HEADING FOR SUMMER... and whatever it brings (Part 160p)

HEADING FOR SUMMER… and whatever it brings (Part 160p)

We definitely had a good time! It brought back memories of the times before the kids were old enough to be figured into our ‘pleasure equation’. For once I used good common sense and never brought up the subject of Elle being wet when I arrived home realizing that it didn’t matter. The only thing wrong was that we fell asleep and were woken up by the phone and Elle’s mother wondering when we were going to pick up the kids. It was after 8pm... and didn't know how to explain why.

I knew Wednesday was going to be a ‘bear’ which led to my not sleeping well. There was no point in just rolling around in bed so I got up and headed for work early. I was anxious to meet the two other trainees and to observe just how they would mesh together. I’d pretty much pushed Jerry out of my mind. I knew what I wanted to see from the group and trusted Lorie and Bret to get it done. Jerry was the ‘wild card’ in that I never knew what he’d say (or do). It would be the first time that he would see his branch staff together and I wasn’t sure if he’d try and establish his control (as manager) or would do as instructed and just be passive.

The first person I met was Mae, the woman who’s relative had been a race car driver. She was definitely not a ‘looker’ but I was impressed by her positive manner. The next to arrive was Rita and she was ready to go, excited to get started. I quickly took her aside and told her I wanted her to try and work closely with Betsy who hadn’t yet arrived. The big question mark was Barb, the one who’s application didn’t clearly state just what her work experience was. When she walked into the work area I immediately liked her. Nothing really special to look at, she was one of those people who had a perpetual smile on her face. Now, having had time to think about it, the reason was probably youthful naivety… and good parenting. Betsy was the last to arrive and in keeping with the bright colors she’d worn the previous two days was wearing a robin's egg blue halter dress. The more I saw of her the more I liked her. Now, it was up to her to perform.

I was going to start in at a little after 9:30am, giving them time to meet each other and to get all the required employment forms completed. Knowing Jerry didn’t get to the office until almost 9:30am I was kind of holding my breath until his arrival. But, Trish walked up to say Jerry wasn’t coming in. My first reaction was “Thank God!”, because it would mean the first day of training could/would go smoothly. It wasn’t until mid morning when Hobie asked where he was and I couldn’t give him an answer that I really thought about it. The downside of his absence was that it was going to be awkward for all of them when he did finally show up. I checked with Trish to see if he gave any reason and all she did was to shake her head from side to side. 

I left Lorie and Bret to oversee the actual training and stepped back. It was my intention to observe from afar and to see how the four of the women interacted with each other. One thing readily noticeable was that Rita and Betsy were getting along well. Mae seemed to have taken Barb ‘under her wing’ and a check of their applications showed that Mae was old enough to be Barb’s mother. It was too early to tell how long it would last and only time would tell. The real question was how would Jerry interact with them and their performance.

The regular weekly mortgage committee meeting was that afternoon. However, I wasn’t told that the branch committee was also going to be there. When Trish came up to me and told me to report to the Board room I was totally blindsided. I walked in and was met with a barrage of questions about the branch opening. Fortunately, I had answers to most but it was “Polak Joe” (who else?) that, as usual, ‘came out of left field' when he asked if I had thought of using direct mail to advertise the opening. If my face had a goofy look on it there was a reason… I had no idea what direct mail was. Long story short… the insurance company that Joe worked for had just signed on for a direct mail campaign. He thought it was the best idea he’d heard of and proceeded to strongly urge the bank to follow suit. What had me upset was that he was not on either the mortgage committee for that month or on the branch committee. In my mind he shouldn’t even have been there. Between the two committees there were enough Trustees to pass a motion to appropriate the money necessary to run a direct mail campaign. It would then have to be ratified at the full Board meeting one week away. Easy for them to do… difficult for me to put into place. But, that never was considered.

Walking down the back stairs I walked into the last vestiges of the training for the day. I asked how it had gone and the answer was a smile from each of them. As I remember it, Mae spoke up and with broad smile said something along the lines of “A piece of cake!” Which brought out laughter form the others while Lorie added that they all passed their first day test.

I thought the partners at the advertising agency would choke when I called about creating a direct mail piece. Even though we were their biggest client they reminded me that they did have other customers and had spent the bulk of their time for the past week on our projects. However, after a brief discussion they agreed to not only create a mailing piece but, though their contacts in the city, arrange for the purchase of mailing lists for the surrounding towns to the branch site. I didn’t dare ask the price.

One of the questions from the branch committee had to do with the signs to go on each side of the building. I’d used my familial contact (Barney, who’s father owned the sign company, was married to my cousin) to get the sign company to put a ‘rush’ on two lighted signs. I decided to stop by the shop on my way home to see their progress. It was worth the trip. Walking into their workshop I found Barney and his father wiring one of the signs. They promised they would be installed over the weekend, almost a week before promised. Good news to end the work day.

To be continued…