The housekeeping team were all smiles after being selected for and receiving face-to-face leadership training from VALUEUSA.
Last year the Antlers was the honored recipient of the Vail Valley Partnership’s Community Impact Award and then this year our own General Manager, Magdalena King won the Hospitality Professional of the Year. These awards are not just a reflection of the culture fostered at the Antlers, but also a refection of the dedication of Antlers employees. Many members of the Antlers team go home after a long day’s work to study math, read a book or do homework with the goal of bettering themselves and their community.
Several years ago Magdalena initiated a partnership with the Literacy Project and then subsequently with the Vail Library to provide the Antlers housekeeping team with the resources to be able to learn English and to be able to advance their education. Since then several members of the Antlers housekeeping team have gone on to earn their GED and all have been learning English and participating in a book club. Because of their dedication to these programs they were selected to receive leadership training through Voice of Adult Learners United to Educate (VALUEUSA). In May VALUEUSA brought instructors to the Antlers to provide our housekeeping team face-to-face training to help them become better leaders in the community. They learned critical thinking skills, organizational skills, priority setting and more.
Both the Antlers front desk team and maintenance team have followed lead in starting up book clubs. The front desk has read a handful of books and engineering just got started with their book club, having now completed reading and discussing the management style in “The One-Minute Manager.”
The cumulative effect of many different Antlers employee programs … book club, English classes, a financial education series presented in Spanish, and others … play an instrumental role in some of our staff’s decision to go back to school, get their GED and effectively change their lives forever.
In 1994 Aniceto Quinones was looking at the classifieds and jumped out of his chair to run to the kitchen where his wife was cooking his favorite meal. “Ilda, Ilda, I found the job I want. I’m going to the Antlers to tell them I’m their man.” Millie Barela hired him that week to take care of the Antlers’ tremendous laundry facility. Ever since, he’s been the first one to work in the morning, one of the last to leave at night and he takes his job very seriously. On average, Aniceto works 10 hours a day because that is his work ethic.
Gladys Contreras is originally from Hondouras. She began working at the Antlers in 1990 as housekeeper, so has been with us 27 years! Although a little quiet and reserved, Gladys is known for embracing the phrase, “The answer is ‘yes’, now what’s the question?” She’s just got that attitude. She worked her way up over the years to become a supervisor and integral part of the Antlers team. She very much enjoys her current role of supervising the staff and making sure that everything is very organized and in its place. She must also have a green thumb, as she cares for all of the plants belonging to Antlers owners in her office, and then brings them back to the owners when they are in house. Many guests recognize her as the constant, happy housekeeping face that is always here to make them feel at home!
Her sister Delores (Lola) worked with us for many years and we miss her. In Gladys’ spare time she enjoys spending time with her three daughters and her granddaughter Yaritza.
