October 2, 2024

What was your last job before Bennington?

I didn’t have one. This was my first full-time job. As a kid, I delivered newspapers and babysat. Jenny was working at the College and coming up to get her hours. I had just graduated from high school and didn’t know what I wanted to do. I walked up with her and, next thing I know, I walked into the kitchen and one of the chefs said, “Are you looking for a job?” 

What were your first days like here at the College?

The Dining Hall was such a great place to work, and being young, I enjoyed being around the people. I couldn’t think of anywhere else I wanted to be. I even came up on hours when I didn’t really have to. During my time in Dining, I worked in the dish room, laundry, salad bar, sandwich bar, and then I was a Server, Cook’s Helper, Cook, and Baker. 

What’s a typical day like now?

I’ve been a housekeeper since 1993. I currently clean Kilpat [Kilpatrick], McCullough, and Welling. Each house has its own personality. Welling was so quiet; we used to call it “The Old Folks Home.” McCullough has always been in the middle. And Kilpat has always been the party house. 

What’s your favorite thing about Bennington, and why?

The kids. They’re wonderful. Through the years I’ve gotten to know quite a few. I still stay in touch with several of them to this day. It’s great that we can have friendships. I just got a card from one saying how they’re doing. Every once in a while I’ll get an email from a kid who I used to call “Smiley,” who lives in Switzerland where he’s been married for 20 years with two children.

There’s a kid who just graduated. One day I caught him crawling through a Kilpat window. I said “Don’t do that again! If you need to get in the house just let me know.” He’s one of those kids that will never forget me and vice versa. We became close friends. 

It’s cool to get to know the parents well too. One of my house chairs in Welling, at Commencement, her dad came up to me and said, “Thank you so much for taking care of my daughter.”

What’s your funniest memory of working at the College?

There’s a tub in Kilpat that doesn’t have a shower, so most times, people don’t use it. I went to clean the bathroom, and there was water and a big rock in the tub. I thought, why would they need a rock in the tub? So I grabbed the rock, and it snapped at me. It was a student’s snapping turtle. She brought it from home after Long Weekend.

Also, when I started in Dining, I had to wear a completely white uniform. My husband—boyfriend at the time—and I were at Price Chopper [now Home Depot] and saw some students. One of them said, “Michele, we almost walked by you because we didn’t recognize you with your clothes on.” My husband said, “Huh?” I had to explain that I was usually in white, and today, I was in color.

Is there anything else you’d like to share?

The kids have been very good to me through the years. Kids will call me Mom and tell me they’ll miss me. I remember one asking me a few years ago, “When are you graduating?” I told him I have a few more years! 

I can’t think of anywhere else I’d want to be. Even on the tough days, I think about some of these kids. I don’t have kids of my own. When someone asks if I have children, I say I usually have about 108 a year. 

Pretend I’m a student and it’s my first day on campus. What advice would you give me?

Don’t stay in your room. Try to make friends. And always know that I’m here. Even if it’s just to say hello.