Wednesday 17-04-2019 - 10:41

How do you feel about winning a STaR Award this year?

I would be lying if I didn’t say surprised. As far as I can tell, I am the first ever member of security to be nominated for an award, let alone win it. Normally we don’t feature in things like this, we are the team who operate out with everyone, staff and students, never really belonging to either group. I actually asked Cecile if this was a prank at first…

 

That aside, I am very pleased that my “work” was recognised as worthy of consideration and ultimately accolade. However, the very nature of my work means that I am never one to glory in it as me having something to do usually means one of our students is having a bad day. I am pleased that I could help on this occasion and that the student in question seems to be coping well after our interaction.

 

What have you done/do you plan to do with your certificate and trophy?

Once I had finished my nightshift and had went home, I was greeted by my two young boys, James (2) and Robert (4) who never seem to sleep past 06:00…. As I was emptying the contents of my bag to get it ready for the next shift, the boys spotted my award trophy and immediately claimed it as their own. This is due to them being huge fans of the Julia Donaldson line of books (the Gruffalo, Stickman and Zog the dragon). Anyone aware of what I’m talking about can attest to Zog the dragon eventually winning a golden star for his efforts at being a good dragon. So, even if I was one to proudly show off my trophy, alas it is now kept with my boys’ Zog book and is apparently proof that both my boys are good dragons who can fly, breath fire and fight knights.

 

What do you enjoy most about your role at QMU?

Quite simply, interacting with you all. We may sometimes be the guys who come and ask you to turn your music down, or ticket your car (sorry) or say “no” to the things you want to do, but on the whole we’re here to make things easier for everyone and help you navigate through your day. I enjoy nothing more than a brief thanks in recognition of a small act of kindness or mundane bit of assistance. I will end this here as the fire alarm has just gone off in block H…