‘Five-star’ lower division hums along thanks to dedication of longtime staffer.
Notre Dame lower division custodian Greg Kaiser makes every day brighter for students and staff.
“I’ve never had a job that gets me to happily jump out of bed every work day at 4:30 a.m. like the one I have now,” said Kaiser, who is in charge of maintenance at the lower division and prefers to stay out of the limelight. (Editor’s note: In fact, he tried in vain to keep this interview and article from happening.)
“But honestly, I truly love what I’m doing for the school,” he said. “It could be because every day there is a good chance I may help start a student’s day off on the right foot. Or maybe it’s the little things I do for the staff in the morning so that they can focus on the big things.”
Focusing on the little things for the “little” school is what Kaiser has been doing since the division was located in Waterford.
“I came on board as a part-time, temporary worker at the school when it was located in St. Benedict’s old building in Waterford,” he said. “It was a wonderful facility, but it had the many, many challenges that usually come with an older building. However, I was able to learn a lot and become a more knowledgeable building custodian through those earlier day-to-day experiences. I enjoy being an NDPMA janitor and thank the Lord each day for the job.”
Customer always comes first
Kaiser said he’s had a number of other jobs and to no one’s surprise, they all have been customer-service oriented.
“I’ve been a chauffeur, a women’s shoes salesman at Nordstrom, and let’s not forget that short blip as a car salesman, which was the hardest six months of my life,” he said. “However, I never would have thought that being a janitor at an elementary school would make me the happiest. But it has.”
Diana Atkins is the principal of Notre Dame’s lower division. She says Kaiser makes every day a good day on campus.
“Mr. Greg greets everyone each day with a big smile,” she said. “He takes time to learn every student's name, and uses their name to welcome them each morning or to say good-bye at the end of the day.”
She said he also works very hard to ensure that the school building is clean and tidy, right down to cleaning the glass on the front doors several times a day.
“We are lucky to have someone who loves the lower division so much that he puts his heart into every task that needs to be completed during the day,” Atkins added.
While it seems that Kaiser and the school are a great match from sunup to sundown, he does play favorites with certain times of the school day and school year.
“Morning is the best time for me as I get to make sure the windows are cleaned, the gates are open, the doors for the teachers are unlocked and the school is ready for everyone's arrival,” he said. “In basic terms, my day consists of ‘keep it simple,’ keep it clean and anticipate every need of the staff.”
He also said his favorite day of the entire year is the first day of school.
“But I have to say that the day I hate most is the last day before summer break. The school becomes very lonely during the summer without the kids here to make it feel alive.”
Still an east-sider
Kaiser and his family live in Oakland County now, but he says his heart remains somewhere a bit south and east of his current residence.
“Many people know that I’m proud to be originally from Detroit’s east side,” he said. He now lives in Rochester Hills, which makes it a lot easier to get to work occasionally on his bike, one of his big passions outside of the workplace.
“I love to cycle,” he said. “It’s all about manpower not horsepower!”
Clearly, he also is passionate about his family.
“I have a wonderful wife, Jacki, who I’ve been married to for nearly 22 years, and who I thank the Lord every day that she is in my life,” he said. “Our daughters, Rachel and Michele, are now off to Central Michigan University, and I can only hope that I did a good job as a dad who helped them become who they are today and who also helped out with what they will become next in this big world.”
We finished up the interview by asking Kaiser what was the toughest part of his job.
“I would never use the word ‘tough’ with my job, but I do challenge myself,” he said. “I work to make the school as clean and bright at 3:05 p.m. when the day is over as it was at 7:45 a.m. when the day began. I have always had the attitude that if I treat the school like I'm working at a five-star hotel, then that would mean all the students are our ‘customers.’ And we all know that happy customers usually love to return again and again!”
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About Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy
Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy is a private, Catholic, independent, coeducational day school located in Oakland County. The school's upper division enrolls students in grades nine through twelve and has been named one of the nation's best 50 Catholic high schools (Acton Institute) four times since 2005. Notre Dame's middle and lower divisions enroll students in jr. kindergarten through grade eight. All three divisions are International Baccalaureate "World Schools." NDPMA is conducted by the Marist Fathers and Brothers and is accredited by the Independent Schools Association of the Central States and the North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement. For more on Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy, visit the school's home page at www.ndpma.org.