Janitorial Services: Meet William Lucas

On the weekends, William Lucas (aka Luke) likes to play his guitar.  He has been playing since he was 15 and loves playing by ear.  He still remembers the first song he learned: “Smoke on the Water,” by Deep Purple.
 
“Years ago I was into heavy metal bands,” he said. “Now I am pretty big into the Christian music scene.”

Luke has changed his life not only in terms of the music he plays and the activities he engages in, but also his health regimen.

“A few months ago I was to 230 pounds,” he said. “I’m 5’8”, so I was pretty fat.  Now I am 175. I run, walk and lift at the gym and try and build bulk. I am still working on it though.”

He recently received the employee of the month award, an award typically reserved for Multnomah County Mid-County Health Clinic employees, not employees who are contracted out.
 
“Situations like that are very rare,” said Gianni Xeros, Project Area manager for PHCNW. “Everyone there really likes him.”

Luke is the first to say he is nothing special and is the last one to brag about himself.
 
“My assessment of the situation is this: all the janitors they had before me sucked,” he said candidly. “They didn’t do their work.  Period. So I come in and do my job. From my perspective, I am just doing the job, you know. They’ve never really seen that before, that’s why they’re all: ‘Wow this guy is good. We’ve got to keep him.’ I focus on the details and do a good job. Obviously the customer likes that.”

Luke said there are certain skills needed to be a good janitor.  One, the person needs to be proactive. Two, the person needs to be detail oriented.

“You have to take the initiative,” he said.  “I am here as the janitor and all the cleaning is my responsibility.  I don’t wait for people to tell me anything. As soon as I see something is dirty, I clean it. I try to anticipate messes and move from one area to the next.  That is how I stay on top of things.”

He started working for PHCNW back in April of 2003.  He said he likes working for PHCNW and has no complaints.  He said he knows that his job is secure and that eliminates a lot of his stress.

“When I go home, I am home and I don’t think about work,” Luke said.  “When I am at work, I think about work.  If I am able to keep those separate, that’s good; that’s what I like. That’s the way it is now.”

He said he supports and will continue to support the mission of PHCNW.

“Obviously the mission is a good thing,” Luke said. “Making the quality of life better for people with disabilities is a good thing.”