02/06/2021
Approximately 2 weeks ago was 37 years since my graduation from the Northeastern State University College of Optometry, and this August will be the same number of years since passing my board exams and beginning my professional career. Of significance is that Memorial Day weekend is the 10 year anniversary of Massengale Eye Care as you all know it today. This week begins our 2nd decade. This last 10 years has been by far, the most challenging, yet enjoyable of those years. I have many to thank for the success of this endeavor. Our loyal patients, my parents, select professional cohorts, a few professors and professional mentors and countless past and current individuals who have dedicated themselves to our cumulative success. I want to single out a few who without, our success and longevity would not be possible. Toby Markey is our CFO and began working with us as a tech when he was a college student, ultimately working his way up to office manager. Without his keen eye on budgets, expenses, bank loans, equipment purchases, tax burdens and helping guide us through it all, we would not be in the healthy position we currently enjoy. Jason Ott joined us just a few months before the move from our previous location to our current building. He has been instrumental in our success since, and has been a confidant, and critical to who we are as an organization and what we do exceptionally well. We would not enjoy our current success without his unparalleled skills and vision of what excellence in eye care should be. I can assure you, his capacity for clinical care is unique and without peer. Candice Austen joined us shortly after we opened in 2011. She began working as one of our opticians, for which she had prepared since she was 15 years old. In one of the rare moments of good judgement on my part, I moved her to contact lens manager and my scribe, both jobs concurrently. The tremendous amount of responsibility and work with which she was burdened often resulted my finding her at the office early as I arrived for work in the morning. Meaning, she had worked all night, overnight, to accomplish all she saw that needed to be done. She would simply clock out in the evening and donate her time to the office... because it was needed. I will never be able to repay her all the time she sacrificed for this office. In another rare display of clarity, I moved her to Practice Administrator when the need arose. No one before or since, has shown a level of unyielding dedication and loyalty to our success. Chelsea Neese and Kelsey Baird probably think they know, but do not, how much easier and better they make my day. The enjoyment I get from managing complicated and difficult patient cases would not be possible without you two. I am grateful every day for both of you. Hali Gutsche, I am so thankful for your skills and ability to work anywhere in the office, and grateful that you joined us. Ellen Rosten, I am so glad I garnered the courage to do an hour interview with you over FaceTime, a skill with which I had no confidence, and ultimately swindled you into joining us. You were heaven sent. To all of you... I owe you all an eternal measure of gratitude. We are who we are because of you all. Others have come and gone over these 10 years, some filling temporary needs, some contributing to some significance. The past several years have been a challenge to build a group of individuals who care about our vision. I believe we are on the verge of accomplishing the task of having an entire staff who dedicate themselves daily to aid in our mission and our goal of being excellent. To each and every one of our current staff... I want to thank you all for how hard you work and what you do for our office every day. I am proud of each one of you, both those who have been with us for awhile and those who have recently joined us, and thankful that I get to work with you. It is a very Happy Anniversary indeed. Thank you all for making the twilight of my career so fulfilling. I am proud of what we do, and forever grateful for your help.
