My husband’s and son’s alma mater had an interesting art project. An alum choreographed and designed a show using the most unlikely cast members: the facility crew at the University. The event took place outside last fall with three performances and original live music. The purpose was to showcase the unsung heroes of the school: those individuals who keep it running and looking beautiful. Those who work on the grounds crew “danced” with their lawn mowers, blowers, and backhoes. The cleaning crew mimed hall cleaning as they grooved to the beat. The plumbers, electricians and techs acted out a skit demonstrating their on-call capabilities.

The design of the project (and other ones that the alum has developed) is to let those “under the radar” workers know that they are noticed and appreciated. Their jobs are important. Hopefully someone who saw the live performance or who sees the video will look with different eyes at these specific workers and at any worker of “menial” jobs.

What I love about the project is that this director, Allison Orr is using her talents and gifts to elevate and make aware other individuals: to give voice to those whose voices gets lost, to educate others about the unnoticed yet vital jobs, to communicate these ideas through a different medium of dance and music and to ultimately build community. As she says, “The purpose of the show was to educate the campus and the wider community about the critical work the facilities staff do to keep the campus running.”

What about you? Have you any thought about the people around you? What can you do to honor, educate or elevate people’s jobs? In some ways, it is more than money. Although appreciating people with monetary gifts is a help to those who do not make a living wage. I am thinking of the bathroom cleaners on the highway rest stops. Talk about a thankless job. But if you have ever entered a stall that was not clean, you certainly appreciate one that was. The last time I was traveling I was wishing that I had extra cash to hand out to those workers, as a visible thank-you. Somehow I felt that my voiced thank-you seemed too weak but my hope is that the woman still felt surprised, recognized and that maybe another traveller who overheard would think about those who serve in a new way.

“It may not feel like it, but something you do will strike people, and they will change how they see things.” ~Allison Orr

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