June 1973 to August 1981 - Office Secretary at Livingstone Adjustment Service, an independent insurance claim adjusting firm. I checked for a website, but they do not have one. I do not even know if the company is in existence anymore, probably not. Most of the smaller companies have been swallowed up by the big ones. This company's headquarters was located in Springfield , Illinois . I had IBM Selectric and later IBM Selectric II typewriters when I worked for this company.
September 1981 to August 1985 - Office Clerk II at American International Adjustment Company, Inc., another insurance claim adjusting company, part of the American International Group of companies. I had an IBM Selectric III typewriter when I worked here. It had a correction key! In 1984 all office clerks were sent to the AIAC headquarters office in East Orange , New Jersey for training on a "computer". We were all very excited because we had never seen one before. It was a one-piece unit, menu driven and the only thing it would do was set up new claims, print labels for the new claim file folder, input data for drafts and print drafts. We were excited nonetheless as we had always typed these items manually before. We were each given our very own password (this was exciting!) and a notebook of instructions.
September 1985 to December 1995 - Executive Secretary at King City Federal Savings & Loan Association, converted to stock on 11/04/86, when the name changed to King City Federal Savings Bank (now Fifth Third Bank). I had an IBM Selectric III typewriter when I worked for this bank. In September 1986 I got an IBM XT computer. It had a monochrome monitor, 5-1/4" floppy disk drive and a 20 mg. hard drive. I was scared to death of it! It was a desk accessory for several months as I loyally used my IBM Selectric III typewriter. Finally one day I decided to give it a try. What a surprise! Do you remember the first time you used the Back Space key and the Delete key? What a treat! No correction key to erase errors. This computer would actually erase your mistakes just by pressing Back Space. As soon as I finished one letter and printed it, I was hooked! I couldn't believe I could actually type the letter, make any number of changes and print the final letter without having to retype the whole thing over and over. I immediately signed up for an introduction to computers course at the local college, then WordPerfect, then Lotus 1-2-3 and on and on. I still remember some of the codes for the old DOS version of WordPerfect. Shift + F7 = Print! I had the IBM XT for 5 years and then graduated to an IBM clone with more hard drive and RAM and a 3-1/2" floppy drive.
January 1996 to May 1999 - Executive Assistant at The Wiliamson Co. , a picture frame moulding manufacturer and distributor. Now: onward to the sophisticated automated office. I had a Gateway 2000 P5-133 PC connected to a network. It was Windows based and I had a lot to learn. I had always used DOS versions of software programs. I just knew I would not like Windows, but just like the switch from the typewriter to the computer, I found I liked it immensely. I even switched to Word and Excel, which I like better than WordPerfect and Lotus 1-2-3. We were on the Internet and had our own personal e-mail address. Times sure have changed. I wish my Mom were alive to see the changes. She would have loved the Internet!
May 25, 1999 to May 1, 2000 - My mother-in-law became very ill and required care at home so I took a part-time job as a secretary for an accountant during this period of time. My mother-in-law passed away May 1, a week before I started my next job.
May 8, 2000 to August 4, 2000 - Secretary to Dr. Tyson Cobb. Dr. Cobb is an orthopedist, specializing in carpal tunnel injuries. This job was something very new for me as I had never before been employed in the medical field. I had a lot of new language to learn, but I found that I picked it up very quickly. The clinic had an old Dos-based accounting program, and most employees had only dedicated word processors. I was one of few who had a PC. I used Windows 98, Microsoft Word and Excel 97 and I had an Internet connection; however, only the doctors in the clinic had email addresses. There was no email network inhouse, I was in a cubicle and did not have my own office. Dr. Cobb moved out of state shortly after I obtained this job.
August 7, 2000 to present - Administrative Assistant for the City of Mt. Vernon Fire Department. I was very fortunate to secure this position so quickly. I have my own office, and the City has very high tech equipment. There are 3 fire stations within the City and 29 firefighters and/or paramedics. I am the assistant to the Fire Chief, who is the commander-in-chief within the Fire Department. Each department within the City is like their own little company. Consequently, I have a variety of tasks to perform, which is great and never boring. I do all correspondence for the fire department, human resources including new hires, payroll, etc., purchasing and accounting. I prepare numerous reports required for city and state agencies. I take minutes of the Firefighters Pension Fund Board whose members meets quarterly. I enjoy this job immensely. Firefighters are a great bunch of people to work with!