Sitting quietly at her desk at Holley-Navarre Primary School, Debbie Price had no idea she would soon be bombarded with flowers, the flash of cameras and gifts.

As winner of Navarre Press’  Best Boss contest, Price, the nursing program specialist for the school health program at the Santa Rosa County Health Department, sat in awe as her co-worker, Leslie Adams, read from her essay on Price.

“As a 27-year veteran nurse, I can confidently say that Debbie Price is the best boss in the county,”  Adams said.  “This was the hardest 199 words to write. So much to say, so little words to put it in.”

 

For more information, see the Oct. 16 issue of the Navarre Press or subscribe online.

 

  

The Winning Essay

 

As a 27-year veteran nurse, I can confidently say that Debbie Price is the best boss in the county. 

Debbie recently returned to resume her position as nursing program specialist for the school health program at the Santa Rosa County Health Department.  What this means  is that she supervises all the school nurses who provide services to all the students in Santa Rosa County.  She is a true advocate for children.

 When Debbie returned to this demanding position a mere two months ago, morale was rock bottom.  Despite my love for community health, I was one of the nurses who was  ready to throw in the towel.  Needless to say, Debbie had a challenging road ahead of her.

Debbie has amazed everyone.  She is a boss who easily empowers her staff by providing them with tools for success such as trust, coaching and morale building.  Her love for school health is infectious and her appreciation for her staff obvious.  People describe Debbie as confident, empathetic, energizing, caring, genuine, knowledgeable and reliable. 

Aside from her job, she is a mother of two, a soccer manager, a principal’s wife and active in her church.  She truly deserves this honor.

 

Leslie Adams, RN, BSN, NCSN

 

SECOND PLACE

Rick Linton is the president of Absolute Consulting, Inc., located in Navarre.  He and his wife, Cyndy, started this company together in 1997.  Absolute Consulting provides technical staff for utility companies.  Rick, being a former  “Navy Nuke,”  has many years of experience in this field.  Over the past 11 years, Absolute has grown exponentially and now provides support to clients in over 25 states nationwide. 

Rick is an awesome boss!  He is constantly striving to find ways to make his company, his staff and himself better. He not only focuses on work performance but he also places importance on being balanced.  He understands that our family life and other outside needs are equally as important as what goes on at the workplace.  He offers company-paid training and encourages all of his employees to take classes and seminars that may benefit them.  He also allows flexibility with schedules realizing that many of us have outside commitments that we also must manage.  His understanding of these situations makes people want to perform better to help the company thrive.

More importantly, Rick listens.  He may not always do everything right but it is not without many nights of contemplation.  He takes what his employees say to heart. He thinks about feedback that he receives and takes steps to make the best choice.  Rick is a thinker and nothing said to him is taken lightly.

Rick’s tremendous technical knowledge, his attitude of  “balance in life”  and his intuitive listening makes him the BEST choice for the Best Boss in SRC.  Plus, Rick winning would give me tons of brownie points!

 

Rene’  Bubanas, Absolute Consulting

 

THIRD PLACE (TIE)

Our boss is the BEST. I spoke with all our employees and asked how Baker Clark has influenced their lives. As some told their story how he had taken care of them through tough and troubling times at work and on a personal level, some of them had tears in their eyes. The man is a leader, motivator, mentor and pillar of the community since 1992. I will say that Baker Clark is a very humble man, he is always ready to roll up his sleeves, and no job is ever beneath him. He is the owner/manager of our Best Western-Navarre and he will clean the pool, commode and answer the phones among many other tasks. We enjoy working side by side with a man who makes us feel as equals. We are allowed to take our own direction with tasks while left alone to do them. Baker is family. He takes a personal interest in every employee. He treats us to lunch often, and will not ask anybody to do anything he won’t do himself. We all love our jobs. One woman has been working for Baker and his family for 30 years and counting. We love the man.

 

Melissa Wolf and the Best Western staff

 

THIRD PLACE (TIE)

Scott Parsons deserves to win the best boss award for so many reasons.  Scott is always willing to help in the community and can always be counted on.  He is extremely knowledgeable and always available to help us and our customers.  Scott is by far the most understanding boss out there.  The field of work that we are in has been extremely stressful over the last year or two and Scott has always done everything he could to help us know that we are appreciated and valued.  Scott and the company have gone above and beyond what any other employer would do for their team.  Most importantly, having a small family-owned business, Scott always treats us as family.

 

Pam, Cindy, Karen, Rebecca and Jan

Reliable Land Title