November 2010 - Amtrak

14 | November 2010 Amtrak Ink
Jim was a past member of the PSSA committee. He is particularly known for his photography
skills, and his work is often used by the APD in various media.
Cheryl Linyear
Lead Ticket Agent, Passenger Services, New Orleans, La.
Cheryl Linyear ensures that the ticket clerks remain abreast of changes and updates
in ticketing procedures, and she encourages employees at the ticket counter to always
treat customers with professionalism and respect.
According to Bruce Mullins, “Cheryl has always put her best foot forward in everything
that she has attempted to do. She informs me of shortages in the ticket office and
always stays on top of them to make sure that they are recovered.” Her skills in dealing
with passengers are excellent, and she makes sure that their reservations are correct and
treats all passengers with respect and kindness to encourage repeat business.
Cheryl also assists with vendors at the New Orleans station to make certain that
Amtrak gets the most for its money. As Lead Ticket Agent, Cheryl’s duties include the
daily consolidation of 920 reports for each ticket clerk. Going beyond expectations, she
then uses the information from these reports to focus on each clerk’s continued training;
this ensures that the New Orleans ticket office paperwork is of high quality before it is
sent to Revenue Accounting.
Therese M. Marshall
Supervisor, Reservation Sales Office, Philadelphia, Pa.
Therese M. Marshall joined Amtrak on October 6, 1980, as a Reservation Sales
Agent. She worked various positions in the contact center and help desk before becoming
a Contact Center Supervisor.
Therese is an exemplary employee and a positive role model to others. She is often
known to volunteer on committees including those for Employee Appreciation Day,
carpet installation, and the Derailment Hotline, to name a few. Therese cares about her
co-workers and her working environment and it shows. By leading through example,
she fosters a better working environment for all involved.
One of Therese’s many roles is that of Safety Officer in the Contact Center. She
brought in outside health and wellness experts to enhance safety fairs at the facility, and
was instrumental in arranging a smoking cessation seminar. She feels that health and
wellness are components of personal safety and her efforts to spread that message have
been well received by her co-workers.
Richard J. “Rick” Martinez
Station Manager, Operations/Transportation, Trenton, N.J.
Richard J. “Rick” Martinez was hired on December 30, 1975, as a Baggageman.
He later held the position of Commissary worker and at present is a Station Manager
for the Transportation department in Trenton, New Jersey.
Rick consistently goes above and beyond by assisting Trenton and Newark employees
during service disruptions. He is their “go-to” person when issues arise from
schedule changes that then necessitate updates in the passenger information system in
the New Jersey District. Through his vast, technical computer knowledge, Rick has
helped Amtrak employees work better and more effectively in resolving complicated
issues with New Jersey Transit (NJT) computer contacts, and thus has made the system
more user-friendly for the employees.
He single-handedly ensured that every Amtrak employee was able to provide accurate
train information during periods when NJT overhauled the information system.
Rick’s attitude is always about getting it done right for the customers — making sure
that they know where their train is, when it will get to the station, and on what track to
find it. He is an excellent customer service manager, attending to each passenger need
and giving out his personal information so they may call him about future travel issues.
Ophelia C. Mayhue
Coach Cleaner Transportation, Sanford, Fla.
Ophelia C. Mayhue has been employed with Amtrak for almost 26 years. Although
her title is Coach Cleaner on the Auto Train in Sanford, Florida, everyone says that
Ophelia is a “Detailed Specialist.”
Misters Apanah, Pearson and Keogh all believe that “Ms. Mayhue is the face of the
Auto Train, which is the flagship of Amtrak.” Her impeccable cleaning has boosted
repeated customer satisfaction. Ophelia provides refresher training to new employees to
ensure that they are compliant with the stringent Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
standards for which retraining is required every two years.
Going well beyond her job scope, Ophelia assists OBS employees with tasks such
as changing stock transfers and taking care of last-minute cleaning needs. She is always
ready to lend a helping hand wherever needed; for example, after the OBS staff had left
for the evening and there was a last-minute equipment change, Ophelia took the initiative
to set up the coach dinner car. She wanted to help relieve stress from the OBS
crew so she removed all stock and set up every table to avoid a delay in serving 240
customers for dinner.
Robin A. McCarthy
Senior Associate, Law, Philadelphia, Pa.
Robin McCarthy’s career with Amtrak began November 3, 1997, as Associate
General Counsel. Robin remained in this position until March 12, 2008, when she
began working as the Senior Associate General Counsel in the legal department.
Nancy Miller took notice of this outstanding employee and nominated her to
receive this award. During the six years that Ms. Miller worked with Ms. McCarthy primarily
on new commuter service Request for Proposal (RFP) she noticed the consistent
demonstration of exceptional job performance. Robin’s is diligent about identifying
issues and providing prudent recommendations. She works with her clients to structure
good proposals that benefit the company. She supports Amtrak’s bids, contract negotiations
and service delivery once contracts are executed to maximize revenue.
Ms. McCarthy has a photographic memory of the operating contracts. Robin has
taken on new projects in the context of Amtrak’s reauthorizing statute, had to learn a
whole new set of programs and grants and brought the same level of care and thoughtfulness,
high quality of service to bear. She makes a positive impact on our state and
commuter partners such as Caltrans and Caltrain. She works to ensure that the commuter
and state service agreements are executed in a timely manner and include fair
and reasonable provisions for the parties involved.
Ann E. McGinnis
Associate Sales and Marketing, Marketing, St. Louis, Mo.
Hired in April 1980, Anne E. McGinnis came to Amtrak as a Reservation &
Information Clerk. She has held a series of positions in the Marketing department, culminating
in her current assignment as Amtrak’s liaison to the National Park Service.
For the past 10 years, Anne has coordinated Trails & Rails activities, an innovative
partnership between the NPS and Amtrak. The program provides rail passengers with
educational opportunities that foster an appreciation of a selected region’s natural and
cultural heritage. It not only promotes NPS areas, but also provides a value-added
service to encourage train ridership.
The Trails & Rails program is commemorating its 10th anniversary; throughout its
entire history, Anne has been instrumental in keeping the service alive and growing.
From a single route program between New Orleans and Lafayette, Louisiana, she has
helped to expand the partnership to 12 different routes and 18 programs. Anne routinely
deals with the NPS, Texas A&M University and a host of other partnership interests to
ensure that the Trails & Rails program runs successfully. Jerome Trahan, a senior
officer in the Marketing department, notes that “’Trails and Rails’ is not her full time
job, yet, she artfully supports the program, while maintaining her regular job, in the true
volunteer spirit … which is what makes this National Parks service program tick.”
Scott B. Meek
General Foreman, Mechanical, Beech Grove, Ind.
Scott B. Meek began his career with Amtrak on April 24, 1978, at Beech Grove. He
has held multiple positions over the last 32 years, including Electrician and his current
role as General Foreman of Coach Shop 2.
Throughout his decades of service, Scott has maintained a reputation as a dedicated,
hardworking and trustworthy employee. As one manager stated, “He’s about as
rock solid as you get … when he is on the job, expectations rise.” Scott has witnessed
many changes as Amtrak has matured, and he has maintained a level of excellence in
his craft that has never wavered in the rebuilding and repair of our passenger equipment.
He gets the work done and always maintains a high work standard. He has earned
the respect of his co-workers and managers as one who is at the top of his game.
In Coach Shop II, Scott is currently overseeing the overhaul of the Horizon,
Viewliner and Superliner I Sleepers. He also manages four foremen and approximately
60 employees including carmen, electricians, sheet-metal workers and pipe fitters.
According to his nominator, Scott has been able to reduce production time and keep his
projects on schedule which positively affects production costs.
Michael T. “Mike” Milburn
Lead Sheet Metal Technician, Mechanical, Beech Grove, Ind.
Michael T. “Mike” Milburn began his Amtrak career as a Pipefitter in 1978 and has
held the position of Lead Sheetmetal Technician since 1986. Mike’s overall job performance
is described as professional, knowledgeable, thorough and efficient.
Mike has a caring attitude and the ability to go above and beyond the task at hand.
He often finds the best and most efficient materials, parts and tools needed while taking
into consideration cost and availability. He is very good at finding obsolete items that
allow the overhaul process to continue on schedule; the results are a cost savings and
most importantly, increased customer satisfaction.
Appointed head eTrax ordering person for Shop 2, Mike also sets up most computers
and does the CSRs for AAMPS and other programs. Mike often comes in early and
stays late to help complete different jobs such as taking pictures for badges or pictures
of equipment, and meeting with vendors for special tooling and helping to find that
hard-to-get part.