Jane is one of the first faces you’ll see when you come to visit us, beaming with her awesome smile at the host stand. Jane is a very empathetic person who is excellent with people, and anyone who knows her knows how open and how nice she is to talk to. It’s easy to forget you’ve only just met her. She answered a few questions with us.
We’ve been asking people what they wish they could do during the pandemic, but now that things are relaxing, what’s the thing you’re doing first?
Being able to hug my grandma and grandpa. I’ve been able to see them but we haven’t been able to hug, and now we can because of the vaccination. We’re both vaccinated now. There are so many people that are just not able to see their grandparents right now, but at least I was able to from a distance.
When you’re not greeting people at the host stand, what else are you getting up to?
I’m in school to become a doula. I’m just the type of person that prioritizes personal relationships over everything. I’m a little over halfway through my course, to getting the certification. And that’s the “COVID school,” a lot of it is online. But you can’t attend a birth online, so obviously it can’t all be virtual. So that’s kind of what I’m doing outside of work here. I’m also passionate about plants.
Are you an Asheville local originally, or did you move here?
I am an Asheville local. It’s kind of like a unicorn these days. I’ve been here since I was two, so I can’t really say “born and raised,” but I might as well be because it’s all I know. It was kind of lame back then, really. Some of these huge buildings were just parking lots. That was when I was 12 or 13, just running around downtown with nobody else around.
Are you a big foodie outside of work, or has working here helped you gain more of an appreciation of food?
I love eating, I don’t love cooking. I will say working here has made me inspired to cook more, way more than I normally have. I didn’t even know what calamari was before I worked here. My coworkers were like, “we need to refine your palate.” I have the palate of a toddler. I also haven’t had a good relationship with food in the past, and working here and getting at least one meal every day that’s fresh and wholesome and made with a lot of care, and tastes really f***ing good…that’s something that helped me get healthier, honestly. I used to be a caregiver, and with that, you’re totally on your own. So I went from that to this type of work. I had never had the team experience of having coworkers that I enjoy. It’s amazing how much everybody has cared for me even though I feel like the most annoying person ever. Everyone wants to belong, and you can just kind of lean back and know that you’re all picking up the slack together.
Is there a mantra or thought that you want to leave people with?
The best way out is through.
