Page 25 - Michigan DNR OAC January – April At A Glance 2017
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Employee Spotlight – Tessie J. Miller
When we talk about the unseen heroes of the Outdoor Adventure Center staff, Tessie J. Miller is our team leader in organization and services. She manages our entire family membership program, pays the bills, oversees the front desk, coordinates all payroll, manages to answer all the general phone and email questions that come to us and then does a little bit of everything else.
Ms. Miller was born in Detroit, however she was raised in Highland Park, and is fond of saying "Once a Parker, Always a Parker"! Her parents were from Georgia. They moved to Michigan where her dad worked for Ford Motor Company for 35 years as a laborer and her mother was “a stay at home mom” until Tess reached the age of 12. Ms. Miller has two older brothers, one who passed away in 2009. Both brothers graduated from Wayne State University on the same day, with degrees in financing and business administration. Tessie J. Miller’s husband, ironically enough, replaced her principal at her elementary school in Highland Park. He has since passed away.
They are proud parents of daughter, TayNinh Rachel (her first name is a province in the Southeast region of Vietnam on the border with Cambodia). TayNinh has graduated from Aquinas College, majoring in math. She is currently working for a firm here in the downtown area and is in the process of pursuing a nursing degree.
Ms. Miller has had a rich and varied career that includes two years of college, time spent working for the City of Highland Park, and time with General Motors. She spent 12 years with Honeywell with the IT Group, supporting over 25 people at a time. A 10-year stint with EDS followed. She also spent 10 years at Ford Motor Company as a Diversity Coordinator with the IT group in Dearborn, a position and company she looks back on with very fond memories.
Tess joined the Michigan DNR in 2010, starting at Maybury
State Park. She transferred over to Milliken State Park and Harbor and was there for three seasons. She spent some time with the Belle Isle Conservancy as well. However, her heart has always been with the DNR and she returned to work with the Outdoor Adventure team in 2015
When asked what she likes best about working at the Outdoor adventure Center, Ms. Miller says, “I am working with a great group of folks and management. I love the people that come into the center, especially seeing the children and the look on their faces, it is truly amazing. The people and employees make this center work. All are quite amazing and I enjoy every minute of it each and every day.”
We think that Tessie J. Miller is an especially “GREAT” colleague and we are proud to have her on our team!
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