Thompson named Administrative Assistant of the Year, Spang received honorable mention
Jodie Thompson (left) of Windsorwood Place received the Administrative Assistant of the Year Award at the second annual Administrative Professional Day Luncheon at Roscoe United Methodist Church. Honorable mention went to Marie Spang (right) of Coshocton Metropolitan Housing Authority.
COSHOCTON – Jodie Thompson and Marie Spang received quite a surprise on Wednesday, April 24 when they were named Administrative Assistant of the Year and honorable mention administrative assistant respectively.
“I was not expecting it at all,” said Thompson. “It was a total surprise. I would like to thank Windsorwood Place for giving this opportunity to me and to Betsy for submitting the nomination. It was a pleasant surprise.”
Thompson was awarded a plaque and was chosen from 12 nominations this year. Spang also received a plaque for honorable mention.
“It made me cry,” said Spang. “I was really shocked. I would like to thank the staff that I work with [at Coshocton Metropolitan Housing Authority]. They are great people to work with.”
First Step Family Violence Intervention Services hosted the second annual Administrative Professional Day Luncheon at Roscoe United Methodist Church and Schumaker Farms catering the event.
Guest speaker was Tiffany Swigert, director of the Coshocton Port Authority, who talked about her journey to get to where she is today.
A graduate of River View High School when she was 17, Swigert attended Zane State College where she planned to go into the medical field. Just months away from graduation, she decided the medical field was not for her and returned home. She married her husband Gene and began working at Cash Advance Stores when she was 20 years old where she worked on her leadership skills. She then got a job as an Ohio Kentucky Tennessee Auto Insurance Adjuster with State Farm where she gained more customer service skills.
She then made the decision to return to college and attended Mt. Vernon Nazarene University. She raised two sons, Briar and Camden, while attending college.
In 2008, Swigert graduated with a bachelor’s degree in business administration and had the opportunity to walk across the stage to receive her diploma with her mother, who graduated at the same time.
She briefly worked for a nursing home in Coshocton and in 2007, she became the Coshocton County Regional Planning Director. About a year later, she also became the safety coordinator for the county.
In November 2015, Swigert’s husband lost his job with the closing of West Rock.
“We are a Christian family and we lean on our faith constantly,” said Swigert. “I am unapologetic about that because the blessings from our Heavenly Father are truly undeniable.”
Swigert’s husband then got a job at Frontier Power and at about this time, Swigert heard the Coshocton Port Authority Director position was open. After praying for guidance, Swigert applied for the job and was awarded the position almost two years ago.
“I don’t think it ends here,” she said. “I’m excited to see what other opportunities will be put in front of us.”
There were also a variety of door prizes given away at the luncheon and a quilt raffle with a quilt made by Jill Lahna. Centerpieces donated by The Garden Patch were also given away.
Category: People & Places
