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June 27, 2008

Exceptional Customer Service

To the editor:

I want to thank the Herndon Safeway Store and specifically the young man from Colombia who works in the produce department for the exceptional customer service that I received this past Saturday.

The produce man asked if I needed any help and I replied that I was looking for ripe mangos and a ripe cantaloupe. He enthusiastically helped me find what I needed including showing me a new type of mango that I had not known about, providing me with a sample to taste and getting me a paper towel from the back of the store to wipe my hands with after I ate the delicious sample. I can’t remember when I have such a pleasant food shopping experience.

While relishing that great experience as I cut up the fruit back at home, I realized that I was wearing a T-shirt I bought while traveling in Peru that had “Save the Forest” written in Spanish on the front. It may be a coincidence that I was wearing that shirt when I got fantastic customer service from a produce man whose native tongue is Spanish. In fact, I’ve gotten good customer service in that department on other occasions. He is such a pleasant young man that I believe he provides excellent service to all customers, however, I also tend to think that my shirt may have brought out the best in him.

I came down from my elated state and wondered about what experiences he may have had based on his ethnicity. Could it be that this man who is legally present in the United States (based on being employed by Safeway) and speaks flawless English has had experiences that make him somewhat guarded when dealing with the public? Then when he sees a visible sign such as a T-shirt with Spanish words indicating that an otherwise ordinary Caucasian shopper accepts his cultural background, he is overjoyed.

I know that warm acceptance of our legal immigrant population is not rare, but perhaps the perception among the immigrants themselves is otherwise. Our Herndon Town Council has consistently voiced their support for our legal immigrants. I hope they will take care not to allow their stand against illegal immigration to provide cover for those who harbor ill will toward our sizeable immigrant population. Herndon’s diversity is a distinct advantage to be valued in our community in the same way that businesses value diversity in a workforce.

Meanwhile, I plan to go through my T-shirt drawer to see if I have any with slogans in other foreign languages.

Nancy Myers
Herndon