FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 16, 2007
Contact:
Nanci Gonder
Office of Public Information
573-751-6062
Did so well at job, company also hired her daughter
At age 67, Javada Brown began as a temporary file clerk in a Kansas City company and rapidly rose to expense auditor, recently nabbing top honor in Missouri’s 2007 Older Worker of the Year Contest. A recognition luncheon for her and 12 statewide finalists took place at the Governor’s Mansion April 27, jump-starting nationwide celebrations to honor Older Americans in May.
“I congratulate Javada Brown on being named Missouri's 2007 Older Worker of the Year, ” Gov. Matt Blunt said. “Javada's exceptional work ethic makes her a role model for all generations. ”
Brown, now 72, began her mercurial rise with Cerner, a leading U.S. supplier of health care information technology that boasts clients in Saudi Arabia, Australia and Malaysia, at a time when most dream of retiring. Her aptitude and desire to learn financial and expense report software programs so impressed her boss that within a year of hire, Brown’s daughter was also recruited. The two now share lunch every day and a love of numbers; Brown makes sure employees don’t spend too much on their expense reports while her daughter thrives on cash collections, making sure clients pay up.
Brown, a career “late bloomer,” didn’t start working outside the home until her two children graduated from high school. “My first job was auditing passenger tickets for Ozark Airlines in St. Louis,” she says. “And now, I don’t plan on retiring until I’m at least 80 or 90, because they’re so nice here.”
Brown is referring to perks at Cerner, which can include closing shop to honor an employee’s birthday. On her 70th, for instance, she and her co-workers were treated to an afternoon at the local bowling alley.
Other stories about Missouri seniors who are changing our perception of what it means to age appear on the Department of Health and Senior Services’ Web site throughout Older Americans Month this May, <http://www.dhss.mo.gov/OlderAmericansMonth/>. To view the articles, click on the blue, orange and green Older Americans Month logo, “Making Choices for a Healthier Future.”
The 17th annual Older Worker of the Year contest is sponsored by the Missouri Senior Employment Coordinating Committee, consisting of the AARP Foundation; Experience Works; MERS/Missouri Goodwill Industries; Cardinal Ritter Senior Services, Catholic Charities of Kansas City – St. Joseph; the Department of Economic Development/Division of Workforce Development; and, the Department of Health and Senior Services/Division of Senior and Disability Services.