Employee Spotlight
The Faithful Ones
It is touch and go after a natural disaster strikes. But it’s also the time when Valet Living and the communities we serve feel extra grateful for our associates who go above and beyond, like Adrien.
When Hurricane Ian hit the Fort Myers area in late September, the destruction left in its wake was devastating. Water levels hit record heights and standing water remained everywhere. Homes and buildings were totaled or trashed across the community, and people desperately needed supplies and assistance.
“I’d never seen anything like that in my entire life,” Adrien recounts, the storm and its aftermath still fresh in his mind.
But the unimaginable destruction didn’t discourage Adrien from jumping in to help gather and deliver supplies to those very same communities. He stepped up when they needed it most.
Not because it was expected. Not because he was told to. Just because that’s who he is: a truly generous man. His natural leadership and the strong team camaraderie Adrien rallies shined even brighter during an undeniably dark time for Fort Myers.
Several Valet Living communities were fortunate to have the steady leadership and unbelievable commitment of District Manager Adrien to help them on the road to recovery.
The communities Adrien serves call him their “superhero,” and you can easily see why. Not only is he an incredible leader for his associates at Valet Living, but he’s also a dependable resource to the communities he works with every day. On and off the clock. The regular days and the hard days.
“They’re not a number to me. They are people working very hard to provide for their families and to provide for themselves,” Adrien explains. “And they come to work with me, not for me. Together we have a goal, we have a job to do. We’re working side-by-side to get the job done. That’s how I do it with my team.”
“Valet Living has become a part of me. I love being a part of this family. And I won’t be leaving it any time soon.”
After starting his career in education, teaching computer programming, Adrien shifted to building and ultimately selling a moving business. After selling, Adrien found himself at a crossroads. He wasn’t sure what his next career move should be.
Adrien grew up on the island of Haiti, accustomed to warm weather and Caribbean sunshine. When a job opportunity at a Valet Living community in the Fort Myers area presented itself, he knew that’s where he wanted to be. Becoming a district manager in the Sunshine State? Next question.
“That was an opportunity that gave me the flexibility to raise my kids and live with my family in a beautiful place,” he says. It was an offer too good to refuse.
Flexibility and a fun working environment may have initially drawn Adrien to Valet Living, but it’s the people that have convinced him to stay on as a district manager for nearly 16 years.
“Really, it’s the people that I work with,” Adrien explains. “I love the service valets on my team, and they love working for me. And then the residents that I work with, we’ve become friends. I love having that relationship with them, and all these things pushed me to love the company more and more, and stay year after year.”
Loving your team makes leading them easier and more successful. But to Adrien, it’s much more than that. He calls himself a leader, not a manager. He looks at his team as people, not just as numbers or as functional roles. And that makes all the difference.
And it’s effective, too. Whether navigating call offs, covering an extra shift, or lending extra hands to assist with the hurricane relief efforts, Adrien knows his co-workers always come through.
“I call them my faithful ones,” he says.
Adrien keeps camaraderie high and strengthens loyalty with his team of associates because he not only cares about their performance, he also cares that they enjoy what they’re doing, each and every day.
When he’s not at home with his four boys, firing up a good barbecue or playing Who Wants to Be A Millionaire?, he’s with his other family, his Valet Living family. And he wouldn’t have it any other way.
“The most important thing in leading this team is making sure that everyone knows what they’re supposed to do, and that everyone’s happy about it,” Adrien says. “When they’re happy, I’m happy. The property managers are happy, the residents are happy, Valet Living is happy, and the whole world is happy.”
Rock Star Highlights
Following Hurricane Ian, district manager Adrien went above and beyond to help the Valet Living communities he serves.
An incredible district manager for nearly 16 years, the associates and residents he works with truly feel like family.
A natural leader to his team, and dependable resource to his community, Adrien is a rock star every day – the regular days and the hardest days.
