The fun-filled festivities began with all full-time employees receiving two free movie tickets as a “thank you” for all that they do to make sure that Binghamton students have the best dining experience possible. General Manager of Retail Operations Tom LaSarso described the importance of celebrating a day like NEAD, saying: “It is important to have a NEAD as we far too often get wrapped up in daily activities and operational situations that we lose sight of the simple things, like saying “thanks”. This gives us the opportunity to recognize the commitment our staff undertakes in serving our campus community.”

 

The excitement continued as employees waited to find out if they would be one of six lucky winners of a JBL Wireless Speaker. One winner was Catering Food Service Prep worker, Jodie Peet, a second year BUDS employee, who said, “I was shocked that I won the raffle, I never win anything!”

 

The festivities concluded with a heart-warming video that featured the BUDS Management Team expressing their gratitude for the staff at their dining locations and the BUDS family as a whole. The video was a special surprise for employees like Shayra Rivera who said, “I have been with BUDS for 7 years now and I was overjoyed with emotions watching the manager's video. It made me tear up!” To watch the video for yourself click here.

 

BUDS’ managers were not the only ones showing their appreciation; in the weeks leading up to NEAD, Binghamton students had the opportunity to write out and decorate their own “thank you” notes for BUDS employees that were then prominently displayed on poster boards in various dining locations around campus.