Some are making merry at work

By MIKE HALLIDAY

The Mirror

It's Christmas Eve, and while you are at home or traveling to see family, there are others working this holiday weekend.

Police officers, firefighters, hospital staff, grocery store workers and city employees are on the clock in Federal Way during the holidays.

Jordana Lujan, a health unit coordinator at St. Francis Hospital, was hired two years ago on Christmas Eve. She is working Christmas Eve and Christmas Day this year. It's the way the schedule was written.

Her husband and child understand why she is gone both days from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., and everyone makes adjustments in the schedule so she can be part of the fun.

Last year, she worked the evening and did Christmas celebrations in the morning with her family.

"They're pretty understanding," Lujan said.

Christine Tabalno, a registered nurse at the hospital, is working Christmas Day and taking Christmas Eve off. Working a holiday like Christmas feels different at the hospital because the patients want to be home with their families and not in a hospital room, she said. The staff tries to make the day more festive by bringing in favorite holiday foods from home.

Kevin Crossen was supposed to work Christmas, but a fellow Federal Way Fire Department firefighter, who is single, swapped the holiday for time off in the summer so Crossen could spend the day with his wife and 5-year-old son.

When he didn't have a child, working on Christmas or New Year's Eve wasn't a big deal, Crossen said.

A 33-year veteran of the fire service, Cole Kiphart is working New Year's Eve next Saturday and has worked several Christmases and Thanksgivings over the years. Families come to the fire stations on those holidays and dinner is cooked.

Kiphart remembers a few holidays when as soon as dinner was served, the firefighters were called out. The families and the meal waited until they returned.

Now a grandfather whose son is also a firefighter, Kiphart said he and his wife had Christmas earlier in the month with their grandchildren before they went to California to spent the holiday with their other grandparents.

"It's not that big a deal," he said.

Some public servants take pride in working the holidays, knowing they are serving those taking the holiday off, said Dennis Wilcox, a Federal Way Police officer.

State Trooper Kelly Spangler said she and her colleagues try to cover each other during breaks so those with children can stop in for a visit on the holidays.

Spangler added that more people take time to thank her and her fellow troopers for the work they do. "It's actually a lot of fun," she said of the compliments.

Law enforcement and medical personnel say Christmas and Thanksgiving are typically quiet work days. Most people aren't traveling and are in their homes. Sometimes the pace picks up in the evening, but the calls are light.

New Year's Eve is typically busier because more people are traveling and there is more alcohol consumption and partying, Wilcox said.

Ron Scott, an employee with the city of Federal Way, will be on call during Christmas. The city has a rotation of employees who are on call throughout the year, including the holidays.

Unlike others in this story, Scott doesn't have to be at his workplace. He carries a pager and his cellphone with him in case a call comes in for a problem with city services. He also must stay within one hour of the city in order to respond quickly.

The job is part coordinator and part fix-it person. If the problem is small, Scott can handle it on his own. For bigger issues, he makes the phone calls for assistance.

At the Safeway store on South 320th Street, manager Miguel Colon and his employees start Christmas morning with a free breakfast. Employees volunteer to work the holiday, Colon said.

Some employees work for the extra money –– they are paid time and a half –– while others work because their families either don't celebrate Christmas or celebrate it differently.

Colon works the holiday because his assistant manager has children at home and Colon, a 25-year employee, doesn't.

During the breakfast, he will thank everyone for volunteering and wish them happy holidays and a good work day, Colon said.

About 15 employees will be there when the store opens at 9 a.m. on Sunday. Last year was the first time the store opened on Christmas. Colon said the morning was slow because most people probably didn't know it was open or they were sleeping in and spending the time with family. By 11 a.m., that was a different matter.

"It's just a barn-burner," Colon said.

Customers come in mostly looking for a last-minute dessert, a quick gift or because they don't have an ingredient for the Christmas dinner. Many of the departments aren't open to handle specialty orders.

Just about everyone is in a festive mood, Colon said. The employees can wear holiday attire and the customers don't mind if the lines are a little longer.

"They're just glad that you're open," Colon said.

Staff writer Mike Halliday: 925-5565, mhalliday@fedwaymirror.com

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