Office Ties: How students whose relatives work in the office connect with them spending everyday in the same place.Office Ties:

Poppy Root and Kathy Johnson:

When nothing in her school day seems thrilling, you can find Junior Poppy Root sitting in her grandmother — Kathy Johnson’s — office.

Johnson became the office Clerical Aide two-and-a-half years ago —Poppy’s freshman year of highschool — and has loved it ever since. Not only does she get to work alongside some of her closest friends, but she gets frequent visits from her grandchild.

“I come to her office a lot to get snacks and talk,” said Root. “She always has the best treats to pick me up throughout the day.”

She enjoys Johnson’s desk drawer filled with treats like Yorks and Reese’s with a side of chit chat. Along with the treats and chats, according to Poppy, she always has a good time interacting with her grandma and the other office ladies, who she has all become closely acquainted with.

“When she’s not talking to me she visits with other secretaries like Jeane Dusek and Krissy Wiggins,” said Johnson. “She’s a friend to the office and it’s great to have her here.” 

Root comes to the office to see her grandma and her friends while learning about what they’ve been up to each week. Outside of friendships, they both enjoy getting to see each other more often than family dinners.

“It’s always fun to tell people that my grandma works at East,” said Root. “Especially my teachers who know who she is.”

Johnson has lived in Kansas since Root was 3 years old but working this job has allowed her to see her more than a couple times a year at family reunions and socialize with her one-on-one.

Poppy never misses an opportunity to visit the office crowd and plans to make many more office trips for the rest of her time at East.

Claire and Mary Jenkinson

Between Junior Claire Jenkinson’s busy schedule balancing sports and schoolwork, her daily visits with her mom — receptionist Mary Jenkinson — at the office front desk are usually quick “hello’s” before heading back to class.

“I stop in and talk when I have time,” Claire said. “Most of the time it’s when I’m going to lunch, I pass the office or before cross country practice.” 

Even if she can’t see her mom that often, she enjoys making a smile gesture by stopping by whenever she has time. She appreciates having someone to talk to, whether it’s about their stressful days or their plans for after school.

According to Claire, she is acquainted with the other office ladies but she mostly talks with her mom, soaking up all the moments they can.

“Most of her visits aren’t longer than a minute,” Mary said. “But she always visits when she can.”

When Mary got the job in the office last year Claire was ecstatic. 

“It’s really nice to know I can say hi to [my] mom throughout the school day,” said Claire.

But saying hi isn’t the only advantage of her mom working at East. According to Claire, her mom is more informed about the different events, like sports games, so Claire can easily get more information on it.

“I get better information from her than I would get in a school email,” said Claire. 

Claire cherishes the short time with her mom throughout the chaotic school day, whether it’s a quick chat or a quick smile while walking in the hallway.