Looking Back - Part 13 - A Great Opportunity - Never Too Late

In the early 1990’s I was living in Dallas, Texas – where I was born and had spent a good part of my life. I had moved back there in 1983 when my husband and I separated, but even after nearly ten years in Dallas I still missed the northwest and wanted to go back before I got too old to move at all, let alone across the country. I loved Montana where we had lived, where our children had grown up, but I knew the chances of finding a job that would do more than keep me off food stamps was probably next to impossible. So, I moved to Oregon, to Portland and fell in love with the city and with the state, with its incredible coast line and magnificent mountains. Now, the only question was, would I be able to find a job? I was just about to turn sixty. It was the early 90s and the economy in Portland at that time wasn’t the best.

I did find a job – finally, as office manager for a landscape architect’s two man business. Not the most promising employment for an old broad, but I had some money put back and I finally found an inexpensive little apartment belonging to one our contractors. I settled in to see where the fates would take me next.

After two years it became painfully obvious that I was not going to be able to prepare for my elder – more elderly years where I was, so I took another one of those deep breaths, handed in my resignation and I began searching for something with a little more future – even short termed future. I decided to work as a temp which would give me a better chance to check out the work environment before accepting a position and at the same time giving a company a chance to see what I could do -- which I was certain would land me what I was looking for -- whatever else, I was never short on confidence -- well, at least back then. The economy was in much better shape by then with numerous high tech companies moving into the area.

Things just felt right the first day of my first temp assignment. It was with a Japanese silicon wafer manufacturing company – an old company in Japan, a new venture in the US. They had been selling silicon wafers to computer companies for years and had finally decided that the time had come to build a plant in the US, manufacture the wafers, as well as have a sales office, engineering department – the works.

I was hired to handle the phones and the front desk of the small, crowded office space they were using while the new $450 million dollar plant was being constructed. But my time on the front desk was short. My boss came to me one day and told me he wanted the company to take part in a job fair and he needed someone to take it on as a project and would I be willing to do that. I was thrilled at the opportunity, for one thing, to get out from behind the front desk and the phones, two, to be able make the most of my several years of experience in the Public Relations department of GTE; now that could work for me at my new job with Komatsu. They had me hire a replacement for myself on the front desk and I went to work having a brochure designed, organizing space at the job fair and pulling it all together.

It was exciting and fulfilling because they left it totally in my hands, signed off on everything I requested. The Fair was very successful, and I received kudos from management. Two months later, when my temporary assignment was to end, the CEO called me in and offered me a permanent position as assistant to the new President and asked me how much I was looking for in regards to salary. It resulted in a great package deal for me and Komatsu's management was happy as well.

Looking back I have to say that other than the job with the Independent Living Project, that I wrote about in an earlier "Looking Back" piece, my job with Komatsu was the best, the most exciting, fun job I’ve ever had. I studied Japanese so I could at least be able to exchange greetings with the many executives and officers from the home office in Japan when they came for business trips. It was part of my job to help entertain them, so my days frequently were considerably longer than eight hours and I could have cared less. We had many Japanese engineers that arrived to help get the plant up and operating and I arranged housing for them all. At one apartment complex we took over one entire building of six apartments. Since this group worked round the clock, I turned one of the apartments into a clubhouse with two bedrooms turned into TV rooms and I hired a Japanese cook to prepare food for them. It worked out great for a bunch of guys working different shifts, 24/7.

For those moving from Japan on a more permanent basis, I rented other apartments, helped get their families settled in, find doctors, get their children enrolled in schools. Komatsu paid for all the day to day necessities such as dishes, towels, bedding, etc. I couldn't believe I was actually being paid to go shopping! Now, it doesn't get any better than that. Target loved to see me walk through the door! I was that gal that bought at least four of everything, every time I came to the store!

During those early months I also did the planning for parties, meetings, conferences and handled much of the publicity for the company at that time.

Gradually, as the positions were filled by permanent employees, those who had come from Japan earlier prepared to go home. I was able to take all of the things that I had purchased for the apartments and donate them to a battered woman's shelter in the area -- and that was a really "feel good" moment - for me and for the company.

One of the lovely things about the company was the fact they hired young and old – I wasn’t the only sixties person -- they hired people from many other countries – Russia, China, the US as well as Japan. And everyone seemed to feel the same excitement and enthusiasm at being involved with this new company. I was able to travel, to take classes in various aspects of the business that took me to San Francisco and Atlanta. And there was always a another chance to learn, to be involved.

We moved into the new building and it was magnificent! But isn’t it strange how things happen? Three years into this new project there was a big downturn in the Japanese economy -- it was 1999. It soon became obvious that we would have to cut back and numerous jobs were eliminated. I managed to survive that cut, but a little over three years after the exciting beginning, the plant was shut down. A $450 million dollar white elephant!

By that time I was sixty-seven and it was obvious even to me that my working days were about over. It was one of the most difficult times in my life. I wasn’t ready to stop or even slow down, but it was soon apparent that there was – is such a thing as age discrimination whether anyone wants to admit it or not.

So I took a deep breath, rented an apartment in San Miguel de Allende in Mexico and spent a fabulous year in the high dessert. In between lovely trips to all the historical cities in that beautiful part of Mexico, I nursed my hurts and disappointments very successfully. My daughter, Kerith and my son, David came down for Christmas that year and we had a fabulous holiday. I slipped into the 21st century that December 31 and watched the world celebrate the beginning of the year 2000.

I returned to Oregon a little over a year later and settled down to try and make the most of retirement and I had to admit that life was still good – different, but good.

And then the move to Seattle! Ah, change is good! Keeps you on your toes. It’s all in how you choose to see it.