This week’s Up Close features Ms. Sue Short, 94th Force Support Squadron ITT manager. Up Close is a series spotlighting individuals around Dobbins Air Reserve Base.
WHERE ARE YOU FROM?
I was born and raised in Philadelphia, PA.
WHAT BROUGHT YOU TO DOBBINS?
My husband was in the Navy, and the Navy brought us down to Georgia in 1997. So, I’ve been working on and off at Dobbins since then. I left for three years when my husband PCS’d out to San Diego, but then we came back here to retire and I came back to work at the base.
HAVE YOU ALWAYS WORKED IN THE TRAVEL INDUSTRY?
No. Actually the majority of my career in civil service has been admin. I’ve always held secretarial jobs up until I came into this position in 2007. I started as the HRO liaison; then our services chief at the time decided to take over the ITT program and try it out. The Navy was moving out because of BRAC. He asked if I wanted to work for the ITT program, and I learned from scratch.
FAVORITE EXPERIENCE?
The TDYs I go on for ITT are fun. They really treat the military folks well. At Disney they put us up in the Animal Kingdom Lodge and give us VIP treatment. I don’t want to say that’s a highlight. It’s definitely a perk to get acquainted with the products and the properties we sell, but I’d say my favorite experience has been meeting lots of people. I’m a very sociable person, so I like this job because I meet so many different people. I’ve even run into people that I knew years ago. They’ll walk into my office and I’ll look at them knowing they’re a familiar face. Then I’ll find out that my husband worked with them.
WHAT ARE YOUR HOBBIES?
I love being outdoors. I love to garden. I’m a huge gardener. For the last six years I’ve been doing vegetable gardens. My best vegetables are my tomatoes and green beans. I also grow my own cucumbers and make my own pickles. One year I grew everything I needed to make my own salsa. The cilantro didn’t work out, but I went and bought it at the store.
PROUDEST ACHIEVEMENT?
Making this program grow. The secret has been hard work and having a great boss. I went to him one day in February last year and asked him for a bigger space since I had three employees. In half an hour he came back and asked if I’d like to move to Lakeside. I told him he better not be messing with me. My biggest achievement is definitely the growth of the program.
We went from doing $10,000 a month to almost $200,000. Now that we’ve moved into this new, gorgeous facility, I can go into leisure travel. I want to start doing trips.
BEST ADVICE EVER RECEIVED?
Be true to yourself. Go for what you want. Like I said, I started this program and then I really liked it and I just went for it. And I do that with everything, even in my personal life. If I want to make myself better, I just go for it. You’ve only got one life. You die once, but you live your life every day. Also, realize that you’re blessed. A friend of mine always says, “you’re too blessed to be stressed.” I try to keep that in mind.
SOMETHING NOBODY KNOWS ABOUT YOU?
I’m pretty much an open book. When I was younger I was a singer in chorus. I always thought maybe one day I’d be a rockstar, but then I married a Navy man and then that dream went out the window.