By Ed Pierce
When students at Raymond Elementary School seek out inspiration about developing a proper work ethic, they need not look any further than their own school custodian Bob Cole.
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| Bob Cole, RSU 14's oldest employee, celebrates his 90th birthday on Friday, Dec. 12. He has served as a custodian for Raymond schools since 1998 and has no plans to retire. PHOTO BY MATT PASCARELLA |
“Back in 1998, I saw an advertisement in the Raymond Road Runner newspaper for part-time help at Jordan-Small School,” Cole said. “I called them at 11 a.m. and they told me to come in for an interview. By 2 p.m. they were putting me to work that very same day. When Raymond Elementary School was built in 2000, I started working over here.”
Cole was born on Dec 12, 1935, and grew up in Portland before moving as a teenager with his family to South Portland. He attended South Portland High School for a year before having to quit school to help support his family.
For 14 years he worked at a shoe shop in South Portland before landing a job as a truck driver for a local laundry which serviced hospitals and other facilities in Maine.
“I drove for them for 38 years before retiring,” Cole said. “I had only been retired for six months when I landed the job with Raymond schools. I live close to the school in Raymond and could walk there if I chose to.”
He says the best part of his job at Raymond Elementary is working in a school environment.
“I like being around the children and the teachers and staff,” Cole said. “There’s really nothing challenging about this job. I love doing it because I can’t sit still. There’s always something here that needs to be done.”
He’s been married for 72 years to his wife, Bernadette, and they have a daughter, two grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
When school is not in session and Cole isn’t working, he says that he and his wife will go to visit with friends, drive to the casino in Oxford or spend time with their grandchildren.
But his job as school custodian is something that he doesn’t take for granted.
“I look forward to each day,” he said. "I’m not planning on retiring ever. I’m just trying to keep as busy as I can. It keeps me feeling young.”
He thinks the public has a misconception about what school custodians do.
“They believe all we do is pick up after the students,” Cole said. “It’s really so much more than that and is constant and keeps me busy all day long.”
During his career working at Raymond Elementary School Cole says he has many fond memories and it’s hard to pinpoint just one as his favorite.
“Let’s just say I have met a lot of good people during my time here and certainly have made a lot of friends,” he said.
According to Cole, the only time that he’s ever really missed while working for the school was a few years back when he had heart surgery.
“I took some time off when I had surgery,” he said. “The doctors told me to stop eating junk food and I feel a lot better and am in pretty good shape today. I can’t believe that I am now the oldest employee in the entire school district. I can’t believe it’s really happened. I love this job and have no plans of leaving it.” <
