"ASSEMBLED BY VADEN"

 

Valentine's Day 2012

At Stride Inc., we refer to Vaden as a  "Super Employee!"  On a daily basis, Vaden thanks us for hiring him; how many employers get to hear that every single day?!  He loves working at Stride and says it's his favorite job ever.  At Stride he has friends and earns a paycheck. Vaden is always eager to increase his hours and never fails to volunteer to assist with an activity.  For Vaden it's simple; Stride is like family and when he has a problem someone is always willing to help him.  Vaden has been a valued employee for many years.

Voted most "Friendly Boy" in high school, Vaden was not born with a congenital disability.  He attended two years of business college before health issues took him on a downward turn that eventually lead to his disability.  Today Vaden lives semi-independently with thanks to a transitional living service.  Vaden  has a great sense of humor and has a unique ability to turn any situation into a positive one, punctuated with laughter.

One of Vaden's first jobs was at Sonic Drive-in where he recounts the time he cooked and delivered a hamburger minus the patty!  His giggles increase as he describes how the customer was halfway through their meal before noticing the missing hamburger patty.  Because customer service is intrinsic to Vaden's nature, the meal was replaced promptly with an apology and a smile. 

Vaden's other interests include bowling, movies, computer games and especially, Facebook, which he says with a twinkle in his eye, "you can have people 'friend' me."  One of six siblings, Vaden is especially appreciative of the help his sister, Leanne, gives him. 

When asked about his favorite job at Stride, Vaden responds with a smile, "All of them! I do like the hand assembly of pens and am glad that we don't have machines making the pens." We agree with Vaden and prioritize products that have hands on applications over items that come off machines readymade.

Vaden is appreciative of his job which he makes apparent... as his colleagues; we are the ones who should be grateful for his steadfast commitment to Stride! We hope you've enjoyed Vaden's story.