{"110751":{"#nid":"110751","#data":{"type":"news","title":"People Make Collections Job Worthwhile","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003ESome people might cringe at the idea of working in a job that required them to get people to pay their bills \u2014 but not Elizabeth Grace.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cI love my job,\u201d said Grace, who is a student account collections specialist. \u201cI enjoy talking to people, not to mention, this job teaches me about being compassionate.\u201d \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAlthough it can get annoying when people ignore her attempts to get in touch, Grace, who has been at Tech for 24 years, tries to remember that \u201cthings happen to everyone.\u201d \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cOne of the most satisfying parts of my job is seeing how relieved people are to know that I\u2019m willing to work with them when it comes to collecting the money,\u201d she said. \u201cPeople are really grateful for my help, and that means a lot.\u201d \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ERecently, The Whistle had an opportunity to learn more about Grace.\u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhat did you want to be when you were a child?\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003EI sang Doo-wop in talent shows as a child, so I really wanted to be a singer. I still enjoy singing in church choirs.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EHow did you arrive at Georgia Tech?\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/strong\u003E\u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp;\u003Cbr \/\u003EI worked as a librarian in Brooklyn for about 10 years before I moved overseas with my husband, who was in the Army. While we were stationed in Europe for five years, I found a job as an official storyteller for the Army, which meant that I got to read and make up stories for the children whose parents worked on the bases in Germany. When I returned to the States, a friend urged me to move to Atlanta with my two children. I found my job at Tech and have been happy here ever since.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhat piece of technology could you not live without?\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003EI love the Kindle Fire that I just won at a collections conference. I use it all of the time for reading my books and magazines.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhich do you prefer: Facebook, Twitter or a world without all of this social media stuff?\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003EI love Facebook. In five generations of family, I\u2019m the only one to have left Brooklyn, so it\u2019s a good way to keep in touch with my relatives. \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhat is your favorite spot on campus?\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003EI\u2019m a walker, so I really enjoy the indoor track at the Campus Recreation Center. \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhat have you enjoyed most about Georgia Tech?\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003EWorking here has allowed me to take care of my children and ensure that they could go to college. My daughter has a doctorate in microbiology from Georgia State University, and my son is a year away from graduating from Atlanta Metropolitan College with a bachelor\u2019s in physical education. \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhat is the best piece of advice you\u2019ve ever received? \u003C\/strong\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003EMy parents would tell me to keep my head up, which I\u2019ve always done. And then my father would always say, \u201cAlways think on your feet \u2014 not on your back.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EIf you could have dinner with one person, dead or alive, who would it be?\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003EMy mother, who passed away 17 years ago. I\u2019d want to let her know everything that the kids and I have accomplished. \u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhere is your favorite place to have lunch, and what do you order?\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003ESiam in downtown Decatur, and I always order the seafood rama, which is made with coconut milk, mussels, shrimp and scallops.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ETell us something about yourself that people might not know.\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003EI travel a lot and really enjoy cruises. I\u2019m eager to take one to Alaska.\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003ESome people might cringe at the idea of working in a job that required them to get people to pay their bills \u2014 but not Elizabeth Grace.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp; \u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Some people might cringe at the idea of working in a job that required them to get people to pay their bills \u2014 but not Elizabeth Grace."}],"uid":"27445","created_gmt":"2012-02-20 15:01:46","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:10:57","author":"Amelia Pavlik","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2012-02-20T00:00:00-05:00","iso_date":"2012-02-20T00:00:00-05:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"110741":{"id":"110741","type":"image","title":"Elizabeth Grace","body":null,"created":"1449178201","gmt_created":"2015-12-03 21:30:01","changed":"1475894706","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:45:06","alt":"Elizabeth Grace","file":{"fid":"194083","name":"elizabeth.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/elizabeth_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/elizabeth_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":1812794,"path_740":"http:\/\/www.tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/elizabeth_0.jpg?itok=JhXkWtma"}}},"media_ids":["110741"],"groups":[{"id":"1259","name":"Whistle"}],"categories":[{"id":"129","name":"Institute and Campus"}],"keywords":[{"id":"24461","name":"Elizabeth Grace"},{"id":"171152","name":"student account collections specialist"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:amelia.pavlik@comm.gatech.edu\u0022\u003EAmelia Pavlik\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003ECommunications \u0026amp; Marketing\u003Cbr \/\u003E404-385-4142\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}