Two Facilities Services employees, Nan Kham and Daryl Maurice Odom, were selected by Chancellor Folt to receive the 2018 C. Knox Massey Distinguished Service Award, one of the most coveted distinctions earned by faculty and staff.
The late C. Knox Massey of Durham created the awards in 1980 to recognize “unusual, meritorious or superior contributions” by University employees. In 1984, he joined the families of his son, Knox Massey Jr., and daughter, Kay Massey Weatherspoon, to create the Massey-Weatherspoon fund. Income from the fund supports the Massey Awards and Carolina Seminars.
Chosen from campuswide nominations, the Massey Award recipients were honored at a luncheon hosted by Chancellor Folt April 14. Kham and Odom were each presented with an award citation and received a $10,000 stipend.
Nan Kham, Housekeeper, Taylor Hall
Clean workspace creates a healthy workplace, lifting spirits, enhancing productivity and making a difference for staff, students and faculty. With 11 years of service to the University and as a housekeeper in Taylor Hall, Kham creates a community in which teaching, research and service thrive. More than 75 colleagues praised her many professional and personal contributions to their well-being, noting her “above and beyond” efforts to accommodate their work schedules and address the unique challenges of maintaining many laboratories in an aging building. “When Nan is working in Taylor, the surroundings become brighter, literally,” praised a colleague. Outside her normal responsibilities, Kham works with facilities services’ recycling during student move-in day, contributes to staff activities and volunteers in the Carolina Campus Community Garden. In the words of a nominator, “She is extremely hard-working, efficient, helpful and approachable.”
Daryl Maurice Odom, Housekeeper, the Kenan Center
Senior administrators from the Kenan Center, Kenan-Flagler Business School and the William R. Kenan Charitable Trust nominated Odom in gratitude for his 30 years of professionalism and goodwill. In the words of a colleague, “Daryl’s devotion to high standards, his respect for his environment and his collegial attitude toward co-workers, staff and visitors to the Kenan Center make him a wonderful role model for other employees.” Described as “meticulous,” Odom upholds the values of integrity, accountability, service and trust. In addition to his Massey Award and in recognition of his longstanding and outstanding job performance, he was honored during the Employee Forum peer recognition award ceremony with the call of duty award for those who go above and beyond their job expectations. In words of high praise, one nominator wrote, “To see Daryl is to recognize that this is a person who takes pride in all he does.”