By ADRIANA ROSALES
Staff Writer
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As a senior attending The College of Saint Rose, 21-year-old Lindsey Brooker is hoping to one day become a speech language pathologist.
Hailing from Long Island, the communication science and disorder major plans to “jump right into” graduate school. But before Brooker can do that she is working three different jobs. She is not only tutoring at the on-campus Academic Support Center, a receptionist at the Pauline K. Winkler Speech-Language-Hearing Clinic, but she is also waitressing at the Stuyvesant Plaza TGI Firdays.
Brooker has been a part-time employee at TGI Fridays for one year, and had previously held a hostess position until late June. When she received a promotion, she was happy not to work as a hostess anymore because she couldn’t “stand there and do nothing.” On the other hand, Brooker always finds something to do with waitressing. Because she lives off campus, Brooker uses the CDTA bus service, and stated that “It runs right to Stuyvesant Plaza, so it’s pretty convenient.”
According to her co-worker, Benjamin Engwer, her job includes a series of tasks, such as “serving guests, advertising products, running food to tables, rolling silverware, and keeping her section of the restaurant clean.” After bringing them their food, she will “leave the customer alone for a little while,” walking by a couple of times to see if they need anything. “There’s a fine line,” Brooker said. “You don’t want to bother them, but you don’t want to ignore them…there’s a reason we’re called waiters. We wait a lot.”
Before working at TGI Fridays, Brooker worked for a small, family-owned Greek restaurant in Floral Park, Long Island. Regarding the difference between working for a corporate restaurant and family owned-restaurant, Brooker explained that, “It’s a much smaller staff,” and “You feel like you’re a part of the family.” Jokingly, she explained that when working for a corporation, it sometimes feels like the company is eating your soul, like a death eater from the J.K. Rowling book series, Harry Potter.
Brooker works nearly 20 hours a week, and though it’s a “stressful job at times…without awe-some coworkers,” nothing would get done. SUNY Albany student Kayla Jeffrey has been working at TGI Fridays since January 2014. Not only did Jeffrey start working with Brooker, she was also trained by her.
According to Jeffrey, Brooker “takes her job seriously and does her best to accommodate the customers.” On her relationship with her co-workers, Brooker stated, “You become a little family. We spend holidays together because restaurants don’t close.”
Brooker works her many different jobs because she has to pay rent for her off-campus apartment and has to buy groceries. She also tries to save as much money as she can, but when asked what she does during her free time, she asked me, “What free time?”
