Terry Minder is October EOM

Terry Minder walked into his Employee of the Month celebration carrying food for his own party, but the surprise was already out of the bag.

“I kind of knew it. I kept threatening to call in sick, but Joan says no you can’t. I don’t know what else to say. I’m honored,” said Minder.

Minder was honored with the October Employee of the Month award during a ceremony in the UIS Student Center on Thursday, October 29, 2009.

He started working for UIS in May of 2000 as a part-time grounds keeper and in March 2002 was named the Assistant Grounds Gardener.

The UIS grounds crew is responsible for caring for more than 370 acres of land. Minder takes care of some of the most diverse flowerbeds and other areas around campus.

“He does an excellent job and a beautiful job taking care of the annuals and perennials that we put out every year,” said Joan Buckles, UIS horticulturist and grounds worker supervisor.

Minder has helped to nurture many of the plants and flowers on campus from the seed phase to full bloom. He spends a lot of time working in the greenhouse on campus to make sure they’re perfect.