Aileen Stone spends her days in the TCU Physical Plant taking repair orders for the things that need to be fixed on campus. She has worked for TCU for 21 years and said TCU has given her a second family that she looks forward to seeing every day. Stone retired from full-time employment Jan. 7, but returned to the university as a part-time worker the next Monday.

When did you start working for TCU?

“I started working for TCU on July 12, 1989.”

What do you look forward to when you come into work?

“This has been like a family, and I just feel like I’m going to be with the family. And I enjoy my work; I have done it for so long [and] it has really been good for me.”

Have you created any friendships with anyone in particular?

“Well, in the beginning I use to talk a lot with the RAs in the dorms, and they were always so uplifting. I enjoyed the camaraderie with them, [and] they were really neat. Now I mostly get e-mails from the dorms so I don’t have the contact there that I use to have.”

Do you have any specific memories that will always stick with you from your time here at TCU?

“Well I have a lot of memories that will stay with me. My husband died seven years ago, and my family here was so supportive. I will always be thankful that I was here at TCU. The whole campus was so supportive; it’s great to have family and friends.”

What do you plan on doing after you leave TCU?

“I am going to enjoy free time. All these years I’ve always got up and gone to work, and it is going to be fun to see what it’s like not to have to get up and go to work. To just do what I want to do.”

What has been one of the most challenging or bizarre orders to come into the Physical Plant desk?

“The most challenging is when we have a fire alarm or when we have a pipe break, and fortunately nothing real serious has happened. We had a young man fall trying to use the chair lift, and that was scary.”