Columbus Dispatch: Dedication To Hard Work

Chances are, you are going to get sick at some point during the year. A cold, a fever, or worse, it can be hard to avoid. If you come down with something, you might take a day or two off of work to try and feel better. That is unless you are Donnie Miller of OhioHealth Grady Memorial Hospital.

You see, for 42 years, without fail, Donnie has shown up for work and has never missed a day. Even with vacation time, Donnie doesn't usually take days off. In fact, he's maxed out at the amount of time off you can earn with OhioHealth, more than 300 hours.

"I don’t like somebody else doing my job,” said Miller, explaining his aversion to taking time off to Ken Gordon of the Columbus Dispatch. “It just infuriates me that I’m sitting home and somebody else is doing it. You feel guilty, you know?”

He credits his upbringing to his dedication to his job. Miller works in environmental services, cleaning the floors of the hospital, the entire hospital. He did plenty of cleaning growing up. Working on his family's farmland, he helped to raise livestock, worked in fields, and always showed up. He said his father expected that, and he wanted to deliver.

"You worked hard, you played hard. Those were good times," Miller told the Dispatch.

During his time at Grady, he has seen many faces come and go but says this hospital is a special place. In fact, some of those who have been at Grady for quite a while say Miller's face is one they know they can count on seeing.

"He is part of the culture at Grady", Beth Savage, nurse manager of surgical services said to The Columbus Dispatch.  "We have a really friendly culture here, and he definitely feeds into that."

Miller doesn't appear to be slowing down anytime soon. After 42 years, he shows up early, asks where he can help, and of course, gets the work done each and every week.

"I got a couple of more years," Miller said to Ken Gordon. "If you're not sick, you're not worn out, and you got your health, then you're supposed to be at work."

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