cedric johnson

Serving with a Smile at Holy Spirit School

By Angela E. Pometto
HERALD Staff Writer
(From the Issue of 11/2/06)

At 8:42 a.m., the call came in: clean-up in the library. With a smile on his face, Cedric Johnson sprang into action. He grabbed his special “throw-up kit” along with a trash can, broom, disinfectant and a vacuum before rushing to the library.
“You never know what’s going to happen around here,” said Johnson, the head maintenance worker at Holy Spirit School in Annandale. “Sometimes I feel like a fireman in a fire department.”
Even though he is the lone Baptist amidst a school and church full of Catholics, Johnson has found a second family and home at Holy Spirit for the past seven years.
“I’m around good people,” he said. “They treat me well.”
His day starts at 7 a.m. and doesn’t usually end until 9 p.m. His duties include sweeping the gym and cafeteria, cleaning windows, and stocking and cleaning all bathrooms. In the summer he cuts the grass; in the autumn he rakes the leaves; and in the winter he’ll shovel the snow.
In the evenings, Johnson stays around to keep the building functioning for night programs like CCD, prayer group and basketball practice.
Along with certain jobs that are on his “to do” list every day, Johnson also responds to various needs that come up throughout the day. The rectory might have a light that goes out or a teacher might call with a maintenance request. And when students get sick, Johnson is there to take care of it.
He is familiar with students at the school as well as the priests and parishioners. The pre-school and kindergarten students often greet Johnson with hugs and excited waves. As the students grow up and reach seventh and eighth grade, he notices they aren’t as openly friendly, but Johnson smiles and waves anyway.
Johnson and his wife, Betty, have been married for 20 years and have three children and one grandson. Johnson’s family and job are the most important things in his life.
“He’s always happy,” said Kara Barger, a pre-school aide. “We don’t know what we’d do without him.”