There are a lot of interesting items for sale at the salvage retail store, Solomon Ventures. To the left there are organic potato chips and dog treats, and to the right are $1 vinyl records. But the first thing you see is a man who stands taller than any shelf in the store.
At a towering six feet five inches tall, Dorcy Gaymon is Solomon’s own gentle giant.
While managers and executives may have the most coveted titles, there are people largely unseen in almost every organization. They are wholly dedicated to their work without always receiving the recognition or distinction. In our Human Resources series we'll uncover the stories of these selfless individuals. Today we meet Dorcy Gaymon.
Gaymon is a Jacksonville native and a retired professional boxer who fought the greatest in Atlantic City, New Jersey. He was a sparring partner to Mike Tyson, and he fought two times for the world title in the 1980s.
“It was a good experience, if I could do it again, I’d do it again,” Gaymon said. “But I’m not able to right now.”
Gaymon said the money and lifestyle that went with his career led him to make bad decisions and landed him a rap sheet. He then developed Parkinson’s disease.
Although some people might have looked at his background labeled him unemployable, his boss Raymond Solomon hired Gaymon four years ago, and he hasn’t regretted that decision.
“He gets here at 8:30 a.m. every morning, six mornings a week,” Solomon said. “He’s the first one here and the last one to leave at 5:30 p.m.”
Gaymon is so dedicated to his job that he rides his bicycle about 10 miles to work every day, even in pouring rain.
“A lot of people see that I shake a lot that they don’t want to ask me to do certain things,” Gaymon said. “I like doing challenging things. I challenge myself to do things that people think I can’t do.”
Whether he’s bagging groceries or moving heavy boxes, Gaymon takes his job very seriously.
Sandi Wood is the lead cashier at Solomon Ventures. She said he takes care of their customers.
“Customers need to get to their car, he’ll open up that umbrella and walk them to the car whether he gets soaked. He’ll get soaked first before he would let a customer get wet,” Wood said.
“He always does the right thing, he really does, he’s awesome. I love Dorcy.”
Long-time customer Jake Freemontt has been personally helped by Gaymon many times.
“One day he rearranged my whole van,” Freemontt said. “I wanted to buy a shelf, but it wouldn’t fit in my van. I looked out there first, half my van is empty. He rearranged it back, put the shelf in, closed the door. I offered him some money and he said ‘no, that’s all right.’”
And Gaymon said he doesn’t work here for the money, it’s the regular customers and conversation that keeps him coming back every day.
“I just come in because I love being here. I love being in contact with good people,” Gaymon said. “People talk to me and they treat you in a different way that I love to be treated in.”
Solomon said he could not ask for a better employee, but he also considers him a friend.
He says he couldn’t ask for a more kind-hearted person than Dorcy Gaymon.
You can follow Lindsey Kilbride on Twitter @LindsKilbride
