BY BOB SHRALUKA
WZBD.com
Joe Avalos, a guy who never saw a tank top he didn’t want to wear nor a job for the City of Decatur he wouldn’t handle, is leaving his city post after nearly half a century.
“Joe is the standard for what a good employee should be, a stellar employee,” Mayor Dan Rickord said as Avalos was honored at Tuesday’s city council meeting.
“I sincerely appreciate everything you have done for this city.”
Friday, May 30, will be Avalos’s last day with the Pubic Works Department, just a few weeks shy of a full 48 years!
Joe joined the city as a high school student on a part-time basis on July 18, 1977, working with the street department under Fritz Baker. He went full-time on May 28, 1979.
It was noted by the mayor at the Tuesday meeting that Avalos was affectionately known as “Mr. Tank Top” by other city workers due to his affinity for the attire.
“I have always given my all for the community and I appreciate everything you have done for me,” Joe told the council and Mayor Rickord.
City Operations Manager Jeremy Gilbert said after the meeting that Joe “was a good, all-around guy,” a dedicated employee.
“No matter what time of the day or night, if you called Joe he would be on the scene before you even got there,” Gilbert said.
And Avalos had a close-at-hand partner: wife Missy.
“Missy was always supportive in his many roles, from spraying mosquitoes, running the street sweeper, filling pot holes and changing signs,” Gilbert explained.
In a council resolution read at the meeting, it was pointed out that Avalos “was regularly called upon during working hours, nights and weekends, often in hazardous or inclement weather conditions to repair water main breaks, clean streets, plow snow and perform any other job necessary to ensure the city’s water and roadways were accessible and safe for the residents of the City of Decatur.”
The resolution noted how city residents have seen Joe for years “hard at work on job sites or driving his city truck, street cleaner or mosquito sprayer from job to job, sometimes from dawn to dusk.”
It also pointed out that he is a devoted husband, father and grandfather and who, “in his retirement is looking forward to spending more time with his family…”
At the reading of the resolution concluded, Avalos was given a loud standing ovation by city officials as well as a large crowd on hand for comments about an upcoming Pride festival.
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