If you’ve ever been in the high school activities office, you’ve probably seen the woman at the front desk, hard at work. When she’s not spending quality time with her husband, sleeping in until 7:30 in the morning, reading, or watching home improvement shows on HGTV, Mrs. Mary Lynn Miksic is doing the job that she loves most, working with students as the Activities Secretary.

Mrs. Miksic began her secretarial career immediately after high school at Pittsburgh Plate Glass Company in 1964. Little did she know it was her daughter who would have the biggest influence on her career. When her daughter was in first grade, her school had a policy where a parent of each child had to help distribute lunches on a rotating schedule. With her love for kids and management skills, Miksic excelled in her position, leading to a full-time position when the supervisor retired. She learned the intricacies of the job, such as ordering supplies and handling government subsidies.

“I grew up in a time period when girls didn’t attend college. They usually went for secretarial or sales clerk jobs right out of high school…When my daughter was in first grade, I began taking my turn as a “volunteer” in the cafeteria, which eventually led to a full-time position as Cafeteria Manager. I was, once again, surrounded by kids. I LOVED it! I never dreamed that decision would lead me to where I am today,” Miksic said.

Because of her concern for the well-being of the children, she started to notice patterns, such as little kids throwing a majority of their meals away while the older kids finished their meals entirely.  She then took the time out of her summer to learn her mother’s old recipes and make them in large quantities to feed 500 children and 25 staff members, making everything from scratch.

“Feeding the kids what they ‘liked’ and anticipated always made a difference in their day. Once I got the hang of it, there were a lot more smiling faces as they went through the lunch line. (Given a choice of mushy, cooked veggies vs. freshly cut ones with homemade dip is a no-brainer!),” she said.

To solve the issue of meal portions, Miksic would cut the meals in half, ask the kids if they wanted “big or little”, and make sure they felt welcomed to come back for seconds if they were still hungry. It did not matter that her supervisor was skeptical of Miksic’s strategy, because it ended up being a complete success. Miksic valued the children’s wants and needs, and it clearly showed whenever kids would tell her that lunchtime was the highlight of their day.

“The most rewarding part of my ‘cafeteria manager’ job is that I still run into former students who tell me how much they remember and appreciate the personal care that was given to them when they were served their lunch at St. Sebastian. I realize in today’s world, with all the regulations, that this is no longer possible. I hope I had an impact and made some positive memories for them. We were just one big, happy family! Now, those kids have kids of their own, and can share their cafeteria experience from ‘the good old days’!”

It was in 1992 that she finally decided to leave that job, but she would not be far from the environment with kids that she loved so dearly. On the advice of her neighbor, who happened to be the secretary at Reserve Primary, Miksic applied for a job at Shaler Area.

Under the supervision of Linda Zimmerman, Mrs. Miksic began her career at Shaler Area in 1993 as a classroom aide for the next fourteen years.

“Linda Zimmerman truly was a gifted teacher! She made me feel like she valued my opinion, probably because I was older and had some experience with large groups of kids. Linda taught me so much about dealing with children. I was her aide in the Special Ed. Classroom for fourteen years,” she said.

With a guaranteed salary increase and year-round schedule, Mrs. Miksic took on the Registrar’s position in the high school guidance department. This job primarily consisted of processing transcripts, entering test scores, and compiling all scholarship information. Due to budget cuts, her position as registrar would be combined with another position of guidance secretary. Instead of remaining in this position and taking on the new responsibilities with the combined jobs, Miksic decided to switch things up, and that summer she transferred to the activities office, where she is now in her seventh year as secretary.

While some may not realize Miksic’s duties in the activities office, her job is integral to keeping things running smoothly. Some of the tasks she is responsible for include, but are not limited to, compiling the daily announcements, running the Titan Shop for students to buy snacks in between classes, processing all banking requests that apply to the high school accounts and balance books, and answering any and all inquiries regarding student activities. What may seem “behind the scenes” for students and staff, are normal, routine tasks that come with the job for Miksic.

Even though both of her jobs in the high school offices were secretarial, Miksic has noticed she has a much more one-on-one relationship with the kids that she sees everyday. They’re generally happier being in the Activities Office rather than the Guidance Office, and she loves to talk about their personal lives with them, whether it’s about their boyfriends, hobbies, or whatever it is they want to tell her about.

If there is one thing that Mrs. Miksic will always make clear, it is that she wants to make a difference for kids, the reason she continues working. She’s not just a secretary though, as she is someone to look up to for guidance. She makes sure to treat the kids that visit her with kindness and respect, and reminds them that she expects the same from them. She cares for the kids she works with everyday.

“I love seeing that I can make a difference just by listening to them or letting them know I understand. When they arrive early in the morning grumpy or angry, I just tell myself that no one knows what environment they just left. They might be hungry, or just left a bickering household. I try to settle them and make the Activities Office a safe place for them. I have sometimes encouraged them to talk to their counselor,” she said.

It’s not just the students that make Miksic love her job so much, but it’s her coworkers, too. Mrs. Miksic describes herself as “blessed” when talking about the people she works with in the Activities office, specifically Mrs. Mindy Thiel and Mrs. Holly Siedlecki. Miksic is extremely grateful for Mrs. Siedlecki’s help using Excel Program, and Mrs. Thiel’s patience with her when figuring things out.

“[Mrs. Thiel] is, by far, the finest director I have ever had in my life!”

Of course, though, Mrs. Miksic’s love for the people that surround her everyday is reciprocated back. Whether it’s through her student office aids, or the teachers working with her, they find just as much joy being around her and she does with them.

“I love getting to work with Mrs Miksic because you can tell she genuinely loves being here. She creates such a positive environment for students, whether they are one of her office aides or just somebody stopping by to buy something at the Titan shop, and getting to just sit and talk with her is always a pleasure,” senior Alyssa Hillwig said.

Now in her later years of being a secretary, Mrs. Miksic looks back on something started by her mother that she calls, “Cute Sayings of the Angels”. Her mother started the book with Miksic and her five siblings, and then Miksic continued it when she took the job at Reserve. Whenever a kid would say something funny, Mrs. Miksic would write it down in her book, and teachers would even come to her to tell her something funny that happened so that she could write it in.

“To this day, I still have it. I often look at it with fond memories. I wonder how those kids are doing, and if I made a difference?”

She’s always a smiling face in the office, and she’s always willing to talk to anyone that comes to see her. She refers to the students as her grandkids, and says she will always act like their grandma at school. She keeps the Activities Office functioning alongside her coworkers. Whether they realize it or not, Mrs. Miksic has surely had an impact on most, if not all the people she’s come across in life.