Below are the names of the 2014 Employee Award recipients from the Methodist Children’s Home of Southwest Louisiana. Each description of the employee and reasons he or she was chosen have been provided by Program Director, Dr. Steven Franks.

Servant Award: Meleena Frey

Meleena works in the kitchen and makes her own roux and does a lot of really awesome stuff. I make it a point to taste her food and she makes it a point to let me know what’s on the menu when she is doing something special. She is a hard working member of the team.

Mental Health Specialist of the Year – Male: Ashley “AJ” Jones

AJ is a quiet soul. He smiles a lot and is difficult to rattle. He clearly enjoys the youth and his team has a lot of respect for him. He is always ready to help others and does so with respect.

Mental Health Specialist of the Year – Female: Jalessa Frelot

Jalessa is an assistant supervisor and has taken on the role of planning and preparing lesson material for spiritual enrichment. She has an infectious smile and a great attitude. The youth enjoy her and she enjoys them. This is clearly a mission to her.

Employee of the year – Stephen Watkins:

Stephen is a supervisor and has a deepening commitment to the youth and staff of the Children’s

Home. He is passionate about this work and always willing to go the extra mile for the sake of staff and youth. He has a great sense of humor and loves to spend time playing sports with the boys.

New Employee of the year – Katie Deshotel:

Katie is a Registered Nurse on the night shift. She decided to work here because she loves it here. The youth and staff all know it and greatly appreciate her attitude and approach to them. This is a mission to her. She fits in great.

Order of the Good Shepherd – Ricardo Griffin:

Ricardo is a supervisor and one of the original hires from when we opened. He has a connection with the staff, the youth, and probably even the building. It all clearly matters to him. He serves everyone in every way he can think of. He believes this is where he is supposed to be and what he is supposed to be doing.