A Mentor, and He Didn’t Know It

 More than 20 years ago I was in a retail career.  One that took me from the sales floor, to managing departments, to dressing mannequins, to being an executive assistant for the Vice President of Advertising for the largest family owned department store in the country.  It was that last stop in advertising that taught me the most and showed me a first glimpse of what a true mentor looked like.  And he probably didn’t even know that that was what he was to me.

I had started this retail career as a sales associate just a few months before Christmas in 1983.  I was in a busy department and my department manager was expecting her first baby.  Three weeks before Christmas she was put on bed rest and I was thrust into filling in and managing one of the busiest departments in the store.  This store was the flagship location and one with high visibility among the executives who worked in the corporate office just a few miles up the road.

After this quick initiation into a retail career, and right at the holidays, I was moved from one department to another, getting a good bit of experience.  Managing different types of people, serving different types of customers, and learning the ins and outs of the retail business.  But it wasn’t until I moved to the corporate office as an executive assistant that I got a true taste of what it took to make such a business run.  I was exposed to private label branding, advertising, the world of customer complaints, and even the legal side of corporate retailing.

But I probably learned the most from a retired executive, Mr. A.B. Cannon.  Once I moved into the advertising office after close to 12 years with this retailer, I was exposed to more of the executive team and even former executives who regularly frequented the corporate building.  Mr. Cannon was one of those former executives.

A.B. Cannon was a retired executive with this premier retailer.  He was instrumental in growing the business to being the leading family owned department store in the country and is credited with helping establish the legacy and the first 50 years of success.  He had once been a right hand to this retailer’s founder. 

Though during my time in the advertising office, Mr. Cannon was retired, he was still coming into the office.  In his early 70’s he was continuing to come to work a few hours a day.  He had an office that was reserved for him where he would check stock prices, review daily store sales, and read his Wall Street Journal.  He did this most every day during the week.

Mr. Cannon was a fan of popcorn and he would always ask one of the ladies in the office to make it for him.  One day, while his normal go-to popcorn maker was on vacation, he asked me to make it for him.  He was very particular.  He liked it to be popped just right and then split into two servings, each in their own paper coffee filter.  He liked to have both servings brought to him and then he would decide who he shared it with.

During this week of being his surrogate popcorn maker, Mr. Cannon and I struck up a friendship.  He asked me about my family, what I wanted to do with my life, and listened a lot to the elaboration of the answers that I would give him.  He would tell me about his family, what it was like working for such a large company, moving around, and having such a large responsibility and storied career.  We developed a bond.

Mr. Cannon didn’t realize it, but he became a mentor to me.  He shared his life and wisdom and he did a lot of listening.  He was probably the one who gave me the courage to take a leap of faith and move states away from family and friends to live a dream; one that would ultimately enable me to live a passion and mission that I am living through my work today….20+ years later.

On the day of my going away party from this career, after deciding to pursue that dream and move to Indiana, Mr. Cannon came in earlier than normal, just so he could say “goodbye”.  He approached me and handed me a porcelain lidded dish and said, “I want you to have this.”  I opened the lid and was stunned.  I immediately responded saying, “Oh, Mr. Cannon, I can’t accept this.  You need to share this with your daughters-in-law.”  His wife had passed many years prior and he only had married sons, who lived in other states.  His response?  “I want you to have this.  You would appreciate it so much more.”  Inside were two vintage brooches, a set of matching earrings and a bracelet.  I have worn them proudly ever since.   I didn’t even know until all these years later how valuable they were.  They are vintage Eisenburg Ice pieces most likely from the 1940’s.  They are beautiful.  Their value, to me, is from the gift giver.  The thoughtfulness and intention behind the special gift has meant the world to me ever since.

The beauty that is in these pieces is the friendship and the mentoring that they represent.  Mr. Cannon was a mentor in every sense of the word.  I trusted him for his counsel.  He was a career and life coach for me.  And he was a friend.

To this day I am complimented on these pieces and that gives me the opportunity to share this story.  Mr. Cannon was a special gentleman.  He took the time to pour into me and share his life with me.  That is what mentoring is all about.  It is the relationship that is formed and the wisdom and wise counsel that is passed back and forth.  It is a special bond. 

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Thank you, Mr. A.B. Cannon, for being that special mentor in my life, even if you didn’t know it.  This relationship set an early example for me; one that I hope I can model in your honor.