Our Ode to Maria

Our Maria – how she has grown.

It is with very sad faces that we share the news of Maria leaving us this week. She is off on her big OE.

We know it's something that everyone needs to do, but the loss of her smile and skill to our studio will be hard to replace. Maria is the last member of our Christchurch design team and without her wonderful support it is hard to imagine how we would have survived the big move and transition to Auckland.

Maria applied for a Mac Op position in the same year that she finished studying at Nat Col. Her CV stood out from the crowd like a shining light, one that I will never forget. She had taken the time to look at our website and find a connection to our team with a photograph accompanying her application that said 'Hire Me'. How could you not give the girl an interview.

Her organizational skills stood out very early on as she tackled a 140 book educational versioning project and then a huge 800+ page soup book. These were just a warm-up for the next 3 years. Maria has tackled a branding and curriculum upgrade over 3 levels that would make many people's hair turn grey at the thought. In scrolling through the emails just now I saw lots of comments like 'excellent Maria, thanks once again', 'we really appreciate you keeping us informed' and 'great work'.

Our problem though was that she was very quickly out growing her Mac Op role and needed to get her teeth into some real design.

As studio manager, I was really reluctant to lose or distract Maria from the great role that she was doing. Her colleagues urged me to rethink and give her more of a challenge, to let her grow, they'd help, they said. Wow, thank goodness I listened.

Maria's growth is one that I have found extraordinary to watch. I feel so privileged to have her as part of our team (I can't use the word 'had', as I really don't want her departure to arrive). During the earthquakes, Maria was living on the west side of Christchurch, so she had power/water and was the only one who was able to keep the company operating. While most of our clients were understanding and happy to wait - there is always one who would like to 'but'. Maria just did it. We got the files off our server (actually, I think we just gave her the whole server) and she put it all together, while we were all putting our lives back together.

In August 2011 Maria packed up her car and joined her good friend and fellow designer Sarah for the big shift to Auckland. It was her first time away from home and her first time in Auckland. She loved it! For our company, she was our rock. With so many changes and shifting sands, it was Maria who was there to hold it all together. Her knowledge and common sense is so valued and will be missed for a while to come.

I've tried to put together this design story to show Maria's progress over the years. I hope you can see her growth as much as I can. Do look right to the bottom to see what she is working on this week as a fitting end to the pinnacle of her career with Book Design. To any new employer, firstly, please, we want her back. Secondly, you are lucky enough to gain one of the best people I have ever been lucky enough to employ. Our very best wishes Maria, we so look forward to watching your future journey.

 

Please feel free to add a comment and leave Maria a message.