We’ve all had days when we feel underappreciated in our jobs.
Most of us put our heart and soul into our work because we genuinely care about doing a good job, but even so, it’s nice to receive some recognition now and then.
One person who always gives it his all at work is custodian Rocky Lopez. He has worked at the Los Primeros School of Sciences and Arts in Camarillo for 33 years, and is loved by students and teachers due to his caring and happy nature.
The students wanted to give back to the man who is always looking out for them. So they decided to surprise him, and called him to the cafeteria to “clean up a mess”…
His reaction is truly heartwarming, and I just had to share it with you. I hope you’ll share it with your friends and family to brighten their day, too!
Rocky Lopez is known throughout campus for his outgoing and kind personality. He always has time for the students and goes out of his way to greet them and see how they’re doing every day.
He takes his work seriously and puts his heart and soul into the job.
“It’s not what you do, it’s how you do it,” Rocky tells The Acorn. “The way I work, it comes from the heart and that’s the bottom line.”
Katie Burchell, the school’s principal, confirms that Rocky is an invaluable member of the school community: “When’s he out on campus, he’s always greeting the kids and joking with them. He knows which kids like which football team and he talks to them about that,” she says. “He gets to know the kids and he cares about them. He’s a wonderful guy.”
Rocky goes out of his way for the students because he truly cares, and has never asked for a thing in return. But the students wanted to organize something special to show Rocky how much he means to them.
They became inspired by the dude. be. nice campaign, which aims to give back to people who work hard for their community. The students worked together with the company to plan a surprise for Rocky.
“We chose Rocky because we thought he doesn’t get nearly enough credit as he deserves,” Allison Martinez, an eighth-grader at the school, explains. “All of us came together to do something special for him.”
The students made banners for Rocky and prepared barrels of his favorite candy to surprise him with. There was also a special guest waiting to surprise San Francisco 49ers fan Rocky: Adam Snyder, who played for the team for 8 years.
When everything was ready and the students were gathered in the cafeteria, it was finally time to surprise Rocky. The school’s principal called Rocky to the cafeteria, telling him that one of the students had made a mess and they needed help cleaning up. But when he arrived, he was met with banners, candy and cheering from the students!
Adam Snyder presented him with a football signed by himself and all of the students, and Rocky couldn’t stop laughing and smiling. When the celebration was over, the teary-eyed janitor posed for a photo with the students to commemorate the special day.
“I’m a man of faith,” Rocky says. “The Lord has a purpose for everybody and you make the best of what you have before it’s too late because time is so short.”
See Rocky’s heartwarming surprise for yourself below! Aren’t these kids just incredible for planning this for their custodian? It doesn’t take much to show people we appreciate them, but it can make all the difference to someone’s day. Share if you agree!
