April 24, 2017
This edition of Colleague Focus features Reid Barr. Reid is the Quality Manager for our Dublin, VA facility and has been with Mar-Bal since April of 2015.
Reid attended Ashford University receiving a Bachelor of Arts in Organizational Management and has been with Mar-Bal for roughly two years. He certainly isn’t shy to say (in all capital letters) that his favorite part about working here is “HONESTY!” Reid believes that honesty wasn’t necessarily placed in high regard with some of his previous employers and goes on to say, “Trust is very important to me. Processes are a dime a dozen; working with a great group like Mar-Bal is not common.”
He attributes his development within the company to working with a diverse group of individuals that harbor a wealth of knowledge and takes pride in the work he does at Mar-Bal.
Rather than highlighting his single proudest moment with the company, he instead prides himself on problem solving. Recently speaking to a supervisor about quality expectations, Reid offered his favorite expression, “How do you eat an elephant?… One bite at a time. Meaning that if we fix problems one at a time, we’ll eventually have no problems that need fixing. After that, [his supervisor] made the comment that he thought the quality had improved since I started working here. Sometimes it’s not about the awards or accolades… sometimes it’s about the impact you have had on a group or individuals that make you proudest.”
When asked about his favorite foods, Reid said simply about himself, “…as you can tell, I like to eat.” His favorite home-cooked meal happens to be his wife’s meatloaf served alongside mashed potatoes, peas and homemade sourdough bread. In fact, he goes on to say that he likes her meatloaf so much, often times he asks her to cook two.
Reid is very much a family man and talks about his wife and kids when asked about whom he admires the most. “…they are all unique and all make me very proud to be part of their lives. I have four kids that are unique.” He proudly lists each of their achievements talking about his daughter recovering from a serious car accident which still causes challenges that she has overcome to become a Pharmacy supervisor at a nearby hospital. When speaking of his sons, Reid states that one is on his way to becoming a Physician’s Assistant, another is finishing up a degree in business, while the youngest is headed to the eighth grade and maintaining straight A’s. Lastly (but certainly not least) Reid talks about his wife, “She is an amazing person and there is no one I would rather spend time with. I don’t think there is enough room to list all her attributes.”
His favorite place to vacation is anywhere that he can camp and fish with his family. Reid used to participate in bass fishing tournaments several years ago but has since traded those in for friendly fishing competitions between him and his family. “We pull our little pop-up camper to the lake along with the boat and in our mind; this is the perfect place to be. There is nothing better than drinking coffee next to the lake while the fog is lifting off the water.”
We would like to thank you Reid for your dedication to Mar-Bal and commitment to quality. With spring already here and summer on the horizon, we know you can’t wait to grab the family and head down to the lake!