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Retiree: Angel Garcia Years with OCPS: 23 OCPS Retirement date: March 25
If you’ve needed new keys or door locks at the Ronald Blocker Educational Leadership Center over the last decade, chances are you have interacted with Angel Garcia, logistics technician with Facilities Use Management.
Garcia actually joined OCPS in 1998 as a clerk at Orange Technical College’s former Winter Park Tech campus (now East Campus). For more than a decade he worked in several roles on three of OTC’s campuses (former Winter Park Tech, Orlando Tech and Mid-Florida Tech), including as a registrar.
A favorite memory of his at Winter Park Tech was helping an irate bus driver who had lost his job due to a back injury.
“He needed to enroll in a basic computer class in order to work in another department,” Garcia recalled. “I calmed him down and called the instructor who gave me permission to enroll him even though the class was full. It was great being able to help someone that was in a bind.”
While at Mid-Florida Tech, he also supported the Fire Academy as an administrative specialist.
“I learned to respect and admire the work firefighters do,” Garcia said. “I actually got to put on their fire suits that weigh about 70 pounds, going up two flights of stairs and experiencing a fire at the burn building. That was definitely an experience I will not forget.”
In 2011, he moved away from assisting students at the technical centers to assisting OCPS team members as an administrative specialist with Facilities Use Management at the RBELC. He has been a logistics technician for the last five years.
In retirement, Garcia plans to catch up on reading science fiction, nonfiction and thrillers, and drawing and oil painting.
“I have enjoyed the company of my fellow coworkers,” said Garcia, who is originally from Manhattan, New York. “I will miss the routine, coming in every morning, but I gotta move on.”
Upcoming Virtual Workshop:
March 9, 5-6:30 p.m.
Real World Retirement Planning – Your ThreeLegged Stool!
https://orangepeal.pub/marchrealworld
To register, visit https://ocps.catalog.instructure.com/. For more information, email retirement.services@ocps.net or call 407.317.3227.
