Lauren Bell celebrated her decade of employment at TVS on May 20, 2021. “People sometimes call me Wonder Woman,” said Lauren. “I have definitely gained more muscles from working here.”
Lauren is described as “an energic individual who is always smiling and laughing” by her supervisor, Noah Orr. “When I started at TVS two years ago, she was my ‘go-to’ person when it came to ways a few of the production lines run,” he said. “She is a joy to be around and I am very pleased have her as part of my team.”
Originally, Lauren was hired to work on the Instant Non-Fat Dry Milk (INDM) line. Since then, she has grown to learn many different operations within TVS including, multiple production lines, packaging, case sealing, palletizing, and hanging bags.
The TVS job opening was printed in the Transylvania Times, remembers Lauren. “I saw the posting and said, ‘Let’s give this a shot,’” she said. “I didn’t know much about TVS back then.”
Long time coworker and friend, Cathy Miller giggles as she describes Lauren as “mean.” Cathy laughs and explains, “No, she isn’t mean at all. Lauren is a great person and really likes to laugh. She would do anything for you, and she has grown a lot working here at TVS.”
Cathy helped train Lauren when she was first hired. “I remember working on the packaging tables with Cathy and Risha Smith,” said Lauren. “We would all laugh and have a fun time as I would accidentally over throw the bags for them to package.”
For the past seven years, Lauren has been working on 2nd shift blending, working by hanging bags and dumping set ups. “If you talk to my parents they would say that I like going to bed late and sleeping late,” laughed Lauren. “I have no plans to switch off of 2nd.”
After a decade of learning several different areas in production, palletizing and hanging bags are two of Lauren’s favorite jobs. “I never thought I would be able to palletize because of how tall I am,” she said. “I am always on the lookout for doing new things and moving into new positions.”
In 2017, Lauren was TVS’ Self-Advocate at the SourceAmerica Grassroot Advocacy Conference in D.C. “At the conference Amber Fredrick and I went exploring to find a store to shop at. We didn’t know where we were,” remembers Lauren with a laugh. “Part of what made the trip so great was the adventure of ‘getting lost’ and just walking around and talking.”
Over the years, not only has Lauren watched TVS grow and find consistent and steady contracts. She has also grown within herself. “TVS has allowed me to challenge myself,” said Lauren. “I have always had supervisors that push me to try new things. Each person I’ve met here has helped me grow and understand different things going on.”
