Friendly Service Drives NRV Parking Attendant

Car styles come and go, but valet attendant Russell Simpkins is a steady presence at Carilion New River Valley Medical Center.

For 13 years, Russell has parked the vehicles of hospital patients and guests. Recently, one of those folks sent a piece of deserving fan mail about Russell to Hospital Administrator and Vice President William Flattery.

“I was sitting outside at the front lobby area waiting for my neighbor to pick me up, and the parking attendant came by on his way into the hospital,” the woman wrote. “I could not remember his name, but I did remember how pleasant he was to me always in the days before the COVID lockdown.

“He said, ‘Are you still driving your red Ford Explorer?’ It is in the shop being repaired as we speak,” she replied. “I sat there in the sunshine and thought, ‘How could he remember me?’”

Friendly service is what drives Russell in his job.

“I like to see people, be as helpful as I can,” said Russell, who has always worked with the public, first as a restaurant manager and, later, as a medical supply delivery man. “I’m just glad somebody is recognizing not just me. It takes a team.”