John Tortora

A personal hero that I want to tribute also happens to be a close, personal friend of mine. His name is Johnny Tortora. Johnny is a man that I work with at the Super Stop & Shop in Saugus, MA. He loads produce, just as I do. However, he is a different kind of worker than most. You see, he is just twenty years old, and he is full-time at Stop & Shop. Now, some may see this a road with a dead end, a job with no future and ultimately no success. However, Johnny has climbed the ladder of Stop & Shop hierarchy rung by rung. He started off just as I did, a lowly part-time worker who got paid for shagging carriages from the parking lot, even in tough weather conditions. From there he bagged orders for people, and even helped to bring them out to the customer’s cars. After bagging, Johnny was transferred to the produce department, where he picked up more and more hours at the store. During this time, he was still in high school, attending the Northeast Vocational School for plumbing. However, his interest in plumbing began to fade, and his love of produce grew. He began to work more and more, and he proceed to get better and better with each passing day. Finally, he approached his boss and asked if he could go full-time, once he finished high school. After much deliberation, the managers granted him this wish, and he was well on his way. However, Johnny did have to endure some hardships during his journey. He had to start off by working night crew, which meant starting the day at midnight and working until eight in the morning. This sort of thing can throw off a person’s entire body chemistry; but Johnny toughed it out, and eventually was promoted to a higher shift. This time, he was told to work the three-to-midnight shift. Also a tough shift with many low points, but the brave Mr.. Tortora stuck with it. I met Johnny on his last day of night crew, so the person I met was extremely excited and happy. However, this was no temporary facade. Johnny’s spirit is one that cannot be broken, and that is why he is my hero. His strong will, hard work, dedication, and overall great personality is what makes him a pleasure to work with. He trained me and taught me everything he knew about produce, and boy was there a lot! But under his tutelage I became one of the best part-time produce loaders in the business. Without Johnny’s help and friendship, I could not have gone half as far as I have already. Now, this isn’t to say that I’m going to work at Stop & Shop for the rest of my life; but someone with Johnny’s personality shows everyone that even a “less respectable” line of work, like loading produce, still needs all the attention of other, “more important” jobs.