Lois Barker
Phillip Britten
PDX Volunteer Information Program

Nominated by Liana, PDX traveler

“Phillip Britten and Lois Barker helped when I left my cell phone in bathroom on the secure side of the airport. I realized after I got to baggage claim that I was missing my phone. I went to the information booth to ask for assistance and Phillip went the extra mile to try and call someone to look for it.

No one was available, so Lois went to Concourse D to find it for me. It wasn't in the bathroom anymore, but she checked around at various gates to find that someone turned it in there. Both volunteers were compassionate and extremely friendly while I was sure that I had lost my phone. They went the extra mile to help, and I want to give them a huge shout out for being so great! Thank you, Lois and Phillip, for helping! I appreciate you both so much!”

Lesly Reyna Castillo
Southwest Airlines

Nominated by Graham Ignoffo, Port of Portland

“There was a medical emergency on an inbound flight – a passenger on board was quite ill and flying into PDX with her young daughter. Lesly stayed with the little girl while the medics worked on her mom. Lesly did an amazing job – talking to the child, playing with her and keeping her occupied and happy in a difficult and frightening situation.

She helped the child talk with the airport operations specialists, the Portland Airport Fire and Rescue team, and the medical response crew so she could understand what was going on, know that she was safe and that we'd take care of her and her mom. Lesly was vital to this situation being successful. Without her and the other Southwest Airlines employees that helped, this situation could have been a disaster.

Doreen Champaco
Port of Portland

Nominated by Susan, PDX traveler

"I misplaced my driver's license as I left the ticket counter. After retracing my steps and searching my purse and the ticket counter several times, we decided to rush home for my passport...though I wasn’t sure I’d make it back in time to board.

I called Lost and Found as we waited for an Uber and spoke with Doreen who helped fill out a lost item report. She also let me know that I could pass through the TSA security checkpoint with extra screening instead of speeding home for my passport.

Once I completed the screening process, I checked my phone and saw that I had a missed call and a text with a photo of my driver's license attached! I got in touch with Doreen, and she told me that she was on her way to our gate with my driver's license.

Her kindness, problem-solving ability and thoughtfulness were so unexpected and appreciated that it made me cry. What started out as a very stressful morning became a great beginning to our vacation. She's an incredible employee and a wonderful ambassador for PDX. I'm so grateful for her help and can't thank Doreen enough."

Nominated by Sheila, PDX traveler

"Doreen was extremely helpful and went above and beyond to help find my husband's lost iPad. She even called after work hours to let me know it had been turned in, and was especially helpful giving directions to their new office location. When I picked it up, she treated me like a family member and even remembered my name! I never write reviews, but she definitely merited one!"

Nominated by Liana, PDX traveler

"Doreen hit all the core values – friendly, knowledgeable and respectful. I left my laptop behind when flying out of PDX. When I called the next day, Doreen provided exceptional customer service. As you can imagine, losing something like a laptop is stressful. She was able to quickly find the item, confirm its safety and provide me detailed instructions on how to pick it up. And she did all of this without any sense of frustration or exasperation. Thanks so much, Doreen!"

Sara Huber

Paradies Lagardère

Nominated by a PDX employee

“Sara at the Your Northwest Travel Mart kiosk delighted the in-bound PDX passengers on Halloween by dressing – quite convincingly! – in a hand-crafted outfit as an English steampunk werewolf.

Sara's intricately adorned costume and spot-on accent made her character quite believable, and harkened back to the days of the Grimm TV show that had many of us believing that Portland really was the host city of supernatural creatures!”

David Jennings
SP Plus Corporation

Nominated by Laura, PDX traveler

"We got to our car after a very long travel day only to find the car’s battery was dead. We contacted the call center line from the shuttle bus station for assistance, and David arrived quickly and was so incredibly friendly. He pulled out his jump box and got us going in less than five minutes. We were so very thankful and appreciate that this service is available at PDX!"

Nominated by Rob, PDX traveler

"David helped my father locate his vehicle in the economy lot. It took a while, but David was super helpful and patient with my dad – his memory isn’t very good and that made the search a bit harder. The world needs more of David’s patience, understanding and exceptional customer service."

Jason Moon
Dollar Rent a Car

Nominated by Therese Chapdelaine, PDX traveler

“Jason at the rental counter went above and beyond to help me…and I was an already frustrated traveler. It was late, I had already missed one flight and the next flight was delayed six hours.

When I arrived at PDX, I was sure Dollar would be closed as the website says the car rental counter closes at midnight and it was almost 1 a.m. But Jason was at the counter, still working with a few people in line! Jason honored my reservation that was clearly expired by this point. When I thanked him for staying open to help, he smiled and said he understands how stressful flying can be and he'd help everyone in line, even if they didn't have a reservation.

When I shared my experience with a relative, they said they had also used Dollar and had a great experience. I appreciate that Jason made me feel genuinely welcome to be renting a car so late in the night. He ensured Dollar will be my first choice in the future.”

Efigenia Perez Santos
Relay Resources

Nominated by Deborah, PDX volunteer

"Efigenia helped communicate with a Spanish-speaking couple and their young child. The family was from Venezuela and trying to get to Vancouver, Canada, to live with family. Unfortunately, they were stuck at PDX – they spent the night in the airport and had no food, no money and no idea how to get to their destination.

Efigenia went out of her way to help them get food, and followed up to ensure they got assistance to reach their destination. Angel with ABM and Port of Portland airport operations specialist Danny Gilliland worked to get the family on a flight.

In the several times that I have seen Efigenia working at PDX, she is always friendly, compassionate, respectful and helpful. PDX is lucky to have such a kind, caring janitor."

Verla Stanley
Latrelle's Galley

Nominated by Kristin, PDX traveler

“I was traveling from PDX and stopped for coffee and water at Stumptown. I was in the midst of an allergy attack that had my eyes watering. As I walked up to order, Verla took one look at me and kindly asked, 'Do you need a hug?' I thanked her for her kindness and explained that it was allergies that had my eyes watering, not distress. We had a nice chat while she and a co-worker prepared my coffee, and I went on with my travels.

Her kindness and care have stayed with me, and I wanted to let her employer know how much that small comment has stayed with me and how much I appreciate her going above and beyond to show compassion to Stumptown's customers. I hope you will share my gratitude with her.”

Laurice Zeitler
TSA

Nominated by David, PDX traveler

"Laurice went far above and beyond to assist me when it appeared that I lost my watch at the TSA checkpoint. Without a moment's hesitation, she inspected and re-scanned my bag to find the watch. This was most helpful and quite refreshing."