May 2021 Employee of the Month - Mary Seville

The Franklin County Commissioners on behalf of the STAR Committee (Special Thanks And Recognition) proudly present the Employee of the Month award to Ms. Mary Seville.

Ms. Seville, (also known as Mary K.) has been employed with Franklin County since July 2020. She currently serves as the Planning Coordinator for the Department of Emergency Services (D.E.S.). The selection for the May 2021 Employee of the Month was determined by the STAR Committee. There were a total of thirteen nominations, four of which were for her.

The STAR nomination form asks what recent event or occurrence made you select Mary K. and the answers stated:

“Last summer, around the time Mary K. began her career with D.E.S., each county was tasked by the Pennsylvania Department of Health (DOH) to generate a COVID-19 vaccination point of dispensing (POD) plan in anticipation a vaccine would be developed. Mary K. developed the POD plan and it was accepted by the Pennsylvania DOH and Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency (PEMA.)

As the pandemic heightened at year’s end and several COVID-19 vaccines emerged, it made sense, in an attempt to help mitigate and stop the spread of this serious illness, for a Franklin County community vaccination clinic (CVC) to be opened. In the beginning of this year, a partnership was formed between Franklin County Government and WellSpan Health to plan and create a CVC. With Mary K. being the Planning Coordinator, she took charge in planning this endeavor to enable as many persons as possible receive the vaccine, if they so desired. The creation of a CVC from scratch was no small task. One of the first major hurdles was finding a location for WellSpan Health to be able to administer the vaccine in a medically suitable location, as well as providing easy access for citizens. Over 50 different sites within Franklin County were searched as possible CVC locations.

After this very tedious process, the former Burlington Coat Factory store in the Chambersburg Mall was chosen. With the selection of the CVC site complete, Mary K.’s . planning focus shifted to setting up this location as a proper medical facility to dispense vaccines. The amount of time it took to find the appropriate CVC location had placed DES "behind the eight ball” to get the CVC opened as soon as possible. The goal was to begin “putting shots in arms” sometime in April, prior to May 1, 2021.

Although Mary K. had much assistance from DES staff and other Franklin County personnel, she spearheaded setting up the CVC. Utilities needed to be contracted, logistical support for vaccination operations needed to be procured and meetings with various stakeholders needed to happen. Mary K. provided the required coordination in a professional, economical way to see to fruition of the Franklin County CVC. There were various “road bumps” along the way but Mary K.’s fortitude and determination never wavered. On April 22, 2021 at 11:00 AM, all of her tireless efforts paid off with the opening of the Franklin County CVC at the Chambersburg Mall. Mary K.’s willingness to work diligently to ensure the citizens of Franklin County would have a CVC paid off. Her dedication to her occupation now allows anyone in Franklin County who wishes to receive the COVID-19 vaccine the opportunity to do so.”

It should also be noted, “Mary K. has done an outstanding job ensuring the Covid-19 vaccine clinic got up and running smoothly; spending countless hours making sure everything that was needed for this outreach program was obtained. She even secured snacks and bottled water through the Red Cross for the workers to have on their breaks.”

“In short, Mary was instrumental in the start up and set up of the Mass Vaccination Clinic at the Chambersburg Mall, which opened April 22, 2021. She went above and beyond her job duties to ensure it went smoothly. She coordinated with multiple outside agencies and has been dedicated to this project, which required many hours of her time. She also managed to keep pace with her regular job duties as Planning Coordinator.”

Another colleague commented, “Throughout this process Mary K. was the calm in the storm. She helped navigate the hurdles to remove the barriers to site activation. In addition to procuring a facility to hold the clinic, she secured estimates from vendors for wrap-around services to establish the logistical piece to support vaccination operations for up to six months. Due to her skillful planning efforts and perseverance, the citizens of Franklin County now have increased access to the lifesaving vaccinations to help bring this pandemic under control.”

As of May 18, 2021, nearly one month after the Community Vaccination Clinic opening she spearheaded, there have been 1,947 citizens of Franklin County vaccinated due to Mary K.’s perseverance.

Ms. Seville’s outstanding characteristics are attributes that have not gone unnoticed by her peers. The nomination form describes her as possessing a contagious positive attitude, as well as being goal-oriented, dedicated, professional, determined and resilient. We are grateful to Ms. Mary Seville as she exudes a high standard of customer service, excellence, and respect to the employees and residents of Franklin County.

Commissioner John Flannery, Employee of the Month - Mary Seville, Chairman Commissioner Dave Keller, and Commissioner Bob Ziobrowski

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