Students entering Sadler Dining Hall are often met with “Hello, thank you,” as they swipe in. Jerrie Cowles, a cashier in the dining hall, has been welcoming students at the College of William and Mary with a smile for almost four years.
Cowles grew up in Dinwiddie County, Va. She moved to Williamsburg in the early 1980s when she married her husband, who is from the area. Cowles worked in retail at Williamsburg Pottery before getting a housekeeping job in Colonial Williamsburg, where she worked for 30 years. She touched on the unique experience of working in the historical tourist destination.
“We had repeat guests that would come in, because they liked learning about the history there,” Cowles said. “Then they started renovating and, to me, they took a little tradition out of it. They used to have wooden floors there where they made it carpet.”
After retiring from CW, Cowles sought out a part-time job. She heard about a position in the Sadler Dining Hall from another dining employee. The job Cowles was offered ended up being full-time, but she feels she fell into a role that suits her well.
“When I first got hired, the manager said, ‘Miss Jerrie, I have a position for you,’ and I was like, ‘Okay.’ He said, ‘You love to talk, so I’m going to make you a cashier,’” Cowles said.
Cowles works swiping Tribe Cards and greeting students walking into Sadler every day from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. She emphasized her consistent presence in the dining hall, being there for all three meals of the day.
“Basically, the students see me all day. That’s how most of them really know me,” Cowles said.
Known for her cheery greeting, Cowles described how she maintains her positive energy as students’ first welcome into the dining hall for many hours each day.
“With a big smile,” Cowles said. “If I smile with my big smile, it makes their day and it makes my day, because I’m happy and they’re happy.”
Cowles noted that her sociability is a natural part of her personality that she displays in and out of work. She said that the energy she brings in her interactions with students is authentic, as she feeds off of the conversations.
“I love it, and I love to talk,” Cowles said. “That’s my biggest goal, is talk.”
Overall, Cowles said that interacting with students is her favorite part of her job, and one that keeps her coming back to work even after retirement.
“I love those students,” Cowles said. “Because to me, it’s like, most of them are a long ways from home. So me, myself, and I, I like talking with the students and being there for them, because when you’re a long ways from home, you have no family. So I like just blending in to make the kids happy.”
On that note, Cowles touched on what makes college students unique customers to interact with day to day.
“It’s like real school, but it’s a more growing-up environment, more education, and just basically seeing what they’re coming here to be,” Cowles said.
Cowles added that she specifically aims to make conversation with students who seem to be in a bad mood, and speaks to them like they are her own children.
“The ones that look sad, I make them happy,” Cowles said. “I interact with them like, ‘Did you have a good day?’ and, ‘I hope you have a good night.’”
Cowles has a son, a daughter and three grandchildren, all of whom live in the Williamsburg area. Cowles maintains a close relationship with her family and sees them frequently. Her oldest grandchild is a high school senior who she hopes will be heading off to college himself next year. Cowles said she enjoys living in the environment of Williamsburg.
Apart from her children, Cowles’s husband formerly worked as a janitor at Ford’s Colony Country Club in Williamsburg. He has since retired due to health complications.
“Every so often I have to miss work just to take him to his doctor,” Cowles said.
Students recognize Cowles’s friendly presence in the dining hall, whether only interacting with her at the cash register or forming a closer personal relationship. Kyle Lewis-Johnson ’25 said that he strikes up a conversation with Cowles whenever he comes into Sadler, and that she makes the dining hall feel more like a home.
“Whenever I’m having a bad day and I go in Sadler, she always asks me how I’m doing, and she’s like, ‘If you’re feeling down, I can give you a hug.’ Of course, I’m gonna accept a hug from Jerrie, so I always hug her,” Lewis-Johnson said. “She’s like, ‘I hope you have a good day, bad times are only momentarily going to hit you, it’s up from here,’ and then I get happier and I eat food. She brings a good environment to Sadler. She feels very comforting.”
