81-Year-Old Janitor Didn’t Qualify For Promotion Because He Didn’t Have A High School Diploma

Aug 20, 2019 by apost team

A custodian in Bartow County, Georgia, was recently up for a promotion for a job well done at Woodland Middle School. Herbert Perkinson was so close to becoming head custodian but it wasn’t possible because he didn’t have the required high school or GED diploma. However, he went back to school and rightfully got the promotion that he deserved after earning his degree.

"It broke my heart and his too that we couldn't offer him the position at the time," Michael Blankenship, the school's principal, said to WXIA.

That didn’t deter Perkinson, and with the principal’s encouragement, over the summer break, Perkinson and his daughter spent time studying together in order for him to receive his GED.

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Thanks to hard work and dedication, 81-year-old Perkinson will be head custodian at the middle school this coming school year. He is a model for understanding that it’s not too late to learn, and is a shining example for the students at the school.

"A lot of them—they look up to me,” said Herbert to WSB-TV about the students. “They tell me 'thank you' for keeping the classroom so clean for them."

Perkinson has been working at the middle school for four years, after a 40 year career as a truck driver.

This promotion is not the only big milestone that Perkinson is celebrating. He and his wife Lenora are also marking their 20th wedding anniversary. She was there at the school's celebration along with teachers and students to support him, "He takes pride in what he does,” she said to WBS-TV.

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