Vera Repp retires after more than 30 years at the GBO reception desk

She sat in the head office for more than three decades, opening doors, answering phones, receiving mail and parcels. Not only did visitors pass through her office, but she also pulled the strings. Now the friendly employee is retiring at the end of the month.

It wasn't a traditional path with a job advertisement, application, interview and anxiety about whether she would get the job. "I actually just wanted to earn some extra money as a cleaner at the housing association and joined through an acquaintance as a stand-in," she recalls. "When my colleague at reception needed help in spring 1993, she suggested me. The managing director at the time just asked me if I thought I could do it. I said yes and got the job."

Over the course of her career, she has continued to train herself to meet the growing demands. This included talking on the phone as well as dealing with difficult customers in person. "There were some, but fortunately it was rare for anyone to get loud," she says looking back. "Most of them were nice, and I got to know many of them over the years."

The constant coming and going of tenants has only decreased since corona, when there were no longer any open consultation days. "But I also liked the times when there was a lot of hustle and bustle. I always enjoyed working at reception, I had to deal with new and different people every day."

She had known one person who came by very often recently for many years: Her husband Ralf Repp worked in a mini-job as a messenger, having previously retired from Stadtservice's Geschäftsfeld Stadtservice. On September 1, he and his wife will now say goodbye to working life for good. They also have plans together: "Cycling, swimming, traveling and sleeping in."