Matthew Folly cleans the hallways of the specialty center. He has mopped the floors in Building 9 for three years.
by Michael Props and Tim Stanford
After clocking in at 3:00 p.m. each day, custodian Matthew Folly drives his white Ford truck to Building 9, gathers his equipment and begins another day of cleaning Building 9 but always with a quick step, a kind word for students and staff and a smile on his face.
For over three years, Mr. Folly has spent eight hours a day from 3 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. sweeping classrooms, emptying trash, waxing and buffing floors and cleaning windows.
“You can’t be lazy. As a custodian you really have to work to get your building as clean as possible,” Mr. Folly said.
Fellow custodian and daytime supervisor James Dawkins said that Matthew is an asset to the school and takes pride in keeping Building 9 clean.
“He knows how to complete his job before anyone asks him to,” Mr. Dawkins said.
Senior Amber Blair said Building 9 is one of the cleanest buildings on campus.
“In Building 9, I know I can put my bag down without it getting dirty,” Amber said.
Distance Learning Specialist David Saunders said Mr. Folly puts in a great deal of time and effort in cleaning Building 9.
“Matthew does an excellent job,” Mr. Saunders said.
Matthew’s wife Brenda Folly said that her husband is devoted to his job. Although he does all the cleaning in Building 9, Mrs. Folly said she does most of the cleaning at home.
Mr. and Mrs. Folly met at 7-11 over 21 years ago when he was buying a soda in the morning. After more than a year of morning meetings for coffee or a soda at 7-11, Mrs. Folly finally agreed to a date with Mr. Folly.
Over the past 20 years, Mrs. Folly has been her husband’s support as he successfully battled cancer twice. Mr. Folly said that he had to change his diet, quit smoking and give up his lawn care business. He said that the cancer made him a better person.
“[The cancer makes you] look at life differently and cherish the things that are around you. You stop thinking about the things that you don’t have and start thinking about the things that you do have,” Mr. Folly said.
Involvement in his church and community are priorities for Mr. Folly.
“Growing up I was deprived of a lot of things, so now that I have a chance to give back, I do,” Mr. Folly said.
Last year Mr. and Mrs. Folly participated in Angel Tree, a program that provides gifts to children of underprivileged families. They also purchased jeans, coats and shoes as anonymous gifts to Varina students. This year Mr. Folly was one of the anonymous givers who helped pay off a family’s layaway order at Wal-Mart.
“We don’t have a lot of little kids, but there are kids out there in need,” Mrs. Folly said.
Between his duties in Building 9 and as an usher at his church, Mr. Folly keeps busy and has no plans to slow down.
“I will be working here as long as I am still able to do my job the way that I want to do it,” Mr. Folly said. “Going home and sitting down all day is like a death sentence to me.”
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