In June of 1960, a recent graduate of Sunbury High School in Gates County arrived for her first day of work at the Obici Hospital business office.

Four decades later, she’s still there.

&uot;I have the ‘Suffolk News-Herald’ to thank for my job,&uot; said Nancy Rogers, who celebrated her 40th anniversary at the hospital June 7. &uot;It said that the paper would run a free ad for high school graduates looking for work, so me and a friend went in.&uot;

She described herself as &uot;a high school graduate with typing experience,&uot; in the ad. Soon after, Obici came calling.

&uot;My first job was sending out little pink and blue slips about delinquent accounts,&uot; she said.

She worked in insurance, at the cashier’s window, and, about 25 years ago, became the collections supervisor.

When the hospital moved from Main Street to Godwin Boulevard in April 2002, Rogers didn’t quite know how to feel.

&uot;I was sad, but happy,&uot; she said. &uot;At the old building, none of us had windows. Now I have an office with a window.&uot;

That’s not the only adjustment she’s had to make.

&uot;Everything’s going electronic, with computers and the Internet,&uot; said Rogers, who proudly proclaims that she picked computers up quickly. &uot;When we first started, we always had to write everything out and it took forever. When I came to work here, people didn’t even have Medicare.

&uot;Where else can you work that has a cafeteria, pharmacy and credit union in the building?&uot; she said. &uot;If I got sick, they’d just put in a code for us and take us to the emergency room.&uot;

Rogers, who will turn 64 in December, doesn’t think she’ll reach the half-century mark.

&uot;I certainly will not be here for 50 years,&uot; she said, &uot;but I’ll stay a little bit longer. I have to stay and enjoy my new office, and somebody has to look over the girls. Some of them call me Mommy, but I’m old enough to be some of their grandmothers!&uot;

jason.norman@suffolknewsherald.com