Team Member Spotlight: Janelle

Meet Janelle, a Restaurant Training Manager at Summerwood’s Maple Shade, NJ KFC/Taco Bell location, who has worked with the company for 19 years. When she was 15 years old, Janelle’s mom passed away and she was in need of a job. Enter Summerwood. 

“Summerwood is the place to be,” she says. “We definitely take care of our people.” 

Janelle would know. She earned her way to the renowned Summerwood Shore House (one of many perks available to Summerwood employees) as a top performing manager, where she was able to give her twin son and daughter the week-long beach vacation of their dreams.

“It’s amazing to work for somewhere like Summerwood because it’s not always about business,” she says. “They treat you like family here.”  

Support, training and development are common themes when discussing life as a Summerwood employee. Janelle credits Summerwood for developing her skills beyond the store manager position, helping her to cultivate valuable life skills and supporting her through major transitions, like when she started college.

“They supported me emotionally, financially, if I needed it, just always…asking me how I’m doing,” she shares.

As a Training Manager, Janelle prides herself on supporting staff the same way she has been supported during her time with Summerwood. And she thrives on seeing team members she trained rise through the ranks. 

Always working hard, Janelle has her eyes on the future as well. She says her goal is to become an Area Coach so she can continue developing people. On this subject, she says, “Somebody trained me, so I want to return the favor.”