Inspiring Okeechobee ... Kindness does not go unnoticed

Posted 1/19/21

Many of us do not realize the impact our actions have on the people around us.

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Inspiring Okeechobee ... Kindness does not go unnoticed

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OKEECHOBEE — Many of us do not realize the impact our actions have on the people around us. Recently, a young woman was recommended for an Inspiring Okeechobee story, and when told why, she was surprised. She did not think she did anything special.

Every morning when we get up, we make a choice. We might not even realize we are making that choice, but we are. We can choose to be a kind, generous person who cares about the people around us or we can choose to be cruel and selfish. Do we get more pleasure from bringing a smile to someone’s face or from hurting others?

According to the person who recommended Mariah Parriott, she chooses to be the former. Parriott was born and raised in Okeechobee and is a graduate of Okeechobee High School. She has worked for the Chamber of Commerce of Okeechobee for the last 10 years and actually began working there as an administrative assistant while still in high school and is now office manager. “I do a little bit of everything,” she laughed.

She had a little help getting the job when she was in high school. Commissioner Terry Burroughs is a long time family friend and suggested to her father that she apply. He knew her history and her work ethic, because when she was 13 years old, she started a t-shirt business to help fund her show cattle in 4-H. At that time, he was a part of Main Street and the Fair Association, and he sponsored her to help sell her shirts at the fair and at National Day of the Cowboy. “I guess he took a liking to me, and he already liked my parents,” she said. “Then when the job opening came up, he thought I should apply.”

Parriott was very involved in 4-H during high school, showing a pig one year before getting into cattle. She was also involved in livestock judging which is typically more of an FFA event, but 4-H groups are allowed to take part.

Parriott began judging in middle school and continued throughout high school. Because she was working at the time, Parriott was unable to commit the time it would take to do FFA, but said it is a wonderful program as well.

The t-shirts Parriott sold when she was in middle school were called Cow Bling. She said she did a rough drawing of a cow — originally a dairy cow but later she removed the spots. The cow wore a bling bling belt of the type that was popular then. The shirts were printed up locally and then Parriott affixed crystals to the belt. This meant each shirt was half professionally done and half hand crafted. She used the money to pay for entry fees, gas and hotels when she showed her cattle.

Her parents taught her at a young age that if she wanted the extras, she would need to find a way to pay for them, so she did.

She spent many years working in her parents’ flower shop and said really she still helps out now on the busy days like Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day and she often works there on weekends. She also worked for a beauty shop doing their cleaning while she was in high school. Parriott was raised in church and was always an active part of the church youth group.

As the chamber’s manager, she is responsible for keeping the books. She works one on one with the different chamber members and helps out with events. One of her more recent responsibilities is the Google Workshop classes which she is thoroughly enjoying.

Google tries to partner with local chambers for the business side of things, she explained. The classes she teaches help people with “Google my Business” profiles. “If you ever search a business online, you will see that there is a little tab on the side on a desk top or in the middle on a phone. You can click to call them or click for directions, things like that. That’s the part we try to help people manage,” she said. She went on to explain that the more traffic you have on the internet, Google will create that little portal, and a lot of businesses do not maintain their portal. This means no one is updating it. the information on there is only what Google is able to pull up at the time it is created, whether it is correct or not. “We want to encourage businesses to claim that listing for their business, because everything is completely free through Google. Then they can utilize it, because there are hundreds of things it can do for them.”

Parriott teaches a course on how to get your business on Google search and maps and one on using Google Drive. She said if you do not want to purchase Microsoft 365, there are free versions she can help you find. All of the classes are free of charge, but the size of the classes is limited due to space and the fact that she is only one person. She prefers to teach a small group well rather than try to teach a large group haphazardly.

When she teaches a class, she gives the students a follow-along guide and then offers students time later for individual help if needed. The beginning classes are offered once a month, and she prefers you take that class before trying to take anything else. The classes are offered virtually as well. For more information, call 863-467-6246 or stop by the chamber at 55 South Parrott Avenue and say hello to Parriott.

inspiring, okeechobee, mariah parriott

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