Jacqueline Harris, Office Manager for Robert Cade, M.D.
Upon leaving her position June 30, Jackie Harris will have completed 45 years of state employment — of which she has devoted 33 years to administrative support for Gatorade inventor Robert Cade, M.D., a professor of medicine and physiology.
“I’ve been greatly influenced by the people I’ve worked for, including Dr. Emanuel Suter (now retired), Dr. Craig Tisher who is now our medical college dean, and especially Dr. Cade, with whom I started working in October 1970,” Harris said. “Cade is a brilliant person with a big heart. He has been a friend to both the scholarly and the indigent throughout all the years I have been associated with him.”
Describing herself as “an old-fashioned secretary,” she said that over the years she has continued the working style she adopted early in her careeer — arriving early, putting hot tea or coffee on her boss’ desk, and staying late to finish each day’s assignments. Her career highlights included helping to establish a district office of the Florida Crippled Children’s Commission (now called Children’s Medical Services) at Shands Teaching Hospital in 1961.
With more free hours available, Harris plans to spend more time gardening, cooking, singing and playing piano for her church, and participating in local and foreign church missionary work.