Today Is A Happy And Sad Day At M/A/R/C Research
I can remember my first day at M/A/R/C Research almost four years ago. I didn’t know anyone at all and needed help finding my office. One by one I met the staff. One by one I forgot the staff’s name and that probably continued for my first week. I was always impressed with how nice, open and talented they were. For some reason they accepted me–or at least appeared to anyway. Reviewing the financials, I knew pretty well that I had a few challenges in front of me. I knew each great or happy day could be followed with a hard or sad day.
Today May 9, 2008 is one of those days — a sad day. Today after 8+ years, someone on our team–Fred Van Tatenhove–will be retiring. Riding off into the sunset. Most of the readers don’t know Fred, so please let me take a minute to describe him.
- He is the type of person who always seems to have a smile on his face
- He is the type of person who would help out anyone at any time!
- He is smart
- He is a solid researcher
- He is the type of person that everyone would want as a friend
- He is very, very family-oriented
And yes Fred is a good golfer……just NOT as good as his wife (which is another example of how smart he is).
My life is a little better because I have worked with Fred for almost four years.
Fred, I am excited for you and Marge that you will be able to spend time with your grandchildren. I know how important that is to you. On behalf of the M/A/R/C family, thank you for all that you did.
Please don’t forget us, and know that we won’t forget you.
Not good bye, just so long!
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Congratulations Fred,
I will miss seeing your smiling face and positive attitude in the office everyday. You are a joy to work with and the the best at recognizing others for their accomplishments and hard work. I wish you and your family many years of happiness, fun and relaxation.
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Fred, it has been great knowing you. Your cheer will be missed.
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Fred,
Best wishes to you and your family in you new endeavors! You will be greatly missed around here. I think Kylene needs to put a ‘Fred Update’ section in the Business Update so we can keep up with what’s going on in retirement life!
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Fred,
Best of luck! You will be greatly missed! It has been such a pleasure to work with you and I hope we’ll stay in touch. Thank you for everything you’ve taught me!
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Fred,
Congratulations! Wishing you great adventurers in this next chapter. Your smile and good cheer will be missed.
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Fred, you have made this a happier and brighter place to work with your smile and positive outlook! Thank you!
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Fred -
Congratulations on making it to retirement!!! Good luck to you in all your future endeavors!!! I’ll miss talking to you and Marge at the Christmas party this year…maybe you can make the trip back.
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
CONGRATULATIONS on your retirement Fred!!
I wish you and Marge the best. It has been a pleasure working with you over the past seven years. I wanted to thank you for always being the first one done with your billing and the first one to update revenue tracker each week!! I will miss your smiling face and wonderful attitude.
Happy Retirement!
Patricia
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Fred, thanks for all the good times (some involving sample product Heineken) and the challenging projects! You will be missed.
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Fred,
First, let me say congratulations on your well-deserved retirement. I hope you enjoy the next stage of your life. Don’t forget to come off the golf courses every now and then!
I am so glad I had the opportunity to work with and learn from you in the past year. I’ve enjoyed the studies that we have shared (or rather that you have shared with me!), and always had fun working with you - even when the studies themselves weren’t fun! You will be missed around here.
Happy retirement!
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Fred,
Best wishes to you and Marge as you begin your retirement. I am so excited for you! While I’m still fairly new, and we didn’t really get a chance to work together that much, I am thankful our career paths crossed. I still remember how welcome and comfortable you made me feel when I came in for my interview. Good luck to you, and here’s to a lifetime of Saturdays!
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Congratulations Fred!!!
It has really been a pleasure working with you over the years. You will truly been missed here. Enjoy your retirement and best wishes!
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Fred,
Congratulations on your upcoming retirement. It’s been great working with you these last few years. I know you’ll have a blast just kicking back and savoring life. ENJOY!!!
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
We connected over some people we have on common that worked with you at Coors. Even before I met you I had heard from them that you were a GREAT guy. I was new to M/A/R/C and you were so friendly and approachable. Being a SOHO, our work paths rarely crossed, but on my visits to Dallas there were some opportunities to learn about your kids and grandkids and swap stories.
I hope retirement is everything you are hoping for. Enjoy it and spend lots of time with those grandkids!!!
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Fred,
You will certainly be missed around here. I can remember when I was new and one of the studies that I was working on with you wasn’t going according to plan. I was so afraid to come and tell you that we were having a problem and when I did you didn’t get mad or yell of anything. Thanks for not scaring the heck out of the new girl!
Good luck to you and Marge. The rest of us will be here counting our Mondays!
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Fred,
We are going to miss you so much around here. It has truly been an honor to know you, to work with you, and to call you a friend. I wish you and Marge all the happiness you deserve as you begin the next chapter in your life! Enjoy your retirement and come back and visit often.
Keep in touch, we miss you already!
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Fred,
Although my only contact with you has been to request information for Client Voices, I will miss that and miss hearing your name mentioned all the time by Merrill. I hope you enjoy your retirement and those grandchildren.
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Fred,
Congratulations on your retirement. I’m really going to miss all your golf stories, client stories, grandkid stories, but most of all, YOU!! Enjoy retirement, Colorado and WEEKDAY GOLF. Maybe you and Marge will come back to Dallas and we’ll finally get in that golf game with Merrill.
Keep in touch . . . we’re all going to miss you!!!
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Fred,
To say I have enjoyed working with you is an understatement. I agree with Merrill, you always have a smile on your face…which never fails to result in one on mine.
I am very excited for you as you begin this new phase of your life but you will definitely leave a void here at M/A/R/C
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Fred -
I will miss working with you. I have learned so much from you over the past year. You are one of the best people I have ever had the opportunity to work with. All the best of luck to you and Marge. Enjoy Colorado and enjoy a relaxing retirement.
Elizabeth
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
…still refusing to admit you are really going and thinking, wow, i know someone that’s retiring - geezzz, i’ve got to get some younger friends…
..on another note, we can still call you if we need you, right?
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Fred always has such a great attitude. Always responsive and willing to help. It is no wonder that clients and co-workers alike enjoy working with him.
Fred, have a long and wonderful retirement.
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Fred,
It’s been an honor and a joy getting to work with you. I’ve learned a lot and had a good time doing it. Thanks for everything!
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Fred,
It has been a great pleasure working with you over the past eight years. I have learned a tremendous amount from you and feel that I am a better person for having had that opportunity. I wish you and Marge all the best as you start the next chapter of your life in Colorado.
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Patrizio in July will never be the same. We’ll think of you every time we order crab claws and bellinis.
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Fred,
It has been such a joy working with you. The office won’t be the same without your smile, all your great stories, watching you mix up your salads with 25 dressings (ok, 3), your participation in all the Hollywood gossip, and your laugh. You will have to be sure to visit us when you are back in Dallas - and we won’t even ask for beer or chocolate samples!
We will definitely miss having you around.
I wish you and Marge all the best and lots of perfect golfing weather!
Kristy
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Congrats Fred on your retirement! Best to you and your family for this exciting new chapter in your life! So glad I had a chance to meet you even though our ‘work paths’ haven’t crossed that often. You will be missed alot! What is Amy’s team going to do without you? Nancy
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Fred, I’ll always remember working with you and traveling down to San Antonio together, you are truly someone I admire personally and professionally and I wish you the best in retirement.
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Way to go, Fred! Gonna miss your warm smile and always kind words … come see us in SC (all golfee/retirees do eventually!).
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Fred, I’m so glad that you wised up and joined the Assessor bunch so we had the opportunity to work together. Don’t forget about all of us slaving away back here - we certainly won’t forget you. Enjoy your retirement!
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Best wishes to you in retirement! Although we never had a chance to work together, I have a great deal of respect for you. Enjoy!
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
When the IT group first moved into the Research building, I had the pleasure of sitting cattycorner from Fred. What a nice guy to have for a neighbor! Fred was always quick with a story and had an infectious laugh. Not only that, he really knew how to take care of his clients!
We will really miss you Fred. Best wishes to you and Marge.
Frank Summers
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Although I cannot think of a time that we actually worked on a project directly together I will have to say you were always most friendly and willing to have a quick chat at any time.
Enjoy your retirement and don’t forget about those of us that still have to fight the traffic to work.
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Fred, I’m sorry to see you go. I’ve always enjoyed working with you, and getting your perspective on client issues. You’ll be truly missed!
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Fred!!
WOW! You’re one lucky guy, and we’re all jealous! 7 Saturdays a week! That’s awesome, and you deserve it! You will definitely be missed around here, but you have way more important adventures ahead of you! Enjoy!
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Best of luck on your new Adventure! You will be missed by all! Enjoyed working with you and your team.
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
I’m going to miss talking golf with Fred and telling him about all the stupid bets I’ve made.
Fred…I wish you all the best in your retirement. Remember, in Colorado you have to take less club.
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Some of my favorite accounts to work on have been Fred’s accounts – I mean, who wouldn’t enjoy working with test products like chocolates, fast food and beer? And who wouldn’t enjoy working with Fred? My appreciation of Fred as a co-worker goes beyond the fact that we both hail from America’s dairyland and share a love of sudsy beverages. Fred is down to earth, fun, and always treats everyone with the same respect and good humor. And even in the face of a crisis (like our shipping company losing 100+ test cameras), Fred always keeps his cool. We will miss you around here, Fred……
So I guess you can stop counting Mondays now- every day will be a Saturday or Sunday for you from now on! Best wishes to you and Marge in retirement.
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
I agree totally with Merrill about Fred. He always has a smile on his face. He is always very quick on “thank yous” as well. One time I processed an invoice after 5:00 pm for his client, and he nominated me for an award at Research. So nice! I am so happy that he can retire and do what he loves! He will be missed, but I wish him all the luck in the world!
Marcia
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Fred, congratulations on your retirement! I know I’ve only been here at M/A/R/C for a few weeks, but I’d like to say that you are one of the genuinely nicest people I’ve met. It’s a pleasure to come to work in a place where people make the office environment cordial and inviting. Thanks for making me feel welcome here every day and I wish the best for you in your next adventure!
Mark
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Fred, my one big regret is that I didn’t get to work on more projects with you. That Jonathan Hook selfishly hogged nearly every opportunity to do that. Of course, he knew that working with you was always a pleasure. You will certainly be missed around here. I, for one, will miss our conversations - whether it was discussing the right design for a project or debating which bachelorette would be sent home that week (I’m laying my money on Shayne getting the final rose…what about you?). I wish you all the best in the days ahead. Enjoy retirement - and keep in touch!
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Congratulations on your retirement Fred! I’ve really enjoyed getting to know you and learning all I can from your experiences. You are a great storyteller. Maybe you should write a book???
We will miss you, your hard work, your “box of cookware”, your salad dressing concoctions, your smile, and your laugh! Take care and enjoy your time in Colorado!
ps - Come on, you’re not really leaving, are you??? Hahaha!
May 9th, 2008 at 9:00 am
It seems like only yesterday that I was sitting in a cube over at the Beltline office carefully listening to the “new” guy answer his phone so I could get the correct pronunciation of his last name…Vantaten-what?? Since our first project together, Fred has been so much fun to work with. I wish Fred and Marge all the happiness in the world! But rather than say good-bye (don’t forget I have your email address and cell phone number), I’ll just say “have a great weekend”…and hope that our paths cross again soon.
May 9th, 2008 at 11:02 am
M/A/R/C Friends
Little did I realize when I joined M/A/R/C and moved to the area in 1999 what a great run it would be for Marge and me. A lot of that is due to all the great people I have had the honor of working with at M/A/R/C. The loyalty, support and hard working nature of everyone are something to be proud of and not always found in today’s work place. And little did we realize how much we would end up enjoying the Dallas area. Our Colorado family and friends are upset and concerned that we have become Cowboy fans.
And a special thanks for everyone in the Westridge office for making yesterday afternoon a special and fun event for Marge and me. I certainly appreciated all the kind words, stories and of course the gifts.
After 43 years of dealing with work Mondays, I have none left. I plan on keeping in touch with your success and will be back as we have many friends in the Dallas area.
Be well,
Fred
May 9th, 2008 at 11:17 am
I know it’s a sad day for everyone that worked with my Dad (I never realized how much he was liked…not that it surprises me!) - but believe me, we cannot be more excited to have them here in Denver with us - and his soon to be twin grandchildren!!
Thank you for taking care of him in his “sunset year”, I know how much he enjoyed working with all of you and I know how much he will miss you all.
Jeff
May 9th, 2008 at 11:29 am
Jeff,
Thanks for your comments. You are very lucky to have a Dad like Fred - he is a very special person.
Also excited he is getting to see the grandchildren grow up.
Have a great summer.
Merrill
May 9th, 2008 at 12:03 pm
Merill-
Thanks for putting this blog together, I’ve very much enjoyed reading all the comments.
We’re definitely looking forward to the summer and Dad’s retirement trip to Kauai. I better watch out, his golf game actually might get pretty good!
Jeff
May 9th, 2008 at 1:46 pm
Jeff,
Glad to do it. He is a good golfer but not as good as your Mom. One of his gifts was tickets too a future Cowboys/Bronco’s game if you let him beat you at golf once in awhile he might end up taking you.
Enjoy seeing your parents often - my parents are still on the east coast which is difficult at times.
Merrill
May 12th, 2008 at 12:03 pm
Hi Fred,
We’ve never met and I know I have missed out on knowing, what seems to be one of the greats, in the industry.
Best of luck to you and your family in your new beginning!
Kind Regards,
Fee