She wasn’t actually looking for a job when she went to vote in November 1988.
But when an acquaintance who was a poll worker said there was an opening in the box office at the Florida Theatre, Anne Lawson started thinking about getting back into the workforce.
Actually, she started thinking it might be a good job for the youngest of her and her husband Bill’s two daughters who had just graduated from high school. But when the suggestion garnered little interest, Lawson decided to apply for the position herself.
“I talked it over with my husband and I decided I would go check it out,” said Lawson. “I thought it would be a way to get out of the house and meet people.”
She interviewed on a Monday and was offered the job that Friday. Since then, Lawson has lost count of how many tickets she has sold in the past 26 years, but she has made plenty of friends.
They are what she’ll remember most about her post-parental career in entertainment, but it will be easy to adjust to being retired.
“I will miss the people,” said Lawson, who is retiring March 13. “But I won’t miss the long hours. We work 9-to-5 during the week and when there’s a show at night or on the weekend, we’re open.”
While she doesn’t get to meet every entertainer who performs at the historic theater, two names come immediately to her mind.
“My greatest memory here was meeting Gregory Peck. We got to meet him and talk to him. He was a wonderful man,” said Lawson. “And we got to meet Carol Burnett when she was here. She’s up there, too.”
Witnessing multiple generations of audience members come to the theater is another part of the job.
People Lawson met who bought tickets shortly after she went to work in the box office are now bringing their children and grandchildren to shows.
Numa Saisselin, president of Florida Theatre, said Lawson will be missed. She’s an integral part of the venue’s ticket sales and public relations team.
“You can teach someone how to use a computer, but you can’t teach someone how to be nice to people,” he said.
Lawson’s husband retired from the decorating business about 10 years ago. A few days after her last day at the box office, the couple and their children and grandchildren will embark on a week-long cruise to the Bahamas.
Marriage and careers can make it challenging to plan family gatherings, so a week at sea is just the ticket.
“We’re going to spend some time with them while we can,” she said.
“It has been a wonderful ride for 26 years, but I am ready.”
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