Oftentimes, we only hear about the negative experiences— especially in the news business. However, every now and then, you might run across an especially friendly cashier at the local grocery store. Or some healthcare personnel that were particularly interested in your well-being as a patient. Or any random person that has gone above and beyond his job duties, or her obligations as an average citizen. Those are the kinds of "Above & Beyond" stories we'll feature regularly, starting with two Wadesboro Walmart Pharmacy employees who have consistently gone the extra mile to help their customers.

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Judy Huntley of Peachland has had more than her share of health problems, most recently a seizure several weeks ago that caused her to go into cardiac arrest. But she said she knows whatever her health problems, she's always been able to count on two employees at the Walmart Pharmacy in Wadesboro— pharmacy technician Sabrina Sturdivant of Wadesboro and pharmacist Paula London of Monroe.

"They are very busy there but they always take the time to see about you," Huntley said. "Those two ladies, they're always very nice, every time I go in there, no matter how busy they are."

The pharmacy is busy, indeed. On an average day, London says the pharmacy fills about 500 prescriptions.

"We always make sure we're nice and helpful to her," London said of Huntley. "She's been through a lot and has had to use our pharmacy a lot, unfortunately."

As a pharmacy tech, Sturdivant deals with customers more often than London, and London says, often goes the extra mile to make sure customers get all the information they need about their prescriptions.

"Sabrina sees [the customers] first, usually," London said. "And as a whole, most of our people are really good but Sabrina always goes above and beyond."

Sturdivant says she clearly remembers her most recent interaction with Huntley, who had called the pharmacy several times trying to get information she needed about some medications she was taking. No one was able to help her— until she happened to get Sturdivant on the phone. "She had to call back and finally she got me," Sturdivant recalled. "I was on the phone with her for about 30 minutes but we got her straightened out."

"She really took the time to talk to me and my doctor about the medications I was taking," Huntley said.

Sturdivant says that customer service is just something that comes naturally to her. She feels the need to make sure each and every customer is satisfied and well informed a bout their medications. She calls most of them by name. "It makes the customer feel like they're important if you can remember their name," she said. When asked how she remembers as many as 500 names a day, she replied, "I don't know how I do it, I just do!"

She said she also makes sure she helps out customers whose doctor may have written down an over-the-counter medication on their prescription pad. "Sometimes when you go to a pharmacy, they'll say, 'Oh, this is just Benadryl.' But the customer may not know where the Benadryl is or that it's not prescription-strength so I just go get it for them."

Although pharmacy employees often deal with customers face to face, Sturdivant and London say it's not something that's really talked about in their training. "It's really not something we learn in school," said London, who just finished pharmacy school in April 2008. "It's just that some people's personalities are just directed more toward customer service."

"Some people work in the pharmacy just for the job, but for Paula and I, we're there to help people," Sturdivant said. "It makes us feel good to help others."

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Would you like to recognize someone who's gone above and beyond for you? Please contact editor Abby Cavenaugh at 704-694-2161, acavenaugh@windstream.net or P.O. Box 959, Wadesboro, NC 28170. Please include your name and contact information.