Maria
Jovanovic
Living a life of gratitude and service to others.
Maria Jovanovic’s life and experiences have taught her a multitude of valuable lessons – resilience, determination, courage, and gratitude, just to name a few. Originally from El Salvador, Maria immigrated to Lethbridge in Alberta, CA in 1993 when she was 23 years old.
Upon arriving in Canada, Maria worked in the hospitality industry for 10 years.
“During those years I had the opportunity to meet and work with amazing people and was given various training and advancement opportunities for which I am extremely thankful as they helped get me to where I am today,” she explained.
Looking for a change, Maria started her career with Agropur as an Operations Clerk in July 2005. After only about a year, Maria had to leave the workforce entirely to care for her daughter who was born prematurely at 26 weeks.
“After my daughter was born, I didn’t work outside the home for about seven years,” Maria explained. “Those years were filled with challenges, hope and growth. I grew in patience and empathy and learned about medical terminology I didn’t even know existed. But most importantly, it gave me the opportunity to see life from the perspective of a child with disabilities. To this day I’m still learning.”
An opportunity to return to Agropur
In 2012, Maria was ready to return to work and a temporary leave coverage position at Agropur was available. She was re-hired and has been with Agropur ever since.
“I truly believe I was meant to be here!” said Maria. “Every day I’m happy to work with what I consider to be my second family.”
Lethbridge at a glance:
- 110 employees.
- 170 million liters of milk processed per year.
- 86,500 total square feet of production and warehouse.
- Products: Swiss, Edam, Fontina, Gouda, Mozzarella, Cheddar (white, colored, jalapeño, herbs & garlic), Monterey Jack (white, colored, red/green jalapeño, red/green jalapeño habanero), brick (plain, red/green jalapeño) Colby, Havarti (plan and jalapeño), Parmesan, Romano, Allegro.
Today, Maria works as an administrative assistant at Agropur’s Lethbridge plant.
“The best way I can describe my role is support staff,” Maria explains. “I’ve supported multiple plant and HC managers throughout my time and each of them have enriched my professional and personal life in one way or another.”
There are plenty of reasons Maria loves her job, but planning activities to celebrate the successes of her team tops the list.
“My role also allows me to be the first point of contact for other colleagues or guests who visit the Lethbridge plant,” Maria said. “My goals is to always welcome them just like I would if they were coming to my home.”
A passion for family and volunteerism
Maria is happily married to her husband of 23 years and together they have three children ages 15, 17 and 19. Outside of work, Maria’s favorite time of day is mealtime as it allows her to spend time with loved ones and to give thanks for the day.
Every Sunday you can find Maria volunteering with the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) where she helps by sorting, boxing, and delivering food donations to families in need in her community.
“My years of volunteering have led me to meet incredible people who have moved to Canada from war-torn places, and I’ve created amazing friendships that go beyond language barriers, ethnicity, skin color or religion,” Maria said.
“My greatest accomplishment during my time volunteering with ADRA has been meeting a young Syrian mother and teaching her how to drive,” she explains. “This experience made me extremely grateful for Google Translate and hand signals! But it was all worth it when I was able to celebrate with her the day she got her driver’s license. She’s since moved to another city, but we remain friends and I will be her sister at heart forever.”
Maria’s greatest hope is to pass her legacy of love and service to others onto her children.
“I believe none of us is an island; we’re better together!” said Maria.
