All you Smiths and Jones out there wouldn’t understand but having the last name Stelmachowich can be interesting.
I was in the downtown Safeway recently and was being waited on by a young man named Jeremy.
When they ring you through they are supposed to say “Have a great day Mrs. Whoever.”
In all my 46 years of going through stores and banks, no one has ever pronounced my last name correctly (the Ukrainian way, I mean).
I do walk away chuckling at their attempts but thus far, they have never gotten it right.
Step up Jeremy…Have a good day Ms. Stelmacovich (that’s how it is pronounced). Once I picked myself up off the ground, I asked him how he knew.
He said I was a referee for Vernon Minor Hockey for years and he had to learn how to pronounce a lot of different names and then say them quickly.
Kudos to Jeremy for perfecting his tongue, kudos to Vernon Minor Hockey for teaching him the trade and to Safeway for hiring a brilliant young man.
Tammy Stelmachowich
Vernon
