DAVENPORT, Iowa -- We all have our go-to favorite ice cream flavors, like strawberry, vanilla, or chocolate. But customers at the Whitey's Ice Cream on Locust Street in Davenport have their favorite go-to employee.
Jan Rusk has been working at Whitey's for 48 years. She's spent 33 of those years scooping cones and making malts at Whitey's on Locust Street.
"Feels like home," Jan said. "You know the routine of home."
Jan said she found the job through a listing in the paper, "and I thought, "Well, I'll work part time.""
Now, Jan is more than a part time employee, she is a trusted trainer.
"I know when Jan is here that things are going to be taken care of," training manager Nick Reid said.
"She makes sure you know the small things," employee Kaitlyn Sparbel said. "Everybody gets the little things right."
"They are a little weak at first, but you see them blossom with their dip," said Jan.
It's not just her relationships with her coworkers that keep her smiling, but also her relationship with her customers. She loves all her customers and knows all the ice cream, but some things are still hard to make.
"Ice cream shakes are the hardest," Jan said. "But, my favorite flavor is the new one mango raspberry."
Jan says she does not have any plans to retire. She commutes to the Locust location everyday from her home in Coal Valley, Illinois.
"I just can't quite let it go," Jan said.
