100 Moments

Sydell and Arnold Miller Family Pavilion 
Cleveland Clinic main campus

Cleveland
10:10 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time

The middle-aged couple is lost. They’re trying to find the surgery check-in desk. With a friendly smile, David Puckett Jr. points them in the right direction, just up the steps and behind the frosted glass wall. 

It’s all in a day’s work for a Red Coat. Cleveland Clinic welcomes millions of visitors annually — and David takes great pride in personally helping as many of them as he can. When he used to accompany his wife, Jennifer, to main campus for her cancer treatments, they were grateful for the kindness shown to them by the Patient Support Services staff. “I’d like to do that someday,” David thought. Jennifer encouraged him to pursue his passion. 

After nearly three decades in the banking industry, David hung up his business suits once and for all and became a Red Coat himself. “I like to play a game when I’m working,” he says. “If people come anywhere near me, I try to catch 100% of them with a ‘Good morning’ or a ‘Can I help you today?’ or a ‘Have a great afternoon.’ I love this job. As Red Coats, we’re here to assist anyone and everyone in any way we can.”

Photograph by Reen Nemeth