John Powell

When you walk into Findlay’s Olive Garden chances are you will be met by John Powell, the lead host and he will greet you like an old friend. When you leave after your meal he will bid you a sincere and fond farewell. He leaves you will a warm feeling by just his presence.

John has worked at the restaurant since it opened ten years ago. He was hired on the spot and to quote management he “took to his position like a fish to water.” He currently oversees and trains 11 hosts and is busy training new ones as the influx of college students coming and going is in full swing.

He is a native Findlayite and graduated in 1973 from Findlay High School. He went directly into the work force and spent 28 years with the City of Findlay doing the hard jobs no one else wants, serving the people of Findlay. He worked in the Street, Parks, Traffic and Sign departments during his tenure. An on-the-job injury damaged his leg and he had to take early retirement at 49 years of age.

For ten years he worked weekdays and weekends at Olive Garden but made a promise to his wife of 16 years to dedicate his weekends to her so now he only is there Monday through Friday. On weekends he travels to malls with is wife, golfs a little, watches golf and they travel to Indiana to assist ailing family members.

He was taught by his mother to be even tempered as she advised him to “work around situations without being angry or spiteful.”

His parents were both from farming families and taught John to be “down to earth, work with what you have, even if you have little take pride in what you have and everything can be earned with hard work.”