Livia Dietz, Infants at Work retiree, six months of service

The City of Tyler often recognizes its employees for their service, but Wednesday’s city council meeting featured a little bit different type of recognition — or recognition of a little bit, rather.

The Tyler City Council honored five employees and a baby for their service and outstanding commitment to the City of Tyler at this week’s meeting.

Livia Dietz, daughter of Utilities Director Kate Dietz, has been coming to work with her mother for the last six months as part of the city’s Infants At Work program.

This program, which was started in June 2021, allows parents to bring their babies to work from the age of 4 weeks to 6 months. It is designed not only to retain employees but also allows new parents to transition back into work while keeping their newborns close by.

In celebration of her “retirement,” Livia was presented with a certificate for her six months of service to the city along with a Tyler ID badge. Library staff were also on hand to gift Livia with a certificate and a bag of library goodies, including her first Tyler Public Library book.

Tyler Mayor Don Warren said Infants At Work is a great program that makes parents and people in the workplace smile.

“It’s good for everybody,” he said, adding his congratulations on behalf of the city to Livia for all her hard work.

Mother Kate previously told the Tyler Morning Telegraph the program helped make the transition back to work much easier and also helped her be a better mother by having the opportunity to spend all day with her child.

The program has received statewide recognition, as earlier this year the city was presented with a Texas Municipal League award for Municipal Excellence in Management Innovations. The program also received the Corporate Champion Award from the Smith County Champions for Children.

Other employees were also honored Wednesday, including:

• Amanda Cook, Public Safety Telecommunicator Administrator, 20 years of service
• James Owens, Lake Palestine Water Treatment Plant Operator, 20 years of service
• Kelly Shirley, Fire Senior Captain, 35 years of service
• Gary Cannon, Water Utilities Project Manager, 25 years of service
• Alan Lowery, Fire Captain, 25 years of service

At this important milestone, city council and staff expressed their sincere appreciation for the dedication and for the special contribution they make to the organization. Together, these employees represent 125.5 years of service with the City of Tyler.