Adjusting was not on Blair Jones’ radar, but within the last year and a half, she has made a home with Crawford Catastrophe Services. Her passion for service is what drives her as a person and as a CAT Resource Coordinator in Atlanta. “I love helping people,” she said. “That’s my thing.”
Before coming to Crawford, Blair worked mostly in healthcare and pharmaceuticals. While she enjoyed seeing how her work helped and changed individuals’ lives, she desired a position that had a stronger business focus. In 2017, she heard adjusting from a friend and was immediately interested. The job is essential and requires a complex set of skills. Later that year, she received her adjusting license and started searching for a new role. Blair admittedly wanted her next move to be her last, and that’s when she found Crawford.
“The RESTORE mission really got me,” she said about discovering Crawford. “It’s similar to what we do in healthcare, too. Once I read the importance of business and community, I was sold.”
Blair was initially a bilingual claims representative because of her Spanish language expertise. One day, she received a call from a woman who was driving late at night with her sons, who had hit a deer, causing significant damage to her car. Blair’s role was to connect the woman with local help, but she could sense the woman’s fear and shock in her voice. She stayed on the phone to provide reassurance until help arrived. Blair remembers being on the other line and asking herself how she would feel in that moment and what she would need. Blair knew that compassion and reassurance was the answer. Crawford’s mission popped into her head and she thought, “This is it, this is what it’s all about.”
Blair’s mother is constantly telling her that she is always “working, working, working,” but for Blair, this is how she functions best. Three days into her current position as a resource coordinator, Hurricane Dorian made landfall. She remarked that she had to dive right in and learn on the way, but that she loved every minute of it. “It was tiresome,” she said, “but it was good because we were helping people.”
Even now, with catastrophic storms hitting every region in the United States and the coronavirus pandemic, Blair’s passion has motivated her to persevere. She said she’s been working harder than she ever has while at home and even on weekends. Blair admits that working from home has forced her to be more creative and efficient in her work. She’s also not one to back down from a challenge. Blair credits the CAT Department for taking on challenges that represent the real world and allow them all to learn and grow while helping those in need.
When asked how she manages to keep going day after day, project after project, Blair responded, “It’s just what I love to do. If you have the passion, you can’t let it go because it is in you, it’s innate.”
Outside of Crawford, Blair’s commitment to do good for others also thrives. She is the president of an Atlanta-based non-profit, Ladies in Formation, that aims to support and unify women from diverse backgrounds. The organization hosts health fairs and virtual seminars with expert speakers to aid their community with issues ranging from career development to supporting the family unit. She can also be found volunteering at her church and with other local organizations. When Blair’s younger sister’s school transitioned to online learning, she was there to help organize, tutor and offer support. She still finds time in between calls and on her lunch break to assist her sister.
Despite her busy schedule, Blair still finds time to continue her education. She is currently pursuing a Master of Business Administration at Georgia State University. Blair hopes that her passion for helping others and dedication to never settling will continue to fuel her success both at Crawford and beyond.
