Miami Lakes town employees chose Budget Officer Melissa Hernandez as Employee of the Year for 2022.
“What can I say but thank you,” Hernandez said when she was honored with a plaque during the Nov. 1 council meeting. “I’m so thankful for this and I’m so appreciative to my colleagues.”
Town Manager Edward Pidermann said Hernandez was the first person he hired four years ago when he began leading town staff.
He read a few comments about her from the nomination forms that mentioned how she has an open-door policy and how she motivates fellow employees.
“She also has the great distinction of being a town resident, she loves this town, and she is one of us,” Pidermann said.
Hernandez previously worked for the city of Hialeah as a budget analyst.
She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in psychology from Barry University and a graduate degree from St. Thomas University.
“I’m grateful to have Ed as my boss,” Hernandez said. “I don’t say this because I’m here in a public place, but he is probably one of the best bosses I have ever had.”
In the photo, from left: Miami Lakes officials at town hall congratulated town Budget Officer Melissa Hernandez. Councilmembers Luis Collazo, Marilyn Ruano, Josh Dieguez and Tony Fernandez; former Vice Mayor Jefferey Rodriguez; Mayor Manny Cid; Councilman Carlos O. Alvarez, Maria Hernandez, mother to Budget Officer Melissa Hernandez; her son Ezra Herrera, husband Fernando Herrera and father Jorge Hernandez and Town Manager Ed Pidermann.