Diplomas, Graduation Gowns, and Goodbyes

Ely Ponti got her first job at our Juanita store as a high-school junior. The pay and flexible scheduling appealed to her. During school, she worked about 10 hours a week, bumping that to 20 hours over the summer. She spread the word, and soon enough, three of her friends had also secured Pagliacci jobs. They learned how to toss pizza dough and manage the ovens. After summer shifts, they’d occasionally go to the beach and jump in the lake--still wearing their pizza clothes.  

Every year, across our many locations in the Greater Seattle Area, late spring brings about dozens of celebrations as our high-school seniors prepare to don graduation gowns. College glitters on the horizon for many of them.  

Here are some of the colleges that our crew will be attending next year: UW, UW-Bothell, WSU, Central Washington, Bellevue College, Gonzaga, University of Oregon, Occidental College, USC, Fordham, UC-Santa Barbara, Wesleyan, San Diego State, Arizona State, Cascadia College, University of Manchester. We’re so proud of them! 

Our General Manager at Juanita, Emily Syberg, will miss her graduating seniors but is thrilled at what their futures hold. “Working with so many teenagers is a blast,” says Emily. “They have tons of energy, and they’re hilarious. These kids are getting into new chapters of their lives, and it’s so exciting to be a part of it. Companies that don’t hire under 18 are definitely missing out! There are no bad days with these goofballs around.” 

Kylee Bogle, who followed Ely to our Juanita store, will soon head to Gonzaga University. She says, “Pagliacci was a great first job. I learned what it was like having the responsibilities of a job and working with others. Pagliacci was also good at understanding when I needed days off.” 

Ely will attend Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. “I’ve loved my experience at Pagliacci this past year,” says Ely. “My GM and all the shift leads are always fun to work with, and they always want you to learn and improve at work. Everyone is so nice, and they are hard workers, which makes work ten times better.” 

Both Ely and Kylee hope to work at Pagliacci again next summer. We look forward to the next few weeks with them before they go, and will look forward to making more memories—and pizza—the following summer.  

Congratulations, graduates!