Jason Ratcliffe is described as an exceptional manager, hard worker, prankster, and friend. A Laurel transplant, he now calls Magee home.
Ratcliffe graduated from Wayne County High School in Waynesboro, Miss., May 25, 1994. He began working full time retail the next day as a bagger with Jitney Jungle in Laurel. It did not take long for management to recognize his work ethic and promote him to cashier, then to scanning coordinator.
Two and a half years later Ratcliffe left Jitney and took a position with Walmart in Laurel (before superstore status) as a clerk in the food and candy department
Another two and half years went by and Ratcliffe entered the healthcare field, becoming a Certified Nursing Assistant in 1998. He took a position in a Laurel nursing home. A year later he was hired to work as an orderly in the surgery department of South Central Regional Medical Center (SCRMC) in Laurel. During a patient transport one day an SCRMC purchasing supervisor approached him about a transfer to the purchasing department. After prayerful consideration, Ratcliffe accepted the offer.
In 2003 he was recruited by a former co-worker with SCRMC to apply for the position of buyer within materials management at Magee General Hospital (MGH). After three months of interviews and negotiations Ratcliffe began work at MGH July 7. Three months later the Purchasing Director resigned, and then Chief Executive Officer Althea Crumpton offered Ratcliffe the position of acting manager, which he accepted. “And I’m still there. This will be my 17th year!” he said.
In August, 2018, MGH filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy beginning a long road of transition for Ratcliffe.
“After the bankruptcy I wasn’t sure what would happen. I needed to make sure I had a job regardless,” he explained.
The Wednesday before Thanksgiving, Ratcliffe took the post office exam and passed. He soon was hired as a postal clerk assistant.
Chanda Davis, part time MGH hospital controller, made Ratcliffe an offer when he told her of the new job. “When Jason came to me in January 2019 I was still full time hospital controller, and he was full time materials manager. But I hated to see him go so badly so we talked about it.”
Ratcliffe agreed to stay on part time as Purchasing Manager, working primarily from home. She continued, “This was a good move for him. I very much wanted to have it work out so he could stay part time.”
Davis also calls Ratcliffe an unsung hero from the days of the bankruptcy. “Jason had a large role in helping the hospital through the bankruptcy. You have to draw a line in the sand and everything that you owe your vendors is put on hold. Well 99 percent of the time that destroys your relationships with those vendors. When you owe somebody money and the courts say ‘okay we’re not paying anybody right now’ … You know that doesn’t give warm and fuzzy feelings to their vendors. But Jason had such a wonderful relationship with these vendors. A lot of them worked with us because of him. Jason built such a long solid respectful relationship with these vendors they were more than willing to go the extra mile to help us through difficult times. And that’s not something you would see on the surface.”
Ratcliffe now begins his day at the post office at 5:30 a.m., arriving to scan and sort new mail and packages and stuff post office boxes. Additionally, Ratcliffe works the counter. Then he works at MGH during his lunch hour, nights, and weekends or as needed. He admits that he enjoys traveling but is really a homebody. “When I get home I like to watch television like old sitcoms and reality shows, like America’s Got Talent.”
And while he does not mind cooking he really does not find it practical for a single man. Ratcliffe prefers to eat out. “I like to go back home to Laurel to The Loft and get a steak. Since I’ve been gone their downtown has just grown and revitalized. I’m proud to see that. That’s what I would like for Magee to do… revitalize downtown. The 17 years I have been in Magee it has grown, spreading out up the highway. I grew up as a country boy but I like the city. I like to hear noise. I would love to have one of those loft apartments!”
Nearest and dearest to his heart are his family and friends. His parents, Julian and Jelene Ratcliffe, live in Laurel and visit when they are able. His sister, Julie, resides in Hattiesburg. Jason said, “I’m very thankful and blessed for my parents raising me up with discipline, kindness, and courtesy to others.”
Ratcliffe lives by the axiom “do unto others.” “Laughter really is the best medicine. Share a smile and a laugh with someone each day. Life is short; live like it’s your last.”
