UW-Whitewater held its second Custodial Appreciation Day last week in the Hamilton Room of the University Center.

Custodial employees played competitive games for prizes and recieved a free lunch.

The event was part of the International Executive Housekeeper’s Appreciation Week, which celebrates custodial and janitorial workers across the country.

Last year, the University Center and Residence Life hosted the event, but after a proposal this year, Facilities Planning and Management took over as host.

“This is an opportunity to recognize the staff [and] tell them that they have done well and that we all appreciate what they do,” Custodial Services Supervisor Alan Goytowski said.

During the week, thank you cards, as well as chocolate bars, were delivered to custodial employees on campus.

The hosts of the event took tasks that  custodial and janitorial workers see on a day-to-day basis and turned them into fun, team-based games that employees enjoy.

Games held during the Custodial Appreciation Day included window cleaning, a vacuum relay race and a toilet roll toss.

The winners of each event were awarded key chains, T-shirts and other small prizes.

The grand prize this year was a year-long membership to the Williams Center.

All of the activities were held in the Hamilton Room in the University Center, and there was a large turnout as nearly two-thirds of the entire custodial staff attended the event.

Jim Zink, who has worked at UW-Whitewater for just over a year, said he enjoyed the event and noted that the free meal made the day even better.

Zink said the event expressed how grateful students and staff are for all the hard work the custodial staff puts in.