For Pete's Sake

By Terri Liska and Melanie Mowry Etters

Where can you go to discover the score of the latest Miami Dolphins game; learn the name, singer, album, and year of a 1980’s tune; and have your groceries expertly scanned, bagged, and cheerfully taken to your car all at the same time? The answer is the Chasewood Plaza Publix located in Jupiter, Florida, if your cashier or bagger is named Pete Rackley. Rackley likes to share music trivia with his customers. “It all just pops into in my head,” Rackley explains when he hears the music.

Rackley has worked at Publix since January 1996 and is celebrating his 20th year with the company. He will be attending a store-sponsored gala soon to celebrate this milestone anniversary.

Rackley receives services from the Agency for Persons with Disabilities. He has a team assisting him including his Waiver Support Coordinator Shari Pinsker with Above and Beyond Support, Inc.

Employment Specialist Terri Liska with the Arc of Palm Beach County visits Rackley monthly and is impressed by his outstanding success. Liska said, “Pete reaching his 20th year is amazing, but what is even more impressive is his decision in November 2015 to branch out and attempt to learn the cash register. I wasn’t sure if Pete would accept the challenge, but boy, did he, and within several months he went through cashier training and is now regularly working on the register with hardly any assistance at all!”

Now, in addition to bagging customers’ groceries and escorting them to their vehicles, gathering carts, and helping to make sure everything is running smoothly for his front-end supervisors and co-workers, Rackley is called on to fill in as a cashier as part of his regular shift or when someone calls in sick.

Chasewood Publix Manager Nick Abiusi said, “It was an easy decision teaching Pete to run a register. Pete is always focused on his customers and giving them world class customer service, so being able to run a register is just another way that Pete can ensure our customers are taken care of.”

Rackley was slightly surprised by how quickly he learned to run a register on his own. He said, “I am now working as a cashier so I guess it did happen!”

One of Pete’s greatest successes is his remarkable transformation since his birth. His mother, Glenda Rackley, recalls, “As a child, Pete would often sit motionless because he didn’t have control over his right side. But with the help of physical exercise and therapy, Pete is now constantly on the go at Publix and involved in the Special Olympics since elementary school. His dramatic improvement is nothing less than a miracle.”

Pete Rackley has other accomplishments, which include being crowned homecoming king at Jupiter High School in the 90’s. He still has the crown, and it makes him very happy.

Rackley has been a Special Olympics athlete for many years. Bowling, the standing long jump, and swimming are the three sports he enjoys, and he has earned numerous ribbons and medals. Recently he won a first place ribbon in the 50-meter freestyle and two second place ribbons in the 50-meter backstroke and 4x50 meter freestyle relay.

Rackley is an avid sports fan, sharing with his customers the names and scores from his favorite teams, including the University of Florida Gators, University of Miami Hurricanes, and Florida State University Seminoles. He also enjoys basketball, baseball, soccer, and NASCAR.

Pete also currently serves as a greeter at his church and participates in a weekly leisure program with the Therapeutic Recreation Complex, located in Lake Worth, where he has fun with friends.

Rackley is always very happy and outgoing. “Everybody loves Pete,” said Mrs. Rackley.  Manager Abuisi agrees, “No matter what is happening in the world around him, Pete is always there with a smile to brighten everyone’s day.”

Pete Rackley.