Sparkling floors, always-tidy classrooms and a flower sprucing up the bathroom are just a few special touches found in Horticulture Hall because of its dedicated caretaker, custodian Tori Postel.

Faculty and staff wanted to honor Postel for always going the extra mile, said Kim Gaul, administrative specialist in horticulture. To do so, they had to be sneaky because Postel is humble and doesn’t like to be the center of attention, Gaul said.

“She’s the type of person that if we told her this was for her, she wouldn’t come,” she said.

A department photo seemed the perfect cover. After Postel and horticulture faculty and staff gathered around a Christmas tree for the photo Friday afternoon, ISU President Gregory Geoffroy presented Postel with the Distinguished Service Award for her dedicated service to the Department of Horticulture and Iowa State. Along with the award, Postel received a garden statue of a woman holding birds created by Iowa artisan Isabelle Bloom.

The stunned Postel couldn’t stop smiling as she thanked everyone and accepted congratulations.

“The university president came. That’s, you know, surprising,” she said. “I appreciate it so much. Everybody’s so kind.”

The department of horticulture created the award for Postel to show its appreciation, Gaul said.

“She works numerous hours beyond the call of duty, and we think we have the cleanest building on campus,” she said.

Postel has been known to sweep snow off the loading dock and clean baseboards with toothbrushes, faculty and staff said.

A strong work ethic and remarkable commitment make Postel special, said Jeff Iles, professor and chairman of horticulture. Last week, a water leak caused part of a classroom ceiling to collapse, creating a mess of water and ceiling tiles. Postel came in early to clean up before students came for class.

“We’ve almost come to expect that kind of thing from Tori,” Iles said.

Postel is often hard at work in the early morning hours, and she and Iles have startled each other a number of times, he said.

“I like working. I like, you know, my building,” she said. “I come in the morning to make sure everything is clean.”

Coralie Lashbrook, assistant professor in horticulture, said she was working on a grant at about 4 a.m. one day when Postel scared her. Lashbrook asked Postel what she was doing at work so early. She replied, “‘I’m just taking care of my building,'” Lashbrook said.

Postel began working at Iowa State in January 1977 and has been in the Department of Horticulture since 1991. In her nearly 28 years of service, she has received the perfect attendance coffee mug nine times.

Gail Nonnecke, professor of horticulture, said Veishea celebrations have brought a lot of traffic for plant sales, which creates extra work, but no matter how great the mess, Postel takes care of it without complaint.

One year, students taped footprints to the floor to guide visitors all the way through the horticulture building to the sales.

When they were removed, the tape residue had made quite a mess, she said.

“She never said a word,” Nonnecke said.

Postel has a lot of pride in the horticulture building and views its cleanliness and appearance as a reflection of her, Nonnecke said.

Faculty and staff receive Postel’s attention too, Gaul said. She remembers them with gifts at Christmas and cakes on birthdays. Because Postel has no children of her own, she takes an interest in their children, Gaul said.