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10 Awesome Photos of #DukeTimeOff

Duke employees share moments from summer pastimes

From the beaches of North Carolina to Arizona’s Grand Canyon and even the French Alps, faculty and staff have shared all sorts of ways they’ve enjoyed #DukeTimeOff this summer.

Since May 18, employees have shared 301 photos of their time away from the office on social media and through an online submission tool to show how they’ve used time off to recharge and unwind. Over the past 12 weeks, several staff have been rewarded for their participation, winning beach chairs from Duke Stores and a lunch and overnight stay from the Washington Duke Inn & Golf Club. 

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This week, three participants were selected at random to receive summer prize packs containing a beach towel and water bottle from Duke Stores and bamboo travel utensils from Sustainable Duke. The winners are:

  • Chulpan Khismatova, lab administrator, Fuqua School of Business
  • Jessica Burgess, marketing manager, Carolina Cord Blood Bank
  • Sarah Tung, communications specialist, Department of Economics

Working@Duke staff wanted to share some of our favorite #DukeTimeOff photos from this summer. Check out 10 of our favorites below and head over to our Facebook page to see 10 more.

Gayla Carr, a nursing care assistant at Duke Regional Hospital, got a photo at sunset on Oak Island, North Carolina with boyfriend, Jamie Harris.

Fuqua School of Business adjunct professor Cathy Clark visited Kenya this summer, where she sent in a variety of animal photos. View them all on her Instagram page.

“Time off rejuvenates me for work and the next adventure,” wrote Stephanie Grant, business analyst with Administrative Systems Management. She had this picture taken while skydiving at the Triangle Skydiving Center, Louisburg, North Carolina. 

Susan Jennings, a staff assistant with Duke’s Academic Council, got “photobombed” by a penguin while posing for a picture at Pittsburgh’s National Aviary. 

Ashley Lunn‎, staff assistant in the Duke Divinity School’s Office of Academic Formation and Programs, visited Hanging Rock State Park in Danbury, North Carolina with her family in May. “Time off is important because I get to spend time with my family making lifetime memories,” she said.

After spending six months working as the interim library director at Duke Kunshan University, Danette Pachtner travel through China for several weeks with family. This picture was taken in the town of Xizhou in Yunnan Province. Cormorant birds are trained to catch fish for the local Bai people. Pachtner is back on campus this fall as librarian for film, video, and digital media and Women's Studies.

“Build a life you don't need a vacation from,” noted Michael Palko, informatics educator at Duke University Health System Clinical Education & Professional Development. 

Shawn Rocco, a senior media relations strategist with Duke Medicine News & Communications, caught several performances by rock band U2 this summer. Here, lead singer Bono performs in front of the crowd.

While on Oak Island, North Carolina, for a family vacation, Joy Searles, senior staff assistant for programs at the Global Education Office for Undergraduates, took this photo of her 3-year old granddaughter, Harper Joy.

Andy Whitfield, digital marketing strategist at the Fuqua School of Business, took two weeks off for a cross-country trip to Arizona, which finished at the Grand Canyon. “With my time off, it's important to see new things and be reminded how amazing the world is,” he said.

Visit the Working@Duke Facebook page to see even more #DukeTimeOff photos.