VALDOSTA — Jeremy Sedor was 16 in 2006, a 10th grader in Dothan, Ala.

A buddy of his called him and asked if he was looking for a job.

Sedor had been working as a farmhand and doing side jobs here and there.

His friend worked at a CiCi’s Pizza in Dothan and invited him to come work at the restaurant. 

“I was used to working and getting my hands dirty, but it wasn’t that formal type of work,” Sedor said.

He was also used to working alone or with one other person, vastly different from the large crowds that visit pizza restaurants.

“I was nervous, but it was exciting,” Sedor said. “I don’t know if I remember the first day, but I remember the feeling. It was overwhelming.”

(If you’re not familiar, CiCi’s Pizza is a pizza buffet restaurant, offering salads, pasta and soup along with a long buffet bar of pizza).

Seder started out working as a table buser and a dough preparer, pressing out balls of dough and flattening them out over the screens used for baking.

On a slow day, one person could handle all the pizza prep: readying dough, laying out sauce and toppings, sending them through the oven.

On a busy day, Sedor might spend the whole shift just readying the dough.

As he worked there, Sedor got more comfortable with the large groups of people coming through.

All total, he was there more than nine years, occasionally leaving to pursue different work, then coming back and working his way up to manager.

“To move was a new opportunity, a fresh start. A basket of my own. If we succeed, it’s because of my team, but If there’s a mess up, it’s on me. I take pride in my work and I push that on my team members,” he said. 

He left a group of regular customers in Dothan when he moved, but he’s been learning about the customers at the Valdosta location, learning their names and faces, since the Valdosta restaurant opened Oct. 12.

“I want them to have a positive experience,” Sedor said. “I want it to grow and be a fun, positive place for families to come.“

He’s also been learning about his team.

“I want them to take something with them when they go,” Sedor said. “I want them to feel like they’re learning — learning how to work with people, how to work as a team.”

It’s something he had to learn himself, almost 10 years ago when he was on his first day of the job and feeling overwhelmed.

Located at 1717 Norman Drive, Cici’s Pizza will be open 11 a.m. until 10 p.m. Saturday-Thursday and 11 a.m. until 11 p.m. on Friday.

Stuart Taylor is a reporter for the Valdosta Daily Times.