Hahne Hall Maintenance and Repair Technician David Croy really likes his lunch breaks. It's not because for once, he actually has time to eat his salami sub while it's still hot. It's definitely not because he can bring his four daughters into work for a $1.25 all-you-can-eat meal special. There's a much bigger reason he enjoys having a set break time and it's one that for a 45-year-old man, he's surprisingly not afraid to talk about.

Two summers ago, Croy was introduced to "Dead or Alive Ultimate," a multi-player kung fu style fighting game for Xbox by junior Bruce Taylor. Taylor, a psychology major at Miami University, worked as a student employee with Croy for an entire summer. After months of laborious hours of laying and waxing tiled dormitory floors together, the two found they had a lot in common.

Science fiction was where the friendship began. Discussions about aliens, predators and outer space are how it evolved. One day, Taylor brought in his Xbox, and the two started to play the game during their 30 minute lunch breaks in the basement of Hahne Hall.

"It was kind of nice because even though I was new to the game, Bruce was patient to help me learn," Croy said. "We started to challenge each other in this sort of competition and as he's helped me, I've helped him get better at different characters too."

Taylor said he agreed their friendship has grown since their first afternoon of gaming.

"We've been playing for awhile now, and we've become good friends since," Taylor said. "David's a very friendly and open person. He's a really good guy."

Pat Kelly, a current member of Hahne's housing staff, works with Croy and said he agrees with Taylor.

"David is a great person," Kelly said. "He really helps make the housing staff fun. We all have such good chemistry."

Maintaining a smile

Known for his infectious cheerfulness, Croy isn't just known for his Dead or Alive savvy. He has spent more than six years working as a maintenance repair technician, though it took almost as long for him to get there. Five years after he applied for the job, his phone call was finally answered. Now, whenever someone has any sort of technical trouble in a residence hall, Croy is almost always the first one on the scene. He can fix anything from a broken light to a broken heater, and he's not hesitant to help his friends with mopping or taking out the trash.

One Monday morning, a toilet in a residence hall overflowed and as Croy mopped up the bathroom with a juniper-scented wash, all he could worry about was whether the mess had put the boys through much trouble over the weekend.

"I really hope these people didn't have to deal with this all weekend," he said. "It's too bad each room can't have its own plunger."

Before working in the maintenance field, Croy worked a number of jobs including pizza delivery and as a gas station clerk. Neither satisfied Croy, who remembers his wife bringing hot subs to the gas station for lunch since he didn't get a lunch break. He said incoming customers constantly interrupted him - so much that when he finally got a chance to sit down and eat, his sub was cold. Now, Croy said he feels lucky to have a job at Miami, where when his boss says he gets a break, he actually gets it.

Dressed in his navy blue khakis and his uniform, white Miami Residence Staff button-down shirt, Croy could pass for any other residence staff member. The only thing physically distinguishing him is the sewn-on name emblem reading "David" in matching navy blue thread across his right shirt sleeve. Although many residents in Hahne Hall might not know his name, Croy is easily recognized by his jolly greeting "Have an awesome day!"

Hahne resident junior Jill Black said she appreciates Croy's cheerfulness.

"No matter how bad of a day he might be having, it seems like he's always in a good mood," Black said, "and that carries on to others too."

Croy said he values the daily interaction he has with students.

"It's such a compliment to know that I make students happy," Croy said. "I think it's important to always try to look at things in the most positive way, and that way, it's a double positive because I can make me and other people happy."

Yet as optimistic as he is, Croy knows grim possibilities could be in his future. At the end of January, Croy said he heard news of the possibility of 100 layoffs at Miami and the closure of another 100 currently vacant spots within the next couple months.

Fears for an uncertain future

Croy stands in the once closet in Hahne, now turned personal office space. It's filled with a hodgepodge of handy tools and a red toolbox, which he uses as a CD case for his favorite Van Halen albums. He casually rests his hand on a Hamilton Journal-News front page proclaiming something about the stimulus package plan in bold letters.

"My main concern is there's rumors about maybe subcontracting our jobs," Croy said. "It worries me. I've got a family of four kids and a wife to take care of. I just worry about everybody here."

For Croy, losing his job might mean fewer trips to the Union Terminal dinosaur exhibits with his daughters or the forfeit of the first house he bought for his family in Middletown. Two years after he played his first Xbox game, Croy was able to save enough money to buy his own gaming system to share with his family and Taylor. With his job in jeopardy, there's a chance he might have to go back to cold salami subs and no video gaming breaks. If Croy loses his job, he won't just be losing his lunch breaks, he'll be losing everything that goes with it.