Latoya Skeete takes the motto of the hotel she works at seriously -- her job at the front desk, she said, is to make everyone feel at home.

``When you work in guest services, you're the first and last person people see,'' said Skeete, 31, who commutes daily from Hallandale Beach to the Miami Airport Marriott Residence Inn, where she has worked since the hotel reopened in June.

Skeete has worked in hospitality for seven years. She was laid off from her job as head of guest services when a Holiday Inn in North Miami closed earlier this year.

More than 500 people applied for jobs at the Marriott the day she showed up for this job. When asked why she thinks she was one of the 15 lucky ones picked that day, she smiles broadly.

``It's because of my personality, as well as my skills.''

Skeete originally wanted to be a stenographer, but ended up working at Bank of America, doing check processing. Then her daughter was born -- four months premature. Sondae was less than a pound, and together, Skeete and her daughter spent months in the natal intensive care unit at Broward General Hospital.

That was five years ago, but Skeete said she's still overwhelmed by the way she was treated -- how the staff there made her feel at home.

That's a large reason why she takes her job so seriously, Skeete said. Guests at the Residence Inn can stay for weeks, and Skeete gets to know many well, like one family from New Jersey who has a son at nearby Jackson Memorial Hospital.

``Every day I see him, I ask him how his son is doing,'' said Skeete, who says she knows small acts like that are really all people ask.

Skeete said she also draws work inspiration from her father, who for 48 years has been the executive chef at Westin Hotel in St. John, in the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Of course, there are many times when guests can get testy. People yell or treat her in a rude fashion, but she knows not to take it personally.

``If you just listen, apologize and take care of the problem, they're happy,'' she said. ``Sometimes, they just want someone to take initiative and own the problem.''

She also puts herself in their shoes.

``They're paying,'' said Skeete, who added that she expects the same when she's on the receiving end of customer service.

Skeete's finishing her bachelor's degree through the University of Phoenix, and eventually wants to be a general manager or director of operations at a hotel. But she knows one thing: She always wants to be dealing with guests, because, she said, she knows how to help them.

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