By Tenlee Ruble ‘27
Starting a new chapter often requires leaving behind the people who made the old one feel like home. For Jenny Ruble, that meant stepping away from a long-term career at JCPenney. As the owners changed and her children grew, a new opportunity at Burlington promised a different kind of workload.
Ruble started working at JCPenney in the shoe department, where she really fell in love with her boss and decided to stay for the long run.
“I trained for 4 months in New Jersey after college,” Ruble added. “I worked at JCPenny when I started college on my first day. I needed to pay for my college, and I went to JCPenney and I loved it.”
Ruble would only go back to talk to her old team and miss their family bond and their trips together.
“Burlington had reached out to me on Linkedin, and it would be a job where I didn’t have to spend the night,” Ruble said about traveling. “Leaving Lancaster on a Tuesday and coming back on a Thursday night.”
In January 2025 JCPenney merged with Spark which formed a catalyst and kBurlington reached out to me on Linkedin,” said Ruble about finding a new job. ”Normally I didn’t speak to anyone but I went from having 19 stores to 29 stores and it was a lot. So I decided to talk to Burlington.”
Ruble also thought about her kids when switching jobs.
I have 2 kids going to college and I have 1 kid in college so we need the money,” Ruble admitted. “It didn’t change too much because the end goal is the same but now I get to be home and experience my kids’ growth.”
Though Ruble loved her old job, Burlington is where she plans on staying so she can be home with her kids and husband.
“I’ve only been there a year so I like terminate and get new store managers so I’m working pretty hard, like harder than I would work as I’m getting everyone up to speed,” Ruble confessed.
People hiding stuff, cleaning stockrooms, and just the grit is something that surprised her the most.
“I do feel like I’m starting to get the hang of things, so I was about 8 months into position when I started to feel like I knew what I was doing,” Ruble stated. “There’s still a lot to learn but I do feel like I understand the company more.”
Ruble feels like she still needs to develop people but doesn’t know the process for everything yet.
As Ruble finds her new balance at Burlington, the family bond at JCPenney will still be missed. As she traded overnight travel for more time at home, she has found a way to support her children’s college education and also be present in her own home.