Tell us about where you grew up
I am a Maine girl at heart but have lived in many other places since leaving home for college. I grew up with Acadian French influence and my parents and older generations preferred to speak French. This came in handy when I was an expat in Paris, France for two years. It has been a fun topic over the years talking about the different expressions and comparing the French I grew up with to the French spoken in France.
Share something about a passion of yours, whether it is within your career or not?
Well, we recently got thrust into winemaking when we had an opportunity to pick grapes off a friend’s vineyard behind their new house. It was harvest time and he was going to leave the grapes on the vine so we ended up picking about 100lbs of grapes buying some of the equipment needed, and making just over 5 gallons of cabernet. Much of our process was very manual and it is still in the fermentation phase as of this writing, so we will only know if it’ll be good wine in a couple of years after aging! There’s something to be said about overcoming a challenge and being able to enjoy the rewards of it, so we are looking forward to that day. My husband and I have had lots of fun and some struggles figuring out all the complexities and making sure we don’t make a rookie mistake!
What is your favorite charity or non-profit organization outside of WIB and why, if not a specific organization then what types of groups do you like to support and why?
Girls Rising is an organization which helps at-risk girls achieve success through mentoring. I volunteered as a big sister for just over 2 years and continue to keep in touch with my “little sister” even though she has graduated from the program and has relocated out of California. I also enjoy supporting a National City organization, Olivewood Gardens and Learning Center, which helps inspire families to be healthy by offering hands-on classes and programs in the garden and in the kitchen.