1. During the spring semester of 2005, I was completing my master’s degree and interned at the Siena College Career Center as a graduate intern. Eight years later – during which I moved three times, got married, and had a baby – I was looking to return to work after taking a year off with my child. In the fall of 2013, I took a position at the Siena College Career Center (now Career Education and Professional Development-CEPD) as a part time career counselor. It just goes to show staying in touch with former co-workers can and does pay off and you never know where your career may lead – or lead you back.
2. Having been here at Siena as a career counselor for seven years has been my longest stint of employment. My professional career has included work at four other colleges/universities, a private K-12 school, and for-profit tutoring companies. I have worked in undergraduate and graduate school admissions, college counseling, and I managed a tutoring center.
3. These career and family changes mean I’ve lived in five different states, and two states twice: Maryland, Virginia (two times), Pennsylvania, New York (two times) and Michigan. More on my last move later…
4. I grew up in a small town called Slatington, (near Allentown) Pennsylvania. My hometown’s claim to fame (at the time) was a piece of Slatington was in every school in America! It is the largest producer of black slate used in blackboards. Unfortunately, most schools don’t have blackboards anymore, which means students today have never heard their teachers run their fingers down the board to get their attention! How lucky they are.
5. I attended Dickinson College (Carlisle, PA). My paternal grandfather graduated from the college 50 years before me but didn’t get to participate in graduation ceremonies as he was fast tracked to medical school. He escorted me during my graduation and we walked out the doors of Old West together. At our alma mater, this is a sacred tradition; the French doors are only open for special ceremonies.
6. College education is very important to my family. In fact, I am the fourth generation female to have attended college on my mother’s side. My great-grandmother earned her teaching degree in 1918. I have her class ring.
7. My husband and I have a unique meeting story. We lived in the same house. This house was divided into three apartments. He lived there during law school, but returned home each summer. I moved in during the summer and then underwent knee surgery. When he returned to his apartment for his third year, there I was his new neighbor sitting in the backyard with my knee all bandaged up. For our second date he visited me in the hospital as I developed complications about three weeks after my surgery. Now that’s love.
8. We are now blessed to have one daughter. Elly is eight years old and brings us much joy. I enjoy doing “kid stuff” again such as: reading story books, flying kites, sledding, catching (and releasing) crayfish, etc. It’s great to do those things again.
9. My last move was to my husband’s family farm. He is the third generation to own this farm in the bucolic Schoharie Valley. While we both work at professional jobs, the farm is active. We have cows grazing in the pastures and crops growing in the fields. It’s a pretty good set up. We get to enjoy the beauty of farming without the pressure of making a living dependent on weather. Even so, it’s a good deal of work.
10. Getting outdoors daily is imperative to me; it’s what keeps me sane-especially during the pandemic. My daily walks on the farm with our dog, Yuengling, include observing many animals including: bald eagles, squirrels, beavers, deer, turkey, snapping turtles, coyotes, etc. and beautiful scenery like this rainbow (below).
