Background and Accomplishments:
After graduating Bourgade, I attended Arizona State University, WP Carey School of Business and graduated with degrees in Finance and Communications. I have been CFO and Director of Administration for Baker Bros Flooring since 2005. They say to do something that you love and it will be more than just a job. I not only love my work, I love the great team I work with, which makes going to “work” enjoyable.
More important than my career, I am passionate about my volunteer causes. I was a CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate) advocating for foster children since 2015. The young lady who I advocated for was a 15-year-old who had been in the system since she was 12. Having been in 17 different placements, her formative teenage years were very tumultuous. After a potential adoptive parent backed out of the adoption, my family decided to make her part of ours. She is now a thriving 20-year-old attending college at MCC.
My husband Jim is a long-time member of the Knights of Columbus. I support our chapter at St. Theresa Catholic Church by planning and executing (including making all of the food) two fundraising events a year for them. These fundraisers allow the Knights to support many causes in our St. Theresa Community. Jim is also a member of the Knights of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem.
I give back to my Alma Mater Bourgade Catholic HS by serving as President of the Advisory Board. I also serve as the Chair of the Finance Committee. Bourgade is an amazing community that most times lives in the shadow of the larger, more affluent Brophy and Xavier. I work closely with the Development team to help tell the amazing story of the Bourgade Community. I am working with the Board and Administration to develop a “professional” advisory board with community leaders who can help advance the goals of the school. We are also working on some exciting opportunities to add new programs to better serve the unique demographic of our great school. In conjunction with community businesses, our goal is to add “trade programs” to the curriculum to allow our students to graduate with a tangible skill that can help them earn a great salary right after graduation and help support their families. No other Catholic school in Arizona has a program like this.
I have an amazing family that is always there to support me. My husband Jim is my rock. My daughter Nicole (Tucker) Warne (a 2009 Xavier grad) and her husband Chris have given me two amazing grandsons (Camden, 2 and Jackson, 1) who are the light of my life. My daughter Aniyah is 20 and attending MCC. She wants to be a child psychologist to give back to kids who had the same difficulties growing up in foster care as she did.
What impact did Catholic schools have on you?
Other than the influence and lessons from my amazing mother, my faith and having the benefit of 12 years of Catholic Education has in large part formed me into the person I am. Living your life in the Spirit of God is not always the easy choice but it is by far the most satisfying. The values I learned from Catholic education continue to guide me in family decisions as well as professional choices. Not only did Catholic education form the person, it also gave me lifelong friendships. I am still in touch with many in my high school class and some of these friends I have known since first grade. I look forward to sharing the gift of Catholic education with my grandsons.
Future plans:
Family is always first. For Jim and I, that means spoiling…I mean spending time with my grandsons. Now that Aniyah is doing fantastic, I am looking to take another CASA case. There are so many kids in foster care that need a voice. I am also very excited about continuing to help take Bourgade to the next level.
