The Short of It
Community Planner with 15+ years of experience working for local governments. Areas of expertise include: project coordination, design review, zoning administration, transportation planning, and Geographic Information Systems/cartography. Strong, sensible leader who believes in good government, government transparency, and positive public participation. Hobbies include playing tennis, running, doing yoga, hiking, biking, making art, learning French, learning astrology, learning feng shui, and playing with fashion and style.
The Long of It
As a child, growing up in Milford, Ohio, I danced jazz, tap, and ballet, even winning a couple of talent shows with my dance group. I always loved performing - wearing a costume, makeup, and hair, and being in front of an audience with music and applause. I tried soccer, volleyball, basketball, and softball and liked them in that order. A knee injury ended my soccer career early, so in high school I played volleyball and basketball. I was best at volleyball, being tall and having the highest vertical leap on my team. Blocking an opposing spike was my favorite thing to do!
I studied fine art at the University of Cincinnati. I enjoyed many of the art classes, and did well in the difficult foundations design courses that all Design, Art, and Architecture students had to take. As I progressed towards my degree, I fell in love with modern art, and especially French and German modern art. I already had studied German, and although I never loved the language, I did love German Expressionism and could relate a lot to the artists. A strict art history teacher required that we memorize French titles of artwork. At first I found this frustrating, but then I realized I was starting to learn French and instantly liked French culture, so much so that I changed my major to art history so that I could take honors French. I did really get into the groove at UC and enjoyed learning and writing. Aesthetics, a philosophy class, was one of my favorites. In my early college days, I prioritized going to dance clubs: Beat Club on Tuesdays, Sundays, and Thursdays; and the Warehouse downtown on most Wednesdays and Saturdays. Vodka tonic was my drink of choice.
I graduated with my bachelor's in art history and thought, now what? Luckily, the answer arrived in my mailbox when I received a letter from the UC School of Planning suggesting a career in community planning via a master's degree. I saw the stock photo of design professionals in an office, and I knew the career was for me. My planning career began in 1997. I have worked for a number of local governments in the Cincinnati area and in the San Francisco Bay area. My areas of expertise include: design review, zoning administration, transportation planning, and Geographic Information Systems/cartography.
Along the way in between my two years of community planning school at UC, I picked up a master's degree in art history from Indiana University, with a fleeting desire to become a professor. I make art now and then, and have participated in a number of local art shows and have sold my artwork. Fashion excites me, and I believe there is a fine art to having an expressive wardrobe and an organized and functional closet full of clothes and accessories that look good on you, and help you to express your true self.
In 2003 I took my first yoga class at the Julia Morgan Center in Berkeley, California. During the guided savasana, I could feel energy coming from my hands. This would be the beginning of a very exciting journey to explore the unseen, mystical side of life, which certainly would have its ups and downs. In January 2020, the next major milestone in my study of energy work occurred when I began to study Integrative Quantum Medicine™. Yoga was the catalyst for me to think about energy work, and IQM™has changed my life, 100% for the better. The technique is so easy, yet the results are remarkable. I am excited to see how energy work combines with my professional work.
I am a Certified Practitioner of Integrative Quantum Medicine™; am a Certified Yoga Teacher; and have studied feng shui and astrology. I enjoy hiking, playing tennis, biking, yoga, and running. My greatest accomplishment is being a mother to two wonderfully gifted, beautiful daughters.
I studied fine art at the University of Cincinnati. I enjoyed many of the art classes, and did well in the difficult foundations design courses that all Design, Art, and Architecture students had to take. As I progressed towards my degree, I fell in love with modern art, and especially French and German modern art. I already had studied German, and although I never loved the language, I did love German Expressionism and could relate a lot to the artists. A strict art history teacher required that we memorize French titles of artwork. At first I found this frustrating, but then I realized I was starting to learn French and instantly liked French culture, so much so that I changed my major to art history so that I could take honors French. I did really get into the groove at UC and enjoyed learning and writing. Aesthetics, a philosophy class, was one of my favorites. In my early college days, I prioritized going to dance clubs: Beat Club on Tuesdays, Sundays, and Thursdays; and the Warehouse downtown on most Wednesdays and Saturdays. Vodka tonic was my drink of choice.
I graduated with my bachelor's in art history and thought, now what? Luckily, the answer arrived in my mailbox when I received a letter from the UC School of Planning suggesting a career in community planning via a master's degree. I saw the stock photo of design professionals in an office, and I knew the career was for me. My planning career began in 1997. I have worked for a number of local governments in the Cincinnati area and in the San Francisco Bay area. My areas of expertise include: design review, zoning administration, transportation planning, and Geographic Information Systems/cartography.
Along the way in between my two years of community planning school at UC, I picked up a master's degree in art history from Indiana University, with a fleeting desire to become a professor. I make art now and then, and have participated in a number of local art shows and have sold my artwork. Fashion excites me, and I believe there is a fine art to having an expressive wardrobe and an organized and functional closet full of clothes and accessories that look good on you, and help you to express your true self.
In 2003 I took my first yoga class at the Julia Morgan Center in Berkeley, California. During the guided savasana, I could feel energy coming from my hands. This would be the beginning of a very exciting journey to explore the unseen, mystical side of life, which certainly would have its ups and downs. In January 2020, the next major milestone in my study of energy work occurred when I began to study Integrative Quantum Medicine™. Yoga was the catalyst for me to think about energy work, and IQM™has changed my life, 100% for the better. The technique is so easy, yet the results are remarkable. I am excited to see how energy work combines with my professional work.
I am a Certified Practitioner of Integrative Quantum Medicine™; am a Certified Yoga Teacher; and have studied feng shui and astrology. I enjoy hiking, playing tennis, biking, yoga, and running. My greatest accomplishment is being a mother to two wonderfully gifted, beautiful daughters.