"Integrity. When I say I’m going to do something, I follow through and make it happen"
When I was in the last semester of my senior year in college, my cousin Reba a”h was dying of colon cancer. I spent almost every weekend by her side, and it was in those moments that I discovered my desire to help others at the most critical times in their lives. As a Finance major from Pennsylvania State University, I had the good fortune to have four incredible job opportunities after interviewing through the school’s career center. It was challenging to decide which of these jobs was the best fit for me, and Reba spent many hours listening to me share the pros and cons of each. In the end, she suggested that I select the position that would fulfill my purpose and not necessarily with the highest pay. She felt strongly that I could move through the ranks if I worked at something I was passionate about. It was with her guidance that I decided to join Marriott International in their Senior Living Services division as a controller of one of their retirement homes. This paired my financial abilities with my desire to make a difference in the lives of the residents and their families. The beauty of caring so deeply comes with a price, though — it was hard for me to handle loss, especially when a community member died in my arms. It was time to move on. And so I joined Marriott International’s change management team and visited 180 hotels as a corporate trainer, which gave expression to my love of travel as well, a passion that has continued throughout my hospitality career.
When my time as a trainer ended, I made my way into the sales division. This transition seemed risky to my boss, as he hadn’t seen someone move from finance to sales and be successful. I was determined to succeed and exceed my goals, which I did every quarter that I was selling both at Marriott and then later with the Ritz-Carlton. As a senior sales manager with these stellar organizations, I learned the importance of response time, customer service, surprising and delighting our guests, being an ambassador of the hotel, and teamwork.
One example of a sale that brought more value to me personally than the $1 million-plus in revenue I brought to the hotel happened sixteen years ago. I was giving a site tour of the hotel to a client, and it wasn’t long before my client Patti and I realized that we grew up near each other. That lead to a long-term friendship.
Meanwhile, something else began happening in my life. I’d grown up Reform and met my husband, Brian, at a wedding in December of 2005. He also grew up Reform but had become more observant after college. When we were talking, he asked me if I believed the Torah was given to Moses at Mount Sinai, and if I believed Torah was written by G-d. I answered “Yes, of course” to both questions, so I guess he knew I was openminded. I have always had a strong belief in G-d and it didn’t dawn on me at the time that others involved with Reform Judaism might have thought differently.
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