When I was a kid, my mother was a grocery store clerk and my father was a security guard. My glimpses of their professional lives were highlighted by a desire to excel at their work, be good to the people around them, and be accountable for their actions. By the end of their careers, my mother was Vice President of the national supermarket chain where she started as a clerk, and my father was Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Customs San Francisco Principal Field Office.

While I didn’t grow up in a design-centered household, my parents’ ability to direct large teams and communicate effectively with everyone around them inspired me. As a quiet kid, I had to learn how to effectively communicate and mediate situations. I learned early on how communication impacted results.

I enrolled at the University of Washington, where I learned of a pilot program for a dual Architecture and Construction Management degree, which I decided to pursue. I loved the process of design—testing ideas by shaping them into a physical form, evaluating, listening to critique, and discussing what might be the next iteration to refine the idea. I was also very interested in the processes we studied in my construction management classes.

While in college, I participated in a semester abroad designing and building a women and children’s health clinic in Cuernavaca, Mexico. Our group worked with local community members to help identify their needs for the clinic and provide ideas for a design that would serve them. After the design was agreed upon, the majority of the semester was highlighted by hard physical labor and daily interaction with the people living around the clinic. What I thought was going to be an experience focused primarily on design and construction, going in, was actually more of an experience in accountability to a community. I’m thankful for it.

Upon graduating from the UW with a BA in Architectural Studies and a BS in Construction Management, I worked for six years in various small, design-focused architectural firms before returning to school at the University of Texas at Austin School of Architecture to pursue a Master of Architecture degree. Having these years to immerse myself in thinking and conversing about design with an internationally respected group of architects and academics was a privilege. I graduated at the top of my class, receiving the AIA Henry Adams Medal.

I returned to Seattle in 2007 to work in another small architectural firm. My work there included the design and management of a 7,000-square-foot single-family residence from schematic design through construction administration. This house was built by Krekow Jennings. During the construction of the project, the KJ management team treated me as part of their team. I loved my time on site and learned much from the many craftspeople and creative thinkers working on the project. Together, we tackled challenges with mutual respect, accountability, and a shared pursuit of excellence in the end product.

Following that project, I decided I wanted to be a part of the KJ team full time. Over my years at KJ, I have served as a project engineer, project manager, and recently led the construction of one of the largest projects KJ has built: a 12,000-square-foot house renovation/addition, a 14,000-square-foot new garage (car museum), and a 3-acre landscape (park). We have taken on many challenges to achieve the excellence our clients deserve—while being good people and remaining accountable.