This is my story.

I grew up in a small coastal town in Oregon, where my  dad was a high school counselor/administrator and my mom worked in city administration. They instilled in me the importance of community connection, treating others with kindness and respect, and lending a helping hand.

I knew from a young age that I wanted to go into the counseling field. After completing a Bachelor’s of Science in Psychology at Whitman College (a small liberal arts college in Walla Walla, WA), I received my Master’s Degree in Counseling Psychology from the University of Oregon. I then went on to work in the field of Mental Health Counseling for the next 10 years. But I always felt that something was missing. I knew that my counseling skills were well developed – but I couldn’t find my focus. 

As my family grew, we made the decision that I would transition to stay-at-home parenting of our four daughters. This was a complicated decision driven by finances, and also by my lack of focus in my career. It was a challenge because I had never expected to be anything but a full-time working person! My mom had been a full-time working parent and my primary role model. 


Here was a major transition in my life: reinventing myself and discovering the value of being at home with my children. That was difficult for me, as I wanted to be contributing financially to my family. Coming to understand the value of myself as a parent was a journey. My counseling background, a supportive spouse, and good friends helped me to navigate this.

What started as a one-year at-home parenting plan turned into six – again, fueled by my lack of focus in my counseling career. I didn’t have anyone to coach or guide me, to help me find my focus. When our youngest daughter was about to begin kindergarten, I began to explore where my next steps were going to take me. 

So, what to do? It was the year 2000, and there wasn’t much in the area of online career counseling! 

I did some research and found a program at the local community college called Women in Transition. It paired a Life Transitions class with a Career and Life Planning class. I spent 8 weeks of that class struggling, trying to find the career that “spoke” to me. I wanted something that I loved, that engaged me fully, and also paid me!

One day in class I had an epiphany! I found myself fully engaged in career exploration and realized that this is what I wanted to do. I wanted to be a career counselor. I wanted to help others figure out who they were and what they wanted to be when they grew up, whether at age 18 or 70. In fact – I wanted to teach this exact class! 

I was lucky: I already had the necessary degree. What I didn’t have was experience working at a community college. I started talking with my instructors, who connected me with the Career Center Director, who connected me with the Internship Coordinator. (Little did I know that this was my initial engagement with networking!) I was accepted into a post-master’s internship for the next year. At the end of that year, I applied for and was offered a position as a part time counselor and Career and Life Planning Instructor. And yes, I also was hired to teach that class that got me to this point! I spent the next 14 years doing work that I loved.

In 2014, the community college began reorganizing and I realized that my part-time position was going to be greatly reduced.

Enter: my undergraduate alma mater. They were hiring for an Assistant Director of Career Development. I applied, was offered the job, and spent 4 amazing years working at my dream job helping college students explore careers, create targeted resumes and cover letters, and prepare for the interview process. I was in my element. One caveat: my spouse and I would be living 350 miles apart and experiencing a commuter marriage!

So why did I leave? In 2018, my spouse was offered a position in SE Alaska. We had been living apart for 4 years. It was time to decide our next steps. I came to the decision that it was time for him and I to be living together full-time again. I took a position as a Behavioral Health Therapist and, after a year, was reminded again that Career Counseling and Coaching was where my heart was! I left that position and then spent the next few years working in a non-stressful lovely art and gift gallery. I mulled over in my head the idea of creating an online career counseling and coaching business. I knew I needed to get back to the source of my career joy: focusing on helping others explore and discover their dream careers.

After four years of being away from our family (and 2 years of that during COVID), we decided it was time to come back to Oregon! Following another job offer, my spouse and I moved in the summer of 2022 to a small town in the northeastern part of the state. I never expected so many transitions in this chapter of my life! 

I look forward to engaging with you as you navigate career exploration, create targeted application materials, explore who you are – the transitions you are experiencing and what brings you joy, and fully embrace how you bring impact to the world. Most importantly, helping you find the career that fits you vs. fitting yourself to a career.

Now you know my story. Having lived through so many transitions of my own, I am passionate about helping you navigate YOUR life and career transitions. Click the button below to share your story with me, and learn how my career coaching can support you.