In January 2026, I celebrated 20 years in business for myself! Being my own boss brought amazing experiences, introduced me to fascinating people (interviewing Spike Lee: very cool!), and kept me stocked up on kitty chow year after year.
You name it, I’ve probably done it: PR, social media, newsletters, strategy, events, videos, annual reports, ghostwriting. For businesses and governments, to authors, nonprofits, publishers, even a farrier. It’s been a wild ride!
The list of people to thank is endless but I’m shouting-out to some key players without whom I wouldn’t be where I am as this new year picks up steam: still serving longstanding local clients but also stepping into a new role as Public Relations Lead for the global engineering + architecture firm Stantec (33,000+ employees worldwide).
Rock stars who helped me get here:
Patricia Hurley helped me gain the courage to leave the world of 9-5 and pursue my love of wordsmithing
Kelly Donahue gave crucial early opportunities and let me learn on the job from her true pro bona fides
Father Fredrick A. Robinson hired me in Feb ’05 and gave me many free reins over 10 years as Director of Communications for Church of the Redeemer
David Martin became a trusted colleague and we’ve continuously referred work and collaborated on many projects
Susan Hicks and Susan Burns gave me magazine writing assignments at the former Sarasota Downtown & Beyond, Sarasota Magazine, and BIZ 941
Phil Colpas made a dream come true when he brought me on as a weekly columnist (Reality Chick) for The Pelican Press. Rachel Brown Hackney, still doing amazing things with Sarasota News Leader, continued to give my op-eds a home in print and online
Su Byron is a woman solopreneur who wants to see other women succeed. She’s referred clients and over the years we’ve strategized and commiserated over the vagaries of running our own businesses
Katherine Ollinger and Kathryn (Karyn) Guerrero gave me chances to step into new responsibilities as EYP was acquired by Page (now acquired by Stantec)
Cooper Levey-Baker, rock star of the written word, hired me as a columnist for Creative Loafing (Sarasota)
Thomas Tryon, former editorial page editor at the Sarasota Herald Tribune, took a flyer on me as a semi-regular op-ed writer, a true highlight of my writing career
Brian Ries + others ran my Sense + The City weekly column in the Sarasota Herald Tribune. Editors at the Tampa Tribune ran op-eds and human interest essays. Even the illustrious (former) St. Pete Times ran my piece about the still-necessary practice of letter writing!
I worked hard, yes. Developed a reputation for getting the job done, on time, yes.
But it all began with people. People who gave of their time. People who listened. People who asked. People who didn’t rule me out because my resume didn’t match some algorithm. People who gave me chances.
I’m forever grateful to these people and so many others.
Here’s to 2026 … and beyond!
