Meet Kathleen Carmody, Director of Sweet Adeline’s

Where I Met Kathleen

I first met Kathy when I was calling for an RSVP for an educational seminar I was hosting.  Kathie was heading out of town for a competition it turned out and when I found out she was part of a 110 woman chorus I immediately knew I wanted to interview her.  We meet at a Starbucks coffee and I found out Kathie was even more interesting than I’d originally imagined!

What I Really Like About Kathy

As we began our visit with the normal small talk, I quickly realized that there were many layers to Kathy and I was going to have to pull some of it out of her.  Kathy also has very vibrant and clear eyes and felt like someone I wanted to be around.  Kathy also got right to the point asking me what I was going to get out of this interview.  I explained that I am building my connections in town and I also wanted to share her story and add to the positive publicity of her organization.

Background

Kathy is originally from Montana and she remembered when she was in the eighth grade socials studies class discussing that Alaska and Hawaii may soon become states.  While in college she interviewed for a teaching position in Alaska and then on March 27, 1963 there was the big earthquake.  At this time there was no such thing as email so Kathy assumed the job was no longer on the table.  Surprised, Kathy was contacted by the interviewer who said something to the effect of “if you have any courage at all, we still have kids to teach.”  In her own act of courage, Kathy’s mom (of 16 kids) drove up to Alaska with Kathy when she didn’t even know how to drive herself.

Kathy was a teacher and then eventually became a principle of a middle school.  One day a kid showed up at the school with a gun in his pocket.  After an eternally long discussion during which the child knew Kathy knew he had a gun, the kid pulled the gun from his pocket.  Kathy said she had no idea if he was going to hand her the gun or shoot her.  A week later she decided it was time to retire and open the next chapter of her life. 

Kathy had been singing all her life and while in Alaska one of her friends suggested Kathy check out the group called the Sweet Adelines.  Kathy was looking for either a singing or public speaking opportunity and she went to check it out.  All of the ladies in the chorus were wearing short navy blue dresses with pearls and were the most fabulous sounding group she’d heard.  Kathy’s husband basically vetoed the chorus because he thought it would take too much time.  But, Kathy put her toe in the water, one meeting at a time and it was well worth the journey.

Kathy had two kids one of whom still lives in Alaska.

My Ideal Client…

Sweet Adeline's was founded in 1948 with a vision to “Harmonize the World.”  Kathy directs the Colorado Springs Sweet Adeline’s called the Velvet Hills but is also a past president of this international organization.  The chorus sings barbershop style in quartets in addition to the entire chorus.  The Colorado Springs Chapter has been ranked as high as 5^th in the world  of over 650 choruses in 14 countries and is competing again regionally right now.

Any woman who loves to sing is welcomed to come and try out to be in Velvet Hills.  Kathy will do a scale exercise and have the auditioned sing Happy Birthday to see if they can do the scale change.  There is private instruction available for someone who really wants to sing and the members and musical leaders of Velvet Hills really want women to succeed.

Once a year there is a membership drive and this includes four voice free lessons.  Rehearsals are on Monday nights and the group is active with social media, has a website and holds a regular bingo game.  The chorus has been here in The Springs for 47 years!

Says Kathy, “So, the ideal chorus member loves to sing and likes education and is able to hold their part, singing four-part a cappella music.    Age and weight do not matter.  We hug indiscriminately and we believe it is important to do something for you. Our practice sessions are about bringing joy and being present and centered in the moment.”

3 SECRETS of my Personal Success

1.  Have self-confidence and achievement

2.  Knowing my people.  As a leader I take the time to really know all of my people and what makes them different building mutual respect

3.  CPR (Choose Personal Responsibility)

1 Great Recommendation for the Next Person

Find something for yourself outside your normal life—open up to the possibilities.

My biggest financial question/concern

Take the time to know the true value of what you pay for in life.  It’s not always about what it costs but what you get for your investment.  For example, in the chorus it costs $45/month but when you look at the way the club helps pay for travel and food, etc you come out way ahead.  Compare the joy you get from an activity to other clubs you may join and compare there, too.

I enjoy meeting with people and learning about their financial desires and challenges.  Please visit my website at www.taraenolan.com or call Tara at             719-210-4242       

Contact Kathy

http://www.velvethills.org/

E-Mail:  info@velvethills.org

Meet Kimberly Hessler, Career Consultant

Kimberly Hessler

Where I Met Kimberly

I first met Kimberly when I was going through the military’s transition assistance program taught at the United States Air Force Academy in 2009.  I met up with Kimberly recently at a networking group in the Springs for Military Academy Graduates.  I remembered Kimberly because she mentioned that her daughter had a horse and I’m a horse person.

What I Really Like About Kimberly

Kimberly taught our class about the challenges we would be facing as new “civilians” in the regular world.  We were going to be going from a very structured environment to a brand new set of circumstances where the rules of engagement were somewhat different.  Kimberly was honest about the realities of transition and had down to earth examples of what we needed to learn.  My favorite part about Kimberly was that she was also in the transition process herself.  Kimberly was going from being an outstanding employee to launching her own company.  A person who is ready to make this kind of entrepreneurial change is exactly the kind of consultant you want to work with as a mentor.  Kimberly doesn’t just know what you should do academically; she has experienced the process first hand, too!

Background

Kimberly comes from a traditional family in Pennsylvania.  Her dad worked two jobs and her mom stayed at home to raise the family.  Kimberly went to college in Kansas and actually met her husband on a mission in Haiti.  Her husband was in the Air Force and so they moved to Mac Dill AFB in Tampa, Florida.  Kimberly admits the weather was a wonderful change from the winters she’d grown up in. In Florida, Kimberly used her sociology degree in the corporate world and found that this did not inspire her.  So, Kimberly started volunteering with the Family Support Center on the military base and then with the Red Cross and found helping other people find their footing was a passion for her.  When her husband was reassigned to Peterson AFB in Colorado Springs, Kimberly began working at the Family Support Center and was in the ground floor development of the Transition Assistance Program (TAPS) for military separating or retiring from military service.  She started teaching part of the course and this was a perfect job to have while raising a new baby.  Kimberly started really listening to the challenges these military members were having as they were looking for civilian jobs and this was the early beginning of her current business. Kimberly started creating networking opportunities for the military members to teach them how to connect with businesses and these win-win events really took off.  Kimberly was teaching people to network and how it is a positive activity where everyone benefits, not just a situation to use people.

My Ideal Client…

Kimberly’s ideal client is a military member or spouse preparing for a transition from the military lifestyle to settling down into a civilian lifestyle.  Ideally, Kimberly likes to connect with these service oriented people about five years before they make the transition.  I asked Kimberly why she wants to connect so early before people are actually looking for their next job.  And Kimberly tells me, “I work with amazing people who are unemployed for six to nine months and I ask them ‘Could you survive this long?’”

3 SECRETS of my Personal Success

1.  Do what you’re passionate about.  Kimberly specializes in helping people find their passion in her one-on-one career counseling program.  She calls it “Finding Your North Star” and it is a comprehensive program that is something you can actually do.

2.  You’ve gotta want it as bad as you want to breath.  If you are just going through the motions, it is going to be hard to find happiness and also a great job.  Employers like to hire fun, well-adjusted people.

3.  Find great mentors. Treat everyone with respect and you’ll find that the most unlikely people become your most valuable mentors.  In starting her business, Kimberly had a retired navy captain tell her, “Kimberly, you need a repeatable process because you cannot be a mama to every person.”  This was a motivation for Kimberly to create her Moving Ahead with Purpose (MAWP) program.

1 Great Recommendation for the Next Person

Find your North Star, in other words, you passion.  I wish we would teach this to our kids in school.

My biggest financial question/concern

I taught my daughter about money in this way.  My daughter wanted a horse and as this was a large and recurring expense, I wanted my daughter to have some skin in the game.  I made a deal with her that if she raised money then she could have a horse.  To make it realistic, my sister offered to match my daughter dollar for dollar (with a cap on the total amount).  My daughter learned to be entrepreneurial as she started a dog-walking business and had to deal with situations like asking to be paid for her work.  When she turned sixteen I gave my daughter the option of the horse versus a car and my daughter chose the horse—her North Star.

I enjoy meeting with people and learning about their financial desires and challenges.  Please visit my website at www.taraenolan.com or call Tara at             719-210-4242       

Contact Kimberly

Kimberly@hshdcareers.com

www.hshdcareers.com