I was born in West Berlin, Germany and was raised between Germany and America for the first 20 years of my life. My family traveled and moved back and forth several times to Germany throughout these years in addition to several moves around the New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania area. The East Coast in general has a huge German-American population and it was a very comfortable place to be if you were growing up with a foreign culture. It seemed as though every other year I was missing a month of school either at the beginning or the end of the school year! In 3rd grade, I first attended school for a full year in Berlin. That is why I absolutely understand the need to teach a foreign language to children at an early age. Once a child hears others around them, plays with others and just hears the second language in an immersion situation, a lifelong ability will be with them forever. It becomes fun to know something special.

In my growing up years, German was spoken at home and with our German speaking friends. English was spoken elsewhere. My language skills are fluent in both languages to the point of having no accent. Many are confused by this. I just say that is an example of what you can accomplish.

After finishing college, I worked in the North Latin American Division of Squibb Pharmaceuticals in Princeton, New Jersey. This opportunity allowed me to interact with many people from other countries, including Germany.

In 1983, I was chosen to be Miss Deutsch-Amerika Philadelphia. This was a great honor as I was able to participate in the 300 Year Celebration of Germans in America. This was a moment in history celebrating the first Germans to immigrate to America. They were from Krefeld, Germany and that is why the 300 Year celebration took place in Krefeld. Many dignataries were present including VP George Bush, Bundespraesident Karl Carstens Bundeskanzler Helmut Kohl. By being honored with this year-long responsiblity, I traveled in Krefeld, Cologne, Rees, Bonn, Koblenz, Wiesbaden, Marburg, Coburg, Bad Mergentheim, Berchtesgaden, Salzburg, Munich, Goslar and Berlin. During this six-week trip, I was representing Mayor William Green of Philadelphia and the 300,000 German Americans living in this area. My introduction to public speaking came about through the incredible number of media interviews and public engagements. I was very proud of my heritage and of my role in establishing future sister-city relationships.

Now, after a long and rewarding 20 year career in the hospitality industry, most recently as general manager, it has been my pleasure to concentrate on my family full-time. Our daughter had been learning German at home and has now advanced much more quickly after attending the GSSOP for two years. Going to school on Saturday is a fun event for her, definitely not a chore!

I feel very fortunate to be a part of the German Saturday School of Portland. Teaching has given me a dedication to providing continuing opportunities to keep the German culture and language in the forefront of new generations.