Honorees

Welcome to the Forty Over 40 blog. We frequently spotlight one of our honorees and their thoughts on reinvention, mentorship and momentum…plus a peek into what makes them tick.

This Q&A is with Dr. Jeanette Hill is the founder and CEO of Spot On Sciences Inc., a biotech company that develops and markets innovative medical devices that revolutionize collection and storage of biological fluids for medical research and testing.

In 20+ years leading research teams at biotech companies, Dr. Hill saw too many destructive mergers (and its destructive aftermath) and decided to launch her own venture.  Dr. Hill’s unique combination of experience led her to launch Spot On Sciences, Inc. in 2010. Her patented device offers groundbreaking improvements in the way bio-specimens are collected for medical diagnostics.

1) What was a pivotal momentum of reinvention for you?

There was a “perfect storm” of events happening in my life.  I was frustrated with the slow and bureaucratic pace of innovation at the large biotech company where I was employed and so left to start a flexible and quickly moving company.  

Right about the same time my mother, who lived out in the country, was dealing with chronic disease and having trouble traveling to a lab for her blood tests. We thought that there had to be an easier way to get access to blood tests, and so developed our products so that blood could be collected and home and sent in the mail to a lab.

The last piece to fall into place was finding a women-centric entrepreneur accelerator right in my city.  The accelerator gave me the skill set and confidence to start my own company.   My patented technology came next and now we’re helping to bring life-saving tests to everyone.

2) Who has been a valuable mentor or sponsor?

Texas State University had a program that trained experienced businesswomen to become entrepreneurs and create startup companies.  The instructors, aka Entrepreneurs-In-Residence (EIRs), devoted their time and resources to helping us learn, grow and network.  I’m still in contact with those EIRs today and especially value their perspective as I grow my business.

3) What is your biggest goal right now?

I know that my technology can have a huge impact in healthcare so my goal is to bring the access of life-saving tests to everyone.  Diagnostic testing through blood sampling is responsible for 80% of healthcare decisions but we’re limited by the way we get these samples.  We still have to get ourselves to a lab and have a phlebotomist draw our blood.  My device allows anyone to take a blood sample at any time, anywhere.

4) How did you get your first job? How did you jump to your second job?

When you grow up on a farm, as I did, your work life starts early.  I learned how to drive a truck and tractor at age 8 which made me very popular with my school friends when they came over to play.  My first paying job was de-tasseling corn which is where you pull the tops (tassels) off the corn to help pollinate certain rows of corn. In high school, my friend and I were the first females to be inducted into our FFA chapter. We were also the first two females allowed to take shop.

5) What time do you typically wake up? What do you do every morning.

My day starts at 6am so that I can walk the dog first thing. The walk clears my head and I can think about how to get the day off to good start.

6) How did you feel on your 30th birthday? What were you doing at that time?

I was in graduate school at Washington University working on a PhD program in bioorganic chemistry.  I was tackling protein folding. For my 30th birthday I went on my very first cruise to the Caribbean.

7) How do you unplug? How often do you unplug?

I don’t do this very well but basically, I unplug by reading. I especially enjoy history and science fiction books. I even enjoy reading about my industry…scientific journals, trade journals, etc.

8) What’s the best networking contact you’ve made? How did you make it?

I met Dr. Mike Smolensky, a biomechanical engineering  (BME) professor at the University of Texas, while working with BME students on the first prototype of my device. The student’s work caught the attention of this world expert in health science prompting him to tell me that my device was just what he was looking for in his upcoming research study. He has since become a valuable collaborator, mentor and friend.

9) What challenge / achievement are you most proud of?

I’m most proud that I was able to build a company from idea stage to actual products and have assembled a great team.  I’ve just received a patent on my device so that’s another thing I’m really proud of.  My mom, while she was alive, loved what I was doing and knew that she was the inspiration for my business.

10) What was the last business book you read?

“The Lean Startup” by Eric Ries.

11) What cause do you most want to advance?

I support all the initiatives to boost women in STEM and have joined various organizations that are making that their mission.  I’m also dedicated to reshaping healthcare so that it works for all of us.

12) What song can’t you get out of your head?

Peace Frog by The Doors

13) What is the best piece of advice you have ever received?

I’m from the “Show Me” state (MO) so I trust advice that comes from people who have actually walked in your shoes.  My advice is to be wary of people who seem to know all the answers but have never been an entrepreneur.

14) What is your “keep me going” quote?

We often use the phrase “make it happen.” We start with a defined goal and then focus on the shortest path to get there.

15) What is your secret indulgence?

The old fashioned candy hearts made by Necco.  I still haven’t gotten over the fact that they’ve changed all the flavors to fruity ones.

16) Who on the list of prior Honorees would you like to meet?

Linda Avey, 23and Me co founder; cause she’s disrupting healthcare just like I am.

Check out Dr. Hill’s full 40 Over 40 profile here!

Welcome to the Forty Over 40 blog. We frequently spotlight one of our honorees and their thoughts on reinvention, mentorship and momentum…plus a peek into what makes them tick.

This Q&A is with Christine Garde the founder and CEO of CouldYou?, a 501c3 non-profit dedicated to supporting African solutions to African problems focused on ending poverty in Africa. http://www.couldyou.org

CoulYou? catalyzes change by connecting people of influence in the West with African businesses and charities.  CouldYou? approaches development uniquely, putting partnership with Africans at the core — with them leading — creating African solutions to African problems.

1) What was a pivotal momentum of reinvention for you?

Mothering. I’ve never been married (though each year I remain hopeful that this is the year that will change!) and yet, since my late 20’s I’ve wanted to have a child and “mother”. Sometimes though, life doesn’t turn out exactly as you envisioned and you find yourself in circumstances beyond your control. I was in my late 20’s running a gang diversion program at the border of Tijuana/San Diego and so I began exploring and being open to ways I could reinvent “mothering”. A young girl in my program was pregnant and I took her to the hospital to deliver the baby and the moment I cut the umbilical chord, I fell in love and received the greatest gift of my life…to help mother that little girl.

That little girl is now 17 years old and living with me in San Diego until she graduates High School. I’ve had the privilege of watching her mother finish high school, receive her LVN license and continue to work on her nursing degree and get married to an incredible man who is a Marine. I got the gift of being in Leilani’s life full time from birth to 4, 12-13 and now16-19 and remained close the other years. It is difficult to put into words the bond we have as there actually isn’t a word to describe it…it transcends words and is the deepest love I’ve ever experienced. There are countless moments when I think life doesn’t get better than this. One of those moments was at her quinceanera (15 year old birthday party). Her mom was dancing the mother-daughter dance and half way through asked me to come out and finish the song. In those 45 seconds ( the speaker actually blew and the song ended pre-maturely) I was overfilled with pride and joy and love and gratitude. Perhaps it is a mother’s love … Though I think it is slightly different as there isn’t room to take it for granted as I am not her “mother”.

Mothering Leilani has been complicated and hard and at times heart-breaking and I wouldn’t trade it for the world. She is not my daughter and I may never get a card on Mother’s Day but I get to love her, mother her and treasure each day with her as she grows into an incredible young woman. I’m glad I didn’t miss this opportunity to “mother” simply because it wasn’t what I had imagined…sometimes the unimaginable is even better.

2) Who has been a valuable mentor or sponsor?

In different seasons of life, there have been different people who have helped shape who I am. Ray Smith at Triple Crown, a gang diversion agency, taught me what it meant to have “white privilege” and about systemic injustice. The gang kids I worked with taught me about loyalty and community and how making a difference in the life of “one” is worth whatever sacrifices it takes. Leon Tompkins at Young Life probably had the greatest impact of anyone on me. He modeled authenticity, vulnerability, servant leadership, a balanced life and deep faith. He believed I could do anything I put my mind to. He challenged me to break patterns and seek emotional wholeness so I wasn’t trying to “fix” anyone because of my own brokenness. He called me the “lamb that roared” and believed I could change the world! Most recently the Archbishop Desmond Tutu Fellows have shaped the way I think about and approach work in Africa. These remarkable men and women of integrity (under the age of 45) hold influential positions in some of the highest levels of business, government and civil society throughout the continent. One is currently running for the President of Tanzania and another was recently nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize. This network of 200 leaders represent the hope of Africa and embody African led solutions to African problems.

3) What is your biggest goal right now?

I want to see the next generation in Mozambique living in a nation that has taken itself out of poverty. I believe full transformation can happen in partnership with the west as we focus on the areas of education, food security and investment opportunities.

4) How did you get your first job? How did you jump to your second job?

When I graduated college with an International Business degree I moved out to San Diego. NAFTA had just opened up and I decided I wanted to work with Mayor Susan Golding. I looked into it and there were no jobs available (with my lack of experience). I then decided to think through what my “ideal job” would be and decided it was working for Katy McDonald in the office of Economic Development and so I contacted her and set up a meeting and asked for an internship. She said there was none available and so I told her I would work for her for free for 40 hours a week, just to learn from her. She said if she gave me the opportunity that I’d have to receive it as a serious position (even if there was no pay) and so for 12 months that is what I did. I took a waitressing job at Ruby’s Moto Diner on nights and weekends so I could survive financially. Katy gave me the responsibility of representing the Mayor on the STAR committee (Strategic Alliance for Redevelopment for the City of San Diego). At the end of the year when a position opened up Katy was able to offer me that job. I ended up not pursuing the job because I realized I wanted first hand experience in the neighborhoods we were serving. That is when I took the job at Triple Crown, which I was told I got because of my experience at the mayor’s office.

5) How did you feel on your 30th birthday? What were you doing at that time?

I felt great on my 30th birthday. I woke up in San Ysidro (the border of Tijuana and San Diego) where I was living in Public Housing (I didn’t qualify for section 8 but I worked out a deal to live there for free and work to reduce/eliminate the gang problem they had been experiencing). I was running a gang diversion program for 100 teens and families. Some moms in the neighborhood sent over homemade Mexican food and some of the young girls I worked with came over to wish me a happy birthday and some friends drove down with bagels and I was able to celebrate with all of them and Leilani and her mother, Adriana. That next night I met one of my best friends in NYC where we celebrated with a great glass of wine and orchestra seats to the musical Aida. There was a point during the musical that I had tears streaming down my face as I watched Heather Headly perform with such power and passion and I realized they were tears of joy because I felt that I too was living the life I was supposed to be living. I decided I wanted to have coffee with Heather and tell her how powerful a moment that was for me. It has not yet happened, but I still have time!

6) What challenge / achievement are you most proud of?

I am most proud of the young woman Leilani has become…so full of compassion and kindness and a zest for life and I am grateful I was able to play a role in nurturing her. I think the greatest challenge though that I am most proud of is the creating and sustaining of CouldYou? I have had the privilege of journeying with incredible African men and women who are sacrificing and breaking paradigms in truly historic ways. I’ve also had the privilege of walking alongside amazing men and women from the west who are asking deep questions about moving from success to significance in an African context. I’ve been able to facilitate successful investments in business and charity ( in both small and large-scale arenas) but even more importantly I’ve gained lifelong deep friendships that make life truly rich.

7) What cause do you most want to advance?

I want to continue to introduce westerners of integrity to African leaders of integrity so together they can do business or charity. We all can’t do everything, but what if each of us did the hard work of discovering our “one thing”? What if we knew what we are passionate about, what we are skilled at and what we love doing? What if we then harnessed that passion, skill and love, and paid attention to one need in the world that makes us mad… and did something about it? In today’s world, opportunities abound for giving time and money to counteract the effects of poverty. In parallel with this, a rise in voluntourism has highlighted people’s desires to do something meaningful. However, while volunteering at a local soup kitchen, building a school or spending time with orphans can be meaningful, there is often a poor match between skills and needs. When the focus is more on creating experiences for volunteers than on responding to the needs of local communities, serious damage can be done.

I was deeply impacted after watching the TED talk by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: The Danger of a Single Story. In it, she warns about perpetuating the old story of Africa as a “place of beautiful landscapes, beautiful animals, incomprehensible people fighting senseless wars, dying of poverty and Aids, unable to speak for themselves, waiting to be saved by a kind, white foreigner.” This state of affairs will not change if well- meaning foreigners continue to think in terms of providing aid and help to the poor. Instead, what is needed today is for people with generous hearts to partner with trusted local leadership and to fill in any gaps they determine. Sustainable change for people living in poverty comes not from the outside in, but from the inside out.

CouldYou? was started out of a desire to help people live life at the interface where, as the American writer and theologian Frederick Buechner says, “your deepest gladness and the world’s deep need meet.” When people find that place, they not only make the world a better place, but they experience abundant life, deep joy and satisfaction. Mahatma Gandhi said, “The difference between what we do and what we are capable of doing would suffice to solve most of the world’s problems.” I want to advance that reality.

8) What is the best piece of advice you ever received?

Bob Goff once told me to hold loosely to my organization and each new year ask the question “Is this what I’m supposed to commit to for the next 12 months and if so, go after it with everything you have but if not, be willing to let it go”. This has been so freeing because I don’t get lost in the building of an organization but rather focus on the work itself and the people I have the privilege of working alongside. Another piece of advice came from a dear friend in Mozambique who asked if I would be “willing to work the next 40 years towards the transformation of Mozambique if in my lifetime I never saw the fruit?” My gut honest answer was no…to which he said “than it was never about the transformation of my nation but about you”. Those words have stayed with me and drive me to not give up when the task at hand is hard and progress seems slow and no one is patting me on the back saying “good job”.

9) What is your “keep me going” quote?

My life quote is one by Frederick Buechner that says True self  “happens when your deepest gladness and the world’s deep need, meet”. I want to live in the middle of that intersection and help people do the same because that is when you experience abundant life. Lately though, when I look at the task of seeing the nation of Mozambique fully transformed, my “keep me going” quote is by Nelson Mandela, “It is always impossible until it is done.”

10) Who on the list of prior Honorees would you like to meet?

I love meeting new and interesting people and so I’d be honored to meet anyone of the 40 women on last years 40Over40 list. Particularly anyone who might have a heart/interest in Africa to see where there might be some natural synergies in our work. Dr. Alissa Johnson and Elizabeth Clarkson for example would be great to talk with, as we are working with an American entrepreneur and investors to help Mozambique with cyber-security.

Check out Christine Garde’s full 40 Over 40 profile here!

Welcome to the Forty Over 40 blog. We frequently spotlight one of our honorees and their thoughts on reinvention, mentorship and momentum…plus a peek into what makes them tick.

This Q & A is with Caitlin McCarthy. Caitlin is an award-winning screenwriter; a DES (diethylstilbestrol) activist; and an English Language Arts Instructor at Worcester Technical High School in Worcester, Massachusetts (the second largest city in New England). After Caitlin discovered in 2005 that she had been exposed to DES in utero, she decided to use her screenwriting to help educate the world about the drug’s dangers. Caitlin’s most notable scripts include: WONDER DRUG; PASS/FAIL; FREE SKATE; and RESISTANCE.   

1)  What was a pivotal moment of reinvention for you?

I’ve reinvented myself several times – from public relations executive, to inner-city public high school ELA teacher, to screenwriter, to DES activist.  Every change has been pivotal for me, because they all involved me stepping outside of my comfort zone and moving in a new direction.  And you know what’s amazing?  As I get older, I get braver.  I can’t wait to discover my next opportunity for growth.

2)  Who has been a valuable mentor?

I have two standouts:

• Andrea Goldstein, the DES Daughter and activist long viewed as the “historian” and Paul Revere of DES issues. Andrea is the first woman to win a DES-related infertility lawsuit against a pharmaceutical company (Eli Lilly) in the United States.  She’s educated the world about DES for decades; she helped educate and support me when I learned of my DES exposure in 2005.  I’m blessed to have her in my life.

• Writer/director/producer/actor Tom Gilroy, who mentored me on WONDER DRUG at the Hampton’s Screenwriters Lab – and didn’t stop after that weekend. Tom is a feminist who champions women filmmakers and writers.  Hollywood needs more men like Tom Gilroy.  I’d say someone should clone him, but Tom is one of a kind.

3)  What is your biggest goal right now?

I would love to help organize a “DES: where we are, where we have been, and what in the world have we learned” meeting in Washington, DC with political folks, influence makers, scientists, advocates, and the interested public in attendance. I’m already exploring this idea with others in the DES community (including Andrea Goldstein, of course!).  We’ll figure out a way to make this happen.

 4) What’s the best networking contact you’ve made? How did you make it?

While going through a teacher training program at Brockton High School in Massachusetts, I mentioned to Diane Ayoche, a veteran teacher, that I had just finished writing a novel.  Diane said, “Oh!  I should introduce you to my cousin.”  Little did I know that her cousin is Oscar-nominated director Matia Karrell!

Matia read my unpublished novel and asked if I could turn it into a screenplay. I said yes, even though I had never written a screenplay before. I bought Final Draft Software and “The Screenwriter’s Bible” by David Trottier, and promptly switched from writing books to scripts.  I have Diane and Matia to thank for that incredible life change.

5) What was the last business book you read? 

“Writing the TV Drama Series: How to Succeed as a Professional Writer in TV” by Pamela Douglas.  It’s a terrific resource that’s practical and encouraging.

6)What song can’t you get out of your head? 

AC/DC’s “Long Way To The Top (If You Wanna Rock ‘N’ Roll).” The guitars. The bagpipes.  Perfection.  Whenever that song comes on the radio, I turn it up and sing along – badly!  But who cares. The song rocks.

7) What is the best piece of advice you ever received?

Former Hollywood manager/producer Beth Colt of the Woods Hole Inn on Cape Cod emailed the following to me: “Just keep doing it.  Write another spec, submit again.  Rinse, repeat.  Each one gets better, the cumulative matters. Don’t give up!  All the struggle will pay off in the end.  Good writing is fueled by life experience.”  Those words were a shot in the arm for me. A hard copy of Beth’s email hangs by my writing desk.

8) What is your “keep me going” quote?

“Work Conquers All.”

9) What is your secret indulgence? 

Okay, I’m not going to lie.  It’s cuddling on the couch with Oscar, my adopted Westie, while watching HGTV’s Property Brothers.

10) Who on the list of prior Honorees would you like to meet?

Betsy Beers, one of this year’s Honorees. I’ve followed her on Twitter for some time now.  I love her work. She’s an inspiration to me.

Check out Caitlin McCarthy’s full 40 Over 40 profile here!

Welcome to the Forty Over 40 blog. We spotlight one of our honorees and their thoughts on reinvention, mentorship and momentum…plus a peek into what makes them tick.

This Q & A is with Sheila Roche the Chief Creative & Communications Consultant, (RED). She has led communications and creative for (RED) since its inception. Her career began in the music industry where she ran U2’s management company and managed the career of PJ Harvey. She has led all of (RED)’s major campaigns including its launch on Oprah, Bono’s guest editorship of Vanity Fair, high profile art & design auctions (collectively raising over $85 million). She has also conceived and led (RED)’s collaboration with the electronic dance community producing #1 dance albums in more than 30 countries.

1) What was a pivotal moment of reinvention for you?

I feel really fortunate to have had two careers – one as a rock and roll manager.  The second launching (RED), the AIDS organization, for its founders Bono and Bobby Shriver. Reinvention was embedded in that move but the aspect of it that most surprised me was how relevant my knowledge and experience from my former career was to my second one.

2) Who has been a valuable mentor or sponsor?

Three people – Bono; Paul McGuinness, U2’s manager for 35 years with whom I co-managed PJ Harvey for 13 years; and Ellen Darst who was my first boss in the music business and pivotal to U2’s success in the US.

3) What is your biggest goal right now?

Helping (RED) to put itself out of business when we get to the end of AIDS, a preventable and treatable disease which has needlessly killed 40 million people.

4) How did you get your first job? How did you jump to your second job?

I asked for every job I got…I just asked and gave passionate reasons for why I wanted to do them. Paul McGuinness first turned me down for my job with U2 because I was a friend and they didn’t hire friends.  I was naive and cocky enough to convince him he was making a mistake!

5) What time do you typically wake up? What do you do every morning?

I wake up around 6.30am, have coffee to get my brain started (I’m in a sorry state beforehand), try to meditate and when I’m home, I walk our dog.

6) How do you unplug? How often do you unplug?

On weekends. I stop having good ideas if I don’t unplug so I really don’t believe that constant busyness is something to aspire to….I think it’s a tyrannical notion and totally counterproductive.

7) What is the best piece of advice you ever received?

Try to hire people who are not too big to do small things and not too small to do big things.

8) What is your “keep me going” quote?

Just do the next right thing.

Check out Sheila Roche’s full 40 Over 40 profile here!

Welcome to the Forty Over 40 blog. We frequently spotlight one of our honorees and their thoughts on reinvention, mentorship and momentum…plus a peek into what makes them tick.

This Q & A is with Margit Detweiler the Founder / Editor, TueNight.com; Founder/CEO, Gyrate Media. Margit has over 16 years experience leading digital media sites (Real Simple, Everyday Health and Aol.) and started her career in print at the Philadelphia City Paper. Margit has a history of disrupting every market she hits. She helped her client, Federated Media, develop a content marketing team and through her firm Gyrate Media, works with blue chip clients such as Verizon, P&G, and Johnson and Johnson on cutting-edge content strategy solutions.

Two years ago, Margit realized that as a 40+ woman, she wasn’t seeing her authentic experience recounted online. Articles like “10 Ways to Get Rid of the Grey” or “Over 40: What Not to Wear” were condescending and frankly, incorrect. Gen-X women are varied, influential and awesome. However, in adulthood, it can be harder to be honest and candid about our bodies and our feelings. Margit started the website TueNight.com to provide a venue for a generation of 40-somethings – a place to discuss anything from fertility to not having children to career mishaps – with humor, honesty and attitude. She’s also part of a “slow media” movement  — longer, hand-crafted storytelling in thematic batches, published once a week.

1) What was a pivotal momentum of reinvention for you?

Back in 2008, when I was laid off from a big-time job at a big-time editorial house, I re-evaluated. Do I take the easy road and take the next editorial director/ exec editor gig? Or do I take this as a blessing and think about what I really want to do with my life. After 20 years of working for other people, I decided to create my own content strategy agency and leverage everything I’d learned in my many past lives to create a top notch consultancy. A few years after that, I started my own website, TueNIght.com — a weekly storytelling site for Gen X women. It was a longtime dream to get back to writing and creating and making — for myself. Juggling a multi-hyphenate career been a hustle, of course, but taking that one bold step to create my own future, has opened many other doors, both personally and professionally.

2) Who has been a valuable mentor or sponsor?

So many. Former Scripps, Yahoo and Federated Media head honcho Deanna Brown, my former colleague at AOL Jesse Kornbluth who runs HeadButler.com now, Rachel Sklar of The Li.st spring to mind. The things they all have in common — they’ve blazed their own trail, learned along the way and taken risks left and right but they always seem to make time to reach down and help a sister out with solid advice. Deanna in particular has phenomenal combined insights on digital marketing and editorial which is invaluable for the modern publisher.

3) What is your biggest goal right now?

I have two. Normally my 2nd goal would have been my first but I had a bit of a setback. Late last year I was diagnosed with ovarian cancer and so that’s my first goal — to get through treatment and get it the hell gone. Oddly its given me some writing inspiration so I’m chronicling my experience on TueNight in a column called Ovarian Rhapsody. Cancer is so often something we don’t talk about, or suffer through silently. I’d like to try and reduce that stigma a little bit if I can.

My 2nd goal is to create a truly sustainable business in TueNight.com through the events we currently host, the advertising and other in-roads. We have Talk TueNight storytelling events which are steadily growing and growing. When I’m frustrated with not being as successful as I’d like, ASAP, I remind myself of my favorite publishing motto “patience and perseverance” — it’s a bit of a slow-poke-turtle point of view, but it’s really the only way to forge ahead in a sustainable, true way. Followers follow you because they love you, not because you bought them.

4) How did you get your first job? How did you jump to your second job?

A friend of mine, Mary Finnegan (I’ll never forget her name) was interning at the Philadelphia City Paper and she told me they were hiring for a paid assistant position and she couldn’t do it, and asked if I was interested? I jumped at the chance and remember immediately calling the newspaper from a street corner pay phone, in the rain. I had an interview that day, in my yellow rain coat, and got the job. I ended up spending ten years there, was their first music and style editor, and left as the managing editor. So that was job 2,3, and 4. The 2nd company I worked for was AOL in 1999. A recruiter called me on the phone at the City Paper, they were looking for a managing editor for Digital City. I jumped at the chance to go online even though a lot of people thought I was nuts.

5) What time do you typically wake up? What do you do every morning?

I am a capricious sleeper. It depends if I’ve had an event the night before. And I’m a bit of a night owl. I always do better when I wake up early, but often I get up at 7:30 or 8am. I stretch or do 15 minutes of yoga, set my intentions for the day, and as of the last few months, have a shake every morning (VITAMIX!)

6) How do you unplug? How often do you unplug?

I unplug entirely on vacation (which is roughly twice a year). I unplug nightly after 10pm.

7) What cause do you most want to advance?

Literacy and writing. Our last event was a benefit for the awesome organization Girls Write Now, a community of women writers and digital media makers dedicated to providing guidance, support, and opportunities for under served high school girls and through TueNight, the idea that experience should be valued and that women of all ages (especially over 40!) are beautiful and dynamic with rich stories to tell.

8) What song can’t you get out of your head?

Sometimes my husband starts singing the Alice theme song (yes that old 70s show), I will sing it in my head for days. “Early to bed, early to rise….”

9) What is the best piece of advice you ever received?

DELEGATE!

10) What is your “keep me going” quote?

“Patience and perseverance”

Check out Margit Detweiler’s full 40 Over 40 profile here!