I fell in love with the Spanish language, as well as the Spanish people, at a young, impressionable age. When I was fourteen I received a trip to Cancun, Mexico as a gift for Christmas! It was this trip that changed the rest of my career course, and really my outlook on life and other cultures.
What happened you ask? When I arrived to Cancun, Mexico, I was excited and eager to explore this new and beautiful land. It was my first time out of the States, and I was ready to mingle! Along my journey in Cancun, I encountered some people from South America who were traveling. I was all too eager to hear and learn about their background and country of Argentina – but there was one big problem I encountered with this: I did not speak Spanish (at the time) and they did not speak English. Besides knowing how to say “hola,” I had yet to have learned any Spanish. My best friend, who was with me on the trip, did have a year of Spanish, but she was not yet fluent in any sense of the term. What is the point of this story you might ask? It was in that very moment of pure frustration and disappointment from not being able to communicate – I told myself: I would not let this happen again.
When I got back to the states, not only did I pick Spanish as my language of choice for all of my high schooling, but decided to go on to also make the Spanish language my major in college, and then go on to pursue a career using Spanish. My love for the language opened up many doors.
In High School, the National Spanish Honor Society inducted me into their honor roll. I then earned my first degree in Bachelor of Arts in Spanish and International Business from Florida Atlantic University. While attending the university, I jumped at the chance to live and study abroad in Salamanca, Spain and El Puerto de Santa Maria, Spain, as well as attend the private language school, Estudio Sampere for six months, where I received some of my most intense instruction in the Spanish language. I then went on to obtain my Master’s Degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Entrepreneurship from the H. Wayne Huizenga School of Business at Nova Southeastern University.
Since then, I have traveled the world and been to more than 14 Spanish speaking countries. I worked for the national major newspaper, El Nuevo Herald, sister paper to The Miami Herald, as their Business Development Manager. I am a member of the American Translation Association, as well as a qualified Court Interpreter in my home state of Maryland.
Last but not least, developing The Gringa Way method and writing the book “Learn Spanish The Gringa Way, The Easiest Way For Native English Speakers To Learn Spanish” is my greatest career achievement.