In addition to being a certified Notary Public in both Oregon and Washington, I am a Loan Signing Agent, certified by both LSS and NNA. My first professional career, beginning in the 1970s, was as an attorney (in California, where I maintain my license). For thirty years, I specialized in the defense of architects and engineers, real estate agents and brokers, and doctors and lawyers—and as such, I’m comfortable dealing with a wide range of professionals and egos. My legal practice also included contract negotiations/dispute resolution and commercial and residential real estate litigation.
​After thirty years, I decided to leave the full-time practice of law and devote myself to volunteering with non-profit organizations, first in California and, since 2012, in Oregon. In California, my activities included such things as serving as a board member and officer of the nation’s largest free healthcare clinic, participating as a court-appointed advocate for foster children, fundraising as a foundation board member on behalf of a local elementary school, sitting as a member and officer of a county commission investigating proposed development projects, and helping to establish and grow an organization devoted to researching and soliciting community input on regional land use issues in a highly acclaimed northern California wine region.
In Oregon, my volunteer activities initially involved fundraising for Oregon Public Broadcasting and the Oregon Humane Society; I have continued to perform a variety of tasks for OHS, including walking dogs and mentoring new volunteers. In 2023, I was honored for my years of service to the organization with a bench at the entrance to OHS's new Community Veterinary Hospital.