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Were you looking for a new job when you retired from the American Red Cross and moved back to Des Moines from Washington, D.C.?

I knew that it was not time yet to hang it all up, but I technically qualified for early retirement so I exercised that. I gave myself time to settle back into my household, et cetera, and sought a new opportunity. This was just a perfect match to my background in nonprofit management, as well as I have always had a huge interest in international relations, particularly the cultural aspect as opposed to the political.

What excites you most about being back in Des Moines?

I am thrilled by the continued progress in revitalizing downtown. Obviously that was already started long before I left four years ago, but the number of great restaurants and the number of opportunities for cultural music venues, I’m very pleased with. I’m delighted to be on the route, I call it a circulator (downtown shuttle), and within walking distance of some great parts of Des Moines, because both of those things are amenities that I had enjoyed and gotten accustomed to.

How did you get into nonprofit work?

I started as an educator and just was looking for a change and literally applied to a blind ad. I did know it was a nonprofit but didn’t know it was the Red Cross. I just read that ad and said I could do that. And that was the start. I spent 28 years in four different locations with the American Red Cross.

Where did you start?

In a little bitty, not unlike the size of operation this (Iowa Sister States) is in terms of staffing and budget, in Muscatine, Iowa.

Are there a couple of priorities you have in this new role?

Raising the public awareness of Iowa Sister States and what it is we do and what opportunities it affords all Iowans. We are housed and based out of Des Moines, but the partner relationships are statewide with states, or whatever they might be called, in other countries. So I’m finding there’s not a knowledge of the agency or the fact that these relationships exist, and it’s just a great opportunity for Iowans to personally get involved and engaged in citizen diplomacy in terms of hosting folks from our sister states as they visit Iowa or traveling as part of a project to those locations and experiencing those cultures.

Is there a big project you’re focused on now?

There are actually several things that have come up that I think are pretty exciting. We have two in August. One is a Hebei, China, delegation that is coming to Iowa and so they have requests of types of information, visits that they would like and then we set about managing the social services requests that they have. Then later in August, there is going to be a celebration for the 50th anniversary of Nikita Khrushchev visiting the Garst farm, and as a subset of that several-day celebration, Iowa Sister States is hosting a barbecue at Camp Dodge and the governor has agreed to speak.

What’s the biggest challenge you face?

I would say finding volunteer hosts, because one of the ways we do this cost effectively is to host our incoming visitors. And then other financial and in-kind support for any of our given projects. We can only do what we can afford to get underwritten.

Is there an achievement you’re most proud of?

Careerwise, it would be the position that I left at the Red Cross at a vice president level. Personally, I’m proud of the fact that I climbed to the top of Mount Kilimanjaro.

What do you like to do for fun?

I have four grandchildren, and that is very fun, as well as a book club I’m involved in, and I like to garden and golf.

What do you miss most about being in D.C.?

The wonderful availability of cultural opportunities. And so many of them at no charge. And I do miss the mass transit opportunities.

How did you make your first dollar?

I washed dishes. It was called a convalescent hospital in Davenport and I was under the age of 16, so I had to have a work permit.