my life AS A PROFESSIONAL

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Price Waterhouse (PW), Los Angeles, September 1981 to mid 80’s
Swett & Crawford (S&C), Los Angeles, mid-to-late 80’s
KPMG Peat Marwick (KPMG), Los Angeles, late 80’s to early 90’s
Houlihan, Lokey, Howard & Zukin (HL), Los Angeles, most of the 90’s
Two small Las Vegas firms in the early 2000’s
Large non-profit organization in Las Vegas from late 2002 to mid 2017

After graduating from IU in May 1981 I spent the summer of that year in Valparaiso with my parents and friends until my mom and I left for LA. While still at home I sewed outfits in anticipation of work in the Big City. I was so excited to move out of the farm country into the big city to start my career!

My first client at PW, one of the Big 8 international CPA firms at the time, was Lloyd’s Bank of London and after a very long and grueling audit I was asked by the partner to join the newly formed Entrepreneur Professional Services group.

I left PW in 1985 and joined S&C, a national wholesale brokerage insurance firm, in charge of budgeting and audits and controls and reporting.  

In the late 80s I went to work for for KPMG, another one of the big CPA firms, for a few years as their internal Controller (for the SW Region).

In the early 90s I  went to work for HL, a specialty investment banking firm as their internal Controller in charge of HR, IT and Accounting and then in 1997 they decided to add a CFO, and they promoted me to that position.

My parents moved to Las Vegas from Indiana in 1993, then they they decided to add (and promote me to) the position of CFO to the organization. Shortly after my promotion, Tom and I decided to start looking for a move to Las Vegas. I took a position as CFO for first a small manufacturing-type firm and then a mid-size production firm (that at the time was publicly traded and had an infusion of joint venture funds made available to it to expand, then 9/11 struck). I soon left there for a nonprofit and stayed for 15 years as CFO at first and ultimately COO/CFO until I suffered my hematoma and became both mentally and physically disabled. My physical disability is quite apparent - as my right side is very impaired and I was right-handed.  I cannot write; thank goodness for computers! And I cannot drive; thank goodness for my husband and Uber! My mental disabilities are that I cannot think, act or process like a COO - that is why I left my job.

While I was successful at my various places of professional employment from 1981-2017, I earned the following accolades:

• Best Service Employee of the Year Award
• Promotions to Newly Created Job Positions
• Plaques for length of employment

I was also hired at the nonprofit organization with no prior experience in nonprofits or their specific fields but I brought “smarts” and built the organization during my 15 years of tenure there.


GOD BLESS, PEG.

“Don’t go around saying the world owes you a living. The world owes you nothing. It was here first.” ― Mark Twain

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