Sullivan Field is undergoing a major renovation. A new 7 lane, green and
gold, Mondo track surface is being installed as well as complete state
of the art lighting. In addition, a beautiful brick sidewalk will be
installed from the ticket booth to the home bleachers. You can have a
personalized brick added to this walkway.
Click here for more information.
Diane Schommer
When I sat down to write this bio it is amazing what 20 years has
brought in the way of experiences and adventures.
Time warp back to 1987 -- Right after graduation I went on a six
week tour of Europe through the People to People program. It was truly
a life changing experience. Up until then I was all prepared to be a
Foreign Affairs Officer in the USSR (took 3 years of Russian at LAHS in
preparation), the first stop on the trip was Moscow. Wow. I learned
very quickly that wasn't the country for me. I hadn't even gotten to
college and I was experiencing a college major change. The trip also
opened my eyes to a whole world I hadn't seen before.
I had 2 weeks back home in LA before leaving for Baylor University,
in lovely Waco, TX. The only thing going for Waco is that it was bigger
than Los Alamos. I graduated in 4 years with a BBA double major in
Marketing and Management. I opted to go directly to graduate school at
UNM for my MBA in Finance, which I completed in 1993.
While enrolled in the MBA program I thought I'd like to be a banker.
So I started working at Sunwest Bank as a teller and was promoted into
the management trainee program. About that time, Boatmans Bankshares
purchased the bank and I went from management trainee to merger project
worker. That was actually interesting. Unfortunately there came a time
when it was over, which left me in a compliance specialist position
(boring!) and looking for new challenges. I moved over on a contract
position to Intel in September of 1995. Just as I got there they put a
hiring freeze on. Things were conspiring against me in Albuquerque. It
was time to move on to bigger and better things.
In June of 1996, I sold my house in Albuquerque and moved to Chicago,
IL. Never having been to Chicago, it was an experience. I've found the
city suits me well. It took me a while to settle into my career. My
mentor at Lockheed Martin took me out of the finance group put my feet
on the career path of Project Management and I have never looked back.
I can truly say that it has been something I've professionally enjoyed.
I earned my Project Management Professional (PMP) Certification in
2000. And I've used that PM tool kit at multiple clients all over the
country. I've consulted in finance, manufacturing, telecommunications,
insurance, and the federal government. After 5 years of severe
traveling I accepted a six month furlough. I was glad to have the time
off when my father abruptly died of a heart attack in 2002. That
experience lead me to re-evaluate my career path. I decided that while
I enjoyed the traveling, it let little time for living. It took a
couple of months to find a position that would be challenging, but
wouldn't have me flying all over the country. I am now a Senior Project
Manager at Abbott Laboratories for the Global Medical Services Group
which handles all of Abbott's global communications and drug safety
responsibilities.
In addition to traveling for work I've done a good bit of traveling
for fun. I can now say I've climbed the pyramid at Chichen Itza and
into the great pyramid at Giza. I've ridden a camel across the sands of
the Sahara and a donkey down the cliffs of Santorni. I've walked the
botanical gardens on Vancouver Island, the sculpture gardens in
Stockholm, Sweden, and the gardens at the villa d'Este in Tivoli, Italy.
I've climbed the stone stairs of castles in Scotland, England, Germany,
and San Marino. I've walked in the footsteps of Cleopatra and Marc
Antony and sailed the route of Homer's Odysseus. I've stood in awe of
the masterpieces of the Renaissance in Rome and Florence, and cried
tears at the work of the sculptors of the pharaohs. My next adventure
is through the ancient cities of eastern Turkey.
Since I stopped traveling for work I've been able to enjoy my hobbies
including: Karate (I've qualified to compete in the National
Championship this year), scrapbooking and rubber stamping. I've also
been able to work on some educational courses and I'll be finishing my
Process Management certificate from the University of Chicago in
December.
With all of the traveling, I haven't found a fellow to keep company
with, but I am hopeful I will find one eventually. He will have to have
a passport, a sturdy suitcase, and a sense of adventure. Those are
non-negotiable requirements.
