Krista Dennison is the newest member of our client service team. She will be working with Mary Kate Herndon, double-checking the check boxes and submitting forms so that our clients’ financial plans are implemented smoothly.
I was born in Anchorage, not far from the ACPM office where I have now been working since January. After graduating from West High, I headed off to college in Connecticut, convinced that I would probably never live in Alaska again. A major in Russian and Soviet Studies led to a year studying abroad in St. Petersburg (then Leningrad) and Moscow. I returned to Anchorage after graduation for a year of interpreting for Russian delegations, following the first friendship flight in 1988 that kicked off a wave of exchanges. I then worked for several years at an airline, giving me a chance to travel around the state and the world. After taking a break from working outside the home while my daughters were little, I was ready to return to working with taller people and jumped at the chance to work with such a great team.
As the newest member of the client service team, I’m often asked, “do you like your new job?” Although pouring over stacks of paperwork is not exactly glamorous, there is a certain satisfaction in getting it done right – so someone’s financial plan can go forward. Paperwork is one of those things that just needs to get done to move on to bigger and better things, kind of like laundry. As it happens, I enjoy doing laundry. In fact, laundry is high on my list of experiences while traveling.
My love of foreign laundry began on a high school trip to Germany, when I learned how to use a scary but useful machine: the mangle. Who knew that navigating the challenges of mysterious machines and foreign languages could be such a great cultural experience? My favorite laundry venue to date is the rooftop laundry of an apartment building in Seville, Spain where we spent a sunny November. My kids were little, so I would take the elevator up to the roof during naptime and spend a peaceful couple of hours doing laundry with a view over rooftops all the way to the Alamillo bridge.
While our services here don’t run to laundry, you may hear from me or Mary Kate if there’s a “wrinkle” in one of your account documents that needs to be ironed out. Although it seems at first like some of the account documents may be written in a foreign language, I am enjoying the challenge of learning the vocabulary. When you come in to meet with your financial advisor, you can relax, enjoy the view, and focus on the big picture, knowing that Mary Kate and I are managing the little details.
Krista Dennison
AWMI, Client Service Assistant
3/28/18