Chris McGilvray owns Santa Cruz’s Nomadic Bear Productions, a film company that creates short films as promotion for companies and causes. The path that brought him to his current role has been anything but a straight line.
How I Got My Job
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How I Got My Job: Gina Occhipinti Borasi on redefining what it means to be a lawyer
Gina Occhipinti Borasi almost quit her pursuit of a career in law after feeling unable to be the shark lawyer she thought it was necessary to be to succeed as an attorney. After finding inspiration with a compassionate mentor, Occhipinti Borasi went on to become a successful personal-injury lawyer who leads with a person-first attitude.
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How I Got My Job: After struggling in school herself, Cristine Chopra now helps students find their path
As a child, Cristine Chopra struggled with undiagnosed dyslexia, receiving a diagnosis only at age 25. Today, Chopra has a Ph.D. and is executive director of the Santa Cruz County College and Career Collaborative, preparing underrepresented students for higher education. She sees a trend of students questioning whether college is worth the cost and the commitment, but says any form of postsecondary education, from a four-year college to technical training, is the key to weathering the ups and downs of modern life.
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How I Got My Job: Case manager Andres Galvan on confronting housing, addiction and mental health crises
Mental health client specialist Andres Galvan works at the intersection of Santa Cruz County’s mental health, homelessness and drug-overdose crises. Now almost 17 years in recovery himself, Galvan understands the importance of counselors and others who work in the mental health and addictions fields treating clients with empathy and compassion. “You can’t just go out there for the paycheck,” he says. “Your heart has got to be in it because you’re going to come across some difficult things. You got to keep that open mind and that’s a difficult task.”
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How I Got My Job: Sandra Renteria turned her passion project into a lucrative career in vintage resale
Sandra Renteria, owner of Angel Aura Vintage in downtown Santa Cruz, loved to thrift-shop as a teenager. When she found herself with extra time on her hands during the pandemic, Renteria dreamed up the company she now calls her career.
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How I Got My Job: Swim school entrepreneur Tiffany Harmon on surviving the pandemic as small business owner
Swim school owner Tiffany Harmon turned her love of the water into a career teaching swim lessons and training others in water safety. Through issues with staffing, COVID-19, and personal loss, Harmon has found support in personal mentors and small business resources.
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How I Got My Job: NOAA fish researcher Tom Laidig on spending 31 days at sea for work
Tom Laidig’s job as a fish researcher at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration takes him out in some of the deepest parts of the ocean to study the ecosystem hundreds — even thousands — of feet underwater. Laidig’s current research involves environmental DNA, where scientists take a water sample and run the DNA to see what is present in the ecosystem at different points along the coast and how it changes, in part to understand the effects of climate change on marine life.
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How I Got My Job: Bay Federal’s Nicole Beaver on building a career in the financial industry as a young mother
Nicole Beaver, manager of Bay Federal Credit Union’s Capitola branch, juggled multiple jobs and school while also raising a family as she made her way through the ranks of the credit union. She spoke to Lookout about the wide variety of roles in the financial industry and why banking requires good people skills — it’s not all dollars and cents.
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How I Got My Job: UCSC student Anna Cummins molds passion for pottery into thriving business
Potter and UC Santa Cruz student Anna Cummins has amassed hundreds of thousands of followers across social media platforms like Instagram and TikTok through her distinctive style and personable videos. Cummins spoke with Lookout about her process of promoting herself, how artists can develop an online presence and her artistic technique.
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How I Got My Job: After spending time in prison, plumbing manager Chayne Hampton found purpose in a career in the trades
Transitioning from incarceration to the workforce is no easy feat, says Chayne Hampton, manager at Santa Cruz Plumbing Inc. People “have to learn how to operate in a world that’s not the world that you’ve been in.” Many will pass judgment, he says, but if someone is a hard worker their past shouldn’t hold them back. Hampton spoke with Lookout about shifting from prison to the workforce and offered career advice to formerly incarcerated individuals.