Up Close With Emily Urueta

Current job: Branch Manager, Employers Overload.

Proudest professional moment: Every chance we get to ‘Help People Succeed’ is a proud moment. A specific example would be the time a job seeker, who was studying for her master’s degree, shared that she was a single mother to a child with special needs and really needed to find the right job that would allow her to meet her child’s needs while also meeting her school schedule. We were very pleased to be able to identify a position that suited her needs perfectly, resulting in a beneficial situation for all involved; it doesn’t get any better than that!

First job: When I was a teenager, my two friends and I worked on a family berry farm in Salem, Ore. We rode on a big machine that was essentially a conveyor belt on wheels. The machine drove over the rows of berries and we sorted through them to pick out moldy berries, debris, spiders, inch worms, even frogs. We worked from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. and again from 10 p.m. to 3 a.m. six days a week. We worked hard, but the work was really just an excuse for us to live on the farm, in the apartment above the barn and spend the entire summer with good friends.

Fun fact: I enjoy bouldering and sport climbing. I broke my ankle last year after taking a fall from about seven feet up and now I have 11 screws and a metal plate in my right ankle. Now that I am almost fully recovered, I look forward to getting back to it.

Favorite spot on a Saturday night: At home with my kids playing games, singing karaoke or forcing them to love “classic movies” like Sixteen Candles, Uncle Buck, Groundhog Day or Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.

Favorite movie: Bridesmaids. Need I say more?

Music of choice: I like a wide range of music but some of my favorites are The Police, Ray LaMontagne, Simon and Garfunkel, Uncle Tupelo, Nirvana, Joy Division, Rush and so many more.

Favorite place to eat: The fish tacos at Woody’s Tacos are, hands down, the best!

Motto/Inspirational quote: “90% of success is perseverance.” – Dave Ramsey

Joanna Yorke-Payne
Joanna Yorke is the managing editor of the Vancouver Business Journal. She has worked in the journalism field since 2010 after graduating from the Edward R. Murrow College of Communication at Washington State University in Pullman. Yorke worked at The Reflector Newspaper in Battle Ground for six years and then worked at and helped start ClarkCountyToday.com.

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