Tracy Rittmueller:
CLASS OF 1989
East High SchoolClass of 1989
Wichita, KS
Wichita State UniversityClass of 1994
Wichita, KS
Southeast High SchoolClass of 1989
Wichita, KS
West High SchoolClass of 1989
Wichita, KS
Tracy's Story
Life
Since leaving Doo Dah, I have lived in Utah, Arizona, Colorado, North Carolina and am now residing in Illinois. After graduating from Wichita State, I knew I wanted to travel and got a job which allowed me that opportunity. I met my husband, Michael, on one of my many trips to New Orleans. We have two dogs and a home near Chicago. I am a realtor in a Chicago suburb and sell new construction condos. I guess you could say that all of my chatting at East High contributed to my successful career in sales. Good to know education doesn't go to waste!
School
High school is such an odd time of life. Your hormones are going crazy, people are pressuring you to do all kinds of scandalous acts, your parents turn into dictators and you're expected to achieve under these conditions. Being a twin, I was always trying to establish my identity. Sometimes I achieved this goal successfully and other times failed miserably. That's what growing up is all about. There are some memories of East that I am proud of and others that I might not speak of. I did have a couple of crushes (who didn't?), but won't say any names in case I decide to drop into a reunion (how embarressing!). But I will say that when I had a crush I would write them anonymous letters or poetry, put them in their lockers and dash from the scene. I was so shy back then. Funny!!!! I am lucky to have gone to a school with such diversity; it really prepared me for the big world outside of Wichita. I don't think that I would do the high school thing all over again. I am so comfortable in my skin now and it just seems that I was so uncomforable with who I was back then. I would pay more attention in class, though. I lost 3 years of my life to gossiping and passing notes. I made up for that in college, though.
College
College was a whole lot more fun for me than my high school years. The main factor being that my parents were out of the picture(they were super strict). I went to school at Wichita State University and graduated with a Bachelors of Science (Major: Gerontology Minors: Psych and Sociology). I loved the open schedules (I am NOT a morning person) and the fact that attending class was usually not mandatory. I did study quite a bit, though, and made good grades. With as much as I studied, I partied twice as much. There was a party every night somewhere and it usually went until the wee hours of the morning. How did anyone manage to graduate? I made many lasting friendships in these...Expand for more
years which I still have today. Once a buddy has scraped you up off of the floor of the Flicker, Y-Not or Streetlights, then you're pretty much friends for life. I met my first two fiances in college, but neither one worked out. I guess everything happens for a reason, though. I would gladly relive my college years, I wouldn't do anything differently. It was a blast!
Workplace
I am hopelessly restless. After college, I worked in my field of Geriatrics for a staggering 9 months before quitting my position as Alzheimers Unit Coordinator at a retirement center. I was very disillusioned by the system and their lack of care/concern for the patient. I opted for a fun job outside of my degreed field instead. I worked at Colter Enterprises/Lonestar Corporate offices in downtown Wichita. What a party! Every Friday was pizza and margarita lunches on the company. The owner would organize huge parties every month and hand out hundred dollar bills everytime the stock went up. It was an experience! After a year I was promoted and transferred to SLC, Utah to become a corporate trainer for the company. I traveled non-stop for the next five years to open restaurants. I got to see almost all 50 states and met some amazing people. In that time I also got transferred to Phoenix, AZ. Phoenix is my favorite place in the whole world. I wasn't there much because of the constant traveling, but if you are young and single, it is the place to be. After leaving Lonestar, I was in the HR field for a couple of years in Colorado. When my husband was transferred to North Carolina, I landed a position with Beacon Technologies (a web company). I traveled with their team and orchestrated their trade show/sales strategies. Trade shows were a blast and I got to see many intersting places and work my gift of gab. When my husband got transferred to Chicago, I decided to jump back into my Geriatric background and worked for Senior Lifestyle Corp. in downtown Chicago. I worked in their development department and my parents were proud that I was finally using my degree again. While at SLC, I was offered a position by a condo developer to sell their product. I worked hard and earned my real estate license and now sell new construction condos. I love the fact that I can make a difference in someones life and help them to find the perfect home. After all, when you are raised in Kansas, you are never far from the motto "there is no place like home". It sounds cheesey, but it's true!
Register for Free to view all details!
Yearbooks
Register for Free to view all yearbooks!
Reunions
Register for Free to view all events!
Photos
