Sandra Childress:
CLASS OF 1989
Prospect High SchoolClass of 1989
Saratoga, CA
Castro Middle SchoolClass of 1985
San jose, CA
New Plymouth Elementary SchoolClass of 1983
New plymouth, ID
Payne Elementary SchoolClass of 1982
San jose, CA
Country Lane Elementary SchoolClass of 1982
San jose, CA
Sandra's Story
(updated 7/9/2022)
A lot has happened since I updated here. Divorced in '11, back to college '13, graduated with BS in horse racing '15, MBA in '21. Now living in West (by god) Virginia. Still single, but have the requisite two cats. Working in horse racing (office stuff).
(updated 4/6/2009)
Times sure do change things. Still in Ramona, still managing a racehorse partnership -- now with two 2yos in training, and still have my event planning co. Was laid off at HP Aug08 -- was a sign of tough times ahead. We're hanging on...just wish the morons who want the economy to change overnight to realize it took years to get here, it's going to take years to get out of this mess.
In the meantime, my planning company is looking for gigs up and down the West Coast. We will remote support as well (ask Barbara Ballard about that).
Hope all is well with the rest of you.
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Life
(updated 11/26/07) Life...let's just say you never know where it will take you.
Currently living in Ramona, CA on 11 charbroiled acres. We started a Petite Syrah vineyard in 2006, and lost about 15% to the Witch Creek Fire of October 2007. Also lost the trailer that was to be our vineyard office. Now in the recover/rebuilding stage. We are better off than many of our near by neighbors who have lost everything thanks to the clearing that was done by my husband and the previous owner of the land.
I have about 70 chinchillas and 3 cats. We've been married since March 2000. I also just started Keepsake Events for planning weddings and small gatherings of up to 200 people. I'm also managing corporate conferences and events, including for Barbara Ballard, owner of Little Springs Designs and for the 2007 HTCIA International Training Conference and Expo.
If you search me, you can find several references and good email addresses for me. I'm not the dog breeder in TX, nor do I have anything to do with softball/cheerleading. I'm the one working on science fiction conventions, a member of several 501(c)3's.
The end of 2006 brought the addition of working at a race horse training and breeding facility. And with this brought the added bonus of acquiring my first race horse: Cara Blanco, a 2004 bay colt by Miesque's Son out of Funny Values. He's run 5 times for his breeder-owners, but bowed a tendon and became a give-away at the end of March/early April. On April 17, transfer of ownership happened, and I and several friends went into partnership to give Cara the long rest needed to heal his tendon. We're just now preparing to sending him back into conditioning so that he'll be ready to go into training to hopefully race at Santa Anita next Spring as a 4 year old. We still have shared available...Expand for more
, so if you are interested in owning 1% (or more) of a race horse, monthly expenses are actually affordable at this level (currently per share: $7.20 - $31.00/month for board, vet fees are $0.00 - $5.00/month; could go higher with partnership consultation based on trainer and vet recommendation of treatment and training needs).
Mid-2007 brought a trip to Japan after I managed the HTCIA conference, and after that great trip where I didn't sushi-out, I got an inquiry by a head-hunter that I couldn't refuse. So after nearly two years, I am now back at Hewlett Packard, supporting an R&D team in Rancho Bernardo. There's flexibility (it's a contract), there's more money than the Farm, and if things change in the right direction I could have everything I really want.
So, I'm still managing events, but prefering to work the smaller affairs, and am available for consulting or design work in California, Arizona, and Nevada in 2008 and 2009.
And as alluded, our home wasn't damaged in the major wild fires of 2007 in San Diego County. The property and the surrounding areas were hit very hard, and we were evacuated for 6 days (and as of this writing, I do not have internet connectivity at home). Our major impact has been environmental and emotional, as we can see the devistation looking out at the surrounding area. 70% of the homes around us are gone. 10.5 of 11 acres are ash. We are working to bring the property back to where it was before the fire and to prepare for erosion control when the rains hit.
I hope that those who read this have had a less eventful 2007 than us, as no one should have to go through what we went through.
Workplace
(update 11/26/07) Well, to keep the wolves at bay, I'm back at HP, but Keepsake Events has a wedding on the books for the end of '08: Helton-McConnell. There's a second wedding that's pending as it's either going to be a consultation or a "day-of" in San Jose, also the end of '08 or early '09. Now to fill in the rest of the year.
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Since I seemed to have a nack for managing people and time, I ended up in an administrative role rather quickly. But as I progressed, there seemed to be this desire to get paid to run parties and conferences. So, instead of getting a BA/BS in Business or Marketing, I jumped into volunteering on Science Fiction Conventions. This crash course in how to get a hotel to give you more than you paid for, has given me a lot more than a college degree could.
So, when my 2nd contract at Hewlett Packard expired, my husband encouraged me to go for it solo. So, now I own Keepsake Events. Haven't gotten to the webpage stage, as things went this-way and that-way this year. I hope to have something up in the next 3 months.
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