I am a proud Phoenix from the class of 1998 and I look back on my 4 years at HCHS with such great fondness. Throughout my years at HCHS, I was a member of the Student Council, National Honor Society and an avid member of Latin Club. Competing at the various Junior Classical League conventions will always be one of my favorite memories.
After graduating from HCHS, I attended St. Mary’s University where I received a Bachelor of Science degree in Biochemistry. The years spent at HCHS greatly prepared me for the science-heavy courseload necessary to obtain this degree.
In 2002, after obtaining my Biochemistry degree, I worked at C.H. Guenther and Son, Inc. as a Food Scientist for 12 years. This position involved utilizing my knowledge of microbiology and chemistry in order to develop food products for customers such as McDonald’s, The Cheesecake Factory, Chili’s and H-E-B (just to name a few).
While my time as a Food Scientist was exciting, I still had the desire to work in a health-care setting. In 2014, I made the decision to leave my career and attend the Feik School of Pharmacy at the University of the Incarnate Word. Four years later, I received my Doctor of Pharmacy degree, graduating with honors.
After pharmacy school, I became the Pharmacist-in-Charge at a start-up independent pharmacy in Hondo, Texas. I loved the personal attention we could give to all the patients. A year later, I was recruited by H-E-B pharmacy and took a position as a retail pharmacist in Kenedy, TX. I enjoyed being able to serve the communities in smaller, rural areas. In many of these areas, pharmacists are the most accessible health care providers available. Serving the community is a huge part of retail pharmacy and a tenant that I learned through the countless volunteer opportunities offered at HCHS. In 2023, I took a position at H-E-B Central Fill Pharmacy. Central Fill is a state-of-the-art, fully automated production facility that is designed to support the needs of H-E-B retail pharmacies. We fill over 400,000 prescriptions a week for H-E-B’s all over Texas. It is vastly different from retail pharmacy, which just goes to show that there are many different avenues for pharmacists to pursue.
I credit HCHS for a lot of the success in my life. I formed long-standing friendships and the rigorous curriculum taught me how to overcome obstacles and prepare for adversity. I now have a daughter who wants to be a Phoenix and will hopefully join next year’s freshman class!
I know my fellow Phoenixes will do great things upon graduation and I can’t wait to see what the future holds!
