The Gift Exchange

Judy:

Short in stature and patience, Judy is a designing diva with an engineering background. Born and raised in the northern part of Minnesota, she spent many a cold day rearranging her mother’s furniture and color coordinating the contents of the kitchen cupboards. Despite a draw towards decorating, her abilities in mathematics won out and she obtained a BS in mechanical engineering. Marriage and motherhood rescued her from the corporate and construction world. She eventually found her way into the design world via GiftTree where she combines a flair for design with the efficiency and practicality of an engineer. In her spare time she enjoys the Oregon coast with her husband of 18 years, their two teenagers and a ridiculously funny family dog. Hobbies currently include reading, painting, cooking and traveling—a far cry from her younger years when she was into skydiving and skiing.

Carrie:

A Seattle native, Carrie ended up at in “the ‘Couv” when her husband was offered a job in the Portland area. Living 3 hours away from Seattle means she is close enough yet far enough away to her relatives who still live up North. She and her husband have a really cool 8 year old son who can play Iron Man (the entire song!) on his guitar. Carrie and her 2 sisters all have red hair and are constantly asked if they are triplets, even though they all have different shades of red, look nothing alike, and aren’t even the same age! Luckily Carrie (the oldest) always ends up being told “you must be the youngest.”

Penny:

Penny loves to watch home improvement & garden shows like Flip This House, Trading Spaces, and Curb Appeal. Just call her Ms. Fix It. She’s often busy around the house – painting, gardening, playing with power tools, and she can operate a mean tile saw. If she has any free time left over, you might find her strumming a guitar. Penny is an avid reader and can always use a good crossword puzzle to unwind with each night. Hanta viruses like Ebola and H5N1, and pandemics are absolutely fascinate her.

Amy:

Native to Kentucky, Amy has vagabonded all over the United States with extended stays in both Key West and Seattle. She currently resides in Portland where she is often spotted playing backgammon with her two brothers over a snifter of her family’s small batch bourbon. Amy enjoys going to dog parks with her rat terrier, Bonsai, along with riding horses, NYT crosswords, fine dining, wine, and obscure music and movies. When asked how she enjoys her copywriting job at GiftTree, Amy responded “Me write goood sometimes. This job is reel good cuz righting bout stuff is fun.” Obviously relying heavily upon the function of spelling and grammar checks, somehow she is able to make it through her work day with her illiteracy undetected (insert bad Kentucky joke about illiteracy here).

Brandy:

Brandy was born and raised in Longview, WA, which is famous for having the world’s only Squirrel Bridge. She grew up with an older brother and older sister, thus, even as an adult, you will often hear her saying ‘I can do it myself!’ She moved to Vancouver when she got married to a wonderful man and his two miniature wiener dogs a few years ago. Brandy can spend hours reading cards at Hallmark and loves to send cards just to brighten people’s day. When she’s not reading or sending cards, you may find her enjoying a day at the beach, kayaking or cooking with her husband. She also loves a good concert and juicy reality TV.

Doug:

After living his first thirty years as a feckless popinjay and rapscallion, Doug decided that his mid-life crisis would involve the pushing of pixels from Pennsylvania to the Pacific. Rabidly passionate about rest and relaxation, he’s the perfect guide to all things decadent and luxurious. Having no formal education in anything but Graphic Design, Doug takes his involvement in the Gift Exchange most seriously. How else would he possibly lay his hands on all these products to try them out?

Shawna:

You better hope this resident prankster doesn’t know when your birthday is! Always looking for an opportunity to repay a prank, Shawna’s shenanigans include toilet papering an unsuspecting co-worker’s office with an industrial sized roll of tp along with some other crazy hijinks that we dare not mention in public. Born in Vancouver, Shawna has moved around a little here and there but always seems to come back to the beautiful Pacific Northwest. Despite her aversion to cold weather, the abundance of fantastic NW camp spots prevails! When she’s not at GiftTree, you will find Shawna and her husband outside playing with their dog, Lily, or chatting up one or more of her five brothers and sisters. Her hobbies include camping, crossword puzzles, DIY projects, and she is also addicted to Monopoly and LOST.

Jeannie:

A California native, Jeannie landed in Washington State twenty years ago after speaking at a funeral in the Pacific Northwest and falling in love with the area. During a record hard winter, Jeannie made the move in her 1961 GMC pickup and also learned to drive in snow on the way. She and her husband are enjoying their second childhood now that their daughter is off living her own life. They enjoy going to the coast, the occasional water fight in the front yard (or in the kitchen), and Jeannie especially looks forward to their Friday night date night. Jeannie is a very creative lady and always finds projects to keep her busy during the Pacific Northwest winters: old keys become a wind chime, old porch lights become a candleholder, old clothes become quilts…You never know what she’ll come up with. After she retires, Jeannie would like to start a business making heirloom baby quilts out of grandpa’s old shirts and grandma’s old dresses.

Jennifer:

With grocery lists in Excel and hyper-organized cupboards, you might be surprised at how messy this perfectionist’s desk can get. Jennifer lives in Vancouver with her husband, son and their adorable dog. She enjoys reading, but creative fictions will put her to sleep. Give Jennifer a biography or a how-to book and she’s enthralled. A die hard Grey’s Anatomy fan, she’s shamelessly instructed her friends and family not to call her on Thursday nights. She’s also been the poor victim of a prank or two of Shawna’s…”What’s that in my purse?…Oh, gross!!”

Luba:

Originally from Ukraine, at age 11 Luba and her large family of 14 migrated to the United States and she instantly fell in love with American culture. Luba is a huge fan of the color orange. Seriously, it’s an odd day when Luba isn’t brightening up GiftTree with her bright orange attire. She has orange sweaters, blouses, shoes, purses, ink pens and her latest addition, an orange camera. An orange car may be in her future. In GiftTree’s Customer Service Department, Luba really enjoys joking around and laughing with her co-workers.