Shining Star: Jeannette Reihing
Where are you from?
I hail from the Jersey Shore, the Bruce Springsteen Jersey Shore, on a small farm raising vegetables and chickens and only a short ride to the beach. Being raised in a rural setting gave me the opportunity to embrace nature and challenge myself with new adventures. Raising chickens was my first entrepreneurial adventure at the age of twelve. Before coming to Orion, I worked for a soccer company importing high-end European equipment from Europe into the USA. I had some wonderful and educational experiences in this company. As VP of Sales and Marketing, I was responsible for developing new products, negotiating sponsorships agreements for professional soccer players and teams and traveling to some great locations.
What college/university did you graduate from? What was your major?
I graduated from Baruch College just two years ago with a Bachelor’s degree in Corporate Communication and a minor in Black and Latino studies. I also hold an Associate’s Degree in Paralegal studies. All of this I was able to accomplish with the support of Orion and Orion’s leadership who encouraged me along the way.
Something interesting you might not know about me…
Something interesting about me that you may not know is one of my past hobbies. I would go caving with friends, or as some call it, spelunking. Simply put, caving is crawling around in the mud, rock climbing, swimming through rivers, all underground and in some amazing places in the world. Caving gave me the opportunity to challenge myself and push myself beyond what I thought I was capable of doing. Just look at a video on caving, you’ll see what I mean.
If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go?
While I’ve had the opportunity to travel to many places, I still have quite a few I would like to visit. One is the Galapagos Islands. From all that I have seen, everything is so unique in this place that it would be a wonderful adventure. Second is Alaska. I’ve been to every other state in the US. Once I get to Alaska, I can say I’ve been to all 50 states. It’s a goal.
What’s your favorite quote?
I have many favorite quotes. One from Winston Churchill is: “Success is not final; failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that counts.” And, another is wonderful quote is by Maya Angelou “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
Given the choice of anyone in the world (any time period), who would you want as a dinner guest?
Warren Buffett from Berkshire Hathaway seems to have lived his life without pretense, always practical and realistic yet is aware of great potential and had the courage to take risks. He is a proponent of gender equality and has been influential in his philanthropy.
