ALUMNAE SPOTLIGHT

A L U M N A E Alumnae Alumnae SPOTLIGHT

KRISTEN DANLEY ’04

Written by Liz Palka Minukas '04

When choosing a career path, Kristen Danley’s advice is simple: listen to the part of you that gets excited. The Holy Child Class of 2004 alumna speaks from experience after many a 24-hour shift at St. Louis Children’s Hospital. For the last three years, she has served as a primary care attending physician at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) Karabots Pediatric Care Center. The clinic provides well child care, sick visits, family planning visits and social work services to an urban population with high medical and socioeconomic needs in West Philadelphia. Kristen is not just a pediatrician, but an educator as well. Karabots is also a teaching clinic where Kristen trains medical students and pediatric residents from the University of Pennsylvania and CHOP. As she says, she’s helping to instill future doctors with empathy and compassion for their patients in addition to clinical knowledge. READ MORE Kristen became interested in medicine during high school but didn’t know any doctors. So, she started speaking up and asking who might be able to help her gain experience ABOUT KRISTEN USING THE QR ABOVE! in the field. Opportunities presented themselves like attending a high school science conference at Georgetown University and shadowing at an infectious disease clinic at the National Institutes of Health. Those first forays into the world of medicine solidified her decision to study pre-med at Bucknell University. Kristen then took a year off after college to work as a clinical research assistant before going on to medical school at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and her Pediatric Residency at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center.

MARGUERITE BOTTORFF ’06 Written by Krista Montes de Oca Kelly '05 Some of the best memories stem from sitting around a table, sharing a meal with friends and family, talking about your day, or telling a funny story. Class of 2006 alumna Marguerite Bottorff said this kind of joy began for her at Holy Child during lunchtime with friends and has stayed with her as she launched her catering business more than 10 years later. Marguerite is the founder and head chef at Silver Spoon Catering Company, which covers the DMV. Drawing on her own experience of developing Celiac Disease, she had the idea for an allergy-friendly catering and personal chef company. Now she regularly appears on local news segments, serves and hosts parties for embassies, receptions for galleries, and private dinners for some of DC’s most elite.

Marguerite’s journey to opening her own business has taken many turns, leading her to work with some of the biggest names in the food industry. While she initially attended The University of Mississippi, her Celiac Disease diagnosis took its toll, forcing her to move home. But Marguerite didn’t let her situation get in the way of pursuing an extraordinary opportunity. She reached out to an acquaintance with the Food Network and ended up landing a job working with Chef Bobby Flay’s production company, Rock Shrimp Production. From there, Marguerite moved to Charleston, SC, where she worked at several restaurants and large catering companies, all while earning her degree from College of Charleston. She eventually moved home to Washington, DC, experimented in teaching, and even tried opening her own baby food delivery service. She always worked multiple jobs, including developing recipes at Whole Foods, serving as sous chef at Mikko in Dupont Circle, and then the secondever female chef in 27 years at Jaleo. All the while, she was trying to grow her own catering business.

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MEG ZARAGOZA VELLECA ’98 Written by Krista Montes de Oca Kelly '05 Her passion for clothing design began at the young age of four, and never stopped. She started drawing dresses; she loved textiles, color, and clothing, and knew that she was destined for more. Class of 1998 alumna, Meg Zaragoza Velleca, says that her parents played a huge role in her journey to becoming successful in the clothing design industry. Meg is the Senior Design Director of Childrenswear at Vineyard Vines, focusing her attention on boys, girls, and baby products for Vineyard Vines, and has been with them for over 8 years. Meg attributes a lot of her success to the support of her parents, and the opportunities they gave her to learn to sew, read books on designers, and taking drawing and painting classes. Meg went to Florida State University where she majored in Apparel Design. The weekend of her graduation, her dream of moving to New York City came true. Meg started her clothing design career as the second-ever employee at CK Bradley in New York, serving as the production manager and designer. After spending a lot of time in New York City’s garment district, she learned where she wanted to go next – a more designfocused job. From there, she moved to Milly NY, spending over 8 years as the lead designer and the founder’s first assistant. After Milly NY, Meg went to Vineyard Vines, where she has had held numerous positions, including the head of women’s design and men’s design, before landing the Senior Design Director of Childrenswear.

One of the most rewarding parts of her job, Meg says, is seeing someone walking down the street, in the grocery store, or at a party, wearing a piece of clothing that she designed.

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NICOLA WHITEMAN, ESQ. ’91

Written by Liz Palka Minukas '04

Alumna Nicola Whiteman (Class of 1991) is at the center of affordable housing and sustainability discussions in Washington, DC, Maryland, and Virginia. She is the Senior Vice President of Government Affairs for the Apartment and Office Building Association of Metropolitan Washington (AOBA.) The membership and lobbying organization represents owners and managers of commercial and multifamily residential properties, as well as companies that provide products and services to the real estate industry. Nicola is AOBA’s chief advocate, which means she helps shape its position and policies as a regional leader on multifamily and commercial real estate issues. She’s been with the organization for 15 years and has been recognized for her work along the way. Nicola was a 2017 Excellence in Advocacy Awards Nominee and was awarded the 2009 Professional Women in Advocacy Conference Golden Best Award. She also serves on the Board of Directors for the Golden Triangle Business Improvement District, which represents the Northwest DC neighborhood stretching from Pennsylvania Avenue to Dupont Circle.

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Besides her work with AOBA, uplifting women is close to Nicola’s heart. In fact, providing opportunities for other women to succeed is what she is most proud of. Nicola says her racially and gender diverse advocacy team at AOBA, which is comprised of three African American women, one Pakistani woman, and an African American man, is one of the most diverse in the region. “I continue to blaze the path for the entire team by promoting and advancing team members to ensure their continued success,” she says. Nicola’s advice for Holy Child students and alumnae pursuing their career is pure gold: take risks, use your network, and pay it forward.