Sunny View’s Annual Benefit Dinner, Lynn North, Chair of the Foundation Sunny View resident, Sara Carter receiving the Oliver Ruud Award (left to right: Bill Penrod, Director of Sunny View’s Foundation, Lynn North, Chair of Sunny View’s Foundation & Sara Carter, resident)
Q: Can you share with our audience one of your most memorable moments your career? LN: There are so many moments where I have had the privilege to help my clients realize their lifelong dreams. For example, I help newlywed couples purchase their first home or young families purchase a larger one near great schools. I help older clients downsize and realize their retirement dreams by finding them a home closer to their families.
use technology to better meet the needs of residents. For example, one project combines Nest and Amazon’s Alexa to give independence to residents in assisted living. The ‘voice first’ technology mitigates falls by turning on a light with a simple voice command. Residents can also adjust the room temperature, make phone calls or listen to music using commands. Another project that was truly special was to provide a shelter for senior residents of Cameroon, Africa.
Q: What’s the toughest part of your job? LN: The toughest part of my job is helping my clients realize the highest return on their homes in a changing and challenging market!
Q: In the years that you’ve been involved with community and nonprofits … tell us, what brings you the greatest joy? LN: We only have a finite amount of time in life to make a difference in this world and help those who need it the most. It is out of gratitude that I help those who are in need. It is very rewarding to share those gifts with others. Recently on behalf of Sunny View, I had the privilege to present an award to Francis N. Njuakom, the director of CDVTA in Cameroon, Africa, (www.cdvta.org). He shared with us that his village, which is located in a very poor area, had to choose to support the children over the
Q: I know you’re very passionate about the work Sunny View Retirement Community does … can you share with our audience some of the volunteer projects you’ve been a part of? LN: Sunny View is a wonderful, caring community. The community works with the Front Porch Center for Innovation and Wellbeing on a number of pilot projects that
seniors, since they only had the resources for one group and the children were their only hope for the future. Therefore, the seniors were homeless and our Sunny View residents and staff along with the Sunny View Foundation and Sunny View’s parent company, Front Porch (www.frontporch.net), matched the resident and staff gifts to build a senior center for elders in Cameroon. It was so heartwarming and so wonderful for our residents to help their peers around the world too. Q: Which woman inspires you and why? LN: As a Christian, Mother Teresa truly has inspired me in her incredible work for the poor of India. I continue to receive inspiration from her reflections and words of wisdom. Michelle Obama is inspirational in terms of how to make a difference in spite of obstacles and even though she started in the projects in Chicago, with perseverance and hard work, she ended up First Lady of the United States. Q: What are some of the challenges you feel women face today? LN: I think that women’s greatest challenges are to continue to believe in themselves and that they can succeed and not lose the confidence and faith that they
are on the right path in spite of the challenges. As a pioneer leader (former VP at Pac Bell and SBC, where my team built the whole infrastructure in the Silicon Valley area), I knew that the people I had the privilege to lead made the difference, as they were closest to the clients’ needs. Q: What advice would you give to young women who want to succeed in the workplace? LN: Respect all those who have led the way, listen and be grateful to your mentors and be confident to take risks! All of us can recollect those who believed in us and were humbled by their incredible support. They were the ones who created your path! Q: What are some of your favorite interests and hobbies that you enjoy? LN: While I serve on two non-profit senior boards, I am active in leadership positions at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Los Altos, including coordinating weddings and truly love helping children (previous Sunday School coordinator) and assisting seniors. We have a very vibrant ministry and everyone can make a difference there! Of course, I enjoy hiking, traveling and time with my children and grandchildren.