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ALUMNI PROFILE: AN INTERVIEW WITH PAM VICTOR ’84
KITAlumni Profile Juliette Olejnik Direcotr of Alumni Relations & Annual Fund AN INTERVIEW WITH PAM VICTOR ’84 Pam Victor attended Roeper in the 7th and 12th What led you to pursue the profession you are grades, graduating in 1984. She has made her in? home in western Massachusetts for the last 21 years and has remained an active member of the I started my career as a teacher, but left that career Roeper Alumni community. to homeschool my children . When my older kid started college, and my daughter transitioned to public school in 2012, I was out of a job! I decided I would try an experiment to see if I could make a living doing what I love . The experiment was creatively named “The ‘Can I Make a Living Doing What I Love?’ Experiment” . I approached the experiment as an improviser, which means nothing was off limits, and fear wasn’t a good enough reason to say no to a potential opportunity . I did anything improv related and made my dollar goal in six months! After my one-year experiment was complete, I founded a comedy theater and training program called Happier Valley Comedy . (The region where I live is nicknamed The Happy Valley . I chose that name because we make the Happy Valley happier!)
What is your current job position and title, or current passion project?
I am currently the Head of Happiness at Happier Valley Comedy, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that brings laughter, joy, and ease to western Massachusetts (and the world) through the principles of improvisation . We serve up the happy through comedy shows, classes, workshops, and professional and personal development services . Before the pandemic, we were running nine weekly classes, mostly in improv, but also in storytelling, standup, and musical improv, and were also doing a weekly mainstage show and a community-led show .
Has your life taken any interesting or surprising turns?
Back when my kids were still little, I saw a flyer on the bulletin board at my local grocery store advertising an improv class . I decided to try it out just to get out of the house, and that’s when I discovered just how much I enjoyed it! At the time, I never imagined I could make a living doing improv, especially in a small town . I am so grateful that I am able to make a living doing what I love! Has the COVID-19 pandemic affected your work? How have you adapted?
Thanks to the pandemic, we didn’t get to celebrate the two-year anniversary of opening the first and only comedy theater and training program in western Massachusetts in quite the way we were envisioning . The physical theater remains closed, unfortunately . But never in my life have I been more grateful for my improv training! I have always been really interested in happiness, and obviously people are in need of happiness, resilience and self-care right now . So I began thinking, “How can I help with that?” which led to a new project . I’ve pivoted to presenting online professional and personal growth events based in the tenets of improv and the science of happiness . This fall, our biggest online program, Resilience Training Through Joy: Happier Valley Comedy’s 30-Day Happiness Experiment officially debuted .
What impact has Roeper had on your life?
Roeper taught me that I am in charge of my own education, and I have the power to figure things out on my own . I learned that I can manifest what I’m interested in, and that there doesn’t need to be a structure in place or a specific path that I must follow . That has not only influenced
Pam as a Roeper 7th Grader
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what I do now and how I run my business, but also how I have educated my own kids . Roeper unquestionably empowered me to follow my passions .
Do you have any favorite Roeper memories?
Godspell during my senior year in 1984! Dean Acheson was the Director, and it cemented my love for theatre . I think it was a magical experience for everyone who was involved, and I remember crying through the final song of the last performance because it was coming to an end . Also, I love that the first time I ever did improv was in 7th grade when Tyne Turner ‘80 led an improv class as her senior project!
Are you in touch with any Roeper folks? If so, who?
The first time I ran the happiness experiment two of my BFFs from Roeper, Michelle Tenner Cantor ‘84 and Lisa Glenn ’84, signed up! It was fun to reconnect, and I loved the opportunity to share happiness and resilience-building tools with them . I’m also in touch with many old friends on Facebook . Bonus Question: How would you finish this sentence: “You know you went to Roeper if…”
You know you went to Roeper if … when you picture a school, you picture a home .
Pam’s Links
Link to Happier Valley Comedy’s Resilience & Happiness Program: https://www.happiervalley.com/happiness_tips.html
Link to Pam’s TEDx Talk: https://youtu.be/-Lk41coL8To
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Pam (center) performs in the 1984 RTC production of Godspell.
