Employee Spotlight: Jennifer Sonnichsen
ERRG’s latest Employee Spotlight is shining on Jennifer Sonnichsen! Jennifer joined the Redmond office in June 2017. At first, she supported the SF office and the San Jose Water Company program. Then she started working on USACE and local public works projects. Read more about her in the Q&A below.
Q: What is the best professional advice you’ve ever gotten and/or given to someone?
A #1: Don’t be afraid to ask for help. “Environmental and Engineering” cover a lot of ground, and we do a lot of different things – no one is an expert at everything.
A #2: “It’s not my job” is never a good answer. We all have to pitch in. Be willing to help when you can.
Q: What is one thing that may surprise your coworkers about you?
A: I’m a certified Dive Master and worked part-time as an underwater naturalist in exchange for free dives on a boat when I lived in Honolulu.
Q: Tell us about a project you worked on that was interesting/challenging/exciting.
A: I worked on an WWII-era aviation fuel pipeline abandonment on Ford Island in Pearl Harbor. The challenges associated with closing the pipeline with incomplete as-builts/plans in an active facility with very flammable residuals was very exciting and challenging. Plus working around historical features including the Arizona Memorial and strafe marks on buildings and the ground was humbling.
Q: If you weren’t in this line of work, what would you be doing instead?
A: Probably running a dive boat, or a bakery/café – I love to cook, bake, and EAT!
Q: If you could meet any famous person, dead or alive, who would it be and why?
A: Walt Disney – we are huge Disney fans, and I get teary-eyed every time I see the Walt and Mickey statue in the park. But also, – Queen Victoria and Jane Austin
Q: If you could go on a vacation anywhere in the world, where would you go?
A: I love to travel, so this is difficult. I was hoping to go to the Galapagos for my 50th birthday, but COVID – also high on the list are Northern Lights (Alaska or Iceland), and Great Barrier Reef before it’s dead Λ
Q: What is your superpower? Real or imagined.
A: The boring answer – multi-tasking. The fun answer – breathing under water.
Q: Tell us about a favorite hobby/blog/podcast/TV show/pet/ice cream flavor.
A: When my kids were in pre-school, I wanted to volunteer for a local animal rescue. I found Motley Zoo Animal Rescue and started helping them with donor appreciation and tracking. Then we started fostering – we have fostered 79 rescue dogs, and up until recently, we only “foster failed” (adopted) one (Mary Poppins). Then we failed back-to-back with fosters 76 and 77 (Jim Halpert (now Tigger) and Scarlett Johannsson (now Scarlett/Baby Lady/Scruffapotomus)).
Q: What do you enjoy most about working at ERRG?
A: I’ve met some great people at ERRG, plus we work on diverse projects for a wide range of clients.