a snowy mountain tops with a meteor in the sky

Rising into the Unknown

Life is a journey, let’s chase the summits and relish the adventure all along the way.

latest adventure posts

Cooking with Bob: Risotto

Whether you’re coming home from work or on your way back from a horseback ride, this quick risotto recipe will hit the spot!Although I’m known for my steaks and overall meat-cooking abilities (like my hard-to-forget bolognese), this cooking demonstration features a simple risotto that is easy to recreate with a good pan and a few key ingredients.

IREJ Lifetime Achievement Award

It was great to attend the Illinois Real Estate Journal (IREJ) Awards last night and see all of the incredible companies and people in our industry be recognized for their accomplishments. A big congratulations to Lamar Johnson Collaborative for winning the Office Interior Design award for their work with Horizon Therapeutics. The Grand Logan Lodge won in the Multifamily category and Mohawk Redevelopment earned its title in Industrial Redevelopment. USA Fire Protection won Building Service Company of the Year and Goettsch Partners was awarded Architecture Firm of the Year. There were also individuals acknowledged for their work on inclusion, such as Alba Colavitti from CRG who earned Volunteer of the Year, and Keiana Barrett from Sterling Bay who received the title of Champion of Diversity. These innovators do all that they can to build our communities back better!

Discussing St. Louis on Donnybrook Next Up

It was great to join Donnybrook Next Up and discuss St. Louis and my thoughts on where the city is headed. I am innately an optimist, so I always work to keep a positive frame of mind – and there is a lot to be positive about in St. Louis. I talked with journalists and hosts Alvin Reid and Wendy Wiese about the political and cultural climate and how we see the region operating and evolving. It was great to also highlight how bringing the Expo to the United States will benefit the entire country.

Aspen Ideas Festival

It was interesting to attend the Aspen Ideas Festival in the beautiful Rocky Mountain State! There were so many incredible events and leaders gathered from around the world to discuss societal issues, advances, and how to best engage in change. The theme of the festival is Heat, Money, Trust, Connection, Power, and Beauty, and it explores global concepts that impact everyone.

Clayco Stands with Women

It is one of my top priorities to make sure every person that comes through our doors at Clayco feels protected in more ways than one. At Clayco, our team is part of something special. It is essential that “we treat others the way we want to be treated.” It’s not words on a piece of paper - it’s everyday actions and movements and choices. Our goal is to make everyone feel special and equal. For women, we are finding clear strategies to help team members overcome obstacles, many of which are unseen, to make their whole life better. At Clayco, we strive to take three steps forward for every one step back. There will always be steps backward, and it is something we must all fight against as a Clayco family.

Juneteenth Fund

Juneteenth is an important time to reflect on the historic struggle so many people of color have undergone to secure freedom in America. I am honored to help underserved communities through Clayco’s Juneteenth Fund Advisory Committee – which donated six $25,000 grants to community-based nonprofit organizations at our second annual Juneteenth celebration. Our committee works to combat the systemic issues that have affected communities of color for far too long. The grants were donated to organizations that are committed to raising awareness and advancing the causes of Black equality and inclusion. Their mission is the same as ours, to empower individuals and companies alike to support progressive values.

ADVENTURE

Building Buttercup

a fence in a field with trees in the background

I can’t describe the powerful emotion I felt at this moment, for everything lost and gained in my whole life. It was a spiritual experience, from my heart.

ADVENTURE

Climbing Capitol Peak

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Adventure

Adventure is in my DNA

Ever since I read the stories of Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer, I’ve looked at all of my life as an adventure. Listening and learning from my father was amazing story in history over the course of 40 years taught me that adventure was in my DNA at conception.

I’ve always been able to keep calm and have a level head and every situation I can remember. The only exception of this rule is that I don’t believe a person should not panic if they’re drowning. I would definitely drown panicking.

Beyond that all of life’s twists and turns good and bad ecstatic or heartbroken all add up to the different color crayons in your crayon box. That was a quote from my dad upon hearing some shocking news about my own colorful life.