Hey! I’m Debi. I love social media strategy and management, WordPress backend help, … being your Girl Friday!
I’m a Jill of all trades, a wife, a mom, and a blogger who lives a joyful life grounded in God’s Word.
I started my adult life as a political scientist at the Oregon State Capitol, and I have done everything from selling karaoke machines and bowling alleys to the U.S. military to planning tours of the Holy Land for Calvary Chapel churches across the globe.
Today I’m a homeschool mom who writes blogs, reads (a lot), fly fishes, and speaks to women’s groups around the country. I have even written a book about blogging. My passion is to know God and make Him known – my whole world revolves around what He has done for the whole world. I love serving His people and seeing them succeed.
meet debi
Her Specialties
In grad school, I had a professor who required us to learn HTML. We were not studying computers and we thought he was crazy. But he was thinking ahead. I headed off to start my career as a political scientist in Washington D.C. and the state legislature and sometimes I was the only one in the office who had a clue about websites or the internet. When blogging and social media erupted in the scene I was way ahead of the game.
For over 10 years I’ve been writing, managing, designing, and creating blogs. I offer support with social media marketing, management, and strategies, in addition to MailChimp and email marketing and Google Analytics.
My husband Mark and I will celebrate our 20th anniversary this year. We have two teenagers, Skylar and Karsten.
Before getting married and having kids, I hitchhiked in Europe, went on safari in Africa, and drove alone across the United States, twice.
In my free time, I love to fly fish and travel with my family, read, and watch Premier League Football (aka soccer). I also like to listen to jazz and binge on popcorn. I’m a huge Manchester City supporter.
My husband and our two teenagers all love to get outside to hike and stand up paddle board whenever we can. I’m a push over for bicycles, Christmas gnomes, and Mexican food.
Her Recent Projects & Experience
After some time as a political scientist in both the private and the public sectors, I managed the entertainment options for US military bases around the world, organized trips to the Holy Land, built a human resources department for a mega-church in the Pacific Northwest, was in charge of shipping giant band saws to lumber mills across the US and Canada, and was a ghost writer for a book for a successful entrepreneur. I also wrote my own book about blogging, owned a fitness franchise offering classes for moms with kids in strollers, and was an event planner and fundraiser for a ski foundation developing downhill and cross country Olympians.
I have spoken to women’s groups of all sizes around the country, created and managed over ten different blogs, consulted with small business owners and writers, and managed a thriving online community of bloggers, writers, and small business owners.
New to Market Refined Media, I am looking forward to helping with:
- WordPress management and support
- Social media marketing and support
- Email marketing and campaigns
- Google Analytics
- and general client and team support.
Her Education & Training
Over the years I’ve attended numerous conferences for blogging both online and in person. I’ve taken courses, read books, and spent hours trying stuff out for myself. I’m an early adopter of everything and love figuring out how stuff works.
Most of my learning has come from trial and error but I love that there is now a whole industry for learning and advancement online. I’ve been in business for 15 years. I started as a blogger when Blogspot was the hip place to be.
The speed of change has been the most surprising to me. We used to calculate tech changes in years, then months, and now sometimes it can be days. Innovation is a wild ride and I’m loving it.
Some of my mentors include:
I look up to the expert who has the solution to my problem. This often changes from day to day and in an effort to stay true to my own voice and to my audience as a blogger, I’ve never thrown all my eggs into one expert’s basket. I like solutions. Anyone with solutions that solve a problem, make life easier, and have immediate results are worth listening to in my book.
1. I love standing in the middle of a river fly fishing for Steelhead.
2. I have a thing for bicycles.
3. I’m not a coffee drinker. (Sorry, Lisa Watson!)
claim to fame
As a kid, I spent my weekends singing at Amway conventions, Dr. James Dobson is my godfather, and I once hitch-hiked through Scotland where I was picked up by a postman and the mobile library truck.
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