Kelli Crickey reinvents herself and her career
Sophia Fain
Issue date: 1/8/10 Section: News
|
Just trying to see the place where she had been adopted from as a child, Kelli Crickey hopped on and off each train, desperately hoping to find Luxembourg.
She wasn't searching for the orphanage or her real parents; rather, she wanted to feel some connection with her roots.
But every sign was in French, every person spoke French and every train stop was taking her further into the unknown.
When she accidentally sat in the wrong class of train seats and was fined a large fee, she did not lose hope. Instead, she gathered her wits and kept traveling, finally arriving in Luxembourg, ecstatic that she could conquer her fear and travel alone.
That first thrill ignited a flame for travel that Crickey has yet to smother.
In fact, every chance she gets, Crickey hops on a plane and travels anywhere that strikes her fancy.
To her, "Travel always presents you with an opportunity in life," whether meeting new people, trying new foods or being immersed in new cultures.
Ever since she was a child, being adopted from Luxembourg was something that set her apart from her classmates in Virginia.
When asked by teachers what was something special about her, Crickey usually used the fact that she was adopted and was a naturalized citizen.
She was proud of her foreign heritage and hoped one day to visit her birth country. Years later, as a young adventurous woman at her first international job, Crickey found a few free hours which she used to brave that confusing trip to Luxembourg.
Many know Crickey as the vivacious, enthusiastic business professor, but she is more than a teacher; she is full of culture, experience and wisdom on the turnings of the world.
At age 42, she has just started on her second career and shows no signs of slowing down.
According to former student Ashley Wilson, Crickey is a "lively, upbeat professor who really knows what she's talking about."
Instead of teaching straight from the book, Crickey uses her own teaching style modeled on real life and her actual business experiences.
Another of Crickey's students, Dallas Martin, said: "You can really tell who worked the business or who just got the degree, and Mrs. Crickey brought great experiences and focused well on useful topics."
Spending the majority of her life traveling from country to country, building her career and her repertoire of cultural experiences, she embraced life and the differences in people.
Be the first to comment on this story