Quad Cities Business News reached out to Jo Ann Johnson, a volunteer for Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. Johnson’s diverse life experiences include being a state employee, theater, being a radio producer, promotions, a lot of community involvement and being an entrepreneur.
1) You have a varied career life. Would you describe your career path and how each choice shape the person you have become?
Looking back, I think the foreshadowing of my career path can be seen in very early experiences including childhood and teenage stage, radio, and television performance, neighborhood variety show producer, and general “nanny.” I also was fortunate to travel to a variety of destinations in my youth. As an adult, I have traveled domestically and internationally. I believe travel is an excellent source of inspiration.
I always loved theatre and performing, and had a deep appreciation for caring for and facilitating other youngsters’ talents. Educational pursuits were too easy for me, so I basically sailed through school while also performing in high school musicals and more serious productions in college. College necessitated path choice resulting in my seeking a degree in Social Work, which eventually led to employment in a federal demonstration project administered by the State of Arizona. While still single, I also worked as the staff social worker simultaneously at two, private, state-licensed facilities for youth.
Marriage and motherhood changed my focus and responsibilities, but also led to many community volunteer opportunities including serving on several committees and boards in the Phoenix area.
In addition to teaching theater performance for adults through Phoenix Parks and Recreation and producing two shows a year with seven to thirteen performances for each and serving as a senior counselor/teacher at Phoenix Country Day School Summer Camp, I represented several medical practices, a children’s theatre, two dance companies, and assisted the original director of the concourse events at Valley Bank Center in the late 1970s and early 1980s facilitating public programs, general media relations, developing ancillary promotional materials, and producing a weekly, medical radio program. In 1984, I became the concourse events coordinator at Valley Bank Center, later Bank One Center and now Chase Tower. For the next 15 and a half years, I, annually facilitated about a thousand individual artists, crafters, cultural group members, small business and corporate representatives, entrepreneurs, civic representatives, and educators in exhibitions, demonstrations, and performances that I designed, promoted, publicized, and produced for the delight and edification of the community, which attended free-of-charge in numbers of over 100,000 persons a year. During this time, I also produced Valley Youth, a weekly program featuring young people of accomplishment, which aired on two radio stations for three years and served as producer and host of a cable television show featuring community personalities. For a number of years I also produced a You Are There series for Sun Sounds of Arizona, radio for visually impaired and home bound individuals.
In the mid-1990s/early-2000s, I edited InsideWillo, the Willo Neighborhood Association newsletter and sold advertising to fund this 24 to 40 page, 1200 home distribution, historic neighborhood, monthly magazine. I was also instrumental in establishing the largest neighborhood Block Watch program in Phoenix, encompassing all streets between Thomas and McDowell roads from First to Seventh avenues with block by block captains/co-captains participating. I also served as historic neighborhoods columnist for Phx Downtown monthly newspaper for a short stint during this time.
For a year and a half prior to moving to Prescott Country Club in Dewey, I handled advertising sales for a central Phoenix historic district monthly newspaper, increasing its annual revenue by a factor of five.
I easily see talent and potential in others and take the opportunity to comment and encourage. People often say that I am very “kind.” I believe that “honest,” “truthful,” and “thoughtful,” in all its interpretations, more accurately describe who I am. I deeply appreciate the value of print and electronic media people who use the materials I have provided to let the citizens know about events and programs they might enjoy.
2) You’ve been in the Quad Cities for about ten years. What do you like about living and being a contributing person in the Prescott area?
Being able to feel and appreciate everything from the flight of a bird to the colors in the sky and the physical health progress of individuals at the gym, as well as my own personal awareness are truly bonus-benefits of living in this exquisite place of natural beauty. By contrast, I loved my decades of fast-paced, intense involvement in Phoenix—I do thrive on accomplishment. However, upon settling in here I realized that though I was always “on” in Phoenix, I had seared my senses in order to get it all done.
Almost immediately after arriving here in 2004, I helped KGCB Christian radio station gather donations from businesses and professionals in the area for a grand auction fundraiser. At Prescott College, I participated on the steering committee of the Community Conversation, through which multiple entities and agencies came together to recognize issues of concern in the quad cities area and seek solutions. Until recently I served on the board of directors of Agua Fria Open Space Alliance, Inc., headquartered in Dewey-Humbolt. I represented Doctor Dumonceaux of Prescott Valley in his initial Stop Smoking campaign and I handled advertising sales for Earth Odyssey a monthly sustainability magazine in 2009 and 2010. Promotional and project writing and PassionFly contacts are current contract opportunities. Perhaps I am learning to be more balanced in the Quad Cities. I continue to be very selective about who and what I represent.
3) Describe the work you do now for ERAU.
As you may have gathered from earlier comments, I appreciate and am a facilitator of excellence. When I attended the Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Aviation History Program (AHP), with my husband, and noticed way too many empty seats and learned that no publicity had been done for the event, I volunteered my professional skills. That was quite a few years ago. This spring, we marked the 50th AHP presentation. For each of the seven programs annually, I create a comprehensive publicity campaign. Media entities are very responsive to my efforts and supportive of these excellent, free, public events. I know that these behind-the-scenes, personal experience, aviation history presentations by very capable and highly knowledgable individuals are a unique opportunity. Davis Auditorium is nearly full each month, which means approximately 300 individuals of all ages get to “travel” the skies of aviation history, learning from someone who has literally been there and done that.
4) You also have an eco-friendly business, PassionFly. What is PassionFly and how did you decided to start this business?
PassionFly, an eco-friendly, fine art business, easily visited at www.getPassionFly.com, was started by our adult daughter who is an architect in Henderson, Nevada. The business name is derived from the idea of letting your passions fly for endangered creatures. She is a talented artist and a very sensitive and caring person. We share an innate concern for and dedication to sustainability. My role in PassionFly is wholesale representative with our retail partners for these elegant, tactile-rich, tree-free and recycled content products featuring artistic renderings of rare and threatened species. I work with nature center, national and state park, aquarium, and museum buyers, as well as boutiques and “green” retailers.
5) What advice would you give to a person preparing to enter the workforce? Also, do you have a favorite piece of advice someone gave you?
Get a good education, keep your wits about you in all situations, and pay attention at all times. A strong educational background is an important attribute for everyone preparing to enter the workforce, as well as work experience in available jobs, internships, and volunteer work. Additionally, setting goals, working to achieve them and setting more goals is an important practice. Always accept good counsel and reject poor advice, while being discerning enough to know the difference. Careful listening is key to good communications and clear communications are critical to success and everything along the way. Always ask for clarification, if needed.
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