I passed the C.P.A. Examination just before graduating from the University of Colorado. I began my professional career with Arthur Andersen & Co., a Big 8 accounting firm, in its Chicago office. Living there, I discovered the difference one could make in people’s lives by becoming involved in city government. I soon changed my career focus and accepted a position in the City of Chicago Department of Finance. I stayed there for five years, leaving as Deputy Director of Revenue, to accept an offer to fill a newly created position with the City and County of Denver as its first ever Director of Tax Compliance. I remained in that position until I became a full-time mother. With five children, I switched my focus to volunteering in the public schools and Greenwood Village city government.