AUDIENCE 2020 - Key Persons
Allison Gnefkow joined the NERUS team in November 2019. Allison works with our markets that produce Best of Programs. We first worked with Allison when she was with the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Allison's passion for helping small businesses to understand the power of combining digital media with high-quality print is what sets her apart.
Allison holds a degree in Business Administration and Spanish from Wichita State University and has a background in customer service. She works remotely from Kansas City and enjoys spending time with family.
Turning down a home-cooked meal by Angel Gonzalez doesn't happen often. His family and friends long ago were introduced to his meals, and what he loves to cook, they love to eat.
That's not all that drives Angel, however. He is an avid tennis player and plays whenever he gets a spare moment. Maybe that's why he loves living where the sun shines frequently.
He was born in San Jose, California, but was raised in Las Vegas. He loves both states and considers himself at home in both.
Angel has been selling for almost a decade, first door to door beginning in 2015 and then transitioning into alarm systems and solar-panel systems. He took a small break (from 2018-2021) from solar as he got into sales for the cannabis industry in Las Vegas, including doing a stint as a local-dispensary manager.
He works remotely from his home in Orange County, California.
An active blogger/vlogger on social media, Ashley, the wife of an active-duty officer in the United States Air Force, uses her website for network marketing purposes which plays nicely into her role as a marketing associate for NERUS Strategies. Ashley has a deep background in account sales stemming from her role as an account executive at the Las Vegas Review Journal. She has sold advertising for the classified division with new homebuilders and commercial real-estate companies and found a home in direct sales due to her husband's near-constant relocation needs. She currently reps for Sipology by Steeped Tea, selling tea and tea ware online and in person. She loves giving value and helping people, which is why she enjoys sales.
A 2008 graduate of the University of Nevada Reno's Reynolds School of Journalism, Ashley and her husband, Jared, have two children, Elizabeth, 7, and Colton, 2. They also have one "very lazy" and pudgy puggle named Louie and spend considerable time supporting their daughter's 4H Club, going to softball games and cheerleading practices. She is based out of Alamogordo, New Mexico.
Ashley Mervin brings multiple years of international, national, and local advertising experience to the NERUS team, which she joined in early 2022.
A native of Georgia, Ashley draws on a variety of print and digital sales skills and looks forward to deploying them as she works in a variety of markets with our media partners.
In her free time (what little she has given she has a 15-year-old son), she likes to read, travel, and attend live events. The family takes in NFL and NBA games, and she enjoys boxing, her son, Joseph, a devotee of the Milwaukee Bucks.
Ashley admits, though, to being a recent convert to Major League Baseball. She loves anything Atlanta Braves and looks forward to going to more games at the new Truist Park in Cumberland, Georgia, just a few miles outside of downtown Atlanta.
She warns, however, that she lives in Thomasville, Georgia, which is nearer to Tallahassee, Florida than it is Atlanta. She is a beach girl at heart and says driving the hour to the beach is a trip to her "happy place."
Having received her bachelor's degree in interdisciplinary studies from Thomas University in Thomasville, Ashley will be working remotely as a Marketing Associate from southern Georgia.
Job Titles:
- Market Operations Manager
Originally from Colorado, Benjamin McDowell, finished his marketing degree and then earned a Master's Degree in Business Administration in just 10 months, both from Louisiana State University Shreveport.
He then moved to Oregon to be nearer to his wife's family and to also take advantage of the imposing and serene surrounding mountains and stellar hiking opportunities. Benjamin said he and his wife, Katie, hike whenever they have spare time, often with their golden retriever, Aubie.
As a Market Operations Manager, Benjamin divides his time between helping with operations and with social media including e-mail blasts. When he's not working, he enjoys photography, and has even done some wedding and senior-class portraits as a sideline.
Benjamin is into all Auburn University (in Alabama) sports, but especially enjoys the school's football and basketball programs.
He lives in Salem with his wife, Katie and works from the Salem corporate office.
Job Titles:
- CEO
- President
- Sales & Marketing Executive
Bill is a Sales & Marketing executive with extensive experience catalyzing rapid revenue growth while controlling multimillion-dollar program budgets. Sharp advertising and marketing acumen across national publications, niche markets, classified verticals (autos, real estate & employment), legal and private party segments. He also has extensive experience working with manufacturers, banks, hospitals, health care, government, political campaigns and non-profits.
Prior to establishing NERUS Strategies, LLC in 2017, he held local advertising leadership positions with McClatchy & Gannett, he also held senior corporate positions with Freedom Communications, and Gannett/Gatehouse/Bridgetower Media (formerly The Dolan Company).
A collaborative communicator, he is continually focused on building relationships and positioning high-performance teams for unprecedented success. He is often called on by large organizations, groups and corporations to speak at workshops or meetings; lead off-sites; conduct rate analysis; forecast where your next sale will come from; and leadership team coaching (advertising, management, content). He is also available as an expert witness on the subject of print advertising and digital advertising and is also an M&A subject matter expert. More about Bill Cummings.
Brittany got a degree in business administration from the University of Buffalo, and is a native New Yorker (Buffalo, brrrrr). When she's not cheering for the Buffalo Bills or devouring chicken wings, she is applying years of experience understanding and promoting women in investing, coordinating networking events with locally owned businesses, and custom tailoring plans for others looking for investment solutions. She has also spent time in the tech world, and currently works at Odoo as a sales consultant.
She dotes on five nieces and nephews in her free time and is cat mom to Muffin and Samantha. She is an amateur baker and an optimistic gardener. She loves second-hand fashion, red wine, and old Hollywood films. She has no idea what she wants to be when she grows up.
Job Titles:
- Project Logistics Manager
A 2009 graduate of Corban University in Salem, Carissa joined the NERUS family in September 2022. She holds the distinction of working in the NERUS office before it was NERUS' office; she did administrative work for the Oregon Bankers Association, which was the previous tenant. She also did accounts payable and receivable for Natural Plants Products and helped them with logistics, which she is doing for NERUS as well.
She lives in Salem and has no pets, but she and her sister, Michelle Williams (no relation to the actress) started a podcast called "Different Sisters" this summer. The podcast focuses on anything unusual and explores conspiracies and true crime. "It really just gave us an excuse to get together. She likes concerts with artists such as Ben Folds and the band, Mercy Me. She's also a fan of horror movies such as "Halloween."
She works out of the Salem corporate office.
Carla Oberst joined the NERUS team as our Merchandise Manager in January, 2022, assuming merchandise fulfillment for clients seeking to show off their contest wins (decals, apparel, acrylic plaques, and the like).
Carla grew up in Oregon but felt the tug of this great country, so she set out to explore it, and earned one of her undergraduate degrees from the University of Massachusetts Amherst. She returned to Oregon following graduation and obtained a second degree from Western Oregon University in Monmouth, where she lives with two cats, Gizmo and Mocha.
She enjoys playing video games in her spare time, and likes art, especially printing including screen printing (she's still taking classes in this medium) and wood-block printing.
To stay involved in the community, Carla, a former member of the NCAA UMass women's rowing team, also is an assistant referee for USRowing, the United States Rowing Association, which is the governing body for the sport of rowing in this country. She works from the Salem corporate office.
Job Titles:
- Director, Content Strategy and Development
Carol McAlice Currie joined the NERUS team first as a freelance writer in December 2019 and then as Senior Writer in May 2021. In September she was promoted to Director, Content Strategy and Development. Carol writes and manages winner's profiles, and the many sponsored content stories that are part of websites and magazines in markets across the United States.
Previously, she was a writer and columnist at the Salem Statesman Journal newspaper for almost 25 years before joining the staff of Sen. Peter Courtney's office as Communications Director at the state Capitol. She was coaxed out of retirement to work for NERUS.
She has written about a variety of Willamette Valley topics over the years, including one about Helen, the blind bison, and how the city of Salem needed a real Christmas tree in its park, not a fake one. She shared first place honors with Zach Urness in the Oregon Newspaper Publishers' Association's 2017 competition for best writing for the poignant Love and Loss on Mt. Jefferson story.
A graduate of California State University Long Beach with a degree in journalism, Carol married her college sweethart, Don, in 1985. The couple live in West Salem with their dog Stout (a pug). They have a daugher, Caitlin in Portland, and Gillian in San Francisco. Carol is proud of the fact that both are taxpayers. When she is not on a hike with Don, find her on Mondays playing Mahjongg.
Carol works from our corporate office in Salem.
A native of Baltimore, Maryland, Christina "Chrissy" Eckstein has more than 15 years of sales management experience, having spent nearly two decades employed by Sprint and Verizon wireless phone companies. Christina joined the NERUS team in early 2022 after re-entering the job market following the premature birth of her daughter, Tinley, now two. The busy mom also has two other daughters, Layla, three (the two girls are just nine months apart), and Ariyah, four. To say she has her hands full would be to understate her daily life. Passionate about being in the outdoors she shares that passion with her daughters. Chrissy works remotely from Hanover, Pennsylvania.
Job Titles:
- Social Media Manager
- Social Media Manager for the Digital Ops Team
Christina Magaña joined NERUS in February 2021 as the Social Media Manager for the Digital Ops team. She brings over 10 years of customer service experience including client relations, digital content management, SEO, and social media management with a focus on small businesses. She's currently pursuing a business degree in Digital Marketing at Western Governors University.
In her spare time, she enjoys dancing Cumbia with her boyfriend, playing video games, watching Studio Ghibli films, and supporting local coffee shops. She lives in Salem, Oregon with her boyfriend and their cat, Mister Atticus.
A few fun facts about Christina, she has a certification in interior design, has 70+ Pokémon collectibles, considers herself a Tetris wizard, and was born on Christmas Day.
Christina works from our corporate office in Salem.
Cory Bergman joined the NERUS team in May 2019. He started his journey as our lead designer and is at the heart of our creative services efforts. He was elevated to Vice President, Creative and oversees our growing team of creatives, based at our corporate office in Oregon.
He has worked in the digital space with 10 years experiene at Snapfish. Cory's skills include graphics and product development. His focus at NERUS is on digital and print design for the advertisers and clients we serve across the United States through our Best Of Programs platform and our newest software, Optimum By NERUS.
Cory and his wife, Samantha live in Salem, Oregon. They have a daughter and two sons and their dog Sherman.
He works from corporate office in Salem.
Based out of Evans, Georgia, which is right next to Augusta, home of the Masters Golf Tournament every spring, Dana, a NERUS marketing associate, spent considerable time in the car business as an Internet sales manager prior to joining NERUS. She left it behind prior to having her last child so she could become a stay-at-home mom.
She and her husband, Bennie, are devoted to their children. She brought her own, the late Chandler, who passed away at age 22; Madeline; 23, Isabella, 20; twins Catherine and Olivia, who are 16; her stepson Bryson, 15; and River, who is four. They have four adopted cats, Goku, Mochi, Suki and Yoshi and a good ol' dog named Jude.
The family keeps Dana and her husband busy, but they make time to take in parks, lakes, zoos, the beach, and the mountains. They also have weekly family nights with her oldest daughter and her husband. If there is any time left in the week, Dana likes to garden and bake. She also loves to travel and plans to get to Iceland to celebrate her Icelandic heritage.
Daveta comes to NERUS Strategies having worked in the sales, marketing, and customer-service industries.
She graduated with a degree in business and marketing management from Western Governors University (with headquarters in Utah) in September 2022, and now she's living the dream. She sold her home shortly after graduating from college, and now lives and works out of a motorhome on the Texas Gulf Coast.
She is making memories with her two dogs, Macy, 3, and Mr. Magoo, 4, walking them along the beach and collecting bits of shells and flotsam and jetsam as they walk. She is an art devotee, and writes and creates paintings and mosaics, and "basically any other form of art" during her spare time.
Job Titles:
- Creative Projects Manager
Hayden is a graduate of Pacific Union College in St. Helena, California, near Napa with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree and a minor in film and television. He has worked for the Capital Press, Malheur Enterprise, and Columbia Gorge News newspapers. He spends time outdoors and nerds out over movies and TV shows indoors. He appreciates superhero, horror, action, and mystery movies.
He has a black cat named Apollo and does some freelance design work in addition to hosting game nights with his friends. Hayden works at the Salem corporate office.
Job Titles:
- Finance Planning & Analytics Manager
Hayden Wright joined Nerus in February of 2021 as one of our Digital Operations Manager, part of the Digital Operations Team. In January 2022, he was promoted to FP&A Manager. His experience includes multiple years of management at Cutsforth's Thriftway, bookkeeper experience from Roth's Fresh Market, and three years of Marketing experience with sports information with the Western Oregon University Athletics Department. After his time with WOU's Athletic Department, he decided that revenue, marketing, and advertising was the path he wanted to take in his career.
Hayden is a 2020 graduate of Western Oregon University, earning a degree in Business and Marketing. Hayden enjoys spending his free time going on hikes, taking pictures of landscapes, and woodworking. In July, 2022, Hayden married the love of his life, Shelby Alexander. The newlyweds make their home in Salem, Oregon. Hayden is originally from Canby, Oregon.
Hayden works from our corporate office in Salem.
Keeping up with a household of active children, JJ, age two, Gracie, age seven, and Dylan, a driving 16-year-old, has Heather as busy as the day is long. So she was a perfect fit selling for NERUS Strategies, relying on her recent almost decades-long career helping credit-union customers succeed.
With the support of her husband of almost 12 years, Eric, Heather was a stay-at-home mom until her brain craved the interaction work can bring, so she sought and found NERUS and is happy promoting the success of this business.
A Target-shopping devotee, Heather is fond of trivia and game nights with her friends and family, Disney-movie night any night of the week, reading, and journaling with her Bible. She is based in Maryland.
Since graduating with a degree in computer science from Western Oregon University during the first year of the pandemic (2020), Ian has pursued a certificate in advanced cyber security from Stanford University and joined the NERUS team in October 2022. Though he is classified as an operations specialist, he wears many caps in the Salem office.
Ian performs various technology-related tasks at NERUS. He is coveted for his problem-solving skills and his tech-savviness, which has folks here often referring to him not just as the IT guy, but as a true specialist or technophile. His love for all things computer is palatable.
In his spare time, Ian has crafted a hobby out of his love for game design and is at work building a small project in Unity. He has a certificate in game design from the University of Washington, just outside of Seattle. He and his sister, NERUS' Merchandise Manager, Carla Oberst, share two cats, Gizmo and Mocha, at their home in Monmouth, Oregon.
He works out of the corporate office in Salem.
Having come of age surrounded often by the NERUS team (her mom, Margaux Alexander, is NERUS' vice president of sales and engagement), it's only natural that Jamie was tapped to be the company's first intern after her interview. At age 17, Jamie, who is three credits shy of earning her high school diploma from Dallas High School, is a native Oregonian who works for NERUS' operations team.
Jamie is charged with vetting, which is doublechecking the addresses, web addresses, email addresses and phone numbers of contest entrants. Recently licensed to drive, Jamie looks forward to taking out her new-to-her Hyundai Santa Fe sports utility vehicle and her younger brother, Chase. A senior, Jamie helps the students in a special-education class at school, and lends a hand in the school's front office answering the telephones and helping with paperwork.
When not finishing High School, she works part-time from the Salem corporate office.
Selling Best-of programs is in Janet's blood, having sold print and digital advertising for the Post & Courier newspaper's Charleston's Choice and Mom's Choice contests for years. She even owned and operated her own promotional advertising business (she sold anything with a logo on it; think T-shirts, mugs, etc.) for more than 17 years.
An usher at her church for more than a dozen years, the Charleston native enjoys her three grown children, her two beautiful grandbabies and her extended family (she has eight brothers and sisters and 28 nieces and nephews). She spends her free time on the city's waterways, boating, crabbing, and taking in the city's many beaches and restaurants. She's also fanatical about cruising and has taken three this year alone.
Job Titles:
- Vice President Business Development
- Vice President, California
Jeff Conway is our Vice President Business Development and Television Development. Jeff puts his 30+ years as a television network affiliate Executive Producer, active producer, advertising agency executive, and television News Planning Manager to work for our clients.
Jeff has extensive C-Level and current hands-on experience in overseeing multiple teams in fast paced, deadline driven television and marketing production environments including broadcast television commercials, programs, news, online, print, and industry events for B2B, B2C and B2G. He is known for his ability to create, script, pitch, produce content, and nurture client relationships.
Jeff has designed studios and workflow processes from a current editor/designer's perspective, including training, staffing, budgeting, and scheduling. He has been responsible for developing creative strategies and managing campaigns to create quality purpose-driven content. Whether it is through in-house production, or by managing vendor relations, he delivers successful programs with precision in a positive way.
Jeff and Bill have worked together with The Madison Avenue Group, Inc. and have won several local and national awards for their work together. Jeff works remote in Central and Southern California.
Job Titles:
- Marketing Associate
- NERUS Marketing Associate
Jill Westerholm joined the NERUS Strategies team in January 2022 with more than two decades of experience in the marketing and advertising industries. She has worked mostly in radio and broadcast media but has experience in print media as well.
Married 32 years, she and her husband, Paul, relocated to North Central Arizona a few years ago from the Midwest, specifically Minneapolis, Minnesota and Fargo, North Dakota. She's entertained frequently by reports of temperatures below zero in Minneapolis while it's in the 60s in her new hometown.
In their spare time, Jill and her husband enjoy traveling to visit their children, an adult son and daughter, who live in Southern California, and she and Paul hike frequently in the natural beauty of Sedona, appreciating its scenic vistas and cultural heritage. Her pastimes include photographing the four-season playground that is Arizona and acrylic painting.
Jill works as a Marketing Associate, remotely from the North Central region of Arizona, which includes Flagstaff and Sedona.
Josh, whose last name is pronounced Pout-ler, is the newest creative content manager/writer on the NERUS team. He joined the company in July, and is a graduate of Western Oregon University, where he obtained a bachelor's degree in English studies with an emphasis in writing. Josh was editing at WOU for about a year when the pandemic hit.
He enjoys running, playing video and other table-top role-playing games such as Dungeons and Dragons in his spare time and is part of a weekly group of friends who gather to do just that. He likes the newer games such as "Vampire: The Masquerade," but says it all appeals to him.
He enjoys crime movies and fantasy novels, metal music and occasionally draws and paints, too. At 6-foot too many inches (6.5) he occasionally runs into lower doorways and is cautious in the new NERUS offices.
He lives with his cat, Arlo, and he works out of the Salem corporate office.
Job Titles:
- Creative Projects Manager
Kara brings over 12 years of design experience to her role with the NERUS design team, including with digital and print media. In addition, she has worked with apparel graphic design and fine art. Kara helps our media partners and their clients on newspaper ad design, digital design, and magazine advertising design. She holds a bachelor of arts degree from Western Oregon University.
Kara works at the Salem corporate office.
Job Titles:
- Director, Creative Projects
Kerry Lorentz joined the NERUS team in February of 2020. Using her extensive experience with print and digital assets, Kerry works with our markets to produce their Best of Programs.
Kerry has a formal education in Visual Communications and has been working in the field since the ‘90s. During her time working for Eagle Web Press, The Statesman Journal and Chemeketa Community College, Kerry designed magazines and newspaper layouts for both editorial and print advertising.
Based in our Oregon Corporate office, Kerry is proud to be a native Oregonian.
A NERUS marketing associate for more than half a year, Llara (pronounced Lair-a, but she'll answer to Laura, too) has been at home selling up a storm and raising a brood of littles. Relying on experience gained from selling insurance for State Farm and Allstate (she is licensed in Pennsylvania and Virginia), Llara is busy for NERUS. She is a newlywed, having married her husband, Dan, on Oct. 1 last year, and between the two of them, they have five children: Greyson, 16; Luella, 13; Addilyne, 8; and their twins, Silas and Finnley, who are six. That alone would be a fulltime job but add three dogs (including a puppy) and four cats, and the couple has its hands full.
Job Titles:
- Social & Legacy Media Manager
Luke is a NERUS digital operator and is as funny as he is quiet around the NERUS office. Having earned his Bachelor of Science degree in business and marketing with a minor in economics from Western Oregon University,
Luke is of Swedish descent and says his last name, which trips up just about everyone who tries to say it, is pronounced Lil-he-n-wall. He has a wide variety of social-media experience, and worked remotely for a 211 call center in Los Angeles and handled social media for the center, which provides social services and food relief to the houseless. He even proposed a marketing plan for the center prior to coming to NERUS. In his free time, Luke enjoys working out at the local gym and returns frequently to his native home in Astoria, Oregon. He also likes video games and snow boarding.
Luke lives in West Salem, working out of the Salem corporate office.
Job Titles:
- NERUS' Vice President of Sales
- Vice President, Sales & Contestant Engagement
Margaux Alexander joined our team in January 2021 as our Senior Project Manager. She was promoted to Vice President Sales & Contestant Engagement in August of 2022. With over 20 years of experience she delivers the level of customer service and media partner satisfaction that is core to NERUS Strategies. Margaux oversees our growing staff of outside sales representatives that work remotely aross the United States, with small, medium and large media partners that engage with NERUS to have direct sales responsibilities.
Margaux's experience in the marketing and advertising industry throughout the Pacific Northwest is well known. She has worked in print, broadcast and digital media. Margaux's career in media began as an assistant for her community weekly newspaper at an early age. After several year's shadowing every department from composition to Publisher, she found her passion working with advertisers and account executives.
Margaux has the ability to build new revenue and execute effective multi-media campaigns across business segments. She has lead sales teams across Oregon, Washington and Idaho resulting in impressive year over year revenue increases for media companies in multiple markets.
Margaux is originally from Nashville, TN. Her family relocated to Oregon where she currently resides. An avid outdoor enthusiast, she enjoys fishing the Siletz river, hunting in the Willamette Valley and exploring Oregon with her four children. She is based at our corporate headquarters in Salem Oregon.
Job Titles:
- Founding Partner
- Senior Vice President
Neil Potter is our Senior Vice President and a founding partner of NERUS Strategies, LLC. Neil has a robust history in the media and customer service space. "I feel fortunate that Neil is a key leader for our team. Media Partners quickly discover Neil's talents as we launch such new and profitable ventures across the United States" said Bill Cummings, President, and CEO of NERUS Strategies, LLC. "Along with our entire team, we are sure to deliver far beyond our promises."
Neil has the unique ability to see and manage our operation from several different vantage points. His experience with sales process, sales planning, managing expectations with senior staff and his even temperament make Neil the best operations leader in the business.
Prior to joining NERUS, Neil was the Salesforce.com Knowledge Champion for Gannett|USA Today Network. Neil held several other positions with Gannett|USA Today including Digital Strategist, responsible for all digital fulfillment and trafficking for digital display, PPC, social media, email blast, website builds, re-targeting and other campaigns. He was responsible for oversight and monitoring of all campaigns for optimization purposes. He also assisted sales representatives and their managers in building digital campaign solutions that delivered ROI to clients.
Prior to entering the media business, Neil worked as a Wilderness Guard in the Mt. Jefferson Wilderness. Trained as a Forest Protection Officer with responsibilities in enforcing forest and wilderness laws. One of the main duties was to educate forest and wilderness users of the different laws and regulations. Enforcement of these laws and regulations was writing citation tickets to the offenders. Often worked solo for this job, and sometimes in teams.
Neil holds a BS in Marketing from Oregon State University. He and his wife, Amanda make their home in Salem with their two sons and a new puppy.
He works from our Salem corporate office.
Nichole's work in counseling, social services, and mental health for about 15 years has prepared her well for becoming one of NERUS Strategies' newest marketing associates. With a bachelor of science degree in psychology from Brigham Young University, Nichole is passionate about connecting with people and spending time with her husband, Jeff and their soon-to-be 5-year-old daughter, Elsie. She enjoys spending time in the kitchen trying out new recipes and also watching her husband cook, which he loves to do and is good at doing.
Sitting outside at a picnic table watching her child play with other children is her idea of nirvana, and she's excited about rejoining the workforce, contributing to the family dynamic, and being able to work from home. Nichole is based out of Pennsylvania.
Job Titles:
- Creative Projects Manager
Olivia has a bachelor's degree from Oregon State University with a focus on art history and an associate degree from Portland Community College in graphic design. Olivia perfectly complements the NERUS creative team. She considers herself an art hobbyist and spends her free time drawing, something she has been doing since she was a child.
She works at the Salem corporate office.
Paul has been with NERUS Strategies since July and is as industrious as he is conscientious. His bachelor's degree in psychology has been quite helpful with this sales position and he looks forward to using more of his education and experience to help him in his new job.
Married to NERUS Marketing Associate Jill Westerholm, Paul has six years' business-to-business sales experience with PepsiCo, which he uses to help him with his NERUS role. Beyond that, he has also worked in appointment setting and mortgage-loan origination.
Paul's children are grown (his son, Adam, has written freelance for the company) and he and Jill have an empty nest (no pets, even). When he is not at work remotely from the Central Coast of California or spending time with his family, Paul enjoys hiking and being in the outdoors.
Job Titles:
- Digital Assets Clerk
- Member of the Operations Team
Finding that her high-school business classes have prepared her well for her job at NERUS Strategies, Polly Nakagawa is busy with her duties as NERUS' newest digital assets clerk.
A native of Orange County, California, but pretty much an Oregonian since she was very young, Polly comes to NERUS after getting to know NERUS CEO Bill Cummings and his dog, Lucy. She has a dog of her own, a German shepherd-beagle-Labrador mix, Colton Jeffrey III, a.k.a. Colt, and has been walking dogs since she was young. She walks Lucy still.
In addition to being a dog fancier, Polly enjoys photography, and loves to read and write. She spends her free time with family and friends and especially craves going on adventures with them.
A member of the operations team, Polly lives with her parents in Dallas, Oregon, along with foster brother, Zack, and will graduate from West Salem High School in June. She plans to attend Oregon State University in the fall 2023, where she will major in marine science. She works out of the Salem corporate office.
Some people visit zoos, others, like Shannan Armagost, live in one. Almost literally. Shannan, one of NERUS' newest marketing associates, is ripping it up selling for NERUS Strategies, but she has four children - ranging in age from 18 down to six - three dogs including a basset hound, a Morkie (a Maltese and Yorkie mix), one English bulldog, two sphynx cats, two bunnies, and one toad to occupy the rest of her time. To suggest she's busy would be to understate it dramatically. As she tells it, the ‘zoo at home takes up most of her time and the animals are a lot of work, too.'
She has been a stay-at-home mom for most of the past 12 years and is relying on her management of a seafood department at a grocery store, which required excellent customer service skills and sales savvy, to help her market NERUS products as she re-enters the workforce. She and her husband, Matthew, when they get a moment away from their offspring's soccer and cheerleading events, like to go to fancy restaurants and pretend they are boujee. She is based out of York, Pennsylvania.
After first getting an associate's, bachelor's and then master's degree in clinical psychology in 2011, Shirley returned to school and earned another bachelor's degree in business to help herself and her partner, Patrick, with their start-up antiques business. She fast recognized the importance of marketing and advertising and has brought that wealth of experience, knowledge, and expertise to her role as a NERUS Strategies marketing associate.
She and Patrick have been together almost 10 years and have blended their families to nurture five amazing children who become Patrick's biggest fans on race days. Just about every weekend, from April through October, the family can be found cheering him on as members of the family's dirt-track racing team - Old Goat Motorsports. Shirleyuses her business background to help promote the team and they join other small businesses as sponsors for Patrick's cars. It is a passion for the couple as much as it is a robust way to enjoy family time together, eating, and visiting new places.
Though self-employed for the past 10 years, Steve has spent considerable time selling Internet Technology (IT) and telecommunications equipment to end users for almost two decades. He has two grown children, one son, Tyler who is 26 and graduated from the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota and works at SPS Commerce and one daughter, Dannielle, who at age 22, recently graduated from the University of Minnesota and is headed soon to Charleston to do graduate work at the Medical University of South Carolina and get her doctorate in Physical Therapy.
In his spare time, Steve enjoys all sports Minnesota including the Vikings and the Twins, and spending time in the company of his children
Selling for NERUS Strategies is a second career for Susan. She was a teacher by education and training for 15 years, but she also had a background in selling advertising for publications for eight years that helped prepare her for her work with NERUS.
She and her husband, Rick, enjoy exploring new places, taking long Sunday drives on Saturdays, eating good food, drinking good drinks and spending time with the people they love and their two rescue dogs, Sherman and Lilly. The dogs are brother and sister pit bull-plot hound mixes, and Susan and Rick have their hands full keeping Sherman away from cardboard (he loves to eat it) and preventing Lilly from chasing every lizard she sees.
Tina Zavalza has worked with NERUS Strategies while on the sales team at the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Inc. selling Best of Las Vegas. She and her husband Marti, live in Las Vegas with two of their three children. She works remotely, representing a variety of Best Of programs including the Best of South Sound (Olympia, Washington) along with a growing list of markets.
Tina and her husband enjoy traveling as a family and are actively involved with their church, St. Joseph, Husband of Mary Roman Catholic Church in Las Vegas, where their daughter is a youth group leader. She is based in Las Vegas, Nevada.