AbbyElse 

As principal and Marian grad, Dr. Susie Sullivan likes to say, “you are a big deal.” This phrase holds true meaning for every Marian girl, even the ones who have graduated. As alumnae turn the pages on their yearbooks, they point out their classmates, their sports/involvements, Field Day, dances and more. But, they don’t get to see what their classmates are up to now. Here are some Marian grads that deserve “big deal” recognition  

Rita Clark-Heaston, Class of 1991, is a Senior Management of Development and Partnerships at Saving Grace Perishable Food Rescue. Her day-to-day tasks include planning with co-workers, engaging with the community, networking to raise money to keep their trucks on the road and inundating others with their mission that food should feed people, not landfills.

At her job, she loves getting the opportunity to build relationships with the people she meets and she feels most fulfilled “when the abundance already grown, cooked and created in our community flows naturally to those who need it—rescued food becomes a catalyst for dignity and stability rather than a lifeline for survival.” 

Marian still helps her thrive in her role today. Her experiences helped her to develop the confidence to lead and organize. The relationships she formed here are still near and dear to her heart today through never ending sisterhood and continuous networking through her classmates today.

Her advice to current students is to “stay curious and stay open to the experiences that shape you—the classes, the friendships, the teams and the moments that push you a little outside your comfort zone.”

The next “big deal” alumnae serves up a sweet treat all the way from Dundee. From the Class of 1996, Abby Jordan, is the owner of the ice cream shop right here in Omaha, ECreamery. The website ecreamery.com shares part of the success story: from great reviews by Barbara Corcoran and Mark Cuban on Shark Tank to sales of over $250,000 from ice cream gifts in a couple months, this alumnae shares her journey to this sweet success.

 Jordan’s Marian experience helped her discover that she wanted to create something big for herself. Being surrounded by her friends during her time at Marian helped her acknowledge this.

Before opening up shop, Jordan worked in e-commerce. “The idea of combining a physical shop with what I’d learned in e-commerce felt like a dream come true,” Jordan said. 

Her day begins with reviewing sales data and performance reports and then moves into a combination of strategic problem solving. 

Jordan loves what she gets to do. She enjoys being involved in everything and the assortment of operational functions and creativity she gets to work with. 

Left with what advice she would give to current students, she said “focus on honing the skills that light you up—they’re more transferable than you think. The clarity about where you’ll use them often comes later.”

The next alumnae puts her passion in action through her role as a Conceptual Textile and Mixed Media Artist. 

This is Chloe Wilwerding, graduate of the Class of 2011. According to her website, chloewilwerding.com, her multidisciplinary art focuses on questions surrounding human life and the complexities of its exploration. She does this using collage, textiles, printmaking and digital art.

She currently has a degree in political science and studio art as well as a masters degree in printmaking. 

Now, she owns her own studio.

When she is going from her day-to-day life, she loves immersing herself into the creativity of it all. Specifically, she loves the rush of finding a new way to use a material.

When doing her job, she finds herself the most content when she starts a new project and gets into a meditative state. “When that happens, decisions feel natural and intuitive, and it’s calming to feel like I know exactly what I need to be doing,” she said.

Her advice to Marian students is to figure out what your ideal future would be and work in reverse to know what steps to take. “Keeping that long-term vision in mind will help you make decisions about which opportunities to pursue and which ones may seem exciting, but ultimately distract you from the life you want to build,” she said.

The last alumnae that was interviewed is a graduate student at Saint Louis University for public health.

Molly Griffin, Class of 2021, noted how her time at Marian has helped her thrive in her academics and build her the confidence she uses daily. 

After she graduates from Saint Louis’s Master of Healthcare Administration in May, Griffin will continue her healthcare career as an Administrative Fellow at Children’s Wisconsin located in Milwaukee. This will take her an additional two years after graduation.

“In this role, I will have the opportunity to rotate through key hospital departments, including finance, human resources, strategy, operations, nursing and facilities, to gain a comprehensive understanding of healthcare management,” Griffin said.

Griffin has realized that although she has a passion for healthcare, she thoroughly enjoys the leadership role of healthcare. So, following her graduate studies, she hopes to work in pediatric healthcare and continue taking on leadership roles.

Her advice to Marian girls is to take time and reflect, but don’t put too much pressure on yourself because it will all work out. “Take a breath, give yourself grace and use this time to explore. Shadow professionals in fields that interest you, ask questions, and stay open to new possibilities,” she said.

Whether it’s a graduate from the Class of 1991 or spanning to 2021, Marian alumnae have excelled in their life beyond the halls of this school. Recognizing their high school experience and what it has given them, they have all utilized it to expand their horizons and chase their dreams because after all “you are a big deal.”