Meet Crista Hill

This week's sister spotlight:

Meet Crista Hill

All Hill (ahem, Hail) the New Graduate!

It’s that time of year when we get to celebrate our recent grads (and when professors are finally reappearing from the grading dens and returning to spotlights! Sorry!). One of those in our Relief Society is the lovely Crista Hill. Hailing from San Jose, California, Crista has just graduated with an MBA from BYU. The 3^rd of 9 children (who has 2 sets of twin siblings!) born on Christmas Eve, Crista is an aunt to 7 nieces and nephews with another on the way. With most of her siblings in Utah now (though she’s also got a brother in Oregon), her big family has moved “east”, too!

No, Not THAT Hollister

When Crista told me about growing up in Hollister, California, I had to ask. Nope. The clothing company did not take its name from the lovely town where Crista grew up. Instead, it got its name from a fake beach they made up. Kinda underscores how cool this real Hollister must be if it inspired a fake beach AND produced an awesome person like Crista!

Where’s the Bacon?

Crista’s family had a lot of fun vacations. She loved visiting the farm in Idaho where her mom grew up. One summer when she was about 8, Crista even helped raise 2 calves. When she was little, they even had pigs, pigs that she absolutely loved. Crista loved being in the country. But then one time, she got there full of anticipation only to discover there were no pigs. But there was lots of bacon. . . .

You Can Take that to the Bank!

After taking a four year break following her undergrad in Finance at BYU, Crista returned to school to her MBA. During that hiatus, she worked for 2.5 years as a Commercial Credit Analysit at American West where she helped process loans for local businesses including writing up the documents those businesses needed for loan approval. She then returned to California to earn her teaching credentials at San Jose State in Elementary Ed.

When Your Family becomes a Moving Target

So, you know when you move closer to family only to have family move to where you are coming from? Ya, that happened to Crista when she moved back to San Jose. Her dad got a job here in Provo not too long after she returned “home”! When she had her teaching credentials in hand, she moved back to Utah and taught 5^th grade for one year. While there were things she liked a lot about teaching, it became clear that this was not what she wanted to do long term.

Pick Your Stress!

Crista’s next move was to return to the world of finance, working with the ultra high stress firm Goldman Sachs for 8 months. Living in the Avenues in Salt Lake in a small studio apartment, it quickly became clear that no matter how stressful it was working at Goldman, it was still less stressful than teaching elementary school. (Hopefully that helps us all be more appreciative of the lives of our sisters who are teachers! J)

MBA = Many Brilliant Adventures (ahead!)

When Crista and I spoke a few weeks ago, she was looking for a job in finance in either Utah or California. Would she prefer a big firm or a small one? Well, she sees the benefits in both. She enjoyed her time at Goldman’s (big!), plus how could she not have liked her internship in Summer 2015 at Amazon (ginormous!) in Seattle. Right next to the water, near outdoor activities, lots of new buildings, new apartments, art and culture. What was there not to like? (Seriously, if you are looking at a change in your current direction, Crista could very well talk you into a job in business with all the cool things she’s gotten to see and do!)

Climb Every Mountain . . . in a Harness and the Right Shoes

So what does Crista do when she’s not rocking the world of finance? You’ll find her hanging

out (literally) on the side of some rock wall. Crista loves climbing and even has membership at one of the local climbing walls. One of the nice things about climbing is that “once you have the gear, the rock is free” (you can quote her on that!). She goes sport climbing up into some canyon on the weekend with her sister (and is generally climbing somewhere a couple of times a week!). For those who have been interested in trying rock climbing, it’s never too late. Crista got started about 5 years ago as a means of getting on good exercise and relieving stress. Some of her favourite places are Rock Canyon and American Fork Canyon. So what can you do during the winter? Well, Vegas also has some good rocks to climb, too, and none of the snow. A while back she went on a trip to Vegas with some people from her old ward. They rented a house and spent the weekend climbing during the winter when the weather was perfect.

Climb High!

Climbing, as it turns out, has some good life lessons. Understandably, climbing is no easy task for those afraid of heights because if you want to get up to the top, the reality is that while there may always be easier routes, there are no lower routes if you want to climb higher. Like life, climbing is a head game.

Yes, I did Say “Primary” and “Singles Ward” in the Same Breath

One of Crista’s favourite callings was when she served as Primary President in a singles ward in South Provo. Yes. I just wrote that. Someone brought their 3 kids to the ward and so they created a primary headed up by yours truly, Crista Hill. The calling lasted a semester, but the memories will last a lifetime. For Crista, it was fun to get back to the basics as she worked with the kids, getting to sing Primary songs and work on fun projects.

Perspectives

Crista’s friends would tell you that she’s pretty easy going, likes to have fun, and is

organized. I’m going to add that she’s got funny stories to tell, too! But when it comes down to it, Crista would hope that others would see her as someone they can rely on to do what she says as well as someone who tries her hardest and respects all people no matter who they are and where they are from.

Forget Energy Drinks . . .

Life in general energizes Crista. Seeing all the people she cares about and trying to move forward in life, constantly working to improve herself, that’s what drives Crista!

Favourite Last Words!

Crista’s favourite quote is one from journalist Jenkin Lloyd Jones that if often attributed to Pres. Hinckley:

“Anyone who imagines that bliss is normal is going to waste a lot of time running around shouting that he’s been robbed. The fact is that most putts don’t drop, most beef is tough, most children grow up to just be people, most successful marriages require a high degree of mutual toleration, most jobs are more often dull than otherwise. Life is like an old time rail journey…delays…sidetracks, smoke, dust, cinders and jolts, interspersed only occasionally by beautiful vistas and thrilling burst of speed. The trick is to thank the Lord for letting you have the ride."

Now, make sure to take the time to congratulate Crista and our other graduates whom we will continue spotlighting in the coming weeks.