Heather Thoreson
Inver Grove Heigts, MN
Class of 2003
Math

Tell us about the work you do:  I am currently working for Sony Electronics as the senior financial analyst on the Best Buy sales team.  I manage the advertising budget for the Best Buy account and support the sales team with various analyses and reporting.  I feel lucky to be able to say that I enjoy coming to work everyday!

A source of pride in your life:  I take a tremendous amount of pride in my family.  I am blessed to have been raised by parents who taught us, first and foremost, to love.  I believe it is because of their loving example that my brother and sister are two of my very best friends.  Family will forever be the earthly gift that I treasure the most.

Best St. Scholastica memories:  I have so many great memories from St. Scholastica, but the people are what I will never forget.  The moment I stepped on campus, I felt welcomed and at home.  From faculty and staff to students and friends, there was a niceness that I haven’t encountered in other places.  I left St. Scholastica with many remarkable friendships that will last a lifetime.

Significant influences:  Guanshen Ren, Mathematics Department chair and professor, deserves to be recognized for his passion for making the classroom a fun environment.  Frequently beginning the hour with a joke or funny story, he’d instantly win the attention and respect of everyone in the room.  Along with making learning fun, Guanshen put complex ideas into terms that anyone could understand, which gave students the confidence needed to get through a course like abstract algebra!  Outside the classroom, Guanshen was a big fan of the St. Scholastica volleyball team; it was fun to see his warm smile and friendly wave in the stands.

Something interesting about your life:  I trained for and competed in the Bay Islands International Triathlon in Roatan, Honduras in March 2007.  The training process has been a real test of dedication and time management, but crossing the finish line was a gratifying reward.

Philosophy:  Satisfaction in life arises in knowing you are where you belong.

Impact of the Benedictine values:  All of these values have become more significant to me since attending St. Scholastica.  However, respect is of the utmost importance to me.  To respect is to love, and we are called to love one another just as Christ loved us.