 Karen McGhee’s upbringing was very different from most.
“I was an Air Force brat, so I was born and raised in the Air Force for 18 years of my life.”
Karen’s father had a career in the U.S. Air Force, so Karen and her siblings moved around quite a bit, spending time in Massachusetts, Michigan, Hawaii, New Mexico, Colorado, Japan, and Germany.
When she graduated from high school, Karen made the transition from a military lifestyle to a civilian one, attending university in Tennessee, where she received a degree in business.
After that, she followed her family to Louisville, where they had decided to settle after her father retired from the Air Force. She gained experience as an executive assistant in a variety of locations before landing in Metro government, where she has been working in community services for many years.
“I like the diversity of this job,” says Karen. “I like that there are always things I can learn and take with me, I really and truly try to understand different aspects around RCS. I guess that’s why people say, ‘Well, Karen knows’ … because I will take the time to read up on things, even though it may not be my area, because I’m just curious and I like to know.”
Karen says that innate curiosity has served her well in her career as an executive assistant because it’s important to be able to refer people inside and outside of the organization to correct and useful information.
In her free time, Karen loves swimming and spending time with children.
And while she’s not necessarily thinking about retirement at the moment, Karen does look forward to a time when she can focus more on some of the other aspects of her life that she enjoys.
“Whenever that time comes, I’m just going to spend time doing those things that I like to do," she says. "I may even take up painting.”
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