PPB November 2018

Kelli Denes cherishes her time with her family including daughters Quinlan and Marin, son Grey and husband Joel. 86 | NOVEMBER 2018 | CONNECT Ke l l i Denes S oap is a pretty basic commodity by most standards but learning to make it was just what Kelli Denes needed at one point in her life. In 2001, she and her husband, Joel, moved from her hometown of Visalia, California, a farming community in the central valley, to Cedar Rapids, Iowa, in America’s heartland. In California, she worked for a top-performing wireless phone provider. In Iowa, the scene was more relaxed and, after experiencing four failed rounds of in vitro fertilization, she was ready for a change. Denes saw a local company’s ad for a soap maker and it was just the ticket. “I love making things, so I became the 13th employee hired at Raining Rose and I made soap,” she says proudly. Since then she has moved on to become the supplier’s large account sales representative and one of approximately 350 employees, but she’s never forgotten the importance of that pivotal role. “I used these big, wire soap cutters and the wires kept breaking so I would call the manufacturer daily to discuss the issue with them,” she says. “Everyone was pleasantly shocked that I had such good phone skills and shortly thereafter I was asked to help answer calls. A couple of months later, the current owners purchased the company and made it into what we are today.” In her current position, Denes travels about twice a month and with today’s phone, video and text capabilities she believes she’s more accessible by not traveling as often as some of her industry counterparts. And she’s grateful to spend time with her husband and three children, Quinlan, 14, Marin, 12, and Grey, 8, and participate in their many activities. In addition to her family, a priority for Denes is completing her college degree. Since late 2015, she’s been attending Mount Mercy University, a small, local private school with an online curriculum. She expects to graduate June 2, 2019 A Focus On Priorities Kelli Denes talks about the importance of health, tness, self-improvement and her goal to nish college. by Tina Berres Filipski