A Long Overdue Introduction

Hi Peak Academy Friends and Followers –

I’m honored to introduce myself as the second newest member of the Denver Peak Academy team. Wait, second newest? As my blog title indicates, this is a long overdue introduction. So, here it is… at last… what you’ve all been waiting for… a little bit about me.

My name is Andy Rees and I joined the Denver Peak Academy as a Process Improvement Analyst three months ago. I was born and raised in southwest Kansas – yes, I fit into the “Not a Native” bumper sticker category – and moved to Denver in 2009 after graduating from Washburn University (Topeka, KS).

I started with the City and County of Denver in 2012 as an Intern in the Environmental Quality Division, but joined the Peak Academy team by way of the Denver Animal Shelter (DAS). For the last three years, I was the Marketing and Outreach Coordinator at DAS. I can’t say enough about my experience at the shelter. The facility is amazing (you should stop by if you’ve never been) but the people are even more amazing. I’ve never worked with a more caring, passionate, and hard-working group of people. Every day they work their tails off (pun intended) to help Denver animals. A nice little bonus of working at the shelter was getting to bring pups into my office for socialization and one-on-one time.

So why leave the Denver Animal Shelter for the Peak Academy? It wasn’t for the office perks, as I’m certainly not getting office pup time anymore, though I may suggest that at our next team meeting! For me, joining Peak was about the opportunity to meet, train, and work with employees across the City to continuously make Denver a better place for our residents. At Peak, I get to interact with employees at all levels and in all departments. I get to guide them to making their work more efficient and innovative. And they teach me a lot in the process.

Of course, what I do for work is only half of who I am. Outside of work I enjoy spending time with my wife, Erin, and our 5-lb Chihuahua, Jedi, and getting outside as much as possible. I enjoy the typical Colorado outdoor activities such as hiking, biking, camping, and snowboarding, but I also like to mix it up by playing as much disc golf as I’m able to. I recently set a goal for myself to complete two sprint distance triathlons in 2017. Wish me luck!