We continue today with Meet the Staff. There are a few new staff members, so we thought it would be a good idea to introduce or reintroduce the entire staff to STC members. This will also give those going to the Summit a way to get to know the people you’ll be seeing all over the place running things, so feel free to come up and say hi. We’ll post one every week or so for the next few months. You’re welcome to pose questions for the staffer as well, and we’ll try our best to answer.
What’s your name and title?
Steve Skojec. I’m the Director of Community Relations at STC.
What is your area of expertise?
I work with our communities. I help leaders get the resources they need to keep their communities running. I work with the Community Affairs Committee to develop community leadership programs and mentor communities that are struggling, handle governance and bylaws questions, work on new community startups, and more. I also oversee the STC Election and work with our web development team on rolling out tools that serve community needs.
My background is in communications and PR, and I participate in those efforts at STC as well. I’m a writer at heart, and I love finding ways to tell the stories that need telling.
Titles are one thing—what do you actually *do* at STC?
See above. A bit of everything.
What have you done in previous jobs that prepared you for this job?
I’ve worn many hats. I’ve worked as a media analyst, public relations consultant, communications director, relationships manager, art coordinator, administrative assistant, cemetery groundskeeper, computer technician, assistant TV producer, religion teacher, Realtor, missionary, desert Humvee tour guide, and pizza maker (not in that order).
I like being well-rounded. Every job, every experience, builds your ability to handle the next one. At the end of the day, knowing who your customer is and how to make them happy is what’s important. Everything you do is customer service, you just may not be thinking about it that way.
Care to tell us a bit about your family/pets/etc?
I am known around the office for being the guy with the kids. My wife Jamie and I just had our fifth child in March. We have two girls, three boys, and a Shih Tzu named Oscar. We’re currently looking for a house out in the country where they can run, jump, climb, explore, build forts, shoot water guns, and spend their summers in trees like kids should. (If possible, I will also rig up a giant hamster wheel and see if they can power the house.)
What do you do when you’re not hard at work for STC?
My family keeps me pretty busy. I like to do projects with my kids, like making videos or storybooks that feature their (imagined) adventures. I’m also a big sci-fi fan (TV, movies, books, you name it). I write fiction now and then, though so far I’ve been terrible about finishing much of it. I love photography, and I have the added benefit of being rather good at it. My wife and I are borderline foodies, and we love trying new cuisines. We also enjoy growing our own produce, making our own bread and cheese, that sort of thing. We’ve recently become initiates into the art of homebrewing as well, which has turned out to be great fun.
Can you tell us about an odd talent or skill you’re particularly proud of?
I have a pretty strong aptitude for accents and voices. I’ve actually taken voice acting lessons in the past, but have never had the luxury of developing the skill beyond the basics. I love reading stories to my kids, and using the most outrageous stuff I can come up with. Sometimes it makes them laugh, other times they just want me to stop entertaining myself and read the story. I do not, however, perform on command. Spontaneity is key. If you ask me to do an accent for you, I’ll pretend we never had this conversation.