Debora Ferrero-Waite has been the executive director of Puertas Abiertas for more than a year, but many Napans will know her from her first career in education.

Over a period of 15 years, Ferrero-Waite was the founder and principal of Shearer Charter School, principal at Mt. George Elementary School and joint principal at Salvador Elementary School and Yountville Elementary School.

“My greatest passion is teaching and learning,” said Ferrero-Waite. Luckily, her new position involves both. “My job at Puertas Abiertas is focused on education of adults. Our goal is to provide support and educational opportunities so people can become more stable and self-sufficient.”

“It’s been a wonderful opportunity,” she said.

Which three people would you most like to have dinner with?

I never had the opportunity to meet my husband’s parents, Harold and Josephine Waite. I would like to have dinner with them, D.H. Lawrence, my favorite author and Michelangelo.

What job would you like to try/not like to try?

I would like to be the photographer for a travel guidebook. This job would combine my love of travel and visual images.

I would not like to be a lifeguard. I do not know how to swim. I was born and raised in the desert and held the honor of being the oldest and largest minnow in the beginning swim class.

What’s on your to-do list?

Play the timpani (kettledrums). Speak Italian. Dance the salsa and flamenco.

Whom do you most admire in the business world?

I admire Dave and Kim Phinney, the proprietors of Orin Swift Cellars. Through their charitable giving, the Phinneys acknowledge and express appreciation for the laborers in the field who make a daily contribution to the success of the wine industry.

What is one thing you hope to accomplish in your lifetime that you haven’t yet?

I would like to bring all the dedicated and talented teachers I have known together to create a school based solely on hands-on, real-life learning experiences.

If you could change one thing about your business, what would it be?

If I could change on thing about the nonprofit business, it would be for grant makers and funders to support general operating expenses as wholeheartedly as they do programs. The rent has to be paid to keep the doors open to then offer services and programs. You can’t have one without the other.

What’s something people might be surprised to know about you?

My husband and I lived in a mountain cabin (in the Tehachapi Mountains) without electricity for six years, including the first year of our son’s life. We did not have a generator or telephone service and used a gravity fed water system from a spring. We were as green as it gets.

What’s the most significant project you’ve been involved with in your career?

The establishment of Shearer Charter School was the most meaningful and significant project I have been involved in. Working with a special group of teachers to create a place of learning that put the best interest of students at the heart of every decision was the most fulfilling personal and professional experience in my career.

What is a common misconception about Puertas Abiertas?

Our doors are open to open to anyone in the community, not just Latinos. We have about 35 nonprofit partners we connect or refer to. We work with Adult Education, the Napa City-County Library, Clinic Ole, Fair Housing Napa Valley, Legal Aid of Napa Valley, Cope Family Center among others.

What other business person(s) would you like to see featured in “10 Questions?”

Dave and Kim Phinney, Orin Swift Cellars.

Jess Romero, Romero’s Tax Service.

Grayland Hilt, Child Start Inc.

More from Ferrero-Waite

What was your first job?

My first job was starching and ironing long sleeve white shirts for a neighbor at 10 cents apiece. Today it is wrinkle-free, then it was sprinkle, roll and press.

What’s the worst job you ever had?

Cutting pampas grass is the worst job I have ever had. It is razor sharp and deadly.

How did you get into this business?

I was reading “A New Earth: Awakening to Life’s Purpose” when a former colleague asked me if I would be willing to give my time as a volunteer to help develop a community resource center.

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced?

The greatest challenge Puertas Abiertas Community Resource Center has faced is being a relatively new nonprofit organization during the economic downturn. Needs increase while resources shrink.

What’s your favorite gift to give?

My favorite gift to create and give is a personalized book of photographs that tells a story without words.

If you could be anywhere right now, where would you be?

If I could be in my favorite place at this moment, I would be on the John Muir Trail beside a deep blue high Sierra lake surrounded by fragrant, majestic pine trees.

 

What’s one thing Napa could do to help local business?

Shop locally; hire locally.

What was your childhood ambition?

At 5 years old, I fell in love with my kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Lingle, and wanted to be just like her.

What was your first job?

My first job was starching and ironing long sleeve white shirts for a neighbor at 10 cents apiece. Today it is wrinkle-free, then it was sprinkle, roll and press.

What’s the worst job you ever had?

Cutting pampas grass is the worst job I have ever had. It is razor sharp and deadly.

How did you get into this business?

I was reading “A New Earth: Awakening to Life’s Purpose” when a former colleague asked me if I would be willing to give my time as a volunteer to help develop a community resource center.

What is the biggest challenge your business has faced?

The greatest challenge Puertas Abiertas Community Resource Center has faced is being a relatively new nonprofit organization during the economic downturn. Needs increase while resources shrink.

What’s your favorite gift to give?

My favorite gift to create and give is a personalized book of photographs that tells a story without words.

If you could be anywhere right now, where would you be?

If I could be in my favorite place at this moment, I would be on the John Muir Trail beside a deep blue high Sierra lake surrounded by fragrant, majestic pine trees.

 

What’s one thing Napa could do to help local business?

Shop locally; hire locally.

What was your childhood ambition?

At 5 years old, I fell in love with my kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Lingle, and wanted to be just like her.

Each Wednesday, the Napa Valley Register’s Business Focus asks “10 Questions” of a local entrepreneur or businessperson. Readers are welcome to suggest business people to be profiled. To suggest a candidate for “10 Questions” e-mail: jhuffman@napanews.com