UC-Personality: Jackie Kinsella

If you walk into Ricoh, you will probably see Jackie Kinsella behind the counter. As the site manager, she is there happily helping students six days a week.

The Brooklyn native has been in Colorado for 25 years and has been working for Ricoh for five. Before heading up the Tivoli crew, Kinsella worked at Regis University.

Kinsella said she enjoys working on campus. “There are moments I want to run screaming from the building, but for the most part it’s good,” she said. “The students keep me young, keep me laughing, keep me guessing, keep me running.”

And there is a lot of running to do at Ricoh in the Tivoli. Jackie pointed out that there is a special challenge with three schools because each has their own branding and formatting.

Outside of work Kinsella is an avid reader. Novels such as Space Odyssey and The Hobbit are a few of her favorites. She is also a pet lover and can often be found in a neighborhood park in Englewood with her two large dogs.

Another of Kinsella’s favorite things to do is to travel. She has a great group of friends who have come up with what they call a Life List. Their last trip was to Mardi Gras in New Orleans and the Kentucky Derby is next.

Kinsella is a huge believer in the importance of traveling for students. “All young people should travel to other countries so they can see what it is to live here,” Kinsella said.

She also pointed out that it is essential to know the political climate of potential destinations. She would love to go to Turkey and Egypt, but right now with political climate it would probably not be the best time.

Last year she went to Croatia where she was impressed by the friendliness of the people in the remnants of war. Despite the bombed out buildings, lines of bullet holes from firing squads that surrounded them, they still seemed happy.

But of all the places to see in the world, Jackie’s heart truly belongs to Italy. She is drawn by the culture, the people, the atmosphere, and the pace of life. As a history enthusiast, she loves visiting the ruins and seeing the architecture.

Jackie also loves the importance Italian culture places on family. “Everything caters around their family life,” she said.

The importance of family is also something Jackie feels at home. She is the proud grandmother of a seven-year-old boy and her time with him is invaluable. “He keeps me alive,” she said.

And Jackie is very lively as she runs from phone to register to printer with a genuine smile on her face.