When things get busy in Moab, it’s easy to become completely immersed in the urgent current of everyday requirements. Business owner and Moab Women’s Network founder Sarah Finocchio is one businesswoman who keeps her head up in even the rockiest waters, determined to see who is navigating them with her.
Fresh out of high school in Grand Junction, Colorado, and determined to become a professional graphic artist, Finocchio hit the streets before even enrolling in college.
“I was always such a go-getter,” she said. “I went to every organization – because I knew that life was all about who you knew – and so at 18, I went to every single company in Grand Junction and basically forced them to interview me – at 18 … And I remember them being like, ‘When you actually get a graphic design class, maybe then come talk to me!’ And I was like, ‘I just want you to know my name.’”
With that attitude, she landed her first graphic art job just a year later. Finocchio became so well-known for her talent and professionalism, she was handpicked by Peczuh Printing, a major regional printing company based out of Price, as its pre-press manager, responsible for final execution of its projects. At 26, she was the only female manager in the company, and the youngest pre-press manager in Colorado, and possibly the nation.
An accomplished swimmer, mountain bike racer and river guide, Finocchio has deliberately cultivated her personal power to excel. Networking with positive, like-minded women also helped keep her afloat at critical junctures in her personal and professional life in both Grand Junction and Moab, she said. That is what inspired her to team up with Alicia Wright of Bella Sol Spa to start the Moab Women’s Network.
“I realized, I have not met everybody here,” she said. “And I took that thing that I learned in Grand Junction, where I bought my bike and stopped smoking and became a racer, and all of the sudden I’m like, ‘I’m going to start attracting a totally different type of person.’ I was like, ‘I need to do the same thing in Moab.’”
The networking group was a hit from the start, Finocchio said, recalling the shock that she and Wright felt watching 15 women crossing the bridge at Rotary Park to join them at its inaugural meeting in the spring of 2012. Now more than 40 members strong, the organization attracts dozens to its potluck meetings every month.
She gives of her time and talents to help man’s best friends, as well. A board member on the Humane Society of Moab Valley, Finocchio donates design and printing to the organization and has helped the organization expand its marketing reach over the last year, said Tricia Gundlach, the humane society’s animal coordinator.
“She’s the last one to toot her own horn,” said Lisa Carter, who owns Lotus Massage and helps Finocchio with communications and other administrative tasks for the Moab Women’s Network. “She’s very concerned with making sure everyone has a chance to speak and be heard. She’s definitely just a wonderful, positive force for Moab and the business community here.”
This profile was made possible by the generous support of Rocky Mountain Power.
This Week: Sarah Finocchio
