Issue link: https://tmcpulse.uberflip.com/i/834093
t m c » p u l s e | j u n e 2 0 1 7 10 10 Spotlight DENISE CASTILLO-RHODES, executive vice president and chief financial ocer of the Texas Medical Center, spoke with Pulse about growing up in El Paso, saying yes to profes- sional challenges, volunteering in Ghana and Guatemala, and getting her motorcycle license. Q | What was it like growing up in El Paso? A | Life was simple and easy. I was blessed with two loving and wonderfully supportive parents, an older sis- ter and two younger brothers. Neither one of my parents had a college education, however. From a very early age they instilled in us that we would attend college. When I attended UTEP, which is located on the west side of town about 20 miles from my parents' home, I could easily see the cardboard shacks that were just across the border in Juárez, Mexico. The only thing separating those shacks from where I stood was a trace of a very shallow Rio Grande. I remember watching lit- tle boys and girls playing outside their shacks or swim- ming in the river. I felt so sorry for these young children, but as time went on I came to realize how happy these children seemed. This experience certainly played a role in my interest in humanitarian efforts. Q | Did you always dream of a career in finance? A | Growing up in El Paso, I thought I wanted to be a math teacher. My sophomore year in high school, I got a job working at Baskin-Robbins and worked there through most of my college years. Eventually, the owner let me run one of his three stores, which was what inspired me to aim for a career in business. While at Baskin-Robbins I not only learned the ropes of the art of scooping ice cream, but, more importantly, the business side of the operations. When I graduated from high school I enrolled at The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) and declared business management as my major. I later changed my course of study when my accounting professor pulled me aside to encourage me to consider accounting as my major after I scored a perfect 100 on my very first accounting exam.