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28 I-CONNECT007 I REAL TIME WITH... IPC APEX EXPO 2023 SHOW & TELL MAGAZINE 28 I-CONNECT007 I REAL TIME WITH... IPC APEX EXPO 2023 SHOW & TELL MAGAZINE Teresa Rowe, IPC senior director, Assembly and Standards Technology, looks back on her unexpected introduction to IPC and how both passion and perseverance have always been at the heart of our industry's drive to innovate. Seize every chance to grow and learn, Teresa says, and always keep moving toward the next opportunity. Teresa, congratulations on this most significant award. What was it like to receive that phone call? I'm just honored and I'm completely hum- bled. I really didn't expect it. John Mitchell called me, and it took me a while to process what he was saying; I reflect back and it's a huge honor. You look back at those who have received it in the past and there are a lot of industry giants on that list. I walk by the board with the Hall of Fame pictures and recognize those who have gone before. Now I will be there. It's just hard to wrap my head around that. You were involved with IPC for quite a while before you became staff. Tell me about that. In the 1990s, I was working for a company with a MIL-PRF-55110-compliant board fab shop and then MIL-PRF-31032 was released. The DLA [Defense Logistics Agency] was present- ing a workshop at a fall event in Providence, Rhode Island, and I was sent there to learn more about how we could apply it to our operations. There was an IPC J-STD-001 task group meeting to complete Rev B and I had arrived early enough to attend. I thought, "I have nothing else to do on Saturday morning in Providence, why don't I just go to this meet- ing?" I did, and I was completely hooked in about 15 minutes. That's how I got started. You volunteered for something? It was interesting because somebody said, "Do you have any comments or any questions on this section?" I raised my hand, made a comment, and they talked about it. After the meeting, Jerry Rosser, the chair at the time, came up to me and said, "Wow, you sat here and didn't say anything, then suddenly you brought that zinger. You're one to watch." And the rest is history. Yeah, at least I didn't ask, "Who are you," right? That's how you feel when you answer, or you're presented with something during your first time in a meeting. You think, "Who am I to comment?" Teresa Rowe Onward and Upward Interview by Patty Goldman