Natalie Almarode
Natalie Almarode’s cell phone is always with her…and always on. With four children, a husband, a full-time job, classes at Blue Ridge Community College, and responsibilities as president of the national champion BRCC Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) team, she has a lot of people to stay connected to. Natalie received her Associates in Applied Science degree in Accounting and Business Management this May, with a 3.778 grade point average. She will attend Eastern Mennonite University in February of 2008. Ms. Almarode, originally from Kingsville, Texas, is president of the nationally-recognized BRCC SIFE team. Natalie was an active member of the BRCC SIFE competition team who placed first in the SIFE 2006 Regional Competition and was first runner-up at the SIFE 2006 National Exposition. Individually, she received the SIFE 2006 Service Leadership Award and the 2006 BRCC SIFE Advisor’s Appreciation Award. This past spring, she lead the competition team to a national championship in Dallas.
In the course of her participation with SIFE, she has worked to educate high school students about ethics and personal finance and participated in the team’s efforts to help with economic recovery in Katrina-ravaged Hancock County, Mississippi. She recently coordinated an environmental management system for the BRCC SIFE Coffee Corner, which has lead to the shop’s receiving Virginia DEQ E² certification. Through this research and experience, she developed a guide for businesses in Rockingham County detailing the steps to becoming an environmentally friendly business.
As a Phi Theta Kappa member, Almaarode was named to USA Today’s national All USA academic second team, and was also honored as a member of the Phi Theta Kappa "First Virginia Team.”
She is employed by Red Top Rentals, Inc. in Waynesboro, where she has worked for seven years. She is married to Marcus Almarode, who is a BRCC Nursing graduate and has a bachelor’s degree in Nursing from Eastern Mennonite University. They have four children: Megan, 14; Preston, 12; Hannah, 12; and Melinda, 8.