Wise is on the rise

As a young girl, the oldest of five siblings, growing up in Bay Village, Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland, Terry was passionate about basketball, softball, running, riding her bike around the neighborhood, climbing trees and reading stories about people who succeeded against the odds. She was the captain of the girl’s basketball and softball teams and loved tossing the football in the backyard with her sister, Kathleen.

She learned at an early age that there wasn’t a difference between “girl” jobs and “boy” jobs. Her parents rotated the chores equally among the three girls and two boys. Each child would be in the weekly round robin to clear the table and load the dishwasher, sweep the floor and empty the garbage, mow the lawn in the summer and rake leaves in the fall.

Doing chores around the house was part of being in a big family, but Terry wanted more autonomy to grow her skills, earn her own money and to create something new. She started her first business at age 10, Terry’s Dog Walking Services which expanded into childcare and lawn-care.

Everything changed when her parents divorced after 20 years of marriage. This was the first major life transition that put her on the path to learn how to build from a new foundation, move through obstacles and seek advice and support. Grit, determination, entrepreneurial spirit and sense of humor helped her flourish on her career path.

Terry discovered her fascination with the stock market in the 1980s while studying Finance in college. She decided to transform her passion for investing into a career as a stockbroker. In her first job interview with a financial firm she was told she would never make it in the investment business because she had three things going against her: “you’re short, you’re female, and you don’t have any experience.” Another comment she heard was “it’s a problem you're a woman in this business.” These experiences did not stop her from pursuing a successful career on Wall Street at one of the top investment firms.

Terry has not allowed challenges to defeat her or other peoples’ perceptions to define her. They fuel her.

She has been speaking up and supporting women’s advancement in the workplace her entire career. In her talent acquisition leadership roles, she created and led many company-wide DEI initiatives.

Terry's rewarding career transitions from Wall Street to real estate to Silicon Valley fostered the skills, learning and development that inspired her founding The Brass.
Her current quest is to help women thrive in the mid-to-late stages of their careers and build a supportive community.

Terry continues to seek growth as an amateur athlete with age group podium finishes in local Bay Area sprint triathlons, 10k and 5k runs. She travels internationally participating in 100 mile group cycling rides in Croatia and trains for marathons.