Over the holidays, we welcomed Amber Himes and Joe Fender to the team. They hit the ground running and have already made substantial contributions. Drupalize.Me now has eight full-time staff, all of whom are working tirelessly to build and maintain the biggest and best Drupal training service on the planet!
Please help me welcome Amber and Joe!
Amber Himes // Trainer
Amber Himes has worn a lot of hats. Some of them, she even crocheted herself. For example, most folks are surprised to learn Amber used to practice massage therapy. She began her therapeutic career in southern Oregon. But in between administering deep effleurage of tense paraspinal muscles and providing chair massage at Ashland's YMCA, she was hacking away at Drupal on her laptop.
Today, Amber still enjoys a lively discussion on workplace ergonomics and the impact of the stress response, although she is no longer practicing massage. Amber is passionate about making people feel at ease with complex technical subjects, which definitely comes in handy as a Trainer at Drupalize.Me. She enjoys helping and presenting at several of Portland's Drupal and Sass meetups. Also, Amber hosts DevMunch, a Google Hangout, where she dishes out bite-sized tips and tools for developers of all experience levels.
Amber currently lives in Beaverton, Oregon. And when she's not in front of the computer, Amber enjoys crocheting gifts for her nieces and nephew, tending her flowers and veggies at a local community garden, exploring the Pacific Northwest with her camera, and practicing rock-and-roll power chords on her accordion.
Joe Fender // Developer
Joe has always trusted that his interests and hobbies will lead him successfully through life. He built his first website—a showcase for The Simpsons— at the age of ten. In the years following, Joe taught himself HTML, CSS, PHP, MySQL and Javascript. All the while, Joe cultivated a passion for competitive gaming too. He captained the strongest gaming squad in the United Kingdom, which enabled him to travel the world and compete in tournaments!
In time, Joe was working as an Events Manager for an Electronics Sports League based in Cologne, Germany. He obtained a degree in Computer Science with Games Technology simultaneously. His love for technology then took Joe to Japan, where he instantly fell in love with the culture, food, and work ethic.
Joe lived in Japan four years. He founded and led a team of ten young creatives at Studio Umi, a startup based in Kyoto and the leading Drupal shop in Japan. This was where Joe first discovered Drupal. He was been using it religiously ever since.
Joe is back in his hometown now, London. In his spare time, he loves to cycle, play drums, collect shoes, and get his geek on maintaining Drupal modules, including Tournament and BracketCloud.
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