ALBUQUERQUE, NM, April 18, 2018 – The Junior Achievement of New Mexico Board of Directors sorrowfully mourns the passing of Jennifer Riordan on Tuesday, April 17, 2018. A member of the Junior Achievement of New Mexico Board of Directors since 2009, Jennifer served as its current Board Chair as well as actively volunteered in the classroom, including both her children's classrooms at Annunciation Catholic School. She was involved with many non-profit organizations throughout New Mexico and devoted her time and passion to many causes including Financial Literacy.
"Junior Achievement of NM joins the New Mexico community in mourning the loss of our board chair, Jennifer Riordan. Jennifer was unmatched in her passion for our mission and the students we serve. We were honored by her service to Junior Achievement of NM for over ten years. Our work going forward will forever be a testament to Jennifer's belief in the potential of every young person," said Erin Hagenow, Junior Achievement's President.
Jennifer's leadership abilities naturally created followers who had unending respect for her. She was undeniably a people person, and mentor and embodied Junior Achievement's mission of passion, honesty, integrity, and excellence in what we do and how we do it. Jennifer was the greatest example of how to balance a successful career with family life, and service to her community.
"Jennifer cared deeply about our organization. We will honor our friend and colleague by continuing to inspire New Mexico's future leaders," said Sam Baca, Vice President, AUI, Inc.
Howard D. Bartner, Senior Vice President - Operations Junior Achievement USA, stated, "When I first met Jennifer, I was struck by her passion, enthusiasm, and her commitment to Junior Achievement. The more we worked together, I realized this is just who Jennifer was. Her infectious smile, can-do attitude, and zeal for life came through in everything she did. While she always put her family first, her commitment for making New Mexico a better place for all, especially for children, was what drove her efforts."
Sam Baca, of AUI, Inc., is current incoming Board Chair and will wrap the remainder of this fiscal year into his term.
"In her memory – please remember to always be kind, loving, caring, and sharing." – The Riordan Family
About Junior Achievement of New Mexico
We are empowering young people to own their economic success. Our volunteer-based K-12 programs foster work-readiness, entrepreneurship, and financial literacy skills, and use experiential learning to inspire kids to dream big and reach their potential.
Junior Achievement is New Mexico's largest organization dedicated to educating students about workforce readiness, entrepreneurship and financial literacy through real-world, hands-on programs.