Holly Ludlow
Class of 1974
Project Manager
Farmhouse Renovator
F-A: 1. Change management is a New Millennium buzzword in the corporate world across the field map. What does change management entail?
HOLLY:
Changes are evident and essential in today’s world, you need to be open-minded and adapt easily to change to survive.
F-A.COM: 2. Describe your work as a project manager?
HOLLY:
As a project manager I coordinated tasks and people (details are important). It can be frustrating when you're relying on a single person who could throw off your timetable and force you to delay a project.
On the same note, it's very satisfying to meet or exceed your deadline.
F-A.COM: 3. What were the biggest challenges and rewards in your 27 pharmaceutical career?
HOLLY:
Management changes were sometimes my biggest challenge. Unfortunately, you don’t get to pick your new manager when you're already in this role.
If you're faced with this situation, try to find out your new manager’s pet peeves and goals. The pharma industry is a tight net group and you might need a reference from your manager one day.
On the positive side, working in the pharma industry, I had the opportunity, on several occasions, to offer global process improvements and implement them.
I was awarded for my determination in the pursuit of more efficient work methods.
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4. What was the best advice you were ever given?
HOLLY:
It could be professional or personal. Stay positive, learn from past mistakes, take risks, keep learning and enjoy life.
F-A.COM: 5. You're renovating your farmhouse. How is that going? Briefly describe your renovation plans.
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HOLLY:
My farmhouse is nearly 300 years old and I have lived in it for 25 years. It was built on a spring, so water in the basement was always an issue.
With three pumps running 24 hours a day, I always feared that a storm would cause the electricity to go out, and my pumps to stop working, which would then cause a flood.
I had French drains installed inside and out, but it didn’t fix the problem. Finally, a solution found me.
I met a person with a farmhouse built on a spring--and he told me to “let the water come in and let it naturally flow back out.”
I did what he recommended, and was able to permanently remove all four pumps. No electricity needed to rid the water. This was amazing.
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62 Chamberlain Rd., Great Britain
F-A.COM: 6. Tell us about your family. What is your favorite family time?
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HOLLY:
I don’t have many living relatives, my parents passed away a few years ago. I have two children.
My daughter is a nurse who lives in Chicago with my 2 grandchildren. My son recently graduated from Penn State as a Software Engineer, and has become his own person.
My favorite family time is always when we are all together (my daughter, grandchildren and son)!
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F-A.COM: 7. How did Frankford prepare you for adulthood? Who or what inspired you?
HOLLY:
I had a life changing experience during my high school years. When I started at Frankford, I was in an academic curriculum. My parents could not afford college, so I thought these classes were a waste of time.
I was not focused and my grades reflected this.
Because of family issues, and halfway through my first year at Frankford--I was transferred to another school.
They had mandatory field hockey, which I was unfamiliar with, but had to learn.
I fell in love with field hockey. After two months, I returned to Frankford, and was placed in the same classes I had before.
I joined the field hockey team among other sport teams, and quickly became an honor student (first time ever).
You had to have good grades to play a sport. I continued to work hard and put myself through college. I ended up with a master’s degree.
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F-A.COM: 8. What advice would you give today's Frankford students? What is your favorite quote?
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HOLLY:
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Never Give Up! (applies to both)
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F-A.COM: 9. What advice would you give to students (high school and college) interested in pursuing a pharmaceutical career?
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HOLLY:
The pharma industry is a great career with a lot of different opportunities, challenges, and good benefits.
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F-A.COM: 10. Why should alumni attend their reunion? How do we get Frankford alum (especially the New Millennium grads) involved in the alumni association?
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HOLLY:
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I had lost touch with most all of my classmates, but by attending a few reunions I was able to
re-established old friendships and made new ones.
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F-A.COM: 11. Describe a great day.
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HOLLY:
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Celebrating anything with family and friends.
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"There’s something very special about your friends from high school!"
HOLLLY CON'TD:
I also had to replace my well, which was hand dug (back in the day) and only 11 feet deep. Now my water comes from 225 feet below and is safer to drink.
As I age, I think about how to make improvements that will enable me to continue living here. Will I always be able to mow the lawn, cut down trees, lift 40 pound bags of salt (for hard water filter system), or climb up a ladder to clean the gutters?
I have learned plumbing, landscaping, masonary, and some electrical, basically I learn what I need to fix. I watch a lot of YouTube videos,
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"...And I've gotten to know the professionals at Home Depot and Lowe’s. The 5-acre farmhouse is a lot of work, but rewarding and gives me purpose. (There's always a project to work on)."
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