Maggie Cormier, a second vice president and actuary with The Standard, is a new addition to The Freshwater Trust’s board of directors. Cormier joined the board in December after finding the organization piqued her interest, given both her mathematical background and love for the outdoors. The Standard connects and trains employees with interest in nonprofit board service, and Maggie found a match with TFT.

How did you end up as an actuary?

I had a math background as an undergraduate and then received a master’s degree in applied math. It was a bit of serendipity to fall into the insurance space in my twenties in Vermont, where I grew up. After working at several insurance companies on the East Coast, my family and I wanted a change and we loved the Pacific Northwest, so I joined The Standard in 2014. My position there is a great mix of quantitative skills and understanding business strategy. Actuaries are really critical to the success of an insurance company. You get a really good bird’s eye view of everything going on.

How did you find out about The Freshwater Trust?

One of the things I really like about The Standard is that they’re very involved in the community. I described my interest in environmental organizations and Bob Speltz, who heads our Public Affairs program, said you have to go check out The Freshwater Trust. I met with Joe Whitworth a couple times, and our meetings confirmed to me the great work that TFT is doing and that I wanted to be part of. I find the opportunity to serve on the board as a really interesting way to combine both the mathematical and quantitative aspects of who I am with the outdoors and environmental side.

What impresses you about The Freshwater Trust?

The energy. The creativity. The collaborative approach to solving some of our big problems and really looking at how to do it better and differently. I’ve really enjoyed meeting the team and learning how they are using analytics to enable people in the field to make the biggest difference possible.

What would you want someone to know about TFT?

I guess I’d want them to know that they are very actively working on rivers right here in Oregon. I’d also want them to know that TFT is using interesting and unique approaches in the way it works with businesses to enact positive and lasting change.

If we were going to ask your friends to tell us a story about you, what do you think they’d say?

I think they’d probably say that I have a really wide variety of interests and when I get into something, I really get into it. They might even classify me as a bit obsessive about my hobbies.

If you were a fish, what fish would you be and why?

The first thing that comes to mind is a brook trout. We used to catch them with my cousins growing up in Vermont, so maybe there’s just a soft spot there.

Tell us about a time you failed.

One Thanksgiving, I made a beautiful pumpkin pie completely from scratch for a large family gathering. And I forgot the sugar. Needless to say, the pie went uneaten.

What’s one interesting fact you learned recently?

I was listening to a BBC podcast recently and learned that the stone hand ax was the Swiss army knife of the Stone Age.

What’s your “Home River?”

The Walloomsac in Vermont where I grew up.

March 2, 2018

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