She got a full-time job at U.S. National Bank and then worked at Omark Industries.
She became President of the Oregon Chapter of the Certified Professional Secretaries Association.
She worked on Ronald Reagan's first run to the U.S. presidency, and became the Chair and Co-Chair for the Tri-County and Clackamas County Campaign Committees for Presidents Reagan and Bush.
She ran for State Representative three times before successfully winning after the retirement of Dave McTeague.
After her time in the house, she served as Clackamas County Republican Party Chair from 2002 to 2004.