Introducing Celine, Skipper Otto’s Member Services and Communications Specialist!
We’re excited to officially introduce you to your Member Services and Communications Specialist, Celine Terfloth! If you’ve phoned or emailed us since January, you may have already had the pleasure of interacting with Celine. Either way, we wanted to formally welcome her to our small and humble Skipper Otto team and encourage you to get to know her through a fun little Q&A.
It is our absolute pleasure to have Celine in the office with us each day — her smile is infectious and her intelligence, dedication, and attention to detail have quickly made her an asset around here. If you see Celine at the Fishermen’s Wharf or chat with her via phone or email, please be sure to introduce yourself and welcome her aboard!
And now, let’s learn a bit about Celine!
Celine joined the Skipper Otto team in January 2019. She plays a huge role in what we do.
“I do everything from answering the phone, to helping manage pickups at the wharf, to managing our editorial calendar, to working with our marketing team, and communicating Skipper Otto’s message in general!”
With a background in biology, Celine is a great fit for Skipper Otto. But there are many more reasons why Celine is unique:
“After university, I spent six months in the Bahamas doing shark and stingray conservation research at The Island School in Eleuthera. But my interest in the campus aquaponics system led me back onto land, and I spent the next year and a half managing it. (Aquaponics= hydroponics + aquaculture, where the nutrients from the fish fertilize the water for the plants — mostly lettuce and greens — and the plants clean the water for the fish in a totally recirculating, freshwater system! Magic!).
I always knew I wanted to move to Vancouver after the Bahamas, and I learned about Skipper Otto about a year before I started working here — it really stood out. It just so happened that a friend of a friend used to work there so we went for coffee last summer… A few Skype interviews later, I had somehow locked in a job before I moved!”
What do your strengths add to the Skipper Otto team?
“I think I’m pretty good at getting people excited to try new things, especially when they’re used to the more conventional route. I’m quite positive, so I’m often able to galvanize the people around me with my enthusiasm. I think this is really important for my role, especially because a Skipper Otto membership means getting used to sourcing your seafood in a slightly different way. I should mention, though, that people are usually easily convinced; Sonia and Shaun’s concept is not a hard sell!”
What have been your most vivid experiences since working closely with fisheries and fishing families?
“I could have never foreseen the response we got when we asked our members to help Scott and Karen (read the story here!). The rest of the team knew from similar experiences that our community is full of highly supportive and generous people, but I hadn’t had the chance to see it in a live situation. Members and followers were calling from across the country and from northern BC, not only to buy Scott and Karen’s spot prawns but to ask if they could make donations! I was floored and so honoured to be part of this amazing community!”
Celine’s key passion lies with re-working how the whole food system functions…
“Community Supported Agriculture (CSA), Community Supported Fisheries (CSFs), and other direct-to-consumer establishments are proving that, when given the choice, people love getting their food right from the source. Whether it be in the name of sustainability, high-quality food, or just having a relationship with your food purveyors, this movement is gaining so much traction on all fronts.”
What do you most love about being part of the Skipper Otto family?
“The office staff and the whole distribution team all come from such different backgrounds. Being welcomed into such a diverse community as soon as I moved to Vancouver was really special. Also, we break for chocolate almost every day (but we also bike everywhere so live extremely balanced lives)!”
Celine’s hopes for Skipper Otto’s future includes social entrepreneurship!
“It would be amazing to offer a program for people wanting to start their own CSF using Skipper Otto’s model. Also continuing to reduce our plastic packaging — something Sonia’s been working hard on since the start!”
Her favourite seafood meal?
“Seared sesame crusted tuna is definitely a favourite for me and my roommates!”
She thinks the world needs more of…
“Planet > Profit.”
