Today we are celebrating big first year milestones for Gisselle Castillo and Elizabeth Peterson! Their happy-to-help attitudes have been wonderful contributions to the office and we are so excited to keep working with them.
MWA is lucky to have team members who bring as much heart to their work as they do skill, and Gisselle and Elizabeth are two great examples. Both are hands-on, quick to help, and bring a sense of humor that makes them a joy to work alongside. Please join us in getting to know Gisselle and Elizabeth!
Gisselle Castillo, Payroll Specialist & Project Accountant
“Gisselle is truly a joy to work with and someone I know I can always count on for support, collaboration and a positive perspective! Her willingness to support our team and those around her makes her such a valuable member of MWA, I feel incredibly lucky to have her as a colleague and a friend.”
What project(s) are you working on right now?
I’m currently working on billing for all of the San Francisco Infrastructure projects. I also work on payroll, making sure everyone gets their timesheets in so they get paid on time.
What’s your favorite thing about working at MWA?
Honestly, it’s how close the company feels even though we’re split between two different locations. There’s a sense of community here that I haven’t experienced at my previous jobs, and I was pleasantly surprised by it when I first started. I also really love the Fluffy Friday Teams chat, where everyone shares photos of their furry friends, kids, and adventures! 😊
How do you maintain work/life balance?
I love playing video games when I have the chance. I used to only game on consoles, but when COVID hit, I decided to switch over to PC so I could connect and play with my friends when we couldn’t spend time together in person. Since then, I’ve mostly been on PC unless there’s a game that is exclusive to a console.
Recently, though, most of my free time has been spent hanging out with family and friends. My niece is currently playing travel softball, and I try to catch as many tournaments as possible. My nephew just picked up basketball, so I’m trying to catch some of his games as well. My parents also just retired, and I’m trying to get them out to explore and experience new things.
When I’m not with family, I’m usually hanging out with friends, going to events, or watching documentaries.
What do you hope to do more of in the next few years?
I would like to focus a bit more on project accounting. Don’t get me wrong, I love payroll, but I’m always trying to learn something new, and I still have a lot more to learn when it comes to project accounting.
What is your next career goal you’d like to tackle?
I want to become proficient in project accounting and project forecasting. I would like to be able to help the PMs with their projects by noticing trends and providing more support throughout the project lifecycle.
What originally drew you to your field of work?
I’ve always been interested in business and finance since I was a kid. Growing up, my parents owned a business, and I spent a good amount of time there outside of school. Personally, I enjoyed helping with their finances and bookkeeping more than stocking shelves with merchandise.
What is one thing you want readers to know about your work at MWA?
It’s all a cycle! Employees work on the project, time is entered on their timesheets, I use timesheets to pay the employees, and the timesheets are posted to the job, which then creates invoices. I verify and submit the invoices to the client, and then the cycle starts all over again with the new month.
What are causes that are important to you?
Youth sports for underprivileged communities are important to me. Growing up in Oakland, you’re exposed to a lot at a young age, which can make it easy to go down the wrong path. Being part of a sport is a great way to keep kids active and entertained after school. It’s also a great way to build communication skills, teamwork, and leadership abilities.
If you have time, check out the Olympic Club Foundation!
Is there a particular architect/designer/artist’s work that inspires you?
Illuminaries are my favorite group of street art muralists. I love driving around the Bay Area and discovering new murals. The amount of detail they can do with a spray can is crazy. I also love that they incorporate different parts of the Bay Area into their murals, whether it’s a Bay Area athlete, team, or artist.
My favorite is the A’s Elephant mural (RIP to the Oakland A’s) in Downtown Oakland. I remember driving on 880 and being in awe when I saw this giant elephant appear behind one of the buildings.
Elizabeth Peterson, Transportation & Resource Management Lead
“Beth is a great team player and has a wealth of knowledge to bring to our projects. I’ve genuinely appreciated the patience and clarity she offers when walking me through technical details, whether they’re complex or straightforward. She also brings a great energy (and levity) to a project.”
What project(s) are you working on right now?
I’m currently the Project Manager on the 1600 Harrison Street Project. This project is a collaboration with Bill, Alfred, and Ying. 1600 Harrison Street is an existing building owned by Oakland Housing Authority (OHA). This project will seismically upgrade and renovate this historic building and serve as OHA’s temporary offices while they upgrade their current offices. I am also part of the McMinnville Water & Light Project team serving as an SME, and I’m on the 401 Santa Clara Project in an advisory role.
My ongoing Business Development has been focused on identifying pursuits, developing the needed relationships with agencies and potential teaming partners, and working with the rest of TRM leadership on active pursuits.
What is one lesson/piece of wisdom you’ve learned from a recent project?
Being a Project Manager on 1600 Harrison has given me the opportunity to learn how to use Vantagepoint to its fullest capacity, which has been great. It has great potential to assist project managers in planning and managing their projects.
What is one thing you would change about the architectural discipline?
Generally, I think we don’t focus enough on how things actually get built. While having the vision for the work is mission critical, having a depth of knowledge about how things are constructed can only make us better designers.
What is your favorite thing about working at MWA?
As cheesy as it sounds, my favorite thing about MWA is the people and culture. We are a great group of people who care deeply about what we do and who we do it with.
How do you maintain work/life balance?
Work/life balance is one of those things I think many of us find challenging. That said, right now ‘life’ has lots of interesting things going on. Our cat passed away a few months ago. She was incredibly sweet but very old. We had talked about getting a puppy and kitten once she passed. We took the plunge and have introduced Alvin, an adorable tuxedo kitten, and Luke, our new puppy, into our lives. As a cat person, I had no idea what a handful puppies are! We’re getting settled currently.
What are you most excited about in the future of your work in the next few years?
I’m most excited about growing the TRM SF Studio, winning projects and executing them in a way that will serve the client and public. I’m also really excited to keep growing into the role of firm leadership.
What originally drew you to architecture and design?
I was originally drawn to architecture by my curiosity about how things work. What makes a beautiful building? Why are some ugly and others make places? How do they get built? How does culture and history impact design? I was fascinated by it all.
Is there a particular architect/designer’s work that inspires you? Why?
It is really hard to narrow down to one particular architect that inspires me. I can get it down to two fairly readily, though it’s hard! Renzo Piano and Santiago Calatrava both inspire me, and for similar reasons. I love how they make such beautiful places and take joy in expressing and pushing the limits of structure.
Gisselle and Elizabeth’s enthusiasm and dedication shape the collaborative, energetic culture we value so deeply at MWA. Thank you both for the work you do and the energy you bring to it every day!