community leader mitz santiano
name
Mariza “Mitz” Santiano (BBA ’85). “My teachers had trouble pronouncing Mariza, so they started calling me ‘Mitz.’ It just stuck.”
occupation
Realtor, Coldwell Banker Northern California, San Mateo, CA.
community involvement
Active member of the Foster City Rotary Club, Chamber of Commerce ambassador, Community Emergency Response Team leader.
Loyola leader
President of Loyola’s San Francisco Bay Area Alumni Club, which has 5,500 alumni and an active calendar of events. “When you leave Chicago and go out to conquer the world, you’d be surprised at how lonely it can be. The club offers people a place to reconnect to their school and fellow alumni.”
roots
Born in 1964 in the Philippines, Santiano came to the United States in 1972 with her mother, Lilia, an intensive care nurse, and two siblings, Marilou and Maria Editha. “My mother moved here to start a new life with new opportunities and a better education for her children. She packed three suitcases and put all of us in matching red raincoats.” When the family got off the plane, Chicago was in the midst of a February snowfall. “We’d never seen snow before and we immediately started playing in it.”
why Loyola?
Graduating in three years from Thornwood High School in South Holland, IL, Santiano attended Thornwood Community College before winning a scholarship to Loyola. “But it wasn’t all about the financial help. My mother was a diehard Catholic and was impressed by Loyola’s Jesuit values.”
what Loyola taught her
“When you have an education, you have options.”
memorable instructor
Ronald T. Lonsdale, PhD, professor emeritus of business. “He taught me to imagine a stone thrown into a pond. At the center of the concentric circle is the customer. If you focus on the customer, providing excellent service and added value, you will gain his business and his trust.”
giving back
Santiano has named Loyola in her will. “Why shouldn’t you give back to the place that helped you? If Loyola hadn’t been there for me, I wouldn’t be where I am today.”
staying single
“I’m 43, and I’ve been engaged three times. But it was never right. My philosophy is, if you’re going to do something, make sure you’re passionate about it. It has to feel right in your heart, or don’t bother.”
faithful companion
Snowee, a purebred Maltese, weighing 4.5 pounds.
advice to today’s students
“Follow your heart…take risks…go backpacking in Europe…travel the world…you’re only young once. So do the things your heart tells you to do now, because as you grow older, you might not get the chance.”