March Member Spotlight: Dennison J Rivera

What do you do for work and what is your slash (aka what do you do in your free time)?

Have you ever wondered about who's responsible for the ads that are displayed above the urinals or behind the bathroom stalls?

*Raises hand* That's me!

I work for Off The Wall Advertising as the Sales and Marketing Executive. My job is to find businesses in Montana that are interested in indoor marketing, because our niche is that we have a captive audience in popular places, where people with high disposable income go to everyday!

When I say captive, I literally mean captive. Can't look left or right, because you know... It's awkward. Since we have our audiences undivided attention, we create effective messages that can reach all of Helena through our 54 locations; which are displayed 24/7 on professional billboards.

I do more than sell ads, I also give marketing consultation because I want to help and make a difference.

On my free time, I enjoy annoying my wife when we aren't too busy going out to events, like Hot Latin Night or hanging out with our close friends.

If you ever want to catch us out and about, definitely come to Hot Latin Night which is typically every second Saturday of the month, (Exception for this Month - This Saturday, March 16th @Millers Crossing) where we dance to Latino music and we even have a 8:30 pm class for those who are eager to learn how to dance.

If you haven't noticed I love participating in social and networking events. At times, you may even see me play against Martin the owner of Martin's Wines on the giant chessboard in the middle of the downtown. I also enjoy working out in the gym, and I recently discovered in the last year that I love to cook.

How did you land in Helena?

I'm a first generation American and I was born and raised in Houston Texas. I moved to Helena to basically start over from scratch. I wasn't happy with my life-style and I needed a fresh start. Thankfully, I learned a lot and moved forward!

What is the best piece of advice that you ever received – career-related or otherwise?

Life is much like a game of chess. You reach a point of the game where you don't know if your next move is going to be the right one or your last one. It's hard to tell when you're cornered and without many options.

In the end, no matter how vulnerable you are, you have to make a move. Based on what you know, you make the best possible choice even though at that moment you have no guarantees of success.

Rest assured, once you make your move you'll find out one way or the other whether you made the right move or not as the game plays out. And when you do, regardless of the results its a lesson learned.

With that being said, make your move and be thankful for the results. Be thankful for everything whether good or bad.

Do what's right just because it's right. If you don't know, find out and be prepared to take a leap of faith when needed.

When do you feel the most yourself?

Though we are newlyweds, I feel like I am most myself when I'm with my wife and family.

Where is the last place you explored and where do you want to explore next?

Last place I've traveled to was back in my hometown of Houston for my wedding. What's next? Colombia! I've never traveled to Colombia though my family and my wife are from there. So I'm excited and looking forward to going there next year!

Tell us something about yourself that we didn’t ask:

I met my wife, Carolina, here in Helena at the Hot Latin Night event. It turns out she is from the same city my father is from in Colombia. What are the chances of that?