Lupe was born in Mexico, but was raised on the northside of Chicago.
She likes numbers and solving challenging problems. Lupe has a degree in business and economics with an accounting certification.
When she’s not working she enjoys crafting and trying new restaurants. She loves to spend time with her family and their 3 cats
Kyle grew up in Chicago on the northwest side attending Notre Dame College Prep in Niles, Il. and Elmhurst University in Elmhurst, Il.
Kyle enjoys the outdoors, fishing, hiking and camping with his family and friends. He loves to travel by plane or road tripping as long as it’s an adventure.
Sumner was born and raised in the Chicago suburbs where his passion for the environment grew though time spend fishing, cycling, and exploring the outdoors.
Sumner attended North Central College where he graduated with a degree in Business Management. During his time in college, Sumner developed a passion for the importance of sustainability in business and the positive impact that businesses can have on our planet.
When he isn’t working, Sumner can be found riding his mountain bike, walking his dog Archie, or going to concerts.
Dan was born and raised on the Southside of Chicago. He attended Illinois Institute of Technology where he played baseball & graduated with a bachelors in IT. After college, Dan played baseball professionally in Europe for two years. Now he spends most of his free time hiking and trying to catch fish at Diversey Harbor.
Barb grew up in Indianapolis and moved to Chicago a few years out of college. Her passion for energy efficiency came from her parents who owned their own business and were always looking for ways to keep costs low and pass on any savings to their customers.
Not long ago, Barb was working for a company that was a Verde client, so she has experienced first hand the positive gains that the company can provide.
When she isn’t working, she is baking, swimming, and traveling with her wife to warm destinations where she can snorkel and scuba dive.
Mitch grew up in Minnesota as the third of five children and spent his college years at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, where he developed a passion for sustainability and protecting our great blue orb.
Mitch looks forward to learning more about energy efficiency and its role in the future of the great city of Chicago. In his spare time, Mitch can be found beating his friends in their annual book reading challenge, playing video games, watching new shows with his girlfriend, and playing with their Bernese Mountain Dog puppy, Freddie (coming December 23rd)! To dispel any confusion, he wants you to know that the dog pictured is his parents’ Golden Retriever, Huntley, who was just as excited as Mitch to have this picture taken
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According to Jacob everything has a purpose and place. Jacob spent six years living in different states and working in a variety of career fields before planting his feet in Chicago and with Verde. As a graduate of the University of Nebraska – Lincoln, majoring in Accounting with minors in Finance and Economics Jacob brings an analytical and logical approach to resource management.
When Jacob isn’t managing every item in the warehouse you can find him studying computer science, walking around town, trying new foods at a local restaurant, or cheering on the Huskers at a sports bar. He lives with his wife in Wrigleyville and can’t wait to attend Cubs games regularly.
Aaron Zachary is a native of Chicago. Through his early teens he developed a great passion for playing musical instruments which led eventually to him attending Roosevelt University finishing with a BA in Jazz studies. Through this passion of working with his hands in music, Aaron has seen the connection to that in his work at Verde. Aaron has just recently transitioned to the installation team from his previous Warehouse Coordinator position and is very much looking forward to growing his skills while under the tutelage of the more experienced installers on the Verde team.
Hi, my name is Dion Johnson. I was born and raised here in Chicago on the south side , in a single parent home along with my two sisters and a very loving and supportive grandmother. I also attended Coyne college and graduated in 2015, started working for a commercial electrical company as an apprentice in the spring of 2016.
I later attended a Coyne college job fair in 2017 and that’s where I first met Jamie. I developed a passion for sustainability and energy efficiency along my journey with Verde. Verde also taught me that it takes a team to make the dream happen. Working at Verde has given me the opportunity to be a part of not just a company but a family that cares about the communities of Chicago and beyond.
Go Sox!!! And cubs!!!!
Dion studied and received his electrical license in 2024 after years of dedication.
Hi my name is Jim Simon. My family on my father’s side came to this country and settled in Louisiana in the 1780’s. My mother’s family arrived in the 1850’s and settled in Chicago. I was born and raised in the Chicago area. While I was in high school I started a part time job at Jewel Foods and eventually went full time. I moved into upper management in the stores. I attained skills in business, management, personnel and customer service.
I left Jewel in 2014 after 37 years and wanted to work with my hands. I was taught by my father to be self sufficient in maintaining a home. I learned a wide variety of skills in carpentry, plumbing, electrical, roofing, automotive, appliance repair, small engine repair and painting. My true passion is electrical work.
Since then I took at position at Verde in 2016. I enjoy being part of the team and teaching my knowledge to the younger installers. I also like working for Verde because you can see the difference you make for people and businesses. We brighten their lives and reduce their carbon footprint.
Jim demonstrates the core value of curiously exploring new solutions, and recently received his Elgin Electrical License in 2023.
I am originally from Kansas City, Missouri and have lived in Chicago for 6 years now. I love my hometown and the fact we have the best bbq in the world along with the defending Super Bowl champs. Being in Chicago has been great and I enjoy exploring the city and taking advantage of everything this city has to offer. You can usually find me checking out a new bar or restaurant and then going out to see some live music.
I really enjoy working for Verde and being a part of such an awesome team. I am studying to become an electrician and Verde is a great place to learn. I love being part of a company that cares so much about our planet and that takes pride in their work.
Paul was promoted to head crew chief in late 2021, and studied hard and received his electrical license from Elgin in 2023.
What we are doing to keep our employees and partners safe during the COVID-19 pandemic:
All of our office staff, including our energy efficiency analysts, are taking the necessary measures to limit contact by working remotely. We have adjusted our office workflow to be done online so that we could continue to support our installation team and to provide excellent services to our partners while also practicing self-isolation.
To limit exposure within our own team members, we have split up our 13 installers into 3 distinct teams that do not overlap. This means that each team of 4 or 5 will not be exposed to other crew members in the situation that there may be an installer who tested positive or had exposure to COVID-19.
In the case where a crew member is exposed to COVID-19, we are requiring crew members to remain in self-quarantine for 14 days with pay. Recently, a crew member was exposed to a family member who had tested positively, and we mandated that all team members who were in contact with that member be in self-isolation for 14 days. They received pay during that quarantine time.
To combat exposure to not only our installers but also our partners, our installation crew is practicing safety and precaution by wearing masks and gloves on-site. We also practice social distancing and reduce contact on-site during installation, wherever possible.
Utilizing safe sanitation and disinfecting practices is something that we take very seriously. During installations, our crew members are committed to disinfecting as often as possible. We purchase our disinfectant from Koval – a local distillery around the corner from our offices. This not only helps to keep our installers and partners safe, but we are also supporting local Chicago businesses.
In order to protect the people who have the highest risk, we are not performing installs in facilities such as fire stations, child care centers that are open, and elderly care facilities.
We will continue to complete our pre-inspection process and have added a post-inspection process, as we want to ensure that our services are at the highest possible quality. However, the members who are involved with the pre and post inspection do not overlap with anyone else in our team to avoid points of contamination between installation teams.
In order to limit exposure in our warehouse, only one team is allowed to enter at a time. We also have dedicated “bays” for each team that has all of their products for job sites to further eliminate cross contamination.
We are continuously striving to improve and offer better solutions that will help keep our employees and partners safe during this time. We are constantly receiving feedback from our clients and installers to see what we can do better to make each installation safer and more efficient.
Verde is able to remain open and operating because we are considered an essential service as an electrical subcontractor and an electrical contractor. Ethically, we have struggled with how Verde should proceed with installations as we are potentially putting our employees’ and partners’ health at risk. However, with our current COVID-19 guideline to help keep employees and partners safe, we are confident that we will be able to keep our commitment to our clients and complete important work we do which is to provide the best energy efficiency. Verde will continue to stick to its Core Values by remaining gracious, humble, positive, proud, and resilient even during these times.
Alisa grew up in California and fell in love with nature through her yearly visits to Yosemite National Park. She received her BS in environmental science from DePaul University and an MS in sustainable resource management from Vrije University of Amsterdam, Netherlands.
Before working at Verde, Alisa was based in France and Germany working in the field of criminal intelligence, combatting global timber and wildlife trafficking. Alisa became interested in developing strategies for a transition to a more sustainable society through her passion of working with children. She believes strongly in protecting the environment to sustain life for generations to come, and she believes investing in energy efficiency is one of the most feasible ways to do so.
In her spare time, Alisa mentors children in the Chicago foster care system and she likes to cook and spend time with her family. She aspires to embody resiliency, confidence, and professionalism through her work at Verde.
Jim likes numbers and streamlining systems and processes, like a lot. A graduate of Saint Louis University, majoring in Accounting and IT Management Jim also brings an incredible passion for conservation and environmental causes after joining the Wilderness Adventure Club at SLU.
When Jim isn’t getting nerdy with numbers, you can find him spending his free time backpacking, hiking, canoeing or cheering on West Ham United from a local pub. He lives with his wife in Ravenswood/Lincoln Square and enjoys discovering local gems in the neighborhood.
Beth’s passion for the environment and sustainability started as a child growing up exploring the forest preserves of the Chicago region. Beth is a graduate of DePaul University in Environmental Science and Geography.
Lately, her hobbies include looking at bugs under her microscope, talking about invasive earthworms and playing outside with her cat, Dawkins.
Dawkins’ hobbies include eating bugs and complaining.
Adrian graduated from the University of Illinois with a Bachelor’s in Environmental Studies: concentration Sustainability. Originally he was majoring in Architecture, but after taking an Environmental Biology class his career goals shifted. Verde is helping small business take control of their energy consumption and he is glad I get to be a part of that.
His hobbies include riding his mountain bike on the trails and going to concerts with the love of his life, Stacey.
