Emily Watkins.

Owner and Publisher

Meet Emily, the owner of Rochester Women Magazine since the beginning of 2020. Emily is excited to take the helm of such a well-known and well-loved magazine. Her degree in French Education from St. Olaf College and her fitness certifications, earned while running her last business, Empowered Wellness & Fitness Studio, aren’t coming in really handy now, but they’re a fun ice breaker and great in the game “Three Truths and a Lie.”

She was born and grew up in Illinois and has lived in Rochester since 2007. She loves to travel, dance, cook, act, sing, paint, sew, decorate, shop, read, eat good food and drink red wine, and she exercises sometimes because she knows it’s good for her. She is married to Justin, and they have two teenage sons, James and Danny, and one German Shepherd/Husky mix named Kai. 

She loves to gather and tell the stories of Rochester area women. Her strong belief in the abundance mindset drives her to make longer tables to ensure that we all enjoy the beauty and bounty of life.

Our team

Alexandra Petrova

photographer

Alexandra Petrova hails from Russia. She pursued a Master’s in French linguistics, followed by additional certificates in the French language pedagogy in Paris, France. In 2010, Alexandra and her husband, Bharath Wootla, moved from France to Rochester, MN. Although subject to a culture shock at the beginning of their US experience, they call Rochester, MN, their home ten years later. Alexandra embraces her life in Minnesota and has made the most of her new experience via the Instagram account, @Rochester_MN, as an outlet for her to share the city’s photos and a way to connect with many like-minded people.

Erin Gibbons

managing editor

Erin’s day job is as a production editor for children’s and adult books at 1517 Media. She has been a freelance editor and project manager since 2010 and an editor for Rochester Women Magazine since 2013. She and her husband, son (soon to be two sons!), and dog live in the Twin Cities, but she loves staying connected to her hometown through her work on this local magazine. 

Barbara Jordan

Community editor

Barbara Jordan is thrilled to join the fantastic Rochester Women Magazine team. She will seek to make her contributions as community editor inclusive and diverse with a broad and deep reach to women in Rochester. 
For this work, Barbara will draw on her almost thirty-year history of active engagement in Rochester, ranging from roles leading nonprofit boards, to building coalitions across the community, to her professional work at Mayo Clinic. She is excited to share her community connections with the members of the editorial team. Barbara identifies as Black woman, wife, mother, woman of faith 
and fast friend.

Kate Brue

Graphic Designer

Kate is our layout designer. She grew up in Prior Lake, MN and moved to Rochester in 2002. Kate has been in layout design for over 20 years and really loves what she does.

Tessa Slisz

Graphic Designer

Tessa is a professional designer who pushes herself to create memorable work that exceeds her clients’ expectations while capturing their imaginations. She has experience designing an array of digital and print media, and she loves working on new projects for her clients.

Melissa Hindermann

Outreach Coordinator & Events Director

Melissa is our Outreach, Events, Social Media & Sales Coordinator . Her job involves increasing our reach to readers through our magazine, website, social media, events, distribution, and sales. She is also an American Sign Language interpreter student, writer, and dog mom. Her mission is to cultivate fun and positive energy everywhere she goes.

 

Jennie Dieterman

Virtual Assistant

Jennie provides virtual administrative and creative assistance for small businesses and entrepreneurs, giving them the freedom to focus their efforts on doing what they do best. Jennie was born and raised in Michigan and became a Minnesota transplant in 2013. She has found her home here in SE Minnesota and enjoys exploring the outdoors of this beautiful area with her husband and son!

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