June 10, 2001

Contact: Robert Lowery (509-963-1487, fax 509-963-2301, email: loweryr@cwu.edu)

ELLENSBURG, Wash. - "Today is a day of celebration. It is also a day of decisions - decisions regarding your future," said Tim Riley, chair and chief executive officer of Door to Door Storage, Inc., to graduates participating in the 17th annual Central Washington University westside commencement exercise today (Sunday, June 10) at the Highline Community College Skookum Pavilion.

Riley, a 1987 graduate of the CWU SeaTac Center, returned to his alma mater to encourage members of the Class of 2001 to develop their visions and then pursue them.

"You came to Central with a vision - to be a better person when you left than when you entered," he said. "Now is a great time to revisit your overall vision for your life, to the years 2010, 2020 and write down what you want to see in your life in vivid detail. Then review it at least once per year to see if you're on track."

Riley was quick to add that the path for graduates to their visions will not be a straight line, but, instead, will "be like a rocket to the moon. Remember that a rocket on the way to the moon is off-course 90 percent of the time. Your vision will be the courage to stay the course."

Riley, who graduated from the CWU SeaTac Center with a degree in business administration and now serves as a member of the CWU Foundation board, says his initial vision, to become the marketing director of a Fortune 500 firm, seemed fanciful at first. But, in 1995 he took a giant step toward fulfilling his vision when he founded Door to Door Storage.

"I left a great paying job with lots of perks to take a flyer on a very risky start-up that was going to be all consuming," Riley said. "I knew that I had to make the switch to attain my true vision."

In 1999, Door to Door Storage was the fastest growing private company in Washington and will be listed this year in the top quintile of Inc. Magazine's 500 fastest growing private firms in the U.S.

"I know that I have utilized many of the tools that my Central Washington University degree gave me to achieve my vision," Riley said.

Along with vision, Riley exhorted the Class of 2001 to "find the point where your passion meets your skills and knowledge and the paycheck will follow."

"When I left Central, I had opportunities to take jobs that paid a much higher salary," he said. "But, the storage business captured my heart - I was smitten. I loved the industry enough to take the lowest job just to get on board. That was a pretty good test of passion."

Riley also urged grads to stay connected and "remain a friend to Central throughout your life in any way you can."

"If it were not for Central, I do not believe that I would have accomplished what I have thus far in life," he said. "Central is a wonderful place. You needed Central and it needs you and your involvement."

Bachelor's degree programs are offered at university centers in Lynnwood, SeaTac, Steilacoom, Wenatchee, Moses Lake and Yakima. Those CWU centers are designed primarily to serve students whose professional or family obligations prevent them from leaving their home communities.

During spring quarter there were more than 1,000 students enrolled at university centers. Sunday's ceremony was for students graduating from the Lynnwood, SeaTac and Steilacoom centers, all three of which have been in operation for more than 20 years.

More than 20 percent of CWU's graduates now earn their degrees at university centers.