Julie Hamory (’93), Fresno, CA

Julie Hamory (’93), who received $80 in Starbucks gift cards as the May winner of the Aztec for Life Prize Giveaway, grew up in Fresno.  After graduating from SDSU and living in San Diego for many years, she’s back in her hometown in the San Joaquin Valley where she and her husband have two children and she works for a major corporation as a financial advisor.  

Aztec for Life Prize Giveaway Winner Julie Hamory at a 2002 Alumni Association 20/30s mixer.

"San Diego was a place we always used to travel to frequently when I was a kid and SDSU was a school that always piqued my interest so I made my way there," says Hamory, who graduated with a degree in speech communication.  She says even though most of her professional life has been spent in the finance industry, her degree choice has served her well.

“I learned a great deal through that speech communication department,” she says. “It's not from the standpoint that you're learning how to read a balance sheet or something like that, but there definitely was value (in the degree).    

“You learn a lot about non-verbal communication in speech and speaking in front of others.  There are things you can learn in a speech department that definitely lend themselves to what I do now - things you learn through those courses that definitely carry over into the ‘real world.’"


Hamory says she had a lot of “great professors” at SDSU and describes her time at the university as a “good experience.  To this day I still have good friends I made at San Diego State," she says.

A fan of Aztec athletics, Hamory says she follows the fortunes of SDSU basketball and football especially closely.  She says she’ll be there in her Aztec gear when the football team travels to Fresno this fall to face the rival Bulldogs.

Being farther removed from SDSU these days is part of the reason Hamory stays connected to the university as a lifetime alumni member.  Another reason is her family, which she describes as being “civic-minded” and always setting an example of giving back to their community and to family alma maters.

"It's just something we grew up with - giving back to your school,” she says. “You give back, you get involved and you support where you came from."  

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