How a Diverse Background Led to DiverseCity Ventures
Mariah Lichtenstern’s Incredible Journey
“My life is an open book,” says Mariah, as we commence our conversation. “Feel free to ask me anything.” With breathtaking authenticity, candor and transparency, Mariah takes us through the incredible journey that has been her life.
I was raised in a very loving home environment, but my mom became disabled when I was eight.” she begins. “She and my step-father divorced when I was ten and I went into foster care at 14, where I met the paternal side of my family for the first time. My father was paraplegic, so I was fostered by my adult siblings. After several placements and moves — each farther away from my high school, and in increasingly troubled neighborhoods — I emancipated myself from foster care at 17 and moved closer to school and work.
When asked how she started off in tech, Mariah reflects, “I’ve always been a tinkerer.” She fondly reminisces on how she would hack into her brother’s phone conversations as a kid. Mariah showed an interest in engineering and was President of the “Future Business Leaders of America” club at her high school.
Read the rest of Mariah’s inspiring story (and more like it) at AnitaB.org.
This story was written by Saranya Murthy, Wogrammer Journalism Fellow. Connect with her on LinkedIn. Support our mission to celebrate more amazing women in tech, like the one featured here, by donating to AnitaB.org.
