Christie Ponciano is retiring from The Morning Star Company at the end of December after nearly 30 years with the organization. Ponciano began her career at Morning Star in July 1995, coinciding with the opening of the Williams factory. She returned to her hometown a few years earlier to care for her parents and brought experience in medical assisting, bookkeeping, and business studies to her accounting role.
Colleagues describe Ponciano as energetic, honest, and positive. “She is vibrant, active, hardworking, and extremely honest — qualities that show up in everything she does. Her energy is contagious, her integrity unwavering, and her outlook refreshingly positive,” said one close colleague.
Family has always been important to Ponciano. She frequently visits Alameda to spend time with her daughter Jennifer, son-in-law Nate, and grandchildren Owen and Soren. Family holidays are especially meaningful for her.
Ponciano has experienced personal loss as well; she lost her son Rick at a young age. These experiences have influenced her approach to relationships by deepening her empathy and resilience.
Gardening is one of Ponciano’s main interests outside work. She also enjoys sports—especially baseball—and has traveled internationally to destinations such as Italy, France, Scotland, and Ireland. In retirement she plans further travel within the United States and looks forward to spending more time reading.
At work, colleagues say Ponciano was known for balancing kindness with directness when necessary: “She builds relationships effortlessly… That approach earned admiration from customers and colleagues alike — not because it was strategic, but because it was genuine.”
As she retires from Morning Star, Ponciano leaves behind longstanding friendships formed during nearly three decades at the company.
The Morning Star Company recently announced that its newsletters will now be distributed electronically via Mailchimp email services. Employees are advised that these emails may initially be directed to their spam folders depending on company firewalls.
