An Interview with Dawn Pereyo
Interviewed by: Ronni Bleich
Name: Dawn Pereyo
NYSLTA Role: Immediate Past President
Company and Title: Westcor Land Title Insurance Company, VP, Regional Manager
Q. Why do you enjoy working with the NYSLTA?
A. I love the people. It also gives me the opportunity to give back to an industry that gave me a career.
Q. What do you plan to focus on this year, as Immediate Past President of the NYSLTA?
A. Becoming President is really a 3-year commitment – incoming, present, immediate past. As an Officer, I attend the regular officers’ meetings. The immediate past President helps with the transition of one Board to the next and makes sure things stay consistent. We need to make sure new folks have everything they need to run the Association.
Q. What are you most proud of?
A. My children, Haley and Johnny. They are 23 and 24. My daughter works for Westcor as their Social Media Manager, while getting her MBA. My son went to a trade school and works for Harley Davidson. I am also really proud of building my career and currently growing Westcor.
Q. What do you enjoy doing while not working?
A. I enjoy spending time with family, cooking and reading. My favorite places to travel are in upstate New York, Massachusetts, Vermont, Maine, and New Hampshire. I absolutely love the Northeast.
Q. When did you start in the title business and how did you get started?
A. In 1990, my brother was a bank attorney and I worked with him closing loans while I went to graduate school at night. I thought the other side, the title side, was more interesting, so I started training with Title Closers. I began working at TitleServ and then opened my own title agency.
Q. Do you have any pets? What’s he/she like?
A. I have 2 Australian Shepherds, Louie and Frankie, and 2 cats, Finn and Dunkin. I wasn’t allowed to have cats when I was little, so now I keep getting them! I love all of my goofballs, they never cease to make me laugh.
Q. Who is the most influential person to you (alive or deceased)?
A. My father, George. My parents got married when they were 15 and 16. My dad got a GED and became a very successful businessman all on his own, by teaching himself everything. He learned to fly airplanes, ski, and travelled all over the world. He ran many successful businesses and showed my siblings and I the importance of putting your mind to something and completing the task. He was truly inspiring.
Q. What did you want to be when you “grow up”?
A. I remember, when I was young, wanting to be a teacher. When I was a little older, I pictured myself as a businesswoman.
Q. If you weren’t in the Title Industry, what job/career would you want to have?
A. If I hadn’t fallen in love with Title Insurance I certainly would have continued on my original plan of going to law school.
Q. What’s your secret talent that no one knows about?
A. Baking from a box. You really can’t mess it up. (Most of the time.)
Q. Where is your favorite place in the world?
A. Home
Q. What is your favorite TV show?
A. The Crown and anything on HGTV.
Q. What is your favorite movie?
A. The Original Godfather
Q. What is the last song you played on your playlist?
A. Hootie & Blowfish – “I go blind”
Q. What’s your favorite movie or song quote?
A. “You might have heard
I run with a dangerous crowd
We ain’t too pretty, we ain’t too proud
We might be laughing a bit too loud
But that never hurt no one” – Only The Good Die Young, by Billy Joel
Q. What was the first thing you bought with your own money?
A. An expensive pair of cowboy boots (they were very trendy in the early 90’s). I had a part time job and came home with them, even though my mom told me not to buy them.
Q. What is one thing you have learned about yourself during this pandemic?
A. Patience. Patience is truly a muscle you have to exercise to strengthen.
Q. Have you tried anything new or different during this pandemic?
A. My kids finally convinced me to start getting into Netflix, and now I love it!
Q. Tell me something not everyone knows about you.
A. I jump/scare easily, especially when I’m working and focused-in on something. A knock on my office door or a quick hello from someone passing by can scare the you know what out of me. I get instantly scared and then find the encounter hilarious!