“RidgeGate Up Close” is our series of interviews with people who make RidgeGate a more vibrant place. Read the unexpected stories of residents, workers and local leaders who live and work here. Know someone who has a unique perspective or life in RidgeGate? Contact us at info@ridgegate.com.
A big thank you to Sarah Neumann Photography for conducting and photographing our RidgeGate Up Close interviews!
This Month: Matt and Cindy Mahlberg tell us why RidgeGate appealed to them as a place to raise a family, and ultimately open a dermatological practice nearby.
#1. What attracted you to this neighborhood?
Cindy: “We both grew up in Colorado and lived on the East Coast for about ten years. When we were moving back to Colorado, we were looking for someplace different from where we grew up and really liked RidgeGate because we’d lived in several cities on the East Coast and it felt like it brought the best of Colorado. It has the walkability of the city and parks and shops close by, and the Rec Center and Lone Tree Library.”
Matt: :”When we first moved in, we had one little boy and then we added a second one shortly after. Being able to easily spend a lot of time outside in parks or hiking, and getting to know our neighbors and people in various neighborhoods around RidgeGate has been great.”
#2. Where are we sitting right now?
Matt: “We’re right across the street from our home in Belvedere Park which is a great little park… actually a good-sized park. It’s got green space and a playground that our kids consider their own. They’ve taken ownership of it because it’s basically like our front yard.”
#3. How did the two of you meet?
Cindy: “We met in college at the University of Colorado Boulder. We were both on the same Boettcher Scholarship. So we met at an event and then started dating our junior year. We will celebrate our 15th anniversary this fall.”
#4. And how old are your boys?
Cindy: “Noah is six and Andrew is four.”
#5. What’s your favorite thing to do in the RidgeGate area with Noah and Andrew?
Cindy: “We go hiking on the bluffs quite often. In the summer we like being able to just walk to dinner and then play outside for a little bit. We love the free summer concerts that happen here.”
#6. Which restaurants do you like to walk to?
Cindy: “Costa Vida.”
Matt: “Noah’s favorite thing to do on a Saturday morning is to get up before everyone else and then drag me to Snooze. We ride our bikes down before anyone wakes up. He likes the ‘OMG French Toast.’ I order coffee…LOTS of coffee.”
#7. What keeps you busy outside of parenthood?
Matt: “Just late last year I started my own dermatology practice—the Colorado Center for Dermatology and Skin Surgery—which is in the south Denver Metro Area. I had been practicing in North Denver primarily and we were just so drawn to continuing to live down in this area that we decided to open up my own practice that would be closer.”
Cindy: “I am a lawyer by training and I have this entrepreneurial streak in me, so after I had children, I started a couple of different businesses. I started an organization called Women in the Mix for women who are juggling work/life/family and then I founded a consulting practice that specializes in working with law firms really in their management and helping the founders and owners with how they are executing their vision. And then now I am quite involved in Matt’s practice helping him get everything up and running.”
#8. So if you guys were stranded on a desert island and only allowed to have one item with you—and it’s not allowed to be sunscreen — what item would you want
Matt: “I’m even a dermatologist and that’s still not the right answer. Boy…probably time.”
Cindy: “A bottle of cold water?” (laughs)
#9. What book is sitting on your nightstand right now?
Cindy: “I am currently reading ‘The Five Love Languages for Children.’ And I just finished a book called ‘Going Public.’ Nighttime reading is parenting guides and sort of how-to. I’ve got lots of parenting books.”
Matt: “I usually just fall asleep.” (laughs)
#10. Last question. I want you to finish a sentence for me. The secret to happiness is____?
Matt: “I think it’s hard to put into words, but I think it’s being grateful for what you have. Gratitude, I suppose.”
Cindy: “For me, it is knowing that I am deeply loved by God.”
