Mark Dennen, CFO, Solairus Aviation
I’m Mark Dennen, Chief Financial Officer for Solairus Aviation. Joining Solairus has transformed my life in many ways and I couldn’t be happier.
I met our founder, Chairman, and CEO, Dan Drohan, in 2007 through the aviation industry and we immediately struck up a professional friendship. Dan is a true visionary and I was impressed to learn he started his first company, Sunset Aviation, when he was just 20 years old. Dan’s passion for aviation was and continues to be contagious.
Prior to Solairus’ launch in 2009 I had several conversations with Dan about coming onboard. At the time my family and I were living in Connecticut where we were born and raised and with Solairus’ headquarters in Northern California we were not ready leave our friends and family to make a move.
Over the years I had kept in contact with Dan and in one of my calls with him he mentioned Solairus needed a new CFO. He wanted me to consider moving to California to take the job. While the idea of working for Solairus was intriguing, it was difficult to imagine moving my family across the country. My two eldest children were enrolled in college in Connecticut and my youngest daughter was about to start high school.
Dan invited me and my wife to Petaluma and put us up in wine country for the weekend. We had visited Sonoma two times previously and we knew we loved the area. The possibility of accepting the position with Solairus began to seem like more of a viable option for us. We discussed the decision with our children and were met with overwhelming support. My youngest daughter loved the idea of starting high school in a new city and my wife couldn’t wait to start a life in wine country.
We officially made the move to California and Solairus two and a half years ago. Though it was difficult to leave our friends, family, and our colonial style home, the move has been a resounding success. We purchased a house in the quaint town of Healdsburg, CA and enjoy the slow and easy pace of life it offers. I love coming to work at Solairus each day, my daughter has joined the varsity lacrosse team at her high school, and my wife has begun a career in the wine industry. After many visits our eldest children have decided to move to California to join us as well.
Making the move to Solairus has changed our lives for the better in so many ways. Professionally it has allowed me to achieve my aspirations and work for a private jet charter and management company I believe in. Personally, my family and I became happy residents of Sonoma County, California. Life is good and we look forward to seeing what’s next.