Noreen Klein: CABA President, Mom and Cancer Survivor

She , triumphed at motherhood and helped the Carrollwood Area Business Association continue its momentum during her tenure as the organization's president.

Noreen Klein has lived in Carrollwood for three decades. She grew up in Staten Island, N.Y., as the oldest of three girls in a family of "Irish cops and firemen." She moved to Florida with her family and started working at a bank, where she discovered a love of mortgages. She joined the Carrollwood Area Business Association, and is now president. Klein will become immediate past president of CABA this fall.

Now, she's a divorced mother of two daughters - one who studies marine biology and the other who works in production in New York.

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We recently talked to the director of loss mitigation at the Florida Consumer Law Center about her biggest challenges and her work with CABA.

Patch: What's been your biggest life challenge?

Klein: The biggest accomplishment is my children and how well they're doing. The breast cancer was probably my biggest challenge. It's been in remission since 2009.

Patch: How did you get into CABA?

Klein: I had been working at a mortgage company called Leader Financial. They joined CABA, so it was basically my job to go. I was in my 20s, and I thought it was fun. It was always a close-knit group.

Patch: Why did you run for president?

Klein: Both of my parents were in hospice care, and I decided to get myself out there. CABA seemed like a great place to be because it always made me feel good. A board member dropped out, and I got pulled into the board in 2009.

Patch: What have you accomplished as CABA president?

Klein: One of the main things that we were able to do is more activities and events, and reaching out to the community. We brought back the CABA Holiday Tree Lighting after it was gone, too.

Patch: What will you do as immediate past president?

Klein: I will be in charge of the golf committee next year for the golf tournament on Oct. 22 at TPC. It means so much to me to get out there and work with the community.

Patch: What do you love about Carrollwood?

Klein: What I like is that anything is available to me. It's very close and convenient. I loved the schools here, when my kids were growing up. You have a lot of churches, as well, to choose from.

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