Claudia Porter was born and raised in the suburbs of Los Angeles. After graduating from Occidental College with a degree in French Literature, she began working at Bullock’s, a division of Federated Department Stores. Claudia met Stuart Hotchkiss at Bullock’s and they took their first international trip together to London, with Frommer’s “Europe on $5 a Day” close at hand!
She moved to Atlanta in 1988 to take on a new position in training for the Federated corporate, which meant managing teams in each of the operating divisions and entailed frequent travel across the country.
Then, in 1994, she left retail to take a consulting position with Deloitte, where her clients included Macy’s, Lowe’s, Gap Inc., Staples, Dick’s Sporting Goods, and Target. Her position also required weekly travel to their various corporate locations.
While in Atlanta, Claudia “found” Seabrook Island and started vacationing here, as well as the Charleston area and Kiawah. They loved it so much they purchased a lot in 1996. Claudia then took a consulting position with a technology company in 2004, and moved to Seabrook intending to build on their lot. However, they soon realized that although Seabrook is beautiful and the people are welcoming, it was too far from Charleston and the airport for their lifestyle, so they moved to James Island in 2007. Claudia retired in 2014 and joined Seabrook Island BIrders in 2016. In 2024, Claudia joined the board of Seabrook Island Birders and currently serves as the Treasurer.
Their hobbies include physical fitness with daily walking, gym workouts, cycling, hiking, kayaking, volunteering for various organizations including the Lowcountry Food Bank, Spoleto, Charleston County Parks, and Gaillard Usher Corps. She and Stuart also love to travel and have been to all 50 states and 68 countries, and are excited to be able to identify new birds on their trips. Claudia also enjoys puzzles of all kinds and usually has a jigsaw in process on the dining table. The bird feeders on their deck are always full and well used by House Finches, Carolina Chickadees, Tufted Titmice, Northern Cardinals, Carolina Wrens, Mourning Doves (the cleanup crew), and the occasional Blue Jay. She and Stuart consider themselves casual birders – they don’t keep a list and don’t list sightings in eBird. They simply enjoy watching and identifying the birds they see in their yard and in their travels.
Photo provided by Claudia Porter
Submitted by Gina Sanders
