Geneviève Kyle-Lefebvre & Cathy Cena Today on Faces: Tri-Cities co-authored stories, Geneviève Kyle-Lefebvre and Cathy Cena had the pleasure of sitting down with Angela Calla, award-winning mortgage broker, radio host, and tireless community builder. Calla lives, works, and raises her children in the Tri-Cities, and she says there is “no better community” to lend her talents. “With you two at the helm of a project that unites philanthropy and storytelling, it was a natural fit,” she tells our hosts, smiling across a table flanked by fellow co-authors. Calla’s central message is action over excuses. Her chapter’s guiding quote reads, “You can take action toward designing your dream life, or you can make excuses.

If you believe it, you can achieve it.” She recalls seeing an older man in a brown suit on a televised finance segment when she was just twenty. “I thought, nice gentleman, but I don’t connect to that. I could do that job differently, with energy people my age would trust.” Twenty-one years later, she still fields emails questioning her expertise because “she doesn’t look forty,” yet her mortgage advice show on CKNW remains a Sunday mainstay and her team has funded thousands of home purchases. The Mortgage Code, Calla’s 2019 bestseller, channels all author proceeds to local causes. The first year’s royalties bolstered Eagle Ridge Hospital; subsequent editions lifted Access Youth, People’s Pantry, and other grassroots groups. “Nobody cares what you know until they know you care,” she says, crediting philanthropy with turning a technical finance book into a community connector.

Publisher warnings about modest sales proved moot: the title hit bestseller lists in Canada and the United States. She sings the national anthem at Coquitlam Express games, folds client appreciation nights into charity drives, and keeps her children close to the action so they learn service by example. When asked how she balances it all, she laughs. “There is no work-life balance. You do what you love, surround yourself with supportive people and bring your kids along. Excuses waste time; solutions move us forward.” Calla dreams of stronger health infrastructure and continued collaboration between nonprofits, businesses, and educators. “Community is what you make it,” she says. “If you want your community to be great, you have to serve.” Her challenge to young women is simple: start before you feel ready, learn as you go, and remember that fear fades once the first step is taken. Tri-Cities Community Television is a volunteer-run media group based in the Tri-Cities region. Our mission is to support community-driven video content and independent local news stories.