Rebecca Gwin: A Quiet Force Behind CR Athletics
Published on Aug 25 2026Rebecca Gwin didn’t just move to Humboldt County at the age of 27, she bet on it.
“I left everything behind. I sold whatever I could sell. I left with my car, my bed, my clothes, my kitchen stuff, my books and my pets, and that was it.”
What brought her to Humboldt County by way of Las Vegas wasn’t a job or even a relationship. It was a feeling.
Ready for a slower pace of life and a fresh start, Rebecca packed up the essentials, loaded her beloved pets into the car, and headed north.
Arriving in Humboldt, Rebecca said, “I absolutely loved how friendly everyone was. People would just walk up and hug me, and they didn’t even know me.”
Not long after, she reconnected with her childhood crush, Dustin. After years apart, they found their way back to each other. From there, motherhood arrived in an unconventional and deeply personal way.
“We’ve had her since she was eight days old,” Rebecca said of her now eight-year-old daughter, Angelica, who came into their lives through family.
Today, Angelica is at the center of everything.
So how did Rebecca end up at College of the Redwoods?
Like many good stories, it happened one small step at a time.
She worked a series of jobs throughout Humboldt County, including time in the CR Café as a temporary employee. Eventually, she found what she describes as home in the Athletics Department.
She’s the one who unlocks the doors in the morning for student-athletes looking for coaches. She turns on the lights, checks messages, reads emails, and steps into workdays that can feel either like a fast-moving train or a slow sunny afternoon, depending on the season.
Rebecca is the Administrative Secretary for the Athletics Department.
“There’s a lot of paperwork,” she laughs.
And there is.
Travel forms. Coach timesheets. Temp paperwork. Cal Cards. Budgets. Meal money. Facility schedules. Summer camp waivers. Volunteer forms. Class schedules. Work-study tracking and calendar management.
Rebecca is the one who keeps it all moving forward.
“I’m always trying to think of ways to make things run smoother.”
But for Rebecca, the most rewarding part of the job is not the paperwork. It’s the students.
They stop by to say hello. Leave notes on her desk. Bring her M&M’s. Wave as they pass by.
Those small moments matter.
Especially the night Rebecca and her husband brought Angelica to a CR basketball game. Angelica was shy and hesitant to shoot around with the other kids during halftime. But one thoughtful football player noticed, walked over, handed her a basketball, and encouraged her to give it a try.
She did.
“From then on, she was hooked,” Rebecca remembers with a laugh.
It’s also about the people she works with.
“I told Andrew (Aiello) that it was sports day at school and Angelica wanted to wear a CR jersey but there weren’t any. Andrew found a softball jersey for Angelica to wear to school.”
“She was ecstatic,” Rebecca said.
Outside of work, Rebecca spends much of her time with Angelica and serves as a Girl Scout troop leader, while also balancing the roles of mom, wife, friend, daughter, and sister.
Rebecca may work somewhat behind the scenes, but her impact is everywhere: in the paperwork that gets done, the schedules that line up, the coaches who get reminders, the students who feel seen, and the little girl cheering for CR Athletics from the sidelines with homemade signs in her hands.
And if you stop by the Athletics Office, chances are Rebecca will be there, helping hold the department together.
One form.
One reminder.
One student at a time.
With a calendar, a spreadsheet, and a story worth telling.