Television personality and AZfoothills.com columnist Nadine Toren is scouring the area, finding savvy Valley features, bringing readers “on the scene.” Every day she’ll introduce you to celebrities, athletes, and give you an inside look into local events and hot spots. She'll touch on topical issues, and keep AZ fans posted on all the big talkers around town.

This week we’re taking a look at A-list Arizona moms in honor of Mother’s Day.  Today, meet ABC-15's Andi Barness...also, a hot, hyper-local business owner.

I met Andi Barness at a Valley fundraiser.

She attended with her family in tow—her husband Dean, and three young boys: Brenden, Cole, and Evan.

Something drew me to the tall, bright, green-eyed babe.  We introduced ourselves to one another, only to discover we were soul sisters, bonded over traffic.

Let me explain.

Andi calls herself a professional traffic reporter, having kicked off her career talking about crashes on the radio.  I am the traffic anchor for the CBS-5 Morning News, so us traffic gals instantly hit it off.

“I always wanted to be famous; I was such a ham.  I told my grandmother she would see me on a billboard,” said TV personality and entrepreneur, Andi Barness.

While Barness has not made it on a billboard quite yet, I’m sure we’ll one day see her face driving down the 17.  That’s because she maintains a magnetic spark—one that’s led her to reach such great heights.

“Every single thing I’ve done has got me where I am today.  I don’t take ‘no’ for an answer,” said Barness.

Barness grew up in Los Angeles, and foresaw fame in her future.  After high school, she studied at a radio trade school and landed her first on-air gig in Barstow, California (commonly known as the middle of nowhere).

“I spun country records overnight for $5 an hour.”

While she wasn’t making the big bucks, Barness knew she had to pay her dues.  Those midnight-5am shifts paid off…her next stop was Palm Springs.

After radio DJ’ing in the California desert, Barness returned to L.A.  That’s when she was introduced to the wonderful world of traffic, reporting for a number of So-Cal stations.

“I loved it, but people still didn’t know who I was.”

So she turned to the tube, applying  to appear on the popular TV program, “Love Connection.”

Now keep in mind, this young 20-something wasn’t on the prowl for a potential hubby; instead, she took part in the game-show simply to gain fame.

“I didn’t like any of the guys, but had to choose one; his name was Dean.”

Dean Barness, to be exact.

Turns out, Cupid made a love connection and the two hit it off.  She says he was so not her type—Dean was a quiet guy with his head on straight, while she often flaunted her gift of gab.

“After dating for three years we got married.  Chuck Woolery (host of “Love Connection”) came to our Santa Monica wedding.”

The two lived in marital bliss until their calm lives were interrupted by the 1994 Northridge earthquake.  Barness was literally shaken up, and feared another big one was coming.  Therefore, the dynamic duo ditched California, and headed straight to Arizona.

“I love it here.  We live in the wonderful community of Scottsdale.”

Barness has been in the Phoenix area nearly 17 years, and established herself as a Valley girl doing traffic for a local radio station.  Her on-air stint ended when her entrepreneurial spirit kicked in.  Barness temporarily surrendered the airwaves to become a business owner.

Dean sold his car to support his wife’s latest endeavor: opening a number pottery shops around town.

“I have a very smart husband.  He sees where I want to go with something and does it the responsible way.”