Spare the Rod, Try Love and Logic
January 24, 2012 by Nichole Bazemore
Filed under Parenting
Whoever coined the phrase, “Good morning” never stepped foot in my house before 9 a.m., because around here, weekday mornings are anything but. Sure, mornings start off good enough, until it’s time for my sixth-grader and me to leave for school. Despite my friendly reminders—Don’t forget your book bag. Do you have your instrument? Do [...]
Portrait of a Dangerous Woman – Mary Frances Bowley
December 2, 2011 by Nichole Bazemore
Filed under 2011, Mary Frances Bowley
Mary Frances Bowley peers through the partly drawn blinds of a room that overlooks a wide, open field. Outside, two young women, who are adults by law but look like teenagers, meet each other’s gaze and break out into childish, hysterical giggles. They embrace each other tightly and head to a swing set a few [...]
Passion to the Core, Karyn Staples
November 14, 2011 by Nichole Bazemore
Filed under Karyn Staples
When you walk into ProHealth Physical Therapy and Pilates Studio in Peachtree City, you’d better be prepared to work—and learn. In preparing to write this story, I had heard that the owner of the studio, Karyn Staples, PT, PhD, OCS, was a powerhouse—a master teacher, engaged student, and savvy businesswoman. I arrive for a one-on-one [...]
You’ve Come a Long Way, Baby
June 15, 2011 by Nichole Bazemore
Filed under Career, Good Stories
ABWA Helps Women Connect, Grow their Businesses on the South Side With all the strides women have made in business in recent decades, it’s hard to imagine that not too long ago, things were a whole lot different. Judy Suiter, a behavior analyst and performance advisor whose firm, Competitive Edge, Inc., boasts an impressive client [...]
Lauren Clark – Citizen of the World
April 10, 2011 by Nichole Bazemore
Filed under Lauren Clark, Travel
Lauren Clark is the epitome of grace under pressure. The warm, yet extremely poised and focused 25 year-old exemplifies a worldliness and savvy far beyond her years. The daughter of Fayetteville residents Wanda and Michael Clark, Lauren made national news this past February when she was one of dozens of Americans who were evacuated from [...]
Lisa Williams Rescues Atlanta’s Lost and Forgotten
February 8, 2011 by Nichole Bazemore
Filed under Lisa Williams
Lisa Williams remembers the first girl who walked through the door of this house, nestled snugly in the hills of a sleepy Georgia town. The 13 year-old, handcuffed and wearing leg shackles, had been arrested for child prostitution. Young, bound, and helpless, the “baby,” as Williams calls her, was a painfully real example of something [...]
Pam Reid is Inspiration in Action
December 19, 2010 by Nichole Bazemore
Filed under Pam Reid
Pam Reid has the type of natural charisma most of us normal folks covet. Vibrant and expressive, she talks with her hands, laughs easily, and reels you in with her boundless enthusiasm. Her effortless hospitality compels you to get comfortable and make yourself at home. In fact, when I arrive at her house in Fayetteville, [...]
Erin Hawkins: A Woman, Her Bike, and One Big Fight
October 13, 2010 by Nichole Bazemore
Filed under Erin Hawkins
Erin Hawkins’ shoulder-length brown hair frames her chiseled face. She wears a green spaghetti strap tank top and long denim skirt. When she greets me at the door, I am struck by her natural beauty. At age 33, she looks like the cover girl for a Dove soap commercial, not a woman who is living [...]
Local organizations are Partners in Education
August 23, 2010 by Nichole Bazemore
Filed under Good Stories
On a sunny spring day, a group of Fayette County business leaders and principals from several Fayette County public schools gather in a training room at the Fayette County Chamber of Commerce. They listen intently as the training leader gives each of them a box of 64 crayons and their assignment: to be creative, innovative, [...]