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 [...]
For Jamie Smith, Losing Weight Meant Finding a New Life
January 11, 2011 by Maggie Worth
Filed under 2011, Jamie Smith
Jamie Smith loves going out to eat, shopping for clothes and playing with her grandkids. Five days a week, she drives a school bus for the Fayette County schools. The rest of the time she drives a Ford Expedition with the seat pushed all the way forward. She enjoys hiking. On vacation, she’s the first [...]
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, [...]
Frances Meaders: A Zest for Life
November 6, 2010 by Sherri Smith Brown
Filed under Cover Girls, Frances Meaders
Frances Meaders. For more than 40 years, her name has been one of the most recognized in Peachtree City. Her photo is the only one besides those of city mayors to hang in Council Chambers. Her signature authorized every building permit issued during the town’s fastest-growing years. She was City Clerk through the administrations of [...]
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 [...]
Trailblazers: The Secret of Her Success
September 8, 2010 by Kristin Girard
Filed under Trailblazers
Looking for some inspiration in your career… or in your life? You’ve come to the right place. This month, we’re pleased to introduce you to five of Fayette County’s most successful businesswomen for our very special cover story. We set out to find the secret of their success, and we’re sure you’ll be enlightened as [...]
Judy Suiter – The Fourteenth Call
September 8, 2010 by Kristin Girard
Filed under Judy Suiter, Trailblazers
Judy Suiter makes a living by guiding others to success. She’s a hugely successful corporate coach and trainer, management consultant, and mentor, and her client list reads more like the Fortune 500 list. Her work has taken her all over the globe; her most recent destinations include Malta, Paris, Luxembourg and Sweden. But even as [...]
Patti Kadkhodaian – Sew Successful
September 8, 2010 by Kristin Girard
Filed under Patti Kadkhodaian, Trailblazers
Patti Kadkhodaian’s start in the business world sprang from an unexpected source: a baby gift. “I received a bib as a gift for my son,” she explains. “I really liked the shape of the bib and thought it would be great to make a personalized bib to give as a gift.” Patti, who at the [...]
Nancy Balkcom – Obligate Yourself
September 8, 2010 by Kristin Girard
Filed under Nancy Balkcom, Trailblazers
Nancy Freeman Balkcom was just 15 years old when she began working in her father’s business, Freeman Forms and Supplies. The south Atlanta company produced and distributed industrial business forms, as well as some office products to complement the forms line, and young Nancy did just about everything related to the day-to-day operations of the [...]
Nancy Lewis – You Gotta Have Faith
September 8, 2010 by Kristin Girard
Filed under Nancy Lewis, Trailblazers
If Nancy Lewis had to choose one word to sum up her success in business and in life, there’s no doubt what it would be: faith. A native of Fort Wayne, Indiana, Nancy grew up as one of three sisters in a family led by a single mother. Her parents had divorced when she was [...]
Carole Marsh – Write Your Own Rules
September 8, 2010 by Kristin Girard
Filed under Carole Marsh, Trailblazers
Carole Marsh is both an internationally-recognized children’s author and the founder and CEO of Gallopade International, a multi-million dollar educational publishing company. But don’t let that teensy little fact about Carole fool you; in person, she’s as down-to-earth as they come. A self-taught, boot-strap entrepreneur, Carole will be the first to admit that her life [...]
Amanda Gunter: It’s All About Finding Your Balance
August 4, 2010 by Whitney Aken
Filed under Amanda Gunter, Cover Girls
The rust-orange waiting room walls of the Brain Balance Center in Peachtree City are covered with taped-on gold paper stars and trophies. Each one bears a hand-written acknowledgement of a student’s accomplishments. “Worked hard today.” “Wrote an amazing story.” “Great sit-ups!” “Had an I-can attitude.” The center’s students, with neuro-behavioral disorders such as ADHD, Asperger’s [...]