Triumph Bank’s mantra: Say ‘yes’ to customer

Emphasis on Finance feature story for The Daily News

Feb. 27, 2012

Entrepreneurs get in the game for many different reasons. They do it to make money, certainly, and to maintain a degree of control over that money and their professional lives.

For many, though, there is an urge to participate within and for a community they understand, live and work in. These are the reasons Triumph Bank was founded, and why their board, 15-strong, is made up, not of bankers per se, but of entrepreneurs.

“All of these entrepreneurs challenge the traditional banking way of thinking,” said board chairman Hilliard Crews who is the founder and CEO of Shelby Group International Inc. which manufactures and distributes industrial gloves, safety glasses and related products worldwide.

The board members of Triumph understand the process, not only of banking and risk factoring, but of what it takes to begin, maintain and grow a business … (read more)

Bedtime pleas won’t deter parents’ voyage into silence

Because I Said So column for The Commercial Appeal

Feb. 16, 2012

I’ve lately been reading Robert Louis Stevenson’s “Treasure Island” to my 9-year-old daughter at bedtime. Chapter by chapter, we’ve sailed into the world of buccaneers and squalls, nameless islands and chatty parrots. And night by night, Somerset has pleaded for just 30 more minutes to stay up. The thought of sleep to her, to most kids I would imagine, is akin to walking the plank.

A whole day’s worth of fun, hours’ worth of television, video games and arguing with siblings, she seems to think, are to be found in that final half-hour before lights out. The unfairness of being forced to her bunk at a reasonable time is quite apparent to her.

Like the characters of Long John Silver, Captain Flint and young Jim Hawkins, Somerset schemes and plots nightly to uncover the treasure of consciousness past the 9-o’clock hour. What fun must take place from then until morning with adults eating ice cream as though it were good for us, drinking a cask of rum, or watching television and movies with explosions and expletives.

Sure, all of that happens, but it’s our right … (read more)

The Memphis Center

Feature story for Rhodes Magazine.

Winter 2012

 … how does the college work within the community? How do the philosophy and theory from textbooks, lectures and the Internet seep from the campus into the surrounding neighborhoods, the arms of the city, the region of the Delta? Consider that almost three-quarters of the Rhodes student body come from places other than Tennessee and the question becomes, “How do we encourage our students to become part of the Memphis community at large and engage with our culture, people and causes?”

There are a number of ways students garner knowledge from real-world experiences and activities, and several Rhodes institutes and groups are leading the charge in ensuring that the college contributes to the greater community … (read more)

Hedgepeth’s work intersects with council’s role

Feature profile with special emphasis on construction for The Daily News

Feb. 13, 2012

A Memphian born and raised, Reid Hedgepeth takes great pride in his city’s institutions, whether they be the tangible of medicine and education, or the more intangible of sports and politics.

The District 9 Memphis City Council member and owner of Hedgepeth Construction attended Christian Brothers High School and the University of Memphis where he played football and majored in sales marketing.

Sales, he says, enters into play no matter the job.

“You’ve still got to be able to sell something to somebody,” he said. “You put your bid in, you’ve got to be in the price range that they want to spend, or the cheapest price, but they’ve still got to feel comfortable with you and know that you can get the job done and succeed in it. You’ve got to be able to sell the job.” … (read more)

Shelby Foote Collection

Discovery 901 feature for The Downtowner magazine

Feb. 2012

Feature article on the Shelby Foote collection of papers, manuscripts, notebooks, artwork and ephemera now housed at Rhodes College in Memphis. (read more)

The Downtowner, Feb. 2012

Kids’ fickle nostalgia a reminder of growing up

Because I Said So column for The Commercial Appeal

Feb. 2, 2012

Aging is bittersweet, isn’t it? There’s the bitter: the aching joints and forgetfulness and … something else. And there’s the sweet: not needing anyone’s permission to eat ice cream for dinner while watching television in bed.

I have recently spent some evenings doing just that while catching up on last season’s episodes of “Sherlock” on PBS.

My oldest son has been eating meat and vegetables for dinner, and watching the “Masterpiece” series as well. He’s also read some of the Arthur Conan Doyle novels and short stories. I’ve read them all, and Sherlock Holmes, one of the great literary characters, is a fascinating subject for us to discuss.

In the past, my kids and I have had other interesting characters to discuss as their interests — near-obsessions with each at any given time — ranged from Dora to Big Bird to Caillou to Clifford the Big Red Dog.

While watching these shows in a seemingly infinite loop, first day-to-day as they aired, then on VHS, DVD and, finally, streaming through Netflix, can be trying on a parent, there is a certain melancholy that comes with leaving them behind, with flipping that switch on childhood … (read more)

Older and wiser

As seniors retire, more turn to entrepreneurship

Jan. 30, 2012

As the oldest of the baby boomers reach their mid-60s, a new mindset on the concept of retirement is maturing along with them, brought about by several factors including economic uncertainty and longevity of life.

While many are financially able to lead – and are content with – a life of leisure at the end of a long career, others are striving to stay busy and engaged in the commercial world and their community … (read more)

Technology changing how, where, when of viewing habits

Feature Lifestyle story for The Commercial Appeal

Jan. 22, 2012

There were scones, crumpets, volunteers dressed as butlers and tea galore for a recent screening of the second season of “Downton Abbey” at the WKNO-TV studios in Cordova.

Outside, fans of the British drama about the lives of Edwardian aristocrats lined up 100 strong for a day-early peek at their favorite new show.

“We were pretty blown away with the popularity of ‘Downton Abbey’ last year based on the national buzz we were hearing, but also local calls we were getting from viewers,” said Teri Sullivan, promotions manager for WKNO, adding that they wanted to know when it would air again, how they could get a video and when Season 2 was coming.

Many television aficionados these days are choosing carefully, not just what they watch, but how, when and where they watch it. With so many options available, the necessity to commit to time in front of a TV set is as passé as walking across the room to turn the dial. Whether watching alone or with a group of fellow fanatics, more of us are watching on our own terms instead of those of programming directors … (read more)

Dinner table plays host to cycle of life on school days

“Because I Said So” column for The Commercial Appeal

Jan. 19, 2012

There is a floating island of marine trash in the northern Pacific Ocean. Have you heard of this? It’s called the Great Pacific Garbage Patch or the Pacific Trash Vortex, and it’s a swirling mass of plastics and chemical sludge collected from around the world that some reports claim is twice the size of Hawaii.

Our dining room table is a lot like that.

We’re a family that eats meals together. We have dinner every night in our dining room at a massive 4-by-8 solid oak piece of furniture my wife got me for Father’s Day years ago. Can’t see it? That’s because all 32 square feet of it is covered in backpacks, jackets, folders, papers, novels, textbooks, mail and other paraphernalia.

You know that giant magnet Wile E. Coyote uses to try to pull Roadrunner into his clutches from across the desert? Or the tractor beam Darth Vader’s henchmen use to pull the Millennium Falcon into the Death Star?

Our table is also a lot like these … (read more)

20

Annual “20 under 30″ issue highlighting 20-somethings making great strides in the city for The Memphis Flyer

Jan. 19, 2012

These 20-somethings are the denizens of a city many of us may not even recognize. It’s a place that we might as well call “New Memphis” for all of the positive changes occurring — the planned revitalization of the Overton Square theater arts district, an Overton Park Conservancy, omnipresent bike lanes on city streets, urban gardens sprouting like weeds, private and government grant money pouring into coffers, and a general attitude shift more powerful than the New Madrid fault. They’re not of an older lineage of “can’t-dos” but one of a new breed: the “why-nots.” Those on the list this year are stepping out and taking risks in careers and community. They’re bettering themselves now to be more productive, creative, and helpful later on.

On this list of 20 people in their 20s are painters, actors, and an athlete. There are musicians, three former members of the military, a handful of radio show hosts, a seamstress, and a conductor of orchestras. They are mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters. We have five entrepreneurs, a dancer, an elected official, and those who dream of one day being elected. They write, they tweet, they meet, they talk and preach, and mingle.

It’s a list whose members are as different as dry rub and wet, Isaac and Elvis, Midtown and Germantown. Yet there are common denominators that cut through this list like Big Muddy itself. First and foremost, they’re all Memphians. Though some weren’t born here — Lahna is from Canada, Samilia from North Carolina, Siphne from New Orleans, and Christian from Austria — they’ve made Memphis their home. Even those whose talents and careers could carry them across the country stay here by choice.

And that brings us to the second common denominator: They each want to make Memphis a better place. These young people have studied, practiced, traveled, and returned to a place they call home, New Memphis. They are faces you’ll be seeing and voices you’ll be hearing, whether you buy tickets at a box office, stop in at an art gallery, watch a political debate, or listen to neighbors in your community. Pay attention. You’ll want to know them … (read more)