Lora Kelley, 29
Owner/operator of Lora Kelley Beauty and co-owner of Para Coffee and Eric Kelley Photography
Lora Kelley opened Para Coffee with her husband, photographer Eric Kelley, in September 2008, three months before they were married and only a week before the recession took serious hold of the economy. With no investors or business background, they hoped Eric would book enough weddings to cover expenses. That year, with her help, he booked 35 weddings. Soon after, she started Lora Kelley Beauty, and her work as a makeup artist has since been featured in Town & Country Weddings, The Knot magazine, and Garden & Gun.
On overcoming struggle:
“I have doubted, forever, that I have anything to offer. It is hard to own yourself, to be responsible for your life—for the cultivation of your abilities and to not look to anyone else to do that for you. It has been a long road to own my desire and to bear desire in balance with responsibility. It’s hard to figure out where the work of beauty meets the world of sorrow, of broken people, and what feels like unrelenting cynicism. I think this is probably the struggle of my life: overcoming fear and entering into the fullness of the world and maintaining hope amidst it all. I like to think that every time a woman smiles at herself before her wedding, and sees herself through the lens of beauty, when she is able to dust off the history of criticism that we all have as women, that beauty overcomes a little more.”
Mary Beth Aungier, 53
Associate at Silent Partner Management (Lockn’ Festival)
Mary Beth Aungier pursued music history by studying ethnomusicology while earning an English degree and initially planned to spend her time on research. But fate twisted when Aungier met Mary Chapin Carpenter, and spent the following 17 years on the road as a tour manager for Carpenter and other accomplished musicians of the country-influenced Americana genre. Back in Charlottesville, Aungier has managed two historic theaters in the area, which led to a spot on the board of the League of Historic Theaters.
On overcoming struggle:
“When I became a tour manager in 1990 there were very few female tour managers in the music industry. I think I could count five that I knew of (Wynton Marsalis had a female tour manager as did a few other artists in the jazz genre). Working in the country music industry as a female tour manager was doubly hard. When I entered into a venue, I was immediately labeled one of five things: 1: hairdresser, 2: makeup person, 3: wardrobe mistress, 4: wife of a band member, 5: lesbian lover of the artist I worked for (thus, causing great unease by promoters who were homophobes). I wasn’t the rough and foul-mouthed typical country music artist male tour manager that they were used to. I didn’t scream. I didn’t demand the cases of Bud Light and Jagermeister for the dressing rooms. I asked for strange things like The New York Times and fresh fruit. It was hard to be taken seriously because it was seen as ‘odd.’ It changed when we started working with larger/national promoters and started selling out 8,000- to 12,000-seat venues. Money talks when the venues sell out and you’re shown much more respect, sadly.”
P.K. Ross, 30
Owner of Splendora’s Gelato
P.K. Ross moved to Virginia Beach from the Philippines at age 4, and arrived in Charlottesville to attend UVA in 2001. After finishing her degree in biology and molecular genomics in three years, she worked three jobs, one of which put her in the kitchen at Splendora’s Gelato. She eventually took over the shop, which will celebrate its 10th birthday this summer.
On advice for younger women:
“My advice to someone 10 years younger than I am is to take the time to cultivate and use your support system. In my dotage, I regret not leaning on my friends more. The rocky patches of my life could have been so much more navigable had I relied on others. So take the time, munchkin, to find a few friends that let you crash at their house when you can’t sleep at yours, worry when you haven’t texted in a couple of days, and watch really terrible television dramas on the couch when the world is just a little much. And make sure those are the same people who say things like, ‘Well you’re being stupid about bleh-imagined-failure-insecurity-picking-the-wrong-person-to-trust-bleh’ while providing said support.
Bobbie Thompson, 70
Esthetician at Face Value Studio & Salon
Bobbie Thompson founded her image, beauty, and well-being company, Image Reflections International, in the early 1980s with $500 from her dad, and grew it to employ more than 3,000 image consultants worldwide. During that time, she invented two body-measuring instruments, the Face Imager (for determining face shape) and the B-Square, to measure body proportions. She wrote 10 image books, including a bestseller, Scarf Tying Magic, and patented a scarf clip adaptor.
On her influences:
“My dad had a great influence on my life by always being positive. He was the kindest, most optimistic person you would ever want to know. He always had a good word for everyone and always took up for everyone.
“I remember once Daddy was telling a story about someone and my mother said to him, ‘James Oral, will you and Bobbie come out of the clouds?’ My dad’s answer was priceless: ‘Why would we come out of the clouds? It doesn’t rain on us up here.’”
Bree Luck, 40
Live Arts education director
When she isn’t organizing theater programs as Live Arts’ education director, Bree Luck leads The Voice Project, a program that provides playwriting workshops to inmates at the Fluvanna Women’s Correctional Facility. A Screen Actors Guild member and community activist, Luck has performed in off-Broadway and regional shows and in feature films including Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil.
On advice for younger women:
“Dear 20-year-old: Here’s the truth of it. You don’t need to know what you want to do for the rest of your life because you are likely to change your mind about 1,000 times. Make your choices knowing that they are only small steps that will inform later decisions. Dear 30-year-old: For some reason, people are ready to take you seriously now. Exploit that as much as you can. Dear 40-year-old (i.e. me): Eliminate the word ‘busy’ from your vocabulary. Busy is a cop-out. Dear 50-year-old: Cultivate new friendships, and make sure you invest in those relationships with an open heart. Dear 60-year-old: Walk barefoot outside as much as you can. It’s good for your brain and your soul.”
Hyam Hosny, 39
Owner of Clay Fitness + Nutrition
Nutrition counselor and triathlete Hyam Hosny arrived in Charlottesville in the fall of 2009, and opened her Belmont studio, Clay Fitness + Nutrition, in early 2010, when many businesses were closing down due to the recession. A certified personal trainer, Hosny quickly grew the business to employ 10 trainers. She’s since scaled back (“I felt like the essence of the business was changing,” she said) to focus on her main mission: to integrate good nutrition and exercise into people’s lives.
On advice for younger women:
“Don’t be afraid to be vulnerable. I think there are a lot of people who live their entire lives protecting themselves from vulnerability, doing all that they can to avoid demonstrating their weaknesses, but there is so much to gain by shining a light on one’s weak points. Only when we identify that a weakness or sensitivity exists can we begin to acknowledge and work on it.”
Jaclyn Piermarini Gerringer, 34
CBS19 news reporter
Jaclyn Piermarini grew up in Burlington, North Carolina. After studying English and creative writing in college, she bartended and backpacked her way across the globe before becoming a DJ and music writer. She moved to Charlottesville eight years ago to help start 106.1 The Corner, then moved on to reporting for WINA News, and now works for CBS19.
On her mother’s generation:
“When my mother was told she would make less than the man that held the position before her because she was a woman, she had no ground to fight it on. So we’ve come a very long way from what my mother faced in the workforce, but by no means should we stop here. Instead of open gender discrimination, we face a different kind of gender-based undercurrent. No matter what I do, it’s clarified by the fact that I am a woman…a female reporter, a female DJ, etc.
“I remember when UVA President Sullivan came to town. In one of her first interviews with the local media a young reporter asked what it meant to her to be a female president of a major university. She paused, and then said that she hoped that was a question future college presidents would not have to answer. As in, one day, the fact she is a woman will become essentially irrelevant. I am pregnant with a little girl, due in August. I hope that by the time she is my age, gender will play no part in her career choice or role.”
Janis Jaquith, 61
Writer
Name a topic, and it’s likely Free Union resident Janis Jaquith has tackled it in one of her many essays, which have been broadcast on Roanoke public radio station WVTF and published both in newspapers and her book, Birdseed Cookies: A Fractured Memoir. From drones to long driveways to last year’s Boston Marathon bombing—Jaquith’s husband, Harry Landers, runs the race every year—Jaquith manages to translate her own humorous, painful, or profound experiences into words that resonate.
On trying times:
“When I was 16, my father died suddenly of a heart attack. He’d had supper, then said he didn’t feel well. When Dad sat down on the couch and removed the watch from his left wrist, I knew he was having a heart attack. He’d had one years before—when he was 39—and I knew that a sign of an impending attack was pain down the left arm. I’d heard him say that if it happened again, he wouldn’t fight it. So, when his wristwatch with the metal expansion band came off, I knew Dad was about to die. And he did. From that moment on, being a rebellious teenager was no longer an option. My mother didn’t need the aggravation. That was the night when I learned that if you want to say ‘I love you,’ now’s the time. Right now.”
Jennifer McDonald, 44
Freelance copy editor and proofreader
Jennifer McDonald, a blogger, enthusiastic power walker, bibliophile, and mother of two, is one of the co-founders of the Eleanor Project, an endeavor that celebrates women of all ages and backgrounds. She writes about grammar, spelling, and punctuation at jennifermcdonald.net and blogs at jenontheedge.com.
On growing up:
“Motherhood definitely forced me to be a fully functioning and capable adult. Before children, I had a job with responsibilities, but at home, I only had to answer to myself. I could eat, sleep, read, and play whenever I wanted. With children, however, I was responsible for little ones who did not care if I was tired or didn’t want to cook or could not bear to read Harry the Dirty Dog one more time. These days, I still don’t always feel like a mature adult, but according to my daughters and their friends, I am, and I am even occasionally called on for advice. (Not that it’s always taken.)”
Amy Gardner, 44
Owner of SCARPA
At 24, with no experience in business, UVA architecture grad Amy Gardner opened SCARPA. Twenty years later, the boutique shoe store is still thriving (and one of the oldest businesses in Barracks Road), thanks to her discerning taste. Asked to give advice to younger women just starting out, she said, “Make sure you can take care of yourself in this world. Be savvy and alert about your finances and your career. Do not assume there will be someone there to care for you.”
On her influences:
“My dad and my boyfriend of the last five years have had the biggest influence on my life. My father passed away a few months after I turned 8 and just a week before Christmas. So my understanding of him is now based more in myth and lore than in adult reality. However, knowing that my father was an entrepreneur from his early 20s, owned multiple small businesses throughout his lifetime, and worked as a creative problem solver with several patents to his name made small business ownership completely intuitive. He also created a chaotic home environment, so I find myself repeating his patterns while simultaneously trying to resist them. Let’s just say life is rarely boring.
“My boyfriend is also a small business owner. As a peer, he has really forced me to be a better version of myself. He’s the guy who is always asking, ‘Why?’ and ‘How do we make this better?’ Being with someone who always forces me to think (even when I don’t want to) has made me better not only at running a small business but also at parenting.”
Andrea Copeland, 41
President of Positive Channels and director of member education services with Charlottesville Regional Chamber of Commerce
Longtime Charlottesville resident Andrea Copeland manages the Charlottesville Regional Chamber of Commerce’s member education services, directs Leadership Charlottesville, and runs her own production company, Positive Channels, which creates the Excellence in Broadcast Award-winning talk show “Speaking with Andrea,” which airs on public access. She has also held an array of positions in the world of education, from teacher to administrator.
On her biggest influences:
“Who I am today and what I do is a result of the strong influence of two people: my mother and Oprah Winfrey. For almost 38 years my mother, by example, showed me how to be a strong, graceful, classy woman. She demonstrated in her union with my father how to be a loving, caring wife without losing her own identity. Mom was a life-long learner and had a gift for teaching. I took notice of this. I enjoy teaching and always make it a point to learn at least one new thing a day. In the almost four years since her passing, I’ve noticed her influence on my life in a way I never did when she was alive. It’s definitely a beautiful thing.
“I also look up to Oprah, from being a survivor of sexual abuse and struggling with weight to hosting a national talk show and starting a network. I do what I do with Positive Channels because of what she’s done and is doing. She’s a trailblazer, overcomer, strong, intelligent, caring, giving woman who likes to positively impact and change people’s lives. That about sums up who I am.”
Anna Scholl, 29
ProgressVA executive director
Anna Scholl is the founding executive director of the advocacy group ProgressVA. A Shenandoah Valley native and UVA alumna, she joined a communications firm in Washington, D.C. before coming back to Central Virginia in 2010 to work for Tom Perriello’s reelection campaign.
On her mother’s generation:
“Strangely, or maybe not strangely, I think I’m at a pretty similar place to where my mom was at my age. She had me, her first child at 30. My mom and dad had built a community around them and established careers. My husband and I are expecting our first child this summer and are both running small organizations. I think we have the advantage of starting our family and making a home near to where we both grew up, with relatives close by. My parents were across the country and had to build that for themselves. Professionally, I think I’ve benefitted from more female mentors and role models than my mom did. When she first graduated from college and was job hunting, she faced a lot of sexism in hiring. I’ve had the experience of having to work harder to prove myself because I’m a woman. I’ve [also] had the advantage of working with and for strong women who set a great example that has nothing to do with gender.”
Joey Conover, 34
Co-owner of Latitude 38
Longtime Charlottesville resident Joey Conover grew up three blocks from the Downtown Mall. In August 2006, she opened design-build firm Latitude 38 with her husband. A graduate of Wesleyan University and the Darden School of Business, she oversees the contracts and finance aspect of the business, and recently earned her Virginia real estate license.
On her mother’s generation:
“My mother was 34 in 1974, a very different time for women. It took courage just to wear pants out of the house. Today, I share a home-based business with my husband and I have a lot of flexibility and independence. Not only can I wear what I want, I feel my options are as wide as I want them. My main challenges stem from having too much to do, not my limitations. With two toddler daughters in daycare part-time, it is hard to set boundaries on work and home life. Being raised to think you can do anything makes you feel you should do everything.”
Julie Arbelaez, 44
Chief frog of Peace Frogs Travel/Outfitters
UVA graduate Julie Arbelaez opened Peace Frogs Travel/Outfitters, a one-stop-shop for all things travel related, in 1993. She saw a need for both trip-planning assistance and access to quality travel products, so drawing on a long-time passion for seeing the world and helping others do the same, she put both services under one roof. Her own passport includes stamps from more than a dozen countries, including Japan, Ecuador, The Netherlands, Australia, and Italy.
On her mother’s generation:
“When my mom was 44, I was graduating high school and going off to college. My boys are 6 and 9, so at 44, I am at a totally different stage of life. She got married much younger than I did and gave up her career for a while to raise three girls and manage the family. My mom returned to work part-time as a teacher when I was a teenager but was still fully engaged with us and our activities. I’m not sure she considers herself a role model but she really pushed us all towards excellence in whatever we pursued and was very solid in who she was as a woman, a mother, and a wife.
“Now my mom lives in Charlottesville and sees her grandchildren weekly. She tells me that she thinks life was easier when she was raising us—that there are many more concerns today that just didn’t exist back then. For instance, as a kid I used to run around the neighborhood with my friends until the dinner bell rang (yes, we had a dinner bell) and she wasn’t paranoid that we would be in any danger other than perhaps suffering a scraped knee.
“My mom loves to joke about how they didn’t even have car seats back then. That they put me in a crib in the back of the wood paneled station wagon and away we’d go. That’s her go-to anecdote when I’m describing all the ‘treacherous things’ that could happen to our children if left unattended or without organic milk for too long. She just nods her head and listens and then she says, ‘We never even thought about that stuff and look, you turned out alright.’”
Liza Borches, 38
President and CEO of The Carter Myers Automotive
As CEO and President of The Carter Myers Automotive Group, 38-year-old Liza Borches is at the helm of a family business started in 1924 by her great grandfather H. Carter Myers. A 1997 UVA grad, Borches worked for American Honda Motor Company for seven years after college before she returned to Charlottesville to take over the family Volvo dealership in Ivy in 2004. Today, Borches steers the company’s eight Central Virginia dealerships in Richmond, Charlottesville, and Staunton.
On advice for other generations:
“To all of the 18- to 25-year-olds out there: Embrace the opportunities that you have to push yourself out of your comfort zone. In your 20s, you have more major life decisions than you have ever dealt with before. It’s hard to leave your high school friends, it’s even harder to move along from your college friends, but don’t take the job in the town where all of your friends are going. Don’t move back to your family if you have an opportunity to try something new! It’s a scary time but when I look back at the best decisions that I have made in life, it was the ones that I was uneasy about or scared of that really helped me become the person I am today.”
Rosa Atkins, 57
Superintendent of Charlottesville City Schools
Leader of Charlottesville City Schools since 2006, Dr. Rosa Atkins oversees an annual operating budget of $70 million, along with 425 teachers who educate more than 4,000 students in nine schools. In 2011, the Virginia Tech graduate was named the state’s Superintendent of the Year. Before she moved to Charlottesville, Atkins worked as a classroom teacher, a principal, and an assistant superintendent.
On overcoming struggle:
“So many of my perceptions and perspectives were shaped by the events of the ’60s and ’70s. There was racial unrest, the war in Vietnam, and women’s lib. Fast-forward to today and the world is so different. Some of those issues still have tentacles, but our world is so much more expansive that those tentacles tend sometimes to hold you down. The struggle is when and where to clip them, and then when to allow them to attach back again. What is a racial issue and how do you identify it in such a large and global space in which there are so many different ethnicities? How do you identify that as you navigate through our world and our workplaces now? That’s been something I grapple with quite a bit, especially in Charlottesville, where there are so many complicated issues that center around disparity—be it economic disparity, racial disparity, housing disparity. There are no simple answers, but a lot of compassion.”
Russell Willis Taylor, 57
President and CEO of National Arts Strategies
As the President and CEO of National Arts Strategies, Russell Willis Taylor manages all operations for a national public charity that provides leadership programs to arts organizations around the world. She is the only American to be given the Garrett Award for outstanding contribution to the arts in Britain. In 2013, she received the International Citation of Merit by the International Society for the Performing Arts for her distinguished service to the performing arts.
On her mother’s generation:
“My late mother was a teacher and principal at Orange County High School when she was my age. I know that my love of education comes from her—she did some of the most important work there is to do. She worked within a set of social constraints and traditions that I would find confining, and it is a measure of her wisdom and love for her daughters that while she accepted these constraints, she did not expect us to do the same. She underestimated herself in many ways—she was naturally modest, and I am quite sure didn’t see the profound effect she had on the hundreds of students she taught.”