Connections and Memories of a Past Life

Today’s post office chatter included banter with a woman who just returned from holiday travel in my old stomping ground—Pinellas County, Florida, home of the St. Petersburg Times.

Turns out she was originally from Tarpon Springs and just returned to Brooklyn from visiting relatives and friends in Dunedin. What a small world, Dunedin was my FIRST beat as a newspaper reporter! The people were wonderful, the civics lessons were huge. I still recall the City Commissioner, Richard Gehring, great guy. And, Parwez Alam, the City Engineer, who won over the city management and attained the "top spot" once Gehring moved on. Back then, it was interesting to see democracy at work as a primarly Anglo community accepted the talent and tenacity of a brilliant gentleman with the quiet reserve and perserverence of Ghandi.

Then there were City Commissioners like Manny Koutsourais and Dave Ramsey. Friendly, astute, welcoming souls, who always kept me "in the know," regarding affairs I should cover for the paper. Although a registered Democrat, I was honored when Ramsey said I should consider running for public office one day and explained that the Republican National Committee (RNC) had "training camps" to teach you how to succeed in politics. I later learned from a colleague at these were officially called "campaign camps" because he participated in one several years ago. A fellow reporter, Amelia Davis, even invited me to join the local Junior League chapter in Clearwater, the neighboring city.

Yes, times were a-changing in the early 80's and a primarily Anglo community was most welcoming to a woman like me. A young, relatively inexperienced Black woman right out of college. What did they see in me? Unbridled commitment to excellence and a willigness to do whatever it took to get the job done. Funny how those skills manage to cross all party lines.

The post office woman also reminded me this week marks Epiphany, celebrated by the Greek Orthodox Church. According to Wikipedia: Epiphany (Greek for "to manifest" or "to show"), is a Christian feast day which celebrates the revelation of God in human form in the person of Jesus Christ; Epiphany falls on January 6. I remembered covering Epiphany a few times for the paper!

Back in the day (1981) there were tons of newspapers; now known as the “dinosaurs” of the media age. Yesterday’s reporters are today’s content developers. If you can learn to write in a tight news style, you can certainly be valuable on the job and build a multifaceted career.

While I didn’t get her name, we had a real human exchange that brought back warm memories of my Florida days. I remembered the stately homes along Edgewater Drive and the marina, which was poised for an uplift 25 years ago. She explained how her mother once was employed as a chef for the Greeks and told me how the most famous restaurant in Tarpon Springs had closed, yet spawned other locations, undoubtedly in more populated, central locales throughout the county.

I’m a big fan of Greek food and Greek culture, thanks to my college professor, Dr. Frank Snowden. The chance meeting with this woman reminds me to take that trip to Greece (which I’ve been talking about forever) within the next year.

The chance meeting also reminded me of my older African American sorors of Alpha Kappa Alpha (Nu Beta Omega Chapter), who lived in northern Pinellas County.

I was fresh out of Howard University, and my Anglo colleagues and I often partied and had dinner together, often on Clearwater or Indian Shores Beaches. The older Black women I knew were reserved and hesitant about dining on those enclaves--once off limits. Why? Because they remember the day when they were not welcome across the causeway; better to play it safe.

But, I’ve never been one for caution and love adventure (or, call it youthful stupidity). During my time in Florida I experienced tremendous growth. That experience gave me the guts and fortitude to move to New York City, where I always wanted to be. I came to town only knowing a few souls, but I knew I could make it. I did temp work for months, then networked with my college professor from Howard, Dr. Larry Kaggwa. He previously taught at Norfolk State University and had a student Lydia Gardner, who happened to work at Hill and Knowlton. After I met Lydia, the rest is history. She was the “connection” I needed to interview with the global PR firm, where I worked for about 4 years.

It’s all about:

> Connections;
> Who you know;
> Who knows you and ..
> Being ready to put what you know to good use.

Yes, sometimes it’s nice to make a personal connection, speak to people in passing, walk or drive to a post office and use snail mail (that’s the kind with a stamp) every now and then.

Yes, snail mail is good for parcels, holiday cards for select special friends and handwritten notes. Try it sometime; your recipient will thank you. My current “favorite” stamps feature Bette Davis, reminiscent of her younger days. Along with being one of my mother’s favorite actresses and mine, I always remember Bette’s seriousness and commitment to the craft in interviews, and how she was a stickler about arriving on time at the studio, set and ready to work.

Good lessons for Hollywood or business types.

Now, it’s my job as a college professor to pass along sound journalism tenents from my newspaper days to my students, who now serve as copywriters, content developers and marketing professionals at leading media organizations and institutions throughout the tri-state area and beyond.

And, to complete the career circle, a few weeks ago, I joined the St. Petersburg Times Alumni LinkedIn group, a perfect transition which celebrates meaningful careers as a reporter, marketing exec, multicultural public relations specialist, business consultant, reporter and professor. BTW, there’s a LinkedIn group for everything; consider starting your own and creating lasting connections that could reap huge emotional and monetary rewards one days.