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)