Blue Water Woman--Spring 2019

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At Blue Water Developmental Housing,
Inc., we believe in empowering the people

we serve to follow their dreams
and live their very best lives.
We have successfully accomplished
that mission for more than 40 years,
thanks to the auspices
of a strong board of directors,
and leadership team, many of whom
are strong, empowered women.

The individuals we assist don’t just thrive ... they soar.

To learn more about volunteer or donor Kathy Swantek
opportunities, contact our office today Executive Director
2016 Blue Water Woman
at (810) 388 - 1200 or visit our website Nonprofit Executive
at www.bwdh.org. of the Year

Photo of individual we serve, Dacey Pritchett, in flight Blue Water Developmental Housing, Inc.
1600 Gratiot Blvd., Suite 1 Marysville MI 48040
(810) 388-1200 www.bwdh.org

2018 Women’s Initiative Steering Committee Past Blue Water Woman of the Year
Award Recipients and Members
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of the Women’s Initiative Steering Committee:
Thus, the mission of the Women’s Initiative Therese Damman Sheri Faust
of the Community Foundation of St. Clair County: Jackie Hanton Kathy Swantek
to educate, engage and empower women to participate in philanthropic opportunities.

Congratulations to our Steering Committee Chair,

Ra��� �u�d�-�am�a�, D.M.D.,

the Blue Water Woman of the Year!

For more information: www.stclairfoundation.org  810-984-4761  Email: [email protected]

l Home Health Care
l Private Duty Services
l Specialized Adult Day

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l In-Home Hospice Care
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1430 Military Street, Suite A
Port Huron MI 48060

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from the editor

RRecognition is important.
Though I do not believe most of us seek it, I think we are all humbled when
we receive it.
And if I’ve learned anything during my 30-plus years in the workforce, it
is that while women, most especially, do not seek it, they are inspired and
motivated by the success they see others achieve. CONTENT
Those are among the many reasons that I decided to establish Blue Water
Woman magazine and the annual Blue Water Woman of the Year awards. randajundi-samman 5
Throughout my life I have been fortunate enough to be surrounded by melindajohnson 6
mentors – both male and female – who encouraged me both personally and paulinerepp 8
professionally, whom I admired and wanted to emulate, and whose good maramccalmon 10
examples served as inspiration.
Not everyone is as fortunate as I have been. carriefarnsworth 11
That is the reason I choose to make a big deal about those who have been sarathomas 12
selected for recognition as recipients of the Blue Water Woman of the Year
awards. It is important to honor those whose formal careers, or personal advertise
endeavors, have had a
positive impact on our in Blue Water Woman!
community.
I hope that, as you read it works!
these pages, you are inspired just ask our advertisers!
by the struggles and the
achievements of the six The ad deadline for the next issue
women featured in this of Blue Water Woman is May 1, 2019.
issue. All have overcome Prices start at just $125 for a business card sized ad!
obstacles on their way to Our most popular ad size is a quarter page at just $250;
achieving great success sign a one-year contract and it becomes just $225 a quarter!
and all are representative
of what is good about our For more information, contact Patti Samar
community. at 810-300-2176 or email her at [email protected]
Two are immigrants who
came to this country with volume 9, number 1 Spring 2019
the hope of a better life. Blue Water Woman is published quarterly by The Write Company,
2016 blue water woman of the year One is the executive director
award recipients of a large nonprofit that is 511LaSalleBlvd.,PortHuron,MI48060. Circulation5,000.

dedicated to helping those less fortunate in our community…and she knows Editor & Publisher:
how it feels to be one of them because, indeed, she once received services from PattiSamar,owner,TheWrite Company
that very agency. One has mothered and nurtured literally hundreds of children
from around the world. Another has quite literally helped save the lives of Advertising, questions, comments or story ideas:
numerous women who came to her seeking help losing weight in order to not Email Patti Samar at [email protected]
only maintain quality of life, but to maintain life itself. And finally, one started
a nonprofit in order to help victims of crime after experiencing the worst Mission:
possible crime that could be imagined. Blue Water Woman is the premiere publication
All have overcome numerous obstacles in order to achieve her goals.
Port Huron Mayor Pauline Repp, who was raised in a foster home, noted: for women living, working and playing
“If you really want to get your life in order, you need to pull yourself up by the intheBlueWaterAreaof Michigan.
bootstraps and do it.” And her life is a testament to her ability to do just that.
Each woman featured here has exhibited resilience and strength along her Its stories and features are written and designed
to be inspriational, motivational and encouraging.

www.BlueWaterWoman.com

© Blue Water Woman is the property
of PattiSamarof TheWriteCompany
The Write Company is a writing, graphic design

and marketing consultation firm.
Viewouronlineportfolioat: www.TheWriteCompany.net

individual life journey. They are among the brightest and the best in our
community and I am proud to showcase their successes in Blue Water Woman
magazine.
Peace,

Patti Samar
Editor & Publisher
Blue Water Woman
2 SPRING2019 BlueWaterWoman.com

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Woman

Llate last year, Blue Water Woman asked the community to nominate very special women who
are deserving of recognition as we prepared to present the eighth annual Blue water woman of
the year awards.
we then sent the nominations to a far away, cold and snowy place known as the upper
peninsula, where a very distinguished panel of women sequestered themselves for an evening and
emerged with six very deserving award recipients.
indeed, we are very fortunate in the Blue water area to be surrounded by so many thoughtful,
smart and compassionate women.
so in this issue, Blue Water Woman is pleased to honor six of the very best:

randa jundi-samman, d.m.d.
Blue water woman of the year

melinda johnson

Blue Water Woman Nonprofit Executive of the Year

pauline repp

Blue water woman Civic leader of the year

mara mcCalmon

Blue water woman Victim’s rights advocate of the year

Carrie farnsworth

Blue water woman Educator of the year

sara Thomas

Blue water woman health Educator of the year

kRaanrdeanJhuanrdrii-Ssamman, D.M.D. cohf aedmucpatiioonn

T byPattiSamar
The key to life is education.
No one knows this better than Port Huron-based dentist Randa Jundi-
Samman, D.M.D.
Jundi-Samman, a native of Damascus, Syria, understood from a very young
age that education could carry a person out of the dark, abysmal crevice of
poverty.
“Coming from a Third World country, I know that education is the only way
out in life,” said Jundi-Samman. “You don’t survive in life if you don’t have an
education.”
A resident of the Blue Water Area since 1992, Jundi-Samman has dedicated
her life here to providing resources and programming to educational institutions
in the community through her fundraising, philanthropic, and volunteer efforts
with numerous organizations in the community.
As a result of her tireless efforts to champion those issues and more in the
Blue Water Area, Jundi-Samman has been named the Blue Water Woman of
the Year. She was nominated by Sushma Reddy, M.D., the 2016 Blue Water
Woman of the Year.
In her nomination, Dr. Reddy noted:
“Randa is an amazing woman who inspires others to follow her cause,
improving the lives of children and making our community a better place to
live, work and play. In addition to her professional practice as a dentist, she is
actively involved with various organizations such as the Blue Water YMCA, the
Community Foundation of St. Clair County, and the Port Huron Schools.”
Jundi-Samman’s involvement with the Port Huron Schools began when her
two children, now grown, were in school.
“I was a PTA mom and I was a president of the PTA,” she said. “We realized
that the schools do not offer physical activities the way we would like them to
be, so we involved our kids in tennis and gymnastics outside of school. But, we
realized that other families didn’t necessarily have the means to do that. I wanted
to offer recreational opportunities for other kids.”
That led Jundi-Samman to develop the Fun Fitness program in all elementary
schools within the Port Huron Schools. “It’s been in place for 14 years and it is a
program to get the kids moving.”
As she became more involved, Jundi-Samman saw a lack of funding for a wide
variety of programs. That led to her involvement in helping to establish the Port
Huron Schools Endowment Fund at the Community Foundation of St. Clair
County.
To help grow the fund, Jundi-Samman chaired a committee to help turn the
annual cross-town rivalry football game between Port Huron High School and
Port Huron Northern High School into a fund raising opportunity.
One of her largest community-wide accomplishments came when she
campaigned tirelessly for passage of the Port Huron Schools millage that raised
money for technology improvements.
“Thankfully, it passed and I almost cry when I go into the schools,” she said.
“It’s a fundamental cultural change and a different way of teaching with the
technology and the STEAM labs. That could not have been possible without the
bond. The bond provided the equipment and resources that they needed. I look
at it like, the public schools got my kids to where they are today…
“The better schools you have, the better community you end up having. It
drives the growth of the community.”
Jundi-Samman is also extensively involved in the Community Foundation,
and currently serves as vice chair of its board of directors. She also serves as the
current chair of its Women’s Initiative steering committee.
Her passion for physical fitness led her to serving on the board of directors at
the YMCA of the Blue Water Area, where she is currently chair of the board.
“There are a lot of organizations that offer so much, but they need our
support,” Jundi-Samman said of her community involvement. “If we can help
promote them, it is a win-win. I came to this country as a migrant and I’m
thankful for all that has come my way. I want to be helpful to all.
“I’m a full-time dentist, but work doesn’t give you that fulfillment the way that
philanthropy does.
“I think it means more to me to donate than the money I give means to the
organization. You can sleep better at night knowing you made a difference.”

SPRING2019 BlueWaterWoman.com 5

Melinda Johnson laelaevgaicnyg

6 SPRING2019BlueWaterWoman.com M bydalehemmila
Melinda Johnson knows exactly what it feels like to be a client walking
through the doors of the Blue Water Community Action Agency (BWCAA).
She knows because, years ago, when she was a young mother, she was a
client.
Her introduction to the wide range of helping-services that is offered by
BWCAA gives Johnson a special affinity for the low-income clients the agency
serves.
Now, as BWCAA’s executive director, she oversees a $6.5 million annual
budget and the 100 employees who provide programs that help low-income
individuals and families become self-sufficient.
Her success in managing this wide-ranging nonprofit organization, and her
dedication to the Blue Water Area’s limited-income community, has earned
her recognition as the Blue Water Woman Nonprofit Executive of the Year.
A Flint native with a master’s degree from Central Michigan University,
Johnson took advantage of the BWCAA’s childhood education program by
enrolling her son and daughter in Head Start more than 30 years ago, before
she worked at the agency. Fast forward to 2019, and Head Start remains a
key part of the BWCAA’s mission and her daily work life, as she oversees that
program directly, maintaining the title of children services director. Head Start
comprises approximately 75 percent of the agency’s work.
The time she gets to work directly with clients, “feeds my soul,” while the
rest of her responsibilities provide additional satisfaction from knowing she is
helping families in need.
“I feel like every day I’m doing what I am supposed to be doing,” she said.
“Even if I’m not working directly with people on the fringes of society, I am
making sure the work gets done.”
Along with children’s services, BWCAA offers assistance with health and
nutrition, home construction and repairs, financial consulting, emergency
assistance services, and more.
“We’re kind of all over,” Johnson explained. “We try to be flexible to meet
the needs of the community. The only thing that determines whether we can
help you is the income level set by the federal government.”
While managing a large community service agency is satisfying in a general
way, Johnson is further inspired by the success stories of individuals who have
interacted with BWCAA.
“We have had people who started businesses, some have gone back to
college, even just making friends so they don’t feel so socially isolated,” she
explained. Johnson cited one woman the agency had worked with for more
than five years “with one crisis after another.” Eventually the woman showed
up one day to deliver the news that she was getting her life on track.
“She looked wonderful, and that was wonderful news, but it took five to
six years to get her to that point. I went home and tap danced that night,”
Johnson said with a smile.
Johnson is quick to acknowledge the people that she works with who likely
have success stories of their own to tell.
“I have a great staff,” she said. “They are outstanding. They have kindness
and compassion.”
The staff and programs will be on the move soon. The agency has
purchased the former Baker College campus and will leave their cramped
quarters above the Knowlton Ice Musuem in downtown Port Huron.
The move was part of Johnson’s vision for the future and will provide more
than 90,000 square feet to allow the agency to consolidate programs that are
currently located in churches and schools throughout the area.
“We have outgrown our building,” Johnson explained. “(Soon) we will
have all this space so we can grow and I am very excited about that.”
With another decade or so to continue her career, she has also targeted
settling the $2 million price tag for the new space as a long term goal.
“I want that to be paid off by my retirement,” she said. “I want that to be
my legacy.”
Well, that, and the uncounted stories of clients her agency has helped.

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pauline repp ma daifkferienncge

8 SPRING2019 BlueWaterWoman.com W bypattisamar
When Pauline Repp retired as the Port Huron City Clerk, she expected to turn in
her keys, walk out the door and never look back.
Boy, did she get that wrong.
“When I retired, I expected to retire,” said Repp, who, at 10 years, is the longest
serving mayor in the city of Port Huron. “This was not on my radar.”
But she wasn’t long into retirement before she put her institutional knowledge
of city government to work as a member of the Port Huron City Charter
Commission. That led to her first run for city council, where she won as the top vote
getter.
Repp’s 25 years of employment with the city of Port Huron, combined with
more than a decade of service to the city via the charter commission and her city
council seat, have earned her the title Blue Water Woman Civic Leader of the Year.
Repp was nominated by Port Huron Mayor Pro Tem Sherry Archibald.
Repp’s road to leading one of Michigan’s best “come back” success-story-cities is
not the road well-travelled. And though Port Huron has made great strides in terms
of economic development during her tenure as mayor, many residents in the city still
face socio-economic difficulties associated with poverty.
And Repp understands their plight better than most realize, having grown up in
and out of the home with her biological mother, and foster care, in the Toronto area.
“I was born in England, and came across the ocean on an airplane alone, at age
four, to be met by foster parents I had never laid eyes on,” she said. “My mother was
a single mother and she didn’t have the means to take care of me.”
Repp spent the next four years living in a stable home provided by loving foster
parents.
“They cared about me and I cared about them,” she said. “I credit them with most
of my moral being. They were church-going people and a very loving family.”
When Repp was nine, her biological mother, who had also immigrated to
Canada, had remarried and Repp was sent to live with her again. The family, which
expanded to include three half siblings, eventually moved to St. Clair. There, Repp
studied hard and skipped a couple of grades in order to graduate from St. Clair High
School at just 16, in order to remove herself from an unstable home life with her
mother and stepfather.
“I had no money to go to college, so I went to work at the Times Herald in
advertising,” she said. She worked there for 10 years, during which time she got
married, started her own family, and pecked away at taking classes at St. Clair
County Community College.
She spent four or five years as a stay-at-home mom, and when she returned to the
work force in 1983, she began her career at the Port Huron city hall.
“I wasn’t sure it would be a good fit,” she said with a laugh, “but I stayed for 25
years.”
It was Repp’s work in the office of then-city manager Gerald Bouchard that
inspired both her desire to become a U.S. citizen, and her interest in all-things having
to do with city politics.
“I became a citizen in 1987,” she said. “Initially, I didn’t really have that drive
with anything to do with politics, but when I started working for the city, I started
seeing how city government affected how you live, and I couldn’t vote, so I became
a citizen.”
Repp’s work at city hall also provided both a personal and professional mentor in
Bouchard.
“Probably the biggest influence in my life was Gerry Bouchard,” she said. “He
encouraged me more than anyone ever had. I was a little intimidated by him – like
everyone else was – but he was the one who encouraged me to finish my associates
degree. It was so important, having someone have faith in me.
“Most people have a parent who does that, but I did not. And he did that with a
lot of people, not just me.”
Though serving on city council was not in Repp’s initial retirement plans, it
certainly is a role that suits her – and the city.
“It gives me a purpose,” she said. “I feel it gives me a way to give back. I bring a
calming effect to the table. I think it helps when you have someone at the helm who
is keeping it under control and speaking up for the city. Everyone does not have to
agree, but you have to provide a unified message.
“I do my best to make sure everyone is treated fairly, and we have a progressive
city that is financially stable. I feel like I bring stability, and I feel like I’m making a
difference.”

SPRING2019 BlueWaterWoman.com 9

Mara McCalmon frormitshienagshes

10 SPRING2019 BlueWaterWoman.com by patti samar

IIn the darkness of a November night in 2010, a terrible, traumatic and tragic
event changed Mara McCalmon’s life forever.
And though the ordeal could have left McCalmon a permanently broken
woman, she instead rose like a Phoenix from the burning ashes of her life, and
decided to help others.
In 2016, McCalmon established the nonprofit, P.S. You’re My Hero, in memory
of her late husband, Paul Skinner, who was brutally murdered – by their
daughter and two of her friends – during a home invasion in 2010. McCalmon
established the charitable organization for the purpose of raising funds to cover
the cost of providing goods and services to benefit victims of crime.
To achieve her goals, McCalmon works directly with the St. Clair County
Victim’s Rights office, helping victims navigate the difficult steps they face
after surviving a life-altering crime.
For her personal resilience and her dedication to and passion for victims of
crime, McCalmon has been named the Blue Water Woman Victim’s Rights
Advocate of the Year. She was nominated by Sue Rutkofske.
“I came from a world that never saw the inside of a courtroom,” McCalmon
said of her very normal life prior to surviving the ordeal that ended her
husband’s life. “This whole thing was so foreign to me.”
McCalmon – who remarried in 2014 – said she met her first husband, Paul,
when they were young. Both grew up in the suburbs of metropolitan Detroit
and moved to Yale, Michigan, in 1992 when McCalmon accepted a teaching
position with the Yale Public Schools.
“We wanted to live in a small town and raise our family,” she said. That
family grew to include two sons and two daughters, all of whom are now
grown. Three of her children are very successful, having achieved advanced
degrees in higher education and are high achievers in their careers.
The youngest, Tia, now 25, is in prison, likely for the rest of her life.
P.S. You’re My Hero came about after McCalmon, who was also gravely
injured during the attack on her family, had reached a personal turning point
following the completion of numerous jury trials for those who attacked her
family, and she was ready to do something positive with her renewed energy.
“When the trials were over, all I kept thinking was, ‘It cannot end like this,”
she said. “I said, ‘I think it’s time to shift this whole story’s focus to something
positive…I’m so sick of this story being about (the perpetrators). It’s time to
do something to benefit others, in Dad’s name.’”
McCalmon noted that from day one she has received an exceptional amount of
support from family, close friends, acquaintances, the community as a whole and
from everyone at the courthouse who sat with her through numerous trials.
In addition to personal support, because she had a job with health insurance,
most all of her medical and emotional needs were taken care of, and so she did
not have to deal with additional financial stress.
But she knew that was not the case for other victims of crime.
“I had a super strong support system, but what about the people who don’t?
I thought about all of the people who don’t have those resources,” she said.
“Victims have to pay for their counseling and their medications,” among other
expenses, associated with being the victim of crime.
P.S. You’re My Hero, a registered 501c3 nonprofit, now helps the victims of
crime with those expenses.
“We’ve been able to pay for so many counseling sessions, and funerals,” she
said. The nonprofit also paid for a therapy dog to be available in the courthouse
for crime victims.
P.S. You’re My Hero was launched with money McCalmon received during
a fundraising event sponsored by the Community Foundation of St. Clair
County. The 2016 100 Women Who Care event provided McCalmon with a
$10,000 grant that allowed her to kick off her nonprofit.
To further sustain itself, the organization conducts an annual 5K run/2-mile
walk every November on the anniversary of the tragic event.
“P.S. You’re My Hero puts the focus on the people who got yanked into this
world of being a victim of crime,” said McCalmon. “Because I went through
that, I understand it from the ground level, and I knew what would be helpful.
“I do something like this because I can. I can make it a mission to help other
people.”

carrie Farnsworth sepdeuccaitaorl

T bydalehemmila
There is something special about Carrie Farnsworth.
First of all, “special” describes her job title. She is a special education
teacher at Port Huron Northern High School. She sees every one of her
students as special and unique. She treats them all as if they were her
own, and that is another way in which Farnsworth is special: a nurturer
by nature, she has devoted herself to making life better for young people,
literally, all around the world.
As a result of her strong dedication to her job, her students, and to youth
everywhere, Farnsworth has been named Blue Water Woman Educator of
the Year. She was nominated by her husband, and fellow educator, Gordie
Farnsworth.
In her 17th year of leading a special education classroom, Farnsworth
has a passion for teaching and working with kids who have special needs.
She uses practical methods to impart abilities they can use for life.
“We work on adaptive skills, how they are doing in the community,”
she said. “We work on daily living skills, social skills, job skills and we try
to sneak in some academics like math skills as well. We provide academics
through practical real-life experience.”
It is obvious that Farnsworth has a strong devotion to her profession
and to those she calls “my kids,” even though she initially did not have any
interest in teaching.
“I never wanted to be a teacher,” she said. “I wanted to go into some
kind of management.”
Her mind was changed when she spent time working in a group home for
developmentally disabled adults while in college.
“I loved the population; they were so loving, it doesn’t matter what the
disability is. And they have so much to offer to the community. Their
success stories make my heart smile. We say that a lot here. It’s making
someone’s heart smile, making their day.
“I love seeing these guys after high school out in the community, working
and having a job,” she said. Each one of these guys can do something.
And I teach them what I teach my own two kids. You need to be kind and
thoughtful. They aren’t any different than anyone else who needs a job.”
Farnsworth also helps her students with activities outside of the
classroom and work environment.
According to her husband’s nomination: “Carrie has been instrumental
in helping to create a climate at Port Huron Northern that is inclusive. She
helped create a program called ‘Lunch Buddies’ that brings together special
education students with other students who serve as ‘lunch buddies,’ once a
week during the lunch hour. Not only has this been a great program for her
students, but it has been life-changing for the lunch buddies, as well.
Farnsworth’s dedication to young people extends far beyond her
classroom, though.
In his nomination, her husband noted that she volunteers for a youth
group, and many of the students call her “Mama Farns.” She has welcomed
foreign exchange students into her home, and she spent several summers as
“camp mom” for hundreds of students at a camp for international students.
“Carrie also supports a child in Ghana through Compassion
International, and she provides support for SONS Outreach Ministry in
our community. She was also recently trained to be a coach for Special
Olympics,” the nomination noted.
“Carrie also works as a job coach through Touchstone Services. There,
she has the opportunity to work with students who have learning
disabilities or special needs. She has a heart for those who may need extra
help to succeed, and spends much of her time serving those in need.
“It is evident that Carrie has many maternal gifts and she has used them
to help raise hundreds of children.”
Farnsworth is quick to acknowledge the support she receives from her
principal and assistant principal: “They are amazing people and allow me
to do what I do,” she said.
But it is clear it is the students in her classroom who fuel her dedication.
“It’s that love,” she said. “When you know it’s sincere; that’s how I come
to school.”
SPRING2019BlueWaterWoman.com 11

sara thomas comtomfiittnmessent

12 SPRING2019 BlueWaterWoman.com S bydalehemmila
Sara Thomas is a woman on a mission.
As the owner of the Curves fitness studio in Fort Gratiot, she is committed
to helping other women improve their quality of life through better health. Her
determination to “strengthen women in a safe, comfortable environment, both
physically and mentally,” has earned her recognition as the Blue Water Woman
Health Educator of the Year. She was nominated by three of her employees and
members of her Curves fitness studio.
With 160 members, Fort Gratiot’s Curves is the only local facility dedicated
to strictly women’s fitness. The Curves model of 30 minute circuit training, and
Thomas’ expertise as a Cleveland Clinic certified weight loss coach, has helped
numerous women lose weight, gain strength, and maintain a higher level of fitness
on their way to a better quality of life.
For Thomas, that means a great deal of satisfaction, but it doesn’t necessarily
come easily. That means a work schedule of more than 50 hours a week doing
everything from leading classes, working as a weight loss coach, handling the
bookkeeping, the marketing, the payroll and everything else that is needed to stay
in business. She also teaches Zumba classes at the YMCA of the Blue Water Area
to generate additional income to help keep Curves viable.
“I feel like a survivor and fight every day to keep the doors open,” she said. “I
don’t want to do anything else. These ladies need me. I’ve just got to hang in
there. I love what I do.”
That commitment to her members doesn’t go unnoticed. Curves’ members’
testimonials confirm their affection and respect for Thomas. They also make note
of her dedication to helping them lose a life-altering amount of weight in a healthy
way.
In the nomination, one member wrote: “Several years ago, I was diagnosed with
diabetes, I was 60 pounds or more overweight and I had to use a cane to walk even
a short distance. With Sara’s help, time has gone in reverse. Now, I don’t take any
medications. I can do Zumba and walk 15,000 steps a day.”
Another member noted: “Over the last three years, Sara has worked one-on-one
with me in my struggle to lose weight. With her support, I have lost 65 pounds.”
And yet another member noted: “I came to Curves at a low point in my life. My
cardiologist told me if I don’t lose weight and get my cholesterol down, I was going
to have to take medication. I joined Curves and Sara has been my coach. With her
help, I’ve reached my goals. I couldn’t have done it without Sara’s support.”
“I lost 40 pounds in four months. I had foot issues and thus, did not have to
have surgery,” wrote another client.
“She is a cheerleader for woman’s fitness,” said one member. “She has a strong
passion for women’s health. She is kind and caring, exemplary, compassionate,
supportive and encouraging; she is a devoted business owner.”
One woman said: “I’m truly impressed with Sara’s dedication to the
membership. She’s like the energizer bunny, she keeps going and going.”
That type of feedback for Thomas fuels her resolve to keep Curves open.
“Their testimonials are a constant reminder that I am doing what I was meant
to do,” she explained. “These ladies reinforce my mission to support women’s
health. Providing the tools to women to extend their life and lead a healthy life is
my passion.”
While assisting women is her goal, she also is a supporter of others in the
community. Her studio and her members assist many non-profits and worthwhile
causes.
Every month, Thomas and the members of her Curves studio provide assistance
to a different nonprofit organization in the community. Organizations that have
been supported by these monthly fundraisers include Hunter Hospitality House,
Mid-City Nutrition, Blue Water Safe Horizons, and the March of Dimes, among
others. Most recently, Thomas and her members took on a large part of the Back
to School Back Pack Giveaway program.
“It’s so, so important to give back to others,” Thomas said. “Collectively, myself
and the members will always do more for our community.”
Helping to keep women healthy and giving back to the community is all part of
Thomas’ own Curves business model that she works hard every day to maintain.
“I need the love and support of my membership as much as they need mine, so I
will continue to do this as long as possible.”

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