Main Street Moms on the Move ~ May 2011
Welcome to another edition of “Main Street Moms on the Move.” We’re thrilled to introduce you to three Triad moms who are making a difference in their lives – and the lives of others – in their own unique ways. Today we feature a mom from Greensboro, a mom from Winston-Salem, and a mom from Kernersville. Perhaps you already know them, or their businesses. But if not, we’re happy to introduce you to them here on Triad Moms on Main. And if you know of a Triad mom who should be featured, please email me at katie@triadmomsonmain.com. We are always looking to meet new moms who are on the move. Enjoy today’s profiles…
Melissa Creech
Melissa Creech of Greensboro is a full-time mother and part-time business owner of Fringe Addiction, a custom decorative sewing business. She began making gift items for babies (anything from bibs to toy hammocks for the crib), for women and girls (aprons, zippered pouches, clutch purses, and tote bags), and for the home (table runners, tea towels, and pillows). Over time her business has evolved and she has expanded into custom home decorative sewing and design work, including home consultations, window treatments, pillows, bedding, seat cushions, table skirts, etc. Melissa currently sells her products though open houses and local crafts and bazaars, but plans are in place for her to launch a web site as well as sell her items directly through Etsy.
But to this mother of two (Cooper, 9, and Hayden, 5), sewing is more than just a business – it’s her passion. Seven years ago, Melissa went through a very difficult time. She suffered two miscarriages and began to question a lot of the plans she had made for herself and her family. During that time, she was able to lose herself in sewing. “The machine drowned out the doubts and fears that threatened to take over in my mind, and in the process I was creating pieces that made me – and others – happy,” she said.
As a result of her crisis, Melissa also formed an outreach group called the Prenatal Loss Network of Westminster Presbyterian Church in Greensboro. The goal of the group is to support couples who have suffered preterm loss and connect them with someone who understands. “We also try to help women be advocates for themselves and encourage them to talk to their doctors about why the miscarriage happened and what, if anything, can be done to prevent it from happening again.” For information on the Prenatal Loss Network visit the web site or send an email to prenatalloss@westpreschurch.org.To learn more about Fringe Addiction or to be invited to the next show, you can contact Melissa at fringeaddiction@hotmail.com.
Amy Wall
Amy was nominated as a “Mom on the Move” for many reasons, but one of her most endearing qualities is the fact she’s a mother to nine children, ranging in age from 2 to 24! Amy and her husband, Jim, live in Winston-Salem and are childhood sweethearts from Radford, VA. Together they attended The College of William and Mary. They then married after her sophomore year and his junior year (Amy graduated in three years so they could finish together). Today they are busy raising nine children. Their oldest daughter, Emily Jane (24) graduated from UNC and currently lives in NYC where she’s studying for her master’s degree at Columbia University. Next is son Joe (22) and a student at UNC; Molly Mae (21) a student at Franklin and Marshall College; David (18) a senior at Forsyth Country Day School (FCDS) and rising freshman at UVA; Liza Kate (16) a sophomore at FCDS; Chloe (13) and Jeb (11) are seventh and fifth graders, respectively, at St. Leo School; Quinn (5) attends preschool at St. Leo’s; and Charlie (2) stays at home.
One would think Amy stays pretty busy at home (and in the car chauffeuring kids to and from activities), but she’s also a Board Certified Ophthalmologist who works full-time and, just 10 years ago, opened her own practice in Winston-Salem called Buena Vista Eye PC.
Amy credits her family’s success – and her ability to complete medical school, a residency program and start her own business – to not only her “fantastic” husband, but also to her nanny who they’ve employed for 20 years. “Don’t sweat the small stuff…and don’t compare yourself to other mothers,” Amy offers as advice. “Spend as much time with your children as feasible…show them and tell them you love them…those are the important things.”
Shelby “Sea Shel” Powell
Being a mom is a constant juggling act, but for this Mom on the Move “juggling” is just another task she checks off her “To Do” list each day. That’s because Shelby is a performing artist with Captain Jim Is Magic and his DJ services based in Kernersville. In fact, she’s engaged to Captain Jim (they plan to marry this year at the Beaufort Pyrate Invasion festival) and their blended family (three boys and one girl between the ages of 19 and 10) all perform together in the family business. The children do everything from juggling to stilt walking, unicycling, while Jim performs magical illusion stage shows and close-up magic (all while on a real wooden peg leg!) and Shelby sings, face paints, and tells fun fortune stories. Yes, they’re a modern day Partridge Family – but much more entertaining! In addition to performing, Shelby also runs her own retail business, Sea Shel’s Treasurers, which sells nautical and pirate-themed novelties through its Facebook page and at most festivals where she performs.
Despite success in entertaining, Shelby’s life has not always been so fairy-tale. After going through a divorce, Shelby completed college, received her NC Funeral Directors license and practiced funeral service for 12 years – all while raising her oldest son, Seth. After that, she transitioned to a position managing a domestic violence shelter. And through the years, she cares for Seth’s severe bilateral sensorineural hearing loss (requiring hearing aids in both ears) central auditory processing disorder, Irlen syndrome and chronic depressive disorder. These conditions were the result of him being born with a rare condition called gastroschesis, which required him to undergo three surgeries as well as being kept comatose, paralyzed and on a ventilator in NICU. Yet, all those things were necessary to save his life. He was born April 25 and Shelby did not get to hold him until the following Mother’s Day. Shelby considers that her greatest gift of all. Now that’s not just magical, that’s miraculous!
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