Main Street Moms on the Move ~ October 2014
By TMoM Team Member Rachel Hoeing
Today we feature a local pediatrican/mom/volunteer extraordinaire in Winston-Salem, a local mom in Kernersville who has started a FB group to bring Kville moms closer together, and three go-getters who are opening a new women’s boutique in the Greensboro area.
Read more about this month’s Main Street Moms on the Move below and be sure toemail us if you would like to nominate a mom to be featured in an upcoming blog!
The Cotton Blossom Boutique Ladies
Tonya Bodenheimer, Karen Levstek and Karen Wiley are the partners of Cotton Blossom Boutique in Greensboro. What started out as an idea over dinner quickly became a reality for these Triad Women and they haven’t looked back since.Cotton Blossom Boutique’s Grand Opening is November 1 in Battleground Village in Greensboro. Offering women’s apparel in sizes XS – 3X, their target market is any woman who is looking for trendy, unique and affordable clothing and accessories. All three have a passion for fashion and enjoy helping other women feel & look their best. With three different tastes, opinions and styles when choosing inventory, they truly have something for everyone. They also plan on carrying some items from local vendors to support the community.
Bringing their individual strengths to the table with experience in finance, marketing, merchandising and sales – all this combined is sure to make this business a success. Other than the boutique, they will also offer online sales, home shows, bridal parties and girls’ night out events where you can reserve the store after hours to customize your shopping experience. They will also offer special discounts to senior citizens, college students and military members.“Owning our business will allow us to have more control over our hours and give us more time for our families”, says Tonya. Both she and Karen L. have two children each.
Why choose Greensboro? “We toured locations in all areas of the Triad – but when we found our space at Battleground Village, we knew this is where we should be. The foot traffic from the other businesses in the shopping center can only enhance our sales,” says Karen W. You can sign up for their monthly newsletter and coupons via their websitewww.cottonblossomnc.com or follow them on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter: cottonblossomnc.
Betsy Armentrout
Betsy grew up in Michigan, but has been happy to call Winston-Salem home for 16 out of the last 20 years. She first came to NC in 1994 to attend what was then Bowman Gray School of Medicine, now known as Wake Forest University School of Medicine. Betsy fell in love not only with Winston-Salem, but also with a Winston-Salem native. After graduating, she and husband Brant spent four years in Cincinnati while she completed her pediatric residency training. They were delighted to return to home in 2002. They have two sons, Ben 12 and Luke 9.
Betsy is a pediatrician with Ford, Simpson, Lively and Rice Pediatrics. “It’s hard to believe that I’ve been at FSLR for nearly 12 years now. I truly love what I do and find it such a privilege to have a small part in the lives of so many children and their families. I cherish the relationships I have with my patients and their parents.” In addition to her professional work, Betsy has served the community as a board member for Horizons Residential Center for the last 5 years. Horizons is a special place that provides a home to children and adults with severe disabilities. “The staff at Horizons does an amazing job of providing outstanding care and a loving home to its residents. I love to bring more awareness to who they are and their mission.” In addition, she is currently serving as president of the Forsyth Stokes Davie County Medical Society. Since she enjoys her time with the young crowd so much, she also volunteers at her church, Green Street Methodist, as a preschool Sunday School teacher.
Few who know Betsy would fail to mention that what she also loves is running. “I joined the Twin City Track Club in 1995 and have been a runner ever since. I love the camaraderie of racing and training. Going for a run is like having recess every day.”
Jessi Whitt
Jessi and her husband Ken reside in Kernersville and have one 10 year old daughter Mackenzie and 5 year old Yorkie Baxter. Both of which are very spoiled! Jessi works full time for High Point Audiological as the Office Manager for the Mobile Services side of the company. She performs administrative duties, but her real joy is making travel arrangements for all the employees traveling the country for military events where the company performs audiological hearing exams. She just recently became a Certified Occupational Hearing Conservationist and can perform hearing tests as well. She hopes to be able to utilize this more in the future as her daughter grows up and she can travel more.
Due to her husband’s extensive work travel schedule over the past 10 years, she has had to be both mom and dad on numerous occasions, which is part of what motivated her to create an online Facebook group as a support mechanism for herself and others. She wanted a forum for moms in the Kernersville area area to find answers to questions, find support, and build friendships. Many new moms to the area have been able to get advice on doctors, schools and child care, while also sharing information about their businesses and local activities in the area.
Jessi is very proud of K’ville Mommas Korner & Friends, but says “I could not do this without some great woman helping me oversee and run the group. Kathy Pugh, Lanie Bemis and Cheryl Thomas are such a huge help in helping me keep the group positive and safe for all the members.” The group is always accepting new members. They prefer to keep it locally to Kernersville Moms, but will accept members in surrounding areas by invite from existing members. Check it outhere! (If you have trouble with the link you can send Jessi a message to her personal Facebook page here and ask to join the group!)
Leave a comment on any blog post this month for your chance to win a $25 gift card to Biscuitville! We are running this contest through the end of October, and then we’ll pick one random commenter as the winner! The more you comment on posts this month, the greater your chance of winning. Be sure to include your email address in the email address box when commenting so we have a way to reach you if you are the winner. Good luck and leave your comments below!
