by Susan Lucas
From The Charleston Mercury
Last week Mary Norton stepped up to the mike at Halls
Chophouse, invited by the Hall Family and the King Street Marketing Group. Speakers
at this monthly event which is nearly two years running have spanned diverse
and influential circles. They include Mayor Riley, Helen Hill, Tommy Baker,
General James E. Livingston, Founder of Cos Bar Lily Garfield and Police Chief
Greg Mullen, to name a few.
The speakers aren’t asked for their agenda or talking points
in advance, each is given a 20-30 minute window to deliver whatever message they
want, and most stick around to answer questions afterward. The speakers are
real, genuine and approachable. Ken Burger personally greeted every person who walked
in the door. Fire Chief Karen Brack had the longest Q&A of anybody.
Mary was a first. She told her story of life as an entrepreneurial
star who fell from grace in a series of corporate missteps that robbed her of
her name and reputation. She made everyone laugh and made them cry, prompting a
tissue rescue and comic relief by Jeanne Hall. Most of all she left her
audience wanting more Mary. She told the naked truth about her life and career,
that in spite of her bubbly, bright personality and core of spiritual optimism
she, like each of us, has experienced dark, life sucking moments. She colorfully
related many of those dark times and also the peak experiences that shaped her.
One businessman said he wanted both of his adult daughters to hear Mary speak,
there were such lessons to be learned. She hugged everyone on the way out; Mary
is a hugger.
Here’s my favorite anecdote that Mary told. When she was to speak
at the Wharton Retail Conference in 2010 alongside fashion luminaries like
Tommy Hilfiger, she learned during the event that she was invited not to be an
inspirational success story but to represent the ‘crash and burn.’ She was shaken.
Barbara Corcoran from the TV Show
Shark
Tank noticed her upset and said, “You’re the goose who laid the golden egg!
It’s just a f**kin’ egg! Go lay another one!” Stay tuned. Mary Norton is about
to lay another golden egg.
For information about Small Business Lunch at Halls, go to www.smallbusinesslunchathalls.com.
There’s a great business story every month, and usually a great personal one as
well.
Another great King Street story is 2nd Sunday. People love it. It’s impossible to explain to someone who hasn’t been to this magical monthly event why everyone is walking around with a smile on their face. It reminds those of us “from off” why we came to Charleston, because we have time to take a leisurely stroll and remember our first sightings of historic architecture, brick streets, sidewalks, alleys, tiny boutiques, cafés, seeing a city on foot and Southern hospitality. It’s a place to run into people you know because so many people who come to 2nd Sunday live right here. Some don’t even make the closed-to-traffic portion of King Street, they just come downtown because it’s the day to, and that’s a wonderful thing. Every month, rain or shine, 2nd Sunday on King Street continues to delight.
