Boring title for awesome presentation goes here.

Bradley Dean, Creative Director and various other positions-holder at Billy Reid, spoke to us on the 29th of October. He was pretty hip, and for such a young guy, he did quite well presenting us with why we should get involved in our community.

He started by telling us that he was a UNA graduate himself, but compared to the experience he had at school, the "real world" was where he got valuable skills.
Then, He told us a little about what Billy Reid's company was and what they were doing, such as growing their own cotton, whereby creating jobs for locals. Bradley told us that Billy had won many awards not typical for someone from little ole Florence to have gotten; then again, aren't there Billy Reid stores in, like, New York?

So, what really got my attention was when he started talking about buying his house in Historic Downtown Flo-town, only to absolutely destroy it.

 Boom goes the dynamite! JK.


How come no one had said anything?, he thought. From then on, he got involved with the community. He started to go to meetings and stuff to see how everything worked. He eventually got on the Historic Preservation Inc. (or something like that). This way, many opportunities opened up for him. Now, there is a more watchful eye on preserving Downtown Florence thanks to concerned people like Bradley taking an initiative, like this guy:

Baila!

When Mámi puts on her musica, I can't help but dance!

Das Junior League.

I miss taking Deutsch.

Anyway, on the 22nd of October (YAY, I'M SO BEHIND!), Leslie Tomlinson from Junior League of the Shoals spoke at Forum. She started by telling us about how she was going to set the world on fire when she was younger:
 (Credit: http://cinemagr.am/show/39383263)

But of course, with age comes wisdom, and she realized that it wasn't going to be so easy. She began volunteering and found a way she could actually do her part through Junior League of the Shoals.

Mrs. Tomlinson then kind of gave us a history of Junior League. So, it was started in 1901 by a sorority girl named Mary Harriman who was 19. NINE-FREAKING-TEEN. My age. WOW. So, Mary started this movement to help immigrants, and it grew to help others in her community. Mostly, her small group worked well, BUT there were certain qualities needed to join this group, such as being of a certain race or economic background. What would become Junior League remained a very closed group for a while, even into Mrs. Tomlinson's service days. However, as she stated, the Junior League grew to be more accepting of other women (sorry, no men allowed, though). Now, all a volunteer needs to do is be willing to volunteer! Oh, yeah, and meet the age requirement...

Now, the purpose of JL is to provide support, guidance, and leadership development. JL has spread to countries like Canada and Mexico. These organizations promote volunteerism, of which they need abundant amounts, to develop the potential of women and improve the community while serving as a social/networking opportunity.