Business North Carolina January 2022

ON THE ROCKS

4 UP FRONT

6 DIGITAL COMMENTS

8 POINT TAKEN

Helping often-ignored areas sparkle takes crafty work by The Golden LEAF Foundation.

14 NC TREND

Honeywell’s big ambitions; incubator taps into NASCAR’s toolbox; sustainability as a key corporate priority; a “sandbox’ for fintech innovation.

86 GREEN SHOOTS

Floating above the tree line evolves into a distinctive calling card for Statesville, the hot-air balloon capital of the East

72 COMMUNITY CLOSE UP: MOORE COUNTY

Golf attracts plenty of people to Moore County. Some stay and make it their home, enjoying a high quality of life and an expanding business community.

JANUARY 2022

COVER STORY

ON THE ROCKS

Changing the state’s quirky liquor system stirs a never-ending debate.

BY EDWARD MARTIN

TOP STOCK PICKS

Business North Carolina’s annual stock-picking contest unveils the best stocks to own.

LITTLETON

How Ed and Deb Fitts are revitalizing a tiny Halifax County town.

BY COLIN CAMPBELL

LEGAL ELITE

Peers voted for the state’s latest group of top lawyers, who share their lessons learned from their first jobs.

BY JENNINGS COOL

David Mildenberg

MAKING A GOOD SANDWICH

How a first job influences one’s life seems like a cliche, except so many people routinely cite that first dip into the labor pool as profound. That is evident as we asked winners of this edition’s Legal Elite feature to describe their entry into the work world.

I particularly enjoyed Rebecca Redwine’s comment about the importance of a good Subway sandwich for Granville County factory workers exhausted after their shifts. “That fast food job taught me so much about how to interact with people.”

Then there was Michelle Connell’s lesson from selling women’s clothing at a Chapel Hill boutique. “I learned we humans are weird, frail, complex little creatures.”

It seemed like the right question during a time in which bizarre things are happening in the work world, most notably the stunning number of people leaving their jobs by taking sabbaticals, early retirements, changing careers or just walking away. Quitting has become such a thing that this pandemic period is likely to also be known as the Great Resignation era, some historians suggest.

It’s also a time in which government assistance for not working reached unprecedented levels. In addition to promoting public health, that well-intentioned financial support was supposed to sustain people’s standard of living and the overall economy in the face of a terrible virus. Given the sharp increases in savings rates, corporate earnings and stock market prices, it appears to have worked.

Of course, paying folks with government checks while staying out of the labor market became a partisan debate that will never be resolved. I’m not taking a side on that issue, but it’s clear from the ubiquitous “help wanted” signs and billboards that workers have gained some influence because of a dire shortage of labor in many industries. That marks a major change

after decades in which wages stagnated for most U.S. workers.

The shuffling work environment in which so many people try to strike a better work-life balance and more fulfilling lives is surely a healthy trend. Let’s just hope that the dignity of work and those first-job lessons of customer service and effective teamwork don’t get lost in the shuffle.

A couple quick notes about this month’s magazine:

■ Ed Martin wrote a compelling cover story about the challenges facing North Carolina’s liquor industry, which shouldn’t surprise anyone familiar with his decades of exemplary work for BNC. But we’re particularly thankful to Ed because he developed this story while dealing with serious health issues, including some hospital time. To say that Ed has a Tom Brady-like work ethic is an understatement.

■ Dan Barkin explains the importance of North Carolina’s unusual Golden LEAF Foundation in his bimonthly column. It continues Dan’s groundbreaking reporting on how economic development really works in our state, a frequent topic in his weekly Daily Digest newsletter column. (Sign up at www.businessnc.com). Dan has tracked North Carolina’s growth for more than three decades. We feel fortunate to publish his stories.

■ We’ve switched our longstanding Town Square feature to Green Shoots, which will spotlight interesting stories about rural North Carolina communities. Jennings Cool kicks off the change by examining Statesville’s love affair with hot-air balloons. Please share your ideas for stories about enterprising people and projects in the state's smaller towns.

Contact David Mildenberg at dmildenberg@businessnc.com.

PUBLISHER

Ben Kinney bkinney@businessnc.com

EDITOR

David Mildenberg dmildenberg@businessnc.com

ASSOCIATE EDITORS

Jennings Cool jcool@businessnc.com

Colin Campbell ccampbell@businessnc.com

Cathy Martin cmartin@businessnc.com

SENIOR CONTRIBUTING EDITOR Edward Martin emartin@businessnc.com

SPECIAL PROJECTS EDITOR Pete Anderson

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Katherine Snow Smith, Michael Solender

CREATIVE MANAGER Peggy Knaack pknaack@businessnc.com

ART DIRECTOR Ralph Voltz

CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHER Seth Roddey

MARKETING COORDINATOR Jennifer Ware jware@businessnc.com

AUDIENCE DEVELOPMENT SPECIALIST Scott Leonard sleonard@businessnc.com

ADVERTISING SALES

ACCOUNT DIRECTORS

Sue Graf, western N.C. 704-523-4350 sgraf@businessnc.com

Melanie Weaver Lynch, eastern N.C. 919-855-9380 mweaver@businessnc.com

CIRCULATION: 818-286-3106

EDITORIAL: 704-523-6987

REPRINTS: circulation@businessnc.com

OWNERS

Jack Andrews, Frank Daniels Jr., Frank Daniels III, Lee Dirks, David Woronoff

PUBLISHED BY Old North State Magazines LLC

PRESIDENT David Woronoff

BNC ONLINE

Small Business of the Year

Heather McWhorter @Heather_McW

Building NC

High Point Economic Development Corporation @HPEDC

We love getting feedback from our readers. Here’s a sampling of what you had to say about Business North Carolina on social media last month.

Daily Digest

Steve Cobb

@Prot3ctD3f3nd

Thanks to @businessnc and @dbarkin for the conversation about ransomware and how it is affecting NC businesses. If your organization needs help, please reach out! #ransomware #cybersecurity #DefendNC

One of @CityofHighPoint's family is investing in #innovation & #downtown - Have you had a chance to visit #CongdonYards? NC trend: Congdon family spurs High Point innovation https://buff. ly/32UgZOl @BusinessNC

Congratulations to these 2021 @BusinessNC Small Business of the Year winners! Love small businesses, and love to see southeast NC represented! #SmallBiz #SmallBusiness #YourBusinessBetter #winning @BusinessNC deray @deray

BREAKING: @NCCommerce committee approves $435 million in incentives for new Toyota battery plant in Randolph County, one of the biggest incentives deals in state history. Facility will total $1.29 billion and add 1,750 jobs: https://businessnc.com/toyotacommits-to-1-3b-n-c-plant-aided-by-435min-incentives/… #ncpol #ncga

North Carolina’s leading business publications, including @BusinessNC and @TriadBizJournal, cover @NCDOR’s latest challenges in court. Read more. #ncpol #ncga

Building NC

barringerconstruction

Congratulations to the Foundation Supply team for receiving an honorable mention as one of the state’s new distinctive structures in @businessnorthcarolina Building N.C. Awards! It was an honor to be a part of transforming this centuryold factory in north Charlotte into a place our community can work, play and grow. Check out the full list of winners at the #LinkInBio @redline_design_group barringerconstructionCongratulations to the Foundation Supply team for receiving an honorable mention as one of the state’s new distinctive structures in @ businessnorthcarolina Building N.C. Awards! It was an honor to be a part of transforming this century-old factory in north Charlotte into a place our community can work, play and grow. Check out the full list of winners at the #LinkInBio @redline_design_group

Thank you so much! ♥ We are honored and humbled to have won this award. This video is absolutely amazing �� great work!

NC Trend

designbar

Check out our interview with Jennings Cool from Business North Carolina to learn more about our chief designer, Monika NessbachMBA, Assoc. IIDA's career!

#business #designer #career #interview

SCAN ME to find Business North Carolina everywhere online or go to linktr.ee/businessnorthcarolina.

Small Business of the Year claritycounseling

GOLDEN RULES

Helping often-ignored areas sparkle takes crafty work by a rural development group.

In September, the Golden LEAF Foundation in Rocky Mount announced a site development program to help rural counties and towns identify and prepare locations suitable for new industry. The foundation’s board committed $10 million for the first year.

It didn’t make the splash that some higher-profile Golden LEAF announcements make, like when it gave $45 million to help fund the new plant sciences building at N.C. State University. Or when the foundation committed nearly $50 million to help North Carolina land the Toyota battery plant announced in December. Or $12 million for a bridge across the French Broad River that helped attract an 850-employee Pratt & Whitney factory in Asheville.

This was more like the lower-key but strategic investments that Golden LEAF has been making for two decades, distributing more than $1.1 billion through nearly 2,000 grants, helping to create 65,000 jobs, $695 million in new payroll, and the training or retraining of 85,000 workers. The foundation awarded nearly $46 million in grants in the year ended June 30 for 53 projects in 34 counties.

The foundation’s emphasis has been on significant N.C. projects and programs that are going to create jobs and thrive long after Golden LEAF’s dollars are deployed.

Some background

LEAF stands for “Long-term Economic Advancement Foundation.” A generation ago, nearly half the states sued the big tobacco companies to recover health costs associated with smoking. A settlement was reached in 1998. The companies would pay the states billions for decades, and North Carolina, a leading tobacco state, got its first check in December 1999.

Each state handled the money differently. North Carolina set up Golden LEAF to manage half of the settlement. The goal was to build an investment fund whose annual earnings could fund grants aimed at rural counties, particularly those

impacted by the decline of tobacco. Board chair Bill Friday, the retired UNC System president, announced the first grants in 2000. At his urging, money was set aside for college scholarships, leading to $55 million for more than 25,000 students from rural counties.

Golden LEAF has received about $1.1 billion in tobacco settlement money over the years. In 2011, the state was having budget problems, prompting the legislature to cut off the

tobacco settlement money going to the group. It has since restored $17.5 million annually, significantly less than it once received. But that’s become less of a big deal. Though it has distributed more than $1 billion, Golden LEAF’s endowment increased to nearly $1.4 billion by mid-2021 as its investment portfolio chalked gains.

“All these other states put [their settlement funds] in the middle of the state budget,” says Dan Gerlach, who was president of Golden LEAF for 11 years and is now a private consultant. “It’s gone. It’s nowhere to be found.”

Many Republican lawmakers, when they came to power a decade ago, viewed the foundation as a Democratic porkbarrel machine. Conservatives criticized the foundation’s $100 million investment 13 years ago in a state-owned facility to house Wichita, Kan.-based aviation manufacturer Spirit AeroSystems at the Global TransPark in Kinston. Expected to employ more than 1,000 employees, Spirit had about 400 in mid-October.

This tension lessened as Republicans added their own board appointees, including Raleigh retailer and conservative leader Art Pope. Lawmakers witnessed the foundation’s response to a ruinous run of disasters: Hurricanes Matthew, Florence, and Dorian and then COVID. When the legislature sought help in distributing relief funds, it tapped Golden LEAF to administer $114.5 million in hurricane aid and $83 million in federal stimulus money. The latest state budget appropriates $35 million to the foundation, including $25 million for flood mitigation and $10 million for food bank partnerships.

Golden LEAF has become a key institution in rural North Carolina. Rural counties, which make up most of the state’s land area, have been in decline as the tobacco warehouses, furniture plants and textile mills closed. More than 60 mostly rural counties face shrinking workforces this decade if trends continue. They need new companies to keep and attract younger generations, which brings us back to the site program.

Shovel-ready

Attracting companies to rural areas involves various strategies. You can focus on building a better-educated, larger workforce. You can offer generous incentives to bring businesses down from Connecticut. But these strategies don’t come into play unless there’s somewhere to put factories. This is the mundane reality of economic development: companies are impatient. They want to execute their plans quickly at “shovel-ready” graded land that they can build on or move into existing shell buildings. Right now, they want water, sewer, power, roads and no environmental problems. This is what the economic development crowd calls

“product,” sites that are good to go. For poor, rural counties, developing product can be overwhelming.

This is what Golden LEAF officials, including new president Scott Hamilton, heard in 2020 when they started working on a five-year strategic plan. One urgent message from across the state was the need for immediate help in creating product. Two of the plan’s five strategic priorities addressed this issue: Improve the competitiveness, capacity and vitality of targeted communities, and increase job creation and economic investment in rural, distressed, tobacco-dependent communities. So they decided to do something to help.

The new site program awarded about $5 million in December and will distribute another $5 million early this year. It’s not a ton of money, but it’s a start. “We think it looks really good on paper,” Hamilton says. “Let’s find out how it works.”

Eleven of the 19 applications received last year were funded by the program, which has three parts. The first is site identification because “some rural counties are going to say, ‘We don’t even have a site,’” Hamilton says. With all the talk about what can be done to help rural communities, it seems the first rung is often missing.

Another category is due diligence. The county may have identified sites, but further work is needed to check environmental problems, topography, and power, water and sewer capacity.

▲ Chairman and CEO at Flow Automotive Companies, Don Flow

Then there’s the third part: site development. “A community may say we’ve done all that, but it would be really good if we could get this site cleared or grubbed, and maybe a little rough grading on it,” says Hamilton. When prospects come for a visit, he wants them to see more than stumps and scrub.

“We can then also extend water, sewer to it. Or we might be able to punch a little driveway into the road, so that when the consultant comes, they don’t have to pull onto the curb and hope they don’t get hit by a passing car.”

Hamilton worked as an economic developer in Henderson and Caldwell counties before becoming executive director of the multistate Appalachian Regional Commission.

Golden LEAF is more likely to fund infrastructure if a county can show that there is interest from companies, including how many inquiries have been received. That’s what Hamilton wants to know.

The foundation also wants to know that there’s a marketing budget. There’s no sense finding, vetting and prepping a site if the locals aren’t going to beat the drum.

Other players

The state has other players in rural site development. The N.C. Department of Commerce has a Rural Economic Development Division that provides technical and financial support for site infrastructure. The division, in conjunction with the Rural Infrastructure Authority, awarded $28.4 million in grants in 2021, according to spokesman David Rhoades. One example is a $3.7 million grant to provide infrastructure for Robeson County’s new industrial park in Lumberton, which announced its first tenant in June. Duke Energy, the electric co-ops, the North Carolina Railroad and regional organizations also have roles.

Golden LEAF works closely with each of those groups. In big projects, the foundation is typically involved with the Commerce Department, Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina and the community colleges. Getting along with everyone is in the Golden LEAF DNA. A strategic plan priority says that the foundation will be known for excellence in “organizational collaboration.”

Golden LEAF typically brings in other funders to enlist their help with its Community Grants Initiative and other programs. The goal is to make sure “that we’re not doing it out here on an island,” Hamilton says. “They know what our priorities are and how they can help leverage this initiative to move the needle even more.”

In site development, Golden LEAF can help leverage state funds for a site. The foundation has engaged Cary-based engineering firm WithersRavenel and South Carolina-based site selection consultant Strategic Development Group to assist

with the program.

Response to the effort has been very positive, according to Don Flow, who became Golden LEAF’s chairman in December after leading the programs committee.

“A lot of [communities] actually have vacant land,” says Flow, CEO of Winston-Salem-based Flow Automotive, which runs 45 vehicle dealerships. “North Carolina’s on a lot of people’s radar right now for new plants, and all that’s happening.” So Golden LEAF was interested in coming up with something “catalytic,” as Flow put it.

“These aren’t just all megasites we’re talking about. One hundred acres in a county could change that county in terms of sustainable jobs,” he says. “One hundred jobs turns into 400 jobs. Very meaningful. And as we look at reshoring of manufacturing, there’s a lot of opportunities for us, particularly in the food production side.”

The St. Pauls story

Murchison “Bo” Biggs, who just completed two years as chair of the 15-member Golden LEAF board, comes from a prominent Lumberton business family. His family’s K.M. Biggs, which owns shopping centers, timberland and farms, has weathered the economic cycles of the past 120 years, going back to the opening of Kenneth Murchison Biggs’

▲ Murchison “Bo” Biggs just completed two years as chair of the Golden LEAF board.

mercantile establishment in 1903.

Biggs is passionate about the board’s work because he has seen the impact up close in Robeson County, among the most economically distressed N.C. counties. It lost more than 17,000 residents in the past decade. He is fond of telling the story of St. Pauls and the chicken plant.

There were 600 acres outside the little Robeson town, a couple of miles west of where Interstate 95 briefly notices St. Pauls on its way between New York and Miami. Local officials called the land an industrial park, but it was really a dirt road and soybean fields.

In 2004, Golden LEAF provided funding to get the site certified by the state. That’s a Commerce Department program that provides details about the property to site selection consultants and companies. In 2010, Golden LEAF provided more than $500,000 to add a sewer line.

Lumberton’s local paper, the Robesonian , wrote, “... [E]verything’s been building, building, building...waiting for the sewer.” If you want to understand the difference between wealthy urban and not-wealthy rural North Carolina, it is what that reporter wrote.

About five years later, Laurel, Miss.-based poultry giant

Sanderson Farms was looking for a site for a new plant. “Well, guess what?” says Biggs. “The site was ready to go.”

Sanderson put in a $150 million investment with more than 1,100 jobs. It was one of the largest industrial projects in Robeson history. (Continental Grain and Cargill are buying Sanderson for $4.5 billion.) St. Pauls, which saw its cotton mills shut down in the 1990s, had to upgrade its utilities. Golden LEAF stepped up with more than $800,000. Because the utilities were available, the town attracted a new Pepsi distribution center nearby in 2016.

“We did the site,” Biggs says. “We got a looker in a Tier 1 poor county, and they’ve got $155 million worth of tax base down there right now.”

“This is what made me a believer that we needed a permanent site development program within Golden LEAF instead of an initiative every so [often] and go do something else.” ■

Veteran journalist Dan Barkin went to high school in Newton, Mass., arrived in the South for college in 1971 and moved to North Carolina in 1996. He can be reached at dbarkin53@gmail.com.

BUILDING NORTH CAROLINA’S FUTURE WORKFORCE BEGINS WITH EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION

This is the sixteenth in a series of informative monthly articles for North Carolina businesses from PNC in collaboration with BUSINESS NORTH CAROLINA magazine.

Editor’s note: When Business North Carolina recently asked Jim Hansen, PNC regional president for Eastern Carolinas, and other influential business leaders to share their thoughts on the state’s business landscape for Business North Carolina’s 40th anniversary issue, he reflected on the state’s growth and hunger for excellence. In the article that follows this reflection below, Hansen and Weston Andress, PNC regional president for Western Carolinas, discuss why early childhood education is foundational to building the workforce N.C. needs to continue this hunger for excellence and remain competitive in the future.

ONGOING BUSINESS GROWTH SHEDS LIGHT ON EMPLOYMENT CHALLENGES

Few days go by, it seems, without a headline announcing the expansion of a N.C. business or a company’s entrance to the region. What is clear is that N.C. continues to attract opportunities for economic development. Also abundantly clear, says Andress, is that the state’s education system and economy are out of sync – and that N.C. is not poised to deliver a workforce with the skills and talent necessary to sustain this growth.

According to myFutureNC, a statewide nonprofit organization for which Andress serves as an advisory board commissioner, the short-term implications are significant; by 2030, North Carolina is projected to experience a 400,000person educational attainment gap. “As our economy grows, the vast majority of new jobs require more than a high school diploma,” says David Bohm, director of development for myFutureNC. “However, fewer than one-half of North Carolinians ages 25-44 – and even fewer from economically disadvantaged backgrounds – hold a post-secondary degree or high-quality credential.”

Education nonprofit myFutureNC was formed to address this shortcoming, with a focus on developing a vision –from preschool through postsecondary

and the workforce – for a stronger and more competitive state. Foundational to this work is the understanding that high-quality early learning and strong academic progress in early years helps prepare children for future success.

EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION: AN IMPERATIVE FOR WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT

It should come as no surprise that children who participate in high-quality early education programs are far more likely to experience greater educational achievements and strive toward higher vocational aspirations – a premise that has been backed by extensive research, says Hansen.

Also validated by research, says Andress, is the fact that the return on investments in high-quality early education and school readiness initiatives are significant and long-lasting, impacting the health of the economy for generations to come. “Pre-K education is not only essential for helping today’s children and tomorrow’s workforce achieve economic mobility, it’s also necessary for meeting the future demands of our state’s employers,” he says.

What this means in N.C., says Hansen, is that access to NC Pre-K must be improved. “If North Carolina is to remain

competitive for business, expanding access to NC Pre-K is not an option; it’s an imperative,” says Hansen.

EMPOWERING EDUCATORS

Access to NC Pre-K is one thing. Ensuring the state has enough early childhood educators to deliver high-quality instruction is another. In recent years, North Carolina has experienced a significant shortage of early childhood educators, a deficit compounded by labor and health implications of COVID-19.

Local business leaders have demonstrated a commitment to help create solutions. For example, in 2020, the PNC Foundation awarded Central Piedmont Community College two grants totaling $500,000 to support the college’s early education program and help train more Pre-K teachers.

“It will take the efforts of the larger business community to deliver on the challenges North Carolina is facing,” says Andress. “Inequality in early childhood education leads to inequality in ability, achievement, health and adult success. And prevention is more successful and less costly than remediation to close the achievement gap.”

u Through PNC Grow Up Great®, a $500 million, multi-year, bilingual initiative to help prepare children from birth to age 5 for success in school and life, PNC has championed early childhood education causes throughout North Carolina since 2012. For more information, visit www.pncgrowupgreat.com.

REGIONAL PRESIDENTS:

Weston Andress, Western Carolinas: (704) 643-5581

Jim Hansen, Eastern Carolinas: (919) 835-0135

Three

CONTROL FREAKS

years after entering North Carolina, Honeywell has big ambitions in many red-hot technologies.

By David Mildenberg

Suppose 10 years ago Charlotte had the choice of attracting the headquarters of General Electric or Honeywell. Conventional wisdom would have been to favor the iconic GE, known for its manufacturing prowess, massive financial-services arm and reputation for management excellence.

A decade later, Wake Forest University alum and GE CEO Larry Culp is breaking up the fabled conglomerate into three parts, hoping that the sum of the parts exceeds the company’s fading $100 billion market value. (It peaked at about $600 billion in 2000.) While GE lost a third of its value over the last decade, Honeywell quadrupled in value to about $140 billion.

Meanwhile, Honeywell moved to Charlotte in 2018 because CEO Darius Adamczyk viewed North Carolina as a better perch than its previous base in a New Jersey suburb of New York City. At the company’s official opening ceremony in December, Adamczyk said North Carolina and Charlotte had exceeded his expectations. (The pandemic postponed previous opening plans.)

“We hope to fill up this headquarters and hopefully build another building to house more employees,” he said in an interview at the company’s downtown Charlotte offices. “That is our objective. We’ll continue to create jobs here.”

He discounted the notion that Honeywell should be split up along the lines of GE. “We aren’t a company to do something just because other companies are doing it.”

Honeywell “isn’t necessarily a conglomerate,” he said, because each of its businesses relates to automation and control systems. “Whether it’s controlling aircraft, industrial equipment, facilities and other buildings, there is that theme.”

“No. 2, we’ve been a successful company and we’ve done well. No. 3 and most important, we add value at the center whether it’s Honeywell Connected Enterprises, which is our software, or our technology centers throughout the world or our management expertise.

“It is a model that has worked to create shareholder value and a model that customers respect.”

The Poland native joined Honeywell when it bought a company he was leading in 2008. He became CEO in 2017. The company now has about 1,000 employees in Charlotte, most of whom work three days a week at the office and two days remotely. Asked how Charlotte differs from Honeywell’s previous locale, Adamczyk said, “It is pragmatic. It understands the world of business, community and society. It really does a great job balancing those things.”

He also cited the ability of North Carolina’s partisan politicians to come together on business issues as a key factor in attracting Honeywell. The state offered about $42.5 million in incentives while Mecklenburg County and the city of Charlotte provided an additional $46 million.

“It’s a purple state that somehow figures out how to work together. We found that appealing,” Adamczyk said. “Whether you are blue, purple or red, you find out how to get things done to create a thriving city and thriving state.”

“We want to do what is right for business, the community and society. If people remember what team they are on whether it’s city, state or country, I think we will be better off.” ■

▲ Darius Adamczyk

▲ Honeywell's global headquarters is located in downtown Charlotte at the Legacy Union complex.

KEYS TO HONEYWELL’S HOT REPUTATION

Aerospace revenues are expected to grow by 20%-plus annually as demand soars for air taxis and unmanned aerial systems including drones and cargo aircraft.

Demand for energy-efficient buildings is expected to grow by 14% annually over the next six years, a sweet spot for Honeywell.

Renewable-energy projects are multiplying at a 25% annual revenue growth rate, creating opportunities for Honeywell’s performance materials and technology business.

Equipment to improve workflow is growing at a 20%plus clip, benefiting Honeywell's safety and productivity solutions sector.

Future shock

Beyond its basic businesses, Honeywell is taking a leading role in quantum computing, an emerging frontier involving quantum physics to create computers and algorithms that can solve the most pressing problems.

The company’s Quantum Solutions division, which makes computers, merged in November with U.K.-based software company Cambridge Quantum to create a new firm, Quantinuum. Honeywell invested $300 million and owns 54% of the company. In December, it started selling its first offering, a cybersecurity product called Quantum Origin.

Quantinuum is led by CEO Ilyas Kahn, who founded Cambridge Quantum in 2014, and Tony Uttley, who joined Honeywell in 2010 and is based in Broomfield, Colo.

It’s a return to the past for Honeywell, a pioneering computer company in the 1960s and 1970s that sold its mainframe business in the late 1980s. Other companies hoping to cash in on quantum computing include Google, IBM, Intel and Microsoft. ■

FAST FACTS

Third-largest public company based in North Carolina, trailing Bank of America and Lowe’s in terms of market cap

18,000 engineers

35,000 granted or pending patents

70 nations with Honeywell operations

Mission statement: “Make a difference in everything we do.”

Founded by Mark Honeywell in Indiana in 1906

SOME ASSEMBLY REQUIRED

A new incubator expects fast success by tapping NASCAR’s vast talent network.

By Michael J. Solender

Last fall, First Turn Innovations launched as a 5,000-squarefoot incubator aimed at helping early-stage businesses grow by tapping the Charlotte region’s big pool of racing industry engineers, mechanics and others.

A recent shift in NASCAR rules that emphasizes standardized car design will inevitably lessen demand for people who have long made a living in the industry, says First Turn co-founder Kevin Mahl. He is a veteran of more than 20 years in racing as CEO of Cornelius-based Champion Tire & Wheel, which transports equipment for NASCAR teams as they travel to tracks nationally.

“With NASCAR Next Gen coming, there is a lot of intellectual talent that will be displaced,” referring to the racing circuit’s new race cars slated for the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series. “The motivation behind forming FTI is having a place to harness that talent.”

The sport has a multibillion-dollar economic impact across the state but is concentrated in Cabarrus, Iredell and Mecklenburg counties. “Its economic impact is felt far beyond the track,” says Craig Depken, an economics professor at UNC Charlotte. He cites wind tunnels used by engineers and teams in aerodynamic car design, machine and parts fabricators, and coating and paint manufacturers.

Mahl, co-founder Jeff Schultz and five other First Turn partners are offering a variety of services, including marketing and manufacturing space, fabrication expertise and prototyping. Schultz is a former college professor who cofounded and leads a bioengineering firm. He had a chance meeting with Mahl that led to discussions about creating First Turn in space that Mahl owns.

“We’re completely a hardware incubator,” Schultz says. “Mobility, manufacturing and measurement are our three core pillars of focus. This is straight down the middle of what the performancedriven NASCAR ecosystem is good at. We feel like there's a good niche for hardware-based incubators, especially in this area.”

Specialized niche

First Turn’s niche is different from other Charlotte area incubators, which mainly focus on financial technology and SaaS, (Software as a Service), says Schultz. “Hardware is something that a lot of VCs generally stay away from because it doesn't scale as fast as

software. It takes a lot more capital than writing code, and it generally takes more time.”

First Turn has fielded nearly two dozen applications from entrepreneurs in the first few months and is working on nine projects as of early December. Joel Poindexter’s SUP-v, a stand-up paddle board vending system, is one of the initial collaborations. The Cornelius resident had kicked around the concept of a paddle board kiosk that serves recreational areas for years.

He saw benefits in tapping into resources made available by First Turn’s founders. “The network here is much greater than mine,” Poindexter says. “With connections, access to capital, engineering and mentors, it's just a good fit.”

First Turn’s intent is to gain equity in its partners’ businesses, not just act as consultants. “We expect to share in the success of the startups we work with,” Schultz says. “In getting them ready to either launch a business or pitch a Series A [early stage round of fundraising.]” In many instances, that involves receiving warrants, which are options to buy shares at a set price over a specified period of time.

Ultimately the business must fit into the mobility, manufacturing

▲ NASCAR's mandates for its cars create an opportunity for First Turn.

and measurement sphere and be headed by entrepreneurs who are a good fit with First Turn’s leaders, Schultz says. “We don't want to take a position in a company where we don't feel like we have value add in terms of commercial or technical knowledge.”

The organizers arranged a separate equity fund that is managed by LaunchLKN (LLKN), a Mooresville-based nonprofit that pro-

motes entrepreneurship in the Lake Norman area of north Mecklenburg, Iredell and Lincoln counties. “LaunchLKN serves as the general partner and manages FTI Capital to support projects FTI incubates,” says Mark McDowell, a co-founder of the group.

Mahl is a director on LaunchLKN’s board and a member of its investment committee that makes funding decisions.

Mahl has a succinct vision for the firm. “We want to enjoy the successes of where this thing can go,” he says. “That's our motto.” ■

Launching Lake Norman

It took a $500 bar tab to convince Mark McDowell that the Lake Norman area was rich enough with business talent to create an entrepreneur-focused networking hub for those eager to share expertise and fellowship.

Through his business travels as a board member of Canadian earlystage venture capital firm Real Ventures, McDowell had met like-minded business professionals living north of Charlotte interested in expanding their connections and helping fuel area entrepreneurship. “I invited several contacts out for an evening of conversation and offered to pay for beers at Cornelius Drafthouse,” he says. “I encouraged each to bring a friend or two, and more than 60 people showed up. It showed me there is a great desire for people to meet up at the lake.”

After that hefty bar bill, McDowell formed LaunchLKN in 2017 as a nonprofit to support the entrepreneurial ecosystem in the Lake Norman area. “We have about 65 active business mentors,” he says, noting the group focuses on Davidson College students, area entrepreneurs and now, founders of startups sponsored by First Turn Innovations.

LaunchLKN also hosts evening “Infinite Possibilities,” a lecture series every other month on issues such as cryptocurrency, virtual reality and cybersecurity. They have a mailing list of nearly 1,500. “These are great networking events for curious people,” he says. “It’s also where we capture and trap the next great business founders.” ■

▲ First Turn is backing a Lake Norman-area paddle board rental vendor.

GOING GREEN

Sustainability vaults as a key corporate priority.

By Katherine Snow Smith

An electric sign hangs in the concourse of Durham Bulls Athletic Park telling fans about the team’s sustainability initiatives at D-BAP.

“We divert food waste from our kitchens to composting plants versus landfills,” it reads. On popcorn bags, bold black letters read: “The Durham Bulls choose environmentally friendly Eco Select paper, which is 100% biodegradable.”

Sustainability, or living in ways that protect natural resources, has been a buzzword for decades. It’s now become a mainstream theme in the business world as a means of protecting the environment while also helping recruit employees, customers, suppliers and investors.

Recent online job listings showed Levi Strauss in Raleigh hiring a senior director of sustainability at a salary of $200,000 to $250,000. Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek, Ingersoll Rand, Cisco, RDU, and Bayer were seeking people to fill similar roles.

“A number of studies show a trend of employees who want to work somewhere that they think is doing good in the world and where they can feel good about working,” says Heather Beard, executive director of EarthShareNC, which connects businesses and environmental groups. “I used to hear about customers who wanted to know they were buying from a company that is responsible. Lately, I’ve also been hearing companies say their investors want to know about (sustainability efforts) and that they are a responsible company.”

The Bulls compost 10,000 to 14,000 pounds of food waste a month because “it is the right thing to do,” says Dave Levey, the team's food and beverage director.

Here’s a look at sustainability efforts at five N.C. organizations.

Sierra Nevada Brewing, Mills River

Leah Cooper is in her sixth year as sustainability program manager at Sierra Nevada Brewing’s Mills River brewery, which opened 20 miles south of Asheville in 2015. A year later, the site became the first production brewery in the U.S. to achieve Platinum certification for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, a certification system for structures designed and built using sustainable strategies.

Cooper works on a wide range of climate-change mitigation efforts for the Chico, Calif.-based brewer. She evaluates the brewery’s greenhouse-gas inventory, water and energy usage, and waste reduction and builds partnerships with vendors.

“Consumers now want brands with integrity,” she says. “If you are

able to create legitimate programs around sustainability and continue to innovate within those areas, your consumers will appreciate that and keep coming back. It builds a sense of brand loyalty.”

Several sustainability initiatives include reducing cardboard packaging and utilizing a carbon dioxide recovery system. Cooper also worked with American Recycling of Western North Carolina to develop a joint plastics and cardboard recycling center for about 20 breweries and other businesses.

“The vast majority of the projects we implement do have some type of financial benefit associated with them, though it might be hard to qualify as a traditional return on investment,” Cooper adds.

Renfro Brands, Mount Airy

Renfro Brands, which makes two dozen sock brands including Fruit of the Loom and Dr. Scholl’s, established its Corporate Sustainability Task Force in 2019.

“Companies can create a meaningful impact while capturing longterm value,” says Todd Roeder, vice president of vendor services and sustainability. “Whether that’s consumer loyalty, easier manufacturing processes with compliance to new regulations, employee engagement, or attracting and retaining new talents.”

Roeder cites a recent McKinsey Global Institute study that found companies with ongoing environmental and social and governance programs show faster growth and higher valuations than competitors, by a margin of 10% to 20%.

Renfro's initiatives include:

☼ Recycling. Renfro recycles raw materials and packaging.

☼ Carbon emissions. The company continuously studies its transportation program to reduce transit times and emissions.

☼ Socks to stuffing. Employees donated 170 pounds of socks that were broken down and used as furniture filling.

SAS Institute, Cary

Jerry Williams’ first big sustainability project for Cary-based SAS Institute was a 5-acre solar farm in 2008. It generates 1.8 million kilowatt-hours of power a year and marked a groundbreaking alternative energy project in the Southeast, reflecting SAS’ reputation for cutting-edge innovation. “This project really helped drive the growth of the environmental program and helped demonstrate that what we do for the environment also makes good business sense,” says Williams, the chief environmental officer.

When discussing new environmental programs, saving the planet doesn’t necessarily resonate with all audiences, he says. “If you have a bunch of finance people in the room and you need to secure approval for your next initiative, you better be able to talk to the num-

bers, too.” Some investments have a good return, while others may not, he notes.

Williams agrees that sustainability also plays an important role in recruiting employees, vendors, customers and business partners.

“It's becoming increasingly important to all these groups that they are doing business with good corporate citizens. Customer engagement is probably one of the biggest drivers for organizations to develop or implement sustainability departments,” Williams says. SAS has seen a dramatic increase in the number of customer questionnaires used to determine the company’s actions related to climate change and other measures.

“They want more than just lip service. These surveys are quite comprehensive, and customers are looking to see that you are tracking the data and performance of environmental initiatives.”

SAS’ initiatives include:

☼ Solar. SAS has two solar farms and seven rooftop solar installations that generate about 4 million kilowatts of clean energy each year.

☼ Charging stations. The Cary headquarters has about 65 charging stations for electric cars.

☼ Green buildings. About 2 million square feet, or 82% of its office space in Cary, is LEED-certified.

☼ Measuring progress. Smart devices and building management systems measure energy consumption and related emissions.

☼ Bees. Four beehives help bees repopulate across the Triangle.

Crescent Communities, Charlotte

Crescent owns 21,500 multifamily units and has 21 million square feet of office, industrial and retail space built or under construction across 14 markets. Individual investors, mutual funds and privateequity partners want to know companies’ goals and performance toward carbon reduction, says Lisa Richards, who oversees sustainability at the Charlotte-based company.

Hiring sustainability directors “is a trend that’s ramping up rapidly. It’s driven globally and it’s circling down to the Southeast,” she says. Sustainability encompasses much more than sustaining the en-

vironment and monitoring carbon dioxide emissions, she says. “It includes measuring community impact, how we support local nonprofits, how we managed through COVID-19 challenges, and our emphasis on creating a more diverse and inclusive real-estate development community,” she says. The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals cover 17 topics including nutrition, women’s rights and zero carbon, she adds.

Crescent Communities’ sustainability practices include:

☼ Certified green. Crescent’s new buildings seek LEED or National Green Building Standard Certification. Example requirements for certification are efficient windows and doors so HVAC systems are efficiently used and highly reflective roofing materials so that less heating and cooling is required.

☼ Data collection. Last year, Crescent started requiring managers of its multifamily communities to gather data on energy use, water use and waste management. Crescent usually sells the communities it builds after construction is completed, but the company will be able to continue measuring their environmental impact.

☼ Smart landscaping. Plants, green space and natural areas around Crescent’s buildings are designed to have limited irrigation and use native species.

☼ Easy recycling. Cabinets are designed to accommodate space for trash cans and recycling. Most buildings offer valet waste and recycling programs.

Durham County

Tobin Freid was the second government sustainability officer in North Carolina when she joined Durham County in 2008. The first started in Asheville two months earlier. “My position was created when the city of Durham and Durham County adopted a greenhouse-gas emissions reduction plan and decided to create an office to implement that plan,” she says.

Now cities, towns and counties of all sizes have a point person devoted to sustainability. Freid oversees initiatives for county government operations as well as programs that help residents, businesses and organizations in Durham County reduce their carbon footprints. The city, county and Durham public schools account for only 2% of total county emissions, so encouraging others to act is a key role.

Durham County’s sustainability efforts include:

☼ Increasing energy efficiency. Freid oversees a $5 million contract that reduces energy and water use in seven buildings by investing in systems that have a 12-year payback.

☼ Electric car charging. The county opened 12 electric car charging stations in 2012. Last year, the stations were upgraded, leading to 26 port chargers now.

☼ Reducing urban heat islands. The county partnered with several local and state entities to identify specific areas that experience more extreme heat. These “urban heat islands” often need greenspace to reduce heat.

☼ More solar panels and electric vehicles. Durham County is adding solar panels at government buildings and buying electric vehicles to help meet a goal of 80% renewable energy use by 2030 and 100% by 2050. ■

▲ SAS has a solar farm in Cary.

SHIFTING SANDS

State leaders create a “sandbox” to unearth innovative fintech projects.

By Colin Campbell

North Carolina is already a huge force in the financialservices industry with companies ranging from giants like Bank of America and Fidelity Investments to newcomers like Credit Karma and Robinhood Markets.

But many state leaders want it to become an even hotter spot for innovators seeking to test new products and services that would not otherwise be allowed under existing state regulations. That’s the basis for a new “regulatory sandbox” program for financial technology approved by state lawmakers and signed into law by Gov. Roy Cooper in October.

Participants in the program will benefit from temporary exemptions from regulations as approved by a new N.C. Innovation Council that includes representatives of the state’s banking and insurance commissioners, as well as industry leaders and experts. Members of the council were appointed in December, and supporters expect it’ll be up and running to accept applications in early 2022.

The bill doesn’t specify the types of companies that could take part or what types of rules might be relaxed. The definition in the legislation involves “a financial or insurance product or service utilizing new or emerging technology, including blockchain technology.”

“I like it better that way, to encourage whatever may come,” says Rep. Jason Saine, a Lincoln County Republican who sponsored the bill. “We don’t know what’s going to become the next hot product, the next growth product in the economy.”

The idea for the program stemmed from a conversation years ago between Tariq Bokhari, the executive director of the Carolina Fintech Hub and a Charlotte city councilman, and veteran Bank of America executive Cathy Bessant. She is now vice chair of global strategy and based in Paris.

Bessant had heard about a similar initiative in Arizona and thought it might work in North Carolina. Bokhari’s organization helps connect financial-technology startups with existing financial institutions.

Officials wanted to learn from other states and craft a better, more nimble approach. Bokhari sought to ensure “we’re not copy/pasting what someone else did,” and in some states, “it

became evident to me that this is going to fizzle out.”

Arizona’s 3-year-old financial-technology program has a mixed track record, the Phoenix Business Journal reported in October. A total of 10 companies participated, most based outside the state. The programs signal a state’s interest in welcoming startups, but “the benefits they provide are quite modest,” Lee Reiners of the Global Financial Markets Center at Duke University School of Law told the Arizona publication.

A success story in Arizona is Alta Solutions, a startup that helps medical marijuana dispensaries that are not allowed to deposit cash in traditional bank accounts. Alta’s service allows those businesses to pay each other using digital tokens. “The sandbox program allows startup financial-technology companies like Alta to test our product while we obtain licenses and regulatory approval,” co-founder Sarah Wessel wrote in an op-ed. “It provided a degree of certainty as we navigated the road to approval.”

Bokhari hasn’t seen a huge success story emerge from other states’ programs. “Everyone else is brand new at having this,” he says. “It’ll take time. It’ll take a creative group of people out

there hunting for it.”

But if something hits, he adds, “We’ll be global news.”

The Innovation Council will include Commissioner of Banks Katherine Bosken and Insurance Commissioner Mike Causey. Other representatives include professors Doug Hague of UNC Charlotte and Leobardo Diosdado of Western Carolina University, who were appointed by Senate leadership; Lawrence Baxter and Vijay Srinivasan, who were named by Gov. Roy Cooper; and Bokhari and Stephanie Castagnier Dunn, who represent the N.C. entrepreneurial community and were appointed by House leadership. Two other slots are pending.

Other states with sandbox programs put either the attorney general or a financial regulatory agency in charge. Backers of North Carolina’s approach say the diversity of the Innovation Council will make it open to a wide range of ideas while still ensuring consumer protections.

“You’ve got people who are responsible to the public at election,” Saine says. “There are real consequences for those folks if they go way too far out of bounds.”

Businesses can be in the sandbox program for two years, with the ability to get a time extension if needed. Saine says that will allow time for successful participants to seek permanent changes in state regulations when needed.

If the program is successful, North Carolina will build on

its recent track record of attracting financial-technology companies, particularly in Charlotte. The Queen City is the headquarters of online marketplace Lending Tree and AvidXchange, which automates accounting processes. Online stock trading company Robinhood opened an office last year. Fintech is a logical evolution for an international banking hub.

Additional support from state government can help accelerate the sector, Saine says. “You may have the birth of an entirely new industry.”

What the new law says

“The General Assembly finds that existing legal and regulatory frameworks are restricting innovation because these frameworks were established largely at a time when technology was not a fundamental component of industry ecosystems, including banking and insurance," according to the text of the bill.

“Since innovators require a flexible regulatory regimen to test new products, services and emerging technologies, such as blockchain technology, the General Assembly also finds that adopting taxonomy related to blockchain, smart contracts and other emerging technologies into state law would provide legal and regulatory clarification and create a more attractive jurisdiction for businesses and individuals who aim to do business in the state.” ■

OH WHAT A FEELING

The Triad finally got its elephant. Toyota Motor North America chose a Randolph County site over plots in nine other states for a $1.29 billion battery plant. Automotive News called the project the giant automaker’s “first electric vehicle seed.”

Lots more investment, including a Toyota vehicle assembly plant, is expected at the Greensboro Randolph Megasite. Economicdevelopment experts predict additional investment by parts makers and other suppliers. Production of batteries is expected to start in 2025.

State and local leaders offered Toyota a package of performance-based economic-development incentives topping $435 million. Most of the money hinges on hitting targets for investment and new jobs over a 20-year period. It marks one of the largest incentive offers in state history, though it’s less than the $846 million offered to Apple for offices in Wake County and expansion of its Catawba County data center.

About $87 million of the state’s incentives will be through a Jobs Development Investment Grant agreement. The rest will come through community college training initiatives, N.C. Department of Transportation improvements at the site and $40 million from the Golden LEAF Foundation.

Toyota’s decision comes after years of land acquisitions and site preparation at the 1,900-acre site that is about 20 miles south of Greensboro. Jim Melvin, who has led Greensboro’s Joseph M. Bryan Foundation since 1996, spearheaded the land deals to assemble a factory site. It is about 20 miles northeast of Asheboro and near Liberty, population 2,600.

North Carolina is the last Southern state to attract a major automotive manufacturing plant. Various automakers have considered N.C. sites but wound up choosing other states that traditionally offered more generous incentives. State lawmakers revised the rules in recent years by permitting much larger incentive offers.

Toyota operates auto and truck assembly plants in Alabama, Indiana, Kentucky, Missouri and Texas. While it offers hydrogen vehicles and hybrids, the giant Japanese automaker doesn’t

have a plant for fully electric vehicles, a market dominated by Tesla. With EV demand expected to soar, investors valued Tesla at nearly $1 billion in mid-December, compared with Toyota’s $250 billion market capitalization.

The plant will have four production lines capable of producing lithium-ion batteries for 200,000 vehicles a year.

The megasite is a joint venture of the Greensboro-Randolph Megasite Foundation and the Randolph County Economic Development Corp. The N.C. Railroad Co. invested about $35 million to buy more than 50% of the land. A Toyota-Mazda joint venture studied the site in 2018 but picked Alabama.

This time, Toyota said North Carolina’s central location, regional workforce and transportation infrastructure won out.

Electric vehicles make up less than 3% of U.S. auto sales, but they are expected to top 10% by 2025 and 50% by 2030, industry leaders say. Ford and General Motors have announced electric battery plants in Kentucky, Ohio and Tennessee.

News of the Toyota deal leaked in mid-November after the state budget included an incentives provision that directed more than $300 million for an unnamed employer looking at the Randolph site. The budget provision said the project involved at least a $1 billion investment and more than 1,750 jobs. ■

▲Toyota trailed only Volkswagen among global carmakers in 2020 revenue.

▲Toyota plans to make 30 electric vehicle models by 2030.

CHARLOTTE

CHARLOTTE

Angie Vincent-Hamacher was elected board chair of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Hospital Authority, which oversees Atrium Health. The Robinson Bradshaw lawyer is the first woman and person of color to lead the state’s biggest hospital company. She joined the board in 2014.

Charlotte-based industrial-technology company Enpro Industries named Eric

CHARLOTTE

Electric vehicle manufacturer Arrival plans a battery-making plant in Charlotte that’s expected to create 150 jobs. The British company will invest $11.5 million in the plant, which will be its fourth location in the Charlotte area.

Vaillancourt as permanent CEO after he had served in an interim role since August. Vaillancourt will also join the company’s board of directors. He was previously president of Enpro’s Stemco division based in Hartford, Conn.

Dallas-based Lone Star Funds agreed to buy industrial products maker SPX Flow for $86.50 per share in a deal valued at $3.8 billion. SPX Flow spurned a takeover bid from Davidson-based Ingersoll Rand last summer.

CHARLOTTE

Charlotte plans an $11.5 million bridge over the Interstate 277 urban loop, marking an effort to connect the South End and downtown districts. The bridge will be 16 feet wide and feature two 40-foot structural arches that light up at night. Construction will start in 2023 and finish in 2025, two years later than previously planned because of cost, design and traffic concerns. State, local and private sources are paying the bill.

Atrium Health, the state’s largest private employer, had net income of about $886 million during the first nine months of 2021, compared with about $98 million in the same period a year earlier. Most of the profit reflects sharp gains in Atrium’s investment portfolio, which exceeds $7 billion. The company’s investments gained 19% over the year through Sept. 30, while increasing at a 9.2% annual clip over the past five years.

CONCORD

Kroger plans a $100 million fulfillment center in Cabarrus County with plans for 700 jobs over five years. The Cincinnati-based company owns Harris Teeter. The supermarket company is in line for $4.3 million in state and local incentives if it meets investment targets. The site is expected to open in 2024.

CONOVER

Sherrill Furniture is investing $2.9 million to open a custom upholstery production facility in Conover, creating 90 jobs. Founded in Catawba County in 1945, the high-end furniture manufacturer has four other production plants for upholstery and woodworking.

▲ Angie Vincent-Hamacher

WAXHAW

Developer Mel Graham sold the 500acre Club at Longview, which includes an 18-hole golf course designed by Jack Nicklaus, to Concert Golf Partners. Terms were not disclosed. Graham developed the club, which opened in 2003.

EAST

tion will be completed next year on the 387,302-square-foot building, which will anchor a new industrial park at the intersection of U.S. 74 and Interstate 95.

GOLDSBORO

TRIAD

EENS - BORO

EEN - VIL

GREENVILLE

East Carolina University named Robin Coger as provost and senior vice chancellor for academic affairs, effective in July. She is dean of the College of Engineering and professor of mechanical engineering at N.C. A&T State University.

LAURINBURG

Organics recycler NCOR plans to invest $6 million in a Scotland County site and employ 43 over the next five years. It is a leader in the recycling of organic waste materials. Its parent company is American Complete Organics Recycling.

LUMBERTON

Stonemont Financial Group plans a new warehouse and distribution facility here for Elkay, a manufacturer of sinks, faucets and drinking fountains. Construc-

Hosokawa Custom Processing Services is opening a plant in a 50,000-squarefoot building and expects to employ 16 people. The Japanese-owned company makes machines that pulverize compounds into small particles used for toner and other products.

WILMINGTON

Thermo Fisher Scientific completed its $17.4 billion purchase of clinical research company PPD. The Waltham, Mass.-based company will assume roughly $3 billion of PPD’s debts. The deal was announced in April. PPD employs more than 26,000 people in about 50 countries and had revenue of $4.7 billion in 2020.

GREENSBORO

Novalent Biotech raised $11 million in equity funding from 712 investors, according to an SEC filing. The company, which developed a sanitizer designed to inhibit the growth of bacteria or fungi for 90 days, had $7.7 million in revenue in 2020.

The downtown 21-story Wells Fargo Tower was acquired for $30 million in an auction. The buyer is New Yorkbased real-estate company Argentic. The 324,405-square-foot building is home to the corporate headquarters of The Fresh Market and Bell Partners. Previous owner Hertz Investment Group defaulted on loan payments last year.

GREENSBORO

Denver-based airplane maker Boom Supersonic is considering a major plant at Piedmont Triad International Airport. The factory would produce a 205-foot passenger plane that can travel at more than 1,300 mph, twice the speed of today’s fastest airliners. The state has allocated $107 million for improvements at the airport that will support the project.

▲ Robin Coger

LEXINGTON

Allegiant Air CEO Maury Gallagher is the new majority owner of Richard Petty Motorsports, a NASCAR racing team. Petty has had a minority stake since 2010 with Andrew Murstein and Medallion Financial holding majority interest. Gallagher Motorsports is moving to the Cup Series this year with driver Ty Dillon.

HIGH POINT

vTv Therapeutics, a biopharma company specializing in drug development, is laying off two-thirds of its 61-person workforce. The move is part of a strategy to focus on clinical trials for a drug targeting Type 1 diabetes.

WINSTON-SALEM

Truliant Federal Credit Union raised $50 million of capital in a private placement, which it plans to use to make more loans and add services in new and existing markets. The institution said it’s the largest single issuance of secondary capital by a U.S. credit union. The fixed interest rate on the 10-year notes is 3.625%.

PMC Property Group, which converted the former headquarters of R.J. Reynolds Tobacco into a Kimpton Hotel, paid $3 million for the nine-story Wachovia Building that opened in 1911. It’s the fourth downtown Winston-Salem building owned by Philadelphia-based PMC, which has invested $116 million in the center city.

Stan Parker is succeeding Robert Boles as president of the Winston Starts business incubator. Parker will be the group’s fourth

leader in less than two years. Boles became permanent president in July 2020. Winston-Salem auto dealer Don Flow chairs the Winston Starts board. Parker has worked in executive jobs at Hanesbrands, Krispy Kreme and GMAC insurance, while also leading startups.

WEST

GigPro created an app that helps Asheville’s hospitality industry fill last-minute openings for service jobs such as catering and cleaning. It’s intended to address a major labor shortage affecting the area’s growing tourism sector. Founder Ben Ellsworth has more than 20 years experience as a chef.

SHE- VILLE ASHEVILLE

ASHEVILLE

Mission Health started construction on a $62 million behavioral health facility, which was promised as part of an agreement when the hospital system was purchased by HCA Healthcare for $1.5 billion in 2019. The 120-bed facility will add 38 beds for behavioral health patients beyond what’s offered at Mission facilities.

MAGGIE VALLEY

The popular small-town tourist destination in Haywood County is considering new restrictions on where RV parks and campgrounds can be located. Local leaders are trying to balance concerns about the facilities being an eyesore with the need to serve visitors. A public hearing could be held as soon as January.

HENDERSONVILLE

Henderson County’s tax collector has decided to revoke the Kanuga Conference Center’s tax-exempt status because they say the Episcopal Church-affiliated facility hosts “for-profit commercial events.” Kanuga is disputing the decision, arguing that all guests of the center must abide by the “core values” of the Episcopal Church.

TRIANGLE

CHAPEL HILL

The Morgan Creek Capital investment firm raised $61 million as part of a $400 million round for New York-based Geminim, a cryptocurrency platform led by brothers Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss. They gained fame for their dispute over Facebook’s origins with Mark Zuckerberg.

UNC Chapel Hill named astronomy professor Christopher Clemens as executive vice chancellor and provost, the university’s second-highest post. He has worked at the institution for about two decades, including as chair of the physics department. He succeeds Bob Blouin, who had been provost for four years. Clemens reports to Chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz.

DURHAM

ServiceTrade closed on $85 million in new capital, more than double the amount the company has raised since launching nine years ago. The software company plans to expand its product innovations, which allow technicians and commercial service contractors to coordinate with customers and work remotely.

Software startup Kevel, which used to be called Adzerk, raised $10 million in a fundraising round led by Fulcrum Equity Partners. Founder James Avery said the 75-employee company would add about 35 workers in 2022.

CARY

▲ Christopher Clemens

NC TREND ››› Statewide

HILLSBOROUGH

Aerie Pharmaceuticals received $88 million in a commercialization agreement with Japan’s Santen. Aerie produces glaucoma treatments that are approved in Europe. There’s a potential for an additional $77 million if various milestones are reached.

Aerami Therapeutics combined with FoxWayne Acquisition, a special-purpose acquisition company, to go public. Aerami, which raised $22.3 million in November, is developing a drug to treat arterial hypertension.

Phil Harvey, the founder of the adult entertainment retailer Adam & Eve based here, died at age 83. He founded Adam & Eve as part of his graduate thesis at UNC Chapel Hill. He also founded DKT International, a nonprofit focused on contraceptives and HIV/AIDS education.

MORRISVILLE

Professional Builders Supply, a building-materials distributor owned by Capitol Broadcasting since 2017, was acquired by Buffalo Creek, Ill.-based US LBM. Professional Builders opened in 2003 and now has 12 locations and 685 employees in the Carolinas. Financial details of the acquisition were not disclosed. CEO Van Isley will continue to run the company.

RALEIGH

Highwoods Properties sold its headquarters and an adjacent building to investor Dean Debnam for $35 million. Highwoods Properties built the 11-story Smoketree Tower in 1984. Debnam sold his 900-employee Workplace Options business to a New York private-equity company in October.

Empire Properties, a big owner of downtown property, acquired the 11-story

Raleigh Building for $12.37 million. The seller was Stephen Lewis, who bought the property in 1999 for $1.2 million. The building features 10 stories of office space over ground-level retail.

Raleigh startup Opus Genetics, which was founded with a $19 million financing round led by the RD Fund, is starting its third preclinical trial. Opus also received funding from the Manning Family Foundation and Bios Partners. The foundation’s mission is to advance treatments for blinding retinal diseases.

The state budget makes historic investments in the outdoor recreation including more than $500 million in funding for parks, trails and conservation projects. Officials say that outdoor recreation represents one of the state’s fastest-growing sectors.

CARY

Dallas-based NXRT High House paid $93.25 million for a 302-unit apartment complex here, or about $309,000 per unit. The property is near Davis Drive and was built in 1997. It sold for $55 million in 2018 to a New Jersey company.

Epic Games filed a request with the town to demolish Cary Towne Center, with the exception of the Belk department store. A rezoning request includes plans for 2.7 million square feet for office use and 200 hotel rooms. Epic bought the shopping center to accommodate its corporate headquarters.

PINEHURST

Carolina Hotel, which opened in 1901, is renovating its guest rooms, lobby and an outside area. Work on the hotel owned by Pinehurst Resort will be done in three stages in order to limit the impact on guests. The upgrades come in preparation for the 2024 U.S. Open, which will be contested on Pinehurst’s famous No. 2 Course.

For questions or additional information, email powerlist@businessnc.com.

TOP STOCK PICKS FOR 2022

Stop holding your breath; Here they are, the recommendations for best stocks to own in 2022 in Business North Carolina’s annual stock-picking contest. In early December, four experienced North Carolina investment professionals shared their best ideas for three stocks that are either based in the state or have major operations here. Our editor offered three ideas just for fun — but please don’t listen to him.

The pros made their picks in late November, offering a mix of well-known, blue-chip stocks and a few middle-market companies involved in basic industries including construction (Insteel) and packaging (Glatfelter).

Ann Zuraw selected three smaller-cap companies that underperformed last year including Raleigh-based Bandwidth, which cratered more than 50% despite rapid revenue growth. The com-

LAST YEAR’S RESULTS

Take a bow, Christy Phillips. The Franklin Street Partners executive made the best pick in last year’s survey by recommending Advance Auto Parts. The Raleigh-based retailer advanced 51% through Dec. 10 as the nation’s car fleet continues to age and new vehicles remain scarce. She also made a strong pick in LabCorp, which returned more than 40%. She’s recommending both companies again this year.

Ann Zuraw made an excellent pick last year in PPD, which gained more than 40% after agreeing to sell to Thermo Fisher Scientific. The deal closed in November.

Frank Jolley scored with his Cisco Systems recommendation as the networking equipment supplier gained 35%.

Unfortunately, our panel didn’t suggest any of the 10 best performers among N.C.-based stocks during a memorable year for investors. See the adjacent chart for those big winners.

CHRISTY PHILLIPS

head of equity strategies and director of research, Franklin Street Partners Chapel Hill

LABORATORY CORPORATION OF AMERICA (LH)

MARKET CAP: $27.6 BILLION

DIVIDEND YIELD: N/A

LabCorp's earnings per share more than doubled in 2020 as COVID-testing revenue drove outsized demand. We believe the duration of this tailwind from COVID-related revenue is much greater than the market is forecasting, which presents an opportunity for upside earnings surprises. More important, its nonCOVID businesses are recovering and will accelerate as employment and routine doctor’s visits recover. We project the company can earn $23 a share in EPS and deserves a price-earnings multiple of 16 times. Our price target of $368 a share implies an upside of 26% from early December levels.

munications software company is expanding quickly, but investors worry about losses spurred by its aggressive strategy.

Unlike previous years, no stock was picked by more than one adviser. Last year. three folks selected Raleigh-based Vontier, which declined slightly through the 12 months ending Dec. 10. The S&P 500 Index gained 28% in the same period.

Top N.C. gainers

for the 12 months ended Dec. 10

ADVANCE AUTO PARTS INC. (AAP)

MARKET CAP: $15 BILLION

DIVIDEND YIELD: 1.7%

The auto parts retailer moved its headquarters to Raleigh in late 2018, one part of a transformation that began in 2016 with a greater emphasis on do-it-yourself customers, significant technology spending, and better optimization of its supply chain and stores. Advance bought the DieHard battery brand from Sears in 2019, while the number of cars entering the “peak repair” age of 6 years is increasing. That gives Advance attractive growth opportunities, while internal development should boost operating margins. The company is moving toward its goal of achieving pre-tax profit margins of 10.5% to 12.5% by 2023. We expect the stock will trade towards the higher end of its historical price-earnings multiple range of 19 to 20. That suggests a 15% upside.

TENCENT HOLDINGS (TCEHY-USA)

MARKET CAP: $581 BILLION

DIVIDEND

0.4%

Shares of Tencent and other Chinese tech companies suffered in 2021 on negative sentiment and a shifting regulatory landscape in the Asian nation. Below the surface are some advantaged businesses that remain fundamentally sound. Tencent’s portfolio consists of Weixin/WeChat, an ecosystem combining social media, online advertising, and payment networks; Tencent cloud, which could be a significant growth driver; and a gaming portfolio that owns leading titles such as Fortnite, created by Cary-based Epic Games. Tencent owns 40% of Epic. We believe the price-earnings valuation of about 20 offers a compelling entry point for investors. The individual businesses are strongly positioned.

co-founder,

investment officer

Capital Investment Cos.

WALMART (WMT)

MARKET

Last year, I recommended Walmart and took a drubbing. I still love the stock because I’m all about buying the world’s best companies at a discount. Walmart’s real estate, including more than 200 North Carolina stores, is easily worth two-thirds of the company’s current market value. Doug McMillon is the best CEO Wal Mart has ever had. Walmart will top $30 billion in cash flow this year.

president, Zuraw Financial Advisors Greensboro

AVAYA (AVYA)

MARKET CAP: $1.7 BILLION

DIVIDEND YIELD: NA

Avaya offers software that helps make voice, email, social media and other communications work at contact centers, in the cloud or as a hybrid solution. The business is transforming to a recurring revenue and software-oriented model. Management anticipates subscription hybrid growth for large enterprises to grow from $500 million to $2 billion by 2024. Avaya moved its headquarters to Durham in 2020.

NUTRIEN (NTR)

MARKET CAP: $40 BILLION DIVIDEND YIELD: 2.7%

DENTSPLY SIRONA (XRAY)

MARKET CAP: $11.6 BILLION DIVIDEND YIELD: 0.8%

This Charlotte-based company supplies all types of equipment to 600,000 dental physicians worldwide. Revenues will probably hit $4 billion this year with cash flow of $600 million to $800 million. Orthodontics is a rapidly growing niche for Dentsply Sirona, which recently raised its dividend by 10%. Amazingly, in an inflated market, you are buying this stock at a similar price as in 2014.

BANDWIDTH (BAND)

MARKET CAP: $1.8 BILLION

DIVIDEND YIELD: NA

Bandwidth sells cloud-based communications platform services for voice and messaging services. Its communications platformas-a-service sector is expected to grow at a 34% annual pace through 2026. Shares tumbled by more than 50% over the last year through mid-December and trade far below record levels.

INSTEEL INDUSTRIES (IIIN)

MARKET CAP: $738 MILLION DIVIDEND YIELD: 0.3%

This Mount Airy company manufactures steel wire reinforcing products for concrete construction. With an enormous focus on our crumbling infrastructure, this company should have its best year ever. Primary reinforcement for concrete structures will remain super hot, as will concrete pipe reinforcement. Cash flow will probably exceed $100 million. Cash of $90 million and debt of $1.73 million reflect an ultra-conservative approach.

GLATFELTER (GLT)

MARKET CAP: $766 MILLION

DIVIDEND YIELD: 3.3%

Glatfelter is a leading supplier of engineered materials including products used in tea and single-serve coffee filtration, personal hygiene, home improvement and industrial applications. Recent acquisitions sparked revenue growth, while cost pressures hurt profitability. Stable cash flows and a strong balance sheet should support the solid dividend. JOLLEY

managing director and co-chief investment officer

Live Oak Private Wealth Rocky Mount

Nutrien is one of the world’s largest manufacturers and suppliers of potash, nitrogen, and phosphate sold to farmers and agricultural businesses globally. Fertilizer pricing has strengthened dramatically in the past year. Supply disruptions may continue into 2022 and pricing is expected to remain favorable. Longer-term fundamentals are bright as farmers seek improved crop quality and higher yield. Shares are attractively priced at about 10 times expected 2022 earnings.

LENDINGTREE (TREE)

MARKET CAP: $1.5 BILLION

YIELD: N/A

Totally “Dogs of the Dow” idea here, referring to the theory of buying last year’s worst performers. LendingTree declined 59% through Dec. 10, the poorest showing among big N.C. public companies. Houses and cars are selling like hotcakes, which isn't helping LendingTree. But CEO Doug Lebda is a big owner who has turned the company around before. Look for that to happen again.

HONEYWELL (HON)

MARKET CAP: $145 BILLION DIVIDEND YIELD: 1.9%

The Charlotte-based company is diversified with exposure in aerospace, building technologies and performance materials. Earnings have rebounded nicely from a down year in 2020, which was largely COVID-related. Earnings in 2022 are expected to advance by low double digits as the company should benefit from increased infrastructure spending and a recovery in aerospace. Honeywell shares yield 2.0% and offer excellent long-term total return potential.

LOWE’S (LOW)

MARKET CAP: $176 BILLION DIVIDEND YIELD: 1.2%

Buying stocks at record prices is often reckless. Lowe’s shares gained 63% last year and have returned 250% over the past five years. But it’s hard to see what can stop the Mooresville-based retailer. It gets two-thirds of its business from home repairs and renovations, a soaring industry as folks focus on improving their cribs. It also faces less pressure from Amazon than most retailers. Icing on the cake is Marvin Ellison, rated among the 30 best CEOs by Barron’s.

NOVARTIS (NVS)

MARKET CAP: $182 BILLION DIVIDEND YIELD: 4%

Novartis develops and manufactures health care products. It is revamping its corporate structure as it looks to spin off or sell its Sandoz generic drug unit and sell the 33% stake it has held in Roche for 20 years. The result will be a war chest to fund acquisitions. Novartis shares trade at less than 13 times earnings and yield 4.2%. Patient investors get paid to wait in this high-quality company.

OLD DOMINION (ODFL)

MARKET CAP: $41 BILLION DIVIDEND YIELD: 0.2%

The Thomasville-based trucker has been the best N.C. stock over the past five years. Its return of 510% in that period isn’t far behind that of Apple. Last year Old Dominion “only” increased 46%. Expecting continued gains makes one feel greedy. But the company, led by the Congdon family and CEO Greg Gantt, delivers stuff, a great business in an online world. ODFL has 237 service centers nationally. The stock should keep on trucking.

Changing the state’s quirky liquor system churns debate, but lucrative transfers to government coffers repel calls for reform.

By Edward Martin

t’s a sunny Sunday afternoon. Cars cruise the shady streets of the Randolph County village of Seagrove with its pottery shops, some in meticulously preserved late 19thcentury houses, with names like McCanless, Humble Mill and Brooke Haven.

Ninety miles up the road in west Durham, a ballgame is on a television above the bar as drinkers sip $10 raspberry coolers and $9 Smirnoff grape-vodka sodas. It’s cozy, the mirrored shelves a kaleidoscope of familiar labels — Dewar’s White Label blended Scotch whisky, Captain Morgan rum and Southern Comfort whiskey.

The two seem worlds apart, but for North Carolina, maybe not so far.

How North Carolinians buy and drink liquor is up for debate again, just as in the early

20th century when Seagrove was known as Jugtown for its whiskey containers supplied to many of the state’s 500-plus distilleries. Anti-alcohol forces shut down the trade by 1909, devastating the jugmaking trade. It took a couple generations for the community to reinvent itself as a leading capital for craft pottery.

A hundred years later, an annoyed regular stalks out of the Durham bar, grousing that it no longer has his brand. Now, rather than temperance crusaders, it’s legislators, bartenders and owners, distillers, and liquor-industry experts who are increasingly critical of the state’s system for selling and distributing $1.4 billion in alcohol a year.

Much immediate criticism focuses on the N.C. ABC Commission’s contract with a private Missouri company that operates the state-owned central warehouse in Raleigh. In a building the size of a shopping center, forklifts shuffle seemingly endless pallets of liquor. All liquor consumed in the state flows through here.

Several years ago, a state auditor gigged the commission for overpaying LB&B Associates more than $11 million over 10 years to manage this warehouse and distribute liquor. Nevertheless, in July, the state renewed its contract and mandated a new, error-free, balky computerized inventory-control program. Some suggest it occurred at the worst possible time, amid the continuing pandemic.

“Product availability and staffing were already strained, creating additional issues for ABC boards, stores and their customers,” spokesman Jeff Strickland says.

Commission Chairman Zander Guy, a Democrat and former mayor of Surf City, was an early casualty. He resigned in September, citing sleepless nights created by

outrage over shortages from bars, drinkers, legislators and others. In December, Gov. Roy Cooper appointed beverage-industry veteran Hank Bauer to succeed Guy. Agnes Stevens, a senior administrator for several years, left last summer.

Critics say Guy’s departure reflects deeper, fundamental concerns.

The current glitches have hurt the hospitality industry, which accounts for one in 10 Tar Heel jobs. They could help upend the state’s nearly 100-year system of controlled alcohol sales, renewing a decades-long effort to shift greater control of the billion-dollar enterprise to private companies. The result would likely bring the system into a 21st-century economy of more sophisticated technology marketing, while also shedding the Jugtown roots.

North Carolina is one of 17 states that control licensing, tax collection and distribution of alcohol

▲Potters at Jugtown Pottery near Seagrove are shown in a 1938 photo.

“What we have now is archaic,” says Lynn Minges, CEO of the 20,000-member N.C. Restaurant and Lodging Association. Her industry has an estimated impact of $27.3 billion a year, with more than 500,000 direct and affiliated workers. Because of COVID-19, revenue declined 60% in 2020, including sharply reduced alcohol sales. “Our state laws were put in place 80 years ago, after Prohibition, and now we have this complicated system controlled by 180 different local ABC boards. It badly needs streamlining.”

Minges favors “a modernized, private-licensure model, with the state still controlling the permitting and location of retail establishments.” The argument is gaining traction, based on a dozen interviews with restaurant and hotel owners, politicians and others focused on the issue.

N.C. Rep. Tim Moffitt, a Henderson County Republican who chairs the House ABC Committee, says he’s open to privatization of what has become a major industry. There are 439 stores — double the number of N.C. Walmarts — operated by 171 local ABC boards.

“In private industry you hire people who have a business background, but this is a patronage system,” he says. “This is government-controlled, and I happen to believe the government should have a limited number of responsibilities. If you go outside that scope, you break more things than you fix.”

Chuck McGrady, a Republican state representative from Hendersonville, had led efforts to reform the system for years, but he resigned in 2020 without much success on the issue. Lawmakers weren’t swayed by a fiscal report tied to reform legislation in 2019 suggesting state and local revenue from liquor sales would increase to about

We order from a Tennessee distiller, put it on a truck, bring it all the way across the state on Interstate 40 to Raleigh, then put it on another truck and send it back to Asheville.

–Lynn Minges

CEO, N.C. Restaurant and Lodging Association

$715 million within a few years.

Moffitt, who succeeded McGrady in the district, has picked up the effort. “We’re beginning to look at some of the solutions being employed in other states,” he says. Calls for change aren’t new or partisan. Democrat Beverly Perdue, governor from 2009 to 2013, and Republican successor Pat McCrory, who served until 2017, campaigned on selling the ABC system to private businesses. Neither actively pursued the idea while in office.

N.C.

North Carolina is one of 17 states in which all aspects of liquor are state-controlled. The commission regulates beer and wine sales separately from hard liquor. A 2019 state report noted that North Carolina collects more taxes per gallon of liquor sold than any Southern state and ranks fourth nationally. Liquor prices and ABC profit margins are unusually high, while liquor consumption per capita ranks among the lowest in the U.S.

“I’ve talked to a lot of distillers who provide product to many states, and they say our state is one of the most difficult to deal with,” Moffitt adds.

Neighboring Virginia has a similar system but has reported fewer shortages. South Carolina allows private companies to sell liquor and its stores, including those in border booze bastions such as Charlotte’s neighboring York County, have had limited shortages.

The ABC Commission’s Strickland says the North Carolina system operates in a very different fashion than most states. “Local boards carry out the retail operations and own the ABC stores, while in other states, retail operations and stores are operated at the state level.”

A benefit for retaining government control has been to secure a hefty cut of revenue, which supports the state’s general fund and local causes including public libraries and schools. In the fiscal year ended June 2020, the ABC system sent $393 million to the state, while another $105 million was distributed to local groups.

In short, there’s a half-billion reasons to stay the course. And the 2021 fiscal year results are likely to be stronger because liquor sales increased during the pandemic — a trend that continued late last year even with complaints over shortages.

Still, the current control system is unwieldy and inefficient, according to critics, who cite empty shelves and lack of inventory for bars and restaurants. That’s not just the exotic brands — a Glenmorangie 1967 Scotch whisky that retails for $825 per 0.75 liter or a WhistlePig rye whiskey bottle for $275 — but standards such as Jim Beam and Jack Daniels.

Some Queen City bar owners grouse about getting only half their orders or spending hours driving from ABC store to store because brands out of stock at one are available at another of Mecklenburg’s 30 stores.

“You don’t go a day without hearing about supplychain problems,” says Meredith McCormack, executive director of the Raleigh-based Distillers Association of North Carolina, which represents most of the state’s 80 locally owned craft distillers.

Some distillers say they can’t get labels and bottles because of pandemic-related problems. Lack of truck drivers

is another big concern while others decry the inherent inefficiency of a central warehouse system.

“We order from a Tennessee distiller, put it on a truck, bring it all the way across the state on Interstate 40 to Raleigh, then put it on another truck and send it back to Asheville,” Minges says. Similarly, a Charlottesville, Va., distiller that ships to Raleigh cited trucking issues but detailed other gripes. “This isn’t a trucking issue,” he says. “This is an LB&B Associates issue,” referring to the warehouse operator. He declines to be named, citing what he calls a “silent rule” among distillers who say they fear repercussions from the ABC system.

At Southern Distilling in Statesville, co-founder Pete Barger walked through a plant recently where mash awaits distillation in gleaming stainless-steel vats. Like many distilleries statewide, Southern was prompted by government agencies to change directions in 2020. It soon had orders for more than 100,000 quarts of hand sanitizer, just as bars and restaurants were shuttered.

They flocked to ABC stores with predictable results. Consumers rushed to stock home supplies in the early months of the pandemic, says Keva Walton, CEO of the Mecklenburg County ABC system, the state’s largest with $182 million in 2020 revenue and about 330 employees. Sales soared, but when Gov. Roy Cooper lifted social distancing and many other restrictions this year, business rebounded sharply at many establishments.

“We had extraordinarily high consumption during the pandemic,” says Walton, “but when the governor lifted restrictions, it was like a hockey stick. Our numbers for on-premise and mixed-beverages sales jumped something like 123%, and we couldn’t get them as much as they

▲ N.C.-based distillers are facing supply chain issues.

Alcohol

consumption per capita (2015)

State

wanted when they wanted it.”

Strickland says total statewide sales in September, the latest month recently available, totaled $134.5 million, a 42% increase from before the pandemic in September 2019.

Uphill battle

Moffitt and others concede it’s a momentous fight to change a system that dates to the middle 1800s, when counties and towns set their own rules on manufacturing and selling liquor.

By the early 1900s, when Jugtown’s potters were bustling, temperance forces were gaining muscle. They forced a 1908 referendum in which North Carolinians voted two to one to ban liquor. “The sun will rise tomorrow on a state redeemed from the whisky evil,” boasted the Raleigh News & Observer at the time The state barred liquor sales more than a decade before Congress passed nationwide Prohibition in 1920.

Perception of liquor as a moral concern still underlies the existence of the ABC control system in a state whose historic icons — moonshine-running race driver Junior Johnson and evangelist and anti-alcohol advocate Billy Graham — reflect conflicted thinking.

“Many still see alcohol as an evil that needs to be controlled,” says Jim Galyon, chair of the Greensboro ABC board, which oversees 16 stores and $58 million in revenue last year. He’s a staunch defender of state control, as are most local ABC board chairs and CEOs. “We still hear the old joke about going into the liquor store and hoping and praying you don’t see somebody from your church there.”

With the passage of its own prohibition law and the national one, historians say North Carolina gained a

reputation as the nation’s moonshine capital between 1908 and 1933. In the middle of the Great Depression, 38 states — not including North Carolina — ratified the 21st Amendment, ending federal prohibition.

In 1937, state lawmakers created the N.C. ABC Commission that operates in mostly similar ways today.

Three years ago, when Elon University and High Point University polled Tar Heels at the behest of a state legislative watchdog agency exploring privatization, about 52% favored a private system.

“People who were ABC store shoppers, who regularly used them, supported private sales two to one,” says Jason Husser, who heads Elon’s polling. “But the anti-alcohol people who said they never went to an ABC — not sure I believe them — wanted government control.” Avowed nondrinkers favored the state’s prohibition on Sunday liquor sales, though drinkers were split.

The Sunday blue laws are cracking, however. A law that took effect in October allows Tar Heel distillers to sell their own products on Sunday for the first time since Prohibition, while permitting online orders and curbside pickup. Moffitt and Minges say it reflects a needed example of modernization.

The statewide grassroots support for the ABC System, coupled with the influential beer and wine lobby, make strong arguments against privatization. The public needs at least some control over a product that can pose clear danger, they contend.

“We do not think the current system should be dismantled,” says Tim Kent, executive director of the N.C. Beer and Wine Wholesalers Association. Formed in 1936, its members serve more than 18,000 outlets. “It needs to be more efficient and modernized, as events of the last few weeks and months — the shortages and empty liquor

shelves — have demonstrated. But the system has still worked pretty doggone well for a long time.”

The potential for alcohol abuse and underage use justifies close government scrutiny, ABC system advocates say. The state commission spent more than $1.4 million last year on programs combating drinking by those under the legal drinking age of 21.

“I don’t want to disparage our neighbors to the south, but South Carolina has greater numbers of alcohol-related deaths than North Carolina, with half the number of people,” Kent says. Federal statistics show South Carolina has 32.6 alcohol-related deaths per 100,000 residents per year, compared with North Carolina’s 28.9, second lowest in the Southeast, to West Virginia.

Kent says new residents, used to buying liquor along with beer and wine at a chain grocery or drugstore, are behind growing calls for a private system. “People move here and wonder why the liquor system isn’t what they were used to in New York, New Jersey or Massachusetts. Then some end up serving in local and state governments and asking questions that frankly are worth asking.”

Money talks

Many say the deciding factor over the future of the ABC system will be a financial decision. State and local boards have seemingly little incentive to change a system that is taking in $500 million annually for public use. “Regardless of whether distilled spirits are controlled or not, we need to take into account the negative impact it might have on the bottom line for the state,” Moffitt says.

A state budget office report concluded that a sale of the system’s stores and other assets would bring in about $700 million. Another report in 2019 by a legislative division suggested “modernization and streamlining” rather than a major shift. Some suggested changes have since been adopted.

Proponents of privatization say taxes and fees on private sellers and distillers would exceed benefits of the current system. Minges cites an estimate that libraries and alcohol-abuse programs would gain an additional $50 million a year, while the state general fund would take in an additional $166 million.

“At some point, North Carolina won’t be a control state,” Moffitt predicts. “I believe the intractability of our control system and how frustrating it is to operate within it will bring about its own end.” ■

FAST FACTS

11.2%

81%

N.C. ABC stores 433 average profit margin of N.C. stores percentage of liquor revenue sold to general public from ABC stores percentage of liquor revenue from retail business for resale (2016-17)

19%

Graham and Madison

only N.C. counties without ABC system boards

BY COLIN CAMPBELL

As Ed Fitts stands in the grass behind the old Littleton High School, he can still point out where the goalposts stood when he was a high school student playing football on this exact spot.

It’s been more than a half-century since Fitts moved away, first to Raleigh to attend N.C. State University, then to eventually become a successful packaging executive. But he can still picture those fall nights when the entire town gathered to cheer on the Littleton Blue Jays.

In visits home through the decades, he’s watched the high school building fall into disrepair after it closed in the 1970s. He’s watched the Halifax County town’s once-thriving Main Street give way to vacant storefronts as the population dwindled from about 1,000 when he graduated in the late 1950s to about 600 people today.

Fitts and his wife, Deb, would drive past the old school, and “it pulled at the heartstrings and we said, ‘We can’t allow this to just fall apart,’” Deb recalls.

A request to help fund roof repairs for the performing arts center housed in the school’s auditorium ended up pulling the pair back to Ed’s hometown.

The couple are using their personal wealth, business acumen and tenacity to lead Littleton’s resurgence through a series of development projects. They’ve already opened coffee and wine shops and a fine-dining restaurant to draw people downtown. A brewery is under construction next door.

BY

PHOTO

COLIN CAMPBELL

And this fall, they’ll complete a renovation of the old high school, transforming it into a vocational skillsfocused private school called Littleton Academy. They likely won’t stop there.

Packaging prowess

Ed Fitts won’t say how much he’s investing in Littleton. But he hinted that it’s similar to how he’s given back to his alma mater, N.C. State. There, he joined with another famous alum, former DuPont CEO Ed Woolard, to contribute $25 million for the Fitts-Woolard Hall engineering building that opened in 2020. A separate $10 million donation from Fitts in 2005 led to the Edward P. Fitts Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering.

Fitts, 82, grew up in the small town about 90 miles northeast of Raleigh before earning a bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering from N.C. State in 1961. He worked for Hartsville, S.C.-based packaging company Sonoco for decades, eventually promoted to vice president of paperboard packaging.

In 1979, he bought a portion of Sonoco’s operations that manufactured fast-food packaging and renamed it Dopaco. That company had 1,500 employees across nine plants before he sold it for about $100 million in 2004 and retired. Deb Fitts, who grew up in Pennsylvania, had a long career in the pharmaceutical industry, working for Pfizer, AstraZeneca and other companies.

Revitalizing Littleton is the latest phase of the couple’s unorthodox retirement. First, they owned and operated a winery in California’s Napa Valley before selling it in 2019 to former Apple executives.

By then, the Fittses were increasingly feeling the pull toward Littleton. They’d been returning each year to rent a house on Lake Gaston and attend Ed’s high school reunions. With each visit, they ended up with a small project to help the community.

They agreed to help fund new downtown Christmas decorations. They bought and demolished a series of vacant, dilapidated homes that had become magnets for crime. Getting involved with the high school and Lakeland Cultural Arts Center on the old campus was where the couple’s involvement snowballed.

“It was just kind of like OK, we need to save the high school — and if we’re gonna do it we’ve got to live here,” Deb Fitts says “If we’re gonna live here, we need a place to eat. … We just started talking to people. What do you want? What do you need? What do you wish you had?”

▲ Ed and Deb Fitts have opened Main Street Wines, Blue Jay Bistro and Daphne’s Coffee Shop in what were previously abandoned storefronts on Littleton’s Main Street.

FITTS PROJECTS in Littleton

■ New home for the Roanoke Valley Veterans Museum

■ Littleton Academy private school

■ Affordable housing for school staff

■ Blue Jay Bistro

■ Daphne’s Coffee Shop

■ Main Street Wines

■ Demolition of abandoned houses

■ Timber Waters Brewing

■ Downtown art gallery and office space

■ Free Wi-Fi internet

One of the first orders of business was connecting Littleton to the world. They’d see local kids hanging out behind the town hall, and they realized it was a rare place to access free Wi-Fi. Funding through the Ed Fitts Charitable Foundation helped provide gigabit Wi-Fi through the downtown area and adjacent neighborhoods. Now, businesses can easily add a repeater and secure free internet service.

Littleton also needed more community gathering spaces. The town has a major asset about 5 miles to the north — sprawling Lake Gaston, full of vacation homes that draw folks from a wide region. The lake has about 350 miles of shoreline in both North Carolina and Virginia, most of which has residential development.

The town is billed as the “Gateway to Lake Gaston,” but vacationers often had little reason to venture there. They’d pack coolers full of food for the week to avoid the limited options of area grocery stores. As lakefront prop-

erty developed over the years, small commercial districts have sprung up around crossroads next to the lake.

Littleton was getting left behind. But those travel patterns have begun to change in the past year or two. First, the COVID-19 pandemic caused many second-home owners to stay at Lake Gaston full time.

“We are seeing the dynamics change around here pretty quickly,” says Leanne Patrick, who leads the Lake Gaston Regional Chamber of Commerce. “Second homes are becoming more appealing as a primary residence.”

That meant venturing into Littleton at the same time the Fitts family was opening its first two storefronts in early 2021: Daphne’s Coffee Shop and Main Street Wines. Both sought to create community gathering spaces in renovated storefronts that had been vacant or full of junk for years.

The Blue Jay Bistro restaurant next door proved to be a heavier lift. The Fittses had to recruit a chef and manager from outside the area, since there were no comparable restaurants nearby.

They selected Chef Ashleigh Fleming, who’d previously served as executive chef at UNC Chapel Hill’s Carolina Club. She and other key managers were lured in part by the chance to live in lakeside houses owned by the Fittses.

“When we first got started, everybody said, ‘You’re never gonna be able to hire the talent you need. Nobody’s going to want to live in Littleton,’” Deb Fitts says.

About 25 of the 30 employees hired for the Fitts projects are locals, fulfilling a goal of providing local jobs. Servers at the restaurant went through a two-week train-

▲ Ed and Deb Fitts are also known for their multimillion-dollar donations in recent years to N.C. State University. Ed is a retired Dopaco packaging executive.

ing program, and the Blue Jay Bistro opened in August with limited capacity. Reservations were quickly booked weeks into the future. The folks drawn to Littleton for the food, wine and coffee are also stopping by other shops and businesses.

A few doors down, Wanda Clark has run a boutique gift shop called Once Upon a County Line for about five years. Sales doubled in 2020. She has added a second storefront that showcases home furnishings, gourmet food and fresh flowers.

“Before there were only two shops in town, and now there’s about eight,” she says. “The climate is joyful optimism.”

Clark credits the Fitts projects and efforts of the recently formed Greater Littleton Development Partnership. That organization has sponsored community cleanup days and a First Friday outdoor concert series.

Similar projects elsewhere couldn’t work without “gaining the commitment from the town itself,” Deb Fitts says.

“Coming from Littleton has been a plus,” Ed Fitts adds. “They know we’re not here to raid the community, we’re not here to control the community.”

Back to school

The next Fitts projects are the renovation of neighboring buildings on Main Street into an art gallery/office space and the new Timber Waters Brewing Co.

The latter is expected to open in late 2022, but the couple have already bought the brewing equipment and hired a head brewer from a prominent North Carolina brewery. It’ll serve pub food and distribute beer well beyond Littleton.

Those projects seem small compared with the school renovation. The old building was in such a state of disrepair — the Fitts foundation bought it for just $246,000, property records show — that it would have been cheaper to tear it down and start from scratch.

But for Ed Fitts and many Littleton High alumni, it’s worth it to preserve the two-story columned building that dates to 1940. In renovating the gym, workers discovered the old electronic scoreboard hidden in the boiler room. It’s now been restored to its original glory.

Once the school’s auditorium is overhauled, Lakeland Cultural Arts Center — mostly home to community theater performances in recent years — will seat nearly 300 people. Arts boosters expect to book touring groups that could draw fans from distant cities.

“It’s going to just give the community an opportunity

to express themselves but also bring in outside talent that will bring in traffic and tourism,” the chamber’s Patrick says. “It’s going to put Littleton and Lake Gaston on the map as an entertainment hub.”

Littleton Academy will welcome its first students next fall, initially elementary grades only but eventually adding middle and high school grades. The plan is to have nearly a third of the student body receive scholarships to help pay the annual $10,000 tuition.

“The only reason why we need it to be private is so that we have the flexibility to be able to teach the way that children need to be taught,” she says. “And you don’t have that when you’re working with a charter school or public school.”

The school’s focus will be vocational skills, teaching subjects like heating and air conditioning and plumbing that will enable students to find jobs and start businesses without a college degree.

Clark says Littleton Academy will provide a missing education option for families who discovered the area on vacation and want to move to the Lake Gaston area full time. Littleton, which sits on the county line between Halifax and Warren counties, has no schools. The nearest public schools are near Roanoke Rapids, about 10 miles from Littleton and even farther from the lake.

With so many developments occurring so quickly, the atmosphere in Littleton has shifted too.

“The overall general feel is it’s a renaissance,” Clark says. She even notices it in her walks through the town’s quiet neighborhoods. “We used to walk and pick up litter. You don’t have to do that anymore.” ■

▲ Lake Gaston, along the Virginia state line, has long been a popular destination, but until recently visitors often didn’t venture into the nearby town of Littleton.

To identify the 20th class of Business North Carolina’s Legal Elite, Business North Carolina contracted DataJoe Research to facilitate an online peer-voting process and internet research process. This year, about 870 lawyers were selected as Legal Elite.

To learn more about the winners’ personalities, we asked the top 16 lawyers to walk down memory lane and share memories from their first job. Winners’ comments have been edited for length and clarity. Hall of Fame members are listed by their firm at the time of selection unless otherwise suggested.

DataJoe Research is a Boulder, Colo.-based software and research company specializing in data collection and verification, and conducts various nominations across the United States on behalf of publishers. To create the list, DataJoe Research facilitated an online peer-voting process. DataJoe checked and confirmed that each published winner had, at time of review, a current, active license status with the appropriate state regulatory board. If we were not able to find evidence of a lawyer’s active registration with the state regulatory board, that lawyer was excluded from the list. In addition, we checked available public sources to identify lawyers disciplined for an infraction by the state regulatory board. They were excluded from the list. Finally, DataJoe

presented the tallied results to Business North Carolina for its final review and adjustments.

DataJoe and Business North Carolina recognize that there are many good lawyers who are not shown in this representative list. This is a sampling of the huge array of talented professionals in North Carolina. Inclusion in the list is based on the opinions of responding lawyers in the state. DataJoe takes time and energy to ensure fair voting, although the company understands that the results of this survey nomination and internet research campaign are not an objective metric.

Disclaimers: DataJoe uses best practices and exercises great care in assembling content for this list. DataJoe does not warrant that the data contained within the list are complete or accurate. DataJoe does not assume, and hereby disclaims, any liability to any person for any loss or damage caused by errors or omissions herein whether such errors or omissions result from negligence, accident, or any other cause. All rights reserved. No commercial use of the information in this list may be made without written permission from DataJoe.

For research/methodology questions, contact the research team at surveys@datajoe.com.

ANTITRUST

ANTITRUST

DHAMIAN BLUE, Blue LLP, Raleigh; James L. Cobb, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Denise M. Gunter, Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP, Winston-Salem; Lawrence C. Moore III, Robinson Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte; John A. Price, Calhoun Bhella & Sechrest LLP, Durham; Gregory Lee Skidmore, Robinson Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte

HALL OF FAME: Matthew W. Sawchak, Ellis & Winters LLP, Cary (2002, 2003); Rodrick J. Enns, Enns & Archer LLP, Winston-Salem (2004); Larry B. Sitton, Smith Moore LLP, Greensboro (2005); Everett J. Bowman, Robinson, Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte (2006 ); Douglas Wayne Kenyon, Hunton & Williams LLP, Raleigh (2007); Mark W. Merritt, Robinson, Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte (2008); Mark J. Horoschak, Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice PLLC, Charlotte (2009); Jennifer K. Van Zant, Brooks, Pierce, McLendon, Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro (2010); Catharine B. Arrowood, Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP, Raleigh (2011); Jonathan Heyl, Smith Moore Leatherwood LLP, Charlotte (2012); Noel L. Allen, Pinnix & Nichols PA, Raleigh (2013); John F. Graybeal, Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP, Raleigh (2014); Press Millen, Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice PLLC, Raleigh (2015); W. Andrew “Andy” Copenhaver, Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice PLLC, Winston-Salem (2016); Stephen Feldman, Ellis & Winters LLP, Raleigh (2017); Brad Evans, Ward and Smith PA, Greenville (2018); Henry “Hal” L. Kitchin Jr., McGuire Woods LLP, Wilmington (2019); Brian Hayles, Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP, Charlotte (2020); Alan Duncan, Turning Point Litigation, Greensboro (2021)

APPELLATE

MICHELLE D. CONNELL, Fox Rothschild LLP, Raleigh; Norris Arden Adams II, Essex Richards PA, Charlotte; Julia Christine Ambrose, Brooks Pierce McLendon Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Raleigh; Jaye Elizabeth BinghamHinch, North Carolina Court of Appeals, Raleigh; Christopher Anderson Brook, Patterson Harkavy LLP, Chapel Hill; Adam Howard Charnes, Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP, Winston-Salem; Angela Farag Craddock, Young Moore and Henderson PA, Raleigh; Alexander C. Dale, Ward and Smith PA, Wilmington; Robert H. Edmunds Jr., Fox Rothschild LLP, Greensboro; Edward Staples Garrett, Legal Aid of North Carolina Inc., Charlotte; Martha A. Geer, Milberg Coleman Bryson Phillips Grossman PLLC, Raleigh; Robert Daniel Gibson, Stam Law Firm PLLC, Apex; Bonnie Keith Green, The Green Firm PLLC, Charlotte; K. Edward Greene,

Dhamian Blue

Blue LLP, Raleigh

Hometown: Raleigh

Education: Enloe Magnet High School, Duke University, Duke Law School

Family: I have a wife of 14 years, Jenna. She is also an attorney. I also have two daughters, Kelsey, 9, and Leni, 7.

First job: Chuck E. Cheese Pizza in Raleigh

What he’d be if not a lawyer: I have absolutely no idea.

Why he chose to specialize in this field: I focus my practice on commercial litigation and federal criminal defense. I believe that businesses and consumers alike should be

Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Ann Patton Hornthal, Roberts & Stevens PA, Asheville; Alicia Dawn Jurney, Smith Debnam Narron Drake Saintsing & Myers LLP, Raleigh; Patrick Michael Kane, Fox Rothschild LLP, Greensboro; J. Blakely Kiefer, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; James W. Kilbourne Jr., Allen Stahl + Kilbourne, Asheville; John Joseph Korzen, Wake Forest Law, Winston-Salem; Michelle Ann Liguori, Ellis & Winters LLP, Raleigh; Jonathan G. McGirt, North Carolina State Bar-Legal Specialization, Raleigh; Allison Overbay Mullins, Turning Point Litigation/ Mullins Duncan, Greensboro; Kip David Nelson, Fox Rothschild LLP, Greensboro; Preston O. Odom III, James McElroy Diehl PA, Charlotte; David S. Pokela, Nexsen Pruet PLLC, Greensboro; Elizabeth Brooks Scherer, Fox Rothschild LLP, Raleigh; Troy Shelton, Fox Rothschild LLP, Raleigh; Mark Russell Sigmon, Sigmon Law PLLC, Raleigh; D. Martin Warf, Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP, Raleigh; John R. Wester, Robinson Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte

HALL OF FAME: Matthew Nis Leerberg, Smith Moore Leatherwood LLP, Raleigh (2018); Toby Hampson, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP / N.C. Court of Appeals,

treated fairly in the marketplace. I devote a substantial amount of my practice to federal criminal defense work because our criminal justice system only functions properly when the government is held to its burden.

Best advice you ever received: Adapt to change.

Favorite place in town: My home. It’s peaceful, relaxing and where I spend most of my time with my family.

Favorite vacation spot: Figure 8 Island. I’ve had wonderful times there with my family.

Favorite book: I recently read John Thompson’s autobiography, I Came As a Shadow. He’s an excellent storyteller, and his impact on young Black men and college basketball was profound.

Favorite movie: I have too many to name.

Raleigh (2019); Drew Erteschik, Poyner Spruill LLP, Raleigh (2020); Beth Brooks Sherer, Fox Rothschild LLP, Raleigh (2021)

BANKRUPTCY

REBECCA FINCH REDWINE, Hendren Redwine & Malone PLLC, Raleigh; Rayford K. Adams III, Spilman Thomas Battle PLLC, Winston-Salem; Charles N. Anderson Jr., Ellis & Winters LLP, Raleigh; Brian Richard Anderson, Fox Rothschild LLP, Greensboro; James B. Angell, Howard Stallings From Atkins Angell & Davis PA, Raleigh; David R. Badger, David R Badger PA, Charlotte; Paul Rudd Baynard, Offit Kurman Attorneys at Law, Charlotte; Laurie Beth Biggs, Stubbs Perdue PA, Raleigh; John C. Bircher III, Davis Hartman Wright PLLC, New Bern; Nicholas Conan Brown, Ask LLP, St. Paul; William E. Burton III, Fox Rothschild LLP, Greensboro; Algernon L. Butler III, Butler & Butler LLP, Wilmington; James O. Carter, Carter & Carter PA, Wilmington; Clayton W. Cheek, The Law Offices of Oliver & Cheek, PLLC, PLLC, New Bern; David H. Conaway, Shumaker Loop & Kendrick LLP, Charlotte; Richard Preston Cook, Richard P Cook PLLC, Wilmington; Stacy C. Cordes, Cordes Law PLLC, Charlotte; John Paul Hughes Cournoyer, Northen Blue LLP, Chapel Hill; Robert A. Cox Jr.,

APPELLATE

Michelle D. Connell

Fox Rothschild LLP, Raleigh

Hometown: Cary

Education: Cary High School; UNC Chapel Hill; Wake Forest University School of Law

Family: My grandparents immigrated from Greece. Their last name was Baraktaris, but when they settled in Raleigh and wanted to open a restaurant downtown, Papou (grandfather) could not spell his name. He learned to write “Davis” from a sign for the local laundry. So our last name became Davis. My dad was one of 12 children. I have two smart, hilarious, kind, adult sons who are better than me in every respect. One is an IT guy (so I don’t understand anything he does); the other is a divorce lawyer in Seattle (so, unfortunately, I understand everything he does). I am married to John Connell, former clerk of court of the N.C. Court of Appeals. I have three awesome stepsons. I have a very sweet, earnest rescue dog with nine teeth.

First job: My first job was at a women’s clothing store in Chapel Hill called Tweed & Tartan. It was relatively high-end clothing that I could not afford, even with my employee’s discount. Dealing with customers, I learned that the adage “the customer is always right” is a concept — not reality. It taught me that people can be difficult, but you don’t have to respond defensively or be unkind. It taught me that sometimes people take their frustrations out on you even when you had nothing to do with the source of their anger. It taught me that you can be kind in your honest opinion. I learned that you can burn a hole in silk with a steamer in a matter of seconds. I learned

that credit cards can be rejected and getting a paycheck provides a sense of pride. I learned we humans are weird, frail, complex little creatures.

What she’d be if not a lawyer: I used to say I’d be a Rockette or would work at ESPN. Recently, I’ve realized that I’d like to be a professional organizer. I love cleaning up and organizing chaos.

Why she chose to specialize in this field: I am a specialist in both appellate and family law. I started practicing family law in the appellate courts in 1998. I am a family law attorney at my core. I don’t know any other practice of law from which I could have as much fulfillment. It’s both gratifying and humbling. I chose to specialize in appellate because I love the purity of the practice; it’s all about the law, no drama. I also love research and writing. I double-majored in psychology and English, so my two areas of specialization fit my majors.

Best advice you ever received: Life is not a dress rehearsal. Be who you want to be — not what you think others want you to be. I didn’t understand it until late in life, but fortunately, it finally resonated.

Favorite place in town: My backyard. It’s small, full of beautiful plants and green astro-turf, which is surprisingly realistic. There are seats in a circle for friends to drop by, white twinkle lights and 100-year-old oak trees all around.

Favorite vacation spot: Vacation? I haven’t taken a vacation in years. But I love the beach. The ocean is calming and cathartic to me.

Favorite book: Stoner by John Williams, written in 1965. It is about the life of a man who grew up on a farm and became a college professor. It’s an extraordinary story about an ordinary life.

Favorite movie: The American President Annette Benning reminds me of myself. In spite of her professional polished facade, she sticks her foot in her mouth and generally makes fun of herself.

Passions: Animals. I am board chair for the SPCA of Wake County. I love playing golf, but it is not quite a passion — not until I retire.

Hamilton Stephens Steele + Martin PLLC, Charlotte; Brian D. Darer, Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP, Raleigh; David R. DiMatteo, Essex Richards PA, Charlotte; Damon Terry Duncan, Duncan Law PLLC, Greensboro; Terry M. Duncan, Duncan Law PLLC, Charlotte; Albert F. Durham, Rayburn Cooper & Durham PA, Charlotte; David L. Eades, Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Charlotte; Paul A. Fanning, Ward and Smith PA, Winterville; Joseph Zachary Frost, Buckmiller Boyette Frost PLLC, Raleigh; Cole Hayes, Hayes Law, Charlotte; Jason L. Hendren, Hendren Redwine & Malone PLLC, Raleigh; Luis Manuel Lluberas, Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Charlotte; Michael Leon Martinez, Grier Wright Martinez PA, Charlotte; Pamela W. McAfee, Campbell University School of Law, Raleigh; Jack Miller, Rayburn Cooper & Durham PA, Charlotte; Clinton Shepperd Morse, Brooks Pierce McLendon Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro; Jeffrey E. Oleynik, Brooks Pierce McLendon Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro; George Mason Oliver, The Law Offices of Oliver & Cheek, PLLC, PLLC, New Bern; Benson Thomas Pitts, North Carolina State Bar, Asheville; Alan W. Pope, Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Charlotte; Richard Abbitt Prosser, Womble Bond Dickinson (US) LLP, Raleigh; Melanie Dawn Johnson Raubach, Hamilton Stephens Steele + Martin PLLC, Charlotte; Matthew Scott Roberson, McGuire Wood & Bissette PA, Asheville; Ciara L. Rogers, The Law Offices of Oliver & Cheek, PLLC, PLLC, New Bern; Travis P. Sasser, Sasser Law Firm, Cary; Philip M. Sasser, Sasser Law Firm, Cary; David M. Schilli, Robinson Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte; Kevin Sink, Waldrep Wall Babcock & Bailey PLLC, WinstonSalem; John H. Small, Brooks Pierce McLendon Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro; Zachary H. Smith, Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Charlotte; William C. Smith Jr., Manning Fulton & Skinner PA, Raleigh; Glenn Clark Thompson, Hamilton Stephens Steele + Martin PLLC, Charlotte; Landon Glenn Van Winkle, Smith Debnam Narron Drake Saintsing & Myers LLP, Raleigh; Joseph Jude Vonnegut, Hutchens Law Firm LLP, Fayetteville; Thomas William Waldrep Jr., Waldrep Wall Babcock & Bailey PLLC, Winston-Salem; Cortney Ian Walker, Sasser Law Firm, Cary; Jill Christine Walters, Womble Bond Dickinson (US) LLP, Raleigh; Matthew Patrick Weiner, Poyner Spruill LLP, Raleigh; Margaret R. Westbrook, K&L Gates LLP, Raleigh; A Cotten Wright, Grier Wright Martinez PA, Charlotte

HALL OF FAME: J. Michael Booe, Kennedy Covington Lobdell & Hickman LLP,

Rebecca Finch Redwine

Hendren, Redwine & Malone PLLC, Raleigh

Hometown: Oxford

Education: Kerr-Vance Academy; N.C. State University; UNC School of Law

Family: Married to Philip Redwine Jr. for 16 years with two boys, Finch,7, and Whitford,5

First job: My first job was a “sandwich artist” at a Subway in Oxford at age 17. I remember being entirely stressed out my first day trying to learn how to enter a combo order on the cash register, and I was fascinated that there was a precise amount of tomato slices you’re supposed to put on a sandwich. The store was located around the corner from the Revlon makeup factory. When a shift would let off, there would be a run of customers. I learned that after working in a factory all day, how a sandwich is made becomes very important. I interacted with people who were mean and people who were kind and everything in between. I learned that standing all day can be exhausting, even when wearing comfortable shoes. I learned that having someone smile can make you happier and feel respected. I learned that cleaning a public restroom is not awesome. I learned small talk can make a difference, and you can’t wash the onion smell out of a shirt that spends eight hours a day in a sandwich shop. Looking back on it, that fast-food job taught me so much about how to interact with people.

What she’d be if not a lawyer: A Walmart greeter. You get to say hello to everyone, and there’s no email.

Why she chose to specialize in this field: I love that the remedy of Chapter 11 is available to all types of businesses and individuals, from hog farms to hotels to heart surgeons. Being able to provide a solution and a path forward for a client, who felt hopeless before walking into our office, is the most rewarding part of the field.

Best advice you ever received: It’s OK if you mess up. We can probably fix it.

Favorite place in town: My back porch. It holds over 12 years of memories of impromptu get-togethers and lazy afternoons. Sitting out there on a Saturday morning with a cup of coffee before my circus wakes up is unbeatable.

Favorite vacation spot: Emerald Isle at Thanksgiving. My entire family usually rents a beach house there for Thanksgiving week. We order everything except the turkey. We cook the turkey, drink mimosas and spend the day enjoying being outside, not worrying if the table, or anything else, looks perfect.

Favorite book: The Know It All by A. J. Jacobs. It’s about a man’s mission to read the entire Encyclopedia Britannica. It’s funny and reminds me that I may be one of the last generations who actually had an encyclopedia set.

Favorite movie: Steel Magnolias because the entire movie is just one, long, entirely perfect quote.

Passions: My family. I am beyond lucky to be a member of a family who laugh as hard as they love. I also am passionate about exercise — not for my health, but for my sanity and for gossiping with dear friends at 5 a.m. Lastly, Duke’s Mayonnaise — there’s no other acceptable option.

Charlotte (2002, 2003); Gregory B. Crampton, Nicholls & Crampton PA, Raleigh (2004); Richard M. Hutson II, Hutson Hughes & Powell PA, Durham (2005); C. Richard Rayburn Jr., Rayburn Cooper & Durham PA, Charlotte (2006); Terri L. Gardner, Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP, Raleigh (2007); John A. Northen, Northen Blue LLP, Chapel Hill, (2008); Holmes P. Harden, Williams Mullen, Raleigh (2009); Christine Myatt, Nexsen Pruet LLC, Greensboro (2010); Gerald A. “Jeb” Jeutter Jr., Gerald A. “Jeb” Jeutter Jr. Attorney at Law PA, Raleigh (2011); Kenneth M. Greene, Carruthers & Roth PA, Greensboro (2012); Trawick H. “Buzzy” Stubbs Jr., Stubbs & Perdue PA, New Bern (2013); Benjamin Kahn, Nexsen Pruet LLC, Greensboro (2014); James S. “Charlie” Livermon, Poyner Spruill LLP, Rocky Mount (2015); Richard S. Wright, Moon Wright and Houston PLLC, Charlotte (2016); Heather W. Culp, Essex Richards PA, Charlotte (2017); William P. Janvier, Janvier Law Firm PLLC, Raleigh (2018); Richard D. Sparkman, Richard D. Sparkman & Associates PA, Angier (2019); George Sanderson, The Sanderson Law Firm PLLC, Raleigh (2020); John “Woody” C. Woodman, Essex Richards PA, Charlotte (2021)

BUSINESS

DANIEL STEPHEN TRIMMER, Skufca Law PLLC, Charlotte; Thomas A. Allen, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Beth F. Atkins, Howard Stallings From Atkins Angell & Davis PA, New Bern; Taylor Craig Auten, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Samuel Eric Bass, Venn Law Group, Charlotte; Brian Carl Bernhardt, Forrest Firm PC, Charlotte; Stephen B. Brown, Investors Title Insurance Co., Chapel Hill; Dorothy Bass Burch, Ragsdale Liggett PLLC, Raleigh; Michael A. Burger, NC Planning, Cary; Steven Carr, Ellinger & Carr PLLC, Raleigh; Kenneth G. Carroll, Morningstar Law Group, Raleigh; Ryan William Coffield, The Van Winkle Law Firm, Asheville; Jonathan “Jon” T. Coffin, Johnston Allison & Hord PA, Charlotte; David Prince Creekman, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; John M. Cross Jr., Brooks Pierce McLendon Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro; Anne Elizabeth Croteau, McGuireWoods LLP, Raleigh; C. Joseph DelPapa, Ward and Smith PA, Raleigh; Kenneth E. Eheman Jr., Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Joseph A. Fernandez, Dun & Bradstreet Inc., Charlotte; Milton Heath Gilbert Jr., Baucom Claytor Benton Morgan Wood PA, Charlotte; Garland G. Graham, Schell Bray PLLC, Greensboro; Joseph W. Grier III, Grier Wright Martinez PA, Charlotte; William B. Gwyn Jr., Manning Fulton & Skinner PA, Raleigh; Benjamin David Hicks, Wagner Hicks, Charlotte; Steven A. Hockfield, Erdman and Hockfield LLP, Charlotte; Daryl Lee Hollnagel, Shumaker

Loop & Kendrick LLP, Charlotte; Nathan M. Hull, Hull Chandler PA, Charlotte; Hilton T. Hutchens, Hutchens Law Firm LLP, Fayetteville; Gregory D. Hutchins, Roberts & Stevens PA, Asheville; Gene A. Jones Jr., Morningstar Law Group, Raleigh; Jeffrey Masaaki Kelly, Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP, Raleigh; J. Nicholas “Nick” Kendall, Johnston Allison & Hord PA, Charlotte; April Epley Kight, Schell Bray PLLC, Greensboro; Ben E. Klein, Sigmon Klein PLLC, Greensboro; Stephen F. Later, Robbins May & Rich LLP, Pinehurst; David K. Liggett, Ragsdale Liggett PLLC, Raleigh; J. Christopher Lynch, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Stephen H. Morris, Essex Richards PA, Charlotte; Joshua James Otto, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Donald R. Reynolds, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; David S. Rugani, Johnston Allison & Hord PA, Charlotte; Kieran J. Shanahan, Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP, Raleigh; James B. Snow III, Hogue Hill LLP, Wilmington; Bettie Kelley Sousa, Smith Debnam Narron Drake Saintsing & Myers LLP, Raleigh; Joseph H. Stallings, Howard Stallings From Atkins Angell & Davis PA, Raleigh; Franklin Scott Templeton, Robinson & Lawing LLP, Winston-Salem; Jonathan Charles Windham, Essex Richards PA, Charlotte; Jeffrey Robert Wolfe, Schell Bray PLLC, Greensboro; Robert B. Womble, K&L Gates LLP, Raleigh; Bradley Wooldridge, Manning Fulton & Skinner PA, Raleigh

HALL OF FAME: Russell M. Robinson II, Robinson, Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte (2002;2003); Doris R. Bray, Schell Bray PLLC, Greensboro (2004); J. Norfleet Pruden III, Kennedy Covington Lobdell & Hickman LLP,

Charlotte (2005); William M. Flynn, Hunton & Williams LLP, Raleigh (2006); Robin L. Hinson, Robinson, Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte (2007); Peter C. Buck, Robinson, Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte (2008); Gerald F. Roach, Smith, Anderson, Blount, Dorsett, Mitchell & Jernigan LLP, Raleigh (2009); Mark Davidson, Brooks, Pierce, McLendon, Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro (2010); Stephen M. Lynch, Robinson, Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte (2011); Amalie L. Tuffin, Whitmeyer Tuffin PLLC, Raleigh (2012); Grayson S. Hale, Morningstar Law Group, Morrisville (2013); David D. Beatty, Myers Bigel Sibley & Sajovec PA, Raleigh (2014); Charles S. Baldwin IV, Brooks, Pierce, McLendon, Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Wilmington (2015); James R. Forrest, Forrest Firm PC, Durham (2016); Gregory S. Connor, The Connor Law Firm PLLC, Raleigh (2017); John Babcock, Wall Babcock LLP, Winston-Salem (2018); M. Keith Kapp, Williams Mullen, Raleigh (2019); Matthew Marcellino, Marcellino & Tyson PLLC, Charlotte (2020); George Stephen Diab, Murchison, Taylor & Gibson PLLC, Wilmington (2021)

CONSTRUCTION

ERIK ROSENWOOD, Rosenwood, Rose & Litwak PLLC, Charlotte; Greg C. Ahlum, Johnston Allison & Hord PA, Charlotte; Aleksandra Elzbieta Anderson, Anderson Legal PLLC, Cary; Thomas Steven Babel, Forrest Firm PC, Wilmington; Ryan Lee Beaver, Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP, Charlotte; Christopher K. Behm, Block, Crouch, Keeter, Behm & Sayed, LLP, Wilmington; Eric H. Biesecker, Nexsen Pruet PLLC, Greensboro; Steven Allen Bimbo, Smith Terry & Johnson, Charlotte; H. (Arty) Arthur Bolick II, Brooks Pierce McLendon Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro; Matthew

C. Bouchard, Poyner Spruill LLP, Raleigh; Melissa Dewey Brumback, Ragsdale Liggett PLLC, Raleigh; Daniel K. Bryson, Milberg Coleman Bryson Phillips Grossman PLLC, Raleigh; Robert “Bob” L. Burchette, Johnston Allison & Hord PA, Charlotte; Christopher James Campbell, Wolfe, Campbell, Gunst & Hinson, PLLC, ; B. David Carson, Johnston Allison & Hord PA, Charlotte; Andrew L. “Drew” Chapin, Conner Gwyn Schenck PLLC, Greensboro; Keith E. Coltrain, Wall Templeton Haldrup PA, Raleigh; Stephen M. Cox, Robinson Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Rock Hill; Andrew S. Culicerto, Shumaker Loop & Kendrick LLP, Charlotte; John T. Daniel, Essex Richards PA, Charlotte; Adam Reese DeNobriga, Bell Davis Pitt PA, Charlotte; Sean Ferguson Doyle, Ortiz & Doyle, Raleigh; Monica Wilson Dozier, Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP, Charlotte; Luke J. Farley, Ellis & Winters LLP, Raleigh; David B. Hamilton, Hamilton Stephens Steele + Martin PLLC, Charlotte; Harvey M. Hamlet, Hamlet & Associates PLLC, Wilmington; Edward F. Hennessey IV, Robinson Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte; Jessica Soles Humphries, Hamlet & Associates PLLC, Wilmington; Tracy Thompson James, Hamilton Stephens Steele + Martin PLLC, Charlotte; Edward Aubin Jesson, Jesson & Rains PLLC, Charlotte; William James Johnson, Smith Terry & Johnson, Asheville; Neale T. Johnson, Fox Rothschild LLP, Greensboro; Todd A. Jones, Anderson Jones PLLC, Raleigh; Daniel G. Katzenbach, Cranfill Sumner LLP, Raleigh; Rebecca Ann Knudson, Cranfill Sumner LLP, Wilmington; Michael Aaron Lay, Hamilton Stephens Steele + Martin PLLC, Charlotte; Nancy Stewart Litwak, Rosenwood Rose & Litwak PLLC,

BUSINESS

Daniel Stephen Trimmer

Skufca Law PLLC, Charlotte

Hometown: Birmingham, Mich.

Education: Seaholm High School; Georgia Institute of Technology; University of Richmond

Family: I’m married to Christy and have two children, Graham and Caroline.

First job: I first worked in retail at a major store helping to stock displays and offer my extremely limited insight to customers seeking the right piece of clothing.

What he’d be if not a lawyer: If I had not gone into law, I would probably be working as an engineer or an economist.

Why he chose to specialize in this field: I originally studied to be an engineer but changed courses when I went into law. Being able to represent businesses and parties in construction cases allows me to

Charlotte; Parker E. Moore, Johnston Allison & Hord PA, Charlotte; Joseph W. Moss Jr., Erwin Capitano Moss PA, Charlotte; Evan M. Musselwhite, Ward and Smith PA, Raleigh; John M. Nunnally, Ragsdale Liggett PLLC, Raleigh; James A. Penry, Penry Riemann PLLC, Raleigh; William W. Pollock, Ragsdale Liggett PLLC, Raleigh; Lindsey Ellis Powell, Anderson Jones PLLC, Raleigh; Jeffrey Mark Reichard, Nexsen Pruet PLLC, Greensboro; Joel R. Rhine, Rhine Law Firm PC, Wilmington; R. Lee Robertson Jr., Robertson & Associates, Charlotte; Whitaker Boykin Rose, Rosenwood Rose & Litwak PLLC, Charlotte; Stephen Peterson Safran, Safran Law Offices, Raleigh; Byron Lee Saintsing, Smith Debnam Narron Drake Saintsing & Myers LLP, Raleigh; Bryan

work with interesting legal, engineering and economic issues that are not present in other types of disputes. I enjoy helping people understand what went wrong and what their options are in trying to resolve a dispute or legal issue.

Best advice you ever received: The negative Golden Rule: Do not do to others what you do not want done to yourself.

Favorite place in town: Shake Shack has great food and it’s near a playground, which helps the kids burn off some of their boundless energy.

Favorite vacation spot: Disney World was the happiest place on earth for my family (pre-COVID). I hope that it remains so in the years to come.

Favorite book: Factfulness by Hans Rosling. It provides a completely different perspective to the depressing and ceaseless stream of bad news that comes from the media. It turns out that the world, for all of its imperfections, is in a much better state than we are commonly told.

Favorite movie: Inception. The story and visuals are incredible, and the ending leaves you thinking and wanting to re-watch the entire story again.

Passions: There is nothing better than being able to play games with friends and family. I also enjoy volunteering with the Ballantyne Rotary Club.

G. Scott, Akerman LLP, Winston-Salem; David A. Senter, Nexsen Pruet PLLC, Raleigh; Gregory L. Shelton, Shelton Law PLLC, Charlotte; Mitzi Riana Smith, Smith Bowers PLLC, Raleigh; Kevin J. Stanfield, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Jason T. Strickland, Ward and Smith PA, Raleigh; Ryal W. Tayloe, Ward and Smith PA, Wilmington; Jay P. Tobin, Young Moore and Henderson PA, Raleigh; Scott M. Tyler, Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Charlotte; R. Matthew Van Sickle, Van Sickle Law PLLC, Cary; Judson A. Welborn, Manning Fulton & Skinner PA, Raleigh; Gary J. Welch, Johnston Allison & Hord PA, Charlotte; Martin “Marty” L. White, Johnston Allison & Hord PA, Charlotte; Steele B. Windle III, Smith Terry & Johnson, Charlotte

HALL OF FAME: James A. Roberts III, Lewis & Roberts PLLC, Raleigh (2004); Jeffrey J. Davis, Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Charlotte (2005); John L. Shaw, Poyner Spruill LLP, Raleigh (2006); Dudley Humphrey, Kilpatrick Stockton LLP, Winston-Salem (2007); James S. Schenck IV, Conner Gwyn Schenck PLLC, Raleigh (2008); Michael Wilson, Johnston, Allison & Hord PA, Charlotte (2009); John B. “Jack” Taylor, Nexsen Pruet LLC, Charlotte (2010); Peter J. Marino, Smith, Anderson, Blount, Dorsett, Mitchell & Jernigan LLP, Raleigh (2011); William H. Gammon, Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP, Raleigh (2012); Richard D. Conner, Conner Gwyn Schenck PLLC, Greensboro (2013); Joseph H. Nanney Jr., Meynardie & Nanney PLLC, Raleigh, (2014); Bob Meynardie, Meynardie & Nanney PLLC, Raleigh (2015); Harper Heckman, Nexsen Pruet LLC, Greensboro (2016); Nan E. Hannah, Hannah Sheridan Loughridge & Cochran LLP, Raleigh (2017); James Johnson, Smith Terry & Johnson, Asheville (2018); Tracy James, Hamilton Stephens Steele & Martin PLLC, Charlotte (2019); Jason James, Bell, Davis & Pitt, Charlotte (2020); Bentford “Ben” Martin, Hamilton Stephens Steele & Martin PLLC, Charlotte (2021)

CORPORATE

JONATHAN JENKINS, Jenkins Haynes PLLC, Greensboro; Alexandria Louise Andresen, The Advocate’s Close, Charlotte; Evan K. Auberry, Fox Rothschild LLP, Greensboro; Marc D. Bishop, Brooks Pierce McLendon Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro; Eugene Scott Bowers IV, Womble Bond Dickinson (US) LLP, Raleigh; Philip S. Chubb, Shumaker Loop & Kendrick LLP, Charlotte; W. Scott Cooper, Rayburn Cooper & Durham PA, Charlotte; Michael Scott Davis, Davis Hartman Wright PLLC, New Bern; Scott Dillon, Carruthers & Roth PA, Greensboro; Robert E. Duggins, Smith Anderson Blount Dorsett Mitchell & Jernigan LLP, Raleigh; John N. Fleming, McGuire Wood & Bissette PA, Asheville; Suzanne R. Griffin, Butterball LLC, Garner; Paul Jason Griffin, The Select Group LLC, Raleigh; Edward Weede Griggs, Womble Bond Dickinson (US) LLP, Winston-Salem; Jeffrey C. Hart, Modern Energy, Durham; Robert D. Kidwell, Fox Rothschild LLP, Greensboro; Richard Alan Kort, McGuire Wood & Bissette PA, Asheville; Deana Ann Labriola, Fox Rothschild LLP, Raleigh; Thomas I. Lyon, Manning Fulton & Skinner PA, Raleigh; Jack Richard Magee, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Dayatra T. Matthews, Local Government Federal Credit Union, Raleigh; Carolyn P. Meade, Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Charlotte; Brandon S. Neuman, Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP, Raleigh; Kevin A. Prakke, Manning

Fulton & Skinner PA, Raleigh; Shannon Brock Ralich, Her Spark Inc, Cary; Thomas Duke Ricks, Alexander Ricks PLLC, Charlotte; Jason Robert Schneider, Schneider Law Group PLLC, Raleigh; G. Edward Story, RTI International, Raleigh

HALL OF FAME: Russell M. Robinson II, Robinson, Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte (2002); James E. Creekman, First Citizens Bank & Trust Co., Raleigh (2003); David L. Ward Jr., Ward and Smith PA, New Bern (2004); Douglas R. Edwards, Wachovia Corp., Charlotte (2005); Stephen K. Coss, Sonic Automotive Inc., Charlotte (2006); Keith Smith, Carolinas HealthCare System, Charlotte (2007); John Taggart, Genworth Financial Inc., Raleigh (2008); B. Judd Hartman, Pharmaceutical Product Development Inc., Wilmington (2009); Gaither M. Keener, Lowe’s Cos., Mooresville (2010); Meredith B. Stone, NACCO Materials Handling Group Inc., Greenville (2011); Lisa D. Inman, Waste Industries USA Inc., Raleigh (2012); Robert Wicker, General Parts International Inc., Raleigh (2013); Michael A. Springs, Bank of America Corp., Charlotte (2014); Santiago Estrada, Quintiles Transnational Holdings Inc., Durham (2015); Jeffrey M. Davis, Lincoln Financial Group, Greensboro (2016); Gerald L. Walden Jr., The Fresh Market Inc., Greensboro (2017); Andrew Spainhour, Replacements Ltd., Greensboro

(2018); Chris Matton, Bandwidth Inc., Raleigh (2019); Jennifer Venable, Capitol Broadcasting Co., Raleigh (2020); John M. Cross Jr., Brooks Pierce, McLendon, Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro (2021)

CRIMINAL

ELLIOT ABRAMS, Cheshire Parker Schneider PLLC, Raleigh; A. Brennan Aberle, Aberle Wall LLC, Greensboro; Daniel DeCederfelt Adams, Brooks Pierce McLendon Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro; James L. Allard Jr., Hewlett Collins & Allard LLP, Wilmington; Hill Allen, Tharrington Smith LLP, Raleigh; Patrick Todd Apple, Dummit Fradin Attorneys at Law, Greensboro; Russell D. Babb, Tharrington Smith LLP, Raleigh; Bradley J. Bannon, Patterson Harkavy LLP, Chapel Hill; Christopher Anthony Beechler, Beechler Tomberlin PLLC, Winston-Salem; Meghann Kay Burke, Brazil & Burke PA, Asheville; Jones Pharr Byrd Jr., Freedman Thompson Witt Ceberio & Byrd PLLC, WinstonSalem; Stephen Lacy Cash, Barbour Searson Jones Cash PLLC, Asheville; Kathleen Cunningham Clary, Rawls Scheer Clary Mingo PLLC, Charlotte; Andrew Carter Clifford, Clifford & Harris PLLC, Greensboro; Christopher R. Clifton, Grace Tisdale Clifton PA,

Winston-Salem; Christopher A. Connelly, Christopher A Connelly, Charlotte; Collin Patrick Cook, Cheshire Parker Schneider PLLC, Raleigh; David T. Courie, Beaver Courie Sternlicht Hearp & Broadfoot PA, Fayetteville; Sean P. Devereux, Devereux Banzhoff PLLC, Asheville; Jeffrey Leon Dobson, Dobson Law Firm PLLC, Raleigh; William Michael Dowling, The Dowling Firm PLLC, Raleigh; David C. Driscoll, RTS Law Group, Charlotte; John Anderson Fagg Jr., Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Charlotte; John Kiah Fanney, Fanney Law Office PLLC, Raleigh; Paige Dorothy Miles Feldmann, Pruden Feldmann Law PLLC, Raleigh; Anna Elizabeth Smith Felts, Anna Smith Felts PLLC, Raleigh; Christopher C. Fialko, Fialko Law PLLC, Charlotte; Berryman J. Fitzhugh III, Sandman Finn & Fitzhugh, Raleigh; David B. Freedman, Freedman Thompson Witt Ceberio & Byrd PLLC, Winston-Salem; Michael Alexander Frickey, The Frickey Law Firm PLLC, Raleigh; Shana LaVerne Fulton, Brooks Pierce McLendon Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Raleigh; Gael Gilles, Gilles Law PLLC, Charlotte; Aaron Michael Goforth, Hatch Little Bunn LLP, Raleigh; Christon S. Halkiotis, The Law Office of Christon S. Halkiotis, PLLC, Greensboro; William Robinson Heroy, Goodman

CONSTRUCTION

Erik Rosenwood

Rosenwood, Rose & Litwak PLLC, Charlotte

Hometown: Clarkston, Wash.

Education: Clarkston High School; Whitman College; and Washington and Lee University School of Law. I also got a master’s in philosophy from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland.

Family: My father was a high school teacher for 31 years. My mother was a psychologist for the county for the first half of her career, then taught at a special school for kids with behavioral or learning difficulties. We lived on a small horse farm in the hills outside the very small town of Clarkston. My parents were from Seattle, but there weren’t many teaching jobs when my dad graduated from the University of Washington, which is how they ended up on the east side of the state. After retiring, they moved back to Seattle and lived near my younger brother, who works in the King County prosecutor’s office.

First job: My first job was working on the grounds crew at the country club where my grandfather was a member. He helped me get the job. I had to be there at 4:30 a.m. and out mowing the greens by 5 a.m. so that we could have the greens ready for the golfers who teed off at 6:45 or 7 a.m. It was a long, hot day, but I really enjoyed that first couple of hours in the morning as the sun came up. You’d start out a little wet and cold, but as it warmed up, the squirrels and birds would come out, and you’d see the sunrise across the river from the course. It was also nice finishing work at 1 p.m. and having part of a day left to enjoy. I’m a bit of an OCD perfectionist by nature anyway, so I liked doing the stripes on the grass in perfectly straight lines, raking the sand traps into patterns, etc.

What he’d be if not a lawyer: I always intended to be a lawyer for a short time and then go teach at a college or university. Then you have kids and buy a house, and that timeline gets longer and longer. It’s still my intention to teach someday when my law partners decide I am too old and put me out to pasture.

Why he chose to specialize in this field: When I was a summer associate at Moore & Van Allen, I tried a lot of different practice areas but really loved litigation. In 2002, my second year of practice, I got to do a seven-week federal trial with Jim McLoughlin. It was the first case tried under the new material support for terrorism laws after 9/11, and I was hooked on being a trial lawyer. After transferring to Hamilton Stephens and working with David Hamilton, I gravitated into construction law, as that was his focus, and found I loved doing the site visits and figuring out how the construction elements worked together. So much of what lawyers do is ephemeral or intangible. At the end of the case, you dispose of the file and there isn’t any physical evidence that you did anything at all. So I like driving past buildings that I have been through as part of a case and know really well, and I particularly enjoy seeing buildings where I represented the owner and the building has now been remediated and is thriving.

Best advice you ever received: Jim McLoughlin taught me to “focus in the eye of the hurricane” and not get distracted from your task or your strategy by everything going on around you. Just because it is someone else’s emergency doesn’t mean it has to be your emergency. David Hamilton taught me that all you have is your reputation and your integrity, so don’t be afraid to tell a client “no” if they are pressuring you to take a position you don’t feel has merit. No case is worth winning at the expense of your reputation and integrity. U.S. Magistrate Judge David Keesler, who was my mentor at Moore & Van Allen, always made the distinction between “counselor” and “attorney.” He taught me that our role is to counsel our clients, not just advocate for them. Sometimes the best advice you can give a client is not to file suit or hire you in the first place.

Favorite place in town: Our office building, which we bought when we started the firm in 2018. We gutted it down to the dirt and the studs, so it feels more like our home than just an office building. Everyone I work with I consider to be a close friend, and I’m really proud of the culture and the firm we have built.

Favorite vacation spot: Oak Island. I’ve been going there for years with the kids and have a ton of good memories. Standing on the beach early in the morning, listening to the waves and watching the sunrise always make me feel really at peace.

Favorite book: I really love Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari and gave copies to a lot of people. I also make everyone read Franny from Franny and Zooey by J.D. Salinger. The story is only about 30 pages, but it’s unbelievable how much the author packs into it. The first paragraph of the story is one of my favorites ever written.

Favorite movie: Raiders of the Lost Ark. At this point in life, I should probably pick something else, but as a teenager, I must have seen Raiders of the Lost Ark 30 times and can still quote basically every line. It’s one of the few movies I never get tired of watching.

Passions: Exercise, photography, cooking, food and travel. On a good trip, you can combine them all.

Carr Laughrun Levine & Greene PLLC, Charlotte; Marcus E. Hill, Marcus Hill Attorney at Law, Durham; Joseph Edward Houchin, Kaufman & Canoles PC, Raleigh; Joshua B. Howard, Gammon Howard Zeszotarski PLLC, Raleigh; Emily Christine Jones, Burney & Jones PLLC, Wilmington; Darrin D. Jordan, Whitley Jordan & Inge PA, Salisbury; George V. Laughrun III, Goodman Carr Laughrun Levine & Greene PLLC, Charlotte; Thomas Courtenay Leitner Jr., Leitner Bragg & Griffin PLLC, Monroe; Thomas Courtland Manning, Manning Law Firm PLLC, Raleigh; Duncan A. McMillan, McMillan & Smith, Raleigh; Joel Hart Miles Jr., Cheshire Parker Schneider PLLC, Raleigh; Patrick Melton Mincey, Cranfill Sumner LLP, Wilmington; John P. O’Hale, John P O’Hale PA, Smithfield; Carole Melissa Owen, Tin Fulton Walker & Owen PLLC, Charlotte; Michael Robert Paduchowski, Matthew Charles Suczynski PLLC, Chapel Hill; Stephen W. Petersen, Fox Rothschild LLP, Raleigh; Gregory J. Plumides, Plumides Romano & Johnson PC, Charlotte; Caitlin McLaughlin Poe, Williams Mullen, Raleigh; Bill Powers, Powers Law Firm PA, Charlotte; Matthew Gridley Pruden, Tin Fulton Walker & Owen PLLC, Charlotte; Edd K. Roberts III, Roberts Law Office PA, Raleigh; James F. Rutherford, James Rutherford Attorney

at Law, Wilmington; Roger W. Smith Jr., Tharrington Smith LLP, Raleigh; Jeremy Barrett Smith, Pinnacle Law, Charlotte; Ryan T. Smith, RTS Law Group, Charlotte; Matthew Charles Suczynski, Matthew Charles Suczynski PLLC, Chapel Hill; Paul K. Sun Jr., Ellis & Winters LLP, Raleigh; Raymond Curtis Tarlton, Tarlton Polk Law, Raleigh; Noell P. Tin, Tin Fulton Walker & Owen PLLC, Charlotte; Anastasia Frances Tramontozzi, Dummit Fradin Attorneys at Law, Winston-Salem; Amos G. Tyndall, Amos Tyndall PLLC, Carrboro; Edwin L. West III, Brooks Pierce McLendon Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Wilmington; James F. Wyatt III, Wyatt & Blake LLP, Charlotte; William D. Young IV, Hatch Little Bunn LLP, Raleigh; Joseph E. Zeszotarski Jr., Gammon Howard Zeszotarski PLLC, Raleigh

HALL OF FAME: Wade M. Smith, Tharrington Smith LLP, Raleigh (2004); James F. Wyatt III, Wyatt & Blake LLP, Charlotte (2005); David Freedman, White and Crumpler, Winston-Salem (2006); Joseph B. Cheshire V, Cheshire, Parker, Schneider, Bryan & Vitale, Raleigh (2007); James P. Cooney III, Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice PLLC, Charlotte (2008); Stephen T. Smith, McMillan, Smith & Plyler, Raleigh (2009); T. Patrick Matus II, Essex Richards PA, Charlotte (2010); David S. Rudolf, Rudolf, Widenhouse & Fialko, Charlotte

(2011); Locke T. Clifford, Clifford Clendenin & O’Hale LLP, Greensboro (2012); Peter C. Anderson, Beveridge & Diamond PC, Charlotte (2013); Michael J. Greene, Goodman, Carr, Laughrun, Levine & Greene PLLC, Charlotte (2014); Robert K. Corbett III, The Law Offices of Harold Cogdell Jr. PC, Charlotte (2015); Ryan T. Smith, RTS Law Group, Charlotte (2016); George V. Laughrun II, Goodman, Carr, Laughrun, Levine & Greene PA, Charlotte (2017); Les Robinson, The Robinson Law Firm PA, Greenville (2018); Wes J. Camden, Ward and Smith PA, Raleigh (2019); Kearns Davis, Brooks, Pierce, McLendon, Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro (2020); Cristopher L. Oring, Oring Law Firm PLLC, Wilmington (2021)

EMPLOYMENT

MEREDITH JEFFRIES, Alexander Ricks PLLC, Charlotte; G. Bryan Adams III, Van Hoy Reutlinger Adams Pierce PLLC, Charlotte; Hannah Auckland, Marcellino & Tyson PLLC, Charlotte; Meredith Grey Ballard, Ballard Law PLLC, Raleigh; Patricia T. Bartis, Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP, Raleigh; Bridget Alison Blinn-Spears, Nexsen Pruet PLLC, Raleigh; Jenna Carroll Borders, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Kenneth P. Carlson Jr., Constangy Brooks Smith Prophete LLP, Winston-Salem; Connie E.

Jonathan Jenkins

Jenkins Haynes PLLC, Greensboro

Hometown: Gainesville, Fla.

Education: Eastside High School in Gainesville, Fla.; University of Florida; Vanderbilt University Law School

Family: I met my wife, Manisha, in high school, and we have been married for 14 years. She is a radiation oncologist at Duke University. We have three daughters: Maya, 9, Anya, 7, and Nadia, 16 months.

First job: My first job was working in the warehouse at Hughes Electrical Supply in Gainesville. I spent my days cutting wire, loading trucks, driving forklifts, pulling orders and stocking shelves. It was all done without air conditioning in a city that is known for its humidity. I worked there full time during summers in high school and part time throughout undergrad. I learned the value of a good box cutter and central air.

What he’d be if not a lawyer: A chef and restaurant owner. My wife and I recently experienced the Chef’s Table at Second Empire

Carrigan, Smith Debnam Narron Drake Saintsing & Myers LLP, Raleigh; Kevin Michael Ceglowski, Poyner Spruill LLP, Raleigh; William S. Cherry III, Manning Fulton & Skinner PA, Raleigh; Kelly Margolis Dagger, Ellis & Winters LLP, Raleigh; M. Robin Davis, Jackson Lewis PC, Raleigh; Dawn M. Dillon, Young Moore and Henderson PA, Raleigh; Cate Edwards, Edwards Kirby LLP, Raleigh; Thomas A. Farr, Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP, Raleigh; Ashley

in Raleigh, and it was fascinating. Throughout the meal, we had the chance to walk around and chat with the chef and kitchen staff during a busy Friday night. I even had the opportunity to plate a dish. It is organized chaos at its finest. The attention to detail, precision, teamwork, planning, and execution that is required every day to deliver an experience for each guest is motivating and a great example of how those attributes are valuable regardless of the discipline.

Why he chose to specialize in this field: I’ve always admired entrepreneurs for their willingness to be bold in the face of uncertainty. They invest in themselves, which is inspiring. As a generally risk-averse person (a common trait for lawyers, I think), being a business lawyer offers the chance to work with clients as they grow. It is rewarding to be able to shoulder the responsibility for a range of legal matters. I’ve learned that I can only be as good as my clients, and it is always a privilege to have the opportunity to work together on such interesting pursuits.

Best advice you ever received: I had the privilege of learning corporate law from Doris Bray. After she handed me primary responsibility for a new, albeit relatively small matter, I remember her telling me that, “You should treat every client like your best client.” At the time it seemed like a simple adage, but I’ve learned that it is both excellent advice and much easier said than done.

Favorite place in town: We have lived in Greensboro for five years, and it has been fascinating to witness the growth in downtown. From restaurants to shops, and now the opening of the new Tanger Performing Arts Center, there is a new energy that has been great to see and experience.

Favorite vacation spot: Napa Valley. We try to visit as often as we can. It offers a great mix of food, wine and weather, all at an approachable pace. Off-season is preferred.

Favorite book: A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole. With an eccentric main character who is hard to classify, the book vacillates between comedy and satirical tragedy and goes out of its way to be anything but ordinary.

Favorite movie: Too many to name. COVID gave our family time to watch many of the movies I remember loving as a child. Rewatching movies through the eyes of my kids is a fascinating experience. We recently watched Goonies, and I forgot how well it captures the feeling of being a kid.

Passions: Family, food, work, and the occasional bourbon.

Louise Felton, Michael Best & Friedrich LLP, Raleigh; Kristen Elizabeth Finlon, Essex Richards PA, Charlotte; Patrick H. Flanagan, Cranfill Sumner LLP, Raleigh; Nicole L. Gardner, Gardner Skelton PLLC, Charlotte; Jared Edgar Gardner, Gardner Skelton PLLC, Charlotte; Susanna K. Gibbons, Poyner Spruill LLP, Raleigh; Caitlin Murray Goforth, Jackson Lewis PC, Raleigh; Patricia W. Goodson, Brooks Pierce McLendon Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Raleigh; S. McKinley “Ken” Gray

III, Ward and Smith PA, New Bern; Marc E. Gustafson, Bell Davis Pitt PA, Charlotte; Holly Elizabeth-Ross Hammer, Hammer Law PLLC, Raleigh; Michael Clyde Harman, Harman Law, Huntersville; Cecil W. Harrison Jr., Poyner Spruill LLP, Raleigh; Nicole Katherine Haynes, GessnerLaw PLLC, Charlotte; Sean Franklin Herrmann, Herrmann Murphy PLLC, Charlotte; Paul S. Holscher, Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart PC, Raleigh; Tamara Lynn Huckert,

Strianese Huckert LLP, Charlotte; Natalie Renee Hughes, Ascension Law, Charlotte; Lori P. Jones, Jordan Price Wall Gray Jones Carlton PLLC, Raleigh; Kenneth R. Keller, Carruthers & Roth PA, Greensboro; Patrick “Pat” E. Kelly, Johnston Allison & Hord PA, Charlotte; Kimberly J. Korando, Smith Anderson Blount Dorsett Mitchell & Jernigan LLP, Raleigh; Dena Beth Langley, Brooks Pierce McLendon Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro; Stephen Luke Largess, Tin Fulton Walker & Owen PLLC, Charlotte; Michael C. Lord, Williams Mullen, Raleigh; Kathleen K. Lucchesi, Jackson Lewis PC, Charlotte; Margaret B. Maloney, Maloney Law Associates PLLC, Charlotte; Emily G. Massey, Ward and Smith PA, Raleigh; Alexander L. Maultsby, Ramseur Maultsby LLP, Greensboro; Christine Fernicola Mayhew, Anderson Jones PLLC, Raleigh; Karin M. McGinnis, Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Charlotte; Michael Douglas McKnight, Ogletree Deakins Nash Smoak Stewart PC, Raleigh; William Joseph McMahon IV, Constangy Brooks Smith Prophete LLP, Winston-Salem; Andrew K. McVey, Murchison Taylor & Gibson PLLC, Wilmington; Kevin Patrick Murphy, Herrmann Murphy PLLC, Charlotte; Laura Lee Noble, The Noble Law Firm PLLC, Charlotte; William A. Oden III, Ward and Smith PA, Wilmington; Daniel J. Palmieri, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Linda Nicole Patino, L. Nicole Patino PLLC, Greensboro; J. Heydt Philbeck, Bailey Dixon LLP, Raleigh; Charles Grainger Pierce Jr., Van Hoy Reutlinger Adams Pierce PLLC, Charlotte; Patti W. Ramseur, Ramseur Maultsby LLP, Greensboro; Sabrina P. Rockoff, McGuire Wood & Bissette PA, Asheville; Susan Raphaela Russo Klein, Roberts & Stevens PA, Asheville; Robert A. Sar, Ogletree Deakins Nash Smoak Stewart PC, Raleigh; Jeremy Regan Sayre, Fox Rothschild LLP, Raleigh; Edward Stroehmann Schenk III, Williams Mullen, Raleigh; Kerry A. Shad, Smith Anderson Blount Dorsett Mitchell & Jernigan LLP, Raleigh; Russell Foster Sizemore, Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Charlotte; Mimi Soule, Soule Employment Law, Raleigh; Shannon S. (“Missy”) Spainhour, Davis Hartman Wright PLLC, Arden; Jennifer Kuhn Staples, Littler Mendelson PC, Charlotte; Kyle R. Still, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Phillip John Strach, Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP, Raleigh; Jill Susanne Stricklin, Constangy Brooks Smith Prophete LLP, Winston-Salem; Michael Todd Sullivan, Graebe Hanna Sullivan PLLC, Raleigh; Frederick M. Thurman Jr., Shumaker Loop & Kendrick LLP, Charlotte; Benton Louis Toups, Cranfill Sumner LLP, Wilmington; Joshua

CRIMINAL

Elliot Abrams

Cheshire Parker Schneider PLLC, Raleigh

Hometown: Raleigh

Education: Enloe Magnet High School, UNC Chapel Hill, Georgetown University Law School

Family: I come from a long line of lawyers and teachers, going back many generations. My mother’s side are Irish Catholics who immigrated to New York. My father’s side were Eastern European and Jewish, eventually settling in South Carolina. One of my three brothers is a personal injury lawyer, who works with his wife and my parents at Abrams & Abrams P.A. in Raleigh. Another brother teaches creative writing at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland. My youngest brother works with a sports-oriented youth development nonprofit.

First job: My first job was as a minimum-wage cashier at a fastfood restaurant at age 15. Some of the employees had been there for many years; others, like me, were there only for the summer. The job was not easy. We were always on our feet, people expected their food immediately, customers were not always gracious, and the pay was meager. But the owner, managers and longer-term employees created a positive culture of teamwork that made the job feel meaningful. I also enjoyed some of the small conversations with customers and the longer conversations with the older employees. I learned more about the world outside my own bubble, and it gave me an appreciation for how hard many people have to work to make a living and for how different people’s lives are from mine. Ultimately, the job instilled an appreciation for hard work, for the importance of creating a positive workplace culture and, most of all, for the varying struggles and different perspectives of others.

What he’d be if not a lawyer: Architect. Growing up, I rode the school bus into downtown every day for years. New houses were being built everywhere, and I watched as these properties went from woods, to bare lots, to foundations, to frames, to houses and, eventually, to homes. It would be wonderful to be part of that process of designing and building homes for people.

Why he chose to specialize in this field: My siblings and I were often in need of defense counsel to respond to our parents’ inquiries and accusations. I took on the defense counsel role most often, so a career in defending the accused came naturally. In all seriousness, I was lucky enough to have an opportunity to work with [Triangle defense lawyers] Joe Cheshire and Brad Bannon. Specifically, I spent my first law school summer trying a first-degree murder case with them. It was a self-defense case, and the jury acquitted our client. I witnessed firsthand the critical importance of defense lawyers in protecting individual freedom in our country. For weeks, I sat with an innocent man who would either be free or spend the rest of his life in prison depending on the quality of his defense. I knew that a life spent providing that type of help and protection to people would be meaningful.

Best advice you ever received: “You have to tell a story.” I was arguing (and losing) one of my first legal arguments in court when Joe Cheshire scrawled this advice on a yellow sticky note and shoved it over to me. I had been discussing the niceties of some legal opinion, but the technicalities of the law was not convincing the judge. The simple directive to tell a story animates all that we do in the legal profession. Especially when defending the accused, it is an uphill battle to get the audience to see the situation from the eyes of the accused, and doing so is only possible when you tell a story. For a new lawyer who had spent three years reading cases and looking at the law like a science, it was necessary advice. I changed tactics, telling our client’s story and weaving in the legal principles where they applied to the facts and won the case.

Favorite place in town: Umstead State Park. My wife and I take our little family there for long hikes on Sycamore Trail, picnics, and scavenger hunts. My three brothers and I grew up tromping through the woods behind our home. The woods brings me back to that life and allows me to share it with my little ones, who love finding treasures in the creeks, marvel at the height of the trees, and listen to the sounds of the forest. I do not get cellphone service there, which makes it a perfect in-town getaway.

Favorite vacation spot: Shackleford Banks, probably equaled only by any black diamond run in the Rockies

Favorite book: Faulkner’s The Reivers. It is the comic story of Lucius Priest, an 11-year-old boy who, with his family’s supposed-to-be handyman and the family’s coachman, steals grandfather’s car for a weekend getaway to the city, and of the eye-opening, stumbling Southern odyssey that follows.

Favorite movie: Usual Suspects

Passions: I am very fond of fishing. I have been taking my little skiff into the skinny water in Core Sound, Core Creek, the Haystacks and the mouth of the Neuse River, looking for redfish, speckled and grey trout, and flounder.”

Meredith Jeffries

Alexander Ricks PLLC, Charlotte

Hometown: Virginia Beach, Va.

Education: First Colonial High School; bachelor’s and law degrees from the University of Virginia

Family: Husband, John Jeffries; three children: Sarah, 25; Emily Holler, 23; and Jake, 17

First job: During high school and college years, I waited tables at a Virginia Beach restaurant, usually the breakfast shift when the tables turned fast. I usually had a section of 10 tables at a time and six hot plates of pancakes and eggs stacked up my arm. Forty years later, I still have some burn scars to prove it. It gave me a tremendous appreciation for the importance of good customer service and resulted in a lifetime of gross over-tipping. I have no pictures of

Reed Van Kampen, Van Kampen Law, Charlotte; Angelique Regail VincentHamacher, Robinson Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte; Reagan H. Weaver, Capitol Law Resolutions, Raleigh; Devon D. Williams, Ward and Smith PA, Raleigh; Kathleen N. Worm, The Worm Law Firm PC, Raleigh; Jonathan W. Yarbrough, Constangy Brooks Smith Prophete LLP, Asheville

HALL OF FAME: Philip M. Van Hoy, Van Hoy, Reutlinger, Adams & Dunn,

my serving career, so I shared a photo of working on the staff of the Virginia Beach Leadership Workshop, a camp and training program for student government leaders.

What she’d be if not a lawyer: Journalism or teaching high school English

Why she chose to specialize in this field: I love the human element of employment law and helping businesses develop best practices to cultivate their most important resource: their people.

Best advice you ever received: Ben Hawfield of Moore and Van Allen told me, “You will make mistakes, and people will forget them. But you have one reputation for integrity. Protect it fiercely.”

Favorite place in town: Any baseball field that our son is playing on

Favorite vacation spot: Bald Head Island. It is where John and I were married and our children have grown up vacationing. It holds many cherished memories and its tranquility is a perfect antidote for our hectic Charlotte life.

Favorite book: The Road to Redemption: Virginia’s Remarkable 2018-19 Season. It has all the elements of a remarkable story: Heartbreak, overcoming adversity, crippling defense, unmitigated joy and Coach Tony Bennett.

Favorite movie: It’s a Wonderful Life

Passions: Family, travel, Broadway theater and Virginia basketball

Charlotte (2002); George J. Oliver, Smith Moore LLP, Raleigh (2003); Penni Pearson Bradshaw, Constangy, Brooks & Smith LLP, Winston-Salem (2004); Jonathan R. Harkavy, Patterson Harkavy LLP, Greensboro (2005); Patricia L. Holland, Jackson Lewis PC, Cary (2006); Louis L. Lesesne Jr., Essex Richards PA, Charlotte (2007); Robert M. Elliot, Elliot Pishko Morgan PA, Winston-Salem (2008); Sarah J. Kromer, Sara J. Kromer PLLC, Charlotte (2009); Susan Brown Grady, SPX Corp., Charlotte (2010); Lisa Grafstein, Disability Rights North Carolina, Raleigh (2011); N. Renee

Hughes, Essex Richards PA, Charlotte (2012); W. Randall Loftis Jr., Constangy, Brooks & Smith LLP, Winston-Salem (2013); Amie F. Carmack, Morningstar Law Group, Morrisville (2014); Nicole Gardner, Gardner Skelton PLLC, Charlotte (2015); Mike Okun, Patterson Harkavy LLP, Chapel Hill (2016); Bryan L. Tyson, Marcellino & Tyson PLLC, Charlotte (2017); Susie Gibbons, Poyner Spruill LLP, Raleigh (2018); Denise Smith Cline, Law Offices of Denise Smith Cline PLLC, Raleigh (2019); Kyle R. Still, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh (2020); David C. Lindsay, K&L Gates LLP, Charlotte (2021)

ENVIRONMENTAL

MARY KATHERINE STUKES, Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Charlotte; Stanford D. Baird, K&L Gates LLP, Raleigh; F. Bryan Brice Jr., F. Bryan Brice Jr., Raleigh; Billy Clarke, Roberts & Stevens PA, Asheville; James L. Conner II, Calhoun Bhella & Sechrest LLP, Durham; Alexander Elkan, Brooks Pierce McLendon Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro; John M. Flynn, Carruthers & Roth PA, Greensboro; David A. Franchina, McGuireWoods LLP, Charlotte; Blakely Elizabeth Hildebrand, Southern Environmental Law Center, Chapel Hill; Steven J. Levitas, Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP, Raleigh; Peter J. McGrath Jr., Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Charlotte; Amy L. Rickers, Johnston Allison & Hord PA, Charlotte; Emily Sabrina Sherlock, Robinson Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte; Christopher Shields Walker, Alexander Ricks PLLC, Charlotte; James Smarr Whitlock, Davis Whitlock PC, Asheville; Noelle E. Wooten, Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP, Charlotte; I. Clark Wright Jr., Davis Hartman Wright PLLC, New Bern

HALL OF FAME: Charles D. Case, Hunton & Williams, Raleigh (2002; 2003); H. Glenn Dunn, Poyner Spruill LLP, Raleigh (2004); George W. House, Brooks, Pierce, McLendon, Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro (2005); William D. Dannelly, Hunton & Williams LLP, Raleigh (2006); Benne C. Hutson, Helms Mulliss & Wicker PLLC, Charlotte, (2007); Amos C. Dawson III, Williams Mullen,Raleigh (2008); Richard C. Gaskins Jr., Catawba Riverkeeper Foundation Inc., Charlotte (2009); Stephen W. Earp, Smith Moore Leatherwood LLP, Greensboro (2010); Ramona Cunningham O’Bryant, Smith Moore Leatherwood LLP, Greensboro (2011); William Clarke, Roberts & Stevens PA, Asheville (2012); Grady L. Shields, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh (2013); Craig A. Bromby, Hunton & Williams LLP, Raleigh (2014); Garry S. Rice, Duke Energy Corp., Charlotte (2015); Sean M. Sullivan, Troutman Sanders LLP, Raleigh (2016); Carol Jones Van Buren, Van Buren Law PLLC, Charlotte (2017); Steve

Mary Katherine Stukes

Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Charlotte

Hometown: Mooresville

Education: South Iredell High School; Duke University; UNC School of Law

Family: My husband is an attorney at Lowe’s. We have three sons, ages 10, 7 and 4. They keep us laughing and are turning our hair gray.

First job: When I turned 14, I took lifeguard training and signed up to work at a pool on Lake Norman. I spent the next three summers testing the pH of the pool and not wearing enough sunscreen.

What she’d be if not a lawyer: Writing a novel or a children’s book

Why she chose to specialize in this field: As a college and law student, I worked at the North Carolina General Assembly for a representative who chaired the environment committee during a time when some significant environmental

Berlin, Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP, Winston-Salem (2018); Keith Johnson, Poyner Spruill LLP, Raleigh (2019); Amy Wang, Ward and Smith PA, New Bern (2020); Susan H. Cooper, Womble Bond Dickinson, Charlotte (2021)

FAMILY

RICHARD GANTT, Gantt Family Law, Raleigh; Carole R. Albright, Law Firm Carolinas, Greensboro; Stephen K. Allinger Jr., David Self Law PLLC, Cornelius; Janet Haney Amburgey, GHMA Law, Asheville; Lisa M. Angel, The Rosen Law Firm, Raleigh; Rachel Carter Beard, Wake Family Law Group, Raleigh; Sarah Bennett, Sodoma Law

legislation was passed. That experience sparked an interest in environmental law, and I met great mentors along the way who taught me to love the subject matter.

Best advice you ever received: My mentor taught me that to achieve a great outcome for a client, there is no substitute for hard work and a thorough understanding of the subject matter. Just being aggressive doesn’t make you a great lawyer.

Favorite place in town: My neighborhood. I love its walkability and character.

Favorite vacation spot: The beach. I grew up spending lots of time on the coast in North and South Carolina, and now that I’ve traveled more widely, I appreciate how lucky I am to live near them.

Favorite book: That’s like asking me to choose a favorite child. These days, I listen to a lot of audiobooks.

Favorite movie: National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. It’s a hilarious depiction of family life and gets better every year.

Passions: My family is, without a doubt, the most important thing in my life. Having children is such an awesome learning experience and responsibility, and we’re trying to soak it up.

PC, Charlotte; Anna N. Blood, Blood Law PLLC, Waxhaw; Heidi C. Bloom, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Andrea Bosquez-Porter, Bosquez-Porter Family Law PLLC, Raleigh; John A. Bowman, Maxwell Freeman & Bowman PA, Durham; Amy Lynn Britt, Parker Bryan Family Law, Raleigh; Laura B. Burt, Wofford Burt PLLC, Charlotte; Suzanne Kramer Canali, Legal Directories Publishing Co. Inc., Charlotte; Charles W. Coltrane, Coltrane & Overfield PLLC, Greensboro; Amanda M. Cubit, Dozier Miller Law Group, Charlotte; Jessica Ketchem Culver, Dummit Fradin Attorneys at Law, Greensboro; Nicholas Lee Cushing, Miller Bowles Cushing

PLLC, Charlotte; Lindsey Sink Dasher, Dasher Law PLLC, Matthews; Joslin Davis, Allman Spry Davis Leggett and Crumpler PA, Winston-Salem; Lindsey Ann Easterling, Easterling Law PLLC, Matthews; Steven Bruce Epstein, Poyner Spruill LLP, Raleigh; Candace Strickland Faircloth, Collins Family Law Group, Monroe; Christine R. Farrell, Mulligan Epstein PLLC, Wilmington; Jonathan Daniel Feit, James McElroy Diehl PA, Charlotte; Marilyn Feuchs-Marker, Fox Rothschild LLP, Greensboro; Katherine Wiggins Fisher, Battle Winslow Scott Wiley PA, Rocky Mount; Ashley Church Foley, Cordes Law PLLC, Charlotte; Katherine Ann Frye, Frye Law Office PA, Raleigh; Maren Tallent Funk, Godley Glazer & Funk PLLC, Mooresville; Wesley Peter Gelb, Fox Rothschild LLP, Raleigh; Stephanie Jane Gibbs, Gailor Hunt Davis Taylor & Gibbs PLLC, Raleigh; Seth Andrew Glazer, Godley Glazer & Funk PLLC, Mooresville; Erin Mulligan Graber, Graber Law Firm PLLC, Raleigh; C. Ray Grantham Jr., Robinson & Lawing LLP, Winston-Salem; Jordan Marie Griffin, Leitner Bragg & Griffin PLLC, Monroe; Monica R. Guy, Kurtz Evans Whitley Guy Simos PLLC, Winston-Salem; Michael S. Harrell, Manning Fulton & Skinner PA, Raleigh; James Gregory Hatcher, Hatcher Law Group PC, Charlotte; Jessica Burgess Heffner, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Penelope Lazarou Hefner, Sodoma Law PC, Charlotte; David Eric Holm, Parker Bryan Family Law, Holly Springs; Paul Doughton Horton, Sodoma Law PC, Charlotte; Evan Bonder Horwitz, Tharrington Smith LLP, Raleigh; Madeline “Maddy” A. Hurley, The Mueller Law Firm, PA, Raleigh; Hilary Workman Hux, Garrett Walker Aycoth & Altamura LLP, Greensboro; Paige E. Inman, Ward and Smith PA, Wilmington; Jill Schnabel Jackson, Jackson Family Law, Raleigh; Erica Lynn Jackson, Dummit Fradin Attorneys at Law, Winston-Salem; Elizabeth Johnstone James, Offit Kurman Attorneys at Law, Charlotte; Robert Paul Jenkins, The Graham Nuckolls Conner Law Firm PLLC, Greenville; Stephanie T. Jenkins, Parker Bryan Family Law, Raleigh; Irene Patrice King, King Collaborative Family Law, Charlotte; Katherine Hardersen King, Wake Family Law Group, Raleigh; Julia Anne Kirby, Marcellino & Tyson PLLC, Charlotte; Jonathan Gerald Kreider, Kreider Law PLLC, Greensboro; Carolyn Lovejoy Krueger-Andes, Hamilton Stephens Steele + Martin PLLC, Charlotte; Dara Duncan Larson, Duncan Larson Law PLLC, Charlotte; Kyle Wesley LeBlanc, Hamilton Stephens Steele + Martin PLLC, Charlotte; Alyssa Michelle Levine, Justice Initiatives Inc, Charlotte; Lauren Vaughn Lewis, Essex Richards PA, Charlotte; James F. Lovett

Jr., Rik Lovett & Associates, Raleigh; Rik Lovette, Rik Lovett & Associates, Raleigh; Jeffrey E. Marshall, Marshall Taylor PLLC, Raleigh; David Michael McCleary, Dozier Miller Law Group, Charlotte; Patrick S. McCroskey, GHMA Law, Asheville; Joy Gragg McIver, Montford Family Law, Asheville; John Edward McKnight, McKnight Law, Raleigh; Lynn W. McNally, Smith Debnam Narron Drake Saintsing & Myers LLP, Raleigh; Christopher D. Miller, Miller Bowles Law PLLC, Charlotte; John G. Miskey IV, Bagwell Holt Smith PA, Chapel Hill; Caroline Trapeni Mitchell, James McElroy Diehl PA, Charlotte; Lynna Palmer Moen, Moen Legal Counsel, Charlotte; Jennifer Paternostro Moore, Marcellino & Tyson PLLC, Charlotte; Barbara R. Morgenstern, Morgenstern Associates PLLC, Greensboro; Gena G. Morris, James McElroy Diehl PA, Charlotte; Manisha Pravinchandra Patel, Manisha P. Patel PLLC, Greensboro; Carolyn T. Peacock, Peacock Family Law, New Bern; Robert A. Ponton Jr., Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Nicole Marie Quallen, Two Families Law, Durham; Lauren Taylor Quinn, Ward and Smith PA, New Bern; Katherine Adkins Rech, Rech Law PC, Charlotte; Mark D. Riopel, Hamilton Stephens Steele + Martin PLLC, Charlotte; Max Ramsey Rodden, Smith Debnam Narron Drake Saintsing & Myers LLP, Raleigh; John Edward Ryan III, Dobson Law Firm PLLC, Raleigh; Linda B. Sayed, Block, Crouch, Keeter, Behm & Sayed, LLP, Wilmington; Jim Siemens, Siemens Family Law Group, Asheville; Tonya Graser Smith, Grasersmith PLLC, Charlotte; Courtney Hamer Smith, Tin Fulton Walker & Owen PLLC, Charlotte; Ketan P. Soni, Soni Brendle PLLC, Charlotte; Megan Elizabeth Spidell, Spidell Family Law, Greensboro; Robin J. Stinson, Bell Davis Pitt PA, WinstonSalem; Alice Stubbs, Tharrington Smith LLP, Raleigh; Isla N. Tabrizi, Collins Family Law Group, Monroe; John Paul Tsahakis, James McElroy Diehl PA, Charlotte; Anna Claire Turpin, Smith Debnam Narron Drake Saintsing & Myers LLP, Raleigh; Meghan A. Van Vynckt, Cordes Law PLLC, Charlotte; Theresa Eileen Viera, Modern Legal, Charlotte; Tamela T. Wallace, Tamela Wallace PA, Charlotte; Anna N. Westmoreland, Westmoreland Legal, Charlotte; Megan Somers White, Modern Legal, Charlotte; Elise Morgan Whitley, Kurtz Evans Whitley Guy Simos PLLC, Winston-Salem; Mallory Ann Willink, Conrad Trosch & Kemmy, Charlotte; Lindsay Woodard Willis, Rosen Law Firm, Raleigh; Rebecca Bartholomew Wofford, Wofford Burt PLLC, Charlotte; James H. Wofford, Wofford Burt PLLC, Charlotte; Melissa

Richard Gantt

Gantt Family Law, Raleigh

Hometown: Sanford

Education: Lee County Senior High School; Wake Forest University; Tulane Law School; Regent University; LLM program at Georgetown Law School

Family: I’ve been blessed with a fantastic family, from beginning to end. I’m engaged to the lovely Sanan Smith, whom I will be marrying next fall. I have four amazing sons (Jackson, Graeme, Lachlan, and Tyler) and one amazing stepson-to-be, Dayton.

First job: That depends upon how you define a job. I remember working on my parents’ farm as a kid. I’d say that was probably a job. But my first formal job in the workforce was as a cashier at McDonald’s during the summer in high school.

What he’d be if not a lawyer: A rock star like Mick Jagger. Unfortunately, I wasn’t born with the voice for that, so I’ll happily settle for the stage I get to perform on for my clients, though I’m not nearly as entertaining.

Why he chose to specialize in this field: I’ve always been a fighter and an advocate. And people with divorce and family law issues definitely need someone to fight and advocate for them. I know, because I’ve been through just about every issue a person could go through in family court in my own life. I get great satisfaction out of helping others get to the light at the end of that tunnel, just like I have.

Best advice you ever received: When I was a young man, my dad told me that nothing worth having in life comes easily and anything worth having is worth fighting hard for. I’ve taken that advice to heart in my legal career and in my personal life, and I try to pass that advice on to my kids and my clients who are struggling with adversity and need encouragement.

Favorite place in town: PLUS Dueling Piano Bar in Raleigh. It’s the best place in town for live entertainment and fun times. My friend Tony Basford owns the bar. He and his team put on a great musical show every single time. It’s a great place for a party.

Favorite vacation spot: Key West. I love to fish,snorkel and parasail with my kids, and it’s also a great place for a fun night on the town too. I also love Australia, where my mom is from. I’m hoping to make it there for a honeymoon next fall.

Favorite book: The Game of Thrones series. I stayed up all night during weekends reading those on more than one occasion because I couldn’t put them down. I’m a sucker for a story about knights, dragons, battles, heroes and princesses. I’ve been waiting forever for the seventh book, but there’s still hope since winter is coming.

Favorite movie: “Gladiator,” which I watch every time I see it listed on TV. It’s the story of a war hero who loses everything but never gives up and returns to greatness. I think that storyline should give hope to anyone going through divorce or custody difficulties. No matter how life rises or falls, there can always be better things ahead for those who never give up.

Passions: Wake Forest sports, live music and catching fish that my fiancee says are way too big to put on the wall. (I caught a 225-pounder in Key West in March that was more than 8 feet long.) My work is a passion as well. I wake up every day excited about the opportunity to battle for justice on behalf of my clients, their families and their businesses.

Davis Wright, Block, Crouch, Keeter, Behm & Sayed, LLP, Wilmington; Arlene Margaret Zipp, Roberson Haworth & Reese PLLC, High Point

HALL OF FAME: John H. Parker, Cheshire, Parker, Schneider, Bryan & Vitale, Raleigh (2007); Carlyn Poole (retired), Tharrington Smith LLP, Raleigh (2008); Richard D. Stephens, Dozier, Miller, Pollard & Murphy LLP, Charlotte (2009); Lana S. Warlick, Law Office of Lana S. Warlick, Jacksonville (2010); Michael F. Schilawski, Wake Family Law Group, Raleigh (2011); D. Caldwell Barefoot Jr., Barefoot Family Law, Raleigh (2012); Stan Brown, Hamilton Stephens Steele & Martin PLLC, Charlotte (2013); Lori M. Vitale, Vitale Family Law, Raleigh (2014); Kimberly Bryan, Cheshire Parker Schneider & Bryan PLLC, Raleigh (2015); Rob Blair, Essex Richards PA, Charlotte (2016); Afi S. Johnson-Parris, Ward Black Law, Greensboro (2017); Chris Eatmon, Eatmon Law Firm PC, Wake Forest (2018); Kristin M. Hampson, Hampson Family Law, Raleigh (2019); Mariana Godwin, Barefoot Family Law, Raleigh (2020); Cary Close, Close Smith Family Law, Raleigh (2021)

IMMIGRATION

DEVON SENGES, Dummit Fradin, Attorneys at Law, Greensboro; Frederick Evan Benz, Derrick J. Hensley, Hillsborough; Laura D. Burton, Fox

Rothschild LLP, Greensboro; Rosa Maria Corriveau, Ogletree Deakins Nash Smoak Stewart PC, Raleigh; Jennifer Lee Cory, Womble Bond Dickinson (US) LLP, Charlotte; Nehmath Taouil Douglass, Gardner Law PLLC, Raleigh; Steven H. Garfinkel, Garfinkel Immigration Law Firm, Charlotte; Vanessa Ann Gonzalez, The Law Office of Vanessa A. Gonzalez PLLC, Wilmington; Alan S. Gordon, Gardner Gordon, Charlotte, Raleigh; Hannah Faith Little, Garfinkel Immigration Law Firm, Charlotte; Allison Jo Lukanich, Bashyam Shah LLP, Raleigh; Jeremy L. McKinney, McKinney Immigration Law, Greensboro; George N. Miller, Dozier Miller Pollard Murphy LLP, Charlotte; Ana Sofia Nunez, Fay Grafton Nunez PLLC, Raleigh; McCathern Marie Painter, Dummit Fradin Attorneys at Law, Greensboro; Jorge Ivan Pardo, Pardo Law Firm PLLC, Charlotte; Jennifer G. Parser, Poyner Spruill LLP, Raleigh; Helen Louise Parsonage, Elliot Morgan Parsonage PLLC, Winston-Salem; Nicola Ai Ling Prall, Jackson Lewis PC, Raleigh; Ann Robertson, Robertson Immigration Law Firm, Raleigh; Todd M. Rubin, Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP, Raleigh; Emily Elizabeth Scotton, Elliot Morgan Parsonage PLLC, WinstonSalem; Rashmi Kumar Shah, Bashyam Shah LLP, Raleigh; Benjamin Albert

Snyder, Charlotte Immigration Law Firm, Charlotte; Julie Christine Spahn, Spahn Law Firm PLLC, Charlotte; Douglas Bradley Thie, Clawson and Staubes LLC, Charlotte; Jessica Lynn Yañez, McKinney Immigration Law, Greensboro

HALL OF FAME: Laura Edgerton, Edgerton Immigration Law, Raleigh (2018); Gerard M. “Gerry” Chapman, Chapman Law Firm, Greensboro (2019); Murali Bashyam, Bashyam Shah LLP, Raleigh (2020); Gigi Gardner, Gardner Gordon, Charlotte, Raleigh (2021)

INTELLECTUAL

REBECCA CRANDALL, McGuire Wood & Bissette PA, Asheville; Stephen S. Ashley Jr., Ashley Law Firm PC, Charlotte; Jonathan E. Buchan Jr., Essex Richards PA, Charlotte; Charles W. Calkins, Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP, Winston-Salem; William Barker Cannon, Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP, Raleigh; Kathryn Gusmer Cole, Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Charlotte; Ticora Elaine Davis, Creatorslawfirm, Charlotte; Arthur J. DeBaugh, Bell Davis Pitt PA, Winston-Salem; Angela P. Doughty CIPP/US, Ward and Smith PA, New Bern; John M. Fuscoe, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Steven D. Gardner, Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton

LLP, Winston-Salem; Kimberly Bullock Gatling, Fox Rothschild LLP, Greensboro; William Lyle Gravatt, Forrest Firm PC, Durham; James Douglas Grimes, Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP, Charlotte; Emily Michele Haas, Michael Best & Friedrich LLP, Raleigh; Arlene D. Hanks, Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Charlotte; William Glen Heedy, The Van Winkle Law Firm, Asheville; Patrick Horne, Shumaker Loop & Kendrick LLP, Charlotte; Seth Lee Hudson, Nexsen Pruet PLLC, Charlotte; Brandon James Huffman, Odin Law, Raleigh; Shawna Cannon Lemon, Stanek Lemon, Raleigh; James Lee Lester, Maccord Mason PLLC, Greensboro; Richard Thomas Matthews, Williams Mullen, Raleigh; Justin Robert Nifong, NK Patent Law, Raleigh; John R. Owen, Coats & Bennett PLLC, Cary; Natalie Dawn Potter, Essex Richards PA, Charlotte; Russell M. Racine, Cranfill Sumner LLP, Charlotte; David W. Sar, Brooks Pierce McLendon Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro; Andrew Robert Shores, Williams Mullen, Raleigh; Jason Matthew Sneed, Sneed PLLC, Davidson; Steven N. Terranova, Withrow Terranova PLLC, Cary; Christina Davidson Trimmer, Shumaker Loop & Kendrick LLP, Charlotte; Robert Charles Van Arnam, Williams Mullen, Raleigh; Thomas Glenn Varnum, Brooks Pierce McLendon Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Wilmington; Franklin Emmett Weindruch, Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Charlotte; Devon E. White, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Randall M. Whitmeyer, Morningstar Law Group, Raleigh

HALL OF FAME: Mitchell S. Bigel, Myers Bigel Sibley & Sajovec PA, Raleigh (2002; 2003); Kenneth D. Sibley, Myers Bigel Sibley & Sajovec PA, Raleigh (2004); Wesley Thaddeus Adams III, Adams Evans PA, Charlotte (2005); J. Scott Evans, Yahoo! Inc., Charlotte (2006); Philip Summa, Summa, Allan & Additon PA, Charlotte (2007); Susan Freya Olive, Olive & Olive PA, Durham (2008); David M. Carter, Carter & Schnedler PA, Asheville (2009); David M. Krasnow, Smith Moore Leatherwood LLP, Raleigh (2010); William J. Mason, MacCord Mason PLLC, Wilmington (2011); E. Eric Mills, Ward and Smith PA, New Bern (2012); Anthony Biller, Coats & Bennett PLLC, Cary (2013); Larry L. Coats, Coats & Bennett PLLC, Cary (2014); Sarah E. Nagae, The Nagae Law Firm PLLC dba Triangle Trademarks, Raleigh (2015); Maury M. Tepper III, Tepper & Eyster PLLC, Raleigh (2016); John C. Nipp, Additon, Higgins & Pendleton PA, Charlotte (2017); Matthew Ladenheim, Trego, Hines & Ladenheim PLLC, Charlotte (2018); Julie H. Richardson, Myers Bigel PA, Raleigh (2019); Russ Racine, Cranfill Sumner LLP, Charlotte (2020); Rick McDermott, McDermott IP Law, Charlotte (2021)

Rebecca Crandall

Hometown: Asheville

Education: A.C. Reynolds High School, Converse College, UNC School of Law

Family: I have a feisty 10-year-old daughter and two cats, Toothless and Justice Bader Ginsburg. My parents live just down the street and have always been very supportive.

First job: Waiting tables at Shoney’s. I learned a lot at that job: a good team of people who each pull their own weight can make work fun and easy, a bad manager can make life miserable to the point of impacting your health and hot fudge cakes are incredibly tasty.

What she’d be if not a lawyer: Assuming I couldn’t make it on Broadway, I always thought package design sounded like fun. That said, I love helping people, solving problems and finding new ways to look at things, so I think being a therapist might have been a good fit too.

Why she chose to specialize in this field: I decided in fourth grade that I’d be a lawyer. When I chose computer science as my bonus major in college, my adviser said, “Oh, so you want to practice intellectual property law? Great choice.” Then I had to go back to my dorm room and search on Yahoo for what that was. It sounded good, so I ran with it.

Best advice you ever received: Glennon Doyle said, “Keep going. That’s all you have to do, ever. You really don’t have to be amazing or fierce or beautiful or successful or good. Just keep going, please. Slowly is fine. Crawling is fine. No feeling is final. Except hope.”

Favorite place in town: The French Broad River. I standup paddleboard on it as often as possible when it’s warm. I enjoy the sunshine, trees, birds, architecture and the camaraderie with others enjoying the river. It’s great to go solo, with my daughter or with friends.

Favorite vacation spot: Going to the Galapagos was my best trip. A baby sea lion stepped on my foot, a penguin bumped into my leg, I got sneezed on by marine iguanas and I saw Lonesome George. As for my favorite place on the planet, there’s no place like home when home is Asheville.

Favorite book: Untamed by Glennon Doyle. From the very first pages, she encouraged the reader to see herself as a cheetah, a powerful being free to live an authentic life. As a parent, I also appreciate Carl Jung’s quote about there being no greater burden on a child than the unlived life of a parent.

Favorite movie: I’m a rebel. I prefer TV shows to movies. To me, there’s no better show than Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Passions: I love my family, my friends, my cats, travel, hip-hop dance class, stand-up paddle-boarding, reading and craft beer. I also love theater. I acted as a kid, my daughter does now, and I serve on the board of Asheville Community Theater. I love to see as many shows as possible. Theater brings people together. It’s an escape from reality, and it teaches us about human existence.

McGuire Wood & Bissette, Asheville

Devon Senges

Dummit Fradin, Attorneys at Law, Greensboro

Hometown: Greenville, S.C.

Education: Mauldin High School; University of South Carolina; Elon University School of Law

Family: I am married to my husband of six years, and we share a 3-year-old daughter

First job: My first nonlegal job was as a box-office cashier at a movie theater. It was an amazing job for a high school student, as it came with free movies, popcorn and soda. The company placed a value on excellent customer service. It was there I learned how to prioritize the concerns of the customer and to always be looking for a way to make things right for them. The focus wasn’t on profits; the company knew that money would come when the focus was on creating a positive experience that made customers want to come back again.

What she’d be if not a lawyer: I would be a travel agent or park ranger.

Why she chose to specialize in this field: During my time as an undergrad at South Carolina, I ended up spending time with the immigrant community in Columbia. I met people through interpreting in medical clinics, translating at community events and attending bilingual churches. As I got to know more families, I learned how heavy the anxiety

and fear of having an uncertain legal status can be and how much it affects families who are going through the process with a loved one. It was a burden I wanted to help lighten.

Best advice you ever received: Progress and presence are better than perfection.

Favorite place in town: Greensboro’s Chez Genese restaurant, which I love visiting for breakfast because it has amazing food and atmosphere. I also love walking through Country Park and taking my daughter to the science center there.

Favorite vacation spot: The mountains. I love being outdoors, and hiking is my favorite hobby.

Favorite book: Gilead by Marilynne Robinson

Favorite movie: I like movies with twist endings. I guess the surprise and shock at the reveal stick with me in a positive way. Director Christopher Nolan is really good at that type of thing. His movies The Prestige and Memento are two of my favorites.

Passions: My work. I feel that I was called to help my clients navigate the complex and obscure immigration system. I walk with them through the fear and mystery and pain of it all to peace, relief and celebration. It is the most rewarding thing in the world.

Fred W. DeVore III

Devore, Acton & Stafford PA, Charlotte

Hometown: Charlotte

Education: Independence High School, UNC Chapel Hill (undergrad and master’s), Wake Forest University

Family: I am married to my wife, Amy, and have three children, three stepchildren and two grandchildren. My oldest son is a partner at our firm. My daughter is a Broadway production stage manager in New York City. My youngest son works for an IT company in Atlanta. One stepdaughter is in graduate school in Scotland; one is an interpreter for the hearing impaired; and one works as a financial analyst. My wife is employed at Matthews United Methodist Church and is a Wake Forest University graduate.

First job: At age 14, I was a potter’s apprentice. I would knead and prepare the clay for the potter, who would make beautiful clay pots. But when I tried to make the pottery, it was unrecognizable as anything.

LITIGATION

FRED W. DEVORE III, DeVore, Acton & Stafford PA, Charlotte; Derek Paul Adler, DeVore Acton & Stafford PA, Charlotte; Derek J. Allen, Allen Stahl + Kilbourne, Asheville; Matthew Frank Altamura, Garrett Walker Aycoth & Altamura LLP, Asheboro; Shannon Lynch Altamura, Garrett Walker Aycoth & Altamura LLP, Asheboro; Mark E. Anderson, McGuireWoods LLP, Raleigh;

What he’d be if not a lawyer: I would like to think I could be a doctor, but I know the curriculum is very difficult. It is another profession that provides service to others.

Why he chose to specialize in this field: I enjoy the service aspect of the practice. It is a very good feeling to help folks through some of their darkest moments in life

Best advice you ever received: Treat opposing counsel respectfully and professionally, realizing that both sides are doing their best to be advocates for their clients. Do not allow litigation to become personal. Also, as to clients, even the least among us is entitled to justice.

Favorite place in town: Probably my law office. It is a 1920s house on Queens Road that we have converted to our law office. It reinforces the “family” atmosphere we try to maintain between our attorneys and our support staff.

Favorite vacation spot: We have a weekend home on Lake Wateree, S.C. I like the isolation and quiet. My family has lots of great memories there.

Favorite book: I enjoy John Grisham’s books, since they are written by an attorney and tend to be more accurate in terms of court procedure and evidence.

Favorite movie: My three favorite movies are Little Big Man, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and The Sting – all because they have unexpected twists at the end. I was also completely fooled by The Sixth Sense.

Passions: I think I have a passion to try to help others. At some point, after I retire, I would like to make writing a passion as well.

Keith P. Anthony, Morningstar Law Group, Durham; John P. Barringer, McAngus Goudelock & Courie LLC, Charlotte; John T. Benjamin Jr., John T. Benjamin Jr. PA, Raleigh; Jonathan A. Berkelhammer, Ellis & Winters LLP, Greensboro; Adrienne S. Blocker, Demayo Law Offices LLP, Charlotte; Robert C. Bowers, Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Charlotte; Ellen Anne Bragg, Leitner Bragg & Griffin PLLC, Monroe; John E. Branch III, Nelson Mullins Riley

& Scarborough LLP, Raleigh; Walter E. Brock Jr., Young Moore and Henderson PA, Raleigh; John R. Buric, James McElroy Diehl PA, Charlotte; Bo Brandon Caudill, Weaver Bennett & Bland PA, Matthews; Karen Harris Chapman, Poyner Spruill LLP, Charlotte; Benjamin Smith Chesson, Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP, Charlotte; David S. Coats, Bailey Dixon LLP, Raleigh; Edward E. Coleman III, Ragsdale Liggett PLLC, Raleigh; Heather Graham Connor, McAngus Goudelock & Courie LLC, Charlotte; Steven Dennis Corriveau, Martin & Jones PLLC, Raleigh; Richard A. Coughlin, Fox Rothschild LLP, Greensboro; Amanda Kay Cutler, McGuireWoods LLP, Charlotte; Eric M. David, Brooks Pierce McLendon Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Raleigh; B. Joan Davis, Howard Stallings From Atkins Angell & Davis PA, Raleigh; Michael Dean DeFrank, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Tricia M. Derr, Lincoln Derr PLLC, Charlotte; Pamela S. Duffy, Sharpless McClearn Lester Duffy PA, Graham; Anne Louise Duvoisin, Henson Fuerst, Rocky Mount; James Robert Faucher, Brown Faucher Peraldo Benson PLLC, Greensboro; Andrew Larry Fitzgerald, Fitzgerald Litigation, WinstonSalem; J. Scott Flowers, Hutchens Law Firm LLP, Fayetteville; Robert W. Fuller III, Robinson Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte; Ross Robert Fulton, Rayburn Cooper & Durham PA, Charlotte; Lucas David Garber, Shumaker Loop & Kendrick LLP, Charlotte; Deedee Rouse Gasch, Cranfill Sumner LLP, Wilmington; Charles George, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Christopher T. Graebe, Graebe Hanna Sullivan PLLC, Raleigh; Glen Kirkland Hardymon, Rayburn Cooper & Durham PA, Charlotte; Scott Crissman Harris, Milberg Coleman Bryson Phillips Grossman PLLC, Raleigh; Elizabeth Sims Hedrick, Fox Rothschild LLP, Raleigh; H. Brent Helms, Robinson & Lawing LLP, Winston-Salem; Jon David Hensarling, Vann Attorneys PLLC, Raleigh; Christopher A. Hicks, New Direction Family Law, Raleigh; Michael J. Hoefling, Johnston Allison & Hord PA, Charlotte; Ryan Patrick Hoffman, Alexander Ricks PLLC, Charlotte; David Darren Howard, Dummit Fradin Attorneys at Law, High Point; John N. Hutson Jr., Young Moore and Henderson PA, Raleigh; William (“Wilson”) S. Jackson IV, Moseley Marcinak Law Group LLP, Greenville; John Christopher Jackson, Morningstar Law Group, Raleigh; John T. Jeffries, McAngus Goudelock & Courie LLC, Charlotte; William Scott Jones, Barbour Searson Jones Cash PLLC, Asheville; Shannon R. Joseph, Morningstar Law Group, Raleigh; Lori R. Keeton, Lori Keeton, Charlotte; Richard J. Keshian, Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton

LLP, Winston-Salem; Robert J. King III, Brooks Pierce McLendon Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro; David F. Kirby, Edwards Kirby LLP, Raleigh; Kimberly “Kim” J. Kirk, Johnston Allison & Hord PA, Charlotte; Sara R. Lincoln, Lincoln Derr PLLC, Charlotte; Trey Lindley, Lindley Law PLLC, Charlotte; Johnny M. Loper, Womble Bond Dickinson (US) LLP, Raleigh; Harrison A. Lord, Lord Law Firm PLLC, Charlotte; Lesley Skye MacLeod, Ragsdale Liggett PLLC, Raleigh; Edward Hallett Maginnis, Maginnis Law PLLC, Raleigh; Robert R. Marcus, Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP, Charlotte; John M. Martin, Ward and Smith PA, Greenville; John M. McCabe, John M McCabe PA, Cary; Joseph P. McGuire, McGuire Wood & Bissette PA, Asheville; Steven A. Meckler, Shumaker Loop & Kendrick LLP, Charlotte; Michael T. Medford, Manning Fulton & Skinner PA, Raleigh; Greg Merritt, Harris Creech Ward & Blackerby PA, New Bern; Jason Andrew Miller, Miller Monroe Plyler PLLC, Raleigh; Jeffrey Robert Monroe, Miller Monroe Plyler PLLC, Raleigh; Bradley Keith Overcash, Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP, Charlotte; K. Alan Parry Jr., Parry Law PLLC, Chapel Hill; Joseph Raymond Pellington, TLG Law, Charlotte; Salvatore Popolillo III, Dummit Fradin Attorneys at Law, High Point; Kristine L. Prati, Wilson Ratledge PLLC, Raleigh; Paul Jennings Puryear Jr., Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Ian Samuel Richardson, Vann Attorneys PLLC, Raleigh; Amy E. Richardson, Harris Wiltshire & Grannis LLP, Raleigh; Alice Carmichael Richey, Alexander Ricks PLLC, Charlotte; Joseph A. Schouten, Ward and Smith PA, Raleigh; Thomas Hamilton Segars, Ellis

& Winters LLP, Raleigh; Timothy Alfred Sheriff, Crumley Roberts LLP, Charlotte; Curtis J. Shipley, Ellis & Winters LLP, Greensboro; Grant Sigmon, Sigmon Klein PLLC, Greensboro; Samuel Allen Slater, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Nathaniel Coates Smith, Bagwell Holt Smith PA, Chapel Hill; Eric Straub Spengler, Spengler Agans Bradley PLLC, Charlotte; Luther D. Starling Jr., Daughtry Woodard Lawrence & Starling, Smithfield; James B. Stephenson II, StephensonLaw LLP, Cary; Wyatt S. Stevens, Roberts & Stevens, PA, Asheville; Colin R. Stockton, Regent Law, Charlotte; Colin Jordan Tarrant, Block, Crouch, Keeter, Behm & Sayed, LLP, Wilmington; Allen N. Trask III, Ward and Smith PA, Wilmington; Sean Charles Wagner, Wagner Hicks, Charlotte; Bo Walker, Ragsdale Liggett PLLC, Raleigh; Mary McHugh Webb, Ragsdale Liggett PLLC, Raleigh; Camden R. Webb, Williams Mullen, Raleigh; Dixie T. Wells, Ellis & Winters LLP, Greensboro; Huntington MacCallum Willis, Martin & Jones PLLC, Raleigh; David C. Wright III, Robinson Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte; Laura L. Yaeger, Laura L. Yaeger, Attorney at Law, Charlotte

HALL OF FAME: James T. Williams Jr., Brooks, Pierce, McLendon, Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro (2002; 2003); Clarence W. Walker, Kennedy Covington Lobdell & Hickman LLP, Charlotte (2004); Gary S. Parsons, Brooks, Pierce, McLendon, Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Raleigh (2005); William K. Davis, Bell, Davis & Pitt PA, Winston-Salem (2006); Dan J. McLamb, Yates, McLamb & Weyher LLP, Raleigh (2007); Robert D. Walker, Walker, Allen, Grice, Ammons & Foy LLP, Goldsboro (2008); J. Donald Cowan Jr., Ellis & Winters LLP, Greensboro (2009); G. Gray

Wilson, Wilson, Helms and Cartledge, WinstonSalem (2010); James H. Kelly Jr., Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP, Winston-Salem (2011); Daniel L. Brawley, Williams Mullen, Wilmington (2012); Lee M. Whitman, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh (2013); Michael J. Byrne, Byrne Law PC, Raleigh (2014); Jonathan D. Sasser, Ellis & Winters LLP, Raleigh (2015); Jean Sutton Martin, Law Office of Jean Sutton Martin PLLC, Wilmington (2016); Greg Merritt, Harris, Creech, Ward & Blackerby, New Bern (2017); Ward Davis, Bell, Davis & Pitt PA, Charlotte (2018); Elizabeth Scott, Williams Mullen, Raleigh (2019); Clay A. Campbell, Marcellino & Tyson PLLC, Charlotte (2020); Kristen L. Beightol, Edwards Kirby LLP, Raleigh (2021)

REAL ESTATE

PHILIP HACKLEY, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Amanda Spillman Bambrick, Morningstar Law Group, Raleigh; Steven K. Bell, Steven K. Bell Attorney at Law PC, Trent Woods; Susan R. Benoit, Hutchens Law Firm LLP, Fayetteville; Camden Charles Betz, Brooks Pierce McLendon Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Raleigh; Ashleigh Elizabeth Black, Ragsdale Liggett PLLC, Raleigh; Jonathan Matthew Bogues, Forrest Firm PC, Raleigh; Richard O. Bolton, Ragsdale Liggett PLLC, Raleigh; Brian W. Brady, Brady Boyette, PLLC, Raleigh; Margaret S. Burnham, Nexsen Pruet PLLC, Greensboro; Michele Andrejco Callaway, Adams Howell Sizemore & Adams PA, Raleigh; Ashley H. Campbell, Ragsdale Liggett PLLC, Raleigh; Hope D. Carmichael, Jordan Price Wall Gray Jones Carlton PLLC, Raleigh; Barbara R. Christy, Schell Bray PLLC, Greensboro; Louis Penn Clarke, Longleaf Law Partners, Raleigh; Benjamin Edward

Philip Hackley

Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh

Hometown: Johnson City, N.Y. I moved to Raleigh at the age of 7 when my father took a job at Coastal Federal Credit Union.

Education: Ravenscroft School; N.C. State University; University of Miami (MBA); St. Louis University School of Law

Family: My wife is from Birmingham, Mich., and is a real-estate agent with Sotheby’s (Hodge & Kittrell). We have 7-year-old twins and a 3-month-old.

First job: I worked in the cart shed at North Ridge Country Club in North Raleigh. It was a fantastic job — albeit physically demanding. But I enjoyed meeting people, being around the golf course and trying not to get hit by range balls while sweeping the driving range. We had a great manager, and I learned a lot about hard work, team dynamics and dedication. There is still definitely a part of me that misses working outside, especially after a long day at the computer, and I thoroughly enjoyed being around the golf course for eight- to 10-hour stretches.

What he’d be if not a lawyer: I got my MBA in finance/marketing, so something in that world. I had a mentor at the University of Miami who was an FBI agent specializing in white-collar crime, so I worked through the first few rounds of the FBI’s application process. I never followed through on the in-person interview.

Why he chose to specialize in this field: I worked for Chris and Gail Willard with Willard & Willard as my senior internship from Ravenscroft. I enjoyed real-estate law and continued to help them out with general errands and as a legal runner, delivering documents and recording and filing at the Register of Deeds. During that time, I also started to learn the basics of title searching. I finished law school in 2008, and with the economy less than vibrant at the time, I moved back to North Carolina to limited opportunities for real-estate practitioners. On the bright side, Chris and Gail had a spot for me. I spent five years learning about residential and commercial real estate law and how to be a lawyer from them before moving to Wyrick Robbins in 2013.

Best advice you ever received: My former boss, Chris Willard, always reminded me that no matter how tired, frustrated or annoyed I was — or would get — with the practice of law, for each client that came through the door, their particular matter was the most important thing currently in their orbit, and that I should always make an effort to treat them accordingly. After moving to Wyrick, I soon found out that my current mentor, Eric Vernon, had the same mentality of giving each client the attention, respect and thoughtfulness they deserve, regardless of other commitments, distractions or variables.

Favorite place in town: I have always enjoyed being in and around downtown Raleigh and watching it grow over the years. My wife and I first lived in a townhome near Boylan Heights and the Boylan Bridge, and we loved taking the dog for a walk in the evenings and trying to spot new cranes on the horizon.

Favorite vacation spot: I enjoy exploring northern Michigan in the summer. It reminds me a lot of upstate New York. I also love visiting south Florida, including Miami, the Keys, Sanibel and Captiva Island.

Favorite book: The Catcher in the Rye, although that always feels like a bland or overused answer. I enjoy most anything nonfiction and am currently reading Midnight in Chernobyl, although my twins have gotten me into Harry Potter and led to me dusting off my old copies of Lord of The Rings and The Hobbit

Favorite movie: A tie between Good Will Hunting and The Way Way Back. Both are aspirational films with the same general themes of overcoming current circumstances and taking a risk to pursue personal growth. My wife always likes to say I am a sucker for any form of “coming of age” storyline.

Passions: Family, golf, travel, urban development and binge watching mediocre TV shows

Dean, Culp Elliott & Carpenter PLLC, Charlotte; Katherine Marie Dowell, Raleigh Real Estate Law, Raleigh; Kurtis R. Dumaw, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Jerome R. Eatman Jr., Lynch & Eatman LLP, Raleigh; Hunter Sutton Edwards, Womble Bond Dickinson (US) LLP, Charlotte; Susan Y. Ellinger, Ellinger & Carr PLLC, Raleigh; Randall Wayne Faircloth, Regent Law, Charlotte; Kurt Blaine Fryar, Kurt B. Fryar Attorney at Law, Wilmington; Anita K. Getter, Getter Law Office PA, Raleigh; Jeffrey W. Glenney, Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Charlotte; Jonathan Peter Goldberg, Alexander Ricks PLLC, Charlotte; Nancy M. Guyton, Law Firm Carolinas, PA, Wilmington; Jennifer Mouchet Hall, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Jonathan Robert Hankin, Hankin Law PLLC, Charlotte; James Bryant Haynes, Jenkins Haynes PLLC, Greensboro; Michael Philip Hebert, Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Charlotte; Solomon Ibekwe Hejirika Jr., Knipp Law Office PLLC, Charlotte; David Layne Hillman, Ellis & Winters LLP, Raleigh; Thomas Patrick Hockman, Schell Bray PLLC, Greensboro; Janeen Miller Hogue, The Miller-Hogue Law Firm PC, Charlotte; Thomas R. Holt, Bagwell Holt Smith PA, Chapel Hill; Justin Kenneth Humphries, The Humphries Law Firm PC, Wilmington; Susan K. Irvin, Irvin Law Group, Cornelius; Marc L. Isaacson, Isaacson Sheridan, Greensboro; Jeffrey Joel Johnson, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Kent D. Jones, Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP, Charlotte; Jeffrey P. Keeter, Block, Crouch, Keeter, Behm & Sayed, LLP, Wilmington; Meredith Jo Kittrell, Getter Law Office PA, Raleigh; Joshua Townsend Knipp, Knipp Law Office PLLC, Cornelius; Benjamin R. Kuhn, Ragsdale Liggett PLLC, Raleigh; John Charles Livingston, Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP, Raleigh; Richard G. Long Jr., Perry, Bundy, Plyler & Long LLP, Monroe; Sarah Robinson Lucente, Kunkleman Lucente PLLC, Charlotte; Moses Luski, Shumaker Loop & Kendrick LLP, Charlotte; John T. Maheras, Essex Richards PA, Charlotte; Gary Thomas McDermott, McDermott Law PLLC, Waxhaw; Heather Dawn McDowell, Ellinger & Carr PLLC, Raleigh; Catherine Bell Mitchell, Fox Rothschild LLP, Charlotte; Peter F. Morgan, Peter F. Morgan PLLC, Charlotte; James A. Oliver, Hatch Little Bunn LLP, Raleigh; John C. Overfield, Coltrane & Overfield PLLC, Greensboro; Michael John Ovsievsky, Morningstar Law Group, Raleigh; Christina Freeman Pearsall, Schell Bray PLLC, Greensboro; James K. Pendergrass Jr., Pendergrass Law Firm PLLC, Raleigh; Nolan Ray Perry, Morgan & Perry Law PLLC, Fuquay Varina;

TAX PLANNING & ESTATE

Brooks Jaffa

Cranford, Buckley, Schultze, Tomchin, Allen & Buie PA, Charlotte

Hometown: Charlotte

Education: Charlotte Latin School; UNC Chapel Hill; UNC School of Law

Family: Rupal Jaffa is my wife. Arvind Jaffa is my son.

Tonya B. Powell, Nexsen Pruet PLLC, Raleigh; Robert J. Ramseur Jr., Ragsdale Liggett PLLC, Raleigh; Lauren Victoria Reeves, Smith Debnam Narron Drake Saintsing & Myers LLP, Raleigh; John F. Renger III, Renger Reynolds PLLC, Charlotte; Stanley Leigh Rodenbough IV, Brooks Pierce McLendon Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro; John R. Rose, Goosmann Rose Colvard Cramer PA, Asheville; Robert Christopher Miles Rountree, Narron Holdford PA, Wilson; Lawrence Joseph Shaheen Jr., The McIntosh Law Firm, Davidson; Douglas John Short, Manning Fulton & Skinner PA, Raleigh; Caroline Wannamaker Sink, Robinson Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte; Jonathan Trent Sizemore, Adams Howell Sizemore & Adams PA, Cary; Carolyn Clark Snipes, Roberts & Stevens PA, Asheville; Jeffrey Kendal Stahl, Allen Stahl + Kilbourne, Asheville; Faison Gibson Sutton, Murchison

First job: I was a counselor at a Lego camp in Charlotte.

What he’d be if not a lawyer: A history professor

Why he chose to specialize in this field: I enjoy working with individuals and guiding them through some of their most difficult decisions.

Best advice you ever received: Listen.

Favorite place in town: Bechtler Museum of Modern Art in Charlotte. I am a huge fan of Mario Botta’s architecture.

Favorite vacation spot: Hawaii. It is the most incredible place that I have ever been.

Favorite book: Five Weeks in a Balloon, as representative of the collected works of Jules Verne, my favorite author.

Favorite movie: The Rocky Horror Picture Show. It’s astounding.

Passions: The Charlotte Hornets and playing with my son

Taylor & Gibson PLLC, Wilmington; Gary W. Swindell, Swindell & Visalli PLLC, Charlotte; Daniel A. Terry, The Terry Law Firm PLLC, Charlotte; Lindsay Parris Thompson, Van Winkle Law Firm, Asheville; R. Susanne Todd, Johnston Allison & Hord PA, Charlotte; Eric A. Vernon, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Nikhil Pankaj Vyas, Vyas Realty Law, Raleigh; David Eric Wagner, K&L Gates LLP, Raleigh; William T. Wallace, McMillan, Psaroudis & Markey, PA, Charlotte

HALL OF FAME: Alfred Adams, Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice PLLC, Winston-Salem (2004); Barry D. Mann, Manning, Fulton & Skinner PA, Raleigh (2005); Brent A. Torstrick, Robinson, Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte (2006); Samuel T. Oliver Jr., Manning, Fulton & Skinner PA, Raleigh (2007); Charles Gordon Brown, Brown & Bunch PLLC, Chapel Hill (2008);

C. Steven Mason, Smith, Anderson, Blount, Dorsett, Mitchell & Jernigan LLP, Raleigh (2009); Timothy G. Sellers, Sellers, Hinshaw, Ayers, Dortch & Lyons PA, Charlotte (2010); Frank M. Bell Jr., Bell, Davis & Pitt PA, Winston-Salem (2011); George W. Sistrunk III, Hamilton Stephens Steele & Martin PLLC Charlotte (2012); Robert Charles Lawson, Williams Mullen, Raleigh (2013); Michael G. Winters, Ellis & Winters LLP, Raleigh (2014); Holly H. Alderman, Schell Bray PLLC, Chapel Hill (2015); Brian W. Byrd, Smith Moore Leatherwood LLP, Greensboro (2016); Anna P. McLamb, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh (2017); Beth Voltz, Weatherspoon & Voltz LLP, Raleigh (2018); Annika M. Brock, The Brock Law Firm PLLC, Asheville (2019); Allen York, Smith, Anderson, Blount, Dorsett, Mitchell & Jernigan LLP, Raleigh (2020); Diana R. Palecek, Fox Rothschild LLP, Charlotte (2021)

TAX & ESTATE PLANNING

BROOKS JAFFA, Cranford, Buckley Schultze, Tomchin, Allen & Buie PA, Charlotte; Abby Lund Adams, Kohut Adams PA, Wilmington; Andrew D. Atherton, McGuire Wood & Bissette PA, Asheville; Jessica Lowry Bell, Robinson & Lawing LLP, Winston-Salem; Andrew Wharton Blair, Manning Fulton & Skinner PA, Raleigh; Gwendolyn C. Brooks, Kennon Craver PLLC, Durham; H. Chalk Broughton Jr., Poyner Spruill LLP, Charlotte; Joshua Dale Bryant, Smith Anderson Blount Dorsett Mitchell & Jernigan LLP, Raleigh; Madison E. Bullard Jr., Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Andrew Steven Bullard, Smith Debnam Narron Drake Saintsing & Myers LLP, Raleigh; John R. Cella Jr., Ragsdale Liggett PLLC, Raleigh; Lynn F. Chandler, Shumaker Loop & Kendrick LLP, Charlotte; Christian P. Cherry, Crisp Cherry McCraw PLLC, Charlotte; Andrea Christina Chomakos, McGuireWoods LLP, Charlotte; Charles M. Crisp, Crisp Cherry McCraw PLLC, Charlotte; Stephanie Camp Daniel, Shumaker Loop & Kendrick LLP, Charlotte; Daniel Brinson Finch, Envisage Law, Raleigh; Elinor Johnsey Foy, Womble Bond Dickinson (US) LLP, Raleigh; Kyle Matthew Frizzelle, NC Planning, Cary; Kara O’Conner Gansmann, Cranfill Sumner LLP, Wilmington; John Randolph Hemphill, Hemphill Gelder PC, Raleigh; Mary Robinson Hervig, Roberts & Stevens PA, Asheville; Kay Miller Hobart, Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP, Raleigh; Michael Cory Howes, Strauss Attorneys PLLC, Raleigh; Kelly Rains Jesson, Jesson & Rains PLLC, Charlotte; Timothy William Jones, Jones Branz Whitaker LLP, Raleigh; Jill Lynn Peters Kaess, Lee Kaess PLLC, Wilmington;

Carl Burchette

Rosenwood, Rose & Litwak PLLC, Charlotte

Hometown: Charlotte

Education: Charlotte Country Day School; University of Alabama; UNC School of Law

Family: My wife, Katie, and I met in law school. We welcomed our first child, Clara, this June. We now have a very jealous dog, a Vizsla named Chessie.

First job: I was a laborer with Crowder Construction the summer before college. I worked on the construction of the I-485 and South Boulevard light-rail station and a nearby wastewater treatment facility. I loved the work and the project. That experience definitely fed the interest in construction I still have today.

Warren P. Kean, Shumaker Loop & Kendrick LLP, Charlotte; John G. Kelso, Van Winkle Law Firm, Asheville; Amy Hulsey Kincaid, Schell Bray PLLC, Greensboro; Amy S. Klass, Fox Rothschild LLP, Greensboro; Meghan Naomi Knight, Lynch & Eatman LLP, Raleigh; Jennifer L.J. Koenig, Schell Bray PLLC, Greensboro; Zachary F. Lamb, Ward and Smith PA, Asheville; David T. Lewis, Johnston Allison & Hord PA, Charlotte; Harris M. Livingstain, McGuire Wood & Bissette PA, Asheville; Steven B. Long, Ward and Smith PA, Raleigh;

What he’d be if not a lawyer: Commercial real estate development

Why he chose to specialize in this field: The focus of my practice relates to construction and real-estate development. Anyone who does similar work will tell you that it’s the people that make you fall in love with the field. My clients take pride in their work, reputation and employees. I take pride in supporting and defending them.

Best advice you ever received: Don’t borrow trouble.

Favorite place in town: Any section of Charlotte’s greenway system. I love to be outdoors, and it’s still a novelty to me having grown up in Charlotte before its development.

Favorite vacation spot: The mountains of North Carolina. They have everything you need to have fun and relax.

Favorite book: The Hunt for Red October. I loved Tom Clancy books growing up, and this one got me hooked.

Favorite movie: It’s a tie. Waking Ned Divine for something lighthearted and Judgment at Nuremberg if I want something serious. They’re both great films, and something new stands out each time I watch them.

Passions: Fly fishing, playing golf, messing around on the grill and hiking in the mountains

Lauren Campbell Maxie, NC Planning, Cary; William Thomas McCuiston Jr., McCuiston Law Offices PLLC, Cary; Robert E. Monroe, Monroe Wallace Morden PA, Raleigh; Christopher Scott Morden, Monroe Wallace Morden PA, Raleigh; Jeffery James Morris, Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP, Charlotte; Marcus L. Moxley, Edwards Craver Veach PLLC, Winston-Salem; Lawrence Moye IV, Womble Bond Dickinson (US) LLP, Raleigh; Michael Christian Murray, Murray Moyer PLLC, Raleigh; Andrew Lamberson Nesbitt, Nesbitt

Law PLLC, Charlotte; Richard P. Nordan, Wallace Nordan LLP, Raleigh; Timothy A. Nordgren, Schell Bray PLLC, Durham; Holly B. Norvell, Johnston Allison & Hord PA, Charlotte; Richard Anthony Orsbon, Orsbon & Fenninger LLP, Charlotte; Erin Bray Patterson, Erin Patterson Law PLLC, Charlotte; Gregory T. Peacock, Ward and Smith PA, New Bern; Justin Nicholas Plummer, Law Office of Cheryl David, Greensboro; Orly Reznik, Reznik Law PLLC, Apex; Larry H. Rocamora, McPherson Rocamora Nicholson Nordgren PLLC, Durham; Heidi Elizabeth Royal, Heidi E. Royal Law PLLC, Charlotte; Maria Magdalena Satterfield, Satterfield Legal, Charlotte; Carolyn G. Shaw, Kirk Palmer & Thigpen PA, Charlotte; N. Lucille “Lucy” Siler, Johnston Allison & Hord PA, Charlotte; Holly Simpson, Simpson Law Firm, Fort Mill; John R. Sloan, Ward and Smith PA, Wilmington; Rebecca Lane Smitherman, Craige Jenkins Liipfert & Walker LLP, Winston-Salem; Adam Brook Snyder, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Kimberly Q. Swintosky, Smith Anderson Blount Dorsett Mitchell & Jernigan LLP, Raleigh; Adam Patrick McInnis Tarleton, Brooks Pierce McLendon Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro; Matthew W. Thompson, Ward and Smith PA, Wilmington; Sarah S. Thornburg, McGuire Wood & Bissette PA, Asheville; Bradley T. Van Hoy, Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Charlotte; Karen M. Wilson, Waldrep Wall Babcock & Bailey PLLC, Winston-Salem; Keith A. Wood, Carruthers & Roth PA, Greensboro; Louis E. Wooten III, The Wooten Law Firm, Raleigh; Henry Denton Worrell, Denton Worrell, Raleigh; Paul Anthony Yokabitus, Cary Estate Planning, Cary

HALL OF FAME: Robert C. Vaughn Jr., Vaughn Perkinson Ehlinger Moxley & Stogner, Winston-Salem (2002; 2003); W. Curtis Elliott Jr., Culp Elliott & Carpenter PLLC, Charlotte (2004); Ray S. Farris, Johnston, Allison & Hord PA, Charlotte (2005); Elizabeth L. Quick, Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice PLLC, Winston-Salem (2006); James W. Narron, Narron, O’Hale & Whittington PA, Smithfield (2007); E. William Kratt, Herring Mills & Kratt PLLC, Raleigh (2008); Christy Eve Reid (died May 8, 2014), Robinson, Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte (2009); Michael H. Godwin, Schell Bray Aycock Abel & Livingston PLLC, Greensboro (2010); Maria M. Lynch, Lynch & Eatman LLP, Raleigh (2011); Graham D. Holding Jr., Robinson, Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte (2012); Andrew H. Veach, Edwards Craver Veach PLLC, WinstonSalem (2013); Robert H. Haggard, The Van Winkle Law Firm, Asheville (2014); Michael A. Colombo, Colombo, Kitchin, Dunn, Ball & Porter LLP, Greenville (2015); Jason Walls,

The Walls Law Firm PLLC, Apex (2016); Debra L. Foster, Foster Royal PA, Charlotte (2017); Elizabeth “Liz” K. Arias, Womble Bond Dickinson, Raleigh (2018); Jean Gordon Carter, McGuireWoods LLP, Raleigh (2019); Rudy Ogburn, Young Moore and Henderson PA, Raleigh (2020); Jessica Mering Hardin, Robinson, Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte (2021)

YOUNG GUNS

CARL BURCHETTE, Rosenwood, Rose & Litwak PLLC, Charlotte; Charles Van Dyke Archie, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Lisa Williford Arthur, Fox Rothschild LLP, Greensboro; Timaura Evadney Barfield, Shumaker Loop & Kendrick LLP, Charlotte; Brett Matthew Becker, Nexsen Pruet PLLC, Greensboro; Keith Alan Boyette, Anderson Jones PLLC, Raleigh; Stuart Long Brooks, Freedman Thompson Witt Ceberio & Byrd PLLC, Winston-Salem; Kathleen “Katie” D.B. Burchette, Johnston Allison & Hord PA, Charlotte; Nathaniel H. Cook, Block, Crouch, Keeter, Behm & Sayed, LLP, Wilmington; Lee Dillon Denton, Spilman Thomas Battle PLLC, Winston-Salem; Christy Cochran Dunn, Young Moore and Henderson PA, Raleigh; Chris S. Edwards, Ward and Smith PA, Wilmington; Katie Marie Ertmer, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Kyle Andrew Frost, Offit Kurman Attorneys at Law, Charlotte; Lauren Elizabeth Fussell, Williams Mullen, Raleigh; Alexandra Cranston Haile, Dummit Fradin Attorneys at Law, Winston-Salem; Tara Austin Harrawood, Marcellino & Tyson PLLC, Charlotte; Christie Anthony Hartinger, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Travis Styres Hinman, Robinson Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte; Cassie Holt, Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP, Raleigh; Kristen Marie Kirby, McGuireWoods LLP, Raleigh; Mary Kathryn Kurth, Edwards Kirby LLP, Raleigh; Anna Gray LeBlanc, Offit Kurman Attorneys at Law, Charlotte; Scottie Forbes Lee, Ellis & Winters LLP, Greensboro; Benjamin Leighton, Alexander Ricks PLLC, Charlotte; Kimberly Marie Marston, Brooks Pierce McLendon Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro; Molly Fraser Martinson, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Carmela Mastrianni, Hamilton Stephens Steele + Martin PLLC, Charlotte; Jovanna Nicole Mastro, Marcellino & Tyson PLLC, Charlotte; Kelsey Nicole Hendry Mayo, Poyner Spruill LLP, Charlotte; Lauren Trask Millovitsch, Creamer Millovitsch PLLC, Davidson; Mary Fletcher King Mullikin, Johnston Allison & Hord PA, Charlotte; Paula Etheridge Murray, Ragsdale Liggett PLLC, Raleigh;

Sarah Hayward Negus, Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Charlotte; Douglas David Noreen, Howard Stallings From Atkins Angell & Davis PA, Raleigh; Whitney R. Pakalka, Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP, Winston-Salem; Antonia Ameca Peck, Womble Bond Dickinson (US) LLP, Durham; Nathaniel James Pencook, Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP, Raleigh; Allie Petrova, Petrova Law PLLC, Greensboro; Jasmine Michelle Pitt, Bennett Guthrie PLLC, Winston-Salem; Robert Blackwell Rader III, Miller Monroe Plyler PLLC, Raleigh; Nader Saeed Raja, Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Charlotte; C. Cowden W. Rayburn, Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Charlotte; Sarah Margaret Saint, Brooks Pierce McLendon Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro; Steven Andrew Scoggan, Ellis & Winters LLP, Greensboro; Joseph Robert Shealy, Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP, Charlotte; Samantha Lee Smith, Dummit Fradin Attorneys at Law, Greensboro; Megan McGee Stacy, Shumaker Loop & Kendrick LLP, Charleston; Tory Ian Summey, Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP, Charlotte; Philip Ryan Thomas, North Carolina Republican Party, Raleigh; Matthew L. Tomsic, Rayburn Cooper & Durham PA, Charlotte; S. Wesley Tripp III, Young Moore and Henderson PA, Raleigh; Elizabeth Lea Troutman, Brooks Pierce McLendon Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro; Caitlin Hale Walton, Essex Richards PA, Charlotte; Zachary D. Walton, McAngus Goudelock & Courie LLC, Charlotte; Jeremy Richard Williams, Milberg Coleman Bryson Phillips Grossman PLLC, Raleigh; Katarina Wong, Brooks Pierce McLendon Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Raleigh

HALL OF FAME: J. Christian Stevenson, Kirk Palmer & Thigpen PA, Charlotte (2012); George Mason Oliver, Oliver Friesen Cheek PLLC, New Bern (2013); Michael F. Easley Jr., McGuireWoods LLP, Raleigh (2014); Alvaro R. De La Calle, Calle Law PLLC, Greensboro (2015); Aaron Lay, Hamilton Stephens Steele + Martin PLLC, Charlotte (2016); Elie Foy, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh (2017); Matthew T. Marcellino, Marcellino & Tyson PLLC, Charlotte (2018); Nancy S. Litwak, Rosenwood, Rose & Litwak PLLC, Charlotte (2019); Antonia A. “Toni” Peck, Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP, Raleigh (2020); Holden B. Clark, Holden B. Clark, Attorney at Law PLLC, Gastonia (2021) ■

IMPROVING ITS GAME

Golf brings plenty of people to Moore County. Some stay and make it their home, enjoying a high quality of life that’s only getting better because of workforce development, small business support and amenities.

The COVID-19 pandemic had a stranglehold on the economy in 2020. In North Carolina’s Sandhills, Moore County finally felt its grip loosen last year. Pinehurst-Southern Pines-Aberdeen Area Convention and Visitors Bureau President and CEO Phil Werz says occupancy tax collections in July, August and September were 67.3% higher than those months the year prior. It was 71% more — $258,286 — in July 2021, for example. That three-month span beat the CVB’s forecast by $336,000.

Werz believes more leisure trips and family vacations to the home of American golf, where there’s nearly 40 courses, was behind the growth. “Clearly, this shift is COVID-related,

and national travel experts like U.S. Travel Association, Destination Analysts and Tourism Economics all agree that it may be 2022 or 2023 before we see a return in some degree to more meetings and convention business,” he says. “Travel surveys show people still wish to take trips to rural areas, so Moore County is perfect for getting out of the big cities and being in a place where you can relax, socially distance and feel safe. Golf is enjoying its greatest resurgence since Tiger Woods came along in the 1990s. Pinehurst Resort is experiencing a record-breaking year, and their success is spilling over to other golf and hotel properties destination-wide.”

Much of Moore’s moxie is in what’s missing. It lacks high-rise office towers and smoke-puffing factories.

You won’t find a six-lane freeway clogged with rush-hour traffic. “When you look at the fabric of Moore County, you’re not going to see a large auto mall, the big shopping malls,” says Natalie Hawkins, executive director of Partners in Progress, Moore County’s economic development group. “We have quaint, charming historic districts with boutique shops and restaurants, so it’s a little more appropriate for our culture, I think, to support new business creation. That’s what made us successful so far. That’s why Moore County is such a great place to live.”

Moore County’s population was almost 103,000 in 2020, up 16.5% since 2010, according to N.C. Office of State Budget and Management. It’s expected to surpass 155,000 by 2050. Hawkins says 41% of residents live in its southeastern corner — Southern Pines, Pinehurst and Aberdeen — where Tifway Bermuda fairways and pedestrian-friendly downtowns create a relaxed quality of life. Economic analysis firm Policom ranked the Pinehurst- Southern Pines micropolitan statistical area No. 1 in the state for the fourth consecutive year in 2021 because of its economic strength, consistent growth and quality of life. “There’s tons of opportunity there,” Hawkins says.

But opportunity isn’t limited in Moore County. It’s found countywide, attracting businesses and people who end up making the county their home. While quality of life is a big contributor, they come for other reasons, including workforce development, entrepreneurial encouragement and amenities.

ECONOMIC DRIVER

Moore County and golf became synonymous when New Englander James Walker Tufts hired Dr. Leroy Culver to design and build a ninehole course at his Pinehurst health retreat in 1898. That relationship is still close more than a century later. “We’ve seen a shift in the balance between corporate travel and leisure travel,” Hawkins says. “Whereas before [COVID-19] we would see the corporate retreat come to town, that type of business is falling off. Now you see groups of people coming to get away for a long weekend, doing something outdoors, playing a few rounds of golf.”

Occupancy rates followed occupancy tax collections in July, August and September of last year, about the time that the COVID-19 pandemic appeared to be waning. Werz says it was up 34% in July 2021, for example, from the prior year, reaching 75.4%. The daily rate for those three months was up an average of 20.6%. He says they’re an indication

of Moore’s popularity. “Overall, our destination is doing exceptionally well,” he says. “When you look at the areas that are succeeding statewide, it is the coast, the mountains and our area. Why have we been so successful in the midst of a global pandemic? Golf is enjoying its greatest resurgence since Tiger Woods emerged onto the scene in the late 1990s. That resurgence is global and not something that is temporary, because the golf industry is seeing record sales in many categories, including clubs, balls, gloves, apparel and more.”

Werz doesn’t believe golf’s resurging popularity is entirely the result of boredom born of COVID lockdowns. “This happens because people are gravitating to the game, and given we are the home of American golf, people looking to travel are seeking us out, because we are globally recognized and known as one of the best golf destinations in the world,” he says.

“Golf is our DNA and to deny that golf is what is driving our success would be foolish.”

The quaint Village of Pinehurst is home to thriving small businesses, including restaurants, boutiques, specialty shops, and inns.

Moore County’s calendar is filled with prestigious golf events. Pine Needles Lodge & Golf Club, for example, will host the U.S. Women’s Open in June, and the U.S. Open returns to Pinehurst No. 2 in 2024. “With those events, plus the impact of the USGA building its second headquarters here and making Pinehurst an anchor site for the U.S. Open, it will have reverberations around the globe,” Werz says. “All eyes in the golf industry and beyond will be on this destination. People want to be a part of the growth and success that is coming, and I can see local businesses benefitting from this, as well as the ones that will choose to start a business here or relocate here to be part of the vibe. The state of North Carolina estimates that the USGA moving here will have a $2 billion impact on the state, and we will benefit most from that decision. That said, we are very excited about positioning this destination as one of the finest foodie golf destinations in the country. We have amazing things

being done here on the culinary side with local restaurant owners and chefs with a vision for the future.”

HELPING HEALTH CARE

While Moore County’s hospitality industry employed 14.3% of its workforce as of 2021’s second quarter, according to N.C. Department of Commerce’s most recent data, health care was the only industry to employ more — 25.5%. Keeping the latter’s ranks filled has become the fulltime focus of many, including health system FirstHealth of the Carolinas and Sandhills Community College, both based in Pinehurst.

Dr. Jacklynn Lesniak is chief nursing officer and vice president of patient care at Moore Regional, one of four hospitals in FirstHealth’s 15-county network. She joined the system in June 2021 after working as chief nursing officer at a Wisconsin hospital and Chicago medical centers, where she held leadership roles in intensive-care and cardiovascular units. She says operating room, emer-

gency room and ICU staffs continue to be hit hard by the pandemic. Working conditions are difficult, and burnout is rampant. “We are working to retain our nurses,” she says. “We’ve rolled out a robust recruitment plan, which includes signing bonuses. And it’s a tiered system, so those [in ORs, ERs and ICUs] get the highest. We also put in place retention bonuses. We recognize how difficult the last 18 months have been.”

Support comes in more immediate forms, too. Moore Regional’s Zen Den is a renewal room complete with massage chair, orange- and peppermint-scented aromatherapy, and silence. “This is a room where [health care workers] can just go and take a break,” Lesniak says. “Then you go back out and deliver that excellent care. Our foundation is starting a Stand Up for Nursing fund to establish three other renewal rooms, one in the ER and others in inpatient areas.”

Regardless of how long they’ve been in the profession, health care workers need to be represented in the decisions of health care systems and hospitals. “How can we assure the direct care nurses are helping to move nursing forward at FirstHealth?” Lesniak asked. “I can make the decisions, but I don’t do their job. So, I bring nurses to the table and have them talk about their needs and their workflow, then I represent their voice at the board table or wherever nursing needs to be heard.”

Retaining and attracting health care workers only gets you so far. More need to be trained, too. “You have to look at how to grow the workforce,” Lesniak says. “How can we grow our own? A lot of people may want to go into health care and not take the traditional route. So, in our hospital, we’re going to develop our own [certified

nursing assistants].”

Sandhills Community College, the state’s first comprehensive community college and first to offer a college transfer program, and FirstHealth will begin offering a unique CNA training program starting with 15 students this month. “It takes four to six weeks, and we work with SCC to accomplish this through their accreditations,” Lesniak says. “You enroll through Sandhills, then it’s a full-time class program, and they’re basically hired by FirstHealth during that time as a training CNA, so you get a paycheck. You can quit your day job and go into this program. There is funding avail-

able for the cost of the class, like a scholarship. The one thing in health care these days is the marketplace is changing so quickly. And with the needs in our community, you don’t have that kind of lag time. We’re developing and rolling out at the same time.”

Lesniak says a nurse extern program also is in the works. “This is targeted at our nursing students in their final year, and they’ll work for us, where we can mentor them and help them grow their skills,” she says. “When they pass their final test, they move into that job with us and get paid for that position as well.”

Dr. Jacklynn Lesniak is the chief nursing officer and vice president of patient care at Moore Regional.

A study by UNC Chapel Hill’s Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research predicts North Carolina could be short as many as 17,500 nurses by 2033. “Agencies in and around Moore County are no different than those nationally, which are in need of trained nurses as well as other health care workers such as medical lab techs, surgical technologists, respiratory therapists, paramedics, radiography techs and ophthalmic medical assistants,” says Rebecca Roush, SCC’s senior vice president of academic affairs and institutional planning. “Technology is becoming increasingly important in the education of nurses and health science students. In some areas, such as associate degree nursing, simulations can be used toward required clinical hours. With the recent national accreditation of the Sandhills’ associate degree in nursing, we are able to increase the percent of clinical hours accomplished

through simulation to 50%.”

SCC also is adding clinical space.

“With this increase, the Sandhills nursing faculty will work toward increasing the number of nursing students entering the program each academic year to address the continued need for trained nurses,” Rousch says. “Simulation cannot be used toward clinical hour requirements in all health science programs, but it can be used to meet competencies. In other words, simulations can be designed to give students experience with specific skills and situations, which might be rare in a clinical setting.”

Moore County commissioners approved a $20 million bond in February 2021. The money will pay for updates to Kennedy Hall and the construction of Foundation Hall, both at SCC. Roush says the move unites SCC’s health care programs. Space vacated by its EMS programs, which, along with nurse aid, were elsewhere on campus, will be occupied by aviation programs. The completed health science and nursing education complex is expected to open this fall.

Michelle Bauer, SCC’s dean of continuing education workforce development programs, says the college is working toward filling other worker shortages.

“We have a wonderful new Breakthrough Construction Center at our Caddell Training Center that just opened for classes … ,” she says. “[It] houses our construction trades, HVAC and plumbing [programs] all in one place. This building was made possible by grants from the Golden LEAF Foundation, William L. and Josephine B. Weiss Family Foundation, American Red Cross and the Palmer Foundation. Having dedicated classroom and lab space for HVAC and plumbing programs has greatly increased our capacity to offer programs in trades areas with a critical shortage of skilled workers.”

CONFERENCE ROOM

692-4900

Moore County is the southernmost county in the Triangle region of North Carolina.

MOORE COUNTY

Moore County Partners in Progress 910-246-0311

moorebusiness.org

*Per capita income is for 2019, the most recent year available.

Source: 2022 North Carolina Economic Development Guide

SERVING VETERANS

Fort Bragg, whose almost 54,000 soldiers make it the U.S. Army’s largest installation based on population, sees about 8,000 soldiers transition out of the service annually, according to its commanders. Some of them return to their home, but a good portion remain in adjacent communities, including Moore County, which lies to its west. There they raise families, work and start businesses. “We recognize the roles that small businesses and entrepreneurs play in our economy, and we want to make sure we’re strengthening that, especially when you think about the military, who live in the area when

EMPLOYMENT BY INDUSTRY

Health care: 26.2%

Hospitality: 13.7%

LARGEST PRIVATE-SECTOR

EMPLOYER

FirstHealth of the Carolinas

LARGEST CITY/TOWN

Pinehurst: population 17,651

COUNTY PROPERTY TAX

51.0 cents per $100 value

HIGHER EDUCATION

Sandhills Community College

they transition out,” Hawkins says. “We have numerous veteran-owned businesses.” VeteranOwnedBusiness. com lists 20 such companies in the Moore County communities of Aberdeen, Cameron, Carthage, Pinehurst, Southern Pines, West End and Pinebluff.

Christopher Cheek was recently hired as SCC’s director of veteran affairs. He’ll help soldiers transition to civilian life. “SCC may not have a lot of active duty [soldiers as students], but we do have a lot of veterans,” he says. “My role is to bring the experience from having worked at Fort Bragg and to go out into the community and work with people, like NCWorks, with

the process of developing different programs for soldiers transitioning from active duty to veteran status.

Active-duty personnel go through a transfer program during their last 180 days [to prepare for civilian life]. But I feel it’s often a lot of information crammed in, and they feel stuck.”

Cheek says SCC is creating a mentorship program for veterans, and they can work with a success coach, too. Many choose to study health care. And he understands why many stay in and around Moore County. “The way they’ve established the county overall, it’s a tremendously reputable place for people to retire and come live the remainder of their lives,” he says. “It’s

an area of peace, like a resort. It’s a nice getaway.”

ECONOMIC REBOUND

There’s a balance to Moore County. While businesses, golf courses and growing communities fill its southern half, the northern reaches are home to a thriving agriculture industry. It’s here that the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s 2017 Census of Agriculture — the most recent — counted 733 farms covering 89,375 acres and producing more than $150 million in annual sales.

Northern Moore County also has small towns filled with history. Its seat — Carthage — is here, about 12 miles north of Pinehurst. It was one of the first 10 towns chosen for the

state Department of Commerce’s Community Economic Recovery and Resilience Initiative, which Gov. Roy Cooper announced in April 2021. The town of Vass, just to Carthage’s southeast, was added in CERRI’s second round, which was announced last month.

Administered by Commerce’s Rural Economic Development Division, Rural Planning Program, CERRI helps communities recover from the economic impacts left by the pandemic. It includes support services such as local cluster analysis, commercial district regulation review, local infrastructure asset mapping, and small business expansion and recruitment.

Much of Carthage’s economic

development attention prior to the pandemic was paid to the former home of the Tyson & Jones Buggy Co., which built horse-powered vehicles from 1850 to 1929. Partners in Progress and representatives from the county and town discussed turning the “Buggy Building” into an entrepreneurship hub early last year. “But [it’s] on hold,” Hawkins says. “That building is historic to the community, and I think that the town leadership is looking for a different use, something that would bring more life to downtown and bring people in, like a nice restaurant or place that sells craft beer, something like that.”

Hawkins says a Partners in Progress study showed that an entrepreneurial hub somewhere in Moore

County was feasible. “But we realized we don’t have all our resources consolidated in one place,” she says. “We want people to have the resources they need to support their efforts, which is why [Partners in Progress] created a task force to pursue entrepreneurial designation.”

THE BIG PICTURE

Attracting people and businesses is the first step. The next is supporting them once they’ve arrived. “I think in terms of population growth, this Morganton Park South we have going on [in Southern Pines] is a big deal in terms of expansion in the retail

industry sector [Moore County’s third-largest industry by employment],” Hawkins says. “It’s rumored we’re going to get a Target, the first one in the county, and if they’re willing to come, it’s an indication of the growth and the economic engine that’s changing our demographics. You see it in the need for elementary schools, in labor-and-delivery [care] at hospitals, in the demands for park and recreation services for our communities. Moore County is more than an attractive place to retire. Now it’s a quality-of-life place for the younger demographic.”

Moore County voters approved a

$103 million bond in 2018. The money is building 800-student elementary schools in Aberdeen, Southern Pines and Pinehurst, replacing ones that are between 70 and 80 years old. The work is matched with a facilities master plan that addresses long-range maintenance needs districtwide.

Moore County Schools offer students opportunities to find and follow a career path. “We have Career and College Promise, where juniors and seniors can take courses at SCC for college credit, then those credits will be applied toward their two- or four-year degree,” says Catherine Nagy, the district’s director

Carthage is home to the Moore County Courthouse and the Buggy Festival, which commemorates the famous Tyson and Jones Buggy Factory that produced the carriages that were essential to 1800s life in rural North Carolina.

of communications. “We have high school students who graduate with a two-year associate degree the same week they graduate from high school. They’ll start a career in fields like nursing or construction and go directly to their job. Then you have some who want to go to a four-year college who will check off some of their requirements ahead of time like freshman English. We offer nursing in our schools, so some students go straight to work in a hospital or doctor’s office or retirement community.”

Nagy says each school is Purple Star rated, signifying its commitment to the distinct educational and social-emotional needs of students from military families. “We also have a very innovative [science, technology, engineering and math] program, and professionals from all over the state and Virginia visit to see how we apply STEM to our students,” she says.

Remote learning and working during the pandemic underscored the need for high-speed internet access. Moore County Board of Commissioners’ 10-member Digital Inclusion Task Force, which formed last fall, is exploring local broadband needs. The Moore County Extension Service estimates 5,936 households — 5.7% of the county — lack internet access. The county website says about 30% of households lack highspeed internet. About 49% of the county population lives in rural areas outside the county’s 11 incorporated municipalities.

The Task Force is identifying where broadband infrastructure is needed, communicating and marketing options for affordable internet, and increasing residents’ digital literacy. “We want to make sure we have adequate, affordable internet service, so we can provide quality education to

our students, and that public safety officials can access data for their daily duties and in health care there is more telehealth,” Hawkins says. “From a business perspective, a lot of businesses have gone into the e-commerce realm. And that’s digital literacy. Can you navigate the internet and leverage what it provides you as a student, parent or business owner?”

Moore County Commissioners will submit the Broadband Inclusion Plan to the state for funding consideration. “[The inclusion plan] will help us pinpoint areas we know we need to focus on,” says Chris Butts, Moore County’s director of information technology. “This is starting to get our ducks in a row so when [grant] money is approved, we are ready to go.”

— Kathy Blake is a writer from eastern North Carolina.

The Pinehurst Brewing Company is located in a historic steam plant that provided power to the Village of Pinehurst at its inception in 1895.

ABOVE THE TREE LINE

Balloon culture evolves into a distinctive calling card for Statesville.

ABY JENNINGS COOL

t sunrise and sunset, trailers hitched to SUVs and pickups with large beds sit as they wait for their pilot’s signal while hot-air balloons paint the sky in Iredell County. Pilots use wind navigation and expertise to find a safe landing, steering clear of trees, power lines and roadways, all while communicating where they are headed to their chase crew. A flat, empty patch of grass in a resident’s backyard will work fine.

It’s not an unusual sight in Statesville, which has developed a reputation as the hot-air balloon capital of the East.

Hot-air ballooning was reborn in the U.S. in the early 1960s by Ed Yost, cofounder of Sioux Falls, S.D.-based Raven Industries, which developed high-altitude balloons used for government space research. Yost fastened a couple of propane tanks to a chair that was attached to a 40-foot-diameter balloon. He took his first flight in 1960, eventually earning recognition as the “father of modern hot-air ballooning.”

Yost’s Raven Industries began manufacturing hot-air balloons and testing safety improvements. By 1965, hot-air balloons were

Istandardized for Federal Aviation Administration certification, marking a monumental step in recreational ballooning.

Ballooning pioneer and legend Tracy Barnes moved to Charlotte in the late 1960s and founded a manufacturing business called The Balloon Works. It was originally located in a large warehouse but was quickly moved to a former women’s prison, both in Charlotte. In the early 1970s, Barnes moved the operation, now FireFly Balloons, to Iredell County.

Barnes hired Statesville native and expert balloonist Bill Meadows as his national sales manager. Meadows had founded a business in December 1969 in Statesville that taught balloon piloting.

In 1974, Meadows founded the National Balloon Rally in Statesville as a reunion for the pilots he trained over the years. That rally, now called the Carolina BalloonFest, has been a highly anticipated event in Iredell County for more than 45 years. It is the second-longest consecutive hot-air balloon festival in the country, organizers say. About 40,000 people

n November, I floated above the trees with pilot Marc Klinger during a media tour spotlighting Statesville and Iredell County. My fiancé and I arrived at the launch pad at Cool Spring Center in Cleveland, a Rowan County town 13 miles west of Statesville. The balloons were deflated and lying flat on the ground. One by one, pilots filled their balloons, and, eventually, bright colors covered the entire field.

We flew for about an hour at sunset, and it was breathtaking. The silence would break when more propane would fill the balloon. Even then, it was peaceful. We landed in an open cow field, where Klinger’s crew picked us up. What might have been just another Saturday for Klinger and his crew was an unforgettable experience for us.

Jennings Cool

attend the three-day weekend in October, depending on weather conditions, according to Bud Welch, the festival’s executive director. Tickets range from $15 to $25.

“The majority of the profits made from the festival are donated back to the community. Over the past several years, [we have] donated $787,000 to local nonprofits in Iredell County,” Welch says. “We, the Carolina BalloonFest, as a nonprofit and festival, are in the business of giving money away.”

Magical experience

“It was a tiny little thing that no one really knew about,” says Kristie Darling, co-owner of Big Oh! Balloons, which was established in 1981. “It just grew and grew and grew, and it turned into the Carolina BalloonFest.”

Darling and her husband, Charles Page, first attended the Statesville rally about 40 years ago. “People would roll out their pickup trucks and put their balloons up in the misty morning. It was magical.”

They watched for two years before hiring a pilot to take them for a flight of their own. Upon landing, their pilot, Jim Thompson, told them he was going to sell his balloon. Darling and Page bought it, and within two weeks, Thompson was teaching Page to fly. After Page and Darling took their post-wedding flight in 1986, Page taught his wife how to fly. The couple lives in Page’s childhood home, which doubles as their balloon

launch pad for Big Oh! Balloons.

But ballooning isn’t just a once-a-year event in Statesville.

Floating above the tree line is arguably part of the town’s culture. Residents wear hats, shirts, sweatshirts and other apparel with balloons stitched on them. Pickups with balloon baskets in the beds are frequent sights.

“The ballooning family we fly with most often is really tight. We all take care of each other and support each other,” Darling says. “We counted about 14 active balloon pilots in our local region.”

One is Marc Klinger, who has been flying balloons for 32 years, he says. He and his wife, Ursula, learned to fly in south Florida in the 1990s and started Airtime Balloon Co., offering trips in the Charlotte region year-round. While Ursula doesn’t fly as much anymore, Marc and his crew fly just about every weekend, weather permitting.

Stateville’s year-round temperate climate allows balloonists to fly throughout the year.

County roads that connect agricultural, rural areas to towns are also on balloonists’ side, making it easy for the pilot’s crews to access them once landed.

“It is beautiful here. On a really clear day, you can see the skyline of Charlotte and Winston-Salem. You can see Pilot Mountain. You can see the Brushy Mountains. And if you fly just south of Statesville, you can see Lake Norman.”

Big Oh! Balloons hosted about 75 balloon flights from April

▲ Carolina BalloonFest is an annual tradition that has been taking place in Iredell County for over 45 years.

to November last year, which tops its average of about 50 per year. Flights range from about $300 to $325 per person, providing what Darling calls a priceless adventure.

Statesville’s continuing love affair with ballooning comes as the Iredell County city is showing more rapid growth with Charlotte sprawling northward. Its population was 28,419 in 2020, about a 16% increase from 2010. Statesville in recent decades grew more slowly than its southern Iredell neighbor, Mooresville, best known as the headquarters of home-improvement giant Lowe’s.

“I started to tell people in five years Statesville was going to look like a completely different place. But that was not really expecting what we have been experiencing over the last year or so,” says Ron Smith, Statesville’s city manager since 2018.

Statesville benefits from ample water and sewer capacity, available land and its proximity to the intersection of Interstates 40 and 77. About 9 million square feet of industrial development is being considered around the city, Smith says, citing local economic recruiting sources.

Many cities have warehouses, of course. Statesville has something loftier.

“I think it is crucial we keep ballooning as part of our city’s identity,” Smith says. “That is kind of one of the things we are known for.” ■

▲ There are about 14 active balloon pilots in the Statesville area.