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INSPIRATION >> OUR TOWNIES
MY PEEPS
Jim Underwood
EVERYONE’S GOT A STORY TO TELL
Our Townies STORY A N D PHOTOGR A PH Y BY STEPH STR ICK L A N D
Who is your greatest female inspiration? Jim Underwood is enjoying the relaxation that retirement brings. After working many years with the Department of Defense as a Contract Administrator in Fort Worth Texas, Jim decided that working to build planes such as F-16s and F-22s would become a thing of the past. During his time as a contract administrator, Jim worked alongside many knowledgeable and hardworking women in the field, who he said were just as capable as anyone else. Now, Jim lives in Alachua with his wife Janet, who he said is his biggest inspiration in life. Two years ago, Jim lost his previous wife, but with a smile he pointed to Janet and said, “she got me through.” For this reason, Janet is Jim’s biggest inspiration, and she 74 |
OUR TOWN MAGAZINE
MARCH/APRIL 2018
continues to inspire him every day. Kate Pitcher is working to help others in their lives, through her roles as a wife and a student at Santa Fe studying Nursing. Kate said she enjoys both aspects of her life. She said, “I enjoy being a wife…[and] I want to help people.” She aspires to be most like her mom who owns her own boutique store. Kate described her mother as “independent and successful,” and she hopes that someday others will describe her by similar characteristics. Karen Dodge and her granddaughter Carly Gilliam found themselves in Alachua to have a meal and spend some quality time together. Carly said her grandmother is her greatest female inspiration because she “does anything for us and is so caring.” Carly’s grandmother, Karen Dodge, was also inspired by her grandmother who was an “honest and kind person.” Karen worked for many years as a technical director in