On reinvention, coming out, parenthood: CharlotteFive’s top 10 people stories of 2019
(1) Artist, activist and renegade Deborah Triplett battles lung cancer
When Deborah Triplett was diagnosed with stage 3 lung cancer in October, her response was, “What have I got to do to kick its ass?” That “do whatever it takes” attitude has followed her throughout her life. In her younger days, desperate to leave her hometown of Elkin, North Carolina, she became a New York City-based flight attendant. In the days when music videos were becoming popular, Triplett jumped at the chance to work for Playboy in California to learn video.
— Vanessa Infanzon
(2) Charlotte-born MLS player on coming out, changing the culture of pro sports
Matt Pacifici has played soccer practically his entire life and, like a lot of kids, going pro has always been his dream. He grew up in Charlotte and played soccer at Charlotte Catholic High School for all four years. After high school, he played at Wake Forest for a year, then transferred to Davidson College, where he was a starting goalie. For most of his soccer career, he knew he was gay — but the timing never felt quite right to come out. “Both Wake and Davidson are your classic Southern, conservative schools. Both are pretty small and campuses on which if a story gets out, everyone has heard it in the next 30 seconds — not unlike Charlotte Catholic,” he said.
— Emma Speckman
(3) Ramona Holloway on sexual assault survival, R. Kelly and a system that supports abusers
What happens when three powerful Charlotte women get together with nothing but a microphone, a recorder and a topic that is often shamed into silence? “I know this is horrible — please don’t tune out,” Ramona Holloway told viewers on Smart Mouth Life’s latest podcast, hosted by Rachel Sutherland and Donna Scott, which is aired here or on iTunes. The 107.9 The Link’s Matt & Ramona co-host appeared as the first featured guest of the new Charlotte podcast. The women came out swinging in the topic department — discussing sexual assault and why it’s important for allies to listen to survivors, not turning away simply because the details are difficult to hear.
— Melissa Oyler
(4) Here’s what happened after Charlotte restaurateurs started paying a living wage.
Olga Guervera begins her day by joyfully greeting her coworkers and checking the list of what she needs to prep before lunchtime. A nine-year veteran of Charlotte Restaurant Group’s Crepe Cellar Kitchen & Pub and Growlers Pourhouse, Guervera started out as a dishwasher and has since moved into prep cooking. She is known as “the glue” of the team, and she won MVE (Most Valuable Employee) for back-of-house across all of the group’s restaurants. But for many restaurant industry employees like Guervera, working at your second home may not always pay the bills at the first. Minimum wage in Charlotte is $7.25/hour. But a living wage? That’s $12.57.
That’s why Charlotte Restaurant Group owners Jamie Brown and Jeff Tonidandel are making the move to a living wage pay structure for all employees. This change will occur across all of their current and upcoming restaurants: Haberdish, Crepe Cellar Kitchen & Pub, Growlers Pourhouse, Reigning Doughnuts and soon-to-open Supperland.
— Jess Swannie
(5) Charlotte chef Chris Coleman: ‘Chopped’ champion
“Whose dish is on the chopping block?” If you’re a fan of Food Network’s “Chopped” show, then you’re familiar with the anxiety these words induce. Local chef and Charlottean Chris Coleman felt the stress firsthand. Coleman came out on top in November t in a battle to highlight beef on “Chopped.” After the show, Coleman told CharlotteFive, “It was so much fun, and thank you Charlotte for supporting me — and thank you to Mac Moran for saving my butt.”
— Jess Swannie and Heidi Finley
Bonus read: Chris Coleman named executive chef of NoDa’s The Goodyear House
(6) It’s a baby! Mrs. North Carolina 2018’s infertility journey comes with a happy ending
After 6 long years of unsuccessful fertility treatments and heartbreaking miscarriages, Harold and Nichelle Sublett got the news they longed for: She was pregnant. Sublett, who won Mrs. North Carolina in 2017, shared her struggle during her reign and with CharlotteFive — and we have followed her journey ever since. On Sept. 6, after 41 weeks and two and a half days of failed inductions, she gave birth to her son, Hudson, via C-section.
— DeAnna Taylor
(7) Art helped Davita Galloway reinvent — and now, she’s offering others the same chance
The night before Davita Galloway was confronted by her employer for stealing $20,000 in cash and products, she dreamt about getting caught. She woke up with a choice to make: she could run, or she could face the consequences of her crime. Galloway chose to stay and address her worst fears, knowing she would be letting her family down. She was charged with a misdemeanor and paid restitution. With the help of her family, Galloway moved back to her hometown of Winston-Salem. She struggled with severe depression. One night, she started writing poems, doodling and taking pictures that told her story. She self-published “Two Scraped Knees: A Self Portrait” in 2010. She worried a criminal record would make it tough to get a job, so she decided to become an entrepreneur.
— Vanessa Infanzon
(8) Find out why this Charlotte photographer took pictures of 2,700 rescue pets
Six years ago, Roberta Sá Griner asked her husband if they could foster George, a dog from a local animal shelter. “Since George, we have fostered about 100 dogs, from short term — a few hours — to very long term — more than one year,” Sá Griner said. “I started to photograph my fosters to help them get adopted, which worked.” A coworker convinced Sá Griner to photograph the dogs and cats at shelters. Since then, Sá Griner has photographed more than 2,700 shelter animals in Burke, Darlington and Mecklenburg counties in North Carolina and Lancaster County in South Carolina and started a nonprofit, Saved by a Flash.
— Vanessa Infanzon
(9) ESPN’s Marty Smith on fatherhood, lake life and writing a book in a 140-character world
As a sports journalist, ESPN’s Marty Smith gets to meet elite athletes and cover some of the biggest sporting events of our time. His fans know him as fun, lighthearted and entertaining.
But sitting on a couch at his home in Cornelius, his eyes well up when he talks about the story he considers his most important. “The one that probably impacted me in terms of my world view the most was in 2015,” he said. Smith was in Los Angeles for the Special Olympics World Games. ESPN was broadcasting the event for the first time. “We made the decision that we were going to treat it like a global sporting event. My role was to take all of these unknowns and go out and really dive into the United States team and meet the athletes and learn their stories,” he said.
— Melissa Oyler
(10) She was morbidly obese most of her life. Here’s what changed.
“You need to lose at least 70 pounds to be considered for the procedure,” the doctor told me. At 22, I laughed at the thought because in my mind, I was only “top heavy” — not obese. I was sitting in a consultation for a breast reduction. I thought that would be the solution to all of my weight problems. However, the doctor further explained that I was morbidly obese. In a nutshell, I was at an increased risk for developing serious illnesses that could lead to my early death.
— DeAnna Taylor
This story was originally published December 23, 2019 at 5:20 AM.
