Pencils, markers, paper, ruler, and
notebooks. A backpack filled with
school supplies. As parents, we
check a dozen times to make sure
our child has everything she needs
on her first day of school. But
the one thing we can't put in that
backpack is the most important
thing of all: the ability to make
good choices.
When Karl and Ann Owens watched their oldest
child, Emma, walk through the school doors for the
first time, they had already planted all she would
need to grow strong and true in her heart. With
appreciation and respect for the past and a natural
predisposition to lead, Emma (Owens) Hamilton
creates her own legacy as a leader in our community.
Emma’s true talent for leadership quickly rose to
the surface when she became a big sister at the age
of three and a half to her twin sisters Abbey Ann and
Hannah Elizabeth. “Maybe being bossy comes with
being the big sister,” laughed Emma. But the desire
to take charge and organize things was apparent
whether at home, school, or work. It's her gift, even
if her sisters might have called it something else
when they were younger.
Emma grew up with a strong sense of
community. She was only a child when her parents
bought and restored the Estroff Department Store
building and the corner bank building. Then in 2005,
they purchased the historic PAL Theatre. Both are
located in the downtown district of Vidalia. “I was
nineteen years old when they sold the Pal Theatre,”
said Emma. “Now, I wish I’d paid more attention to
it,” she said. “Just the other day, I called my mom
and asked, ‘Can you tell me again about the history
of the Pal?’”
Even though she couldn't see it at the time,
the appreciation and value her parents held for the
community and its history helped develop her own
perspective and the path she would one day choose
BY TERI R. WILLIAMS PHOTOS BY RUTH ENGLISH
Follow
the
Leader
HOMETOWN LIVING AT I TS BEST 99
As young professionals in
Toombs County take the lead,
Emma Hamilton rises to the
top as a leader and strong
community supporter.