If you’ve ever spent time in the Crescent City, you may have been taken in by its charm and wished you could stay longer. New Orleans held a similar type of appeal for Valerie Preston, who was born and raised there, and never thought she would (nor did she want to) live anywhere else. But as we all know, sometimes life has other plans for us….
Valerie went to school in New Orleans, earning both her bachelor’s degree and Master of Business Administration from Tulane University. It was also there where she adopted her first two children and found out that she was pregnant with her third. Then, with mere weeks to go before she delivered her third child, and with her “shiny new degree” (her words, not mine!) in hand, she and her family moved to Charlotte for her husband’s job. Au revoir, Crescent City, and hello, Queen City!
Professionally, while in New Orleans she worked in marketing and management at The Audubon Institute (the zoo and aquarium), taught at her alma mater, Trinity Episcopal School (the model for Charlotte’s Trinity), and owned a children’s custom furnishings and clothing business. It was a difficult yet necessary decision for her to stay home and help her family as they adjusted to Charlotte, and she is now ready to start that career she put on hold (“any offers?”, she wants to know!). However, Valerie has certainly stayed busy with many other endeavors while making her new home here. “I involve myself in a lot of nonprofit work focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). You might say this is my passion,” Valerie states. This includes supporting underfunded schools by grant writing and raising funds to create computer labs and put technology in classrooms, and mentoring English as a second language (ESL) students. It has also meant providing one on one support to underprivileged and under-represented populations, in addition to supporting the organizations serving them. This work then led to DEI consulting for a boutique firm on a contractual basis.
One of the things Valerie has grown to love most about Charlotte is the neighborhood, Dilworth. She explains, “It’s a true neighborhood where people know their neighbors, hang out on their porches, and can walk to almost anything they need. I love being able to walk to, and along, the Rail Trail, the farmers’ market, and South End. This is especially true with all the recent art installations and music pop-ups happening.” To give back to the neighborhood, Valerie has chaired the Dilworth Home Tour and served a double term as the president of the Dilworth Community Association. This has meant spending her time on lots of advocacy, land use and re-zoning work (including negotiating Atrium’s campus expansion plans), transit-oriented development (TOD), and more.
In addition to nonprofit support and community involvement, Valerie’s hobbies include doing anything creative (painting, drawing, gardening, cooking), traveling (including immersing herself in other cultures and teaching herself a bit of the language before she visits), spending time with animals (including Poppy, her Golden Retriever, who is the dog love of her life and Mathilda, the Maine Coon cat, who is trying to teach her that some cats are cool), listening to live music (preferably outdoor), and being at the beach. Valerie says, “Growing up going to the beaches along the Florida panhandle spoiled me. I’m now a beach snob. If you can ride a bike on the sand or need to wear shoes on it, it’s not my beach. I also prefer turquoise water and being able to see what’s swimming in it!”
Valerie has been a Women’s Impact Fund (WIF) member for two years and has participated in the Member Education Committee and the Human Services Grants Committee. She is also a member of the DEI Task Force. Some of the many things she loves about being in WIF include engaging with incredible women through committees, events, and gatherings, and learning so much about our community, its needs, and especially the amazing people doing the hard work to meet those needs. “Every WIF interaction I’ve had has been enriching on some level,” Valerie notes. To make the most of the opportunities WIF presents, Valerie recommends joining a committee, if only to get to know some other members. And, if you can’t join a committee, she recommends trying to commit to attending an event every month. Ultimately, her advice is to “find some connection, add your voice – it matters. The more opinions and perspectives we add, the more we learn and the better we are at doing meaningful work.”
While it was certainly New Orleans’ loss, it is clear Charlotte is all the better for Valerie and her family moving to Charlotte!
