To the Editor:

Entrepreneurial women are different. They see an opportunity and make it happen. They know the bad comes with the good. They put their hearts on their sleeves and hope that others will appreciate their contribution.

When I heard that Washington was possibly going to have a mini-mall on Main Street I got excited. My sister (Garleen Woolard) told me that Jennie Jones was in the process of making that happen. I saw all kinds of opportunities for Washington to have something that would be an opportunity for women and men in the community. Then The Little Shoppes of Washington was born. It was so wonderful to witness women and men working hard on the “shoppes” and excited about the contribution they were making to the community and it was a fun thing to do.

Then Hurricane Irene decided to make her mark on Washington. Not to worry — it was just a Category One hurricane. Well, she decided to linger a little bit longer than expected. Our “shoppes” were destroyed, but not our will. Our building was condemned, but not our spirits. When women and men of like mind get together nothing is impossible. With one thought in mind — get back up and get started, The Washington Emporium was born. Rebecca Clark and Jayne Meisell headed up the endeavor to get this project off its feet. The birth has had a slow start, but things are looking up and we know the holidays will see us through.

I tell you all this because I have two shops in the Emporium — The House of Lear and The Kitchen Shoppe. Washington has received the shops well and I am optimistic the shops will grow and be a service to the community and other towns and cities will visit also. My experience in retail is minimal. I used to work at Jowdy’s music shop between college and radiological school at the hospital. My family moved to Washington in 1962, and I married a local guy and we left to start our lives together in 1969. But the passion of sharing my love of antiques, collectible and garden decor along with all things “kitchen and entertaining” has been a joy.

By the way, my mother’s name was Irene. I think she would like the fact that the Phoenix does rise again.

SANDRA S. MARTIN
Greensboro