Giving back to the place that gave so much to me — Mitzi Mead, CEO/President and sole owner of Anakim Consulting.
Headquartering my company in the East Belmont HUBZone is my way of giving back to this wonderful community. Although the mills of my childhood are mostly gone, Belmont, NC is still a place imbued with faith, family, and loving, hardworking people. It's a place with limitless potential, and I’m confident it is poised for a prosperous future. It’s great to be contributing to this special town!
Belmont will always be "Home"
Although I lived many places growing up as a USMC dependent, Belmont, NC is my “hometown”. My beloved mother, Patricia Covington, was a Belmont native. She met my father, Brigadier General USMC (Ret.) James Mead while he was a student at Belmont Abbey College. They were married in the Cathedral at Belmont Abbey in 1957. After their marriage they began a 31 year journey together to forge a career in the Marine Corps.
Because I was born into a military family, we moved every two to three years. When my father was deployed to combat in Vietnam and other overseas duty, my mother would return to her hometown of Belmont to be close to her mother, Billie Roberts Covington, and other members of the extended Roberts family. They, and the people of Belmont, supported our family during the difficult, uncertain times when Dad was serving his country.
My family lived and worked in the hubzone
My grandmother, great aunt and great grandmother lived across the street from each other in East Belmont on Linestowe Drive, which is currently designated as a HUBZone. I literally ran the streets of the East Belmont HUBZone as a child… and loved it!
My grandmother, great aunt and many other family members worked at many of the cotton mills in Belmont. These mills were once the lifeblood for my family members, as well as that for many other proud, hard working Belmont families. When the mills closed, Belmont faced a very uncertain future. However, with typical Belmont grit, the town has been reinvented into a thriving small town community.
Now we're all back in belmont
Fond memories of my childhood and family have led me to headquarter Anakim Consulting in Belmont, the town I love. Feeling the same pull to return to his roots, one of my two brothers has brought his family back home to Belmont as well. My older brother and his family lived not far away in Fort Mill, SC before retiring to Florida.
Our entire family came home to the area we loved so much growing up. So you can see that Anakim Consulting is far more than a business for me. It's a reflection of my mission to restore the dreams and prosperity of this great little town.