This
article is taken from our August 2006 newsletter. To subscribe
to
the print edition, send
us an e-mail or call us at (601) 353-6336.
Check
out our newsletter archive!
|
In
her Own Words:
Mary Largent Purvis
 Shoestring
board member Mary Largent Purvis believes very strongly
in the importance of giving back to her community. She’s
made a commitment to our organization that is an inspiring
example to staffers, volunteers, fellow board members
and students alike. In addition to her work at Shoestring,
she does contract work as an attorney, serves as an adjunct
professor at the Mississippi College School of Law, and
is the executive director of the Jackson Young Lawyers
Association. But she considers parenthood to be her “biggest
and most important job”; she and her husband Alex,
also a Jackson native, have a daughter, Cate (shown above),
who just turned two.
|
I grew up in Madison, but I consider myself to
be a Jacksonian. I went to Jackson Prep for high school and graduated
from Millsaps College in 1998. I majored in biology and thought
I was going to be a doctor, but logically enough, I ended up
going to law school. That liberal arts education came in handy
at the last minute!
I
would say that it’s the example set by my parents that
makes me stay involved in my community. It comes from within,
the desire to make the world a better place for my kids and their
kids.
I
had done some work at Operation Shoestring when I was a student
at Millsaps, as part of their Midtown Project. Later, [fellow
board member and former board president] Doug Minor and I became
friends through the legal community, and he kept encouraging
me to increase my involvement. What really drew me in more than
anything was that I really believe in what they are doing. The
mission of giving people a “hand up” is such a beautiful
thing.
The
staff at Shoestring is wonderful, and the work they do is so
important. The more I am involved, the more I want to get
involved, and I want to share that and spread the word about
how they are putting their mission into action. It’s such
an impressive place, and I want more people to know about it.
Of
all the things Shoestring does, I think the most important
is that they instill in children a belief in their own potential.
The programs teach them that it is okay to believe in themselves,
because others believe in them. It’s an investment in the
children, and because they also work with the families as a whole,
there’s a ripple effect that impacts the entire community.
Newsletter
Archive:
