
“Food, Faith, and Feelings” Podcast Episode from July 16, 2017

Sue Wyatt & Mike Dunlap/BrandBank
The Brand Banking Company (BrandBank) was chartered in 1905 after county officials told E.M. Brand that he could no longer loan money on the courthouse steps. He did not move far. He built his bank on the courthouse square. Over a century of service later, BrandBank is the oldest locally-owned bank in Gwinnett, combining old-fashioned personal service with the benefits of modern technology. With employees who live in or are native to the area, they boast a very stable staff. Their employees are encouraged to participate in community service and activities.

Jay Litton/MapR Technologies & RUMC Job Networking
Jay Litton is Sales Director, Southeast for MapR Technologies. MapR is a big data platform that allows companies to combine historical, database and real time data in one location. Immediate action is taken on this data for detecting credit card fraud, website product recommendations, preventing disease at hospitals, and much more.
Jay has been providing career advice at RUMC Job Networking for 20 years. He co-leads a team of over 300 volunteer professionals who donate their time with an eight-hour agenda twice each month. Jay is also known as the creator of the WoW! Interview™ having taught over 10,000 professionals in career transition.
Porschia Parker/Millennial Performance Institute
The Millennial Performance Institute (MPI) is a coaching and consulting firm that helps companies cut the costs of turnover and improve the performance of their employees. They offer a wide variety of services including individual and team coaching, consulting, workshops, training, seminars, and strategic planning. MPI has a special focus on helping companies with employees in the Millennial Generation, but also provides support around the bigger picture, inter-generational communication, which effects a company’s performance and revenue.



Stefanie Jewett/Activvely
Stefanie Jewett is the founder and CEO of Activvely, the premiere social-pairing app that connects you with platonic fitness buddies. Stefanie’s path into the tech world isn’t a conventional one by any means. A recovering journalist, she spent five years covering hard news at CNN, until her creativity breached the spillway and Activvely was born. A Miami native, Stefanie grew up in a Spanish-speaking household with her Cuban roots never too far from her heart.
Living in Central Virginia, Maryland and Washington D.C. inspired her to pursue a journalism career in earnest. This passion for news would see her at the U.S. Congress, National Republican Senatorial Committee, WSET, the Alliance to Save Energy, and eventually at CNN. Working on several projects and shows including “Crossfire” and “The Situation Room”, she held her own among the most elite journalists at CNN world headquarters and the Washington D.C. bureau.
Stefanie returned to Atlanta with three goals: to lift the stigma off swipe platforms solely being used for dating; to help the people of this vibrant city connect; and to enable everyone from startups to established corporations effectively use technology to create meaningful customer interaction and growth for their business.
Stefanie Diaz/Mastermind Your Launch
Stefanie Diaz has always had a keen ability for developing marketing strategies for entrepreneurs, but it’s her ability to position startups for accelerated momentum through personal branding and content marketing that has become the cornerstone to her professional success. Her background includes being a strategic adviser to CEO’s spanning startup phase to over $100 million in annual revenue. She has led strategic partnerships with global retailers and Fortune 500 companies, as well as facilitated multi-million dollar government contracts. There is something magnetic about the energy of startup founders that draws Stefanie in. They’re hungry, driven, and committed to making positive change for themselves and the greater community. Learn more at MastermindYourLaunch.com.


KEVIN O’BRIEN/COOPER’S CREW
There is a saying that “God gives his toughest battles to his strongest soldiers.” How true this was for Cooper O’Brien. He was a brave and strong soldier, but on July 5th, 2014 he lost his 14 month battle against cancer at the young age of 14.
Cooper had a rare form of cancer called Clear Cell Sarcoma. Throughout his fight, Cooper faced each day with a strong, positive attitude. He truly just wanted to be a kid and enjoy life. There are currently no protocols or treatments for this type of cancer. Rare cancers get the least amount of funding for research or clinical trials, especially for children.
Cooper’s family is passionate about bringing awareness and funding for children’s Sarcoma research. Please join them in helping others who suffer. To find out more about how you can help, please visit cooperscrew.org or contact Kevin O’Brien at 770-490-2362 or okevin1@bellsouth.net.



Kristi Gorinas
Kristi Gorinas is an inventor, successful licensee and mother of five! She will be sharing her story of inventing multiple products over the past 10 years as well as the struggles she faced while taking those products to market. You can reach Kristi at kristi@kristigcompany.com.




Patricia Harris/True Hearts Travel & Dream Vacations
Patricia Harris with True Hearts Travel is your cruise and land vacation specialist! She has been planning vacation escapes for the past five years. Patricia is your best resource to plan your next vacation escape, saving you time and money. She partners with Dream Vacations, the largest cruise retailer in North America. Dream Vacations has offers and deals you won’t find anywhere else including going directly to the cruise line. Vacations are not a one size fits all. As your vacation specialist she gets to know you and provide tips and recommendations for a vacation you’ll never forget. So where do you wanna go?
Tiffany Hale Carter/Tiffany Hale Carter Design Firm
Tiffany Hale Carter Design Firm is a full-service boutique interior design firm based. Their focus on superior service to their clients and integrations of biophila makes them different. Their services include architectural drawings, construction process, sustainability, accessibility, building codes, fire and safety, space planning, 3D renderings, ergonomics, aging in place, universal design and FF&E selections.
Jessica Mills/Keune Haircosmetics
A family-owned and founded entrepreneurial company based in The Netherlands, Keune Haircosmetics has served hair stylists and colorists in more than 70 countries by providing the finest professional hair color, hair care and styling products for more than 90 years.
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