Community Leader | Tacie Brown and Sonya Smith
Welcome the Children: Tracie Brown and Sonya Smith
-Liesel Schmidt
To give them the best future, children need a healthy place to socialize, learn and play. It can be a struggle to find that, but organizations like the Ruff Wilson Youth Organization, Inc., offers that. For the past four years, Tracie Brown has held the position of executive director at “The Ruff,” overseeing operations in everything from hiring employees and bookkeeping to communicating with local schools and organizing the afterschool program and summer camp. As a retired teacher with 26 years in the Baldwin County School system, Brown brings a great deal of experience with kids to her role—not to mention passion. “The children—hands down—are the most rewarding benefactors,” she says of what she loves most about her work. “To see them blossom and flourish and grow into the young people they become is simply awesome. These are the movers and shakers of tomorrow. They impact each other, and they also impact their families and peers. The communities in which they live now and will live in the days to come will greatly benefit from these young people. I’m eager to see their journeys, because I know that their destination is upward and onward. I will watch them become great!”