A spotlight on individuals who are moving onward & upward

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LISA HAMILTON

Not many Black people have access to $47 million. But Lisa Hamilton does, and her job is to give it all away.

As the new president of the UPS Foundation in Atlanta, this tax attorney-turned-giving-guru oversees the charitable arm of the United Parcel Service.

"Once I left private practice, I had the opportunity to get involved in charitable activities," says Hamilton, 38. She started by organizing UPS' United Way volunteer program and got hooked. "They've never had anyone in the Foundation who had my kind of expertise. Between my interest in the programming side and the governance that I bring, [I'm an] interesting fit."

Hamilton is not the first Black person to hold the position, but she's the fifth president of the Foundation in 56 years. UPS gives money away because it believes in creating a healthy environment for its employees and customers, she says.

"If you want to have a great business, you want to have a great community to work in," she says. "We are successful because of that community."

LISA'S FIRST J-O-B: "[I was] a member of the teen board for Rich's department store, and it's now Macy's. They pick 20 young ladies in the city [to] learn about the fashion industry, do some modeling and community service. I had just turned 16, and I got a car. I was trying to get gas money together."

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DEMETRICE TUTTLE

Demetrice Tuttle is only 18, but he has $27,000 in his pocket.

That's because the Boys & Girls Clubs of America has named him the national Youth of the Year, an honor that comes with a hefty college scholarship from Reader's Digest and plenty of exposure.

Tuttle's cash goes to his tuition at LaGrange College in Georgia, where he has a double major in theater and sociology. Rather than leave town, he opted to stay home to help care for his mother. He hopes to get to Washington, D.C., to earn a law degree from Georgetown University.

Though sometimes ridiculed for sticking with the Boys & Girls Clubs programming well into his teens, the loyalty paid off; he says. "There is that perception that after you reach 15 or 16, it's not cool to be involved with certain organizations," says Tuttle, whose speech is punctuated with ma'ams and sirs. "With me, because I fell in love with Boys & Girls Clubs, it provided me a place where I could go and be safe. I stuck with it."

Tuttle helped start a TV show that discussed teen pregnancies and drugs. Now, he'll be speaking out on those subjects and more as an ambassador of sorts for the organization until next year's Youth of the Year is selected.

"It's an amazing experience," Tuttle says. "I grew up from extreme poverty and so many times I'd sit back and think there's no way I'd ever, ever make something of myself. To be in the position I'm in on a national level is inspiring and amazing."

DEMETRICE'S FIRST J-O-B: "I worked at a local supermarket in my hometown of West Point, Ga. I was a bag-boy. I was probably 16 ... the pay wasn't so good, but because there were tips involved, most of us came home every day with a good sum of money."

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KATRINA McGHEE

A major warrior in the battle against breast cancer is expanding its outreach to Black women. With a new Multicultural Marketing Department and the hiring of Katrina McGhee to oversee it, Susan G. Komen For the Cure plans to lead the charge to educate African-Americans and other women of color about their risks for cancer and then promote the options for a cure.

As Komen's new vice president of marketing, McGhee is the first African-American on Komen's executive team.

"There are two facets to my job--to raise revenue and then to engage new audiences in the breast cancer movement," says McGhee, 39, of Dallas. "If you look at the statistics, you recognize that the gap is widening related to the mortality rates between White women and Black women. We're asking more African-American women to join us in the movement. Komen is making a conscious shift to say we want to engage you."

The job has the potential to be depressing, but McGhee says she keeps her head up. "I believe that we can find a cure [for breast cancer]," she says. "As long as I have hope, it keeps me going."

KATRINA'S FIRST J-O-B: "I was a tour guide at Carillon Historical Park in Dayton, Ohio. It was an historical park. It was a great experience because it dispelled inhibitions I had about public speaking. I was 14. I was paid $2.50 an hour. The first thing my parents did was take me to the bank to open my own savings account."

COPYRIGHT 2008 Johnson Publishing Co.
COPYRIGHT 2007 Gale Group