Rising Stars

Brunswick resident Thearon Filson says she was a single mother of three girls living in public housing in January 1997, when STAR Foundation entered her life and changed it forever. “I received a flyer for free computer training classes promising to open the door to higher-paying employment. I was working at Wal-Mart for $4.75 an hour, so I signed up immediately.” On the first day of class, Filson remembers, she was nervous. “I’d been a teen mom, I lived in the projects, I came from a dysfunctional urban family, and I’m an introvert. Plus, I knew nothing about computers. I walked in expecting to be stereotyped and judged. But Ellen Murphy wrapped her arms around me and I felt like she saw ME, not my situation, and heard me, too.”

Only months earlier, Murphy, her sister and brother-in-law, Katie and Wally Orrel, proprietors of Dataline Computers, a successful Golden Isles software training and computer repair company, had approached the director of the Brunswick Housing Authority with a proposal offering residents computer training classes, and thus, STAR was born. “Don McGlamory gave us trial-basis permission to use a rec room in the Glynnvilla Apartments for a quarter,” recalls Wally. “And for the next three years, it was always ‘I’ll give you another four months’ until the program expanded, and we moved.”

ABOVE LEFT: On site in the CCGA Student Health Service Center, STAR alumna, CCGA graduate and staff member Thearon Filson and College of Coastal Georgia president Dr. Michelle Johnston.

ABOVE RIGHT: STAR executive director Dr. Markisha Butler (far right), with 25th Anniversary Gala committee members (counterclockwise) Donna Davis, board chair; Courtney Prince, gala co-chair; Debbie Banks and Elaine Griffin, at the event venue. Not shown: Molly Moroney-Norrett, gala co-chair; and Tina Kirby, past board chair.

From day one, students received much more than the basic computer skills the flyer promoted. “Ellen, Katie and Wally were family,” says Filson. “STAR became this wonderful support group where we’d discuss our hopes, dreams and problems. We learned how to change our approach to change the outcome; that your attitude matters; how to live better lives. And then ‘oh by the way, this is a mouse,’” she remembers warmly. “Yes, I learned computer skills, but STAR’s greatest gift to me was a confidence I truly didn’t have before. And it’s carried me through ever since.”

Thearon enrolled in the College of Coastal Georgia following her STAR graduation, earning her AA in 2013 and a four-year BA in business administration in 2017, while working full time and helping to raise grandchildren. The recipient of CCGA’s Student Hall of Fame award her senior year, Thearon began working in the school’s Office of the President as a student, serving both Valerie Hepburn and Gregory Aloia. She is currently CCGA’s Health Services Coordinator, acting as a liaison between students and area medical, mental health and nutrition resources. She’s proud of two of her initiatives, Walk A Mile in Her Shoes, and a collaboration with the Glynn County Health Department promoting physical and mental wellness, as well as positive sexual health.

STAR’s relationship with the College of Coastal Georgia is a close one. The two entities signed a supportive memorandum of understanding in 2017. CCGA president Dr. Michelle Johnston, explains, “Our partnership is about two very likeminded organizations. We share a deep commitment to ‘futures’ – to changing lives and the trajectories of entire families. We share the belief that education is the doorway to opportunity and the gateway to success.” She adds, “It’s amazing what STAR’s employment readiness program does to build skills and confidence quickly. When you combine that with the courage and determination it takes to complete the program, there is no limit to what STAR graduates can achieve.”

The nonprofit will celebrate its 25th anniversary with a “Catch A Rising Star” formal gala (black tie optional) to be held at 6:30 p.m. on Friday, January 21 in the A.W. Jones Heritage Center. The timing could not be more critical for the post-COVID economy, says STAR’s new executive director, Markisha Butler, Ed.D., who took the helm this September. “The dearth of job-ready employees in Glynn County has reached crisis proportions. STAR’s holistic workforce training program delivers graduates who are properly prepared and ready to work on Day One. Our commitment to meeting the area’s workforce development needs is unparalleled in the region. During the pandemic, we expanded to include mobile and onsite workshops, in addition to our core employment readiness, office professionalism, financial literacy and education readiness programming.”

STAR board chair Donna Davis (Don McGlamory’s daughter) shares that the organization has served more than 1,400 local adults and their families over the past quarter century, with plans to expand to serve even more. “We are excited about upcoming growth opportunities and corporate partnerships,” Davis stated. “STAR is a program like no other, and we are passionate about true transformational change and the multi-generational impact STAR’s programming achieves. STAR’s graduates leave with the empowerment of education, hope in themselves, belief in their capabilities, growth in their lives, and planned success in career-ready futures.”

Help create more rising STARs in our community by getting tickets to the 25th Anniversary Gala on January 21. They are available online for $140 each or $250/couple, along with sponsorship opportunities, at starfoundation.org/donate.

“I’d been a teen mom, I lived in the projects, I came from a dysfunctional urban family, and I’m an introvert. I walked in expecting to be stereotyped and judged. But Ellen Murphy wrapped her arms around me and I felt like she saw ME, not my situation, and heard me, too.”

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