6 minute read
Our Town
THE USUAL OUR
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–Ken Walsh, Triangle Troglodytes vice-chair
When can we go underground again? asks the Triangle Troglodytes tagline. Th e answer? “About every other month or so,” says group chair Mark Daughtridge. Th is band of spelunkers – hobbyist cavers all – organizes trips to nearby caves, which in this region usually means
Virginia and West Virginia. In between, they hold monthly open meetings at the N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences, where members socialize, learn, and practice their skills. Recently, one item on the evening’s agenda was “drilling holes into concrete,”
Daughtridge recounted jovially. Such bolting is serious, actually: a key skill for navigating challenging caves. Despite the occasional power tools, these gatherings are fr iendly. Truly all are welcome, regardless of experience. When a newcomer asks about tight, dark spaces, Daughtridge reassures: “It’s generally not as scary as people think it would be,” he says. When in doubt, he recommends sending a taller, heartier caver in ahead of you. “I’m great to go with beginners,” pipes up vice-chair Ken Walsh, who is more than 6 feet tall. “If I can fi t, you know you’ll fi t.” In all seriousness, “I’ve never had anyone be fr eaked out and decide they didn’t want to go farther in the cave,” Daughtridge says. “If anything, most people really feel pretty adventurous.” Adventurous is the common denominator of this diverse group. Of the Tri Trogs’ 35 or so active members, ages range fr om 2 (cavers sometimes bring their children along) to 83. “We have a surprising number of Ph.D.s,” Daughtridge says, plus electrical engineers, college students, and people who “happen to move here fr om a place that had more caves than we do.” Rock climbing and diving are fr equent gateway hobbies, he says. And there are also always just plain curious outdoorsfolk. –J.A.
“We’re in the business of solving problems and
helping people.” –Frank Papa, Phydeaux pet shop founder and owner There was an aha moment about 15 years ago that motivated Frank Papa to leave his former software development job to start the holistic pet shop Phydeaux in Carrboro. He just can’t quite remember what it was. “I had an indoor cat at the time who had inadvertently gotten out,” he says, “somehow she did something that made me land on ‘pet store.’ That’s all I can recall.” He blames the lost memory on the store’s trajectory since: Within three years, he’d moved Phydeaux to a larger location in Chapel Hill, and then quickly opened Raleigh and Cary outposts, too. “It did take off pretty quickly … I wasn’t aware of how life-altering running my own business would be, how completely all encompassing. It’s pretty much the only thing I’ve done for the past 15 years.” Not that Papa’s complaining. Phydeaux stands out for its independent ownership, organic pet foods, and product selection. It’s the luxury boutique of pet stores. “As a staff we look at every single product we bring in. We try to find the best that’s available on the market, anywhere in the world.” Papa is mostly self-taught, despite a business undergraduate degree. “I took what I learned there and did the opposite,” he says with a laugh. “I had no experience in retail, and I figured it out as I went.” Luckily, a dedication to “high quality” has paid off. So has a passion for animal welfare. Phydeaux puts on events with local animal nonprofits most weekends. “We do our best to try to sponsor any and all local rescue groups that we can. That’s always been important to me personally.” –J.A.
2535 Atlantic Ave.; phydeaux.com
OUR Town GAME PLAN
from left: Lekita Essa, Athena Hartwig, and Irene Iatridis “We’re learning that there are more and more female veterans locally that are homeless. We want to bring awareness to that issue and contribute.”
–Lekita Essa, Greek Orthodox Ladies Philoptochos Society member
“Philoptochos is a Greek word that translates to ‘friends of the poor,’ and our local chapter is the Agape chapter, the Greek word for ‘love,’” says Lekita Essa. Essa went to her first Philoptochos monthly Sunday meeting at Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox church with her godmother, a Philoptochos founding member, 108-year-old Pota Vallas (who was featured in the February 2016 issue of WALTER). She was impressed by the group’s civic projects and immediately plugged in. “It does beautiful work here in our community and all over the U.S.” Essa knows about the nationwide work because, in addition to serving with her 70-some fellow Agape chapter members, she serves on the national Philoptochos board. And, although she’s admittedly biased, Essa believes the Raleigh chapter stands out. “I’ve got to tell you: When looking at everything nationwide, obviously larger cities have more members and then they have the ability to give much more money. But our chapter is known to be one of the hardest-working chapters, and we give thousands and thousands of dollars each year.” Philoptochos dollars locally go to Backpack Buddies, the Pretty in Pink Foundation, InterAct, and Alliance Medical Ministry, among others. This month, the Agape ladies are busy focusing on a new cause to the group: homeless female veterans. They’ve been filling water-resistant backpacks with toiletries, fast food gift cards, and other personal items. When Holy Trinity hosts a regional laity conference in June – in which leadership from more than 70 regional Greek Orthodox churches will convene in Raleigh – the Agape volunteers will distribute the bags alongside Philoptochos members from throughout the Southeast. “We embrace and welcome everyone’s ideas in this organization. It’s an amazing community.” –J.A.
–Adrienne Cole, Greater Raleigh Chamber of Commerce president and CEO The Greater Raleigh Chamber of Commerce’s new leader is not new to town, or to the chamber: Adrienne Cole’s economic development career includes roles as the executive director of the chamber’s county economic development program and then as senior vice president of economic development. “I’ve been in and out of Raleigh my whole life,” she says. Born here and raised in New Bern, Cole returned with her family in 2001 and has been a Raleighite ever since. “My family and I love Raleigh. We’ve been able to really grow our careers while also enjoying the community and providing what we think is a great place for our children to grow up.” Cole has had a key role in creating that community: She says two of the high points of her past chamber work include helping to recruit Campbell Law School and the Red Hat headquarters to the city. The difference those business developments have made in the fabric of Raleigh epitomize what she loves about her work here, she says. “One of the things that makes this area so special is how effectively we collaborate together. I think it’s part of our secret sauce: we work so well between organizations, elected leaders, business leaders.” When she was named president of the chamber in March, she became the first woman to hold the position. “Frankly, it wasn’t something that I thought a lot about. I was much more focused on the opportunity and future of our community. Being the president and CEO of the chamber is a very missiondriven role.” Among her mission-oriented priorities are the economic development she’s familiar with, and also “a commitment to diversity and inclusion, as well as supporting small business and entrepreneurship.” –J.A.
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