By Rebecca Winters and Family
Q: Tell us about your background, where you are from.
A: I grew up in Madison County and attended Sparkman High School where I was involved in SGA, yearbook, and Government team. After graduation, I attended the University of Alabama where I received a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science with a minor in Telecommunication and Film. During my tenure at Alabama, I was a member of Alpha Delta Pi sorority, SGA, and a member of the Student Judicial Board my senior year. I also spent a summer in Washington D.C. interning for Congressman Bud Cramer. Upon graduation from Alabama, I immediately moved to Montgomery, Alabama where I worked for a political consulting firm for many national political campaigns, including a presidential campaign.
Q: Tell us about your husband’s, job, and education and where he is from.
A: My husband is from Greenville, Alabama where he was Valedictorian of his class. He graduated from The University of Alabama with a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering. After graduation, he moved to Huntsville where he began his work as an Army civil servant. He has been serving in this role for the past 16 years. While working for the Army he earned two master’s degrees, a Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering and an MBA.
Q: Tell us about your children.
A: We have three children, Charlotte (10), Nora (7), and Samuel (4). They are all very active in the community and their school sports. Both of the girls are members of the Soles Dance Center competition teams.
Q: How did you and your husband meet?
A: My husband and I met through my stepfather, Joe Carter. Emory and Joe shared an office and Joe thought the two of us would be a great fit for each other. Our first date was a (blind) double date with Joe and my mom so we could meet, and each have someone we knew there just in case we didn’t click. After that night, we quickly realized that we were a perfect match and have now been happily married for thirteen years, after only dating a short time. Even though we married quickly after meeting, our biggest regret is not meeting each other sooner so that we could have been married sooner in order to make more memories and enjoy each other that much longer.
Q: What is your best memory together?
A: Our best memory together is the places we have traveled together. As a couple, we went to France for two weeks as our honeymoon and it could not have been more perfect. As a family, we recently took our family to Disney World and the magic of Disney through our children’s eyes was worth every penny. We love spending time as a family whether it is through coaching sports or watching movies. We decided early in our relationship that our family would always come first, and we have kept that promise to each other.
Q: You started out as paralegal and then decided to attend and graduate law school. Tell us about your educational and professional journey.
A: After Emory and I married, I relocated back to Huntsville. I was asked to answer the phone temporarily at a law firm. That job quickly turned into a paralegal role, and I realized that I really enjoyed the legal field and the impact it had on people’s lives every day. The attorney I worked under realized my desire to learn more and suggested that I attend law school. I applied and began law school in the fall of 2011 on a whim. I then worked a full-time role as a paralegal and attended law school every Saturday in Birmingham.
In 2012, Emory and I found out we were expecting our first child. Charlotte was born in the middle of a semester of law school; I missed school the weekend after her birth and then went back the next weekend. I graduated law school in May of 2015 and began an intense study program to aid in taking the bar exam.
About six weeks before the exam, I found out I was pregnant with Nora, although my focus had to be on studying and passing the bar exam. I wanted to only take it once. I sat for the bar in July of 2015 and got the passing results in September of 2015. I continued working for that firm until Nora was born. I decided that being a mom was more important to me than being an attorney, and I decided to open my own firm, which allowed me to create my own schedule and be available to our family as I wanted. I quickly realized that even though it was very exhausting and I had to get creative with my working hours, I could be an active mom, wife, and attorney. Around the time that I opened my office, my husband earned his MBA with a focus in Marketing so he could help me grow my business and my presence online in order to gain clientele.
In 2020, I hired my first employee as an assistant to answer the phones and help manage my calendar. She quickly followed in my footsteps and began paralegal work and now attends law school while working full time.
Q: How do you feel that this will inspire the next generation of those looking at law as a career?
A: I feel that by showing others, especially women, that you can be successful at home and with your full career it allows people to get creative with their schedule, their education, and to think out of the box so that you do not have to be selective with whether you are a mom or have a career, it’s possible to do both, and thrive.
Q: Why did you choose family law as your specialty?
A: I chose family law because first, it was where I had the most experience. Second, because as a child of divorced parents, I had the unique perspective of how divorce impacts not only the husband and wife, but the rest of the family as well. I try to keep my clients focused on what is best for them as well as their children and not just how much they can hurt their soon to be ex-spouse.
There are also happy times in my job such as the adoption process. This allows me to see families grow and expand instead of breaking apart. I genuinely enjoy my job and ensuring that my clients come out better from my office than when they came in.
Q: What is the family’s favorite restaurant in Huntsville?
A: We do a lot of cooking at home, especially during the week with our busy schedules, and we love to cook together. If we do go out to eat or order in, we love China Sun and Taco Mama.
Q: If the family had a motto what would it be?
A: Our family’s mottos are “Love One Another” and “Do the right thing, the right way.” We try to set the example for our children that love comes first, and it is important to always treat people with love.
South Huntsville Neighbors 