Deborah Morris shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.
Hi Deborah, thank you for taking the time to reflect back on your journey with us. I think our readers are in for a real treat. There is so much we can all learn from each other and so thank you again for opening up with us. Let’s get into it: Have you stood up for someone when it cost you something?
Standing up for people who are being ignored or mistreated has been a regular part of my life since childhood. In middle school two friends and I formed a “secret club” with a mission to publicly befriend and defend other kids at school who were being bullied and treated as outcasts. We named the club (this is cheesy) the “Merry Hearts Club” because of Proverbs 17:22–“A merry heart does good like medicine, but a broken spirit dries up the bones.” We surrounded the broken-spirited kids who got picked on and taunted–sat with them at lunch, picked them on our teams, etc. Of course we took a lot of grief for it, but we also felt good about doing it. We saw that it made a difference.
Looking back, those early experiences prepared me as an adult to stand up for others in more serious situations. In the early 80’s in Smithfield, NC, a young first-year teacher’s job was threatened after the PTA moms “boycotted” her kindergarten class simply because she was black. I had a rather fiery conversation with the principal about what would happen if she fired this young teacher under these circumstances. Our daughter was the only child to attend kindergarten for the first two weeks, but eventually the other students trickled in. Our whole family paid a price for supporting the teacher since we were shunned everywhere from school events to church, but it was the right thing to do.
It’s almost always a risk to put yourself in harm’s way by speaking up instead of keeping your head down, but there’s also a very real risk to remaining silent, to hardening your heart until you can no longer feel others’ pain. Personally, I would rather take the first risk.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
Although most recently I’ve served as a three-term Garland City Council Member and mayoral candidate, my professional career was as a nonfiction author/interviewer and creator of an Emmy-nominated TV series on the Discovery Channel. Throughout the years I’ve also served in various volunteer roles: a hospital “Pink Lady”, a Red Cross Disaster Team Leader, a Christian Motorcyclist Association (CMA) First Aid Team Member, and currently as a community advocate and volunteer team member with Acts of Mercy International, a church-based disaster relief organization that serves locally, nationally, and worldwide.
I just returned from deployment down to Kerrville after the massive flooding to assist in the Community Disaster Assistance Center run by the Texas Department of Emergency Management (TDEM) in partnership with the Kerrville Salvation Army. It is a gift at this stage of my life to have the time to step up and help where and when needed, whether it’s disaster relief, mentoring young people in the community, or speaking in schools.
Okay, so here’s a deep one: What relationship most shaped how you see yourself?
I’ve been blessed with many positive influencers in my life, but if I have to choose only one, that would have to be my husband, Terry, whom I married at age 17. (We celebrated our 51st anniversary earlier this year, so despite a lot of early naysayers we think this marriage thing just might work out for us.)
Terry shares many of the character traits I most admired in my father: unflinching honesty, a firm faith, incredible generosity, and a constant fascination with learning new things. An electronics engineer and inventor, Terry is a sort of modern-day Renaissance man with a wide variety of skills and interests who has consistently challenged me to pursue my own passions, wherever they might lead. He’s believed in me far more than I believed in myself, and been my biggest fan and supporter.
He’s enlarged my vision of who I am and what I can do.
What did suffering teach you that success never could?
Humility. Empathy. The ability to endure difficulties and disappointments and keep going instead of falling apart.
One thing I’ve come to recognize over the years is that all my closest friends, those I most respect and who demonstrate the most depth of character, are all people who have suffered greatly in one way or another. Conversely, some of the most shallow people I’ve ever met are those who’ve led what many of us might consider a charmed life.
None of us would ever wish for suffering, of course, for ourselves or others. But I’ve come to believe that if–or rather when–suffering does come, it often leaves behind a priceless gift that can’t be gained any other way.
Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. Is the public version of you the real you?
Yes and no. I’m more reserved in public than in private, but I’m the same person–probably more due to my natural “wiring” than to anything deliberate. I’ve never been able to (successfully) deceive or prevaricate, even as a child. I most definitely do not have a poker face!
Although I am by nature an introvert, all my life I’ve been thrust into extrovert roles. I’m far more comfortable in small groups or one-on-one conversations where I can have more intimate conversations than in large crowds where it’s mostly “small talk”. Small talk drains me; hearing about other people’s lives, stories and thoughts inspires me.
Okay, so before we go, let’s tackle one more area. What is the story you hope people tell about you when you’re gone?
I hope they’ll say that I genuinely cared about people, and that I was steadfast in my faith during good times and bad.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/deborahmorrisgarland
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/deborah-morris-1724b317
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/morrisforgarland
