My mom and I always greet each other with, “Hey there!” When I hear that greeting from others, it always feels so warm.
So, I’ll start this blog post off with, “Hey there!”
My name is Jamar Davis! This is my second year as a YP board member for the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance.
When my first year as a board member began in January 2022, I worked for the Mecklenburg County Health Department, and I left in March of that same year. I did not seek out another job opportunity until six months later for the City of Charlotte’s Innovation and Technology (I&T) Department as its Access Charlotte coordinator.
During the time off, I got the opportunity to see what this city had to offer, look at it through the lens of someone who was fortunate enough to navigate it without a job and appreciate Charlotte. That time was also when I felt a part of this city rather than just a cog in a wheel.
While I was born in Charleston, West Virginia, I came of age in parts of North Carolina. I attended Olympic High School, went on to study at North Carolina A&T State University in Greensboro, and then returned to Charlotte as a working adult.
I’ve seen the change in Charlotte’s streets and neighborhoods in a manner that has benefitted transplants and the city’s natives. That’s the beautiful side when you view this city from one scope. The other side is how those changes have tipped the scale against native Charlotteans. The upward mobility study from the Stanford Center on Poverty and Inequality was the push I needed to see how I could contribute to this city. And I am honored to do it in ways like being a board member, serving and engaging with the community, and working in government roles that are connected to progressive, non-performative change. Each opportunity here has molded my experience. Those experiences have helped me to identify what purpose feels like and I’m happy to say that it was Charlotte that connected me to my purpose. That’s why I’m here and it’s the first place that has felt like home.
I hope to see my fellow young professionals walking in their purpose here!
