
My multifaceted experiences are meld into a colorful canvas that reflects the interplay of work, family and personal adventures.
After decades dabbling into genealogy with my search for “missing” relatives who included my paternal great-grandfather, William Weed. His last whereabouts were in 1919 in Helena, Arkansas, when African American men especially were being rounded up and killed during an uprising mirrored around the country. I was 10 years old and wanted to know more about what happened. Thankfully, his youngest son, my grandfather, Sampson Luster Weed/Wead, and his mother and William’s widow, Carrie Lee, somehow made it to Omaha, Nebraska.
There is much more to know about our rich history as a family and culture. Late last year, my first cousin and now business partner, Mark Owen, and I studied and graduated as genealogists. Books, blogs, podcasts and workshops are on tap for our Wead Write Away and Genealogy Services. Stay tuned.
Also I am an award-winning financial news journalist, higher education administrator, professor, government administrator, innovator, “intrapreneur,” strategic start-I up specialist, scholarly researcher, grant writer, author, freelance “ghost writer” and philanthropist.
That’s the professional side of Ann.
The civic, community, spiritual, and personal component of Ann is equally dedicated and fully engaged as a volunteer, mentor, children’s disability advocate, family historian, truth seeker and global explorer..
Imagine the steady circling of three balls or spheres with each one marked with the words “Professional Ann” and “Personal Ann” and “Explorer Ann.” In each of those three circular spaces, I bring a little or a lot of me. Within each of those spheres, the total Ann exists and learns.
Welcome to my world.