A LAWYER’S REFLECTION: WHEN MARKETING MEETS COMMUNITY SERVICE

Parents teach so many lessons by their actions, as well as their words. In the Hannah family, both of my parents were extremely active in the Greensboro community. I made the assumption that everybody’s families were similarly active. My father was a scoutmaster for years. He was active with the Greensboro Jaycees, and our church. He also had a number of clients who were older, infirmed, and sometimes, just alone in the world. I grew up going with him to visit these folks just because. He generally manufactured an excuse to drop by, but I knew he was just checking on them.

My mother was involved in more community groups than I could possibly list. She rose to leadership in almost all of them. I remember her desire to lead the PTA in both my middle and high schools. Why? Because I moved to the county schools for those years. The county schools had the reputation of being rural and Mom wanted to make certain that the students (not just me) were being prepared to have the best opportunity for college. I do not think it is coincidental that my graduating class included the first Morehead Scholar, as well as students who were accepted at Wake Forest, Northwestern, Furman (me), and any number of non-state schools that were new to our guidance counselors.

As I prepared to attend law school, family conversations helped me understand that both parents did what they did because of the models set by their parents, but also because Dad started out as a sole practitioner. Mom was as much a part of his marketing effort as he was. Getting involved in the community provided opportunities to build relationships with other young, upcoming members of the business community and opened doors to building a client base and a law practice.

Over my 30+ years of practice, I have told many young lawyers that your career comes with three buckets of time – billable time, which is essential to keep food on the table and the law office operating; personal/family time which should be largely segregated from the office to allow the recharging of batteries and avoidance of burnout; and a third bucket that should be a bit of both, but needs to include marketing and community activities.

As the folks at Hannah Sheridan & Cochran will tell you, my third bucket has always been full. Currently, I serve as the Chair of the Triangle Sports Commission, and in that role, I am part of the local organizing committee for the 2029 Summer FISU World University Games. HSC is a proud sponsor of this event and our other lawyers are beginning to take on roles as the organization ramps up. I have been involved since 1993 with the Taylor Family YMCA in Cary where I coached basketball, served on the Advisory Board, chaired Major Gifts for the annual We Build People Campaign, and several times played in the 100-hole Golf Marathon, to name a few contact points. I serve as an elder in my church, which comes with lots of committee work. And, I am active in both the North Carolina Bar Association, and the Wake County/Tenth Judicial District Bars.

A lawyer once told me that I could make a lot more money if I practiced more and volunteered less. That is undoubtedly true, but I would be much more stressed, much less happy, and our firm would have a lot fewer clients. Community service is both a chance to give back and an opportunity to build relationships. Ask Carter Cole, one of our lawyers, who I first met when he played basketball for me at the Y as a fourth grader.