BY CLIFF SMELLEY
Chrissy Thompson, owner of Starke’s The Downtown Grill, was one this year’s Santa Fe College Women of Distinction and honored at a March 26 luncheon at Gainesville’s UF Hilton Conference Center that was sponsored by Starke’s Teal Tile Carpet.
Thompson admitted she would’ve never thought she’d be selected for the annual honor. In fact, when Santa Fe President Paul Broadie attempted to reach her multiple times in December, she assumed the school was wanting her restaurant to cater an event.
When Thompson spoke to him and learned the real reason for why he was calling, her thought was, “There are so many more deserving people. I’m not sure how I got picked.”
In her mind, she would come low on a list of women from Bradford County to honor. However, the reality is that many feel Thompson does plenty in the community to make her a Woman of Distinction. Teri McClellan, the assistant vice president for Santa Fe’s Office for Advancement and Marketing and Communications, told her she had received the most nomination letters of any honoree in the 17 years that McClellan has been involved with Women of Distinction.
“I was surprised. I really was,” Thompson said.
Women of Distinction was created in 1987 to recognize outstanding women in Alachua and Bradford counties as part of Women’s History Month (March). Thompson is now one of approximately 200 who have been honored since its inception.
This year’s honorees also included Alachua County’s Naima Brown, who is Santa Fe’s vice present for Student Affairs, and Jeannine Hogue. Newberry High School graduate Honesty Huston was recognized as a Woman of Promise. (Visit sfcollege.edu/wod to view profiles of the honorees.)
In 2014, honorees began raising funds to establish funds for endowed Woman of Distinction scholarships. To date, more than $220,000 has been raised.
“It’s amazing that that many women can come together, put something together and make it happen,” Thompson said.
Thompson, who has lived in Bradford County since she was 8, is involved with such organizations as the Bradford County Education Foundation, Communities in Schools of Bradford and the Starke Downtown Merchants Association.
Through those organizations and her support of other community groups and events, Thompson exhibits her desire to have an impact on others. One of her favorite sayings is: “If you help one person, you may not change the world, but for that person, you have changed their world.”
The desire to serve her community was instilled in her at an early age. Thompson said a lot of the credit goes to her grandparents: Roland and Ann Nazworth and Junior and Ruth Clemons.
Thompson said the Nazworths were a military family that stressed service to God, family and country.
“They always had a flag flying. They always had a Bible on the table,” Thompson said. “I guess that just kind of stuck with me.”
She said Junior and Ruth Clemons were probably the hardest-working people she has ever known. They were “classic farmer grandparents” who could take care of themselves and knew how to live within their means, Thompson said, adding, “They weren’t super educated, but they were educated in life, for sure.”
Someone else who was an influence on her life was Virgil Berry, who was a longtime chiropractor in Starke.
“He is a lifetime friend, community leader and mentor,” Thompson said. “Dr. Berry was the first person who told me I could make a difference.”
Thompson got to know Berry through her initial career, which had nothing to do with serving food. Inspired by volunteering as a candy striper at the hospital, Thompson went Santa Fe and graduated from its nursing program. Her first job out of college was working for Berry.
While working as a nurse, she did catering on the side. A brain injury to her son Jason led to the change in direction in careers. He had been working at one of the prisons at the time and was a sharpshooter, but his family was told that he’d never be able to shoot a gun or handle inmates again.
“I knew that we had to find something that would be a family business or something that would make him a productive adult again,” Thompson said, explaining that Jason had restaurant experience when he worked at Western Steer while in high school.
Thompson would buy what used to be known as BobKat’s Café from Kathryn Ford. Thompson said Ford told her she could make a success of the restaurant. Thompson also ran the idea by Telegraph Owner/Publisher John Miller, who also expressed the belief that she would do great with a restaurant.
That was 17 years ago.
“The rest is kind of history,” Thompson said.
Thompson learned to cook from both of her grandmothers, saying that some of her food items, such as fried chicken and pork chops, are their recipes.
Having a business downtown naturally led to her being a part of the Downtown Merchants Association. She likes the fact that business owners put aside any competition and support each other as well as providing such events as The Great Pumpkin Escape and Christmas on Call Street.
“Everybody brings something to the table, and everybody works together,” Thompson said. “It really does make a difference when you have a network of people, and you can share what you already know, what already has been done and what already works.”
Whether it’s with the Downtown Merchants or one of the other groups she’s involved with, Thompson will always look for ways to serve others.
“Until I die, I will be community service led,” she said. “It is very rewarding.”
She’s just one person, though, which is why it’s hard to accept any kind of spotlight on her alone.
“It’s not an ‘I’ thing,” Thompson said. “I belong to a lot of great groups of people. All the boards that I sit on are made up of movers and shakers. They are the ones who make individuals look good. It’s not a one-person thing by any stretch.”
Thompson said it was humbling to attend the Women of Distinction luncheon and be surrounded by women supporting and empowering each other. That included former honorees from Bradford County — women Thompson is also blessed to call friends.
“Those ladies absolutely lead our community and teach us all how to grow and to be better women,” Thompson said.
Thompson may not believe she’s worthy of being a Woman of Distinction, but she exemplifies what it means to seize the day and be a servant for one’s community.
“Live your life to the fullest because tomorrow is not promised,” Thompson said. “Tell people what you feel and work out problems right away. Find the things you want to do. If you follow your passion and follow your heart, things will come together so you can do what you want to help others.”
