Greensboro Gurus

Dominick grew up in Charlotte, NC and attended Myers Park High School, and then came to Greensboro to UNCG for his collegiate career.  After graduating, he moved to New York City, where he lived and worked on Broadway for over 15 years.  He was 39 when he moved back to Greensboro. He returned for quality of life for his kids, job opportunities, and to be closer to his family.  And those are exactly the reasons he has stayed... plus the incredible community of friends that they've found around Greensboro.

After attending UNC-Greensboro, Ryan lived in Charlotte, NC before returning to Greensboro. He was 38 when he moved back to town. He enthusiastically said yes to the opportunity to return to Greensboro to lead a newly created office focusing on arts & culture within the City government. The move was made all the easier when his partner found a professional growth opportunity working in Human Resources for a national company’s Greensboro office. For them, Greensboro offers the perfect balance of a slower pace and far less traffic than they knew in Charlotte, an overall more affordable cost of living, and all the amenities (arts & culture, shopping, parks and greenways, restaurants, etc.) that make a place livable.

Zithobile (Zitty) grew up in Greensboro and attended preschool at First Baptist Church, Peeler Open School, Erwin Elementary School, Swann Middle School (formerly Aycock), and Dudley High School. After graduating from Dudley in 1999, Zitty attended Spelman College and Georgia Perimeter College in Atlanta, GA before returning to Greensboro in 2005. She was 24 when she moved back to town. She came home and finished her undergraduate journey at Guilford College. Life hadn't gone as expected and she needed a hard reset. She has built an incredible social network in Greensboro and hope to do a lot of good in the city.

Adam grew up in Greensboro and attended Page High School. After attending William & Mary, he lived in Atlanta, Charlottesville, Atlanta again and Durham before returning back to Greensboro.  At 33, he moved back with his wife and 3 young sons (with a 4th son on the way).  His kids were pre-school aged and as he reflected about the environment that he wanted to raise them in, a mid-size city was more attractive so that he and his wife could be more involved in their day to day lives.

Originally they considered other mid-size cities in the region, but after visiting family back in Greensboro, they realized that Greensboro was very different from the city he knew growing up in the 80s/90s.

Between the downtown scene, the transformed universities and the new industries (aerospace, logistics), it was an evolving city that was emerging for 21st century growth. Specifically, he loves the combination of restaurants in Greensboro and the diversity of offerings in the area and find they don’t have time to try all of them.

Having been back for 7 years, we have loved our time in Greensboro. He worried about moving back would be a repeat of his childhood, but living in a different neighborhood, with many friends who aren’t from here, both him and his wife have found this to be a new home! Most importantly, living here has allowed them to make the lifestyle changes they needed to be very involved in their children’s lives.  The lack of traffic and closeness of most destinations allow him to attend all of his kids activities and sports, and that has been perhaps the greatest gift his hometown has given his family.

Lauren is a boomerang back to Greensboro for the first time since childhood.  Lauren loves the Mayberry-meets-New York vibe and rich art scene of her native city.  She loves living downtown with a loft apartment and 2 office locations all along Elm Street.  Look for her at Cheesecakes by Alex or at any other outdoor eatery conducting business on the laptop.

Clifford grew up in Greensboro. After attending college in West Lafayette, Indiana and launching his career in Atlanta GA, he moved back to Greensboro with his wife. He came back to be close to family and for work.

La-Donia lived in Greensboro for 25 years and attended NC A&T State University. Various jobs has landed La-Donia living in Georgia, Virginia and Ohio.La-Donia returned to Greensboro to become an Adjunct Professor at NC A&T State University and self publish the first HBCU Homecoming Children's book. With so many roots in Greensboro, La-Donia and her husband, Michael enjoy raising their daughters here.

Denise lived in Greensboro for 10 years and served in a number of leadership capacities including working for a Member of Congress, leading government affairs for public/private economic development organizations and as Greensboro City Manager. She was appointed by President Barack Obama to lead the General Services Administration, one of the largest federal agencies, and the only opportunity significant enough to instigate our move! She returned to Greensboro for the quality of life. Raising an 11 year old who loves the outdoors,she wanted him to have the experience of the extensive park network and exploring outdoor activities in a safe environment. The airport has a number of direct flights to major cities which allows her to reach her clients with ease. Her family has adopted Greensboro as their hometown and continue to enjoy the parks, arts and the neighborly community. They appreciate the culture of the city as well. The city has a rich history of activism and a multitude of diverse colleges and universities which attracts engaging young people.

After graduating from UNC-Chapel Hill, Carrie returned home to pursue a banking career with BB&T.  In 2017, Carrie changed industries and now helps run a solar and lighting company, Green State Power, with her husband, Will.  Together, they are growing a business and raising 3 young children, always encouraging friends and family to move back to Greensboro.

Matt was born and raised in Greensboro and is a proud alumni of both the Greensboro Day School and Page High School.  He attended UNC Chapel Hill, then lived in DC for five years and then moved back in Chapel Hill for a few years. He and his wife, Sarah, believe that North Carolina is a beautiful state, and Greensboro is one of the best cities.  The quality of life in Greensboro is unparalleled.  It’s warm here 9 months out of the year, but you still get “All 4 Seasons” as people like to say.  Greensboro offers all the same amenities as other NC metros, but with a 5 minute commute and half the price.  Plus, Greensboro is beautiful, eclectic, artistic, fun, great restaurants, very social, with outstanding educational opportunities for children and adults, and the people from here are the most genuine, sophisticated, and well-rounded.

Margaret left Greensboro for high school in Pennsylvania and college in Indiana from 1999 until 2006. After college, she moved to Maine to work on a lobster tour boat and then in a small financial institution for a couple of years. She moved back to Greensboro in 2008 to return to her North Carolina roots, be closer to family, and to take advantage of the accessibility of the community...and because she don't shovel snow.

As a Greensboro native, Alyse only ventured away to attend college at UNC-Wilmington and graduate school at UNC-Chapel Hill.  Greensboro has helped raise her and shape how she sees the world, and often how the world sees her. After undergraduate, she was an educator in the public school system for five years, before deciding to return to graduate school to become a Psychologist.  Upon graduation from UNC, she moved back to Greensboro to work for the Mental Health Association in Greensboro and started expanding her Greensboro roots. She got married, had two daughters, volunteered, and decided Greensboro was where she wanted her family to be.  In 2017, she moved into private practice and was fortunate to open her own practice, Sante Counseling, located in historical Fisher Park.

Tal grew up in Greensboro and attended Page High and UNCG. He moved to San Francisco where he worked in tech journalism for 20 years. A variety of reasons brought him back to Greensboro with his California-born wife, including proximity to family, reasonable and rational cost of living, recognizing growth opportunities in Greensboro, escaping traffic and population density in the Bay Area, community, and wanting to make a difference in politics, human rights, cultural, and social issues. Tal is a board member of Guilford Green Foundation and LGBTQ Center, which opened downtown in 2020. He was also involved with the food and beverage scene in San Francisco, so he started MACHETE restaurant here in Greensboro with a couple of talented chefs as a pop-up experience out of his house. Tal hopes the success shows others there are opportunities in Greensboro to try something new and add to the amenities and social activities in the area. His wife also very much enjoys living in Greensboro and they talk about how moving from California to NC when they did was a great decision.

Hilda was born and raised in Greensboro. After graduating from UNC-Chapel Hill, she accepted a job in Northern Virginia. After a few years in Virginia and graduating from Leadership Arlington, she felt very compelled to make an impact in her hometown community. Hilda moved back to Greensboro in 2018, she was very attracted to the cost of living, being closer to family and her ambition to network and make an impact in her hometown. She enjoys volunteering, supporting local businesses and walking in local parks.

Anna (pronouns:she/her) was born in Greensboro and lived in the Triad for several years before her family moved east to the beach. She returned to her hometown to attend university and has lived here (again) ever since. Anna is a realtor with Keller Williams and absolutely loves her work. When not working you can find her and her partner working on home projects, cooking, or in general getting crafty. Anna's favorite thing about Greensboro (besides the houses) is the easy access to both the coast and the mountains and the local food and drink scene.

Beth attended Guilford College and received her undergraduate degree in business. After college, she wanted to explore beyond NC boundaries and lived in Chicago, Atlanta and Cleveland. Beth moved to Charlotte in 2002 and returned here to work for UNCG as vice chancellor for University Advancement. She was excited by UNCG's momentum and the people there. The Spartan family is reflective of Greensboro - down to earth, warm hearted and motivated to do the right things. She is an active member of Women Executives and Women’s Professional Forum.

Elizabeth left in 1989 when her mother remarried, and lived in Raleigh, Atlanta, Davidson (for college), Washington, D.C., and Winston-Salem (for law school) prior to coming back here.  She returned primarily for family and because Greensboro offers access to all that you need from a bigger city while maintaining an easy way of life.  She had job offers out of law school in Atlanta and Greensboro, and she didn't want to spend precious time she wouldn't have as a young lawyer in her car.

Kristen grew up in Greensboro, went to Appalachian State for undergrad and then moved to Colorado for four years before coming back to the 'boro. She returned for many reasons - from family, to obtaining her masters at UNCG, and to that feeling of home and belonging, Greensboro just holds a special place in her heart.

Michael was born and raised in Greensboro. After graduating from Greensboro Day School, he attended NC State University in Raleigh, NC where he stayed for 7 years for his undergraduate and graduate studies as well as to begin his work career. Michael moved to Washington, DC for the big city experience. After a year in DC, he was offered a position back in Greensboro. With a lower cost of living and increased salary, it was a no-brainer to come back. His biggest concern coming back was the possibility of culture shock and wondering what there was to do for young professionals. Upon his return, Michael was pleasantly surprised and has watched Greensboro continue to grow and offer more and more for young professionals. Now, with a family of his own, he can't imagine raising his kids anywhere else.

Jordan grew up in Greensboro, went to Northwest Guilford High and received her BA from UNCG. When she married her husband, the Army took them to Destin, Florida, and then they had a year-long adventure in Bozeman, Montana. The stars aligned with a job offer for her husband and they moved back home to Greensboro. Jordan is an entrepreneur, so she was able to bring her business with her. They live in Lindley Park and spend a lot of time at the little Walker Avenue corner restaurants. They have enjoyed the nostalgia of GSO as well as discovering new friends, new organizations, and watching the city grow. They love it here, and now as 35-year-olds with a 4 month old baby, they have a new perspective and a revived passion to make it the best city ever!