Macon Magazine

JUANITA JORDAN'S LEGACY OF SERVICE INSPIRES ANOTHER GENERATION OF "GOOD-DOERS" BY DODIE CANTRELL BICKLEY | PORTRAIT BY YVONNE GABRIEL LEADERSHIP MATTERS. It matters so much these days that the topic is the source of many dinner table conversations, turned conflagrations, as bitter as day-old sweet tea left out on the kitchen counter overnight. As we approach the 2020 election, we acknowledge how profoundly leaders can shape a nation, but a nation's strength lies in its vast collection of communities, and it is the leaders in those cities and towns who help shape our day-to-day destinies. In late August, Central Georgia lost one of its most impactful leaders, Juanita Jordan. ere are dozens of articles detailing how multimillionaire newspaper publisher Peyton Anderson saw early on, what others would later come to learn about Jordan. Jordan worked part-time for Anderson when he told her he wanted her to quit her other job driving a school bus and work full-time with him. Anderson hired her initially to manage his business affairs once he retired from the newspaper business. Later in life, as Anderson formed the idea of launching a foundation, he began mentoring her so that she might lead a board that would use his newspaper publishing fortune to give to "good-doers" – not "do-gooders" – and improve the lives of people in Macon. at is exactly what she did for more than 20 years. Following Jordan's death on Aug. 24, the words of those who knew her detail how she brought Anderson's vision to life, her single-minded dedication to the people of Macon and how her leadership did more than move Macon forward. It inspired people to build on her leadership efforts. eresa Robinson is one of them. During her tenure as a Georgia Power executive, Robinson served on several charitable boards in Macon. She said one of Jordan's important leadership skills was her ability to pull in people to get things done, and knowing that: Lessons in leadership L 42 maconmagazine.com | OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2020

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