Macon Magazine

Not only was she in a new country, but when she started fourth grade in Miami-Dade County, the only English words she knew were "cat" and "dog." Baldwin-McNulty was determined and worked hard to learn more. One teacher helped her in ways she said she will never forget: Rose Garcia. "She really made a difference," Baldwin-McNulty said. "I don't really remember a language problem a er fourth grade." Baldwin-McNulty had to leave school in ninth grade to help her mom put food on the table and pay bills. Baldwin-McNulty worked a full-time day job with her mother, then went to night school while her mother went to her second job. Her brothers were actively serving in the military. "Our whole life changed. But you know, you're happy you're alive. You're happy you're free. You move forward and do the best you can," she said. She kept going and homed in on her love for numbers. Math had clicked for her from the beginning, and while she kept climbing up the ladder in her accounting job, she knew there was still more to learn. She took Accounting I and II at Miami-Dade Community College. "From then on, it was by the seat of my pants, and I rushed forward," she said. e Start of Dean Baldwin Painting LP Baldwin-McNulty was 19 when she married her first husband, Larry Baldwin. Larry worked at a grocery store and helped with his father's side business painting aircra parts. In 1975 Eastern Airlines hired Larry to paint aircra full time, but he kept helping his father. That side business gradually grew. When Larry's father retired in 1978, the business had six employees. Larry le Eastern Airlines to continue growing his father's business. It wasn't long before Baldwin-McNulty le her accounting job to help. In the early 1980s they moved to West Palm Beach while expanding the business in Miami. "This was an opportunity to make it our own. It's ours. We either make it or break it. If we don't make it, then we figure it out," Baldwin-McNulty said. In 1995, Baldwin-McNulty became a majority owner and CEO of the company. The first major expansion happened in 1999 with the opening of the first full-service facility in Roswell, New Mexico. A er the 9/11 attack in 2001, the aerospace industry faced major setbacks. Airlines were flying less and losing money, so they cut back on expenses like painting. "One of the companies we serviced went bankrupt within a couple of months, another one moved out of state, and our biggest customer said, 'I'm hurting. I have to keep all of the money in-house.' A er 17 years of doing their work, they gave me a six-month notice that they weren't going to use our services by the end of the year," Baldwin- McNulty said. In 2003, they closed their business in Miami and relocated San Antonio, Texas, to support VT Aerospace facilities' paint and appearance requirements. San Antonio has since become Baldwin Painting LT's corporate office and is still Baldwin-McNulty's home today. Baldwin-McNulty wanted to expand a er the move to San Antonio, but many banks rejected her small business loan applications. "Being a woman with a minority-owned business going to talk to the banks," she laughed, "good luck." But she kept going, trying, and failing until she found someone who would help. Eventually, her determination paid off. When the small business loan funding came through, she used it wisely. Within a few years, the facility in Roswell started seeing $13 million in annual sales growth. By 2012, they began operating a Goodyear, Arizona, site, then opened a new state-of-the-art full-service paint facility in Peru, Indiana, in 2013. That same year, Baldwin- McNulty became the sole owner of the entire company. Moving to Macon In 2020, when most companies were shutting down and facing serious financial insecurity, Baldwin- McNulty was implementing construction plans for a brand-new aircra facility in Macon, Georgia. Of course, a COVID-19 pandemic-era expansion wasn't planned, but giving up isn't in Baldwin-McNulty's vocabulary. "I've always taught my children to believe. If you don't believe, you won't get anywhere," Baldwin-McNulty said. "I tell them I'd rather see them fall flat on their face than see them sit on their behind." Her ambitious spirit keeps her going and is the reason she made a $21 million investment into the Macon facility, creating 115 jobs in Macon-Bibb. Hers is one of the five facilities nationwide that serve customers such as ATSG, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, DEAN BALDWIN PAINTING LP IS HIRING Aircraft painters: Earn up to $29.35/hour + benefits Ready to start an exciting new career or learn a skilled trade while being compensated? Submit your application and resume: deanbaldwinpainting.com. APRIL/MAY 2023 | maconmagazine.com 59

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