“Craig Reaves can drive everything but a train,” says his daughter-in-law, Lawren Reaves. As the owner of Bear Point Harbor, Craig has needed these skills on many occasions. He grew up in Columbus, Georgia, where his family owned a fourth-generation building demolition business that expanded into waste management, hazardous asbestos removal, a landfill, roll-off dumpsters, and a crane rental service. They sold most of the businesses in 2009 but kept the waste management operation until last year.

Donna Hill is one of those unusual people that actually use the degree she earned in college. She’s still using the Home Economics degree from Auburn, which is both rare and delicious! I first learned about Donna through a friend who loves her Rosemary Butter Cookies.

You might say, Mark Hatchett, owner of the Dees Pecan Company in Grand Bay, Alabama, is a little nutty over pecans. If indeed he is a nut, Hatchett’s a healthy one. The former Auburn University baseball player is a sharp, youthful 70-year-old. Must be all of that pecan oil, filled with antioxidants and vitamin D. Like his mentor and friend Clarence Bishop, age 90, of Fairhope’s B&B Pecan Company. Hatchett knows what it takes to survive during trying seasons.

Anna Cowart has always loved to cook. She grew up cooking with her dad, Mark Ryan and through him, she learned how to blend ingredients for sauces, what foods work well together, and how to season and cook meats. Her “real” job is that of a speech therapist at Springhill Memorial Hospital by day and she is a chef by night, who offers customized menus and wine pairings for private dinner parties in clients' homes.

Michelle Prouty, the owner of Corner Copia Garden Center, wears a t-shirt that says “Plant People” when she sits down to talk with us in the beautiful courtyard of her garden center at the corner of Highway and US 98. Her passion for plants and the business she created is evident because the dream of “doing what you love“ is now a reality for her.

On a tip, I contacted David Van Der Like, owner and executive producer of Hellcat Productions in Pensacola, to see what they were all about. It turns out that David and his son, Ben, operate a busy production studio and event space, Hellcat Hangar, with their hands on lots of interesting things. The building in which they operate is a quirky old 4,000 SF Quonset hut on U.S. Highway 98, that I’ve passed by many times.

Bryan and Courtney Fitzsimmons had been working in the hospitality industry for 27 and 20-plus years respectively when they decided they were ready for a change. At the time, Bryan was director of operations for Another Broken Egg overseeing seven states. Bryan’s dad, Frank Fitzsimmons, was living in Pensacola where he has been a business broker for 25 years.

When I was a boy, it was a big deal to stop by Punta Clara Kitchen and buy some fudge and pralines. It was a special treat, made me happy, and I thought it was a pretty cool place. They moved the kitchen while I was in college, but it was still close, so I didn’t mind.