You ever had a coworker that’s such an inspiration that for her birthday you just have to write a blog post about her?
That’s Margaret.
Margaret, Margaret, Margaret.
I mean holy cow, working at the Saxapahaw General Store isn’t an easy job. It’s busy, it’s complex and often chaotic. And to excel as a leader in such an environment is something that few people seem to do so as effortlessly as Margaret. Author and educator Joanne Ciulla once said “Leadership is not a person or a position. It is a complex moral relationship between people based on trust, obligation, commitment, emotion, and a shared vision of the good.”
Trust.
Obligation.
Commitment.
Emotion.
A shared vision.
Margaret embodies all of these, and encourages the best out of those around her with boundless patience. Leaders set the tone and mold the overall mood of an organization, and good leaders navigate that complex moral relationship so that everyone succeeds, and Margaret does it with humility, wisdom, grace and kindness.
Yet I’m not here to just talk about Margaret as a leader. I’m here to also talk about Margaret as a person. I can’t speak to the lengthy details of her life, as I’ve only known her for about five years. I know she’s one of a set of triplets and that she grew up in Nigeria. I know that when I was planning my wedding, I asked Margaret to be one of my groomsmen, and then everything shut down for a while due to covid, and I got married anyway in a very very small ceremony at the Alamance County magistrate’s office instead. I know that she is loved by pretty much everyone who meets her and that no matter what kind of insanity life at a restaurant brings that she never loses her cool… as a matter of fact, she just gets cooler under pressure. I know that she loves a good laugh, a glass of wine and a good book. I know that if angels walk the Earth in disguise, Margaret might be one of them.
So if you’re out in Saxapahaw today for breakfast or brunch or for Saturdays in Saxpahaw, ask the lovely people on front of house to sign Margaret’s card. If we run out of space on one card, we’ll get another, and another and another. Margaret isn’t on the schedule today, but you might see her anyway…sometimes she seems to appear when she’s needed most.
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