Saturday, May 23, 2009

Some Who Have Made A Difference




Paul E. Broadhead (10/36 - 8/07)

A native of Needham, Ala., Broadhead lived most of his life in Meridian. In the late 1960s, he founded a small Meridian real estate development company and grew it into what would become one of the nation's Top 10 regional shopping mall developers.

Hartley Peavey, CEO and founder of Peavey Electronics said that he’d lost his best friend when Paul died. “I met him in 1959 at a fraternity party and I've known him ever since”, Peavey said. Peavey said Broadhead was one of the greatest men he’s ever met and one of the most unique and extremely knowledgeable. ”You couldn’t talk about anything he couldn’t talk about”, Peavey said. "When I encountered problems in my professional life and frankly in my personal life, he is who I would turn to, and I'm going to miss him. There was a bond of entrepreneurship Peavey shared with Broadhead as well.

“Entrepreneurs are cut from a little bit different cloth”, Peavey said. He added that his friend was not always popular locally because he called it like was. But, he went on, "Successful people are people who are willing to do the things unsuccessful people don’t want to do, and those are the people who bring home the bacon, whether it is to their own home, throughout a community, a region, a nation or beyond. As human beings the best we can expect to do is help each other", Peavey said. "And Paul Broadhead helped a lot of people”.

Click on to read:
A profile in giving

His philanthropy in the Meridian community is well known through his donation of buildings and founding of numerous organizations including the Meridian Boxing Club, Hilltop House for Boys, Kress Building Youth Center, Friendship Center and the Lauderdale County Juvenile Detention Center, as well as his support of many local charities.

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