Less than a decade ago, Dewayne Bowen and his family had never heard of Calhoun, Ga.

Now they are happy to call it home.

Bowen’s path to Gordon County began when he followed his true interest in finance to Edward Jones, where he had been a long-time client. With years of experience in accounting, Bowen became a financial advisor for Edward Jones. He opened an office in Wilmington, N.C.

“We loved North Carolina but we wanted to be closer to home, but not necessarily in our hometown (in Alabama.) That’s how we found out about Calhoun. Initially I asked, on behalf of another advisor, if there were any openings in Alabama. This is when I found out about a couple of openings we had in Georgia and we had enjoyed living in Georgia back in the 90’s,” recalled Bowen. “The company flew me to Rome to see the area and mentioned that I also take a look at Calhoun. I came up here and knew I’d like it.”

“I saw that they were building a new school in Sonoraville and that Gordon County was right between Chattanooga and Atlanta, so the location is great,” he said.

“Really the selling point was how friendly people seemed. I was driving around on my own trying to find Red Bud Road when I stopped in at the Chamber of Commerce to ask for directions and that is when I first met Ruby Crump,” Bowen said.

“Now if you know her, you love her. She was really nice and introduced me to everyone in the building. That stuck with me and made me feel like this would be a great place to live and a great community to raise my kids in.”

“I told my wife how everyone was so nice and I’ve since told the staff and volunteers at the Chamber how much of a positive influence they can have,” he said.

“Also, my fraternity pledge boss of all things, was from Calhoun, Chuck Ruth. I told him I was considering moving to Rome and he had a lot of great things to say about Calhoun and particularly both the city and county school systems. Another one of my good friends from high school and college, Phillip Cofield, who has lived in Calhoun for the past 15 years, spoke highly of the people here as well,” he said.

By the time Bowen made his second trip to Calhoun, he’d accepted the position as Financial Advisor for the area and had a place to call home with his wife Melisha and sons Austin and Dylan soon to follow.

Bowen’s actions speak as loud as his words. In eight years he has shown his love and support for the community. He has been involved with the Chamber of Commerce as Past Immediate Chair, Vice Chair and at present Executive Committee Board member.

He holds the County wide Post on the Gordon County Board of Education and he is Advisory council for the County’s Future Business Leaders of America chapter and Junior Achievement.

“Dewayne is a very good man, and holds my utmost respect and admiration,” said his wife Melisha Bowen. “Over the years, I have learned so much from him. I have enjoyed watching Dewayne teach our boys the importance of having good character and being ethical. He is very dependable, fair and always stands up for what he believes in. I am so proud of him and his accomplishments,” she said.

“I’ve enjoyed being a part of the Chamber. One of my favorite things is getting to know people,” said Bowen.

“I like to work and enjoy my job very much. We (Edward Jones) provide financial advice and guidance to about 450 families in the North West Georgia region, and are looking to grow with people looking to better plan for retirement, save for college or lower their tax bill.”

“I am honored to work for great clients and I really count many as personal friends as well. Really my passion is helping people with decisions that create a better life and help them reach a variety of goals. I love meeting people before they retire, being with them when they retire, helping them send their kids to college, etc. It feels good to interact with clients and create working friendships,” he said.

“The need is there to provide people with financial advice they can trust. I love being able to do that and I really enjoy coming to work every day.”

As a school board member: “I like going over to the schools and seeing how I can help the kids. I have kids in the system and I feel like that makes me more approachable. I like helping kids explore career possibilities as well, mostly those I know through my own sons. Just like every person, I owe a lot to teachers who worked extra hard to help and inspire me. And as a Board of Education member I want to find ways to help teachers and the staff now who have been working hard with less pay over the past few years. Several members of my family are teachers, so I think it’s one of the most noblest of professions,” he said.

“It’s different in the private sector - budgets, taxpayer money vs. profits - very different.”

“I came onto the Board during a time of financial crisis I know, but I still hope to bring to the school board a different perspective on accountability and transparency, so that we utilize our resources in ways for the students and taxpayers that we all can be proud of.”

Bowen’s strengths as an advisor and friend are just a few of the traits that make him a great father, according to his sons. “My father is an intelligent man. He always pushes me towards success as much as he possibly can. He tries his best to lead me in the right direction,” said his son Austin Bowen.

Bowen’s son Dylan said of his father, “My dad is a great example of a man with unwavering moral values.”

“I don’t play golf or hunt, but I like spending as much time as I can with my two sons and my wife. We have always been together wherever we go, so it’s a little unusual for my wife and I, now, as our boys are getting older and more independent. My wife and I love to travel. We sacrifice other material things such as new cars and such so we can save and put back to enjoy big vacations. This summer we’re going to Switzerland. And in the past few years we’ve visited Hawaii, Huntington Beach, Calif., Yellowstone, St. Thomas Island and have gone on a couple of cruises,” he said. I have three older sisters and my parents are still married after nearly 60 years. I’m happy that my wife and I are close to all 11 of our nephews and nieces, and we enjoy visiting with them as well. It is important to stay healthy and exercise and I do those things with varying degrees of success. I workout at the gym, play basketball with a group weekly, and my wife and I enjoy riding bikes in the area and an occasional 5k run,” he said.