Lorie Clark
Since Lorie Clark was a child, she always wanted to help people. She always wanted to find ways to empower women who were less fortunate. In 2010, during the wake of Hurricane Katrina, she gathered a group of her friends to celebrate her birthday. The goal was to discover ways to help assist with the devastation of Katrina. Lorie soon realized efforts need to be focused at home - Chapel Hill-Carrboro. That evening, the Hannah Ruth Foundation was birthed. The organization is named after Lorie’s paternal and maternal grandmothers. Hannah Burnette was Lorie’s paternal mother, whom she never met. Hannah died during the childbirth of Lorie’s father. Ruth is Lorie’s maternal grandmother whom she cherished, admired, and adored. It was Ruth who instilled Lorie’s work ethic, sense of civic responsibility, and the willingness to serve others with integrity and compassion. Lorie along with the Board wanted to focus on working with the elderly. In the first year of operation, they provided a financial scholarship to a student who had been displaced, delivered meals to the sick and shut-in, hosted a Pamper Me Day and Ice Cream Social. The Pamper Me Day, meal delivery, and formal social event “Love is in the Air” have become annual signature programs.
When Lorie left Chapel Hill for college, she dreamed of becoming a social worker. Lorie’s interest in social work turned into a fascination for theater while studying Communication at Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Florida. That interest blossom into a career in both commercial and public television for more than 15 years. She decided to find her passion and stepped out on faith and relocated home to Carrboro, North Carolina. She gained experience working with Chapel Hill Parks and Recreation organizing festivals and then as a publicist with the Sonja Haynes Stone Center for Black Culture at UNC-Chapel Hill. She found her “true” calling when she was hired to work as the high school specialist with the Blue Ribbon Mentor-Advocate Program with the Chapel Hill- Carrboro City Schools. Lorie believes that this is “her life’s work and calling.” She is a product of Carrboro and is humbled and honored to be paying it forward in her community.
Lorie feels blessed to be able to serve her community in a different capacity, through the Hannah Ruth Foundation. Her mom is her role model and inspiration. She credits her mom and grandmothers for working with passion, compassion, and integrity. Lorie holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communication from Eckerd College. She has been honored and has received several awards. Lorie currently resides in Carrboro with her family.