Hi! I’m Betsy.

I’m so glad you’re here. The About Me section always challenges me. What could I possibly say here that might matter to a reader? I guess the truth!

I’ve been writing and designing since I was a little girl. Whether I was creating stories or plays or drawing bedrooms, I always wanted to create. My imagination was always a bit over the top and I would certainly express myself to the fullest. Over the years, I’ve had so many blessings in my career and have served in a creative capacity with people who have mentored and inspired me, and ultimately helped me see where my talents and strengths could be put into purposeful action. While my professional life has been devoted to communications, marketing, and developiong organizations, today my focus is on my family and continue to enjoy a variety of projects for multiple organizations.

For today, this space is to write and create and my prayer is that it offers a inspiration, a daily spark, or virtual connection when you may need it.

THE LONG STORY

As a little girl, I LOVED using all of my senses. I designed living spaces with my colored pencils, rearranged my bedrooms practically monthly, wrote stories, cartoons and plays. I baked and wanted to learn how to cook. I was an aspiring musician who sang songs, acted out musicals, sang in choirs and played classical piano. I couldn’t keep my hands out of the creek, my feet off of an untaken path, or my excitement away from summer camp.

I guess you could say I loved all the things my senses could grasp, and if there was an audience, Bravo! As an adult, these first loves have transitioned into business. I still think we have to understand our audience and through design, sound, music, inflection, words, composition, and how it’s delivered (marketing and communications), I still get to help my clients and audiences put art and information together, for understanding and profit, but also to enjoy it like a childhood first love.

In 2009, I married Terry, my best friend and love of my life. He introduced me to the Catholic church after years of searching for my faith home. We would go to Mass while we were dating. Despite my best efforts to bring him to my childhood faith, God had other plans. In 2008, I was confirmed in the Catholic church and my life has been so blessed since then. Soon after we married, we welcomed our first son and our second was born within 21 months. These two are best friends and thick as thieves. They are a true blessing. More than any job or professional moment, these moments as a wife and mom have been the most life-giving, challenging, and life-changing moments. Conversion, Marriage, and Motherhood. I highly recommend them all!

During early parenthood, our work continued. Terry traveled regularly and I continued my work as a marketing director in a children’s museum while raising two under two years old, and then two under three years old. Having a full-time career became more challenging to manage and not only did I need a change, the organization deserved that change too. In 2013, after over two decades in a blend of corporate communications, marketing, and brand management in a Fortune 100, startups, and non-profit organizations, I came home. While juggling the tug of motherhood vs. work (which is should never be!), I eventually launched a personal branding boutique coaching practice that integrated my skills and expertise. This allowed me to be more present as new mom…or so I thought.

Betsy Harvey Inc., a faith-based personal branding service for women and small businesses, allowed me to help individuals and businesses with their story, communicating it effectively, and ultimately coaching them to reach their full potential. It was an exciting chapter of my life, filled with life-changing moments for both my clients and me, a YouTube channel, weekly videos, a brief podcast, and exciting light-filled moments of joy. The best part was the people. I had clients who were committed to themselves, persevered to make lasting changes with their personal branding and lifestyles, and it was my greatest honor to be alongside them. It wasn’t easy. I never believed I was doing enough and that was also true in my marriage and motherhood. “Doing it all” seemed like the biggest lie that I was trying to live.

In April 2016, everything changed in one day. We received a phone call that my inlaws were sent to two separate hospitals. My husband’s parents were ill and needed our support. After praying for guidance, we made the difficult, but important life changing decision to move our family from Atlanta to Philadelphia that summer to help care for them. I closed my business and in hindsight, thankfully I did. There would not be time to tend to clients, marketing, or whatever the latest social media demands were for me to stay afloat.

In June 2016, my husband’s father died before we arrived in the north, and as we juggled a new town, home, church, school, friendships, and more, we were trying to support his Mom who was now alone for the first time in over 50 years. We did the best we could with great support from our new school and new friends. Sadly, 14 months after we moved, his mom passed away unexpectedly followed by the unexpected death of my own mother 6 months to the day of his mom. I still cannot find the words. We were devastated and heartbroken. Nothing made sense. All of this was also on the heels of many other challenges that we had experienced with moving twice, job changes, and just trying to lay down some new roots.

Losing my Mom was probably one of the hardest chapters of my life. We don’t realize how much of our identity is wrapped up in our mother’s arms until we don’t have them to fall into - literally or simply through a phone call. It was surreal, numbing, loaded with unexpected and never-before navigated emotions. Simply put, it was a season of being untethered. I was a mess and understandably so. During it all, one thing remained steadfast and grew stronger amidst many, many trials: faith. I learned what perseverance, fortitude and strength could exist amongst tears, depression, and wanting all of the hard feelings and sorrow to just go away. Grief and suffering were part of the story - my story - and faith in God, leaning on the love of the Holy Family - Jesus, Mary, and Joseph - really were a saving grace.

When Mom died, feeling so lost, I neede something to do. I returned to school and completed the missing piece of Betsy Harvey Inc. by achieving my health coaching certification. It kept me busy and allowed me to find more answers about what on my Mom’s own health journey could have been different. From 2017-2020, I earned my Certification, Master Certification and National Board Certification in Health and Wellness Coaching. This all culminated during the beginning of Covid quarantine and while it may have been the missing link to my business, I didn’t feel called to pursue health and wellness coaching. God was asking me to do something else.

That something else is still being revealed in small ways. Each day, I listen and discern what “it” is recognizing that it must align with my faith and family responsibilites. Perhaps it’s many little things that ad up to “it”. I love serving and helping in my children’s school and church, launching a women’s ministry, and I love being asked (and paid) to oversee projects involving branding, messaging, and design so that I can bring art and words together to effectively communicate messages. I can easily solve problems that others may struggle with and there isn’t a communication challenge I haven’t wanted to roll up my sleeves and fix! I’m grateful for these projects and would say yes to something more permanent, if God put the right opportunity on my path. Until then, I write, pray, discern, and of course, grow a smidge (okay, a lot) impatient in times wishing God would use a megaphone or lightning bolt…but that’s when I’m reminded this: I’m exactly where I need to be. Just for today. +Betsy