We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Elizabeth Lockhart a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Elizabeth, looking forward to learning from your journey. You’ve got an amazing story and before we dive into that, let’s start with an important building block. Where do you get your work ethic from?
As a young woman, I grew up in a household of faith. My father was a pastor and a business owner. He left the South and moved North to provide a better living for himself and his family. As a little girl, I watched him do many jobs, from working in Sarah Lee’s Bakery to janitorial work and finally becoming a business owner. He always wanted the best for his family. He saw doctors and lawyers in his children, which he was allowed to do.
He taught us the value of education and how important it was to work hard to achieve goals. He taught us that nothing comes easy, but you can have what you want, and there are no limits to where your mind will take you. My father was a workaholic. He always kept at least two jobs while pastoring a church.
Saturdays were our off days from school, so we decided to sleep late and go outside to play. That was not the case. My mother would come through the house, waking everyone up. He would reply, Mom, it’s Saturday; there is nothing to do. She said, I don’t care if it’s nothing to do, you will not lay around, you will get up and do something.
As a family of eight, we had different responsibilities. My job was to clean the bathrooms. Like clockwork, I was faithful to my job. Everyone had jobs. In the summer, we had to work part-time jobs to earn our money for the upcoming school year. Those qualities I learned from working during the summer provided me with skills that reinforced what my parents taught us at home.
One of my most incredible experiences was when my dad opened a “Dollar Store.” In the dollar store, there was a little cafe. In the cafe, we sold Nachos. The Nachos consisted of Tortilla chips, ground beef, cheese sauce, and peppers. It was a child’s favorite. So, my dad pulled me aside and wanted to show me how to prepare the Nacho. How difficult could it be to prepare a nacho? Much to my surprise, it was not about how I prepared it but the spirit in which I did it and the art of making it look perfect.
In that lesson, he taught me how important it was to develop a work ethic that would follow me throughout my career. I committed to how we perform, to perfecting, and to serving others with dignity and pride.
Today, I operate with those same ethics in business. I’m a perfectionist and request the same of others who work with me. “At the end of the day, people won’t remember what you said or did; they will remember how you made them feel.”
― Maya Angelou
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
I’ve been blessed to work in both the for-profit and nonprofit sectors. As the owner of Queen Liz Enterprise, LLC, I own and manage a retail Christian book store, providing books, Bibles, church supplies, gifts, and more. I am also a real estate property manager and a business consultant for startup businesses, both for-profit and nonprofit.
I am the Executive Director of the Arthur Lockhart Resource Institute, whose mission is to advance the Austin and West Garfield Park community by providing its residents economic, educational, health, and social support to enrich, empower, and encourage positive growth. We offer community services such as food resources, veteran resources, senior services, and summer youth employment.
Housing is an issue for many people in the United States, but it is more of an issue for Veterans who have served and continue to serve our country. I am currently working on rehabbing a 6-unit apartment building that will house veterans and female veterans with children. In addition to the housing, we will focus on opening a wellness center to address veterans’ health holistically. This facility will be located on the west side of Chicago, with more than 20,000 Veterans.
Serving is not what I do; it is who I am.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
The most important and impactful things in my life have been my ability to bring people together, my passion for serving people and my understanding that every person is special regardless of social status or race.
How can folks who want to work with you connect?
I am looking for people to collaborate with in opening our first wellness center on the west side of Chicago for veterans. I understand that this task will be great, but with the right partners and people who can lend a hand both professionally, economically and creatively to create something special and different that will help meet the needs of our veteran community.
Contact Info:
- Website: arthurlockhartinstitute.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Arthur-Lockhart-Resource-Institute-
