Growing up in the countryside on a working vineyard was fun, but my parents had one rule which was always to be home before dark and never go into the fields at night.  As a kid I remember my mom coming into my room each night to tuck me into bed and she would open the windows to let the cool air flow through the house since we didn’t have air conditioning.  The winery fields at night were a desolate and eerie place. The vines, which during the day were lush with grapes, now hung like sinister fingers in the darkness. The only sound was the rustling of leaves and the occasional hoot of an owl in the distance. The moon cast an otherworldly glow over everything, illuminating twisted shadows that seemed to dance around my little feet at the end of the bed. 

One day my brothers and I were playing hide and seek, and I decided to hide out in the fields because they would never find me.  It felt like I was sitting there forever waiting for them and the boredom must have set it because I fell asleep. When I woke up it was dark and immediately I was terrified and my heart was pounding in my chest. I had to get home so I stumbled through rows and rows of vines, desperately searching for a way out but I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was being watched.  Suddenly, a pair of yellow glowing eyes appeared in the darkness, followed by a low growl. I froze in terror as a massive black dog stepped out from the vines, baring its teeth menacingly. I turned to run but found myself face to face with a group of shadowy figures with twisted limbs. They hissed and snarled, inching closer and closer until I could feel their hot breath on my skin. I screamed for help, but no one came and I quickly realized I was alone with these terrifying creatures. As the night grew darker and colder, my fear intensified, my small frame shivering with every step. The wind howled through the barren branches of the trees that surrounded me as if they were calling out to me in a haunting voice.  With every rustling sound I heard I walked a little bit faster and that’s when I tripped over a stray root and fell face-first onto the dirt.  When I looked up again, I found myself staring into two glowing red eyes that seemed to be getting closer by the second. I quickly realized it was not the scary vine creatures, but my dad and I started screaming Daddy, daddy.  Next thing I knew he swept me up off the ground and carried me home.  The next day I told my dad I was going to save every penny of my allowance so that one day I could leave the scary creatures behind and move to a new place.   His reply was simple, “once you can pay your own way, you can move out son.”

As we become adults there are so many things we must be responsible for, and one is our finances.  My dad always told me 50% of my allowance should go to my needs, then 30% to my wants, and 20% should go to Mr. Piggy (that was my bank).  I have practiced that my whole life because finances are one of our biggest responsibilities in our personal life as well as in our professional life.  As business owners, we must be smart, responsible, and always on top of the P&L because we are the only ones responsible for the result.  We must make sure our business is sustainable even during those difficult times.  Real Estate is a good example of the ups and downs and how the market can change instantly from a seller to a buyer’s market or how interest rates can change buyers’ habits.  Agents must be prepared for those slow times, or they could see themselves in a financial crisis because as our next-door neighbor says you only make money when you sell a house.  We would think being fiscally responsible would be a requirement for most management positions, school board positions, or even city council positions because you are overseeing large budgets.   That is why we were kind of shocked about The Hot Mess with Dynette Davis when we learned she had financial issues.  Let’s just say there were circumstances that could explain it and we gave her a pass; does it make it okay for her to then lie to a direct question asked of her for a news article?  The same questions are asked of every candidate running for the same type of position and they all have to tell the truth.  Truth and financial responsibility have a direct correlation to your character.  As the weeks have passed it made me curious (here we go again),  how fiscally responsible the others are who sit on the ISD Board or City Council.   

We started with a simple Google search of each council member’s name and the word bankruptcy.  Imagine our surprise when we found an article in the Orlando Sentinel back on  April 1, 1996, that says “Dono W. Pelham and Angelia E. Pelham, also known as Just for You Cosmetics and the Make Up, in Orlando filed for Chapter 7 listing Assets: $1,245 and Debts: $343,466. The Major creditors were Community First Bank, Jacksonville, $140,000; Eric Stern, Carrollton, Texas, $35,000; Schroder Center Management Inc., Dallas, $35,000. The creditors meeting was held that year on April 24.”   

We then looked at her candidate interviews – was she honest about it?  Well according to the Dallas Morning News Voter Guide she was asked, “Have you ever been involved in any civil lawsuits or declared personal or professional bankruptcy? If so, please explain.”  Her response was “No lawsuits. One business filing almost 30 years ago in the early 90s for a small cosmetics retail business with 2 locations that I owned when I was in my mid-twenties in Florida. Did not have the financial capital to maintain inventory in both locations. Incredible learning experience as a young entrepreneur.”   The answer to the question is yes she was honest that she had a business filing.  Dono and Angelia filed Chapter 7 on 03/26/96 and it was discharged on 2/27/97 – related case number 6:96-bk-01808-ABB in Florida Middle Bankruptcy Court

In the DMN Voter Guide, she was asked, “What is an example of how you led a team or group toward achieving an important goal?”  Pelham noted she had 30 years of experience as an executive with companies such as Walt Disney World Company, PepsiCo, Frito-Lay, Main Event Entertainment, and Cinemark.  She claims to have been responsible for setting strategic plans and fully executing them, evaluating executive compensation plans, led massive downsizing and right sizing; led countless large-scale change initiatives; supported business acquisitions, and managed multi-million-dollar budgets all through effective leadership of others.  At the time she filed for Chapter 7 (1996), Angelia Pelham’s resume also states she was the Director of Human Resources for Walt Disney World in Orlando from 1989-1998.   That means she has a full-time demanding job while trying to operate her own business.  It begs the questions did she have a good understanding of her own business and the debt she was accumulating?  Why did she open a second location if the first location was not fluid?  She called it a small business but $343,466 in debts for a small business is questionable and we are pretty sure her creditors left holding the bag would agree it was not “small.”

She noted at the time it was an incredible learning experience for her, so we assume as she moved forward in life she paid more attention to her money!  Why did Griffin Park Residential Association file a lien against her property in November 2006 for $2,088.90, October 2011 for $956.80, June 2013 for $1335.65, then again in July of 2020 for $1233.70.  Then Wells Fargo Bank filed against Dono Pelham in 2014/15 for what looks like a $10,375 civil judgement.  Also in July of 2016, Carlos Avendando, owner of Dallas Green Landscape, filed an affidavit of mechanics and materialmen’s lien on the Pelhams home for $4039.00 for unpaid work.  The County of Denton sent a Notice of Les Pendens on Feb 13, 2020 to the Pelham’s letting them know a lawsuit had been filed listing the cause of action for the foreclosure of the property due to unpaid tax lien (delinquent property taxes).  It appears in February of 2022, The County of Denton released the Lis Pendens against the property so they must have taken care of it.

Is Angelia the only one?  Well, we do know Councilman Livingston also hit some financial issues in 2018 with his food businesses but we could not find bankruptcy records.  With more research we found a statement from Livingston that he has posted publicly on social media stating “while his lawyer recommended he file for bankruptcy, he had chosen not to do that and instead he worked with those he owed on a payment plan to pay out the debts and continues to make payments today to back any creditors.  Mr. Livingston has a home mortgage in the amount of $294,800 and his home’s annual taxes are around $8500 that they purchased back in 2010.  At the time the Livingstons drove a 2007 Chevy Silverado and now drives a used Tahoo which makes sense if you are paying off some large debts. 

What did we learn?  Angelia and her husband stiffed creditors out of $343,000 dollars and it appears they continue to have issues however they live in fancy neighborhood in a house with an estimated value of $971,422 and annual taxes around $12,000 and they drive a BMW or Lincoln which are some nice cars.  The question is can they afford to live the way they are living?  It would be easy to do if you didn’t pay bills.  Mr. Livingston appears to be taking financial responsibility for his debts, we also confirmed he has paid off a huge IRS lien and his family live on a tight budget.

Back to me, I saved every dollar since I was a kid and today am proud to have no debt.  It wasn’t easy and yes there were bumps in the road, but my wife and I have no outstanding debts and have never been sued by creditors let alone our HOA.  We know there can be bumps in the road, those unforeseen things like medical bills which can knock a family right out of the comfort zone financially, but you get back up and wipe off your pants and move forward.  If financial issues continue to plague you then the problem is you, and your bad choices and decisions.  Our point – is that we should hold those who represent our city and boards to higher standards.  They are representing us!  Our character is defined by the choices we make, our values and our ethics.  As Dave Ramsey says, “act your wage!”