For 4 months, I have been given every reason why starting a new magazine in Annapolis was a bad idea. Everything from, “You have no idea how complicated it is!”, “Is there really a need for another magazine?”, “There’s no way you can get it out by January 3rd!”, “Who’s going to write all of it?”, “There’s not enough time!”… and the list goes on! And the doubt would creep in. It’s easy to have self-doubt when people are so vocal with their opposition.
But little by little, we assembled the best team we could ever imagine.
It started with my husband, Jeff Peri, who has a background in marketing and has always believed in me and my crazy ideas.I told him I wanted to make the biggest summer camp guide ever and boy did he deliver with over 300 camps!
My co-admin, Jessica Opert, who trusted me to work like crazy while she ran our group mostly by herself like the boss she is! She then edited the publication and helped to finish the camp guide. She worked nonstop!
Sandy Biello came on as our Marketing Director in late October and she can do anything! She embraced the idea and moved mountains working 80 hour weeks since the day she started.
At nearly the same time, Chelsea Harrison started “part time” working day and night as our Editor in Chief. She calmly dealt with chaos, pulling together writers and topics while working two other part-time jobs with 4 kids!
Meg Leonard and Danelle Lawrence helped shape the look and style of the publication.
And to round off this incredible crew, Lissy Kerr came in the last 4 weeks to pinch hit and worked around the clock to lay out our digital and print magazine, marketing pieces, ads, and so much more!
A special thanks to our writers Jillian Amodio, Sarah Amyot, Frank Bolinsky, Lynne Streeter Childress, Diana Love, Duffy Perkins, Liza Roe, Ann Alsina, Judy Colbert, Heather Greenwell, Kristin Gulitz, Amanda Lane, Meg Leonard, Laura Price, and Jackie Shea.
Thank you for the trust and investment of our incredible sponsors and advertisers. Thank you for believing in Annapolis Moms Media! You are the trendsetters, the risk takers, and the leaders in our community. You understand that when we don’t innovate and try new things, we stagnate!
Most importantly, thank you Annapolis Moms! For 13 years, you have been right by Jessica’s and my side. Sometimes it gets rough, but most of the time, we are a community of support, love, and compassion. We hope you find that our new quarterly magazine reflects our core values. We are you and we love you!
A new magazine? Who does that? We do that! Welcome to The Motherlode!
Author: Lisa Peri, MSW
Founder & Chief Enthusiast Lisa Peri has dedicated her life and career to both the parenting field and has been integral in many business ventures in sales and media. She earned a bachelor’s degree in Sociology from Clark University and a Master of Social Work from the University of Pennsylvania. Lisa is also a proud mother of two wonderful children and is married to Jeff Peri.
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