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Printed on: February 9, 2010 |
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ANDREA HOLLADAY ELLER
Class of 1983
Ohio Valley University
Back in the spring of 1981 Andrea Holladay from Salisbury, NC could not have been more excited to learn she had been selected as a member of the Sunshine Express. After all, she had just accomplished the first step in her life plan. She would be an Express member for two years, complete an associate degree in Secretarial Science from Ohio Valley College, work outside the home before having the first of three boys following her marriage to Prince Charming, and they would all live happily ever after in his castle.
Andrea did serve two fun-filled, memory laden years in the Sunshine Express, “…back when Express had instruments and got into trouble for banging too loud on the drums.” She performed with Terry and Gary Swisher, Jeff Garrett, Rick Tincher, Dan Kessinger, Marty Davis, Athelia Tomblin Griffin, Chuck Hill (the loud drummer), and her close friend and roommate Kristi Cottrill Smith who “was never afraid of anything.” “I remember Chuck [Hill] really falling out of the van while trying to make me THINK he was falling out of the van,” Andrea mentioned. “Served him right.”
And she did get that degree in secretarial science while graduating with honors. Andrea remains grateful to Imogene Aebi, the college’s secretarial science professor, not just for improving her typing and shorthand skills, but for life lessons she continues to practice and tries to instill in her son Josh.
As with other alumni of her generation, she has fond memories of Clifton Inman (OVC Bible professor). “I always wanted him to think well of me, for no particular reason other than I figured he had a special in with God.”
After OVC, while many of her classmates and friends pursued baccalaureate degrees at other institutions, Andrea pursued her plan back in North Carolina. She met and married Prince Charming. Josh was born, and everything was right on schedule. Andrea quit her job with F & M Bank and was a “happy stay-at-home mom.” The castle was small, but did not affect the potential for living happily ever after.
“Then, one day, my Prince was gone!” And her plan, that had been working so well, went right out the window. Suddenly, Andrea was an out-of-work, single mom with just two years of college on her resume. She would need a new plan, and this one would need to work.
Andrea and 15-month old Josh moved to Columbia, SC where she returned to banking as an administrative assistant at what was then known as NCNB ( formerly North Carolina National Bank). She loved the job and would soon accept a promotion and transfer to Charlotte, NC in 1992. But even the new job did not pay all that well, and she knew she would need a four-year degree to guarantee advancement. She took a calculated risk. As soon as Josh began kindergarten, she reduced her employment to part-time in order to take classes at the University of North Carolina – Charlotte.
Times were tough. Credit card bills and student loan balances piled up. But Andrea was once again back on course. She was working her plan as best she could. “It took me four years to do my junior and senior years!!” And those were four challenging years for a part-time banker, part-time college student, and full-time mom. “I was going for a BS in Biology, but as God would have it, just as I ran out of money, I also had just enough hours for a BA in Biology,” Andrea recalls. “Praise the Lord!”
But why a degree in biology for someone who already had 12 years’ experience with in banking? Andrea remembers enrolling reluctantly in a required freshman level biology course for non-science majors. She was fascinated by the revelation that biology is indeed the study of life. The professor … “didn’t know she was showing me how much God loved me just in the way He had made the physical environment and the human body….” Andrea now believes Cell Biology and Immunology should be required fare in the college curriculum. “It is awesome and astounding to think that the divine creator took the time to make every single cell in your body a community unto itself.”
So today, Andrea is a banker, a highly successful banker, with a degree in biology. Her bank evolved into what is now the Bank of America. Her work as an Operations Analyst primarily involves the management of commercial leases in properties owned by the bank. She has a portfolio of about 450 leases in uptown Charlotte, New York City, and points west of the Mississippi. “They range from multi-tenant office leases in large buildings, to single-tenants in small buildings, to kiosks sitting in parking lots, to antennas sitting on rooftops.”
Andrea has had a number of fascinating experiences in banking. She recalls working on the “development side” of a project a few years ago. “We did some actual construction and sale of high-end, residential condominiums in uptown Charlotte. That was the most fun.” She enjoyed touring the units because “we got to see how the other half was going to live.”
Of course, every occupation has its downside, and in most cases that has something to do with a customer. Andrea took a phone call not long ago from a lease tenant. He had an interesting request. “I have a letter from you telling me to change the address for my rent payment. Could I get that in writing?”
About 6 ½ years ago a very generous young man in their singles group at church made Andrea an offer neither she, nor any other intelligent banker, could refuse. Scott Eller was looking for investment property and wondered if he could find a house to buy, would Andrea want to rent it. “Not being stupid, I took his offer before he came to his senses.” Thirteen months later Andrea married her very generous landlord.
Today, Andrea’s plan is working just fine. She and Scott could not be happier. Son Josh is 16 ½ and driving. Andrea teaches the three year olds at church and sings on the Praise Team, and she has become a successful roadrunner. “At 39 I ran my first 5K, and at 41 I ran my first 10K.”
After 18 years in banking, Andrea is now a vice-president, and life is very good. Old OVC friendships remain a significant part of her life. Even our children are now “2nd generation friends.” She remembers a tragic accident that took the life of one friend, but mostly she remembers the “good things about OVC.” She values, in particular, the sense of “commonality in the Lord” she and her friends have continued to share for over 22 years. And while her original plan has had a few alterations along the way, Andrea can see now that the Lord’s plan for her and her family has been working all along.
Know someone we should feature in alumni profiles? Contact us at 304-865-6081 or email alumni@ovu.edu.
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