Community Highlights: Meet Mary Parker of Junction 2800

Today we’d like to introduce you to Mary Parker.

Hi Mary, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
When I came to Atlanta in 1992, this beautiful city became my home. Whenever I declare a place “home”, I become invested in that place. We have come a long way and accomplished beyond our wildest dreams.

I started “ALL N ONE” and that endeavor became the first-ever Black woman-owned full-service security firm. We have won awards, been recognized by the media, and much more that I am proud of. We have given and invested beyond what we expected into this community. Yet, after all that we have done, I know that we can do more.

Growing up, my grandmother always taught me that I could do something kind for others. She would cut up watermelon and put it on the porch so that when neighbors passed by, they would be able to grab it and be refreshed. Through her, I learned the principles of thankless work and vowed that I would be the person who supplies refreshing and opportunity to everyone who passes by.

That is why I took the former Campbellton Road Community Center and turned it into a place called “Junction 2800”. As a dedicated place for the community, Junction 2800 will provide educational, entrepreneurial, and empowerment resources for young people and adults for many years to come. I am also honored to partner with Mayor Andre Dickens to establish Junction 2800 as a hub for small businesses and community education.

I could have done this anywhere in the world, but I chose Campbellton Road. I chose Southwest Atlanta because I saw where Atlanta was being omitted or forsaken. It is my sincere desire that everyone who passes by our place and partakes in our services will be refreshed and forever changed.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
There is no road that can be traveled well without obstacles. While some people would assume that Campbellton Road presents more obstacles than other places, the truth is that these challenges are simply unique to the area. They may be unique to the area we are serving, but they are not unique to the human condition.

Our main obstacle in establishing Junction 2800 has been maintaining authenticity with the community. It is our desire to provide a space of empowerment for emerging leaders and aspiring creatives, and it is impossible to do that if that voices that they see our platform are not authentic voices from their own communities.

Essentially, we want Junction 2800 to look like the community it is planted in. We want it to “smell” like the community and be properly accessible to those who we are trying to reach. Desiring that is not a struggle, but maintaining that definitely has been one of the chief obstacles.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
We are transforming the former Campbellton Road Community Center into Junction 2800. As a dedicated place for the community, Junction 2800 will provide educational, entrepreneurial, and empowerment resources for young people and adults for many years to come.

We desire to be a transformational hub for people who are looking to expand their own brand and personal pursuits, while also providing beacons of hope for the community we are planted in. We are asking the question, “How can we better this community from the inside?” We do not want to hold anything back when it comes to investing in our community for education and empowerment.

Junction 2800 trains, resources, provides meeting space, rents out recording rooms, classes for personal/brand development, and much more.

Can you talk to us about how you think about risk?
Anyone who has accomplished anything of value in life has been a risk-taker. I have taken numerous risks in my life: moving to other cities, expanding and broadening my business, and starting this venture with Junction 2800. My philosophy is I want to leave this world “empty”. I do not want to have anything unsaid, undone, and “unspent”.

That mindset motivates me every time I take a risk. I always think about whether or not this risk will take me into a place of emptiness for the bettering of someone else. Those risks are always worth it.

Contact Info:

• Email: info@junction2800.org
• Website: https://www.junction2800.org/what-we-do
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/junction2800/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/junction2800
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/junction2800

Image Credits:
Enka Lawson