Displaced workers Don and Tammy Smith have found a new sense of place - and a whole new life

The couple, who both graduated May 10 from Southwestern Community College with degrees in Paralegal Technology, had worked for years at Coats of North America in Rosman.

Losing their jobs at Coats of North America was actually a blessing in disguise, said Don, left, and Tammy (right) Smith of Pisgah Forest. The couple graduated May 10 from Southwestern Community College with Associate of Applied Science degrees in Paralegal Technology. ““We’ve been able to upgrade our lives, not just economically but mentally, too,” said this couple now employed at Coward, Hicks and Siler law firm of Cashiers.

Tammy worked as a spinner, running the machines while Don, known as a “dolfer,” exchanged the bobbins on the machines. The couple was comfortable in their life styles and pretty secure in their future.

“We thought everything was going our way. Then one night the house of cards fell apart,” said Don, who worked the third shift at the textile factory specializing in industrial sewing thread.

“One night after work the manager called us all in a room and told us we’d be losing our jobs in 15 days,” Don said. “I thought 15 days, what are we going to do?”

The plant was moving to Orizabo, Mexico, and gave Don, who had been working for Coats for eight years, the option of moving to Mexico.

“At Mexican wages…I don’t think so,” he said, quickly dismissing that option.
“Plus, we had just bought a new home - only been in it a year- and we have three kids to think about,” said Tammy.

Another option was going to college to learn a new skill.

“That option terrified me,” said Tammy, who dropped out of school in the 8th grade. “Here I was 31 years old and didn’t even have a high school diploma. I didn’t see any way that I could be going to college.”

With mortgage payments and three kids to care for, the couple realized they had to fast track their lives.

“We knew we didn’t want to breathe cotton dust the rest of our lives so actually this was a blessing in disguise,” said Don. “I’ve always been a history buff and enjoyed research and I knew real estate was going to be around for awhile – that NAFTA couldn’t ship it to Mexico. So going into paralegal studies and searching histories of properties appealed to me.”

It did to Tammy, too. So within two months she received her GED so she could attend college with her husband.

Now consider these logistics. The Smiths live in Pisgah Forest yet they selected Southwestern Community College in Sylva, a 114-mile round trip.

“We now have more knowledge to help our kids (from left, Charlie, 8, Kasie, 8, and Biancia, 13) with their homework,” said Tammy Smith, an 8th grade drop out.

And it gets even more interesting. Some days, when their schedules didn’t match, Don would ride his bike to school - that’s pedal bike, not motorcycle.

“I’d leave the house at 6 a.m. and bike across the Blue Ridge Parkway. It would take me 4 ½ hours,” he said. “Actually, it was therapeutic and gave me a chance to clear my head, think about where our lives were going.”

“No matter what the weather or the circumstances, Don and Tammy always made it to class,” said their Paralegal Technology instructor Edward Anderson, who was impressed by the couple’s dedication.

It wasn’t easy juggling schedules, getting the kids off to school, going to classes, picking them up in the evening, fixing dinner, then on to the homework- both theirs and the kids, the couple admits.

“With both of us taking the same courses Tammy and I could bounce questions and interpretations off each other,” said Don.

“I now have more knowledge to help my kids with their homework,” said Tammy, who also learned new time management skills.

“You think you know your breaking point,” said Don. “I thought I was at mine several times. But somehow I got past it and learned I could take on more.”
All the hardship and stress that could have torn them apart have instead strengthened their marriage, they agreed.

The Smiths said what helped motivate them was the caring faculty and staff at SCC.

“They pitched in for us and were available after hours to talk to,” said Tammy.
“The classes were small enough to be one-on-one so we didn’t have to get tutors. It had been 10 years since I was in school and I first thought I would need a tutor,” said Don, who served in the U.S. Army before working at Coats. “It seemed like everybody at SCC really wanted us to succeed and was there for us and I don’t mean just as instructors.”

“The Smiths are an example that losing a job doesn’t mean your life ends, it just turns around,” said Anderson.

“I went from being the bread winner to not having any control. But from that chaos has come college degrees and new careers for the both of us. In fact, we’re making more money starting out than we were after working all those years at Coats,” said Don.

Both he and his wife are now employed as paralegals at Coward, Hicks and Siler of Cashiers.

“Losing our job was actually a blessing,” Don said. “We’ve been able to upgrade our lives, not just economically but mentally, too. We have so many more ways to look at life now.”

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