Christie Moore
President and CEO, Dawson County Chamber of Commerce
University of Georgia BA ’10, American University MA ‘15
Dawsonville, GA
Christie, after graduating from Lassiter High School, weighed her college options very logically. The HOPE Scholarship was the biggest factor in her final decision to attend the University of Georgia. “It’s the reason that I chose to go to Georgia. I definitely looked at quite a few other schools. If the HOPE Scholarship didn’t exist, I wouldn’t have gotten to Georgia. It opened so many opportunities up that I honestly never thought I would have. Having HOPE also meant that I got to pick jobs that aligned with what I wanted to do, instead of having to pick jobs where I just had to make as much money as possible.”
During her time in undergrad, Christie had the chance to pursue her interest in politics through internships and student organizations. “While at Georgia, there were just so many opportunities that were open to me. I was very involved in politics on campus. I was involved in Student Government. I was able to have a lot of internships that actually aligned with what I wanted to do in the future. None of this would have happened if I didn’t go to Georgia.”
“I would say UGA played such a role that I was able to meet all these people and have all these awesome classes that inspired me and really made me want to stay in Georgia.”
One of the most significant impacts that Christie’s college experience had on her was the development of her affection for small towns and communities. “I grew up in a pretty big place, but I really gravitated towards people that were from small places in Georgia. Some of my very best friends in life were from very small places. I think that was the foundation for me falling in love with small towns. When I first moved to Athens, I thought I was moving to the boonies.. Clearly it was very foundational to go to Georgia and realize ‘oh wait I love smaller communities. I love the complexities of smaller communities.’”
Her love of small towns led her to Dawson County, where she serves as the President and CEO of the Chamber of Commerce. “Our organization handles small business support, economic development, and tourism marketing for our community.”
“I love that in this role I get to serve a community that I love in a way where no two days of my life are ever the same. I still get to be involved in politics. I also get to be involved in history, with things like the Historical Society. I get to be involved in education, because education is so important in the community. I get to be involved in healthcare, because I serve on a hospital board. I get to do all these things that I’m very interested in. It’s truly my favorite thing.”
Christie lives in Dawsonville with her husband. She aspires to continue to find new ways to serve others.