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Allison Linden is an Alabama native who moved to the Midlands in 2011 with her now husband, Darin. Allison and Darin currently live in Red Bank with their children - Vivian and Henry. Allison has a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and obtained her MBA in May 2019, while almost 8 months pregnant with Vivian. She has worked for a retail energy company since 2013 and began working from home during the pandemic. Her husband became a house spouse after the birth of Vivian to allow Allison to pursue her career goals. Balancing working at home with a baby and a preschooler has been a challenge, but she has thoroughly enjoyed watching her children grow up. Allison enjoys taking her children to Edventure, Riverbanks Zoo and Botanical Gardens (the garden is way cooler than people give it credit for), local parks, the library, gymnastics, and dance class. When she is not working or momming, Allison enjoys exercising, binging true crime shows on Max, and occasionally having dinner and drinks with friends. Likes: Vacations, concerts, stand-up comedy, nice restaurants, bacon, juicy gossip. Hates: Yard work, driving, pants without an elastic waistband (hard pants), running.
Angie is a stepmother, pet mom, grandmother, and caregiver for her loving mother. She and her husband Marvin moved from Maryland to Columbia in 2020. She is a graduate of Talladega College (Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration) and Troy State University (Master of Business Administration), and works as a Senior Advisor with the Department of the Treasury. She is a certified intermittent fasting and health coach who has a passion to inspire women and men to live their healthiest selves. She is the founder of Commit 2B Healthy where she has spent years providing private nutrition counseling and group coaching programs. Beyond her private nutrition counseling and group coaching programs, she is a brand ambassador with Ultima Replenisher and a content creator with Shop Style Collective, the world’s largest fashion search engine. Angie enjoys cycling, reading, and self-care. Her latest passion is meditation, which she uses to unwind at the end of the day. She is eager to explore the city and share her experiences with the Columbia Mom community.
Brittany is a Columbia mom from Chattanooga, TN. She has lived in the Midlands the past 5 years with her husband and dogs. Since then, they have added two precious girls to their family and more pups! Brittany is a former elementary school teacher. She graduated from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga with a major in middle grades education and then went on to receive her masters in education. After the birth of her first daughter in 2021, she decided it was best for her family to stay home. Brittany is now a virtual marketing director, social media manager, and of course a mom. When not covered in milk and juggling house tasks, you can find Brittany attending her daughter’s dance class, visiting the local coffee shops, and at the Soda City Market almost every Saturday. Brittany loves the beach, walking her dogs, a matcha latte, and summertime. She can't wait to share her favorite things about Soda City and the daily in's and out's of motherhood.
Brittany is a mom, wife, and outgoing introvert who recently moved to the Columbia area in 2022! She has lived in many different cities from the East Coast to the Midwest and is happy to now call Columbia home. Building a sense of community is one of the reasons she and her family decided to come to Columbia and why she is very excited to be a part of the Columbia Mom team. Physical and mental health is also very important to her. As a physical therapist, she has witnessed the powerful connection of the mind and body and how both need to be given the proper TLC. In her spare time, she enjoys perfecting the fine art of sleep procrastination, listening to podcasts or books on tape, doing anything active, and adding unnecessary items to her Amazon cart. Photo by: Zach and Sarah Photography
Brittney is the proud new mother to one amazing baby boy (Ayden, 1) who constantly keeps her on her toes. A native of South Carolina, she is a graduate of the University of South Carolina (Bachelor of Arts in Public Relations) and Webster University (Master of Business Administration). While navigating her new role as a working single mom, she is finding the balance and redefining what it means to do it all. You can find Brittney on weekdays working from home or in the office as a Digital Marketing Strategist. While in the evenings and on the weekends alike she can be found cooking a nutritious meal or enjoying one at any of Columbia’s many exquisite cuisine options. She enjoys hanging out with her “new mom” friends, shopping, watching movies, attending church with her family, and finding fun kid-friendly activities. Brittney has always been passionate about being a black woman and is excited to now explore and share her experiences as a black mother.
Heather Blanton Burns lives in Columbia with her husband and daughter. Natives of South Carolina, they love taking road trips to visit family, as well as spending time at the lakes, beaches and mountains nearby. Heather is a Board Certified Pediatric Nurse Practitioner and Certified Gentle Sleep Coach. She received her undergraduate degree from the College of Charleston and her doctoral degree from the Medical University of South Carolina. She cares for children of all ages at a small pediatric practice locally. She founded a small business, Cultivating Bright Futures, in 2020 to support mothers through education and provide encouragement for mothers at every step along their motherhood journey. When she’s not working, Heather enjoys reading, spending quality time with family and friends, staying involved in the community through Junior League, eating delicious food at local restaurants, checking out local events in Columbia and staying active through walking, yoga and barre.
Iesha is originally from Milwaukee but has lived in Columbia for over ten years after graduating from USC with a bachelor’s of mathematics and a master’s of teaching. As a proud single mom of four year old Rahj, she spends substantial amounts of time at libraries, zoos, museums, parks, and doctor’s offices. Iesha intentionally provides memorable experiences for Rahj and is always seeking new adventures. When she’s not momming, she may be teaching high school math, running her tutoring business, working out, traveling, running a 5k, worshiping at church, volunteering, or spending time with friends. Iesha simply loves God, loves people, and looks forward to sharing that love with all of you!
Wildly in love with her perfectly imperfect life, Kathy’s been married to her most favorite person in the world, “The Professor,” for 14 years. They moved to Columbia from Atlanta seven years ago and are enjoying raising their two girls, Gracie (12½) and Tate (10) here. After undergrad and her MBA, Kathy worked in Corporate America for 10 years before retiring to work full-time for the girls. Most recently, she was a grant writer at a college here in town, but had to leave that job when her family moved to New Zealand for six months for The Professor’s sabbatical. She started her blog, Kathy Goes Kiki, to document that amazing adventure, but now she’s home and trying to figure out what to do with her life. Again. Probably the loudest and most foul-mouthed introvert you’ll ever meet, she can usually be found curled up with a trashy romance novel, on the tennis court, at her awesome gym, or drinking wine with people she loves.
Katrina is a mom of three great kids and has been married to her first love for more than 10 years. She’s grateful to have a job that allows her the flexibility to both work from home some days and in the office others. On the surface, Katrina is pretty crunchy – she loved breastfeeding, babywearing, co-sleeping, natural birth, and the idea of homeschooling — but still loved her stroller, having her kids in their own beds at some point, her epidural was fantastic, and she’s sending the kids through public school. Most of all she loves the fact that we have all these choices, which makes life interesting! One of her favorite experiences was moving to Japan in 2002 to live as an adult dependent with her USMC family. It was an amazing experience, and if it weren’t for that, she probably wouldn’t ever have met her husband.
Kiyana Thomas is a multifaceted professional whose journey in education is characterized by her roles as an educator, homeschooling parent, consultant, wife, and mother. Kiyana's career includes significant achievements such as being a National Board Certified Teacher and winning the Teacher of the Year award. She holds a Master's Degree and has over 15 years of invaluable classroom experience. Despite her success, Kiyana made the tough decision to leave the traditional classroom to homeschool her children, showcasing her commitment to education in all forms. Beyond the classroom, Kiyana is a motivational speaker and a pioneer in the homeschooling community. She founded Royal Scholars Homeschool Academy, a South Carolina Accountability Group and Hybrid School, and created Life Ready Learners, an online platform focused on teaching essential life skills. Kiyana has also ventured into authorship, with her debut book "I am the Future: Character Traits Journal for Kids!" available on Amazon. This book serves as a resource for character development in young minds.
Marissa was born in Charleston, South Carolina on Sept, 27, 1986 to James Sweat and the late Tracy Graham. She is the youngest girl of six, two sisters and three brothers. She grew up in Holly Hill, and graduated from Holly Hill Roberts High. Marissa furthered her education at Midlands Technical College, receiving a certificate in Early Childhood Education in 2017 and an associate degree in Early Childhood Education in 2018. She has been married for seven years to her husband Terence Evans. Together they have three children (Jaylen, Jada and Ny’Asia Evans). Her oldest and only boy, Jaylen, has cerebral palsy, epilepsy, and autism. Marissa and her husband are also the founders of the movement #Dontstare which is to raise awareness to how rude staring can be.
Mee Jean is a mom of three who is married to her high school sweetheart. A native from Atlanta, Mee Jean holds a Journalism degree from the University of Georgia while her husband, Greg, graduated from The University of South Carolina (House Divided!). Together, they have three children: Alyssa (8), Jacob (7) and Isaac (1). Once wondering how she could live in a small town like Columbia, she now embraces it and loves her home in Blythewood. Working as a marketing analyst at BlueCross BlueShield, she loves being involved in the community and making Columbia the best place for her kids. As a graduate from the Leadership Columbia Class of 2017, she has learned a lot about Columbia. Mee Jean loves hanging out with her girlfriends, reading, watching Georgia football, running races (5ks or Spartans), taking pictures and making memories (lots of selfies and hashtags) and relaxing with some wine by the pool.
Natalie has lived in South Carolina most of her life after her family moved across the country from California. Growing up in a small, South Carolina town allowed her to appreciate the simple ways of country living. She now resides in Lexington which isn't too far from rural life. She holds a degree in Journalism from USC (Go Gamecocks!) and currently writes for a couple of Lexington publications. After giving birth to twins, she decided staying home was the best option for her family. In addition to identifying with other twin moms, she has also come to know the world of NICU survivors, early intervention and the world of special needs. Aside from being a twin mom, she also enjoys church and growing with God, writing, crafting, walking and a nice cup of tea. She also appreciates and loves learning about different cultures as she is of Asian American descent.
Sarah has lived in Columbia since she was a kid, but it never felt like home until 2012 when she married her husband, David, and moved to Forest Acres. They met in 2010 when she was as a single mom, and have two children together, Hannah (age 4) and Titus (age 1), and Madison, (14). Sarah has a cosmetology degree, and is a part time stylist, while being a full time wife and mama. She has a deep desire to connect with other women, whatever season, to remind them they are not alone. She is a 'social' introvert, a deep thinker; who pays no attention to details, loves reading, but never finishes a book, she has a strong love for God's word, and despite her many flaws she desperately wants to be used to further the kingdom. She is a foodie, coffee drinking, wanna be perfectionist. She can identify with blended families, infertility, teenage parenting, and mental health issues.
Simone is a wife and bestest friend in the world to Otis (better known as Odor) and mom to football and soccer-loving Grayson 12, competitive cheerleader Elind 7, and tantrum expert Ozzy Voltaire, 2. She is a native of New Jersey but relocated to Key West and later Columbia. As an overachiever, she believes learning is the best gift she can give her children and spends much of her time teaching her children at home (Grayson attends school, but the learning doesn't end when he leaves the classroom). Simone finds motherhood and family life are most easily managed by having a system in place for home life, kids' schedules (including learning, screen time, and reading), and meal planning. She is an avid reader who finds books are one of the best ways to unwind at the end of the day. She spends a lot of time boxing and at Pure Barre getting her burn on. You'll often find her buried in a book or on Pinterest getting ideas for her next project or yummy meals for the family menu.
