My name is Carol Cain, and I am a retired educator and storyteller. I have been a resident of LaGrange for 40 years, moving here from Hogansville, my hometown. I like to tell people that my roots are in Hogansville, but I spread my branches in LaGrange. This community has allowed me to thrive in many areas, including my career in education and my involvement in the arts. Even in retirement, I have found lots to do here, including four part-time jobs!
About Carol Cain
Q: Please tell us a little bit about your family.
I am the fifth of six children. As a storyteller this big family gives me lots to talk about, but it also gives me an incredible support system! I am very close to my two sisters, and we go on quite a few adventures together. I have two adult children, Cory and Katie, who make their mother quite proud! I am also “Gram” to my very intelligent and very vocal granddaughter Ruthie. Another grand baby is coming this summer.
Q: Please tell us about your current, past, or future career. What do you love most about what you do?
In 2015, I retired after 30 years in education teaching language arts and theatre arts at Troup High and West Side Magnet School. It seems I couldn’t leave teaching completely because the very next year, I took a job at the Lafayette Society for Performing Arts teaching Creative Dramatics for 1st through 6th graders. I am also an instructor with the West Point Lake Floating Classroom and a docent at the Biblical History Center. Additionally, I am a storyteller which allows me to spend time in schools, museums, churches, retirement villages, and with audiences of all ages. When you look at all of these jobs, it is easy to see they all fit in my skill set— teaching and talking! That means none of these jobs seem like work.
Q: What advice would you give to people?
The late Merle Davis who was married to storyteller Donald Davis gifted me with a bumper sticker that I think is wise advice: Don’t postpone joy. This has been a motivating statement for me and probably makes good advice for us all.
Q: Where do you see yourself in 5 to 10 years?
In 5 to 10 years, I imagine my life will look a lot like it does now, especially because I have a hard time saying no! I hope I am still in good health, still telling stories, still having adventures, and happily spoiling grandchildren!
Carol Cain & Our Community
Q: What are a couple of your favorite restaurants in our community?
I eat a lot of lunches at Taste of Lemon, especially on days when they have fried okra! I enjoy Sunday lunch at Venucci’s and their pasta for a special night out. I love the lasagna and salad from Pizza Villa, and I frequent the Bull Street restaurants—Charlie Joseph’s, Bull’s Hibachi, and Your Pie..
Q: How long have you lived or worked in our community?
Growing up in Hogansville, we would come to the “big city” of LaGrange for shopping and entertainment. I was a student at LaGrange College from 1978–1982, living on campus so I was somewhat of a resident of LaGrange. I actually moved here in 1984 and have made it my home ever since.
Q: Who is the most interesting person you’ve met here in our community?
This question could get me in trouble! Honestly, it is too hard to name one person. I have been blessed to get to know many interesting people here through my work in the arts, through teaching, through community activities. I find most interesting those who are willing to share their stories with me!
Q: What current or former local business makes you the most nostalgic about our community?
Even though much has changed there since I was a student, my most nostalgic spot in LaGrange is “The Hill,” the campus of LaGrange College. There is hardly a spot on the campus that doesn’t bring back a flood of memories of a really special time in my life. So much of who I have become was begun on that campus. Walking downtown also brings back memories of my childhood when we would come to LaGrange to shop for Christmas and Easter clothes. Though many of the establishments where we would shop are no longer in business, the buildings are still there. The stories are still there.
Q: What is your favorite thing or something unique about our community?
One day while eating at Charlie Joseph’s I was talking to some visitors about LaGrange and what all we had to offer. After I had talked a while, they asked, “Are you the mayor or the city’s ambassador?” I laughed about that but realized that I am somewhat of a cheerleader for America’s Greatest Little City. We have an incredible, arts-rich community— theatre, ballet, choral groups, a storytelling festival, a symphony orchestra, art museums. We have Sweetland which brings in great musical acts. We have the Biblical History Center, West Point Lake, the Legacy Museum, restaurants, shops, breweries and wineries. LaGrange has a lot to offer!
Q: If you could choose anyone that is alive today and not a relative; with whom would you love to have lunch? Why? And where locally would y’all meet for this lunch?
I would love to have lunch with my creative muse—Carol Burnett! It would be fun to have a catered meal inside the Black Box Theatre at LSPA so I could show her where I aim to channel her comic energy when I perform and where I do my best to inspire the next generation of thespians in the way she inspired me.
For Fun
Q: What is one of your favorite movies? TV shows?
I am a long-time fan of GREY’S ANATOMY, having invested in all 20 seasons! The teacher in me loves ABBOTT ELEMENTARY, and I also enjoy lots of the renovation shows on HGTV like HOME TOWN, GOOD BONES, and NO DEMO RENO. It hasn’t inspired me to be a baker, but I also love THE GREAT BRITISH BAKING SHOW. As for favorite movies, I love romantic comedies like SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE, YOU’VE GOT MAIL, and PRETTY WOMAN.
Q: (Even for friends or family), what is something interesting that most people don’t know about you?
Long ago, probably the mid-80s, I rode in a hot air balloon over Troup County. The event was a balloon launch from the mall with area businesses sponsoring a balloon and its team. I volunteered to ride in one. The first day, I had friends and family come to watch me go up, but the launch was cancelled due to high winds. The next day, no one came to watch, yet I went up…in a balloon with a total stranger! It was so quiet and beautiful floating across rural Troup County, but the landing was a bit bumpy!
Q: What would you rate a 10 out of 10?
Yes, I am biased, but one of my favorite things in LaGrange is the Azalea Storytelling Festival. This is a nationally recognized festival that has been bringing in top-notch storytellers from across the country for close to 30 years, yet there are many people in LaGrange that still don’t know what it is—despite the banners and posters we hang downtown and the appearances we make in schools and for community groups and churches. It is fairly common for us to have ten or more states represented in the audience at our festivals. I want to encourage more locals to come experience the Azalea Storytelling Festival the first full weekend of March. The shortest distance between two people is a story—and this festival will give you an entire weekend of great entertainment!
Q: Who inspires you to be better?
I always want to be the kind of person that my children, and now my granddaughter, will look up to and admire in the same way I did my own mother and my grandmother. These women found that marvelous balance of being strong and being kind. They loved fully and without reservation. My granddaughter is such a little sponge, soaking up everything she sees. I want her to see in me the same qualities I saw in my mother and my grandmother.
Q: Finally, what 3 words or phrases come to mind when you think of the word HOME?
Okay, it’s more than three words, but I believe HOME is where the heart is.
