An Interview With Damaris Boone

Interviewer - Remi Boulay
Note from Remi Boulay: As one of the first journalists hired by the newly-formed Sitka Cove Observer, I was intrigued by my new boss, Damaris Boone. At the end of my interview, she asked me if I had any questions, and I immediately asked if I could interview her. To my delight, she agreed! It’s been a few months since my request, but at long last, a date was set and I was invited out to her home where we sat down to have a conversation. Ms. Boone was a gracious host, even giving me a tour of her home and property before we sat down to iced tea and fruit cocktail. She may be a modern-day industry magnate, but she was every bit the humble, polite hostess. Gracious, confident, and ambitious, Damaris Boone might well be the visionary Sitka Cove needs. What follows is the transcript of our conversation.
RB) Thank you for inviting me to your home. Most residents of Sitka Cove aren’t familiar with the name Damaris Boone. Can you tell us a little about yourself?
DB) I was born and raised in Boston. I studied at Harvard, earning degrees in business administration and Public Policy. I first became familiar with Sitka Cove by accompanying my father on fishing trips to this area when I was younger. He had a fishing camp not too far from town, which he willed to me when he passed. When the camp roof caved in, I decided to build a home on the site, which is now complete, as you can see.

RB) How did you get started in business?
DB) After graduating from Harvard, I was hired by a town council to analyze the potential for economic development and make recommendations to retain the skills of their residents. The town had been hemorrhaging residents for years, and the mayor and council wanted to turn that trend around. I was an “economic advisor” there for a number of years while I built up my own transportation company, which still operates today. When I was no longer needed in that role, I started a contracting business.

RB) Can you tell me a bit about that?
DB) Essentially, the Boone Contracting Group employs carpenters, electricians, plumbers, and drivers that all travel to wherever the work is. One month, we could pick up a contract in one town for a renovation, and three months later all those tradespeople could find themselves in a completely different town building a factory from the ground up!

RB) Someone told me you have an equality-focused workforce. What can you add to that?
DB) Well, as you can see, I’m a woman, so it’s important to me that I give everyone a chance to utilize their skills - whether they identify as a man, a woman, or fluid. I believe that society won’t change unless industry leads the way, so I make equality important when hiring. I also give all of my employees, across the Boone Industry Group, the chance to build their skills, no matter what they were initially hired to do. So if a woman I hired to drive one of my trucks comes to me and says she wants to take time off to study to become a plumber, I sit down with her and figure out how I can help her achieve that goal.

RB) Most bosses wouldn’t do that.
DB) I hope I’m more than just a boss. I firmly believe that those who want to reach for increased success should be enabled and assisted. Everyone’s idea of success is different, but someone who has an attainable goal will be happier and more content if they have help reaching for success.

RB) So you see yourself as a mentor?
DB) A mentor, a facilitator, a guide. Whatever title works best for you. I just think everyone deserves to be happy.

RB) So why settle in Sitka Cove permanently? Instead of Boston, for example?
DB) I made a life in Boston for many years after my stint as an economic advisor. But when my wife died of cancer, everywhere I went reminded me of her. It became painful to go anywhere. So I decided to start over and make a new life. Once this house was finished being built, I decided to move my operations here.

RB) Our newly-hired town planner told me that you requested a special meeting of the town council seeking permission to build a variety of facilities in Sitka Cove. Can you tell me about that?
DB) I want to help Sitka Cove become a town whose various industries all link into one another, a self-contained supply chain that consistently strives to strengthen its own economy. As a result, Sitka Cove will pull itself up out of the pit of unemployment. I’d like to see a school in town that will teach folks what they’ll need to know so that they won’t need to move away to find work. They’ll be able to stay in Sitka Cove and raise families here. Part of that solution is a medical center that will attract family doctors and medical specialists which will raise the overall health of Sitka Cove. Then we’ll be able to offer positions to teachers that think beyond the provincial-mandated curriculum. Our young people and adults seeking continued education will be better educated than previous generations, they’ll be healthier and happier, more employable, and subsequently able to earn higher incomes. All of it will make Sitka Cove a more desirable place to do business, live, and raise generations of families.

RB) Some would ask what you get out of it.
DB) That’s a fair question. As I’ve said, I’ve relocated here to Sitka Cove. Even though I was born American, Sitka Cove is my permanent home now. Why wouldn’t I want it to be the best place to live?

RB) Do you see this as your legacy?
DB) I just want to help, that’s all. I hope I live past a hundred, hell, I’d like to live forever, but if I don’t, I hope I’m remembered as the woman who helped others achieve their dreams.

RB) Thank you for taking the time to speak to me today, and allowing all of us a glimpse into your vision for Sitka Cove.
DB) It was my pleasure!