Sunday interview with Evelyn "Mimi" Woodson

Mimi Woodson settled in Columbus after serving 15 years in the U.S. Army.

She didn't know then that she would become one of the longest-serving Hispanic elected officials in the state.

In 1994, she ran for Columbus Council, and more than 20 years later, she's still in office, having won five elections.

Woodson is also co-founder of the city's Tri-cities Latino Festival, which will be held Sept. 12 at the South Commons. And she continues to be a leader in the Hispanic community.

Woodson sat down with reporter Alva James-Johnson to talk about her life in Columbus and the upcoming festival.

Here are excerpts from the interview, with the content of some of the questions edited for length and clarity.

In the military, you moved around a lot. So why did you stay in Columbus?

The atmosphere, the middle-sized community. Not too big, not too little. It was a great place to raise children. I liked the uniqueness of the city. It's young, but it's old at the same time. So depending on what you like, you can find it here. It's centrally located. If you want to be in a more lively community you can go to Atlanta, or you can go to Florida. It kept bringing me back, so I just figured that by the grace of God this was where I was supposed to be.

So in what part of town did you settle?

On the south side.

Why that area?

I liked it, first, because it was close to post. ... A lot of realtors tried taking me north quite a bit, because of the stereotype of south Columbus. We chose not to. ... I have a pretty big house and it's in a nice neighborhood. I love it, I've been there 22 years now. I wouldn't give up my neighborhood for anything in the world.

Tell me about your candy store.

When I got out of the military, my husband was in Desert Storm at the time, and I made a promise to God that if he would bring my husband back safely to me and my children, I would do something for kids. So what we did was open a candy store called "Kids-n-Things." At Kids-n-Things, we would sell candy for a penny to a dollar. We wouldn't charge them any taxes. We would pay the taxes for it. Then we (partnered) with this program called Save the Earth, and we brought it to the candy store. And we would take gang members, troubled kids and encourage them to go to school, teach them how to talk to their parents.

A 12-year-old talked to me about opening a little layaway for their parents so that they could give Christmas and birthday presents. ... They decided the whole project, how it would go, and we did it. ... I didn't know I was called "The Candy Lady" until about a year ago. I was at work and I was walking down the aisle and I heard a young lady say, "Oh, there goes The Candy Lady. We used to go there all the time!"

So the business no longer exists?

No. It lasted for about 5 years. Then Council came about. I consider it a spiritual calling. The district was redistricting. The community wanted somebody grass-roots. They really didn't want someone that was a politician. They came to me. It took them 5 months to convince me to even consider running for office because I felt that I wasn't the right candidate. One, I was a woman. Two, I was Latina. And three, I had only lived in Columbus two years. While I did vote and exercise the right to vote, I wasn't really interested. ... But things happen for a reason.

How was it a spiritual calling?

One of my neighbors who is no longer with us -- God bless them -- they convinced me to go to their church, a little church off of North Lumpkin Road. The preacher there was preaching about how God uses all of us in different ways and different methods. ... My husband had called me and I stepped out and I said, "There's something about this church. I need to stay." ... The preacher kept preaching, and he kept walking by. He just asked, "Who feels uncomfortable? Who feels nervous?" ... I put my hand up ... I said, "Me." He talked to me and next thing I knew I went home and I told my husband, "I'm not going to win, but I'm going to listen to what God tells me to do and we're going to do it!"

I never dreamed I would win. We ran a campaign with less than $3,000. I had two opponents at the time. One was raised in Columbus and one was born and raised in Columbus. And I never thought that I would win either one. I told my girlfriend, "I kind of like listening to people and trying to help them. We're going to lose, but we might come back and try it again." That was my thought at the time, because I just felt that I was doing something that God wanted me to do. I didn't have faith in myself. I didn't think I was the person for it. Next thing I knew, we ran the campaign, we were in the government center. I come off the elevator and my daughter jumps on me and says, "Mom, you won!" The first words that came out of my mouth were, "Hell, what do I do now?" And here I am 20 years later. And every time I quit, I'm somehow turned back to that church.

So have you tried to quit?

My last election, I was thinking of just laying my hat down and focusing on my grandchildren and my mom who's ill. But two ladies, one at the grocery store and another lady, said, "Mimi, I don't think you're reading your messages right. You need to go back where you came from." Well, when you tell me to "go back to where you came from," to me it's that church ground. And I went back there. And what was so funny was the gates are always closed but that day it was open. There was a white truck there, and I parked in there and I was crying because I didn't know what to do.

There was a gentleman who came out from the church and we talked. We had a long conversation and he said to me, "You know, God tests us sometimes, and I think you better go home, take a shower, go to bed and think about it. And I think you'll know what to do in the morning." That was it and I said, "OK!" but in my mind I was saying, "Right, I know what I'm going to do. I'm not going to turn these papers, I'm going to take care of my mom and find me a husband." That's what I was saying to myself. Next thing I knew, I woke up in the morning -- no campaign manager, no money, no plans, no nothing! I got up and said, "Lord, really?! This is what you want?" Next thing I knew, I went back and I filled out my paperwork and I ran again.

Are there any unique challenges that you faced because of your background as a Latina woman and being new to town?

I don't think I can honestly say that, because Columbus is really an embracing community. Was it challenging in the beginning? Yes. I had no idea what I was really getting into. I had my military background and I had all my leadership skills. I knew I was a people-person and I knew that I loved to help people. And that's what makes my day is when I can put a smile on someone's face. ... Have there been challenges? Yes. Have there been remarks when I've thought, "Wow. Did you really just say that to me?" But I think my faith is what keeps me straight and keeps me going.

I love Columbus; I wouldn't go anywhere else. I will stay here until God calls me. My family has tried, often saying, "You need to come. You live by yourself." I'm like, "No, I love it here." I really do. I go home and visit and enjoy my time home with my family.

In Puerto Rico?

Yes. I go back to Puerto Rico, Chicago, New York, and visit my family. I always come back.

Tell me about the Hispanic community here in Columbus when you first arrived. Was there a large population?

It was a small population, but it was unique. ... The Hispanic community here is very different from any other community. ... I say that because the Hispanic community doesn't want to be stereotyped. If you pay attention, everybody is spread around. No one is in a certain location, except your labor-workers. ... I find that unique. You go to Chicago, you go to Atlanta, you go to Florida, even Kentucky, North Carolina, they're all in a community. You can find them. For us, it's a little bit difficult.

The only area that really was considered pretty much Latino, but not very big, is South Lumpkin Road because you have the three Latin stores one behind the other. About my second term, I got with the Chamber and we started collecting data to see the Latin community and we found out in the data that there were almost 250 different Latin-owned businesses, but the majority of them had American names.

One of the activities that has united the Latino community is the Tri-Cities Latino Festival, right?

That's been a wonderful success, not only for the Latino community -- it brings everybody together. ... I had a dream of the festival maybe three years after I got elected but I could never get the right timing or the interest or anything going. It took many, many, many years. Lefty (Encarnacion) used to do block parties at his store (Millie's Market) to say thank you to his patrons and to Fort Benning. And we started working on a lot of dances, concerts, block parties, a lot of other stuff. One day he called me and said, "Hey, I want to talk to you about something." And I said, "OK." He said to me, "You know my block party? I would like to do it a little bit bigger." I started laughing. ... I said, "Lefty, I always wanted to do a Latino Festival and it's really been hard to get it together." He high-fived me, I high-fived him. And here it is three years later.

What is your reaction to what is going on in national politics with Donald Trump and some of the strong statements he's made about immigrants?

What else is he going to do for our country? That's what I would like to know. He's focusing on immigration. He's saying all these things he's going to do. But where is he getting the money from? Are you going to take away from my children's education? Are you going to take away from the roads that my city could have? Are you going to take that money away from the people in my community getting a job because you want to get elected as a president? That's where I'm at. I want to know what are your other issues.

Sometimes Latinos get stereotyped -- that we don't want to work, and come to this country to take all this. ... That's not true. It's like in every culture, you have your handful, but overall we have a lot of pride, we have a lot of family values that we instill that we want in our family. We want a great education. We want our kids to be known as chief of police, the doctor, the teacher, the greatest artist. We want these things too.

You mentioned Lefty. He had been an integral part of the effort. Since the last festival he's had a lot of problems. He lost the radio station. He's closing the shop and having health issues. What is your reaction to that?

It hurts. I wish it wasn't happening to him. But we don't know why things happen. He can be stubborn but he's a wonderful man. He barks loud but he has a big heart. He has helped many people get out of jail. People who didn't have food in their home, he gave them food. He's done a lot of great things and he's tried so hard to unite this community more and more and more and more. For me, it's emotional. ... We continue the festival in his honor.

Is there going to be anything done at the festival to acknowledge his contributions to the community?

After the festival, we plan on doing a fundraiser for him. We don't want to mix the two together because some people will misconstrue it.

What makes the festival so special?

The Latino Festival is not really all Latino. If you do research of Latino festivals throughout the United States all have mostly Spanish music, Spanish foods. ... We decided here that we wanted it a little bit different. ... The objective behind the festival is to bring people together of all cultures, not just Latino -- to get to know us, to know our heritage.

BIO

AGE: 57

HOMETOWN: Manatí, Puerto Rico

CURRENT RESIDENCE: Columbus

JOB: A customer service supervisor at TSYS

EDUCATION: Two years of college while traveling in the military

MILITARY: Served 15 years in the U.S. Army; two years in the National Guard and 13 years active duty

FAMILY: Single with two children, three grandchildren and her elderly mother

This story was originally published September 5, 2015 at 10:18 PM with the headline "Sunday interview with Evelyn "Mimi" Woodson ."