Women Over 40 Rock!

Some say we live in a man’s world, but after one conversation with Marion Paul you won’t believe that for a minute. Others will smile and tell you to make lemonade of the lemons that life hurls your way. Well, Marion not only made lemons, she quite literally built, owns, and runs the lemonade stand – plus the hot dog stand, the sausage stand, and even the snowball stand. You’d know that too, if you ever spent a day at Fannie Farkle’s in Gatlinburg, Tennessee.

After graduating high school, she set out to fulfill her dream in the world of professional dancing, from summer stock in Long Island, NY to working chorus lines and entertaining troops during a USO tour throughout Southeast Asia. She met Don Paul, the man she would marry, while working a burlesque show with a traveling carnival.

Don and Marion became not only husband and wife; they became partners. For twenty years they worked side-by-side. Together they opened Fannie Farkle’s and, while Don worked the traveling arcade operations, Marion ran the Gatlinburg operation. Soon they expanded their arcade businesses, opening up Walkin’ Charlie’s on the Daytona Beach boardwalk in Florida. As partnerships go, theirs worked… until 44-year old Don, piloting his small plane, crashed when a mechanic’s error caused him to lose control of the plane shortly after take-off.

Don’s death left Marion alone to mourn the loss of her husband. But life wasn’t done with Marion just yet. She had businesses with bills to pay, and her competitors were circling.

Faced with having to manage two businesses, 650 miles apart, she gathered together the employees of both locations and put the question to them directly. “Will you stay and work with me?” she asked. With a thunderous “Yes!” the die was cast. Both properties would remain open.

Once again, life was good. Marion proved to herself and to anyone who cared to watch, that she was an exceptional businesswoman. Financially secure, Marion decided that it was time to give something back to the community. Volunteering for the United Way of Sevier County, Tennessee, she met Ken Wade. Marion says that when she met Ken, something “just happened.” Something indeed, for Marion and Ken were destined to marry.

Not much later, a male colleague asked Marion if she would like to apply for a seat on the board of directors of the Amusement & Music Operators Association, the international trade association of the coin-op world. AMOA represents those who own and operate jukeboxes, pool tables, and other coin-operated games and equipment in commercial establishments worldwide. In an industry so male dominated as the coin-op industry, the AMOA board of directors might have been said to represent, at that point in time, coin-op’s glass ceiling. But that wouldn’t last for long.

Within coin-op, being chosen to serve on the AMOA board of directors is considered to be a great honor. With more than a little apprehension, she filled out that application. Five industry references were required… and it was five men who put their signatures on the line recommending Marion Paul to the AMOA.

It comes as no surprise — Marion was accepted to serve on the AMOA board. It amuses her to think back to when she and Ken attended their first AMOA board function. She recalls how one board member, an elder statesman of sorts, walked up to Ken, hand outstretched, to welcome him to the board. Ken took the man’s hand and, smiling now, moved it over to Marion’s and said, “Meet your new director.” This group of forty-eight – forty-seven of them men – understandably intimidated Marion, an only child who had attended an all-girl’s high school.

As awkward as that first introduction may have been for Marion, the time came soon enough to put away any insecurity and to, once again, put her shoulder to the grindstone and do a job. Aware that others were quietly skeptical of her, she watched and listened – and learned. Marion became convinced that this group of men would benefit from a female perspective.

Ten years later, Marion Paul became only the third woman in the organization’s 60-year history to be elected to the position of AMOA president. Since serving her term in 2004–2005, Marion has proudly watched five more women join the ranks of AMOA director. Today, whenever she attends a function as a member of the past-presidents council, there are a few more female faces in the crowd. Marion says that she “is proud of setting a standard for other women to know that it can be done… if you just set your goals high and never give up.”

“In the years since Don’s death, I have learned a great deal about going it alone in a man’s world. Yes, at times it has been quite frustrating, being challenged by men who have not been as nice as they could have… well, I just learned to put on my ‘big girl panties’ and move forward. The harder it became, the more determined I was not to give up! If I’ve learned one thing from working on the AMOA board, it is this… men have just as many insecurities as women… they just don’t talk about them.”

What does the future hold for Marion at age 61? She would like to mentor young women who are just starting out. She believes strongly in leadership by example. When asked what advice she would give young women today, Marion said, “Set your own goals… always keep them in front of you so that you can keep them in focus. NEVER compromise your ethics or integrity. Have the courage to say yes when it matters and, even more importantly, to say no when you know you should. Don’t be afraid to ask questions and reach out to mentors. That glass ceiling is getting broken through more often these days.”

And when it comes to cracking through glass ceilings, Marion Paul carries a big hammer!

Posted by Mandy Crest, blogger for In The Trenches Productions, The First Entertainment Website for Women Over 40!