The quiet kid with the loudest instrument.
I grew up in a quiet house in Clinton, Mississippi. In middle school, a high schooler came to our band tryout day and played a classical piece on the trumpet. I was hooked. I picked the loudest instrument in the band, and I never put it down.
By my senior year I was drum major. I marched four years in the University of Georgia band and studied marketing there. Somewhere along the way I learned that volume isn't the same as presence. You don't have to be loud all the time. You just have to be heard when it matters.
After college I spent seven years in Atlanta arts marketing, first at the Atlanta Ballet and then at the Alliance Theatre, the largest nonprofit theatre in the Southeast. I worked alongside BBDO and helped win a 2008 Gold Effie. I was mentored by the late Virginia Vann, who oversaw the launch of the Cingular Wireless brand.
Then I left what I thought was my dream job. I spent thirteen years in Bolivia as a missionary. I helped foundations raise money, hosted a radio program, pastored and taught, and played my trumpet in plazas and prison courtyards. My faith is at the center of my life, and it's why I care about the people behind every business I work with.
I came home in late 2020 with my wife and our three kids, not sure what came next. My best friend Chris told me to go out on my own and charge what I was worth. He connected me with my first two clients, and Sound Trumpet was born. I named it after the instrument that has followed me my whole life.
What I learned in Bolivia, sitting with people and listening to their stories, is the work I do now. Every business has a story worth hearing. Most owners just haven't had someone sit down, ask the right questions, and write it down.
Today I work out of Monroe, Georgia, and I'm a proud member of the Walton County Chamber of Commerce. If you're nearby, I'd love to buy you a coffee and hear yours.
Or email me at curtis@sound-trumpet.com.
