Personal Peek AS SEEN IN OCTOBER 2007 She is a Focused Woman By Lucy M. Pritchett • Photos by Ewa Wojtkowska Deborah Charlton, 51, president and founder of PMR Companies, provides office, retail, and multi-family residential property management and related services; offices in Louisville and Houston, Texas. Married to Ron Charlton; three grown children, April Satterly, Amy Cordoba, and Derek VanVactor. Who she is: Mother, wife, grandmother to eight — soon to be nine — and friend to my extended family at PMR. Each role has a different meaning and purpose every day. Got started: I enrolled in Jefferson Community College after high school and was working as a leasing agent at McNeely Lake Apartments. What came next: I started a company with another individual. When I left it, we had 15 clients. I moved to other cities to get experience in different types of property management that I couldn’t get in Louisville. magazine clear glass shelves holding them. Breaks her heart: When we go in to take over management of a property I sometimes see some terrible things — victims of domestic violence, child abuse, poverty. Heroes: My parents Herman and Jane Hagerman. My father died in August 2006. My mom is my closest friend. Pet peeve: People not following through with obligations and commitments. Favorite movie: Brian’s Song. It is so sad. What people don’t know: I am pretty much an open book. I have been fortunate to be successful and couldn’t do what I do without a supportive husband and family. I work long days and long weeks. The best part of her job: The people. The employees, clients, and residents. My job is to take care of them. Secret passion: Gardening. For 20 years, I have raised African violets. The windows in my kitchen are lined with pencil. I keep my calendar with me always. When traveling I stash things in it and file when I get back home. I also keep a journal to document conversations and meetings. It has come in handy for documentation. Stays on task: I am very focused and organized. I think I inherited it. Nordstroms. Online or its Houston store. Gourmet treat: Cake batter ice cream with bananas from Coldstone Creamery. back to Louisville to be closer to family. My father was ill. I started doing some consulting work for clients I had worked with previously and then in January of 2004, I started PMR. We now have 200 employees and manage 7800 units in Louisville, Houston, Orlando, Nashville, Evansville, and Indianapolis. for Cardinal Realty Services in Boca Raton, Fla. Organizational tool: Paper and Ethnic food: Mexican. Buys her clothes: Recently: I semi-retired and moved Doing in 1992: District manager BMW SUV X3. In Houston: 1998 BMW convertible. Must have: I drink a cup of pomegranate green tea every night before bed. individuals who don’t turn off their cell phones in meetings. I see so much of that. When I am meeting with a client I give them my total focus and attention. Advice: My parents taught I have wanted a Vespa scooter and my husband just bought me one on eBay. It is pistachio green. I want it so I can tootle around the Highlands. me and my siblings to be honest because all we would have is our integrity and that would follow us everywhere. Jump starts her day: I get up at 6 a.m. have coffee, read the paper, take a shower, dress, and head to the office. With 15 free minutes: I Can’t get the knack of: would catch up with old friends. Slowing down. Drink of choice: The renovation and property management of Kentucky Towers. Dr. Pepper. Celebrates her birthday: I have a friend who lives in Nashville and our birthdays are eight days apart. We have known each other since Girl Scouts in elementary school. We get together somewhere every year to celebrate our birthdays. Last year we went to Kansas City. Special pen: Would be doing… I love contemporary art. I would be an art gallery owner. In fact, I have owned two galleries in the past. Lives: We moved to a condo in the Highlands two years ago. I also have an apartment in Houston because I am there three to four days a week at least every other week if not more. I approve company invoices by signing with a calligraphy pen. It stands out among many other signatures. I have always done that. If caught relaxing: My phone and Blackberry would be off. Prized family possession: Louisville, it is The Bristol on Bardstown Road. In Houston, it is Pappasitto’s Mexican Restaurant. A video I did for my parents in 1988 of childhood photos and movies of me and my siblings. We watch it every year after eating Christmas dinner. I wouldn’t take anything for it. Drives: In Louisville: White Soapbox: The rudeness of Favorite restaurant: In Reprinted with permission from Zion Publications, LLC Latest purchase: Color she would never wear: I don’t like gray. Scent: Coach Perfume. China pattern: Kutani Crane Recent project: Recent best idea: I have been working on this for a while with Lisa Butcher at Republic Bank. I wanted a way that we could get instant credit for money orders just like we did with checks as rent payment. We found an Italian model — The BOD or Business On-Site Deposit — and we are rolling it out at all of our properties. This saves time and money because no one has to go to the bank. We don’t take cash. All of our banking now, even in other states, is done with Republic. This is a good example of an independent bank willing to grow with its customer. Pampers herself: by Wedgwood China. Wishes she could stop doing: Gaining weight. How long things take: Triple the amount of time you think you will have to spend on a project. Manicure and pedicure every two weeks. Perfect Sunday: Doing nothing.