http://www.charlotteoptimist.com/

The Charlotte Optimist, Charlotte, NC (2026)

06/08/2026

Eleanor Shell calls it the long middle. The time after a major life changing event when the meal trains and check-ins stop.

The Shells lived a pretty typical life in Charlotte up until June 2024. As Eleanor and her daughter Blakely were leaving a routine check-up, she was hit by a young driver in the parking lot. At the last second, she pushed Blakely’s stroller away safely as the vehicle hit her, leaving her with a traumatic brain injury. Months of recovery and 12 weeks at an Atlanta concussion center later, her brain was only functioning at 60%. Bills began piling up. They weren’t making enough to pay but also made too much to qualify for aid.

She talks openly about the struggles of recovery but the biggest help is actually doing things for others. She started a nonprofit called Borrowed Hope that fills baskets with snacks and gift cards for experiences around Charlotte for families in a similar situation so they can find a moment of fun and joy during the summer.

You can apply for or nominate a family to receive of a basket or you can choose to donate to help fill the baskets. The deadline to apply for a basket or nominate someone else is Wednesday, June 10.

Apply, nominate or donate to the Borrowed Hope Summer Fun fund with the links in our bio as well as at the bottom of Eleanor’s full story, which we’ve also linked.

Photos by Logan Cyrus

06/01/2026

Estella Patterson made history in December 2025 when she was announced as the new Chief of Police in Charlotte. After overseeing the police department in Raleigh for four years, Patterson came to Charlotte to replace the retiring Johnny Jennings and become the city’s first female chief.

Her arrival in Charlotte was more of a homecoming than an introduction. Patterson joined the CMPD in the early 2000s after serving in the Army during the Iraq War. In 2016, she held the position of head of internal affairs, which provided oversight in the police killing of Keith Lamont Scott.

One of the more visible changes she has brought to CMPD this year are blue uniforms. For years, CMPD leadership wore white to differentiate themselves from rank-and-file officers. While she served as chief in Raleigh, every officer wore blue. Patterson drew inspiration from her military service and decided to bring that with her to Charlotte.

This week, Patterson will pass her first 180 days in the role. In a short period she has brought strong leadership and stability to a police department that hasn’t been a stranger to controversy in the past. Michael sat down with Patterson to discuss how she has managed to steady the ship amidst the current turmoil in the city government.

You can read the full profile by clicking the link in our bio or visiting Charlotteoptimist.com.

Thank you once again for reading. Have a great week!

Photos by Logan Cyrus

05/22/2026

Before you head out for your long weekend this afternoon, we have one more story for you this week.

Navy Captain Wade Smith moved away from North Carolina in 2001 after graduating college and receiving his commission in the Navy. Three months after 9/11, Wade reported to his first ship, the USS Kauffman, as the nation prepared for the unknown.

Over the past 25 years, he’s been serving out that commission and recently became the Commodore of Littoral Ship Squadron 2 based in Naval Station Mayport. One of only 10 commodore posts in the Navy.

In early May, he returned to Charlotte to see a place that he barely recognized since leaving over two decades ago. He was chosen alongside dozens of other sailors to travel around the city for Navy Week. As the senior-ranking officer on the visit, he was given the VIP treatment at Quail Hollow during the Truist Championship as well as the opportunity to meet with some of the top leaders in Charlotte. He left Charlotte and Navy Week unsure where his years of leadership experience could be best used.

“Smith became captain of the USS Sioux City in 2019. He began devouring leadership books. He held ‘coffee with the captain’ office hours, so that young seamen could understand that no matter their role — senior officer, engine mechanic, or cook — they knew its importance to the overall mission.

‘That’s where I learned that leadership was me trying to listen instead of me already formulating what I want to tell you about,’ he says. ‘That’s been huge for me, is to just shut up and listen.’

At 47, Smith lives in northeast Florida now. His next promotion would be to rear admiral, but he’ll likely retire before that. He spent some of his week in Charlotte wondering whether this is where he could land next.

‘As I’ve walked around the city this week, I’m trying to figure out, is there some way I can come back here and plug in?’ he said. ‘Or do I take the easy button and do some type of, you know, Navy-related job in Northeast Florida?’”

Read Michael’s full profile with the link in our bio.

Don’t forget, we won’t be publishing this weekend but we will be right back on the next one! Photos by Logan Cyrus

05/18/2026

The parking gates at the government center were up as people left the city council meeting on Monday last week. Free parking as a consolation prize for those who stuck with the nearly 7-hour session. Important things were on the docket. The first being a public discussion of the upcoming budget. A steady stream of concerned citizens and business leaders filled the time slots, appealing to our panel of council members on a range of issues from raises for some of our hardest-working city employees to continued funding for domestic violence assistance. Last on the agenda was public input on the much debated I-77 project.

As the scene unfolded and motions were made, Councilwoman Renee Johnson proved there was still appetite to not just adjust the plan but to wipe it away and start from scratch. Council member Driggs spoke up to say that this would probably be it and if we back out now, NCDOT wouldn’t be likely to entertain future projects. At 10 p.m., it seemed like the motion to rescind support of the project would fall just short of the 6 votes needed to pass. Much to everyone’s surprise, when the hands went up, there were 6.

Michael has been chatting with community members and business leaders for the past few weeks to understand the issue more and was in the chamber on Monday as it all played out. In this week’s main story, he breaks down the controversy and what this actually means for Charlotte going forward. As it stands at the time of posting this, the vote is holding, but Councilman Driggs is doing his best to reverse the reversal. As Charlotte’s lone city council representative for the project, he’s responsible to bring the decision to the Charlotte Regional Transportation Planning Organization board, who has the final authority to cancel the project.

Read his entire breakdown of the project and all of its moving parts in this week’s story.

Link in bio, of course.

Thanks again for reading!

Photos by Logan Cyrus

05/11/2026

Dr. Kandi Deitemeyer has been the president of Central Piedmont Community College for nearly 10 years.

She’s kept a low profile in the media during her tenure, but Charlotte’s rapidly changing employment needs put her and CPCC at the center of conversations with CEOs and government leaders about training the workforce of the future. CPCC’s highest enrollment growth areas are in skilled trades — things like HVAC, plumbing, and construction. Meanwhile, the college has developed partnerships with many local four-year colleges to ensure a seamless transition for CPCC grads.

The school is also playing a leading role in developing a public safety training center for first responders in Matthews that’s come under scrutiny, pulling Deitemeyer into the spotlight even more.

We think it’s important to understand the person behind all those decisions. In his latest profile, Michael spent some time with Dr. Deitemeyer ahead of CPCC’s spring graduation this Thursday, to get her perspective on the past decade, as well as how her past continues to shape her future.

Check out the full profile with the link in our bio.

Thanks again for reading.

Photo by Logan Cyrus

05/08/2026

Hi, there. Here we are with a rare midweek story.

Yesterday morning, Vi Lyles announced she wouldn’t be finishing her term as the Mayor of Charlotte after winning re-election just a handful of months ago. Her last day in office before stepping down will be June 30th.

As the news started to filter out to city leaders and residents, many questions remained unanswered. One thing was for sure, the race to fill the seat had already begun.

Michael stayed up late last night to write down some thoughts on her decades of public service and what this decision means for the city. Check out that story with the link in our bio.

Thanks as always for reading.

Photo by Logan Cyrus

05/04/2026

One year in the books.

Last night Michael sent out a thoughtful essay on what it’s been like hitting send on a newsletter about Charlotte each Sunday night. If the mood strikes, you can find a link to that essay in our bio. It’s pretty good! I read it twice. Once because I had to add photos to it, but another time just because.

If you’re an Optimist reader, what was your favorite story so far? What would you like to see more of in our next 365 days? (If I’m being honest, I’d like to see a story on how there came to be so many Grateful Dead fans in Charlotte.)

Honestly and sincerely, thank you. What a great city. We’re going to keep on truckin’.

04/27/2026

Inside one of Charlotte’s many office parks, past a big pothole and 2 speed bumps you’ll find Santé, Mecklenburg county’s mental health crisis response team.

In 2025, this small crew of well-trained clinicians fielded nearly 10,000 calls. All people in need of effective and decisive action. Within this staff of 10, you won’t hear mental health discussed the same way you do on tidy social media posts.

It’s far more personal and complicated working alongside the darkest parts of our lives. Jeremy Floyd, one of the clinicians at Santé, said it succinctly, “We don’t have the opportunity to speak to anybody on their good days.” Regardless, like superheroes in a red Santé labeled Toyota Corolla, they’ll come and find you if you find yourself in crisis.

We hope you take time with this story and walk away with the same feeling of gratitude for the work they do that we felt reporting it.

In these photos you’ll see executive director Rebecca Peacock, clinician Jeremy Floyd and clinician Jessie Williams. Just a small example of the good people that keep Santé going 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Please be aware this story has mentions of su***de. If you are in crisis or know someone who is, Santé’s 24-hour line is 704-566-3410. You can also call or text 988 from anywhere in the U.S. to reach the su***de and crisis hotline

04/20/2026

The president says he quit but the senator says he didn’t. Last Friday Michael sat down with Thom Tillis over coffee and a chorizo breakfast burrito at Camp North End to talk about his decision to retire, Operation Charlotte’s Web and the president’s standoff with him over the Fed chair nomination.

𝘛𝘸𝘰 𝘥𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘦 𝘮𝘦𝘵, 𝘗𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘛𝘳𝘶𝘮𝘱, 𝘧𝘳𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘛𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘢 𝘯𝘦𝘸 𝘍𝘦𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘙𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘦 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘪𝘳, 𝘴𝘢𝘪𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘢𝘯 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘛𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘴 “𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘵” 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘩𝘦’𝘴 “𝘯𝘰 𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘳 𝘢 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘰𝘳,” 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘱𝘪𝘵𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘴, 𝘢𝘵 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘹𝘵 𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘩𝘴. “𝘛𝘳𝘶𝘮𝘱-𝘛𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘪𝘧𝘧 𝘥𝘦𝘦𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘴…” 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘢 𝘍𝘖𝘟 𝘕𝘦𝘸𝘴 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦. “𝘙𝘦𝘱𝘶𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘚𝘦𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘰𝘳 𝘙𝘢𝘮𝘱𝘴 𝘜𝘱 𝘍𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘈𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘛𝘳𝘶𝘮𝘱’𝘴 𝘉𝘢𝘧𝘧𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 ‘𝘔𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦,’” 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘋𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘺 𝘉𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘵.

𝘛𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘴 𝘭𝘢𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘸𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘵 𝘥𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘍𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘢𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘢𝘴𝘬𝘦𝘥, “𝘈𝘳𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘢 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘰𝘳?”

“𝘐 𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘶𝘱 𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘔𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘺 𝘗𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘯,” 𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘪𝘥, 𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘢𝘮𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 1970𝘴 𝘢𝘣𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘥𝘺 — “𝘐’𝘮 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘥𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘺𝘦𝘵.”

The full story is up on our profile or find it at Charlotteoptimist.com.

Photos by Logan Cyrus

04/13/2026

This week’s Optimist presents you with a collection of vignettes from The Milestone to the convention center ballroom to the Charlotte SHOUT! Festival. As Michael takes you across the city, he also connects the dots on what Charlotteans from every corner of the city are quietly reaching for.

“Sometime after midnight, my ears still ringing, I drove home thinking about how the 27-year-old in the Harms Way T-shirt and the 67-year-old bank CEO have both reached, from opposite ends of the city, for the people who made them feel less like strangers.”

You’ll find the full story at Charlotteoptimist.com. Would love to have you!

Photo courtesy of Dan Russell-Pinson

The Charlotte Optimist

06/08/2026

06/01/2026

05/22/2026

05/18/2026

05/11/2026

05/08/2026

05/04/2026

04/27/2026

04/20/2026

04/13/2026

Address

Website

Alerts

Contact The Business

Shortcuts

Share

Category