Featured Author Carl Mays Author of People of Passion Carl Mays has authored a dozen books, seven dramas, and three newspaper columns. He is a professional speaker and consultant who deals with human relations, inspiration, and self-improvement. He has spoken to over 2500 groups, and is a recipient of the National Speakers Association’s Certified Speaking Professional and Council of Peers Award for Excellence designations. He is a member of the Speaker Hall of Fame. Born and reared in Humboldt, Tennessee, Carl obtained his undergraduate degree from Kentucky’s Murray State University, where, in 1990, he received the Distinguished Alumnus Award. He earned his graduate degree from New Orleans Baptist Seminary and did additional work at the University of Memphis. Carl was the founder of a successful conference sales group in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, and was the charter chairman of the Gatlinburg Board of Education. He has served the city and county in numerous ways and is one of the area’s best good-will ambassadors. Carl and his wife, Jean, have been residents of Gatlinburg since 1972. They have one son, Carl Mays II, who lives with his wife, Beth, and son, Carl Mays III (Trey), in Texas. As a result of a writer-in-residence grant in 1972, Carl moved to East Tennessee and the Great Smoky Mountains to continue his studies and work. Here, he has remained. Carl was captured by the beauty of the area. He was also captured by the beauty and heritage of the people. This led Carl to begin interviewing elderly natives in 1974. He collected their stories and shared them through a local newspaper column. The column was soon picked up by other papers and eventually appeared in regional magazines. In 2000, Carl began sorting through his collected stories. Combining them with additional historical research, he developed a unique book in 2003. Carl writes in the introduction, “These stories, which span a period of 200 years, concentrate on a certain region of the nation, but they demonstrate the principles, the spirit, and the character of many people upon whom our nation has been built.... Though their legacy lives on, many of their stories are almost forgotten. That's why I wanted to reopen my files and revive some of their accounts.... The people of these stories and these mountains represent well every American who has paid a price for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” Pathos, humor, and inspiration combine to make this book a captivating and informative read.

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