Galina Schott can speak with authority at the Southside Business Men’s Club.
As the 2012 president, she wields the gavel weekly at meetings of the 315-member club, serving as the second woman to do so in the club’s 80-year history.
As its leader, she represents small business on the Southside, pursuing her career as a financial adviser with North Florida Financial Corp. in the Baymeadows area.
As a resident of the community, she can talk about making a commitment to become a U.S. citizen, having immigrated to the United States at the age of 28 with her husband, 9-year-old son and $100, speaking no English.
“We lived too close to Chernobyl,” Schott said from her office this week, explaining that it took five years to receive refugee status. Chernobyl was the site of the 1986 nuclear reactor explosion.
Sponsored by Lutheran Social Services, they settled in Jacksonville. “I did not know anybody,” she said.
Then she made connections. Her first job was at The University Club as a cocktail waitress, working nights and taking English classes during the day at what is now Florida State College at Jacksonville.
Schott had an engineering degree from Kiev University. A University Club member offered her an engineering position at Reynolds, Smith and Hills. (Another club member, Angie Tekin, sponsored Schott as a member at the Southside Business Men’s Club in 2006.)
Having learned English, she headed to Jacksonville University for a master’s degree in business administration. Divorced, she met Don Schott at school as her “study buddy.”
She completed the program in December 1996 and they married in 1999. She also became a U.S. citizen. “I became a U.S. citizen in 1996, as soon as I became eligible,” she said.
“It’s a land of opportunity,” said Schott, who turns 50 this year.
Learning English was a challenge. The toughest part was learning the proper structure and the multiple meaning of words.
Schott worked her way through the ranks of the Southside Business Men’s Club to earn the top spot. Two more women are in that pipeline toward the presidency.
The 2011 club membership included City Council Vice President Bill Bishop and Council member Lori Boyer, state Rep. Charles McBurney, state Rep. Lake Ray and former state Rep. Dick Kravitz. (This reporter joined in 2008.)
While the club started at the time many organizations didn’t allow women as members, Schott said 90 women have joined. There are no plans among club leadership to change the club’s name.
Schott’s vision for the club includes celebrating its 80th anniversary with a community focus; continuing its work in charity and civic involvement; and highlighting its continued support of children, especially the Youth Achiever Program, and military veterans.
The Southside Business Men’s Club includes members who live or own property in South Jacksonville or do business in the area, defined as the south side of the St. Johns River in Duval County.
About 100 members attend the meetings, which feature programs, auctions and other events, including an opportunity for members to thank other members for doing business together. There also are regular meet-a-member events.
Schott wants members to be excited and involved.
“People come to network,” she said. “They like what we’re all about, having fun and making a difference in people’s lives,” she said.
She wants to draw recognition to the club. “It’s about balance and diversity and giving back and fun,” she said.
356-2466.