Determination and service are family traits shared by the mother-son duo of Claudette Owens and her son Mayor Michael Owens of Mableton. The two have been serving their community in Cobb County for decades leading Michael to become the first Mayor of Mableton in 2023.
Claudette found her calling in nursing and served at Wellstar Cobb Medical Center from October 1998 to April 2012 when she retired. As we celebrate National Nurses week, she expressed that “once you are a nurse, you are always a nurse.”
During her time at Wellstar, she was a staff nurse and a charge nurse. “I think all nurses probably feel the same way. When our patients come in with chest pain, shortness of breath and chest pains so unstable, it is such a good feeling to care for them and bring them back to good health. That was my reward from Wellstar Cobb Hospital when I served on 2 North.”
At that time, her son Michael was pursuing his dreams and attending college. “If he set his mind to do something, he was going to find a way to do it,” Claudette said. “I think determination was his guiding force.”
On the eve of Mother’s Day weekend, Claudette fondly remembers her son when he was young. “He would bring me little pictures and we would go over them. He played basketball with his friends and brothers and was even into modeling and acting. He always kept me busy too because I was always running him here and there, but it was really fun for me.”
Michael started his life of service as a teenager by joining the United States Marine Corps before going on to college. “He’s always been moving towards something,” she said.
“I joined the Marines at 17. My father was in the Marines and my grandfather was in the Navy. Leadership is an extension of serving my country – I am now serving locally,” Michael said.
After enlisting with the Marines, Michael graduated from high school and went to Paris Island for basic training. He served for eight years and then attended North Carolina A&T State University, Georgia Institute of Technology, Harvard University and the U.S. Army War College. He launched a career in cybersecurity and dedicated time to public service. When Cobb County residents voted to create the City of Mableton in 2022, Michael set his sights on his next chapter of community service.
Michael’s drive and inspiration is evident in his mother. “Before she was a nurse, she opened her own beauty salon in a small town in North Carolina,” he said.
Michael’s fondest memory of his mom is when she became a registered nurse. “She inspired me, and she still inspires me. She has always had an appetite for the world and working hard. She was relentless in wanting the best for us as a wife, mother and daughter. She was constantly trying to be everywhere at the same time.”
As Claudette reflected on her time as a nurse, she recalls, “I was welcomed from the very beginning. I always felt welcome there [at Wellstar] and I still feel that way today.”
Michael shared that some of his mother’s best friends served alongside her.
“I used my vacation time back then to make sure to get our family together,” she remembers describing the summers when she would get her entire family, including five children, their spouses and grandchildren together.
The camaraderie she experienced on the floor with her fellow nurses is memorable. “And we all knew one another’s children even though we didn’t see them, but we knew when there was a graduation or birthday.”
Now that she is retired, Claudette is still active in the Mableton community, attending events and enjoying many of the activities the city has to offer, and spending time in her garden and with her family.
For Michael, his service is about “improving the quality of life for everyone.” With strong role models growing up and in adulthood, he is committed to his community. After spending the first year of his term “putting the blocks together” for the newly established city, he’s excited about Mableton 2045, a comprehensive citywide plan that’s being developed.
“The goal is to come up with a flexible and comprehensive plan to determine how the city is going to change and build,” he explained.
Mableton is now the largest city in Cobb County and home to 80,000 people.
The mayor and his mother will have much to celebrate this Mother’s Day, including their legacy of serving their growing community.
