The birth mother of The SouthWay Foundation is Mississippi-native, Belinda Stewart. Belinda is a country girl at heart, growing up in the village of Walthall. Her rural upbringing instilled in her an optimism and perseverance about the land around her, her career, and the impact she wanted to make. After completing her thesis on vernacular architecture at Mississippi State University, by age twenty-eight, she started her own firm that specialized in historic preservation. In 1995 she helped co-found a state-wide heritage preservation non-profit; two years later she became mayor of the village she grew up in; and in 2013 she was recognized as a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects (FAIA) for her outstanding contributions to the profession. Decade after decade, this consummate leader keeps innovating. In 2021, her passion project to create an independent non-profit organization that reinforced her commitment to the South and her motto that “There’s Always a Way,” culminated in SouthWay.