Most Influential: Sally White is Roswell's Living Legend

You might have heard her name mentioned, or at least read it on one of many recognition plaques in Roswell parks; either way, when you meet her, you are bound to feel admiration for Roswell's own living legend - Sally White.

White has spent a majority of her life bettering everything within the city limits, but her story starts normal enough. Born at home just a stone’s throw away in Webb, Georgia, Sally lived in Alpharetta until she married her high school sweetheart, Don White, in 1959.

“Don was such a wonderful person,” Sally says. “He was a man of vision and dedication. He did so much for Roswell.”

His stint as a Roswell City Council member made him a valued Roswell resident – so much so that the city even named a fire department facility after him. Sally says she has always been supportive of her husband’s ventures, so when his seat was vacant after his death and projects he had begun were sitting unfinished, people began asking her to fill his shoes.

“I thought I had better sense than to be in politics,” Sally says with a laugh. “It was my son who finally convinced me to go for it. He said, ‘Who better to finish [Don’s] dreams than you?’”

Although she felt under qualified and unequal to the task, Sally ran for office and won, serving six years on city council and heading up multiple projects, such as the senior adult recreation center.

“It was such a loss for me when Don died. I had such a high standard to live up to because he was so much more qualified than me. It wasn’t about me; it was about the citizens of Roswell,” she says.

Proving to others and herself that she was more than capable of not only finishing projects she believed in, but also starting new ones, she also served on the Recreation Commission for seven years and the Roswell Arts Commission. An outspoken, fiercely independent woman, Sally attributes her success to two people in her life: her mother and her husband.

“You look back on a lot of things and they might not be significant, but when I look back on my life, I realized several circumstances made me able to do these things. I was raised by a very strong-willed woman and I married a good man who made me a better person than I wanted to be. I learned so much without knowing I was learning.”

Though she no longer serves on the city council, she still volunteers with many local boards and committees, always focused on her goal of improving Roswell.

An avid traveler who has visited at least 11 countries, Sally likes to bring back ideas from faraway places than inspire her. One example is the covered bridge in Roswell – which came about after she walked through one in Switzerland. Recently returned from a cruise trip to Norway to see the northern lights, Sally survived massive jolt from a rogue wave at sea and being thrown from a dog sled. Her travels aren’t always peaceful, but she has learned to make the most of every experience.

“Enjoy every good thing that you are blessed with. Be passionate about what you do. If you can’t be passionate about it, then do something else. That’s how you get things done. That’s how you make a difference in the world,” she says.