Erin Hames and her son, Isaac, share a quiet moment with the First Lady of Georgia, Sandra Deal, at Monday’s campaign rally in Cornelia. Erin is a 1999 graduate of Habersham Central High School and now serves as Gov. Nathan Deal’s deputy chief of staff for policy. She is the daughter of Larry and Kathy Lovell of Clarkesville.
To watch her interact with her husband and young son outside the Community House in Cornelia you would never know Erin Hames is connected to so much power at the state capitol. She’s petite, unassuming and polite. Hames doesn’t carry any of the airs we often associate with people who have big titles and, yet, she has one: She’s the Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy for Governor Nathan Deal. Despite the title, and the responsibility that comes with it, Hames is down to earth and accessible.
Parenthood can do that to you. It can burst whatever’s left of the egocentric bubble you’re born in and thrust you into a world of selfless service. Maybe it was motherhood that changed her or, maybe, quite likely, that’s just the way Hames has always been. She’s a hometown girl from Habersham who puts faith and family at the top of her priority list.
Erin Hames – the daughter of Larry and Kathy Lovell of Clarkesville – graduated from Habersham Central High School in 1999. She attended the University of Georgia and graduated magna cum laude from UGA’s College of Education in 2002. From there she moved into the classroom, teaching sixth and eighth grade middle schoolers in Raleigh, North Carolina. A career switch led her to law school at Georgia State University and to the state capitol under the gold dome in Atlanta. Hames joined the Office of the Governor under Sonny Perdue in 2006 and has been at the epicenter of Georgia politics ever since.
Her online bio of achievements is dizzying. Hames served as Perdue’s policy director and education policy advisor. She was executive sponsor for Georgia’s Race to the Top team that successfully secured a $400 million federal grant for the state. In 2011, Hames joined the Office of Georgia Governor Nathan Deal. She led the work to amend the Georgia Constitution to allow for state-authorized charter schools and championed the preservation of Georgia’s HOPE Scholarship and Pre-K program.
Campaigning is a family affair for the Hames family. Originally from Habersham, the family now lives in Atlanta.
Erin Hames is an acomplished policy wonk, and while she says her work is important to her, it’s not the most important thing. “You know, it’s tough. It’s a job of great importance and that requires a lot of hard work but, you know, nothing is more important to me than my faith and my family; those things come first,” she insists.
Hames’ husband Ben also works for the governor. He understands the stressful demands of politics and governance.
Erin and Ben brought their 2-year old son Isaac to a rally that was held Monday for their boss in Cornelia. And while politicians often get accused of acting like two-year olds, this toddler was quite well-behaved. Perhaps that’s because he’s been around the political scene his whole life. “I went through a legislative session and was nine months pregnant on sine die (last day of the session),” Hames says, smiling.
Family is clearly important to her and Hames credits Governor Deal with helping her strike a balance between her professional life and home life. “He’s been incredibly supportive all along the way. He’s made it work every step of the way and has insured I stayed on his team. It would be good if all women had bosses that were as supportive as he is.”
The rigors of such a high profile, high pressure job can be overwhelming. Add to that a bitter political campaign and it can be downright brutal. But Hames appears to take it in stride. In fact, she seems pumped…energized. “It’s such an honor to work for somebody like Governor Deal and, so, it’s a lot of fun to be out on the campaign trail. The hard work is really worth it.”
Not everything about the campaign trail is fun. Political barbs and accusations can get nasty. It’s one thing when you’re on the sidelines, when you don’t have “skin” or “kin” in the game, but when you know the political players personally it’s a different story. “What’s personally difficult is Governor Deal is an incredible man. Anybody that knows him knows that he is kind and compassionate and caring,” says Hames, “and, so, it’s difficult to watch just what happens in political campaigns and to see that up close and personal. He and Mrs. Deal are just incredible role models for us and, so, that’s the difficult part.”
That’s the downside of politics. When asked for an upside Hames says, “For me, I love this state and I just want to be some part of making this great state better.”
While it was not her intention or dream to be in politics back when she was a Raider at Habersham Central High School in the late 90’s, Hames says she’s happy with where life’s road has led her. “My life is really a story of God’s sovereign hand taking me places I never imagined that it would go. I’ve always loved politics. I love public policy and so, you know, it’s not a huge surprise that it ended up somewhere in that realm. But you can’t plan for this,” Hames says, “you just look back and say ‘Thanks, God’ and you’re humbled by it. My goal is to live every day for God to get the glory and for me to do some good through Him.”
As our interview wraps up I ask to take one last picture of Hames and her son. As she hoists Isaac onto her hip the First Lady of Georgia walks into the frame. Sandra Deal reaches out her hand to Isaac and he immediately responds. There is a closeness between them, you can see it in his reaction and hear it in the First Lady’s voice. Deal coos over Isaac in grandmotherly fashion then joins in the picture. The two women – connected by politics, motherhood and hometowns in Habersham – wrap their arms around each other and smile for the camera. It’s a sweet moment on a campaign trail, in a profession, that isn’t always so sweet.
