Teacher and surgeon
Developers
Passionate collectors
Patrons of the arts

To visit the home of Dr. Walter and Linda Evans is to enter a world of amazing art, intellect and gracious warmth. There, you’ll have a glimpse of one of the world’s largest private collections of African-American art, most of which tours premier U.S. museums and galleries. Their equally impressive collection of African-American books and documents reveals such gems as a piece of W.C. Handy music with a note penned to Fats Waller.

Walter was born in Savannah but spent his career in the North, where he developed his interest in African-American art and began his magnificent collection in 1979. He established his surgical practice – and met Linda, his delightful wife – in Detroit. They moved to Savannah’s historic district in 2001.

Hollywood movie producer
Purveyor of fine ice cream

Talk about Savannah’s diverse characters! Stratton Leopold has produced such well-known films as Mission Impossible III, The General’s Daughter and The Sum of All Fears. He also scoops the best ice cream you’ll ever taste at Leopold’s Ice Cream in the hot Broughton Street neighborhood.

Born and raised in Savannah, Stratton learned the family’s secret ice cream recipe from his Greek immigrant father and uncle, who opened the original Leopold’s together in 1919. The ice cream shop remained a favorite gathering place for locals until the 1970s. Stratton left Savannah in his 20’s to seek his fortune, but often dreamed of reopening the store. In 2004, he used his father’s secret recipes to make Leopold’s super-premium ice cream once again. He recreated the inviting atmosphere at the store, which includes the original soda fountain as well as movie posters and photos from Stratton’s other world.

Executive and Artistic Director, Savannah Music Festival

Rob Gibson came to Savannah after serving as the founding director of Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York City, which during his 10 years of guidance was described by the Times of London as “the most prestigious organization of its kind in the world.” Working with Artistic Director Wynton Marsalis, Rob created and produced programs in more than 30 countries.

Now, Rob applies his vision and performing arts experience to enhance Savannah’s cultural scene. Lured here by both the opportunity to be part of the city’s arts evolution and to raise his family in his home state of Georgia, he believes that Savannah is a great cultural destination and a very desirable place to work and live.

World travelers
World-renowned physicians

“Savannah is very cosmopolitan. There’s a rich diversity of culture, and we’ve made a strong network of friends,” notes Dr. William Hoskins, senior vice president of oncology and research at Savannah’s Memorial Health University Medical Center. “Yet it’s the smallest city we’ve ever lived in!”

The Hoskins host old friends from afar quite often. “They say, ‘I’ve always wanted to see Savannah,’” says Iffath Hoskins (like her husband, an internationally known physician). “Our daughter especially loves to come visit, because she’s very involved in the arts and enjoys the galleries.”

Licensed acupuncturist
Doctor of Chinese medicine

Fawm Smiley is originally from the South, but spent much of her adult life in the west…and much further east. She attended the University of California at Berkeley, where she studied anthropology and developed a love of Eastern culture. Then, she pursued adventures in India, Peru, Burma, Malaysia and Borneo. In 1999, she returned to Savannah.

Impressed and intrigued by Eastern medical care, she studied at San Francisco’s American Academy for Traditional Chinese Medicine and apprenticed with Dr. Tao, a renowned neurosurgeon and acupuncturist in Savannah. She now practices in her downtown Savannah office and specializes in women’s health.

Software developers
Coastal explorers

In early 2004, Kate and Bradley Taylor were in southern California, where the water was cold and the cost of living was high. “We woke up one day and said, ‘What are we doing here?’” Kate recalls. “We were working long hours. There wasn’t much balance in our lives.”

They relocated to Savannah seeking that balance, and to get closer to their families (his in Florida, hers in the Carolinas).

Kate kept her job with a company that develops information systems for mapping and spatial analysis. Bradley “went freelance” as a web developer. “The irony is, I think we work even more now, since I started my own business,” he laughs.