Alumnus named among 50 Most Influential People
Ray Lattimore
The magazine described Lattimore as “one of the Upstate’s strongest advocates of entrepreneurialism and minority business growth.” Lattimore joined a list of leaders who made significant contributions that shaped Greenville’s business and community landscape in 2011.
Beyond dreams to potential
Lattimore entered Southern Wesleyan University with dreams of his own, but realized a potential far beyond what he could have imagined. He is founder and president of Marketplace Staffing Services, a Greenville-based company that has grown into the Carolinas, Georgia, Virginia and Ohio. Lattimore is a community leader, serving on numerous boards and foundations.
The first in his family to enter college, Lattimore came to Southern Wesleyan on a basketball scholarship. But his dream was to go pro in basketball.
What Lattimore learned at Southern Wesleyan was invaluable – moving him beyond the basics academically and preparing him for a career as well as shaping him spiritually. He realized going pro in basketball would not have allowed him to reach his fullest potential. He is now serving people all over the Mid-Atlantic and South.
“Southern Wesleyan changed my life, taught me how to love and brought me closer to Christ,” Lattimore said, adding that the chapel services heattended impacted his life and brought him closer to God.
“We had some of the best business professors. They not only knew business but they owned businesses themselves,” he said. Lattimore admits the program was tough but is grateful for how it stretched him and made him appreciate the areas of accounting and finance.
“A business is all about the numbers. There are different languages in the world, but the universal language is numbers,” he said.
“Rock solid” is the way Lattimore describes his degree program, noting that his professors helped him reach his potential.