| Greg Vital has lived in Hamilton County for 50 years, all in the Ooltewah-Georgetown area. An entrepreneur and job creator who enjoyed remarkable success serving senior citizens in five states over the past 25 years. Greg has established a legacy of giving back to the community as a private citizen.
Now, he wants to give more by entering public service in the Tennessee General Assembly.
Greg co-founded Morning Pointe Senior Living with Franklin Farrow 25 years ago after starting his career in healthcare as an executive with a national healthcare provider. Morning Pointe owns and operates 35 senior living and Alzheimer's facilities in five southern states, six in Hamilton County and four within District 29. As a person who has signed both sides of paychecks, Greg's company employs more than 400 people in Hamilton County and more than 900 in Tennessee.
The past 14 months demonstrate Greg's character and experience. In April of 2020, two of his facilities on Shallowford Road, part of District 29, were heavily damaged as an EF3 tornado swept through eastern Hamilton County. Thanks to his leadership and ability to manage a crisis, no lives were lost as residents of the facilities were moved to a safe place in the middle of the night. Now, with the "Morning Pointe Strong" attitude, Greg and Franklin have rebuilt the facilities so they can continue to serve seniors in Hamilton County. At the same time, Greg led his employees through the COVID-19 crisis, staying ahead of the curve in implementing safety protocols to protect the health of his residents and employees.
His dedication to protecting the land was evident as he placed his 300-acre Georgetown farm into the Land Trust for Tennessee. Greg was recognized in June 2021 by the Tennessee Wildlife Federation with its Tennessee Wildlife Conservationist Achievement Award.
Greg is the current chairman of the Land Trust for Tennessee and former chairman of the National Parks Conservation Association. He is a past recipient of the Daughters of American Revolution Historic Preservation Medal and the 2000 Farm of the Year by the Hamilton County Soil & Conservation District. Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park awarded Greg the Drew Haskins Award for outstanding service to national parks and support of the park's volunteer program. He has served on the board of the Friends of Moccasin Bend National Park and the Tennessee Aquarium.
His love for the land and farms propelled Greg to champion property rights and oppose the abusive use of eminent domain. He is a founding member of the Collegedale Tomorrow Foundation and a major contributor to the creation of The Commons in Collegedale.
Despite his vast accomplishments in conservation, Greg may be best known for the Vital Buffalo Farm in Georgetown and the annual October celebration of Native American history held at the Buffalo Farm. Greg protected the land in 2006 as part of The Land Trust's first conservation easement in Southeast Tennessee. In 2019, Greg protected additional land with the organization when he and his neighbors partnered to conserve 114-acres of farmland in the Harrison community.
As strong as his passion is for the land, Greg is equally committed to education and promoting the education required to succeed in business. In 2013, he was inducted into the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga College of Business Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame. Greg is an active member of the college of business and serves on the board of the UC Foundation. In addition, Greg has been a strong advocate for community colleges and vocational education through endowed scholarships at Chattanooga State, co-chairing for nine years the First in the Family program and as a board member of the Foundation for the College System of Tennessee, a part of the Tennessee Board of Regents. The Greg A. Vital Center for Natural Resources and Conservation was established at Cleveland State Community College and was funded by Greg and supports the Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries Program.
Greg serves on the board of First Horizon Bank and held a six-year term on the Erlanger Board of Trustees. Greg holds a business degree from Southern Adventist University.
He previously served a four-year term on the Collegedale City Commission. He has received the Tennessee Republican Party's "Statesman of the Year" for Tennessee's Third District in 2018 and received the "Chairman's Award" from the Hamilton County Republican Party in 2016 for his continual support of the party's annual Lincoln Day Dinner.
Greg resides on Lake Chickamauga at Ware Branch. He enjoys working on his Georgetown Buffalo Farm, the outdoors, hiking and water sports. He has visited 340 sites in the U.S. National Park system. |