Peter Taunton made one woman very happy last month. The CEO of Snap Fitness, Chanhassen, MN, traveled to Albany, GA, with Snap Fitness COO Gary Findley on Oct. 11 to present a Snap Fitness franchise worth $250,000 to Charlice Noble-Jones, the winner of the Partner with Peter contest conducted by Snap Fitness.
More than 2,000 people entered the contest, which required people to share why they thought they would be a good Snap Fitness franchisee. Noble-Jones, a teacher at Lamar Reese Magnet School of the Arts, had quite a story to tell. The Howard University graduate was working on Wall Street at the time of the 9-11 attacks. Two years later, she lost her husband to pancreatic cancer. In his last few days of his life, her husband made her promise to move on with her life and start to plan and dream, Noble-Jones told WCCO-TV in Minneapolis. He made her promise that she and her son, Preston, would be happy.
Those words spurred Noble-Jones to spend her life giving back to her community. She became a fourth grade social studies teacher. She also began exercising to improve her physical fitness. Her fitness journey spurred her to dream of owning a gym where she could help others.
“I’m shocked, I’m excited, I’m so extremely happy,” Noble-Jones said in a release from Snap Fitness. “Things have happened in my life like the other shoe has fallen, but this has such a positive impact. I believe that I’m about to live the life I was born to live.”
Taunton will work with Noble-Jones on a monthly basis monitoring her marketing and sales. She plans to continue teaching for a couple of years while she gets her business off the ground.
“As an entrepreneur myself, I know the importance of guidance for anyone embarking on a new business venture,” Taunton said in the release. “This contest gives me a great chance to pass along my knowledge and business experience to one deserving individual.”
The prize includes the building, equipment, site selection, initial rent and working capital to get Noble-Jones started.
Noble-Jones’ club is scheduled to open in mid-January, according to Patrick Strait, communications manager for Snap Fitness. She and her manager recently went through Snap University training.