A proud product of North Memphis — the same historic district that has witnessed countless of inner city individuals savor sustained success — Ford attended Shannon Elementary, Cypress Jr. High, and Frayser Kingsbury High Schools before enrolling at nearby Bethel University.
HER TIME IS NOW — A native Memphian and a longtime Shelby County Government employee, Shelandra Ford will be afforded the golden opportunity to add to her quest to assume Register of Deeds in the coming election May 1. The early voting period is from April 11-26.
“I have been here with the people of Shelby County throughout our struggle,” Ford, during a recent interview with Making Headline News, said while recalling her upbringing in her native establishment.
For what it’s worth, Ford had deemed it essential somewhere along the way to demonstrate to the citizens of Memphis that she is destined to become an even greater ambassador for a city that is in dire need of change, particularly from a political standpoint.
“It is time to make a change,” Ford has said with such authority time and again on her Facebook page in recent weeks.
It is, by all accounts, because the Memphis-metropolitan area is longing for an array of favorable changes that Ford has announced her quest to assume the Shelby County Register of Deeds seat in the upcomingelection.
“Hey, friends and family, I need your support,” Ford said in social media post last week. “I’m the only minority candidate for the Register of Deeds Office.”
If Ford is fortunate enough to attract a majority of the African-American votes when all of the area precincts report their final figures on May 1 (the official election date) then, chances are, she will emerge victorious after vying for her very first political seat on this, the first attempt for the Shelby County Democratic candidate.
The early voting period is from April 11-26.
“Claiming my office,” Ford wrote in a Facebook post just after midday CST on Tuesday.
FIRST PLACE, FIRST TIME — If Ford is fortunate enough to attract a majority of the African-American votes when all of the area precincts report their final figures on May 1 (the official election date) then, chances are, she will emerge victorious after vying for her very first political seat on her first attempt.
In her quest to claim Register of Deeds, she will undoubtedly need thousands of fellow Memphians to help steer her to victory by showing up in massive numbers at the polls in the coming weeks.
If nothing else, amongst the things on which Ford can surely hang her hat is that she’s armed with some much-needed home field advantage, of sorts, as Election Day 2018 looms.
For starters, Ford is currently a Principal Court Clerk for Shelby County Government Civil Court.
In addition, she’s responsible for allocating what is known as an even workflow, during which she customarily interacts with various department managers to ensure that work is completed efficiently and in a timely manner.
A Shelby County Government tenure that spans nearly two decades, Ford’s professional stint officially began on May 21, 1998, during which she served as a Clerical Specialist for the Shelby County Health Department.
LEAST SHE FORGET — Displayed is one of Ford’s favorite quotes, one that was uttered by iconic Civil Rights giant, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
To her credit, Ford advanced and worked diligently in several departments for the government, most notably when she was appointed by the Shelby County Board of Commissioners to the Shelby County Unified Personnel Policy Committee as Employee Representative.
Interestingly, Ford is the owner and chief executive officer of the Mid-South-area Creative Graphic Designs, Inc.
As for her quest to assume the Register of Deeds Office, Ford provided the citizens of Shelby County with a strategic, effective synopsis of her notable policies that will include, among other things:
Ensuring that any additional IT investments made by the taxpayers of Shelby County are well spent and that her Access for All initiative is her No. 1 priority.
Forming a community-based engagement task force that will appropriately explain in great detail the paperwork processes for the Registers Office
Working diligently with other Clerk Offices and community groups to ensure all fees are collected for the sole purposes of benefiting taxpayers and,
Ensuring that the Register’s Office Staff will have an advocate before the Board of Commissioners, particularly when it comes to wage increases, as well as a strong advocate for ensuring every customer of the Register’s Office is met with respect and treated with dignity.
WHERE IT ALL STARTED — Ford’s mother.
“Again, these are just a few things Ms. Shelandra Ford will implement upon being sworn in on Sept. 1,” a spokesperson for Ford’s campaign told Making Headline News.
Oh, and let’s not forget what Ford appropriately outlined as her assortment of “campaign goals,” which include, but aren’t limited to:
Being an advocate for the Shelby County community.
Building better communication between the Deeds Office and the people of Shelby County.
Creating new, innovative ideas to help educate, empower, and enliven the Shelby County community and,
Improving efficiency of database information and providing customer friendly options for filing private documents.
CAST YOUR VOTE — All things considered, if things go her way during what is shaping up to be an intense campaign for this proud and beloved Memphian, many of Ford’s supporters believe she could very well deny all odds, thus emerge as the next Shelby County Register of Deeds.
All things considered, if things go her way during what is shaping up to be an intense campaign for this proud and beloved Memphian, many of Ford’s supporters believe she could very well deny all odds, thus emerge as the next Shelby County Register of Deeds.
“She’s truly a public servant,” said a spokesperson for Ford’s campaign.
A repetitive catchphrase that, to her credit, has been uttered by Shelby County Government for nearly the past two decades.
Which, fortunately for Ford as she lobbies for her first political seat, is just the kind of unyielding support she needs as she enters this jam-packed race with some much-needed homefield advantage.
Talk about a change for the better for a city she’s pleading to work together.
MEMPHIAN SHELANDRA FORD AT A GLIMPSE:
Principal Court Clerk with Shelby County General Sessions Civil Court
Shelby County Unified Personnel Policy Committee Employee Representative
Civil Service positions within Shelby County since 1998
“JUST SAY YES” Youth Empowerment Program
Owner of Creative Graphic Designs Inc.
Kingsbury High School Graduate
Bethel University (Class of Summer 2018)
Member of Christ In You Faith Temple
EDITOR’S NOTE:If you are an entrepreneur, business owner, producer, author, athlete, musician, barber, life coach, motivational speaker, cosmetologist, tax preparer, model, or pastor/minister who is seeking exposure and would like to share your story with an in-depth news feature, call Reporter Andre Johnson at 901-690-6587 or Facebook message him under “Andre T. Johnson” for details.
Andre Johnson is Founder and Publisher for Making Headline News. A 2000 graduate of the University of Memphis School of Journalism and a former staff reporter the Memphis Commercial Appeal newspaper, Johnson covers the NBA Southwest Division from Dallas, Texas. To reach Johnson, send email to andre@makingheadlinenews.com or to memphisgraduate@yahoo.com. Also, follow him on Twitter @AJ_Journalist.
ABOUT ANDRE: Andre Johnson is a longtime sports journalist and a 2000 graduate of the University of the Memphis with Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism. A native of Memphis, Johnson is a former sport reporter Memphis Commercial Appeal newspaper and Memphis Sport Magazine. He worked as full-time staffer for The Commercial Appeal from 2000-2002, in which he was the beat reporter for the Memphis Houn’dawgs of now-defunct American Basketball Assocation and the Memphis Xplorers of the arenafootball2 league. He has interviewed numerous sports personalities, most notably Archie Manning, LeBron James, George “Iceman” Gervin, Issac Bruce, Laila Ali, Vince Carter, Paul Westphal, Phil Jackson, Ken Hamlin, Cortez Kennedy, Michael Oher, Kobe Bryant, Chris Douglas-Roberts, Marc Gasol, Dwight Howard, James Harden, Patrick Willis, Stanley Morgan, Dirk Nowitzki, Rick Carlisle, Mark Cuban, Carmelo Anthony, Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, Rudy Gay, John Force, Lamar Odom, Alexandra Stevenson, Derek Fisher, Penny Hardaway, Phillip Rivers, Colin Kaepernick, Jim Harbaugh, Tyreke Evans, Kirk Ferentz, and O. J. Mayo, among others. To reach Johnson, send email to: memphisgraduate@yahoo.com. Also, follow him on Twitter @AJ_Journalist.
Andre Johnson 
“Hey, friends and family, I need your support,” Ford said in social media post last week. “I’m the only minority candidate for the Register of Deeds Office.”
EDITOR’S NOTE: If you are an entrepreneur, business owner, producer, author, athlete, musician, barber, life coach, motivational speaker, cosmetologist, tax preparer, model, or pastor/minister who is seeking exposure and would like to share your story with an in-depth news feature, call Reporter Andre Johnson at 901-690-6587 or Facebook message him under “Andre T. Johnson” for details.
