She Does It All

By: Chelsea Good

When describing Michelle Somes-Booher, it’s easier to list the things she isn’t involved in than the things she is. Somes-Booher was raised in Mt. Pleasant and chose to stay here to start her family and her career. She is a graduate of Central Michigan University who has chosen to dedicate her time to making Mt. Pleasant a better place for all of us.

Somes-Booher is a professor in CMU’s management department. Teaching courses such as women in management, she develops relationships with her students and gives them the skills they need to achieve their career goals.

One of Somes-Booher’s own career goals was always to own her own business. She achieved that goal in 2004 when she opened Lets Do the Dishes, a paint your own pottery studio.

“I think Mt. Pleasant is a small town that wants to be a bigger town,” says Somes-Booher. “Most people are looking for unique opportunities and I saw a potential market with paint your own pottery.”

Through Lets Do the Dishes, Somes-Booher has given the Mt. Pleasant community a place to gather with friends and family and unleash their creativity in a relaxed friendly atmosphere.

“I have always wanted to own my own business and of course Mt. Pleasant was logical
since we had become established here,” says Somes-Booher. She employs several CMU students and tries to incorporate skills they are learning in their classes into their work at Lets Do The Dishes.

Somes-Booher uses her business to give back to the community. Events such as “Think Pink!”, a breast cancer awareness benefit at Lets Do The Dishes, and participation in local causes such as “Girls On The Run” allow Somes-Booher to grow her business and give back to her community. “We try to invest with causes that touch us directly,” she says.

Somes-Booher feels it is absolutely necessary for locally owned small businesses to be involved in the community. “Besides,” she says, “it is just the right thing to do to give back to those who help you.”

Somes-Booher does more than her fair share of giving back. She is the co-chair of youth ministry and education at the First United Methodist Church of Mt. Pleasant. She is a member of the Women in Business and Leadership Committee and a Junior Achievement leader. Somes-Booher is also a member of the PTO at Fancher Elementary School, where her life’s greatest achievement, her son Charlie, is a fifth grader.

Those who know Michelle Somes-Booher will be the first to tell you that she is one “cool person”. Every community should be so lucky to have people that care as much and work as hard as Michelle.