THOM 1 | Fall / Winter 2013

collaborators
A PEEK INSIDE THE TREEHOUSE
Written by
Madeleine Walker
Photographed by
Anna Bader and
Andrew Sisk
WHETHER IT IS A blanket fort in the living room or a wooden treehouse buried
in the branches of a magnolia, children create a secret place for themselves and
their friends. The makeshift play area becomes a symbol of innocence, a place
where anything can be imagined, with nobody to say that imaginations are too big.
Too often, however, the blanket fort is cleaned up, and the treehouse is filled with
leaves. We all grow up and leave those intimate, safe spaces for bigger and more
competitive spheres. Sometimes, in those spheres, I meet someone who sees my
vision or shares my passion. It’s a light bulb moment, and I wish to pull that person
into the same kind of space so we can talk for hours.
Though for me it is only a desire, Bunny Byrne, Brent Runyon, Haile McCollum,
and Michele Arwood make it their reality. They haven’t let that safe space
disappear. These Thomasville movers and shakers carve out time every
Wednesday to sit next to each other and talk in an old Coca-Cola bottling
building that is now Haile’s office space. During their time together, which Haile
aptly named the “Idea Treehouse,” they discuss ideas that intrigue them, and
their visions for Thomasville. When I get to sit and talk with them, I can’t help
but notice the positive dynamics. Their openness and respect for one another is
infectious; their confidence and progressive energy, palpable.
Haile, an entrepreneur with several successful business ventures under her belt,
is the instigator of this creative collective. Haile’s office space seems to mimic
an actual treehouse with its warm and secluded atmosphere. She explains that
the Idea Treehouse came out of her desire to connect people. “I knew all these
people individually and thought that something cool could happen if they were
brought together to talk.” Haile wanted to create a space for ideas to flourish
without demanding an outcome. There is no agenda. No note taking. Just a sacred
space where, for an hour, each individual sheds their work persona and simply
gets to be.
Listening to them makes me a bit jealous. I want to watch their brains work
together because, in the midst of this data and outcome driven world, the
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