The Last Page is dedicated to individuals who are making a positive impact on the LGBTQ community in Central Florida and Tampa Bay.
This issue, we check in with Bowled Over Promotions owners Lisa Brown and Dawn Kallio from Orlando. Keep an eye on this space to learn more about the movers and shakers of your community.
Hometown: Dawn was raised in New Port Richey, Florida and moved to Orlando in 1992. Lisa’s father was in the military and retired here when she was in the third grade and calls Orlando her hometown.
Identify As: Lesbians
Pronouns: She, Her, Hers
Out Year: Lisa in 1986, Dawn in 1997
Profession: Co-owners of Bowled Over Promotions
Professional role model: Barbara Corcoran
Autobiography Title: “We’ll take vacations and experiences over possessions every time”
Hobbies: Golf, boating, reading and travel
What do you do professionally?
As owners of Bowled Over Promotions we team up with businesses and organizations for all their promotional branding needs. With 13 years of experience in the industry, we understand the value of promotional advertising and the importance of finding the right products and apparel to represent the organizations brand and marketing message.
How do you champion for the local LGBTQ community?
Much of what we have been able to do is through our business. We recently hosted The Pride Charity Golf Challenge to raise money for our local nonprofits. Lisa loves to create fun events, so she is always thinking of new ways to engage and bring people together. We have also been able to help raise funds for nonprofit organizations on the fly after things like the marriage equality decision and Pulse.
What is your favorite thing to read in Watermark?
Our favorite things to read are that issue’s cover article and the Out & About page.
What is your favorite local LGBTQ event?
Come Out with Pride and now the Pride Charity Golf Challenge!
What is your favorite thing about the local LGBTQ community?
Certainly, the diversity of our community is amazing, but the size of it is also great. With such a large LGBTQ community there is no end to opportunities available in sports, arts, organizations, friendships etc. It’s comforting to see how our LGBTQ family supports each other with our various needs and endeavors.
What would you like to see improved in the local LGBTQ community?
That’s a tough one since we feel very blessed to be part of a very diverse and supportive community. Perhaps maybe better communication regarding scheduling of events, it’s hard to do everything there is to do.
What would you like our readers to know about you?
We both love this city and love the community. Lisa participates in many city related activities to make an impact where she can. We are both actively involved in The Pride Chamber that has played a key role in our business success. Giving back as much as we can is important to us both.
What advice would you give your younger self?
Start saving sooner and learn as much as you can about as many things as you can.
What is a reward and a challenge going into business with your spouse?
Working together has been a great experience for us. While it’s not for everyone, we have created the perfect work environment for both of us. We have separate offices so Lisa can listen to music, Dawn can keep tabs on the news. We are very good at communicating with each other so even in difficult situations we can work through them easily. We haven’t experienced too many challenges, though in the early years of the business we did have to set some “off clock” guidelines to ensure that the business didn’t consume too much of our personal time or attention.
