Ellington

Lynda Hood is the kind of person that can be tough to take if you haven’t had your morning cup of coffee. She thinks fast and talks even faster. Every idea, casual exchange or formal presentation is delivered with an unwavering gusto, an energy that has helped her beat cancer, run the Chattanooga Bar Association and become one of the community’s most effective boosters.

“My secretary always tells me, ‘Lynda, you’re wearing me out,’” she says, giggling. “People ask me, ‘Do you always have to be so chipper?’”

Hood, who sits on the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga’s Chancellor’s Roundtable with prominent leaders like retired Army General B.B. Bell, Erlanger CEO Jim Brexler and Chattanooga Mayor Ron Littlefield, says her notorious spunk will be on full display at UTC’s homecoming events, where as a fanatical Mocs cheerleader she may or may not embarrass her 14-year-old daughter, Lauren.

She rarely sits or stands without screaming at games, she confesses. Though a University of Tennessee Knoxville graduate, few things have been more exciting for Hood than watching the UTC football team turn its losing streak around during the past year. “It’s so fun to see,” says Hood. “Those players are just so humble. You just really want to support them. I am from Chattanooga, and I feel like I am supporting the community by supporting UTC.”

Having grown up on Signal Mountain, she says it’s been exciting to watch the hometown university, once a small commuter college, improve and change.

“The school is growing by leaps and bounds,” she says. Rooting for an underdog comes natural for Hood, who never seems discouraged by challenges. A survivor of stage-four breast cancer, she tells people she’s glad she went through the terrifying experience because it’s allowed her to help others facing cancer.

Hood spends much of her time reaching out to friends and community members dealing with the pain and anxiety brought on by cancer. “You learn a lot about yourself when you go through it,” she says. “I wanted to live and I fought to live. I’ve been blessed, and I am thankful I went through it.”

Hood’s indifference to obstacles extends to her work and community involvement.

As executive director of the Chattanooga Bar Association— a post she has held for 16 years—Hood is the front person for the official organization of 893 area lawyers.

Among her challenges: “Help them stop working long enough to have some fun,” she says. “We want to focus on quality of life issues. It’s just stress all the time, and all they hear is problems. They brag about working 24 hours a day, seven days a week.”

In June, Hood was brave enough to compete in Dancing with the Stars Chattanooga, which raised money for the Partnership for Families, Children and Adults. Besides training for 15 weeks and stumbling over steps to the cha cha, swing and jive, she managed to raise $7,900 for the Partnership’s sexual assault center while edging out five other participants to become the “fan favorite.”

“It meant a lot to me because I could raise that money,” says Hood, who continues to take foxtrot and rumba lessons, and plans to take her husband, Michael, out on the dance floor soon. “It was a challenge against myself. I would love to be a competitive dancer. It’s fun. It’s just fun.”