Priscilla Williams Hailey was the president and chief financial officer of the Seattle Medium Newspaper Group for 40 years, until she retired in 2011. Prior to moving to Seattle from Waynesboro, Georgia, Priscilla was an elementary school teacher. When presented with the opportunity to relocate to Seattle and assist her cousin, Christopher H. Bennett, with his new business venture – a black community, weekly newspaper – Priscilla volunteered during a summer break. Priscilla loved Seattle as well as the vision for the enterprise, so she decided to stay in Seattle for the long-term and worked for the company for her entire professional career.
Priscilla earned a Bachelor’s of Science in Business from Savannah State University. After settling in Seattle, she established the business department for the Seattle Medium and was ultimately responsible for significant budgets and all of the businesses under the Seattle Medium umbrella. In addition to facilitating relationships with the local business community and financial institutions, Priscilla was instrumental in acquiring printing contracts for other newspapers in the city, including the University of Washington Daily, Korean Times and Japanese American print publications.
Outside of her day-to-day business responsibilities, Priscilla helped organize and operate Chris Bennett Enterprises Charities, a non-profit corporation, to help the less fortunate in the Seattle-Tacoma area. Under this organization, thousands of dollars in scholarships were awarded to college students, tons of food was collected to help feed the needy and thousands of coats and toys have been donated to families in the area over the years. Priscilla volunteered much of her time to Soul Festival, an event that brought the community together annually to support small area businesses and enjoy music, food and culture.
Although Priscilla retired in 2011 to the Washington DC metropolitan area to be closer to her two daughters and four grandchildren, she continues to serve as a business consultant to the Seattle Medium. Priscilla is an active participant in the Savannah State University alumni association for Washington DC/Maryland and the Harmony Hall senior’s organization. Her greatest joy is spending her free-time with her young grandchildren.
