New Frontier: How Family History Shapes Scout Holdings Group

Whether she’s exploring the great outdoors with her kids or purchasing a property that others might easily dismiss, Scout Holdings CEO Jamie Carr has never been afraid of a little risk. 

“It’s in my DNA to take calculated risks,” Carr said. “Just look at my grandparents.”

Meet Jim and Bernece Davis. They met at a state fair in Tennessee, fell in love and soon after were married. Motivated to make a good life for themselves, they followed the Homestead Act and moved to Alaska, a land promised to have acres of rich potential.

“This was before it was even a state,” she said. “They heard that homesteading was a chance for folks with nothing to be self-reliant.”

Jim Davis was clever. “Do you know the saying, ‘During the gold rush, it’s a good time to be in the pick and shovel business?’ Well, my grandparents lived by that,” she said.

In the small town of Seward, there were few attractions for Alaska residents to enjoy, so Jim and Bernece Davis opened a bowling alley—with a twist. Their bowling alley had drinking. Needless to say, it was a huge success.

“It was like the last frontier, “ said Carr. Jim and Bernece jumped at opportunities, took initiative and, most importantly to Carr, took the risk. 

Though her grandparents would ultimately move back to the South, Carr was born in Alaska. The state has remained a second home to her.

That spirit of the homestead, one of persistence and adaptability, influences Scout Holdings Group even today. “I believe in committing time and energy into this work, in thinking it all through. That’s what the business requires.”

The dedication Jim and Bernece paid to their dreams and work inspires Carr’s company, as well as how she parents her children. “I teach my kids the value of a dollar and show that hard work is pivotal in stretching that dollar,” she said. 

Carr credits her grandparents’ story and generational wisdom as key to developing the work ethic she shows now to Scout Holdings Group. “These stories are really tools,” she shared, “to build the lives we want.”