Moving back to her hometown, Rachel Botts Schoenholz was pleasantly surprised. She works as a graphic designer for Taylor Strategy. CONTRIBUTED

MADISON – After two years in North Carolina, Rachel Botts Schoenholz and husband Carl recently moved back to her hometown.

“I honestly loved North Carolina and was a little hesitant in returning home. It felt like a back step. I was afraid coming home I’d feel stuck in the past and have no room to grow,” she said.

However, Rachel was pleasantly surprised. “So much has changed in the past couple years. The area feels much more inviting for people our age. While I quickly felt comfortable, it also has felt like a new season in our life much different than my previous time in Madison,” she said.

Madison “maintains Southern charm while still keeping up with the times and staying modern. It feels like a small town when I enter a grocery store and see five people I know but also feels young and modern with attractions like Bridge Street Town Centre near by,” Schoenholz said.

A graduate of Bob Jones High School, Rachel earned a bachelor’s degree in graphic design at Auburn University.

Rachel’s husband Carl Schoenholz works as Associate Director of Student Ministries at Asbury United Methodist Church. Her parents are Dr. Mike and Mary Lynn Botts. Mike owns Botts Innovative Research and Mary Lynn is “doer of everything,” Rachel said. Her brother Drew of Huntsville works as a pattern designer for Billy Reid.

“Being a graphic designer, I love finding other ways to use my creativity,” Rachel said about decorating their new house. “I also enjoy hand-lettering/calligraphy, binge-watching reality TV shows and hosting Carl’s youth group at our house for board game nights,” she said.

Rachel works remotely for Taylor Strategy public relations firm. “I was thrilled to continue working with Taylor Strategy,” she said. Her clients include Allstate, Van Heusen, Panera, Friskies and Mercedes Benz. “My college self would never have believed it.”

Her taste in music leans to pop and folk for Ben Rector, Drew and Ellie Holcomb and Andy Grammer, along with worship music from Hillsong, Bethel and Rend Collective.

Rachel and Carl enjoy eating out at Bento Box and Moe’s. They own two cats, Flick and Scout.