Gazelles in Our Midst: Tracy Finney Achieving Goals

Tracy Finney made the most of her time at home during COVID restrictions by achieving a decades-old dream.

She got her high school diploma at age 52. When the opportunity to finish her education came through the Goodwill Excel Center program, she was able to complete it from the comfort of her own home.

Not having her diploma was always a void for her, but life kept getting in the way: She had her first child when she was 15, and her son was very ill and often in the hospital.

“I would go to school from the hospital; I never dropped out, and actually, I was over-credited,” Finney said. “But my counselor waited until a week before graduation to tell me I was missing a half credit requirement in history. I found myself angry, and due to having a sick child, I did not attend summer school to get the required grade.”

By the time she was 21, she had three children, which kept her busy, and going back to school wasn’t an option.

“And I was in an abusive marriage for 10 years, which sent me into hiding, and I was forced to live in a shelter with my three children,” Finney said.

Then, she was diagnosed with an early stage of cervical cancer at age 25, but has been cancer-free since having surgery.

Though there were plenty of obstacles in her path, her goal was to keep pushing through with the determination to be the best mother she could be – no matter what.

She worked at St. Louis Children’s Hospital for eight years, then became severely allergic to Latex, forcing her to leave her job.

“I always worked two or three jobs to provide for my children,” she said. “When I became ill, my doctor diagnosed me as disabled, and I was off work for a few years until I decided that wasn’t a life for me. I became a manager at a storage facility.”

Then a life-changing experience set her on a new path as a business owner, when she opened Tracys Treasures in March 2010.

“I started in my home and doing vendor events, and opened a store in 2013,” she said.

That journey started with a prayer.

“I watched all three of my children become successful, so I started to wonder what I would do with my life. I spent personal time praying to God for direction,” she said.

Then, while in Tunica, Mississippi with her husband, Willie, and some friends, they visited a flea market.

“My husband was about to buy me a handbag, and I had an out-of-body experience – the first time experiencing the voice of God, saying ‘Why would you buy that when you can do that yourself?’ Yes, it was weird, tears rolling down my face, and my husband thought I was losing it!” she said.

Finney ended up telling her husband that she was going home to sell handbags. She got her license two days later, resigned from her job three months later, and the rest is history.

During COVID, she closed her brick-and-mortar store on Cherokee Street, but the company is still online at shoptracystreasures.com, and Finney said she continues to do well. She also holds live selling events on Facebook at 2 p.m. on Saturdays, and 7 p.m. on Tuesdays. She has always operated the business on her own. Willie, her husband of nearly 20 years, is an electrician at Mallinckrodt and Bellerive Country Club.

Her son, Marvin Mitchell, is a financial advisor and retirement coach, and owner of Compass Retirement Solutions in St. Louis, where Finney’s daughter, Octavia Jackson, also works. Finney’s other daughter, Diamond Hall, is a professional photographer in Nashville.