Our Founder

Founder & CEO

 

Our Founder, Tom Meeks Sr. career started his career at an early age after high school when he entered the U.S. Navy as a Journalist and directed the public information office for an anti-submarine warfare squadron and then on board the USS Forrestal, the first super aircraft carrier. Following his service, he entered Memphis State University majoring in Journalism and Marketing with a minor in philosophy.   

Background and Experience Summary

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From there, Meeks career has included senior positions in marketing and management with national companies including Holiday Inns, Inc., Beverly Enterprises, Inc. and in association with top marketing and advertising companies followed by the development of his own successful marketing and business development company. During his career Meeks has also provided senior management support to a wide variety of national companies including strategic business consultation, research analysis, and planning to reposition and successfully remarket the Brand of failing businesses on a market-by-market basis to get them back on track for profitable growth and asset enhancement. His most recent business consulting position led to Meeks becoming Chief Operating Officer of Outdoor Communication Structures, Inc. When he accepted that position the company’s assets were valued at a little less than $5 million. Recently, after five years, that company sold its billboard assets for $15 million.

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Business Philosophy and Approach

During his career, Meeks has performed senior consultation and

management support to client companies which normally included a

strategic business analysis, brand positioning, and development of a

business and marketing strategy and plan. The guiding principle that

he always follows to achieve the greatest potential for a given business

venture, is that it is necessary to first do the research and development

work necessary to create a comprehensive Business Plan. Quite

simply his approach is “Plan the Work” and then “Work the Plan!”

before launching any new incremental business activity.

 

Another guiding principle that Meeks has followed since his early years

in the U.S. Navy is to always invest some part of his time and resources in

whatever way possible to give something back to his community in some sort of public service manner to meet individual and community needs for the benefit and good of all.

 

Overtime this has included working with youth groups in various compacities along with his Church and various civic groups in his community. In the recent past, Meeks has worked with his Knights of Columbus group as one of its leaders to develop a multi-year fundraising program to provide various equipment and services to special needs children in the local county schools where he lived at the time. While the annual county school budget was large there was no funding available to provide for development equipment for children in their special needs program.

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It was this program working with the county school system that first gave

Meeks the idea to find an ongoing business way to generate needed

public school funds for such educational needs not covered by the standard

school budgets. While working with the billboard company he recently

managed, he got the idea to find a way to work within that industry to

support public schools for all ages throughout Georgia to provide funds

to meet unaddressed educational needs at the classroom level to provide

whatever was needed to enhance the school environment and program

to provide the best experience for the children.

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VISTA MEDIA, Inc. Public Service Focused Media Centers™

 

A direct outgrowth of that experience is VISTA MEDIA, Inc. where one of

our top priorities is to utilize our commercial advertising vehicle to generate incremental funds and market exposure for schools locally and eventually throughout the state of Georgia. While this has been done in the past with “on-premise” billboards, it has not been addressed in a comprehensive and consistent manner to produce the maximum potential as a fundraiser for public schools that Meeks believes is there. Within this website and through direct personal contact you can learn how by identifying marketable school locations and bringing those school locations into our Public Service Focused Media Centers™ program we can develop a significant, ongoing program to meet more classroom and child needs within our public education system on a county-to-county basis.

 

An avid fisherman, father and grandfather, Meeks continues to serve his community by organizing faith-based events and fundraisers, while continuing to consult and build an ethical business model to support his philosophy to always find ways to give back to his community.

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This is my PASSION and LEGACY to give back through the Outdoor Industry!