2025 40 Over 40 Series: Paula Davis
“Some of the greatest transformations in my life came through some of the hardest seasons I have faced — including cancer, heartbreak, divorce, and rebuilding parts of my life I once thought were permanent. While those experiences were painful, they also became the catalyst for my greatest growth. Each season taught me strength, sharpened my faith, deepened my confidence, and revealed a version of myself that was stronger than I realized.“
Paula’s story:
I am a business professional, dual controller, entrepreneur, and woman of faith whose life has been shaped through resilience, reinvention, and growth. For more than two decades, I have worked in finance, operations, and business management for companies in the hazardous and non-hazardous waste transportation and disposal industry. As controller for multiple companies under common ownership, I have spent much of my career helping businesses create structure, stability, accountability, and forward momentum even in challenging environments.
Some of the greatest transformations in my life came through some of the hardest seasons I have faced — including cancer, heartbreak, divorce, and rebuilding parts of my life I once thought were permanent. While those experiences were painful, they also became the catalyst for my greatest growth. Each season taught me strength, sharpened my faith, deepened my confidence, and revealed a version of myself that was stronger than I realized.
My Christian faith and my reliance on Jesus are the foundation of who I am. One of the verses that most reflects my journey is Isaiah 61:3, where God speaks of giving “beauty for ashes.” That scripture deeply resonates with me, along with the symbol of the phoenix rising from the ashes more refined, more confident, and more powerful than before. I believe some of life’s most beautiful transformations are born from adversity, and that the fire we walk through can either destroy us or refine us.
That belief inspired the creation of Beauty for Ashes, a retail store built around faith, resilience, and purpose, with the phoenix as its logo. However, I cannot take credit for building it alone. Two incredible women are an important part of the business and its heart. My cousin, who shares my vision and mindset, helps manage the business and ensures strong structure and controls remain in place. My sister-in-law plays an equally important role by keeping the store organized, welcoming, and running smoothly while handling weekend sales and helping create an environment customers enjoy walking into. Together, we have created something that represents not only survival, but strength, renewal, and community.
In addition to supporting women through opportunity and encouragement, Beauty for Ashes also gives back by donating a percentage of profits to help support the autism community and families affected by autism.
Today, I strive to encourage other women to stand firm in their faith, know their value, and understand that resilience is not about never breaking — it is about rising again stronger each time.
What are some of the rewarding parts of the current decade you are in? The challenges?
What is most rewarding about the decade I am in is the confidence and clarity that only life experience can bring. In my younger years, I spent a lot of time trying to prove myself, carry everything for everyone, and survive difficult seasons without fully understanding my own worth. Now, after walking through both success and hardship, I have a deeper sense of who I am, what I value, and what truly matters.
This decade has taught me that strength is not just about endurance — it is about wisdom, boundaries, faith, resilience, and learning how to rise again after life changes you. The challenges I once thought would break me instead refined me. I have learned to trust myself more, trust God more, and understand that growth often comes through the very seasons we would never choose for ourselves.
It is also rewarding to see how my experiences can now help others. Whether through my professional leadership, my business, my faith, or simply encouraging another woman who is struggling, I appreciate being in a season where I can turn pain into purpose and experience into guidance. There is something powerful about reaching a point in life where you no longer feel defined by what happened to you, but by who you became because of it.
What has been your favorite decade you have lived through and why?
I cannot say that I have had one favorite decade because each season of my life has brought its own unique joy and purpose. In my 20s and 30s, some of my greatest happiness came from being a mother and raising my children. Those years were filled with love, sacrifice, growth, and memories that helped shape who I am today. In more recent years, becoming a grandmother has brought an entirely different kind of joy — one that is softer, deeper, and incredibly rewarding.
While every decade has held meaning for me, I do appreciate where I am in life right now. Wisdom truly does come with age and experience. Through both life’s blessings and its hardships, I have gained a greater sense of stability, confidence, and understanding of who I am. I no longer feel the same pressure to prove myself or seek validation from others. Instead, I value peace, authenticity, faith, resilience, and the relationships that truly matter.
At this stage in life, I have come to understand that growth is not always easy, but it is valuable. Every challenge, every triumph, and every season has contributed to the woman I am today — stronger, wiser, more grounded, and more certain of my purpose than ever before.
If given the opportunity, what would you do differently?
If I were given the opportunity to go back and change anything, I would place greater importance on taking care of my mind, body, and soul. For many years, I focused so much on taking care of everyone else — my family, my work, my responsibilities, and the people depending on me — that I often neglected myself in the process.
As I have gotten older, I have realized how important it is to be healthy in every aspect of our lives, not just physically, but mentally, emotionally, and spiritually as well. True strength comes from balance. It comes from making time to rest, heal, pray, reflect, and care for ourselves with the same compassion we so freely give to others.
I have learned that pouring from an empty cup eventually catches up with you. Taking care of ourselves is not selfish; it is necessary. When our mind, body, and soul are healthy and aligned, we are better able to handle life’s challenges, support the people we love, and fully walk in the purpose God has for us.
What was your top life lesson that you’ve never forgotten and have lived by?
My greatest life lesson has been learning that some of life’s hardest seasons are often the very things that shape us into who we are meant to become. For a long time, I viewed pain, loss, disappointment, and adversity as things to simply survive. But through experiences such as cancer, heartbreak, divorce, and personal rebuilding, I learned that hardships can also become places of growth, refinement, wisdom, and transformation.
I have learned that resilience is not about never falling apart — it is about finding the strength, faith, and courage to rise again. I have also learned the importance of knowing my worth, setting boundaries, and taking care of my mind, body, and soul instead of constantly sacrificing myself for everyone around me.
Most importantly, I have learned to trust God even when life does not make sense. Some of the greatest blessings and breakthroughs in my life came after seasons I never would have chosen for myself. Looking back, I now understand that the fire did not destroy me — it refined me. Like the message in Isaiah 61:3, God truly can bring beauty from ashes.
What has bought you the most joy in your life?
My greatest joy has been seeing the smiles on the faces of my children and grandchildren. It brings me joy to be part of such a large family filled with kids, stepchildren, and grandchildren — whether blood related or not — where everyone is accepted, loved, and supported. Being surrounded by so much love and connection has been one of the greatest blessings of my life.
What was your experience like working with Brandi Stage Portraiture as a part of the 40 Over 40 Project?
What I enjoyed most about my experience with Brandi’s Stage Portraiture and her 40 Over 40 project was spending time with Brandi and learning more about her passion and God-given purpose behind what she does. Brandi does not simply share her own story — she genuinely takes the time to learn who you are, what you have walked through, and what makes you unique. She has a beautiful way of capturing the most genuine and beautiful parts of a person so they can see themselves the way others often already do — valuable, strong, beautiful, and worthy.
You are more beautiful than you know!
To book your own fabulous Portrait Session, contact us through the inquiry form below.
Much love,
Brandi
International Award-Winning Portrait Photographer
Brandi Stage is a portrait photographer recognized by the prestigious International Photography Awards and based in Diamondhead, MS. She creates an exceptional magazine-style photo shoot and timeless heirloom portraits for women, men, children and pets in her studio or on location.