20 IN THEIR 40s
FAMILY:
Wife, Amy; Children,
Charlie and Albert
CITY OF RESIDENCE:
Marietta
VOLUNTEER WORK:
Davis Direction Foundation
Board Member,
Kennestone Hospital
Board of Directors, T-Ball
coach at Oregon Park
AWARDS AND
HONORS:
Georgia Legislator of the
Year from numerous
groups, including
Georgia Council of
Adoption Lawyers and
other Child Advocacy
Organizations; Georgia
Trend “40 Under 40” in
2015
AGE 44
What do you do in your role?
As a state legislator, I help my constituents
navigate the Georgia government, and I
work very hard to bring good policy changes
and improvements to Georgia, with a large
focus on child welfare, foster care reform,
and adoption reform. I also serve as a Floor
Leader for Gov. Kemp, where I carry the
Governor’s legislation packages through the
General Assembly.
What drives you to be successful?
For as long as I can remember, I’ve always
been highly motivated to use my God-given
skill sets and talents to make my surroundings
a better place, whether it was school,
business, city, county, or state. Now that I
have children, I want to lay the foundation
for Georgia to be a better place for them.
What are some of your hobbies
outside of work?
Playing and singing rock-and-roll music with
my band, climbing very tall mountains and
spending time with my family.
What lessons have you learned in
2020? The value of slowing down and
living in the moment.
Other personal anecdotes, quotes or
insights: Right now, I am getting to live out
dreams that I’ve had since I was a student at
North Cobb High School. I fell in love with
politics then, and have been able to see my
dream to serve in our Georgia Legislature
come true. Something I’ve learned along
the way - every person who dreams big has
to overcome the fear of losing big. A lot of
folks don’t ever taste their dream because of
the fear of not achieving it. Running for
office involves the real possibility of not just
losing, but losing in a very public way! For
everyone out there with a big dream, there
is going to be an even bigger risk you have
to take to achieve it. Don’t be afraid of
losing. One of the most liberating things
that has happened to me in the last few
years is realizing that the fear of losing was
something I could let go of. As I like to say
now, if the voters of Cobb County ever
decide to go another direction, away from
me, I will be at peace and walk away with a
big smile on my face - because while I was
there, I worked very hard and did everything
I could to make the biggest difference I
could make.
Bert Reeves
State Representative
Georgia House of Representatives
28 COBB LIFE | JANUARY 2021