He grew up in the Ozarks in Missouri, where the closest town had a population of 12.
Living in a home without indoor plumbing, Paul McAtee, 66, would walk three miles to attend a school that taught all eight grades in one classroom.
In 1967, he was drafted into the Vietnam War and worked as a medic. After returning home two years later, the veteran moved to California to begin a banking career that would span more than two decades.
Now semi-retired, the Glendale resident of 33 years works by referral as a small-business consultant, interacting with Glendale businesses and helping Southern California business owners maximize their profits.
What do you do as a semi-retired Glendalian?
My wife and I have our own consulting film, the Small Business Growth Assn., where we work with small businesses and help them build a plan, get financed and help them with their problems. We’ve been doing that for the last 12 to 13 years.
In the community, we are very active in the American Legion Post 127 helping veterans, some of the men coming back from Iraq and Afghanistan. We’re with the Glendale Quarterback Club, where we support the athletes and help them get scholarships.
You were an athlete in college. Do you still exercise?
I ride my bicycle for the American Lung Assn. and do cross-country rides. Sometimes it’s two weeks; we’ll come down Seattle to San Francisco. We’ve ridden up to Canada to Lake Louise.
I run every day and cycle on the weekends. My goal is to eventually ride across the United States.
How did you get your start in California?
I had previously got my education before I was drafted into the service, and after I graduated from the University of Missouri, I got an MBA from Washington University in St. Louis, a private school. So I had an education, so I came out to California and helped my handicapped brother out and started working for a bank. My career was in banking in downtown L.A. That’s where I met my wife — we’re corporate folk.
How do you help your clients get back on track?
