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Running a business runs in the family for Brenda Morgan Jarman ’73, ’77. Owner of J.A.’s Uniform Shop in Greenville, NC, Jarman has been hard at work providing health care professionals the finest uniforms in town since 1992.

In 1970 Lenore Jarman, Brenda’s mother-in-law, and her dear friend Dorothy Armstead, who was a nurse, decided that Greenville needed a uniform shop, particularly with the continued growth of East Carolina’s nursing program, to provide quality scrubs and shoes for medical personnel, and so J.A.’s Uniform Shop was born. The store’s first location was on Evans St., then moved to the Medical Pavilion on West 6th St., and in 1996 ended up at its current location on Stantonsburg Rd. where it offers medical and school uniforms, shoes, and fun pirate wear.

Jarman, who was a teacher and guidance counselor in the Pitt County School System, took over the family business in 1992 after her mother-in-law passed away. “I just couldn’t see all of her hard work go to waste, so it was an easy decision for me to continue her legacy by taking over the store,” remarked Jarman. “J.A.’s was a central part of our family; my kids would come here after school to help their grandmother with inventory, and Mrs. Jarman and I used to go on the best trips to search for new items to carry in the store. It just made sense to me to keep it open, and it’s a wonderful way to serve our community.”

Service is something Jarman takes to heart and strives each day to provide the best service she can to her customers and employees. “Retail is a personal business. You’ve got to create relationships with your customers and help them get what they need. Treat everyone as an equal and be willing to work at every aspect of your business—bookkeeping, inventory, answering the phone. It makes a big difference in employee morale and will keep your customers as regular patrons.”

“I also feel it is so important to give back to your community. I feel ECU is the engine that pulls the eastern part of the state, and as my alma mater I take great pride in giving back however I can. Alumni who are not involved with ECU are missing out on a terrific family. Grant [Jarman’s husband] and I haven’t missed a home football game in 41 years, and it’s because of that family atmosphere that we keep coming back.”

Jarman is not just a football fan; she’s also an ambassador for ECU. “You’d be amazed how many places I’ve gone where I run into ECU alumni and friends. My husband wears an ECU ball cap almost everywhere we go, and inevitably we hear “Go Pirates!” We took a trip to Vail, CO and wouldn’t you know the owner of a restaurant we went to was an ECU graduate! It makes me feel so proud to know how truly global East Carolina has become.”

When not busy with her family or her business, Jarman takes time to volunteer for East Carolina. She spent a number of years on the Pitt County Alumni Board during the mid-1970s, is involved with the Pitt County Pirate Club Chapter, and serves on the College of Nursing’s Advisory Council. The Jarman family endows a nursing scholarship in memory of Lenore Jarman, and funds an unrestricted endowment for ECU Athletics. Brenda and Grant are members of the Alumni Association, Order of the Cupola, Chancellor’s Society, Saber Society of the Pirate Club, and Circle of Excellence. Jarman’s support of the College of Nursing will be recognized this spring when the student services room lobby is dedicated in her name.
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