“I don’t want to leave anyone on the sidelines; I want to give everyone the tools they need to make decisions.”
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Colvin's professional life began with the U.S. Army. As an ROTC cadet at Wofford College, he entered active duty upon graduation and served with distinction, eventually transitioning into the U.S. Intelligence Community (IC), where he spent the next several decades as a leading voice in national security policy, science and technology strategy, and enterprise risk management. His work focused on the critical nexus of emerging technologies — particularly AI and machine learning.
Upon retiring from military service, Colvin continued his commitment to national security through federal government roles, where he developed expertise in supply chain risk management — a field he helped define in an era of increasing geopolitical and cyber vulnerability. But even as his responsibilities grew in scale and complexity, Colvin never stopped learning. He earned three master’s degrees across disciplines, and at age 52, he graduated with a Juris Doctorate (J.D.) from the Charleston School of Law.
My mother, she was the heart of our home—a nurturer who never slept when her children needed her. On winter nights when temperatures dropped to 13 degrees in our unheated house, she moved through the darkness, wrapping thick blankets around coughing children and tending to us like a field hospital.
In all 31 years she raised us, no pandemic ever reached her children—her love was our shield.
When our father fell ill in 1969, disabled at just 40 years old, she gave up homemaking without hesitation and went to work in a local factory for nearly 30 years. She risked her own health and well being to keep our household stable through economic hardship. She was truly heaven-sent—a woman whose tremendous heart carried us all.
Ellis learned early on in his life that there is no such thing as the impossible.
His grandfather, Ellis Colvin, Sr., the first of his name, was a successful blind farmer.
Although some would look at his blindness as a handicap, he did the impossible, worked his farm and fed his family. It is not always what you can see with your eyes, but what you can see, the possibilities you can see,with your heart, spirit. Fortitude, and belief.
Ellis Colvin, Sr. exhibited an unwavering sense of duty as a lifelong agriculturalist. Always a man of the community, he provided food to his community and cared for his neighbors and the most in need-traits Ellis carries within him and in this campaign.”
My Great Grandmother, Mrs. Viola "Mrs. Ola" Nichols; she's another one of my guiding stars.
Born in the 1890s, a descendant of enslaved workers, she was raised in The Jim Crow South. Having earned a 3rd grade education, Mrs. Ola led a prosperous life.
She would often travel long distances across regions of our country to visit and support extended family.
She was the matriarch of her family, and she was ALL heart and ALL soul. Having witnessed the struggle she bared in her life, ignited the commitment I made to be of service to, and take care of others.
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