At home, at work and in the community, Molly Grantham gets it done. Now she’s out with a new book, the last in a series, in which she reminds us: Practice doesn’t make perfect.

written by Sharon Smith  |  styled by Whitley Adkins
photographs by Olly Yung  |  set assistant: Emily Mydosh

On a sunny morning leading into fall, Molly Grantham wrangles her three kids (Parker, Hutch and Hobie) for a photo shoot at a couple of favorite spots in Wesley Heights. There’s Rhino Market, where she’s known to grab a quick sandwich, and Town Brewing, where her family is a familiar fixture. 

It’s required real-life convenience, as Molly works less than two blocks away at WBTV and chose west Charlotte as home base 20 years ago. “If anyone asks me where home is, I say Charlotte — 100% Charlotte,” says Molly, who spent time growing up in both Pennsylvania and Pinehurst.

The Emmy Award-winning journalist first walked into WBTV studios on Nov. 10, 2003. “I’ll never forget that date. I was 26 and gonna save the world,” she says, laughing at the thought. Now she’s the longest-running female anchor in Charlotte, and it’s a meaningful achievement in an industry known for its revolving door. In my unofficial tally, she connects with viewers across 780 newscasts a year. That’s millions of viewers over 20 years — not factoring in her reach online and through countless community events and public speaking engagements. 

Molly has been there for Charlotte, rain or shine, for a long time. Come hell or high water — she’s all in. 

She has deeply covered CMPD’s gang unit, her reporting on CBD oils helped change state law, and she’s gone to the Super Bowl to cover the home team. Molly has outlasted mayors, city council members, and a string of CMS superintendents. 

In a newsroom, that kind of institutional knowledge strengthens editorial coverage. When the city collectively debates a new bond issue or spike in crime, Molly can give context. “Most of the time, this is not a new problem, just a new spokesman for it,” she says. “So let’s talk about this and educate our newsroom so we can educate the city.”

A Shirt Thing plaid shirt, $330, Carolina K skirt, $425, and Rachel Comey Lohr earrings, all from Five One Five; Noelle Munoz Bones bracelet, $735, noellemunozjewelry.com; Etro belt, stylist’s own.

Full disclosure: I met Molly nearly 20 years ago when I was up for a reporting job. WBTV’s news director, Dennis Milligan, gave me her number and said something along the lines of, “Why don’t you give Molly a call? You both went to Carolina. She’ll give you the scoop on our newsroom.” We clicked during that first conversation. Over the years, we competed for stories, worked as a team, rooted for each other, and mirrored major life events — becoming moms, navigating grief and growing into our adult selves. Five years after I left the newsroom, we still connect. 

She has that way about her. If Molly has a keyword in life, it must be connect. In all the ways, across all the platforms, with all the people. 

She’s the go-to speaker when nonprofit and business leaders are looking for someone to get people pumped up or connected to their cause. 

Notably, she’s built a supportive social-media community, where she shares personal stories and champions people who often don’t make headlines. Frequently, children and their families fighting cancer get support, resources and an emotional boost from her Molly’s Kids posts. 

As someone who lost both parents to cancer (her mom to breast cancer and her father to colon cancer), Molly knows their journey, and the desire to lend support through her platform is strong. Three years ago, she spearheaded the effort to launch the Pink Cupcake Walk and Breast Cancer Survivor Lap at Truist Field each October. The dollars stay local through #TeamMolly to help families fighting breast cancer through the nonprofit, Go Jen Go. Her social-media feeds are flooded with stirring pictures and stories of the support and camaraderie — all while raising awareness and nonprofit dollars. 

Some may mock the value of Facebook as a village-builder, but Molly can’t dismiss its importance. “It became a literary platform for me, a story archive. People responded — you got instant gratification or instant criticism. But you heard back from a community. And there’s a joy in that.”

Social media also provided a starting point for her books, a series based on 100 months of raw snapshots and anecdotes from Molly’s life as a mother and journalist. The third and final book, Practice Makes … Progress, hit stores in October, a follow up to The Juggle is Real and Small Victories.

“I actually think it’s the best one because it’s the most relatable — no matter if you’re a parent or not, or a woman or not,” Molly says. The story picks up in April 2020, when Covid shut down the world. “People say it’s like after you have a newborn, you forget all the stuff that happened — like a kind of amnesia. We forgot what we endured, how we adapted and navigated our way through.”

Left: Saloni chevron maxi dress, $825, Five One Five; Kristin Hayes Jewelry earrings, $210, kristinhayesjewelry.com; vintage Lucite bangles, stylist’s own. Right: Veronica Beard Wixson dress, $648, and Donelson jacket, $698; Anna & Ava hoop earrings, $15, Dillard’s.

There are entries about Mermaid Academy (remote school). Her Zoom baby shower. Hobie’s diagnosis at 10 days old as the youngest positive case of Covid-19 in Mecklenburg County. (“It was a scary time,” Molly recalls, being sick with pneumonia and the virus herself.)

Her books embrace that tough and beautiful messiness of life, with a knowing wink and nod to parents who struggle to get it all done on the daily. Molly doesn’t have a secret weapon. But she does keep long hours — and checklists. “I love scratching things off my list. Literally, it’s a list I keep at my desk.” She updates it nightly after the 11 p.m. news and organizes her stock of photos monthly. It’s a system that works for her. 

She’s also intentional with her time.

“People ask, ‘How do you do it?’ I don’t have a perfect answer. I’ve learned that I don’t do it all. I let the balls drop if I have to,” she says. “I don’t cook, I don’t make dinners. I don’t take on that responsibility.” She does make the most of weekends and builds in time to unplug, whether it’s for a family dinner break at Town Brewing or an escape to her favorite place, Kure Beach, which always includes a stop at Britt’s Donut Shop. 

She wouldn’t do all these things if she didn’t love it. “It’s a great career. It’s a very demanding career,” she says. “The three kids are hugely awesome, wonderfully great and big —  but they provide so many colors on the calendar,” she jokes. 

It comes down to this. “You make time for what you want.”

She credits her husband, Wes, with making it work. The two met as reporters in Kentucky, his home base. It’s fitting that this last book is dedicated to him — her rock. 

As for wrapping up the series, Molly says the timing is right for two reasons: 100 months is a good stopping point, and her daughter Parker is in middle school. “She deserves to have her own life without my words.” 

It’s one chapter ending, but make no mistake — Molly will still be writing and sharing about their life. She’s a natural reporter with many more stories to tell.  SP

Molly’s books are available at mollygrantham.com, Park Road Books, select Barnes & Noble retailers, and on Amazon. You can also connect with Molly via Facebook and Instagram @mollygrantham. 

Update: “An unexpected exit does not erase 20 great years,” Molly wrote on Facebook following her difficult decision to leave WBTV in March of 2024. She continues speaking to groups, emceeing, working with non-profits and communicating a message of empowerment. Her upcoming Bet on Yourself Summit inside Bank of America Stadium sold out in less than one hour when ticket sales were announced in April.

Featured photo: Rachel Comey Asteras top, $450, Larni skirt, $550, and Lohr Earrings, $150, all from Five One Five.