Cathy Mitchell '82: A Profile of Service to Collegiate

Cathy Mitchell never suspected a thing.

Sure, alumni director Jennifer Wilkins had invited her to Commencement this past June, but she was under the impression that it was to recognize the efforts of those who had assisted with Centennial festivities.
That made sense, of course, because Cathy, along with Linda Geho, had organized the Centennial Torch Run from the school’s original Monument Avenue location to North Mooreland Road.

She thought it strange when Jen directed her to the front row, an area normally reserved for parents of graduating seniors, but she complied, settled into her seat, and waited for the festivities to begin.

Early in the ceremony, alumni association president Mason Chapman walked to the podium to present awards.

“This year’s recipient of the Award for Outstanding Service was a cheerleader during her time at Collegiate,” Mason began.  “Fortunately for us, she never really stopped being a cheerleader for Collegiate.”

About that time, Jen removed the program from Cathy’s lap.

“I thought she was going to point out something,” Cathy recalled.  “I looked over at her, and she whispered, ‘That’s you.’”

Mason proceeded to describe Cathy with honorifics such as “enthusiastic volunteer with a positive attitude…inspires those around her…gladly embraced the smaller jobs – and the daunting ones – all to help the school.”

He went on to list several of her many volunteer activities in addition to the Torch Run, a huge logistical undertaking. Among her many contributions, she’s served as a room mother, seamstress for costumes for Collegiate’s drama productions, and “pocket lady” at the Village Green Fair, and co-chair of the Fair (with Martha Bowden in 2007).

“It’s her brand of energy,” Mason continued, “that ensures students and families can take pride in their school and, as (founder) Helen Baker hoped – go out and make the world a better place.”

All the while, the 1982 graduate listened incredulously.

Unbeknownst to her, her elder daughter Carolyn was one of several who nominated her and actually provided much of the background information from Valencia, Spain, where she was studying.

“That was so touching,” she said, “because you do all these things not thinking that anybody’s watching.  To find out that one of my own children was paying attention was really meaningful.”

Also unbeknownst to her, her sister Anne Chamblee ‘80 had driven from Greensboro that day to share the moment.  She and their parents Clyde and Carolyn Ratcliffe, who live in White Stone, had slipped onto campus and tucked themselves away in the back.

For a century – literally – volunteers have played a vital role in the success of Collegiate’s myriad activities.  The great majority do so freely and without thoughts of recognition.

“I’ve had a ball,” Cathy said. “Everybody’s so much fun to work with.  People have asked me (to help out), and I’m a say-yes person.  Each thing that I did, I had a grand time and wanted to do more. Collegiate has helped us raise our children. It’s all I can do to give back. I feel a lot of gratitude.”

Cathy is a Collegiate lifer. Her daughters Carolyn ‘12, Frances ’14, and Julia ’17 are lifers as well.  Cathy is a Duke alumna who worked as a buyer for Hecht’s in Northern Virginia following her 1986 graduation, then earned a graduate degree in education from Marymount University in Arlington and taught first grade in Fairfax County.
    
Back in Richmond, she’s worked part-time, first for Young Scientists (which teaches science lessons in schools throughout Central Virginia) and more recently with the non-profit Read To Them.
    
All the while, she’s volunteered at Collegiate.
    
“Collegiate is an easy place to spend your time,” she said. “People are happy and willing to help out. Apart from my immediate family, Collegiate has had the greatest impact on my life.  I learned so much not only about being a student but about being a person.”
                 -- Weldon Bradshaw
    

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