The Transformative Power of a Limestone Education

Act I

When Patti graduated from Crest High School in Shelby, N.C., she wasn’t sure what career she wanted to pursue.  A church friend offered her an internship in an accounting department, so Patti took it.  She’d stay there until she decided what she’d like to do, Patti told herself, but it wasn’t long before she began working in banking.  That career step put Patti on the path to meeting the woman who would eventually hire her at Limestone.

Patti’s story jumps ahead now to her life’s next season.  “I was a mother with young children when I got a divorce.  When it happened, one of my biggest worries was, ‘How will I save for college?’”  Patti turns the palm of her hand upward and gestures away from her body as she shares this past concern.  In her honesty Patti isn’t vulnerable, rather her candor is pragmatic.        

Patti applied for a job at Limestone on her birthday.  When she did, she didn’t know she was sending her resume to the woman she used to work with at the bank.  “I always tell my children to work in an environment that will take you somewhere,” Patti shares.  “And I tell them to approach jobs with a work ethic where someone will remember you.”  This advice comes from experience because Limestone Human Resource Manager Brenda Watkins recognized Patti’s name when her job application showed up in her inbox.    

“To me it’s just a God thing that led me to Limestone,” reflects Patti.  “I started working here in 2013, I’ve worked here for eight years, and I truly love my job.”  

“The thing I love most is not just the other employees, but I love the kids,” she continues.  “I have some students who call me mom when they stop by my office with questions about their work-study checks.  I keep a drawerful of snacks for any students who need them.”      

Act II

Patti worked at Limestone full-time when she began researching employee benefits.  “When I took the job, I didn’t realize the opportunity I had, that my children had.  Once I began looking over the benefits, I realized Limestone has given me back what I always wanted to do and that is to get my education,” she explains.  This discovery prompted Patti to take her first step toward earning a Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources Management.  

 “When I took the job, I didn’t realize the opportunity I had, that my children had.  Once I began looking over the benefits, I realized Limestone has given me back what I always wanted to do and that is to get my education.”

She started taking classes, one at a time, through the University’s Online Program, a program with the flexibility that allowed Patti to ensure her children remained her priority.  “I knew it was going to take years to do it because my children were first,” acknowledges Patti.  “So I did one class each term.  There were a few times when I took a term off when I needed to, but I did it.”  

Her eight-week classes consisted of papers, projects, online discussions, and proctored exams.  “There’s a lot of work and material covered in that time,” Patti elaborates.  “But the teachers understand the challenges faced by working adults.  It’s been very, very hard, but it has been the best.”         

Not only did Patti take advantage of the convenience and flexibility of Limestone’s online programs, but her oldest son, Zach, did so as well.  He took summer classes to prepare for his freshman and sophomore years of college.  Her youngest child, a daughter named Sarah who is a high school senior, is enrolled in two classes at the University to prepare for her freshman year.  Jacob, Patti’s youngest son, started college at Limestone where he ran track and cross country, transferred to another university after his sophomore year, but ultimately returned to Limestone to complete his degree online.  He will be walking with his mother this December at Fall Commencement.     

Patti smiles when she shares this, and her expression reflects the pride she has for her children’s accomplishments.  Patti doesn’t stop smiling when she looks down at her hand and brushes her the palm across the tabletop.  It’s as if she’s sweeping away her struggle because all that matters is how her work has paid off.  “It’s been following my children, the benefits reaped from Limestone, the opportunities it’s given my family and me.  It’s touched every one of my children in some way or another.”     

Act III

Limestone has also touched the relationships at the center of Patti’s life.  When Patti married her high school sweetheart in 2016, the couple held their reception in Winnie Davis Hall, an historic redbrick building often called the campus’s crown jewel.  

“It was important to me to make Limestone a part of my story.  They’re the ones who helped me get to where I was, where I am, and I just wanted to bring a little of that in,” Patti explains.  Their reception was small, but perfect, she says as she unconsciously spins her engagement and wedding rings between her middle and little fingers.  

At the time of their wedding, Patti’s husband, who had been in the military, was completing the credits he needed to earn a degree in Business Finance and Accounting.  “We knew we were going to be alumni, so we wanted to make that part of our ceremony,” Patti notes.  Her husband, Terry, graduated in December of 2020.  

When he graduated, Patti bought Terry a brick, one of many that now pave the main entrance of the Hines and Riggins Library and Student Center, in support of the University’s “Pave The Way” campaign and in celebration of his accomplishment.  The brick is engraved with his name and class year.  In turn Terry purchased a brick for Patti.  The bricks lay side-by-side and will forever be a legacy of the couple’s connection to Limestone.       

When Patti and Terry vacationed at the beach one recent summer, they made a point to meet up with a Limestone classmate, one Patti had met online and only spoken to face-to-face once or twice.    

Linda Griffin who was working on her Human Resources Management and Business Administration/Accounting degree, was taking the same class as Patti when she messaged her about a discussion topic.  “We just got to talking,” Patti remarked.  “One night we met for dinner and it’s like I’ve known her forever.  We started talking, e-mailing, helping each other with classes.”  

When Patti and Linda discovered they would be at the same beach at the same time, they made plans.  Linda and her husband, Marty, met Patti and Terry to grill out.  During their time together all four discovered they had a lot in common.  Patti explains, “It turns out I met a great friend for life during the online program that you would not think you’d have the opportunity to do.”  

Walking at graduation with her son and friend in December of 2021 was certainly not the end of Patti’s Limestone story. Not long after her graduation, Patti was named Limestone’s Director of Human Resources where she has the opportunity to give back to a place that has given so much to her.