Through bravery and determination, alumna Patricia Campbell was able to create a successful future for herself and her child.

BY SHERI GIBSON

During Hurricane Katrina, alumna Patricia Campbell’s house was engulfed in water, and her cherished Southeastern yearbooks were lost. Earlier this year she was presented with these pieces of memorabilia. As she carefully pored over the pages, taking them in, her recollections of life at Southeastern in the 1970s came bubbling to the surface, and a stirring story of determination began to unfold.

Patricia, who always excelled in school, was originally from New Orleans. At 13, she and her family relocated.

“My mom moved us to Springfield, and we lived in a little shack back in the woods. She was gone most of the time, and I had three younger siblings. I had one older sister, but she married and moved out after we got there. So, I was basically taking care of my three other siblings from the time I was 13. Through all of that, I just didn’t see that life for the kids I might have one day. For me, that was my focus, and I knew that my only way out was education. So, I did what I had to do.”

Patricia knew she wanted more, for both herself and her future children, and to guarantee that she would need to rely on herself. Driven by this realization and determination, she continued to shine academically, even through being part of the first integrated class in Springfield in 1970. She took the ACT test, applied to Southeastern, and was accepted to begin that fall.

During her freshman year, Patricia commuted daily via bus from Springfield to Hammond.

“I would get up, do what I could to help my siblings prepare for the day before I left, and then catch that bus,” she said. “The bus would stop in the middle of Hammond, where the bus station was by the railroad tracks, and I would walk the rest of the way to Southeastern. I did that for an entire year. And at the end of the year, my mom decided to move the kids back to New Orleans. I made the decision that I wasn’t going.”

When her family left, Patricia applied for student loans then packed up her own belongings and moved onto Southeastern’s campus, first in Livingston Hall then eventually Hammond Hall. She also changed her major from education to business accounting.

“I just knew I had to go to school. So whatever challenges I faced, I took them on. Because I knew I had to do this, and whatever needed to be done I had to deal with it and stick it out,” Patricia said.

And her dedication indeed paid off. Upon graduation in 1974, she began her first job as an accounting clerk, and only a couple of years later she accepted a position as an accountant for the Superdome. Upon her retirement, she held the position of assistant director of accounting services for Tulane University, where she worked for 34 years.

But perhaps even more importantly, she was able to fulfill the wish she had when still only a teenager. When she did have a child, she was able to give him a warm life and a bright future. Her son is Paul Matthews, the current CEO of the Port of South Louisiana.

This bond she has with her child is so great that it seems impermeable even to the torrential waters of Hurricane
Katrina. “Everything in my house was totally underwater, except one thing,” she reflected. “When I finally got to go to my house, his baby picture was on the wall. I couldn’t believe it. Everything else was on the floor—but that picture was on the wall, and it gave me hope.”

Today Patricia is able to enjoy a well-earned retirement, volunteering her accounting services for her church, indulging in mystery novels and shows, and, especially, watching her son enjoy an amazing life of his own.

Top image: Alumna Patricia Campbell reminisces over Southeastern yearbooks with her son Paul Matthews.