Mitzi is a familiar face to many from her days in television weather forecasting. Today, she still appears on camera to advocate for people with disabilities and on behalf of the lifesaving work of the American Red Cross, where she serves as Development Director.
As the mother of a double amputee, Mitzi has a unique perspective and compassion for the 50,000+ plus people with disabilities in our community. She has served for the past 9 years as Chairperson for the Mayor’s Committee for Persons with Disabilities. When plans were proposed to build the Columbus Public Library, Mitzi led the way in advocating for a porte-cochere to be built to accommodate disabled visitors during inclement weather and ensured support of the Mayor’s Committee for the library’s accessible services, including the C.L.A.S.S. program. During her tenure, she facilitated an adaptive sports program for the Muscogee County School District. This program has given students with physical disabilities a level playing field with their able-bodied counterparts. Adaptive sports instills in children with physical disabilities, confidence and improvement in skills which can carry over to the classroom, resulting in better students.
Mitzi has been recognized for her work as an advocate for people with disabilities by the state of Georgia. In 2004, she was presented with the Aspire Award for her commitment to enhancing the quality of life for children with physical disabilities. Her leadership skills with the Mayor’s Committee have also brought recognition to the city from the Georgia American Legion for efforts to raise awareness for people with disabilities and in making Columbus a more accessible place to live and visit. In 2008, Mitzi was presented the Dr. Jack Hughston Humanitarian Award for her continued efforts in making Columbus a more accessible community and a better place to live. Mayor Jim Wetherington presented her the award, along with previous Mayors Bobby Peters and Bob Poydasheff, under whose leadership she has served. Most recently, Mitzi was honored with the Outstanding Citizen Leadership Award by the Chattahoochee Better Way Foundation for her role in helping change and better the lives of people with disabilities in our community.
Her compassion and leadership through the local Red Cross have also served the community well. Mitzi works tirelessly in a fundraising capacity to ensure that Red Cross is always there to offer Help and Hope when it’s needed most – supporting First Responders, going door-to-door following tornadoes, and carrying out the mission begun by Red Cross founder Clara Barton, of serving military families in Columbus, Ft. Benning, and around the world. Mitzi was recently recognized by Command of the Warrior Transition Battalion for support of wounded warriors and her personal devotion to establishing an adaptive sports program.
She was recognized in April 2010 by the Columbus Consolidated Government as one of the most influential women in the city. She was also recently honored as one of the most influential women in Columbus by the Minority Chamber of Commerce.
As a cancer survivor, Mitzi lives to seize every minute of every day and inspires others to do the same.