Redwood Grove Memorial Gathering Held To Honor Corliss Watkins

A crowd of more than 80 people assembled in the Redwood Grove this past weekend to remember beloved staff member Corliss Watkins, who died July 16 after complications from cancer. 

Watkins most recently served as director of the Student Engagement and Academic Success Office. During her 11-year career at Saint Mary’s, she was an academic mentor to first-generation college students in the High Potential Program (HP), a staunch advocate for the College’s students of color and in particular for black students (she was a longtime advisor for the Black Student Union), and a champion of inclusive excellence, serving as a founding member and co-chair of the College Committee on Inclusive Excellence (CCIE).

Made up of Saint Mary’s alumni, including many former HP students, along with current students, staff, faculty, friends, and members of the Watkins family, the gathering was primarily an opportunity for many of Watkins’s former students to share their thoughts about her positive influence on their lives.

Organized on social media within a few days of the news of Watkins’s passing by HP alumnae Gabriela Perez ’14 and Lien Truong ’11, the assembly was held mid-day on Saturday, July 21. “How many times have we held community time here at Saint Mary's? Always 12 to 2:30 p.m., and I can remember [Watkins] would go out there on Black Wednesdays and have barbecues and just hold space and be present for our students. And we felt that we had to put something together,” said Truong. 

“We wanted to hold this space for students to process their loss,” said Perez. “We decided that the perfect time to do so was community time, because she dedicated that time to advocate for students and was always present at student-led events. While it breaks my heart that she left us, you could hear in all of the narratives that were shared, how big of an impact she made on so many students, providing lessons that will go on for a lifetime.”

The event’s attendees—many wearing blue in a nod to Watkins’s appreciation for the color—were encouraged by her husband, Tony Watkins, a former Seminar professor and HP educator, to assemble in a large circle on the lawn and take turns sharing their thoughts about their late mentor. 

One after another, her former students entered the circle and expressed gratitude to the Watkins family for sharing Corliss Watkins with them, and recognized her for helping to calm their fears, inspire them to succeed academically, and discover the power within their own voices. 

“When I came to Saint Mary's, I didn't believe in myself. But when I met Corliss, I feel like every time that I walked into the HP office that I'm going to share my heart with her and she would listen to me,” said Carlos Mongalo ’11. “When I left that room I felt empowered.” 

“I would go to her when my life was falling apart, because I was a science major and a dance minor, and I had no time to study and she would sit there and plan my life with me, like almost every week, and she really, honestly, got me to graduation,” said Marti Pile ‘14. “And I really think she helped me get into optometry school.”

“I came here to play basketball. I had my first freshman advisory meeting with Corliss, and so that was the first person outside of basketball that welcomed me on campus,” said Danielle Mauldin ‘14, now an assistant coach for SMC’s women’s basketball team. “She showed me that there was more to Saint Mary's than just basketball.” 

“Anytime there was a problem, she never said no,” said Eno Akan-Etuk ’16. “She just said, ‘It'll be okay. It's going to happen. Let's take a deep breath. Let's breathe. Let's calm down and let's try to think about how we can do it.’”

Others echoed similar themes about Watkins as not only an outstanding administrator, but also an academic ombudsperson and generous surrogate parent for HP students and students of color. 

To close the gathering, Tony Watkins called the attendees into a closer circle. With everyone standing and many holding hands, he offered prayers of reassurance. “I think of James's first Corinthians 13 that talks about faith, hope, and charity, and the greatest of these is charity, which we talk about as another four-letter word, love,” he said. “And that's one of the things that Corliss was so full of. So you've received that from her, and that's an awesome responsibility and now you have to share it too. So share it.” 

He then encouraged attendees to channel that love as a guiding compass in their lives. “What would she do? What would she say? Now let’s just say ‘I love you Corliss,' as another way to say ‘amen.’” The circle responded enthusiastically. Smiles and embraces soon followed. In a final gesture, scores of colorful balloons were released into a light breeze, which carried them toward a receptive blue sky.

The College plans to hold an official memorial service to acknowledge Corliss Watkins in the fall.