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Retirements You probably know who has retired from Elon this year. But how much do you know about their plans for retirement? Read on to find out!

Margaret Jobe, Circulation Services Manager As a member of the library staff since her arrival at Elon in April 1979, Margaret has seen plenty of changes on campus. But perhaps none was more dramatic for her than relocating to the new Carol Grotnes Belk Library last year. "Getting into the new building was wonderful," says Margaret. "In the old building, we had a lab and then we had 16 computers downstairs, but those were only for database research. We love it over here." Margaret handled a variety of duties in the old McEwen Library and in Belk, including circulation, research and government documents. She says she's enjoyed the people she has worked with over the years. "I have really enjoyed working with the staff we've had," she says. "And I've enjoyed the students . . . both the ones who work for us and the ones we help in the library. It has been really rewarding to work with them." Margaret's husband, Loyd, is retired, so they will spend a great deal of time visiting their grandchildren in Raleigh. And Margaret predicts she'll stay busy with volunteer work at her church and in the community. "I'm not one to just sit and hold my hands together," she says.
Linda Weavil, Professor of Business Administration When the reality of retirement actually hit her about a month ago, Linda went to her files at home and pulled out her old grade books, curious to know just how many students she taught during her career. "I counted 5,255 of them. I was just amazed by that figure," says Linda, who came to Elon in 1973. She's been a mainstay in the business department ever since. One of the highlights of her career, she says, was the addition of the MBA program, which graduated its first class in 1986. "For about 10 years, I was the only person to teach those courses," Linda says. "So that was a lot of teaching at night." While she points out that they won't move there permanently, Linda and her husband, Bob, do plan to spend more time at their beach house at Salter Path. "We're also going to Italy this coming fall, and we'll do some other vacationing we haven't had the time to do," she says. In addition to her work with the Red Cross, Alamance Regional Medical Center and the Love School Advisory Board, Linda also plans to spoil her granddaughters, Kathryn, age 4, and Caroline, age 2.
Carole Chase, Professor of Religion Carole says she's proud of the strides Elon has made over the years, especially in the quality of its students. "When I first came here, our students were not that strong, and many of them came here because they couldn't get into school other places," says Carole, who joined the faculty in 1976. "Today, Elon is the first choice for just about all of our students. I would have to say the improvement in academic standards has been one of the highlights of my career." While she is retiring, she won't be leaving Elon. "I'm staying right here," she says, adding that she plans to take some art and computer classes on campus this fall. "And I'm going to spend the summer cleaning out the office and my house. Those are things which I haven't been able to get to in years!" Carole will also work on getting some of her prose and poetry works published. She has already written a book, which will be published in September. "Madeleine L'Engle Herself: Reflections on a Writing Life" is a collection of L'Engle's thoughts and reflections on writers and their works over the years. While she may do some adjunct teaching at Elon next spring, Carole says some quiet time and reflection are her immediate priorities. "I'm going to let my body and mind rest and catch up," she says.
Judy Prevette, Secretary, Health Services Caring for Elon's sick students and staff is a lot more fun than most people think, says Judy, who retired April 27 after 11 years at Elon. "There is never a dull moment in health services," says Judy. "Every day was different, so if variety is the spice of life, we definitely had it!" While she says retiring right before the new Ellington Health and Counseling Center opens is "a bit bittersweet," she is looking forward to traveling with her husband, Joseph, on his job in textile sales. "I always told him, 'You'd better not retire before I get to do some traveling with you!' He's about three years away from retirement, so I'll have time to do some of that with him," she says. Judy says their first trip this summer will likely be to New York and the New England area. She's also looking forward to spending time in the yard, tending her flowers. "And I'm also going to have some 'R and R' time for Judy," she says.
Ellen Gagnon, Data Entry and Records Clerk, Admissions Ellen came to Elon in 1977 and worked in student affairs for 11 years before moving to admissions. "Student affairs handled a little bit of everything when I worked over there," she recalls. "We handled traffic matters and discipline in that office in those days." While she remembers the circular driveway that used to run in front of Alamance Building, she has been excited to see the changes that have taken place at Elon during her career. "A lot has changed, but there's no doubt in my mind that it is all for the better," she says. Ellen says a variety of activities will keep her busy, but mostly, she and her husband plan to spend time with their five grandchildren -- the oldest of whom is just 3! She says that even though the five are so close in age, "they're a lot of fun!"
Editor's Note: Jerri Holloway, secretary in human resources, retired last February. She first came to Elon in 1976, working in the registrar's office until 1987. She came back to Elon in 1998 to work in human resources. Jerri is keeping so busy that we were unable to reach her for an interview before this issue. Best of luck to Jerri and all the other Elon retirees!


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