Upchurch Giving Much
“To receive much, you must give much.”
When I grow up, I want to be like Ms. Elsie Upchurch.
Elsie Stossel Upchurch started attending Longwood University in 1939, when it was known as the State Teachers College in Farmville. Upchurch became involved on campus by joining drama club and becoming a sister of Tri Sigma sorority. She was majoring in education and later went on to be a teacher and guidance counselor in Ashland and Richmond. During her time at Longwood she lived in the Cunningham Residence Hall, which would eventually be replaced by the new university center that holds her name. In 2012, Longwood received a $4 million donation from Upchurch to ultimately build a new university center for the campus called the Norman H. and Elsie Stossel Upchurch University Center. The project began late in 2014 and recently finished in the fall of 2018, my senior year.
For me, getting to watch this building grow with me as I was at Longwood has been unreal. I give tours and whenever I would talk about the new student center I would get overwhelmed with joy thinking about how many students it will bring to this beautiful campus. My junior year, I was hired to work as the office assistant for the University Center and Student Activities office and had the opportunity to work in Upchurch for a semester before I began student teaching in the spring. One of Tri Sigma’s advisors, Susan Sullivan, Director of the University Center and Student Activities,also now works in Upchurch and loves getting to interact with students every day.
Elsie Upchurch had not only given so much to her career and alma mater, but also her sisterhood. Since joining Tri Sigma sorority at Longwood University in the fall of my sophomore year, I have implemented the motto, “To receive much, you must give much”, in almost every aspect of my life. I look back and reflect on times where we, as a chapter, would volunteer or serve our community through our local and national philanthropies and think of the great joy it brings others. I also take great pride in the work we do and receive much happiness in return. Having other people benefit from our actions, big or small, on or off campus, has taught me a lot. I am blessed to have such a supportive group of women who feel so passionately about giving to others. Having the chance to attend Robbie Page every semester and host the March of Dimes walk are memorable events where we see the difference we are making in families’ lives.
This past semester I saw a wonderful example of what it means “To receive much, you must give much” when Ms. Elsie Upchurch herself came to campus. For several years now, Elsie has taken the time to come back to visit campus, while also generously giving back in any way she can. The project for building a new university center had been talked about a lot and Elsie Upchurch made this dream turn into a reality. On October 26th, 2018, Longwood University celebrated the grand opening of the Upchurch University Center. The sisters of Tri Sigma had the honor of speaking with the namesake of the building herself, Elsie Upchurch. As active sisters of the sorority, we loved having the experience to talk with Elsie about our sisterhood and how it has changed over time. She also talked about the older building, which was the Cunningham’s residence hall and how it had been haunted. She expressed that getting to live in there was an exciting time but she was also excited for the new student center to take its place.
I think it is so fitting that Elsie had the building named after her because of such an active role she played as a leader on Longwood’s campus. She left her mark here and will continue to do so in years to come. Getting to see Ms. Upchurch come to our campus, cut the ribbon to declare the building open, and to be in her presence in general was remarkable. The sisters of Tri Sigma would like to thank Ms. Upchurch for all she has done for our sisterhood and school. By having this new addition to campus, it’s another place for sisters and students in general to come to hang out and do homework in study rooms, as well as enjoy the other food options. This space is utilized for many offices on campus like Fraternity and Sorority life, the Student Activities Center, and the Office of Citizen Leadership and Social Justice Education to name a few. Myself and others have benefited already from having Upchurch open for such a short amount of time.
Since coming as a freshman for orientation there has been a blue fence up around this construction lot where Upchurch is now and it has finally been taken down and the building is ours. It has truly grown with me and many others as I have gone through my four years at this university. With the help of Ms. Upchurch this building was now complete and will continue to be an essential part of campus. When you give a lot to something or somewhere, you do receive much in return and seeing Ms. Upchurch solidified that ideal for me. She truly is a role model for many of us to look up to and think of as we move on and graduate from Longwood. Longwood has given me countless opportunities, and in return I want to give back as much as I can. That is why when I grow up, I want to be like Ms. Elsie Upchurch.
“The [Upchurch University Center] is in the heart of the heart of campus, and it’s a place where students can gather, meet, learn and grow. This is a place where everybody is valued and everyone is important.”
-Susan Sullivan, director of the university center and student activities
Article written by senior, Sadie Hodges, class of 2019 at Longwood University
Member of Tri Sigma Alpha Chapter
Sources:
http://www.longwood.edu/news/2018/upchurch-university-center-grand-opening/
http://www.longwood.edu/magazine/summer-2018/oct-26-is-the-big-day-/