Patricia Walsh Chadwick has held many roles at Elon University, from being an Elon parent in 2012 to more recently joining the finance and administration committees as a trustee. This spring, she will take on a new role as the 2026 undergraduate commencement speaker.
Chadwick was offered the position of commencement speaker over a phone call from Jim Piatt, senior vice president for advancement and external affairs. Chadwick said she knew her late husband, John, would have encouraged her to say yes.
“I said to Jim, I said, ‘My instinct as I’m driving the car is to think, oh, I have to tell John. And of course, I can’t, but I will promise you, he would have been so happy for me,’” Chadwick said. “And so I said, ‘I’m not going to take any time to think about it. I’m gonna do it.’”…