Sept 20, 2023
By Grace O’Riley
“You don’t wanna wish you had done something. You wanna be glad you did it because you will regret it if you don’t.”
This is the advice Rachel Raiford received from her grandfather. Raiford is senior at the University of Montevallo studying multimedia journalism. In the summer of 2023, Raiford’s grandfather unexpectedly passed away. The advice he had given her countless times is now changing the way she makes decisions.
Raiford and her grandfather always had a close bond. Since starting college, Raiford would call her grandfather once or twice a week to catch him up on her life and ask for his advice.
“I am not very confident. I never have been,” Raiford said. “Whenever I was trying to make a decision, I would tell him about it.” Her grandfather would listen and encourage her to do what she already knew was right.
When she sought his opinion about moving off-campus, he responded: “Do whatever you want. If you want to move into an apartment, move into an apartment. You don’t have to worry about anyone else’s feelings.”
“It’s your life. You’re the one living it and you don’t want to regret anything you didn’t do.” – Ralph Wair, Raiford’s grandfather
After his passing in June, Raiford says she has come to treasure his advice and the memory of those calls. When uncertain about something, Raiford tries to imagine what her grandfather would say about the situation.
“He always had drive and passion, whether it was for a project, his job, or just to keep going. I think that is very admirable,” Raiford said.
This admiration of her grandfather continues to influence how she interacts with others.
“He was the most well-spoken man. He never sugar coated the truth. He would never hide anything from you just because it hurt your feelings,” Raiford said. “He was very honest, very passionate. And I think that’s what I admire most about him.”
As the Montevallo chapter president of the Greek organization Phi Mu, Raiford is required to make administrative decisions. She said she struggles with delegating and is learning to ask for help from her executive members, cabinet members and sorority sisters.
“I love being a leader and seeing them accomplish little successes. Seeing their excitement and their achievements for little passion projects is so rewarding,” she said. “I love knowing I got to help them get to their success point.”
Raiford is also a journalist for the UM student newspaper, The Alabamian. When faced with a recent sensitive story, Raiford said wrote what she believed her readers deserved to know.
“I was unsure about this one article I wanted to write about Gold Side,” Raiford said. As a member of the Gold Side cabinet, she was aware of an internal story that she wanted to publish. She faced opposition because of possible misinterpretations of the article. “I sat here one night and was thinking: this is what I would call grandaddy about.”
“He always told me to go for whatever I wanted to go for. I think that’s what has changed about me the most. Instead of being so hesitant, I now go for it, if I am confident or not. My attitude has changed,” Raiford explained.
She wrote the article, and it was published the second week of term. Now, “Loyal Golds” as Raiford calls them, and the rest of the University can read about the Side’s shift in leadership from a source whose best intentions are to support and honor Gold Side.
“I think about the impression I’ve left on people a lot,” Raiford said.
At the start of the semester everything is just beginning with classes and events, but this is the last time Raiford will be a part of it as a graduating senior. She hopes that her contributions have helped others to grow in their time at UM.
“I want people to know me as a happy, kind person. That’s the impression I want to leave, even on my worst day.”
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