Margaret Campbell Obituary

My aunt, Susan Seyfried, worked at CSS for many years and introduced me to Mrs. Campbell. She was the type of lady who commanded your attention while being able to start up a comfortable conversation about any subject. I also went to school with Mrs. Campbell daughter at CMHS. I'm sure there are many people whose lives Mrs. Campbell touched and many that will miss her deeply. My deepest sympathy to her family at this time of loss.

I entered CSSG’s boarding school program on a scholarship in the fall of 1965 when I was in 11th grade. I also had a supportive grandmother who paid part of my tuition in order to free me from a very negative family situation and to provide a more challenging academic environment than I was receiving in my public school, where I felt bored and misunderstood. I would not have been able to attend the school during my last two high school years if it had not been for that scholarship. I was always one of the “different” kids in that class of twenty students, mostly because of my lower socio-economic background and lack of experience in the upper-crust social milieu, but also because of a lack of interest in boys and the contemporary music scene, and because of standing out academically and choosing to do extra self-improvement things like daily piano practicing and ice skating lessons that were difficult in the dorm situation. Despite the social differences, I loved being at school and dreaded having to go home to Denver every weekend on the train. After two years at CSSG, I graduated at the top of my 1967 class.



During my senior year, I faced many crises and challenges, including a serious bout with depression, brought on mostly because of my family situation, and the “bombshell” that my parents could not afford to send me to any of the colleges of my choice that I had applied to and wanted, instead, for me to either work a year to earn money before going to school, stay at home and go to the University of Colorado, or consider a different career path. None of those options were very high on my list of hopes and dreams, especially considering the troubles I had faced at home for the previous seven years. I needed to get away from home! After many discussions with teacher Polly Pitman, my mentor from whom I gained so very much, and with Margaret Campbell, Mrs. C. offered me a gift that I graciously accepted and which probably changed my life. She gave me $1000, a huge amount in those days, especially for an 18-year-old, to cover the difference between what my parents said they could afford, the various scholarships and loans I received, and the actual cost of my first year of college at Beloit College in Wisconsin, which had a very innovative and solid educational program and was considered “the Yale of the Midwest.” The money was to be a loan, to me alone (not to my parents), and I was to begin paying it back during my second year of college. It meant the world to me that she had enough confidence in me to make that offer. I had no idea how I was going to repay it, but I decided to take the risk and assumed that I would be able to figure something out when the time came. Because of that loan, I was able to get away from home and go to the college of my choice, and once there, I found ways that I could earn money and continue the program. It wasn’t easy, and sometimes I worked as many as 40-60 hours a week on top of my studies. I managed to not only complete my studies with a Cum Laude (pretty decent, considering the horrendous work hours!), but also to go over to Europe for a full year abroad, including an extensive stay in East Germany, and to complete a Masters in Education. I paid back Mrs. Campbell as she had requested, and spent the ten years after college paying back college loans. Most importantly, I have always been so very thankful for the excellent education I got, both during my last two years of high school and in college.



Since graduation, I have worked as a German teacher in grades 7-12, a travel agent while my children were growing up, a professional genealogist and writer for genealogical magazines, a piano teacher, and most recently as an owner and curriculum developer for four small private schools which my husband and I own together. Our goal is to create schools which are clearly superior. Isn’t it odd how things have come full circle! Margaret Campbell’s gift has come to mind many times over the years, and I have often wondered whether she had any understanding of just how much her gift meant to me. I know that I have and will continue to try to leave a similar legacy in our schools and hope that others are inspired to do the same…



Sincerely, Kathi Rader Sittner, CSSG Class of 1967

I have taught at The Colorado Springs School for twenty years now. What a highlight it was for me to meet Margaret at commencement excercises a few years back. I am proud to work at the school she helped found.