Photographs by William Taufic.
Talk to any of the Mitchells, and they’ll tell you that their tradition of giving dates back to the founders of the family business, Ed and Norma Mitchell. “It was always part of our DNA,” says their son Bill, “even in 1958.” That is when Mitchells department store opened, with three men’s suits, a coffee pot and a strong sense of community.
“My grandfather’s whole belief in running a local business was that if we are involved with the community, we will have a healthy business,” says Andrew Mitchell-Namdar, Jack Mitchell’s son (Bill’s nephew).
The list of causes the company supports includes Near and Far Aid, Westport Country Playhouse, the Breast Cancer Alliance, the YMCA and YWCA, the Boys and Girls Club, Kids in Crisis, the Jewish Home for the Elderly, the Bruce Museum, SoundWaters, Autism Speaks and St. Vincent’s Medical Center. There are hundreds more. Each of the Mitchells (Bill and Jack have seven sons between them) and their spouses are involved in charities personally as well.
“I’m a mentor at Kolbe Cathedral High School in Bridgeport,” says Bill. “It’s called a shepherding program. You pay a student’s education for four years and mentor him. It’s an inner-city Catholic school, and 99 percent of the kids go on to college. I helped initiate the program some years ago. For me it’s always about the kids. Through education and kids—that’s the way we’re going to get this great country back on its feet.” Bill is also on the board at St. Vincent’s Medical Center and Sacred Heart University and supports Near and Far Aid and the Inner-City Foundation. “Those are my personal babies,” he comments. “I’m also very involved in Paul Newman’s Hole in the Wall camp. He was a great friend and neighbor, and if Paul says, ‘Support this camp,’ I don’t think I’m saying no to him, right?”
Bill’s oldest son, Scott, spearheads many of the charity events at Richards. He has served on various boards but says, “My number one passion is SoundWaters. They teach 20,000 kids a year at their center in Stamford Cove. It’s great because it’s local, serves underprivileged kids and has an environmental focus. My kids go to their camps in the summer.” The father of three is priming the next generation of Mitchells: “This past spring my oldest went with my wife and painted the SoundWaters schooner. They see underprivileged kids there and get an idea of what it’s all about.”
Scott’s cousin Andrew is excited about a new charity called Pink Aid. “We are trying to fulfill compassionate needs of women with breast cancer in our area. I was working at St. Vincent’s and a woman came up to me and thanked me for a $70 wig we had donated to her. She said, ‘My four-year-old daughter will hug me again. Before she was too scared. Thank you so much!’ We live in this glass bubble; there are women right in our backyard who don’t have $70 for a wig, or can’t afford a sitter so they are taking their kids along to their chemo treatments. Kids don’t need to see that.
“There are lots of wonderful organizations I’m involved in that put a tremendous effort in research,” continues Andrew, “but there is a human compassion side that needs to be addressed. Pink Aid is about making an overwhelming diagnosis less overwhelming.” Carving out the time for this charity and philanthropic events isn’t hard for Andrew. “It’s the most rewarding piece of my job,” he says. “I look forward to that part of my day.”