Wellford received the award at a special event in December.
Wellford is pictured with The Honorable Annie Tauer Christoff ’96, United States Magistrate Judge for the Western District of Tennessee.
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Hutchison Alumna Earns Memphis Bar Association Honor
Shea Sisk Wellford ’87 received the Judge Jerome Turner Lawyer’s Lawyer Award from the Memphis Bar Association.
The award recognizes a Memphis attorney who has practiced law for more than 15 years and embodies professionalism, civility, and courtesy. An accomplished attorney and shareholder at Martin, Tate, Morrow & Marston, P.C., as well as a member of the Executive Committee of the firm, Wellford represents large and small businesses, financial institutions, and individuals in civil litigation. She previously served as president of the Memphis Bar Association, the Mid-South Chapter of the Federal Bar Association, and the Leo Bearman, Sr. Inn of Court.
As an attorney, she is well-versed in making a case for her clients but realizes that respectful communication and civil discourse are vital in law and life. “It’s important to be able to have civil discourse, to be able to truly listen to someone without formulating a response in the moment or interrupting. And then to be able to communicate back to them in a way that they can listen to you so that you can have a discussion that may or may not get you to an agreement, but that may get you closer toward an understanding of the other person’s perspective,” she said.
Her success reflects not only her legal skill and leadership, but also the values instilled during her time at Hutchison: resilience, critical thinking, and integrity. “The more cases I tried, the easier it became. It wasn’t like flipping a light switch, but it was just the mindset of, ‘okay, I can do that.’ I just kept pushing forward as the cases got larger and more important from a monetary and business issue standpoint. It definitely was a learning process,” she said.
Annie Tauer Christoff ’96 never had any inclination that she would one day be a magistrate judge. She didn’t know any lawyers growing up or much about the practice of law.
Figuring out the best way to make change happen on a legislative level requires critical thinking and strong attention to detail. “If you’re going to change a governing document for a whole city, it has to be right. It has to be well thought out,” said Meredith Franklin Keaton ’08.
Hutchison Now highlights recent graduates early in their careers who embody how a Hutchison education can lead anywhere you can imagine. We spoke with Blair Threlkeld, a speech-language pathologist who works with patients who have sustained neurological injuries.
Hutchison Now highlights graduates early in their careers who embody how a Hutchison education can lead anywhere you can imagine. We spoke with Gaby Nair ’14, Ph.D., a Postgraduate Research Associate in Politics at Princeton University, where she recently completed her PhD in political theory. She is also a former Morehead-Cain Scholar at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
We asked Kristen Farmer Davis ’99 about some of her past experiences, how those influence her work with Hutchison students today, and what she’s excited about in her new role.
It’s a special memory for Gabrielle Arkle ’12. When she was younger, she visited the National Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola, Florida. The museum features more than 150 restored aircraft representing the Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard aviation.
If there’s one thing Elizabeth Blankenship-Singh ’08 knows about, it’s pivoting. It’s something she has done successfully several times and something she believes Hutchison prepared her well for.
The best coaches teach you lessons that last long after the final buzzer. Ten alumnae hope to impart what they learned through Hutchison athletics by coaching girls in sports such as soccer, basketball, lacrosse, and volleyball.
Hutchison Now highlights graduates early in their careers who embody how a Hutchison education can lead anywhere you can imagine. We spoke with Hannah Freeman ’20, a trade and investment officer for healthcare and life sciences at the British Embassy in Washington, D.C.
Hutchison Now highlights recent graduates early in their careers who embody how a Hutchison education can lead anywhere you can imagine. We spoke with Kelley Guinn McArtor ’12, a brand marketing director at PepsiCo in New York.
Two alumnae—Shubhi Singh ’22 and Francie Sentilles ’17—have taken their world language skills far beyond Hutchison classrooms, from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where they both attended, to countries around the world.
Carly Gubin ’12 played tennis at Hutchison and learned the importance of being part of a team. As a dentist, she relies on a team when caring for patients.
Hutchison Now highlights recent graduates early in their careers who embody how a Hutchison education can lead anywhere you can imagine. We spoke with Morgan Murdock, a development manager with South Downtown Atlanta.
Hutchison Now highlights recent graduates early in their careers who embody how a Hutchison education can lead anywhere you can imagine. We spoke with Dorothy Oehmler, who works for Mischief Comedy in London.