Cynthia Yothers : Interview for the John W. Gardner Legacy Oral History Project
Abstract/Contents
- Abstract
- Cynthia Hahn Yothers, who worked as executive assistant to John W. Gardner for twenty years, discusses her early life, her career, and her personal and professional relationship with John Gardner. Yothers recounts moving to Washington, DC, and getting a job with Common Cause, where she met Gardner. She describes the vibrant energy in the organization during its early days when it tackled issues including Watergate, the Vietnam War, and education reform. She characterizes Gardner as an inspirational leader, principled and disciplined. She emphasizes that he was willing to take unpopular action, even if it meant alienating friends. Yothers talks about Gardner’s decision to start Independent Sector with Brian O’Connell and discusses Gardner’s participation as a member of the Board of Trustees at Stanford University. Working with him for so long, Yothers became well acquainted with Gardner and gained insight into his personality. She describes him as witty, shy, and sometimes absent minded. She relates information about his early life and his family and discusses her decision not to accompany him when he returned to California.
Description
Type of resource | text |
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Extent | 1 text file |
Place | Stanford (Calif.) |
Publisher | Stanford Historical Society |
Date created | April 25, 2018 |
Language | English |
Digital origin | born digital |
Creators/Contributors
Interviewee | Yothers, Cynthia | |
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Creator | Yothers, Cynthia | |
Interviewer | Abel, Suzanne | |
Publisher | Stanford Historical Society |
Subjects
Subject | Gardner, John W. (John William), 1912-2002 |
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Subject | Civil Society > United States |
Subject | Administrative assistants |
Genre | Interview |
Bibliographic information
Biographical profile | Cynthia Hahn Yothers went to work at the offices of Common Cause in 1971, becoming executive assistant to John W. Gardner in 1972. She stayed with him in this capacity throughout his tenure at Common Cause, the founding of Independent Sector in 1980 and well beyond--until 1990, after Gardner returned to Stanford as the first Miriam & Peter Haas Centennial Professor in Public Service. Yothers was involved in every aspect of Gardner’s work, including the start-up of both national membership organizations and the publication of seven books. Prior to her work with John Gardner, Yothers spent five years at United States Steel Corporation in her hometown of Pittsburgh, PA. Remaining in Washington after Gardner’s return to California, Yothers initially worked for the Center for Marine Conservation, but in 1993 became corporate secretary for the board of WETA (PBS) in Arlington, VA. In addition, she served as executive assistant to WETA’s COO, then in 1997 to WETA’s President and CEO, Sharon Percy Rockefeller. Mrs. Rockefeller had served with John W. Gardner for a number of years on Stanford University’s Board of Trustees. Yothers remained in this position at WETA until her retirement in 2003. Yothers is a graduate of Georgetown Visitation Preparatory School and the University of Pittsburgh. She also holds a certificate in French language and civilization from the University of Paris at the Sorbonne. |
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Audio |
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Finding Aid | |
Location | https://purl.stanford.edu/wd772fk6025 |
Location | SC1355 |
Repository | Stanford University. Libraries. Department of Special Collections and University Archives |
Access conditions
- Use and reproduction
- The materials are open for research use and may be used freely for non-commercial purposes with an attribution. For commercial permission requests, please contact the Stanford University Archives (universityarchives@stanford.edu).
- Copyright
- Copyright © The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University. All rights reserved.
Collection
John W. Gardner Legacy Oral History Project
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