At 80 years old, Carole Sergent has more grit than most women half her age, and she’s not slowing down any time soon. A philanthropic dynamo with an inspiring story, the Memphis-born Vanderbilt graduate has resided in Nashville for most of her adult life — and our city is all the better for it.
Inspired by her mother’s volunteer work, Carole has chaired prestigious events like the Swan Ball and Symphony Ball. But it’s her incredible and selfless work with refugees that truly makes her stand out above the rest. With an open heart, a garage full of supplies, and a team of friends and family willing to help her drive the mission forward, she’s assisting refugees as they adjust to life in Music City and beyond. Please welcome this week’s FACE of Nashville, Carole Sergent.
This week’s FACE of Nashville is none other than philanthropic dynamo Carole Sergent.
What was your upbringing like?
I was born in Memphis, and I was a pianist and an organist. I was the organist for our Catholic church at the age of 14. It was a great learning experience because it started my love of classical music. I had a nun — a Sister of Charity — who taught me. She insisted we play the classics with a little popular music thrown in. One time, at age 14, nobody showed up for a 6:30 a.m. high mass, so I sang and played the entire mass in Latin by myself from the back of this huge church.
I went to Vanderbilt in 1957, and that’s where I met my sweet husband of almost 59 years. John and I dated for about three years, and then he went to medical school. We got married after I graduated from undergrad in 1963. I was a history major and a fine arts minor. One of my professors was Walter Sharp, who was related to many people in Nashville. I was always impressed with him; he taught me and gave me my love of the fine arts. When I went to Europe as a sophomore, I saw so many of those masterpieces I knew about from him; it was an eye-opening love affair with the arts.
What inspired your passion for nonprofit work?
Nashville is a wonderful place to volunteer! We lived all over the East Coast when John was doing his training — in Washington, DC, Baltimore, New York City … all those places. They’re so large that it’s very hard to make an impact. I joined the Junior League in New York and started volunteering. When I came back to Nashville, I continued with the Junior League, the Symphony, Cheekwood, and many other organizations. I served on their boards through the years, but my love was the symphony. I was president of the volunteer arm, called The Guild. I chaired the Symphony Ball and the Swan Ball … Volunteering has always been part of my life. My mother [volunteered]; I grew up with that and wanted to do my part.
Carole met her husband when they were both students at Vanderbilt. These days, he is a rheumatologist affiliated with Vanderbilt University Medical Center.
What led you to your work with refugees?
When a former president said that no more Muslims would be let into the United States, I became so irate! I told John, “I’m either gonna crush every TV in this house, or I’m going to do something positive.” So, I did something positive. To date, it has been the greatest experience I’ve ever had. I met this family from Iraq — a mother and her three children. The children were young and only knew the words to Taylor Swift’s music; they didn’t know how to speak English. And the mother was inspiring; she had a smile on her face 100% of the time. The one thing she kept repeating to me was, “Carol, I want to keep my children safe.” One impetus that propelled them here was that all four of them saw her husband (their father) killed in their front yard by 13 bullets. She moved here with suitcases, and that’s it. She had a background in education — a college degree — and the children had been educated but didn’t know much English.
I met her about a week after she moved here and fell in love with the family. I mentored them and still do. We — a consortium of my neighbors and friends — pitched in money and household effects, and we furnished their apartment. We got her a car and gave her driving lessons. This woman passed the written driving test, which was in English, and made a 100%! If I had tried to do that in Arabic, I wouldn’t have passed for the rest of my life! But she was determined and smart. Then, we started working on jobs for her. We raised a lot of money for them. She wanted to be in education, and one of my daughters is very into public education. She helped me get to the right people and got her a job in the Metro school system — she was willing to do anything to get a start, so she started in the cafeteria. She was scrubbing toilets, cleaning up, and doing all sorts of tasks just to get her foot in the door. From there, she became a teacher’s assistant. All along, she was taking extra courses on her own. She added to her resume bit by bit. About three weeks ago, she called me and said,” Guess what? I’m a U.S. citizen!” She applied all on her own and had to wait five years to get her green card. She’s the kind of citizen we want, and she’s just one of many! So, that inspired me. They’ll always be family to me. It’s a wonderful story.
I got a call about a year and a half ago that we would have a lot of Afghans. So I said, “I’ll do anything I can to help.” I’ll tell you what’s been a great thing — the neighborhood blog I subscribe to. I go on that and ask for volunteers, and I get 30. I ask for food gift cards, and I’ll get $500-worth. Tennessee isn’t called the Volunteer State for nothing, and I’ve really found that to be true. I had a boutique in my garage for months, where people dropped off clothing, household items, TVs, bicycles … everything. We loaded up pickup trucks and my station wagon and took it over there, and people would come out smiling. Families invited us to eat; I’ve made wonderful friends. Now the Ukrainians are coming in. I just can’t say no, even at age 80. The people are so wonderful! To think that we, as a country, almost wouldn’t let them in inspired me to say, “Not on my watch.”
“I’ve been on both sides and seen the waste in these big organizations,” says Carole. “They spend so much on overhead that people don’t get what they’re supposed to get. We don’t have those layers of bureaucracy at Tennessee Resettlement Aid. We get it done.”
What is the best way for us to help?
I work for an organization called Tennessee Resettlement Aid, run by Katie Finn. I started helping her raise money and get volunteers, and that’s who I’ve done all of this work through — she’s just dynamite. She’s 27 years old and worth every single adoration. She gets things done! You get with big organizations, and they’re sitting on all this money. We don’t have money from the government like they do. But they cut people off after six months, and we continue to support them. The system needs to be tweaked, and the government needs to be able to get to people quicker than through the layers of bureaucracy they have to go through.
Rumor has it you’re ready to pass the torch. Is that true, or are you in it for the long haul?
Well … I have about 10 car seats in my “Baby Boutique,” which is my carport. They’re gathering dust, but I’m doing that until we see if we get an onslaught of Ukrainians. At 80, you do slow down. John and I are traveling — we just got back from a safari, and we’re going to New York for Christmas in December. I think it’s time for the younger people to take over, but I can’t not have my finger in the pie. I’ll always have an opinion, and I have relationships I can never let go of.
You mentioned your safari to Africa. What was the impetus behind your trip?
The impetus was John! It exceeded expectations. We had no idea of the scope and beauty and people. The biggest thing we got out of it was how fabulous the people were. Some have nothing, and they smile anyway. One of our guides told us, “They may not have anything, but what they have, they’re very grateful for.” It’s very different from the American way. So that was life-changing. Then, of course, there are the animals. But the animals weren’t the top thing from that trip; it was the interactions with the guides, people, waitstaff, etcetera.
“We saw every single animal you can imagine,” Carole says of her recent African safari. “One morning at dawn, we took a balloon ride over the Savannas. We saw lions scamper below us, and elephants and hippos were squealing. It was magical.”
What is the best piece of advice that you’ve ever received?
Keep the lines of communication open — whether with children, husbands, in-laws, or friends.
Outside of faith, family, and friends, what are three things you cannot live without?
One thing I cannot give up is my garden. I don’t need to spend money in a therapist’s office; I just go dig or weed. I can really pull out some four-letter words while weeding!
I still have to say my family. I have four perfect grandchildren, two daughters, and two perfect sons-in-law, and we can’t ask for much more than that. And traveling is up there. We’re going to do as much as we can. John says, “The clock is ticking in the arena; we just don’t know how much time is on it.”
She may be ready to pass the torch, but for now, Carole is still offering solace and help to refugees throughout Nashville. Image: Hunter Armistead
All images were provided by Carole Sergent unless otherwise noted.
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