Pam Derrickson:

After PAHS, I went to William and Mary, married Al Etheridge after graduation (he was at W&M too) and then taught gifted students in Charlottesville (my home town) to put Al through law school at UVA.

Our 30 year marriage was spent living in Virginia Beach on the Lynnhaven River and later at the North End on the beach. I worked closely with Al on projects/business ventures and we had many travel adventures, mostly in Europe, NYC, and around the US. (Our travels enhanced our enjoyment of the arts and theater.) In business, I concentrated on marketing and management, particularly in the hospitality industry/international tourism. 

I have been very involved in volunteer work. I was a Founder and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Virginia Stage Company in Norfolk, VA. The theater is now over 30 years old and nationally recognized. I was also the Team Manager every year for our sailing team in the international sailing race, the Worrell 1,000, which our team won in 1987. 

1989 brought a full-time move to the Ft Myers/Naples area of Florida where we already had a beach home and business and spent vacations. The marriage ended in 1993, and I moved south to Naples which I love and has become my adopted “hometown.” In the 1990’s I became the marketing director of a large furnishings/interior design company located in Naples and around Florida. My volunteer efforts here have included the American Heart Association Heart Balls, fundraisers for the Shelter for Abused Women, graduation from Leadership Collier, NAMI, and others. 

Around 2000 I became a full-time Realtor in Naples and am a graduate of the National Realtor Institute. I sell second or vacation homes in/near my own community, with 2 ½ miles of Gulf front beaches with beach clubs, as well as golf, tennis etc. I’m with a large historic real estate firm here, but conveniently have my office in my home! 

I have two wonderful sons, Dan, born in 1968, who went to Yale and then USC for graduate work, and Mike, born in 1970, and his wife Tara who both went to University of Miami. Dan and Mike have both been in the film and TV industry in Los Angeles for some years, Dan as a producer and Mike as an assistant director. Mike and Tara are parents of my granddaughter Hannah who is 17 and the light of my life, of course!  We visit as often as possible and I’m fortunate to have a close relationship with my family in spite of the distance! A younger brother moved here after our mother passed away in Virginia Beach, and another brother in Indianapolis maintains a second home here.

I enjoy the casual healthy lifestyle of Naples with beaches, boating, movies, theater, music/concerts, symphony, reading, good food, and good friends…special relationships I’ve developed over the years. Recovering this summer/fall from major back surgery, I couldn’t have made it without my family and friends with me!

None of my family is in VA Beach any longer, so I rarely have an opportunity to visit old friends who remain in the Tidewater area, except for attending college reunions.  At William and Mary, I was the class activities chairman for my 45th reunion.