Kay Mixon is known as an outspoken advocate for victims of domestic violence and sexual assault, and even though she will retire as executive director of the Cumbee Center to Assist Abused Persons later this month, that won't change.
"My mouth is going to keep on running as long as I can talk," said Mixon, whose last day of work will be March 27. "You will still be hearing from me, and I'm going to be even more open because I won't have a responsibility to any agency."
Mixon said she had been thinking about retiring for a while before she told her staff at the Cumbee Center two weeks ago that she would be leaving.
"I'll be 70 years old in June, and I kind of think that if I'm going to do something else, I need to do it soon," said Mixon, who has been at the Cumbee Center for more than 30 years.
"I'll do a little bit of traveling, work in my yard with flowers and enjoy my great-grandbabies," Mixon said.
"I have a daughter who has cancer," Mixon continued, "and I want to spend some good time with her. She has to go to a lot of doctor's appointments and she isn't able to drive anymore, so it will be very helpful for me to be with her more."
Mixon started at the Cumbee Center as the domestic violence service coordinator but, less than a year after she was hired, she became the executive director.
Under her leadership, the nonprofit organization has continued to grow - increasing the number of its employees and expanding its facilities and services.
"When I started, there were three people in my office and in our shelter, we had two people during the day and two ladies that rotated every other week working at night. Now, we have a staff of about 18 people."
In addition, during Mixon's tenure, the Cumbee Center moved its shelter from a rural location to a site within Aiken's city limits. The current safe house is able to accommodate more women and children more comfortably than the former shelter could.
"We have a play yard and a wonderful walking trail that Leadership Aiken County built for us last year," Mixon said. "The trail is a place where the women can go out and meditate and enjoy some tranquility."
Also during Mixon's association with the Cumbee Center, public recognition of the domestic violence problem has increased and assistance for its victims has improved.
"It used to be an issue where people said, 'This needs to stay in the home; it's not our business,'" Mixon said. "But I've been around long enough to see it being openly discussed in our legislature, and I had the opportunity to see the Violence Against Women Act come to fruition in Washington, D.C."
Mixon won't be cutting her ties to the Cumbee Center completely.
"I'll be back to help at our Whiskey Road Race," she said, "and there will be other things happening that I can volunteer for. I don't want to totally go away."
Sharon Rodgers, president of the United Way of Aiken County, praised Mixon for her efforts.
"She has brought strong leadership to the nonprofit community for so many years," Rodgers said. "She has provided wonderful direction for the Cumbee Center, and she has been a champion for the cause of curbing domestic violence, which is so prevalent in our society. She will be sorely missed."
Gayle Lofgren, executive director of the Child Advocacy Center of Aiken County, also expressed appreciation for Mixon's contributions.
"She has always been very helpful to me in my job at the Child Advocacy Center," Lofgren said. "She is a person who is a very strong advocate for women and children who have experienced domestic violence and abuse. She is very aware of victims' needs, and she has always been very willing to speak up for them and to look at the ways assistance to them can be improved. She pushes to make things better."
Dede Biles is a general assignment reporter for the Aiken Standard.