Community Remembers Mona Cornwell
Mona Lipe Cornwell, Director of Community Relations and Marketing at Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College, died unexpectedly Tuesday, April 2, of complications from ovarian cancer.
Mona had been employed at A-B Tech since 1994, when she was hired as a desktop publishing specialist. She held the title of Public Information Officer from 1996-99 and then worked as Director of Communications from 1999-2010. She and her department received numerous national marking awards over the years. In January, she was named the North Carolina Community College System’s staff person of the year. She had previously worked as a reporter for The Asheville Citizen-Times.
She served on the boards and committees of numerous local and state organizations including the Buncombe County Schools Foundation, the Buncombe County Justice Advisory Group, and the state and local chapters of the National Alliance on Mental Illness.
She received a leadership award from Western Highlands Network for her instrumental role in launching Crisis Intervention Training for area law enforcement officers, school resource officers, emergency medical technicians, and others working with individuals with mental health diagnosis. The 40-hour program at A-B Tech builds empathy and trains officers in de-escalation techniques to humanely handle crisis situations with no loss of life. She also served on the state CIT Advisory Group and various other mental health advocacy and community improvement organizations. Asheville’s homeless population long held a special place in her heart.
Friends, family and associates will remember her as a woman of uncommon humility with a warm, infectious laugh and indomitable spirit. She attended Highland Christian Community Church and First United Methodist Church.
Contributions can be made to the Mona Cornwell Memorial Fund of the Community Foundation of Western North Carolina, established to assist people in need in Buncombe County. Contributions should be made to CFWNC, noting the fund’s name on the memo line, and mailed to 4 Vanderbilt Park Dr., Suite 300, Asheville, NC 28803.
