Sam Mitchell graduated from MVRHS in 1996 as a well-rounded student with a wide range of academic and extracurricular interests. Whether music, sports, or the camaraderie of his peers, he embraced every opportunity with enthusiasm. He was truly a pleasure to know and to teach.
After high school, Sam attended Wesleyan University, where he majored in European history. While he spent summers working in construction on the Island with his dad, his first step toward a professional career came after his sophomore year, when he was offered an internship in Washington, D.C., working for Sen. Tom Daschle of South Dakota, the Senate Democratic leader. This experience allowed him to demonstrate his strong work ethic, but even more so, it revealed his natural curiosity and love of learning. Sam thrives when working and learning alongside others, always seeking opportunities to do both. His internship set him on a path toward his first job out of college: an entry-level position within Daschle’s leadership operation. Over the next several years, he worked in multiple Senate offices, and in 2009, joined the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of the incoming Obama administration.
However, a major career shift was on the horizon. By 2011, after a decade in politics — during which the increasing polarization of the country was becoming impossible to ignore — Sam decided to take a different path. He left government and enrolled in cooking school.
Why? Because he wanted to do something different — something that allowed him to use his hands and be creative.
He spent a year in school, which included an externship at a highly regarded D.C. restaurant, after which he launched a private dining service, allowing him to enjoy a more manageable pace while often cooking for many of the same D.C. contacts he had built relationships with over the years. He supplemented his work by offering writing, marketing, and design services to small business clients. Having gotten married in 2009, Sam’s flexible schedule allowed him to see his wife more often, and to be home with his son, Milo, who was born in 2015.
Due in part to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on his work, Sam cooks less than he once did. However, he has expanded his portfolio of small business projects, including work with Island Health Care, the Edgartown health center run by his mother, Cynthia.
Hearing Sam tell his story, I am struck not only by the opportunities he has diligently pursued but also by his creative approach to every challenge. Whatever is set before him, he commits to it fully, always finding a way to turn lemons into lemonade. Kudos to you, Sam — you make us proud. We can’t wait to see what comes next!
Marge Harris was a teacher at MVRHS for 27 years. She lives in Oak Bluffs. You can contact her at margeharris@comcast.net.
