Maureen Ragland
“It’s the camaraderie of doing things together for a purpose,” says Maureen Kelly Ragland of her Tri Kappa sisterhood.
When Maureen joined her husband, Charlie, a professor at the Indiana University Kelley School of Business in Bloomington in 2017, she was looking forward to becoming involved in a community-service organization.
Luckily, she lived next door to Moriah Sowders, who used her clever match-making skills to fix Maureen up on a “girlfriend date” with Nancy Gettinger. Next thing Maureen knew, she was a member of the Alpha chapter.
“I joined because giving back to the community is really important to me,” Maureen says. “I’ve always been involved in the community. I wanted to find a group of women to do just that and learn about Bloomington along the way.”
Maureen grew up in Moline, Ill., and attended Southern Illinois University in Carbondale before transferring to St. Ambrose College in Davenport, Iowa, where she was graduated with majors in business and economics. She started out her career in finance in Silverthorne, Colo., up in the Rocky Mountains. She worked in banking in Dallas and attended graduate school in Florida before landing in Atlanta, where she met her husband.
“I met Charlie’s roommate, who invited me to a Sigma Nu alum party,” Maureen says. “I met Charlie there. We had a lot in common – tennis and skiing – plus we both lost our dads at a young age.”
The Raglands have three grown sons, CB (and his wife, Erin), Connor and Chris.
Maureen, who now works at TIAA Financial Services in Bloomington, is an avid tennis player. She played in college and has continued her passion throughout her adult life. Fellow Tri Kappas Tara Babcock and Mary Burch Ratliff say she’s an excellent player.
Maureen also likes to garden and watch the squirrels and birds in her backyard. She laughs when she says she dreams of doing lots of reading in her retirement someday.
For now, work, family, tennis and Tri Kappa take up her time.
“Tri Kappa is a group of women with the same goals and values making a difference in people’s lives,” Maureen says. “I really like Blingo and making cheeseballs to sell each year.
“Tri Kappa is wonderful, and I’m glad to be a part of it!”
More About Maureen:
Loves bright colors
Has lived in nine states
Considers Chattanooga, where she raised her sons, her home
Spends as much time as possible outdoors
Is the youngest of six children in a big Irish-Catholic family