Assistant Managing Member, Jackson Kelly, PLLC
by Kensie Westerfield
Gretchen Callas, a Morgantown native who grew up wanting to be a horse jockey, was romanced into the world of law after watching her husband embark on the challenging path of a young lawyer. “My husband was instrumental in my career path,” says Callas. “He was a new lawyer (at Jackson Kelly) when I decided to apply to law school. Chris really enjoyed the people he worked with, and it was clear that he had fallen into a great work environment. I quickly became envious and thought a legal career would offer the kind of interesting work I would enjoy as well. I wanted to try something new and law school seemed like a good option.”
Callas and her husband, Chris, have been working together for years and have found that it works perfectly for them. “I’ve worked with my husband for years and we have always been at Jackson Kelly. He started in 1992 and I started in 1996. For us it has been a perfect existence and an ideal situation. We’re able to understand and talk about issues that arise at the office. Yet, we don’t see each other regularly at the office—we’re in different departments, four floors apart.”
As a working mother of three young girls, Callas was glad that she had the opportunity to see that women can have it all. “I babysat for Carol Henry’s two boys in Morgantown and she taught me that I could balance career and family, that as a woman you can have both a fulfilling career and children.”
Callas prides herself on the fact that people can count on her. She is the first female and youngest person ever to be Jackson Kelly’s assistant managing member and she continues in her role as a member of the Litigation Department. “I liken myself to an air traffic controller. There are at least 10 things going through my mind at all times. It can be very mentally challenging; there is a lot to think about and to prioritize. You have to make sure that people in many different places are covered and have the support they need. If they need my support, I want to be there, whether it’s a management meeting or a kindergartner who needs to be met at the bus stop. There is a lot of juggling involved, but I really would not have it any other way.” It is her drive to put others first and her hope that her family and colleagues will be proud of her that keeps Callas motivated.
In her precious few moments of free time she likes to relax by playing the piano. “It is one of the few activities that really allows me to forget everything.”
Keeping a sense of perspective has helped make Callas a success along the way. “I’ve found that maintaining a sense of humor has been very important. If you don’t enjoy what you are doing, you’re not going to last very long. You have to be able to find the humor in a situation, even difficult ones.”
Somehow in the midst of everything she juggles, Callas has found time to serve as a volunteer for a variety of groups and organizations. She has volunteered time to the YMCA Spirit of the Valley Campaign, Piedmont Elementary Read Aloud Program, American Heart Association, the Youth in Government Program and the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia’s LAWS project, an educational program for high school students.
Photography by Rick Lee
