Return to Main Menu

Meet...Mikie Name: Michelle Hayes—Everyone (except the nuns) calls me “Mikie.” Department: CardioVascular Institute. How long at MUSC: 8 years. Most rewarding thing about your job: Meeting extraordinary people and seeing the tangible and positive effects that their philanthropic gifts have on programs at MUSC. Family/pets: The love of my life is my daughter, Madison. Three years ago we inherited a black lab, Bear-Bear, and a long-haired tabby, Lucky Girl. I take no credit for the clever names. Favorite books: Steel Titan by Robert Hessen, The Greatest Secret in the World by  Og Mandino, and 365 Readings by George MacDonald. Favorite song: Milord by Edith Piaf. Madison and I like to sing it at full-volume in the car.  Fondest childhood memory: Riding my horse in a horseshow at Madison Square Garden. Bad habit: Finishing people's sentences. Pet peeve: People not letting me finish their sentences. Your mentors: My parents had the most profound influence on my life. They taught us that education and travel open up the entire world and that you can achieve anything to which you set your mind. Every night, suppers were spent discussing world events, historical leaders and the impact they had on the world. Fantasy job: Vice president of development for the Musee du Louvre. Most memorable trip: 1969—Mother, father, Italian grandmother, 5 kids, 2 cats, and an Old English Sheepdog drive from Connecticut to Georgia in a station wagon. Brother feeds Sheepdog a banana, Sheepdog throws up. So does family.  Within hour of departure, Hayes family takes hotel rooms. Fantasy dinner guests: Margaret Fuller, Andrew Carnegie, Simone deBouvoir, Pope John, XXIII, Nathan Lane, Oprah, a few close friends, my father and me. (I'm ½ Italian, who cooks for four?) Something people don't know about you: I taught aerobics for years. Favorite  quote: “You can stand tall without standing on someone. You can be a victor without having victims.” —Harriet Woods.