When Virginia Peninsula Community College rededicates its performing arts space Jan. 10, 2026, many in attendance won’t notice the subtle name change.
For family members of its namesake, the Dr. Mary T. Christian Theatre is more meaningful than the Dr. Mary T. Christian Auditorium.
“My mom was such a theater person, but something happened, and she went another way,” Benita Toler said. “Theater was her love.”
Toler’s niece Cheryl Smith agreed with Toler “100 percent.”
“I think theater is very nice for her because she was very theatrical. I think that’s more appropriate for her,” Smith said, who is also Christian’s granddaughter.
While Christian made her mark in education and politics, she also produced community plays and talent shows, according to her daughter.
“She loved being in a theater,” Toler said. “But she was such a strong advocate for lifelong learning. She had a special place in her heart for community colleges, for the universities, especially HBCUs, for the theater.”
Christian, who was born in Hampton on July 9, 1924, graduated from Phenix High School in Hampton in 1941. She earned a bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from Hampton University in 1955, a master’s in Speech and Drama from Columbia University in 1960, and a doctorate in Elementary Education and Special Education from Michigan State in 1967.
That formed the foundation of her long careers in education and politics.
She taught in Hampton City Schools and was the first Black woman to serve on the Hampton City School board. She also was a professor and later the dean of Hampton University’s School of Education.
As for politics, she was the first woman from Hampton elected to the state legislature and the first Black person since Reconstruction to represent Virginia’s 92nd House District. She served nine consecutive terms, advocating for health care, education and civil rights, among other things.
“She was all about education,” said Smith, adding many family members have attended the College.
Both Smith and Toler said Christian played a role in them becoming educators.
After Smith graduated from Kecoughtan High School in 1982, she enrolled at then Thomas Nelson Community College, hoping to transfer to a four-year institution. She soon decided school wasn’t for her and entered the workforce.
“I remember sitting down with her, and she said, ‘I will give you one year to go and work and do whatever you want to do, but you are going back to school, and you’re going to finish,’” Smith said. “After one year, I came back. And it was a game-changer.”
Smith was serious about school, eventually graduating from what is now VPCC in 1987 with an associate degree in word processing. She blames her grandmother for her career path.
“I am, yes, a teacher, and I will attribute that to her, absolutely,” Smith said.
Shortly after graduating, Smith moved to Maryland and started working with the National Science Foundation. She spent a few years with the federal government, then went into the private sector. She, her husband, who is involved in prison ministry, and their son were active in their church, so she started working in after-school care at the school affiliated with the church.
She’s been there 17 years, going from aftercare to the cafeteria to a teacher’s assistant to kindergarten teacher to first-grade teacher. She’s now in her fifth year teaching first grade.
“Never had I even intended to get into ministry and get into school,” Smith said. “I told my grandmother, ‘This is all your fault.’”
Toler, who has lived in Atlanta for 3½ years, has been retired for nearly 15 years after a long career in education. She holds a doctorate in Leadership and Policy and Administration from Virginia Tech.
With a military husband, she has worked across the globe, including Europe. She spent most of her years in Fairfax County, starting out as a teacher. She then went into administration and eventually became a high school assistant principal. She also was a program writer, working with the superintendent on discipline cases. And she has taught college classes.
As with Smith, Toler received a nudge from Christian regarding her education. When Toler was teaching, she didn’t think she needed a doctorate, reasoning she can do everything she wanted without a Ph.D. Christian thought otherwise.
“She said, ‘You will open more doors if you continue on.’ It was all about education, always,” Toler said of her mother.
Christian and her husband, Wilbur Christian, were married for almost 65 years and had three children, nine grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren. She died Nov. 11, 2019, at the age of 95.
There is an elementary school in Hampton named after her, and there is a statue of her at Hampton University’s Legacy Park.
The original theater dedication at the College was Jan. 15, 2003. The roof of the old theater collapsed in April 2021. The building and campus were closed due to the pandemic, and no one was injured.
A VPCC official representing the president’s office said it just made sense to keep the name on the renovated theater.
“Because the space had already been dedicated to Mary T. Christian, the College felt it was important to honor that legacy,” the representative said.
Having the name on the theater at VPCC, according to Toler, also allows her mother’s legacy to carry on.
“We’re hoping that it inspires generations of students and educators and the artists, so when they see her name they’ll say, ‘Who was she and why is her name on this building?’” Toler said. “Hopefully, her story will explain why she is on it. Then they’ll find out the many wonderful things that she did for humanity.”
Toler and Smith said through all the dedications, honors and awards, Christian always remained humble.
Noted Smith: “She has left such a mark on my heart and the hearts of our entire family. It’s just phenomenal what she has done in her life and continues to do even now. As I said, she’s home with the Lord, and she’s still being honored.
“Still being honored, not forgotten.”