Black History
“Mr. CIAA,” Abraham Mitchell, Dies In Suffolk At Age 95
Abraham Mitchell, affectionately known as “Mr. CIAA,” passed away at age 95, leaving behind a legacy of vibrant fashion, community pride, and an enduring impact on Black college sports as a CIAA Hall of Fame inductee.
#MrCIAA #AbrahamMitchell #CIAATournament #BlackSportsHistory #CIAAHallOfFame #HBCU #SuffolkVA #BasketballLegends

By Rosaland Tyler
Associate Editor
New Journal and Guide
When Abraham Mitchell died at the age of 95 on Jan. 7 at Suffolk’s Sentara Obici Hospital, nearly a dozen news outlets and many area residents fondly recalled the man known as “Mr. CIAA.”
For decades, Mitchell wore eye-catching attire to basketball games sponsored by the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association, the oldest Black athletic conference in America, which held tournaments in Charlotte from 2006 to 2020, moved to Baltimore in 2021, took a break in 2021 due to COVID-19, and reopened in 2022 in Baltimore. “Mr. CIAA” changed outfits several times at each game; but each outfit always included a hat, sunglasses, and an umbrella, which he used in later years as a walking stick. He said he visited clothing stores and updated his wardrobe regularly over the years. Wherever Mitchell walked through the CIAA arena, he drew a crowd.
“I enjoy walking around and talking to people,” he told one reporter years ago.
Numerous tributes to “Mr. CIAA” appear underneath his obituary posted on the website for Crocker Funeral Home in Suffolk. One person jokingly recalled how she called Mitchell a traitor, after she saw him at a MEAC tournament, an annual event sponsored by the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC), which has been headquartered in Norfolk since 2010 and will hold tournaments at the Norfolk Scope Arena until 2027. Others shared kind recollections about the times they spotted Mitchell at Norfolk State University games or at Suffolk Christmas parades.
Meanwhile, several newspapers covered his recent death including the Winston Salem Journal. Mitchell “worked” the CIAA Tournament for close to 40 straight years and in 2016 was inducted into the CIAA’s John B. McLendon Hall of Fame,” the newspaper noted. “His full-time job was as a mortician in Suffolk, but the week of the CIAA Tournament he took off from work to be at the games no matter where the tournament was played.”
The Charlotte Observer also covered Mitchell’s death. “Mitchell started attending the tournaments in 1970 because his nephew, Peter Mitchell, was playing at Norfolk State. Even after his nephew graduated from college, Mitchell continued attending the tournaments. He was a big part of the CIAA basketball tournament – along with the bands, the dance squads, and the basketball teams. When he missed the event, as was the case in 2020, it was big news.”
Black Enterprise magazine also covered Mitchell’s death. Mitchell “was so revered as a fan that he was inducted into the CIAA Hall of Fame in 2016. The organization’s Facebook account announced his death on Wednesday, Jan. 8 … in 2016, Mitchell said he bought about 27 suits for that year’s tournament. He stated that he often attempted to match the suits he brought to the tournaments to the colors of the teams playing. He bragged about having between 300 and 400 suits, most of them self-made, while he designed the others.”
QCity Metro in Charlotte said, “If you attended a CIAA Basketball Tournament in Charlotte, you probably saw him – tall, dapper, and always impeccably tailored. Throughout tournament games, he’d parade in and out of the arena, bedecked in an ensemble of dazzling, self-made attire. Thus, fans bestowed upon him the name “Mr. CIAA” – a moniker he wore as proudly as a three-piece suit. At the 2016 tournament, which was held in Charlotte, Mitchell said he had brought about 27 suits to the four-day event. ‘Not that I will use all 27,’ he said. ‘It depends on how many I do per game and how many times I’m stopped (by fans).’”
His death was announced by Tina Mitchell, a great niece, who said her uncle’s health had steadily declined for years and he stopped attending CIAA tournaments shortly after he was inducted into the CIAA Hall of Fame.
“He loved just being a crowd pleaser. He wanted to bring life and smiles to people who are still here,” Mitchell’s niece said. “He saw the other side of sadness and death. He wanted to bring happiness to people who are still around. His fashion sense was extraordinary. He had a room for everything. He had a room for suits, a room for hats, a room for jewelry.”
The CIAA said of Mitchell’s death in a recent statement on multiple social media accounts including Facebook and Instagram:
“It is difficult to put into words the depth of our loss with the passing of Mr. Mitchell. Since 2018, his absence at the tournament has been profoundly felt. Mr. Mitchell will forever hold a cherished place in the CIAA family, having created countless beautiful memories for our fans, students, and partners over the span of more than four decades. As a distinguished member of the CIAA Hall of Fame, Class of 2016, his remarkable legacy will endure for generations to come. During this time of honoring and celebrating his extraordinary life, we extend our heartfelt prayers for comfort and peace to the Mitchell family.”
Funeral services for Mitchell include a viewing that will be held 4-7 p.m. on Jan. 17, at Metropolitan Baptist Church, according to his obituary provided by Crocker Funeral Home, in Suffolk. A celebration of life will be held noon, Saturday, Jan. 18, 2025 at New Tabernacle, 2500 E. Washington St., Suffolk. He will be laid to rest in Carver Memorial Cemetery. The family will receive guests daily 12-8 p.m. at 127 Highfield Rd., Suffolk.
Sean Anderson, a sports news anchor for WTVR-TV in Richmond not only shared photos on X of Mitchell arrayed in various suits but also suggested the CIAA establish a shrine for the legend.
“If you attended a CIAA Tournament, you knew Mr. Mitchell,” Anderson wrote. “He would walk around the arena, wearing custom made suits in the colors of all the schools in the conference! Maybe the @CIAAForLife will set up a Shrine, with his many suits, for fans to see at future CIAA Tournaments!”

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