Commissioner Mitchell retired to New Bern in 2009 from the metropolitan Washington DC after spending two decades as a naval intelligence officer with specialties in counter-espionage, crisis operations, and anti-submarine warfare. Although her family is from South Georgia, Commissioner Mitchell grew up all over the United States; her father was a career Air Force officer. She is a graduate of the University of the South, Sewanee, Tennessee.

Commissioner Mitchell resides in New Bern with her husband, "Champ" Mitchell, a retired CEO and attorney, and a native North Carolinian. Their three children live in North Carolina and Texas.

Commissioner Mitchell serves on the North Carolina Military Affairs Commission. She previously served on the North Carolina Veterans Affairs Commission, as well as on the Boards of the New Bern Housing Authority, Craven Community College Foundation, Twin Rivers YMCA, New Bern Preservation Foundation, and Craven Literacy Council. She is a member of Military Officers of America Association and American Legion Post 539.

Commissioner Mitchell was elected as a Craven County Commissioner in November 2018, and is appointed to the following boards:

• ACT: Allies for Cherry Point Tomorrow
• MPO: New Bern Area Metropolitan Planning Organization
• New Bern - Craven County Library