Born 1949, Bluefield, Mercer County Born in Bluefield and raised near Mt. Hope, Ethel Caffie-Austin is known as West Virginia’s “First Lady of Gospel Music.” She began playing piano at the age of six, started accompanying church services at nine, and directed her first choir at age 11. Ethel is a graduate of West Virginia Institute of Technology, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in Language Arts. She was conferred an honorary Doctor of Arts degree in May 1997 by Davis and Elkins College.