CSU magazine vol.19 no.1

vol.19 •no.1

FOUNDING CLASSES CELEBRATE

40thREUNION

LEARNINGDrs. Ronald & Sandra Turner;SBTS professors of church music

LEADINGThose who were the firstgraduates were alsoknown as pioneers

SERVINGJoe Tallon had to wait 36years to receive the honorowed him

SCHOOL TIESGraduates enter theworld of fashion

8 16 30 46

SCHEDULE OF EVENTSBCC FOUNDING CLASS

REUNIONOctober 23-24, 2009

**All times and locations are subject to change**

Friday, October 23

22nd Annual President’s Cup Golf Tournament, Noon shotgun start, location TBA

The format is captain’s choice, and golfers will be arranged in teams offour. Register a team or individually at a cost of $75 per player. There willbe prizes for the top 3 teams, longest drive, and closest to the pin. Therewill also be a hole in one challenge with a grand prize of a new car! Anawards banquet will be held at the conclusion of the tournament, andnongolfers can attend the banquet for $10 each. Contact David Weiss inthe Alumni Office at 843-863-7516 or [email protected] to register orfor more information.

Saturday, October 24

Alumni Association Annual Meeting, 9 a.m., DPW Nursing Building Auditorium

All Alumni are invited. Alumni Board members and Alumni Associationofficers will be elected, and senior administration members will beavailable to answer your questions. Light refreshments will be served.

Homecoming Parade, 10 a.m., front campus

The whole family is encouraged to attend the 2009 HomecomingParade. Enjoy the floats and displays from the various clubs and organ-izations on campus, the Air Force ROTC, and the Marching Bucs. Also,our Homecoming Court nominees will appear in the parade.

Alumni Tailgate Lunch, 11:15 a.m., Alumni Tent near football stadium

Join the Alumni Association at the big tent located near the footballstadium for a great time of fellowship and tailgate food. FoundingClass members eat for free, all others $7 each.

Football vs. Liberty, 1:30 p.m., CSU Stadium

Watch as the Buccaneers take on defending Big South ChampionsLiberty at CSU Stadium. Reserved tickets are $10 each, and generaladmission tickets are $5.

Founding Class 40th Reunion Dinner, 7 p.m., Strom Thurmond Center Dining Hall

This is the big event! The founding classes will celebrate their 40threunion at this black tie optional event. Come out to fellowship withyour classmates, their spouses, and professors and coaches from yourBCC days. A reception, dinner, and entertainment will be a part of theprogram. Keep an eye on your mailbox for registration information.

A PUBLICATION OF CHARLESTON SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY CSU magazine 1A PUBLICATION OF CHARLESTON SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY CSU magazine 1

DearFriendsThe year 1969 is memorable for many reasons. Neil Armstrong landed on the moon. The Boeing 747

and Concorde made their maiden flights, and construction began on Walt Disney World in Orlando.

Another historic “first” was the first full graduating class of the then Baptist College at Charleston.

This magazine will highlight some members of the founding classes of 1967 through 1969.

These founding classes will also celebrate their 40th Reunion during Homecoming Oct. 24, 2009.

There is a great deal of excitement on campus about our vision: to be a Christian university nationally

recognized for integrating faith in learning, leading and serving.

The Derry Patterson Wingo School of Nursing will begin offering an MS in Nursing this fall.

You will have the opportunity to read more about this new major in the following pages.

On January 28, the University opened a new Graduate Center on the first floor of Jones Hall.

The center provides dedicated service to students seeking a graduate degree in business, education,

criminal justice and nursing.

Our campus ministries continue to expand and spread the gospel. The purpose of this organization is to

reach college students with the gospel, raise college students in the scripture and release college students

to change the world. Each year we rejoice with the hundreds of students who make decisions for Christ.

Presented on page 26 is an article that summarizes the State of the University address given to the

Board of Trustees in January. We believe CSU is strategically positioned to continue growing and

moving forward during these challenging times.

Thank you for your continued support of Charleston Southern.

Please keep the CSU family in your prayers.

Sincerely,

Jairy C. Hunter, Jr.

President

2 CSU magazine A PUBLICATION OF CHARLESTON SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY

from the

Editor:

about theCOVER:

Editorial StaffJan Joslin ’82, Editor, Director of Publications

Doug Dickerson, Director of University Relations

Sherry Atkinson, University Relations Officer

Contributing WritersBlake Freeland

Tara Hulsey

David Weiss ’03

Contributing PhotographersRhett Marley ’10

Cynthia Pace Photography

CSU Magazine is published three times a year by the Office of University Relations for

alumni and friends of Charleston Southern University.

Address changes should be sent to Juliana Londono, director of operations for advancement,

CSU, P.O. Box 118087, Charleston, SC 29423-8087 or e-mail [email protected].

Senior OfficersDr. Jairy C. Hunter Jr., President

Dr. Jim Colman, Vice President for Academic Affairs

Dr. Richard B. Brewer Jr. ’77, ’96, Vice President for Planning & Student Affairs

Janet Mims ’82, Acting Vice President for Business Affairs

Debbie Williamson, Vice President for Enrollment Management

W. Stovall Witte Jr., Vice President for Advancement & Marketing

Rusty Bruns, Chief Information Officer

William L. Ward ’90, Executive Director for Development

Lindsey Walke, Assistant to the President

w w w. c h a r l e s t o n s o u t h e r n . e d u

PUBLISHED BY

One Poston Road, Suite 190, Charleston, SC 29407 | 843.747.0025

www.atlanticpublicationgrp.com

Richard Barry, President

Warren Darby, Vice President of Operations

Ashley Arnsdorff, Publishing Services Director

Bob Durand, Senior Art Director

Ali Lorenzana, Editorial Services

Maggie Barry, Accounting Services

© 2009 Charleston Southern University

magazinevolume 19number 1

A PUBLICATION OF CHARLESTON

SOUTHERN UNIVERSITYCSU

In an effort to keep CSU Magazinefresh and relevant, we’ve completeda redesign and restructuring withthis issue.

We’re excited to have AtlanticPublication Group bringing anupdated look to our pages.

We’ve also restructured toincorporate the university’s vision:to be a Christian universitynationally recognized for integratingfaith in learning, leading and serving.To strengthen the message we’vedivided the magazine into foursections: learning, leading, servingand school ties. In the school tiessection, you’ll find all your oldfavorites like Class Notes, AlumniUpdates and profiles of fellow alums.

As always, we’d love to hear fromyou. E-mail me at [email protected] comments, ideas and storiesabout interesting alumni.

Current students recreate a photofrom the 1968 Cutlass to illustratehow the campus has grown andchanged since the founding days.Current students are: Lee Davis, afreshman from St. Louis, Mo.; LaurenYoung, a sophomore from Beaufort,Franis Tran, a sophomore fromGreer; Franny Garrett, a seniorfrom Manning and Briston Burns,a freshman from Pelzer.

Photo by Rhett Marley

A PUBLICATION OF CHARLESTON SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY CSU magazine 3

ContentsLEARNING

4 ...... Commencement – A Call to Active Faith

5 ...... Georgetown Coroner Receives Degree

6 ...... Graduate Program ExpandingMaster of Science in Nursing Education Added.

6 ...... CSU Partners with Trident Health System

7 ...... Graduate Services Center Celebrates Opening

7 ...... Faculty Member Nominated for Grammy

8 ...... Music, Worship & LoveDrs. Ronald & Sandra Turner: SBTS professors of church music.

14 .... My InspirationAmy Nokes – volleyball player, finds inspiration from familiar friend.

LEADING

16 .... It Began With UsOfficially known as the founding class, those who

were the first graduates were also known as pioneers.

20 ... TransformationDr. Hal Adams Jr. went From Below Average Student

to Insurance Industry Leader

24 ...... Hall of Fame Inducts Four

25 ...... Alum Making Great Strides in Ministry

25 ...... End-of-the-year Challenge Campaign Motivates

26 ...... University Remains on Secure Financial Footing

SERVING

28..... Music Is Who I AmRetirement hasn’t stopped Judy Postell Cone from teaching music.

30..... A Hero’s WelcomeJoe Tallon had to wait 36 years to receive the honor owed him.

34 ...... Bucs Give To Make Dream Come True

35 ...... Students Minister in Tennessee

35 ...... Shopping for Scholars

36 ...... Jenise Durant Touching Lives

SCHOOL TIES38 ...... Class Notes

43 ...... Memorials

44 ...... Alumni News Update

44 ...... 2010 Alumni Directory Project Under Way

45 ...... Phonathon 2009 Benefits Annual Fund

45 ...... Save the Date – Homecoming 2009

45 ...... Alumni Congratulate Class of ‘08

46 ...... Graduates Enter the World of Fashion

46 ...... Bryant Joins Religion Faculty

47 ...... Dickert Marketing Dreams

48 ...... Jimmie Brewer Memorial


L E A R N I N G


P roud family and friends gathered towitness 268 graduate and undergradu-ate students receive their degrees at the

North Charleston Coliseum Dec. 13. “It’s a big accomplishment,” said Requel

Sosa, a business administration major fromMiami, Fla. “It’s the end of one life and thebeginning of another. I really enjoyed theEvening College program. It’s great forworking adults,” she said.

The Commencement speaker was ShawnJenkins, the founder, president, and CEO ofCharleston based BenefitFocus. Jenkinsreceived his M.B.A. from Charleston Southernin 1995. Jenkins’ BenefitFocus currentlyserves 289,787 employers, 410 carriers, and52 million consumers. BenefitFocus is thelargest healthcare benefits software provider.

Jenkins challenged the graduates to lookout into the future, “and see what you want tobe, to write your own headlines for tomorrow.Sometimes the headlines of the newspaperdon’t line up with that of scripture. We haveour hands full with this economic situation,but I want to encourage you not to trust inwhat you see, but trust your heart, trust yourinner voice, trust God.”

Speaking of his success with BenefitFocus,Jenkins related the story of how in scripture,Nehemiah heard an inner voice, a leadingfrom God to do a great work. He challenged

the graduates to seek God’s plan. Jenkinscorrelated how in his Capstone Strategy courseat Charleston Southern, he created a businessplan for a new venture but let it sit dormantfor several years. In 2000 BenefitFocus incor-porated even though a few months earlierthe NASDAQ crashed. He encouraged thegraduates to stay focused on God’s plan fortheir lives despite what they see around them.

Courtney Rittenburg, a communicationmajor from Charleston, said being atCharleston Southern was an eye-openingexperience. “It was definitely a positive experi-ence. The professionalism of the Universityand the professors and their involvement isoutstanding.” The sentiment was shared byDennis Delemar a business administrationmajor from Charlotte, N.C. Delemar beganstudies at the New York Film Academy inJanuary. “I had a great experience at CharlestonSouthern. The friendships and relationshipsI’ve made here will last a lifetime.”

The Distinguished Service Award waspresented to Shirley Whitfield of Charleston.Whitfield was recognized for outstandingChristian leadership and service to the com-munity and to the University. Whitfield andher husband, Floyd, are devoted supportersof the University, and through their graciousgenerosity fund the Whitfield Endowed

Scholarship. “This award means an awful lotto me. Charleston Southern has meant somuch to me over the years. The whole schoolis just amazing.”

Commencement was a family affair forcousins Kristy Lapp and Megan Pinney fromMaryland. The two came to CharlestonSouthern together and were roommates. Lappgraduated with a degree in psychology and aminor in religion. Pinney earned her degree inbiology with a minor in kinesiology. “I grewso much in my faith. I can move forwardknowing that the Lord is taking care of me.The Lord has really changed me since cominghere,” said Lapp. Pinney added, “The profes-sors really cared for us. The people wereamazing; it made it much more worthwhilebeing here.”

In his closing remarks, Jenkins told them ofa goal card he keeps in his wallet at all times.“Thirteen years ago I sat in your seat with thiscard in my wallet. I carry my card to this dayto remind myself of what God can do whenyou write your own headline with Him.”

Commencement – ACall to Active Faithby Doug Dickerson

President Jairy Hunter & Shirley Whitfield

Kristy Lapp & Megan Pinney

Shawn Jenkins


L E A R N I N G


G eorgetown County Coroner KennyJohnson has been a lawman all of hisadult life. Back in November he was

elected to his fourth term as coroner. Duringhis illustrious career he has received numer-ous awards and recognitions. On Dec. 13, heattained another one: college graduate.Johnson was one of 268 graduate and under-graduate students who received their degreesfrom CSU. Johnson received his degree incriminal justice with a minor in psychology.

He began his career with the GeorgetownPolice Department in January of 1982 andgraduated with honors from the SouthCarolina Criminal Justice Academy class II in1983. Johnson’s duties within the departmentvaried from criminal investigations, narcotics,traffic accident investigations to public speak-ing events.

In 1986 Johnson joined the GeorgetownCounty Sheriff’s Office as a uniformed deputy.He was promoted to shift sergeantand later promoted to patroldivision lieutenant. By thetime he left the Sheriff’sOffice in 1986, after beingelected coroner, Johnsonwas supervising theuniform patrol divisionof 30 deputies.

Going back to school to obtain his degreewas not a requirement of the office, butJohnson felt compelled to get his degree tobetter serve the citizens he represents. “Thecitizens deserve the best that I can give them.I felt like I needed to be the best coroner I canbe,” he said.

Johnson elected to enter the criminal jus-tice program at CSU. The Myrtle Beach sitewas the ideal location for him to fulfill theduties of his office while making the shortcommute for classes. “I love CharlestonSouthern,” said Johnson, “I was real pleasedto know that they were in Myrtle Beach.Besides that, my experience with CharlestonSouthern goes back to the days when theywere Baptist College and youth from theschool would come to our church. There hadalways been that connection.”

Johnson relates the integration of his faithin his line of work. “I pray a lot. It forces me

to be humble when I have to go and knockon a door at 2 or 3 in the morning to

explain the death of a loved one. Intimes like that I can give them amessage of hope. I never force myChristian beliefs on anyone, but I letthem know that you can getthrough this with God’s help.”

Johnson is a longtime member ofScreven Baptist Church in

Georgetown. His passionfor his job is second

only to his love forGod, his family andhis church. “I ammarried to the

woman of my dreams. My wife, Rhonda, hasalways supported me in my career as well asmy educational pursuits. My son, Stephen,thinks it’s cool to have a father graduatingfrom college at 51 years of age. I think it’scool too.” Johnson has served in a variety ofleadership roles in his church as a deacon,Sunday School teacher, and singing in thechoir.

Johnson is the vice president of the SouthCarolina Coroner’s Association; he is also amember of the American College ForensicExaminers. He received his certification as amedical investigator level 3, and is a boardregistered medicolegal investigator with theAmerican Board of Medicolegal DeathInvestigators. He is also certified as a forensicconsultant.

Even with his distinguished accomplish-ments, Johnson was compelled to pursue hisdegree with CSU. “The coroner’s role in thecriminal justice system is too important not tobe educated. I saw Charleston Southern as thechoice vehicle to further my educationaldesires. A bachelor’s degree from CharlestonSouthern is a prestigious document to hold.My experience at the University has beenrewarding, and I will cherish the criticalthinking attitude it offers.”

Dr. Jackie Fish, chair of the criminal justicedepartment and director of criminal justicegraduate program, said, “We are very fortu-nate that Charleston Southern attracts qualitystudents such as Kenny Johnson to our crimi-nal justice program. His dedication to com-pleting his bachelor of science degree whileworking full time as the coroner forGeorgetown County speaks volumes of hiscommitment to our discipline.”

As for Johnson, “This is my ministry,” hesays, “I’ve got to be able to offer people some-thing. But as a public servant that is morethan just the answer to why their loved onedied; you’ve got to offer hope. It’s about beingan example.”

Georgetown Coroner Receives Degreeby Doug Dickerson


L E A R N I N G


B y 2010, it is speculated there will be ashortage of 1,000,000 nurses in theU.S. Compounding this problem is the

nursing faculty shortage. Nearly two-thirds(65%) of schools responding to the AmericanAssociation of Colleges of Nursing (AACN)survey stated they turned away qualifiedapplicants for their undergraduate nursingprograms due to the faculty shortage.

CSU’s School of Nursing has been unableto accept all qualified applicants to our BSNprogram consistently over the past three yearsdue to faculty shortage.

In response to this problem, an MSN degreein nursing education has been developed toprepare nurses to teach at a faculty level in

nursing programs as well as to accept staff andpatient educator positions within hospital andclinic settings. This program will target BSNnurses as well as RN nurses who would receivecontent from the BSN curriculum and acceler-ate into the MSN nurse educator content. Thecurriculum is modeled after the NationalLeague for Nursing, NLN, criteria for certifica-tion as a nurse educator, CNE. Students of thisprogram will complete a teaching practicumthrough our existing BSN program that wouldprovide teaching assistance to our nursing fac-ulty and expert mentoring to the students.

The MSN program at CSU uses a nationalcohort model. Courses are taught in a 5-week,online format so that students are not focus-

ing on more than one course at a time.Another unique feature of the program is theintegration of faith throughout the curriculumas well as the inclusion of two courses thatwill teach the students how to integrate faithinto nursing curricula and to serve asChristian leaders in health care.

It is possible to complete the program in16 months, and the online program offers24/7 technical support.

For more information contact: AshleyMillwood, graduate enrollment counselor, at843-863-5501 or [email protected] orAlison Harrison, graduate enrollment coun-selor, at 843-863-7534 [email protected].

Graduate Program Expanding Master of Science in Nursing Education Added

By Dr. Tara Hulsey, dean, School of Nursing

C harleston Southern and Trident HealthSystem have entered a partnership inproviding resources to underwrite the

cost needed for a new faculty position. The School of Nursing is currently one of 15

pilot schools in the country implementing quali-ty and safety education content into the BSNcurriculum. As part of this initiative, the schoolis expanding the skills laboratory to include highfidelity simulation technology to be integratedthroughout the curriculum. This technology willallow the nursing students to learn critical think-ing and technical skills prior to entering theactual patient care settings, thus increasing the

safety of the patients and quality of care provid-ed by the nursing students.

To support this expansion, CSU needed acoordinator of nursing technology and hasentered into an agreement with Trident HealthSystem to underwrite the cost associated withthe new position. “The partnership betweenTrident Health System and Charleston Southerndemonstrates teamwork and collaborationbetween education and practice in increasing thequality and safety of patients, and the education-al advancement of registered nurses with associ-ate degrees,” said Dr. Tara Hulsey, dean of theDerry Patterson Wingo School of Nursing.

In the agreement, Trident Health System willcontribute $75,000 for three years for salary andFringe Benefits support for one new master’slevel position – Coordinator of NursingTechnology. Potential continual support beyondthe three years will be negotiated during thethird year based on availability of fundingresources.

“Trident Health System is proud to supportthe nursing program at Charleston SouthernUniversity,” said Todd Gallati, President/CEO,Trident Health System. “We have an incredible

opportunity to make a positive difference in thehealth care field, and I’m delighted we can be apart of the University’s efforts to add to their fac-ulty and enhance their technology.”

The benefits to Trident Health System willbe increased recruiting potential for BSN grad-uates, increased safety of patients, educationaladvancement for current staff of registerednurses with associate’s degrees, increased reten-tion of current registered nurse staff, and careerenhancement for registered nurse staff withdual appointment for master’s level staff andcareer ladder/promotion advancement for regis-tered nurses obtaining a BSN.

During the 1970s and 1980s the Universityoffered a successful associate’s degree in nursingprogram. In 1993 the Board of Trusteesapproved the establishment of the DerryPatterson Wingo School of Nursing. The successof the nursing program at Charleston Southernhas been noted recently by a 100 percent passrate on the first attempt on the NCLEX-RNExam for the past two years in a row. The CSUSchool of Nursing is the only school of nursingin South Carolina to earn this distinction for theyear 2007.

CSU Partners with Trident Health SystemBy Doug Dickerson


L E A R N I N G


H orton School of Music Artist-in-Residence, Ricard Bordas, lived in theworld of the rich and famous during

Grammy week. Bordas, a countertenor, is heard on the

opera CD Psyché by Jean-Baptiste Lully,released by cpo Records. The CD was one offive to receive a nomination in the Best OperaRecording category at the Grammy awards.

“The Horton School of Music faculty, staff,and students are thrilled with Ricard Bordas’nomination for a Grammy,” said Dr. ValerieBullock, chair of the Horton School of Music.“We always knew that we were blessed to havean incredibly talented voice faculty and now itis confirmed on an international level.”

FACULTY MEMBER NOMINATED FOR GRAMMY

T he Graduate Services Center celebratedits grand opening Jan. 28 with a ribboncutting ceremony. Located on the first

floor of Jones Hall, the Graduate ServicesCenter will become the hub of activity forCSU’s graduate programs.

The oversight of the graduate degrees atCharleston Southern until now had beendecentralized. Each director was responsiblefor advising, promotion, recruiting, enrolling,advertising, and retention of its students. “Thecreation of the Graduate Services Center putsinto place a new organizational structure thatshould enhance the visibility of CharlestonSouthern’s graduate programs while at the sametime centralizing functions in an effort to gaingreater benefit from concerted efforts,” said Dr.Jim Colman, vice president of academic affairs.

Dr. Bill Bowers of the School of Businesshas been named the Director of GraduateStudies. Bowers will be responsible to leadthe Graduate Studies program in the areas ofmarketing, recruitment, and retention.

CSU currently offers graduate degrees incriminal justice, education and businessadministration. A master’s in nursing is sched-uled to begin in the fall of ’09. “According toBusiness Week magazine, since 2001, the only

group with positive growth in their ‘realwages’ are those Americans who’ve earneda graduate degree,” said Bowers. “If you are aschool teacher, if you work in law enforce-ment, if you are a registered nurse, or if youare employed in business you could benefit byearning one of Charleston Southern’s graduatedegrees. The Graduate Services Center existsto better serve the educational needs of theCharleston community,” said Bowers.

The Graduate Services Center is alreadymeeting the needs of students at theUniversity. “We are very excited about thenew Graduate Services Center,” said AlisonHarrison, an enrollment counselor for thecenter. “Students will benefit from being ableto come to one place and receive informationon everything from financial aid to applyingfor a particular program.”

For more information about the graduateprograms at Charleston Southern call 1-800- 947-7474 or go online atwww.csuniv.edu/academics/graduate.

Graduate Services Center Celebrates OpeningBy Doug Dickerson

Dr. Lorraine Wylie, dean of the School of Education; Dr. Tara Hulsey,dean of the Derry Patterson Wingo School of Nursing; Dr. TrudyMorris, director of graduate education; Dr. Jairy Hunter, president;Alison Harrison, enrollment counselor; Ashley Millwood, enrollmentcounselor; Christi Coghill, enrollment counselor; Dr. Bill Bowers,director of the Graduate Services Center; Dr. Jackie Fish, chair ofthe criminal justice department; and Dr. John Duncan, dean,School of Business. Photo by Doug Dickerson


LEARNING

8 CSU magazine A PUBLICATION OF CHARLESTON SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY8 CSU magazine A PUBLICATION OF CHARLESTON SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY

LEARNING

music,worship

Drs. Ron and Sandra Turner.

Photo provided


Q. Did you know that you wanted to major in music when you began college? Was music a lifelong pursuit for you?

Sandra: No. Although I studied piano from the age ofseven, and was a church organist from the age of 12, Iaspired to become a physician (I liked the way the labcoats looked!). When I was ready to go to college, how-

ever, Baptist College offered me a full music scholar-ship on the condition that I major in music

and be accompanist for the CollegeChoir. For awhile I tried a double

major in chemistry, but labs andpiano practice competed for thesame all-afternoon time commit-ment. In the end, music won.

Ron: I actually felt called intomusic ministry very early in myteens, and was in fact the firstminister of music at the FirstBaptist Church of Goose Creek atthe age of about 14. When itcame time to go to college, how-ever, the only scholarship offer Ireceived was to The Citadel, tobe the carilloneur and assistantto the Director of Music, VernonWeston. After two years, how-

ever, at the urging of Vic Lawson, who had been my highschool band director, I realized that I needed to transferand actually major in music, and that was at the righttime, when David Cuttino offered me a voice scholarshipto BCC to sing in the choir and accompany voice lessons.

Q. How did your studies at BCC prepare you for your advanced degrees in music?

Sandra: Mr. Oliver Yost, my piano teacher, reallydeveloped my piano technique. He was a stickler forscales in 3rds, 6ths, and 10th, and all kinds of technicalexercises, but he also introduced me to Hindemith andother composers whose music I had never played. Wealso had terrific training in music theory and music his-tory from Victor Lawson and Mr. Yost. Mr. Lawson was ataskmaster in theory, and that difficult theory traininghas paid off for our entire careers.

Ron: I agree that our small music faculty of four profsgave us a first-class music education. After my service inthe U.S. Navy, when we wanted to do our master ofmusic degrees at Converse College, an excellent musicschool, they at first were hesitant to accept Sandra andme, coming from the upstart Baptist College. BCC wasnot even fully accredited at that time. After our place-ment exams, however, we were the only entering mas-ter’s students not to have to do remedial work. My voicetraining at BCC was with my teacher from the age of 13,

loveFounding class members, Dr. Ron Turner and Dr. Sandra Chucalo Turner, met and

married while attending Baptist College. Their life is rich in music, worship and love.

Currently Ron is Carolyn King Ragan professor of church music and chair of voice,

and Sandra is professor of church music and chair of keyboard studies at The

Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky. Join them as they reminisce

about BCC’s early days, changes in church music and the joy of creating music.

&OBSERVATIONS ON NEARLY 50 YEARS OF MUSIC IN WORSHIP

“THERE’S NOTHINGGREATER THAN ACONGREGATIONREALLY SINGINGITS HEART OUT ONA GREAT HYMN.”


LEARNING


Vernon Weston, who also had been Sandra’s pianoteacher. He was a fine teacher who influenced manyfacets of my musical career. And David Cuttino showedus that you can have fun as a musician. I studied com-position as well as theory with Vic Lawson, and that toohas served me well for a lifetime of composing.

Q. What was it like to attend BCC when it first opened?Did you worry about attending a new college?

Sandra & Ron: We came to BCC in its second year, thefirst year of the campus, which consisted of three not-quite-finished buildings, plus a music trailer way offfrom any of the real buildings. The trailer had a class-room, the four tiniest practice rooms ever built and twofaculty studios. We did have brand new pianos in thatmusic trailer though, and that was our only luxury.There were also two circle-the-wagons dorms made outof little two-room trailers. The men’s and women’s dormswere arranged sort of like Fort Apache, separated by themusic trailer. Sandra lived in the girls’ fort, and they hada curfew that was monitored better than Fort Knox!

There wasn’t a blade of grass to be seen but acres ofred mud. You had to dodge the giant earth-movers thatwere always rushing someplace on campus. You couldactually sink ankle-deep and lose your shoes in the mudon a rainy day, and there were lots of rainy days in 1966-1967. Getting to the gym for chapel was sometimes anadventure. On dry days we sometimes had dust storms!

Neither of us thought twice about coming to a newcollege. We were glad when the semester finally began,which we remember as being around the beginning of

October, because campus construction was way behindschedule. What we found at BCC was a small music fac-ulty of excellent teachers who themselves had first-classeducations. Two of our music profs, David Cuttino andOllie Yost, were graduates of Southern Seminary, wherewe have taught for so long.

What we gained in those early years was a truegrounding in the discipline of academic music study. Weleft BCC with as much confidence as graduates of muchmore established music schools, knowing that we werewell trained. In our nonmusic courses we had mostlysenior professors, quite a few of whom were retired fromteaching in great colleges and universities, so they weretopnotch. And Dr. John Hamrick was as inspirational asany college president could be.

By the second year we were at BCC, there was a realwomen’s dorm, and the girls thought they had movedinto the lap of luxury. It even had a parlor. There wasalso a nice cafeteria by that time, and we sometimes metfor breakfast there.

Q. What are your memories of your BCC days, professors and friends?

Ron & Sandra: Of course we have so many fond mem-ories. Victor Lawson, David Cuttino, and Oliver Yostwere our main professors, and each made vivid contribu-tions to our lives. They also were friends to us as well asteachers. We had another music professor for a year orso, Dr. Anne Howe, who can only be described asunique, a great lover of life. And we remember friendslike Van (“Bubba”) High, Carolyn “Squeeky” Burbage,Walker Wright, Joe Tallon, and so many others in theBaptist College Choir. We later crossed paths with BCCclassmate Duane Toole at Southern Seminary. Duaneonce got in trouble for playing his trumpet on the roof ofthe BCC gym. And of course, Sandra’s roommate, RuthKuni from Hawaii, who danced the hula at our weddingrehearsal dinner, and Mary Ann Riding, who sang for ourwedding.

Q. How did you meet and what was it like to attend college with your spouse?

Sandra & Ron: We had both taken music lessons fromVernon Weston during our teen years, but did not knoweach other, though Ron remembers really noticingSandra playing on a recital when she was 13 and he was15. Years later he could even describe the dress and tellher what she played on the recital (the Khatchaturian“Toccata”), so she obviously made an impression. Sandradid not notice Ron at all on that occasion!

We actually met in theory class and choir at thebeginning of our first semester and sort of got togetheron a field trip to Winthrop College with Mr. Oliver Yost,a dear man who always boasted that he got us together.Our first true date was to the Coastal Carolina Fair in1966, where Ron lost all his money trying to win somesilly prize for Sandra. Things spiraled from that point,and we were married almost two years later, just beforeRon’s senior year and Sandra’s junior year. Actually, Ron’sgrades went up after marriage, because we didn’t spend

Dr. Sandra Turner received theFindley Edge Award for

Teaching Excellence at SBTSgraduation in 2006. Dr. Ron

Turner received the award in2000. The award is presented

to one faculty member from theentire SBTS faculty each

academic year.

Photo provided


all that time dating and driving around in Ron’s VW bug,when he should have been studying biology or some-thing. We were in many, many classes together, did all ofour theory homework together (that’s a really hot date!),and managed to sit in the back of the bus on choir tours,checked on regularly by Dr. and Mrs. Cuttino! We’venow been married for 40 years. During that time, we’vefinished eight degrees between us: Ron (BA, MM, DMA)& Sandra (BA, MM, MCM, DMA, ARCM). That’s enoughfor any couple. And we did all of those degrees in thesame schools, going to school at the same time, exceptthat Ron did his doctorate first, and then Sandra.

Q. In addition to teaching, what other duties do youhave at SBTS? What is a typical semester like for you?

Sandra: As chair of keyboard studies, I assign stu-dents to piano teachers, as well as supervising doctoralstudents who teach pregraduate piano classes and pri-vate students for Southern. I am also seminary organist,so I play for many chapel services, academic convoca-tions and all graduations. In a typical semester, I teachprivate lessons in both piano and organ to students rang-ing from undergraduates in the Boyce College division ofSBTS, master’s degree students, and doctoral students.This semester I am teaching piano and organ pedagogy,accompanying the Chapel Choir, and will play for amajor hymn festival in a few weeks. I also have to audi-tion all prospective accompanists for our school andassign a rate of pay for them.

Ron: I am chair of voice, and until this year was alsochair of music theory, and for a few years was associatedean for doctoral studies. Nowadays I do the same kindsof things with regard to singers that Sandra does in thekeyboard area. Mainly I teach people how to sing. Thissemester I am also teaching Church Music Literature forVoices, a course that I have taught dozens of times overthe past 35 years. I have taught courses in music theory,composition, music history, and every imaginable voice-related course that we offer.

Q. What type of music do you play for your own enjoyment?

Sandra: I love to listen to Bluegrass music and ham-mered dulcimer Appalachian folk music, an interest thatdeveloped after we moved to Kentucky. To really relax, Ilisten to Dolly Parton. My favorite CD of hers is LittleSparrow. When one of my colleagues was to be marriedin her late 30s, I once clogged in a music school talentshow to Dolly’s He’s done kissed me on the mouth, and he’sgonna marry me! It was a big hit, especially with thestudents! One of the things that drew me to Dolly wasthat my uncle, a Methodist missionary doctor in PigeonForge, actually delivered Dolly Parton one bleak nightand was paid a sack of corn meal for having come on hishorse to do that – true story!

Ron: Having spent a year working at St. Paul’sCathedral in London on sabbatical, it’s obvious I loveEnglish cathedral music, but I can also put up withDolly. There’s really no choice about that around here!Actually, I tend to listen to audio books in the car,

because between seminary and church we do so muchmusic that sometimes I need to get away from it. Believeit or not, our home Yamaha grand, a wonderful piano,must feel like a stepchild because we rarely play thepiano at home.

Q. Has the direction of church music changed since you’ve been at SBTS?

Ron: Wow! Where to begin? Church music has under-gone nothing short of a sea change in the 36 years we’vebeen at Southern. Whereas we both love the organ as aprincipal instrument for worship, many of our studentswill serve churches that don’t even have an organ. Theentire prevailing view of church music in SouthernBaptist churches has changed radically. Where hymnsdominated worship for generations, many churches nolonger sing them, having gone over completely to praiseand worship songs. I find that sad, believing that there’sa place for many kinds of church music, even within thesame service. In our church we are able to do musicranging from classical to Appalachian to contemporaryChristian, and our folks seem to appreciate it all. I thinkthe key to that is making sure that the texts and musicalmoods fit the specific needs of a worship experience.

Sandra: I think that one of the reasons the organ haslost so much ground is that many Baptist churches havehad poor organs and often heard them played poorly.The organ that I played at the age of 12 was not one toinspire me to want to be a church organist forever. Itwasn’t until I heard great pipe organs such as we have atSouthern that I began to get really excited about theorgan and its possibilities for worship.

Ron: Another way that church music has changed isthat many megachurches today seem to prefer to traintheir own musicians, turning away from formally trainedmusicians. The popular music culture has made its wayinto the church and supplanted much of what has beentraditional in church music.

My ideal would be that the best of all styles of churchmusic find a place within worship.

Q. What role do you think music plays in worship?

Sandra: Music has the ability to open the heart toworship. For many worshipers, music communicatesbeyond words.

Ron: Music in worship should fulfill the same goals asa sermon—to present the gospel, to teach the faith, andto instill a sense of acceptance of God’s message for thatworship experience. It functions in praise, in prayer, as awitness of our faith to others in the congregation, in fel-lowship, and in response to the Word. When I plan wor-ship for Deer Park Baptist Church, I begin with the scrip-tures of the day and the germ of an idea for our pastor’ssermon. Then I try to make every aspect of worship,musical and nonmusical, support his goals as much aswe can do that. My aim is that, as Doris Akers wrote,“without a doubt we’ll know that we have been revivedwhen we shall leave this place!”

“THE ENTIREPREVAILINGVIEW OFCHURCH MUSICIN SOUTHERNBAPTISTCHURCHESHAS CHANGEDRADICALLY.”


LEARNING

12 CSU magazine A PUBLICATION OF CHARLESTON SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY12 CSU magazine A PUBLICATION OF CHARLESTON SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY12 CSU magazine A PUBLICATION OF CHARLESTON SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY

Q. What do you think are the greatest challenges facing church music today?

Ron: I think the greatest challenge is avoiding theentertainment syndrome in worship, where a few singersand instrumentalists essentially perform, while the audi-ence becomes a passive group of listeners and watchers.It is possible within any structure of worship style forentertainment to take over, whether in the Englishcathedral or the evangelical megachurch, but worship atits best is always participatory. There’s nothing greaterthan a congregation really singing its heart out on a greathymn, whether it’s by Isaac Watts or Stuart Townend andKeith Getty. Too often today church buildings are beingbuilt in such a way that congregations are discouragedfrom singing by dead acoustics. I believe that there isindeed a need for that which is churchy and differentfrom the world, but my view appears to be a minorityone in the current climate.

Sandra: On a purely practical level, we are finding italmost impossible to get people to commit to regularchoir rehearsals for themselves or their kids. These dayseven a Sunday morning soccer game can take prece-dence over Sunday School and worship. Many churchesseem to be facing this problem.

Ron: For the long-term, one of the greatest challengesto church music is that too few young people are feelingcalled into music ministry and continuing their educa-tions at seminary church music schools. All of theSouthern Baptist seminary music programs are facingthis challenge. We need more music students to come

from colleges like Charleston Southern, to develop theirabilities as music ministers within the crucible of theo-logical institutions like Southern Seminary and otherministry-oriented schools.

Q. What can our readers who lead small churches do to have a vibrant music ministry?

Sandra: The first thing to do is make sure that youhave an open line of communication with the pastor andthat both of you work toward the same goals for wor-ship. The two of you must be mutually supportive. Also,you must take a good inventory of the talents that arepresent in that congregation and then find ways to workthose folks into the music ministry. Also, take advantageof denominational training events, from the association-al level to the state to Ridgecrest.

Ron: One problem that small churches often have isa lack of financial resources for music purchases. Iusually advise that small churches look to largerchurches as a source for borrowing music that theycan’t afford to buy. For congregational music, church-es need to have CCLI licenses, which are inexpensivefor small congregations, as a means of providing manysongs outside of the hymnal that can be copied inex-pensively (and legally) in bulletins or for a screen.And although some will hear this as heresy from amusic professor, there are definitely times when theuse of trax accompaniments is clearly better thaneither doing no music or having the piano or organplayed poorly. We are fortunate in serving a small

Sandra posing in front ofDolly Parton’s bus at

Dollywood during the Turner’s40th wedding anniversary trip

to the Smokies.

Photo by Ron Turner


church with a lot of talented people, whose talentsrange from playing violin concertos to Appalachianmusic. I’m convinced that many small churches havemore talented people than they realize, yet fail to uti-lize the talents that are available.

Q. Do you have any suggestions for our readers abouthow they can incorporate music into their lives andwith their children?

Sandra: One of the most important ways to incorpo-rate music into anyone’s life is by participating joyfully inmusic at church, either in the congregation or in a choir,praise team, or instrumental ensemble. Also, I havefound that I turn to playing music in difficult times tohelp me find God’s peace, and for that reason I really amhappy to be a musician. Knowing how much my earlypiano study has benefited me both professionally andpersonally, I encourage parents to include piano or someother instrumental study in their children’s lives, or atleast to take advantage of their church’s children’s choirs.

Ron: It is important that children hear music at home,and also that they be encouraged to sing from an earlyage. I’m convinced that the musical style doesn’t reallymatter. It’s the act of singing itself that helps so much todevelop a musical aptitude, vocal coordination and theear. Since public schools tend to be cutting back onmusic education, and even many churches don’t providethe graded choir programs they once had, parents needto take the lead in developing musical gifts. Once chil-dren reach a certain point without musical involvement,it becomes almost impossible to develop them into suc-cessful musicians later in life. So, listen to Mozart or lis-ten to Dolly Parton, but listen to something with yourkids, and then sing along.

Q. Do you think it is ever too late for someone to learn to sing/play an instrument?

Ron: It is never too late to learn to sing or play tosome extent, and I love to brag that I can teach anyoneto sing. Sandra once taught a Kuna Indian deacon inPanama to play God Is So Good on an electronic keyboardin one week during a mission trip, and he played it in aconcluding service for everyone to sing. He had neverplayed before. I suspect, however, that he had alwayssung! So, no, it’s never too late to learn to do music tosome level, but to learn to do it well, you have to beginfairly early—certainly by the teen years.

Sandra: Also, that Kuna deacon was extremely moti-vated and dedicated to developing his ability to play hisfavorite hymn, and “I can’t” was not a part of his vocab-ulary. For most people, learning music takes dedication.I have taught many piano students who advanced fartherin music than some of their peers who were actuallymore talented.

Q. Tell us about your family/career/hobbies.

Sandra & Ron: We have one daughter, Alison Badgett,a wonderful singer and voice teacher, and an even morewonderful human being, who lives on Long Island, N.Y.

She and her husband, Jonathan, are in music ministry atWantagh Baptist Church, one of the strongest evangeli-cal churches on Long Island. We have two grandchildren(Madison, 4 1/2, and Benjamin, 2), plus #3 on the way inAugust. So we make many trips to New York, and unfor-tunately fewer trips now to Charleston.

As for hobbies, we’ve really only ever had but one,and that’s riding our bikes. Wherever we go, we take ourbikes along. One of our favorite places to ride is actuallyon Folly Beach, riding down to see the Morris IslandLighthouse at low tide. We also love to ride the 11-mileloop at Cades Cove in Tennessee, and in Louisville wetake long rides across the Ohio River to picnic at theFalls of the Ohio.

We have been truly blessed in our careers. Ourentire careers have centered around only two institu-tions: The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary,where we have been since 1973, and Deer Park BaptistChurch, which we also began to serve in 1973. Beingat SBTS has offered fabulous opportunities for studyand service, including spending two year-long sabbat-icals studying in London, England, plus a recent short-er sabbatical in St. Albans, England, when Sandrastudied organ with Peter Hurford, one of the greatestplayers of Bach’s organ music in the world. We bothstudied at the Guildhall School of Music for one year,and then another time Ron spent a year on the staff ofSt. Paul’s Cathedral as their visiting scholar in churchmusic, composing a considerable body of liturgicalmusic for the Cathedral Choir and doing voice trainingwith the boys in the choir. Sandra was able to do a per-formance diploma in piano at the Royal College ofMusic during that year. Ron has conducted choirs atthe seminary, served as chorusmaster for KentuckyOpera productions, and conducted the KentuckyBaptist Chorale on a tour of Brazil, as well as havingheard his compositions sung by the Choir of St. Paul’sCathedral. Sandra has been the featured pianist for oneSouthern Baptist Church Music Conference and theconference organist for another. And she daily presidesover an Aeolian-Skinner organ that has been describedby a well-known English cathedral organist friend as“the finest instrument I have played in America.” Whatmore can you ask!

At this point in our lives Sandra has finally decidedthat maybe it really was God’s will that she not becomea physician, but rather a church musician. As activechurch musicians at Deer Park Baptist, where Ron isminister of music and worship and Sandra is keyboardminister (playing organ, piano, and harpsichord), wehave found ourselves able to have an impact on peo-ple’s spiritual lives, as we do the thing we most enjoy—to plan, lead and play for worship. As teachers ofchurch musicians, we now have former students liter-ally all over the world. As the world of church musicchanges, one constant for us has been the joy of work-ing with women and men called into music ministry.Another constant has been the joy of preparing andleading music in worship for almost 50 years. God hasbeen good to us.

“ONCE CHILDRENREACH ACERTAIN POINTWITHOUTMUSICALINVOLVEMENT,IT BECOMESALMOSTIMPOSSIBLETO DEVELOPTHEM INTOSUCCESSFULMUSICIANSLATER IN LIFE.SO, LISTEN TOMOZART ORLISTEN TODOLLY PARTON,BUT LISTEN TOSOMETHINGWITH YOURKIDS, ANDTHEN SINGALONG.”


LEARNING

14 CSU magazine A PUBLICATION OF CHARLESTON SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY14 CSU magazine A PUBLICATION OF CHARLESTON SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY14 CSU magazine A PUBLICATION OF CHARLESTON SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY

tarting in about fifth grade Amy Nokes decidedto babysit for the Schueler family in Chicago,Ill., where she grew up. For seven years, Nokesconsistently showed up for the family, babysit-

ting as often as twice a week, growing ever closer to theoldest boy, Henry, as well his siblings, Anna and Joe. Evenwhen she wasn’t babysitting, Nokes spent time with theSchuelers, going to Henry’s baseball games, Anna’s basket-ball games, or just playing with Joe at the park.

Now a sophomore at CSU, Nokes’ senior year at LaneTech High School brought devastating news. Henry wasdiagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

With all of the excitement of her senior year, as well asa scholarship to play Division I volleyball in front of her,Nokes wanted to stay closer to home in Chicago, Ill., andcloser to Henry.

S

Photos by CSU sports information

My“HE KNEW THE

MASCOT, THECOLORS, ALL ABOUT

COACH (DANYEL)BELLUSH, HOW THE

BASEBALL TEAMWAS. IT WAS

AMAZING HOWMUCH RESEARCHHE HAD ALREADY

DONE. HIS SUPPORTWAS ONE OF THE

MAIN REASONSTHAT I ENDED UP

COMING HERE.”

A PUBLICATION OF CHARLESTON SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY CSU magazine 15A PUBLICATION OF CHARLESTON SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY CSU magazine 15A PUBLICATION OF CHARLESTON SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY CSU magazine 15

Even in the midst of the pain he was going through,Henry’s positive outlook and jovial spirit showed through.“You have to go,” he explained. “You are too white, youneed a tan.”

Nokes decided to go ahead and sign to play at CSU,and when she visited with Henry a few days later was sur-prised by what he told her.

“He knew everything about CSU,” said Nokes. “Heknew the mascot, the colors, all about Coach (Danyel)Bellush, how the baseball team was. It was amazing howmuch research he had already done. His support was oneof the main reasons that I ended up coming here.”

On March 16, 2007, shortly after his 14th birthday,Henry underwent bone marrow transplant surgery. Notsurprisingly, Henry was said to have recovered morequickly than any other patient the transplant team hadever treated. In fact, he recovered so quickly that he grad-uated with his eight-grade class in June.

Henry remained healthy, playing in his summer base-ball league and earning all-star status. In September,though, the leukemia relapsed and he was once again sub-jected to chemotherapy treatments. Almost 1,000 milesaway from home, Nokes watched from afar as he devel-oped zygomycosis, a fungal infection that would forceanother bone marrow treatment.

Amazingly, the young Henry showed maturity beyondhis years. On October 9, 2007, which coincidently wasNoke’s 19th birthday, Henry was given hours to live andwas about to be sent home to spend the rest of his time inthe comfort of his home with his family. His attitude con-tinued to shine as he tried to encourage those with him.“We will be together again in heaven,” Henry told his sib-lings. “It will be much better than earth because I can’t getthe flu in heaven.”

Continuing to fight, his blood count went back up inthe late hours of October 9, and he was able to stay in thehospital with hopes of recovering again. News quicklytraveled across the country to Nokes, and even though noone in Charleston knew him, Henry’s perseverance andwill to live impacted many around CSU.

Knowing he was a big baseball fan, the CSU baseballteam signed a couple of baseballs and gave Nokes a sweat-shirt to take home to Henry. She did so during the 2007Christmas break, a break that Henry would not survive.Henry put up a valiant fight, claiming, “If I’m down to mylast breath, I’ll take 20 more. It will take a truck to bringme down,” but passed away on Dec. 14, 2007.

In her sophomore year, Nokes changed her number

to 41, which was Henry’s football number. It serves as areminder for her, and gives her plenty of chances toshare his story with others, leading them to the 41 & 9Foundation set up by Henry’s parents. Henry’s deathchanged more about Nokes than just her number. Hergrades went from a dismal 1.5 GPA to an outstanding3.75 in one year, and her play on the court improved aswell. This past season, she was fourth on the team inkills, third in blocks, and second in assists, playing inalmost every game.

“This young man changed my life so much,” said Nokes.“I write his number and initials in a heart on my wrist beforeevery game. I dedicated my volleyball career to him andalways try to go above and beyond when I play or in prac-tice. No matter what I do, I try to make Henry proud.”

Over the course of the season, each player on the vol-leyball team got to have their own “spirit week,” wherethey got a chance to address and motivate the team. Nokesput up a picture of Henry with a quote in the locker room,and even though her spirit week ended, there was nodoubt that the team would leave it up for the remainder ofthe season.

“You can really tell a difference in Amy,” said Bellush.“When she came back after his death, she came back a dif-ferent person. She no longer sweats the small stuff butreally takes pride in her life. She has a pure joy about herthat kept her on the court this year, and I felt like that joycame from him. She has a passion for life that no onecould have taught her.”

Because it was Henry that convinced Nokes to come toCSU, the impact he made on her life holds eternal changesas well. Being in a Christian environment during one ofthe toughest years of her life led Nokes to find her faith.

“I never really went to church before I came to CSU,”recalls Nokes. “I just came here to play volleyball. WhenHenry got sick, people all around campus came to my aid.Everyone said that they would pray for him, and for me,and that really made an impact on me. It was because ofthose experiences that led me to my faith.”

Bellush added, “It was so nice that she was here atCharleston Southern, where we could openly pray for her,and for him while he was sick. God has His timing foreverything and there is no doubt He had a hand in everyaspect of this situation. God has really touched her lifethrough Henry.”

More information on Henry’s battle with leukemia, aswell as the 41 & 9 Foundation can be found at www.hen-ryschueler.org.

yInspirationBY BLAKE FREELAND Young Man’s Battle Continues

to Inspire Nokes


LEADING


Itwith

BeganOFFICIALLY KNOWN AS THE FOUNDING CLASS, THOSE WHO WERE THEFIRST GRADUATES WERE ALSOKNOWN AS PIONEERS, THE FIRST,AND THE BASKETBALL TEAM WASAFFECTIONATELY KNOWN ASTHE WANDERING BUCS BECAUSETHEY WERE ALWAYS HUNTINGPRACTICE FACILITIES.

SEVERAL MEMBERS OF THEFOUNDING CLASS REUNIONCOMMITTEE SHARED THEIR MEMORIES:

HalAdams

JoeTallon

JudyPostellCone

LigonDougherty

RonTurner

Ligon Dougherty ‘71Interestingly, when I decided to attend BCC, it was

not for a spirit of adventure. I had actually planned toattend another college but my paperwork was lost and atthe last minute, I applied to BCC. However, God isalways good and watching out for me for it was at BCCwhere I met my future wife, Ann Smith (Dougherty). Herstory was similar to mine as she was planning to attenda different college but due to circumstances beyond hercontrol, could not attend and therefore applied at the lastminute at BCC. I never felt that attending the college wasanything of a risk. I felt the college was founded on spir-itual principles and that it would be interesting and funto attend a new institution. With my emotional and spir-itual immaturity, it would have been a huge mistake toattend a larger college. I guess God knew what I neededand guided me to the most safe and supportive learninginstitution that was available.

I was a day student for most of the time and missedout on many interesting happenings. However, I remem-ber the honor of having my say in the naming of theannual, newspaper and mascot (which was most contro-versial). Starting classes at the church the first year wasfun as we spent a lot of time just hanging out and gettingto know each other. We moved to the campus the 2ndyear and even with all that space had problems withparking. On dry days, we experienced the wind, andsand storms; and felt like we were in the Sahara Desert.On rainy days, it was the mud that you had to sludgethrough as there were no sidewalks. Another problemwas pulling cars out of the mud or driving your car inthe mud and making it slip and slide and trying not torun into a ditch. Running into trees was no threat asthere were none. I stayed at the St. Johns Hotel on sev-eral occasions and that was quite an experience. I wouldlove to hear more from others who stayed the wholeyear. My most interesting memories of the hotel werelying awake at night and hearing the rats making noisein the walls and ceilings. There was also the issue of thewater balloons but others will have to provide thedetails. Definitely, a lot of mischief went on at the hotelbut much of it cannot be repeated; however, I’m sure itwill be talked about at the reunion! There were times Iwondered what I was missing by not attending a largercollege but I would not trade my memories of BCC. Iremember the very first day at the church and Dr.Cuttino talking to us and trying to prepare us for whatwas coming (either we were not listening to him or did-n’t believe him). Other memories include checking outeveryone who was there on the first day and saying, Ididn’t know you were going to attend here; and attend-ing the first basketball game and watching Jim Gardnerplay (we thought he was our first superstar).

I am proud of the first years of the college and excitedto see how it has grown. Yes, we now have trees.


Howard M. Surface ’68At the time I was accepted at Baptist College, I had an

interest in getting my degree but had not made it at twoother colleges. I should have been a junior in college atthe time but was instead a 28-hour freshman. The factthat Baptist College accepted me, and gave me a thirdopportunity to succeed with my goal of getting a degreeis something that I will always appreciate. They sawsomething in me and once they gave me encouragementI was able to proceed. After graduating from BaptistCollege, I worked for several years, and with the educa-tion that they had given me, I was later accepted at UNC-Chapel Hill, and from there earned my MPH in HealthAdministration. Baptist College took a chance when noone else would, and I am eternally grateful. I know thatthe Good Lord smiles regularly on CSU because of whatit did for and with folks like myself.

Us

“I NEVER FELTTHAT ATTENDINGTHE COLLEGEWAS ANYTHINGOF A RISK. I FELTTHE COLLEGEWAS FOUNDEDON SPIRITUALPRINCIPLES ANDTHAT IT WOULDBE INTERESTINGAND FUN TOATTEND A NEWINSTITUTION.”

MaryFranceseBuckner


LEADING


Woodrow Busch ’69I wanted to go to The Baptist College because I hoped

it would prepare me for the pastorate – and it did. Goingto a new school was also an adventure. I remember allthe mud and the confusion the first year on the campus.But the faculty was great and meeting new people was apositive experience.

Joe Tallon ’69The risk [to attend] was taken because my church

(Dorchester-Waylen Baptist Church) and other Baptistchurches were willing to back up the school with theirresources. We never felt it had a chance to fail. Also, itwas affordable. The first year’s tuition for day studentswas only $1,000 per semester. However, that didn’t lastlong since it increased each year.

The first year Dr. Hamrick wanted the mascot to bethe Swamp Fox. We protested and voted in theBuccaneers. He said that there were no good Buccaneersand that they were just pirates. Pat Spence and I did apaper on Sir Francis Drake and changed his mind, or wewould still be the Swamp Foxes today.

I was in the BCC choir, and we traveled by bus tosing. I would drive Mrs. Cuttino and her young daugh-ter and follow the bus in case it broke down. The buswas called “The Blue Goose.” Mrs. Margaret Gilmorewould travel with us and recruit students and money forthe college. We sang at schools, churches, and conven-tions. It was a way to get the name of Baptist Collegeacross the state and the Southeast. The first year we alsosang in the Nutcracker with the Charleston SymphonyOrchestra at the Dock Street Theatre, and the nextyear we did The Testament of Freedom, again with thesymphony but instead at the new BCC gym.

Blast from thePast: 1969

Sources: thepeoplehistory.com/1969.html; blogs.ancestry.com/circle/?p=464; infoplease.com/year/1969.html; si1969.com/69trivia.aspx

• A gallon of gas cost a whopping 35 cents.

• A new house would set you back on average $15,550.

• NASA successfully landed the first humans to walk on the moon: Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin.

• Abbey Road, the Beatles’ last album, was recorded.

• The Gulf Coast was devastated by a category 5 hurricane: Camille.

• Do you remember these TV shows? They all premiered in ’69: Sesame Street,

The Brady Bunch, Scooby-Doo, Where Are You and Marcus Welby.

• A first-class stamp was 6 cents.

• It was a banner year for teams from the Northeast: The NY Jets beat Baltimore in the Super Bowl;

The NY Mets beat Baltimore in the World Series, and Boston beat the LA Lakers for the NBA Championship.

• Glen Campbell’s By the Time I Get to Phoenix captured the Grammy for Album of the Year.

• The beginnings of the Internet were born through the Advanced Research Projects Agency, when four universities went online.

• The 1st home computer, Honeywell’s “Kitchen Computer,” sold for $10,600.

• The #1 song of 1969? Sugar Sugar by the Archies.

EVERY CLUBOR GROUP OR

ORGANIZATIONWE BEGAN THAT

YEAR AND EVERYMEMORY WE

FORGED SET THEFRAMEWORK FORTHE FUTURE, AND

WE KNEW THAT.

WoodrowBusch


Mary F. Buckner ’69There is never one easy answer to explain why we do

what we do. My decision to attend the new BaptistCollege at Charleston was quite complex. My heart’sdesire was to go to Furman University just like my olderbrother. But funds were tight, and my parents had oneoverarching goal in life – to college educate all four oftheir children. Since I was the # 2 child, I knew therewere two others behind me that needed schooling, too.So I opted to save money, stay at home and attend col-lege, knowing that I was headed after college graduationto seminary and would have at least two more years ofschooling ahead of me.

My mother and I went to Dr. Carpenter’s home onemorning to talk to him about the new school and what thedreams for it might be. I must admit that there was some-thing very appealing about being in on the ground floor ofa school that could develop years later into a large andwonderful institution. Since Dr. Carpenter had just pickedup the initial applications from the printer that morning,I filled one out while I was there, and thus became the firstapplicant to the school – an interesting honor.

There are many fond memories from being part of thefounding class. My classmates and I all bonded in waysnot found in other more established schools. We weremore like a family, and we had the added distinction ofbeing upperclassmen all four years. We knew, on somelevel, that the decisions we were making (name of a mas-cot and a yearbook, for example) would be far-reachingand would probably continue as long as the school exist-ed, so we tried to make those decisions thoughtfully.

If you speak today to any of those founding students,certain images surely are recalled – attending classes thatfirst year in a church building and a local gym, for exam-ple. Boarding students have great “war” stories to tellabout the old St. John’s Hotel and its warped floor boardsand other idiosyncrasies. Every club or group or organi-zation we began that year and every memory we forgedset the framework for the future, and we knew that.

Once we moved out to the current campus our sec-ond year, we can all remember times of dodging earthmovers in order to get to class. I can also recall the smellof the earth being turned over and the sounds of con-struction as part of our everyday schedule. Dust andmud were just part of the daily scene. But it was also anexciting time, and now those memories are sweet.

Everyone involved in this new school, from the staff tothe faculty to the student body, had an investment in it –to see it prosper and grow and be a viable option for agood education. Mistakes? Yes, we ALL made plenty ofthose. And again, those mistakes were equally divided bya young and largely inexperienced faculty and staff and aneager and fresh-faced group of students. Never in mymind, however, did I question whether those of us whomade up those first classes were fully dedicated to seeingthis new school succeed. We invested all our hopes anddreams and energies into it. And look at it now! Go, Bucs!

One more amusing anecdote: I was a music major,and so I enjoyed singing in the college choir all my yearsthere at CSU. David Cuttino was the Director during

those years. He often would schedule our group to singfor evening worship services at local Baptist churches inorder to further advertise the school and the good worktaking place there. One Sunday evening, the churchwhere we were singing was also having a baptismalservice. Our choir was in the choir loft area and thebaptistery was behind the loft. One particularly largeadult man was to be baptized. As the man went underthe water and back up, the entire men’s section of ourchoir got soaked; the water sloshed over the edge due tothe size of the man.

Memories from the Early YearsExcerpted from Ebenezer Stones – A Firm Foundation: A History of The Baptist College at Charleston 1955-1988 by Margaret Taylor Gilmore

• Walter Koon, in a feature in the Charleston Evening Post, said, “some call it ‘instant college’ because it is conducting business with no campus, no buildings, and no graduates.”

• Few who spent their freshman year of college in the old St. John’s Hotel and attended classes in First Baptist of North Charleston will ever forget the excitement of being members of a group known as “The Pioneer Class.” Their thoughts often went on to next year when they would be the first students to call the campus, “way out on I-26, ours.”

• The original faculty, for the most part, were visionaries, attracted by the rare and exciting challenge to become a part of something new, something that could become very big. It would be a college where ideals would be high, potential unlimited, and academic standards would be held sacred – all in an atmosphere that would be distinctly Christian.

• The summer before classes began, President John Hamrick, and his wife, Margaret, hosted a gathering for the employees...Everyone felt important, just to be FIRST in whatever role they were to carry...Afterward John Barry remarked, “We will remember this evening. For very soon now there will be so many of us that the closeness we now feel will be impossible to recapture.”

• The second year...When it became possible to drive on campus, students found not only mud, but in many cases also found their quarters inaccessible except by climbing on precariously placed stacks of material to reach their “dorm” doorway. Residence Directors, Furman and Esther Touchberry, retired pastor and his wife, were “Mom and Pop” to the students and managed to make the experience one of bearable and almost happy survival. Few complained. They had decided they were “Pioneers,” and they took it all as challenging.

• The News and Courier gave front-page, color photo coverage to the commencement story. Dr. Hamrick was pictured with Eugene Franz Jonk, who graduated cum laude, and Mrs. Lowell Dean Martin Rowell, who graduated magna cum laude. The date was May 14, 1969. Seventy-eight of the 175 who received diplomas had enrolled as freshmen at the college. These students had set the tone, broken ground and started traditions that would become historical Ebenezer Stones for the institution.


LEADING


Dr.Hal Adams Jr.

ADAMS ENJOYEDCAMPUS LIFE

BUT WASSERIOUS ABOUT

ACADEMICS.HIS FOCUS WAS

ON LEARNINGHOW TO STUDY,GETTING GOODGRADES, ANDGRADUATING.

Photo by Cynthia Pace Photography


from

STUDENTtoInsurance Industry

BelowAverage

BY SHERRY ATKINSONs Dr. Hal Adams Jr. flipped through his 1969Baptist College annual, pictures of MichaelHarmon, Billy Bedenbaugh, Jim Raborn andPhil Bookter brought back a flood of good

memories. But memories of playing dorm room footballwith roommate Billy Mew are by far the sweetest. “Billywas a big guy, and we’d challenge any two guys willing toplay football with us. In order to score you had to get bothknees on one of our beds, serving as end zones…and noone ever did. We never lost a game, never tied a game,”laughed Adams. “There was great camaraderie in thedorms, and I made lifelong friends there.”

Prior to coming to BCC, Adams spent two years atClemson where he had struggled academically. A formerClemson roommate, Ron Parnell, had transferred toBaptist College and talked Adams into coming for a visit.In the summer of 1967, Adams visited Parnell and theBCC campus. Later he met with Registrar David Stonewho agreed to admit him on academic probation, andAdams transferred to BCC in fall 1967.

The first night in the new dorm Adams woke up to aloud commotion and the sound of rushing water.According to Adams, a pipe between the second and

A


LEADING


third floors had burst, and everyone was evacuated.Making the best of a bad situation, Adams pulled his carup and blasted the radio drawing a crowd not only tohear the music but also to admire his 1967 PlymouthBarracuda. One of the students Adams befriended thatnight was Jim Baker from Kingstree. Baker later intro-duced Adams to his sister, Cookie, who was a student atColumbia College. A long-distance romance began, andthe two were married in 1971.

Adams enjoyed campus life but was serious aboutacademics. His focus was on learning how to study,getting good grades, and graduating. He had manyprofessors who influenced him along the way. Among

them were Silas Garrison, English; Doug Donehue,journalism; Charley Brassell, speech; Frank Gay,economics; Dr. Royce Breland, business; Ada Johnson,Spanish; Dr. John Barry, philosophy and religion; andHelen Barry, psychology.

His first semester at BCC, Adams took English 102with Professor Patricia Allen. His first assignment: to writean autobiography. When the graded papers were returned,he was shocked and angry – he had made an “F.”

The following paragraphs, excerpted from theDecember 2000 graduation speech he gave when he wasawarded an honorary doctorate in business administra-tion from Charleston Southern, tell the rest of the story.

I returned to my room and for about half an hour blew off some serious steam. I thendecided to return to the professor’s office and discuss the grade, although I had to

muster up all the courage I could to go…

Calmly, the professor asked me to read the theme again and asked me what it really said.I told her that it was my life to date – an autobiography, exactly what she had asked me towrite. She then explained that I had been very critical of myself, and that while the themewas technically nearly perfect in structure, its content was a formula for certain failure.She went on to spend a good deal of time with me, helping me understand that I was notas bad as I had held myself out to be in the theme, and that I had potential.

I left her office nearly an hour later with the instructions to write the theme over. As I did,I was first only relieved to have a second chance for a better grade. With time, though, itbegan to dawn on me that her words were making a difference in my life and that I could seethings in perspective and could make a difference to others. Two years later, I wasno longer the below average student that I thought myself to be, and was excellingacademically.

I WILL ALWAYSBE INDEBTED TO

CSU FOR MYEDUCATION, ANDI STILL WEAR MY

CLASS RINGPROUDLY. AND

ALWAYS, ALWAYSASK PEOPLE,

WHAT CAN YOUDO TO HELP

CHARLESTONSOUTHERN?

LEFT: Former Intern Charlotte Bouchet, Cookie & Hal- Palacio Real (Royal Palace), Madrid.

ABOVE: Famile Bouchet, Cookie & Hal -Chez Bouchet, Reims, France.


Attending a liberal arts college gave Adams a widerange of knowledge and experiences. In 1969 he gradu-ated with a bachelor of science degree in businessadministration with emphases in marketing and man-agement and a minor in English. He continued his edu-cation as a graduate student at the University of SouthCarolina master’s program in business administrationfrom 1970-71.

Adams has had a successful career in the insuranceindustry for 38 years. He began his career in 1970 withthe Dana Insurance Agency in Columbia. The firmhandled insurance for several nonprofit organizationsand various religious denominations. In 1977 Adamswas approached by several Southern Baptist missionar-ies about property insurance coverage. “I grew up in avery missions-oriented church and family and realizedthe importance of their need,” explained Adams. Hefollowed up with, what was then, The Foreign MissionBoard, and after a two-year process of gatheringinformation and finding an underwriter, they wereable to offer the insurance to foreign missionaries.Adams remembers, “The program grew slowly, but themissionary community began to respect the program ashaving the missionary needs at heart and that we couldput together the kind of programs they needed.” Soonafter, other denominations began requesting coverageas well, and in 1982, the company added volunteermissionary insurance.

In January 1980, he founded Adams Eaddy &Associates and began its International Division. Adamsserved as president of the firm until the InternationalDivision had grown substantially enough that it wasnecessary to spin off on its own in June 1992. Thischange created Adams & Associates International, Ltd.,with Adams as chairman and owner. He and his staffwere now free to devote their full attentions to provid-ing all insurance lines to not-for-profit organizationswho have operations and personnel located outside ofNorth America.

As the business became profitable, Adams wanted togive back to the missionary community. In 2000 he

established the Adams and Associates International MKEndowed Scholarship at Charleston Southern, and in2003, the Adams and Associates International MKEndowed Scholarship II was established. To date, therehave been 47 MKs (missionary kids) who have receivedthe financial benefits of those scholarships.

Adams is currently area president of Adams &Associates International - Arthur J. Gallagher RiskManagement Services after the November 2006 mergerwith Arthur J. Gallagher. He continues to focus hisenergies on the nonprofit, charitable and missionarycommunities developing and implementing insuranceproducts designed to meet the specific needs of theseorganizations.

Looking back, Adams experienced many highlightsthroughout his career. “Creating products and servicesfrom scratch is my second most rewarding highlight.The most rewarding has been having eight interns, allforeign, over the past 10 years. Mentoring them atthis stage of their lives then seeing them developacademically and vocationally following their tenurewith me has been most rewarding,” reflects Adams,who in February traveled with his wife to France, Spainand Switzerland for reunions with five of these interns.He has also received numerous professional awards asthe result of his involvement and dedication to theinsurance industry and is a member of many profes-sional and civic organizations.

Adams and his wife are now empty nesters. They havetwo daughters, Dorothy and Alice. Dorothy is a middleschool teacher and lives in the Charleston area. Alice is afinance professor at the University of Kentucky. She ismarried to Matthieu Bonaimé (another former intern)and has a 3-year-old son, Luke, and is expecting anoth-er child in June.

“I could just go on and on about my experiences thereat school,” said Adams. I will always be indebted to CSUfor my education, and I still wear my class ring proudly.And always, always ask people, ‘What can you do to helpCharleston Southern?’ This school has really helped me,so I am committed to helping it.”

CREATINGPRODUCTS ANDSERVICES FROMSCRATCH IS MYSECOND MOSTREWARDINGHIGHLIGHT.THE MOSTREWARDINGHAS BEEN HAVINGEIGHT INTERNS,ALL FOREIGN,OVER THE PAST10 YEARS.

LEFT: Former Intern Amaury Vanoye, Cookie & Hal -Square des Batignolles, 17th Arr. Paris.

BELOW: Former Interns Benjamin Philippe (L) &François Latombe (R), Cookie & Hal - Chez Phillipe,Coppet, Vaud, Switzerland.


L E A D I N G


T he athletics department inducted fourmembers into the Hall of Fame duringHomecoming Weekend.

Allison Arreola Delaney was introduced byformer teammate and coach Danyel Bellush,who praised Delaney – who played as AllisonArreola – for more than just her athletic abili-ty, saying “Allison will be known for heraccomplishments on the court, but I remem-ber her just as much for her personality, atti-tude and smile.”

An All-Big South selection, Delaney was anAcademic All-American for her work on thecourt and in the classroom, where she earneda perfect 4.0 GPA and was the 1998-99 BigSouth Christenberry Award winner.

“I am so honored and thrilled to be here,”said Delaney. “I want to thank the selectioncommittee, but also want to thank my team-mates and the professors here at CSU. I hadforgotten what it meant to be part of thisschool, but after a long flight, as soon as I setfoot in the gym, I was immediately remindedof the love and support.”

Steve Blanchard took the podium second,earning the honor for his accomplishments onthe club football team at CSU. Blanchard fin-ished his career with more than 200 totaltackles, and 22 career interceptions.

“I am so humbled to be here tonight,” saidBlanchard, who was part of the inauguralBuccaneer football team. “My time here atCSU definitely changed my life. How oftendoes someone get to be a member of the firstteam, and meet the woman of their dreams onthe first day of class?”

A pair of golfers, Jim Gardas and PatriciaMartinson-Earley, rounded out the inductees,both being introduced by their former coach,Howard Vroon, who had high praise for them.“Both Jim and Patricia live and breatheachievement every day in all that they do.Neither did what they did here for the famebut because they didn’t know any other way.”

Gardas was a Verizon Academic All-American after earning a 3.94 GPA and wasalso named the 1998-99 Big SouthChristenberry Award winner.

“I am so proud and honored to be induct-ed into the Hall of Fame. I want to congratu-late the other inductees as well. To see whathas happened here over the last 10 years isreally amazing,” said Gardas.

Martinson-Earley, whose credentials rivalthose of anyone, as a three-time Big South Playerof the Year and three-time Big South tournamentchampion, was thankful for the opportunitiesthat her time at CSU has given her.

“I was so excited to get the phone call let-ting me know that I was being inducted,” saidMartinson-Earley. “Because of the opportunityI had to come here as a student and an ath-lete, so many doors have been opened for me,and I know that even more will be in thefuture. CSU gave me the opportunity to growacademically, athletically and spiritually. I amproud to wear the Blue and Gold and callmyself a Buccaneer.”

Basketball and baseball hall of famer JohnKammeyer rounded out the evening by tellingthose in attendance “As proud as you are rightnow, I promise you that in a few years whenyou see what this University is doing, you willfeel even better.”

Hall of Fame Inducts FourBy Blake Freeland

Photo by CSU sports information

Gardas FAST FACTSPlayed at CSU from 1994-99

1999 Verizon Academic All-American

1999 Christenberry Award Winner

Two-time Big SouthScholar-Athlete of the Year

Two-time All-Big South

2006 Anthracite GolfAmateur of the Year

Arreola FAST FACTSPlayed at CSU from 1994-1998

Four-year starter

1999 Christenberry Award Winner

1999 Academic All-American

Second in career attacks

Second in career kills

Fourth in career digs

Blanchard FAST FACTSPlayed at CSU from 1985-89

Finished with more than200 career tackles

Finished with 22 careerinterceptions

Member of the inauguralclub football team thatfinished the seasonundefeated

Martinson FAST FACTSPlayed at CSU from 1998-2001

Four-time member of thePresidential Honor Roll

Three-time Big SouthPlayer of the Year

Helped lead CSU to a BigSouth Championship,finishing fourth


L E A D I N G


D r. Anthony Reed, an alum andCharleston native, returned to campusto help commemorate Martin Luther

King Day, speak at Convocation, and serve asguest lecturer. Reed’s visit and impact willlong be remembered.

The name Anthony Reed is one that isfamiliar in the presence of people who havebeen around the Big South Conference for anylength of time. Mention Anthony’s name andthey remember a number of broken recordshe left behind after graduating with a degreein religion in 1999.

Reed continues to hold the Big Southindoor record in the triple jump and was atwo-time Big South indoor champion in thelong jump and triple jump. He was also atwo-time Big South triple jump champion inoutdoor track and held the League triplejump record until 2008.

Those credentials gave Reed plenty of cred-ibility when he spoke to Charleston Southernathletes and coaches. The message he gavewas not just how to succeed on the field ofcompetition, but how to succeed in life.

“Remember that this life is more than justyour performance,” Reed said to the athletes.

“There is a greater reason that God has calledyou to compete at CSU. CSU prepares athletesfor the competition of life, where victory isgained through Christ.”

While speaking at the athletics departmentluncheon, Reed let the coaches know that thethings he remembers most from his days as anall-conference athlete were how his coachesalways taught him something new about him-self. He urged them to serve as mentors totheir student-athletes and to help build char-acter in addition to strong athletes.

“My success on and off the track is becauseof Christ,” Reed explained. “CSU offered methe opportunity to be surrounded with peoplewho were strong in their faith, people thatcared more about me than my performance.”

At Convocation, Reed shared his own expe-riences growing up in Charleston in a single-parent home and of his dreams for the future.He shared from Matthew 20 about the twoblind men on the roadside begging. He recalledfrom the story that when the men called out toJesus, others tried to quiet them. “The two menkept focused on Christ, not the crowd.” Reedencouraged the students to remain focused onChrist regardless of the challenges they face.

“Dr. Reed repre-sents the vision wehave for our alums.He is demonstrating,as an alum, faithintegration in learn-ing, leading, andserving – qualitiesthat Anthony modeled as a student,” said Dr.Rick Brewer, vice president for planning andstudent affairs. “It is a rich blessing to noteAnthony’s growth and cultivation of his God-given gifts which are being used to strategicallylead his church and denomination regionallyand nationally with a Kingdom focus.”

After graduating from Charleston Southern,Reed attended Turner Theological Seminary atthe International Theological Center inAtlanta. He received his Doctor of MinistryDegree at United Theological Seminary inDayton, Ohio. Reed now serves as the Pastorof Martin Memorial African MethodistEpiscopal Church in Miami, Florida. Hischurch is one of the fastest growing AMEchurches in the state of Florida.

Alum Making Great Strides in MinistryBy Doug Dickerson & Blake Freeland

END-OF-THE-YEAR CHALLENGE CAMPAIGN MOTIVATES UNIVERSITY AND DONORS TO NEW HEIGHTS

T he donor issued a challenge to theUniversity, “Raise $200,000 in newgifts and pledges, and I’ll match it

dollar for dollar.”

The University got to work, and ourfriends opened their checkbooks. The resultwas $230,191 in new gifts and pledgesreceived during the month of December, trulya blessing in the spirit of Christmas. Whenmatched by the $200,000 challenge gift,$430,291 in new gifts and pledges wasreceived.

Our thanks go out to everyone who partic-ipated and especially to our anonymousdonor for making this wonderful Christmasgift possible.


L E A D I N G

A s the challenges of the current econo-my continue, Charleston Southern hasdeveloped a plan to respond to the

increasing financial needs of students, toprotect the livelihood of its employees, and tosecure the financial footing of the University.“I am confident about the future of CharlestonSouthern in these challenging economictimes. We are taking proactive measures toensure financial stability,” said President JairyHunter. Although careful resource manage-ment has allowed the University to project abalanced budget at the end of the year, theunknown length of the stagnant economyrequires continued careful planning. In lightof this challenge, the University has madeseveral key decisions.

Since academic quality is key to accom-plishing the University’s mission, maintainingadequate faculty resources will continue as atop priority. Therefore, no hiring freeze isanticipated, no faculty/staff position reduc-tions are planned, and the University willseek to fill new faculty positions previouslyapproved.

Mindful of the economic challenges thatexist, the University has implemented signifi-cant cost containment measures: 1) no salaryincreases; 2) voluntary six percent salary cutby President Hunter; 3) only essential travelapproved; 4) only essential office equipmentpurchases made; 5) postage cost reductionsthrough the use of technology. Any fundsavailable at the end of the year will be setaside for financial contingencies.

The financial aid office is reaching out tofamilies who are having financial hardships.Financial aid counselors are setting up help

stations in the student cafeteria and sendingout letters asking families to contact themshould they have a significant change in theirfamily income or new financial challenges dueto this economic downturn.

The future is optimistic for the University.Enrollment figures are strong and encourag-ing. Freshmen applications for fall 2009 areup by 23 percent over the same time last year,and new freshmen confirmed is up 73 percentover last year. New student enrollment forspring 2009 is up by 16 percent compared tolast year. New majors for fall 2009 include aB.A. in graphic design and an M.S. in nursing.

CSU is also enhancing its veterans affairsprogram to meet the increased needs ofmilitary personnel who have served or arecurrently serving in the U.S. Armed Forces.The new federally funded Post 9/11 GI Billand Yellow Ribbon Program have significantlyincreased benefits for veterans and will gointo effect August 2009. CSU has proudlyserved veterans since its inception in 1964and is pleased to be a “Military-to-CollegeFriendly” institution.

As we look to the future, the University’smission of promoting academic excellence ina Christian environment and vision of inte-grating faith in learning, leading, and servingremain strong. “With faith in God, carefulplanning, and the generosity of our friends,we believe the best days are ahead forCharleston Southern,” said Hunter. We trustin the promise of the scripture that says, “Andwe know that God causes everything to worktogether for the good of those who love Godand are called according to His purpose.”Romans 8:28.

University remaining on secure financial footingBy Doug Dickerson

“I AM CONFIDENTABOUT THEFUTURE OF

CHARLESTONSOUTHERNIN THESE

CHALLENGINGECONOMICTIMES. WE

ARE TAKINGPROACTIVEMEASURESTO ENSURE FINANCIAL STABILITY.”

– President Jairy Hunter


Click toCONNECT

Life just got a little easier for alumni, friends and donors who give or desire to

give to Charleston Southern University. When visiting the University’s home page,

www.charlestonsouthern.edu, notice the new ALUMNI/GIVING tab.

• Give Now - a way you can securely and easily make a donation online

• Ways to Give- shows all the ways you can make an impact at CSU, from joining the Legacy Society, starting an endowment, giving a funded scholarship or simply giving a small gift to honor a loved one in your life

• Board of Visitors- lists the names of current members, event photos, important dates, joining information and much more.

• Development Officers- meet the team who can help you find the right fit so you can most impact Charleston Southern University students.

WITH THIS FEATURE YOU WILL F IND THE FOLLOWING AND MUCH MORE:

Connect to CareFor additional information about Giving to CSU, contact the advancement office at [email protected] 843-863-7513

udy Postell Cone is petite, soft-spoken andmoves fluidly around the pianos and organs atthe Fox Music Store in North Charleston.Although she retired from the public school

system in 1996, her schedule is packed with privatelessons and senior adult group lessons at the store. Sheis also the organist and choral director serving withher husband, Frank, pastor, at Rutledge Baptist Churchin Charleston.

JMusic


SERVING


Photo by Sherry Atkinson

“Music is who I am, and I know God had a plan forme from the very beginning,” said Cone. She shares thatshe was adopted as a baby and was her adoptive parentsonly child. “I didn’t know who my real parents wereuntil I was about 40 years old,” she said. “Looking backnow and knowing what little bit I knew about them, Iwould have probably never been able to take music les-sons; it would have never happened.”

“MUSIC IS WHO IAM, AND I KNOWGOD HAD A PLAN

FOR ME FROMTHE VERY

BEGINNING.”


As it was, Cone began piano lessons at age five. “I hadalways loved music and loved to sing,” she said. “I loveddancing around to the music on my little record player.”Her parents were very supportive and created opportu-nities for her to progress musically.

After years of training as a child, she auditioned withVernon Weston, a well-respected teacher, who acceptedher as an organ student when she was in junior high. Aftertaking lessons for only six months, Weston called and saidhe had a request for an organist at a small Methodistchurch. “He recommended me because He thought Icould do it, and I believed him,” said Cone, seemingly stillamazed by that today. “So I became a church organist andchoral director at age 14. That was my first experience,and I have been a church organist ever since.”

Cone received an organ scholarship to ColumbiaCollege in the mid-1960s. After attending there twoyears, her mother became ill, and she returned toCharleston to care for her.

Shortly after coming home, she received a phone callfrom David Cuttino, assistant music professor at BCC,who offered her an organ scholarship at a brand newschool. “That was a God thing for me because my momended up being an invalid for 16 years, and I would neverhave finished my music degree if it had not been for thephone call that day,” said Cone. To this day, she does notknow how Cuttino learned about her and her situation.

In 1966 she started as a transfer student at BaptistCollege. “The music department was in a trailer in the backof campus where we had to wade through mud to get toclass,” Cone remembers. But in the midst of the unsavoryconditions, she felt very at home on campus and was nur-tured by professors like Oliver Yost. “Mr. Yost, my pianoprofessor, did so much for my playing. I had great tech-nique, but I didn’t have a whole lot of feeling,” said Cone.

“I remember him saying, ‘Judy, you have got to love thismusic as you play, love it.’ I had to think about that becauseno one had ever said that to me before. He was a wonder-ful professor who shaped a lot of the way I play today.”

One of the musical highlights of her college careerwas being invited to play the organ accompanying twochoirs and the Charleston Symphony in a presentation ofHandel’s Messiah. “That was a really special time for me,”she recalls.

Although Cone was a commuter student, she lovedhanging out in the dorm with friends. One of her closestfriends was Linda Harrison, an elementary educationmajor who taught her how to play bridge, which Conesays, at that time, was almost as evil as dancing.

In 1968, she graduated from Baptist College earningthe first music education degree. Over the years, she hasdone graduate studies in education at The Citadel, organat Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, and choralmusic and musical theater at USC, Columbia.

The Cones have two children who are following theirown dreams. Stephen is a film maker in Chicago. Hisfirst film premiered last fall. Daughter Christina is asinger/songwriter living in New York City. HusbandFrank graduated from BCC in 1977.

Cone has taught in nine schools ranging from middleschool to college level, has an impressive list of churchministry experiences, and has taught countless privateorgan, piano and voice lessons for more than 30 years.

There is no way to know how many lives Judy Conehas touched over the years. She has freely and consistent-ly shared her God-given talent and has followed the beatof His heart regardless of her circumstances. “God orches-trated things in my life when I was a baby and helpless. Aslife went on, He continued to orchestrate things in my lifewhen I didn’t realize how helpless I was.”

IsamIWho

BY SHERRY ATKINSON

“GOD ORCHESTRATEDTHINGS IN MY LIFEWHEN I WAS A BABYAND HELPLESS. ASLIFE WENT ON, HECONTINUED TOORCHESTRATETHINGS IN MY LIFEWHEN I DIDN’TREALIZE HOWHELPLESS I WAS.”


SERVING


“WHEN MYOLDEST SON

MATTHEWPINNED ON MY

AIR MEDAL ANDTHEN SALUTED

ME, IT TOUCHEDMY HEART,BUT WHEN

HE STEPPEDFORWARD AND

GAVE ME A HUG,HE SQUEEZED A

FEW TEARSOUT OF THIS

OLD SOLDIER’SEYES.”


HEROSa

‘

WELCOMEFor 1969 graduate Joe Tallon much of what took place between

graduation and the day he received his Purple Heart at Charleston

Southern in 2008 is what movies are made of.

BY DOUG DICKERSON

PHOTOS BY JAN JOSLIN


SERVING


Tallon got his draft notice in June of 1969 and wasin the Army by August. He flew combat missionsover North Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos. He was anOV-1 Mohawk reconnaissance pilot and flew most ofhis missions under the cover of darkness. His planewas the only unarmed, unescorted plane flown overNorth Vietnam.

Tallon was shot down Aug. 12, 1972, and was evacu-ated nine days later. Just after takeoff into the night skiesof South Vietnam, his plane took a missile in the num-ber two engine. He ejected from the plane and parachut-ed to the ground. “I should have been dead,” said Tallon,as he recalled that frightful event.

The plane’s aerial observer and tactical operator waskilled when his parachute did not open. Tallon says hehit the ground at 140 mph and blacked out. “I landed ina minefield at night in a razor fence. I made it throughthe minefield without triggering any mines while on fire.I crawled to the perimeter of the airfield’s fence.”

Dodging flames that surrounded him, Tallon couldn’tfind his knife or pistol. “What kept me from beingimpaled was my radio and my New Testament,” he said.Tallon has since given the New Testament to both of hissons who have taken it to Korea and Iraq.

On Nov. 12, 2008, after a 36-year delay, Retired U.S. Army Lt. Col. Tallon

was awarded a Purple Heart at Lightsey Chapel Auditorium for injuries he

received on a combat mission in Vietnam. He was also awarded The Air

Medal and The Bronze Campaign Medal with Bronze Star attachment.

1st Lt. Josh Tallon pins on theVietnam Campaign Medal

with a Bronze Star.

I AM VERY PROUDTO HAVE BEEN A

PART OF THEFOUNDING CLASS

OF THE BAPTISTCOLLEGE AT

CHARLESTON, ANDI AM PROUD OF

THE INSTITUTIONCHARLESTON

SOUTHERNUNIVERSITY HAS

BECOME.”


The next day, Tallon’s commanding officer didn’t seebullet holes at the crash site; the plane had melted andonly the propeller was left. Since there weren’t two wit-nesses, there wasn’t enough proof that Tallon was shotdown. The secret nature of his missions also compound-ed the delay in receiving the Purple Heart.

The crash left Tallon blind for 10 days and left himwith double vision which he still has today. He spent twoand a half years in six Army hospitals, where he says hereceived excellent care. After a 36-year delay, and morethan 20 surgeries later, Tallon finally received the PurpleHeart that eluded him for so long.

“I’ve had many honors in my 37 years of service to thecountry, but to be at my alma mater and to have my twosons participate in the ceremony was really special. I amvery proud to have been a part of the founding class ofthe Baptist College at Charleston, and I am proud of theinstitution Charleston Southern University has become,”said Tallon. He earned a BA in history.

The Purple Heart was pinned on him by Ret. U.S.Army Special Forces Lt. Col. Rudi Gresham, a senioradvisor to the secretary of veteran affairs who worked in

the White House. The Air Medal was pinned by his old-est son Capt. Matthew A. Tallon. The Vietnam CampaignMedal with a Bronze Star attachment was pinned by hisyoungest son 1st Lt. Joshua A. Tallon.

“When my oldest son Matthew pinned on my AirMedal and then saluted me, it touched my heart, butwhen he stepped forward and gave me a hug, hesqueezed a few tears out of this old soldier’s eyes. Myyoungest son Josh did the same, but that moment wasspecial too since he had recently returned from combatin Iraq where he earned the Bronze Star. I am very proudof both of my son’s service to their country,” said Tallon.

Tallon continued to serve in active duty and in thereserves for 37 years, spanning five decades. He taughthistory for 21 years for the state of South Carolina inpublic schools and for 12 years for the Army.

In reflecting back on his storied military career, Tallonsaid, “I feel it is the duty of every citizen to serve hiscountry; especially when called.” At the close of the cer-emony, Tallon received a standing ovation; a BaptistCollege war hero had come home.

The Purple Heart is aUnited States militarydecoration awarded in

the name of thePresident to those whohave been wounded orkilled while serving onor after April 5, 1917,with the U.S. military.The National Purple

Heart Hall of Honor islocated in New Windsor,

New York. The PurpleHeart is the oldest

symbol and award thatis still given to members

of the U.S. military.

Capt. Matthew Tallon pins theAir Medal on his father.


S E R V I N G


T hanks to the support of the footballcoaching staff and team, Rory Killeen,father of senior defensive lineman Jake

Killeen, was able to watch his son play in hisfinal game for CSU.

Rory is in a difficult battle with pancreaticcancer, and with decreased mobility wasunable to come for the senior day festivities atCSU. In fact, the illness is so severe that Jakewas honored at last year’s senior day for fearthat his dad wouldn’t make it to the 2008home finale. Diagnosed with stage four cancerduring the summer of 2007, Rory was givensix months to a year to live.

A year and a half later, he has continued tobattle. Justin Witzmann, who has been team-mates on the defensive line with Jakethroughout junior college and on to CSU,Coach Jay Mills, and his staff would notaccept for their all-conference defensive endto have to play his final games without hisfather getting to see him. They cleared it withthe NCAA and decided to take up a collectionwithin the team to get Rory to the final gameof the year against Coastal Carolina.

“God orchestrated all of this from the verybeginning, and that was quite obvious,” saidMills. “In the pregame chapel we had 16 confes-sions of faith. My wife, Kim, was released fromthe hospital just before game time after healthissues of her own. God was alive and well in thisprogram. I told team chaplain Jon Davis that Ifelt like we were living out Facing the Giants.Most of the things throughout this year I would-n’t have designed, but looking back, I certainlywouldn’t have changed anything.”

In just a short period of time, those closeto the program donated more than enoughmoney to cover any expenses that Rory wouldhave during the trip.

“You don’t win based solely on Saturdaynight; you win by putting in the preparationthroughout the week,” said Mills. “This self-less and anonymous act by different staffs wasnot a one-time thing for them, but more anindicator of what was already there.”

When approached with the idea, Jake andhis dad were both reluctant. “We felt a littleguilty because you are talking about collegekids, who don’t have any money to give. It

blew me away when they came up with somuch, but really showed what a Christianuniversity is all about.”

Defensive Coordinator Thielen Smith wasalso pleased with the reaction from the team.“This is a great example of teammates goingbeyond the call of duty for their teammate,”said Smith. “The whole team came together todo an outstanding thing for Jake. He trulyappreciated what they did and you could tellby how hard he played.”

Killeen finished the game tied for secondon the team with eight tackles and a sack. Hefinished his two-year CSU career with two all-conference selections, eighth all-time with 17career tackles for loss and second all-timewith 11 sacks. The team also came throughfor the Killeen family, winning the game 24-0with the defense handing Coastal Carolinatheir first shutout in program history.

“I am normally really nervous, but when Isaw my dad there with me, I had this sense ofcalmness come over me,” said Killeen. “I toldmyself no matter what to have fun, and I did.I don’t think I stopped smiling the entiregame. I had about four tackles on the firstseries, and it was probably one of the mostfun games I’ve ever played in.”

Coach Smith believes that rallying aroundthe Killeen family served as a bonding eventthat pays dividends in more than one area.“Going through this process really helped theteam. When you have to pull together likethis, you are able to get the results that wesaw. This is a true example of a team becom-ing family and really shows what CharlestonSouthern is all about.”

In addition to raising funds to pay for theflight and meals, Rory and Jake were named asroommates in the team hotel the night beforethe game. Then, just before the game, Mills andone of the officials were talking about the situa-tion. The official invited Rory onto the field forthe coin toss with the captains – including Jake.

Rory, who got to see his son play for theBuccaneers for just the second time, got thethrill of his lifetime as he was presented withthe game ball after the victory.

“I must say that the trip out to SouthCarolina to be with Jake and watch him in hislast game was one of the most special times inmy life,” said Killeen. “I couldn’t have beenmore proud of Jake and it is a memory that Iwill carry with me for eternity. Coach Millsand his coaching staff made it all happen.They did so much for me and their selflessacts speak volumes of their character.”

Bucs Give to Make Dream Come TrueBy Blake Freeland

Coach Jay Mills, Jake Killeen andRory Killeen at senior day.

Photo by CSU sports information


S E R V I N G


N ine students joined with campusminister Clark Carter and served withSnow Memorial Baptist Church in

Johnson City, Tenn., over their fall break.This was the fifth year of serving in this

area of the country for Charleston Southernand was a rewarding experience for allinvolved. “It was a very fruitful four days ofministry,” said Carter, “Probably one of thegreatest things that God did through us was toencourage Snow Memorial Baptist Church.This church has been in decline for a fewyears, but with the calling of a new pastor andwith the help and enthusiasm of our students,the church has already seen people beingadded to their membership.”

Service projects that the team conductedwhile there included cutting down a 40 ft.willow tree for an elderly couple; Kool Coatedtwo trailer roofs for elderly and handicappedchurch members; cleaned the interior of ahouse for a senior citizen; and worked withFishery Community Church to present ablacklight gospel presentation.

Rusty Wishon, pastor of Snow Memorialspoke highly of the ministry team’s service.“God has used the CSU mission team to refreshand energize our churches for the past severalyears,” he said. “We are refreshed to see thehard work and compassion in these young menand women. They have given us a newfoundenergy to keep ministries going in our church.Our community and our church love Jesusmore because of their dedication and love.”

The impact upon the Charleston Southernstudents will be lasting. “One thing I remem-ber about the trip is the expression from thepeople that we helped and also how theyappreciated everything we did for them,” saidfreshman Sierra Burnett of North Charleston.“Pastor Rusty is just a great guy; you can justsee the love he gives to all that surroundshim,” she said.

“It’s always exciting to see God workthrough students. Not only were the liveschanged of those we served, but our studentswere transformed by the joy of serving others.Our prayer is that our students will comehome not only with great memories, but alsowith a passion to live a missional lifestyle,”said Carter.

Students Minister in TennesseeBy Doug Dickerson

M embers of the CSU Women’s Council,Shirley Whitfield and Sissy Hunter,participated in the WC’s 6th annual

fundraising auction. Each year, the Women’sCouncil raises thousands of dollars which aredonated directly to student scholarships.The Women’s Council has established twoendowed scholarships – the Mattie LeighFrancese Scholarship and the Charlene B.Kirk Scholarship.

SHOPPING FOR SCHOLARS

Photo by Sherry Atkinson


S E R V I N G


D ecember graduate Jenise Durant fromLynchburg, S.C., recently was honoredby the Dorchester County Department

of Juvenile Justice as the 2008 Volunteer/Intern of the Year. The award is given annuallyto the intern making significant improvementsin the lives of the youth of Dorchester County.

“I am very grateful and blessed to even beinvolved with the Department of JuvenileJustice, so winning this award is like icingon the cake,” said Durant. “I want to thankeveryone at Dorchester County DJJ. Theyare awesome individuals who deserve morecompensation for the wonderful selfless jobthey do,” she said.

As a volunteer for DJJ, Durant conductedintake services for new cases. “Basically, Iadvise the child and their parent/guardians oftheir rights and obtain background informa-tion from them. I also performed contractmeetings,” said Durant. During her time as avolunteer she also made house visits through-out the community and helped wheneverand wherever she was needed.

“The reason we chose Jenise,” said DeborahSmith, county director of DJJ, “is she wentabove and beyond what was required. Shealways gave more than was asked of her; morethan the normal intern. There is somethingabout her enthusiasm; her personality. Sheshowed up on time every day and alwaysseemed happy to be here.”

Durant said, “It is priceless to enjoycoming to work and being able to performyour duties without someone stifling yourabilities. I also enjoyed the learning experi-ences. I learned how very important it is toinvest time in our youth. It is sad to see kidshave so little hope in their futures, so I amglad to be able to inspire some of them.”

Durant’s recognition was not the only onewith a CSU connection. Dr. Susan Styles, pro-fessor of psychology, was named the 2008Intern Network of the Year. Smith said, “Theinterns from Charleston Southern are easy towork with, reliable, and interested in what wedo. She (Styles) always sends us great internswho are highly motivated.”

Styles said, “Our intern sites that are themost successful are those that match the stu-dents with internship supervisors that really

care that the students are going to have avaluable learning experience, and Deborahdoes that for us. I can always count on herwhen I call to find a place for our students.”

As for her future plans, Durant is contem-plating whether to pursue graduate school orenter the U.S. Air Force while studying for theLaw School Admission Test. She plans to con-tinue her volunteer work at DJJ and hopes tobecome a part of Howard University’s 2010graduate class.

Jenise Durant Touching LivesBy Doug Dickerson

Dr. Susan Styles and Jenise Durant


Faith. Education. Vision. Ambition. Excellence.

At Charleston Southern University you can help preserve the

essence of your beliefs long after your worldly possessions

have faded. You have the opportunity to contribute to

academic excellence in a Christian environment and

help generations develop the values that

defined who you were.

For more information on the Legacy Society contact:Lili Gresham at 843-863-7517 or e-mail [email protected] the Legacy Society Web site at

www.charlestonsouthern.edu/development/legacy.asp

How do you pass onyour values?


S C H O O L T I E S


1968Howard M. Surface has been appointedhealth director of the Lee County HealthDepartment in Sanford, N.C. He receiveda master’s in public health degree fromUNC, Chapel Hill in 1974.

1969John Harper, Ph.D., is the school superin-tendent for the Bartow County SchoolDistrict in Cartersville, Ga. BartowCounty, about 50 miles northwest ofAtlanta in the foothills of the AppalachianMountains, has seen continued growth.Harper oversees a growing county systemwhich must constantly evolve to meet theneeds of its student population of morethan 14,000 students.

1973Harry Scarborough is retiring from theministry after 42 years of preaching.Most recently, he was pastor of New LifeChurch in Goose Creek, and has been amember of the Board of Trustees at CSU.He plans to do interim work and pulpitsupply preaching.

1974

After a career with the FederalGovernment that spanned 53 years,Jerry E. Beckley retired to Memphis,where he continued his academic careeras a professor of management science.He is currently the department chair ofbusiness and accounting at NationalCollege of Business and Technology,Bartlett Campus. Jerry’s e-mail [email protected] for thoseinterested in keeping in touch.

1978David Berry was named a CarolinaPanthers High School Coach of the Weekduring the 2008 season. David is headfootball coach at Blackville-Hilda HighSchool in Blackville. During his time atBlackville-Hilda, the Fighting Hawkshave won 13 region championships andthree state championships.

1983B.J. “Joe” Campbell, Ph.D., has beennamed customer relations manager forWatson Engineering’s manufacturingfacility located in Piedmont. WatsonEngineering is headquartered in Taylors,Mich., and is a multimillion dollar globalISO certified, tier one industry supplieroffering a wide range of services from thesimplest of vehicle builds to high-volumeproduction runs.

1990Susan Edwards is the director ofadvancement at Mount Saint JosephAcademy in Boston, and is working onher master of arts in philanthropy fromSt. Mary’s University.

1992Holly Michelle Roberts MEd ’02 andDr. Daniel Webster Cross IV ’90 weremarried June 28 in Moncks Corner. Hollyis a teacher with the Berkeley CountySchool District, and Daniel is employedby Georgetown Hospital Systems,Lexington Medical Center and EastCooper Regional Medical Center. He is amember of the CSU Board of Directors,Board of Visitors and Legacy Society.They live in Moncks Corner.

ClassnotesCOMPILED BY JAN JOSLIN ’82


S C H O O L T I E S


1993Michael “Ansel” Brown chose the NFLAlumni Inc. and Ronald McDonaldHouse Charities as the beneficiaries of aportion of the proceeds from his IPAKRecords’ debut album. As part of Brown’sBigger Heart Tour, he performed hismusic at children’s hospitals. To learnmore about Brown, visitwww.ipakrecords.com andwww.youtube.com/abheart08.

1997Ronda Hall is a teacher assistant workingwith preschoolers with autism inGreenville, N.C. In summer ’08 sheserved as an intern with the CooperativeBaptist Fellowship of Florida working inday camps and with outreach programs.

Sherry Weilnau Deakin was marriedDec. 31, 2008. The Deakins live inAtlanta, and Sherry is a rehabilitationjob readiness specialist at VocationalRehabilitation.

Amanda Herrmann Livingston andher husband, Eric, welcomed theirsecond child April 22, 2008. JonahSamuel weighed 8 lbs, 12 oz. Amandawrites, “His big sister, Katie, is 2 yearsolder and was happy to welcome him,too! We live in Summerville, and I’m aproud stay-at-home mom.”

1998

Sheila Ferrer Cathcart and herhusband, Chad, proudly announce thebirth of their son, Ethan Harold, bornNov. 12, 2008, weighing 9 lbs. 15 ozs.Ethan joins a big sister, Carmen, age 4.Sheila and Chad are still living in Aiken,where Sheila works as an athletic trainer.

Meghan Elizabeth Grace Hutchinson andAndrew Patrick Bell were married Oct.11, 2008, in Mount Pleasant. Andrew is ayearbook sales representative with Jostensand is currently the representative work-ing with CSU. The Bells live in Hanahan.

Erin Melissa Stanley and Derik JamesTrent were married Oct. 25, 2008, inCharleston. She is a project manager atGEL Laboratories. They live inCharleston.

2000Stacey Dryden has been promoted atAdvanced Technology Institute inCharleston to procurement analyst II.

Melanie Marie Keppers and Robert JasonWingard were married Nov. 22, 2008, inMoncks Corner. She is employed byBerkeley County School District. Theylive in Moncks Corner.

2001

Cherise Townsend Doyle and herhusband, Adam, proudly announce thearrival of their third child, Jonah Adam,born Dec. 16, 2008, weighing 8 lbs.exactly. Jonah was welcomed by his22-month-old twin sisters, Makayla andMakenna. Cherise is a stay-at-home mom,and the family of five lives in New Jersey.


S C H O O L T I E S


Carrie Ann Lagasse and Jeffrey AllenYespy MBA were married Sept. 13, 2008,in Buzzard Bay, Mass. He works in thefinance department at Hill Holiday. Theylive in Randolph, Mass.

2002Jessica Diane Eddins and CaptainStephen Gregory Dobbins were marriedJune 21, 2008, in Columbia. She is anadmission counselor at Savannah Collegeof Art and Design, and they live inGeorgia.

2003Jennifer Morillo MEd was named S.C.Middle School Principal of the Year bythe S.C. Association of SchoolAdministrators. Jennifer is assistant prin-cipal at Lady’s Island Middle School inBeaufort. She and her family live inBluffton.

2004Tomiko Brown earned the education pro-fession’s highest credential, National BoardCertification, in November 2008, a cre-dential that can take teachers to anyschool district in the nation. Tomikoearned her master’s degree in literacy edu-cation in 2006 and her +30 certification inreading in 2007. She has been employedwith Dorchester School District 2 as a 2ndgrade teacher since graduation.

Samantha Dyal and her husband anddaughter proudly announce the birth oftheir new addition, Benjamin Micah,born May 15, 2008. They have recentlymoved to Savannah, Ga.

Kate Hayden MEd ’05 and EricJackson were married March 14, 2008,on Driftwood Beach, Jekyll Island, Ga.Katie is a kindergarten teacher withGlynn County Schools and is currentlyworking toward her doctorate degree atGeorgia Southern University. Eric is anetwork analyst with South Ga. HealthSystem. They are active in their church,The Chapel, and live in Brunswick, Ga.

Brandi LaFaye O’Quinn and JarredMatthew Boan were married Dec. 20,2008, in Branchville. He is a health sci-ence technology instructor at CentralCarolina Technical College, and they livein Manning.

Alan Smith and his wife, Heather,proudly announce the birth of a secondchild, Julius Emerson. Alan is a referencelibrarian with the Horry County Library.

2005Christina Leigh Davenport and JohnCooper Stephens were married Dec. 8,2008, in Charleston. They live in Mt.Pleasant.

Emily Michelle Young and David NathanDent were married at Table Rock StatePark, Pickens. He is a fifth grade teacherat Hanahan Middle School, and they livein N. Charleston.

Rebecca Heckathorn and Kirby Mackwere married Oct. 26, 2008, in BoilingSprings. She works at SpartanburgCounty Public Library. They live inBoiling Springs.

<< CLASS NOTES CONTINUED FROM PREVIOUS PAGE


S C H O O L T I E S


2006

Virgina Vann and her husband,Bobby ’05 announce the birth of adaughter, Alyssa Faith, born Nov. 13,2008, weighing 9 lbs., and 20 incheslong. The Vanns are ministering inMinot, N.D.

Leandra Sharee Brown MBA and MarvinEugene McHellon Jr. ’07 were marriedDec. 20, 2008, in Charleston. Leandraworks at Trident Technical College, andMarvin works for Wachovia InsuranceSecurities, and they live in Summerville.

Jessica Nicole Effler and Ian AndrewHolmen were married Oct. 26, 2008, inSpartanburg.

Kristen Dale Fraylick and Ronald DavidPatrick were married Dec. 6, 2008, inMt. Pleasant. She is a teacher atFlowertown Elementary School inSummerville, and he is a software analystat Santee Cooper. They live in Mt.Pleasant.

Ashley Iseman and Adam West weremarried Nov. 9, 2008. Ashley writes,“We recently moved from Utah toCalifornia because Adam received ordersfrom the Air Force. We are loving thewarm weather and pleasant people.I was teaching 5th grade in Utah andabsolutely loved it. I am currentlyseeking a teaching position in California.We are excited about starting our lifetogether in California, but we can’t waitto get back to the beautiful East Coast!”

Ryan Kohlhepp has been deployed to Iraqand would like to hear from classmatesthrough Facebook or at SPC KohlheppRyan C, 772 MP Co, Camp Delta, APO,AE 09317.

Adam R. Lawrence was awarded the J.P.Strom Award by the South CarolinaCriminal Justice Academy Dec. 5, 2008.He is employed by the Mauldin PoliceDepartment and lives with his family inTaylors.

Melissa N. Mehl MAT and herhusband, Graham, announce the birthof a daughter, Miranda Norene, bornNov. 18, 2008.

Drena Lynn Smith and Kevin Jeffery Hazelwere married Sept. 27, 2008, inWalterboro. She works at ColletonMedical Center, and they live inWalterboro.

2007Jona Lee Maloney and Bryce AlanJeffcoat were married Oct. 4, 2008, inNew Windsor, N.Y. She works forProgressions Music Therapy. They live inNew Britain, N.Y.

Julia Ann-Marie Sims and Howard JamesOwens were married Jan. 3 in Sumter.Julia is minister of music at BethesdaChurch of God. They live in Sumter.

2008Morgan Laine Brinson and Richard E.Fann were married Nov. 29, 2008, inCharleston. She works for Thornley OilCompany, and they live in MoncksCorner.


S C H O O L T I E S


Melissa Katherine Query MBA andJonathan Frank Pearson were marriedDec. 20, 2008, in Summerville. Melissa isemployed by CSU in enrollment services,and Jonathan is minister of students atCalvary Baptist Church in Neeses. Theylive in Norway.

Delia Anne (Dee Dee) Register andBarrett Auldman Smith were marriedOct. 4, 2008, in Charleston. She is work-ing toward a master’s in social work atthe University of South Carolina. Theylive in Bowman.

Ashley Williams and Joshua Adamswere married Nov. 22, 2008, inCharleston. Ashley is minister of musicand education at First Baptist Church ofHemingway, and Joshua is the art teacherat Johnsonville Elementary School. Theylive in Hemingway.

<< CLASS NOTES CONTINUED FROM PREVIOUS PAGE

We would love to hearabout your career & family.IN ORDER FOR YOUR NEWS TO BE PRINTEDIN THE NEXT ISSUE OF THE MAGAZINE,WE NEED TO RECEIVE YOUR INFORMATIONBY MAY 22, 2009.

Photos are welcome and should be 300dpi high resolutionand saved as jpeg format.

send via e-mail to:

[email protected]

or mail to:

Class Notes,CSU University RelationsP.O. Box 118087Charleston, SC 29423-8087

If you have an alumnus friendwho isn’t receiving the magazine,send his/her address to [email protected].

KEEP in TOUCH


S C H O O L T I E S


Ruth Elizabeth Gilchrist Bridges ’72,age 86, died Jan. 5 in Summerville. Shetaught school for 25 years and was a mil-itary spouse.

Dr. Tony Ray Coburn ’72, age 59, diedOct. 17, 2008, in Zirconia, N.C. He wasa family therapist in Hendersonville andowned and operated Camp Timberwolfin Zirconia.

William H. Gaultney MEd ’92, age 61,died Oct. 15, 2008, in Georgetown. Hetaught high school science and coachedsoftball at Hanahan High School. Whilein high school, he was voted one of thetop 100 high school athletes in the coun-try by Sports Illustrated.

Charlene B. Kirk, age 84, died Oct. 15,2008, in Charleston. She was a dedicatedmember of the CSU Women’s Council,assisting the University in fundraisingand beautification activities. Memorialsmay be made to the Women’s CouncilScholarship Fund, CSU, P.O. Box118087, Charleston, SC, 29423.

Christopher Lane Kowalski ’91, age40, died Nov. 7, 2008, in Charleston. Heworked for Value Music Inc., and workedaround the Southeast.

Loubie M. O’Neill ’88, age 69, diedDec. 7, 2008 in Charleston. She was ahomemaker.

Richard Thomas Rivers ’77, age 52,died Dec. 1, 2008, in Chesterfield. Hewas retired as administrative assistant tothe chief of staff at the VA Medical Centerin Columbia.

Lt. Col. Judson C. Spence Sr., U.S.Army ret., age 87, died Dec. 6, 2008. Hewas the first dean of men and chair of thedepartment of foreign languages at CSU.He retired as a professor emeritus fromThe Citadel.

Erin Stanton Schlitt and Tara Stantonwrite: “Our brother, Brett Stanton ’01,passed away on October 18, 2008, atThomas Jefferson University Hospital inPhiladelphia, after a three-year battle withbrain cancer. Brett showed sheer grit anddetermination throughout his illness,never giving up hope that he would beatthis deadly disease. After graduating fromCSU, he had a successful career in televi-sion advertising sales with the CBS andWB networks in Atlanta and the CW net-work in St. Louis. Brett enjoyed watchingand playing sports, making friends wher-ever he went, and spoiling his niece andnephews. His good CSU friends, JasonKristowski ’99 and Gerrit Stam, support-ed Brett throughout his illness and servedas two of Brett’s pallbearers. Jason andGerrit delivered beautiful tributes atBrett’s funeral luncheon as they recalled

their great times together at CSU and toldmemorable stories that made everyonesmile. In life, Brett’s ultracompetitive spir-it shined in every soccer game he played,every deal he closed, and every challengehe faced. One friend recalled a conversa-tion with Brett after his first surgery.‘Brett called and told me the score wasBrett: 1, Brain Cancer: 0.’ If only that hadbeen the final score.

We are honored by the number of peo-ple that have expressed their condolencesto our family and their desire to helpkeep Brett’s memory alive. In honor ofBrett and to help fund a cure for braincancer, one of Brett’s friends will be run-ning the Ironman Triathlon in Hawaii inMay 2009. Please visit his Web site athttp://www.active.com/donate/teamstan-ton to help him meet his goal of raising$25,000 for the National Brain TumorSociety in Brett’s memory.”

Donald Winfield Weldon ’72, died Feb.1 in Gulf Breeze, Fla. He owned andoperated Vista Travel Agency inFairbanks, Alaska, before retiring toFlorida. He was an Alaskan Travel andTourism Advisor to three governors.

Memorials


S C H O O L T I E S


O ne of our proudest moments in 2009 willbe when the University has the opportu-nity to celebrate the 40th reunion of the

Founding Classes of CSU. The Class of 1969,along with those who transferred in credits tograduate in 1967 and 1968, represent the firstgroup of alumni to receive their degrees fromthe new Baptist College at Charleston, nowknown as Charleston Southern University.

This group saw the University from itsbeginnings as a dream among LowcountryBaptists who were aware of the need for morechoice in higher education in the Charlestonarea. With a growing population due to astrong industrial, manufacturing, and military

presence, the shortage of opportunity in highereducation had become acute. There were nobuildings, no students, no faculty, and no staff,but the early founders of the University wereable to see the big picture and were able toenvision a sprawling, modern campus spring-ing up from the former Izard Plantation, a 500-acre site made available to the new college byCharleston County. Those students who decid-ed to become a part of the instant college inthe fall of 1965 were about to become a part ofa pioneer group, the first class of CharlestonSouthern University. The first year classes wereheld at First Baptist Church in NorthCharleston. The boarding students commuted

by bus from the St. Johns Hotel, now the MillsHouse in downtown Charleston. By the secondyear, classes had moved to the campus, butclasses, convocation, sports, and all otheractivities were accompanied by constantconstruction and noise...these students werea part of something big, the birth of a college.These students paved the way for the morethan 13,000 alumni around the world who haveearned their degrees from Charleston Southern.

Homecoming 2009 will provide a uniqueopportunity to honor the accomplishments ofthe Founding Classes on the 40th anniversaryof their graduation. I would like to personallyencourage all members of the Founding Classto attend the reunion and encourage your class-mates to attend. To register to attend, view theschedule of events or view the list of thoseplanning to attend, look for the Founding ClassReunion link on the alumni webpage, located atwww.csuniv.edu/alumni. Also, you can [email protected] to inquire about theReunion or other Homecoming events.

Remember, Homecoming is for ALL alumni,regardless of class year. All graduates and friendsof the University are encouraged to bring thefamily out to campus for Homecoming festivi-ties. With the President’s Cup Golf Tournament,the Homecoming Parade, the tailgate lunch, andthe football contest against Liberty, there areevents for everyone to enjoy. Other eventswill be added, so be sure to visitwww.charlestonsouthern.edu/alumni to findupdated event listings for Homecoming.

I look forward to seeing you on campusin 2009!

Alumni News UpdateBy David Weiss ’03

A s some of you know, the data collec-tion process for the CSU 2010 AlumniDirectory Project began in early 2009

by Publishing Concepts. If you have alreadycalled to update your information, thank you.If not, PCI will be in touch on behalf of CSUover the next few weeks. You may get a post-card, e-mail, or telephone call fromPCI/Publishing Concepts on behalf of CSU

giving you the chance to both update yourcontact information and purchase the upcom-ing alumni directory.

We will be producing and offering a bounddirectory and a CD-ROM directory of alumnifor release in early 2010. The directory will pro-vide opportunities for maintaining and encour-aging both personal and professional connec-tions among alumni. It will also serve a primary

role in keeping alumni contact information cur-rent so that Charleston Southern University canshare with its alumni information aboutreunions, opportunities to get involved, andinformation about what’s happening at CSU.

If you have any questions about the direc-tory project, please contact David Weiss,director of alumni affairs, at 843-863-7516 orat [email protected].

2010 Alumni Directory Project Under Way

BELOW: Alumni Board at Homecoming ’08Alumni Association Board: Front row: Lili Gresham ’02, Edna Williams ’99, Hope Harrison ’88,Deborah Spencer ’02, Stephen Cadwallader ’83, Lecius Moorer ’00, Danny Johnson ’81,Second row: David Weiss ’03, Aaron Dunn ’82, Dave Thompson ’00, Anne Turner ’86,Rex Divine ’85, not pictured: Kristin Moore Olney ’06 and Tony Fountain ’85.


S C H O O L T I E S


D uring February, March, and April, manyof you received phone calls from CSUstudents and alumni volunteers. Our

callers made thousands of phone calls toupdate alumni contact information, reacquaintalumni with the University and to make thecase for financial support. All gifts toPhonathon benefit the University’s annual fund,which provides vital aid to our student body.

As you already know, more than 95 per-cent of CSU students receive financial aid, andmany of these students would be unable toattend Charleston Southern without scholar-ship assistance. The entire CSU family isgrateful for alumni who are willing to pass thegenerosity of past donors on to today’s stu-dents. By supporting Charleston Southern stu-dents, you are making an investment not only

in Christian higher education but also in thefuture of our country. Thanks again for yourgenerous show of support.

Remember, it’s not too late to be a part ofthe 2009 Phonathon Annual Fund Drive!Simply visit the CSU Web site,www.charlestonsouthern.edu, and click on the“Give Now” button. Making a gift before May31, 2009, will ensure you are listed in ourHonor Roll of Donors for 2008-09.

Phonathon 2009 Benefits Annual Fund

H omecoming 2009 is planned for theweekend of October 23-24. All alum-ni are encouraged to bring the whole

family out for a great time of fun, fellowship,and football. Watch your mailbox for theHomecoming brochure, and viewwww.charlestonsouthern.edu/alumni to see anupdated schedule of events.

Remember, Homecoming 2009 also marksthe 40th anniversary of the Founding Classesof BCC. Please log on to www.charleston-southern.edu/alumni to view all the details ofthis reunion. Contact the alumni office at843-863-7516 or at [email protected] if youhave questions.

The Wingate Inn at Charleston Southern isthe official hotel of Homecoming. Call 843-554-4444 or log on to www.charleston-wingate.com for more information. Rememberto ask for the special CSU alumni rate whenbooking your room.

Save the Date - Homecoming 2009

S outh Carolina Representative Tim Scott’88 was the guest speaker at theDecember graduation luncheon hosted

by the Alumni Association.

Scott encouraged the graduates to “havefaith and have fun.” He told them, “I wish Iwould have left college with a bigger dream.Think of your best and brightest idea andthen know that you can do better.”

Scott is the first African-American electedas a Republican in S.C. since Reconstruction.He is the owner of Tim Scott & Associates, anAllstate insurance company.

Alumni congratulate class of ‘08

Photos by Doug Dickerson

D r. Michael Bryant, assistant professorof religion, has joined the religiondepartment.

Bryant graduated in 1995with a BS in history. He enteredSoutheastern Baptist TheologicalSeminary and graduated in 1998with his MDiv.

Bryant served as a pastor in eastern NorthCarolina for eight years, during which time

he completed his PhD in NewTestament at SoutheasternBaptist Theological Seminaryin 2008.

“I really love teaching,” saidBryant, “it is one of my threepassions, as well as the pastorateand missions.” Bryant’s heart formissions is evident as he speaks

of teaching national pastors overseas inMoldova, Cameroon, Ecuador and Uganda forshort stints during breaks and summers.

“We are excited to have someone who is aCSU alum and who brings both the practicaland academic experience that Dr. Bryant has,”said religion department chair Dr. KeithSharp. “He is one of our own who has comefull circle and has returned to help preparethe next generation of students for God’s callon their lives.”

Bryant Joins Religion FacultyBy Sherry Atkinson


S C H O O L T I E S


B illy Boyd ’03 and Quentin Gilmore ’03have embarked on the ambitious ven-ture of designing and marketing a

clothing line.Boyd said, “The initial idea to create a

clothing line stemmed from our ambition tobe entrepreneurs. Most of Quentin’s and myinfluences come from CSU where we wereexposed to different races, cultural back-grounds, religions and fashion trends.

“Our goal with the Ross NuMan clothingline is to create a positive image for men byportraying a self-assured individual who isconscious of who he is, where he is going andwhat it takes to get there. We want others toadopt these qualities and pursue theirdreams,” said Boyd. Additional informationabout the company can be found atwww.rossnuman.com.

They’ve been in business for more than ayear and are expanding their clothing line andavailability. Currently, Ross NuMan styles canbe found in Myrtle Beach and Chicago, withplans to expand into Atlanta and Florida.Their 11 member marketing team includes2004 graduate Ed O’Neil.

Gilmore, Boyd and a designer came up withthe Ross NuMan logo of a man leaning againsta wall thinking. Boyd said, “He is suave, yetcool, all the while contemplating his options.The styles were derived from research throughthe Internet, questioning individuals andattending some major fashion shows.”

Boyd and Gilmore both hold down full-time jobs as they expand their urban clothingline. In addition to building a successfulclothing line, they one day hope to establish afoundation to support higher education formale and female students.

“I’m a police detective at North CarolinaCentral University,” said Boyd. “I investigateall major crimes that occur at the university.Working on Ross is a part-time thing. Thereare nights when I’m tired from working, butI can hear my English professor, NancyCanavera, who used to tell me, ‘Billy you arean inspiration. You can accomplish anythingyou put your mind to.’ This fuels me to keepstriving. Through Ross NuMan, I am a livingtestimony that you can accomplish anythingthat you put your mind to.”

Gilmore is a program supervisor at theBoy’s and Girl’s Club in the Chicago suburbswhere he mentors youth and assists in coordi-nating activities. He is also a substitute teacherwho believes in education. “We love workingon Ross NuMan because it is getting a positivemessage to people,” said Boyd.

Graduates Enter the World of FashionBy Jan Josl in

Sporting the Ross NuMan line are Quentin Gilmore ’03 wearing abrown hoodie, Billy A. Boyd ’03 wearing a blue hoodie, BradleyHardee wearing a blue skyline shirt and LaShire Ward wearing ablue/black hypnotize shirt with rhinestones.

Thomas White ’03 wears a white button-up andyellow jeans from the Ross NuMan line.


S C H O O L T I E S


H ow does being a marketing directorfor a home-building company prepareyou to feed 300 people three meals a

day for seven days for free and run check-infor more than 2,000 volunteers for sevendays?

Linda Hunt Dickert ’83 of Raleigh, N.C.,would tell you it doesn’t. “Only God can helpsomeone stay awake and functioning thatlong,” said Dickert.

Dickert worked seven days straight 24hours a day with about two hours of sleep anight. This was her week during her first stintwith the popular show Extreme Makeover:Home Edition.

Arteus Homes and Communities, whichbuilds in Atlanta, Raleigh, Charlotte, Phoenixand Albuquerque, signed on to build a housefor an inner-city mother with a legally blindhusband and two children, who also runs aministry for preschoolers and an after schoolprogram for inner-city schools. Dickert, mar-keting director for Atreus Homes, said, “Wedesigned a house, engineered it, got all of thematerials and workers donated in five weeks.”

Dickert enlisted the help of the N.C.Baptist Men’s Disaster Relief group to provideshelter for check-in and volunteers to helprun it. “We ran four six-hour shifts per day ofvolunteers. It was great to see a fresh crewcome in every six hours. This is all the stuffthe show doesn’t show you,” she said.

Her latest stint with Extreme Makeover:Home Edition was in New Orleans for theshow’s season finale last season. Arteus Homeswas one of 18 builders who went to NewOrleans to build a home for twin brother fire-men and their mother and to rebuild Noah’sArk Church. During Katrina many people inthis inner-city area sought shelter at Noah’sArk Church. “This was the group that SeanPenn and an EMT rescued in john boats, tak-ing them to the overpass that we all saw pho-tos of on TV. We took 32 volunteers and morethan 75 construction guys with us. My jobwas coordinating the volunteers. It was anamazing build,” said Dickert.

She also volunteered to provide marketingfor a project called Operation: Coming Homethat provided a home for a returning veteranwho was injured by a road-side bomb in Iraq.A group of military veterans in the buildingindustry, Triangle Real Estate andConstruction Veterans, secured a lot andbuilders to make the project possible. “Webroke ground on the house on Memorial Day,2008, and gave Joey Bozik the keys on hisAlive Day, Oct. 27, the anniversary of the day

he woke up and realized the bomb had notkilled him,” said Dickert. “This was perhapsone of the most rewarding things I have everbeen part of. I actually live in the communitywhere Joey’s house is. It is an honor to callhim a neighbor.”

Dickert was recently honored as Chair ofthe Year for her outstanding service by theTriangle Sales & Marketing Council of theHome Builders Association of Raleigh/WakeCounty and the Home Builders Association ofDurham, Orange, Chatham counties.

Helping others is reward enough itself forDickert. “Each of these projects seemedabsolutely impossible. It was only by the graceof our good Lord that he touched so manypeople to make these projects happen.” Andshe encourages others to get involved. “Don’tthink that something is too big or out ofreach. Everything is possible when you havethe right resources on your side. Our Lordwas our biggest resource. Now...go do it!”

Dickert Marketing DreamsBy Jan Josl in

TOP: Linda Dickert coordinated volunteers and meals inNew Orleans for Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.

BOTTOM: Builders in the Raleigh, N.C., area built a homefor a returning vet from Iraq.

C harleston Southern mourns the

passing of Mr. Jimmie Brewer, a

valued friend and supporter of

Charleston Southern University who died

Tuesday, February 3 at his residence in Garden

City Beach.

President Jairy Hunter said, “Jimmie and

Patricia Brewer have been long-time friends to

Sissy and me. All of us at Charleston Southern

University extend our sympathies and prayers

to Patricia and the Brewer Family.” The Brewers

first began supporting CSU in 1990 as donors

for The Hunter Reception Center. The Brewers

also established the Brewer Family Endowed

Scholarship Fund which continues to provide

numerous scholarships for CSU students.

Brewer has served on the Board of Visitors at

CSU since 1992.

CSU mourns the passing of

Jimmie Brewer

In 2000 the Brewers provided a significant

donation to the University in honor of Jimmie

and Patricia’s mothers, Jessie S. Brewer and

Dorothy S. Penegar, both of Lancaster. The

Board of Trustees recognized the Brewers

for their gift by naming the beautiful new

student activities and wellness center The

Brewer Center.

Brewer was born in Jefferson, a son of

the late Roy E. and Jessie Brewer. He was a

member of the First Baptist Church of Surfside.

He was a lifetime Mason in Lancaster. He was

the owner of Brewer Sand Co, Inc. and Sara J’s

in Garden City Beach.

Survivors include his wife, Patricia of

Garden City Beach; a son, Brad Brewer of

Garden City Beach; a daughter, Audreya

Adams of Murrells Inlet; five grandchildren,

Holly Johnston of Murrells Inlet, Chase Adams

of Murrells Inlet; Jaden Brewer of Garden City

Beach, Amanda Brewer of Garden City Beach

and Joshua Hammond of Lancaster; two

great-grandchildren, Foster Johnston and

Salem Johnston both of Murrells Inlet; and a

sister, Norma Jean Parker of Spartanburg.

�


Michael Silvestri

Class: Senior Major: Education From: Myrtle Beach

Favorite Class:Education 300

Who/What inspires you?My family has always been there for me nomatter what, and knowing that they are therefor me inspires me to do great thingsthroughout my education at CSU.

My life verse is ...Because no matter what bumps in the roadhappen throughout your life this verse willget you through whatever you are goingthrough. - Philippians 4:13

When I’m not in class you might find me …In the Brewer Center working in studentactivities or at an elementary school doingpracticum for one of my education classes.

I enrolled at CSU because …The atmosphere that CSU offers and thesmall school environment was what sealedthe deal for me becoming a CSU Buccaneer.

Before I graduate, I want to …Have a 3.0 GPA.

Student Life at CSU is ...It can be summed up in one word:Awesome!

Life after CSU:I would like to get a 1st grade teaching joband then return to CSU for my Master’s inElementary Education.

Nonprofit Org.U.S. Postage

PAIDColumbia SC Permit #487

Charleston Southern University

9200 University Blvd.

P.O. Box 118087

Charleston, SC 29423-8087

Promoting Academic Excellencein a Christian Environment

FOUNDING CLASSES CELEBRATE

40thReunion

OCTOBER 23-24, 2009www.charlestonsouthern.edu/alumni

LEARNINGDrs. Ronald & Sandra Turner;SBTS professors of church music

LEADINGThose who were the firstgraduates were alsoknown as pioneers

SERVINGJoe Tallon had to wait 36years to receive the honorowed him

SCHOOL TIESGraduates enter theworld of fashion

8 16 30 46

CSU magazine vol.19 no.1

Documents

Transcript of CSU magazine vol.19 no.1