Western : the magazine of Western Carolina University.

              Western Fall

2006

T h e Mag a z i n e o f We s t e r n C a ro l i n a U n i v e r s i t y

A Learning Environment

Biodiversity of WNC Mountains Offers

Endless Research Opportunities

Catamount fans across the Southeast who can’t make it to the Saturday, Sept. 23,

football game at Furman or to the Homecoming showdown with Chattanooga

still can have front row seats. Both games are scheduled to be broadcast by

ComCast/ Charter Sports Southeast ( CSS) for cable subscribers in 12 states

— Arkansas, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri,

North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia.

WLOS/ WYMA of Asheville, which is donating the uplink and

satellite time for the WCU- Furman game, will carry a replay on

Sunday, Sept. 24, at 2 p. m. Negotiations also are under way

to televise the annual Battle for the Old Mountain Jug when

Appalachian State returns to Cullowhee on Nov. 11. For

updates on the televised games or a complete fall athletics

schedule, visit catamountsports. com.

Tackling the Tube

8

Cover Story

Features

4 Millennial Campus

Campus of Future Embraces Innovation,

Service to WNC

14 Serving Citizens

Public Sector Careers

Attract WCU Alums

19 Homecoming Attraction

Catamounts Come Back

to Cullowhee

24 Sporting Goods

Five Named to Hall of Fame,

Grads Grab Gridiron Glory,

Softball Superstars

32 Courageous Catamounts

Freedom Fighters Earn

Bronze Stars

34 News and Notes

Catch Up with Classmates

Fall 2006

Volume 10, No. 3

Western Carolina University Magazine, formerly known

as Our Purple and Gold, is produced by the Office of

Public Relations in the Division of Advancement and

External Affairs for alumni, faculty, staff, friends and

students of Western Carolina University.

Chancellor John W. Bardo

Vice Chancellor Clifton B. Metcalf

Advancement and

External Affairs

Associate Vice Chancellor Leila Tvedt

Public Relations

Managing Editor Bill Studenc

Associate Editor Teresa Killian

Art Director Rubae Sander

Chief Photographer Mark Haskett ’ 87

Contributing Writers Mike Cawood

Randall Holcombe

Daniel Hooker ’ 01

John Kenyon

Jim Rowell ’ 72

Steve White ’ 67

Dianne Yount ’ 79

Contributing Designers John Balentine

Loretta Adams ’ 80

Contributing Photographer Ashley T. Evans

Chris Edmonds

Special thanks to:

The U. S. Marine Corps, Robins Air Force Base,

The Sylva Herald, the Asheville Citizen- Times,

Clay County Progress, DownStreamPhoto. com

and the Charlotte Bobcats for their contributions

to this issue.

Please send story ideas and suggestions to:

Western Carolina University Magazine

Suite 420, H. F. Robinson Building

Western Carolina University

Cullowhee, NC 28723

or via e- mail: bstudenc@ wcu. edu.

Go to the Western Carolina University Alumni Association

Web site ( alumni. wcu. edu) to add a class note, update your

information, or catch up on campus events.

Postmaster: Send address changes to:

Office of Alumni Affairs, Suite 440, H. F. Robinson Building

Western Carolina University, Cullowhee, NC 28723.

Outdoors Odyssey

WNC Mountains Take

Students Above and Beyond

( on the cover) Kathy Mathews, assistant professor of biology,

points out aspects of rivercane to Western students

Sharhonda Bell, Katie McDowell and Adam Griffith ( from

left to right). Their measurements and observations will be

used to help restore the plant, which, though native to

the region, has struggled for survival in the face of

development and agricultural planting.

T h e M a g a z i n e o f W e s t e r n C a r o l i n a U n i v e r s i t y Western

When Robert Lee Madison assembled 18 students in

August of 1889 in the one- room schoolhouse that was the

forerunner of Western Carolina University, he did so with a

vision of what he called “ the Cullowhee Idea”— the concept

of an educational institution with an influence ranging far

beyond the small mountain community where it was located. As

described by history professors Curtis Wood and Tyler Blethen

in “ A Mountain Heritage: The Illustrated History of Western

Carolina University,” Madison came to the Cullowhee Valley to

launch a school at the behest of people characterized by a stead-fast

“ spirit of progress, ambition and change for themselves and

their children.”

The vision and the spirit of Madison and WCU’s found-ers

are now taking a giant leap into the future as the university

implements the Millennial Initiative, which Chancellor John

W. Bardo calls “ a defining moment in university history.” The

Millennial Initiative calls for the university to develop close

partnerships with business, industry and government in

a way that simultaneously increases hands- on educational

opportunities for students, allows professors to conduct

high- tech research and plays a role in regional economic

development. WCU will build multiple- use neighborhoods

that cluster academic buildings, research facilities, business,

industry and housing on portions of the existing campus and

on 344 acres recently acquired across N. C. Highway 107. In

those on- campus neighborhoods, partners from the university,

private industry and government will come together, share

resources from manpower to knowledge and conduct

research into scientific and technological innovations that have

commercial applications.

University officials say Western’s plan is not a conventional

“ research park” or “ business incubator” approach in which

research and business activities occur in a separate district, but

is a new arrangement in which those activities actually will be in-serted

into the existing, traditional campus to create integrated

knowledge communities. A mixed- use neighborhood centered

on retirement, aging and health, for instance, would not only

have classroom space for students but might also have nearby a

private health care provider who works with older populations,

specialty senior housing or a company that supplies products

related to health and aging.

“ These neighborhoods will become home to educational

and outreach programs that are co- located to improve the

education of our students while also supporting the regional

economy,” said Paul Evans MS ’ 72, director of WCU’s Insti-tute

for the Economy and the Future, which will oversee the

Millennial Initiative ( see related story). “ Students not only learn

in the classroom, but also can effectively apply that learning

to real problems as they work with public and private partners

located in the very neighborhoods where those students are

living and learning.”

N. C. Gov. Michael Easley said the ability to produce

innovative technologies and a skilled, knowledgeable

workforce is an important factor to the state’s future economic

success. “ Western Carolina University’s Millennial Initiative

capitalizes on Western’s research and entrepreneurial strengths

to promote economic development and prepare the

region’s workforce for the transformed economy of the new

millennium,” he said.

Propelling the Millennial Initiative forward is the North

Carolina Board of Governors endorsement this spring of the

university’s plans to create a “ knowledge enterprise zone.” The

endorsement capped a process that began six years ago when

the General Assembly approved Millennial Campus legislation

based on a measure originally written by WCU staff. The leg-islation

makes it possible for UNC institutions to seek public-private

partnerships to improve the academic experience for

Millennial Initiative Looks to the Future

While Maintaining the Vision of WCU’s Founders

By BILL STUDENC

The Evolution of an Idea

“ Western Carolina University’s Millennial Initiative

capitalizes on Western’s research and entrepreneurial

strengths to promote economic development and

prepare the region’s workforce for the transformed

economy of the new millennium.”

­—

N. C. Gov. Michael Easley

The Magazine of Western Carolina University FALL 2006

students and allow universities to apply their intellectual re-sources—

their faculty, students and staff— to foster economic

development to benefit their respective regions and the state.

“ We are pleased that the Board of Governors has approved our

request, which follows an exhaustive process involving the

campus, the local community and the entire Western North

Carolina region,” Bardo said.

Now, the Millennial Initiative is coming to life as the uni-versity

updates its master plan, which guides construction and

development ( see related story). Already, representatives of

several private companies, including a business investigating

environmentally friendly methods of pest control, a wireless

technology company interested in new product development,

and a secure data storage facility, have contacted university

officials to explore potential partnerships.

Attracting new high- tech businesses and industries to

the region is a critical element of the Millennial Initiative.

“ We are attempting to fulfill a promise we made to the people

of Western North Carolina to do everything in our power to

help keep some of the best and brightest of the region’s young

people from being forced to leave home to find the type of high-paying

jobs available elsewhere,” Bardo said. “ We want

the children of the mountains to be able to remain in the

mountains, to be prosperous, and to be participants in the

global economy.”

State and federal officials say that WCU’s efforts will help a

region and state that have been hammered hard by the loss of

jobs in such traditional manufacturing settings as textiles and

furniture— jobs that are gone and not coming back.

“ As we look to the future of North Carolina, job creation

and technological development will be essential to our growth

and prosperity,” U. S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole said. “ The creation

of the Millennial Initiative will play such an important role in

this endeavor, helping to lead the way for university, private

industry and government partners to work together.”

The Millennial Initiative will attract high- tech businesses to campus that offer stu-dents

more hands- on experiences such as those pictured above. From left to right,

Sarah Reneer operates equipment in an audio- visual production lab; Lee Scholoss

and Phillip Thrailkil work with machinery; Jonika Shank explores robotics;

nursing students Megan Gillette and Zoe Quinn practice skills; and Brett Banther

experiments with prototyping.

Leading the way in planning Western’s Millennial

Initiative is the university’s think tank and regional economic

development arm, guided by a distinguished group of scholars,

military leaders, government officials and business professionals

who are lending their expertise to help accomplish the mission.

In their roles as senior policy fellows with WCU’s

Institute for the Economy and the Future, they are assisting

the university in crafting a long- range plan for regional

growth in Western North Carolina and for pursuing business

opportunities for its Millennial Initiative ( see related story).

The fellows, who joined the university earlier this year, also

are assisting in developing policy studies, survey research

and public forums on regional economic development issues.

Among the fellows’ other projects, for example, is a recent

survey of America’s state- level homeland security officials that

revealed ongoing concerns about national security and federal

disaster preparedness.

The senior policy fellows are Alphonse Buccino, a technology

consultant who has worked at the National Science Foundation

and the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy;

Maj. Gen. Geoff Higginbotham, a retired Marine who served

during the Vietnam and Desert Storm campaigns; Daniel Os-tergaard,

former executive director of the U. S. Department of

Homeland Security’s Advisory Council; Arnold Packer, a work-force

development authority who has worked with the U. S.

Department of Labor; William T. Thompkins Jr., an informa-tion

technology development and management expert; Alan Z.

Thornburg, formerly a N. C. Court of Appeals judge; and Robert

Warshaw, former U. S. deputy drug czar.

“ With the announcement that these distinguished and

highly skilled leaders have agreed to serve as senior policy fel-lows

at the IEF, we have taken a very important step in meeting

our commitment to build a regional think tank with capacities

for rigorous research and economic base analysis that can help

Western North Carolina prosper,” said Chancellor John W.

Bardo. Formerly known as the Center for Regional Develop-ment,

the IEF is working on projects targeting digital entrepre-neurship;

economic modeling and visualization; issue polling,

research and policy analysis; and executive education for global

competitiveness in critical areas such as corporate security.

Pictured above: Senior policy fellows at Western’s Institute for the Economy and the

Future, from left to right, are Daniel Ostergaard, Maj. Gen. Geoff Higginbotham,

Alphonse Buccino, William T. Thompkins Jr., Arnold Packer and Alan Z. Thornburg.

Senior Policy Fellows Helping

Chart Path for Economic Future

FALL 2006 The Magazine of Western Carolina University

With new academic buildings, residence halls and traffic

patterns popping up all across campus during the construc-tion

boom of the past several years, Chancellor John W. Bardo

has often said, “ If you haven’t been to Western in the past few

months, then you really haven’t been to Western.” With the

addition of 344 acres that more than doubled the size of campus

and the dramatic transformations envisioned in the university’s

new master plan, future visitors may have difficulty even

recognizing the place.

That’s because the master plan recently approved by WCU’s

board of trustees represents an innovative new concept of

the 21st- century university. The plan, a long- range roadmap

designed to guide future growth on Western’s existing cam-pus

and development of the new property, moves away from

old notions of an ivory tower removed from the rest of the

world. Instead, the plan, a major component of the Millennial

Initiative, envisions the Western of the future as a mixed-use

knowledge community that blends traditional campus

functions and facilities with private and governmental

enterprises in a place featuring common recreational facilities,

open space and other commercial and community amenities.

“ We are reinventing Western Carolina University,” said

Bardo. “ We are transforming the traditional notion of a

university into a broader notion of a university- centered

knowledge community. In this conception, the university

continues its traditional functions, but also serves as a central

source of intellectual energy— a knowledge- based economic

development enterprise— to spur regional prosperity in

the knowledge economy.”

The master plan calls for developing “ neighborhoods of

interest” on portions of the existing campus and on the recently

acquired property, which runs roughly from the Jackson County

Airport to the N. C. Center for the Advancement of Teaching.

Neighborhoods of interest are mixed- use areas designed so that

partners from private business and industry work alongside fac-ulty

and students teaching and learning in academic programs

closely related to the activities of those firms.

Master Planning Process Guides Development

of Existing Campus, Millennial Properties

By BILL STUDENC

A Roadmap to the Future

Architectural drawing of the proposed retirement, aging and health neighborhood

Plans for this neighborhood call for a 145,000- square- foot School of Health and Gerontological

Sciences building and neighboring facilities for private business and industry, such as a health care

provider or company that supplies products linked to health and aging.

The Magazine of Western Carolina University FALL 2006

Architectural drawing of the proposed learning services and education neighborhood

The neighborhood would be anchored by a 163,000- square- foot School of Education building and would

offer space for related public- private endeavors, such as the development of educational software.

The first two neighborhoods to be developed on the

new property are expected to focus on retirement, aging

and health, with a new $ 46 million School of Health and

Gerontological Sciences; and on learning services and

education, with a new $ 40 million School of Education. Both

new buildings have been designated high funding priorities by

the UNC Board of Governors.

University officials believe the health, aging and retire-ment

neighborhood, where students and faculty interested in

those areas would study, teach and live, also would provide a

good location for private health care provider facilities,

specialty housing related to older populations, and companies that

supply products or services related to health and aging. The

education and learning neighborhood would create

opportunities for public- private partnerships in research and

policy studies, competitive learning systems, and pedagogy and

software development.

Other potential neighborhoods identified in the master

plan include those focused on technology and engineering;

arts and entertainment; business; humanities and culture;

social sciences and services; and the Honors College. The

master plan calls for the creation of “ town centers” on both sides

of campus, where restaurants, coffee shops, retail stores and other

businesses would provide services to help keep students on

campus and attract visitors.

The plan also continues the emphasis on a pedestrian-friendly

campus that was a hallmark of the previous master

plan, with strong walking corridors, plazas and ample green

space, and provides for a true “ front door” to campus at the

connection between the old and new parts of campus, as well

as an “ entrance statement” at the “ back door” to campus off

Old Cullowhee Road.

The Millennial Initiative property ( shown inside

the yellow lines) is located on 344 acres across N. C.

Highway 107 from the existing WCU campus.

FALL 2006 The Magazine of Western Carolina University

Retired WCU Biology Professor J. Dan Pittillo ( pointing) teaches “ Forest Ecosystems of

the Southern Appalachians,” a course offered at nearby Highlands Biological Station.

Photo courtesy of Highlands Biological Station

Learning Environment

The Magazine of Western Carolina University FALL 2006

Scientists estimate 100,000 different species reside

inside Great Smoky Mountains National Park, though

fewer than 10 percent had been documented when

Western Carolina University began participating in the

All Taxa Biodiversity Inventory several years ago. This

summer, the initiative had documented more than 600

species new to science and the national park’s 5,000th

entry – the velvet leaf blueberry shrub.

There’s a lot to discover in the great outdoors around

Western, and those discoveries could be important for

everything from developing future medicines to guaran-teeing

the quality of drinking water.

“ This is really a magical place,” said Jim Costa, WCU

professor of biology and director of the Highlands

Biological Station to the south of campus. The Southern

Appalachians offered refuge to organisms driven away

by historic glaciers, and the mountains, over time,

naturally divided and isolated species that adapted to

the significant precipitation and temperatures. “ It’s so

biologically rich,” said Costa, adding that herpetologists

around the world describe the area as second only to the

American tropics in diversity of salamanders. The

thin- skinned creatures are easy prey to pollution, and

studying them can help assess environmental health.

Such resources create many opportunities for West-ern

students. Wes Bonds, an assistant professor of

chemistry, leads classes in the search for new genes in

the northern red oak tree. Their findings could improve

information useful to the forestry industry.

Sean O’Connell, an assistant professor of biology, and

his students have examined microbial communities, tis-sue

decomposition and bacterial biodiversity in caves of

the Smokies. Their findings could yield information in the

field of forensic microbiology— an evolving crime investi-gation

method utilizing bacteria to determine how long a

body may have been decomposing.

Western students have studied whether the roots

of different plants could help clean hazardous waste and

how to protect the endangered Frazer fir. They have inves-tigated

the effects of ozone and air pollution on healthy

hikers in the national parks. Hundreds of other students

have participated in a project to restore a 1- mile portion

of Cullowhee Creek to improve water quality

and restore a habitat that will support aquatic

life including trout.

This summer, work continued on a project to locate,

study and revitalize rivercane. The once plentiful grass,

which can grow 12- to 16- feet tall, not only helps

prevent sedimentation and flooding problems

but also is used for making baskets

and other Cherokee goods.

Today, students such as Katie

McDowell from Franklin

are working with faculty

members who have

expertise in genetics,

botany, geochemistry, remote sensing,

sedimentology and ecology restoration

to revitalize the plant. McDowell said

she has hiked deep into thick, thorny

brush to document about 40 sites in six

counties with a notebook and tools including

Global Positioning System devices. Students record

location, density and height.

“ Rivercane is not Asian bamboo or kudzu,” said Rob

Young, associate professor of geosciences. “ It’s a native

plant that belongs here. If it were aggressive, it would not

be gone. We think rivercane restoration is a high priority

for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, and it’s excit-ing

for WCU to be able to provide that kind of service.”

Mountains, Climate Near WCU

Create World- Renowned Outdoor “ Classroom”

By Teresa Kilian

Jerry R. Miller, the Blanton J. Whitmire Distinguished Professor of Environmental

Sciences, helps student Jessica Jaynes take measurements at the Tuckaseigee River

just a few miles from campus.

FALL 2006 The Magazine of Western Carolina University

Fishermen perch on the banks of creeks and rivers that wind

along Western Carolina University. Five miles away, national for-est

trails invite hikers and mountain bikers. To the south, WCU

faculty and student kayakers take turns playing on a whitewater

river feature called “ the Slab.” And just inside the Jackson County

border, cyclists attack the hill up to the Blue Ridge Parkway and

rock climbers explore Laurel Knob, the highest cliff- face east of

the Mississippi.

The great outdoors in Western’s back yard offers many op-portunities

to students, from the chance to participate in outdoor

adventure sports to the opportunity to work in the burgeoning

outdoors and tourism industries.

“ People come to the mountains to experience a number of

things – activities not readily available in other regions,” said

Michael Despeaux, an outdoors sports enthusiast and WCU

career services coordinator and counselor. “ They come here every

weekend with kayaks on their cars to paddle on the Nantahala

River or drive hours to hike in the Smokies or on the Appalachian

Trail and fish on the Tuckaseigee.” This summer, “ Good Morning

America” and National Geographic Adventure featured rafting

on the Nantahala as one of the nation’s “ Top Ten Trips with a

Splash,” on par with snorkeling in Hawaii and swimming with

dolphins in Florida.

One of the latest ways Western is seizing outdoor opportu-nities

near campus to enhance education is a new “ Integration

of Learning” program. The interdisciplinary program invites

interested freshmen to choose an adventure sport such as cycling

or trail running. Working with Base Camp Cullowhee and a small

group of faculty, students will participate in a sport and then

incorporate their experiences into tailor- made English and sociol-ogy

courses. They also will help develop a historical exhibit for

WCU’s Mountain Heritage Center.

“ By establishing a strong connection to several faculty

members and to a subculture in this community affiliated with

an outdoor sport, the students will be grounded here at the

university,” said Despeaux, who was one of the developers of the

inter- disciplinary learning program. “ They will be more likely to

stay at Western and succeed at Western. They also will walk away

with an appreciation of the important economic and sociological

components of those sports to this region.”

Adventure Sports Foster Personal Growth

Outdoor adventure sports reel participants back again and

again. “ People test the limits of what they can do and what they

are comfortable with, and they leave thrilled to realize that they

have abilities they had not recognized,” said Scott Philyaw ’ 83,

associate professor of history, director of the Mountain Heritage

Center and lifelong outdoors enthusiast.

“ But, it’s more than, ‘ I didn’t know I could do that,’ after a

first trip down a whitewater river or climbing something that

looks scary,” Philyaw said. “ You also learn that you can, in un-predictable

wilderness situations, take care of yourself. Even a

birdwatcher can get caught in a summer thunderstorm, or a trout

fisherman in rising water. The self- confidence from knowing you

can take care of yourself is incredibly valuable in any situation.”

What participants also practice are the personal tools of suc-cess—

planning, focus, risk assessment, a can- do attitude,

problem solving, strategy, teamwork and leadership

— that are requirements in any career, whether

indoors or out.

Continued on page 12

WNC Recreational Opportunities Prepare Students for Success

By Teresa Kilian

Get Out, Get Ahead

Western’s Base Camp Cullowhee program

hosts a wide range of instructional and

recreational activities for students

including whitewater rafting ( upper

left), cycling ( upper right) and

rock climbing ( right).

Andrew Allen

The Magazine of Western Carolina 10 University FALL 2006

A former professional cyclist who

started racing in high school runs Base Camp

Cullowhee, Western’s launchpad for outdoor

programs from rock climbing to snow skiing.

And although Josh Whitmore wasn’t as big

or as fast as his archrival in his early racing

days, he usually beat that yellow bus to school every morning

and back home every afternoon. He even gave his nearly 15- ton

competitor a head start as he finished his homework at school

before taking off so he wouldn’t have to haul books on the

10- mile ride, uphill, both ways, in the snow. Well, actually,

there was no snow, but the ride was rigorous enough to prepare

Whitmore for a chance meeting with a cyclist who was decked

out from aerodynamic jersey to high- tech bike shoes. The gym-shoe

wearing 14- year- old turned and chased him down. Their

conversation yielded an invitation to Whitmore’s first race

( not with a school bus).

“ By the time I was 16, all I really wanted to be was a bicycle

racer,” said Whitmore. Graduating a year early from high school

allowed him more time to train on a bicycle worth far more

than the $ 300 Ford Escort he used to chauffeur it to races. A

few years later, he was a professional cyclist. The problem was

he felt like that was all he was. “ You have to be single- focused

to be that kind of athlete,” said Whitmore. “ I was getting burned

out and really missed lots of other activities – rock climbing,

kayaking and backpacking. I started to wonder what my role

in the world was, what it should be, and needed to have more

meaning in my job.”

Instead of striving to transform his body into a high- per-formance

cycling machine, Whitmore took jobs teaching and

guiding others with Outward Bound and the National Outdoor

Leadership School. “ Leading outdoor programs was not about

trying to develop athletes physically, but about using outdoor

activities as a medium for personal growth, a sense of self

and group development.” Whitmore completed his master’s

degree in recreation management in Montana. He sees working

with college students as a way to help young adults growing

up in a technologically dependent generation get away from

the impersonal communication of cell phones and instant

messaging. “ Spending time together outdoors requires personal

interaction and removes a layer of being anonymous and of

being less responsible or less accountable,” said Whitmore.

WCU students such as Ted Denning say they have come

away from Base Camp Cullowhee activities feeling more con-nected

to Western and to themselves. “ Josh made my first year

at Western great,” Denning said. “ He’s done it all. There is not

a conversation with him that I don’t learn something new, or

where he doesn’t open my eyes to a part of the world that I never

thought about.” Denning is not alone. In the past year, Whitmore

said participation at Base Camp Cullowhee has tripled.

Now training in his spare time to represent the United

States this fall at the Union Cycliste Internationale World Cup

in Canada, Whitmore says taking the job at Western was about

fulfilling a commitment to pass on to others the kind of experi-ences

that are important to him. Windy Gordon, an assistant

professor in psychology who also teaches kayaking, says Western

is fortunate to have Whitmore at the helm.

“ Unless you really press Josh, you will never know how

deep and broad his skills are,” said Gordon. “ He’s a world- class

cyclist. If he chose, he could be a world- class mountaineer.

He is certainly a very skilled paddler, and most impressive is his

leadership ability and capacity to train new student leaders. He

is profoundly understated and remarkably over competent.

He is an absolute coup for us.”

Leader of the Pack

Former Professional Cyclist Josh Whitmore Inspires Students

By Teresa Kilian

Josh Whitmore

FALL 2006 The Magazine of Western Carolina University 11

David Hepp ’ 98 relocated from

Western North Carolina to Charlotte this

summer to become paddlesports manager

of the world’s largest whitewater park of

its kind— the U. S. National Whitewater

Center. Hepp coordinates boating and

rafting on a multi- channel, 12- million-gallon

artificial river, which drops 23

feet in altitude in 1,000 yards.

“ It’s big,” said Hepp, a paddler who

has competed at similar whitewater parks

around the world while part of the U. S.

National Team. “ This is easily the steepest

whitewater park in the world.”

Nearby rivers drew Hepp to WCU,

where he met his wife. The couple recently

sold Dillsboro Chocolate Factory in antici-pation

of the move to Charlotte with their

three daughters. “ We are true to Cullowhee,

though,” Hepp said. “ I can see us moving

back someday, and I can envision a perfect

place for a whitewater park.”

U. S. National Whitewater Center

David Hepp ’ 98, Paddlesports Manager

Mary Ellen Hammond MPA ’ 91

combined her love of writing and passion

for the outdoors in her work as co- owner

and president of Almond- based Milestone

Press, which publishes outdoor guidebooks

for whitewater rafting, canoeing, kayaking,

hiking, camping, rockhounding, mountain

biking, road biking and motorcycle touring.

Milestone’s publications include the “ Off

The Beaten Track” guide series by Ham-mond’s

husband and business partner,

Jim Parham. Next spring, Milestone

will release a hiking guidebook for Western

North Carolina.

“ Who would have guessed, back in

the early 1950s when the first canoes were

navigating the Nantahala River, that white-water

rafting would draw so many tourists

to this region, and that athletes would train

here for Olympic whitewater kayak com-petition?“

Hammond asked “ Who knows

what’s next?”

Milestone Press

Mary Ellen Hammond MPA ’ 91, Co- Owner and President

Great Outdoors, Great Occupations

Get Ahead Continued from page 10

Outdoor Businesses Offer Hands- On Work Experience

Meanwhile, WCU students themselves are a resource to

the businesses and organizations that serve outdoor recreational

enthusiasts in Western North Carolina. For instance, all summer

staff members at the Dillsboro River Company are Western

students, said owner Shane Williams ’ 96.

Catamounts have put their academic skills to work as they

researched and wrote brochures for the Blue Ridge Parkway.

Others helped organize the documents needed for the advocacy

efforts of American Whitewater, a nonprofit that works to con-serve

and restore America’s whitewater resources and enhance

opportunities to enjoy them safely. The organization recently

relocated its national headquarters from Washington, D. C.,

to Jackson County.

“ This area has a nice balance of professional talent and aca-demic

talent as well as being close to major projects of ours,” said

Mark Singleton, executive director of American Whitewater. “ Just

down the road from Western, we are working on agreeing to have

whitewater releases on the West Fork of the Tuckaseigee, which

will create another new paddling opportunity, and, as a result,

another economic opportunity.”

Visitors to Region Fuel Tourism, Hospitality Industry

Philyaw said the economic impact of outdoor recreational

sports is much higher than most people realize. “ You may think

a camper goes out in the woods, sleeps in a tent and goes home,

but that’s not true,” said Philyaw. “ When you walk out of the

woods, you want a hot shower and a good hot meal. Adventure

sports are play, but the economic impact is profound.”

www. milestonepress. com

www. usnwc. org

Ben Edson/ downstreamphoto. com

The Magazine of Western Carolina 12 University FALL 2006

Statesville native Michael Briere ’ 96

has applied his bachelor’s degree in market-ing

to working as an agent for New Zea-land-

based Bliss- Stick, which manufactures

kayaks. Briere travels from his Asheville

home to trade shows and festival demon-strations

and takes clients out to try prod-ucts

one- on- one at “ cool” area rivers. “ Never

in a thousand years would I have imagined

in Dr. Myron Leonard’s marketing classes

that I would be doing this,” Briere said.

When he started kayaking after

graduating from Western, he found himself

driving past the university to get to his out-doors

destinations. “ Mention the Smokies

to any paddler in the world, and they will

mention one thing —‘ lots of whitewater,’”

Briere said.

Bliss- Stick Kayaks

Michael Briere ’ 96, Agent

S hane Williams ’ 96 owns and operates

Dillsboro River Company, which offers begin-ner

and intermediate family- oriented rafting

trips. “ Families often begin very nervous,

not knowing if it’s something they can do,

and when they finish, they have a sense of

accomplishment that they can and did some-thing

like that together.”

Williams also teaches outdoors courses

at Southwestern Community College for

part of the year, works as a raft guide for

the Nantahala Outdoor Center and leads

international kayaking trips. What struck

him as he trained to guide on the Cheoah

River was the quality of experienced

instructors and guides they will find in

Western North Carolina, which regularly

attracts visitors from Atlanta, Charlotte,

Greensboro and Chattanooga.

Dillsboro River Company

Shane Williams ’ 96, Owner and Guide

L aura Blalock ’ 03 MAc ’ 05 does not

consider herself an outdoors enthusiast but

has a job she loves thanks to the outdoor

industry. Blalock is the full- time financial

accountant for the Sylva- based nonprofit

organization American Whitewater.

She came to Western originally to

study education, but, as she conquered the

financial challenges that come with going

to school and providing for her family as a

single parent, her interests turned to busi-ness

and accounting.

“ Moving, getting a job and attending

school were challenges for me since I had

little to no savings,” said Blalock. She gradu-ated

summa cum laude with her under-graduate

degree in accounting and won the

business school’s Outstanding Senior Award

in 2005.

American Whitewater

Laura Blalock ’ 03 MAc ’ 05, Financial Accountant

www. dillsbororiver. com

www. bliss- stick. com

www. americanwhitewater. org

Western professors have researched the multimillion- dol-lar

industries linked to outdoor sports, from Chris Cooper,

assistant professor of political science and public affairs, who

authored “ Pedaling for Dollars: From Outer Banks to Mountains,

Cycling Brings Big Bucks to NC,” to

Hal Herzog, professor of psychology,

who studied the economic impact of

whitewater rafting in the “ New Ency-clopedia

of Appalachian Whitewater.”

Bob Dalley, a retired associate professor from the engi-neering

technology department, says he believes the outdoor

recreation industry has room to grow. Dalley, who designs and

builds boats ideal for fishing on moving water, is advocating for

the creation of a National Paddling and Rowing Heritage Center

in WNC. He sees the center as a tourist attraction that would

celebrate such history as the spectacular sleek, small boats that

the Cherokee designed.

That kind of historical and cultural element is critical to the

future of the industry, says Windy Gordon, an assistant professor

in psychology at Western. “ The business is

no longer just about how to tie knots,” said

Gordon, who not only works at Western but

also has instructed, managed and served

on the board of directors for the Nantahala

Outdoor Center. “ It’s ‘ How does this place where we are climbing

tie into the history of the native people who lived here?’” Gordon

said. “ You can’t just be a kayaker or a rock climber. You need to

bring to those activities an appreciation of art, history, literature

and sociology. There’s got to be a reason to go to a place other

than an adrenaline charge of hiking, climbing, biking or boating.”

“ Adventure sports are play, but the

economic impact is profound.”

— Scott Philyaw ’ 83

FALL 2006 The Magazine of Western Carolina University 13

It was almost on a whim that Jay Denton ’ 78 MPA ’ 05, Sylva

town manager, fired off an e- mail inquiry to a group of North Caro-lina

city and county managers earlier this year. Denton, who was

searching for fellow Western graduates currently working in local

government positions across the state, said responses began pouring

in almost immediately, flooding his inbox with the names of nearly

50 Catamount brothers and sisters working as management profes-sionals

from the westernmost mountains to the easternmost shores

of the Outer Banks.

“ I’ve been involved in local government for a long time. I knew a

lot of Western alumni were employed in the public sector, but it was

amazing how many replies I got in one afternoon,” said Denton. In

Sylva alone, Denton finds himself working alongside several Western

alumni, including town clerk Brandi Henson Ashe ’ 03 and finance

officer Lynn Allen Bryant ’ 89. Just down the street at the Jackson

County Courthouse are land records and mapping director Bobby

McMahan ’ 81 and John Ashe ’ 73, executive director of the Jackson

County Public Housing Agency.

What is it that draws so many Catamounts to public service?

For Steve Wyatt MPA ’ 91, recently appointed Henderson County

manager, it’s knowing that when you get up in the morning to go

to work, you have the ability to make a real difference. “ I have a

burning desire to see Western North Carolina improve, to enhance

the quality of life for our folks. I have an opportunity to do that in

my job,” said Wyatt, who works alongside assistant county manager

Selena Coffey ’ 93 MPA ’ 95. “ Local government is the place where

the rubber meets the road, where government meets the people. You

don’t go to Washington or Raleigh to work directly with the people

you serve. If you want to make a real difference in the lives of people,

you do that at the local level.”

Other WCU graduates in local government positions

agreed. “ This is a very rewarding profession that gives you the

opportunity to serve all the citizens in your community,” said

Wayne Bowers ’ 69, city manager for Greenville since 1977.

“ Each day brings new and interesting challenges, but all have in

Shannon Ashe ’ 97 – police detective, Sylva

Randy Billings ’ 73 – executive director,

Piedmont Triad Council of Governments

Matt Brinkley ’ 02 MPA ’ 04 – city budget of-ficer,

Durham

Paula G. Carden ’ 03 MPA ’ 06 – public health

director, Jackson County

John Connet ’ 92 – city manager, Clinton

Heather Wakenshaw Cotton ’ 00 –

city planner, Marion

Mike Decker ’ 84 MPA ’ 00 –

city administrator, Franklin

Billy Joe Farmer ’ 83 MBA ’ 86 – city manager,

Red Springs

William Alan Gill ’ 80 – parks and recreation

director, city of Henderson and Vance County

Stacy Guffey ’ 99 – planning director,

Macon County

Andy Hedrick ’ 77 – town manager,

Fuquay- Varina

William Todd Herms ’ 05 – town manager,

Badin

Charles Horne ’ 74 MPA ’ 85 –

county manager, Chatham County

Tracy Jackson ’ 88 – assistant county manager,

Iredell County

Jeff Jamison ’ 80 – chief of police, Sylva

Charles Mashburn ’ 68 – finance director,

Stanly County

Al McClure ’ 76 – finance director and

deputy executive director, Cape Fear

Council of Governments

Kimberley Mecimore ’ 93 – environmental

health specialist, Iredell County

Alice Collier Smith Moore ’ 70 – city public

information director, High Point

Other Western alumni working in local N. C. government positions found through Denton’s investigative work:

Public Goods

From the Mountains to the Coast, Local Governments Rely on Alums

By BILL STUDENC

Kendra Penland Turner ’ 04 MPA ’ 06, neighborhood coordinator for the city of Asheville, meets

with assistant city manager Jeff Richardson, who also teaches in the MPA program.

The Magazine of Western Carolina 14 University FALL 2006

common the provision of essential services to the citizens of your

community. Citizens depend on city government to provide these

services each day and generally let you know directly if the services

are not being provided properly. As an administrator, you get to be a

part of a fascinating political process without being a politician.”

Many Catamounts employed in upper- level public sector jobs

are graduates of WCU’s Master of Public Affairs program, which of-fers

classes at night in Asheville for the convenience of government

professionals already working in the business. Among them is Joel

Mashburn ’ 69 MPA ’ 84, currently Iredell County manager. “ I was

the county manager in Henderson County, and would travel to Ashe-ville

for my classes,” said Mashburn, who has worked in the public

sector for 32 years. “ It took four years, but I did it, and I feel the MPA

not only helped establish me as a professional administrator, but it

improved my reasoning skills and taught me discipline. Also, I devel-oped

a much broader view of the relationships necessary for effective

government.”

The town of Warsaw seems to recognize the value of the pro-gram,

earlier this year hiring Jason Burrell ’ 03 MPA ’ 05 as its city

manager, replacing fellow alum Frankie Maness MPA ’ 01, who left

to become assistant city manager in Graham. “ The board didn’t start

out looking for someone from Western Carolina’s program, but it

no doubt helped to know that someone with that background could

do an outstanding job,” Warsaw Mayor Win Batten told the Warsaw-

Faison News.

April Bone ’ 00 MPA’ 03 credits the lessons she learned in her

MPA statistics and government classes with providing her with the

skills necessary for her job as budget analyst for Gaston County. “ I

help prepare and monitor the county’s $ 202 million budget,” Bone

said. “ The MPA program is the reason I have a job. I interned with

the Gaston County Budget Office and was hired a few months after

graduation. The foundation laid in the program continues to serve

me on a daily basis.” And Craig Honeycutt MPA ’ 04, city manager

for Laurinburg, says his WCU years gave him the ability to listen.

“ Western’s program was unique because of the great mixture of

young and old, of straight- from- undergrad- students to students who

had years of practical experience,” Honeycutt said. “ The open and

frank discussions in class were wonderful, and were led by professors

who encouraged differences of opinion, because when dealing with

the public, that is part of the job.”

Just ask William Andrew MPA ’ 92. Upon his recent departure

as resources development manager to accept the long- embattled po-sition

of city manager for Flowery Branch, Ga., the Hall County ( Ga.)

Board of Commissioners presented Andrew with a bulletproof vest.

In spite of the flak – and the occasional need for a flak jacket – WCU

alums working in the public sector say they wouldn’t trade their jobs

for any other. “ I’ve been working in local government for 24 years

now,” said Steve Harrell ’ 77, planning and development director for

Carolina Beach. “ You get a true feeling of giving something back to

the community and contributing to the common welfare, and a feel-ing

of having an impact— an impact that is measurable.”

L. Richard Nifong ’ 71 – city communications

and information services director, High Point

Allen Oliver ’ 78 – city parks and recreation

director, High Point

Jonathan A. Olson ’ 90 – division chief,

Wake County Emergency Medical Services

George Page ’ 93 – parks and recreation direc-tor,

Brunswick County

Chad Parker ’ 97 MPA ’ 06 – director of

solid waste management, Jackson County

Michael C. Peoples ’ 98 – town manager,

Cramerton

Susan L. Powell MPA ’ 98 – town clerk,

Mills River

Mary Elizabeth Quidley ’ 79 – town clerk,

Kill Devil Hills

Joshua W. Ray MPA ’ 03 – town manager,

Biscoe

Glenn Rhodes ’ 74 – town manager,

Columbus

Dan Schaeffer ’ 79 – public works director, Sylva

Richard Shore ’ 73 – parks and recreation

supervisor, High Point

Richard Smith ’ 92 – director of planning

and community development, Kannapolis

Jerry Taylor ’ 88 – information services,

Iredell County

Jennifer Turner MPA’ 03 – law enforcement

officer, Asheville

Mark Wagner ’ 95 – director of parks and

recreation, Pinehurst

Steve Warren ’ 75 – deputy director of

planning and inspections, Iredell County

Frank Willis ’ 69 – retired in May as Randolph

County manager after 30 years of service

John Wilson ’ 79 – town recreation director,

Hudson

Joseph Zalkin ’ 81 – assistant chief,

Wake County Emergency Medical Services

Western alums working together to serve the residents of Henderson County are Steve

Wyatt MPA ’ 91, recently appointed county manager, and Selena Coffey ’ 93 MPA ’ 95,

assistant county manager.

Jay Denton ’ 78 MPA ’ 05, Sylva town manager ( left), and former town clerk Alison Lyons ’ 02

MPA ’ 04 ( center) consult on a project with Christopher Cooper ( right), MPA program director.

FALL 2006 The Magazine of Western Carolina University 15

It’s hard to believe that nearly a year has passed since comedian and “ Tonight Show” host Jay Leno helped

Western launch its new Fine and Performing Arts Center at a black- tie celebration featuring the funnyman’s humorous

observations and the music of blues singer Kat Williams. The gala opening back in October was just the tip of the arts

and entertainment iceberg, as the center’s inaugural season attracted capacity crowds for shows by the internationally

acclaimed Atlanta Ballet, the singing Von Trapp family from “ The Sound of Music” and the dazzling light show and

performance art of Luma, to name just a few. The center is ready to raise the curtain on its second season. Nine

shows will be hitting the boards as part of the 2006- 07 performance series, “ Galaxy of Stars: Legends on Stage.”

“ Hazel Larsen Archer:

Black Mountain College

Photographer.” The

college and people

who lived and created

in the experimental arts

community in the late

1940s and 1950s come

alive in this collection of

images. Aug. 22 - Sept. 23.

“ Art That Works: The

Kimmel Collection of

Art and Design.” The

eclectic exhibit explores

modernism in wide-ranging

American,

and European fine art

and design spanning

100 years from 1885 to

1985. Sept. 23 - Oct. 21.

Fine and Performing Arts Center Launches Second Season Successful Sequel

Performance Hall Fine Art Museum

Galaxy of Stars: Legends on Stage

Sunday, Sept. 17 – “ Let’s Put on a Show,” a collection of songs,

reminiscences and jazz by Mickey Rooney, 3 p. m.

Monday, Oct. 16 – “ Man of Constant Sorrow,” the story and music of

Ralph and Carter Stanley, 7: 30 p. m.

Sunday, Nov. 19 – Selections from “ The Nutcracker” and other classical

works, by the Atlanta Ballet, 3 p. m.

Thursday, Dec. 14 – The Lettermen, performing music spanning the

1960s through today, 7: 30 p. m.

Thursday, Feb. 1 – “ Ol’ Time Religion,” featuring the American

Spiritual Ensemble, 7: 30 p. m.

Thursday, March 1 – Cirque le Masque, a gravity- defying European

stage show, 7: 30 p. m.

Saturday, March 17 – “ Out of the Mist: A Dragon & An Ire- ish Tale,”

a puppet extravaganza by Wood and Strings Theatre, 3 p. m.

Sunday, April 15 – “ Amadeus,” a performance by the Atlantic Ballet

Theatre of Canada, 3 p. m.

Friday, April 27 – The Capitol Steps, a traveling troupe performing

political satire, 7: 30 p. m.

For more information, call ( 828) 227- 2479

or visit the Web at www. wcu. edu/ fapac.

16 The Magazine of Western Carolina University FALL 2006

Country music legend Roy Clark will perform opening night at

Western’s premiere of a colorful, unique art exhibition that celebrates the

marriage of form and function — “ Art that Works: The Kimmel Collection

of Art and Design.” Clark, a co- host of the television show “ Hee Haw” for

more than 20 years and award- winning musician, will perform at 7: 30

p. m. on Saturday, Sept. 23, at Western’s Fine and Performing Arts Center.

The musician’s hits include “ Yesterday When I Was Young” and “ Thank

God and Greyhound,” and he made appearances on TV shows including

“ The Tonight Show” and “ The Beverly Hillbillies.” Clark’s awards include

the Pioneer Award from the Academy of Country Music, numerous

Instrumentalist of the Year awards and Entertainer of the Year. Tickets

to the show are $ 45 each and can be purchased by visiting the Web site

at www. wcu. edu/ fapac or calling the box office at ( 828) 227- 2479.

The concert follows a by- invitiaton- only gala preview of the

Kimmel exhibit at the Fine Art Museum for Fine and Performing Arts

Center major donors. Following the major donor gala preview, ticket

holders for the Roy Clark performance will also be able to view the

Kimmel Collection beginning at 6: 30 p. m. A free reception and gallery

talk opening the exhibit to the public will be held from 1- 3 p. m. Sunday,

Sept. 24. The exhibit features art pieces that Joe and Cynthia Kimmel

acquired nationwide and during their travels around the world.

The Kimmel collection includes examples of art noveau and art deco

movements as well as modernist furniture, glass, ceramics, paintings,

photographs and sculpture. Works of art range from limited edition

prints of Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse, the exquisite glass of Emile

Galle to the innovative chair design of accalimed architect Frank Gehry.

Joe Kimmel, founder of one of the leading construction industry

executive search companies, Asheville- based Kimmel & Associates, is

a strong supporter of Western’s construction management, engineering

and technology school, which was recently named in his honor.

For more information about the Kimmel Collection exhibit or

attending the gala preview for major donors, contact the museum

office at ( 828) 227- 3591.

Roy Clark Takes the Stage

as WCU Opens Kimmel Exhibit “ Harvey K. Littleton and

Friends: A Legacy of

Transforming Object,

Image + Idea.” Littleton,

called the father of the

contemporary studio

glass movement, also in-vented

the vitreographic

print- making process. The

exhibit features Littleton

Studio prints and works in

glass, sculpture, ceramics

and painting by Littleton

and 15 guest acclaimed

artists. Oct. 21 - Dec. 16.

For more information

about museum hours

and events, call

( 828) 227- 3591

or check out

www. wcu. edu/ fapac.

The Kimmel exhibit features a diverse collection of art pieces ( right) ranging from prints to glass.

FALL 2006 The Magazine of Western Carolina University 17

The 2006 edition of Western’s annual Mountain Heritage Weekend features a

performance by bluegrass music chart- topper Rhonda Vincent and her band, the

Rage, on Friday, Sept. 29, leading up to Mountain Heritage Day, the university’s

daylong festival of mountain culture, on Saturday, Sept. 30.

Vincent and the Rage will present a pre- festival concert in the Ramsey Regional

Activity Center at 7: 30 p. m. Friday. Dubbed “ the new queen of bluegrass” by the

Wall Street Journal, Vincent is a six- time winner of the International Bluegrass

Music Association’s Female Vocalist of the Year Award. Tickets, at $ 10 and $ 15,

go on sale Friday, Sept. 1, and may be purchased by calling the amsey Center box

office at ( 828) 227- 7722, toll- free ( 866) 928- 3378, or by clicking on the Web at

http:// ramsey. wcu. edu.

Shortly after daybreak on Saturday, the 32nd annual Mountain Heritage Day

kicks off on WCU’s campus with demonstrations of authentic mountain folk arts;

three stages of traditional music and dance; exhibitions of shape- note singing and

Cherokee stickball; an arts and crafts midway featuring handmade items; food

booths with old- fashioned fare; and numerous just- for- fun competitions.

Mountain Heritage Day is held outside, rain or shine, and admission to the

festival is free of charge. Pets are not allowed on festival grounds, but service ani-mals

are welcome. For more information about the festival, call ( 828) 227- 3193

or click on the Web at www. mountainheritageday. com.

It will be a busy Mountain Heritage Weekend at Western, as the Catamounts

do battle with Georgia Southern in a Southern Conference football clash at 6 p. m.

Sept. 30 in E. J. Whitmire Stadium, and as WCU students welcome moms, dads,

brothers and sisters to campus for Family Weekend Sept 29- 30. For information

on accommodations, contact the Jackson County Chamber of Commerce at ( 800)

962- 1911, or click on the Web at www. mountainlovers. com.

Bluegrass Queen to Play a Busy

Mountain Heritage Weekend

Rhonda Vincent

Mountain Heritage Day Offers Music, Crafts, Folk Arts, Food and Fun

Weekend of September 30th

The Magazine of Western Carolina 18 University FALL 2006

Join us to celebrate the pageantry of the present

and the memories of the past.

WCU Alumni Association

HOMECOMING 2006

October 13- 15

Western C arolina U ni v ersit y

Event Calendar

Friday, October 13

Noon – Alumni Scholarship Golf Tournament, a Homecoming tradition, tees off at Laurel

Ridge Country Club in Waynesville. Shotgun start. Cost: $ 80 per person, includes fees and cart.

Four- person “ captains choice” format. Refreshments available during play. Social following the

tournament. RSVP is required by Friday, October 6. Call the Office of Alumni Affairs at

( 877) 440- 9990 or ( 828) 227- 7335, or e- mail magill@ email. wcu. edu.

6: 15 p. m. – Homecoming 2006 Main

Street Parade in Sylva. Cheer as community and student floats, Western cheer-leaders,

football team, Homecoming Court, and Catamount Marching Band parade

through downtown Sylva. Prizes awarded for best floats; winners announced during

Saturday’s football game.

7 p. m. – WCU Nurses’ Alumni

Association Reception at

Moore Hall. Come and meet the

Class of 1973, the first class to

graduate from Western’s

nursing program. Please

contact Sharon Metcalfe

at Metcalfe@ wcu. edu or

828- 670- 8810 or Diane Oakley

at Oakleydia@ aol. com.

8 p. m. – Spirit Night. Join students, faculty, staff

and alumni for a pep rally, music and food on the lawn

of A. K. Hinds University Center. Fireworks will light

up the autumn sky at the conclusion of the evening.

C o m He oHmomeec too mCuilnlogw h2e0e 0 6

Gathering of “ The Herd”

Come join more than 100 former athletes and cheerleaders from

the mid- 1950s through the mid- 1960s. Get reacquainted with

your old Catamount teammates from years gone by as the group

known as “ The Herd” reunites for Homecoming weekend. From

12: 30 until 3 p. m. Saturday, “ The Herd” will host a pre- game

tailgate adjacent to the E. J. Whitmire Stadium parking lot. Look

for the big purple- and- gold tent at the bottom of the Ramsey

Center stairs. After the game, come join “ The Herd” for dinner

at the Jarrett House in nearby Dillsboro at 7: 30 p. m. For more

information and to RSVP, contact Tobe Childers ’ 61

at ( 800) 211- 8759 or e- mail tchilde@ transunion. com.

Saturday, October 14

8 - 10 a. m. – WCU Alumni Breakfast. The University Center Grandroom

becomes Alumni Central! Come join fellow WCU alumni and friends for a

continental breakfast. It’s a great time to make weekend plans with your old

classmates, or simply reminisce about those good ole days in Cullowhee!

RSVP by Friday, October 6, to mramsey@ wcu. edu.

12: 30 - 3 p. m. – Pre- game tailgate, with live

music in the parking lot of Jordan- Phillips

Field House.

3: 30 p. m. – Football. The Catamounts do battle

against the Mocs of the University of Tennessee

at Chattanooga in the cozy confines of Whitmire

Stadium and Bob Waters Field.

7 p. m. – Stompfest 2006, a step- show

competition featuring African American

fraternities and sororities. Ramsey Regional

Activity Center. For tickets or information,

call the Center for Student Involvement

at ( 828) 227- 2276.

10 p. m. - 1 a. m. – Stompfest After Party.

University Center Grandroom.

Sunday, October 15

3: 30 p. m. – The crowd- pleasing Inspirational

Choir Concert will bring Homecoming Weekend

to a close. University Center Grandroom.

5 year reunion! Class of 2001

10 year reunion! Class of 1996

15 year reunion! Class of 1991

20 year reunion! Class of 1986

25 year reunion! Class of 1981

Class Reunion

12 - 2pm – Class Reunion

Luncheon Reunions for the

classes of 2001, 1996, 1991,

1986 and 1981. Come visit

with your classmates from

years gone by. You and your

class will be provided a

complimentary lunch in

Illusions on the third floor

of the University Center

( adjacent to the Grandroom).

RSVP by October 6

to Marty Ramsey at

( 828) 227- 7335 or

( 877) 440- 9990 or

mramsey@ wcu. edu

􀀤 􀀶 􀀭 􀀭 􀀰 􀀸 􀀩 􀀦 􀀦 􀀍 􀀁 􀀯 􀀏 􀀤 􀀏 􀀁

􀀸 􀀤 􀀶 􀀀

􀀦 􀀴 􀀵 􀀏 􀀁 􀀒 􀀙 􀀙 􀀚

ALUMNI

ASSOCIATION

For more information, visit the Alumni Association Web site at http:// alumni. wcu. edu

or contact Marty Ramsey ’ 85, Director of Alumni Affairs, at ( 828) 227- 7335,

( 877) 440- 9990 or mramsey@ wcu. edu.

Continuing the Tradition

Alumni Association Scholarship

Helps Daughter of Western Graduates

Juanita Proffitt ’ 39 did not know how she would afford college.

The “ bank burst” in 1929. The aunt from Speedwell who raised her

had terminal cancer. There was simply “ no money, no anything,”

Proffitt said. “ My mother finally raised $ 6 – that was a lot of money

then – and that got me started at Western.” Proffitt was able to work

her way through the teacher education program, taking jobs such

as grading papers for professors. “ Most of the time, I had enough

money to pay my way, but I realized children with potential need

help,” she said. “ I have really tried through the years to help. I think

about them, and I empathize.”

Proffitt, a member of Western’s Alumni Association board of

directors, and her husband, Brank Proffitt ’ 42, have reached out to

students in many ways, but the latest has been through supporting

the Alumni Association Scholarship Fund. The scholarship fund

is designed to help Western students who have financial need,

preferably students who have close family ties to Catamount alumni

or whose parents work for the university. “ The No. 1 reason people

give for dropping out is a lack of money,” said David Andrew ’ 83,

president- elect of the Alumni Association and chairman of its

financial affairs committee. “ We are very pleased now to be able to

award the first scholarship.”

The $ 40,000 raised so far enabled the association to award the

first scholarship this summer to Amanda Roach, a senior athletic

training major from Fairview whose parents both graduated from

Western. Hospital bills from a recent medical emergency in her

family have caused some financial stress. “ The scholarship is just

such a blessing to me and my family,” said Roach. “ Every little bit

helps.”

Her parents, Judy Davis Roach ’ 73 and Leon Roach ’ 73

MAEd ’ 77, said they were not surprised when their daughter chose

to attend WCU and study athletic training. As the daughter of an

A. C. Reynolds High School teacher who also coached sports, she

attended her first high school football game when just 2 months

old. The avid sports fan also played, and it was actually an athletic

trainer who helped her recover from an injury that inspired her to

pursue a career path incorporating her love of sports and desire to

work in physical therapy. “ Sports are a big part of my life, and I did

not want to leave them,” she said.

Her mother said she is impressed with the amount of hands-on

experience her daughter is gaining through Western’s athletic

training program. “ She has worked really hard,” said Judy Roach,

noting the long hours athletic trainers put in, from arriving before

the team to staying until after practices and games. Roach has done

everything from assisting the championship Swain County High

School football team to working with a Catamount baseball player

who has Horner’s Syndrome.

The syndrome can affect the nerves and cause one pupil to be

constricted. Roach’s curiosity and interest in the player inspired a

research project about her experience with him that won invitations

to every major athletic training conference on the East Coast, from

the National Athletic Training Association meeting in Atlanta to the

Eastern Athletic Training Association event in Philadelphia. “ We

would think the constriction in his left eye would affect his depth

perception and ability to play, but it did not,” she said. “ It’s just

amazing how the human body adapts itself over time.”

Meanwhile, she lived for three years in Reynolds Residence Hall,

where her father also stayed when he was at Western. She recently

moved to the Phi Mu sorority hall to be closer to her “ family away

from home.” Her parents have had a bit of a homecoming, too, when

they visit her. “ There’s a lot of new things and changes, and yet still a

lot that brings back the memories,” said Judy Roach. “ We are excited

to see the direction the school is going.”

Want to help?

Make checks payable to:

WCU Foundation ( Alumni Scholarship Fund)

c/ o The Office of Alumni Affairs

440 H. F. Robinson Administration Building

Western Carolina University

Cullowhee, NC 28723

The first Alumni Association scholarship recipient, WCU senior Amanda Roach

( second from left), celebrates the honor with her mother Judy Davis Roach ’ 73,

scholarship supporter Juanita Proffitt ’ 39 and her father, Leon Roach ’ 73 MAEd ’ 77.

For more information, contact Brett L. Woods, director of

annual and special gifts, at ( 828) 227- 7124 or bwoods@ wcu. edu.

Ken Melton ’ 94 MPA ’ 96 cranks up the car, carries the

local daily newspaper back in the house and reads headlines to

his wife as she finishes getting ready for work. “ Ooh, read that,”

says Sherry Melton ’ 95 MPA ’ 96 when he hits stories she’d like

to hear before going over the paper herself— cover to cover. The

news hounds met at Western, where they arrived with goals of

working in TV journalism but left with something else— a desire

to not only gather news but also help make it. “ I evolved from

wanting to do documentaries or pieces that highlighted what was

wrong to really wanting to do more to fix problems,” said Ken

Melton. Today, the New Bern native helps coordinate appropria-tions

activity and works with proposed tax laws as legislative

affairs director for the North Carolina Department of Revenue.

Meanwhile, Sherry Melton recently began working as vice

president of communications with the North Carolina Citizens

for Business and Industry, which serves as the state chamber of

commerce and manufacturing association. She traces the fork in

her career path to a required political science course under Don

Livingston. “ I fell in love with politics,” said Sherry Melton, who

grew up on a family- owned dairy farm near Franklin. “ I became

absolutely determined to make a career out of communications

and politics together.”

She has— a very successful career. With NCCBI, Melton’s re-sponsibilities

include editing North Carolina magazine, a weekly

legislative bulletin, and the association’s Web site. She works

with reporters and with communication among policymakers,

members and potential members. “ My job is to advance a public

policy agenda for the betterment of North Carolina and all her

residents,” Melton said. “ It doesn’t get any better than that.”

Her “ break” came after landing a job at the State Employees

Association of North Carolina. During her eight years there, she

lobbied the North Carolina General Assembly and ultimately was

promoted to public relations director. “ The competition ( for the

job) was fierce. I had to compete with MPA ( Master’s of Public

Affairs) graduates from numerous other well- respected universi-ties,

such as UNC- Chapel Hill, N. C. State University and Duke

University. I knew, however, that no one had received a better

education than I had at WCU,” Melton said.

“ What I learned from Dr. Don Livingston in his public policy

formulation course about ‘ influence peddlers’ and the role of

lobbyists in policymaking proved so true and valuable to me,” she

said. “ What I learned from Dr. Gordon Mercer about manage-ment

and leadership theory also prepared me to succeed in my

first job— not only in managing and motivating staff, but also in

coordinating and organizing grassroots activism. What I learned

from Dr. Ken Wink about government budgeting prepared me to

analyze and make sense of North Carolina’s $ 30- plus billion bud-get,

and taught me how the government budget game is played.”

Livingston said he tries to teach his students to develop

research, analytical and communication skills as well as stay

informed about political developments in the world. “ I want

them to realize that an individual’s success in life is measured

not by one’s accumulations but by one’s contributions,” he said.

Livingston describes Sherry Melton as bright, industrious and

highly motivated with outstanding organizational, analytical and

communicative skills, and Ken Melton as a sharp young man who

was an industrious and serious student with superb people skills.

“ He and Sherry are a great team,” Livingston said.

It was in Livingston’s class that Ken Melton said he fine-tuned

his public speaking skills. After a discussion, a classmate

told him that he made a good point. The small compliment had

a big effect. “ It just dawned on me that I belonged, that I was

just as valued a voice and opinion in discussion as anybody else,”

Ken Melton said. “ I really felt like whatever I do out of here, I can

go out and try to make a positive impact in the world of public

policy in some form or fashion.”

A required internship led him to the Buncombe County

Board of Elections and ultimately developed into a full- time job.

He became the deputy director in charge of absentee voting and

special projects before moving on to work as a legislative as-sistant

to state Sen. Virgina Foxx ( now U. S. Rep. Virginia Foxx)

and researcher with the General Assembly. Ken Melton then “ put

in quite a bit of shoe leather” with lobbyist Zeb Alley. “ We were

the eyes and ears on the ground for legislation that may have an

impact on any of our clients,” said Ken Melton, who the North

Carolina Center for Public Policy Research ranked among the top

50 of more than 500 lobbyists for the 2003- 04 year. He moved

to the state revenue department from there. “ I wake up in the

morning and look forward to going to work,” he said.

Making Headlines

MPA Degrees Help Couple

Advocate for Change

By Teresa Kilian

Sherry Melton ’ 95 MPA ’ 96 and Ken Melton ’ 94 MPA ’ 96 often read the

newspaper together at the start of workdays spent monitoring public policy

proposals for the state. Sherry Melton also edits North Carolina magazine ( right)

through her work with the North Carolina Citizens for Business and Industry.

FALL 2006 The Magazine of Western Carolina University 23

Five former Catamounts will be inducted into the Western Carolina Athletics

Hall of Fame on Saturday, Sept. 16, prior to the Catamount’s football game

with two- time NCAA I- AA national champion Eastern Kentucky. This fall marks

the 17th consecutive year that WCU will pause to recognize the outstanding

accomplishments of former student- athletes, coaches and administrators,

continuing a tradition begun in 1990. Induction ceremonies will be held

on the Ramsey Center concourse prior to the 6 p. m. kickoff.

Members of the 2006 Hall of Fame class are Mark Ferguson ( football),

Scott Gay ’ 88 ( baseball), Ralph Lundy ’ 73 MAEd ’ 76 ( men’s soccer), Darrell

Murray ( men’s basketball) and Willie Williams ’ 03 ( football).

Ferguson played football for the Catamounts from 1970- 73. In his senior

season, the Asheville native was a first team All- American as selected by the

American Football Coaches Association and The Football News. An offensive

lineman, he helped Western to a 6- 3- 1 record that season. The previous year,

Ferguson was a key figure in Western posting a 7- 2- 1 record and a ranking of

eighth in the final Associated Press small college poll.

Gay was a member of Western’s baseball squad from 1983- 85, leaving

after his junior season as a fourth- round draft pick of the New York Yankees.

A first- team All- Southern Conference selection in 1984 and 1985, the Milford,

Conn., native was named conference Player of the Year after leading WCU to

the SoCon championship and the school’s first- ever NCAA Tournament berth

in 1985. He led the conference in strikeouts twice, and his 12 wins in 1985

established a school and SoCon single- season record.

Lundy came to Western as a junior in 1970, helping the Catamount men’s

soccer team turn around a 1- 6- 1 record in its inaugural season to an 8- 2 record

and a berth in the NAIA playoffs. After receiving his undergraduate degree in

physical education, Lundy joined the Marines, later returning to Western as an

assistant coach and receiving his master’s degree in physical education. Lundy

left in 1976 to become head men’s soccer coach at Erskine. In 1987, Lundy

moved on as head men’s coach at the College of Charleston, a post he still

holds. During his 30 years as a head coach, Lundy has a career record of

333- 218- 37 and ranks among the nation’s top 10 in career victories.

Five Former Cats To Be Inducted

into Hall in September

By MIKE CAWOOD

From Game to Fame

WCUAthletics

The Magazine of Western Carolina 24 University FALL 2006

WCUAthletics

Murray was a forward for Western on the 1962- 63 men’s basketball

team, which advanced to the NAIA national championship game. An

All- Carolinas Conference selection, the Elwood, Ind., native ended his

career fourth on Western’s all- time scoring list ( 1,471 points) and second

in rebounding ( 1,208), being just one of three Catamounts to accumulate

1,000 points and rebounds in a career. As a senior, Murray led Western to

a 20- 6 record and a second- place league finish. As a sophomore, he helped

the Catamounts to a 21- 8 record and a Carolinas Conference Champion-ship.

Murray was named to the North State Conference All- Freshman

Team after setting a school season record of 155 offensive rebounds.

Williams, Western’s first football player to reach the Super Bowl, was

a three- time All- SoCon pick ( 1990- 92), earning first- team honors in 1992.

The Columbia, S. C., native, like fellow inductee Ferguson, is a member of

WCU’s All- 20th Century Football Team and holds the distinction of being

the first WCU player selected to play in the Blue- Gray All- Star Classic. A

defensive back, Williams was drafted in the sixth round by the Pittsburgh

Steelers, where he played for four seasons, leading the AFC in intercep-tions

and playing in Super Bowl XXX in 1996. He followed his first stint in

Pittsburgh with seven seasons with the Seattle Seahawks before returning

to the Steelers for the last two seasons, helping his team win Super Bowl

XL this past season.

For more information about Hall of Fame weekend or any other WCU

athletics event, contact the department of athletics at ( 828) 227- 7338.

On an evening back in May, Dave

Bristol ’ 59 found himself in a room filled

with sports figures he’s always admired. By

the time that night was over, the Andrews

native stood beside them as a member of

the N. C. Sports Hall of Fame. He was one

of 10 inductees for 2006 in a ceremony in

Raleigh.

“ It was like getting money from home

without writing,” Bristol said describing the

experience. “ It could not have been better.

When I introduced my daughter ( Murphy

girls’ basketball coach Cissy Dyer) to Dean

Smith, that was a proud moment. It was

worth the whole trip to see her standing

there talking to him.”

Bristol became the youngest manager

in Major League Baseball when the Cincinnati Reds hired him in

1966 at age 33. He led the Reds from 1966- 69 and managed at

the big league level for all or part of 11 seasons until 1980, with

stops in Milwaukee, Atlanta and San Francisco.

Former Citizen- Times sportswriter Bob Terrell ’ 51 first

covered him as a player when Bristol was 14 and later followed

him at spring training during Bristol’s managerial career. “ Dave

developed a good part of the Big Red Machine for Cincinnati in

the minor leagues,” Terrell recalled, referring to the nickname given

to the Reds during their run of four World

Series appearances in the 1970s. “ I always

enjoyed him as one of the sharpest baseball

men I knew.”

Since Western North Carolina had

few opportunities for aspiring ballplayers during

Bristol’s younger years, he used to hitchhike

to Haywood County to play for a team there.

He signed with the Reds after high school

and played for Cincinnati farm clubs in the

1950s and early ’ 60s— the last few years as

a player- manager— before his big league

managing debut.

Bristol coached the likes of Pete Rose,

Johnny Bench, Dale Murphy and Mike Schmidt.

After concluding his career as a manager in

1980, he stayed at the big league level as a

coach, for Philadelphia and later for Cincinnati, before leaving

MLB after the 1993 season.

“ Because Dave Bristol lived in the big leagues for so long,

he has insights into the game that few people have,” said Chuck

Jackson, a former big league baseball player who lives in Ashe-ville.

“ I don’t know if coaches around here realize what kind of a

resource we have in WNC. The baseball community around here

needs to find a way to tap into this resource. He’s a treasure.”

Reprinted in edited form with permission of the Asheville Citizen- Times.

Playing In The Big League

Former Baseball Manager Named to State Sports Hall of Fame

By TYLER NORRIS GOODE

Hall of Fame inductees pictured are Ralph Lundy ’ 73 MAEd ’ 76 ( upper left), Mark Ferguson

( center left), Willie Williams ’ 03 ( lower left), Darrell Murray ( upper right) and Scott Gay ’ 88

( lower right).

FALL 2006 The Magazine of Western Carolina University 25

Many WCU Alums Are Among High School Football Coaching Legends

By STEVE WHITE ’ 67

Friday Night Lights

America needed a change of pace in the late 1940s fol-lowing

a decade and a half of economic depression and global

conflict. And although there were few lighted local fields

immediately after World War II, high school football quickly

grew into the cultural event now known as Friday Night

Lights. The phenomenon sprang from that need for diversion

and community spirit, spreading throughout much of the

nation. North Carolina was not immune, as the consuming

topic in cafes and barber shops from Murphy to Manteo

during the autumn months revolves around the fortunes

of local high school football teams.

Western has contributed its share of icons that helped

make high school football an integral part of the state’s

culture. In the 1950s and ’ 60s, when high school football

was blooming in Western North Carolina, Hugh “ Pee Wee”

Hamilton ’ 50 and Norris “ Pee Wee” Jones ’ 51 were

legends. Hamilton won 145 games at Andrews, Asheville and

East Henderson high schools. Jones coached for 20 years at

T. C. Roberson High and 10 years at Swain High, chalking up

195 victories.

Perhaps the most- renowned high school football coach

in WCU’s legacy is Charles “ Babe” Howell ’ 53, who won

a North Carolina record 301 football games. Included in

Howell’s resume are five state championships at Sylva-

Webster High, where he spent 24 seasons. He has been

inducted into the WCU, Western North Carolina, N. C. High

School Athletics Association and North Carolina Sports halls

of fame. Even the winningest high school football coach

of all- time, the legendary John McKissick MA ’ 69 of

Summerville ( S. C.) High, holds a WCU graduate degree.

In the ’ 70s, a new set of coaching legends was crowned.

Boyce Deitz ’ 69 took over the reins at Swain High in 1977

and, over the next 20 seasons, won 201 games and five state

championships. Bob Colvin ’ 62 earned a North Carolina

record 11 state championships at Robbinsville from 1966

through 1985 and prevailed in 177 games in those 20 seasons.

Jim Taylor ’ 70 collected 201 victories in 20 seasons at

Shelby High, while Bruce Peterson ’ 63 claimed eight confer-ence

titles at Lee Edwards/ Asheville High in 10 seasons.

Currently, 17 WCU graduates are active as head coaches

in North Carolina high schools, and at least a dozen in South

Carolina and Georgia. Among the most successful are John

photo by John Fletcher courtesy of the Asheville Citizen- Times

The Magazine of Western Carolina 26 University FALL 2006

Lowery ’ 78, who is pushing 200 triumphs at Forest Hills

High in Union County; Mike Biggerstaff ’ 70, who has

won more than 100 games at West Caldwell and East Burke;

Jim Fox ’ 71 at Rosman, who also has passed the century

mark in the W column: Danny Wilkins ’ 79, who guided

his Asheville High squad to the state 3A championship last

season; and Neil Setzer ’ 81, who has secured more than

60 wins at Hayesville High and has developed a perennial

state playoff program.

Over the years, high school football has come to de-fine

communities. In many small towns, Friday night at the

stadium is as significant as Christmas and the Fourth of

July. “ The annual Fat Friday game between East Burke and

Freedom epitomizes the spirit and community of high school

football,” says Biggerstaff, ex- Catamount all- star linebacker

and East Burke’s head coach. “ They can turn off the traffic

lights in Morganton, Drexel and Valdese because everyone is

at the game.”

Now director of regional outreach for WCU’s athletics

department, Deitz says nothing unites Swain County better

than Friday football in Bryson City. “ You’ve got the team, the

student body, the band and the community all on the same

page for several hours and, generally, that enthusiasm and

spirit carries over into everyday life,” he said.

Fox, who has coached at several large- and small- classi-fication

schools, said Friday nights in the one- school- in- one-town

venues of the Smoky Mountain Conference are special.

“ The excitement at the Murphy, Hayesville, Swain, Robbins-ville

and Rosman games cannot be matched in Charlotte or

Greensboro. It’s like a family reunion every Friday night.

Everyone in the stands knows the players and vice- versa,”

he said.

The post- war coaches saw numerous innovations and

changes such as two- platoon football, the addition of face

masks, development of the kicking game, and a move from

the hard- nosed, grind- it- out running game to using the whole

field. The newer legends also have seen the game change with

integration, artificial playing fields, the emphasis on strength

and conditioning, and sophisticated passing and blocking

schemes. Despite the changes, when the lights come up on

Friday night again this season, one thing will remain the

same. It’s THE game.

photo by Ann Ferguson courtesy of the Clay County Progress

Catamounts who became hometown heroes for coaching high

school football include, from left, Charles “ Babe” Howell ’ 53,

who won a North Carolina record 301 football games; Al “ Mutt”

DeGraffenreid ’ 77 MAEd ’ 80, former Cherokee High School

coach who is now athletics director at Smoky Mountain High

School; Danny Wilkins ’ 79, who led Asheville High to the state

3A championship last year; and ( background) Neil Setzer ’ 81,

coach of the Hayesville Yellow Jackets.

photo by Steve Dixon courtesy of the Asheville Citizen- Times

FALL 2006 The Magazine of Western Carolina University 27

A familiar face from the glory years of Catamount football

once again will be prowling the sidelines this fall as former West-ern

player and assistant coach Don Powers ’ 68 MAE d ’ 69 returns

as defensive coordinator.

“ Coach Powers join-ing

our program will make

a huge impact,” said Kent

Briggs ’ 79 MAE d ’ 81, the

Catamounts’ head coach.

“ His experience, personality

and love for Western Caro-lina

bring a lot to the football

program, as well as to the

university. He is a Catamount

and always will be a Cata-mount.

Every Catamount,

present and past, is excited

to have Coach Powers back.”

While an assistant

coach at Western ( 1974- 83),

Powers was associated with

Western’s most prolific teams

and coached some of the

greatest players in school his-tory.

After playing four years as an outside linebacker and earning

National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics All- District hon-ors

three times, Powers joined the staff of legendary Coach Bob

Waters in 1968 as a graduate assistant. He became a full- time as-sistant

the following year, working the linebackers, a post he held

until 1974 when he was named defensive coordinator. His impact

was felt immediately, as the unit finished fourth in the nation in

scoring defense in 1974, allowing just 87 points in 11 games.

Powers was named assistant head coach in 1982, becoming

the first person in WCU history to earn such a title. Five times

from 1976- 83, Western ranked among the NCAA leaders in pass

defense, pacing the nation in the category in 1977 by allowing just

77.5 yards per game. Western also led the Southern Conference

in passing defense from 1977- 79. In his final season at Western,

Powers helped the Catamounts reach the NCAA I- AA champion-ship

game. During his tenure as a defensive coach, a total of 27

all- SoCon honors were bestowed upon Catamount defenders over

a seven- year period.

Powers, who has been in

private business since 2000,

previously coached 12 years at

The Citadel, including the last

five as the Bulldogs’ head coach.

Powers took over a Bulldog team

that was 2- 9 overall and 0- 8 in

the Southern Conference before

taking the helm and guiding

them to an 11- 12 league mark

during his first three years. Un-der

his leadership, the Bulldogs

went from two victories

in 1995 to six wins in 1997,

marking the top increase in

the Southern Conference

during that time span.

As the Bulldogs’ defensive

coordinator, Powers was a

two- time Southern Conference

defensive assistant coach of the

year honoree ( 1990 and 1992) as he helped The Citadel win its

second SoCon Championship in 1992, and first since 1961. That

team went 11- 2 overall and 6- 1 in the SoCon, while recording wins

over Arkansas and Army and reaching the second round of the

NCAA I- AA playoffs.

“ It’s great to be back where I belong, back home at Western,

because this is my home in so many ways,” Powers said. “ I am

elated with the way Coach Briggs approaches the program. We are

both proud to be a part of the Bob Waters heritage and legacy,

and my strongest motivation is to help achieve the success that

Coach Waters envisioned for this program. I really want to see

Western have a Southern Conference championship in football.

I am very strongly motivated to achieve that for Coach Waters,

for every player who has ever played at Western, and for all

Catamount fans.”

At the rate he’s going, Danny

Williamson ’ 84 MAEd ’ 86 is going to

have to build a bigger trophy case. That’s

because the veteran Catamount coach

was named Southern Conference

Outdoor Track and Field Coach of the

Year after guiding his squad to a come-from-

behind first- place finish in the 2006

SoCon championships in April. The victory

came just a couple months after Western’s

men claimed the indoor track and field

conference title, helping Williamson earn

coach of the year honors for that sport.

For Williamson, it was the 20th confer-ence

coaching honor. And, on the heels of

that honor, he was selected the Southeast

District Men’s Outdoor Track & Field

Coach of the Year by the U. S. Track &

Field/ Cross Country Coaches’ Associa-tion.

Now, about that bigger trophy case....

Fast Company

Former Player, Coach Returns to Bob Waters Field

By MIKE CAWOOD

Powers Play

Don Powers ’ 68 MAEd ’ 69 returns to help coach Catamounts.

The Magazine of Western Carolina 28 University FALL 2006

At the risk of sounding cliché, the inaugural season of Cata-mount

women’s softball was seemingly straight from the pages of

a fairy tale. The storybook season could not have been written any

better by screenwriters in Hollywood. The first pitch was a strike…

the first hit was a home run… the first game was a win… and the

first season resulted in a championship.

Preseason predictions pegged the youthful Cats in seventh

place in the eight- team league. But amid the hills of Western

North Carolina, an offensive juggernaut and a one- two pitching

combination was unveiled. When the dust finally settled on the

infield diamond, Western had racked up nine Southern Conference

weekly honors; six All- SoCon selections, including five first- team

honorees; three monthly awards; and three of the conference’s

four annual awards. And, the Cats brought home a regular season

championship trophy in their first year of existence – something

that no other SoCon team in any sport had ever pulled off before.

“ When we first made the move to add softball to our list of

sponsored sports, no one would have ever believed that this team

would have accomplished in one year what they did, and we could

not be more proud of their accomplishments,” said Chip Smith,

WCU athletics director.

Five players, led by junior Ashley Adams, belted double- digit

home runs this season as the Catamounts shattered the confer-ence

record for homers in a single season with 81 round- trippers.

Adams led the way with another SoCon record, amassing 21 four-baggers.

Freshman Lauren Ross began the home run barrage in

the season- opener, blasting two— including smashing the team’s

first- ever hit over the centerfield wall— to lead the Catamounts to

victory in their inaugural outing.

Western was the first school in the conference to reach 20,

30 and 40 wins, and was the only league team to hit the 40- win

mark during regular season competition. The Catamounts tore

through the conference and captured the 2006 regular season

championship, sweeping the College of Charleston at home to

earn the crown.

Individually, freshman

pitcher Mendy McKenzie led

the league in wins ( 22) and

strikeouts ( 207) during the

regular season while ranking

second overall in earned run

average ( 2.17). The Clemmons

native garnered a SoCon- re-cord

five pitcher- of- the- week honors during the season, and was

twice named the conference’s pitcher of the month. She would

eventually be dubbed the SoCon Pitcher of the Year.

The second part of the powerful one- two pitching punch was

Fremont native Jenny Jackson, who secured 15 wins in the circle

with the third- best ERA in the SoCon ( 2.38) during the season.

Credited with the school’s first no- hitter, Jackson also hit .302

with 11 home runs as a utility player and earned the SoCon’s

Freshman of the Year award.

The architect of Western’s success also was lauded by the

league, as Head Coach Megan Smith garnered the SoCon’s Coach of

the Year award. Hired in July 2004, Smith guided the Catamounts

to the regular season championship with only four losses in league

action. Along the way, she collected her 100th career victory in just

her second stint as a head collegiate coach.

Despite an early exit from the conference tournament, the

Catamounts are primed for next year. The championship roster,

composed mostly of freshmen, bears just two juniors and a pair of

sophomores, and the entire starting lineup returns intact. “ I am

just so proud of this team— very proud,” Coach Smith said. “ This

team did more than anyone expected and really played their hearts

out all season long, and that’s all any coach can ask. Things just did

not go our way at the tournament, but I am still very proud of this

team. They want to and cannot wait to get back here next season.”

Catamount softball fans feel the same way. This is one

Hollywood story crying out for a sequel.

Catamount Softball Hits Home Run in First At- Bat

By Daniel Hoo ker ’ 01

A Storybook Season

Winning moments in the Catamounts’ first season

include, clockwise from left, Mendy McKenzie’s

fast pitches, Samm Keppel’s golden glovework,

Ashley Adams’ championship- clinching catch

and the national anthem at the dedication of

Western’s new softball facility.

FALL 2006 The Magazine of Western Carolina University 29

Sitting on stage in front of 900- plus graduating students and

a close- to- capacity crowd at spring commencement, Dr. Frances

Owl- Smith ’ 83 was a little nervous about giving her “ thank you”

speech, but the Waynesville pathologist, on hand to accept WCU’s

Award for Academic and Professional Achievement, was pleased to

have her family, including three grandchildren, in the Ramsey Cen-ter

audience. “ I hoped my grandchildren could see that if they work

hard and are dedicated to their educations, they can do anything

they choose to do,” she said. “ And I was hoping that something I

would say would be an inspiration to other people.”

It’s hard to imagine anyone being less than inspired by Dr.

Owl- Smith, the first female member of the Eastern Band of Chero-kee

Indians to receive a medical degree. A Cherokee native, she

graduated from Swain County High School in 1968 and married

Doyle Smith, and the couple soon began having children. Over the

next decade, she kept busy as a housewife while working occasion-ally

as a teacher’s aide or nurse’s assistant. Smith’s flexible schedule

as a barber made it possible for his wife to enroll at Western, and

in 1979, at the age of 29, she joined the freshman class. Owl- Smith

became a dean’s list student, enrolled in the medical technology

( now clinical laboratory sciences) program, recorded a 4.0 grade

point average during her junior and senior years, and graduated

summa cum laude ( with highest honors).

Owl- Smith had never considered medicine as a career until

a visit to a podiatry school led her to consider applying for medi-cal

school. She had attended an eight- week program for minority

students at UNC- Chapel Hill in the summer of 1982. Because of

her success in that program, she was accepted into medical school

at Chapel Hill. Loans, financial aid and a fellowship helped the

family make ends meet while husband Doyle continued barbering.

Owl- Smith graduated with high honors four years later as a medical

doctor, but those years were not easy as she tried to balance roles as

wife, mother and student while dealing with the sleep deprivation

caused by clinical rotations and nighttime study.

After graduation from medical school, Owl- Smith was chosen

to enter the pathology residency program at UNC- Chapel Hill. Dur-ing

the five- year residency, the couple’s son was diagnosed with a

medical illness that would need lifelong attention. That was a major

adjustment for the family, but they persevered, and Owl- Smith

became a practicing pathologist at the age of 42.

The family moved to the Southwest as Owl- Smith began her

career working for the Indian Health Service in Arizona and New

Mexico, partly as payback for loans. The family came back to the

mountains in 2002 when she accepted a position at Haywood

Regional Medical Center, where she is a pathologist and laboratory

medical director.

Owl- Smith’s many admirers include Dan Southern, WCU clini-cal

laboratory sciences professor, who taught and mentored her.

“ Dr. Owl- Smith is a very respected pathologist and has helped save

many lives with her diagnostic skills,” Southern said. “ As a supervi-sor

of laboratory personnel, she’s adored by her employees, many of

whom are graduates of WCU’s clinical laboratory sciences program.

She also gives unselfishly to her family, community and to her heri-tage,

and she’s been an ardent supporter of the CLS program.”

No wonder that after receiving her award at spring commence-ment,

she spoke to the graduates about the importance of doing

good. “ As a practicing pathologist, I’m obligated to make accurate

diagnoses, and today I have a diagnosis for all of us,” she said. “ We

all have a terminal illness called life. So I challenge you to go out

there and get a real life— a life not just of the mind, but of the soul

— a life where you do good.”

A Positive Diagnosis

First Eastern Band Woman To Earn Medical Degree

Inspires Others To Work Hard, But Enjoy Life

By RANDALL HOLCOMBE

alumniAchievements

Dr. Frances Owl- Smith ’ 83 works as a pathologist and laboratory medical director at Haywood Regional Medical Center.

The Magazine of Western Carolina 30 University FALL 2006

Joe Crocker ’ 74 had long admired

the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation, which

in the past 70 years has directed more

than $ 360 million to nonprofit organiza-tions

and charitable activities that benefit

North Carolinians. So when offered the

chance to join the foundation last year as

director of operations, Crocker said yes.

He saw the move as an opportunity to

be closer to the philanthropic work he al-ready

was part of as senior vice president

and community affairs manager for the

Wachovia Corporation in Winston- Salem.

“ The foundation provided the oppor-tunity

to be involved full- time as opposed

to part- time,” said Crocker, former chair-man

of Western’s board of trustees. “ The

more you are in the community serving

the community through leadership and

board positions, the more you become

aware of the needs. Since I started my

working career, I have served on local

boards and worked with organizations

to help others. This is a culmination of

that beginning.”

Thomas W. Ross, executive director

of the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation,

said Crocker’s background in community

relations and economic development

made him an ideal choice for the orga-nization,

which processes 700 to 1,000

grant applications annually. Crocker’s

friends and colleagues also say the new

job is a perfect fit. “ Joe is an exceptional

individual and a tremendous asset to

the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation,” said

Harold Martin, senior vice president for

academic affairs for the University of

North Carolina system and former

chancellor at Winston- Salem State

University. “ He is a very serious, honest,

religious person driven to always do the

right thing. It’s just who Joe is.”

Ricky Shore, president of Aladdin

Travel & Meeting Planners, described

his former Wachovia coworker as just a

solid citizen. “ There is a book about the

purpose- driven life, and that is what Joe

is about,” said Shore. “ The move to the

Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation enables

him to come closer to fulfilling a purpose-driven

life.”

The list of organizations that Crocker

has helped lead or contribute to is long,

including Western Carolina University,

the North Carolina Rural Center, the

North Carolina Public School Forum, the

North Carolina Network of Grantmakers,

Donors Choose, the North Carolina Medi-cal

Care Commission, the Mint Museum

in Charlotte, Family Guidance Center,

the Inter- Faith Housing Development

Corporation of Hickory, Catawba County

United Way, Catawba Valley Community

College and Catawba Memorial Hospital.

What Crocker brings to the organiza-tions

that he assists is a listening- based,

inquisitive and decisive leadership style.

“ At meetings, I would be amazed how

many questions he would ask,” said

Catherine Lough, director of develop-ment

at the North Carolina Center for

the Advancement of Teaching. Lough

got to know Crocker when they

both worked for Wachovia. “ You knew

he would ask questions, and he would ask

the hard questions until he was satisfied

that he had a full understanding of the

issue,” said Lough, adding that he also is a

people person who is quick with a smile.

“ You instantly feel comfortable and at

home around Joe. He really puts people

at ease.”

Lucky for Western, Crocker has kept

room in his heart and made time for his

alma mater. He has served two terms

on the university’s board of trustees

and made history as WCU’s first African

American board chairman, during a time

of tremendous growth.

Indirectly, too, he and his wife, Carol

Vaughan Crocker ’ 75, have had a hand

in recruiting at least two students. One

was their daughter Marcella, who said

she grew to love the mountains and the

school during their many visits back to

Cullowhee for football games and other

events. “ He’s been bringing us here to

Western ever since I can remember,”

said Marcella Crocker ’ 05. The other

was their daughter’s longtime friend and

Lough’s daughter, Betsy Walker ’ 05, who

joined the Crockers on one of those trips

west. “ Carol was a music major and took

Betsy around,” Lough said. “ There was

something so special that appealed

to Betsy that she came home right away

and said, ‘ That’s where I want to go.’

She sat at the kitchen table and filled

out her application.”

Purpose- Driven Life

Zest for Philanthropy Guides Career

By Teresa Kilian

alumniAchievements

WCU is a family tradition for

Carol Vaughan Crocker ’ 75,

Marcella Crocker ’ 05 and

Joe Crocker ’ 74.

FALL 2006 The Magazine of Western Carolina University 31

Lt. Col William “ Bill” Lochridge IV ’ 65 cannot forget the

reason he spends his days protecting the waters around New

York. The commander of the New York State Military Emer-gency

Boat Service can still see the scattered shoes and the body

of a fallen firefighter, even though 9/ 11 was five years ago.

Lochridge also cannot forget the “ Pier 92” family of

emergency responders who grew so close that he and his fiancé

relocated their October 2001 wedding to the Ground Zero

Command Center. Then- Mayor Rudy Giuliani performed the

ceremony. “‘ We need an uplifting event like this,’ Giuliani told

me,” said Lochridge.

The 22- year veteran of the computer and communications

industry who also served two tours in Vietnam was feeding

breakfast to his yellow lab, Chance, when he heard that a plane

hit the World Trade Center, turned on his TV and watched the

unthinkable. “ My commanding general called and instructed me

to find a way into the city,” said Lochridge, a member of the New

York Naval Militia. “ I told the general that all bridges and tun-nels

into the city were closed, traffic congestion was horrendous,

and all non- military and law enforcement aircraft were re- routed

or grounded. He said, ‘ Lochridge, you find a way in.’”

His way was a friend’s 36- foot high- speed power boat

named the Huntress, which picked him up at the Greenwich

Yacht Club. They traveled to the 23rd Street Marina through

three Coast Guard blockades. “ The memories of those first

few days shall always be with me: the smell; the powdery ash

covered with paper from offices that once were occupied; shoes

littering the ground; a flattened baby stroller in front of the

Millennium Hotel; crushed fire trucks and police cars around

the impact site; and an American flag that I watched, on the

first night, as it broke loose from its pole, flew through currents

of hot air and caught itself on a lamp post,” said Lochridge. “ It

never touched the ground.”

For the next 51 days, Lochridge and others at Ground Zero

worked 18- to 22- hour shifts. Lochridge helped coordinate the

flow of materials needed at Ground Zero. He directed installa-tion

of defensive security and safety systems for the Command

Center on Pier 92 and coordinated with the Coast Guard and

police marine units for waterfront security.

Meanwhile, fast approaching was his wedding day to a

woman from Germany who had been a professional ballerina

that he first met when he was a student at Western. Twice, he

proposed. Twice, she said no. Finally, in 2000, they reconnected.

“ Only this time, she asked me to marry her,” Lochridge said.

“ Amen.”

On their wedding day, a police car drove them from

LaGuardia International Airport to the command center near

Ground Zero, which had been decorated with everything from

floral arrangements to a wedding cake from the Red Cross.

Military personnel joined New York and New Jersey state police,

firefighters, sanitation workers and state and federal emergency

workers in an honor guard that led to the Command Center

podium. Instead of “ Here Comes the Bride,” a piper played the

“ Marine Corps Hymn.” When Giuliani asked Lochridge if he was

ready to get married, he said, “ Yes, sir. It’s only taken 37 years

since I first asked her.”

Emergency Responder Embraces New Mission, New Life

By Teresa Kilian

alumniAchievements

Triumph over Tragedy

Courage and Commitment Drive Alums Five Years After 9/ 11

Lt. Col. William “ Bill” Lochridge IV ’ 65 commands the

New York State Military Emergency Boat Service ( above).

Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani presided over

Lochridge’s wedding at a command center near Ground

Zero a month after 9/ 11 ( left).

The Magazine of Western Carolina 32 University FALL 2006

Former Catamount golfer 1st Lt. Sarah Parris ’ 00 broke

her back and injured her face when a Humvee in which she was

manning a gun turret flipped over. The vehicle had swerved to

avoid an Iraqi running toward the convoy – one of 50 Parris rode

in while serving with the 78th Security Forces Squadron.

In recognition of her service, Parris was honored at Robins

Air Force Base in May with the Bronze Star, a medal presented

for heroic or meritorious achievement of service, not involved in

aerial flight, in connection with operations against enemy forces.

Her responsibilities in Iraq included advising and mentoring

Iraqi soldiers at Camp Ur near the city of An Nasiriyah, a

nontraditional role for females in those areas. “ It was definitely

a challenge trying to get accustomed to the Iraqi culture,” she

said. “ It’s definitely not in my personality to accept treatment as

a second- class citizen just because I’m a woman. It took a month

or so for the Iraqis to get used to women being assertive and

in positions of authority. The main thing was respecting their

culture, taking things slowly and showing them that we can all

work together.”

In addition to training soldiers, Parris helped create several

security plans. One was developed for the high- profile Iraqi

elections in October and December, enabling more than 2,000

soldiers to travel

to An Nasiriyah to

vote. She helped

develop standards

not only for Camp

Ur, but also define

the path taken

by coalition forces

in Iraq.

“ I’ve enjoyed

my experience, and

I will value this

honor for the rest

of my life,” said Parris, who separated from the Air Force this

summer and plans to work as a physical education teacher. At

Western, her athletic achievements landed her in 11th place on

the university’s all- time golfing career scoring charts with 6,458

strokes in 76 total rounds for a stroke average of 84.97. “ I am

looking forward to being ‘ Coach P’,” she said.

Reprinted in edited form with permission of the Robins Air Force Base

newspaper, the Robins Rev- Up.

Catamount Alumna Earns Bronze Star

By 2nd Lt. Sequoiya L. Franks

Darkhorse Marine Decorated for Valor

By Cpl. Mark Sixbey

alumniAchievements

Maj. Gen. Richard Natonski presented the

Bronze Star Medal with Combat Distinguishing

Device to 1st Lt. Alfred L. Butler IV ’ 01 ( right).

U. S. Marine photo by Cpl. Mark Sixbey.

Col. Theresa C. Carter, 78th Air Base Wing Commander,

presents a citation for meritorious service to 1st Lt Sarah

Parris ’ 00 ( right). U. S. Air Force photo by Sue Sapp.

Darkhorse Marine 1st Lt. Alfred L. Butler IV ’ 01 was deco-rated

with the nation’s fourth- highest award for valor by the 1st

Marine Division commanding general.

Maj. Gen. Richard Natonski presented the Bronze Star

Medal with Combat Distinguishing Device to Butler, weapons

company executive officer, 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment,

outside the battalion’s command post in May. “ I knew his father,

and I think he’s following in his footsteps,” Natonski said. “ This

is his third deployment to Iraq, and he’s done a marvelous job

over here.”

The 27- year- old from Jacksonville earned the award for his

actions and leadership while commanding an 81mm mortar

platoon on Dec. 23, 2004, during combat operations in Fallujah.

“ It was one of those days when everyone ran out of ammo,” said

Butler. “ We even used AK- 47s.”

As insurgents ambushed his platoon, Butler rushed to the

attack where he found several men pinned under heavy auto-matic

weapons fire on a stairwell. He evacuated them from the

house and learned insurgents had isolated additional men on

the second floor. He quickly organized an assault force and

raced to an adjacent house under constant small arms fire to

recover the men.

The platoon commander led his team as they cleared two

buildings, jumping from roof to roof to reach them. He shielded

the bodies of the fallen Marines when a grenade landed nearby,

then threw two grenades into a room filled with insurgents.

While delivering cover fire, Butler moved the men across to

an adjacent rooftop, personally evacuating a wounded Marine

under constant small arms fire and grenade attacks. His actions

preserved the lives of the men.

Butler credited the decoration to the Marines under his

command. “ I owe those Marines my life,” he said. “ The things

they did that day are the sort of things you read about in books.

What they do for each other and what they sacrifice for each

other makes you not want to leave

the Marine Corps.”

Butler was only 5 years old

when his father, Marine Maj. Alfred Butler

III, was killed in Beirut. Butler said most of

what he knows of his father he learned from

Marines like Maj. Gen. Natonski who served with

him. “ From what I understand, he was a great

man, great Marine, husband and father,”

said Butler, who is currently on duty in

Iraq. “ If I can be half of that, I think

I’ll be fine.”

Reprinted in edited form with permission

of the U. S. Marine Corps.

FALL 2006 The Magazine of Western Carolina University 33

The Class Notes section features news about

personal or professional accomplishments

of Western graduates. Alumni are listed

in the year in which they earned their first

degree at Western. City and county names not

otherwise identified are in North Carolina.

• class NOTES•

1939

Darnell Phillips Spann received

special recognition for Mother’s

Day this year. As the oldest mom

attending worship that day at Pilot

Baptist Church, she was presented

with a vase of red roses. Spann

lives in Zebulon.

1965

Dale Hollifield and wife Dianne

’ 66 were honored in May as the

Southern Conference Distinguished

Service Award winners from

Western. Each member institution

selects honorees based on their

overall contributions to the school.

The Distinguished Service Award

honors select individuals who

have gone above and beyond the

call to help Southern Conference

institutions better achieve their

goals to the benefit of thousands

of student- athletes. In 1995, Dale

retired from United Parcel Service

with 28 ½ years of service, and

Dianne has spent her entire career

in education, teaching at various

levels and in many areas. Both

have been lifelong supporters of

Western athletics, academics

and the arts.

1971

It is a reunion of sorts for

Timothy C. Jacobs MAEd ’ 75

MA ’ 99, former director of

WCU’s A. K. Hinds University

Center, who is serving as interim

director for the University Union

at the University of North Texas

“ as a favor” to his ex- boss at

Western. Bonita Jacobs ( no

relation), former associate vice

chancellor for student affairs

at WCU and current vice president

for student development at

UNT, asked Jacobs in January

to step in and run the student

union until a permanent director

is named. He is in charge of a

198,000- square- foot facility

with more than 65 employees.

The facility averages 17,500

users a day at the 32,000-

student university.

1974

Chairman of Sylva’s WestCare

Health System board of trustees

since 2005, Jim Manring MBA

’ 76 in April received a state trustee

service award at the Annual

N. C. Hospital Leaders Institute

of the North Carolina Hospital

Association. The trustee service

awards recognize hospital trustees

who, through their leadership,

have made significant and unique

contributions to their hospitals

and the communities they serve.

A member of WestCare’s board

of trustees since 1996, Manring is

director of planned giving

at Western.

1975

After 30 years in education— the

past 23 at West Henderson High

School in Henderson County—

cross country coach and guidance

counselor Greg Price MAEd

’ 76 retired in June. Before going

to West Henderson in 1983,

he was at Rugby Middle School

and Highlands High School. “ My

daughter is graduating ( from

West Henderson High) this year,

so I thought I’d graduate with

her,” he told the Times- News

of Hendersonville. Among the

trophies and plaques his student-athletes

have won over the

years are boys’ and girls’ state

championships in 1993 and the

boys’ state championship again

in 1995.

1976

Recently selected as one of four

supervisors in the United States for

NCAA women’s basketball, Judith

L. Stroud MAEd ’ 81 has reached

a milestone in women’s basketball:

She has played, coached, officiated

and— beginning in September— will

supervise officials, bringing her

involvement in the sport to

more than 30 years. A resident of

Hendersonville, Stroud is an agent

with State Farm Insurance and a

member of Western’s College of

Business Advisory Board.

1977

Previously vice president for

academic affairs at Western

Piedmont Community College in

Morganton, Jim Burnett MAEd

’ 84 EdS ’ 92 became the college’s

fifth president in January. An

alumnus of WPCC and honored

as WPCC Alumnus of the Year in

2001, he joined the staff in 1973

as coordinator of veterans’

affairs and then served in various

positions, including dean of student

services, registrar and adjunct

business instructor.

1978

After more than 10 years with

theaters in Kansas City, Boston and

Providence, Jeff Clark returned

to his home state last spring as

executive director of the Mariam

and Robert Hayes Performing Arts

Center in Blowing Rock. His job

includes executing the business

plan and creating programming

and patron services for the new

center, scheduled to open in

August after almost five years

of arduous fundraising for the

15- year- old dream.

1979

After holding many positions

with Angel Medical Center in

Franklin over the past 15 years,

Jean Sprinkle recently returned

to a position she held 10 years

ago— director of Home Health and

Hospice. The agency offers patients

and their families education,

training, treatments and therapy,

as well as bereavement counseling

for up to one year after the death

of a loved one.

1980

Retired director of administrative

services for Cleveland County

Schools, Steve C. Borders

MAEd EdS ’ 82 recently was

appointed to serve as interim

superintendent of the school

system, beginning in July. He served

as teacher, assistant principal and

principal in Cleveland County

before becoming administrative

services director, a position he held

for three years before retiring with

30 years in N. C. public schools.

1982

Serving as Western’s acting

registrar since October, Larry

Hammer MS ’ 96 ( pictured above)

in June was appointed registrar.

Prior to moving to the Registrar’s

Office in October, he was

information systems coordinator

for enrollment management at

Western. Hammer and wife Darla

live in Sylva with son Paul and

daughter Elizabeth.

1983

Commander Wesley S. Trull has

retired from the U. S. Coast Guard

after serving almost 23 years in

the armed forces. Commissioned

a second lieutenant in the U. S.

Army after college, he transferred

to the Coast Guard in 1987. His

last assignment was at the U. S.

Coast Guard Air Station in San

Francisco, where he served as the

unit’s operations officer and the

executive officer.

1985

After 21 years in the U. S. Air Force,

Lance Sigmon has retired as a

lieutenant colonel and opened a

law practice in Newton. During

his military career, he served as

a military trial judge, the chief

appellate government counsel for

the Air Force, the chief prosecutor

The Magazine of Western Carolina 34 University FALL 2006

Deborah Potter ’ 80 used to sign off her deejay slots at

Western Carolina University’s radio station with “ I love you

Cullowhee!” The station played everything from Steely Dan to

The Rolling Stones, and Potter’s discovery of how much she

loved working there set the course for a career in the communi-cations

field that led her to a position today as press secretary

for U. S. Rep. Charles Taylor, who was recently awarded an

honorary doctorate at Western.

Potter had planned to become a school teacher when

she enrolled at Western, but switched her major to radio and

television. She graduated summa cum laude on a Saturday

and went to work for WLOS- TV in Asheville the following

Monday. After six months of working as a video editor ( and six

months of “ bugging” the news director), she began reporting.

During her time at WLOS and at WSPA in Spartanburg, she

covered stories including the Republican National Convention

in New Orleans when then- Vice President George H. W. Bush

was nominated as a presidential candidate. Potter cried in

the newsroom when she heard the missing children of South

Carolinian Susan Smith were found dead in a lake. She spent

long days covering the search for Atlanta Olympics bomber

Eric Rudolph. Potter then moved to an editing position at the

Asheville Citizen- Times, where Jim Buchanan ’ 83, editorial

page associate editor, said Potter was always a friendly, reliable

“ go- to” person. “ When you wanted something taken care of,

you could direct it to her and it would be done,” Buchanan said.

Taylor had called her “ out of the blue” to ask her to join

his staff, she said. They talked about his initiatives and vision

for Western North Carolina. “ I was amazed because I had not

heard about them, and he said that was why he needed me as

a press secretary— to help more people learn about them. He

said, ‘ You know, Deborah, if I’m successful at what I want to

do, then maybe by the time your girls get out of college, they’ll

be able to find a job here and won’t have to move away like my

sons.’ I thought about that a lot.”

Potter, a mother of two, joined Taylor’s staff nearly three

years ago, and Taylor said she has brought a new level of

professionalism to their office. “ A lot of the initiatives we are

working on are very complex, and Deborah has been successful

at working with our district media to keep the public informed

of what we are working on,” Taylor said.

Potter has had the chance to visit Western’s campus

several times to observe some of the growth Taylor has helped

make happen. She visited the Center for Applied Technology, a

28,000- square- foot facility that was the first new building

constructed on Western’s campus in more than 17 years.

Nearly $ 8 million in federal funds enabled its construction.

“ I thought how cool it would have been to use all that great

equipment with all the bells and whistles,” Potter said. “ I was

proud to be working with someone who did so much to make

that building a reality.”

Capitol Communication

Catamount Works With Congressman

By Teresa Killian

for Europe and the Middle East,

and a military defense counsel.

His new practice will involve the

representation of any member of

the military accused of a crime

and facing trial by court- martial.

Under the Uniform Code of

Military Justice, military personnel

accused of a crime may elect to be

represented by a civilian attorney

at trial. Sigmon’s practice will be

based in Newton, but he will travel

worldwide to represent clients.

1987

Kings Mountain Middle School

seventh- grade language arts

teacher Cynthia Jean Cook

in March was selected a Star

Teacher and recognized at the

16th annual Time Warner Cable

Star Teacher banquet at Gardner-

Webb University. Before receiving

certification in middle grades

language arts in 1998, she was

a K– 4 resource teacher for two

years, then spent about nine

years working with children with

disabilities in a regular education

setting. Cook also has acquired

certification in academically

intellectually gifted education. Last

year, she was voted Kings Mountain

Middle School’s teacher of the year.

1990

In April 2005, Rick Gardin,

lead counselor for group homes

for challenged youth in Burke

County, began the Heroes for

Christ Youth Sports Organization,

a Christian- based organization

that hosts three basketball teams

for boys and girls ages 8 to 17.

Although the organization has

a Christian emphasis, Gardin

says it is unaffiliated with a single

denomination. “ Basketball is just

a way to get them here,” he told

The News Herald of Morganton.

“ We have another agenda: to teach

them character and respect. We

want to teach the kids the basic

fundamentals of basketball and how

sports can relate to life.”

1991

The list of achievements keeps

growing for Hayesville High School

English teacher Marianne Leek

MAT ’ 01 ( pictured above), who

inspires students to learn through

assignments centered on personal

reflection. In addition to earning

National Board Certification, two

Hayesville High School Teacher

of the Year awards and the 2003

North Carolina Character Educator

of the Year, Leek is the 2005- 06

Teacher of the Year for Region

8 in North Carolina. “ Marianne

exemplifies the type of teacher that

we aspire to prepare at Western,”

said Michael Dougherty, dean of

the College of Education and Allied

Professions. “ She understands

and effectively demonstrates the

three ‘ Rs’ in the correct order:

relationship, relevance and rigor.”

Lisa Majors- Duff joined the

American Cancer Society as an

income manager in June 2005.

Her responsibilities include

generating more than $ 250,000

in contributions in Jackson and

• classNOTES•

Deborah Potter ’ 80 joins U. S. Rep. Charles Taylor on a tour

of Western’s biology and chemistry research facilities.

Continued on page 36

FALL 2006 The Magazine of Western Carolina University 35

Western’s registrar

Larry Hammer ’ 82 MS

’ 96 vividly remembers his

friend Dr. Sal Lettieri ’ 83

walking down the hall in

the Natural Sciences

Building reading his physi-cal

chemistry textbook

aloud – in French.

Lettieri was a student

to the extreme: He didn’t

just study foreign language.

He became fluent, tutored

others and considered at-tending

school in Montreal.

Instead, the chemistry and

mathematics major went to

medical school in North Carolina and pursued postdoctoral work

at Johns Hopkins Hospital and Maryland Shock Trauma Center.

Today, the student has emerged a teacher. Lettieri shares his

expertise as a plastic surgeon specializing in trauma reconstruc-tion

with residents at the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine in

Arizona. “ The difficulty is fewer and fewer plastic surgeons are

willing to do trauma reconstruction exclusively,” said Lettieri,

who was drawn to the profession for the variety of work. “ The

lifestyle can have long, unpredictable hours, and the reimburse-ment

for such procedures is diminishing.”

His patients range from burn victims to people with ad-vanced

cancer, such as a patient whose jaw eroded as a result of

a tumor or treatment. Episodes of the TV show “ Saving Life and

Limb” highlighted how Lettieri helped repair a woman’s scalp

after a dog attack and reconstruct the face of a man injured in

a lawn mower accident. Royce Woosley, the head of Western’s

chemistry department when Lettieri was a student, said the lawn

mower injury documentary was hard to watch and yet incredible.

“ The man who Sal did surgery on

had had a mustache most of his

life that was destroyed, and he

said on the show that he was very

pleased Dr. Lettieri was able to re-store

it as he built a new upper lip,”

Woosley said. “ It was amazing.”

Lettieri said he feels very

fortunate to have built a career

around something he is happy

doing and for which he has an

aptitude. Before he started college,

the math whiz considered pursu-ing

a career in engineering and

enrolled at Western with every

intention of transferring to N. C.

State University. “ I ended up

liking Western so much that I just stayed and majored in math

and chemistry,” he said.

After graduation, Lettieri spent a year as a graduate assistant

with the chemistry department at Western. He considered dental

school but, as a senior, decided he would rather pursue medicine.

Lettieri lacked the biology credits other medical school applicants

had, having decided to apply so late in his undergraduate career.

He was not accepted the first time, but Woosley and other faculty

helped him prepare to reapply during his year as a graduate as-sistant

and supported his dream however possible. “ I we