Posted on Friday, October 29, 2021
It’s time to release all that pent-up Panther Pride at this weekend’s in-person Homecoming celebrations.
“Last year, we had to do a virtual Homecoming because of COVID,” said Martha Pirkle, Director of Alumni and Community Relations. “While we had wonderful participation, there is nothing like seeing everyone face to face. We can’t wait to gather this weekend to celebrate all that makes LaGrange College special.”
The festivities will commence today at the 2021 Alumni Awards Luncheon to honor this year’s Shackelford Alumni Achievement Award winners Michael Thorp Fay ’86 and Cheryl Blasingame Garing ’98, as well as Outstanding Young Alumni Award honoree Eric Keels ’10 Ph.D.
Honorary alumni Charlene Baxter and Linda Cole will be recognized, and David Fowler ’86 will be inducted posthumously into the Sports Hall of Fame. See bios below.
Other activities Friday include the 2 p.m. dedications of the Glover Garden, named in recognition a gift from Shearon ’72 and Taylor Glover, and the Flagpole in honor of Kappa Sigma fraternity founded as Gamma Phi Alpha, a gift from Bill ’72, H’14 and Sheila Hodges.
Friday evening, the fun will shift to Overlook Plaza downtown, next to Wild Leap Brew Co., for Flashback Friday night. Two signature cocktails have been created by Wild Leap for the occasion: Spirit and Spice and Panther Pumpkin Mule.
The Reasons Why band that includes several alumni returns to provide music, while food trucks J’Bo’s Grill Pit on Wheels, Chucky D’s Deli and Crave Cookie Co. will be onsite.
The family-friendly event will also include games and activities for children.
On Saturday, the Red and Black Reunion Row in the Callaway Auditorium parking lot will be anchored by a registration tent from 10 a.m. until the end of halftime. Alumni are encouraged to sign in and mingle with college friends. Kickoff for the Homecoming game vs. Greensboro will be at 1 p.m., and the king and queen will be crowned at halftime.
At Lamar Dodd Art Center, an exhibition of photograms by alumnae Ann Hutchinson Beason HA'14 and Merri Herbert Lawrence '77 will be featured from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m.
Phi Mu, Kappa Delta and Alpha Omicron Pi are marking 50 years on the Hill with activities including tailgates and open houses from 4:30-6 p.m. The day will conclude with the Sorority 50th Celebration at 6 p.m. at Highland Country Club.
“I am so grateful for the amazing committee of Greek sorority alumni, chaired by Becky Johnson Loveless ’10, which have planned a fabulous evening to celebrate national sororities on the Hill,” Pirkle said.
The weekend will conclude with the annual Memorial Service at 11 a.m. at Callaway Auditorium. It will honor the lives of alumni and members of the LC community who have passed away since Homecoming 2019. For a list of those being remembered, visit here.
Charlene Baxter is a retired director of LaGrange College’s Frank and Laura Lewis Library. She grew up in Bowdon, Georgia, and received her bachelor’s degree from West Georgia University and a master’s in library sciences from the George Peabody College of Vanderbilt University.
She began work at LaGrange College in 1976 as Technical Services Librarian, a position she held until 2013. She worked under directors Frank Lewis and then Loren Pinkerman before becoming Library Director in 2013.
While at LaGrange, Baxter was known for her professionalism, kindness and spirit. Described as soft-spoken but direct, her desire to help people and natural curiosity to find answers were a natural fit to her work. She would often stay extremely busy the first few weeks of each academic year helping new students and those entering a new major.
Extremely passionate about the history of the college, she enjoys sharing it with others. She has given multiple informative presentations to various groups and written on research topics related to LC’s history.
Baxter also has served as president of the Friends of LaGrange Memorial Library and as a member Sierra Club, the American Library Association and the Azalea Storytelling Committee of Lafayette Society for Performing Arts.
Baxter retired from LaGrange College in 2019.
Linda Cole of Cumming, Georgia, is chief nurse and hospital operations officer at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. She earned a bachelor’s degree from the Medical College of Georgia and a master’s in business administration from Georgia State University.
At Children’s Healthcare, she is the lead executive for nursing for three hospitals and for patient experience across the system. She has served as president of trauma and emergency services and chief nurse and hospital operations officer. Before joining Children’s Healthcare, she was a staff nurse at Northside Hospital where she held positions including director of emergency services and vice president of emergency services.
At LaGrange College, Cole has served as a member of the Panther Club Leadership Team and the Board of Trustees, including being a part of the presidential search committee in 2019. She is a longtime supporter of athletics and mother of two LC alumni, student-athletes Alex Sapp ’10 and Kevin Sapp ’13.
Cole has also been president of the Cumming-Forsyth Chamber of Commerce and has taken on roles with Leadership Forsyth, United Way of Forsyth County, Georgia Trauma Commission, Association of American Healthcare Executives, Miles for Cystic Fibrosis, North Forsyth Rotary and Atlanta Ronald McDonald House Charities.
In her spare time, Cole enjoys running, traveling and supporting the Panther football program along with another red-and-black themed collegiate team.
David Fowler ’85 (1963-2018) was a LaGrange native and graduated summa cum laude from LaGrange College and from Walter F. George School of Law at Mercer University in 1988. While at LaGrange, he was a member of the Kappa Sigma fraternity.
Fowler followed his father – the late B. Delma Fowler ’54, one of the first male students at LC and namesake of the college’s basketball MVP award – to the Hill.
He was a president of the Rotary Club of LaGrange, where he was named Rotarian of the Year in 2009 and was a multi-time Paul Harris Fellow, Will Watt Fellow and Walter Y. Murphy Fellow. Fowler was also a board member of the LaGrange Art Museum as well as a member of the planned giving committee of the West Georgia Health System Foundation and the LaGrange Gridiron Club.
Notably, he helped form the LC Panther Club to raise funds for student-athletes. Fowler served as an adjunct professor at LaGrange College and a lay eucharistic minister at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church. He was named to the LC Wall of Outstanding Alumni in 2010.
Fowler was an attorney for 30 years and, near the end of his life, served as a Municipal Court Judge for the City of LaGrange. He also was a vice president and treasurer of the Troup County Bar Association, president of the Coweta Circuit Bar Association and was a member of the State Bar of Georgia.
Congratulations to the newest members of the Kappa Delta Pi International Honor Society in Education who were inducted Wednesday. They included Lauren Collins, Music Education; and Elementary Education students Noah Stanford, Jasmine Middleton, Taylor Hill, Kaela Busby, Cristinne Bottica, Gracie Amonett, Mary Kate Tucker, Zoe Duncan, Olivia Baldwin, Lindsey Estes and JC Barnes.
“Tales from the Hill,” written by English professor Dr. Jack Slay, continues its run at Proce Theater through Saturday. Show time is 5 p.m. and tickets must be purchased by emailing priceboxoffice@lagrange.edu. Mature audiences only.
Check LC Connect for Virtual CE events and instructions. For in-person events, all COVID guidelines apply.
THROUGH SUNDAY
LC Young Alumni Virtual Interview Series – George Lankford ’11
TUESDAY
Completing Your Ethos Portfolio
11:15 a.m., Corn Auditorium in Lewis Library
Student Health Fair
11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m., library plaza
Golf
Freshman Luke Jarvis was selected as the USA South Golf Rookie of the Week after tying for 14th at the Chick-fil-A Collegiate Invitational in Rome, Georgia. As a team, LC was 10th in its final tournament on the fall schedule.
Volleyball
The Panthers (4-17, 4-10 USA South) lost 3-1 to Huntingdon on Wednesday night in Richter Gym. Seniors Ariel Modeste and Adreona Bowen were honored before the game. Journey Oden led LC with a match high 18 kills.
Men’ Soccer
The Panthers (7-5-1, 2-3-1 USA South) closed out their season with a 2-1 Senior Day win over Warren Wilson last Sunday. Nine seniors were honored before the game.
Women’s Soccer
LC (5-6-1, 3-4-1 USA South) ended its season with a 5-1 loss at Maryville last Saturday. Sydney Saul scored the Panthers’ goal.
Football
The Panthers (1-6, 1-4 USA South) lost 52-16 at Maryville last Saturday. Freshman quarterback Tyler Coleman threw for 203 yards and two touchdowns.
Women’s Basketball
The Panthers were fourth in the USA South West Division coaches poll released by the conference Wednesday. The Panthers open the 2021-22 season Nov. 6 on the road against Oglethorpe.
Men’s Basketball
LC was fifth in the USA South West Division coaches poll as released by the conference Thursday. The Panthers host Pensacola Christian on Nov. 8 in the 2021-22 season opener.
(Please note that schedules may change due to circumstances beyond our control. Please check www.lagrangepanthers.com to confirm.)
Saturday
Check out some of the highlights planned for this weekend's Homecoming.
Category: Events, Students, Arts and Culture, Academics, Faculty, College, Community
Keywords: Homecoming alumni
