09 autumn reporter 1-20 - Franklin College
09 autumn reporter 1-20 - Franklin College
09 autumn reporter 1-20 - Franklin College
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professor Sam Hicks, a group of dedicated<br />
singers rehearsed, wrote scripts, built sets,<br />
made costumes, created the menu (sometimes<br />
cooked) and set up the facility for the annual<br />
Christmas dinners that attracted faculty, staff,<br />
students and members of the community.<br />
Each dinner transported the audience to the<br />
Middle Ages through food, entertainment and<br />
song. The dinners were originally held in the<br />
basement of the college chapel before it was<br />
remodeled — who can forget the duct tape<br />
that was needed to hang curtains on the<br />
concrete block walls? The dinner then moved<br />
to various locations over the years but kept<br />
its menu of wassail, “boar’s head” and figgy<br />
pudding and its tradition of beautiful a<br />
capella singing. These are great memories<br />
I share with my siblings and their spouses,<br />
Ruth (Park) Gallagher ’78, John Gallagher ’78,<br />
Bob Park ’80, Kelli DeMott Park ’81,<br />
Lynn (Park) Cruser ’81, Jim Cruser ’82,<br />
Shari (Park) Wilson ’83 and Tom Wilson ’83.<br />
We all participated in the Madrigal Singers<br />
together for more than six years.<br />
Hetty (Schott) Gray ’84: Because I love old<br />
buildings, I enjoyed all my classes in Old<br />
Main. The night it burned, I drove back to<br />
campus and watched as the firefighters fought<br />
the blaze. After the renovation, I was thrilled<br />
with the result! What a lovely, welcoming<br />
building. How lucky alumni are to have had<br />
an administration dedicated to preserving a<br />
piece of <strong>Franklin</strong> <strong>College</strong> heritage.<br />
Nancy (Hathaway) Vandell ’84: I remember a<br />
lot of SAC events, but one night a group of<br />
us went up to the fifth floor of Main to see if<br />
the rumor was true about someone hanging<br />
himself up there. We found a rope tied to a<br />
rafter that had been cut off. It convinced me.<br />
Kristy Brown ’86: I have many favorite<br />
memories of my days as a student at <strong>Franklin</strong><br />
<strong>College</strong>, but I particularly remember May<br />
Sing. This was an opportunity for the Greek<br />
organizations to pull together a musical<br />
presentation. If I remember correctly, it was<br />
hosted on a Sunday afternoon. Parents and<br />
family members came to watch, and all of<br />
the Greek organizations participated, putting<br />
a lot of effort into the theme, music and<br />
choreography. It was always great to see those<br />
performances and cheer for one another!<br />
Wendy (Shuler) Hagn ’86: I have many great<br />
college memories — a (small) dance in Cline<br />
Circle was a freshman orientation weekend<br />
“big” event in 1982. I also recall when several<br />
students had an impromptu mud wrestling<br />
tournament on Dame Mall (after the 1985<br />
fires)— messy fun! Times spent in PJs in the<br />
lounges of Elsey Hall with “just the girls,”<br />
“Dateless Wonders of America” events (Friday<br />
night gatherings in our Tri Delta sorority suite<br />
for those sisters who did not have dates) and<br />
sorority rush were fun experiences for a girl<br />
who grew up with only brothers! And friends<br />
with cars, nice ladies at <strong>Franklin</strong> First Baptist,<br />
Brown’s Regal Market (open 24 hours), JB’s<br />
Pizza King, Nick’s “Sweet Retreat,” all-campus<br />
bowling and movie nights were vital to an<br />
out-of-state student’s survival!<br />
Nora (Lowe) Brems ’87: A lot of my memories<br />
from my student days at FC are shaped by the<br />
fires that occurred in 1985. This memory<br />
sticks out to me because it was a turning point<br />
of sorts. A month after the Bryan Hall fire<br />
stunned the campus community, Old Main<br />
burned. My then-boyfriend and now-husband,<br />
Bill Brems ’87, and I helped carry student<br />
academic records from Old Main to the home<br />
of professor Tom Howald. It was such a<br />
poignant moment in time because it touched<br />
the very essence of what an academic<br />
institution is built to do — educate students.<br />
We were educated that day, not only on the<br />
importance of joining in to help save the<br />
integrity of the academic records, but we were<br />
educated on life and the bumps and curves<br />
that you encounter on your journey. In some<br />
ways it was a surreal experience, but it taught<br />
me so much about humanity, loyalty and<br />
giving back. At the risk of sounding trite, this<br />
was a turning point in my life that confirmed<br />
for me the vitality of <strong>Franklin</strong> <strong>College</strong> and the<br />
legacy that would coin the phrase, ‘rise from<br />
the ashes like the mythical Phoenix,’ aptly<br />
spoken by Former President and Chancellor<br />
William Bryan Martin.<br />
Sally (Bray) Brown ’87: Since I lived in<br />
<strong>Franklin</strong>, I worked for the physical plant for<br />
several summers. There were two or three of<br />
us summer helpers at any given time. For our<br />
work, we had two riding mowers; one was a<br />
tractor with a belly mower, and the other was<br />
a very “modern” Toro. We also had one or<br />
two push mowers, when we could keep them<br />
running! Still, we kept Elsey field, the football<br />
field and campus looking pretty good all<br />
summer. At that time, the physical plant was in<br />
a building across the railroad tracks; it leaked<br />
and had water standing in it. The walls were<br />
wet and rotting. When it rained or we caught<br />
up on mowing, we painted inside or hauled<br />
and moved things around campus as needed.<br />
One summer, before the Old Main fire, we<br />
shoveled “droppings” from the third floor,<br />
where pigeons made their home because it<br />
was open and in horrible repair. It was a hot<br />
and stinky job, but we did it with little fuss.<br />
I also remember living in Elsey Hall, with no<br />
air conditioning and unreliable heating in<br />
the winter. We shared just two phones on<br />
each floor! Still, I wouldn’t trade my college<br />
years for anything. I loved FC then and even<br />
more now as an alumna of <strong>20</strong>-plus years. I<br />
drive through the campus on my way to work,<br />
lunch and back home again every day, and it<br />
always fills me with a great sense of pride.<br />
Amy (Sebree) Crawford ’89: My roommate,<br />
Julia (Alberts) Puckett ’89, had known<br />
Dr. Lloyd Hunter, professor of history, before<br />
attending college so when it was finals week, he<br />
and his wife always invited us over for dinner.<br />
It was a great opportunity to be off campus for<br />
a bit of study relief and to enjoy hospitality and<br />
fun stories of a wonderful family. One time I<br />
had already taken my final in Hunter’s class,<br />
and we went to dinner where I walked in and<br />
found my graded blue book waiting in my<br />
chair. Years later, after I graduated, Hunter<br />
officiated at my wedding. His encouragement<br />
through my life and his role modeling are<br />
bright spots when I think of <strong>Franklin</strong> <strong>College</strong>.<br />
WWW.FRANKLINCOLLEGE.EDU AUTUMN <strong>20</strong><strong>09</strong> 51<br />
1970s