Tri-County Honors Top Students
At Annual Awards Ceremony

CONTACT: LISA GARRETT, EXT. 2315

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 5/5/2000
(By Lisa Garrett)

PENDLETON- Don't rest on your laurels; instead enhance your lives by giving back to your communities through volunteerism, by celebrating others' victories and by helping others to deal with tragedies, Elouise James, a 1991 alumna of Tri-County Technical College's University Transfer program and site property manager at Hunters Glen Apartments, told a group of Tri-County Technical College students being honored at an annual awards ceremony.

Mrs. James discussed the metaphorical "community woodpile" in your neighborhood or town, where everyone resupplies or gives back to the community and families as needed. "Everyone in this room has either seen or been personally involved with some kind of community event, such as a church choir concert, a Girl or Boy Scout troop marching proudly in a parade, or you've heard about or seen the adult education class at the local community center. All of these are wonderful positive uplifting events," she said.

Then there is the other side of the coin -- the tragic car accident, the family whose house burned down, she continued.

"The individuals involved in these circumstances – whether happy or tragic-- did not come through them alone," she said. Family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, casual acquaintances, volunteers, and even sometimes complete strangers, rallied around to support these individuals in these tragic events and helped them up until they were able to stand alone."

Many of these same folks also came together to lend their time, experiences, talents and abilities to make happy events possible by supplying transportation for youth and/or meeting and training young people in some worthwhile pursuit, or through moral support in hospital waiting rooms. "They need the warmth that the wood can supply to hold themselves together for just one more day," she said.

"The community-sponsored activities, from which we all benefit and so greatly enhance the quality of all of our lives, would be impossible without community volunteers," she told the audience.

"The one key ingredient in all of the events mentioned above is caring, giving people. It is people who bring the wood to the pile -- just as it is people who will someday have the need and will take wood away. The good news is you don't have to wait for a tragedy to put up a supply.

"Each of you extremely talented, bright, promising young people not only have the opportunity, but the moral obligation, to add constantly to your community woodpile and to keep a candle glowing bright enough to light the way for some other person – young or not so young -- to get to the wood pile."

Mrs. James was elected to Clemson City Council in 1997 and is president of the Littlejohn Community Center Board of Directors and is a member of the Clemson Rotary Club and the South Carolina Municipal Association.

She said when she was a student in Tri-County's evening program, she never dreamed she would be as involved as she has been. "The doors that were opened for me, and will be opened to you, are yet unimagined and are only unlocked by your willingness to do for others," she said.

Following her graduation from Tri-County, Mrs. James entered Southern Wesleyan University where she earned a degree in Management of Human Resources. She later earned a master's in Human Resource Development from Clemson in 1997.

After her speech, the following awards were presented:

Lindsay B. Martin, of West Union, was named Outstanding Dental Assisting Student.

Alicia Sue Tennis, of Pickens, was named Outstanding Early Childhood Development Student.

Dennis Martin Junkins, Jr., of Anderson, was named Outstanding Industrial Mechanics Student.

Teresa Michelle Hayes, of Anderson, was named Outstanding Practical Nursing Student.

Adam Jim Porter, of Pickens, was named Outstanding Welding
Student.

Anna Christine Seyller, of Mountain Rest, was named Outstanding English Student.

Natalie Michelle Greene, of Seneca, was named Outstanding Math Student.

Alexei Chakhirev, of Pendleton, was named Outstanding Science Student.

Annie Michelle Makinson, of Seneca, was named Outstanding Humanities Student.

Tina Reid Scott, of Pendleton, was named Outstanding Social Sciences Student.

Laura Villegas, of Clemson was named Outstanding Comprehensive Studies Student.

Michelle Owens Love, of Anderson, was named Outstanding Student Support Services Student.

Gwendolyn Bloodworth Kilcrease, of Waterloo, received the Textile Management Mayfair Leadership Award.

Outstanding graduates in each department are:
Accounting - Xia Liao, of Clemson.

Associate Degree Nursing - Carol Annette Holt-Salter, of Seneca.

Associate in Arts - June Curtis Glenn, of Central.

Associate in Science - Stephen Thomas Blevins, of Anderson.

Business Technology – Shena Lekecia Rouse, of Belton.

Computer Technology - Lynne Reed Burden, of Hartwell, Georgia.

Criminal Justice Technology - Stephanie Michelle Nix, of Pickens.

Electronics Engineering Technology – Stephen Bryant Ezell, of Walhalla.

Engineering Graphics Technology - Deborah Ann Gould, of Anderson.

General Engineering Technology – Jacob Dean Webb and Mae Eliza Lee, both of Anderson.

Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning Technology - Demetrius Ralpheal Carson, of Anderson.

Industrial Electronics Technology - Michael Lee Culbertson, of Belton, Marian Stanislaus Sowinski, of Easley, and Kerry Randall Finley, of Easley.

Machine Tool Technology - Almond Chadwick LaMance, of Easley.

Medical Laboratory Technology - Rita Breedlove Anderson, of Easley.

Office Systems Technology - Anna Christine Seyller, of Mountain Rest.

Radio and Television Broadcasting - Kristi Elaine Burnsed, of Tamassee.

Textile Management Technology - Roy Granville Burrell, Jr., of Westminster.

Veterinary Technology- Robin Michele Christmus, of Anderson.
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