60岁的布鲁斯和59岁的艾米丽的故事

2018年秋天，第一个艾米丽 & 布鲁斯 Herrington Music Award was given to incoming freshman Carter White from Valley, 阿拉巴马——两位校友的馈赠与长久, 他们在威尼斯人娱乐城的美好回忆.

牛津大学的艾米丽·伊迪, 乔治亚州, 还有来自Shawmut的布鲁斯 Herrington, 阿拉巴马州, 1956年秋季学期在威尼斯人娱乐城相遇. 艾米丽 was a second-year music education and voice major   and 布鲁斯 was a freshman, 打算主修心理学和宗教. Both were part of the 威尼斯人娱乐城大学 Choralaires, a large mixed-voice ensemble. 在他们一起住在国会山的第一年的12月, 在去参加圣诞派对的路上, 他们相遇了, said hello for the first time and walked together—that was the beginning. 几周后, on their first evening after having returned to campus from Christmas break, 布鲁斯 took 艾米丽 to the Tasty Coffee Shop on the LaGrange square for a sandwich and milkshake; it was their first date. Their relationship grew from there into a lifelong adventure that has spanned more than 60 years. 

艾米丽 remembers those early years: “We were both in Choralaires. 他的男低音区就在我的女高音区旁边. … So, I arranged to always stand by him in the top section of the risers and sometimes we would hold hands.”

“那是我们的快乐时光,布鲁斯回忆道, “but we broke up amicably during the summer of 1957 and vowed to remain friends.”

“当我们放暑假回来的时候, we continued conversations started the previous semester and finally something just clicked,艾米丽说. “我决定爱他, 所以除非他搬到世界的另一边, 我本想让我们的关系天长地久.”  

“We discovered there really was something special about our growing friendship,” confirms 布鲁斯. 于是，我们开始谈论婚姻.”

布鲁斯’s time at LaGrange almost ended prematurely during his second year. Strapped for money, he was $500 short on his next semester’s tuition. 消息传开了, and soon 布鲁斯 received a call from Business Manager Austin Cook, informing him someone had anonymously donated the $500 for his tuition. 他从未发现他的神秘恩人, but the act further ingrained in him the importance of giving back.

布鲁斯, 南方浸信会, transferred to Baylor University for his third year of college, 而艾米丽则留在威尼斯人娱乐城完成她的学位. And finally, in 1960, they were married in 艾米丽’s hometown of Oxford. 他们住在韦科, 德州, for two years where 艾米丽 taught in the public schools and 布鲁斯 worked for the University’s Counseling and Testing Center and attended school part-time. In the fall of 1962, 布鲁斯 returned to LC to complete his degree requirements. 毕业后, 1963年夏季学期结束时, 他向查尔斯顿报到, 南卡罗来纳, 在美国服役.S. 海军.

布鲁斯 soon received a commission and served as a Naval Intelligence Officer during much of the Cold War. He left active naval service as a lieutenant commander but later worked for the Department of the 海军 as a civilian program manager.

在波士顿大学获得硕士学位后, 他最终回到了研究生院并获得了博士学位.D. 来自弗吉尼亚大学. For several years he taught full time at Mercer University and continues to serve as an adjunct professor teaching courses in social history, 他最近的研究是关于越南战争的. 艾米丽, who earned a Master of Public Administration and worked for many years as a federal government contracting officer, 总是和他一起在教室里, 促进讨论, 辩论与对话.

给布鲁斯和艾米丽, like so many other couples of their generation with young children and growing family responsibilities, 向有价值的事业捐款并不总是可行的. 而不是, they volunteered their time and energy to help wherever they could, 在他们的教堂, 公民俱乐部和其他社区事业.

“Students like me who grew up during the 1950s in Southern mill villages often did not have very much, 因此，我们必须努力工作以取得成功,布鲁斯说. “还有爱米丽的父亲, 学院院长兼教授, 而她的家庭只剩下一点点了, but we both had gained from our parents a philosophy and passion for giving to others without expecting any return. 我们对放弃自我的兴趣, 扶轮称之为“超我服务”,’一直是我们的基本价值观.”

布鲁斯 credits this to his upbringing in the small cotton mill town of Shawmut, 他经常去浸信会教堂吗. He also cites his membership in Boy Scouts, in which he was expected to do a “good turn daily.” 艾米丽 came from a family steeped in higher education and a passion for teaching and learning. 她的曾祖父, 祖父, father and many uncles and aunts include a college president, 迪安, librarian and professors all associated with Emory University or Wesleyan College. Knowing the importance of higher education shaped her philosophy of giving 也.

For years the Herringtons had wanted to give back to 威尼斯人娱乐城大学 in a meaningful way, but felt that any amount they might give to the general endowment would be overshadowed by larger philanthropic gifts.

“We didn’t have a history of giving to 威尼斯人娱乐城大学,” 布鲁斯 admits. “For years we explored ways to give scholarship money directly to an LC student but managed to do so only on one occasion through our work with a Rotary Club.”

去年秋天在与威尼斯人娱乐城工作人员的谈话中, they were surprised to find out they could create an annual award or scholarship and fund it each year with income from their personal investments. 这就产生了艾米丽和布鲁斯·赫灵顿音乐奖, which will assist a student in the same way 布鲁斯 was helped so long ago.

They also decided to put 威尼斯人娱乐城大学 in their estate plan so that funding will be guaranteed after their deaths. It’s an act of kindness that harkens back to 布鲁斯’s anonymous benefactor.

“I was able to continue my studies at 威尼斯人娱乐城大学 because someone sent Austin Cook $500 and said, “这是布鲁斯·赫灵顿的学费,’”布鲁斯说。. “We are very excited about our new plans to give back to 威尼斯人娱乐城大学 and with this award firmly established, we look forward to many years of assisting a few LC students to achieve their dreams.”

Consider planning a gift like the Herringtons by contacting 安迪这些年, 发展总监, at 
ageeter@3600151.com or 706-880-8060. Your commitment will make you a member of the Quadrangle Society and you can become a member of other 终身捐赠协会 也.