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04.25.07
Erskine students posed for a picture after the Drummond Center banquet.
Drummond Center celebrates accomplishments at fifth annual awards banquet The fifth annual Drummond Center Awards Banquet Tuesday night in Columbia turned out to be as much about the inspiration as the honoree. Spartanburg Mayor Bill Barnet was presented this year's award, but emphasized why the honor was particularly special to him – because it connected him with State Sen. John Drummond, for whom the center was named to promote the ideal of perpetuating statesmanship in South Carolina. "I am honored to find my name aligned in this way with yours," Barnet said to Drummond, who was among those in attendance. The Drummond Award winner said that he is "the son of a different place," having been raised in upstate New York. He came to South Carolina when his family's company expanded to the state. He shared the award with his parents, wife Valerie and children John, Will and Becca. "My wife and children are my life, and they define my hopes for a world that we all work to sustain and improve," Barnet said. The Spartanburg chief executive said Robert Frost was his favorite poet when he was young. Frost coined the phrase, "building soil," and Barnet used that phrase in describing Drummond's contributions to South Carolina. "We honor Senator Drummond and we all know why," Barnet said. "Senator Drummond built soil and did so by featuring civility —the capacity for, and the commitment to, the consideration of other people and ideas. As he does, I believe in this state, and I believe in its future." Barnet, who spent a great deal of time helping to reform education in South Carolina, said, "I do not know all the answers. I will continue to seek to worth with others, like you, to find those answers; but this I do know: education is the key." He encouraged those gathered to focus more on working together to achieve a common goal – making South Carolina a better place and an inclusive place – and less on finding fault. Barnet accepted the award with a "deep sense of humility" and said it is "affirmation of my passion for our community." In her introduction of the award winner, Drummond Center Board Chair Paula Harper Bethea, who presided over the evening's events, called Barnet "a gentleman, a gentle man and a gentle giant." "Bill's influence is seen all over our state," she said. "Bill Barnet always does what is right. Few private citizens have championed the cause of education as he has. What a difference he makes in our little corner of the world." Keynote speaker was Darla Moore, vice president of Rainwater Inc. and founder and chair of the Palmetto Institute, a nonprofit think tank aimed at bolstering per capita income in South Carolina. Moore was also quick to shine the spotlight on Drummond. "When I accept a request to speak, it is usually because a good friend has made the request or it is an audience that can help the Palmetto Institute spread and share its singular mission and message of improving the quality of life in South Carolina," she said. "While both of those reasons apply to this occasion, since my Palmetto Institute colleague Paula Harper Bethea asked me to speak, the real reason I accepted this engagement is so I could pay tribute to my hero, John Drummond." Moore said that with his 40 years of service in the State Senate, Drummond is "truly the public's servant." The speaker recalled an occasion in May 1998 when she gave a self-described "blunt speech" before the State Senate about the poor condition of the state and the General Assembly's role in it. The speech was entitled "Permanent State of Disrepair." "Since then, I have benefited from the very warm and rich association with the namesake of this institution," Moore said. "John Drummond has seen and done it all. He is a true American hero." Addressing Drummond, Moore continued, "You're my hero and as always, I am honored to be in your presence. Thank you for what you have done for South Carolina." Moore said that since her speech in 1998, she has learned a lot more about the people of South Carolina – their problems, needs, fears, but most importantly, their dreams and hopes. She said she's also learned about the state's residents' capacity for change for the better if given direction, guidance and encouragement by capable leadership. "Much progress has been made," she said. "Slowly, painfully, and with many distractions, our educational attainment is improving." Moore said the state cannot lay all of its problems on the doorstep of the General Assembly. "We will fail if the private sector doesn't help government find solutions to our problems," she said. The best way to have a good partnership with government, Moore said, is to elect good people to public office. The state must compete in the global market to achieve prosperity, she said, and establishing foundations in education, retraining unemployed textile workers and making agriculture and agribusiness viable again are keys to being competitive. Also at the banquet, Erskine President Dr. Randall T. Ruble, in a significant moment for Erskine College and the Drummond Center, announced the creation of the Grady L. Patterson Jr. Chair in Politics. Patterson, the longtime state treasurer from Calhoun Falls in Abbeville County, was represented by his family because of ill health. The Inez Tenenbaum Essay Award was presented to Eric Ellenbogen, an eighth grader at Riverside Middle School in Greer, and his teacher, Gail Denton. Dr. Jay West, executive director of the Drummond Center and Erskine vice president for institutional advancement, told the gathering that a conference center would soon be constructed on Lake Russell, thanks to the generosity of U.S. Land.
Mayor Bill Barnet
Darla Moore
The Inez Tenenbaum Essay Award was presented to Eric Ellenbogen, above, an eighth grader at Riverside Middle School in Greer, and his teacher, Gail Denton.
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