by S. Rotan Hale, Debora Moir and Linda Ashford contributed
It was camaraderie, it was community, it highlighted academic and athletic achievement and more but most of all it was a time to reconnect and celebrate as Colonels at the William Fleming High School Alumni Weekend.
The reunion, one of the most well attended affairs of its kind, held August 22–25 brought former students from all over the country together for four splendid days of events.
Scheduled events included: a meet & greet, a golf outing (Hanging Rock course), a semi formal dance, an award breakfast and it all culminated at the grand cook out that had Washington Park bursting at the seams.
Blue 5 – “live music venue and southern eatery (downtown) was certainly hopping on Thursday, Aug. 22. This was the kick-off spot that featured a live band as well as DJ. Several styles of music played throughout the night pleasing the various generations of William Fleming alumni. This was only the beginning of a fantastic weekend!
One of the most impactful–among the line-up of events–was the Breakfast of Champions that recognized several outstanding coaches and athletes.
“William Fleming HS and the coaching staff created a multitude of successful men and women both academically and athletically,” said Keith Johnson one of the major organizers of the reunion.
Among them was Dr. Ben Barnett, an ‘86 WFHS honor student with an impressive academic and athletic profile reflecting his accomplishments in football, track and wrestling, that got him inducted into the 2010 William Fleming Athletic Hall of Fame.
Barnett went on to become a West Point graduate and has lived a life of high achievement through the corporate world and other levels of professional endeavor.
In 1994, due a major shift in consciousness –from sports, to corporate, to spiritual–he changed course and entered the ministry. As a dynamic speaker and motivator, Barnett is presently senior pastor of Bridge Pointe Church in Atlanta, GA.
His empowering speech, as keynote speaker at the Breakfast for Champions was one steeped in his allegiance to all those who framed and prepared him for a life of success and intellectual prosperity.
Barnett told three stories emphasizing those things that influenced him greatly and sized them up as “the seeds that were planted in me…on the fields of friendly strife that have served me well.”
One story was of a star athlete that he was inspired by. Another was his experience–as a tenth grader at Fleming–whereby he began to receive numerous college recruitment letters, to his amazement. He later found out the letters were generated from a recommendation by Sherley Stuart, a prominent area coach who saw promise in him. Coach Sherley’s endorsement went viral and the letters poured in from a flood of colleges.
His third story involved Coach George “Kila” Miller, his wrestling coach, who sat proudly at the table with other coaches honored that day.
Barnett said that after leading the Colonels to victory (‘85) during one particular dual wrestling match, Miller presented Barnett with a medal he had won in ‘73. Because Barnett was considerably late to weigh-in earlier that day. Miller then chastised Barnett hitting him with “a friendly blow to the chest,” then followed by saying, “You won today but you sure weren’t impressive. Don’t ever be unimpressive again.”
“Sometimes you need a punch in the chest to wake you up and humble you,” Barnett said and thanked Coach Miller for believing in him and planting some of the seeds that led to his growth.
“I want to be inspired and more importantly I want to live my life as a person of inspiration,” he said in closing.
Other Fleming coaches honored were: Roland Lovelace, Sherley Stuart, Millard Bolden, Clinton Barlow and Burrall Paye.
Later that day a record crowd assembled for the massive Fleming Alumni Cookout that followed the breakfast as hundreds of people gathered in Washington Park smiling, hugging, dancing to the DJ’s beats, eating, reminiscing and taking pictures.
The park was alive as people went from tent to tent exchanging stories over food and drink. During the sold-out cookout hundreds of alumi showed off tee shirts with class dates. In a show of unity, school rivals showed support as they either married a Colonel or raised one.
On the basketball court, class photos were taken, folks danced and at one point balloons were released in memory of classmates who have passed.
It was indeed a multi-generational reunion. A group photo was taken of all the seventies classes represented under one banner. Individual class photos were also taken starting with the eighties.
As one alum wrote in a Facebook post, thanks to organizer and Fleming Alum Keith Johnson, she saw homeless people fed that day with leftover food donated to shelters.
The last day (Sunday) many of the hundreds who converged on the city, attended services at their respective church of choice.
Additionally, several reunion functions raised funds for scholarships as well as Roanoke City Public Schools. All things considered, the Colonels of William Fleming showed up and showed out beautifully. Kudos to the organizers and the many who attended and supported this most memorable 4-day reunion.
