Spire Magazine 2021

In Memory

1956 Cline Edwin Hall , of Lynchburg, Virginia, passed away on October 19, 2020. He started as a pastor of Emmanuel Chapel in Indiana and move to teaching at Truett-McConnel College and North Greenville. He was also Chairman of the History Department and co-founded the Civil War Chaplain’s Museum. Cline followed an entrepreneurial call and purchased a Dairy Queen that he and his family owned for 26 years. 1958 Frederick "Fred" Maurice McCray , of Bristol, Tennessee, passed away on January 14, 2021. He was a SSGT in the United States Army, served in the Army Security Agency, and served during the Korean Conflict. He was an active member of the Patton-Crosswhite VFW Post #6975 in Bristol, TN/VA, and a lifetime member of the Disable American Veterans. He was an employee of Brown Engineering on the NASA Campus, and then later worked for UNIVAC/Sperry. 1959 Gary C. Hodges of Charleston, West Virginia, passed away on June 6, 2020. He was a certified optometrist and operated his own practice in Alleghany Highlands. Gary was the treasurer for the Covington-Hot Springs Rotary Club and Chaplain of the Covington Masonic Lodge. He was an amateur radio operator and member of the Virginia Mountain Amateur Radio Club. 1960 Harry E. Morehead, of Bastian, Virginia, passed away on January 26, 2013. John Donald Ragland and spouse of Loretta H. Ragland (’59), of Madison Heights, Virginia, passed away on September 23, 2020. John lived his life serving his country and God. He served in the Marines and as a Naval Chaplin during the Vietnam War. He also served as interim pastor at Madison Heights Baptist Church and many churches in Virginia and North Carolina as pastor, retiring from Hull’s Memorial Baptist Church. 1961 Judith “Judy” Davis Angles , of Williamsburg, Virginia, passed away August 8, 2020. Judy worked for the Richmond Times-Dispatch and later became the Human Resources Director for the family-owned business. She was a board member of the Queens Lake Community Association, director of the Queens Lake Clubhouse, and member of Williamsburg United Methodist Church.

1963 Glenda (Camp) Farrar McCann, of Hickory, North Carolina, passed away on April 10, 2021. Glenda was a member of the Philanthropic Educational Organizations (P.E.O.) which celebrates the advancement of women through education. She responded God’s calling and served at Melrose Baptist Church as a Deacon, Sunday School teacher, choir member, and others. She then was a member of Viewmont Baptist Church in Hickory. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made in Glenda's name to Viewmont Baptist Church and Bluefield University at 3000 College Avenue Bluefield, Virginia 24605. 1965 Larry Eugene Slagle, of Mooresburg, Tennessee, passed away on December 24, 2020. Larry was a veteran of the Vietnam War. He was also a PGA teaching professional and he loved to pass along his knowledge of the game to younger generation. James Aston Gray , of Mechanicsville, Virginia, passed away on July 10, 2021. His entire career was spent in education. He was a teacher at Ervinton High School in Nora, Virginia, an itinerant teacher at Copper Creek, and Graham High School in Bluefield, Virginia. He later on joined the Virginia State Department of Education where he held different titles including Assistant State Supervisor of Marketing, Supervisor for Marketing Education, Associate Director for Marketing Education, and Associate Director of Career and Vocation Education. 1968 Emmett Wayne Cumbow , of Talbott, Tennessee, passed away on September 25, 2020. Emmett served God in many different ways; he served as a youth pastor at Farmstead Baptist Church in Alabama, he served as a minister of music at Nance’s Grover Baptist Church in Tennessee, and he also served as a volunteer chaplain with Covenant Health sharing the love of Christ. 1969 Jim L. Duke, Jr ., of Angier, North Carolina, passed away November 13, 2019. He was an associate pastor of Villa Heights Baptist Church, Roanoke, Virginia, and minister of youth at Broadus Memorial Baptist Church, Richmond, Virginia. During the next 30 years, Duke was a senior service technician for General Binding Corporation, IKON, and ACCO Brands, while serving as a volunteer in churches in Richmond, Virginia, Fuquay-Varina, and Angier, North Carolina.

32