fall2017

57 / 60

FALL 2017 / 53
Class Notes
submissions
You can send news of weddings,
births deaths, job changes, career
highlights, honors, and awards
directly to BSC through the
college’s online alumni community
at ; you
can also view all of the recently
submitted class notes. Or, you
may submit them via email to
. If you would
like to make a gift to honor or
memorialize a classmate, contact
the Office of Alumni Affairs at
(205) 226-4912, or, you can mail
a check with a note of tribute to:
Alumni Affairs, Box 549003, 900
Arkadelphia Road, Birmingham,
AL 35254.
Crowder was a four-year captain
of BSC’s women’s soccer team and
was honored as scholar athlete of
the year upon graduation. Having
joined the U.S. Air Force in college,
she also received the BSC/Samford
University Air Force Cadet of the
Year award. She was inducted into
the BSC Sports Hall of Fame. She
and her husband graduated with
honors from the University of South
Alabama College of Medicine.
After nishing their residency, they
moved to Biloxi, where Crowder
practiced neurology at Keesler
Air Force Base. Survivors include
her husband, three boys, and two
sisters, including Jennifer Walker
’02 of Brentwood, Tenn.
Hester Jo Wills ’02 (MPPM) of
Bluff Park, on Feb. 13, 2017. Wills
was a graduate of the University
of Alabama, where she earned a
bachelor’s in accounting. While
in high school and college, she
was a member of debate teams
and won multiple awards on both
the state and national level. Wills
spent her entire career in leadership
positions in the banking industry
in Birmingham and was a certi ed
internal auditor. She was a member
of Chapel in the Pines Presbyterian
Church and was an ordained elder.
Her parents and sister are among
survivors.
Tiffany Naomi Newborn ’06 of
Birmingham, on May 23, 2016.
Schylar Keith Freeman ’15 of Leeds,
on March 11, 2016. Freeman was
a former Panther men’s basketball
player. Survivors include his mother.
FRIENDS
Jim Bennett of Montgomery, on
Aug. 17, 2016. Before entering
politics, Bennett was a reporter for
the Birmingham Post-Herald and held
several public relations positions,
including with BSC. He was a four-
time Alabama Secretary of State.
He served in the Alabama Senate
from 1983-93 and as member of
the Alabama House from 1978-83.
Among survivors are his wife, two
children, three grandchildren, and
one great-grandchild.
Gera Brown Comfort of
Birmingham on Feb. 14, 2017.
Comfort served on the boards of
many Birmingham organizations,
including Summerfest. Her
greatest passion, though, was for
the arts at BSC; she was the rst
chair of the BSC Arts Council. She
was recognized with a BSC Fine
Arts Society Community Award,
among her many other honors for
community service. She is survived
by her husband, four daughters,
four grandchildren, and four great-
grandchildren.
C.H. “Stretch” Dunn of
Birmingham, on Feb. 26, 2017.
Dunn served on the Norton Board
of Advisors at BSC following his
military and corporate careers.
He was a 1966 graduate of the
U.S. Military Academy at West
Point, a distinguished graduate
of the Command and General
Staff College, an Army War
College Fellow, and a professional
engineer. He served in the U.S.
Army 26 years and earned many
awards for valor, including the
Silver Star in Vietnam. He retired
from the Army and served 11 years
in corporate America with BE&K,
an international engineering and
construction rm. After his second
career, he co-wrote two books on
professionalism and patriotism,
and for the past decade, offered
corporate and university seminars.
He is survived by his wife, two
children, and ve grandchildren.
Robert McLester Ramsay of
Middleburg, Va., on March 7,
2016. Ramsay endowed the
Ramsay Family Scholarship at BSC
for students preparing for a career
in business or engineering. He
attended the University of Virginia
and completed his education
in mechanical engineering at
the University of Alabama. He
was a World War II U.S. Army
veteran. Ramsay began his career
as a design engineer for James A.
Evans Engineering. In 1951, he
founded Banks, Ellett & Ramsay,
Inc., a mechanical engineering and
contracting company, where he
served as president for 30 years. In
1958 he purchased Birmingham
Lead and Smelting Co. and served
as president. In 1972, his company
purchased Shook and Fletcher Air
Conditioning, Inc.; he became
the largest mechanical contractor
in Alabama. In 1982, he and his
son, Erskine Ramsay II, founded
Superior Mechanical, Inc., where
he served as president and CEO for
17 years until his retirement. He is
survived by his wife, ve children,
13 grandchildren, and 15 great-
grandchildren.
Howard Henson Sisson of Hoover,
on Sept. 19, 2016. Sisson was a
strong supporter of the college,
and all of his children graduated
from BSC. After a 40-plus year
career, he had retired from ACIPCO
as southeastern sales manager in
its Atlanta of ce. Sisson was an
accomplished high school athlete
who received 16 sports letters and
was a member of both the football
and basketball teams at Howard
College, where he graduated. He
was a longtime high school football
referee and later a supervisor of
referees in the Birmingham area.
Sisson served as a lieutenant in the
U. S. Navy during WWII, retiring
from the reserves with a rank of
lieutenant commander. He was an
avid gardener and golfer. Survivors
include his wife; three children:
Anne Sisson Smith ’67 (Hon.
Robert Smith ’66), Jane Sisson
Seigel ’75 (Dr. Lester Seigel ’79),
and William Sisson ’75 of Mobile;
eight grandchildren, including Kerry
McInerney ’92, Amy McInerney
Dillard ’90 (Clint Dillard ’88),
and Daniel Seigel ’02 (Jessie
Mayne Seigel ’12); and 12 great-
grandchildren, including Elizabeth
Dillard ’19.
Margie Faye Smith of Birmingham,
on Nov. 21, 2015. Smith had retired
in 2010 as head of housekeeping at
BSC after faithfully serving the college
community for more than 24 years.
She is survived by two children and
several grandchildren.
Gloria Reach Tinker of Birmingham,
on June 16, 2017. Tinker worked at
BSC for many years and retired from
the American Red Cross. She was a
member of Bethel Baptist Church in
Pleasant Grove. Survivors include her
husband, a son, three step-daughters,
13 grandchildren, and 13 great-
grandchildren.
Dorothy Webster of Birmingham, on
Aug. 17, 2016. Webster was retired
from BSC, having served as associate
director of nancial planning form
1975-94. She was a member of
First Presbyterian Church. Among
her survivors are three children,
six grandchildren, and ve great-
grandchildren.