Lipscomb mourns the loss of longtime supporter Miles Ezell Jr.
Kim Chaudoin | 615.966.6494 |
When Miles Ezell Jr. was a young man, he took the words his father, Miles Ezell Sr., to heart.
“Work hard, make money and spend wisely. Share your earthly goods as well as your time and talent with those in need,” his father once wrote. Ezell became known as a man of faith who devoted himself to giving back to others.
“He not only gave of the talents God entrusted to him, but he also gave of his time and reared a family that carries on this legacy,” said L. Randolph Lowry, Lipscomb president.
Today the Lipscomb community is mourning the loss of Ezell, longtime member of Lipscomb’s Board of Trustees and friend of the institution, who died Thursday, Sept. 15, at age 89 following a short illness.
Visitation will be held on Sunday, Sept. 18, from 1-8 p.m. and on Monday, Sept. 19, from 10-11 a.m. followed by the funeral at 11 a.m. at Una Church of Christ, located at 1917 Old Murfreesboro Pike, Nashville.
For more than 50 years, Ezell helped lead Purity Dairies, a company founded by his father in 1925 as Ezell’s Dairy. He was known as a leader among Nashville’s business community and for his generosity to the city. He also served as elder at Una Church of Christ for decades.
Miles Ezell Jr. was also an integral part of the fabric of the Lipscomb community. Ezell, who attended then-David Lipscomb College in 1947 and 1948 before heading to The Ohio State University to pursue his bachelor’s degree in dairy technology, served as chair of Lipscomb ‘s board from 1991-97 and as board member from 1980-2002.
Lowry said that Ezell and his family have played an integral role in the physical growth of Lipscomb’s campus including financial contributions to the Ezell Center, the Village and numerous other projects and initiatives. Today, the Ezell Center hosts thousands of visitors each year for numerous meetings, conferences, workshops and classes.
“But Miles and his family did not just give generously to this institution financially,” said Lowry. “He was also a supporter of Lipscomb. He could often be found in Allen Arena supporting our athletics programs as a fan. He attended numerous dinners, lectures and special events to support whatever initiative or program was of import to the university at a given time. He gave of his time as he served on the board and various committees. And he found time to encourage employees by sending a note, telling them personally what a good job they did on a particular project or by quietly slipping them a coupon for a free gallon of Purity ice cream.”
Generations of the Ezell family have attended Lipscomb Academy and Lipscomb University, and sons, Stan and Mark, have also served on Lipscomb’s board of trustees.
“What Lipscomb has meant to my family and friends, and the influence the teachers and leaders here have made—I can’t express the blessings we have received,” said Ezell in 2003 when accepting the university’s Torch Award, Lipscomb’s highest honor at the time. “I feel a bit guilty about accepting this award because I’ve received so much more from Lipscomb than I’ve put in.”
The Torch Award honored those who “performed distinguished service to the university, and who embodied the spirit of Christ in every endeavor—in family, church, business or community.”
“I know of no person or family who is more uniformly respected and appreciated than Miles Ezell Jr. and the extended Ezell family for their leadership, integrity and generosity in business, in the church and community,” said then-Lipscomb president Steve Flatt when he presented Ezell the award during the 2003 Founders’ Day chapel.
Ezell was on the board during most of Flatt’s administration, which spanned 1997-2005.
“Miles Ezell was the model of a Christian gentleman,” said Flatt. “He was a soft-spoken leader whose wisdom was revered. Miles' generosity knew no bounds because he loved anything that bettered people's lives and that grew the kingdom of God. Miles' influence on my life was profound. Everyone who knew him will miss him, but we are all better because of him.”
Former Lipscomb president Harold Hazelip said Ezell, who was elected chair of Lipscomb’s board in 1991, “was one of the best board chairs anyone could hope for.”
“I have no better friend than Miles Ezell,” said Hazelip, who served as president from 1986 to 1997. “From the start of his board chairmanship he provided unusually wise and good and kind leadership. He could stay calm and unruffled when I could get quite disturbed about a problem that we faced or a difference of opinion among the board. It may not have really been that bad of a problem, but would seem quite serious to me. I remember Miles saying to me, ‘Harold, 90 percent support is not too bad.’”
Hazelip recalled each year-end around Christmastime, Ezell would invite him out to Purity Dairies to sit down in a room with the leadership of the dairy, including the family.
“Miles would make a short speech of commitment encouraging the people around him. He would then tell me what the business would be giving the school for this year, and then what his contribution would be,” Hazelip recalled. “Then Bill (his brother) would make his contribution and then other members of the family would make their contributions. I came away from Purity Dairies with just a real boost to the end of the year every year.”
“But it wasn’t just the money they gave, but the context in which they gave it,” he continued. “Where he explained to those around them, ‘this is why we’re doing it. We’ve been doing it a long time and we think it’s worthwhile to continue.’ He was basically saying, ‘I want you to continue it when I’m not here to continue it.’ That was very meaningful to me.”
Hazelip also recalled an occasion during his presidency when Ezell received a letter from a minister who was upset about his speaking to a particular congregation about a matter.
“The minister copied Miles on his letter as people often did. If someone was unhappy with me they copied the board chair,” Hazelip recalled with a smile. “Miles copied me on his letter that he sent to the minister that said ‘he means to do well and a few things like that.’ He signed the letter and then he said, ‘By the way have a half gallon of good ice cream,’ and he enclosed a coupon for a free half gallon of Purity ice cream! It was a touch that was just Miles Ezell. He was trying to say that ‘I’m going to stand by my friend here, I think he’s done the right thing, and I’m going to try to make a friend of you, too, if I could.’”
Ezell was very involved in the community and was instrumental in establishing the Youth Hobby Shop, now Youth Encouragement Services, and was president when its first building was constructed in the early 1960s. He was also a charter member of the AGAPE board and served four terms as chair. He was a board member and president of the Tennessee Dairy Products Association, board member and chair of the Milk Industry Foundation, Washington, D.C., the Charlotte Fanning Foundation, The Nature Conservancy-Tennessee Chapter, and the American Red Cross and was a former member of the Metro Nashville Human Relations Commission, served on the AmSouth bank board, and served on the board of the Washington Foundation.
Miles is survived by his wife, Linda; and children, Mila (Mike) McDonald, Stan (LeEllen) Ezell, Gil (April) Ezell and Mark (Martha) Ezell as well as numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his wife, Gerry, in 1995.
— Photos by Kristi Jones and Beaman Library Archives