Lipscomb presents 'Torch Award' to Miles Ezell Jr.
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Lipscomb University today presented longtime Nashville businessman Miles Ezell Jr. with the university's highest honor, the "Torch Award."
The award was presented during Founders' Day chapel by Lipscomb President Steve Flatt.
The award honors those who have "performed distinguished service to this university, and who have embodied the spirit of Christ in every endeavor - in family, church, business or community," Flatt said.
"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.
"His leadership and generosity have had a significant impact on the distinctive quality that characterizes Lipscomb University today. He is the kind of role model we want our students to focus on," Flatt said.
Ezell expressed thanks for the award but said "I feel a bit guilty about accepting it because I've received so much more from Lipscomb than I've put in."
He noted that more than 60 of his father's family and descendents have attended Lipscomb through the years, not including spouses.
"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," Ezell said.
Ezell attended Lipscomb University before earning his bachelor's degree in dairy technology from The Ohio State University in 1950. He joined the family business, Purity Dairies, following graduation, and advanced to treasurer, president, and chairman. He was named senior chairman in 1997, a post he retains today.
From 1980 until 2002 he was a member of the Lipscomb University Board of Trustees and served as chair from 1991-97 during the Harold Hazelip administration. For 30 years, he served as an elder at Una Church of Christ.
Ezell has also been active in community service and dairy industry leadership. He 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. He has also been a member of the Metro Nashville Human Relations Commission, served on the AmSouth bank board, and is continues to serve on the board of the Washington Foundation.
Lipscomb University conducts a Founders' Day convocation annually on or near the anniversary of the school's establishment on Oct. 5, 1891. This year also marks the 100th anniversary of the university's relocation to its present site, which was once a farm owned by David Lipscomb.