Nile and Russell Yearwood legacy honored during Yearwood House dedication
Chris Pepple |
On Nov. 16, President and Mrs. L. Randolph Lowry hosted the dedication of the Yearwood House at The Village at Lipscomb University. The Yearwood House, a campus dormitory, was dedicated to the legacy of Nile Yearwood and his wife Russell.
| Randall Yearwood |
“We appreciate so much this family claiming this institution,” Lowry said, addressing the Yearwood family members and the Lipscomb community who joined together to celebrate the dedication. “We appreciate so much 50 years of service and all of the contributions that were made, including those contributions when buildings were built and no charges at all were levied at the university for the services in building them. We are so appreciative that the family continues to be involved at Lipscomb University, and now we look at [Yearwood House] and imagine the next generations of students who will occupy it.”
Randall Yearwood, the son of Nile and Russell and now a retired architect, was a principal in the Yearwood and Johnson Architects firm. He and his wife, Joan, have three daughters: Lisa Flow, Linda Hendon and Laurie Casey. Joining Randall and Joan were daughters Lisa and Linda, granddaughter Caitlyn Flow, and cousins Pat Ward and Judy Flatt.
“I know my mother and my father would be very pleased with this action today,” Randall Yearwood said, acknowledging his father’s role in Christian education. “My father dearly loved this school. … My father had to support his parents most of their lives, but he was a great believer in college education. That’s why he started the Yearwood scholarship fund here. He tried to go to college two times … but he had to quit and go to work to support his parents. I am the first person in the Yearwood family to have a college degree.” Yearwood encouraged Lipscomb students to “work hard and stay at the top of the class.”
| Nile Yearwood |
Known as the “campus builder” throughout the Lipscomb community, Nile Yearwood built, or was involved in building, 13 facilities on campus including the Crisman and Burton buildings, McQuiddy Gymnasium and the addition to Elam residence hall. He combined his love for architecture and construction with his passion for Christian education. In the early 1980s, when Lipscomb faced serious facility needs and financial dilemmas, Yearwood built three structures – the athletic complex for David Lipscomb High School, a dormitory that bore his name and the original portion of the Axel Swang building – without charging the school for his services.
In the 1950s, Yearwood served on Lipscomb’s board of directors and, at the time of his death in 1998, was a member of the university’s National Development Board. In 1982, Yearwood received the “’Fessor Boyce Award” at Lipscomb, and in 1987 received the Distinguished Service Award from the university’s Development Council. He also served on the boards of Dominion Bank and Pepperdine University. In 1959, he established Capital City Bank which was sold in 1970 to Nashville City Bank. Yearwood then entered the construction management business.
Yearwood House is part of The Village featuring apartment-style housing for students as well as conference facilities for community use. The apartment-style rooms provide four- and eight-person suites with kitchens and common areas. The Village is designed for upperclassmen who desire an off-campus lifestyle with the convenience of on-campus living. It will also be used during the summer as housing for conference and seminar attendees.