Greenville Technical College (GTC) recognized members of the community and the college who act unselfishly in service to others. This year, the Unsung Heroes awards event was held on January 24, 2017 with four categories of recognition: student, college faculty and staff, community member, and corporate partner.
Jackson Payne and Lawrence Stack were the honorees in the student category. Jackson is president of the student body at the college and works to improve the student life experience. With a heart for people, he recently organized a campaign to raise money for the leukemia foundation after a close friend died of the disease. Lawrence Stack is a tireless advocate for completing college, and having graduated from GTC in December, an excellent and inspirational example of doing just that. While at GTC, he was a founding member of the African American Male Leadership Institute, connecting the group with other chapters across the state and with key community organizations.
Employees recognized were Desiree Dumas, Julian Nixon, and Finchetta Stewart. Desiree works in a STEM-related field, teaching math and engineering classes, and she encourages other females to pursue these opportunities. Julian serves as faculty advisor for the African American Male Leadership Institute. With his guidance, the organization has provided resources, relationships and experiences that empower and launch men into accelerated roles at the college, in the community, and in society. Finchetta uses strong determination to assist students, recently helping a military veteran find financial assistance to pay for a Solar Technology class and then working to find him a donated laptop so that he can complete assignments.
The community honoree was Dustin Keenan, a student who works full-time as a flight medic and medical examiner at the Army Aviation facility in Greenville. In addition, he contributed many hours to containing the recent fire in Pickens County and helped when the state was flooded during Hurricane Matthew.
The Corporate award recipient was Kurt Goodwin and GE Power. Kurt led the effort to open the company’s GE Advanced Manufacturing Works facility on Feaster Road and in that role, helped the Greenville Tech Foundation receive a half million dollar gift of equipment for the Center for Manufacturing Innovation and for its GE Bridge to Learning, now being developed at the facility.
Entertainment at the event was provided by the Phillis Wheatley Dwight Woods Repertory Theater for Youth.