Lance H. McCarty
As co-owner of Fletcher Construction, Lance McCarty obviously knows a little about building things. He has built a reputation as an honorable businessman, and a solid record of community service. As with all sturdy structures, you have to have the right foundation. McCarty gives credit for his success to the education he received at the Jackson County Campus (1984-86) and to two inspirational instructors.
“The college gave me more than an education -- it taught me that I could make it at any university,” McCarty said. “Two instructors who made a difference in my time at school were Tom Eason and the late Bennie VanCourt. Their encouragement to further my education is one of the reasons I’m in the position I’m in today.”
Eason saw something special in McCarty, and he’s followed his career with pride. In fact, he nominated McCarty for the alumni award. “I’m proud to say that Lance is a former student of mine. He’s an honorable man with impeccable integrity,” Eason said. “He’s co-owner of one of the most reputable construction firms in South Mississippi and a fine example of how Gulf Coast makes a positive influence in our community.”
Making a difference in his community is important to McCarty. His father, Jolly, who dedicated his life to volunteer service in Jackson County, taught him that. Having served as both a coach in youth soccer and baseball and as a Dixie Youth Baseball board member, McCarty is devoted to his hometown. He and his wife, Candace, want to teach that devotion to their sons, Slater, 12, and Nicholas, 10. “Pascagoula has been my home for most of my life. I was raised here and believe there is no better place to live and raise a family,” he said.
McCarty, a 1983 Pascagoula High School graduate, received a bachelor’s degree in construction technology engineering from The University of Southern Mississippi. “College can be a great experience. I have memories of being around old friends and meeting new ones,” he said. “It’s especially good if you enroll in courses that you enjoy. I never was successful in college until I discovered what I liked, and that was construction. Construction gives me the opportunity to see something change every day. It makes me proud to see a completed project and know that I was a part of building it.”
Pleased but humbled by the award and by having one of his old mentors nominate him, McCarty said he was shocked when he got the call. “When Dr. Lott informed me that I was chosen for the hall of fame, I was surprised, but I feel privileged to be a part of it. I have great memories of Gulf Coast and my classmates there.”
And he said he feels strongly about the advantages an education can give you. “Education is an opportunity that is made available to you. Whether or not you take advantage of it is a choice you make. You have to find something you enjoy and strive for it every day. Education offers you the chance to get there.”
Jerry Leo Levens is described in his nomination as a man who “continues to pursue excellence in his work, church, home and in the community where he tirelessly works.” That’s no surprise considering his vitae: partner in the accounting firm Alexander, Van Loon, Sloan, Levens and Favre, PLLC, in Gulfport and Wiggins; one of the owners of AVL Wealthcare, LLC, in Gulfport; service on the State Board of Public Accountancy and National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (governing bodies that regulate CPAs in the state and nation); and certified fraud examiner. Even with his career, this 1976 Jefferson Davis Campus honors graduate finds time to volunteer with his church, St. Thomas Catholic Church in Long Beach, and with the Catholic Diocese of Biloxi. And now, he’s being honored as the 2008 JD Campus Alumni Hall of Fame honoree, a recognition of his success in college, career and philanthropy.
A member of Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society and business fraternity Phi Beta Lambda while at the JD Campus, Levens remembers his first accounting classes taught by Betty June Lee. “She was an incredible and effective teacher,” he said. “She was hard but fair and constantly challenging her students, especially if she knew you had more academic talent. When you finished her class successfully, you were well equipped for the next level of accounting classes.”
He credits Lee with giving him the fundamentals he needed to be successful in his chosen profession. “The foundation I obtained at JD from Mrs. Lee allowed for a very easy transition to my junior-level accounting classes at Ole Miss. I am grateful for her style of instruction and for her as a caring teacher. I remember contacting her to tell her that I had passed the CPA exam three years after she taught me. She was as excited about the news as I was!”
Levens, who is married to the former Cindy Chandler of Savannah, Ga., grew up in a large, close-knit family. He’s the second oldest of the nine children of Mary and the late Gene Levens of Long Beach. All his siblings still reside in Long Beach, with the exception of one, a sister who lives in Houston, Texas. “My parents were firm believers in education, and all nine of us were required to attend Gulf Coast before we were allowed to go to senior college,” he said. “Being from a large family, this decision was driven by the economic value of community college. Seven of the nine of us graduated from Gulf Coast. I currently have a sister enrolled at the college. She’s going back to school midlife. And all three of my children (Jay, Andrew and Jenny) attended the college before attending senior college.”
Levens and his siblings wanted to share their parents’ love of education with others. “My parents placed a high emphasis on education, even though neither one of them ever had the opportunity to attend college. So when our father passed away in 1999, our family endowed a scholarship fund with the Gulf Coast Community Foundation in honor of our parents. To date, this fund has awarded 15 scholarships of $1,000 each to graduates from Long Beach High School, and the majority of these scholarship recipients were attending Gulf Coast,” Levens said.
Those scholarships make it possible for students to achieve success like Levens’. Selecting him for the Alumni Hall of Fame Award is one way Gulf Coast can recognize his efforts and dedication. “I am very humbled by this honor. When I look at the list of past recipients and realize the magnitude and breadth of their achievements and the impact they made on their communities and professions, it makes me feel much honored to be in their company. We are all stewards on this journey of life. By learning, teaching, serving and sharing together, we can leave this world a better place than we found it.”
Pat Ladner’s life reads like a good book. The first chapter’s setting is Mississippi Gulf Coast Junior College’s Perkinston Campus, where he played on legendary Coach Ken “Curly” Farris’ first two state-championship baseball teams in 1966 and 1967, the year he graduated. In chapter two, he joined the Air Force, working with the Strategic Defense Initiative Organization, or Star Wars, and retired in 1992 as a lieutenant colonel. In chapter three, set in 1992, he became executive director of Alaska Aerospace Development Corporation, a self-sustaining company founded by the Alaska State Legislature in 1991 and chartered to develop space-related economic growth in the state at its Kodiak Launch Complex (launching rockets since 1998). He won Alaskan of the Year Governor’s Award in 1999, the Aviation Week’s Laurels Award in 2001, the Aviation Week’s Laurels Award in 2001 and the NASA Exceptional Public Service Medal in 2006.
The next chapter is being written now, as Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College recognizes Ladner as the Perkinston Campus 2008 Alumni Hall of Fame honoree. It is a happy ending that began with roots laid deep in South Mississippi. “You don’t realize the value of things in your life until you accomplish something,” he said. “Then you realize your parents, education and military service mean something. They got you where you are.”
As for his past, he remembers the Perkinston Campus had a “homey” atmosphere that kept him and the other students focused on what they needed to do to achieve their goals. “Perk is like a university but smaller. The faculty cared about us. If they didn’t see us in class, they came looking for us. They expected excellence from us. They wanted us to succeed.”
He credits his success to an excellent education received at Gulf Coast. “I knew a lot of kids smarter than me, but I was able to go to college anyway. That’s the great thing about a community college: It offers everyone the chance to go to school. Because of that chance, I was able to accomplish what I have already and what I plan to do in the future.”
As president and CEO of the Alaska Aerospace Development Corporation, he has proven his abilities every day, building the business from the ground up and marketing the Kodiak Island launch facility. “The exciting part is always watching a launch. There’s emotion, a lot of emotions – relief, joy and sadness. Then you tell yourself, ‘Wow, we did it. Now we get ready for the next one!’”
Ladner, who now lives in Anchorage, Alaska, believes strongly in the value of education. His company sponsors scholarships and internships to encourage students in math, computer science and engineering. “It’s a shame for anybody not to go to college…anybody with any ability at all. It is an important step to take,” he said.Ladner, who still manages to growl when rival Pearl River Community College is mentioned, is thrilled to be drawn back to Mississippi for the Hall of Fame award. “This is one of the greatest honors – to be recognized by a place that means so much to you,” he said.