ALUMNI NEWS

Congratulations to Brady Holloway (‘21) who committed to continue his academic and athletic career in baseball at Middle Tennessee State University.

Congratulations to Austin Hill ('20), 2019 Tennessee Mr. Football, who was chosen by his teammates to help lead Army Football in 2023.

When announcing the four captains to the team, Coach Monken said this about this prestigious honor: "They are the guys that you can trust to help with decisions that affect the program... and that are very respected by not only their classmates but everybody in this room."

Getting it done on the field and in the classroom!

Congratulations to Preston Daniel (‘20) for being selected as an FSU SAAS Student-Athlete of the Month for April

Preston was nominated and voted on by SAAS staff and athletic administration for exhibiting tremendous effort and commitment in the classroom.

Congratulations to Brady Holloway (‘21) who has made his mark on the Southwest Tennessee baseball program! He set the school record with 21 career home runs, helped lead his team to an historic 41 season wins, and he was named TCCAA Co-Player of the Week!

We are proud of 2013 ECS alumnus Brent Rooker!

Recently, Coach Jim Heinz was posthumously inducted to the TSSAA Hall of Fame as a part of the 2022 class at a luncheon in Murfreesboro. Coach's impact on many was far-reaching, and includes those ECS connections present at this celebration, pictured here left to right: Justin Payne, Aubrey Boren, David Carter, Jane Heinz, Steve Heinz, Cathy Jobe, Ben Todd, Alan Durham and Blake Butler.

Coach Heinz has previously been inducted into the Tennessee Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame, the ECS Hall of Fame as well as the Amateur Sports Hall of Fame, the last induction ceremony at which he was also posthumously presented with the Larry Finch Lifetime Achievement Award.

Coach Heinz coached football and baseball at ECS from 1978 to 2010, helping to build our storied athletic history. He was easily one of the most revered coaches in Tennessee. He won seven Tennessee State Championship titles, four in football and three in baseball, and two of those seasons were undefeated (30-0 in the 1989 baseball season; and 13-0 in the 1999 football season). He was distinguished with multiple Coach of the Year honors, awarded from the Tennessee Athletic Coaches Association to The Commercial Appeal to Best of the Preps.

Despite all of his achievements, Coach Heinz is remembered by those whom he coached as a great man of God concerned most with discipling his players in Christ and building them into godly men of character. We are so proud of Coach Heinz and his great legacy that continues to inspire our ECS community.

The class of 2023 is one step closer to being #ECSalumni! On April 27, they celebrated with the annual Almost Alumni Brunch hosted by the ECS Alumni Department! It was a deliciously fun time!

JOIN US as ECS alumni, parents and faculty/staff come together for some fun summer basketball, which culminates in a super competitive tournament for the chance to win the big trophy and bragging rights for the year.

Sign up here today: https://www.ecseagles.com/alumni/legacy-league-basketball

• COST: $50 per player
• WHERE: ECS – 7600 Macon Road – Cordova, TN 38018 – Legacy Center Gym
• START/END: Games begin the week of June 5, and championship will be the week of July 31. (We will not have
• games on July 4.)
• PARTICIPANTS: ECS alumni, spouses of alumni, current faculty/staff or spouse, current father of ECS student (Each
• team is allowed 3 players that do not meet these criteria.)
• SIGN-UP DEADLINE: Wednesday, May 17 (Registration must include payment.) First-come basis!

Our football coaches enjoyed an ECS reunion at a coaches clinic at Clemson University recently! They enjoyed spending time with the Clemson staff and reconnecting with former ECS coach Will Gilchrist who is now on the Clemson coaching staff and ECS alumni Peter Nearn and Dietrick Pennington who play for the Tigers.

ECS alumna, teacher and coach Molly Martin ('17) enjoyed the new upgrade to the Shelby Farms campus that opened recently - Sips Tea & Coffee Shop!

ECS alumni and longtime friends reunite at the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament!

Thomas Kizer ('21), longtime friend, classmate and teammate of star Marquette guard Kam Jones ('21), traveled to Columbus, Ohio to cheer on Kam as he played in the basketball tournament. Thomas' dad, Dr. David Kizer, 9th grade ECS boys basketball coach and Kam's former childhood competitive basketball coach, was also there to show his support.

Although the season ended sooner than we wanted, it was a special one for the Marquette basketball program, and Kam played a big role in its success! Kam was selected to the Big East Tournament team and earned NABC All-District honors. In his final game of the season yesterday, Kam made his 100th 3-point shot this season! At ECS, Kam was selected as the Tennessee DII-A Mr. Basketball and is the All-Time Leading Scorer. ECS is proud of you, Kam!

We were so glad to see the Kizer-Jones connection again!

Congratulations to Kam Jones ('21), Marquette basketball guard, for being selected to the Big East tournament team and for earning National Association of Basketball Coaches All-District honors!

Here's what Kam had to say about how his days at ECS prepared him for this moment (taken from a 2021 article)...

"After practicing at Marquette for a few weeks, Kam penned a letter to his ECS basketball teammates. In it, he wrote, 'Playing at ECS prepared me for what I’m going through here, and even attending school there did as well. I had to take constructive criticism, I had to keep my head up after making mistakes, I had to lead, I was held to a high standard, I was held accountable for my actions, my maximum effort was demanded out of me, nothing less.

“Playing at ECS has put me ahead of my classmates, mentally, physically, and most importantly spiritually. Playing basketball for ECS even prepared me for the challenges I’ve already faced off the court at college. How to step away from things, how to approach situations, how to talk to people, get to know people before you judge them. Playing for ECS and attending ECS absolutely prepared me for what I am facing now at Marquette, on and off the court.”

READ MORE: http://bit.ly/3llXfN6

Congratulations to ECS alumnus Tim Johnson (‘06), Furman University assistant basketball coach, who helped lead his Southern Conference championship team to their first NCAA basketball tournament appearance in 43 years.

Photos courtesy of Furman Basketball and Tim Johnson.

The annual Brent Rooker Fellowship of Christian Athletes Diamond Challenge baseball tournament was held recently! Brent is a current MLB player and ECS alumnus (‘13).

Congratulations, Kam Jones (ECS class of 2021), Big East basketball regular season and tournament champion!

We are proud to announce that Coach Jim Heinz will be posthumously inducted to the TSSAA Hall of Fame as a part of the 2022 class at a luncheon on April 15 at 11:00 a.m., at the Embassy Suites and Hotel in Murfreesboro. Tickets are $35 each and must be purchased in advance at tssaa.org beginning Monday, February 27.

Coach Heinz has previously been inducted into the Tennessee Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame, the ECS Hall of Fame as well as the Amateur Sports Hall of Fame, the last induction ceremony at which he was also posthumously presented with the Larry Finch Lifetime Achievement Award.

Coach Heinz coached football and baseball at ECS from 1978 to 2010, helping to build our storied athletic history. He was easily one of the most revered coaches in Tennessee. He won seven Tennessee State Championship titles, four in football and three in baseball, and two of those seasons were undefeated (30-0 in the 1989 baseball season; and 13-0 in the 1999 football season). He was distinguished with multiple Coach of the Year honors, awarded from the Tennessee Athletic Coaches Association to The Commercial Appeal to Best of the Preps.

Despite all of his achievements, Coach Heinz is remembered by those whom he coached as a great man of God concerned most with discipling his players in Christ and building them into godly men of character. We are so proud of Coach Heinz and his great legacy that continues to inspire our ECS community.

ECS alumnus ('08) and photographer Houston Cofield's pictures of the aftermath of the flash flood in Waverly, Tennessee from August 2021 taken for The New York Times are now on exhibit at The Parthenon Museum in Nashville through May 6.

Read more about Houston's impressive photography career in "Through the Lens of Houston Cofield: A Look at American Icons, Southern Culture and Grief" at ecseagles.com/alumni.

It was a fun night celebrating our ECS alumni from the 2011 state championship basketball team! In the photo below, pictured left to right:

• Hunter Herrington
• Steven Kaspar
• Brosnon Armfield
• Coach Terry Tippett
• George Jamison
• Micah Teed
• Walter Weaver
• Coach Garrison (pictured in thumbnail photo on the court)

Also honored but not pictured:

• Alex Armfield
• Chris Armfield
• Kevonte Askew
• Jake Fowler, mgr
• Chase Futrell, mgr
• Samuel Gilles
• Isaac James
• Walker Jones
• Skal Labissiere
• Kip Owens
• David Pearson, mgr
• Nick Wiseman
• Coach Armfield
• Coach Danner
• Coach Taber

A boyhood dream come true! We are proud of Morgan Cox (‘05)!

From an ECS senior road tripping with buddies to watch his favorite pro football team play in Nashville to earning his fifth Pro Bowl bid - now playing for his home state's NFL franchise, Tennessee Titans long snapper Morgan Cox ('05) said, "I've seen God's hands on a lot of things as I kind of reflect on my career. I am grateful for the opportunities I have been given, and the unique experiences I have gotten to have because of this game."

Read more about his remarkable career here: https://www.tennesseetitans.com/.../from-the-pro-bowl...

ECS is proud to announce our partnership with Diversity & Integration of Christian Education (DICE), a foundation that offers endowments to Christian schools that help provide a Christian education to children from diverse, low-income families.

We are excited about this new partnership which will give more minority families who desire Christian education the ability to attend ECS. In turn, it will help diversify our student population at ECS, enriching our entire school community by better reflecting the Church as a whole.

“There are many Christian families living in impoverished neighborhoods with very limited educational opportunities – and little prospect for breaking the cycle of poverty,” according to DICE’s website. “Sadly, many of these children – often minorities – never get the chance to experience the educational and religious opportunities that a private Christian school provides. Diversity & Integration of Christian Education is working to change that.”

John (ECS class of 2002) and Maura Bailey, ECS parents of JJ (3rd), Joshua (2nd), Catherine (SK), Caitlyn (JK), Jacob (JK) and James (LE), founded the organization in 2019. Since then, ECS varsity boys basketball coach Amory Sanders, and his wife Laura, ECS parents of Emma (5th) and John (2nd), and Denardo and Kim Crawford, parents of Noelle and Brielle (age 10) and Desmond (age 2) and have joined the foundation as members of the board of directors, chaired by John.

John recalled going through the process of selecting a school for their children to attend years ago. “In all categories, especially biblical discipleship, ECS was winning,” John remembered. “However, the student population was not very diverse. I met with leadership about it and learned that funding was the primary obstacle. So I said, ‘I can change that.’” As a result, the DICE Foundation was formed.

Amory said, “There is a common need for this. My wife is a teacher and knows students who would love the opportunity to participate at ECS and be a part of its discipleship. This foundation helps to give them that opportunity.”

Providing a private Christian education gives children from low-income families an improved chance to proceed on to higher education following high school graduation. Studies have shown that children who receive a private education are 25% more likely to attend college than those who attend public schools (Council for American Private Education).

DICE seeks to endow ECS with scholarship funding for students who meet the criteria for admission and who represent minority families who desire Christian education starting in elementary school all the way through 12th grade. DICE funds not only tuition, but also school lunches, uniforms, and fees for extracurricular activities such as athletics and field trips for the entire Christian education experience. The directors want these students to start ECS at a young age, hopefully before barriers get built.

Denardo said, “The reason there is so much racial division is we all tend to stay in our own areas. We stay separated. The older we get, the more entrenched we tend to become. This foundation will make it easier to break that as these children start going to school with each other at a young age.” He added, “That’s why we want a diverse group. We are in this together.”

DICE Foundation also allows for teacher training to help faculty understand students from different cultures. In addition, the foundation requires the involvement of families who receive the scholarships.

Maura, Laura and Kim are all involved in this effort and willing to lend support to the families who will receive these scholarships. Maura said, “It is important that the wives are involved to have that support, especially for single moms. We want to help them be successful, and that is done by building relationships.”

To read more about DICE and explore ways you can contribute to their effort to provide an ECS education to more minority students, please visit their website at www.enlighteningyouth.org.

We are so grateful for the leadership of the Baileys, the Sanders and the Crawfords whose generosity and commitment to diversity at ECS will greatly enrich our school community and make all of our students better prepared to lead in life.

This photo documenting the memorial service of Lisa Marie Presley at Graceland recently was taken by Houston Cofield (‘08) and published in The New York Times.

As part of the annual Professional Speaker Series, our juniors and seniors learned more about potential career paths. Experts answered students' questions and shared about their careers in the medical, legal, financial, engineering, real estate, law enforcement, veterinary, teaching and consulting professions. Speakers included ECS alumni, parents and other industry leaders. 

We were so glad to have some of our outstanding alumni return to campus to share more about their professions with our students! Many thanks to the following alumni:

• Lynda Wray Black (’82)
• Whitney Prude Thompson (’06)
• Donnie Thetford ('90)
• Barrett Jones (’08)
• Chandler Gagnon (’11)
• Ben Greene (’20)

We began our 2nd semester faculty and staff in-service with praise and worship, then spent time in prayer for our school, families and students.

Many thanks to Tony Fisher (ECS class of 2000), Anna Kelly Pearson (ECS class of 1999) and Emily Waites for leading us in worship.

Three ECS alumni reunited at the 2022 Orange Bowl. Pictured left to right: Dietrick Pennington (‘21), Bennett Brady (‘22) and Peter Nearn (‘21).

Shoutout to Austin Hill (‘20) who forced a fumble on the 1-yard line in double overtime to help secure Army football’s victory over Navy!

Photo courtesy of CBS Sports

It was great to see alumni and parents and grandparents of alumni last week at the annual Jingle Mingle!

From state champions at ECS to ACC champions at Clemson, ECS alumni Dietrick Pennington (‘21) and Peter Nearn (‘21) enjoyed the victory Saturday night, December 3 in Charlotte. 

On Veterans Day 2022, we saluted our many alumni who have served or are currently serving in the United States Military, and we thanked them for their service.

A special thank you to the following alumni who submitted photos and updates to us. 

• Col. Jay Benson ('81), US Army
• Maj. Jonathan Sherrod ('01), US Army
• Capt. Trace Williams ('13), US Army
• 1st Lt. David Boyd ('16), US Marine Corps
• Pfc I Hadden Burgess ('20), US Army National Guard
• E-3 Airman 1st Class Ruthie Burgess ('21), US Air Force National Guard
• Sgt. Austin Cooper ('10), US Army Special Forces
• Ensign Nick Genereaux ('15), US Navy
• Ensign Zack Genereaux ('17), US Navy
• Capt. George Jamison ('11), US Marine Corps
• 2nd Lt. Colin Jones ('18), US Marine Corps
• Capt. Select Ben Lowe ('14), US Marine Corps
• Lt. Austin Marshall ('10) with his wife, Emily, US Navy

(Pictured in the thumbnail is our Alumni in Service plaque which hangs in our chapel lobby inscribed with the names of more ECS alumni who serve or have served our country in the military.)

Congratulations to Fisher Smith, Esq., and Andrew Shorten, Esq., who were inducted to the Tennessee Bar today!

Fisher and Andrew are both from the ECS class of 2015 and are pictured here with their mothers, Kelly Smith and Jenny Shorten, who currently work at ECS.

Congratulations to Morgan Cox (‘05) who recently played in his 200th NFL game! Morgan currently plays long snapper for the Tennessee Titans and was featured on the Mike Vrabel Show. See clip below. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zMZyftDhnMM

This is a wonderful way to honor the memory of Tommy Pacello (‘96) and continue his legacy of and passion for investing in our city.

https://dailymemphian.com/.../tommy-pacello-fellowship...

ECS alumni worldwide!

While traveling, Mary Beth (Hazelwood, ’99) and Bill Edwards (‘00) met up with Brussels, Belgium residents Daniel (‘99) and Katy Brink.

Three ECS alumni reunited in Tallahassee at the FSU vs Clemson game!

Pictured left to right: Preston Brady (‘17), Florida State Seminoles Football staff; Dietrick Pennington (‘21), Clemson Football player; and Preston Daniel (‘20), FSU football player.

Check out this article in Style Blueprint, announcing plans to open an additional Lower School option at the Shelby Farms campus in 2023-2024, the first time in our school history that all grades will be offered on one campus! Space is limited. Schedule a tour, and apply now at THIS LINK

IT'S A GREAT DAY TO BE AN EAGLE!

The class of 2002 had a great time at their recent 20-year reunion!

A record number of golfers participated in this year’s Steve Collums Classic Golf Tournament to benefit the tuition assistance program. It was a beautiful day to play golf, enjoy the ECS community and raise funds for a great cause!

See our complete photo album at https://www.facebook.com/ECSAlumni

Homecoming 2022 was full of fun celebrations for students, teachers, parents and alumni! See our full album on our Facebook page.

The latest issue of "FORWARD ECS: The ECS Alumni Newsletter" was sent via email on Sept. 14 ! Don't miss out on updates on fellow ECS alumni!

If you did not receive FORWARD ECS in your inbox, check your spam mail, then email us at alumni@ecseagles.com.

Congratulations to Ashleigh Young Rainer (’10) who recently won Make-A-Wish Mid-South’s culture award! Ashleigh has been a Volunteer Coordinator with Make-A-Wish Mid-South since April 2019.

The mission of Make-A-Wish Mid-South is to grant life-changing wishes for children with critical illnesses. ECS has been a part of the Kids for Wish Kids program as a sponsor of wishes.

If you are interested in volunteering with Make-A-Wish, contact Ashleigh at arainer@midsouth.wish.org for more information about upcoming virtual training sessions. #ECSalumni #ECSeagles

Congratulations to Austin Cooper (‘10), who completed the qualification course for Army Special Forces this year as an 18 Bravo, Special Forces Weapons Sergeant Green Beret.

In his military career, he served in the US Marine Corps as an Infantry Officer from 2014 to 2019. During this time, he deployed as a platoon commander with 3rd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment. After deployment, he was the only marine that year to attend and graduate the US Army Ranger School. Austin got out of the USMC as a Captain.

Austin joined the US Army in 2019 in order to join US Army Special Forces, and he graduated Airborne school in 2021.

Austin is pictured with his wife, Katie, his parents, Richard (‘88) and Amee, and brother, Hunter Cooper (‘13).

Thank you for your service to our country!     #ECSalumni #ECSeagles

Congratulations to ECS class of '01 alumnus Clint Dowdle, who was recently named to The Athletic's College Sports 40 Under 40 list for his impressive work in the sports industry as one of the most influential coaching agents at Creative Arts Agency.

"Dowdle helped negotiate Marcus Freeman’s promotion to head coach at Notre Dame, and his list of clients includes Oregon’s Dan Lanning, Missouri’s Eli Drinkwitz, Florida State’s Mike Norvell, Philadelphia Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni, Minnesota Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and Utah State’s Blake Anderson. CAA is the biggest player in the college coaching agent world, and Dowdle has quickly moved up the ranks."

Read more at https://theathletic.com/.../23/college-sports-40-under-40/                            #ECSeagles #ECSAlumni

Tennessee Titans players wore their high school jerseys into Nissan Stadium recently, so ECS alumnus and Titans long snapper Morgan Cox proudly wore his #53 ECS Eagles jersey. The last time he wore it was also in Nashville at the 2005 State Championship!

#ECSalumni #ECSeagles

Two ECS alumni are now in dental practice together! Patrick Person, DDS (‘81) and Baker Darlington, DDS (‘14).

#ECSeagles #ECSalumni

Congratulations to Team Kaspar (orange), the 2022 Legacy League Champions!
Congrats also to Team Fisher (blue), who placed Runner-Up!

Legacy League 2022 was so much fun! It was great to see so many alumni involved!

#ECSalumni #ECSeagles

The ECS class of 2014 is representing in California! Chase Clack and Austin Cain stopped in for a visit with Ben Lowe, and they enjoyed a little golf today in Monterey.

#ECSalumni #ECSeagles

Coach Terry Tippett stopped by to see his former players compete in the Legacy League Semifinals.

Pictured below, guys who played for Coach Tippett, L to R: Cameron Dobbins ‘15, Peyton Watts ‘15, Conner Graves ‘14, Jake Weatherford ‘16, Coach Tippett, Marcus Lytle ‘15, Noah Teed ‘15, Benton Garrison ‘16

Also pictured below are Hunter Harrington, Micah Teed and Steven Kaspar, who played on Coach Tippett’s 2011 state championship team.

#ECSalumni #ECSeagles

All three Gagnon brothers played in the Legacy League this past summer!

Pictured left to right include Carson (‘20), Cameron (‘22) and Chandler (‘11).

#ECSalumni #ECSeagles

Brent Rooker (‘13) started for his new team, the San Diego Padres, in July, and fellow ECS alum, David Boyd (‘16) was at Petco Park to show his support! #ECSalumni #ECSeagles

Check out this great The Daily Memphian article on Morgan Cox (‘05). #ECSalumni #ECSeagles

https://dailymemphian.com/.../tennessee-titan-morgan-cox...

Congratulations to Zack Genereaux (‘17) and Colin Jones (‘18) on their recent graduation from the United States Naval Academy! Thank you for your commitment to serve our country!

Congratulations to Landon Williams ('01) for being selected to the 40 Under 40 List by the Memphis Business Journal.

Williams currently serves as SVP for Cushman & Wakefield/Commercial Advisors. During his days as a sports agent, he helped negotiate a $127.5 million contract for pitcher Matt Cain in 2012, the largest in Major League Baseball at the time. On the real estate front, Williams has worked on MAA's build-to-suite headquarters in Germantown, to name just one of the many high-profile deals.

When asked what motivates him, Williams responded, "Strive for excellence in every facet of my life; not to earn God’s grace — of which I cannot earn — but because of God’s grace of which He has freely given me."

Read more here: https://tinyurl.com/yady6n67     #ECSalumni #ECSeagles

Some former ECS girls soccer players from the classes of 2003-2013 laced up their cleats and played together in a 7 v 7 soccer tournament in May at Mike Rose Soccer Complex to benefit Lebonheur Children's Hospital. #GoEagles #ECSalumni #ECSeagles

So many from the ECS community attended a reception on May 19 to celebrate Mr. Brink's retirement after 49 years of faithful service to ECS. It was a fun afternoon full of catching up and lots of hugs! Check out our full photo album on our @ECSeagles Facebook page. #ECSeagles #ecsalumni