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Dr. Tina K. Anderson, President of WTCG, unveiled the rendering of the renamed Lowndes Hall during an indoor ceremony (due to weather) to Sidney and Sharon Morris and guests including state legislators and local dignitaries.

MAKINGDreams A REALITY Sidney and Sharon Morris Helping Make the “What If’s” Possible at Wiregrass Technical College

COMPILED BY JOHN RIDDLE | PHOTOGRAPHY BY LYDIA HUBERT

SSidney and Sharon Morris were honored by The event was held in conjunction with a "Topping Off Wiregrass Technical College on November 12 at Ceremony" for the new Health Sciences Building, slated to a Renaming Ceremony of Lowndes Hall to the open in Spring 2022, which will be named for Dr. Ed and Sidney and Sharon Morris Hall due to a generous Rhonda Mark. donation to the college.

Morris Hall houses the president’s suite and administrative offices, classrooms, and labs for several fields of study, including business and computer systems programs, printing and graphics, esthetics, neuromuscular, early childhood, and the library.

The Morris’ have been supporters of the college since 1988 when James Bridges, former President of Valdosta Technical Institute, asked Sidney to help organize the Valdosta Technical Institute Foundation, now the Wiregrass Georgia Technical College Foundation. He remains an active member of the Wiregrass Foundation South Trustees. In 2018, the Technical College System of Georgia named Sidney as the TCSG Volunteer of the year based on his service to the college.

Greg Dozier, Commissioner of the Technical College System of Georgia, was part of the festivities where he thanked the Morris’ for their generosity and hard work over the years. “We are here to celebrate two wonderful and generous members of the community—Sidney and Sharon Morris. Sidney and Sharon have served on boards for the college since the creation of the College Foundation. Today, we officially rename Lowndes Hall to Sidney and Sharon Morris Hall in their honor and as a tribute to the Morris' commitment and support of the students and faculty of Wiregrass Georgia Technical College. We are extremely grateful to them and celebrate their belief in the mission of the college,” he said.

“When we started, all those years ago, we never dreamed our little tech school would become the footprint it is today. In the 32 years I’ve served on the Foundation, I've seen this technical college change a lot of people's lives, and we take great pride in seeing Wiregrass graduates throughout our community. As a member of the Foundation board, I've asked more than a few friends for favors for Wiregrass, and I asked for a huge donation of my friends Dr. Ed and Rhonda Mark, and they willingly responded, which guided Sharon and me to donate to Wiregrass. We put our money where our mouth is,” Sidney explained.

Sidney emphasized that the success of the students of Wiregrass was a big part of the celebration. "Their success can be seen in business, truck driving, healthcare, and many other phases of business and industry," he said. "Sharon and I are proud to have played a role in their success. We look forward to continuing to serve Wiregrass, as it no doubt continues to change lives across our community."

Philanthropy is vital to the college. It allows the school to provide more opportunities to students in the form of scholarships, textbook assistance, new equipment and supplies for various programs, and program expansion.

“Wiregrass appreciates Sidney and Sharon Morris for what they mean to our college and community,” said Dr. Tina K. Anderson, President of Wiregrass Georgia Technical College. “They require us to imagine bigger and to think better, and to embrace the ‘what ifs.'" “Today, we officially rename Lowndes Hall to Sidney and Sharon Morris Hall in their honor and as a tribute to the Morris' commitment and support of the students and faculty of Wiregrass Georgia Technical College.”

TCSG Commissioner Greg Dozier

For more information and to get invovled with the Wiregrass Technical College Foundation contact Crissy Staley, Executive Director, at crissy.staley@wiregrass.edu or 229-333-2124.