Celebrating the life of Liz LaVelle

Celebrating the life of Liz LaVelle

by | Sep 5, 2010 | News Slider

Arrangements of large sunflowers and peach-colored roses line the front wall of the Ezell Chapel on August 31, the day of the memorial service honoring Liz LaVelle’s life. Liz was a 2009-2010 freshman at Lipscomb from Germantown, Tennessee. She was killed in an auto accident on her way to Nashville on July 28. To the right of the room stands a large portrait of Liz lying in the grass with a beautiful smile from ear to ear. As her family begins to arrive, laughter, hugs, and the murmurs of conversation slowly begin to fill the room. The mood overall is not a somber or sad one as reminiscent stories are shared. Dr. Scott McDowell welcomes the throng of people who have come to honor Liz. There is not an open seat in the room as more and more people pile in and stand in the back. Dr. Harold Hazelip prays the prayer of Psalm 23 and introduces Dr. Dave LaVelle, Liz’s father. A teary-eyed Dr. Lavelle accounts the story of Liz’s life and restates over and over again how much Liz was loved by her family and was very close to her  cousins. He said she was very committed to the Lord and was spiritually growing all the time. Liz was baptized when she was 10 years old, stating that she “wanted everyone in the family to baptize her.” Liz was a psychology major pursuing a career at Agape. “Liz’s future was bright,” said her father. “She could draw, paint, sing and write. She had a lot of talent and a bright future. “We’re faced with reality. The reality...
Lowry urges students and Lipscomb to push against the tide at convocation

Lowry urges students and Lipscomb to push against the tide at convocation

by | Aug 31, 2010 | News Slider

President L. Randolph Lowry promised at Convocation that 2010 and the years following will be full of expansion, academic and athletic success and spiritual growth for Lipscomb University and the community as a whole. In Allen Arena on Tuesday, students from the campus school and the university joined faculty, staff, administration and members of the Nashville community to ceremonially begin the academic year. As Lowry took the stage he began his speech by singing praises to the university in its entirety and expressed how students and faculty continually press on “against the tide.” He expressed his adoration for this school and the hope he has for a bright and promising future. “Against the tide of private universities around the country that are declining in enrollment, Lipscomb University is growing,” Lowry said. “This fall we start with 400 more students than we had just one year ago. We are up almost 1,300 students from five years ago. There is record enrollment in almost every program.” Student government president Jackson Sprayberry, a senior political science major from Chickamauga, Ga., expressed his optimistic outlook on the school year. “There are a lot of things, be it academics, be it social life, or be it spiritual life, that we have to look forward to,” Sprayberry said. Sprayberry also commented on what Lowry has to offer as Lipscomb’s president. “President Lowry brings to this office the mind of an academic, the passion of a teacher and the heart of a mediator,” Sprayberry said. As the faculty and staff entered Allen Arena donning academica regalia, they were introduced by the colleges in which they teach and...