Over 300 members and friends of the Samford University Legacy League celebrated Valentine’s Day at the organization’s annual scholarship luncheon on Feb. 14.
Held at Vestavia Country Club, the program featured nationally known author and speaker Trudy Cathy White, daughter of Chick-fil-A founder Truett Cathy. In keeping with the title of her latest book, “A Legacy that Lasts,” White offered a thought-provoking message about passing family values down to future generations.
“The legacy we leave is the life we’re living now,” she said, “which makes the decisions we’re making so very important.”
She encouraged the luncheon crowd to define and understand their values and shared that she and her husband base decisions on their five core values: faith, family, integrity, generosity and gratitude.
“When you understand your values, you get just a little more intentional with how you live your life,” she said.
Finding community
As a testament to the Legacy League’s support of its scholarship students, a Samford senior shared her Legacy League story, which began with a family member’s unfaithfulness, substance abuse and later, suicide.
But throughout her family’s ordeal, she said, “There was nowhere God wasn’t standing right beside us. I get to see that now, especially within the Legacy League. To give me a community I would have never dreamed of, to have people praying for me and to be financially able to attend the best school I could ever ask for, I would never be truly able to express my gratitude.”
The establishment of a new endowed scholarship, the Anna Belle and Emmett Johnson Legacy League Scholarship, was announced by Samford First Lady Julie Taylor.
“The story of this scholarship is a story of love,” she said.
Johnson served as president and CEO of Baptist Medical Centers from 1974 to 1994. He died in 2011.
Trained as a nurse, 95-year-old Anna Belle Johnson established the scholarship to help nursing students in significant need to obtain a nursing education as she did.
Daughter Gay Johnson, a longtime Legacy League member and volunteer, accepted a certificate of recognition on behalf of her parents.
An organization of 800 members, the Legacy League is committed to providing scholarships to students in significant financial need and challenging circumstances. For more information, visit www.samford.edu/legacyleague.
Share with others: