The event was a homecoming for the author as he graduated from LMU in 1947. Born in a clapboard cabin in Polk County, Tenn., in 1915, Scarbrough was the third of seven children in a family of sharecroppers, which moved frequently around the county during his early years. He was an avid reader from his earliest years and showed literary inclinations, which seemed very strange in the county at the time. Never forgetting his rural upbringing, though, he once said, "As a born dirt farmer, I have dirt, soil, under my nails. I keep it there figuratively, as a reminder."
Scarbrough attended the University of Tennessee in 1935-36 and the University of the South in Sewanee, Tenn., for two years on scholarship during the war in 1941-43. After teaching at several schools, he entered LMU and graduated with honors in 1947. He received a master degree from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville in 1954 and later attended the Iowa Writers' Workshop.
Over many years continuing into the present, Scarbrough has published poetry in more than 65 magazines and journals such as the prestigious "Poetry." He has also published five major books of poetry and one novel. George's first book of poetry, "Tellico Blue," was published in 1949. "The Course is Upward" followed in 1951, and "Summer So-Called" was printed in 1956. His "New and Selected Poems" was published in 1977, and it was greeted with widespread acclaim. Scarbrough's only novel "A Summer Ago" came in 1986. His most recent book "Invitation to Kim," printed in 1989, was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize in 1990. He also is included among the period's major poets in "The Poetry Anthology of 1921-2000." At age 89, he is still at work, using the same out-dated manual typewriter he has used for years. Most recently, he has been working on a collection of poems about Han Shan, a Chinese poet of the Tang Dynasty.
In the course of his career, Scarbrough has received many recognitions and awards, including two Carnegie Foundation grants, the Borestone Mountain Award, the Mary Rugeley Ferguson Poetry Award, a grant from the Authors League of America, the Sheena Albanese Memorial Prize and a nomination for the Pushcart Award. Last year, George Scarbrough received the Knoxville Writer's Guild 2003 Career Achievement Award. He accepted in his typically joking manner by saying the honor should have come sooner.
A graduate of the LMU Class of 1956, Bush retired from the Claiborne County School System after 27 years of outstanding and devoted service. She and her late husband Willard together amassed more than seventy years of educating young people. She is remembered by her former students as a caring woman who often went above and beyond the call of duty and had a genuine concern for the pupils under her care.
Retirement did not diminish her drive to work and to see that others were ministered to. She spends a great deal of time in service to her church and to her community, and she is a frequent volunteer at LMU. She teaches an adult Sunday school class at Pump Springs Baptist Church, and she hosts a popular weekly televised bible study class which airs from the University's Sigmon Communications Center. She also has a prison ministry, through which she reaches out to women who are incarcerated. She began her work with nine women, all but two of whom have been released and are now productive citizens in their communities.
Other awards went to retired Prudential Asset Management executive and LMU alumnus and trustee Richard Horvath and retired educator Dr. Hubert Black. Horvath received the Honorary Doctorate of Laws. Dr. Black, who also served as commencement speaker, was recognized as recipient of the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award. LMU awarded 974 associate, baccalaureate and master degrees on Saturday. This is the largest graduating class since the University was founded in 1897.
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