A scholarship endowment paying tribute to the lives of three University of Mississippi students has grown to more than $500,000, and three new recipients say they feel honored to represent the men for whom the scholarship is named.
Continuing gifts from the Kappa Alpha fraternity have expanded the Charles Walker Kelly, Samuel Clayton Kelly and Bryant Mason Wilbanks Memorial Scholarship Endowment that pays tribute to the lives of lifelong friends tragically killed in a 2011 car accident while returning to Ole Miss to attend a church service with other members of the fraternity.
All natives of Madison, Mississippi, the friends graduated together from Madison Central High School, attended Broadmoor Baptist Church, enrolled in Ole Miss and pledged the same fraternity. Now their legacies are kept alive by fellow KA brothers who receive the annual scholarship awards.
This year’s recipients of the $5,000 scholarships are Jack Beaird of Dallas, Texas, Will Dukes of Brandon, Mississippi, and Clayton Mahaffey of Madison, Mississippi.
Ken Wilbanks, father of Mason Wilbanks, said, “When a parent loses a child, they fear their child will be forgotten. Thanks to KA, family, friends and donors, we know that’s not going to happen and we really appreciate that. KA means a lot to us and meant a lot to our sons.”
Alumni advisors of KA’s Alpha Upsilon chapter and UM’s scholarship committee work together to select recipients. The award is based on several criteria, including financial need, leadership and academic performance.
“At our son’s celebration of life service in Madison, the one thing we’ll always remember is his pledge brothers up in the choir loft and then walking out of the church through all the KA pledges lined up,” Wilbanks said. “We’re very thankful for everybody in Kappa Alpha and for what this scholarship is doing.”
Beaird, a junior studying business and entrepreneurship, expressed gratitude for the award.
“I’m extremely honored to receive this scholarship. It will allow me to stay focused and remain committed to honoring the families who make this support possible,” he said. “I want to leave a legacy of being a good friend and simply trying to make at least one person’s day just a bit better. I hope to honor the Kelly, Kelly and Wilbanks sons by being a friend to all and making sure one more person smiles each day.”
Likewise, Dukes, a freshman finance major, said, “Receiving the Kelly, Kelly and Wilbanks Scholarship award is a very special milestone for me in my academic journey, and I would like to personally thank the Kelly, Kelly and Wilbanks families for their compassion and selflessness for honoring myself and others with this award.
“This scholarship allows me the opportunity to continue my enrollment here at Ole Miss which will also open the door for many other professional and academic opportunities.”
Mahaffey, a junior banking and finance and real estate major, echoed his friends’ sentiments: “Receiving this scholarship means a lot to me. On the application I had to answer the question if tomorrow never came, what would your legacy be? Because of this question, I thought deeply about the purpose of life. I concluded that our goal is to reflect the love of Christ and share his image with others. We take for granted that there will be a tomorrow, but that isn’t a guarantee. To me, this scholarship is a reminder to live each day to the fullest and make it meaningful by serving and loving others as Christ did.
“I am so grateful to those families and thankful for their continuous support of KA,” he continued. “It means a lot and shows me how great their character and ongoing love for their sons are. They have taken a horrible tragedy and, instead of letting it be only bad, they used it to bring about many years of good and giving. This scholarship is a great way for their sons’ legacies to carry on.”
Chapter adviser Trey Horne of Oxford has been instrumental in growing the endowment.
“Mason, Sam Clayton and Walker were strong men of character who loved God and their families. Through this scholarship endowment, their legacies will live on by providing three men of Kappa Alpha Order scholarships each year,” he said.
“As new classes enter Ole Miss, this endowment will remind these men that the lives Mason, Sam Clayton and Walker lived are worthy to be followed.”
The endowment is open to gifts from individuals and organizations. To contribute, send checks with the Kelly, Kelly and Wilbanks Scholarship noted to the University of Mississippi Foundation, 406 University Avenue, Oxford, MS 38655; contact Charlotte Parks, vice chancellor for development, at cpparks@olemiss.edu or 662-915-3120; or visit this page.
By Bill Dabney/UM Foundation