Class Notes: February 2023

This collection includes news from February 2023. Class Notes are published monthly on The BSC Blog to provide timely updates for friends and alumni of the College.

Submit career updates, weddings, births, and in memoriam news here.

To register your child or grandchild for BSC’s Seedlings Program, find more information here. Children will receive a special birthday card each year from the Office of Alumni Engagement, as well as invitations to age-appropriate events if they live in the Birmingham area.

In the News

Lisa Narrell-Mead ’86 was named one of the Birmingham Business Journal’s 2023 Leaders in Diversity. Mead is the Chief Operating/Risk Officer at Crossroads Impact Corp, a financial lending institution committed to investing in businesses that promote economic vitality and community development.

The Alabama Optometric Association’s current board includes three BSC alumni: Board President Dr. Howard R. Day, O.D. ’83, Melanie Lawrence, O.D. ’07, and Dr. Megan Sandlin Kentros, O.D. ’12. “BSC prepared us well for our careers and our leadership positions,” says Dr. Day.

Wendi Ward Boyen ’91, Executive Vice President for Government and Institutional Banking at Regions; Stephanie Houston Mays ’04, shareholder and Chief Talent Officer at Maynard Cooper & Gale; and M’Kayl Lewis ’14, Senior Vice President for Member Services at Pack Health LLC, were featured in a Birmingham Business Journal roundup of tips on mentoring.

2010s

Claude Hugh Estes V ’12 has been named to the position of head of infrastructure and senior managing director at Harbert Management Corporation (HMC). Estes is tasked with overall responsibility for Harbert Infrastructure’s activities including acquisitions, asset management, and the strategic direction of the platform. Estes joined HMC in 2015 and has held escalating positions, including most recently head of investments of Harbert Infrastructure.

Rev. Dr. Thomas Hermans-Webster ’12 presented a paper, “Nourishing Our Becoming: The Eucharist and Belonging in a Process Perspective,” at the 50^th anniversary conference of the Center for Process Studies Feb. 15-17 in Claremont, Calif. A religion major at BSC, he earned his PhD from Boston University School of Theology. He currently serves as the Acquiring Editor at Orbis Books in Maryknoll, N.Y.

In Memoriam

Dr. Thomas O’Connor James on Feb. 18 in Birmingham. James earned his B.A. in Philosophy from Notre Dame University, and served in the Navy as a jet pilot. He earned his MBA from SUNY-Buffalo and his Ph.D. in education from the University of Pittsburgh. He served as Financial Administrator for Nazareth College of Rochester, Chatham College in Pittsburgh, Birmingham-Southern College, Spring Hill College in Mobile, and as President of Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas. He developed a national reputation in financial management through his consulting with many schools over the years, enabling them to become successful and thriving institutions. He was a prolific author in his lifelong pursuit for ethics, both in management and globally.

Robert Michael Callahan ’73 on Jan. 19 in Birmingham. Callahan received his JD from the University of Alabama Law School. After a short year working in the public defender’s office in Birmingham, Callahan worked as an FBI Special Agent for 27 years in field offices across the country in Kansas City, New York City, Georgia, and Birmingham. He also taught federal, state, and city law enforcement officers at Quantico throughout his career. After retiring from the FBI, Callahan operated a private investigation firm for more than 10 years.

Anne Frazer Drake on Feb. 6 in Birmingham. She was a graduate of Murphy High School, and attended Agnes Scott College and Birmingham-Southern College. In 1960, she married Henry Drake. They settled in Birmingham, but she continued her lifelong ties to family and friends in her beloved childhood home of Mobile. Anne considered being a wife and mother her calling and was devoted to raising her four children. She became a member of Briarwood Presbyterian Church in 1969 where she was active in Women's Circle, Bible studies, Vacation Bible School, and countless other areas of service and discipleship.

Kathryn Werner Ragland ’52 on Feb. 7 in Birmingham. A member of Phi Beta Kappa, she was also a member of First Lutheran Church Birmingham, First Methodist Church Birmingham, and Irondale United Methodist Church for over 50 years. Active in the church throughout her life, she was a long-standing member of the United Methodist Women, participated in many Bible studies, and enjoyed participating in mission trips. She was also active in the Fair Haven Retirement Home Auxiliary, serving as its president, and for many years was a volunteer in the Nearly New Shop at Fair Haven.