C o m m e n c e m e n t F all 2 0 1 3 In December 2013, Ansleigh R. Pack was among 165 graduates who crossed the stage in Lander’s Finis Horne Arena. Like many grads, the day marked an important milestone for Pack as she made the transition from Lander student to alumna. However, Pack was celebrating more than just her graduation – she was also carrying on a family tradition. In 1959, Ansleigh Pack’s grandfather Joe B. Pack began as a student at Lander. He attended the university for three years, but was unable to complete his degree at that time. However, he returned to the school in 1980 and earned a degree in business, graduating in 1982. “He drove from Taylors three nights per week for two years, while holding down a full-time job in order to obtain his degree,” recounted Joe Pack’s wife, Bobbie, in a letter to a university staff member. Ansleigh’s father, Joe (Barry) Pack Jr., also completed a degree at Lander. He graduated in 1985 with a degree in computer science. During the ceremony, Ansleigh’s father looked on as she received her diploma for mass communication, but her grandfather was not in attendance. Sadly, Joe Sr. passed away in September 2012. Still, during the ceremony Ansleigh carried a small piece of her grandfather’s spirit. She honored his memory and the family’s Lander legacy by wearing her grandfather’s class ring on a chain around her neck. The Packs were likely not the only ones in attendance that day celebrating a family tradition. Stories like this one have resounded across the history of the school, as fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, cousins and all sorts of kin have been able to share in calling Lander University their alma mater. During the commencement ceremony, graduates and attending family and friends enjoyed an address by Dr. Bettie Rose Horne, who urged the new alumni to keep learning. Of her 40 years of experience in academics, Horne spent 30 years of that time as a teacher and administrator at Lander. She is currently a member of the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education, representing the 3rd Congressional District. Horne is the wife of the late Finis Horne, Lander athletics director emeritus. After her speech, Horne was presented with an honorary doctorate of Humane Letters by university officials.
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Lander Magazine • Spring 2014
Carrying on the Legacy
Family Celebrates Lander Tradition Spanning Generations By Russell Martin
Lander President Dr. Daniel Ball, left, welcomes commencement speaker Dr. Bettie Horne, of the S.C. Commission on Higher Education, to campus prior to the Fall 2013 graduation ceremony.
Ansleigh Pack, right, a mass communication major, poses with her father, Joe Pack Jr., Class of 1985, before crossing the stage to become a Class of 2013 graduate.