50 Years In The Making: 1968 Alumni Make Music & Movies

R-MA alumni Greg Hoover ‘68 and David Sullivan ‘69 have remained in contact over the years through emails from their Class Ambassador and Vice Chairman of the Board of Trustees, John Simar ‘68.

In 2021, Simar shared with classmates a beautiful song written and performed by Hoover. This got some creative wheels turning in the mind of Sullivan, a filmmaker and novelist living in the mountains of Western North Carolina.

The two grads began corresponding, and the result was the country song “Travelin’ Stan,” with lyrics by Sullivan and music by Hoover’s Syracuse-based band, Black Mountain Angels. The song was released not only for radio but will also be included in the soundtrack for Sullivan’s upcoming film, “Encounters at Flat Rock,” based on his sci-fi book trilogy of the same name.

After their graduation from R-MA, both Hoover and Sullivan studied Economics, at Tennessee Wesleyan and Boston College respectively.

Hoover later worked in construction material sales & design before becoming a highly successful builder specializing in homes, commercial projects, and subdivisions. His leadership in these areas was recognized as he became President and Board member of various state and national building organizations.

Sullivan’s career focused on organizational development in corporate telecommunications, manufacturing, and oil & gas industries, where he won multiple business communications awards and developed programs to prepare executives to give effective testimony in state and Federal courts. He also served as two-time President of the Dallas-Fort Worth Association for Psychological Type.

Both men credit the Academy for much of their success in both the worlds of business and their creative endeavors. They are now at work on a short film about the ghost of Alice Riley, the first woman executed in Georgia. Hoover has already penned a great song as a part of the production process.