Page 36 - some-stuff-i-wrote-and-some-stuff-i-didn't-(2011)-h-morris-williams

Some Stuff I Wrote (2001) H. Morris Williams

The Birth of LCCC, Plus a Few Tidbits

February 9,1993

So how did we get Lake City Community College placed in Lake City back in 1962 anyhow?
Here’s the story.

G. T. (Doc) Melton - still alive, kicking and playing golf three times a week - was our state
senator. He was also chairman of the powerful Senate Education Committee and that gave him great

influence with the Florida Department of Education. A former teacher and coach, Sen. Melton knew
the enormous value a college would be to the Lake City area, so he introduced a bill in the Senate
to put a “junior college” in Lake City. Over in the Florida House of Representatives, F. W. (Shorty)

Bedenbaugh - now deceased - introduced a similar bill. With their combined influence, Lake City

got its college. Later, Doc Melton served the college 16 years as chairman of the board of trustees.
The Learning Resources building is name after him.
Much of the credit for getting the college here must also go to W. E. Bishop, who had earlier

made an astute political move to set everything in place. Here’s what happened. A legislative
decision had been made to place a 2-year college in either Madison or Live Oak. Sen. Bishop, a

former CHS agriculture teacher, knew that Lake City would not get a college if Live Oak got one
— they were too close together. So Sen. Bishop joined forces with Sen. Turner Davis of Madison and

together they got North Florida Junior College placed in Madison. This then opened the door for
Sen. Melton and Rep. Bedenbaugh to introduce their bills to put a college in Lake City. Their bills

passed both chambers with flying colors and that’s how we got our college 31 years ago.
Skipping Around
Dr. Keith Ozaki (CHS 1981) received a $10,000 award last week for his term paper on

cardiovascular research. Keith, who got his medical training at Duke and Harvard, was described

as an “extraordinary” researcher for his paper which was judged the best in the entire nation.
Veda Bearrs Attaway died last week at age 90. She was one of the finest teachers of higher
math ever to teach at CHS. Hundreds of CHS grads have called her the best teacher they ever had.

Any student who took four years of math under her was well-qualified to enter any institution of
higher learning and excel in math. If Heaven has a Teachers’ Hall of Fame, Veda Attaway will sit

on the front row.

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