Class of ’73 dedicates new LED sign

ROCKINGHAM — Greeting students and passerbys near the main entrance of Richmond Senior High School is a new gift from the school’s first graduating class.

Prior to Friday’s home football game, Richmond held a dedication ceremony to officially unveil its new LED sign along U.S. 1.

Several Raiders from the class of 1973 joined were joined by current principal Joyce McRae and former administrator Jim Butler, along with Richmond County Schools Superintendent Dr. Joe Ferrell.

Vivian Davis Hilton explained that following the class celebrating its 50th high school reunion in 2023, the reunion committee wanted to “give back to its alma mater.”

Asking Butler, who was principal at the time, for donation recommendations, it was decided that a new sign was needed to replace the original one.

That sign, which was uprooted earlier this month, was also dedicated by the class of 1973.

Hilton, a longtime educator and member of the first group of Raiders to cross the stage, said part of the decision to construct a new sign was to replace “the antiquated sign that required a school employee to take a ladder and change the letters.”

In conjunction with Kay Britt, who serves as co-chair of the reunion committee with Hilton, and classmate Jerry Lamont, the three “took on the challenge to oversee the project’s fundraising for the state-of-the-art LED sign.”

Under the direction of the newly created sign committee — comprised of Eddie Dean, Sharon Morris Spondike, Dewey Brower, Barbara Mudd Orr and Joel Covington — the class of 1973 worked closely with Butler and Ferrell.

As funds were raised, the sign committee and RCS officials conducted research and met with companies which specialized in the construction and installation of LED signs.

Everything came together this past spring, which allowed the new sign to be put in place in time to welcome Richmond’s students for the first day of the 2024-25 school year.

“In March, a classmate anonymously matched the funds that had been donated,” Hilton shared. “That allowed the class to meet its goal that had been promised to Richmond County Schools.

“The Richmond class of 1973 is extremely proud of the sign and hopes that the school and community will enjoy it for many years to come.”

“On behalf of Richmond Senior High School, I want to thank the class of 1973 for its generous donation of the new digital sign at our front gate,” McRae said. “Your commitment to our school, even decades after your graduation, is truly inspiring and greatly appreciated.

“The state-of-the-art sign will help us enhance communication with our community, promote events and showcase our Raider pride. The generosity shown will have a lasting impact on our school community for years to come.”

Editor’s note: This article was updated at 8:14 p.m. 08-30-24 to include a quote.