Ogletree House Campaign Resumes Following Katrina

Dec. 20, 2005

Fund-raising efforts to restore and expand the Ogletree House have resumed.

The Campaign for the Restoration and Expansion of the Ogletree House was temporarily suspended following Hurricane Katrina after having secured more than $1 million in gift commitments only two months into the public phase of the campaign. The target date for completion of the fund-raising effort is now December 31, 2006.

Home to offices of the Southern Miss Alumni Association since 1975, the Ogletree House is named for the longtime Alumni Association leader Powell G. Ogletree. Albert & Associates Architects in Hattiesburg will redesign the 93-year-old existing structure to approximately 12,000 square feet, nearly doubling the Ogletree's House present size.

The multipurpose room in the new facility will be named after Lou Ann and Louis Poynter of Hattiesburg. Along with the Poynter lead gift, Ralph Simmons of Laurel made a major gift contribution. The kitchen in the new facility will be named the Ralph T. Simmons and Linnie Cockrell Simmons Kitchen, in honor of Simmons and his mother.

Additional gift supporters of the campaign donating $5,000 or more include: Bobby and Betty Chain, Lamar and Joy Gillespie, Mark and Olga Jackson, Ed and Lynda Langton, Lewis and Margie Myrick, Bob and Kristi Pierce, the Rotary Club of Hattiesburg, Ray and Jo Anne Sims, the Southern Miss South Central Mississippi Alumni Chapter, Thad and Gerry Waites and Bonnie and Lawrence Warren, all of Hattiesburg; Rex and Becky Kelly of Gulfport; Dick and Diane Berry of Mobile, Ala.; Danny and Patty Mitchell of Brandon; Ken and Carolyn Shearer of Ridgeland; Jeffrey and Lynn O’Keefe and Lucy, Jack and Walt Denton, all of Biloxi; Curt and Virginia Hébert of Mandeville, La.; Lester and Jan Haddox of Columbia; Bob and Judy Mixon of Sumrall; and Bill Phalen of Scottsdale, Ariz.

Donations for the Campaign for the Restoration and Expansion of the Ogletree House are accepted online or by check payable to The USM Foundation (with Ogletree House Fund in the memo blank) and mailed to the Southern Miss Alumni Association, 118 College Drive #5013, Hattiesburg, MS 39406-0001.

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