By Tanya Zanish-Belcher and Mika Payden-Travers

Last December, we were proud to host Dr. Edwin G. Wilson as he spoke about his new book Songs of Wake Forest. Over 1,000 Deacs joined us for the celebration, often sharing their fond memories on the chat. To date, nearly 5,000 people have watched the program online.

The overwhelming response inspired us to create Songs for Dr. Wilson, a collection of tributes from alumni and others that shared how much he meant to them and what he means to the campus as “Mr Wake Forest.” Over 100 alumni responded, and we were able to present Dr. Wilson with a special book containing these messages for his 98th birthday last February.

But we wanted to do more. Thanks to the energy and dedication of ZSR Board of Visitors member Dr. Heber H. “Dickie” Newsome (‘58) and Jane Crosthwaite (‘59 and former Assistant Dean of Women; Professor Emerita-Mt. Holyoke) we were able to do just that. Dickie and Jane worked with members of the Delta Nu fraternity and other supporters to quietly gather the funds necessary to bring in an archives assistant to process the papers of Dr. Wilson. What happened next is quintessential Wake Forest.

Emily Wilson (MA ’62, P ’91, ’93) was so touched by the work that this group was doing that she and Dr. Wilson (‘43) took the project to the next level. Their support has enabled us to expand the project to include the collections of those Dr. Wilson celebrated in Songs of Wake Forest and other Wake Forest luminaries.

But we would like to do more!

To that end, we are now putting out a call to all Deacons who wish to support these projects and honor Dr. Wilson. If you are interested in supporting this work, please go to this web site and make your donation today!