Amphitheater contributors honored at recent ceremony

Contributors to the Mary Louise Jackson Amphitheater were honored during a ceremony recently at the Manassas Campus of Northern Virginia Community College.

The event featured the unveiling of a plaque listing the major benefactors.

"Thank you for joining us in this beautiful setting," Provost Hortense Hinton said in her welcoming remarks at the amphitheater. "There's something magical about spending a summer evening relaxing with friends and I hope you are enjoying it as much as I am.'

Hinton introduced special guests Mary Louise and Elijah "Zeke' Jackson, Senator Charles Colgan, D-Manassas and his wife, Alicia, Kathryn Ann MacLane, Jim Fabian, Charles and Gail Kettlewell, Shawn Roach and Floyd and Barbara Williams.

Several college board members attended the ceremony, including James White who represents the City of Manassas and Robert C. Gaskill Sr., representing Prince William County. College official

included President Robert G. Templin Jr., Educational Foundation President John Ritzert Jr., and Educational Foundation Executive Director John Ruffino.

Donations for the project came from large and small companies, civic organizations, local jurisdictions, families and individuals. Early in the fundraising phase, NavCom Systems donated $185,000 to cover construction costs, and the company's chief executive officer, Zeke Jackson, named the amphitheater for this wife, Mary Louise, who is well known in the education community after serving on the Virginia State Board for Community Colleges for eight years, including a term as board chairman in 2002-2003.

"We are extremely thankful for everyone who worked together to make this dream a reality," Hinton said. "For a long time, we have wanted to create a permanent reflection of our appreciation for the community's support. We hope the plaque we are unveiling tonight conveys, in some small way, how grateful we are to have

such wonderful friends."

The Jacksons, Ritzert and Ruffino unveiled the rectangular bronze plaque that features a bust of Mary Louise Jackson and the names of the major contributors: NavCom Systems, GTE Foundation, Manassas Rotary Club, Kathryn Ann MacLane, Ross, France and Ratliff, Century 21 Capital Realty Corp., Peter Chase and Associates, Jim and Yolanda Fabian, Dave and Caroline Felt, Wilfred Howsmon, IBM, Charles and Gail Kettlewell, Manassas Ice and Fuel, Merchant's Tire and Auto Centers, Nikon, Inc., the Pentagon Pacesetters, Planning and Services Corporation, Rector Construction, Skippy's Trucking, Strayer University Education Foundation, Weichert Realtors, Vulcan Materials, Barbara L. Williams and an anonymous donor.

After the plaque was unveiled, Jackson reminisced about her life and the many blessings that have come her way. She called her husband, Zeke, her "greatest cheerleader" and said he could have named the amphitheater after himself but he humbled himself and named it after her. Mentioning some of the good deeds Zeke has been involved in, she said "He has found his calling and gives so others may receive."

Jackson challenged the audience to discover what is important in life and asked where they are putting their efforts. "Inside each of us is greatness. Pass that greatness on to the next generation," she said.

Before the evening ended, attendees enjoyed a preview of "The Gray Ghost," a Civil War drama in production at the amphitheater. The facility is a fully equipped professional venue for performing arts. For more information call Jim Fabian at 703-257-6632.

—Bennie Scarton Jr.