Larry Penkava
RAMSEUR — Grady Lawson is retiring from the Randolph County Board of Education after 40 years.
“I’m about used up,” said the 80-year-old last week. “I’ve worked with six superintendents, but it’s a different ballgame now.”
Lawson said he was first elected in 1968, was defeated two years later then ran again in 1972 and has been on the school board ever since. He plans to call it quits when his current term ends in December.
“Every school in the county has been built or renovated since I came on,” he said, noting the Eastern Randolph and Southwestern Randolph high schools were being built during his first term. He counts as one of the highlights of his career getting new high schools in operation, including the most recent two – Providence Grove and Wheatmore.
“I was thinking the other night about the new schools” that have been built during the past 40 years. There has been a school building boom in the county during the past couple of decades.
A 1947 graduate of Ramseur High School, Lawson ran a gas station and auto parts store in Ramseur before retiring a number of years ago. He was instrumental in starting the Post 81 American Legion baseball team in 1970 and still heads the program. He has also been part of the Eastern Randolph High School athletics booster group.
Lawson is almost synonymous with Eastern Randolph, going back to when the school was built in 1968 and ‘69. He said he thought the high school was built for $1.4 million compared to about $39 million for the two latest high schools.
“Eastern Randolph did without for a long time,” he said, adding that the football, basketball and baseball teams played at other schools until the boosters could raise money for on-campus facilities. He said the annual Christmas tree sales have provided the school with approximately $78,000 during the past 26 years.
Lawson said the new high schools have hurt Eastern Randolph, which he said had “one of the best football programs in the state.” He said students at the school have annually received more scholarship money, both for academics and athletics, than any other in the county. “That’s an accomplishment in itself.”
He says teacher morale has dropped in the last couple of years and that’s had an affect on him.
“I’ve got where I can’t sleep at night thinking about things,” Lawson said. “It affects my health.
“I may be the only one who’s negative,” he said. “Part of the blame of it is on the economy.”
Looking back, however, Lawson says, “It’s been pretty good. I hope I’ve contributed. If not, I’ve wasted a lot of time.”
He points to high rates of scholarship in Randolph County schools and “people going to the next level.” As head of the American Legion team, Lawson said he plans to “continue as long as I’m breathing. I enjoy that.”
If there’s a philosophy he can point to for his life, Lawson said it’s simple: “Do what’s right. I’m going to try to do what’s right and that’s it. My bottom line is I care about the kids of Randolph County.”
After retiring from the board, Lawson said he’ll “rest and stick with my baseball. When you’re 80 years old you don’t make many plans.”
He said he and wife Helen will try to spend more time with their children, Michael Lawson and Gina Young. He said one of the highlights of his life was “getting my kids through college ... and they’re both doing well.”
Lawson said the school board should be OK since “we’ve got some good people running. I feel like it’s just time for me to go.”
