February 22, 2017
VAN DAVIS 5K TOPS $50,000 FOR ENDOWMENT
National Park College (NPC) hosted the fifth annual Van Davis Memorial 5K Run/Walk Saturday. To date the event has raised more than $50,000 for the Van Davis Memorial Scholarship endowment.
The race included 285 participants. Noah Eskew, a junior at Jessieville High School
won the race for the fourth straight year with a time of 16:24.66.
Race teams included Poppy’s Angels, FBC Fitness, YMCA Reach & Rise, NPC Nursing, US
Bank, Social Sciences (The Cool Division), and ASMSA (hARdcore).
Charlotte Veazey-Davis, Dr. Davis’s widow, was among the race participants along with
her daughter, Erin Davis-Shedd, granddaughter, Liliana, and friend, Coy Theobalt.
She shared with other participants about the emotion she felt pinning her bib on the
morning of the race and the many times she had pinned Dr. Davis’s bib on before his
races. She said, “I cannot thank you all enough for being here, remembering Van, and
supporting this legacy with the College.” She presented each race medalists with a
custom blue glass medal.
Presenting sponsors for this year’s race included The Sentinel-Record, Dennis Berry of Morgan Stanley, and Henderson State University.
Gold sponsors included The Munro Foundation, Levi Hospital, Alliance Rubber and Regions Bank.
Silver sponsors included US Raceworks, First Security Bank, and Lewis Architects.
Bronze sponsors included BanCorp South, Road ID, Dr. Richard Braley, Hot Springs Title Company, Raymond Wright State Farm, Portal Dental Health, Razorback Vending, Group Therapy, Simmons Bank, Malvern Minerals, Stonecipher Distributors, US Bank, BW’s Studio, Pro Productions, Med Express Urgent Care and Weyerhaeuser.
The Van Davis Memorial 5K Run/Walk was started in 2013 in honor of long time NPC instructor, Dr. Van Davis. Dr. Davis received his formal education at Simpson College in Iowa, Oxford University in England, and earned his Ph.D. from the University of Virginia. His dissertation on the ideology of Northern
Democracy during the Civil War and Reconstruction may be found in 14 libraries across the country, including Harvard University and the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library.
He was an avid runner completing over 60 marathons including the Boston Marathon six times and Pikes Peak eight times. With his familiar beard and his long, lanky legs, many local residents remember seeing him running around Whittington Park and other Hot Springs roadways.
Van’s proudest achievement was teaching history and political science with passion for almost 38 years. He was an inspiring professor and lecturer and held the deepest knowledge and understanding for all the subjects he taught. His students were in awe of the knowledge he possessed, and considered him an icon on campus. Dr. Davis challenged his students to do their best daily, and he served as a standard of intellect for others to model. He cared deeply for his students and he shared joy in their successes.
