TOM BERRY
Tom Berry became the first student-athlete to earn a swimming scholarship at the University of North Carolina after a stellar career at Grimsley High School that included All-America honors, four state records and six state championship medals. As a three-year letter winner and team captain at UNC, Berry set school records in three events. He was a six-time ACC finalist and a national qualifier in the 100 and 200 breaststroke events. For the past five decades, Berry has been at the forefront of North Carolina’s wildlife conservation efforts, earning appointment to the NC Wildlife Commission and chairmanship of the organization’s Land Us Committee. Berry has been recognized at the national, regional and state levels during his tenure, which has seen the Commission acquire more 65,000 acres of land for use by North Carolina citizens and protection of the state’s wildlife.
john burney
The first certified athletic trainer in the Guilford County school system, John Burney’s career at Southern Guilford High School spanned 34 years from 1975 through 2008. After earning degrees from Lees McRae College, Appalachian State University and Bowman Gray School of Medicine at Wake Forest University, he served as the head trainer for North Carolina’s Shrine Bowl football games from 1992-2004 and was the NCCA East-West All-Star trainer in 1984 and 1985. He served 21 years as an executive officer for the NC Athletics Trainers Association, holding the positions of president, secretary and treasurer. During his tenure, Burney initiated the formation of licensing of athletic trainers in the state of North Carolina. He has worked as a trainer for the North Carolina State High School Wrestling championships since 1976 and was named the North Carolina Athletics Trainer of the Year in 1990. A Raleigh native, Burney entered the North Carolina Athletics Trainer Hall of Fame in 2002 and the NC/SC Shriners Hall of Fame in 2015.
karen buxton
An accomplished multi-sport coach and athlete, Karen Buxton is a four-time USA Triathlon member and six-time Team USA Duathlon member. She qualified for the IM World Championships in Hawaii (2004 & 2014), was a USA Triathlon All-American six times and finished four Ironman races in 2023. She was ranked #1 in the world in her age group in 2024, holding that ranking for several weeks. Currently the head women’s triathlon coach at Greensboro College, she has competed in more than 160 events and coached athletes through hundreds more. A native of Trenton, NJ and a Greensboro resident for more than 30 years, Buxton was the founding field hockey coach at Greensboro Day School (1996-2012) and was named the 2002 NCISSA Coach of the Year. Buxton was a member of the Greensboro Youth Soccer Association (1995-1997) and has been part of the Ridgewood Swim Club, helping develop and implement a competitive summer swim program for 120 children. As a breast cancer survivor, she has overcome devasting injuries to excel in race competition. Buxton earned the 2007 silver medal in the Duathlon Long Course World Championships and owns 15 finishes in Ironman competition, including the 2004 and 2014 World Championships.
lem cox
Lem Cox was a groundbreaking athletics administrator at nearly every level of Guilford County during his long career. A graduate of East Carolina University, he oversaw the intramural program which led to a long career in athletes. Cox came to Greensboro in 1961 and served as the Director of Athletics for Greensboro City Schools for 38 years. During the 1970s, he was very involved in the integration of city schools and guaranteeing access to athletics for all students. He was at the forefront of the city school system adopting a salary schedule ensuring equal pay for coaches of both genders. Cox was founding member of Special Olympics North Carolina as well as the Little 4 Invitational high school basketball tournament (currently the annual HAECO Invitational) in 1975. He was the first director of Greensboro’s Camp Joy, an inclusive summer day camp for ages 5 and up since the mid-1960s. He is a 64-year member of the YMCA and received the organization’s award of Appreciation for Dedicated Service. Cox served at Greensboro College as Director of Health & Safety Education & Athletics from 1993-2008. He was inducted into the Greensboro College Athletics Hall of Fame in 2019.
marcus gilchrist
Marcus Gilchrist was a standout athlete at High Point Andrews where he was voted football MVP, twice earned All-Conference honors as a defensive back and earned All-State honors as a kick returner. He was also a four-year starter in basketball, earning team MVP and All-Conference honors for the Andrews team that reached the Western Regional Finals with a 22-3 record. Gilchrist also competed for four years in track and field, starring in four events. He was recruited by Clemson University in football where he played 49 games and had 191 tackles and 16 passes defended as a defensive back. He also returned 59 kicks for more than 1,000 yards during his college career. A second-round draft choice of the San Diego Chargers in 2011, Gilchrist enjoyed a 10-year career with seven NFL teams. Including the NY Jets (2015-16), Houston Texans (2017), Oakland Raiders (2018), Detroit Lions and Jacksonville Jaguars (2019), and Baltimore Ravens (2020). During his NFL career, he started 98 of the 128 games in which he played and retired in 2020 with 502 tackles and 14 pass interceptions. Gilchrist was inducted into the High Point Andrews Hall of Fame in 2021.
CHRISTY HEDGPETH
Christy Hedgpeth was an immediate success at Westchester Academy on the basketball court, earning recognition as team MVP, Conference Player of the Year and Academic All-Conference each of her four years. She was the Guilford County Player of the Year as well as All-State in 1990 when she led her team to the state championship. Hedgpeth played tennis for four years, earning team MVP honors each year and winning two state doubles championships. Moving to Stanford University, she was a four-year member of the basketball team, playing in four NCAA National Championships, winning the 1992 NCAA title as she averaged 13.3 points per game. Hedgpeth earned 1st team All-PAC-10 honors in 1994, PAC-10 All-Academic honors three years, was a member of the USA Basketball Junior National Team in 1991 and was a nominee of ESPN ESPY Female Basketball Player of the Year in 1993. After a three-year career with the Seattle Reign and a brief time with Under Armour, she served as Vice President for Team Marketing and Business Operations for both the NBA and WNBA. She was named Chief Operating Officer for the WNBA in 2018, then named President and CEO of PlayFly Sports in 2021. Hedgpeth was inducted into the Westchester Country Day School Hall of Fame in 2009.
ERIC HICKS
Eric Hicks is a record-setting basketball player who dominated at Dudley High School from 1999-2002 who was named to the All-Guilford County team in 2000, 2001, and 2002. He holds the all-time state record of 210 blocked shots during his senior year while also setting a state record with 365 made field goals during his final season. Hicks is tied for 3rd all-time in NC with 28 games of 20 or more points and his 936 points in 2001-2002 are the 4th most by a NC high school senior in a single season. During his career, Dudley was a 3A state runner-up (2000) and runner-up in the Little 4 (2000 & 2001), then earning MVP honors as Dudley won the Little 4 championship in 2002. Hicks attended the University of Cincinnati where he starred for four seasons, leading the team to NCAA Tournament berths in 2003, 2004, and 2005 before playing in the NIT in 2006. He is second all-time in blocked shots and led his team to both a Conference USA regular season and tournament championship in 2004 and was the recipient of the Oscar Robertson Award for Defensive MVP in 2006. Prior to his senior year, he earned a gold medal with Team USA in the 2005 World University Games. Hicks played overseas for multiple teams after short stints with NBA teams in Miami, Boston and New Jersey. He was a Polish League All-Star in 2008 and Club Africa League Champion in 2016. Hicks was inducted into the Dudley High School Hall of Fame in 2023.
ROBERT G. KENNERLY, SR.
Robert G. (Bob) Kennerly Sr. has left a major imprint on the city of Greensboro in multiple areas. After playing basketball and golf at Greensboro (Grimsley) High School, he matriculated to Virginia Tech where he played two years of basketball. He was extensively involved in coaching team travel basketball for boys (age 11-12), winning four national championships. He also coached boys and girls at the junior high and high school levels. But perhaps the greatest impact that Kennerly made on the area was with Sutton-Kennerly & Associates, a structural engineering firm he founded in partnership with John Sutton in 1958. When the Greensboro Coliseum underwent a major expansion in 1969, Kennerly played a huge role in its renovation and design. Over the next two decades, Kennerly was intimately involved in the planning and design of other facilities that form the complex surrounding the coliseum. His impact will truly be felt for generations to come.
lee porter
A Greensboro native and Guilford College All-American, Lee Porter has traveled the world as an amateur and professional golfer. After attending Page High School through grade 11, he graduated from Newark Academy in New Jersey in 1985. Porter won six tournaments and was a two-time NAIA All-American at Guilford. In 1988, he won the World University Games Gold Medal and in 1989 won two prestigious events, the Cardinal Amateur and North and South Amateur while also being named an alternate to the USGA Walker Cup Team. Porter was ranked as the 4th best amateur in the United States by Golfweek magazine. After turning professional in 1989, Porter was an exempt member of the PGA Tour for six years, playing in 185 events and earning three top-10 finishes. He also competed on the Asian Tour, the European Tour and the Nationwide Tour, where he once made a then-record 20 consecutive cuts. As a professional, he won the 1991 Venezuelan Open and four mini-tour events. Porter now competes in senior amateur events and has earned wins in the Society of Seniors Masters and the 2024 Carolinas Senior Amateur while winning a silver medal for 2nd place in the 2022 British Senior Amateur. He was inducted into the Guilford College Hall of Fame in 2003.
DAMON VAUGHAN
Damon Vaughan always excelled at in athletics as well as academics. At Northeast Guilford High School, he was a team captain and MVP in basketball, team captain and a standout in the long jump and triple jump, winning the latter in the North Carolina 3A state meet as a senior, and ran cross-country. Beyond athletics, he demonstrated an early passion for civic engagement, interviewing two members of the historic “A&T Four” who were commemorating the 1960 Woolworth’s Civil Rights Sit-In. With these accomplishments, he also graduated with honors. Vaughan then starred in indoor and outdoor track and field at NC A&T State University winning seven individual All-MEAC honors while contributing to the Aggies’ three MEAC championships, and securing top-10 national finishes at both the Penn Relays and USATF Junior Nationals. After a devastating leg injury as a junior, Vaughan turned to the javelin throw and became the MEAC Champion in his final event. He earned Dean’s List honors all four years, graduating Cum Laude in Electrical Engineering and earning two master’s degrees, including an MBA from the University of Chicago. Vaughan became a corporate executive and led several billion-dollar brands for Fortune 500 companies while holding two accredited patents and continuing to be an industry leader. Vaughan was inducted into the North Carolina A&T State University Athletics Hall of Fame in 2022.
BARBARA BLUM (legends class)
Barbara Blum arrived with her family in Greensboro from Atlanta in 1970 and the sports landscape in Guilford County changed forever. The late Barbara Blum pioneered the rise of soccer in the Greensboro area, stepping up when the sport was still in its infancy in many parts of the United States. Blum and others worked hard to introduce the game to the young athletes of Greensboro by organizing youth teams, creating youth leagues, training coaches and officials, and securing fields of play. She worked countless hours to raise money to provide uniforms and equipment for the initial teams of youngsters who wanted to play soccer in Greensboro. Blum was one of the founders of Greensboro Youth Soccer and the NC Youth Soccer Association, serving as president of both organizations and thousands have benefited from her leadership, tenacity, hard work and dedication as the sport flourished. Blum was inducted into the NC Soccer Hall of Fame in 1999.