Mitchell Trustee honored with Order of the Long Leaf Pine
Mitchell Community College Board of Trustees member and friend of the college George W. Brawley, Jr. was presented with the Order of the Long Leaf Pine at the College’s Taste of the South event on Thursday, April 26. The award was presented by Mr. Frank Johnson, member of the North Carolina Community Colleges’ State Board of Community Colleges.
This prestigious award–the highest civilian honor presented by the governor–recognizes individuals who have made significant contributions through service and accomplishments to their communities and to the state. Mr. Brawley joins a select group of Mitchell alumni, employees, stakeholders and friends who have received the Order of the Long Leaf Pine.
For most of his adult life, George W. Brawley, Jr. has been a civic leader and supporter of public education. His longtime service to the City of Mooresville, Iredell County, and North Carolina is strong and unwavering—and has been so for decades.
Born in Iredell County in 1933, Mr. Brawley attended Mooresville schools as a young man. He played football for and graduated from Mooresville High School in 1952. He went on to earn a bachelor’s degree from Appalachian State University and became a history teacher. After leaving the classroom, Mr. Brawley landed a job as a bank teller at Mooresville Federal Savings & Loan, and there began a more than fifty-year career in banking and investing.
Over his decades in the bank, which is now known as First Bank, Mr. Brawley rose through the ranks, becoming a loan officer and vice president, and then assuming the position of the bank’s president, where he served until retirement. He contributed his experience and expertise on the State Banking Board toward the end of his career, and his civic service extended to leadership roles in the Mooresville Rotary Club, where he served as president, and First Presbyterian Church Mooresville.
Even though Mr. Brawley left teaching to pursue banking, education was never far from his heart. He became a member of the Mooresville Graded School District Board of Education in 1965 and served for 18 years, including the last four as chairman. When it became clear his high school alma mater needed a football stadium, Mr. Brawley deployed his knowledge about lending and financing to find a creative solution that led to the development of Blue Devil Stadium, a venue that remains the pride of the Mooresville community and is home to dozens of athletic and community events each year.
In 1981, Mr. Brawley was appointed to the Mitchell Community College Board of Trustees, where he has served for 37 years, including one term as Chair and one term as Vice Chair. As a relatively new member of the state’s community college system, Mitchell had yet to develop many of the programs it is now known for. Thanks to Mr. Brawley’s leadership, however, the college soon found its footing. During his tenure on the Board, Mitchell established a number of new and now-thriving initiatives, including the Career and College Promise program. As a trustee, Mr. Brawley also oversaw a dramatic expansion in the college’s physical plant, including the construction and renovation of Mitchell’s downtown Mooresville campus.
During the 1996-97 academic year, Mr. Brawley partnered with Statesville’s Dr. Ralph Bentley to undertake a capital fundraising effort that established what is now known as the Mitchell Community College Foundation and Endowment for Excellence. In that early campaign, Mr. Brawley secured hundreds of thousands of dollars in gifts to begin the fund, which has since grown to nearly $20 million in assets—one of the larger community college endowments in the state and, indeed, the nation. The Foundation Board, of which Mr. Brawley was a founding member, has awarded millions of dollars to support academic programs, faculty efforts, and student needs at Mitchell. He remains a board member today.
George W. Brawley, Jr.’s bold leadership and commitment to public education at both the K-12 and community college levels has fundamentally changed our county for the better. Through his service to Mooresville Graded Schools and to Mitchell Community College and its Foundation, Mr. Brawley’s legacy as a servant to his fellow citizens is a high standard for anyone to attempt to meet.