University honors donors who have recently helped reshape campus

In 2024, the bridge connecting the Crowder Welcome Center to the plaza in front of the Stegall Administration Building was deemed unsafe. Since then, many Wingate students and employees have increased their step count by walking around the pond to get to classes, meetings and lunches.

Bill Crowder '68 came to the rescue. Crowder, a University trustee and executive vice president of Crowder Construction, financed a new, more striking bridge, and today the structure was dedicated in honor of Pamela Crowder, his wife.

Pamela's Bridge is a nearly 107-foot-long bow string, "weathering steel" footbridge that features a concrete walking path and a rust-like surface that will seal and prevent further rusting (and will never need painting). It weighs nearly 15 tons and took over 20 weeks to build.

"Bill has spent his life building bridges - literally and figuratively," said Dr. Rhett Brown, Wingate's president, "and through this gift he has given Wingate something that will serve generations to come."

The bridge was one of four dedications or acknowledgments held today in conjunction with the spring Board of Trustees meeting. In addition to the bridge, the following were dedicated or acknowledged today:

• Cooper Hall: The former West Wilson Residence Hall was renamed in honor of Wayne and Judy Cooper.
• Truth Center for Sport Performance: Thanks to an anonymous donor, it was announced that funding has been secured for a 14,000-square-foot training center for Wingate's student-athletes.
• Paul Little estate: Much of the estate of Wingate graduate and former trustee Col. Paul Little, M.D., who died in February of 2025, was left to Wingate University.

The morning started with a reception inside the Crowder Welcome Center. When the rain let up enough, trustees had the opportunity to test the bridge for themselves.

The bridge, which took eight weeks to design and a full day to install, has many interesting features, including nearly 7,000 LED bulbs lighting the way at nighttime. The weathering-steel construction means it is designed to weather the elements.

"I'm deeply honored to be able to do this," Crowder said. "Ever since I came down here in 1967, Wingate has been a very central part of my life, and I am deeply, deeply honored to do anything and everything I can to support this university."

Cooper Hall

Wayne Cooper

Wayne Cooper grew up on a Dust Bowl farm in Oklahoma and, through hard work and relationship-building, forged a successful career in international business. He has also spent more than four decades as honorary Mexican consul in Charlotte, helping thousands of Mexican citizens get passports, business visas and tourist cards.

Cooper never attended college but always wished he had, and he has shown dedication to Wingate students, especially those who have faced obstacles to earning a degree.

Judy Cooper, who passed away in 2025, shared her husband's heart for students. She spent her career counseling students in one of Charlotte-Mecklenburg's toughest schools.

"Together, Wayne and Judy opened doors for students through their generosity, creating opportunities that truly change lives for generations," Brown says. "Cooper Hall now stands as a lasting tribute to that legacy - a place where students will live, learn and grow, supported by the same values of determination, compassion and opportunity that define the Coopers."

Truth Center for Sport Performance

Wingate's student-athletes will benefit greatly from the Truth Center for Sport Performance. Ground will be broken on Bulldog Athletics' new training home this summer, after funding was recently secured thanks to an anonymous $2.1 million gift.

The $6.2 million, 14,000-square-foot facility will serve as the primary training home for more than 900 student-athletes across 30 Wingate teams. It will support not only their strength and performance but also their overall well-being, as it will house the D.O.G. ("Development, Opportunity, Growth") Days program, an initiative focused on preparing student-athletes to be leaders in their careers and communities after college.

Aside from the anonymous donor, others have provided transformational gifts to make the Truth Center possible: Founders Federal Credit Union; Hinson Electric, owned by trustee Ron Hinson; SellEthics, owned by trustee Joel Barham '84; and Lib and Morrison Creech.

Paul Little's estate

Col. Paul Bennett Little '68, M.D., left the bulk of his estate to Wingate University, and at a Board of Trustees luncheon today, his good friend Tommy Allen '69 presented Brown with a check for $5 million.

Little lived a life of service. He served on the staff of the U.S. Army surgeon general at the Pentagon, in Washington, D.C., and was the first medical editor at the United States Department of Defense Media Center.

He and Allen worked together on the Anson County Rescue Squad for years. Later, Little volunteered with the Anson County Historical Society, the North Carolina Forestry Association, the Anson County Voluntary Agricultural District, and the First Baptist Church of Wadesboro, where he also sang in the choir. In retirement, he worked the family property, Magnolia Farm, in Anson County, before his death in February 2025.

Little was also a University trustee, serving the institution where he got his start in higher education and where his mother taught art.

"Paul was just a good guy," Allen said. "He was a smart guy, always at the top of his class. But he was just a good guy who was very generous. He helped a lot of people behind the scenes."

April 30, 2026