Thanks to a gift from the estate of Col. Louis "Ike" Alpheus Green '42 of Lexington, N.C., a new scholarship fund has been established at Catawba College. Preference for the Ike and Vicky Green Annual Scholarship Fund will be given to football players.
The late Col. Green, a native of Lexington, played football for four years while studying at Catawba. He was named Little All American and was later inducted into Catawba College's Sports Hall of Fame in 1979. Col. Green's grandfather, the Rev. James D. Andrews, served as president of Catawba College while it was located in Newton, N.C., from 1913 to 1918.
After his graduation from Catawba with a degree in history, he found a career when he joined the United States Air Force. He served as a military officer for 29 and a half years, all of that time as a fighter pilot, and he saw action in World War II and the Korean War. He was the commander of one of the first jet fighter squadrons to engage in jet-to-jet aerial combat during the Korean War. He flew 150 combat missions and was credited with destroying four MIG 15 jet fighters and damaging seven others. For his outstanding service, Col. Green was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross with two oak leaf clusters, the Bronze Star, the Air Medal with four clusters, and the Commendation Ribbon.
After retiring from the military in 1971, Col. Green served as a pilot for Coble Dairy in Lexington for 17 years. His "loves" were flying and golf and he was proud of having made six holes in one during his lifetime of golfing. He was a member of First Reformed United Church of Christ in Lexington.
"Ike and Vicky Green have long supported Catawba," said Catawba Senior Vice President Tom Childress. "It is only appropriate that their support continue through the scholarship even after Ike's passing. They were active in the Chiefs Club and had a keen interest in our student-athletes. While we mourn his passing, we are grateful for this couple's foresight in establishing this scholarship."
When he died on May 30, 2009, Col. Green left behind his wife of 59 years, Hester "Vicky" Clarine Green; daughter Marsha Ann Green FitzGerald of Bridgewater, Va.; his sister, Mary Louise Green Rollins '45 of Lexington (who died November 20, 2009); three granddaughters and two nephews.
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