Seven Mercerians were recognized for their contributions to Mercer University during the ninth annual Alumni and Friends Awards Reception and Dinner held Nov. 1 during Homecoming.
The Mercer Alumni Association honored recipients of the Thomas Sewell Plunkett Young Alumnus Award, Meritorious Service Award and Distinguished Alumnus Award. The Mercer Athletic Foundation also recognized the newest class of inductees into the Mercer Athletic Hall of Fame and Hall of Honor.
The Thomas Sewell Plunkett Young Alumnus Award, given to an alum who has graduated within the last 10 years and demonstrated continued support of the University, was presented to Stephen C. Bradshaw.
Bradshaw is a 2012 graduate of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and earned his Master of Business Administration at Mercer in 2014. While a student, he was a member of the Student Government Association, Reformed University Fellowship, Mercer Ambassadors, Mercer Maniacs and Judicial Committee. Bradshaw is now senior vice president and commercial banking group manager at Queensborough National Bank and Trust in Augusta. Augusta Magazine and Georgia Trend have honored him for his professional achievements and community involvement, including serving as treasurer of the local Red Cross board and deacon of his church. He is married to Morgann Belcher Bradshaw, who graduated from the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences in 2013.
The Meritorious Service Award, given to an individual who supports the Alumni Association and the University through contributions of time, talents and financial resources, was presented to David E. Hudson.
Hudson graduated from the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences in 1968 and went on to earn his Juris Doctor degree from Harvard Law School in 1971. He has been a private trial lawyer since 1974 and practices general civil litigation with an emphasis on business and commercial disputes, media law and construction law. He is a partner at Hull Barrett in Augusta and has represented clients from the trial court to the U.S. Supreme Court. Hudson has received numerous professional awards and is an active civic leader. He has served on the Mercer Board of Trustees, including as chair, and he and wife Janet Kirkley Hudson, a 1968 graduate of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, are Life Members of The President’s Club.
The Distinguished Alumnus Award, given to an individual who serves his or her profession in an outstanding manner and, in doing so, brings honor to the individual and University, was presented to Richard A. “Doc” Schneider.
Schneider earned his Juris Doctor degree from Mercer Law School in 1981. Over the course of his law career, he worked on high profile cases including the 1989 grounding of the Exxon Valdez in Alaska and the Dow Corning breast implant investigation in 1992. A senior partner at King & Spalding in Atlanta, Schneider focuses on the defense of product liability claims and complex litigation. He has represented clients on matters involving tobacco products, asbestos-containing products, and alleged toxic exposures in the workplace and in the environment, as well as commercial disputes. Schneider has served multiple terms on the Mercer Board of Trustees, including as board chair. He and wife Helen Schneider are Life Members of The President’s Club.
Athletics honors
The Mercer Athletic Hall of Fame, which originated in 1971, welcomed three new members: Billy Burns, baseball; Bob Hoffman, men’s basketball; and Kahlia Lawrence, women’s basketball. Ashley Amos Copelan was inducted into the Athletic Hall of Honor.
Burns starred for the Bears from 2009-2011, helping the baseball team win the Atlantic Sun Tournament title and earn an NCAA Tournament berth in 2010. He posted a career on-base percentage of .449, the best in team history, and recorded 59 steals over a two-year stretch. Burns also owned Mercer’s single-season runs record of 73, also set in 2010. Following his junior season, he was named to the CoSIDA Academic All-America Third Team and drafted in the 32nd round of the 2011 Major League Baseball draft by the Washington Nationals. He made his MLB debut in 2014 for the Oakland Athletics, where he remained until playing for the Kansas City Royals from 2016-17.
Hoffman served as Mercer men’s basketball’s head coach from 2008-2019, winning 209 games during his tenure. He led the Bears to their first NCAA Tournament win in 2014 — a major upset of Duke in the opening round of March Madness. The win over the Blue Devils earned Mercer an ESPY award from ESPN for recording the biggest upset in all of college athletics for 2013-2014. Hoffman also became the first coach in NCAA history to win a tournament game in all four Division I postseason tournaments in a four-year span. He was voted Atlantic Sun Coach of the Year three times, and in 2014, he was awarded the Fellowship of Christian Athletes National Basketball Coach of the Year.
Lawrence graduated from the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences in 2018. While on the Mercer women’s basketball team, she was a three-time Southern Conference Player of the Year and a three-time First Team All-SoCon player. She played in 133 career games and averaged 17.1 points, 5.2 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.4 steals per game across her career with the Orange & Black. She scored 2,275 career points on 42.7% field goal shooting. She also made 78.3% of her attempts from the free throw line. Lawrence was named 2018 SoCon Female Athlete of the Year and was selected as 24th pick of 2018 WNBA draft by the Minnesota Lynx.
Copelan earned her bachelor’s degree from the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences in 1991 and her master’s degree from the Tift College of Education in 1996. She has served on the Mercer Board of Trustees and Mercer Athletic Foundation, as well as many community boards. She also served as committee chair of the Aspire Campaign, the University’s most successful fundraising campaign. Copelan’s family set up a charitable foundation in honor of her grandfather, William L. Amos Sr., and the family has provided significant support to Mercer. In 2013, the family made a gift to name the Amos-Copelan Balcony in the Drake Field House. Copelan and husband Dean Copelan are Life Members of The President’s Club.
