All class: Fort Mill Hall of fame tabs a football pro, coach, teachers, civic leader.
A Fort Mill man who played in the NFL almost a century ago is headed to the hall of fame. So too are a football stadium namesake coach, two decades-long educators and a civic pillar.
On Tuesday night the Fort Mill School District board voted to add five new members to its school district hall of fame. One of them is Robert Crockett “Daddy” Potts, who the Herald profiled in August.
Potts is the first football player from South Carolina, and the first from any college in the state, to play in the NFL. The Clemson Tiger lineman won a league championship, in his lone year, with the 1926 Frankford Yellow Jackets.
The newest hall of fame class has a sporty feel to it. Bob Jones worked as a history teacher, coach and athletic director at Fort Mill High School and the A.O. Jones school. Jones created the girls track program at Fort Mill High, where the stadium bears his name.
Sue Jones started the physical education program at A.O. Jones and an elementary swimming program. She taught for almost 20 years in the school district and spent considerable time as a volunteer with the Fort Mill Care Center.
Bob and Sue Jones join inaugural hall of fame class members Mac and Pheobe McCallum in 2017, as husband and wife pairs to earn the honor.
History also makes for a common thread among the pending enshrinees.
Charlotte Adkins taught for two decades in the district — Carothers School, George Fish School, A.O. Jones and Fort Mill Middle School — left, then returned for another 10 years at Springfield Middle School. After retiring she continued to teach through trunk show visits to schools for the Fort Mill History Museum.
Rudy Sanders was a key figure in the creation of the Fort Mill History Museum. A graduate of the George Fish School, Sanders served in Vietnam before heading to New York for further education. He lived and worked there more than two decades before coming back to the Carolinas. Sanders worked with a group of George Fish alumni to put a marker at the former school site, and helped with grants and projects in the Paradise community.
Adkins, both Joneses, Potts and Sanders join a growing list of honorees. Prior inductees include Elliott Littleton Avery, Joe Bonds, Molly Coggins, A.O. Jones, Francis Mack, Sr. and Hoss Nesbitt.
“The Fort Mill School District Hall of Fame is an opportunity for the district to recognize people for their contributions to the district and achievements in the community,” said Chuck Epps, district superintendent. “Our committee has selected five inductees this year that demonstrate the values of good character and citizenship we try to promote in our students, and we look forward to honoring them in January.”
A ceremony and reception will precede the Jan. 21 school board meeting.
The Fort Mill School District Hall of Fame began in 2016. It recognizes district graduates, employees, supporters or community members who made significant contributions to the district or their professions and communities. Former students, district employees, school board members, community leaders, parents of district students are eligible.
