On Saturday, Feb. 19, Northside held its third annual Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony. Eleven Inductees sat inside the Northside Competition Gymnasium while the bleachers filled with an audience of local leaders such as Mayor LaRhonda Patrick, inductee family members and even formerly inducted Hall of Famers.
Northside Principal Markeeta Clayton addressed the amassed crowd and described the purpose of the Hall of Fame.
“The Northside Hall of Fame is an institution honoring those achievements of individuals who serve as alumni, faculty, or contributing members of the Northside community family over the years,” Clayton said. “The Northside Hall of Fame began in 2019, so this is our third annual induction ceremony, being that we had to take a year off because of the pandemic.
“Even with this being only our third year, we still herald 22 inductees into our institution. We will be inducting 11 today, so that 22 will become 33. We are honored to have them today. The Northside High School Hall of Fame began in 2019 as mentioned, and I come to say that I am honored to be a part of this ceremony. Recognizing as a new principal those traditions that are here at Northside High School, and those who have taken time to contribute to the education of those that go on before. It is pinnacle that the students we have here today have an opportunity to look in our lobby and see those who have gone before them, recognizing that they come from greatness, and that they themselves can go on to be great.”
Following Clayton’s comments, each of the inductees were introduced by Director of Theatre Brian Barnett — each giving a brief word regarding their success or their time at Northside.
Dr. Douglas Brewer was the first of the inductees to be recognized. Brewer graduated from Northside High School in 1979 with honors. He participated in Beta Club, Drama Club, Chorus and was voted as an outstanding senior. He later went on to graduate from the University of Georgia in 1983 Cum Laude with a Bachelor’s of Science in Biochemistry. Brewer graduated from the Medical College of Georgia in 1987 and completed a residency in General Surgery at The University of Louisville in 1993, as well as a Fellowship in Colorectal Surgery in 1994 at The Lahey Clinic in Boston. Brewer can boast a long tenure in the field of medicine, working in several hospitals and tending to the needs of Middle Georgia. Currently, he is the Senior Vice President of the Erlanger Health System and Chief Medical Officer of the Erlanger Medical Group in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
Like Brewer, Diane Butts graduated from Northside High School in 1979, and her time there is what led to her career in broadcast and communications. Butts has worked in radio and television for over 30 years and has interviewed household names, such as Oprah Winfrey, Michael Jordan and Bette Midler. Professionally known as Diane Roberts, Butts has worked across the United States, and even has her own business: Diane’s Talking — where she works as a media coach, a public speaking trainer, avoiceover artist and much more. Butts is the recipient of a Regional Emmy Award, the Edward R. Murrow Award and several Telly and AP Awards for her work.
After receiving all of his early education in Houston County public schools, Mike Ginn graduated from Northside High School in 1965 as the school’s first ever senior class president. Continuing his education at Young Harris College, Ginn became a member of the Kappa Sigma Fraternity and the president of SPAT (a service fraternity), later going on to graduate from the University of Georgia where he received his bachelors, masters, and specialist degrees. Following his college graduation, Ginn returned home and started teaching at Rumble Junior High School where he remained for two years until returning to his Alma Mater and developing the Diversified Cooperation Training program. Ginn remained as Northside for 28 years, 14 as a teacher, and the other 14 as a vocational coordinator and assistant principal. He retired in 1999. Ginn and his wife, Wynette, have been married for 51 years with two kids and four grandchildren.
Ernest Sterling Hodge was one of the first students to attend Northside High School, where he played football, basketball and baseball — lettering in all three. In 1965, he received the Most Outstanding Back Award due to him being a three-year starter for the Northside Eagles. And in his senior year, he was named as a favorite in the Class of 1966 Yearbook, being named “Friendliest.” Later, he was given the Jimmy Perkins Award by Head Coach Matt Arthur. A tragic accident occurred only months later while Hodge worked on a construction job, leaving him a quadriplegic for life. That did not stop Hodge. He was accepted into the aeronautical engineering program at the University of Illinois, met and married his wife, Mary Pat Van Osdol, and was an active athlete in the schools wheelchair sports program. Hodge went on to get his Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering. In his professional career, Hodge worked for well known companies such as General Electric, Lockheed-Martin and eventually his own: Modelogics.
Dr. Anthony Hylick is currently a Senior Engineering Lead for Meta’s Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure. He’s part of a large team of people pushing the boundaries on next-generation computer systems to pave a way for the demands of machine-learning training in the days to come. He plays a part in the Reels you see on Instagram, the ads you see on Facebook and the blocking of explicit content. Before working with Meta, Hylick worked with large tech companies, such as IBM and Google Research, developing hardware necessary for the PlayStation 3 and the AI for Google Pixel phones. He graduated Summa Cum Laude with a Bachelors in Science in Computer Engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology, and he holds a PhD in Computer Science from the University of Cambridge. He’s married to Veda Bartlow, and they have one daughter. Before that, he was the Valedictorian of Northside High School’s graduating class of 2000.
The greatness of some of the students in Northside’s Hall of Fame could never have been reached if it hadn’t been for the school’s faculty. Sue Dunbar Kinsaul. Born in 1930, Kinsaul graduated from Byron High School, attended Georgia State College for Women in Milledgeville and then Georgia Southwestern College in Americus. Later, Kinsaul returned to school to earn a degree in nursing. It wasn’t until 1971 that Kinsaul became a part of the Northside High School family. Joining the Booster Club, Kinsaul met Barbara Waddle and began selling football reserve seats and program ads. Seven years later, Principal Matt Arthur hired Kinsaul to oversee student records, and several years later became the bookkeeper under Principal Ed Dyson — all the while selling reserved seats and tickets at the main gate for the Saturday Night Lights. Kinsaul retired in 2000, but she continued to sell tickets at the Eagle’s stadium. She’s retired from even that now, but she still remains “a true blue Eagle.”
Lieutenant Colonel Carvel Edwin Mahaffey, Jr. got his start when he joined the Air Force and applied for pilot training in Texas. Mahaffey went into a brand new program: Radar Training. Thus began a 20-year-long career of active duty as a navigator in the United States Air Force. Mahaffey has been stationed all over the world — Alaska, Kentucky, Japan, New Jersey — and has been a navigator in planes that have traveled far vaster distances in South Asia, Africa, Europe and Vietnam. After retiring from the USAF, Mahaffey took on a new job, building an Air Force Junior Reserve Office Training Corps program at Northside High School. Under his tutelage, JROTC students at Northside were given the opportunity to learn about military discipline, history of the USAF and develop leadership skills. Students were given hands-on experiences — even to the point of participating in a refueling mission aboard a USAF KC-135. The remnants of Mahaffey’s leadership and program development echo in the halls of Northside High School even today.
Robert Martin was best known as the “candy man” amongst faculty and students at Northside High. After serving in the United States Air Force and retiring as a Master Sergeant, Martin went on to work with IBM, and then Eastman Kodak when they bought out IBM. After retiring from his position as a field engineer, Martin took on the roll of Sunday School Secretary at Green Acres Baptist Church and took on substituting at Northside High School. He made sure to support the teaching staff with a can-do attitude and a smile, and the kids he subbed for knew he was always equipped with a peppermint. A scholarship for graduating Northside High School students remains today as a testament of Martin’s love for the school.
Dr. Charlotte Moore was born in Florence, Alabama, and graduated from Warner Robins High School, but she didn’t get her start at Northside until after she graduated college and was looking for a job. Moore left the University of Georgia with a Bachelor of Arts degree in History. When she applied to work at Northside High School, it was for a Reading Specialist position (with the caveat, of course, that she would receive a Master’s degree as a Reading Specialist from Mercer University). Moore spent 12 years teaching as a Reading Specialist for Northside High School, and in 1984, Moore became an Instructional Coordinator for NHS. Only three years later, Moore was named Assistant Principal at Northside. She retired from that position in 2002, however the culture that she cultivated and the family she gained is still present to this day.
Colonel George Edward Nichols was born on Robins Air Force Base. He graduated from Northside High School in 1995 and returned to the base not long after that. Today, he is the Chief of the Strategic Design and Construction Division, leading a team of 112 personnel responsible for $3.5 billion in worldwide, large-scale operations, maintenance design and construction efforts supporting the Air Force. Previous to this position, Nichols was titled as Deputy Chief of Military Construction Design and the Construction Division, and has served through five contingency tours. He is a recipient of the Defense Meritorious Service Medal and the Meritorious Service Medal with six oak leaf clusters. Nichols was an avid athlete while attending Northside High School. According to Nichols (and several others in the crowd), “it’s great to be a Northside Eagle.”
Northside graduate Tom Walmer is the epitome of “Once an Eagle, always an Eagle.” A student in the graduating class of 1978, and after attending college and receiving his degree, returned to NHS as faculty. Walmer served on the Houston County Board of Education from 2002 to 2013 and was Chairman of the board for his four final years of tenure. In addition to the years of service he’s provided through his teaching career and his time on the board, Walmer has been a member of the Northside Booster Club and a statistician for Northside Football since 1987. Much of Walmer’s life has been devoted to serving the Northside High School Community.
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