Four inducted into CHS Wall of Fame
From left are Clinton High School Co-Athletic Director Nate Martin, and CHS Wall of Fame inductees Norman Eskridge, Tom Heffern, Rick Meredith and Dr. Bill Owens. (photo:Ken Leinart )
• Norman Eskridge is a 1968 graduate of Clinton High and holds the distinction of being the first African-American to play football for the Dragons.
After high school, he enrolled at Tennessee Technological University. While there, he participated in VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America), a community service program for low-income families. He also enrolled in the ROTC program, the first step toward his military career.
• Tom Heffern spent 44 years as an educator in Anderson County, 21 of those years at Clinton High School.
Heffern began his career in 1972 teaching math and coaching football at Clinton Junior High.
In 1974, he moved to the high school as a guidance counselor and assistant football coach. He would become athletic director, and from 1980-1991, the assistant principal.
After a short time at Anderson County High School, he returned to Clinton High in 1995 to serve as principal, a role he held for six years.
He finished his career in the Office of Technology, working on topics like improving attendance.
• Rick Meredith, a 1980 graduate, is currently the president of the Anderson County Chamber of Commerce.
He was selected as the 2018 Chamber of Commerce Executive of the Year. He served three terms on the Anderson County Commission. He is a Rotarian and a life-long Clinton resident.
• Bill Owens is a 1967 Clinton alumnus. After graduation, he enrolled in Cumberland College (now University of the Cumberlands). He graduated with honors in 1971. He then attended the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, where he received his master of divinity and doctorate of ministry degrees. Owens has ministered for 53 years.
He then went to Chattanooga’s Riverdale Baptist Church, where he was instrumental in the church’s acquisition of a 50-acre campus.
During his 31-year tenure at Ridgedale, it grew from 300 members to more than 2,000.
A major focus of the Owens ministry is visitation to hospitals and care facilities, and in-home visits.