The Alleghany Highlands Chapter of the Virginia Tech Alumni Association (AHVTAA) and the Covington-Hot Springs Rotary Club will host the seventh annual award-winning Blue Gray Banquet on Thursday, Feb. 27 in the Moomaw Center at Dabney S. Lancaster Community College.
We are delighted to have Dr. Paul Quigley, the first James I. Robertson, Jr. Associate Professor of History at Virginia Tech as well as Director of the Virginia Center for Civil War Studies, as our guest speaker. His topic will be “The Confederacy’s European Problem.” Quigley, a native of Manchester, England, graduated with a B.A. in American Studies from Lancaster University before crossing the Atlantic to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he completed an M.A. and Ph.D. in United States History. He taught at the University of Edinburgh for six years before coming to Virginia Tech. Quigley’s research focuses on the American South during the era of the Civil War, particularly the issues of nationalism and citizenship. As noted by Willliam C. “Jack” Davis, Virginia Tech Professor of History and former Executive Director of the Virginia Center for Civil War Studies, “He is a delightful fellow, and hearing some Civil War with a British accent will be an unusual experience for any and all.”
A social with light hors d’oeuvres will begin at 6:15 and the dinner will begin at 7 p.m. followed by Quigley’s presentation.
Dr. Phil McManus, program head for the Culinary Arts and Hospitality Management Programs at DSLCC and his students will prepare Northern and Southern foods for the dinner buffet.
Tickets are available to the public at $30 per person and must be purchased in advance – they are available until Friday, Feb. 21. All are welcome to attend. Tickets may be purchased in Covington at the Alleghany Highlands Chamber of Commerce & Tourism, in Clifton Forge at Jack Mason Tavern, or Owen’s Pharmacy or by contacting Kathleen All at sandkall@aol.com, 540-862-9575 or Jane Newkirk at magiecan@aol.com, 540-969-6758. No tickets will be sold at the door.
All proceeds will fund scholarships for area students at Virginia Tech and the Rotary Club’s DSLCC scholarship. Note that the AHVTAA Chapter was one of eight chapters recognized nationally (out of 130 chapters) with the Outstanding Chapter Gold Award from the Virginia Tech Alumni Association for their activities including their 2013 Blue Gray Banquet.