| Many
Owen County residents gathered last week to mourn the loss of
longtime farmer, philanthropist and community pillar O.D. Hawkins.
Those who knew and worked with him called him a giving and caring
man.
Hawkins died Monday night, Oct. 9, at his Southfork Road farm.
He was 92.
He managed the University of Kentucky’s Eden Shale Research
Farm from its inception in 1955 until he retired in 1979.
Funeral services were held Friday afternoon at McDonald &
New Funeral Home, and he was buried in Owenton Cemetery.
During his life, Hawkins made significant contributions to Campbellsville
University, where he served as a trustee. He also served on the
boards of numerous local farming and civic organizations.
“He loved agriculture and farming,” said Joe Wyles,
a longtime friend and coworker who took over as manager at the
Eden Shale farm after Hawkins’ retirement. “He basically
dedicated his life to making things better for people in this
area.”
Prior to its opening, Hawkins headed a committee to acquire funding
for the research farm and was asked to manage it.
“They asked him to stay two years to get the farm open and
he stayed 24,” Wyles said.
The Kentucky House of Representatives passed legislation honoring
Hawkins in June 2005 for the “remarkable vision, foresight
and leadership he utilized, which led to the creation of the Eden
Shale farm.”
The 965-acre research farm, which works to help farmers improve
efficiency by testing soil types, crops and farming styles among
other research projects, celebrated its 50th anniversary in June
2005,
“I spent 23 years here and it has been the highlight of
my life,” Hawkins said at the anniversary celebration.
“He was just a great individual to work for,” said
Wyles, who moved to Owen County in 1969, shortly after his father
died. He then began a 10-year work relationship with Hawkins that
progressed into a lifelong friendship going beyond the Eden Shale
farm.
“He became a second father to me,” Wyles said. The
two men talked on a weekly basis well after they quit working
on the farm together.
Born Nov. 29, 1913, in Henry County to the late Uylsess and Cordia
Wood Hawkins, O.D. Hawkins graduated from the University of Kentucky,
where he later received an outstanding alumni award. He also served
in the U.S. Army, retiring with the rank of colonel.
Hawkins later wore many different hats with a variety of groups
in the community, including director of the Owen County Farm Bureau,
chairman of the Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service
committee, director of the Southern States Cooperative and chairman
of the Owen County Farmers’ Home Administration Board.
Hawkins was also a member of the Kentucky Nature Preserves Commission
and Gideons International. He attended First Baptist Church in
Owenton, where he taught Sunday school and was named a Deacon
Emeritus in 2001.
Owen County Judge-Executive Billy O’Banion served alongside
Hawkins as a deacon at the church and said he shared numerous
conversations with him throughout the years about many different
aspects of life. He described Hawkins as a person dedicated to
helping his fellow man.
“He brought so much to the service of his country, the service
of his family, the service of our community, the service to Campbellsville
University, his service to the young people of this community,
trying to help them further their education,” O’Banion
said. “He touched so many lives and he’s going to
be missed in this community.
“Just a great man who’s going to be greatly missed
for a long, long time,” he said.
O’Banion recalled a time when county leaders were working
to reorganize the parks and recreation commission and Hawkins
approached him.
“He said how wonderful he thought it was and made a monetary
donation to the program,” O’Banion said. “There’s
many (moments), but that’s one that sticks out because the
program is near and dear to me. He played a role in helping that
program come to life.”
Hawkins and Bessie Campbell Hawkins, his wife of 64 years, also
played a large role in breathing life into the athletic program
and creating scholarship opportunities at Campbellsville University.
The two were on a car trip in the late 1980s, according to the
Campbellsvillian, a university publication, when they decided
to stop at the school and saw a group of football players in collared
shirts and ties unloading from a bus after attending church.
“We knew that this was the caliber of program that we wanted
to support,” O.D. and Bessie told the magazine in 2002.
But they wanted their contributions to go beyond the playing field
of the athletics department.
“Sports is not and should not be first in a person’s
life,” Hawkins told the magazine. “We hope our gifts
have and will continue to create an environment where student
athletes learn the importance of strength of character and the
value of Christian service.”
Campbellsville University President Michael Carter said in a statement
released Friday that Hawkins contributed significantly in both
time and resources to the university.
He said as recently as a month ago Hawkins hosted a group of students
at First Baptist Church in Owenton, encouraging them to consider
attending the university.
“Mr. Hawkins particularly cared about the students,”
Carter said. “He wanted them to have the best academic experience
possible.”
Hawkins served on the advancement committee at the university,
in charge of seeking and securing donations for the school.
Hawkins, along with his wife, contributed an undisclosed amount
to the namesake Hawkins Athletic Complex. The $1.7 million facility,
which opened in 2004, will see completion of its final phase next
year.
“The … complex has made a major impact on recruiting
and retaining quality student athletes,” said Rusty Hollingsworth,
athletic director of Campbellsville University, in a statement.
“Without that facility, it is hard to imagine where our
athletic programs would be at this point.”
Bob Marshall, president and CEO of Owen Electric, worked with
Hawkins on the New Horizons Medical Foundation board.
Marshall, who is chairman of the board, said Hawkins chaired a
subcommittee that reviewed grant applications for the foundation.
“He served from the beginning (2002) and was a very active
member,” Marshall said of Hawkins. “He’s just
one of the finest gentlemen I’ve ever known. He’s
always been a very giving person and was willing to do whatever
he could to help his community.”
In addition to his wife, Hawkins is survived by a son, David Hawkins
and wife Patty of Chesapeake, Va., and two grandchildren, Stuart
and Ben Hawkins.
He was preceded in death by three brothers, Cecil, Boyd and John
Hawkins; and two sisters, Georgia Dunavent and Martha Roberts.
Memorials can be made to Gideons International.
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