Donor Spotlight: Wanda & Dan Parrish, Jr.
Rings, Diplomas & Leaders
| Wanda (Brantley) and Dan Parrish, Jr. give to Georgia Southern Athletics through the Athletic Foundation because they want student-athletes to be competitive and excel, not only in their respective sport, but also in the classroom. "This is possible only if our alumni and fans provide the necessary funding. It's a great feeling to know we played a part in helping our teams win championships and seeing our athletes become successful citizens. I hope all our fans will take ownership of the program and enjoy the rewards." said Wanda Parrish. Wanda and Dan have been longtime supporters of the athletics program at Georgia Southern University, and their service has been multifaceted. Both Wanda and Dan graduated from Metter High School. Wanda earned her Bachelor of Science in education from Georgia Southern College. Dan earned his Bachelor of Science in mathematics from Georgia Institute of Technology and a Master of Business Administration from Emory University. In Atlanta, Wanda worked for the Georgia Department of Education and Dan for The Coca-Cola Company. The South Georgia natives reconnected through a mutual friend and married in 1966. Dan and Wanda returned to their hometown of Metter, Georgia, in 1972. Dan worked at Metter Banking Company, which later became BB&T, while Wanda returned to Georgia Southern College for her master's in education. Just as football was returning to Georgia Southern, Wanda joined the Georgia Southern Athletics Department as the second person employed with Southern Boosters, Inc., now known as the Georgia Southern Athletic Foundation. The Parrishes became football season ticket holders and later on added baseball and men's and women's basketball. Reflecting on her time with Southern Boosters, Wanda told the story of when she confessed to Coach Erk Russell that Dan was a graduate of Georgia Tech. “Coach looked at me with those steady blue eyes and replied in that inimitable voice: ‘Well, Wanda, we'll just have to help him overcome it.’ And we did!” Wanda’s passion for Georgia Southern is contagious; it definitely did not take long for Dan to also become a "True Blue" supporter of Eagle Nation. After Wanda retired from Georgia Southern in 1986, she and Dan continued to support the athletics programs. Dan served on the Board of Directors and Executive Committee of Southern Boosters from 1994 to 1999, and was recognized in 1999 by the Georgia Southern Alumni Association as a Friend of Georgia Southern and in 2004 he received the Distinguished Service Award from the Southern Conference. Wanda began serving on the Athletic Foundation's Board of Directors in 2003, and was named to the Executive Committee in 2006. In 2009, she was elected as the first woman to chair the Foundation and remains an ex-officio member of the Board of Directors. When asked to provide one word regarding the program, Wanda and Dan agreed, “FORWARD! The athletics program and the University as a whole are always moving forward while still respecting and honoring our past and our traditions.” In 1999, The Parrishes made a major gift to Georgia Southern Athletics honoring Dan's father in support of Georgia Southern's football program. Located near Hanner Fieldhouse off of Fair Road, the Dan J. Parrish, Sr. Football Center housed football coaching staff offices and meeting rooms. However, with the expansion of the football stadium in 2014, football operations moved from the Dan J. Parrish, Sr. Football Center to the new Ted Smith Family Football Center adjacent to Allen E. Paulson Stadium in Erk Russell Athletic Park. Wanda and Dan Parrish provided yet another gift to renovate and rename the Dan J. Parrish, Sr. Football Center in 2015. Now known as the Dan J. Parrish, Sr. Building, the building provides a hub for athletics’ administration and women’s coaching staffs, which includes senior athletic administrators, marketing, media relations, external operations and coaching staffs for women's basketball, soccer, softball, tennis, track and field/cross country and volleyball. Wanda and Dan also joined the Transition 20, a group of visionaries who, in 2013, led Eagle Nation to help fund the transition to the FBS football era. They are currently Platinum Eagle members of the Athletic Foundation's annual scholarship fund known as the Eagle Fund - which they have been supporting since 1985. Their favorite Georgia Southern athletic moment? “Of course, ‘The Catch’ when Frankie Johnson caught Tracy Ham's pass for the 1985 NCAA Division I Football Championship. Just as important, however, was Tony Belser's reception on fourth and 13 on the previous series. That really was the ‘last play in the world.’” said Wanda. |  | |
