By Mike Hutchens, UC Schools Communications Director
Union City, Tenn.–The complete “Union City High School experience” will be on full display at the school’s annual Academic Top 10 Banquet.
Dr. Lolly Eldridge, a 1994 UCHS graduate and noted OBGYN at The Jackson Clinic, will be the guest speaker at the 35th edition of the event Monday night.
The Top 10 from each of the four classes at UCHS this year – based on grade point averages – will be recognized at the banquet, which is set for 6:30 p.m. in the high school gymnasium.
Dr. Eldridge, the daughter of former Union City Director of Schools Gary Houston and wife Marsha, is certainly no stranger to the event nor the many opportunities for educational growth and extracurricular options of the school system.
She was in attendance at the banquet as an honoree each of her four years at UCHS and graduated third overall in her class. Eldridge was also a member of the widely-acclaimed Marching Golden Tornado band for four years – serving as field commander as a junior and senior. She was a cheerleader in 1992, too, when UC won the second of its five boys’ state basketball championships.
And she insists her well-rounded Union City High School education experience served as a great springboard to higher heights as a professional.
“I was well-prepared for college – maybe even more so than I thought — because of the education I received at Union City Schools,” said Eldridge, who graduated from University of Tennessee College of Medicine with High Honors. “There’s always been a level of excellence at Union City High School, and I truly believe it rivals any school in West Tennessee — and that includes the private schools.
“The administration and staff did a wonderful job of meshing the education and the social part. There were many classroom and academic demands in place during the week, but on the weekends, that was mixed with ballgames and band competitions. It was truly a wonderful high school experience.
“Personally, for me, I think being a field commander presented me with some leadership opportunities and gave me confidence. The trip to Disneyworld with the band was the first and only time I’d ever been there until just a few years ago with my own children. You just can’t put a price tag on those things.”
Lolly’s path that ultimately led to women’s medicine was admittedly not a clear one.
“I didn’t know exactly what I wanted to do,” she claimed. “I started as a biology major (at Union University), but the Lord led me to medicine.
“It was strange because I was a little afraid initially of the field as I used to pass out when I looked at blood. My faith pushed me through med school, though. And then I was led into women’s medicine.”
Eldridge insisted she “was overwhelmed and humbled” when Director of Schools Wes Kennedy asked her to speak at the banquet and counts it “among her greatest professional accomplishments.”
She said having both her mother and father as well as husband, Steven, and two daughters in attendance for the occasion will make the event even more special.
“I can appreciate the legacy that my father built, even though he was superintendent after I graduated from Union City High School,” she added. To this day, “I have patients and other people who learn of our father-daughter relationship tell me what he meant to them as an administrator.
“He tells a story about me finding out I was No. 3 in my class and says I said: ‘If I knew I was that close, I’d have tried a little harder.’” I’m not sure I remember that, but I do know that having him and my mother there at the banquet, along with my husband and daughters, will make it an even more special time.”
Among the UCHS students to be honored at the event are:
TOP 10 SENIORS
Dalton Bone, Neil Brown, Erin Gill, Tammy Huyhn, Ben Martinek, Ben McMillan, Laken Prather, Gabriel Qualls, Carter Walton, Leah Wisener
TOP 10 JUNIORS
Kamia Cross, Daniel Edwards, Hope Kennedy, Elizabeth Lattus, Silas Petty, Lydia Runions, Olivia Tanner, Kobe Terrell, Sara Ullrich, Annie Wade
TOP 10 SOPHOMORES
Toni Armstrong, Khali Brooks, Alyssa Durham, Reagan Durkee, Chloe Meade, Owen Rodgers, Jocelyn Ruiz, Kate Schlager, Madeline Underwood, Charlton Wisener
TOP 10 FRESHMEN
Shelby Bondurant, Sarah Del Valle, Lucas Greer, Emily Hammond, Molly Kizer, Taryn Landry, Joseph Lattus, II, Ella Palmer, Marlee Theobald, Bailey Waggoner