TIGER PRIDE

Central High nonprofit gala honors alumni, raises funds

The Little Rock Central High Tiger Foundation jumped into the fundraising arena recently with its first Award of Excellence event honoring Julie and the Very Rev. Christoph Keller III and the late Roosevelt Thompson. The dinner and program were held Oct. 13 in the Great Hall of the Clinton Presidential Center.

Christoph Keller and Thompson were student-body presidents, as were the event's co-chairmen, Darrin Williams, chief executive officer of Southern Bancorp Inc., and state Rep. Clarke Tucker.

"It's a huge part of who I am," Tucker said post-event of his high school alma mater. "I'm able to do what I do in part because of my experiences at Central."

About 200 people attended, raising roughly $125,000 for the foundation, which was founded in 2012 as an all-volunteer organization.

Tucker, the foundation's board chairman, said the proceeds would likely be divvied up among student groups who apply for funding of projects in the areas of academics, the arts, citizenship and athletics. Honorees can be, but are not limited to, Central High alumni, he said.

After a dinner of thyme-smoked chicken breast, mascarpone grits and caramelized leeks, guests heard remarks from Principal Nancy Rousseau and Bobby Roberts, former director of the Central Arkansas Library System (CALS).

The Rev. Keller is an Episcopal priest and theologian perhaps best known as the founder of what is now St. Margaret's Episcopal Church in west Little Rock. Julie Keller is a former journalist with a background in volunteerism to match. Lee Thompson accepted the award for his brother Roosevelt, who died in a car wreck during his last semester at Yale University. Central's auditorium is named for Roosevelt Thompson, and the west Little Rock branch of CALS is called the Roosevelt Thompson Library.

High Profile on 10/23/2016

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