Lyman Ward Cadets Host Dixon Foundation Appreciation Day
Camp Hill, Alabama – May 14, 2009 – Next to Dr. Lyman Ward himself, founder of Lyman Ward Military Academy (LWMA), no other individuals have had such a profound impact on the Academy than the late Solon and Martha Dixon.
Cadets, staff and faculty at the Academy recently held an Appreciation Day for the Solon & Martha Dixon Foundation, complete with a full-dress parade, a reception in Tallapoosa Hall, lunch with the Corp of Cadets, and a performance from the Academy’s prestigious Sword Drill Team, as a show of gratitude for the couple’s significant contributions and support of LWMA. This is the first time in the school’s long history that its Sword Drill Team has conducted two performances in a single school year.
“Both our library and Chapel bear the names of the Dixon family, a tribute to their history of support for our Academy,” says Bill Jenrette, President of LWMA. “Generations of Cadets have benefited from the Dixon Foundation, and I’m confident that the Dixon’s would take much pride in knowing that their support helps in the development of young men of strong character, who go on to make positive contributions to society,” says Jenrette.
Solon “Sox” Dixon, a 1922 graduate of the Southern Industrial Institute (SII), now LWMA, dedicated his life to his family, and supporting the educational institutions that contributed to his business and financial success – Lyman Ward Military Academy and Auburn University.
Throughout the Dixon’s life, they graciously supported Lyman Ward with significant monetary contributions, including a $100,000 donation in the 1980’s that, according to a resolution of gratitude passed by the Board of Trustees, was responsible for “breathing new life into the spirit of all those associated with Lyman Ward.”
Upon graduating from SII in 1922, Dixon went on to receive a degree in mechanical engineering from Alabama Polytechnic Institute, now Auburn University.
Dixon was a forestry leader, conservationist and farmer and was known for his dedication to education. He and his brother, Charles, developed and managed Dixon Lumber Co. in Andalusia. The family’s acquisition of forestland began in the 1920s and peaked in the mid-1970s with about 90,000 acres. Solon Dixon died in 1986. His wife, Martha, and the Foundation’s board members, continued his philanthropic support of education through the Solon & Martha Dixon Foundation.
Based in Camp Hill, Alabama, LWMA is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS). LWMA is one of less than 50 military boarding schools nationally, educating young men from grades 6-12. For more information, to schedule an on-campus visit, or for a list of recruiting events, visit LWMA online at www.lwma.org.