PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF THE ALTAMONT SCHOOL
Ceremony guests included (L-R) Eric and Kat Rogers, Altamont Head of School Cecil Stodghill, Susan Keith, Shannon and Bret Connor, and Jim North.
More than 100 guests assembled recently as The Altamont School dedicated the Susan W. Keith ’79 Tennis Complex on the school’s Red Mountain campus.
During the ribbon-cutting ceremony, school officials, alumni, students, and friends noted the powerful influence of the longtime teacher and coach, who joined the faculty of her Alma Mater in 1988. Keith, in turn, recalled the mentorship of coach Melinda Whitt, who introduced her to tennis in the seventh grade at Brooke Hill School, which merged with Birmingham University School to create The Altamont School in 1975. Love for the game grew in Keith, and she joined the school’s tennis team as a sophomore.
Keith’s love of physical education grew, too, thanks to Whitt. “She put something on my heart right then that made me want to teach PE,” Keith said. “The reason I’m still at Altamont has to do with that PE teacher.” Through almost 40 years of service at the Altamont School, Keith maintains that passion, dedication, and recognition of the importance of play, not only for generations of tennis players, but for all students. “I don’t go to a job every day,” she said. “I come to school to play.”
The Susan W. Keith ’79 Tennis Complex—featuring new and refinished courts, backboards, landscaping, seating, lighting, signage, and renovated bathrooms—was made possible by a host of generous donors, including: Deshazo Foundation; Mrs. Shannon ’96 and Mr. Bret ’93 Connor; Lyons Family Foundation; Mr. James L. North, Jr. ’92; Altec/Styslinger Foundation; Mr. and Mrs. Samuel D. Haskell; Mr. and Mrs. Drayton Nabers, Jr.; Jimmy ’45, Jim ’83 and James ‘20 Shepherd. —Sean Flynt