2013 FCSHOF Banquet

On April 13, 2013, The 2013 Fannin County Sports Hall of Fame held its first annual Induction Ceremony and Banquet at the Fannin County High Cafeteria in Blue Ridge Georgia. A full house of more than 300 attended the event.

2013 FCSHOF Inductees

There was a group of twelve athletes or coaches, and one basketball team that were inducted into the Hall of Fame this first year of 2013. Inducted were Aldon Farmer, Johnny Farmer, Tom Foster, Carlton Guthrie, Mike Hartness, Raymond Montgomery, Bernadine Heaton Ralston, Bunzie Johnson Ross, Brian Satterfield, T J Thompson, Joe Tipton, David Turner, and the 1945-1946 Fannin County High Girls Team of Morganton. The team inductees are: Coach Clyde J. Henry, Jean Henry Zachary, Blanch Smith Ganues, Bunzie Johnson Ross, Bernadine Heaton Ralston, Martha Jane Roberson Henson, Willa Dean Cole Dillard, Nelli Farmer Pittman, Doris Wallace Wheeler, Genova Smith Kinser, Lena Ralston Caban and Margaret Ann Richards Ballew.

A short biography with a short video of each individual and the 45-46 girls team was given. Some of the inductees or their representatives offered a few words.

Each inductee or their representative received a plaque with a photo and biographical sketch on it. An identical plaque will go on the wall at the Fannin County Recreation Gymnasium sometime in the summer. Inductees also received a DVD that included the FCSHOF banquet and FCSHOF biography videos of them and their fellow inductees. A dedication of the Hall of Fame will follow.

2013 FCSHOF Banquet Special Guests

Among the special guests in attendance were Bill Chappell, Hayden Wagers, Jackie Bradford, and Charles “Babe” Howell. Legendary coach Bill Chappell coached Dalton to 317 wins in football and is in the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame. Coach Wagers led Dalton’s golf team to six state championships and is in the Georgia Coaches Hall of Fame, Jackie Bradford was Co-Captain at David Lipscomb with inductee Mike Hartness and is a past president of the Atlanta Tipoff Club. He is now in the Atlanta Sports Hall of Fame. Babe Howell, former coach at East Fannin High coached two of the inductees and is in eleven different sports hall of fames in two states. When Coach Howell retired he had won more baseball games and more football games than any coach in North Carolina history.

The class of 2014 was announced in August 2013 and introduced at the HOF Game at Fannin County High School on December 20th, 2013. The induction ceremony will take place on Saturday April 12, 2014 at Fannin County High School starting at 2:00 o’clock.