The baseball
field at Virginia Wesleyan College is receiving significant enhancements
this fall—including upgrades to the dugouts, backstop, stands and a new
press box—thanks to the generosity of longtime VWC benefactors Joan and
Macon Brock. We are pleased recognize Joan’s father and former Board
member, Kenneth R. Perry, by naming the field in his memory.
A contribution from the Brocks of $500,000 makes possible a new 370-seat grandstand; a climate-controlled press box with scorer’s table; a rebuild of the existing dugouts, including new benches, helmet and bat racks, and protective netting; a VWC-branded home-plate halo; relocation of the bull pens; four-foot black vinyl fencing with spectator-friendly sightlines; practice screen replacement; new pole and net backstop; and surrounding landscaping. Earlier, the Brocks’ generosity provided a new irrigation system as well as grading and re-sodding of the field.
Joan and Macon Brock are well known for their community leadership, their generosity and vision, and they are among the closest friends of Virginia Wesleyan College. The strength of VWC today can be traced in significant ways to their leadership and support, as many aspects of the College have benefited from their genuine interest in students, programs and facilities. Most recently, we were proud to announce the formation of the Joan P. Brock School of Mathematics and Natural Sciences. Dr. Chris Haley serves as the Kenneth R. Perry Dean of the Joan P. Brock School of Mathematics and Natural Sciences through an endowment created by the Perry and Brock families.
A contribution from the Brocks of $500,000 makes possible a new 370-seat grandstand; a climate-controlled press box with scorer’s table; a rebuild of the existing dugouts, including new benches, helmet and bat racks, and protective netting; a VWC-branded home-plate halo; relocation of the bull pens; four-foot black vinyl fencing with spectator-friendly sightlines; practice screen replacement; new pole and net backstop; and surrounding landscaping. Earlier, the Brocks’ generosity provided a new irrigation system as well as grading and re-sodding of the field.
Joan and Macon Brock are well known for their community leadership, their generosity and vision, and they are among the closest friends of Virginia Wesleyan College. The strength of VWC today can be traced in significant ways to their leadership and support, as many aspects of the College have benefited from their genuine interest in students, programs and facilities. Most recently, we were proud to announce the formation of the Joan P. Brock School of Mathematics and Natural Sciences. Dr. Chris Haley serves as the Kenneth R. Perry Dean of the Joan P. Brock School of Mathematics and Natural Sciences through an endowment created by the Perry and Brock families.
In 2006, the College named a residence hall complex after the couple—Joan and Macon Brock Village—in recognition of their generous support of student scholarships, residence hall improvements, athletics programs, and other programs. The Brocks have also long supported Virginia Wesleyan’s Center for the Study of Religious Freedom, for which Dr. Craig Wansink currently serves as the Joan P. and Macon F. Brock Jr. Director.
Joan Brock served on Virginia Wesleyan College’s President’s Advisory Council from 1996-1999, the Board of Trustees from 1999-2006, and was Chair of the Board of Trustees from 2001-2004. She received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree on behalf of the College in 2010.
Mrs. Brock’s service and commitment to Virginia Wesleyan College continues a long family tradition. Her uncle, Douglas McIntyre, served as the College’s first registrar and was a member of the faculty for 25 years. Kenneth R. Perry—Joan’s father, for whom the baseball field is named—served on the Board of Trustees from 1991 until his death in 2004 and was awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws degree in 2002, the first year the College presented honorary degrees.
Upgrades to Perry Field are slated for completion by the season’s start in February 2017, and a formal dedication ceremony will be forthcoming.
