Evansville Courier and Press
November 5, 2004

MADISONVILLE -- Madisonville businessman Brown Badgett Sr. made history for Madisonville Community College Thursday when he delivered a pledge of $1.2 million to the school's Fulfilling the Promise fund-raising campaign.

Made in the form of an irrevocable insurance trust to be paid upon his and his wife Heidi's deaths, it boosts the total for the college's $5 million drive to $3.75 million, said MCC President Judith Rhoads.

It is the single largest donation the college has received and follows nearly $400,000 the coal operator and road contractor has given to the school in past drives.

Kentucky Gov. Ernie Fletcher, University of Kentucky basketball coach Tubby Smith and former coach Joe B. Hall joined some 500 staff, students and community residents at a noon ceremony to honor Badgett.

Fletcher said Badgett's gift, along with contributions of $25,000 or more from 23 others to the fund-raising drive this year, "sends a resounding message for us and shows us where we are and where we need to be going."

Smith and Hall joked about fishing trips and long-standing friendships with the Badgetts. Smith said Badgett reminded him of his father -- who taught him it was better to give than to receive and to leave the world a better place than he found it.

Hall rated Badgett a hero, a person to admire and aspire to be like.

"Heroes are kind of disappearing," Hall said. "They don't seem to manufacture them like they used to -- Lou Gehrig, Babe Ruth. But what's so refreshing is to see a community recognize one of its own as a hero."

Badgett also received recognition and tokens of appreciation from representatives of Rep. Ed Whitfield, the Kentucky General Assembly and Madisonville and Hopkins County governments.

"I didn't know I was such a nice guy," said Badgett, whose name will be applied to the college's planned Energy and Advanced Technology Center.

Construction of that $14 million building has been delayed by the Kentucky General Assembly's failure to adopt a state budget earlier this year.

Rhoads is hopeful the tech center will be budgeted for construction when the legislature meets again in January.

Badgett's pledge, the college president said, will be used for the development of new education programs, sponsoring scholarships and funding arts programs and existing programs.

Badgett has a history of providing financial assistance to educational programs in Hopkins County and elsewhere.

In the 1990s, he helped to lead a $6 million fund-raising drive for the college and has made major contributions to construction of the Joe C. Davis Science Building on the Madisonville campus and to development of its satellite campus in Muhlenberg County.

He facilitated the development of the Badgett Regional center for Educational Enhancement at Madisonville, which provides a professional development and networking source for 11 western Kentucky school districts. He has also provided more than $2.6 million to Hopkins County schools for development of athletic complexes at Madisonville-North Hopkins and Hopkins Central high school.

The Kentucky High School Athletic Association inducted him into its Hall of Fame in recognition of those contributions earlier this year.

The Brown Badgett Foundation also awards annually 10 renewable scholarships to Hopkins County students attending four-year schools. Since 1990, the foundation has awarded more than $60,000 in scholarships.