Priscilla Stapleton was born in Rock Hill, S.C., but moved to Greensboro, N.C., where she attended Western Guilford High School and served as the student government vice president, was active in Young Life and played tennis. After graduating in 1978, she attended Lenior-Rhyne College in Hickory, N.C., where she majored in political science and earned a minor in English. Priscilla also was active in the North Carolina Student Legislature. During the summer, Priscilla coached a tennis team in Greensboro. It was there that she met Bruce Stapleton, a University of North Carolina business student, who coached a rival Greensboro tennis team.
Bruce Stapleton also grew up in Greensboro, but he graduated in 1976, from Grimsley High School, one of four city schools. While there, he was a member of the basketball team and eventually ended up on the UNC basketball team that made the NCAA final four in 1977.
He began dating Priscilla, but after graduating from UNC, continued his education at the University of South Carolina in Columbia, S.C., where he earned an MBA in 1980.
The couple married and moved to Dayton in 1982 after Bruce accepted a position in the customer service department at NCR. In 1984, Priscilla also worked for NCR, but left in 1988 when the couple’s oldest child was born.
The Stapleton’s have four children. Michelle Stapleton Renfro graduated from Centerville High School in 2005. She earned a degree in creative writing at Ohio University and became involved in Campus Crusade, where she met her husband, Lee.
The couple currently works for Campus Crusade at OU, where Michelle counsels young women and Lee works with the Athletes in Action group.
Baxter Stapleton is a 2007 CHS graduate and received the CHS Philanthropy Award his senior year. He attended Cedarville University where he was elected president of his class. He currently works with three partners to run Elayo, www.elayo.org, a design firm that specializes in urban affairs and film programs.
Baxter’s video showcasing The Greene can be seen at www.thegreene.com.
Baxter also received a United Nations Foundation Award for his efforts in addressing Millennium Development Goals using an innovative and sustainable approach.
Alex Baxter is a 2010 CHS graduate who is currently majoring in art and photography with an emphasis on stage combat choreography at Wright State University.
He also owns Stapleton Photography,
, which specializes in nature photography and sports photos. Christine Stapleton is a sophomore at CHS.
She recently participated in a Tower Height’s Middle School beautification project that resulted in murals being painted on plain walls.
In 1999, after 16 years at NCR, Bruce Stapleton struck out on his own and started a wellness facility. Three years later, he was named chief club officer at the Five Seasons Sports Club. During his tenure at the Five Seasons, he has focused on service through the community with fundraisers for groups like Ambucs, Athletes in Action and the Susan G. Komen for the Cure breast cancer group.
Following the devastation of Hurricane Ike in September 2008, Stapleton opened the Five Season doors and invited the public to use the showers.
In addition to work and serving as an elder at Southminster Presbyterian Church in Centerville, Bruce Stapleton also finds the time to teach two business courses at Cedarville College.
Contact this columnist at (937) 432-9054 or jjbaer@aol.com.
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