Lee County Speech and Debate inducts inaugural class into Hall of Fame

LEESBURG — Billed as “A Night to Remember” in the program, the Lee County Speech and Debate Team hosted more than 100 people this past weekend to recognize the past and present accomplishments of Lee County High School’s most successful competitive team.

“The evening felt absolutely magical,” team coach Kyle Constable said. “Our kids gave tremendous performances for members of the community, and following those performances, we were finally able to honor the heroes of the program’s past, including coaching legends like Martha Dye, Ted Carter and Bill Swafford. To have all three of them there at once felt almost unreal.”

Following a video presentation that opened the evening’s events, Constable introduced his current team to the community. The program featured performances from eight of those students, including sophomore Taylor Dollar and freshman Xannria Sierra’s duo interpretation of Mo Gaffney’s “Annette and Gina” and junior Eli Lamb’s nationally acclaimed Original Oratory, “Playing To Win.”

After student performances closed, the inaugural class of the Lee County Speech and Debate Hall of Fame was inducted. Stories from students and coaches alike were shared as members of the community and the current team watched and listened.

“We stand on the shoulders of those who came before us,” said Burt Baker, who spoke at length about the program’s past success and the dedication of Dye, his coach.

Baker graduated from Lee County High School in 1980 and was a member of the school’s first state championship debate team.

“‘Thank you’ hardly seems like enough,” he said.

The inaugural class included former students Kelly Lancaster ’76, John McClellan ’81, Bob Reeves ’82, James Sizemore ’83, James Vann ’88, Russ Pennington ’89, Zac Lawton ’96, Mat Dunn ’99, Kyle Constable ’12 and Hugh Slaton ’13 as well as former coaches Dye, Carter and Swafford.

The evening ended with an announcement that both Dye and Carter would be nominated for the National Speech and Debate Association Hall of Fame later this year. Dye and Carter, as well as Swafford, were all previously inducted into the Georgia Forensic Coaches Association Hall of Fame.