Collegiate Times

When Doug McAllister thinks of William E. Skelton, he thinks of the proverb, "Good men must die, but death cannot kill their names."

Indeed, Skelton's name is stamped across the Virginia Tech campus, as timeless as the Hokie stone it is etched in and as long-lasting as the effect he has had on the Hokie community.

Skelton passed away Saturday, Aug. 30, 2008 at the age of 89. He was the former director of 4-H programs and the Virginia Cooperative Extension, and dean of the Extension Division. He was also president of Rotary International from 1983-84.

Skelton graduated from Tech in 1940, later returned in 1949 to begin a 39-year career as a leader at the university, and after 1979 became a very giving and active volunteer for the alumni association and the 4-H program.

Skelton played a significant role in raising funds for the conference center that would eventually bear his name.

"He was truly the most significant volunteer in planning and leading the (alumni center) campaign in the whole process," said Tom Tillar, vice president of alumni relations at Tech, who worked directly with Skelton on the creation of the Skelton Conference Center and Inn at Virginia Tech. "There wasn't anybody who did more. He was also a leadership donor, and he truly did make his mark on the alumni programs of the university by enabling us to have our first real alumni center."

Jim Weaver, athletics director at Tech, said that Skelton and his wife Margaret also established the Skelton Award for Academic Excellence in Athletics, which is an annual $5,000 scholarship awarded to one male and one female. It is presented at the Athletic Director's Honors Breakfast each spring.

"The one thing that I'll always remember about Dr. Skelton was his willingness to volunteer and serve, and I think he epitomizes the Ut Prosim motto better than anyone I know," said Weaver.

"He got the Donaldson Brown Center built, which is now our graduate life center," added McAllister, the director of development and strategic partnerships in the office of university development at Tech and the W. E. Skelton 4-H Educational Conference Center at Smith Mountain Lake.

"I've been privileged to claim Bill Skelton as my mentor and friend for over 35 years," McAllister said. Once Skelton hired McAllister at Tech, the two worked together through Rotary International and on Tech activities.

"He always displayed endless vitality, imagination, discipline, and a sense of tenaciousness on what he was working on than I've seen in any other professional," McAllister said. "He just didn't take no for answers; he got the job done."

Skelton, as Rotary International president for one year and a member for many years prior, Skelton influenced over 1.2 million people in over 200 countries.

"He worked very faithfully and effectively to make life better for other people," McAllister said about Skelton's work ethic with Rotary. "The motto is 'service above self;' he did it for others."

Roger Ellmore, executive director of the Skelton 4-H Center, added that when Skelton was president, the Rotary International had the highest number of new Rotary clubs established in one year.

"Up there in heaven somewhere Bill has restarted the Hokie chapter," McAllister said. "The Hokies already got together, and he's planning something in a tenacious way. That's the way he was. It's the kind of guy he was. Kind of quiet and serious, and kind of intimidating to some, but when you got to know him he was always trying to help out or accomplish something new."