![Ravens Reflect on Receiving the Ione D. Pegram Award]([{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_1/v1645025630/ravenscroft/wvjjlsnla3bszse74xsg/VOICESPegram_CROP4.jpg","width":256},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_2/v1645025630/ravenscroft/wvjjlsnla3bszse74xsg/VOICESPegram_CROP4.jpg","width":512},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_3/v1645025630/ravenscroft/wvjjlsnla3bszse74xsg/VOICESPegram_CROP4.jpg","width":800},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_4/v1645025630/ravenscroft/wvjjlsnla3bszse74xsg/VOICESPegram_CROP4.jpg","width":1200},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_5/v1645025630/ravenscroft/wvjjlsnla3bszse74xsg/VOICESPegram_CROP4.jpg","width":1600},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_6/v1645025630/ravenscroft/wvjjlsnla3bszse74xsg/VOICESPegram_CROP4.jpg","width":2200}])
- Voices
In video reflections, past recipients describe how being recognized with this award, honoring the “grace, integrity and optimism” of the longtime Middle School secretary, has shaped them.
Recipients of the Ione D. Pegram Award spanning the Class of 2018 through the Class of 2025 describe how it felt to be recognized with this award and how Mrs. Pegram’s legacy of grace, integrity and optimism has shaped them since.
This plaque, adorned with flowers from her family, serves as another reminder of Ione Pegram’s legacy at Ravenscroft.
Remembering Ione D. Pegram
Nestled in a shady spot near Jones Health Center and Richards Hall — which housed the Middle School until 2001 — is a wooden bench that invites students, faculty and staff to enjoy a quiet moment. Nearby is a plaque, often adorned with flowers, placed in memory of Ione D. Pegram, who served as the Middle School secretary beginning in 1979.
Pegram was a vital, beloved presence at Ravenscroft. When she passed away in May 2000, the school created the Ione D. Pegram Award, given annually to two eighth-graders who reflect Pegram’s qualities of “grace, integrity and optimism.”
“Receiving the Pegram Award in Middle School is a remarkable honor and achievement for an eighth-grade Raven! As young adults who are still in the process of defining their identities, it is truly something special to witness these students already possess such a strongly developed sense of character,” Middle School counselor Merritt Cole said. “As you hear from our previous award winners, it is evident that they exemplify the character traits of grace, integrity and optimism that Mrs. Pegram was known for, while remaining humble and selfless in their pursuit of having a positive impact on the school culture and community.”
In 2020, her family — touched that the school has continued to honor her spirit with this award — established the Ione D. Pegram Endowment Fund, a need-based scholarship fund that benefits a rising sixth-grader who reflects those traits the fund’s namesake was known for. In addition, her granddaughters Lindsay and Kylie announced the 2021 recipients of the Ione D. Pegram Award as part of the prerecorded Middle School Awards and Recognition Ceremony.
It is the Pegrams’ wish to continue their connection with Ravenscroft in the years to come. In keeping with that spirit, the memorial bench and plaque will soon be moved closer to the Middle School and the Olander Center for Student Life at the A.E. Finley Activity Center, where students, faculty and staff from the division she served with such dedication can be reminded of her legacy.
