MOUNT VERNON -- A family move
brought Renee McMillan back to her native south Georgia, and with the relocation
she brought nearly five years of experience in alumni work to Brewton-Parker
College.McMillan, a native of Waycross, began as Brewton-Parker's director of alumni relations on July 28.
McMillan is a graduate of Berry College, where she was coordinator of reunion events for two years and coordinator of alumni activities the two previous years.
However, when her husband, Jason, was offered a job opportunity in Vidalia, McMillan had to relinquish her working ties to her alma mater, where she began her college education in 1993.
"The first thing I did was cry," said McMillan, who began her time in the Berry alumni office as an administrative assistant and interim director in 1998. "I was very attached to the school and the alumni. We were very much a family and I was deeply saddened, but there was a reason to do it. We took a leap of faith."
McMillan will be the first to profess that God provided in the situation.
"There was sadness of leaving, but then my thoughts turned to family and to what opportunities there would be in the Vidalia area. I knew Brewton-Parker was here, so I looked at the Web site and a miracle occurred: the director of alumni relations position was open!"
McMillan's experience proved to be a perfect match for Brewton-Parker's alumni directorship, which Bob Sanford vacated after four years to become assistant to the provost, Dr. Ron Melton.
"It is all by God's hands that this has happened," McMillan said. "I look forward to the opportunity ahead of me. It is going to be challenging, but it will be fun."
"I am delighted to have Renee with us to head our alumni office," said Jay Orr, Brewton-Parker's vice president for college advancement. "She is wonderfully gifted and has a wealth of experience that will greatly benefit Brewton-Parker College."
The McMillans have a 2-year-old daughter, Gillian Anne.
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