Stephen F. Austin State University

Stephen F. Austin State University hosted a celebration of philanthropy Monday night as it dedicated the Ed and Gwen Cole Art Center @ The Old Opera House and recognized the generous spirit of four Nacogdoches families and their gifts to the university.

The Art Center, a 9,460-square-foot building constructed in 1889, was renamed to honor the Coles, who moved to Nacogdoches in 1978 following Ed Cole’s retirement from a successful career in the oil-field equipment industry. The Coles quickly embraced SFA.

“The Coles have become two of the university’s most loyal supporters and benefactors,” said Dr. Baker Pattillo, SFA president.

Ed Cole served on the SFA Foundation Board of Trustees and is a former president of the Lumberjack Booster Club. Gwen is a former president of the Ladyjack Booster Club and was the originator of the cross country team’s award for outstanding Ladyjack. Together they have served on the Friends of Music Board, and they are currently serving on the College of Fine Arts Dean’s Circle Advisory Board.

The Coles became the first recipients of the president’s service award established by the SFA Alumni Association in 1993. The concert hall in the Wright Music Building and the audiology lab at SFA are named in their honor.

The first-floor gallery of the Cole Art Center @ The Old Opera House honors Jack and Doris Ledbetter of Nacogdoches. In addition to working as a professional pilot and as a volunteer with the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association in Washington, D.C., Jack was a leader in the electric sign industry and established a manufacturing company that is now managed by the Ledbetters’ four children.

“Doris Ledbetter is a native of Hemphill, and two years ago, the Ledbetters returned to Texas from Long Beach, California, to become a part of the Nacogdoches community,” Pattillo said. “We only wish they could have gotten here sooner.”

Both Jack and Doris are directors of the College of Fine Arts Dean’s Circle and members of the Amore opera group, SFA Friends of Music, the Nacogdoches Club, the Nacogdoches Treatment Center, the Samaritan Center, Millard’s Crossing, and the Boys and Girls Club of Nacogdoches. Additionally, Jack is a member of the Nacogdoches Rotary Club and chairman of the City of Nacogdoches Sign Valuation Board.

The Florence Wilson Reavley Gallery on the second floor honors the memory of the late Florence Wilson Reavley. Born Feb. 9, 1922, Florence grew up in Nacogdoches and was the niece of Karle Wilson Baker, artist and Poet Laureate of Texas. She attended Stephen F. Austin Teachers College Demonstration School and Nacogdoches High School, as well as Stephens College in Columbia, Mo. She earned a degree in studio art from the University of Texas and was a gifted artist, painter and sculptor.

Florence was married to Judge Thomas Morrow Reavley for 60 years before her death on Nov. 17, 2003. Together they had four children—Tom Reavley, Marian Neevel, Paul Reavley and Margaret Currin.

Thomas Reavley served as a lieutenant in the U.S. Navy during World War II and earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Texas and a Doctor of Jurisprudence from Harvard Law School. During his career, Judge Reavley served on the Texas Supreme Court and achieved senior status on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.

The A.T. and Patricia Mast Forum honors Patricia Mast and her late husband, Adlai, who was a fourth-generation native of Nacogdoches. The Masts have been prominent figures in the ranching and timber industries of East Texas, the Texas Panhandle and New Mexico. Their sons, Travis Mast III, John Mast and the late Horace Mast, each attended SFA; their daughter, Patricia Mast George, attended Sweet Briar College in Virginia and the University of Texas at Austin.

“From SFA’s beginning, the Mast family has played key roles in the university’s development and growth,” Pattillo said. “When Stephen F. Austin Teachers College was founded, Adlai’s father chaired the committee of Nacogdoches citizens that selected the site for the new school.

Adlai himself served on the Pineywoods Architectural Preservation Board, which was instrumental in making the gift of the historical Cason Building to the SFA School of Art for use as a visual arts center.

Adlai and Patricia Mast’s generous support has positively impacted both SFA and the community, Pattillo said. Endowments include the A.T. and Patricia Mast Arboretum Fund, A.T. and Patricia Mast Nursing Fund, A.T. and Patricia Mast School of Art Scholarships, and the Horace Mast Scholarship in agriculture. The university’s arboretum is named in their honor.

In 1923, D.K. and Willie Maud Cason purchased the downtown building known as “The Old Opera House.” Approximately eight years ago, the Cason’s heirs deeded the building to Pineywoods Architectural Inc., and in February 2001, the building was deeded to the SFA Real Estate Foundation for use by the SFA College of Fine Arts and School of Art.