Memorial Trees at SOTA

Margarette Douyon: Margarette's memorial tree is an eastern redbud (Cercis canadensis), native to East Native America. Eastern redbuds have dark green heart-shaped leaves and snowy rosy pink flowers in the spring.

Margarette Douyon had the Eastern Redbud memorialized after her. Ms. Douyon was the chemistry teacher at SOTA for many years. Prior to this, as a kid she immigrated from Haiti. She was a pioneer in the Jackson Mississippi public schools working on integrating students before the mandatory desegregation in the 1950’s. Ms. Douyon expected a lot from her students. These high standards pushed students to be the best, excelling in their academics. Ms. Douyon was very cherished by staff and students. Her dedication and traditional teaching styles are what made the biggest impact on SOTA.

Terri Joseph: Joseph’s tree is a large Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum) that is in the center of the Courtyard. The Sugar Maple is native to the forests of eastern Canada and eastern US. The Sugar Maple can grow up to 120 ft. Produces very colorful foliage in the fall and is often tapped for maple syrup in late winter.

Terri Joseph's memorial is a Sugar Maple located on the left side of the courtyard. Ms. Joseph was the costume designer for the drama and dance majors. Her costumes were at the utmost quality. She was a master at anything that involved sewing. Ms. Joseph was very driven and dedicated. Many described her as dedicated and driven because of how detailed her work was.  If someone tried to order a costume online she wouldn't allow it and insisted on making it herself. That just shows the effort and care she put into SOTA. Her impact on SOTA was large, if it hadn't been for Ms. Joseph's many SOTA productions wouldn't have been as successful as they were. She set a very high standard for the costume department and left big shoes to fill for the next costume designers after she retired. 

Kathleen Perry: Perry’s tree is a “Snowdrift” Crabapple (Malus) that is outside the courtyard in front of the band room. The Snowdrift Crabapple is native to Europe, Asia, and North America.  It is a large full tree with small white flowers.

Kathleen Perry’s memorial tree is the Snowdrift Crabapple located in the University side of the school near the band room. Ms.Perry was the string teacher here at SOTA. She was an accomplished violinist and decided to dedicate her craft to teaching students. She first started when the building was still very new in the 90s. Perry enjoyed all arts not just the orchestra and would frequently attend art galleries and other local displays of the arts in her free time. Flowers and gardening were also a very big part of her life. Ms. Perry would even go to her friends' houses and do their gardening work for them. Overall she was very committed to SOTA and her students. Her light and care for them will always be missed and her huge impact and contribution to SOTA will never be forgotten.

Bob Ruppenthal: Ruppenthal’s memorial tree is a Common Lilac (Syringa vulgaris) that sits in the back left corner of the Courtyard. The Common Lilac is native to the Balkan Peninsula. It grows to have heart-shaped leaves with purple flowers.

Bob Ruppenthal has the Common Lilac bush in his honor. When asked about teachers only had good things to say. He actually wasn't a School of the Arts faculty member. Instead, he volunteered as the treasurer of Friends of SOTA for many years. Mr. Ruppenthal was an active member of the School of The Arts community. Before being a benefactor he was a licensed sailor and ship captain. The US Coast Guard also awarded Ruppenthal a master's license. He also spent time in the tech field developing integration software for commercial products. With all of this success, he chose to give back to his community. Devoting much of his retired time to helping SOTA become the best possible school it can be. We thank Mr. Ruppenthal for his generous contributions to the School Of The Arts. 

Carole Wemmett: Carol’s memorial is a garden consisting of a variety of plant life including tulips (Tulipa gesneriana) which are native to Middle East and Turkey. Blooms in a variety of colors, with simple, The garden also includes Daylilies (Hemerocallis) which are native to Asia. They have long-stalked clusters of bell-shaped flowers that range in color from yellow to red. 

Carole Wemmett had the courtyard garden memorialized to her. This garden includes tulips, chameleon plants and daylilies. Ms. Wemmett was the first Social Studies teacher at SOTA. She was loved by all and described as the most popular teacher. People admired her kindness and dedication to the school. She held her students to a very high expectation and once said, “really, half the job is to teach, otherwise the students show up for the teachers and meet them halfway”. Her positivity and eagerness to give is what made an everlasting impact on everyone who interacted with her. That being said, her contribution to SOTA was so large. She will forever be remembered and missed.