Bell and Whitesides Awarded NC’s Highest Honor

Retired Executive Director of the Asheville Housing Authority Gene Bell and Buncombe County Commissioner Al Whitesides have been named to the Order of the Long Leaf Pine, the highest civilian honor bestowed by the governor of North Carolina.

The award, begun in 1963 and presented in recognition of extraordinary service to the state, was bestowed by Gov. Roy Cooper and announced during a celebration ceremony at UNC Asheville on Oct. 18, 2021.

Recognizing PEAK Academy Opening

The Oct. 18 celebration also recognized the opening of Asheville PEAK Academy, a tuition-free public charter school that strives to close the achievement gap through personalized instruction and character education to ensure youth, regardless of income status or race, receive a quality educational experience that will allow them to achieve academic and lifelong success. Gene Bell chairs its board of directors.

This fall UNC Asheville formalized a partnership with PEAK Academy to support the important role it plays in the education of elementary-aged students in Asheville and western North Carolina. This partnership provides engaged learning opportunities for UNC Asheville students, faculty, and staff while advancing the University’s mission of seeking and serving North Carolina’s most promising students, regardless of need, and facilitating their path to higher education.

Bell Has Long History of Public Service

Gene Bell directed the Asheville Housing Authority for 14 years, with a 25-year career with the organization spanning from his first position as director of maintenance construction in 1994. As executive director, he oversaw the growth of the Housing Authority to serve 10 public housing developments.

Bell graduated from Xavier University in Cincinnati with a degree in business management. After a 20-year career with IBM, Bell bought a construction company in Charlotte, NC, and later joined the Charlotte Housing Authority as the Director of Technical Services, before moving to Asheville.

Bell’s service to education, equity and advocacy can be marked by his volunteer work with numerous organizations, including as chair of the Asheville Housing Authority Board of Commissioners, chair of Buncombe County Planning Board, and past president of the NC Housing Authority Directors Association. He also served on the Executive Committee for the United Way of Asheville and was past chair of the Asheville Civil Service Board. In support of better sustainable opportunities for children and families in public housing, Bell served as board chair of the Asheville City Schools, and is now the Board Chair of Asheville PEAK Academy.

Whitesides Recognized for Ground-Breaking Accomplishments

Al Whitesides, a long-time community activist and former banker, is the first African American to serve as a commissioner for Buncombe County. He built a successful career of 40 years in banking with First Union National Bank in Asheville, Wachovia, and Mountain 1st Bank and Trust—while never stopping his fight for justice and equality in his community.

That role started early in his life in Asheville. While attending the segregated African American Stephens Lee High School in the early 1960s, Whitesides joined the Asheville Student Committee on Racial Equality (ASCORE). ASCORE students boycotted and integrated the city’s and county’s libraries, lunch counters, movie theaters, and more, for five years in Asheville.

His passion for advocacy led him to a double major in political science and history from North Carolina College, now named North Carolina Central University in Durham, North Carolina. As president of the student body, he continued to fight for civil rights by working with students from NCCU, UNC-Chapel Hill, and Duke Universities boycotting in downtown Durham for equal rights. He graduated from NCCU in 1969 during the height of the civil rights movement.

Whitesides has a résumé full of community service and volunteer roles. He has served on the Asheville City Board of Education, the board of his alma mater NC Central University, and as chair of the UNC Asheville Board of Trustees. He was chairman and board member of the YMI Cultural Center for 10 years and is currently serving as a Buncombe County Commissioner. In 2012, UNC Asheville honored Whitesides’s legacy with an honorary degree. In 2016, UNC Asheville rechristened the former New Hall academic building as “Whitesides Hall” in his honor.

Long Leaf Pine Laureates a Distinguished Group

Distinguished recipients of the Order of the Long Leaf Pine honor include UNC Asheville Chancellor Emerita Anne Ponder; UNC Asheville Professor Emeritus of Management Robert Yearout; civil rights pioneer and founder of the Martin Luther King Prayer Breakfast Oralene Simmons; retired founding Director of UNC Asheville’s Center for Diversity Education Deborah Miles; and former executive director of the Great Smokies Writing Program, retired UNC Asheville lecturer and author Tommy Hays. Other recipients include former UNC System President William Friday, author Maya Angelou, Mrs. Coretta Scott King, and many other leaders in business, education, public service, arts, entertainment, and sports.