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Berryhill endowment will support CALS students from Person County

A new endowment has been created to provide scholarships for undergraduate students enrolled in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at N.C. State University. The Eugene C. Berryhill Sr. Scholarship endowment was established in the North Carolina Agricultural Foundation Inc. in May. Awards of the merit-based scholarships will be made to CALS students from Person County, Berryhill’s home county.

Berryhill, a 1947 CALS graduate in animal industry, owns Hill of Berries Farm in Roxboro. The family farm, which dates back to the 1800s, is among the oldest in the state. Berryhill’s sons, Cal (E.C. Berryhill Jr.) and Joe, continue to farm tobacco and beans and raise cattle, as well as expanding to include the Hot Times Firewood Company.

Gene and Huldah Berryhill
Eugene Berryhill Sr. and his late wife, Huldah, who was instrumental in his creating the new scholarship.

The Berryhills are a die-hard Wolfpack family. The sons and their sister, Dr. Claudia Berryhill DVM, are all CALS alumni. Claudia earned her bachelor’s degree in zoology in 1972, and Cal received his bachelor’s degree in animal science in 1973, the same year that Joe was awarded his associate’s degree in livestock management and technology from the College’s Agricultural Institute. A Berryhill grandchild is currently enrolled at N.C. State, with another poised to enter as a freshman next year.

Additionally, Eugene Berryhill Sr. and Cal Berryhill have served on the N.C. Tobacco Foundation board, while the senior Berryhill is a member of N.C. State University’s R. Stanhope Pullen Society, which recognizes alumni and friends who support N.C. State with deferred gifts.

E.C. "Cal" Berryhill Jr.
E.C. “Cal” Berryhill Jr. (here with dog Scooter) and his siblings are all N.C. State alumni.

Participating in the creation of the endowment were Dr. Richard Linton, CALS dean; Dr. Sam Pardue, CALS associate dean and director of Academic Programs; Nevin Kessler, associate vice chancellor for University Advancement; and Keith Oakley, president of the N.C. Agricultural Foundation Inc.—Terri Leith