News        from ABAC

Michael D. Chason Director of Public Relations ABAC 30 -- 2802 Moore Highway Tifton, GA 31793-2601 Phone 229-391-5055 Fax 229-391-5056 mchason@abac.edu

IMMEDIATE APRIL 10, 2008

Dr. Charles Speakman

SPEAKMAN NAMED OUTSTANDING HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONAL

TIFTON - Dr. Charles Speakman of Columbus received the Outstanding Health Care Professional award at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College’s 2008 Homecoming celebration.

Speakman attended ABAC from 1971 to 1973. While there, he pitched for the baseball team and exceeded academically, winning the Math Divisional Award and the Ty Cobb Academic Scholarship.

He continued his education at The University of Georgia, completing his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine in 1978. While in school, he was also married and financially contributed to his family at home. In 1987 he completed his MD at the University of South Florida College of Medicine and completed his residency there in 1991.

His dedication to learning and desire to further his service to his fellow man led him ultimately to a career as an Ophthalmologist with West Georgia Eye Care Center and the Ambulatory Surgical Center of Columbus.

He is an active member of the Christ Community Church in Columbus and devotes time and resources to fundraising for the visually impaired, the Carpenter’s Ranch for Boys, Sound Choices Pregnancy Center, the American Diabetes Association and the United Way. He and his wife, Charlene McDonald Speakman, also an ABAC alumnus, have two children.

###