Bridgewater College

VIDEO: DOUGLAS COLEMAN'S HALL OF FAME INDUCTION CEREMONY

Douglas Coleman finished his career at Bridgewater as one of the College 's top track and cross country performers.

Coleman helped lead the cross country team to three straight Virginia Small College meet titles. In 1971 and 1972, Coleman was the individual winner at the small college meet. Coleman also won the Mason Dixon conference championship meet in 1970, leading the Eagles to a second-place team finish. He broke the BC course record numerous times during his career and was a team captain in 1971 and 1972.

On the track, Coleman was a champion at the Mason Dixon conference mile, the VACA indoor 880-yard run and the Virginia Small College 880-yard run. At the Virginia Small College meet in 1972, Coleman won the 880 with a time of 1:56.2, placed second in the mile at 4:18.6 and ran a 50-second 440-yard leg on the mile relay team.

Coleman graduated with a degree in biology and taught botany as an adjunct professor at a community college from 1974-75. He then began working part-time at Wintergreen Resort in 1975 where he developed environmental programs and wrote the first Rare Plant Management Manual for the Blue Ridge Parkway.

His programs at Wintergreen won the National Environmental Achievement Award presented in San Francisco in 1987. In 1992-93, Coleman co-authored the award winning article Vascular Flora of the James River Gorge.

Coleman was named the first executive director of the Wintergreen Nature Foundation in 1994 a position he still holds. He also serves on the Flora of Virginia advisory committee.

For his outstanding career as a runner in the track and cross country programs at Bridgewater and in recognition of his work as a conservationist, Douglas Coleman is deserving of induction into the Bridgewater College Athletic Hall of Fame.