Belcher memorial scholarship awarded to 2nd student

The friends and family of Vestavia Hills icon Dave Belcher continue to honor his memory through a scholarship for teens who have received a second chance at life.

After Belcher passed away in 2016, his Sunday school group at Shades Mountain Baptist and longtime friends Buddy Lockhart and Henry Long established the scholarship fund for children housed at Big Oak Ranch. During his life, Belcher and his family were active supporters of Big Oak’s work with children and teens experiencing abuse and neglect.

“We’ve been involved with the ranch for so long,” said his wife, Sue Belcher. “That was Dave’s big thing.”

Sue Belcher said they started supporting Big Oak Ranch upon moving to Vestavia Hills in the 1970s, and many of their early Christmas parties were at the Belchers’ Royal Automotive dealership. Dave Belcher always made sure to get a list of each child’s Christmas wish so he could fulfill it.

“They’re just special people,” said John Croyle of Big Oak Ranch. Croyle said he once went to buy a van from Royal Automotive for the ranch, but Dave Belcher refused to accept his money. Royal would go on to donate at least 30 vehicles to the organization over the decades.

“Dave loved children; he loved the Big Oak; he loved our Sunday school class. This is really the reason we’re doing this, because of our love for Dave,” Lockhart said in a 2016 interview with the Vestavia Voice. “I’d like to put his picture on Mount Rushmore, but I can’t. I feel that strong about it.”

In 2016, the David R. Belcher Memorial Scholarship was awarded to Gilbert Rosas, who is studying computer programming at Gadsden State Community College and plans to complete his studies at Jacksonville State University. At the time, Lockhart said they were hoping to raise $100,000 to make the scholarship an endowment that would continue in the future.

This May, Lockhart said they passed that $100,000 goal and are still raising funds and deciding how to invest the money to get the most return out of it to put toward scholarships. Big Oak Ranch will select the recipient of thescholarship each year.

The second scholarship was awarded to Brittney Franklin, who graduated in May and has lived at the girls’ ranch for nine years. Sue Belcher, Lockhart and Long visited the girls’ ranch May 22, the day before her graduation, to give Franklin the award and tell her about the man behind the name.

Franklin intends to get an associate degree as a physical therapy assistant from Wallace State Community College before going on to become a licensed physical therapist at Troy University. When they met her, Lockhart and Sue Belcher said they were pleased to see that Franklin had such a clear vision for her future mapped out.

“I hope that you’ll have near the success [Dave Belcher] had and friends he made in his lifetime,” Lockhart told Franklin.

“Nothing would make him happier,” Sue Belcher added.