Hometown Clinton - Fall 2016

The
way
we
were
Carol and David Durham
Elizabeth Bennett
music department part-time at Mississippi College
for the past 25 years. For the past 10 years she
has taught organ at Belhaven University and
Millsaps College.
At Morrison Heights Baptist Church, she has
held a variety of roles including organist, children’s
choir director and ladies ensemble. Carol is a
member of the American Guild of Organists and has
been the dean of the Jackson chapter. She is
currently the president of the Mississippi Music
Teachers Association and for 12 years she was the
chairman of the Bach Festival in Mississippi.
David and Carol go together like two peas in a
pod. “What I like best about David is that he supports
what I do. He makes the punch when I have recital
receptions,” said Carol. “We are both classical music
people and belong to the symphony,” said David.
“Carol is really smart. I can’t believe how smart she
is,” gushed David.
David and Carol have three children and six
grandchildren. Rachel was born in 1973, Davy was
born in 1977 and Elizabeth was born in 1980. They
are thankful to have five grandchildren in Clinton,
too. When they reflect on having an empty nest, they
have a lot to say. “Your kids are always your kids,
no matter how old they are,” said David. “I never
got too sad about having an empty nest because I
was always glad to see them develop their wings
and interests and use the talents God gave them,”
said Carol.
“When our children were young, we stayed
close to home. Now that they are grown, we enjoy
traveling more. Some places the Durhams have
enjoyed traveling to are Niagara Falls, Toronto,
England, Scotland, Italy, Vienna, Switzerland and
Alaska. Carol’s favorite vacation was when they
traveled to Vienna to visit their daughter. They
went to Salzburg, the home of Mozart and Zermatt,
Switzerland.
The Durhams have had a long and prosperous
marriage and have some good advice for newlyweds.
“Forgive one another,” says David. “When you’re
dating, the person looks perfect. When you’re
married, reality sets in. Don’t go to bed angry,” he
says. “Communicate. Don’t bottle things up. Go into
marriage with the idea that it is permanent no matter
what,” said Carol. “When you say, ‘Until death do us
part’, mean it,” said David. Those are certainly words
of wisdom from a couple that has been in it for the
long haul.
These Clintonians like to reflect on Clinton
back then and now. According to David, many
things have changed, but the most significant
changes are the size of the town and the number
of places to eat. Both increased significantly.
“The only places to go eat in 1970 were the
Mississippi College cafeteria, the Bill Will Motel
restaurant, and a drive-in,” said David. The Durhams
watched the Clinton Parkway being built. “That has
been a very good change for Clinton,” said Carol.
David enjoys woodworking in his spare time
and has built things such as bookshelves, cabinets
and Carol’s harpsichord.
David and Carol Durham have enjoyed making
Clinton their home for 41 years. Although David still
misses the Great Smoky Mountains being practically
in his backyard during his childhood, he is grateful
for his home here, living with the love of his life in
Clinton, Mississippi.
Clinton is home to a multi-talented couple who
has been married 48 years. David and Carol Durham
have a long history that is filled with music and
numbers. Most of their marriage has been spent
living in Clinton.
The Durhams were graduate school students at
the University of Tennessee when they first met at
First Baptist Church, Knoxville. Carol’s roommate,
Jessie, introduced the two. Carol was interested in
David but he was dating someone else at the time.
That someone else is a distant memory in David’s
mind now as he reflects on being married to the love
of his life for the past 48 years.
David was born in Nashville and grew up in
Maryville, Tennessee. He graduated in 1957 from
high school and then went to Georgia Tech where
he studied physics. Next, he moved to Knoxville,
Tennessee, where he attended graduate school at
the University of Tennessee. He received his Ph.D
in Physics.
Carol was born and raised in Clinton. She
graduated from Clinton High School and Mississippi
College. She grew up attending First Baptist Church
of Clinton. After college, she moved to Knoxville to
begin graduate school at the University of Tennessee.
Carol’s graduate school degree is in Organ.
Their love story began at First Baptist Church,
Knoxville. They were in the choir together. Carol first
caught David’s ear as she played the most beautiful
piano music in opening assembly on Sunday
morning. While they were dating, they enjoyed going
hiking in the Smoky Mountains. They also enjoyed
eating strawberry pie or hot fudge cake at Shoney’s.
David and Carol’s first date was on April 1, 1968,
and their wedding date was not long after that on
September 7, 1968. The Durhams were married at
Calvary Baptist Church in Jackson, Mississippi. David
was 29 and Carol was 23. “I cared more about the
details of the music than the dress and flowers. We
had my organ professor from Tennessee to come to
play all Bach for the wedding,” said Carol. The
Durhams enjoyed the majestic, refreshing mountainous
views of Asheville, North Carolina, and the
Biltmore Estate for their honeymoon.
After David finished graduate school, he taught
in Auburn, Alabama, and in 1970, the Durhams
moved back to Carol’s old stomping grounds in
Mississippi. David began working as division chair of
math and sciences at Hinds Community College in
1970. He worked there in a few different positions
until his retirement in 2015. He is currently an
adjunct professor at Mississippi College.
When the Durhams moved to Raymond in 1970,
they were the first to live in faculty housing at Hinds
Community College. The rent for their three
bedroom, two bath duplex was $75 a month. They
had their first baby while living in Raymond and
decided they wanted a more permanent residence so
they built a house in Clinton in 1975. They drew the
plans themselves and it was custom built. They made
their home in Countrywood when it was brand new
and barely developed.
Carol’s career has been a long and expansive
one. Carol played the organ at First Baptist Church,
Auburn while they lived in Alabama. When the
Durhams first moved to Mississippi, Carol played the
organ for four years at Raymond Methodist Church.
For the past 40 years, she has been the organist
at Morrison Heights Baptist Church. “When I started
as organist in 1976, we had a toddler. We subsequently
had two more babies. They grew up in that church
and now I’m a grandmother. I’m grateful God has
given me the opportunity to live out my calling in a
church that attempts, in so many ways, to honor
Christ,” said Carol. She has also taught piano lessons
in her home since 1985, and still does.
In 1990, she became the staff accompanist at
Mississippi College. She has taught piano in the
“Forgive one another,” says
David. “When you’re dating, the
person looks perfect. When you’re
married, reality sets in. Don’t go to
bed angry,” he says.
“Communicate. Don’t bottle things
up. Go into marriage with the idea
that it is permanent no matter
what,” said Carol. “When you
say, ‘Until death do us part’,
mean it,” said David.
62 • Aug/Sept/Oct 2016 Hometown Clinton • 63