NATCHITOCHES -- Northwestern State is throwing a 20^th anniversary party on the 20^th this month.

 

Demon supporters will gather Saturday evening in Prather Coliseum to commemorate Greg Burke's two decades as the Demons' director of athletics, marking the occasion with "Burke Bash: A Roast, Toast & Boast."
 
The Demons Unlimited Foundation is hosting the event, which begins at 6 p.m. and includes dinner, a program and a post-roast party. Some of the proceeds go to the newly-established Greg Burke Athletic Scholarship, with additional revenue benefitting the DUF, the 501-c-3 non-profit entity that supports NSU Athletics.
 
Complete event information and online registration is available at NSUDemons.com/burkebash. Assistant athletics director Haley Blount Tatiano is coordinating the Burke Bash and can be reached at blounth@nsula.edu by e-mail or by calling 318-357-4278.
 
A native Ohioan, Burke is anchored in the local community, far beyond his 20 years in the top athletic post at NSU. He arrived in the mid-1980s as an intern in athletics working for then-AD Tynes Hildebrand, and quickly became immersed in Natchitoches, joining the Jaycees and falling for a local girl, SuSu Williamson. The proud parents of 22-year-old Catherine Jean Burke celebrated their 29^th anniversary June 12.

 

"Greg embraced the Northwestern and Natchitoches community from the moment he stepped foot on the campus as an intern," said Joe Cunningham Jr., a longtime friend and local businessman. "Greg quickly became a critical part of, and assumed leadership positions in organizations like the Jaycees and Kiwanis, and serves on boards like the Natchitoches Parish Tourist Commission and many others. He is a relentless promotor and supporter of all things Northwestern and Natchitoches. The 900 or so phone numbers on his speed dial attest to that."

Other than four years spent at the University of Akron from 1992-96, the Burkes have called Natchitoches home. He became the Demons' athletics director Aug. 29, 1996, when his first day included speaking at the annual NSU/Independence Bowl Kickoff Luncheon. Burke is the longest serving AD at any Louisiana or Southland Conference institution.

 

"Greg has a top notch work ethic," said Patric DuBois, a tennis coach and administrator for NSU Athletics. "He simply walks the walk and is capable of doing anything and everything in our department to the highest level."
 
He has steered NSU athletics to many of its greatest accomplishments while overseeing a program that has fielded championship caliber teams in a dozen of the school's 14 NCAA Division I sports.

 

"Part of Greg's success is because of his ability to empower the people on his team. As his student worker before he became AD, I saw how Greg could both be a leader and teach others to be leaders as well. He's a special kind of coach in his own way," said NSU graduate Jill Cantrell Morrison, a Marthaville native who lives in Dallas and serves on the DUF and NSU Foundation boards. "Once you're on his team, he never lets you go. Being able to continuously cultivate those long-term friendships and bonds through NSU has given him an incredible staying power."

 

That special knack for bringing out the best in those around him, for the benefit of NSU and Natchitoches, will be celebrated Saturday evening.