Junior Kendyl Messer is the inaugural recipient of the Daisy Pearl Pugh Urban Scholarship. The honor was presented during Tuesday’s CONE-vocation in the Cone University Center Lucas Room.
Rob Urban, the son of the scholarship’s namesake, announced the recipient, who is a nursing major and student employee. A Charlotte native, Messer is a building manager for the Cone Center. She noted that during her two years as a student worker, she has learned the importance of building relationships, and she said she values the leadership experience her job affords.
The late Daisy Urban retired in 2000 as assistant director for auxiliary operations at the Cone Center; during her 25-year tenure, she served as a surrogate mother to countless students, said son Rob, who along with his father Al, established the scholarship to recognize outstanding contributions by a student employee.
“My mother loved working here, and like everything she ever did in her life, she approached the job with passion and commitment,” said Rob Urban. “She was proud of this school, and she was proud of her role in helping to build it and send it forward into the future. Now she’s helping again.”
Rob Urban, a UNC Charlotte alumnus, began his career as a full-time journalist in 1986, working for the Charlotte Observer. He joined Bloomberg News in 1993 in Europe, where he oversaw coverage of Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. After living in Prague for six years, he relocated in 1998 to Moscow. In 2001, Urban moved to New York, where he covered Enron and WorldCom and the collapse of Arthur Andersen before taking over management of Wall Street coverage. Currently, he is the managing editor of Bloomberg’s daily mortgage column.
During the CONE-vocation, several individuals spoke about the Cone University Center’s namesake “Miss Bonnie” and the facility’s role as an integral part of campus life. The Cone Center is hosting a variety of events as part of its 50th anniversary celebration.