WILSON, N.C. – The sixth annual Wilson-Barton Partnership Leadership Award Dinner honoring Marvin W. Coghill, Jr., will be held on Thursday, Sept. 23, on the campus of Barton College. The event will begin at 6:30 p.m. on center campus.
Tickets are available at $75 per person and made be reserved by calling Frances Belcher at 252-399-6357. Sponsorship opportunities are available and begin at $750 for a table of eight. Advance reservations are required and the deadline for reserving seats is Thursday, Sept. 9, at 5 p.m. A portion of the proceeds will support a one-time annual scholarship honoring Coghill. This scholarship will be awarded to a Barton College student in the School of Business.
Honoring Marvin W. Coghill, Jr. –
A native of Henderson, Marvin W. Coghill, Jr., was born on to Emma Parham Coghill and Marvin W. Coghill. He was raised in the farming community of Bear Pond and graduated from Henderson High School in 1951. Continuing his education, Coghill attended North Carolina State University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1951 and 1952, respectively. In 1952, he joined the United States Navy during the Korean War, serving his country until 1956.
Following his military service, Coghill joined Elia Salzman Tobacco Company in London, England, in January 1957. Soon after, the tobacco company merged with the United States based Standard Commercial Tobacco Company, and Coghill served in a number of leadership roles with the expanded company in the years ahead.
From 1957 to 1963, Coghill’s travel for Standard Commercial included work in Southern Rhodesia, Thailand, Greece, Turkey, Japan, and The Philippines.
In 1963, Coghill married Tomoe Kiyota in Japan. That same year, he also was named manager of Standard Commercial Tobacco Company’s plant in Thailand. Coghill was named Standard Commercial’s regional manager for the Far East in 1970, and he became a director of Standard Commercial Tobacco Company in 1975.
Continuing its history of expansion and growth, Standard Commercial Tobacco Company bought J. I. Miller Tobacco Company in 1978, and this acquisition provided Coghill’s introduction to Wilson, North Carolina. In early 1980, Standard Commercial also bought the Imperial Tobacco Company facilities in Wilson, and in May 1980, the Miller Tobacco Company office and factory facilities were moved to the Imperial facilities.
Following these acquisitions, Coghill was named President and Chief Operating Officer of Standard Commercial Tobacco Company in 1980. Now spending the majority of his time in Wilson, Coghill and his wife made the decision to move their home from Thailand to Wilson in July 1981.
Standard Commercial had also acquired a wool business, which had expanded through acquisitions, and the decision was made in 1993 for the company to develop two separate divisions. Coghill became chair of the tobacco division, a position he held until his retirement in 2001.
Tomoe Coghill, his wife of 34 years, passed away in 1997. In 2000, Coghill married former classmate Anne Harris Fleming of Henderson, and they continue to make their home in Wilson where they serve as active members of the community.
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Questions? Please contact Kathy Daughety, director of public relations, at 252-399-6529 or email: kdaughety@barton.edu.