The Old U(VA) and I: 1961 - 1965

The author lays the foundation in his account of his own life as a student during the last years of the "Old U"-a period that came to a natural end. His telling is rich in details - in the names, dates, and places that will be familiar to anyone who was a student in those days, and he is strikingly candid. His stories of party weekends and road trips and life in the Beta house ring true because they are so convincingly his stories, even as they are also our own stories. His tales of coming of age, of the courses almost (and not quite) failed, friendships that endured, successes and failures that tied him to the place, and of the love affair that defines his entry into adult life come in powerfully honest forms. Frank tells what every reader who was there will remember about the Old U but tells without arguing the past was better than what came after. That's a rare quality in a tale of growing up, and a good reason to read and follow Frank through the process.About the AuthorFrank Briggs was born in New Jersey and raised in Rhode Island, Montreal, Virginia, Houston, and Pittsburgh. He graduated from Blair Academy in 1961 and the University of Virginia in 1965 with a BA in English. After graduation, he moved to Atlanta, became a financial planner, and never left. Frank's wife and three children are all Virginia graduates. He has been involved in numerous professional, civic, and Christian organizations. As a couple, the Briggs were instrumental in the establishment of the Atlanta Youth Academy to provide an academically superior education to underserved children in a Christian environment. A former commodore of the Atlanta Yacht Club, the Briggs have been avid supporters of sailing since their marriage in 1966. They enjoy their lake cabin whenever possible, often with some of their ten grandchildren.