Theodore 'Ted' G. Westmoreland of Shelby receives Clemson Alumni Distinguished Service Award

Published: March 12, 2012

Dr. T.G. "Ted" Westmoreland image by: Clemson University

CLEMSON, S.C. — The Clemson Alumni Association has recognized Theodore G. “Ted” Westmoreland of Shelby as one of six 2012 winners of the Distinguished Service Award, the association’s highest honor.

Distinguished Service Award honorees demonstrate a dedication to enhancing the value of the university for future generations; church, professional and public service; and personal accomplishments that serve as a model for present and future Clemson University students.

Born and raised in Clover, S.C., Westmoreland is the youngest of eight children. As a high school senior, he was named to the S.C. Shrine Bowl football team. He raised cattle as a 4-H project, later selling them to help defray his tuition costs at Clemson.

Following two years of pre-veterinary study at Clemson, Westmoreland received his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from the University of Georgia in 1958. He rose to the rank of captain at the Charleston Air Force Base while commissioned as base veterinarian and assistant preventive medicine officer.

Westmoreland has spent five decades as the owner of Boulevard Animal Hospital P.A., one of the most successful animal clinics in North Carolina. At the age of 78, he continues working to care for generations of animals and their owners 365 days a year.

Westmoreland twice was elected president of the N.C. Angus Association and his River Hill Angus Farm produced renowned breeding stock for purebred herds across the United States and Argentina. He had a sharp eye for selecting cattle and utilizing superior genetics. River Hill cattle competed successfully at the local, state, regional and national levels. River Hill Angus Farm pioneered what is believed to be the first on-farm embryo transfer in North Carolina.

Despite the many achievements, prizes and awards, his’s greatest impact may be in the encouragement and mentoring that he selflessly provides to others. He served as a mentor, teacher and supporter of youth of the N.C. Junior Angus Association. Upon exiting the cattle business in 1991, he generously donated the majority of his valuable herd to Clemson. 

Westmoreland’s energy and resources have positively impacted athletics and academics at Clemson. A life member of Clemson’s IPTAY program, he has been a supporter of the WestZone and other strategic initiatives for student athletes. The T.G. Westmoreland Scholarship Endowment assists a significant number of animal and veterinary science majors. Westmoreland has served as a director for the Clemson University Robert J. Rutland Institute for Ethics.

An active member of Elizabeth Baptist Church for the past five decades, Westmoreland has served as chairman of the deacons and the finance committee. He chaired the church’s building finance committee in its expansion in the 1970s and is currently serving in another major building campaign. Additionally, he is generous in his support of numerous Christian causes, both domestic and foreign.

Westmoreland is married to Margaret Corbett Westmoreland, and they have five children and nine grandchildren.

The other Distinguished Service Award winners are William Kelly Durham of Clemson, Gosnold Graham “Goz” Segars Jr. of Hartsville, E. Smyth McKissick III of Greenville,  Palmer E. “Satch” Krantz of Columbia and Charles Lenson Sullivan Jr. of Hartsville.

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