Houston Pearce, a longtime supporter of CCHS who built and operated radio stations across the Southeast, died Sept. 9, 2022, in Tuscaloosa. He was 89 years old.
Born in 1933, Pearce grew up in Whitfield, Ala., where his family owned a general store. When he was 8 years old his father died and Pearce and his three siblings worked together to run the store.
Pearce graduated from Sumter County High School in York, Ala., and attended Livingston University (now the University of West Alabama) for two years. He then attended The University of Alabama, graduating from the School for Commerce and Business Administration (now Culverhouse College of Business). After graduation, he joined the U.S. Army and was stationed at the Nike Missile Base in Providence, Rhode Island.
After completing his military duties, Pearce moved home to Whitfield with the intention of taking over the family store, but his mother encouraged him to pursue other professions. In 1959, he and two associates built a small-power radio station, WPRN 1230 AM, in Butler, Ala.
Pearce married Voncile Roberts in 1961 and the couple went on to build a small empire of local radio stations that included properties in Alabama (Tuscaloosa, Centreville and Jasper) and Mississippi (Meridian and Pascagoula). Over the years, the family operated radio stations in 10 different markets.
Pearce served as president of the Alabama Broadcasters Association from 1989-1990, and he was appointed by the National Broadcaster Association as a Member to the NAB’s Congressional Liaison Committee. In 1994, Pearce was named Alabama Broadcasters Association Broadcaster of the Year.
The Pearces eventually moved to Tuscaloosa and continued their radio business until 2006, when they sold their Tuscaloosa stations to Citadel Broadcasting Corporation. Citadel was acquired by Cumulis Media Inc. in 2011 and sold the cluster of stations to Townsquare Media a year later.
The Pearces established a generous endowment fund within CCHS to provide financial support to students from rural Alabama seeking to become doctors and return to rural communities to practice. The fund continues to support medical students studying at the College.