River deep, mountain high

James Madison University and Appalachian State University enjoy a friendly rivalry in athletics that stretches back more than 40 years, including some classic games on the gridiron when both teams competed at the Football Championship Subdivision level and now across multiple sports as members of the Sun Belt Conference.

But the ties between the two schools, which are separated by 350 miles, run deeper than that. In fact, they start at the top.

JMU President Charlie King is a North Carolina native and a graduate of Appalachian State, where he earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees. “Those were some of the best years of my life,” he said.

Meanwhile, Appalachian State’s interim chancellor, Heather Hulburt Norris, is a graduate of JMU, having earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance in 1991.

King said the two schools share similar institutional profiles and are “almost mirror images” of one another. Both began as teachers’ colleges and grew into comprehensive universities. Both are “exceptional educational institutions and very popular” in their home states, he said. “And they both have that same welcoming feeling among their staffs and attract the same caliber of students.”

So it’s not surprising that after App State’s campus in the mountains of Boone, North Carolina, was devastated by flooding from Hurricane Helene last month, Dukes stepped up to help their rival in need.

Longtime patron Joe Showker (’79) established the Dukes Support Mountaineers Fund through the Community Foundation of Harrisonburg and Rockingham County to assist App State with emergency relief efforts, and agreed to match donations up to $10,000 via the Joe and Debbie Showker Foundation.

“I have a tender place in my heart for hurricane victims,” said Showker, whose family is from the mountains of Charleston, West Virginia. “So when this happened, and since JMU has a very healthy, respectful rivalry with Appalachian State, I just felt compelled to do something for them.”

King was among the fund’s early contributors. “I hoped maybe it would spur on some other Dukes to jump in,” he said.

In its first 24 hours, the Dukes Support Mountaineers Fund raised more than $12,000, unlocking the Showkers’ match. The total now stands at more than $48,000 and counting. Showker began releasing some of the funds this week to help the App State community get back on its feet.

“The App Nation is so appreciative of the Dukes rallying to support App State,” Norris said. “In times like these, with Mountaineers and members of our greater community suffering, we see so clearly that our worthy rivals truly are our friends.

“I always hold a special place in my heart for my alma mater, JMU, and send you our deepest and sincerest thanks,” she added.

King and Norris plan to meet in person on Nov. 23, when the Dukes football team travels to Boone for another matchup with the Mountaineers.