On August 9th, 2005; the Board of Directors of the Longleaf Trace paused to recognize the contributions of five persons who played a key role in the creation of the Longleaf Trace: Lynn Cartlidge, Stone Barefield, Bobby Garraway, Ronnie Shows, and James Moore. The plaque below will hang in the Gateway building honoring these five persons. Kristi Fairley, manager of the Hattiesburg Visitor Center read the plaque, and presented each recipient with a smaller version of the Gateway plaque. She thanked the honorees for their part in creating one of the premier attractions for visitors to this region. Sid Gonsoulin, Associate Vice President of Student Affairs and Executive Director of Recreational Sports at Southern Miss spoke next, and thanked them for creating a valuable resource for USM students and staff, and stated that work currently in progress on campus walkways would soon provide a direct connection to the Trace. Leslie Farmer, President of the Friends of the Trace, thanked the honorees for providing such a wonderful place for the citizens of Hattiesburg to exercise and recreate, and for being so open to citizen input, especially via the Friends organization. Read the plaque inscriptions  to learn more about the key role each of the honorees played in the creation of the Longleaf Trace.