John Sowards Named Outstanding High School Mentor

Sowards, a Corporate and Banking attorney with Nexsen Pruet, began mentoring a young man he met at Irmo High School, where his child was a student. The teenager was on the verge of expulsion before Sowards quietly intervened.

In the year that followed, Sowards has been meeting the student for lunch, taking him to basketball games, and escorting him to various social events on nights and weekends, as well as locating a much-needed English tutor. Sowards had not told anyone about his mentoring, and the district honor came as a complete surprise.

"You don't get involved with the expectation of receiving recognition for it," he said. "There are a lot of opportunities to give back to the community by helping young people achieve their goals. Sometimes, they just need a little help getting where they want to go, and I was happy to provide it."

The student's teacher praised Sowards, saying he has "gone above and beyond the call of mentoring" and has "equipped this senior with a dream."

"Investing in the communities we serve is a founding principle of Nexsen Pruet," said William "Al" Pollard, managing partner of the firm. "I cannot think of a better way to do that than investing in the young people who represent the future of those communities."

NEXSEN PRUET is a 135-attorney general practice firm founded in 1945, with offices in Columbia, Charleston, Greenville, Hilton Head, and Myrtle Beach, S.C., and Charlotte, N.C. The firm provides a broad range of legal services to the business community and represents companies and other entities in local, state, national, and international venues. For further information, see www.nexsenpruet.com

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