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W&L is a place that talks about an identity as an honorable citizen, trusted colleague and friend, and these relationships last a lifetime.
-William “Burr” Datz ’75
Community is at the heart of everything William “Burr” Datz ’75 does. And it all started just before his eighth birthday, when he was visiting his grandparents who lived five blocks from his home on Long Island, New York. They wanted to know what Datz wanted for his birthday, and playing on the television in the background was “The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet.” A teenaged Ricky Nelson was sitting on a couch strumming the guitar and leading a group of people gathered around him in a folk song. That was it — Datz wanted to learn to play the guitar. His grandparents agreed to pay for the guitar and music lessons on one condition: He would bring his guitar to all their family gatherings.
“That’s how I came to feel very comfortable in front of crowds,” Datz says. “Imagine playing in front of a room of everybody who loves you, and it doesn’t matter if you make a mistake.”
During Datz’s sophomore year at Washington and Lee University, he and a few of his Delta Tau Delta fraternity brothers discovered two guitars in the attic of their fraternity house; Datz had brought his three-quarter size harmony guitar with him to W&L. The trio learned some “cowboy chords” – open chords that are generally easier for beginners to learn – and they all sang. The natural next step was forming a band.
They carried their instruments everywhere and played all the time. They leaned toward bluegrass, a musical genre known for its technical prowess and musicianship as well as its ability to bring people together. Traditional songs, passed down through the generations, encourage audience participation when familiar chords are struck. One of Datz’s favorite things about bluegrass is that each technically proficient musician becomes something even greater when part of a group. There’s a certain amount of trust in the fast-paced playing style, with one musician finishing a solo and then kicking it to the next person. You have to be listening closely, prepared and ready to do your part. Asked what music has brought to his life, Datz can sum it up in one word: “everything.”
“It’s a way of life,” Datz says. “Learning to listen made me a better musician, and I think it's made me a better person.”
One of the foundational moments of Datz’s time at W&L was his first year, when Dean James Leyburn – “dressed impeccably in a gray suit” – spoke to students in an afternoon meeting at the University Chapel about aretę, which means “to excel in virtue.” Leyburn talked about a community of trust and expectations around upholding the virtues of honesty, integrity and civility.
“What distinguishes this university from many is its student-run Honor System,” Datz says. “It's the seasoning that takes good cuts of meat and well-grown vegetables and makes it a gourmet dish.”
After graduating with a degree in Spanish, a slight detour from his early inclinations of accounting, Datz worked for a few years as an elementary school teacher on Long Island. But while visiting one of his pledge brothers in Lexington, a chance encounter with the head of Dining Services resulted in a job offer. Datz moved back to Lexington and worked as assistant food manager, including managing the Cockpit, the popular watering hole where Datz began bringing in regional touring bands to perform (ask him about the time a 19-year-old bluegrass banjo virtuoso Béla Fleck played). He went on to work as assistant director of security at W&L for nine years, and from 1988 to 2001 – and again from 2010-2017 – he served as campus minister at both Washington and Lee and Virginia Military Institute. In 1990, he earned a Master of Pastoral Studies from Loyola University.
Between his two tenures in campus ministry, Datz served as W&L’s director of leadership development and coordinator of religious life, where he helped students grow through service and reflection. He enjoyed helping people come together through team-building activities and loved helping students develop confidence and leadership skills that would serve them far into the future. With such public-facing roles, there is nary a student who wasn’t privileged to Datz’s thoughtful questions and entertaining – and enlightening – stories.
“These four years are of a great way of learning, and that's what life is about: learning,” Datz says. “It's about working together to make things better.”
Outside of his professional roles, Datz has led transformational experiences through “Datz Us Adventure & Music,” an experiential education initiative offering retreats and adventure-based programs for young adults since 1988. And he still performs about 30 local gigs a year with bluegrass and Americana bands. But one of his favorite gigs was portraying Santa Claus at W&L’s Winter Wonderland celebration from 2012 to 2021.
Over the years, he fielded many questions from curious children: “Why are you wearing a fake beard?” Answer: Santa was on vacation in Florida and needed a slight makeover. “How did you get past our house’s security system?” Answer: Santa Claus can blow in a lock and magically open doors, and security film only captures “the bad guys.” He loved the opportunity to think on his feet and make connections with the same children and the same families year after year. And one of his biggest blessings is his own family: his wife, Lisa, two children, Katy and Ally (both were inducted by their colleges – Roanoke College and then-Lynchburg College, respectively – into Omicron Delta Kappa, the national leadership honor society founded at W&L in 1914), and four grandchildren.
“I’ve lived a really amazing and full life,” he says. “I feel really blessed – it’s very fulfilling.”
Datz has received several honors for his impact on the W&L community, including being honored with a 2025 Distinguished Alumni Award, which he will be recognized for during Alumni Weekend from May 1-4. He also received the R.E. “Chub” Yeakel Memorial Service Award from the Athletic Department in 1989 and 2007 (he’s a volunteer coach for the men’s and women’s golf teams), the James G. Leyburn Service Award in 1999 and the William W. Pusey III Award from the Executive Committee in 2010, recognizing his lifetime contributions to the university. He’s served as an undergraduate class agent for the W&L Fund since 2015 and on five reunion class committees.
His service also extends into the broader community, where he was named Volunteer of the Year by the Chamber of Commerce Serving Lexington, Buena Vista and Rockbridge County in 2016. VMI also honored him in 2016 with its Christian Service Award. He has served on boards of directors for Main Street Lexington, the Rockbridge Community Unit of the American Cancer Society, Fine Arts in Rockbridge, the United Way and Habitat for Humanity and currently volunteers as a hospice chaplain.
For Datz, giving back is a way of life. He’s made a significant impact in his decades at the university and has been a pillar of support for many. In honor of his 50th reunion, he wanted to also make a meaningful impact through monetary giving and made a planned gift that will support the DeLaney Center, the Generals Club and several athletic teams: men’s basketball, men’s lacrosse and men’s and women’s golf.
“I always think, as a musician, when I'm playing with somebody better than myself that I want to get better, and that’s what W&L has done for me,” Datz says. “I want to give back, so students have a chance to continue experiencing the many varied opportunities we have here.”
Every month, Datz and three of his fraternity pledge brothers have a conference call in which they catch up on each other’s lives. They always start with the same questions: “What are you drinking? What’s a good joke you’ve heard lately? And how’s your family?” On the eve of his 50th reunion, Datz is grateful for the lasting friendships that were formed at W&L and to have had a front row seat to W&L’s continual role in educating the next generation.
“W&L is a place that talks about an identity as an honorable citizen, trusted colleague and friend, and these relationships last a lifetime,” Datz says. “I firmly believe that the richness of our lives is directly proportional to the quality of our relationships. It's all about relationships.”