SPRINGFIELD, Ohio --- Wittenberg University will honor 10 distinguished alumni as part of the school's Alumni Weekend June 18-20. The awards will be presented at 9:45 a.m., Saturday, June 19 at the All-Alumni Awards Brunch in the Benham-Pence Student Center.
In addition to the alumni being honored, three Springfield residents will be granted the status of honorary alumni: Tom and Mary Lou Loftis and Pauline Chakeres.
Honorary Alumni membership is "bestowed upon those who have demonstrated a loyalty and devotion to Wittenberg that is exemplary to alumni."
Tom Loftis, who is a member of the university's Board of Directors, is president of Midland Properties, Inc., a Springfield commercial real estate company that specializes in urban redevelopment consulting, commercial development, real estate syndication and commercial brokerage. A native of Grand Rapids, Mich., Loftis is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame and received a master's degree from the University of Michigan.
Mary Lou Loftis is a lifelong resident of Springfield and along with her husband served as members of the Parents Executive Committee in 1992 and served as co-presidents of the Wittenberg Parents' Association in 1993-94. She has also been active in the Wittenberg Guild and has held numerous positions on the executive board since 1993, currently serving as president.
The Loftises are members of the university's Benjamin Prince Society and two of their three children attended Wittenberg.
Mary Lou Loftis graduated from the University of Wisconsin received a master's degree from Boston University.
Chakeres is the wife of Wittenberg alumnus and past Board member Michael Chakeres and the mother of two Wittenberg graduates. The Chakeres' are lifetime members of the university's Benjamin Prince Society. They established the Mr. and Mrs. Michael H. Chakeres Family Scholarship Endowment Fund at Wittenberg. She is a graduate of St. Mary's Junior College of North Carolina and attended Wake Forest University.
Receiving the Alumni Citation are Harvey Peters '56 of Madison, Wis.; Bernard Hilbrink '49 of Fairborn; Donald Lindsley '29 of Santa Monica, Calif.; Joseph Bullock '63 and Martha Ann Foss-Bullock '63 of Worthington; and Milton Thompson '76 of Indianapolis.
The Alumni Citation "recognizes those who have brought honor to Wittenberg by their continuing dedication to the ideals for which the university stands."
Peters is a retired Lutheran pastor who served parishes in Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico and most recently, Madison, Wis. where he was senior pastor at Luther Memorial Church from 1990 to 1997. He also served in various leadership roles within the Lutheran Church.
Hilbrink has been a civic leader in the city of Fairborn for decades. As editor of the Fairborn Daily News for almost four decades, he was known for his pro-Fairborn and pro-schools stance. He has received nearly every possible civic award.
In 1998, Lindsley received the "Century Award" from the International Organization of Psychophysiology for his contributions to psychophysiology and related neurosciences. A member of the National Academy of Sciences, Lindsley was a professor of psychology at UCLA from 1951 until 1977. He also had faculty positions at the University of Illinois and Northwestern University.
Bullock is an internationally recognized pediatric allergy physician and is currently associate professor of pediatrics at The Ohio State University and co-founder of Midwest Allergy of Worthington which includes nine regional offices. Mrs. Bullock has been an active volunteer in Columbus for more than 20 years, especially in the arts community.
Thompson is a partner in Martin, Thompson and Stein Law Firm in Indianapolis and president of Grand Slam Companies, a sports marketing and management agency. A member of Wittenberg's Board of Directors, he is in the university's Athletic Hall of Honor.
The Class of 1914 Award "honors an individual from our community of alumni, faculty and staff who has served Wittenberg above and beyond what might be expected of any contributor to the college's welfare."
Receiving that award are William Hirt of Erie, Pa. and Barbara '62 and Robert VanKleunen '58 of Barrington, Ill.
Hirt is retired chairman and chief executive officer of the Erie Insurance Group, which was founded by his father, H. Orth Hirt. He is a life member of Wittenberg's Benjamin Prince Society.
The VanKleunens were active in the university's Parents' Association for several years, eventually serving as co-presidents. This past spring they co-chaired the Benjamin Prince Society. Mr. VanKleunen is a retired vice president of The Kemper Group.
Deborah Lenschow, a 1990 graduate, will receive the Outstanding Young Alumna Award which recognizes graduates of the last decade for outstanding achievement in profession, vocation and avocation which exemplifies the liberal arts tradition at Wittenberg.
A variety of events have been planned for all alumni and special reunion events for the classes of 1949, 1949 Hamma, 1958-61 and 1968-70. There are also reunions of Kappa Delta sorority members and Beta Theta Pi and Phi Kappa Psi fraternity members.
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