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Awards
A nominating committee selected
by the Washburn Alumni Association Board of Directors meets in November
of each year to slate candidates for the Distinguished Service Award,
Monroe Award and GOLD Award. Upon approval by the Board, the award recipients
will be presented their awards during Alumni Weekend.
The Board welcomes your suggestions for names of alumni who should be
considered for specific awards. Names must be submitted by October 31
of this calendar year in order to be considered for awards given at
our upcoming Alumni Weekend.
Distinguished
Service Award
This award is given to recognize outstanding alumni who have made personal
and professional contributions to society. Nominees for the award should
have demonstrated exemplary support to the Washburn Alumni Association
and the Association community, been of service to mankind, distinguished
themselves in their career, and/or brought honor to Washburn University
through their accomplishments.
View list of past recipients
2008 Recipients:
Nancy (Merillat) Paul, bba ’76
Topeka, Kan.
Nancy serves as financial officer and secretary/treasurer of
H.T. Paul Co. Inc. She served 2003-07 on the Washburn Board of Regents,
is a Washburn Endowment Association trustee and a member of Nonoso.
She is also a member of the Kansas Society of Certified Public Accountants
and the Construction Financial Management Association and served on
the boards of Topeka Performing Arts Center and Top of the Tower. With
her husband, Howard Paul, she is a member of the Lincoln Society, supporting
the Dr. Jerry and Susan Farley Chair in Leadership and the School of
Business.
Steve Kitchen, bba ’70 and honoray doctorate ’05
Collinsville, Texas
Steve retired in 1998 as executive vice president and chief
financial officer of Western Resources, now Westar. He also served on
many corporate boards, including Kansas Gas and Electric, Central National
Bank and Oneok. In 1993, Washburn honored him as an Alumni Fellow, and
in 2001, he was elected chairman of the Washburn Endowment Association
board of trustees, where he has served since 1996. With his wife, Brenda
(Thomsen) Kitchen, he is a member of the Lincoln Society and supports
the Steve and Brenda Kitchen Scholarship Fund for Single Mothers.
Monroe Award
This is awarded to a woman selected by the alumni board of directors, who has distinguished herself as a teacher, instructor, administrator, or benefactor at the University and has given service to the community and/or her chosen profession. The award is named after suffragist, lawyer and publisher Lilla Day Monroe.
View
list of past recipients
2008 Recipient:
Doris (Yockey) McKernan, b ed ’59, and aa ’89
Emporia, Kan.
Doris is a former secretary/treasurer of Bluestem Broadcasting
Co. Inc. and a former track and field official. A member of the Washburn
Athletic Hall of Fame, she served on the athletic director search and
gender equity committees and served 1990-93 on the Washburn Alumni Association
board. She is a past president of Emporia’s American Diabetes
Association and was a member of the planning committee of the Trusler
Sports Complex in Emporia. With her husband, Edward McKernan, she is
a member of the Lincoln Society and supports women’s softball
through the Conway & Grace Yockey Memorial Scholarship.
Ritchie
Award
This is awarded to a man selected by the alumni board of directors,
who has distinguished himself as a teacher, instructor, administrator,
or benefactor at the University and has given service to the community
and/or his chosen profession. The award is named after Col. John Ritchie,
who donated the land on which Washburn is built.
View
list of past recipients
2008 Recipient:
Tom Wright, jd ’64 and ba ’81
Topeka, Kan.
Tom is chair of the Kansas Corporation Commission and president-elect
of the Kansas Bar Association, where he served 1998-2005 on the Board
of Governors. He is a former chair of the Governor’s Gaming Committee
and of the Consolidation Commission of Topeka-Shawnee County and served
1992-98 on the civil justice reform advisory group of the Federal Court
and 1995-03 on the Kansas Supreme Court nominating committee. He served
1982-88 on the Washburn Board of Regents and taught many years in the
Washburn School of Law and an adjunct instructor. With his wife, he
also supports the Thomas E. and Carole Wright Scholarship.
GOLD
Award
This award honors Graduates Of the Last Decade who demonstrate leadership
in career or civic endeavors and loyalty to Washburn University. The
GOLD award is one of the highest honors that Washburn University bestows
on its young alumni.
View
list of past recipients
2008 Recipient:
Armond Enclarde, ba '05
Lawrence, Kan.
Armond is urban scouting executive for the Jayhawk Area Council of the Boy Scouts, where he is ranked No. 7 in the Mid-West Region and was recognized as a Quality District, Chief Winners Circle (2005-07), Above and Beyond (2005-07) and Top Fifty in the Region (2006-07). He works with inner-city boys in the Topeka area, conducts after school and summer programs and spearheads the Breaking Barriers program at the Topeka Correctional Facility. As a student, he helped found what is now Washburn Black Student Union. He organizes Washburn's annual Merit Badge Day, University of Scouting and serves as a mentor for Washburn students.
Ruth
Garvey Fink Award
This award recognizes individuals who have furthered the mission of
the Bradbury Thompson Center in supporting Washburn University. It was
through the vision, determination, organization and generosity of Ruth
Garvey Fink that the Center actually came into being and the family
of Bradbury Thompson provides this annual award in her honor.
View
list of past recipients
2008 Recipient:
Rick Friedstrom, ba ’73
Topeka, Kan.
Rick is an agent with New York Life Insurance Co. He is also
the immediate past chairman of the Library Foundation board of the Topeka
and Shawnee County Public Library, a past president of Shawnee County
Historical Society, a past president of Alpha Delta Alumni Association,
treasurer and a past president of MacVicar Education al Foundation and
a member of the 2000 class of Leadership Kansas. He served on the Alumni
Association board, was president of the board in 1995 and served on
the search committee for Washburn’s 14th president. He is a Washburn
Endowment Association trustee, where he served 1998-07 on the development
committee.