Alumni Award winners recognized at Homecoming

KYLEE LARY
PHOTOGRAPHER

JORDAN FOX
COPY EDITOR

9/30/2024

The 2024 Alumni Award recipients were honored at the Homecoming Choir Concert this past Saturday. There were five awards: Distinguished Alumni Award – Gary Peters (‘80), Hebert Award – Hugh Brenneman (‘67), Smith Distinguished Service Award – Dean Havelka (‘79), Young Alumni Award – Katie Meloche (‘13) and the Parade Grand Marshals – Pat and Maurie Luetkemeier.

The winners were each presented with a plaque at the beginning of the concert and given a few minutes to share what the award means to them along with their time at Alma. 

“I am excited to receive the Herbert Award because the very existence of this particular award is proof of the premium our college places on its alumni. I believe that when you attend Alma College you become part of the greater Alma College universe, which reaches far beyond the classroom,” said Brenneman.

“I am deeply honored to be selected to receive the Smith Distinguished Service Award. I know that Art and his wife Carra were both tremendous supporters of Alma College and being selected to receive an award in their name is a tremendous honor and I’m very proud to be part of the Alma Legacy,” said Havelka. 

The two Alma College alumni reflected on their fondest memories during their years of attendance. 

“I would have to say that some of my very favorite memories of my time at Alma would have centered around my involvement in the Greek System. I was a member of the Tau Kappa Epsilon Fraternity while at Alma and the friendships I established with my fellow fraternity brothers made life on campus exciting and sometimes an adventure,” said Havelka.

“Being part of a fraternity provided many social opportunities that I don’t think I would have experienced otherwise. Life in the TKE House was interesting to say the least,” said Havelka.

And, though they did not attend Alma College as students, Pat and Maurie Luetkemeier still collected many memories to reminisce on from their years serving at the institution. 

“We hosted a young woman from South Korea who decided it would be funny to dress up in Pat’s wedding dress and pose with our son for pictures that she sent home telling her parents that she decided to marry a guy from Alma,” said Maurie.

“I took a hike with a group of students during a spring term experience in Colorado and got caught in a blizzard. We ended up staying overnight in the woman’s rest room at the rest stop in Vail,” said Maurie. 

The alumni winners are chosen from a pool of individuals nominated by their peers and then the recipient of the award is selected by the Alumni Board. 

“It’s incredibly important for us to have Alumni Awards… because it’s one way… for this institution to recongize our graduates and the wonderful things that they are doing… It’s a great opportunity for Alma College to say, ‘Thank you.’ ‘We see what you have done.’ ‘We recognize what you have done.’ and ‘We celebrate what you have done,” said Bob Murray, Vice President for Advancement.

Read Tim Rath’s article for more information about each alumni award recipient at alma.edu/news.