Burgess Receives Pharmacy Award
Phil Burgess (’69), national director of pharmacy affairs for Walgreen Co., is this year's recipient of the National Association of Chain Drug Stores' Harold W. Pratt Award, the chain pharmacy industry's highest honor.
Burgess joined Walgreens in 1969 as a pharmacy intern and held many positions with the company before being named to his current position in 1999. He is also vice chairman of the Illinois State Board of Pharmacy. Burgess served on the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS for the Clinton and Bush administrations.
UT Alum Serves in Iraq
Michael C. Johnson displays his UT flag at the crossed swords parade ground in Baghdad. Johnson (’00 architecture), a captain in the Air Force, is the air transportation liaison for the U.S. Department of State.
Duncan Named Pharmacist of Year
John Duncan (’92, ’93) of Knoxville is the 2006 Tennessee Distinguished Young Pharmacist of the Year. The honor was bestowed by the Tennessee Pharmacists Association.
Duncan is a Knox County Health Department pharmacist. He received the award for his leadership with vaccine procurement and management, the travel immunization center, and annual flu clinics. He received his doctor of pharmacy degree from the UT Health Science Center in 1997.
His wife, Lynnette, also is a pharmacist as is his mother, Dianne Duncan, a former president of the UT National Alumni Association.
Wilson Takes Manager Honors
Tom Edd Wilson (’66), president and CEO of the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce, was named Chattanooga Area Manager of the Year for 2006. The honoree enjoyed a 35-year career in banking, which concluded with his service as president of the East Tennessee Region of Bank of America from 1992 through 2001. The next year he was elected to the Chamber position.
Wilson has been a prolific fundraiser for Chattanooga promotion and economic development. The Crossville, Tenn., native has been active in the Chattanooga Symphony and Opera Association and Alllied Arts of Chattanooga as well as United Way.
Legislators Honored
Two prominent UT alumni, the lieutenant governor/speaker of the Senate and the speaker of the Tennessee House of Representatives, were honored recently by the National Conference of State Legislatures.
John Wilder, who attended UT but graduated from the University of Memphis, received the organization’s lifetime achievement award. He has been speaker of the Senate since 1971, making him possibly the longest serving head of a legislative body in the U.S.
Jimmy Naifeh (’61), speaker of the House, received the 2006 Excellence in State Legislative Leadership Award. He is a 31-year veteran of the Tennessee House and has been speaker since 1991.
Alumni and Friends
When Torchbearer's companion online publication, eTorch, asked for pictures of pets who wear orange, Norris Carden shared this photo of his Great Dane, Bindi. Carden (’89) is a photographer who lives in Madison, Wis.
eTorch is still accepting photographs of alumni pets wearing UT orange-- email photos to torch@tennessee.edu.
Golden Grads to Gather
The UT Golden Graduate Reunion will be held in Knoxville May 17-19, 2007. The class of 1957 will be welcomed into the Golden Grad circle. The previously announced dates of May 10-12 were incorrect.
On Thursday, May 17, there'll be a special reception for the class of ’57. Friday, May 18, all participants will travel to Oak Ridge National Laboratory to visit the Spallation Neutron Source. Friday evening a convocation ceremony will honor the class of ’57 and all Golden Grads. Saturday morning the group will return to the classroom and the Hill for lectures in Ayres Hall and tours of surrounding buildings. For more information, call Phyllis Moore at 865-974-3011.
Engineers Are Prize Winners
A team of UT engineering alumni received the Joel Magnussen Innovation Award for its development of a risk analysis model for the U.S. Coast Guard. The honorees work for ABS Consulting in Knoxville. They are David Campbell (’78), Myron Casada (’74, ’76), Vernon Guthrie (’79), Matt Mowrer (’97), James Rooney (’78, ’83), and David Walker (’89, ’90).
Astronaut Hartsfield Honored
Astronaut Henry “Hank” Hartsfield Jr. (’71) is a new member of the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame.
Hartsfield is a veteran of three shuttle flights. He earned the master’s in engineering science at the UT Space Institute at Tullahoma.
The induction took place at Kennedy Space Center’s Apollo/Saturn V Center. Astronaut Thomas Mattingly introduced Hartsfield and joked about his time with Hartsfield in space: “He would say, ‘You look out the window, and I’ll fly the aircraft.’”
Hartsfield flew on the fourth and final test flight of Space Shuttle Columbia in 1982.
He commanded the maiden flight of Space Shuttle Discovery in 1984 and commanded Challenger on a science mission in 1985.
He retired from NASA in 1998 and serves as vice president of Raytheon.
Love United Gospel Choir Reunion
The Love United Gospel Choir is planning a 30th-reunion celebration and concert during 2007 Homecoming. If you are an alumnus of the choir and want to be involved, contact:
Love United Gospel Choir
University Station
P.O. Box 8707
Knoxville, TN 37996
Email: lugc@utk.edu
Web site: web.utk.edu/~lugc
The choir has established the Brandon M. Harvey Love Scholarship to recognize a member who has demonstrated leadership. The choir also is planning to tour Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alabama this year to do community service and a benefit concert for hurricane relief in each state. Donations to the scholarship or the tour are welcomed at the address above.
Founded as the John 23rd Singers, the choir today includes 100 students who serve the campus and local community through music and service. Choir adviser is Jocelyn Milton in the Minority Student Affairs Office. You can contact her at 865-974-4738 or jmilton@utk.edu.
Join the Alumni Online Community
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Visit the UT National Alumni Association's online community website for more information.
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