Index of University Press Releases

Oct. 2, 2008

DWU to celebrate Blue & White Days

MITCHELL – Several activities open to the community have been planned for the annual two-day Blue & White Days homecoming celebration next week at Dakota Wesleyan University.

The 13th Annual Patrons’ Banquet, where alumni and friends of the university are recognized for their financial contributions, is at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 9 in the Sherman Center. Reservations are required for the banquet.

The Opperman Lecture is at 11 a.m. on Friday, Oct. 10 in the Sherman Center. Dr. Louis Weiland, 1957 graduate and Ethan native, will present the lecture. His presentation is “Through the Eyes of the Speaker.” The lecture is open to the public. Weiland is a pathology consultant in the U.S. and Malaysia, and was formerly on staff and a professor of pathology at Mayo Clinic.

The Alumni Awards Banquet is set for 6:30 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 10 in the Sherman Center. Reservations can be made by calling the university’s alumni office at (605) 995-2603. The following alumni are being honored at that banquet.

Alumnus of the Year
Don Messer, Centennial, Colo., Class of 1963, serves as the executive director of the Center for the Church and Global AIDS. Messer was DWU’s president for 10 years before serving for 25 years as president of The Iliff School of Theology in Denver. He has authored 12 books and three more will be published in 2009. Author of the legislation creating the United Methodist Global AIDS Fund, he has recently been elected chairperson of the United Methodist Global AIDS Fund Committee.

Outstanding Service to Alma Mater
Daniel Duffy, Rapid City, Class of 1983, is a partner in the Bangs, McCullen, Butler, Foye & Simmons law firm. He received the Young Alumnus of the Year award in 1996 and was inducted into the DWU Athletic Hall of Fame in 1999. He served on the DWU Board of Trustees for 12 years and has been a member of the Athletic Advisory Committee. He has also hosted a variety of alumni events in Rapid City for admissions, athletics and development. Duffy and his wife, Karrie (O’Malley), a 1986 graduate of the DWU nursing program, have established and funded the Duffy-O’Malley Family Scholarship at DWU.

Outstanding Professional Achievement
Maybelle Fetters Schein, Sioux Falls, Methodist Hospital Class of 1958 and DWU Class of 1961, worked as a nursing instructor, first at the Methodist Hospital in Mitchell and then at Sioux Valley Hospital in Sioux Falls. After leaving Sioux Falls, Schein spent 34 years working for the Center for Disease Control (CDC). She worked on tuberculosis drug research trials in New York City for more than 20 years, visiting many foreign counties and later returning to the CDC headquarters in Atlanta where she served as a project officer and nurse consultant for tuberculosis programs in the United States. In addition to her work for the CDC, Schein was also employed part time as a staff nurse and in the medical-surgical registry at Emory Hospital in Atlanta and as a private-duty nurse for the New York University Hospital in New York City. She returned to South Dakota in 1995 and works at Daugherty Hospice House in Sioux Falls.

Outstanding Educator
Jerry Miller, Sioux Falls, Class of 1963, has been a teacher and coach across the state of South Dakota. Jerry currently teaches graduate classes for the University of Sioux Falls and conducts coaching clinics throughout the country. Miller serves on the board of directors for the Howard Wood Relays in Sioux Falls and is on the advisory board for the South Dakota Sports Hall of Fame. Miller was nominated for the National Football Coach of the Year award in 2007-08, received the 40-year award from the South Dakota Football Coaches Association, was inducted into the South Dakota High School Wrestling Coaches Hall of Fame and was a two-year nominee for the Power of Influence Award in coaching. Miller has received more than 20 honors and awards, including being inducted into the DWU Athletic Hall of Fame in 1999.

Humanitarian of the Year
Charlotte Nold, Chicago, Class of 1964, serves as the senior pastor at St. John United Church of Christ, Chicago, a position she has held for nearly 20 years. At St. John, Nold has been involved in a variety of ministries, including programs for deaf and hearing alcoholics. She has held more than 200 rummage sales to provide neighborhood residents with inexpensive clothing and household items. She has also helped grow the St. John food pantry, which formerly benefited 200 clients, to serving 400 clients monthly. Nold is the board president for the Sunlight of the Spirit (an Alcoholics Anonymous food pantry), has served on the board of directors for the Chicago Anti-Hunger Federation, was the president of the Redevelopment Authority of Rogers Park in Chicago, and was the president of the clergy caucus of the Near Northwest Neighborhood Network. She received the 1999 Guardian of Mercy Award from Inspired Partnerships, was interviewed by Harry Porterfield on national news as “Someone You Should Know,” and has been honored by her congregation and members of the Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous communities.

Young Alumna of the Year
Paula Larson, Hermitage, Tenn., Class of 2002, received her Master of Science degree in environmental health policy in 2005. While at the University of Minnesota, she also worked as an intern for Bread for the World of Minneapolis. Larson worked at a homeless day shelter in Nashville, coordinated a recycling program for the state of Tennessee, and now works as an environmental specialist in the Brownfield Program for the Department of Environment and Conservation. She freelances at implementing recycling and waste reduction initiatives at television tapings, conferences, meetings and other events in Nashville. She coordinated and implemented the environmental and sustainability efforts for the 2008 Americana Music Festival and Conference in Nashville.

Outstanding Nursing Professional
Debra Glover Leibel, Burke, Class of 1976, is a family nurse practitioner at the Community Memorial Hospital of Burke, the Burke Medical Clinic and the Bonesteel Medical Clinic. She is also the medical director of the Burke and Bonesteel Ambulance Services, a volunteer emergency medical technician (EMT) and treasurer for that organization. She teaches EMT, CPR and first aid courses. She is a member of the Burke Hospital Auxiliary, serves on the Burke Community Foundation Board of Directors and is a past member of the pastor-parish relationship committee.

The annual “Burning of the W” student and alumni pep rally will follow the alumni awards banquet and the volleyball game, beginning at 9:15 p.m. Friday evening outside the Christen Family Recreation/Wellness Center.

The Blue & White Days Parade will make its way down Mitchell’s Main Street beginning at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 11. The theme of this year’s parade is “Kickin It Old Skool.” The DWU Alumni Association will host the breakfast tent in front of CorTrust Bank (one block north of the Corn Palace) beginning at 10 a.m. All alumni, spouses and families are invited and welcome to watch the parade from that location.

The DWU Athletic Hall of Fame Luncheon is at noon in the Sherman Center. Honorees include Dave Backlund ’71, Mitchell; Brooks Schild ’88, Yankton; Wayne Heisinger ’69, Heron Lake, Minn.; Sonnie Waln-Jenssen ’89, Goodyear, Ariz.; and Chris Long ’97, Garretson. Reservations are required.

The DWU Alumni Association will host a tailgate party, Floats and Football, at 1:30 p.m. in the parking lot at Joe Quintal Field. The DWU Tigers take on the Doane College Tigers at 2:30 p.m.

Multiple reunions and gatherings will take place around Mitchell on Saturday evening. Contact the alumni office for more information on specific reunions and locations.

The public is invited to an alumni chapel service at 10 a.m. on Sunday, Oct. 12 in the Wagner Chapel in the Rollins Campus Center.

For additional information or to purchase tickets for the banquets, contact the alumni office at (605) 995-2603. For information about the Blue & White Days Parade, contact the campus life office at (605) 995-2950.