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1998 Inductees
Individuals
A two-time MIAA cross country MVP in 1964 and
1965, Jim was one of the best distance runners of his era. He helped
lead the Britons to three consecutive MIAA championships from 1964 to
1966 and was named to the All-MIAA team all three of those years. Jim
was also an instrumental member of the 1964 and 1965 MIAA champion track
and field teams, winning the 2-mile event in both of those years. He
passed away Oct. 1, 1992.
A great athlete for Albion College, Diane was a
standout in field hockey, basketball and volleyball. She was three times
a member of the All-Star basketball and volleyball teams in 1966, 1967
and 1968 and was also a four-year member of both the field hockey and
tennis teams. Her exceptional play in field hockey earned her a spot on
both the Michigan College Field Hockey Association team and the Great
Lakes Sectional field hockey team in 1965, 1966 and 1967. Off the field,
Diane served as Women's Athletic Association vice president in 1967 and
then president in 1968.
Upon leaving Albion, Diane began teaching
physical education and science in the Livonia Public Schools, where she
stayed from 1969 until 1982. After moving to California, where she
received a master's degree from the National University in San Diego,
Diane worked as a lecturer/consultant and as the director of marketing
for Data Trek, Inc. While in California, Diane was active in the
California Women's Commission on Alcoholism. In 1987 she moved back into
teaching, and in 1989, Diane received the District Teacher of the Year
Award in the Palm Springs Unified School District.
Today, Diane lives in Livonia, where she enjoys
golf, gardening, dog training and computers.
One of the best female athletes of the 1960s,
Judy was an outstanding member of the field hockey, volleyball and
archery teams while at Albion. She was a member of the All-Star
volleyball team in 1960 and named both Outstanding and Most Improved
Player of the Year in field hockey for 1959. She also captured the
coveted Jo Dunn Archery Award in 1963. Judy was awarded the Outstanding
Senior Award in 1963 by the Women's Athletic Association.
Upon leaving Albion, Judy worked as a high
school teacher, first in Ferndale and then in Traverse City. In 1968,
she left high school teaching to assume her current post as professor in
the Science Division at Lewis and Clark Community College. Judy is
active in the YMCA as a member of the Board of Directors in Alton, Ill.,
as well as the American Red Cross. She has received the National Honor
Award Special Citation for Exceptional Volunteer Service.
Judy lives in Alton, Ill., and enjoys fitness
walking, cycling, swimming, golf and bird watching.
A team leader both on and off the field, Marvin
was co-captain and MVP of the 1950 baseball team which won the MIAA
championship. He was a member of the “A” Club in 1948, 1949 and
1950, and a member of the indoor track team in 1948.
Marvin is now the vice president of quality
assurance at AvTech Laboratories, a position he has held since 1990.
Before that, he served as a pharmaceutical consultant for four years and
a research scientist and associate director at The Upjohn Company from
1952 until 1986. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Idaho.
Marvin served as a member of the Albion College
Alumni Association Board of Directors from 1980 through 1984 and as the
president of that organization in 1983 and 1984.
Marvin lives with his wife Catherine in
Kalamazoo. They have three children, John, '74, Janyce, '77, and Pamela,
'81.
One of the all-time best Albion College
softball players, Karen set six MIAA records in softball, including most
pitching wins and best batting average. She was named to the All-State
softball team in 1981, 1982 and 1983, and to the Academic All-American
softball team in 1983. Additionally, she was a standout basketball
player for the Britons, twice named to the All-State team. A four-year
veteran of the basketball and softball teams, Karen was captain of both
teams in 1982 and 1983. She was also a two-year varsity member of the
volleyball team.
Karen has worked for General Motors since 1983,
and currently serves as a quality engineer in Ypsilanti. She has
remained active in sports since her graduation from Albion, playing on
many basketball and softball teams. Along with basketball and softball,
she enjoys playing golf. She also coaches high school girls' basketball
at Belleville High School. Karen currently lives in Ann Arbor.
During her 30 years as Athletic Department
secretary Ruth made tremendous contributions to Albion College
athletics. She was never too busy to remember a birthday with a big
plate of cookies and always had the patience to put up with the coaches
and professors in the department. As many of the members of the Athletic
Department can attest, Ruth always had a sympathetic ear and gave
motherly advice to many.
Ruth served as the secretary to the Athletic
Department from 1960 until her retirement in 1991. She lives in
Litchfield with her husband Wayne. They have two children, Kenneth and
Sharon. Ruth enjoys square dancing, walking, biking and crafts. She is a
member of the Litchfield Historical Society.
As Albion's first NCAA Postgraduate Scholar,
Jim was not only a great athlete but also an outstanding student. He
earned a spot on the All-MIAA team in baseball in 1968 and 1969, and was
named an Outstanding College Athlete of America in 1968. Jim served as
the captain of the baseball team in 1969 and was a four-year letter
winner in basketball, named Most Improved Player in 1967. Jim did not
end his athletic career with Albion; after graduation he played for the
San Francisco Giants in 1969.
Jim earned his M.D. from the University of
Michigan, and turned his talents to pediatrics. Since 1979 he has been
professor of pediatrics at the Medical College of Ohio at Toledo. Jim is
a member of numerous professional organizations.
Jim and his wife Deborah live in Sylvania,
Ohio, with their five children, Elizabeth, David, Jennifer, Stephen and
Joel. He enjoys golf, tennis and baseball.
One of the most outstanding distance runners in
recent Albion history, Ron was a two-time qualifier for the national
championship meet in both cross country and track. He was a three-time
All-MIAA cross country athlete and two-time All-MIAA track athlete.
Albion College's cross country MVP in 1979, 1980 and 1981, he twice
served as that team's captain. Ron was equally impressive in track and
field, setting five Albion records and the MIAA record for the 10K run
in 1982.
After leaving Albion, Ron earned a doctoral
degree in inorganic chemistry from Wayne State University and did
postdoctoral work at Michigan State University. He then joined Nalco
Chemical Company, where he worked until 1995. Now a group leader of
refinery new product development at Nalco/Exxon Energy Chemicals, L.P.,
Ron holds four U.S. patents and has 16 scientific publications. Outside
of his professional pursuits Ron has remained active in running, and has
improved on his record-setting 10K time since graduation.
Ron currently lives with his wife Ruth in Sugar
Land, Texas, where they enjoy golf, gardening, hiking, scuba diving,
camping, and other outdoor activities.
“Pop” McKale had a lifetime commitment to
athletics which started at Albion College in 1906. Pop was named a
two-time All-State athlete in both football and baseball at Albion. He
helped the football team win an MIAA championship in 1908 and served as
the team's captain in 1908 and 1909. A four-year varsity letter winner
in both baseball and football, Pop served as the student president of
the MIAA in 1909-10.
After Pop left Albion College he moved on to
the University of Arizona, where he distinguished himself as a coach and
athletic director. He served as director of athletics at the University
of Arizona from 1914 until 1957. During that time he served as a
baseball, football, basketball and track coach. Pop was inducted into
the Arizona Sportsmen Hall of Fame in 1959 and was a charter member of
the Arizona Sports Hall of Fame, inducted in 1976. He passed away June
1, 1967. His legacy at the University of Arizona will live on forever in
the baseball stadium that bears his name.
A member of the MIAA championship football team
in 1976, Steve was named as both the Albion College and MIAA football
MVP that year, along with being named to the All-MIAA team. He was a
member of the MIAA championship baseball team in 1977 and a four-year
letter winner in both football and baseball. Steve has continued in
athletics since he left Albion and now is high school football coach for
the Milan Area Schools. In 1997, Steve was named State High School Coach
of the Year by the Associated Press.
Steve began his teaching and coaching career
with South Redford Schools. He went on to teach and coach at Divine
Child High School in Dearborn where he stayed for six years before
moving to Milan. As football and baseball coach, Steve has been named
coach of the year by several sources including The Monroe
Evening News, The Ann Arbor News and the Michigan High School
Coaches Association.
Steve lives in New Boston with his wife Ann and
their daughter Kylie.
One of the top basketball players of the 1950s,
George was named MIAA MVP in 1957. In that same year George was also
co-captain of the Albion team which won the MIAA championship. He was
named to the All-MIAA squad and earned Honorable Mention Associated
Press Small College All-American. George was a three-year starter at
Albion, in 1955 setting the sophomore scoring record and the Albion free
throw record against Tri-State.
After graduation George continued with
basketball, playing industrial basketball for 20 years. In fact, his
teams were regular Orange County champions, and he was a perennial
scoring leader.
George is going strong after 41 years with
State Farm Insurance, currently working as a divisional claim
superintendent. He lives in Thousand Oaks, Calif., with his wife Linda.
They have two children, Jody and Susan, and two grandchildren, Bobby and
Savannah. George is anticipating retirement soon and enjoys tennis,
gardening and travel.
Teams
The 1952 Britons were the first football team
to win an MIAA championship for Albion College in 12 years. Led by the
likes of Robert Wikstrom, MIAA MVP; Ray Loeschner, Little All-American;
and captain William Armstrong, the Brits racked up an impressive 7-1
overall record with a perfect 6-0 record in the MIAA. One of the MIAA
victories came against Kalamazoo, in which the Britons set a new scoring
record with a 59-7 win. Six members of the football team were selected
to the All-MIAA team. The coach of the 1952 football team was Del
Anderson.
Other team members included: Ralph Boe, Roy
Braginton, Larry Byle, Peter Christ, Floyd Conklin, Jon Dean, Cedric
Dempsey, Richard Fabian, Robert Friberg, James Grant, Jack Hanford,
Walter Hierholzer, Jr., John Hummon, Allen Jackson, James Kareck,
Richard Kelly, Robert Kouts, Melvin Larimer, Robert MacDonald, Lynn
Marvin, Donald McIntyre, Robert Meeth, James Murray, Robert Mutch, John
Nash, Lee Parkison, James Reutter, Elvin Ritt, Edward Schied, Fritz
Shurmur, Doug Steward, Alan Swan, John Taylor and Jack Thompson.
The 1965 golf team, coached by Tom Taylor, was
one of the best in the history of Albion College. The first golf team in
a decade to win an MIAA championship, they did it with a perfect 5-0
record in the MIAA and a spotless 9-0 overall record. The Briton
linksters had one golfer selected to the All-MIAA team.
Team members included: Frederick Adams, Jr.,
Cash Beechler, Mark Lindsay, Bruce Miller, William Rivers, Terry Shade
and Barry Siler.
The Albion Chain Gang has amassed 91 years of
combined service within this eclectic group of five which includes: a
Circuit Court judge, a retired produce manager, a purchasing supervisor,
a petroleum salesman and the owner of a print shop. Just like mailmen,
neither rain, nor sleet, nor snow will keep these five from doing their
job. They have been seen on the sidelines of every home football game
that the Britons have played for almost as long as anyone can remember.
In fact, the elder statesman of the group, Harry D. Worden has been
working the chain for 33 years!
Other Chain Gang members include: Jon O.
Sprandel, 21 years on the Chain; John E. Rumler, 16 years on the Chain;
James C. Kingsley, '63, 14 years on the Chain; Richard J. Rutkoskie, 7
years on the Chain. |
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