Glenbard East fetes 2010 Distinguished Alumni

A Pulitzer Prize nominee, an atmospheric scientist and a man who scaled Mount Everest are among the 2010 Glenbard East High School Distinguished Alumni.

The 10 alumni will be honored at an awards ceremony at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, April 22, in the school's Biester Auditorium.

This year's honored alumni join the 2000 inductees, including shuttle astronaut Dan Tani, in the Glenbard East Alumni Hall of Fame.

Glenbard East is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year.

Kurek Ashley, Peak Performance coach, author, actorKurek Ashley is CEO and founder of Kurek Ashley Success International. He was the corporate motivational and empowerment seminar speaker performance coach for the Women's Australian Olympic gold medal beach volleyball team and the author of the best-selling book "How Would Love Respond?" A professional actor, Ashley has more than 38 film and TV credits, appearing with Sylvester Stallone, John Travolta and Chuck Norris."What Glenbard East taught me more than anything else is in life, you have to take the first step toward your dream. No one can or will do that for you. You have to make the decision as to what you want to be. And when you do, there are people along the way that are there to help you achieve all of your dreams. All of your dreams come true when you make the decision to make them come true!"Dr. Malcolm Bilimoria, cancer surgeonDr. Malcolm Bilimoria is director of the Illinois Center for Pancreatic and Hepatobiliary Diseases at Northwest Community Hospital in Arlington Heights and a nationally recognized expert in the surgical treatment of pancreatic cancer. A graduate of Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine, he completed a two-year research fellowship at the Robert Lurie Cancer Center and was named Outstanding Fellow during his surgical oncology fellowship at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Texas.Richard P. Cebula, atmospheric scientist NASA scientist Richard P. Cebula designed and supervised the building and use of scientific equipment used to study the ozone layer from orbit aboard the space shuttle. He has a Ph.D. in physics from Johns Hopkins University."Some of life's most valuable gifts come unwrapped, generously given, and are there for the taking. Seek out teachers who love their profession and their students. Long after the details of today's lessons are lost in time, gifts from those mentors will serve you well throughout your entire life."John Golden, humanitarian/adventurer/inspirational speakerJohn Golden has spent 20 years as an executive in Fortune 500 companies, including leadership roles at Verizon, ATT and CNA Financial. The former college football athlete suffered a career-ending knee injury in 1986 and underwent 23 operations. He not only regained movement and reduced pain, but he sought to give back by creating the LiveActive Foundation to raise funds for orthopedic research. He climbed 14 mountains, culminating in his ascent of Mount Everest, the world's tallest peak, in the spring of 2009."The four years I spent at Glenbard East prepared me for the journey of life. I learned that the impossible is possible; by setting goals, surrounding yourself with a great team, and having the passion and motivation to see change as a bend in the road, not an end to the road. East taught me that we all have the responsibility and ability to give back and make a difference. Go Rams!"Jeff Jarvis, journalist/writerThe author of "What Would Google Do?" (HarperCollins 2009), Jeff Jarvis is an associate professor and director of the interactive journalism program and the new business models for news project at the City University of New York's Graduate School of Journalism. He is also a consulting editor and a partner at Daylife, writes a new media column for The Guardian and is host of its Media Talk USA podcast. He is the former president and creative director of Advance.net and creator and founding editor of Entertainment Weekly.Jack Miller, university presidentJack Miller has been the president of Central Connecticut State University since 2005. He previously served as chancellor at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, dean of the College of Education at Florida State University and professor and administrator at Georgia Southern and Wichita State Universities. His annual study of "America's Most Literate Cities" is published by USA Today,Betty Rider, educator/entrepreneur/Rams BoosterBetty Rider created the "Glenbard East 50th Anniversary Group" for Facebook as a member of the Glenbard East Anniversary Committee. She is responsible for initiating and administering the William E. Rider scholarship, given each year in memory of her father, the first principal of Glenbard East High School.She has been a researcher and administrator at the Ohio State University, a high school and middle school principal and a sales director for Mary Kay Cosmetics. "The Glenbard East High School motto: Right Attitude Means Success - RAMS - has served me well throughout life. Attitude is everything! The learning that took place in and out of the classrooms of Glenbard East helped form my life experiences beyond my school years. The teachers and support staff of Glenbard East deserve a huge thank you for all that they have done, and continue to do, for the students of this great school."Mary Doria Russell, novelistMary Doria Russell is the author of four successful novels, "The Sparrow" (1996), "Children of God" (1998), "A Thread of Grace" (2005), and "Dreamers of the Day" (2008). Her novels have won nine national and international literary awards, including the Arthur C. Clarke Award, the James Tiptree Award, and the American Library Association Readers Choice Award. "The Sparrow" was selected as one of Entertainment Weekly's 10 best books of the year and "A Thread of Grace" was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize. She is a professor and special lecturer in the Department of Oral Biology, School of Dentistry at Case Western Reserve University, an adjunct professor in the Department of Anthropology and a forensic consultant for numerous law enforcement agencies.Steven Spoden, photographerAs the chief photographer at E.A. MacKay Enterprises, publishers of the Lombardian and Villa Park Review, Steven Spoden has provided a "visual chronicle" for the village of Lombard and surrounding suburban area for the past 40 years. He also maintains an avid interest in astronomy, sharing his knowledge with young students in Lombard classrooms. Periodically throughout the year, he highlights astronomical events in his "Star Lines" column.Marie Diener West, research scientist/college professorMarie Diener West is the director of the Master of Public Health program at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore and a professor of biostatistics education. She is the recipient of the Ernest Lyman Stebbins Medal (2007) and the Golden Apple Award for Excellence in Teaching (1991, 1997, 1998, 2001, 2004 and 2009). She is deputy director of the Collaborative Ocular Melanoma Study and also has worked on research studies of cystic fibrosis and the relationship between sleep disorders and heart disease."Glenbard East provided me with an excellent educational foundation but, even more so, the encouragement to succeed and strive for the best. The personal and individual influence of a teacher on a student's life should never be underestimated. As a professor and teacher, I have aspired to emulate the qualities of many of my mentors from Glenbard East. I am very grateful."False13382000Kurek Ashley False