Glenbard West to honor inaugural Distinguished Alumni Award recipients

Glenbard West High School will honor its first class of Distinguished Alumni Award recipients during the homecoming pep rally at 6 p.m. Friday, Sept. 21.

Glenbard West's Distinguished Alumni Award was created to honor and celebrate those who have continued to embody Glenbard West's motto of Pride, Tradition, and Excellence through their accomplishments and service.

Award recipients for 2018 include:

• Mary Rohrs, class of 1938. She began the Mother Goose Shop in Glen Ellyn. As a World War II widow, she created one of the largest children's clothing stores in the Chicago metro area.

• Lester Munson, class of 1958. He has received national awards for his investigative journalism and volunteers his time in the field of addiction with the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation and with many community organizations and legal groups.

• Bruce Capel, class of 1961. He was the original Hitter. Glenbard West's football players are still called The Hitters because of Capel. He and Dick Butkus won the Rose Bowl for the University of Illinois. Capel was killed in Vietnam and is buried not far from Glenbard West.

• Laurie Anderson, class of 1965. She is an international music and art superstar.

• Bobby Rahal, class of 1971. He won the Indy 500 in 1986 and has been inducted into the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum Auto Racing Hall of Fame

• Nancy Utley, class of 1973. She is the CEO of Fox Searchlight. Under her guidance, her movies have received more than 120 Academy Award nominations, including Best Pictures "Birdman" and "The Shape of Water."

• Thomas Gilardi, class of 1986. He has more than 25 years in leadership positions at one of the largest orphanages in America that has touched the lives of more than 30,000 chhildren since 1887.

• Caryn Capotosto, class of 1993. A documentarian, she was the producer of the Mister Rogers documentary "Won't You Be My Neighbor?"