For the week of Sept. 1, 2008

From the 6th floor

Record heat blanketed much of Upper Michigan over the Labor Day holiday weekend. It was a picture perfect weekend with plenty of sunshine and blue skies. The beaches were packed. If you happened to be in Upper Michigan visiting, you lucked out as it was, by far, the best weekend of summer. Temperatures Tuesday soared to 90 degrees as children in U.P. school districts headed back to class. Forecasters call for a bit of a cool-down for the remainder of the week.

NMU Alumni Association Homecoming Award Winners announced

	Outstanding Young Alumni Award:      Heather Albrecht '96—Chicago, Ill. Heather is a vice president and consultant with RuffaloCODY, the nation's largest and oldest higher education fundraising consulting/software firm. Heather's special areas of expertise have been helping design and oversee annual giving fundraising efforts for colleges and universities. She is a sought-after speaker and trainer. Heather was extensively involved in activities as a student at Northern and continues her involvement by attending alumni events and promoting NMU at every opportunity.
	Alumni Achievement Award:      Mike Ross '76—Neenah, Wis. Mike is the band and orchestra instructor at Appleton West High School. Throughout his teaching career, Mike has been a positive influence on hundreds of students and has been actively involved in the local community. He has won a number of state awards for his dedication to his students and their music.  He is also a well-respected coach at the high school level.  Two years ago, Mike was diagnosed with Amyloidosis, a rare, terminal blood disease. He has continued to teach through his treatments, which include a stem cell transplant and kidney transplant.
	Distinguished Alumni Award:      Duane Vandenbusche '59—Gunnison, Colo. Duane is a highly regarded history professor at Oklahoma State University and a nationally-recognized track and cross country coach.  He has coached 10 NCAA national championship teams, both men and women, and has received the national "Cross Country Coach of the Year" honor seven times. He has authored five books and two historical videos.
	Distinguished Alumni Award:      Larry Inman '76—Traverse City, Mich. Larry is retired vice president of Huntington National Bank.  He currently serves as a Grand Traverse County Commissioner where he has been instrumental in assisting with economic development for the county.  He holds a number of positions on various local and state boards including the State of Michigan Community Corrections Board.  He served four years on the NMU Board of Trustees and recently began a term with the NMU Foundation Board of Trustees. Larry is a lifetime member of the NMU Alumni Association.

Homecoming is one month away.
Friday-Saturday, Oct. 3-4.

A variety of new activities are planned and several groups are hosting reunions.

Check out the complete 2008 Homecoming schedule here.

Second annual NMU Night at Comerica Park

Close to 200 NMU alumni and friends attended the Detroit Tigers baseball game, Monday, Aug. 25 at Comerica Park as part of NMU Night at Comerica Park. The group got together pre-game for a Wildcat reception. This is the second year for the NMU Alumni Association-sponsored event. Association members received a free t-shirt, courtesy the NMU Bookstore and Alumni Association.

Jerry '66 and Suzette Mattson, Ruth '63 and Bob '62 South.	Paul Hoppe '67, Bob Ferguson '62, Gary Hoppe '65.
Paul Hoppe '65, Carol '64 and Dominic '64, '70 Sarvello.	Damon Scott and Kris Day '94.
Kevin '77 and Mary Kay Smith	Mark Peterson '84, Nora Kessel, Barb Battersby '84.
	Steve Nemeckay '90 and Keith Shaw '91.
Bill Bleiler '69, Gean Bray, Donna Syrett

NMU Sports Hall of Fame Class of 2008

Five new members will be inducted into the Northern Michigan University Sports Hall of Fame in conjunction with Homecoming 2008. The induction dinner and ceremony will take place Friday, Oct. 3 in the Great Lakes Rooms of the Don H. Bottum University Center. Social hour begins at 6:30 p.m., dinner at 7:30 p.m. and the induction program at 8:15 p.m.

Tickets are $20 for adults and $12 for children. Reservations are required. Tickets can be purchased at the Superior Dome Ticket Office or by calling 906-227-1032.

This year’s inductees are:

	Shao Hong '93 A four-year letter winner on 1989-93 NMU swim team, Shao received numerous team, Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference and NCAA honors. The All-America swimmer set NCAA II national records in the 100 breaststroke and 400 medley relay and was a five-time NCAA national champion. Shao set four GLIAC and four NMU records, two of which still stand: 200-medley relay and 400-medley relay. One thing that distinguishes her national championship titles is that in 1993 she was the oldest national champion to date, at the age of 30. Hong currently lives in California.
	Lori Juntila Rupert '81 An Ishpeming Township native,Rupert lettered in women's basketball four years, 1978-81. She was a walk-on her freshman year, became a starter midway through the season and started every game following. In addition to being the first 1,000-point scorer in NMU history, she is currently 10th overall in career scoring with 1,342 points. She held the career scoring mark for 10 years. Rupert was captain and most valuable player her junior year at Northern and led the team in scoring as a junior and senior. Rupert resides in Tulsa, Okla. with her husband, Tim.
	Timothy Kerwin Tim was a member of the 1975-79 men's swimming and diving team, when NMU was an NCAA Division II powerhouse. He was a four-year letter winner and earned team MVP honors all four years. He was a multiple-time GLIAC champion. At the end of his NMU swimming career, Kerwin had amassed a record 27 NCAA and All-America honors. He currently resides in Milwaukee.
	Bill Schafhauser A four-year letter winner on NMU's 1980-84 hockey team, Schafhauser was a second-team All-American in 1983, the first Wildcat defenseman to gain All-America honors. He also was a three-time team captain. His senior year, Schafhauser was named second-team All-CCHA and NMU's MVP, Best Defenseman and Senior Award honoree. He was a sixth-round choice of the NHL Chicago Blackhawks in 1981 and had a 12-year professional hockey career, spending three years in the Philadelphia Flyers system and a number of years in Europe.  Schafhauser and his wife, Tamara, live in Woodbury, Minn., with their two sons.
	George Works Jr. A four-year letter winner on the NMU football team, 1978-80-81-82, Works was a Kodak All-America first-team running back and an A.P. All-America second-team pick in 1982. He also earned team MVP honors that year. During his Northern career, Works set a number of NMU records, many of which remain today, including career points and touchdowns, and points in one season. He also holds NMU's record for most touchdowns in one game of five, which he did three times. Works spent a number of years playing professionally in the former United States Football League and Canadian Football League. He currently lives in Charlotte, N.C., where he works in the printing industry.

Fall Sports Kick Off set for this Saturday

Wildcat football gets under way this weekend with the Fall Sports Kick Off. The celebration will be held on Saturday (Sept. 6) from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. in front of the Superior Dome. There will be children's games, entertainment, free food and drink. The Fall Sports Kick-off is a free community event hosted by the Northern Michigan University Intercollegiate Athletics and Recreational Sports Department.

Wildcats and Huskies team up for Miner's Cup parties in Detroit, Chicago and DC

Other locations will be publicized as soon as details become available.

The broadcasts will also be syndicated through regional sports networks and made available via broadband at www.ncaa.com.

Alumni in Marquette--the Wildcats need your help!
Fans in the Marquette area should get their tickets for their seats in the Dome and help NMU "pack the place." Tickets are available at www.nmu.edu/tickets or by calling 906-227-1032. Wear your green and gold to the game!

If you are interested in knowing more, contact us.

From the e-mail bag

"Just a quick note to let you know that we, Cason Harris '06 and Kristy (Pierce) Harris '07, tied the knot on July 19 in Grand Blanc, Mich. We honeymooned in Sarasota, Fla., not far from our current residence in Lake Placid, Fla. We hope to visit Marquette soon, but in the meantime, we have named our cat Wildcat Willy to remind us of our college days. Go Cats!" Cason and Kristy Harris harris.cason@gmail.com

"Greetings fellow Wildcat alumni! This year, I took up running as a way to stay healthy without paying for a gym membership. And this summer, I've run three 5K races, posting times of 30:59, 30:58, and 29:06 respectively. In my last race (8/16), the Volunteer Muskegon Human Race, I finished second in my age group, which means I medaled in an athletic competition for the first time ever! It's a wonderful feeling." Bob Cowles '06 Muskegon, Mich. rcowles@alumni.nmu.edu

"Men of Dakota House...Michael Shamus Wiles will be on the biker series 'Sons of Anarchy' on FX, Wed. at 10 p.m. starting in Sept. He will be on the 3rd show, Sept. 17. He plays a rival biker gang leader."
Dennis Hawk
Atlanta, Ga.
ddalehawk@yahoo.com