Crawford AuSable School District 403 Michigan Avenue Grayling

Keyna Darling
Class of 1974
Career Pathway: Arts & Communication

   Keyna Darling moved to the Grayling area at the age of 12 with her parents and five siblings. She always had an inner drive for singing, dancing and writing poetry. Her favorite class in high school was Creative Writing class with Mr. Michael Delp. She was proud to represent her school as a Viking cheerleader for three years and sang her first original song at a talent competition while attending cheerleading camp in Indiana.
   After graduation, Keyna married and had two wonderful daughters who went along with her to sing to lonely people in nursing homes. At that time, people began taking notice of Keyna's singing, and later, Keyna formed a band called Southbound 75, which had a large following in Northern Michigan, and sang in the surrounding area for 32 years.
   In October 2005, Keyna quit the band when she was contacted by security to prepare herself to perform an original song she had written with her oldest daughter in mind who was serving in the U.S. Air Force during 9/11 for a political rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan, at the Devos Center. Keyna performed her song "Stand Up, America" in front of the President of the United States and 21,000 listeners.
   Keyna has opened for and performed with Mark Farner, the lead singer of the the famous band, Grand Funk Railroad. Farner sang a song on her debut album called "LovingYou." In 2006, Keyna won Breakthrough Country Artist of the Year in Hollywood, California. She is now working with a movie producer in California for an upcoming Pixar Film for which she has written and will be singing songs for one of the main characters in the film.
   The achievement that makes Keyna the proudest in her life is being a mother and having her daughters share in her accomplishments as she shares in theirs.
   Keyna's oldest daughter, Alana, is a paramedic in Dover, Delaware, and her youngest daughter, Devette, has been attending a community college pursuing her dream to work with animals.
   It is Keyna's belief that dreams are only dreams if left on the shelf of wishing, while putting your dreams into action makes those dreams come true.

Theodore G. Davenport
Class of 1953
Career Pathway: Business, Management, Marketing & Technology

   Ted Davenport was the president of the Class of 1953. While in high school, he also played football, baseball and basketball and ran track. His summers were spent working at Camp Grayling. During his senior year, he enlisted in ROTC and graduated from Central Michigan University in 1957.
   Ted earned a B.S. degree in business administration from Central Michigan University in 1957 and a master of business administration degree at the University of Arizona in 1967, where he was a member of Beta Gamma Sigma.
   From 1957 to 1977, Mr. Davenport was in the United States Army, where he progressed from regular second lieutenant to lieutenant colonel. He had two tours with the Headquarters Department of the Army, two at NATO Headquarters and battalion command. While in the Army, he received the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal, Meritorious Service Medal (two awards), Army Commendation Medal (two Awards), Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry with Palm, Vietnamese Civil Action Honor Medal First Class and the German Army Marksmanship Award (Bronze and Silver Awards).
   After leaving the military, Mr. Davenport was employed at the Federal-Mogul Corporation in Mendon, Michigan, where he was responsible for all the plant personnel and labor relations, representing 160 UAW employees and 29 salaried employees.
   From 1979 to 1989. he worked as the personnel manager for Lectron Products in Rochester Hills, Michigan, joining the company to reorganize and consolidate all employee relations functions into a personnel department in which he was responsible for the corporation's total industrial relations program for 210 employees. He played a major role in site selection, recruiting and start-up of a manufacturing plant in Indiana and an office in West Germany. He also contracted for and implemented self-insured group health and workers' compensation with a resulted annual savings of over $200,000 for each program. Through growth and expansion, the corporation reached 925 employees in two manufacturing plants and an overseas office.
   From 1989 to 1990, Mr. Davenport was the executive search consultant for the Compass Group Ltd in Birmingham, Michigan, before retiring to his home in Lake City.
   Ted is married to Lise, they have has five grown sons, and he spends his time hunting, fishing and playing golf.

Karen S. Febey
Class of 1992
Career Pathway: Human Services

:   While at GHS, Karen Sue Febey was a member of the National Honor Society, the concert and jazz bands and the ski team.
   In 1996, Karen completed a B.A. degree in Norwegian and political science from St Olaf College. While at St Olaf, she played trombone in one of the bands, was on the varsity downhill ski team and was involved in Habitat for Humanity. After finishing her bachelor's degree, Karen received a one-year fellowship to study economics at the University of Oslo in Norway. She then worked at a Japanese public high school as an assistant language teacher for two years.
   After teaching in Japan, Karen earned a master's degree in public policy from the Humphrey School for Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota in 2002, and in 2005, she completed her Ph.D. in evaluation studies, also at the University of Minnesota. In her dissertation, she examined teachers' professional relationships in small learning communities in high schools. Dr. Febey has published numerous articles in educational policy journals and has presented her research at national conferences.
   She currently works as a policy analyst for the Government Accountability Office in Washington D.C. She has worked on evaluations of programs ranging from No Child Left Behind to environmental reporting to the fence that is being built on the US/Mexican border.
          She says she still has Grayling in her blood!

Roger Nelson
Class of 1958
Career Pathway: Human Services

   Roger Nelson was nominated by Hans A. Andrews, Ed.D., GHS Class of 1956 and a 2005 GHS Hall of Fame honoree.
   He responded:
   "I am deeply honored that on this 50th anniversary of my graduation from GHS, Dr. Hans Andrews has submitted my name as the nominee, and you, Mr. Powers, and the Board of Education have chosen me, from the Class of '58 to be an inductee into the Fourth Annual Grayling High School Alumni Hall of Fame. I am doubly pleased that my alma mater has chosen a representative who works in the field of social work, where the diversity and complexity of poverty, youth and other human needs are enormous.
   My preparation began as a fourth generation of Nelsons in Grayling, with fabulous parents, a safe and supportive community, and a school, attending K-12 with teachers that stimulated and prepared us and overall was such fun. After graduation, I attended and earned an associate of arts degree at, what was then, Northwestern Michigan Community College, in Traverse City. From there I attended Alma College, where I discovered my passion for sociology.
   Upon earning a BA degree in 1964, I commenced a career with the State of Michigan in social services. By then I had met, at her senior prom in Grayling, Ms. Sharon Renaud, who a year later would become my wife and my life-partner. We began our journey together in 1962, some 46 years ago. We were equally blessed with three children, each successful and pursuing their career paths: Michael, a painter, Paul, an engineer and Pam, an accountant.
   My chosen field of employment was and remains social work. That profession affords one to chose from a wide-spectrum of career options and, given the diversity of human need and challenge, there are tremendous options and opportunities to serve. Obtaining a master's degree (an MSW) can double or triple the range and depth of options, which I chose to do, and had the good fortune of accomplishing at the University of Michigan in 1971.
   A sampler of my careers include: day care and foster home licensing; casework with foster children and families; counseling and treating youth and parents; group treatment with traumatized veterans, neglectful parents and troubled youth; serving various roles of ascending responsibility, including supervision and administration; teaching courses in social work as an assistant professor at WMU; training graduate students for careers in children services; and 20 years of training other professionals in skills ranging from how to offer job readiness workshops, to serving reactionary clientele, to providing strength-based/solution-focused services, and others.
   From 1964 to 2001, some 37 years, I've enjoyed the stimulation and remuneration that goes with learning, performing and training social work and from having served in 10 divergent careers (and counting) within it. Since my first retirement from State and several other agencies, initially in 1997, and then in 2001, I've enjoyed being a volunteer and am serving in a variety of roles, from supportive counseling, to grief support, to developing local youth prevention programs within the church and in the community."
                                         ~~~
   Retired since 2001, Mr. Nelson has more time to enjoy family, friends, church and volunteering in areas such as supportive counseling with families where one parent suffers a disability. During the holidays, he facilitates a grief support group during that tough time of the year. With Sharon and others, he leads a local blood drive. He helped institute a youth asset building outreach program for local "at risk" kids. For extreme fun, Roger joined a song and dance group of seniors, the "Social Security Scandals."

Regina B. Rosi
Class of 2002
Career Pathway: Human Services

   Regina Rosi was valedictorian of the Class of 2002. During high school, she was in eight plays and musicals, jazz band, pep band, concert band (percussion), forensics and pon poms.
   At Kenyon College, in Gambier, Ohio, Regina majored in Spanish and international studies and graduated summa cum laude. She received the Spanish Department Award for Excellence and is a Phi Beta Kappa member. Her senior thesis was entitled, "Gender, Sex, and the Catholic Church: The Cultural Factors Behind HIV Transmission in Mexico and Brazil.
   After graduation, Ms. Rosi received a Fulbright Fellowship to study bilingual education of Mayan and Spanish in Southern Mexico. She designed an ethnographic case study and carried out her research in two rural Mayan communities. She lived with indigenous Mayan families, taught English, took a Mayan language class, slept in a hammock and took lots of bucket showers! By conducting more than fifty interviews and observing elementary schools, she provided the Department of Education with practical and creative ways to improve its bilingual program. She also worked with the Mexican government to improve its public relations campaign regarding bilingual education. She has presented papers on her Fulbright research at two anthropology conferences, and she is in the process of publishing an article for the Anthropology and Education Quarterly.
   Ms. Rosi is currently teaching Spanish to seventh and ninth graders at Marlborough School, a private all-girls school in Los Angeles. Ultimately, she plans to get a Ph.D. in Spanish and teach at the university level.
   She says she credits GHS for giving her the foundation to succeed. She feels especially lucky that Grayling offered her a wide variety of AP classes, all of which provided her with the necessary study skills and writing skills to do well in college.
   She is the daughter of Dr. Tomlin Rosi and Marilyn Rosi, a family nurse practitioner, and the sister to 2004 Alumni Hall of Fame inductees, Dr. Yolanda Rosi, Class of 1993, and Dr. Nathaniel Rosi, Class of 1995.

Edwin R. Skinner
Class of 1959
Career Pathway: Business, Management, Marketing & Technology

   Edwin R. Skinner is the retired senior vice president of marketing and sales for Auto-Owners Insurance Company. Auto-Owners is a Fortune 500 company doing business in 25 states with about 3,600 associates.
   Mr. Skinner began his insurance career in 1959 following graduation from GHS. He started as an independent agent in the Grayling Insurance Agency, working for John Bruun and Melvin Nielson, notable Grayling businessmen. In 1964, he continued his insurance career by joining Auto-Owners Insurance Company in Lansing, Michigan. Until his retirement in 2005, He served in a number of management positions with the company, including regional vice president of Illinois, Missouri, Nebraska, Iowa and Wisconsin; vice president of the company's Michigan operations; vice president of marketing; vice president of sales; vice president of regional sales operations; and senior vice president of marketing and sales.
   Ed, who grew up in Frederic and Grayling, was the only son of George and Beatrice Skinner, who also had four daughters. His father is deceased and his mother, age 92, still lives independently in Traverse City near two of his sisters. He began his early schooling in Frederic, completed the sixth, seventh and eighth grades at St. Mary's Catholic School in Grayling and completed his high school education at GHS. He chose to work throughout his high school years rather than participate in sports. He attributes his work ethic, learned in Grayling, as a strong asset throughout his insurance career.
   In spite of not possessing a college degree, Mr. Skinner advanced successfully in the business world by making the most of his education at GHS. He has fond memories of many of his former teachers and classmates, who were major factors in shaping both his education and his positive can-do attitude.
   His family consists of his wife Donna, son Craig, who, with his wife Lori, has two daughters, Nicole and Alexis, and daughter Kelly, who, with her husband, Jim, has three sons, Tommy, Nick and Sam. They all reside in the Lansing area. Ed and Donna enjoy golf, family activities, leisure travel and time at their cottage on Eight Point Lake in Clare County.
   A letter from Auto-Owners Insurance was read at the ceremony:
   "Dear Mr. Powers: It gives me great honor to share in the recognition of Edwin R. Skinner and join you and others in honoring him as an inductee into the Grayling High School Alumni Hall of Fame. Having known Ed for many years, he is truly a successful professional in every sense of the word and is worthy of the honor you are bestowing upon him. Ed began his career with Auto-Owners Insurance in 1964, joining our Accounting Department after beginning his insurance industry career with the Grayling Insurance Agency. Upon joining Auto-Owners, Ed enjoyed much success, being promoted and advanced into areas of additional responsibility 15 times over the next 40 years with our company. At his retirement, Ed had risen through the ranks of the company to become senior vice president, marketing and sales, and a valued contributor and member of the executive team of our company. He served our company favorably with distinction and pride over these many years. He retired as a friend, mentor and leader to many. While we are unable to be there in person to help in honoring Ed, he is highly commended and recommended for the recognition you are giving to him. We thank him for his many years of faithful service to our company, the Industry and to those he so wonderfully served throughout his career. With you, we extend our very best wishes to him, Donna and his entire family.
   -Sincerely, Roger L. Looyenga, Chairman of the Board & CEO, Auto-Owners Insurance"

	Sherrill J. Thayer Class of 1971 Career Pathway: Health Services (Nominated by her father and former GHS teacher, Arthur Thayer)

In high school, Sherrill Thayer participated in band, playing flute and piccolo, honor society, debate, forensics and oratory. She took 2nd place at the state finals in the American Legion Oratory Contest. Sherrill graduated from Lake Superior State College in 1974 with an associate degree in nursing, which allowed her to work in a number of places, including Michigan, New York City, Massachusetts, Virginia, and most recently, Wisconsin. She has worked in almost every area of nursing from the basic floor nurse to charge nurse, to head nurse, to intensive care unit, cardiac care unit, emergency room, physician's office, college school nurse, supervisor of a 180-bed facility that was half sub-acute hospital and half long-term care, and most recently, as an adult nurse practitioner. Along the way, her educational levels and credentials changed along with her levels of responsibility. Sherrill first returned to college while working as a college nurse. Stimulated by the learning environment around her, she began taking classes and eventually chose a degree track. During this time, she worked for three years as the fiction editor for The Bradford Review, a literary magazine published by the college. In 1982, Ms. Thayer graduated as salutatorian of Bradford College in Bradford, Massachusetts, with a bachelor's degree in creative arts and a major in fiction writing. She also won the Elizabeth Barrett Award for outstanding achievement in the area of creative writing for her short story, "Empty Houses." Her work has appeared in The Woods Runner, a literary magazine published by Lake Superior State College and The Bradford Review, published by Bradford College; and a bound edition of her work remains in the Bradford College Library. She has also worked as an editor and has two books, How to Identify, Master and Conquer Change by Robert Ian and Babies with Bullets: Women having Fun with Guns by Debbie Ferns. As much as she loved writing, nursing was her first love, and she decided to work toward a master's degree. In order to get into the program of her choice, she had to have a bachelor's degree in nursing first, so she once again returned to school. Ms. Thayer graduated in 1991 as valedictorian of Salem State College in Salem, Massachusetts, and she was inducted into Phi Kappa Phi, the oldest and largest collegiate honor society dedicated to the recognition and promotion of academic excellence in all disciplines. She was also inducted into Sigma Theta Tau, the international honor society for nursing. As soon as she finished her bachelor's in nursing, she began taking classes towards her master's degree. For graduate school, she attended Simmon's College, an all- women's college and also the A sister college to Harvard, and graduated in 1994 "with distinction" with a master's degree in in primary health care nursing, and after taking the adult nurse practitioner exam, she became a board-certified adult nurse practitioner. She was then hired by the University of Wisconsin Medical School, Department of Surgery, Division of Otolaryngology (ENT) and Head and Neck Surgery. At the time, she was the second nurse practitioner to work for the medical school. There, Ms. Thayer established state-of-the-art collaborative practice relationships to serve as models for nursing and other students in the health science disciplines. She also developed the initial protocols and guidelines for management of specific problems still in use in her clinic and was responsible for keeping them updated. She also helped to pioneer the role of the nurse practitioner in the surgery clinics. After the success of her clinic, today there are more than 100 nurse practitioners and physician assistants working in all aspects of care at the University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics. Because of her writing skills, she was appointed associate editor of The Head and Neck Connection, a biennial publication of the University of Wisconsin Department of Surgery, Division of Otolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery. She was responsible for the initial motivation for the development of the role of the acute care nurse practitioner who is trained to work solely in hospitals. Eventually, she was named senior nurse practitioner and had supervisory duties over all of the other nurse practitioners, physician assistants and registered nurses. Ms. Thayer became active in the Society of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Nursing, Inc. in 1995-2007 and helped develop it to the point where Wisconsin was the largest state chapter. She has always been very active in education and lecturing and has traveled all over the country presenting the Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Review Course to nursing groups and has lectured on other topics related to Ear, Nose and Throat both at the state and national level, in her clinic and for the University of Wisconsin School of Nursing. Early in 2007, Ms. Thayer began writing a book entitled Practicing for Retirement: Your Life. Your Way. Right Now. In December 2007, She retired from the University of Wisconsin Medical School. She is currently working full time on her book, which is scheduled for publication in 2009. When not involved with her writing, Ms. Thayer is an avid gardener and reader. She resides in rural Wisconsin with her husband Robert and their dog Sherbert.

Douglas L. Wilson
Class of 1968
Career Pathway: Human Services

   Doug Wilson's nomination was read by his son Camren:
   Douglas Wilson, executive director of the AuSable Valley Youth Service Bureau and member of the GHS Class of 1968, was nominated to the Alumni Hall of Fame because he has dedicated his life and career to the most vulnerable citizens of Crawford and Roscommon Counties.
   In high school, Doug participated in football, basketball and track. He also competed at the state level in forensics and had roles in several high school drama productions. After high school he earned a bachelor of science degree in education from Central Michigan University (Fire Up, Chips!) with majors in psychology and sociology.
   Mr. Wilson worked briefly as a teacher and counselor with the school district until being hired as the director of the Youth Service Bureau in June 1978. Through the Youth Service Bureau, he has provided prevention and delinquency counseling services, taught social skills, bolstered self-esteem and provided summer recreation services to hundreds of youth in Crawford and Roscommon Counties. He has touched the lives of countless children and their families. He is a gifted social worker and is often called upon by the schools and service agencies to deal with issues arising with students. He is a true advocate for kids who need a voice.
   Over the years, he has continued to provide counseling services, even on shoestring budgets, because children need the help. All the agency's services are supported by state funding, contracts with local agencies and grant dollars that he works to secure for the youth of Crawford County. He prides himself on providing a solid program at no cost to children or parents. It is difficult to describe the impact that he has had on the youth, families, schools, probate courts and the community over the last 30 years.
   He was a founding member of the Crawford County United Way and is currently the vice chair of the Crawford County Multi-Purpose Collaborative Body. He has served on the board of directors for the GRACE Center, is serving his second term on the vestry for St. Francis Episcopal Church, has served as a liaison for the Thrift Shop, and has coached in the Grayling Junior Pro Basketball and Grayling Little League programs. He has organized a Secret Santa Christmas Program for several years, delivering gifts to local families.
   Doug is the son of Jack and (the late) June Wilson of Grayling. He has two sisters and one brother who are also graduates of GHS. He is the father of four, two sons who are also GHS alumni, Brock of Grayling, and Brad, who is currently teaching and coaching at Belding Middle School. He has two children currently attending the district, Camren, who will be a freshman at GHS in the fall and Carlie, who will be entering third grade at Grayling Elementary. He has been married Tracy for 15 years.