2003 Fall draft - Uwpiaa.org

Annual Awards Honor Alumni
Each year at reunion, several
alumni are recognized who continue
to embrace the ideals of Up with
People and strive to live up to those
ideals in their everyday lives. The J.
Blanton Belk Outstanding Alumnus
award is presented to one alumnus
who, in carrying forward the ideals
of UWP, has made an exceptional
contribution to humankind. The
James E. MacLennan Everyday
Hero award is presented to up to five
alumni who remain behind the
scenes and accomplish much in a
quiet, persistent way.
2003 J. Blanton Belk Outstanding
Alumna Award Winner
Marcia Tweed Klecker (73A)
Nominated by Jim Tracey (73A) and
Marty Eclan (73A)
Marcia Tweed Klecker has been
a constant inspiration to our cast of
73A and probably to everyone she’s
encountered. Marcia was diagnosed
with multiple sclerosis in her early
20s. But she was determined that
that was never going to stop her. She
finished her undergrad degree and
went on to get her masters in Special
Education/Early Education.
Marcia taught Early Education
in the public school system, studenttaught
with disturbed teenagers and
worked as a regular education
teacher in public schools. She was an
educational consultant for the
Children’s Care Hospital, dealing
with multiple-handicapped children
for a year. She went on to be an
educational consultant for disturbed
kids where she dealt with crisis
intervention.
Besides her work, Marcia has put
in countless hours as a volunteer.
In 1994, she unexpectedly got
pregnant and had a beautiful daughter.
Unfortunately, baby Mara was
born with a tumor, and resulting
complications caused Marcia to
come close to losing her life.
After she and Mara recovered,
Marcia’s MS became progressive but
she continued doing behavior
consulting for private schools and
doing workshops on reservations.
It has always been important to
Marcia that she give to others in her
work, and she has helped countless
people through her actions. Marcia
has made a powerful positive impact
in this world and has done more,
with MS, than most people do in a
lifetime.
2003 James E. MacLennan
Everyday Hero Award Winners
Bret Whissel (80A, 88B)
Nominated by Brenda Moran (77C)
We all know the request “could
you help me with a little project?”
Bret Whissel received that call the
summer of 1997, and little did he
know that this “little project” would
take thousands of hours, travel and
teamwork to make it a reality.
Bret joined the UWPIAA board
of governors the fall of 1997, and set
to work to generate an alumni
website. More important was the
need to maintain an alumni database
to help cast and era representatives
keep in touch with cast/staff members
worldwide.
So, Bret began. Besides a challenging
full time job at Florida State
University, Bret spent thousands of
hours building the first alumni
website, message boards, online
reunion registration program, and
much, much more. With the successful
launch of the UWPIAA website
in March 1999, Bret’s role of keeping
alumni in touch and in-the-know
proved especially important when
UWP closed its doors in December
2000.
Bret also was serving his community
in myriad ways. Debi Chandler
from Tallahassee wrote, “He
sang in my church choir for 15 years
and volunteered as an accompanist,
director, (youth) chaperon, and group
leader more times than I can count.”
So it is then, that Bret has shared
his gifts and talents with many in a
quiet, dedicated fashion, much as
James MacLennan did within UWP.
Though Bret’s work has been known
and utilized by many, over several
years, he never solely took the credit
he deserved. For the thousands of
hours and his spirit of selfless giving,
we are pleased to nominate Bret
Whissel for the Everyday Hero
Award.
Larry Noel Swenson (78D)
Nominated by Brenda Moran (77C)
and Lindsey Johnson Suddarth (78D)
From directing international
language schools in China to creating
fun-filled days of international
learning for school children, Larry
has traveled extensively, bringing
music and building bridges of
understanding wherever he is. His
involvement and volunteer activities
UP BEAT
with the International Camping
Association, the UWPIAA, 4-H,
Camp Horizons, and many more
have created opportunities for youth
and adults alike to gain a greater
understanding of themselves and
others.
Although these activities could
fill pages, it is his quest to bring
communities and people together
that we wish to single out for his
Everyday Hero Award nomination:
What began as a simple inquiry into
Larry’s family ancestry became a
joining of communities thousands of
miles from one another. Lindsey
Johnson Suddarth writes, “Larry
tracked down the village in Sweden
where most of his relatives came
from, and from that first meeting,
established an exchange program
between the two towns. Families met
extended family members for the
first time and teachers were exchanged
for language and cultural
teaching and training.”
Larry’s role in this discovery and
ongoing exchange was crucial; it was
through his pictures, storytelling, and
welcome that people were willing to
step out of their comfort zones and
experience travel, history, people and
music in new ways. His sense of
wonder and fun continue to bring
people together as he remains behind
the scenes, providing these opportunities
to many. It is for these reasons
and more that we nominate Larry
Swenson for the James E.
MacLennan Everyday Hero Award.
Steve Fuller (78E)
Nominated by Judy Creech-Bonsall
(78E)
With the “Building for Children”
program he spearheaded in
1993 in Gunnison, Colorado, Steve
Fuller has made an exceptional
contribution to humankind. His
work earned him the title of “Distinguished
Citizen of the Year,” along
with a proclamation from Roy
Romer, governor of Colorado.
In November 1992, Colorado
voters passed Amendment 1, which
limited the amount of money school
districts could spend. This created an
overcrowding of classes for the third
and sixth graders in Gunnison RE1J
School District. It was so bad that
the local fire marshal was considering
shutting down the school.
Steve Fuller, along with another
parent, came up with the solution.
They agreed to build a two-room
school building the old-fashioned
barn-raising way, and donate the
building to the school district if the
school board would agree to hire two
new full-time teachers. Steve and the
other parent immediately created
“Building for Children,” a project
designed to involve the community.
Over 2,000 volunteers from ages two
to 96 became involved with the
project. Donations came in the form
of money, food, medical and other
supplies and, of course, labor.
Within 30 days of their first
meeting, a new two-room school
building was completed and ready to
house the overcrowded students. As
Steve has said, “The spirit of Up
with People lives in all of us, but it
only takes one of us to make a
difference in the world around us.”
Thomas Spaulding (87D, 93E, 94E)
Nominated by Joel Mauney (94E)
While working for the 1998
Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan,
Thomas had visions of starting a
youth leadership program that would
engage youth in the community.
Thomas believes that getting students
involved in the surrounding
community at an earlier age would
empower them with confidence,
experience and connections they
would use for the rest of their lives.
This vision was ultimately shaped
from the UWP spirit that he had
experienced in years past.
Thomas started acting on his
vision during the summer of 2000.
By dedicating his life to the dream,
working 100-hour weeks, meeting
with countless principals, superintendents,
teachers, politicians, and nonprofit
and corporate leaders, Thomas
displayed incredible tenacity and
focus. He put in much of his personal
assets, selling his house and
devoting all of his energies to what is
now called Leaders Challenge.
In three short years, Thomas has
influenced hundreds of youth in
Colorado. Leaders Challenge
students have worked with many
non-profit organizations and completed
hundreds of hours of community
service. A Leaders Challenge
student, Kelsey Hills-Evans, perhaps
said it best: “Every month, Leaders
Challenge asks me to be a leader, but
every day, Leaders Challenge helps
me become the leader I’ll be for the
rest of my life.”
UpBeat 9