HOWLAND - The Howland Achievement Hall of Fame introduced its first class recently at DiLucia's Banquet Center. Inductees included:
Richard Orwig, class of 1943, a U.S. Army veteran of World War II, stationed in Iwo Jima, Salpan, and Okinawa and who attained the rank of master sergeant. He co-founded the Howland Athletic Club in 1954 and was an active member for over 40 years, served on the Howland Board of Education from 1962-1978, was elected a Howland trustee in 1978 and served the community for 32 years.
Linda DeScenna, class of 1967, received a bachelor of fine arts degree from Kent State University and moved to Hollywood in 1973. She began her career as a set dresser and landed set decorating positions for two TV series and her first motion picture, ''Star Trek: the Motion Picture.'' She moved on to production designer from 1993-2008. Some of her films included ''Galaxy Quest,'' ''Back to the Future II,'' ''Bruce Almighty,'' ''Blade Runner'' and ''The Color Purple.''
Ken Hess, class of 1971, received a bachelor of science degree in engineering with distinction from Stanford University, and in 1978 he received his master of business administration degree from Harvard. He has worked for the Intel Corporation, Hewlett Packard and Symantec. At Banner Blue he wrote the initial versions of "Family Tree Maker" for locating and organizing information about one's ancestors and recently founded and became president of Science Buddies, and was awarded the Science Prize for Online Resources in Education.
Carl Patrnchak, class of 1971, attended Northwestern University and served as the football team's co-captain during the 1974 to 1975 season with his twin brother Joseph. He graduated in 1975 with a bachelor's in biology and later continued his studies at the Northwestern University School of Medicine and became a physical therapist. He is a specialist in myofascial release physical therapy. He has served as director of physical therapy at St. Bernard Hospital in Chicago and as director of rehabilitation Services at St. Anthony Medical Center, Rockford, Ill. In 2007, he established Myofascial Physical Therapy LLC.
Joseph Patrnchak, class of 1971, attended Northwestern University and co-captained the 1974-75 defensive unit with his brother Carl. He graduated in 1975 with a bachelor of arts in sociology, and his master's degree in organizational development from the American University in Washington, D.C., from the Advanced Executive Program at Northwestern's Kellogg School of Management. He worked for 26 years for Digital Equipment Corp. From 2002 to 2007, he was the chief human resources officer and senior vice president for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts.
Thomas Gysegem, class of 1977, attended Westminster College and received a bachelor of arts magna cum laude. He earned his juris doctorate from the University of Akron in 1984 and served as assistant prosecuting attorney for Trumbull County from 1984 to 1995. In 1989, he was named Honorary Ohio Attorney General for the prosecution of environmental crimes. Since 1986, he has been an adjunct professor for KSU and has been an elected judge of the Warren Municipal Court since 1995.
Dr. Deanne Wilson-Costello, class of 1982, began her medical career while serving as an athletic trainer for the Howland football team. She graduated with a bachelor's degree from Grove City College magna cum laude. She did her graduate studies in chemistry at YSU and received her M.D.from Wright State University School of Medicine. From 1994 to 1997 she had a Neonatology Fellowship and is currently a staff neonatologist at Rainbow Babies and Children in Cleveland, Geauga Regional in Chardon; Southwest Genral in Strongsville; and Lake Hospital in Painsville. She has been honored in "Best Doctors in America."
Molly Fillmore, class of 1989, earned her bachelor's degree in vocal music performance from American University in Washington, D.C., graduating magna cum laude and received her master's from the University of Maryland. She also studied at the Franz Schubert Institute for Poetry and Performance of the German Lied, in Austria. She is a tenured Associate Professor of Voice, College of Music, Michigan State University, and is currently appointed as a Soprano for the Metropolitan Opera where she recently sang in a performance broadcast live in more than 40 countries.
Molly Marino, class of 1991, earned her bachelor's of art and a bachelor's of science from Miami University in Oxford, and her master's of business administration from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. She worked for 15 years as a corporate marketing executive for such companies as AT&T Wireless. She is currently a real estate broker with Baird and Warner in Chicago and is an advocate for the humane treatment of animals. In 2005, she founded a nonprofit animal rescue organization and is a certified humane investigator in Illinois.
Mary Capellas, class of 1994, studied dance at Ohio University and also attended Point Park University in Pittsburgh. She has danced for Royal Caribbean and Celebrity Cruises. She performed regionally in ''Carousel,'' ''My Fair Lady,'' and ''Footloose.'' In 1999, she auditioned for the Radio City Rockettes and has been dancing with the troupe ever since. She is one of the few Rockettes who teach the Rockette Experience and Rockette Summer Intensives.
Information and nomination forms are available at www.howlandschools. com.