Hope you stopped by the Penn Manor Alumni Association tent during Friday night’s homecoming game on October 12. There were free PM tattoos and face painting for all those interested, free PMAA t-shirts for the first 140 alums, raffles for gift cards, and special gifts for those who joined the alumni association that evening. Mark your calendar for next year so you don’t miss out! Homecoming 2013 is scheduled for Friday, October 4, 2013.
Mark your calendars for Friday, October 12, 2012 to attend the Penn Manor Homecoming football game at 7:00 pm at Biemesderfer Stadium where our Comets will take on Manheim Township. Stop by the alumni tent inside the stadium where the first 100 alums will receive a t-shirt. There will be handouts for children of alumni and an opportunity for non-members to sign up to join. Don’t miss the fun!
This year the Penn Manor men’s alumni soccer game is scheduled for Sat. August 11, 2012. The teams will be picked between 5:15- 5:30 pm. (odd years versus even years). The game will start at 6:00 PM at Comet Field. Players planning to attend please (RSVP) by contacting Richard Frantz at 717-872-4591 (frantz.sr@verizon.net) or Jim Frantz at 717-413-7691 (goldilocks22@msn.com). Players should bring two shirts (blue and white). Post game festivities to be announced on game day. Minimal donations to offset costs are welcome. The photo below is from the 2011 game. Come and join the fun!
The 96th Penn Manor Alumni Banquet was held on Saturday, April 16th in the Penn Manor High School cafeteria. This year, alumni who have chosen a career related to the field of education were saluted. Three alumni were honored and inducted into the Distinguished Alumni Wall of Honor – Dr. Daniel Witmer (Class of 1956), Dr. Joseph McSparran (Class of 1961) and Dr. Dean Hess (Class of 1968).
Dr. Daniel C. Witmer graduated from Penn Manor High School in 1956. He earned his B.S. and his Master’s from Millersville University, his Principal’s Certificate from Temple University in 1970 and his Ed.D. in 1976 from Penn State University. After serving in the U.S. Army, Dr. Witmer taught science at Manheim Township School District from 1962 until 1970 and later was Assistant Superintendent at Dallastown School District. From 1980 to 1990, he was Superintendent of Schools at Conestoga Valley School District where the special education and arts annex bear his name. Dr. Witmer served as President of the Lancaster Chamber of Commerce from 1990 to 2000. He is a gifted metal sculptor and has been very involved on numerous community boards in the Lancaster area such as Rotary, United Way, YMCA and Lancaster County Art Association. A scholarship received from the Penn Manor Alumni Association made college possible for him.
Dr. Joseph E. McSparran graduated from Penn Manor High School in 1961. He went on to graduate from West Chester University with a B.S. in Secondary English, earned his Master’s in Educational Administartion from Fairfield University in Connecticut in 1970 and his Ed.D. in Educational Leadership from the University of Pennsylvania in 1983. Dr. McSparran began his administrative career in education in the Manheim Central School District in 1971 as Assistant High School Principal. He served as Superintendent of Schools from 1990 to 1995. From 1996 until the present time, Dr. McSparran has been employed as a professor at Kutztown University. He is a published author. His most recent endeavor is a brochure, “The Other Freshmen Fifteen: Surviving First Semester” for first year college students to help them navigate the critical transition to life on a college campus. In 2010, Dr. McSparran gave the commencement address for Kutztown University.
Dr. Dean R. Hess graduated from Penn Manor High School in 1968. He graduated from Messiah College in 1972, earned his Master’s degree from Millersville University in 1980 and his Ph.D. from LaSalle University in 1994. Dr. Hess currently teaches Anesthesia at the Harvard Medical School and is Assistant Director of Respiratory Care at Massachusetts General Hospital. Dr. Hess has published over 200 papers and 7 books, done extensive medical research and won many prestigious awards such as the Forrest M. Bird Award for Lifetime Scientific Achievement. He has been the Editor-in-Chief of Respiratory Care, the official science journal of the American Association for Respiratory Care since 2008. Dr. Hess has lectured extensively throughout the United States as well as in Europe, Southeast Asia, Africa and South America.
The Penn Manor Alumni Association is accepting nominations for the Distinguished Alumni Wall of Honor. This award is designed to honor and perpetuate the
memory of those individuals whose post graduate accomplishments have brought recognition, honor, distinction, and excellence to the Penn Manor School District.
If you know of a deserving individual, please fill out a nomination form and return it by February 1, 2011 to PMAA, P.O. Box 1001, Millersville, PA 17551.
Join the PMAA on Facebook to network with fellow alumni. Our goal is to support alumni facing career/education issues. Your initial contact will be with Dr. Jan Mindish, recently retired HS principal after 37 years in PMSD. After determining the support you need, she may put you in contact with a fellow PM alumni who is experienced in your field and has volunteered to serve as a mentor.
At this year’s alumni banquet a special group of alums received a resounding tribute. All Penn Manor cheerleaders from the past were honored. Forty cheerleaders representing each decade from the 1930’s to the 2000’s were on hand for the tribute. Current high school cheerleaders demonstrated current cheerleading techniques and then posed with CometMan and (from left) Dot Roland Bender (’39), Kitty Charles Glass (’48), Harry Lines (’36) and Mary (Becky) Afflebach Barley (’36). Over 180 people attended this fun evening!
Friday, October 9 was the 2009 Homecoming Football Game. The final score was Penn Manor 41 – McCaskey 12. Many people visited the Alumni Tent and entered the trivia contest. Sixteen Homecoming queens from the past were on hand to celebrate Penn Manor’s homecoming.
At Penn Manor’s 94th annual alumni banquet, three distinguished alumni were inducted into the Wall of Honor. From left, Dr. Gary Miller ’75 is an entomologist who is the leading authority on aphids and scale insects; Linda Buch ’68 (her mother is pictured and accepted the award) is a personal trainer and a writes a syndicated column on fitness; Dr. Dan Morrison ’54 is a retired professor of chemistry from the University of New Hampshire and led the development and worldwide commercialization of many of the chiral hydrogenation catalysts he invented.
On January 21, 2009, dozens of alumni who participated in Penn Manor’s wrestling program over the past 50 years gathered and caught up with one another at a social before a dual meet pitting Penn Manor against rival Hempfield. The wrestlers were joined by many of the coaches from the past also.
A highlight of the evening was the introduction of the alumni wrestlers before the evening’s match began. This honored group of alumni included Penn Manor’s State Champ, Jere Herr, from the Class of 1963.
Both head coaches for the evening’s match were Penn Manor alumni wrestlers. Jude Bervinchack, Class of 1976, coaches the Hempfield team, while Steve Hess, Class of 1990, is Penn Manor’s head coach.
