The Friends of the Library

Graduate Awards

In early 2014 The Friends took on the challenge of creating a database detailing the lives of graduates honored with a variety of exceptional achievement awards. These awards included the Distinguished Graduate Award and the Distinguished Service Award. As part of a multi-year set of heritage projects supported by The Friends of The Air Force Academy Library, this effort reflects The Friends commitment to being a premiere Academy organization in recording and preserving the heritage of the Air Force Academy. The project’s continuing goal is to assemble all the available material dealing with the adult lives of these Air Force Academy graduates and future award recipients.

The graduate database is currently in the process of being migrated from legacy software to a more modern, user accessible interface. Until complete, data will be unavailable. Please check back frequently as this process continues.

The Distinguished Graduate Award

It is a unique honor bestowed by the U.S. Air Force Academy and its Association of Graduates, recognizing exceptional graduates who have set themselves apart by making extraordinarily significant contributions to our nation and/or their communities. Distinguished Graduates provide inspirational examples to all graduates and cadets of the standards that we value and of the abilities that have made our country and society great. The award was first presented in 2001 to General Ronald R Fogleman ’63 and Mr. Harry J Pearce ’64.

The Distinguished Service Award

The Air Force Academy established this award in February 1999. Each year the award is presented by the Superintendent to an individual or organization whose contributions have had a distinct impact on the morale and well-being of the Academy. The Distinguished Service Award recognizes those who contribute to the betterment of the Academy through their personal generosity and dedication to the institution.

Previously there was no central location for information about the recipients of prestigious awards presented by the Academy and the Association of Graduates. Nor was much existing information on awardees readily accessible. If you have any information you wish to be considered for inclusion in this data base, you may contact The Friends. We encourage you to enjoy the fruits of this historic project. The Friends believe this project will have a lasting impact for decades to come, indeed as long as the Academy exists.

Distinguished Graduates


Ronald Fogelman Class of 1963 2001	Harry Pearce Class of 1964 2001	Paul Kaminski Class of 1964 2002	Robert Oaks Class of 1959 2002	Bradley Hosmer Class of 1959 2003	Richard Schlosberg Class of 1965 2003


Frederick Gregory Class of 1964 2004	Ronald Yates Class of 1960 2004	H. T. Johnson Class of 1959 2005	Michael Ryan Class of 1965 2005	Robert Beckel Class of 1959 2006	Edward Mechenbier Class of 1964 2006


Ervin Rokke Class of 1962 2007	Gregg Popovich Class of 1970 2007	John Martinson Class of 1970 2008	Donald Shepperd Class of 1962 2008	John M. Loh Class of 1960 2009	Heather Wilson Class of 1982 2009


Max James Class of 1964 2010	Ralph Eberhart Class of 1968 2010	Ruben Cubero Class of 1961 2011	Richard McConn Class of 1966 2011	Marcus Anderson Class of 1961 2012	Edward Legasey Class of 1967 2012


Bart Holaday Class of 1965 2013	William Looney Class of 1972 2013	Thomas Eller Class of 1961 2014	Kevin Chilton Class of 1976 2014	Gregory Martin Class of 1970 2015	Paul Madera Class of 1978 2015


George Butler Class of 1961 2016	Charles Holland Class of 1968 2016	Gary Payton Class of 1971 2016	R. David Yost Class of 1969 2016	John Fox Class of 1963 2017	T. Allan McArtor Class of 1964 2017


Steve Lorenz Class of 1973 2017	John Inglis Class of 1976 2018	Edward Jayne II Class of 1966 2018	H. Michael Lambert Class of 1970 2018	Mark Welsh III Class of 1976 2018	Leslie Denend Class of 1963 2019


John Kucera Class of 1978 2019	Edward Rice Jr. Class of 1978 2019	Norton Schwartz Class of 1973 2019	Fletcher Wiley Class of 1965 2019	Gail Colvin Class of 1980 2020	Jay Kelley Class of 1964 2020


Ron Sega Class of 1974 2020	Hugh Williamson III Class of 1964 2020	Leonard Ekman Class of 1963 2021	William Wecker Class of 1963 2021	Eugene Lupia Class of 1967 2021	Hans Mueh Class of 1966 2022


Susan Desjardins Class of 1980 2022	David Goldfein Class of 1983 2022	Terrence O'Donnell Class of 1966 2023	John Hopper Jr. Class of 1969 2023	William J. Begert Class of 1968 2024	Jerome V. Bruni. Class of 1970 2024

Distinguished Service Graduates


Jock Schwank Class of 1960 2011	Edward Legasey Class of 1967 2012	Bart Holaday Class of 1965 2013	John Fox Class of 1963 2017	Bob Munson Class of 1973 2021