The University of North Florida has named its 2004 Honorary Alumni Award winners. These candidates were chosen based on their contributions to the community and to UNF, and will be honored today.
Mark Vitner will be given the Distinguished Alumni Achievement Award, the highest award given to UNF alumni. Vitner is the senior economist for Wachovia.
The other honorees:
• Thomas Borowy taught psychology for 14 years at UNF. He also built a private mental health practice featuring multiple facilities in Jacksonville and Atlanta.
• Thomas Brown took time out of his Jacksonville law practice to a volunteer his time for UNF’s Pre-law Board and the Dean’s Leadership Council.
• Luther W. Coggin and Blanche B. Coggin will be recognized for their contributions of time and money. The pair is credited with the largest gift ever received by UNF. Luther is a founding member of the Board of Trustees. She volunteers at the college of health.
• St. Joe President Kevin Twomey will be recognized for his contributions to UNF and a local elementary school. He helped arrange a $500,000 gift from St. Joe to UNF and served as a mentor to a local elementary school principal.
• Charles M. Ged worked for JEA as a power plant chemist after graduating from UNF. He has returned to campus several times as a teacher.
• Mary Biggs Knauer serves as Executive Vice President and Shareholder for Legacy Trust Company in Ponte Vedra Beach. She is a founding member of UNF’s Graduate Business Club.
• Francis J. Mackesy earned his master’s and bachelor’s degrees in business administration from UNF. He is now the Undersheriff for the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.
• Michael Tanner handles Sarbanes Oxley compliance for CFO Services. He also serves on the UNF Alumni Association Board of Directors.
• Philip Mobley works as a programmer for Human Resource Systems for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida. Mobley is the Immediate Past President of the University of North Florida Alumni Association.
• William C. “Bill” Mason III is currently the executive director of the Florida Community College at Jacksonville Foundation. Mason’s career in health care spans four decades, including leadership as the former CEO of the Board of Baptist/St. Vincent’s Health System.
• William Edward Pratt-Dannals graduated from UNF in 1981 and since worked for the Duval County School District. He actively supports partnerships between UNF and Duval County Public Schools.
• Ann Hanawalt Van Ormer has made a lasting commitment to health care since receiving her master’s in health from UNF in 1982. She is a well-known speaker in health education, medical writer, and lecturer.
• Gary Jarvis serves as the director of Brooks Health System biofeedback clinic. He has served for the past three years as a member of the UNF Institutional Review Board.
• Teri Coutu currently is employed as a program manager by the Northeast Florida Area Health Education Association. She serves on the College of Health alumni board and serves as a student mentor.
• Issis Richter is an alumnus of the English Language Program in the Division of Continuing Education and an alumnus of the University of North Florida. She currently is employed by Citibank.