Davis High alumni recognized for achievements

By Riley Donahue,

Bluedevilhub.com Editor–

For the past six years, the Blue and White Foundation has put on the Davis High Hall of Fame awards ceremony to honor the illustrious alumni of Davis High School.

Each year’s inductees fall into one of five different categories: Alumni at Large, Athletics, Fine Arts, Faculty/Staff and Friend/Benefactor. Past inductees include Nobel Prize winner Carol Greider, musician Michael Franti and local newspaper writer and community activist Bob Dunning.

This year’s ceremony was held at the Activities and Recreation Center (ARC) at UC Davis, and honored Doug Arnold, Wanda Winton, Paul Och, Marcy Place Sheehan and Rachel Moore.

Arnold received the Friend/Benefactor title for his work with creating the Coldwell Banker Doug Arnold Real Estate Company and his generous donations to Davis High and its programs. His health kept him from accepting the award in person, so his son Will accepted the award on his behalf with a touching speech and stories of his father’s time in the San Francisco Police Force.

Winton accepted the Alumni at Large title for her work with different charity groups, specifically the Salvation Army in Davis. Winton was recognized for collecting money and “ringing the bell” at the Salvation Army booth outside of stores and downtown to collect money for those in need.

Och received the Faculty/Staff title for his work with the women’s tennis team and as a Davis High counselor. His team’s track record of being in eighteen Delta League championship games with five wins is one that stands as a testament to his coaching ability.

Moore received the Fine Arts title for her very successful dancing career and work with the American Ballet Theatre.

Sheehan accepted the Athletics Award for her success as a field hockey player that got her start at Davis High and ended on the U.S.A. Olympic field hockey team. She still stands as the most successful field hockey player to come from DHS.

Sheehan was very grateful to have received the award and was excited to see some of her old classmates from Davis High.

“I was thrilled [to be inducted to the Hall of Fame],” Sheehan said. “My mom still lives in Davis so I still have connections to the community and so it was a wonderful thing. To see [my old classmate] Katy was shocking, and really fun. Seeing Mr. Villanueva and Mr. Ochs has been really, really fun.”

Mike Satre, past Vice President and President of the Blue and White Foundation was excited to be attending the event once again for its seventh year.

“Apart from the nostalgia factor,” Satre said. “There’s always that element of some of those people you knew were destined for great things because of what they were like even back then. It’s like ‘wow, look what they’ve gone on to achieve’; Carol Greider grew up down the street from me and playing tag in a driveway we didn’t imagine [she would] get a Nobel Prize award.”

Hall of Fame committee member and event organizer Nancy Storm thought that “this is a really special evening because we get to honor the people who are being inducted.”

“All we do as the dinner committee is plan a big party which is really fun. It’s been an excellent event with great inductees this year,” Storm said.