Distinguished Award Recipients
Thomas More University has established several signature award programs to honor individuals and organizations who make contributions to the University, to Catholic education, and to the community at large. These individuals are representative of the mission of the University and we salute them!
Bishop William A. Hughes Award
The Bishop William A. Hughes Award was established in 1996 to honor those who have made significant contributions to Catholic higher education.
This award honors the legacy of the Most Reverend William A. Hughes, who was born in 1921 in Youngstown, Ohio. After attending elementary school and high school in Youngstown, he attended St. Mary Seminary in Cleveland and graduated summa cum laude from St. Charles Seminary in Baltimore.
Bishop Hughes was ordained a priest in 1946. After serving as an assistant pastor in two parishes in Ohio, he became the founding principal of Cardinal Mooney High School in Youngstown where he served for nine years. Upon leaving Cardinal Mooney, he was appointed superintendent of schools, the vicar of education, then vicar general of the Diocese of Youngstown. He was appointed the auxiliary bishop of Youngstown by Pope Paul VI and ordained a bishop on Sept. 12, 1974.
On March 13, 1979, Bishop Hughes was appointed the eighth bishop of Covington by Pope John Paul II. Bishop Hughes was an active member and served as chairman of various committees within the National Conference of Catholic Bishops and the United States Catholic Conference. He served on various boards within the Greater Cincinnati community and was chancellor of Thomas More University. Bishop Hughes retired in July 1995. He passed away on Feb. 7, 2013, at Carmel Manor.
| YEAR | RECIPIENT |
|---|---|
| 1996 | The Honorable Robert E. Ruberg+ Mr. Robert B. Sathe |
| 1997 | The Reverend Anthony H. Deye+ Dr. Henry R. Winkler+ |
| 1998 | Mr. Frank B.+ & Dr. Patricia J. ’71 Sommerkamp The Honorable Nathaniel R. Jones+ |
| 1999 | Mr. Lanny R. Holbrook ’68+ Mr. Robert J. Kohlhepp ’63 Lifetime Service Award: The Rev. Msgr. John F. Murphy+ |
| 2000 | Mr. Charles H. Deters ’50 Mr. William J. Williams+ |
| 2001 | Mr. Gerald A. Thelen ’61+ Mr. William J. Keating+ |
| 2002 | Mrs. Mary H. Brown Mr. David C. Phillips |
| 2003 | Mr. George H. Scheper+ Sr. Jean Patrice Harrington S.C., Ph.D.+ |
| 2004 | Mr. Frank “Al” Schleper+ Mr. George A. Schaefer Jr. |
| 2005 | Mr. Clifford R. Borland Sr.+ Mr. Paul W. Hemmer Sr.+ |
| 2006 | Dr. George A. Renaker ’55+ Mr. George J. Thelen ’58+ |
| 2007 | Mrs. Mary T. Bunning The Rev. Msgr. William F. Cleves |
| 2008 | Mr. William G. Kohlhepp ’61+ Mr. Charles R. Scheper ’74 |
| 2009 | Mr. Edwin T. Robinson ’63 Mr. Matth. Toebben |
| 2010 | Mr. William J. Zeck Mr. Wilbert L. Ziegler ’53 |
| 2011 | Mr. Thomas R. Dietz ’69 Mr. Andrew J. VonLehman ’75 Founders Award: Benedictine Sisters of St. Walburg Monastery |
| 2012 | Mr. James A. Dressman III ’74 Ms. Julie Geisen Scheper ’76 |
| 2013 | Mr. Bill & Mrs. Sue Butler Mr. Oakley+ & Mrs. Eva+ Farris |
| 2014 | Ms. Helen M. Carroll Mr. Wm. T. (Bill) ’67+ and Mrs. Joan ’69 Robinson III |
| 2015 | Mr. John S. Dubis Mr. Daniel R. Groneck Ms. Alice Sparks+ |
| 2016 | Ms. D. Lynn Meyers ’77 Sr. Margaret A. Stallmeyer, CDP ’68 Mrs. Marna Meier Zalla |
| 2017 | Mr. Bob and Mrs. Susie Castellini Mr. Garren ’86 and Mrs. Susan ’89 Colvin |
| 2018 | Mrs. Casey (Thomas) ’81 and Mr. Mark Guilfoyle, J.D. Mrs. Stephanie Renaker-Jansen and Mr. Dick Jansen |
| 2019 | Most Reverend Roger Joseph Foys, D.D. |
| 2023 | Mr. Alan Pickett |
| 2024 | Mr. Robert M. Hoffer |
| 2025 | Ms. Melissa Lueke |
| 2026 | Mr. Louis Esselman ’81 and Mrs. Marilyn Esselman |
St. Thomas More Medallion
The St. Thomas More Medallion is the University’s highest non-academic service award for “extraordinary service to the University and to the communities which it serves,” and was established following a recommendation of the Golden Jubilee Committee which planned the commemoration of the 50th anniversary (1971) of the founding of institution.
The medallion is presented in recognition of an individual’s extraordinary service to the University and to the larger community which the University serves. It is not necessarily an annual award but is awarded in recognition of outstanding merit on occasion.
The University Archives has no complete list of the recipients of the award because, it is said, the president of the University sometimes gave the award too freely and did not always inform the campus community.
Recipients on record:
| YEAR | RECIPIENT |
|---|---|
| 1971 | Msgr. Herbert F. Hillenmeyer |
| 1973 | Sr. M. Irmina Saelinger, OSB |
| 1974 | Mr. Stanley C. Hugenberg, Sr. Mr. George H. Scheper |
| 1975 | Dr. Frank Brisley Mr. Charles H. Deters Mr. Ernest B. Hillenmeyer Mr. Peter Sartori |
| 1976 | Sr. Mary Julitta Bomkamp, S.N.D. Mr. William J. Muehlenkamp Jr. |
| 1984 | Mrs. Isabel Zimmer |
| 1988 | The Benedictine Community Benedictine Sisters of St. Walburg Monastery Sr. Mary Catherine Wenstrup, OSB |
| 1989 | Ms. Margaret A. O’Conner Mr. Gerald A. Thelen |
| 1990 | Dr. Stephen R. Covey Sr. Mary Joell Overman, SND |
| 1991 | Sr. Mary Wendeline Burkard, OSB Mr. John J. Curtin, Jr. |
| 1992 | Dr. James T. Coleman Dr. Wallace F. Humphreys |
| 1993 | Monsignor John R. Murphy, S.T.D. |
| 1995 | Mr. Nathaniel R. Jones |
| 1996 | The Reverend Germain Marc’hadour |
| 1997 | Ms. Monika K. Hellwig |
| 1998 | Mr. Edwin J. Rigaud |
| 1999 | Dr. Phillip A. Sharp |
| 2000 | Mr. Nick Clooney |
| 2001 | The Rev. Msgr. William F. Cleves |
| 2002 | Ms. Judith A. Marlowe Ph.D. |
| 2003 | Mr. David Dick |
| 2004 | Senator Jim Bunning and Mrs. Mary Bunning |
| 2005 | Judge Donald C. Wintersheimer |
| 2006 | Mr. Richard W. Wurth |
| 2007 | Mr. Robert J. Kohlhepp |
| 2008 | Mr. Frank A. Schleper |
| 2009 | Mr. and Mrs. Roy Romes and Ms. Millie Faust |
| 2010 | Rev. Edward A. Malloy, C.S.C. |
| 2011 | Mr. Wm. T. (Bill) Robinson III ‘67 |
| 2014 | Mr. Oakley B. Farris+ |
| 2018 | Most Reverend Roger J. Foys, D.D. |
| 2023 | Mr. Wilbert L. Ziegler |
| 2024 | Mr. Robert B. Sathe |
| 2025 | Mr. Garren Colvin |
| 2026 | Mr. Charles Scheper ’74 and Mrs. Julie Geisen Scheper ’76 |
Raymond G. Hebert Distinguished Service & Support of Thomas More Award
The Dr. Raymond G. Hebert Distinguished Service Award was established in 2023 and honors those who have made a significant contribution within the University. In its inaugural year, the award was presented to Dr. Ray Hebert who joined Thomas More in 1975 as a faculty member and had more than 50 years of service to the University. Hebert served in a wide variety of positions including dean emeritus, executive director of the Wm. T. (Bill) Robinson III ’67 Institute for Religious Liberty, dean of summer session, chairperson of both history and the expanded history, international students, and political science departments, interim dean of student affairs, vice president of academic affairs/dean of the college, director of James Graham Brown Honors program, director of the dual credit program, as well as coordinator of many study abroad programs.
| YEAR | RECIPIENT |
|---|---|
| 2023 | Raymond G. Hebert, Ph.D. |
| 2024 | Coach Jim Connor ’50 |
| 2025 | Siobhan Barone, Ph.D. |
| 2026 | Mr. Thomas Gilday ’75 |