The banquet recognizes outstanding alumni, university supporters and students during an evening of celebration and reverence for the great things being accomplished by the Marshall University alumni community. The event features awards in a number of categories, music, dinner and special presentations.
Highlighting the list of more than a dozen honorees at the 2019 awards banquet is Dr. David Allie, who has been named the recipient of the Marshall University Distinguished Alumnus award, the alumni association’s highest honor. Other award recipients include Mike Kirtner, recipient of the Distinguished Service to Marshall University award; Frankie Jones, recipient of the Outstanding Community Achievement award; and Jennifer Owen, recipient of the Young Alumni award. Other awards scheduled for the evening will include MUAA Chapter of the Year, scholarship awards and honors from many of Marshall’s colleges.
“Our slate of awardees this year is outstanding and we anticipate a fantastic celebration during this year’s banquet,” said Matt Hayes, executive director of alumni relations at Marshall University. “Year after year, our award nomination process reveals extraordinary Sons and Daughters of Marshall who are leaders in their fields and full of gratitude for the role our university played in helping turn their ambitions into reality.”
Allie, a 1974 graduate of Marshall University and recipient of the Marshall University Distinguished Alumnus award, is the medical director and chief of cardiothoracic, vascular and endovascular surgery at the Louisiana Cardiovascular and Limb Salvage Center, which he founded in 2009. Allie received his undergraduate degree from Marshall University before earning his medical school degree from West Virginia University and, upon graduation, served in the general surgery residency program at the Charleston Area Medical Center in Charleston.
Allie has over 35 years of medical clinical practice and was an early co-founder of the Cardiovascular Institute of the South, one of the five largest cardiovascular practices in the nation. As an award-winning physician, Allie was named the Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgeon of the Year in 2000 and holds a number of clinical firsts in the field. During his distinguished career he has trained more than 2000 physicians, performed hundreds of lectures and presentations on the field and written more than 250 articles, editorials and papers in educational journals.
“Sharing the successes of our awardees each year never gets old,” Hayes said. “Each awardee’s Marshall story offers inspiration to our university community and motivation to our amazing students. Marshall University is truly an institution on the rise.”
Mike Kirtner is the recipient of the 2019 Distinguished Service to Marshall University award, given to individuals who show an unwavering commitment to the university. Kirtner is the president and CEO of Kindred Communications in downtown Huntington and is a 1973 graduate of Marshall. He has been an avid supporter of the university for decades, using his skills as a gifted orator in a number of roles throughout the years. He has hosted major Marshall University events, served as the public address announcer for Marshall University men’s basketball games and halftime performances by the Marching Thunder, and been emcee for university functions including pep rally events and scholarship dinners. He was the master of ceremonies for the “We Are Marshall” movie premiere in Huntington.
Frankie Nowlin, a 1970 graduate of Marshall University, is the recipient of this year’s Outstanding Community Achievement award. Nowlin, a native of Huntington, spent more than 20 years in the workforce development system, 14 years in corporate America and has served in a number of community leadership roles before retiring recently. Her many outstanding achievements include her work with the YWCA of Columbus and her time on several nonprofit and educational boards in both Huntington and Columbus, in addition to using her professional roles to help better her community. She was named in both Jet and Ebony magazines and was named Ms. April in the inaugural calendar for the Women for Economic and Leadership Development.
Finally, Jennifer Owen, a 2005 graduate of Marshall, was named this year’s Young Alumni award recipient. Owen is the senior vice president for the Commercial Lending Group in Johnson City, Tennessee, and has served in a number of high-ranking leadership roles within the banking industry over the past decade. She is also heavily involved in her community, working with her local YWCA, United Way, Ronald McDonald House and other organizations in Tennessee. She was selected as a “Power Women of the Tri-Cities” and received the “Forty Under 40” award in her region, both in 2017.
Other awards being given at the event are the Cam Henderson Scholarship Award, Nancy Pelphrey/Herd Village Scholarship Award, Nate Ruffin Award, MUAA Chapter of the Year and various Awards of Distinction presented by each of Marshall University’s colleges.
Tickets to Marshall University’s annual Alumni Awards Banquet are available online at www.HerdAlum.com or by calling 304-696-3134.