Holtville High honors its own By MEGAN BAKKER, Staff Writer
Wednesday, November 26, 2008 11:22 PM PST
Holtville High School honored accomplished alumni and community members last weekend as part of its annual “Hall of Fame” celebration.
“We were surprised and pleased” to get the award, said honoree Quentin Burke. He and his wife, Ellen Burke, were honored for their work as publishers of the Holtville Tribune, as well as their work with the American Field Services Student Exchange Program.
“There were a lot of young people who had positive experiences both from hosting and from going overseas,” Quentin Burke said.
The awards were granted by the Holtville High Green and Gold Hall of Fame organization, which works on fundraising efforts for the school.
The eight inductees join 20 other members of the community, from the previous two years the award was given.
In addition to the Burkes, Vic Wellong, who founded Holtville’s Athletic Club and served as its president, was honored. Wellong has cooked and sold dinners at nearly every game in order to raise money for Holtville athletics.
Another key figure to Holtville athletics was Madeline Magan. Magan coached tennis from 1974 until 1989, leading the team to six championships during that time.
A former student was honored as one of the best cross-country runners in the state. Miguel Ramirez, who graduated from the high school in 1998, helped the team win a 1996 championship and placed the team second at the state level for that year.
Other former students ranged in accomplishments. One, William Warne, went on to hold several positions in the U.S. government after graduating from Holtville High in 1927. Warne worked for the Department of the Interior and liason with Iran and Korea in the 1950s.
George Brown also ended up in politics after graduating in 1935. Brown was the chairman of the House Committee on Science while he was a U.S. Representative. He worked in Congress from 1963 to 1971 and from 1973 to 1999.
After graduating in 1964, Les Wallace went on to found Signature Resources in 1982. The company tracks business environment and workplace trends and provides consulting services.
And in medicine, graduate Ricardo Vasquez now works as a vascular surgeon at the Vascular Center and Vein Clinic of Southern Indiana.
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