HATBORO-HORSHAM HIGH SCHOOL WELCOMES SIX NEW MEMBERS TO HALL OF FAME

HORSHAM – Hatboro-Horsham High School inducted six new people into its Hall of Fame during a special ceremony held on April 22.

The six inductees for this year were:

• Dr. Marion Gilmour Buck – Class of 1954 – Science

• Nancy Charles-Columbia - Class of 1973 - Government

• Deborah Harkness - Class of 1983 - The Arts

• William Miracle - Class of 1964 - Government/Business

• Lawrence Stuardi - Class of 1975 - Business

• Jamie Haddon - Class of 1991 - Community

At the ceremony, each inductee received a plaque and their names were added to the high school’s Hall of Fame wall. Hatboro-Horsham High School alumni, along with some non-alumni, are nominated for the Hall of Fame every two years. A nominating committee of principals, teachers, former Hall of Fame members and parents decide who is chosen for the Hall of Fame, which began in 1990. Brief bios of the inductees follow below:

Dr. Marion Gilmour Buck - Class of 1954 - Science

Dr. Buck is being inducted for her contributions to science, specifically in the field of biochemistry. After earning a Ph.D in biochemistry, Dr. Buck travelled to Sydney, Australia to begin her research which continued at the University of Pennsylvania and further continued at the University of Louisville Medical School where she also taught biochemistry. She continued her research after accepting a position at Yale University where her work was published and presented both nationally and internationally. In 1974, Dr. Buck accepted the position as Principal Investigator in the Department of Internal Medicine, Pulmonary Section, where she began new research on the cause of Byssinosis. Her work took her overseas to Holland where she accepted a Scientific Faculty Research Fellow position. Her published work once again led to national and international recognition. Dr. Buck has been a contributing member of her community since her retirement from Yale in 1994.

Nancy Charles-Columbia - Class of 1973 - Government

Ms. Charles-Columbia is being inducted for her service and accomplishments as a female pilot for the U.S. Navy. She graduated from Temple University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications in 1977. She worked as a public relations specialist at the U.S. Naval Academy before being selected as one of five women for U.S. Navy Flight Training; the only one of which to complete the training and receive her pilot wings. Nancy was then assigned to the U.S. Navy Squadron VXE-6 where she flew scientists and equipment throughout the continent of Antarctica. Other notable accomplishments include being a Flight Instructor for the Navy Squadron VT-6 and an international and domestic pilot for Delta AirLines where she holds the highest possible FAA rating of Airline Transport Pilot. Nancy became the 13th female Captain at Delta Airlines in 2002 and was the first female pilot asked to participate on the AirLine Pilots Association Professional Standards Committee.

Deborah Harkness - Class of 1983 - The Arts

Ms. Harkness is being inducted for her contributions to the arts. A New York
Times Best Selling author, she has received Fullbright, Guggenheim, and National Humanities Center fellowships and earned degrees from Mt. Holyoke College, Northwestern University, and the University of California at Davis. Ms. Harkness has researched and studied the history of magic and science in many libraries around the world. Her published works include John Dee’s Conversations with Angels: Cabala, Alchemy, and the End of Nature; The Jewel House: Elizabethan London and the Scientific Revolution; and A Discovery of Witches. She currently teaches European history and the history of science at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles.

William Miracle - Class of 1964 - Government/Business

Mr. Miracle is being inducted for his service as a businessman and his impact to his local community. After earning a Purple Heart and the Silver Star Award in Vietnam, he attended Temple University, then founded Miracle Drywall Construction Company in 1975. In the early 1990s, Mr. Miracle began devoting a significant portion of his time to his community where he has positively impacted a number of institutions. For the last 15 years, he has co-chaired the Coopersburg Community Day; he spent 16 years serving on the Southern Lehigh School District Board of Directors; and held a 16 year tenure on The Joint Operating Committee for the Lehigh Career and Technical Institute. In 2011, he was elected to serve as “Trustee at Large” to the Lehigh Carbon Community College System where he is currently serving as

Trustee to the College and is Chairman of the Joint Coordinating Committee.

Lawrence Stuardi - Class of 1975 - Business

Mr. Staurdi is being inducted for his accomplishments in real estate development. He attended Kutztown University of Pennsylvania then became a project developer at Rouse & Associates. In 1991, Mr. Stuardi founded MRA Group, a multi-disciplined firm that specializes in real estate services for health care and institutional clients. MRA provides practical and strategic solutions for its construction projects including rehabbing or retrofitting obsolete buildings into modern facilities. His impressive list of projects include: medical facilities, office buildings, ambulatory centers, senior housing projects, office campuses, and multi-building student housing.

Jamie Haddon - Class of 1991 - Community

Mr. Haddon is being inducted for his service to community organizations. He is an Eagle Scout who received a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Delaware Valley College in 1995. In 2008, he completed his Master’s in Public Safety Management with an emphasis in Fire and EMS Management at St. Joseph’s University. In his 20 year career, he has served as Executive Director at the Second Alarms Association and Rescue Squad of Montgomery County; as a firefighter and EMT-B/Driver Operator for six departments in South Eastern Pennsylvania; and worked for the Boy Scouts of America. Mr. Haddon currently serves as the President and CEO of the United Way of Bucks County where, in his tenure, the number of people in the community reached by the organization has doubled to 1 in 5 Bucks County Residents.

Dennis Williams, Hatboro-Horsham’s high school principal noted, while attending the luncheon following the ceremony, “It is an honor to have these accomplished alumni inducted into our Hall of Fame. Each day our students strive to do their best; these six inductees are proof that hard work and dedication pays off!”

Pictured from left to right are: Deborah Harkness, William Miracle, Jamie Haddon, Lawrence Stuardi, Nancy Charles-Columbia, and Dr. Marion Gilmour Buck.

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