Four notable Lamar University alumni will be honored as distinguished alumni Feb. 24. The Lamar University Alumni Advisory Board's Distinguished Alumni Awards Committee makes the annual selections. The Distinguished Alumni Awards Dinner will be held at 6:30 p.m. at the University Reception Center on the eighth floor of the Mary and John Gray Library. Alumni and friends who wish to attend the Distinguished Alumni Awards Dinner must make reservations by Feb. 10. Reservations and payments can be made online at the Distinguished Alumni link located at www.lamar.edu or by calling the Alumni Office at (409) 880-8921. See expanded release a twww.lamar.edu .
Jim Gilligan '69,'70 , LU's longest serving baseball coach, reached more than 1,200 wins during the Cardinals' 2011 campaign, a feat accomplished by only five other active NCAA Division I baseball coaches. Gilligan has served Lamar University for more than 34 years on the coaching staff of the Cardinals baseball team. He began coaching the Cards in 1973 earning his 500 th win in 1986, twice taking his team within one game of the College World Series.
Steve Moore '77, entertainment executive, has gone from playing trumpet and working construction jobs at night to pay his college expenses to CEO of the Country Music Association, representing more than 6,000 music industry professionals and companies around the globe. The LU grad has organized and run shows for high-profile clients such as Brooks & Dunn, Faith Hill, Alan Jackson, Tim McGraw, Kenney Chesney, Taylor Swift and Sugarland to name a few.
Don Pumphrey '88 , community and service leader, earned the bachelor's degree in communication and has been a consistent and reliable point-man for community service and community relations for more than 40 years. He began his career in television as a reporter for KJAC-TV in Port Arthur and KFDM-TV in Beaumont in the early '70s before joining the City of Beaumont as community relations coordinator and community development coordinator. He has been active with many organizations advocating for children, the elderly and the less fortunate.
Michele Smith '88, local attorney and community leader, is a super lawyer and a super civic servant. A shareholder with the law firm MehaffyWeber, she has extensive background in product liability and premises liability cases, representing clients in state and federal courts. Texas Monthly magazine selected her as a "Texas Rising Star" in 2005 and a "Texas Super Lawyer" from 2005-2011. She was included on the "Top 100 List-Houston Region", the "Top 50 Women in Texas", and the "Top 100 List-Texas" for Texas Super Lawyers.
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