Alumni Association awards acknowledge Bruin achievement

Leading the room in a spirited 8-clap, KNBC news reporter and UCLA alumnus Patrick Healy kicked off a celebration of Bruin pride that honored notable alumni and friends of UCLA on Sunday.

Hosted by the UCLA Alumni Association, the event highlighted Bruin excellence by bestowing awards upon UCLA alumni in areas ranging from professional achievement to university service. The celebration also honored high-achieving professors, graduate students and graduating seniors.

“The mission of this event is to honor alumni and others who have contributed in exemplary ways. … These alumni all understand what it means to be a Bruin and carry it out in their everyday lives,” said Ralph Amos, the executive director of the Alumni Association.

The ceremony culminated with the presentation of the highest alumni tribute, the Edward A. Dickson Alumnus of the Year Award, to former UCLA football coach Terry Donahue. The 1967 graduate also worked as the general manager of the San Francisco 49ers and currently serves as an analyst for the NFL.

Current football coach Rick Neuheisel and former chancellor Charles E. Young praised Donahue in an introductory video, and several former football players commended their coach’s character and ability to inspire.

Donahue said he was taken aback and humbled when he was notified about the award.

“I was absolutely shocked when Coretta (Harris, the selection committee chair) called and said I had been selected. I was excited, yet I felt a strong sense of humility because of the caliber of people being honored,” Donahue said.

Donahue was modest when a student questioned him about his career.

“Well, I guess I succeeded some,” he said in response.

Among the other honorees was attorney David A. Lash, recipient of the Community Service Award. As executive director of Bet Tzedek Legal Services, he provided free legal aid to poor, elderly and disabled community residents.

Raised in a family of Bruins, Lash grew up hearing stories of his parents engaging in activism at UCLA.

“As students, my parents helped to organize a boycott against a Westwood barber shop that wouldn’t cut the hair of African American students. They marched in rallies to ban the atomic bomb. … These were the stories I grew up with,” Lash said.

His own undergraduate education played an equally influential role in empowering him to make a difference through service.

“I learned to use my knowledge and the power of the law to combat injustice,” Lash said.

The University Service Award was presented to Jeffrey A. Seymour for his exceptional dedication to UCLA. The former president of the Alumni Association has long emphasized the importance of student participation in university issues. He also served as a University of California alumni regent and president of UCLA Jewish Alumni.

Fred Wudl, the recipient of the Professional Achievement Award, is one of the top 100 chemists in the world, according to the Institute for Scientific Information. He serves as codirector of the UC Santa Barbara Center for Polymers and Organic Solids and was the former Dean Willard Chair in Chemistry at UCLA.

The Public Service Award went to Cindy Miscikowski for her expertise on city planning and her work on the Los Angeles City Council. She is a senior fellow at the UCLA School of Public Affairs.

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