Central Lee formally inducts 18 into Halls of Fame

DONNELSON – Eighteen former Central Lee students were inducted into the school’s Halls of Fame Saturday in a ceremony at Central Lee High School.
Superintendent Dr. Andy Crozier welcomed a full house in the high school gymnasium to introduce nine inductees from 2022 and nine from 2023.
Included in the inductees are three medical doctors and a former CEO of Texas Instruments, among many others.
The 2022 Academic Hall of Fame honorees include Howard Lee Carter, Dr. John Charles Jabour, and Mary Sue Megchelsen Chatfield.
Carter spent 31 years as a Central Lee educator, teaching social studies and math. He was named the 1980 teacher of the year, in part due to his innovative Multi-Occupations Cooperative (MOC) program through which students were placed with manufacturers in business for hands-on training. He also began a World of Work class that enabled students to learn about resumes and interviewing, advertising, filing taxes, and other key concepts. 
Chatfield is a former first-grade teacher leader who presented various curriculum ideas at the Iowa Reading Council and Iowa Social Studies Conferences. Chatfield also served on the steering committee of the National Geographic Alliance of Iowa, along with the local Comprehensive School Improvement Plan committee. She was named Central Lee’s teacher of the year in 2004. She was also named a Southeastern Community College Distinguished alumni in 2011.
A graduate of the class of 1973, Dr. John Jabour has also been inducted into the Academic Hall of Fame this year. While in high school, Dr. Jabour was on the campus bowl team, earned an ACT score over 30  was named a State of Iowa Scholar, and received a National Merit Letter of Commendation through the PSAT program.
Dr. Jabour went on to attend the University of Iowa, where he was a member of the honors program. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in chemistry with highest distinction, was the Merck Index award winner for being the top-ranked graduating senior in chemistry, and was a member of the prestigious Phi Beta Kappa Society.
Jabour also had the infamous claim to fame of treating heavy metal rocker Ozzy Osbourne after the singer ingested the head of a live bat.
In 2022 the three honored with inductions into the Fine Arts Hall of Fame included David Roth, Kelsey Hammer-Parks, and Morgan Krehbiel.
Roth is part of the local music group Ozone Ramblers that were just notified of an induction into the Iowa Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
A graduate of the class of 2008, Krehbiel participated in yearbook, art club, community problem solving through the TAG program, marching band, and show band. She is a 2012 graduate of Northwestern University, where she earned a bachelor of arts in art theory and practice with honors.
Hammer-Parks has received many honors for video journalism including a state award for chronicling the impact recent derechos have had on Iowans throughout the state.
As part of the 2023 Fine Arts HOF class, inductee Judith Burgin dedicated 38 years as a Central Lee educator, teaching both Spanish and English. In addition to her teaching duties, Burgin served as an advisor to the Spanish Club, directed the senior class play for several years, and acted as a volunteer liaison for foreign exchange students. She emphasized real-world experience by frequently studying abroad, encouraging students to broaden their horizons beyond southeast Iowa.
Jerry Junkins, posthumously inducted this year, was a 1955 graduate of Montrose High School who went on to become the president, chairman, and CEO of Texas Instruments (TI) from 1988 until his passing in 1996. Junkins, who was the salutatorian of his high school class and married the class valedictorian, Sally Schevers, graduated from Iowa State University in 1959 with a degree in electrical engineering. After relocating to Dallas, he joined Texas Instruments while pursuing a master's degree in engineering administration.
A graduate of the Central Lee class of 1992, Phil Tweedy distinguished himself as a high-achieving student during his high school years. His accolades included winning the Physics Bowl, receiving the Outstanding Senior Science Student award, and earning the Presidential Academic Fitness Award. Additionally, Tweedy was a part of the 1989 Iowa State Baseball All-Tournament Team, and his FFA team achieved gold at the state convention.
The ceremony also recognized six former student athletes. The Class of 2022 includes Rich Schiller, Megan (Weirather) Warneke, and long-time Hawk coach Lon Spurgin. The 2023 class honored Don Ford, Jeff Brisby, and Christy (Holtkamp) Schrader.
Ford dedicated more than three decades to coaching at Central Lee. Throughout his career, he coached an impressive six sports. Among his notable achievements, he founded the volleyball program at Central Lee and served as the head coach for 31 years. Ford's guidance led the volleyball team to capture nine conference titles in a decade, earning him multiple conference coach of the year awards.
Ford's influence extended to numerous sports, with 11 years as head basketball coach, another 10 years as an assistant, as well as 10 years as head coach of girls' track and softball. Additionally, he served as an assistant football coach for one year and volunteered as the head girls' golf coach for three years.
Also inducted this year is Jeff Brisby, one of the most distinguished student-athletes in Central Lee's history. His exceptional talents transcended multiple sports, earning him first-team all-conference honors in football, basketball, and baseball. Brisby was a standout on the All-Hawkeye Land team in both baseball and basketball and received honorable mention all-state recognition in all three sports.
Christy Schrader (Holtkamp) is a Central Lee graduate and accomplished three-sport athlete. Her basketball achievements include scoring 1,311 points and grabbing 733 rebounds. Her defensive talent is evidenced by an astounding 273 blocked shots, placing her among the top 50 high school girl basketball players in state history.
2022 inductees include Lon Spurgin who served as a coach at Central Lee for over three decades. Over his career, he coached girls’ basketball, volleyball, and baseball. Spurgin’s career highlights as the girls’ basketball coach include leading the team to a second-place finish at the state tournament in 2000 and coaching the team in the 1999 All-Star Game. He was recognized for coaching girls’ basketball throughout his career, being named the 3A Coach of the Year in 2000 and Burington Hawkeyeland Coach of the Year in 1985, 1993, 1998, and 2000.
Also inducted in 2022 is Rick Schiller, who had an unmatched athletic career during his time as a student-athlete. He was the first person to receive first team honors in three sports (basketball, baseball, and football) in the history of the Blackhawk Conference. He earned first team all-conference in basketball for three years.
Schiller held the scoring record for basketball at Central Lee for 35 years, with 40 percent of his shots made outside of what is now considered the three-point line.
Megan Weirather is a Central Lee Class of 2006 graduate who held 19 school athletic records, including 11 in softball and eight in volleyball. Weirather started on varsity softball as an eighth-grade student and earned all-state honors in softball three times. She received both the Bernie Saggau Award and Army Reserve National Scholar Athlete Award in 2006.
Weirather’s career highlights included finishing as a 1,000 point-scorer in basketball, being recognized as academic all-conference between all sports from 2005-2006, and being named to the academic all-state basketball team as a senior.