Hall of Fame 2023

Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony

Westminster College is pleased to announce the inductees into the prestigious 2023 Blue Jays Hall of Fame. Induction will take place during a formal ceremony beginning at 6 p.m. on October. 28, 2023, in Mueller Leadership Hall. The evening ― which will feature a live auction ― is scheduled during the Blue Jays’ jam-packed 2023 Homecoming Weekend.   

REGISTRATIONS ARE CLOSED

      
Event Information

 

Saturday
October 28, 2023

Backer Dining Hall in Mueller Leadership Hall, Westminster College

 

6:00 P.M. Cocktails
7:00 P.M. Dinner

 

INDUCTEES

2003 Westminster's Football Team

In 2003, the Blue Jays football team won the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) South Division title and defeated Martin Luther College 28-21 in the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis, Minnesota, winning the team’s first-ever UMAC Conference Championship. The Blue Jays finished the season with a 7-2 record and went 7-0 in the UMAC. The Westminster offense averaged 31.4 points per game, and the defense led the UMAC, allowing only 14 points per game. Nicholas P. Bruck, ’05 IND, was named UMAC Lineman of the Year and South Division Lineman of the Year. Coach John Welty was named the South Division Coach of the Year. Ultimately, 18 Blue Jays football players were named to the All-Conference Team, while six different Blue Jays were named Player of the Week that year. Robert A. Coleman, ’05 IND, holds the program record for rushing attempts in a season with 272. He rushed for 1,419 yards and scored 14 touchdowns in the 2003 season. Colby L. Beal, ’06 ΒΘΠ, is tied for the most interceptions in program history in a season, with seven interceptions. The core of this team returned in 2004 as UMAC South Division champs. They won the UMAC for the second year in a row
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After transferring to Westminster from Jefferson Community College, Erica Burney had an immediate impact on the Blue Jays softball program. A Psychology major, Burney applied herself as a student-athlete, earning back-to-back St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletics (SLIAC) Player of the Year honors and First-Team All-Conference recognition. As a junior, Burney was an All-Tournament Team selection and earned National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) All-America Third Team. She was also named an NFCA All-America Scholar Athlete. Burney is the only Blue Jay in program history to be named an All-American and SLIAC Player of the Year. She earned All-Tournament Team, Academic All-Conference, and NFCA All-America Scholar Athlete honors as a senior while leading the Blue Jays to their first regular-season conference title since 1992. Statistically, Burney is listed in nine Westminster softball statistical categories, including career leader in batting, with an average of .491 and 15 home runs.
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Gracie Koonce was a star Blue Jays soccer player who set four records at the College, including most goals in a game, which took place on Oct. 27, 2018, when Koonce scored five goals against Blackburn College. In that same game against Blackburn, Koonce went down in Westminster history as the player with the most points in a game (12). Additionally, Koonce holds the record for the most points (109) and goals (43) in a career. In 2015, during Koonce’s freshman year, the Blue Jays won the SLIAC conference title for the first time in Westminster history. As team captain in 2018 during her senior year, the team earned their second SLIAC conference title. In 2017 and 2018, Koonce was named to the SLIAC All-Tournament Team and was Second Team All-Conference. She was also SLIAC All-Academic Team three times: in 2016, 2017, and 2018. After majoring in Biochemistry and minoring in Spanish, Koonce graduated summa cum laude from Westminster in 2018. In 2023, she graduated from the Pepperdine University School of Law in Malibu, California.
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Donald P. Lofe, Jr., ’79 IND, earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Accounting and Political Science from Westminster College in 1979. He then attained a Master of Business Administration with concentrations in Finance and Business Policy from The University of Chicago School of Business in 1992. Well-qualified in his field, he is a certified public accountant and a chartered global management accountant (Active Status) and is also COSO Certified by the AICPA.

Leveraging more than four decades of professional excellence in corporate finance, operations, and risk management, Mr. Lofe assumed the role of President and Chief Transformation Officer at Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri, on July 1, 2021. After a unanimous vote, the College’s Board of Trustees officially announced Mr. Lofe as the College’s 23rd president in April 2021, citing the major progress at the historic liberal arts college made under his leadership as Interim President in Fiscal Year 2020-2021, even during an exceptionally challenging year and in the midst of the pandemic. Additionally, he has continued to drive transformational efforts at the College which have been and continue to be focused on many cultural and operational aspects within the entire institution.

Mr. Lofe previously served on the College’s Board of Trustees for approximately eight years in a variety of capacities, including Board Chair, throughout his Board tenure. He is presently on an indefinite and extended leave of absence from his board chair role.

Prior to his appointment at the College as Interim President and Chief Transformation Officer in 2020, Mr. Lofe was most recently a Partner and the Chief Risk Officer for Global Business Services – Mortgage and Lending Solutions for the IBM Corporation, based in San Ramon, California. Lofe has served in several senior executive roles for insurance, community lending, and other financial and mortgage-related service entities, both domestically and internationally, before his tenure with the IBM Corporation. He was also a Partner with PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, specializing in financial services, insurance, and private and public higher-education clientele.

During his time at Westminster, Mr. Lofe also demonstrated exceptional athleticism throughout his tenure with the College’s cross country and indoor and outdoor track and field teams. In 1979, Mr. Lofe earned NAIA Indoor Track and Field All-American status in two events. He was also named to the All-NAIA District 16 teams in cross country, and indoor and outdoor track and field from 1977 to 1979, respectively. Additionally, he and his teammates were members of several NAIA District 16 championship teams, both in cross country and indoor and outdoor track and field throughout this same period. He and several of his teammates also qualified for the NAIA and NCAA National Championships in cross country and outdoor track and field from 1977 to 1979. He was also captain of the cross country and a captain of the track and field teams his senior year. In acknowledgment of his outstanding performance throughout his tenure with Westminster’s cross country and indoor and outdoor track and field teams, Mr. Lofe, in his senior year, was also selected as the 1979 Columns Athlete of the Year.

Mr. Lofe’s wife, Lorraine, is a native of St. Louis, Missouri, who graduated from Southeast Missouri State University in Cape Girardeau with a BS in Business Administration. She is also a CPA. They have a set of grown twins. Their daughter, Lauren, graduated with honors from the University of San Diego in 2019 and is Director of Marketing for a digital marketing company in San Diego, California. Their son, Don III, graduated with merit in 2020 from the U.S. Naval Academy. He is a Naval Aviator based at Tinker Air Force Base, in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

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The members of the Kent, ’62 ΣΑΕ, and Judith Mueller family of Paradise Valley, Arizona, are known at Westminster for their steadfast generosity and open-heartedness toward the College. Most recently, their kindness made possible the Kent and Judith Mueller Stadium and Vicki Mueller Memorial Plaza that will serve current and future Blue Jays for years to come. As a Westminster College student, Kent majored in mathematics while devoting himself to Blue Jays varsity baseball and basketball as well as intramural sports. He attributes much of the lessons he learned from sports participation to how he later approached business: with a competitive edge. Kent was a pioneer in the independent software industry whose career began at IBM. After a lucrative career in corporate America, he later became an entrepreneur and launched a highly successful venture capital business. In 1994, he was named Arizona Entrepreneur of the Year by Inc. magazine. Kent was an Alumni Achievement honoree in 1993, was awarded an honorary degree in 2017, and received the Student Government Association Award in 2000. Kent has served on Westminster’s Board of Trustees since 1994, and since that time, he and Judy have lived by the motto, “Giving doesn’t come from the head. It comes from the heart.” At the College, the Muellers have been keenly interested in providing for students in a number of ways, and most visibly through modern facilities. In addition to the new stadium and memorial plaza, they are responsible for the glorious construction of the Kent and Judith Mueller Student Center in 2001 and Mueller Leadership Hall in 2006. 

Like their parents, the Mueller children ― Sally, Daniel, and Vicki ― are known for their generosity. The Vicki Mueller Memorial Plaza is a testament to Vicki’s strong interest in promoting the success of others. A quick wit who firmly believed in the power of education, Vicki selflessly paid for several friends to attend trade schools or college. She was even quicker to lend her time and talents to friends and family.  

Through their consistent thoughtfulness toward Westminster, the Mueller family truly represents the College’s emphasis of striving for lives of success, significance, and service.

Craig McIntosh majored in Computer Science at Westminster, where he was a dual-sport athlete in men’s basketball and baseball. In Blue Jays men’s basketball history, McIntosh is eighth in points scored, ending his career with 1,317 career points. He is also 11th all-time in career rebounds (560). During the 1986-1987 season, he was named First Team All-Ozark Collegiate Conference (OCC). In the 1987-1988 season, McIntosh was named Second Team All-Conference in the Independent College Athletic Association. On the baseball diamond, McIntosh was a pitcher for the Blue Jays baseball team, placing fifth all-time in career wins (14). He is tied for fifth all-time in career strikeouts (137). McIntosh had a career earned-run average of 3.60 and an earned-run average of 2.79 his senior season in 1988, which gave him the fourth-lowest ERA in a season at the time. He held a then-program record of most strikeouts in a season (58), and in 1986 tied for the fifth all time in the most victories in a season, with six wins.
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Matt Mitchell joined the Westminster College athletic staff as men's Head Basketball Coach and Golf Coach in 1998. In 2005, he relinquished his golf coaching duties to assume additional responsibilities as Director of Athletics, and in 2016, he assumed the role of Senior Director of Athletic Advancement. He currently serves the College as Director of Development and Major Gifts Officer. Mitchell led the Blue Jays men’s basketball team for a total of 24 years and finished with a career record of 301 and 301, making him the second-winningest coach in program history. He led the Blue Jays to three regular season conference titles and four conference tournament victories, taking Westminster to the NCAA tournament on four separate occasions. In total, Mitchell coached seven 1,000-point scorers, one SLIAC Player of the Year, and one SLIAC Newcomer of the Year. He won SLIAC Coach of the Year in 2008-2009, 2009-2010, and 2012-2013. During his tenure, eight different players were named to the SLIAC All-Defensive Team. In that time, 10 were named to the SLIAC All-Tournament Team, with Joseph S. James, ’14 KA, winning tournament MVP in 2012 and Ky D. Millard, ’11 KA, winning tournament MVP in 2010. The Blue Jays won the SLIAC All-Sportsmanship Award five different times with Mitchell at the helm and saw 10 different players named to the SLIAC All-Sportsmanship Team. During his tenure, 28 different Blue Jays were named to the SLIAC All-Conference Team, and 43 were named to the SLIAC Academic All-Conference. Today, Mitchell remains a cornerstone of both Westminster College Athletics and the Fulton community.

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Vernon F. Scheiter, ’77 IND, earned his bachelor’s degree from Westminster after majoring in Economics, Business Administration, and Physical Education. During his time at the College, Scheiter was a decorated Blue Jays athlete who excelled at both cross country and track & field. He was a member of the cross-country team that placed second in District 16 in 1973 and was captain when the team won the district in 1975 and 1976. Scheiter was a four-time national cross-country qualifier and helped the team qualify for nationals in 1974,1975 and 1976. He also served as track & field captain in 1977. In addition to team titles, Scheiter was the District Mile Champion 1974,1975, and1976 and was runner-up in 1977 to a teammate. That year, he received another tremendous accolade by becoming an NAIA All-American by placing third in the national meet for the indoor mile, and he currently holds the Westminster indoor mile record. Ultimately, Blue Jays track & field placed 10th in the Nationals in 1977. Finally, Scheiter was the Westminster College Athlete of the Year in 1976. He would like to recognize his teammates for their cross-country training together in mornings and afternoons, any weather, seven days a week, across gravel back roads, highways, and fields that added up to 100 miles per week. "Stride for stride, they were there with me. Thank you," he says. Today, Scheiter is happily retired from a successful career in the airline industry. He was instrumental in developing United Parcel Service Cargo airlines which now is the second largest in the world. Scheiter lives in La Grange, Kentucky, with his wife, Donna, of 37 years. They have two daughters, Emily and Erin.

Auction

This event will feature a silent auction and a brief,
exciting live auction. Support the Westminster
Blue Jays by bidding on a variety of items!

FEATURED ITEMS

Beach House Vacation in Hermosa Beach, California

Dallas Wings WNBA Game floor seats and suite access

Golf Experience at Mariott Champions Circle hotel and Golf Course and Big Shots Golf, Fort Worth, Texas

St. Louis Cardinals home game honorary first pitch, tickets for four, and passes to the UMB Champions Club

FEATURED GUEST SPEAKER

R. MARCUS “MARK” BUROFF, ’76 ΔΤΔ

MANAGING DIRECTOR, CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER

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R. Marcus “Mark” Buroff, ’76 ΔΤΔ, is the Managing Director and Chief Information Officer for the National Collegiate Athletic Association, where he oversees all facets of technology. Mr. Buroff joined the NCAA in 2012 as the Director of Infrastructure, bringing more than four decades of expertise in advancing information systems. He was appointed CIO in 2022.

Mr. Buroff works with more than 1,200 colleges, universities, and conferences, facing some of the most challenging technology issues in the landscape of today’s intercollegiate sports. Prior to his role with the NCAA, he served as the Director of Platform Information at Omnicare. Mr. Buroff has worked in various
technology leadership roles at Xchanging, JP Morgan Chase, Time Warner Cable, CompuServe, and Schering-Plough. He has also held technology-related positions at IBM, TRW, and Unisys. In addition to his professional roles, during his “free time,” Mr. Buroff spent 19 years coaching high school girls’ lacrosse.

Mr. Buroff earned an MBA from the University of Missouri and a BA from Westminster College, where he majored in Physical Education and was a student-athlete on the swimming team.

SPONSORSHIP LEVELS

Title Sponsor - $10,000

2 Tables (16 Seats) - Includes Dinner and Open Bar

Gold Sponsor - $5,000

2 Tables (16 Seats) - Includes Dinner and Open Bar

Silver Sponsor - $2,500

1 Table (8 Seats) - Includes Dinner and Open Bar

Individual Tickets or Sponsor a Student Athlete - $125

Includes Dinner and Two Drink Tickets

 

All proceeds will support student experience, scholarships,
academic and athletic excellence, and enhancements to the
Westminster College campus.

If you want to pay later (via cheque) - please fill this form and please send payment to the attention of Susan Whitmar at 501 Westminster Ave, Fulton, MO 65251

Registrations Closed