UMSL staff members enjoyed lunch items and company in the Nosh during the Staff Association Awards and Picnic earlier this month. (Photos by August Jennewein)

It is no secret that the University of Missouri–St. Louis community is composed of a vibrant and diverse group of individuals who work tirelessly together to uphold the institution’s reputation as a leader in both education and community service. Much of this success can be attributed to the nearly 1,000 dedicated staff members who help shape UMSL into the thriving and welcoming campus that it is.

In honor of such integral service and commitment, the UMSL Staff Association hosted its annual awards ceremony and picnic Aug. 12 at the Millennium Student Center. During the festivities, 138 staff members’ milestone years of service were celebrated by a variety of campus officials, including Staff Association President Nick Palisch and Chancellor Tom George, who both spoke highly of the entire staff’s dedicated and collaborative spirit. For the picnic portion, staff members enjoyed everything from hot dogs to snow cones and had the chance to win raffle prizes from contributing companies like Starbucks and AT&T.

Staff members (from left) Rochelle Declue, Ken Braylock and Linder Williams are three of nearly 1,000 people who help make UMSL the university that it is.

One special awardee, Gloria Leonard, who will soon be retiring after an astounding 45 years of service, remarked that in all her time at UMSL “there has never been a dull moment.”

Leonard, who has served under every UMSL chancellor except James Bugg, was quick to praise many of her coworkers who she says have become “like family over the years because of their loyalty and support.” She added that the most exciting part of her time with UMSL has been the opportunity to “literally watch a campus grow and develop into a very respected institution.”

The day’s awardees were as follows:

5 Years of Service
Mary Jo Adams, Paul Anderson, Amy Banken, Amy Benwell, Mary Bono, James Brookman III, Latrina Calvin, Cassidy Cooley, Erika Cotton, Daniel Doerr, Shpend Dvorani, Megan Finnegan, Dorothy Fleming, Katherine Fraizer, Deborah Godwin, Jeffrey Griswold, Karl Guenther, Martin Hecht, Jason Hoeft, Tiffany Izzard, Roger Jesse, Katie Jessie, Kathryn Johnson, Stephanie Kaimann, Dejan Karan, Tegan Klevorn, Beth Krumm, Marjorie Lodge, Jeff Lovell, Julie Matthews, Kimberly McCollom-Hull, Alysia Palm, Kelsey Proud, Charles Roeseler, Sara Ross, Patricia Sanders, Marcia Seabourne, Scott Simmons, Angelique Speck, Lela Taussig, Tiffany Thomas, Tara VanDeVoorde, Mikhail Yelenskiy, Ryan Young

10 Years of Service
Karen Bartoni, Kenneth Braylock, Nancy Cook, John Creamer, Martha Donovan, Katherine Drewry, Hasim Dullovi, Lori Flanagan, Cynthia Gemignani, Marshall Griffin, Linda Guetterman, Mary Hackmeister, Laura Hayes, Linda Hearst, August Jennewein, Theresa Keuss, Stephanie Koscielski, Kalisha Lemmitt, Cornell Lewis Jr., Rebecca Mottl, Madalyn Painter, Ryan Reagan, Calvin Rhodes, Justin Roberts, Mark Sisley, Sharon Smith, Debra Sprague, Steven Struck, Lisa Taylor, Kathleen Thompson, Mary Thurmond, Ahmet Unal, Patricia Wallace, Kyle Wilkinson, Corey Worth

15 Years of Service
Henry Belton, Rachel Boehlow, Michael Butler, Concepcion Chavez, Jerol Enoch, Willie Fleming Jr., Mitchell Hess, Michelle Hill, Brian Huxtable, Jaime Lincoln, Celeste Marx, Patrick McKeon, Terrence Moore, Margaret Naes, Jesse Nay Lor, Jeanne Ortega, Mary Pastor, Anna Savu, Christopher Scheetz, John Shanklin, James Starkey, Susana Torres, Svetlana Veljkovich, Jason Wagstaff, William Warren

20 Years of Service
Marcel Bechtoldt, Karen Boyd, Katherine Burney Miller, Darryl Crites, Patrick Dollard, Debra Granger, Roger Kujath, Thomas Lange, Dennis Opfer, Michael Schrand, Christopher Sullivan, Patrick Tansey, Kenneth Voss, Lynn Voss, Paul Wilmarth, Charles Zoeller Jr.

25 Years of Service
Alice Canavan, Shanta Kyles, Sandra Morris, Kenneth Rapsilber, Robert Ross, Linder Williams

30 Years of Service
Chrisann Boyer, David Brown, Charlotte Hitchcock, Robert Malon

35 Years of Service
Mary Brown, Rochelle Declue

40 Years of Service
John Burton, Robert Easton Jr., Gary Velders, Joann Westbrook

45 Years of Service
Gloria Leonard