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University Honors 2017's Presidential Service Award Recipients

10/19/2017

More than 95 employees who have served Saint Louis University for years and who reached milestone years in that service were honored at a recognition breakfast on Thursday, Oct. 5. The employees honored celebrated milestones between 25 and 60 years of service. This year's group of recipients represents 2,875 years of combined service.

The speakers at the 2017 Presidential Service Award breakfast

(From left) Jeffrey Gfeller, Ph.D., chair of psychology, Mark Haenchen, J.D., director and radiation safety officer in the Research Integrity and Safety Group, and Elizabeth Lawrence, business manager in the School for Professional Studies, spoke at this year's Presidential Service Award breakfast. Photo by Patrick Maloney

Mickey Luna, vice president for human resources, congratulated the honorees while Don Highberger, S.J., delivered the event's invocation.

Three of those honored spoke, reflecting on their careers with the University.

“One of the activities that I’m most proud of in terms of being part of SLU has been the teaching, training, and mentoring that our faculty and staff do for and with the students who attend SLU each year,” Jeffrey Gfeller, Ph.D., professor and chair of psychology, said. Gfeller has been at SLU 25 years.

Elizabeth Lawrence, business manager in the School for Professional Studies and the Center for Workforce and Organizational Development, who has been with the University for 25 years, cited the mentorship of her former supervisor, Sue Tebb, former dean of the School of Social Work, as evidence that SLU has fostered a community where employees can grow.

“During my time here, I’ve had people care about me in unexpected ways,” Lawrence said. “She [Tebb] took the time to invest in me personally and professionally. She helped to me to grow into who I am today.”

Mark Haenchen, J.D., has been at SLU for 25 years as well. The director of the Research Integrity and Safety Group, shared reflections on a conversation with a high school senior interviewing for the Presidential Scholarship. The student, he said, asked him what Haenchen liked most about the University. Haenchen cited its sense of community.

“It is real,” Haenchen said. “It is palpable. So many good people. You, we, are good people. I celebrate that today. We are family. We genuinely care about each other. We share good times. We share frustrations. We share our pain. It’s what families do.”

“In whatever we do, we are passionate,” Haenchen continued. “And we are passionate about SLU because we care.”

The Presidential Service Award is given each year to employees celebrating a service year milestone anniversary of 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, and 60 years of service. Honorees also receive a recognition package during the month of their anniversary date. For more information about SLU’s recognition programs, please visit the University Faculty and Staff Recognition Portal.

The full list of this year’s honorees includes:

60 Years –

45 Years –

40 Years –

35 Years –

30 Years –

25 Years –