Raymond Weeks ’30 was posthumously honored by the Birmingham Public Library as “the father of Veteran's Day.” Weeks is credited with expanding Armistice Day’s recognition of World War I veterans to honor all United States veterans, an idea that was formalized by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1954. In 1942, shortly after graduating from BSC, Weeks enlisted in the U.S. Navy for service in World War II. He later served three terms in the Alabama State House of Representatives and was an awarded and active member of many civic and veteran groups.

Dr. Bruce Irwin ’72, CEO of American Family Care and BSC Trustee, has led the company towards significant franchise development growth following the difficulties of the pandemic. American Family Care had the best quarter in its history during the third quarter of 2021, during which its team closed 22 deals to open new franchise locations across the nation. Irwin and his team are on track to open the 200th franchise unit by the new year.

Clete Walker ’90, CEO of Vituro Health, is a finalist in the Birmingham Business Journal’s CEO Awards for 2021. The awards recognize excellence among top executives in the Birmingham-metro area for businesses of all sizes and industries. Vituro Health provides comprehensive prostate cancer care through a personalized concierge-care model.

Ashley Boatright Kizzire ’95 accepted a position as vice president of marketing for consulting firm Advancing Organizational Excellence, a division of the American Concrete Institute of Farmington Hills, Mich. The firm specializes in business and marketing consulting for the building, design, concrete, and other technical industries.

Keidane McAlpine ’97 has been named the sixth head coach of the University of Georgia’s soccer program. In his previous position as head coach for the University of Southern California women’s soccer, McAlpine led the team to eight-straight NCAA tournament appearances, including a national championship in 2016. He was also recognized as the Pac-12 Conference Coach of the Year in 2021 as well as in 2013 as head coach at Washington State University.

Stuart Franco ’03, owner of Focus Creative Birmingham, and Jeris Gaston ’05, partner at Bridgeworth Wealth Management, are members of the 2021-22 class of the Alabama Leadership Initiative. This year’s class is made up of 59 emerging business and community leaders from across the state.

Samuel E. Russell, Jr. ’42 of Birmingham on Nov. 18, 2021. Russell served as 2nd Lieutenant in the U.S. Air Corp and navigator in a Night Fighter Squadron during World War II. After returning, he served as president of Russell Realty and president of the Birmingham chapter of Certified Commercial Investment Members. Russell’s son Brandon E. Russell ’83 is also a BSC graduate.

Elise Berthon ’52 of Birmingham on Oct. 30, 2021. A lifelong Birmingham resident, Berthon retired from ACIPCO, where she was the executive assistant to the president and CEO. She was the first woman to receive a 50-year service award at the company. Berthon was a member of Canterbury United Methodist Church, where she was part of the Knit Wits group, and a board member for Carraway Methodist Medical Center, the BSC Advisory Board, and the Salvation Army Women’s Auxiliary. She was also actively involved in her sorority, Gamma Phi Beta, and served in numerous positions and on boards both statewide and nationally.

Fredda Hanson Benefield ’53 of Birmingham on Nov. 18, 2021. Benefield studied speech and drama at BSC before spending 12 years with the Town and Gown Theatre on the stage and in production for the organization. While raising her family in the 1960s, she hosted a popular children’s show on Alabama Public Television and was nominated for Birmingham’s Woman of the Year in 1968. Benefield served as chair of the Birmingham Festival of Arts, publicity chair for the Birmingham Museum of Art’s Elegant Event, and as a board member for the Alabama Symphony Orchestra’s Women’s Committee. She was a fixture of the city’s cultural arts scene and a lifelong member of the Episcopal church.

Frank D. Malone ’53 of Birmingham on Oct .29, 2021. Malone studied education at BSC prior to entering the U.S. Army in 1953, where he was stationed in Europe. He was employed as a safety supervisor for Pullman Standard in Bessemer and then as safety supervisor for Alabama Power Miller Steam Plant in West Jefferson. Malone was a lifelong member of Gardendale Methodist Church/Gardendale Mt. Vernon United Methodist Church, where he taught a Sunday School class for more than 50 years that is now named after him.

Helen Landel Faught ’58 of Birmingham on Nov. 2, 2021. Faught attended Agnes Scott College and graduated from BSC, where she met her husband of 63 years, Harold Faught ’57. While on the Hilltop, she was a member of Alpha Chi Omega and a finalist in the Miss Alabama Pageant. She was an active member of Sixth Avenue Presbyterian Church and later Mountain Brook Presbyterian Church, where she served on the Chancel Guild. After raising her three sons, Faught  was a successful agent with LAH Real Estate. She was also active in the P.E.O. Sisterhood, a philanthropic organization helping women increase their opportunities in higher education.

Dr. Robert H. Carlson III ’65 of Birmingham on Dec. 19, 2020. Carlson attended Washington and Lee University, graduated from BSC, and received his medical degree from the University of Alabama. After graduation, he received a fellowship to study under French geneticist Jerome Lejeune, who discovered Trisomy 21. Upon completion of his residency in Denver, he took a position in a family practice in Dolores, Colo., where he and his family cultivated an ardent passion for hunting, fishing, and conservation. Carlson returned to Birmingham to practice emergency medicine and started one of the first urgent care practices in the state. His career was characterized by a deep compassion for his patients and those in need, particularly in the face of tragedy. He served as a first responder after the attacks of 9/11, setting up triage units at Ground Zero. In 2010, he traveled to Haiti to deliver care to people after an earthquake.

Kathryn Dean Donovan Leeman ’69 of Birmingham on Oct. 22, 2021. While at BSC, Leeman was a member of Pi Beta Phi, and she later earned her Master of Education degree from UAB. She enjoyed a long career as an educator and touched the lives of many as a teacher, principal, librarian, and reading specialist.

John Wallace Whiteman ’73 of Nashville on Nov. 5, 2021. Whiteman’s successful professional career in IT took him to Maine, where he lived until he returned to his hometown of Nashville during his retirement in the early 2000s. His “joie de vivre” often began with meeting like-minded golfing friends at one of their many favorite golf courses or meeting friends for lunch at one of their “food stops.” Some of Whiteman’s favorite life experiences included vacations at beautiful Les Cheneaux, Mich. and Perdido Beach, Fla. where boats and beaches provided idyllic amounts of sun, boating, swimming, and many happy moments spent with family and friends.

James D. Blackburn of Birmingham on Nov. 25, 2021. Blackburn graduated from Central College in Fayette, Mo., before pursuing his lifelong passion for education in graduate school and as a high school teacher. He later moved to North Carolina, where he received his doctorate in education from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Blackburn accepted a position at the University of Alabama and then joined the education faculty at BSC, where he taught courses in history, sociology, and the philosophy of education. He was an avid history scholar with expertise in Native American culture, the American Civil War, and early American firearms, knives, and coins. During his retirement, Blackburn operated J. Blackburn and Co., which sold cigars, pipe tobacco, and smoking accessories.