Beaumont's Inaugural President's Reception Recognizes Distinguished and Hall of Fame Award Winners

Beaumont hosted its inagural President's Reception this weekend with President Wendy Hoke recoginizing important members of the Beaumont community. The event was well attended at Beaumont School as President Hoke presented the following awards:

Distinguished Alumna Award:

Noreen Friend Fraser ’71 was posthumously awarded the 2018 Distinguished Alumna Award. Noreen was the President and CEO of the Noreen Fraser Foundation and co-creator of the Stand Up to Cancer Organization, both dedicated to funding groundbreaking women’s cancer research. Noreen passed away from breast cancer in March 2017 after living courageously with the disease for 16 years. She and her five sisters (Colleen ’70, Cooper ’77, Lucy ’77, Laura ’77, and Bridget ’85) all are proud graduates, along with their mother, Jackie ’47.

Beaumont Award:

Ray and Eleanor Smiley are the recipients of the 2018 Beaumont Award. Through the generosity of the Smiley family, Beaumont was able to advance our fundraising efforts dramatically in 2018. They have generously supported Catholic organizations throughout Cleveland, often challenging them to build their capacity for fundraising. We are grateful to the Smiley Family for their continued belief in Catholic education and their willingness to invest in Beaumont in order to better support our students.

Athletic Hall of Fame:

Team—The Beaumont 1990 Track & Field Team were inducted to the inaugural Athletic Hall of Fame. This team won the 1990 State Championship with a record-breaking 98 points (nine 1st place wins and 1 second place win, along with four state records in 1990). At the time, this was the 5th consecutive Track & Field title for Beaumont, along with their 8th consecutive conference title, both state records as well.

Coach—Mr. Gary Bill received the first Hall of Fame award in coaching. Mr. Bill coached at Beaumont School from 1989-2000, leading teams in softball (both slow and fast pitch), volleyball, basketball, track & field, and golf. He initiated the development of both varsity fast-pitch softball and golf teams during his tenure, and was named Plain Dealer Coach of the Year for Fast Pitch Softball in 1997. Mr. Bill began his time at Beaumont as a volunteer coach, after retiring from a long career in physical education for Cleveland Public Schools.

Individual—Richelle Webb Dixon ’90 received the first Hall of Fame award as an individual athlete. Richelle was a multiple time state champion and state record holder in 100m and 200m dash as well as participated in 3 relay team events at Beaumont. She continued her track career at the University of Michigan where she won two individual Big Ten titles, and in 1993 and 1994 was named to the first team All-Big Ten, and was the Big Ten Athlete of the Year in 1994. Richelle still owns the University of Michigan outdoor 200-meter dash record.