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Newsmakers

George Wuerch, ’57, mayor of Anchorage, Alaska, and his wife, Brenda Hughes Wuerch, ’57, welcomed President George W. Bush and Laura Bush during an official visit to the city in May 2002.

Warren Washington, ’58, ’60, Louisville, Colo., has been elected chairman of the National Science Board. He is head of the Climate Change Research Section at the National Center for Atmospheric Research and has served on the National Science Board since 1994.
Ronald K. Hanson, ’61, has been elected to the National Academy of Engineering. He chairs the department of mechanical engineering at Stanford University.

Theron M. Bradley Jr., ’69, has been named chief engineer at NASA. He will be responsible for the overall review and technical readiness of all NASA programs, reporting to NASA Administrator Sean O’Keefe in Washington, D.C. For the last 20 years, he’s been the director of Naval Nuclear Propulsion as a field representative and manager of that agency’s Idaho branch office. He is a former Navy nuclear engineer in the Naval Nuclear Propulsion program. He’s also served as a civilian with the U.S. Department of Energy and the Department of Defense in numerous leadership and management positions with the Office of Naval Reactors, at the Idaho branch and in Washington D.C.

Clarke R. Lethin, ’80, a U.S. Marine Corps lieutenant colonel, has been awarded the Legion of Merit for his actions in Afghanistan during Operation Enduring Freedom. He was the operations officer for Task Force 58 and led the planning and execution of landing U.S. Marines in Afghanistan, establishment of a forward operations base at Camp Rhino and the capture of Kandahar Airport. "Lt. Col. Lethin’s superb leadership, dedication to the accomplishment of our mission and tough character directly contributed to the destruction of the Taliban regime," said Brig. Gen. James N. Mattis, commanding general Task Force 58. Lethin is a native of Salem and son of Ronald Lethin, ’56, and his wife, Beverly, of Astoria. Lethin currently serves at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton where he lives with his wife and three children.

William Oefelein, ’88, has been assigned to pilot the Space Shuttle Atlantis in May 2003. It is a mission to the International Space Station involving a crew changeout, the addition of a new truss segment, as well as some major thermal control system reconfiguration. "It will be full of challenges, but a lot of fun," said Oefelein. After he received his bachelor of science degree in electrical engineering, NASA selected him for the astronaut program. He has received many honors including the Strike/Flight Air Medal, Navy Commendation Medical and Navy Achievement Medal. He was inducted in 2000 as a member of the OSU Engineering Council of Early Outstanding Engineers.

Ariko Iso, ’93, is an athletic trainer for the Pittsburgh Steelers. She is the first woman athletic trainer to land a full-time, permanent job in the NFL. She has been a trainer at Portland State University for six years and has taught athletic training classes part time. She has worked with the Steelers during two training camps and a few exhibition and regular season games.
Brita Stream, ’02, Eugene, was named Miss Oregon this July. She received a $10,000 scholarship to continue her studies and will represent Oregon in the Miss America Pageant in Atlantic City, N.J., in September.

Ret. Col. Dick Horne, ’52, who returned to campus for the Golden Jubilee Reunion, concedes he may have been awarded more Distinguished Flying Crosses than any fighter pilot in the Air Force. During his 30-year Air Force career, he received 10 Distinguished Flying Cross Medals, four Legion of Merit Medals, one Bronze Star and 23 Air Medals (among his 60 awards and decorations).
Horne, who now lives in Reno, Nev., served two tours of duty in Vietnam and completed 335 jet fighter missions. He became deputy commander of operations during his second tour, supervising more than 200 pilots and what he calls "the biggest wing in the war," made up of six fighter squadrons. He maintains that his finest combat accomplishment was never losing a wingman.
He said of all the awards he received, the Distinguished Flying Crosses mean the most because they were earned in combat. He was involved in attacks against a variety of targets, including the majority of major bridges in North Vietnam.
One target, in particular, was legendary — the heavily defended Thanh Hoa Bridge about 85 miles south of Hanoi. Horne received his last Distinguished Flying Cross for leading a raid that destroyed Thanh Hoa Bridge, which had served as a communication, fuel and transportation lifeline for the North Vietnamese.
"It had survived attack after attack," said Horne. "Most pilots thought the whole world was held together by the Thanh Hoa Bridge."

Thirty-six lives had been lost on previous attacks of the bridge. Horne led his 15 fighter planes back safely after the successful mission, although he had to fly upside down to dodge fierce enemy fire on his way back to the Gulf of Tonkin.
He said his most satisfying missions were three rescue missions where he helped successfully rescued downed pilots. On one of the rescues, his plane ran out of ammunition while providing cover attack for the rescue of a flyer with a broken back. "We faked it," he says in a hushed voice, still amazed after all these years they were able to pull it off.
He credits Oregon State Air Force ROTC, Pershing Rifles, Scabbard and Blade, and the Arnold Air Society with getting him started toward a military career.
Horne ended his career as vice commander of the Third Air Force before reluctantly retiring after 30 years of service. His military service, however, may not yet be over. He has volunteered to serve in Operation Enduring Freedom and is hopeful he will be recalled.
—Patricia Filip

Ken Eagon, ’74, (left) and Mike Macnab, ’77, are two of the eight hard working OSUAA board members who retired from the board this year. Retiring after either three or six year terms are: Mary Coussens, ’74, Eagon, Terence Elder, ’44, Scott Freeburn, ’72, Jack Hamilton, ’62, Susan Poole, ’69 and Susan Richardson, ’80. Macnab has served for 11 years.