TWU
Home > Marketing
& Communication > News
Releases
TWU announces Betty and Joe Alford and Presbyterian Hospital
of Denton as 2009 Founders’ Award recipients
3/13/09
DENTON —
Betty and Joe Alford of Denton and the Presbyterian Hospital
of Denton will be honored for their exceptional service to
the community and to Texas Woman’s University as the
2009 TWU Founders’ Awards recipients.
The awards will
be presented at the annual TWU Founders’ Awards Scholarship
Luncheon at 11:30 a.m. Thursday, April 2 in Hubbard Hall on
TWU’s Denton campus.
Seats for the event
are $35 per person. Patron seats are available for $75. Benefactor
tables for eight are available for $750. For information on
sponsorship opportunities, contact Patrice Benfield Frisby
at (940) 898-3867. Reservations are required by Friday, March
27.
“The university
is fortunate to have partners such as the Alfords and Presbyterian
Hospital of Denton join us in our mission of educating students
to meet the needs of the citizens of Texas,” TWU Chancellor
Ann Stuart said.
Proceeds from the
luncheon benefit the TWU Chancellor’s Endowed Scholarships,
the most prestigious scholarships awarded by the university.
Established by Chancellor Stuart and other donors in 2000,
these scholarships are the largest awarded by TWU, and the
only academic scholarships that offer a stipend to recipients
in addition to paying tuition and fees. They are awarded to
TWU students on the basis of outstanding academic achievement,
leadership and service in school and community activities.
As of March 13,
sponsors of the Founders’ Award luncheon include: Access
1st Capital Bank; BBVA Compass; DATCU Credit Union; DeBerry
Funeral Directors; Denton Record-Chronicle; First State Bank;
Meridian Bank Texas; PointBank; Presbyterian Hospital of Denton;
Ramey & King Insurance; Verizon; Chancellor and President,
TWU; the TWU Former Students Association; and the TWU Foundation.
Nancy M. DiMarco,
Ph.D., RD, CSSD, TWU professor of nutrition and food sciences
and director of the TWU Institute of Women’s Health,
will be the keynote speaker at the luncheon. Her speech is
titled “Childhood Obesity: It’s Everyone's Responsibility.”
With a more than 50-year history of community involvement
in Denton, Betty and Joe Alford have established themselves
as committed leaders in promoting the city, its events and
organizations, and its universities.
“It is very
humbling and exciting to receive this award,” Mrs. Alford
said. “We support TWU because of the intellectual richness
of the university and the things it has done and is doing
for the community. Denton wouldn’t be the kind of town
it is without our universities, and TWU is a strong component
of that.”
The Alfords have
been supporters of TWU for many years, contributing to university
athletics, the construction of the new Redbud Theater Complex
and the TWU Redbud Revitalization Campaign. They also have
been members of TWU’s Chancellor’s Circle since
its inception.
“Serving
TWU and the Denton community is essential to who we are and
what we do,” Mr. Alford said. “The fact that we
are being recognized by a university that has been so special
to us in our lives is truly a honor.”
Dr. Betty Alford
is a TWU professor emertita and former dean of nutrition,
textiles and human development. She earned three degrees from
TWU — a bachelor’s in home economics, and her
master’s and doctorate in nutrition — and taught
at the university for 40 years before her modified retirement
in 1997.
She served as president
of the Denton County Historical Commission and vice president
of the Parks Foundation of Denton County. She has been recognized
as a Texas Distinguished Research Dietitian and a Texas Distinguished
Educator Dietitian. She is a charter member of the Denton
Benefit League and a St. Andrew Presbyterian Church Elder.
Joe Alford is a
former member of the Denton City Council, where he served
three terms, including two as mayor pro-tem. He has been a
member of the Denton Kiwanis Club for more than 50 years and
currently is a member of the Denton Chamber of Commerce, the
Greater Denton Arts Council and the Denton Community Theater
Board of Directors. He also is a member of the Texas State
Florist Association and the National Florist Association’s
Marketing Committee. Mr. Alford owned and operated a floral
shop in Denton for 46 years before retiring.
The Alfords have
been married for 50 years and have two sons, two daughters-in-law
and six grandchildren.
For more than 20
years the Presbyterian Hospital of Denton has been a leader
in the Denton community, supporting various organizations,
events and activities, including TWU.
Hospital CEO Stan
Morton said, “We feel that it is important to support
TWU with time, talent and financial resources. We look forward
to continuing this relationship and finding mutual opportunities
that will enhance the overall well-being of the community
we both serve.”
The hospital is a member of the TWU Chancellor’s Circle
and has supported TWU athletics since 1996 through a preferred
provider agreement and an annual corporate sponsorship. The
hospital also was a major sponsor for the USAG Gymnastics
Championships, and assisted in purchasing the scorer’s
table when the Kitty Magee Arena opened in 1997.
In 2006 Presbyterian
Hospital of Denton partnered with the TWU College of Nursing
to form the Graduate Assistance in Areas of National Need
(GAANN) grant fellowship program. This program addresses the
critical nursing faculty shortage by offering doctoral students
stipends so they can attend school full time and graduate
sooner.
Recently, third-year
TWU nursing students began performing their on-site clinicals
at Presbyterian Hospital of Denton. This collaboration gives
the students the opportunity to stay closer to their home,
form strong relationships with the hospital and be employed
locally after graduation.
The first Founders’
Awards were presented in 1998 to honor organizations and individuals
who have supported TWU. TWU celebrates Founders’ Day
to commemorate the date the university was established by
the state of Texas — April 6, 1901. TWU, the TWU Foundation
and the TWU Former Students Association host the annual TWU
Founders’ Awards Scholarship Luncheon.
###
Media
Contact:
Amanda Simpson
Director of News and Information
Tel: (940) 898-3456
e-mail: asimpson1@twu.edu
|
