HALL OF HONOR

 

 

 

Mike graduated from Fairless High School in 1985 and went on to the University of Akron where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in mass media communications. During his time at FHS, Mike excelled academically and was a member of the National Honor Society. He started his media career as a member of the yearbook and newspaper staff. He became the newspaper editor his senior year. At the University of Akron, Mike reported for the Buchtelite newspaper and was on Akron's WZIP radio station. Mike has covered sports as a reporter for the Canton Repository since 1990. He covered the Cavs during LeBron James' first four seasons in the NBA and has helped cover the Indians and Ohio State. Mike has covered college teams at Malone, Walsh, and Mount Union. He has written about several Mount Union football national championship teams and covered the men's basketball team's trip to the national championship game last season. Mike is most known in Stark County for covering local high school athletics. Generations of local athletes have had their story told by Mike - a passion for storytelling that started right here at FHS.

 

Allyson graduated from Fairless High School in 2014 and went on to the Ohio State University where she earned a bachelor's degree in special education while competing as a D1 college athlete. She was the first female athlete in the history of Fairless to earn a state championship. She is a 2-time OHSAA State Champion pole vaulter, and a 2-time OATCCC Indoor State Champion Pole Vaulter. Her winning vault at the OHSAA State Competition in 2014 ranked her 6th in the nation and also was an Ohio all-state, all-division record. In 2014 she was named the Ohio Female Track and Field Athlete of the Year by Gatorade. In addition to her athletic accomplishments, Allyson was an Academic All-Big Ten Distinguished Scholar, and a 3-time Ohio State Scholar Athlete. As of 2023, she is ranked as the 3rd highest vaulter in the OSU program's history.

 

 

Davina Gosnell is a 1960 graduate of Brewster High School. She earned her diploma from the Massillon City School of Nursing, her BSN from the University of Pittsburgh, a Masters of Science and PhD of Nursing from the Ohio State University. She has had over 40 years of experience in nursing  and has earned many honors. She served as the Dean of the College of Nursing at Kent State University and was a professor and founding director of Hiram College’s Department of Nursing. During her career, she worked in foriegn countries and was a consultant for the World Health Organization.

 

 

 

Tim Stith served as a teacher in the Fairless Local School district for most of his career having served from 1973-1998 as a 6th grade teacher. He was a long-time Fairless Cross Country, Track and Field Coach who was instrumental in getting the district to install the 8-lane all-weather track. He was the head coach for the district’s first individual state champion and coached a state championship runner up cross country team. He was Stark County Track Coach of the Year (1978), All-Ohio Cross Country Coach of the Year (1978), All-Ohio Track Coach of the Year (1979). Tim served as president of the Fairless Education Association and was highly regarded as a science teacher who served on curriculum committees at the local and state levels. Tim continues a lifetime of service as a member of many boards, is active as a cross country, track, and swimming referee for OHSAA.

 

 

 

 

Scott Budge grew up in Brewster and is a 1980 graduate of Fairless High School.  He also graduated from the two-year welding program at R. G. Drage.  He obtained his Vocational Career license from Kent State University and has taught Welding and Metal Fabrication for 31 years at R. G. Drage Career Technical Center.  Scott instills the three A’s in his students - Attitude, Attendance, and Ability.  Many of his students receive National Certifications before graduation, and 90% of his past students are employed by the welding industry.  Scott is a CWI certified welding inspector and provides this service back to his students for free certifications.  He serves on Labor Management and District Leadership Teams as well as the Student Learning Objective, Oil and Gas, and Alumni Committees.  Scott volunteers to coordinate the Regional and State of Ohio Skills USA competitions and serves as a judge at these events.  He sits on the National Visiting Committee as a representative through the National Science Foundation for WELD-ED and serves as the President of the Stark County Area Vocational Educators for R. G. Drage.  Scott was nominated and selected by his peers to receive the 2016 Plummer Memorial Education Award, sponsored by the American Welding Society.  Scott and his students have designed and fabricated many projects throughout the community, including the Falcon that graces the front of Fairless High School.  Scott has been married to his wife, Sue, for 39 years.  They have two children and eight grandchildren.

 

 

Jane (Myers) Williams is a 1975 graduate of Fairless High School.  In addition to being the starting center for the girls’ basketball team, she began her career in the entertainment industry early as a Thespian Award Winner at Fairless.  Jane attended the University of Tulsa, before heading to New York City in 1978. A 32 year member of IATSE, Jane has worked in the costume departments of over 35 movies and tv shows including Fried Green Tomatoes, Six Degrees of Separation, and Godfather lll. A staple of Spike Lee's movies in the 90's, she wardrobe 
supervised Malcolm X, Crooklyn and Clockers for Oscar winner Ruth E. Carter.  Jane is currently the founder/director of Morningside Theatre Company in Edina, MN, where she has taught the joy of theater to kids every summer, for the past 12 years.

 

 

Greg Colaner is a class of 1975 graduate of Fairless High School.  He obtained a Bachelor of Science in Education from Bowling Green State University in 1979 and a license to practice nursing home administration in 1983. Greg joined the Altercare company in 1986, where he served as the Administrator of Altercare Navarre. He held a succession of positions including president of Absolute Health Services and later assumed his role as president of Altercare in 2003. Greg has dedicated his career to the long-term care industry and has continued to serve Altercare by overseeing all aspects of operations for 25 rehabilitation and nursing care facilities across Ohio and Michigan. Greg has been steadfast in his support of the Fairless Local School District, and his roots have remained strong in our community as a Canton native. He is a past board member for the Stark County American Heart Association, Lincoln Healthcare Group, and Canton Central Catholic Schools. Colaner continues his support and community service with many organizations such as Alliance Area Development Board, Aultman College of Nursing Board and Mercy Development Foundation.

 

 

Casey (Miller) Lucius grew up in Brewster and graduated from Fairless High School in 1994.  She attended Ashland University before joining the Navy in 1997.  She was trained in Naval Intelligence and served on an aircraft carrier in the Persian Gulf.  In 2000, Casey earned a Master of Arts in National Security Affairs from the Naval Postgraduate School and later earned a PhD in Political Science from the University of Hawaii.  In 2005 Casey moved to Vietnam to work as the Operations Assistant to the U.S. Ambassador at the U.S. Embassy in Hanoi.  Upon returning to the U.S. in 2009, she began teaching National Security Decision Making at the Naval War College in Monterey, CA.  During this time, Casey served on the local City Council for four years and ran for the US Congress in 2016.  She has also written two books on political decision-making and campaigns.  In 2017 Casey and her family moved to Naples, FL where she is now working for the City of Marco Island.  Casey is a member of the International City Managers Association and Women in Government Foundation.  She is married to LCOL Robert Lucius, USMC (ret) and they have one son.

 

 

Jon graduated from Fairless High School in 1976.  He was a three-year letterman at Fairless and was the last Fairless player to be named All Federal League in 1974.  He held the record for the longest rushing touchdown (88 yards) vs. Akron Hoban in 1975 and held the single-game record for rushing attempts, 52, versus Oakwood in 1974. Jon was also a two-year letterman in Track at Fairless.  He was the first district qualifier for track since 1966 in the 100-yard dash in 1975. Qualified for state in 1976 also in the 100-yard dash. He set the school record for accumulated points in running events for the season in the 100, 200, 400 relay.  Among all of his athletic accomplishments, Jon was also involved with National Honor Society. Upon graduation, Jon was appointed to the United States Military Academy at West Point. There he was the 3rd leading rusher and 4th in receptions in both 1976 and 1977.  Jon later transferred to Kent State University where he became co-captain of the 1980 team. Jon has spent over 35 years in sales in the woodworking industry. He was the regional sales manager at Reneer Films, the Vice President of sales at Therm O Web, Inc. and is currently self-employed at JL Sales Associates.

 

 

 

Gene graduated in 1953 from Navarre High School.  Gene began his career in education as a teacher at the former Beach City Elementary School.  There he taught fifth and sixth grades and later moved on to teach 7th and 8th grade within the district as well.  Gene was also a teacher at North Canton Junior High School. Gene became the principal at Northwest Intermediate School in 1968 and moved on to become the principal at Northwest High School.  When Perry opened their new Pfeiffer Middle School in 1975, Gene was brought in to be the first principal of that school. Gene later became the Director of Curriculum, the Assistant Superintendent, and ultimately the Superintendent at Perry Local Schools.  Gene was also the Interim Superintendent at Osnaburg Local Schools and from 1994 to 2001 served as the director of the Stark/Portage Area Computer Consortium. Most recently, Gene served as the Interim Superintendent of Strasburg School District.  

 

 Brett graduated from Fairless High School in 1978.  While at Fairless, Brett was involved in the band, French Club, track, and was on the Academic Challenge Team.   Brett went on to obtain his Master’s of Science in Computer Science from Kent State University. Brett credits his interest in computer science to his father who began the computer science program at a small liberal college where he taught.  Throughout his professional career, Brett has left his mark on the technological world. He was a Senior Software Engineer at Eastman Kodak, an engineer and consultant at Diebold, a software department manager at Electric Device Corp., at Consultant for Data General, and was a Senior Manager at Dell EMC.  Brett also earned his Diplom, Ing. (the German equivalent of a Master’s Degree in Engineering) in Karlsruhe, Germany. Brett has been involved in developing twenty-two patents and was awarded the Blackstone Valley Entrepreneur of the Year in 2013. Currently, Brett is the President of Irrigation Automation Systems and is a Senior Global Software Manager at Red Hat, Inc.

 

 

Dominic, “Dud” as he was more commonly known, graduated from Brewster High School in 1937.  He attended Miami University where he played football and baseball.  World War II interrupted his education plans and he was drafted into the United States Army as a medic.  Later he was accepted into Officer Candidate School in the newly created United States Army Air Forces where he attained the rank of 1st Lieutenant.  While on leave in 1943, he married Evelyn Morgenstern, a local teacher.  He served his Country during WWII, was honorably discharged in 1945 and returned home to serve his community with the same passion that he had served his country.

For over 25 years Dominic voluntarily took movies for Brewster High School and then Fairless High School football and basketball teams.  He was instrumental in having the press box installed in the Fairless Gymnasium.  For 27 years Dominic coordinated the American Legion Buckeye Boys State Program with Fairless High School.  In those 27 years he helped send over 180 boys from the Fairless School District to attend The American Legion Boys State Program.  Dominic worked tirelessly to benefit all military veterans.  He was instrumental in the revitalization of the Veterans Memorial Boulevard in Brewster.  In 1981 Dominic was elected American Legion State Commander and traveled throughout Ohio to improve the lives of all military veterans.  

 

 

Tom graduated in 1950 from Navarre High School where he lettered in three sports and was an all county selection in football and basketball.  Tom rejected an offer to play minor league baseball and chose to attend Miami University in Ohio to play football after being recruited by Woody Hayes.  After graduation, Tom hoped to enlist in the Air Force, but when it was discovered he was color blind and could not become a pilot, he served in the US Army as a signalman.

Tom began his career in education in Richmond Indiana where he taught and coached three sports.  He was the Head Coach at Sandy Valley High School and was the Head Coach and later Athletic Director at Perry High School.  He was selected Stark County Football Coach of the Year in 1969.  In 1981, Tom accepted the Fairless High School Principal position and 1 year later became Superintendent of Fairless Local Schools.  In 1988, Tom was hired as Superintendent of R.G. Drage Career center, a position he retired from in 1992.  He left retirement to accept the interim Superintendent position at Louisville City Schools.  Tom was elected to the Perry Local Board of Education, but resigned from the Board to accept the position of Superintendent of Perry Local Schools.  In addition to coaching and his work in administration, Tom taught History, Government, Biology and Driver’s Education.  His entire career in education spanned 40 years.

 

 

Dr. Zurcher attended schools in Wilmot, Justus, and Beach City before graduating from Fairless High School in 1974 as co-valedictorian and outstanding senior girl.  Vickie was active in band and a variety of clubs while at FHS. She served as captain of the Academic Challenge quiz team and as a statistician for boys track and basketball.   Vickie is a graduate of the College of Wooster where she received Departmental Honors in biology and was inducted into the Phi Beta Kappa academic honor society.   After graduating from the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine she completed a pediatric residency at Children’s Memorial Hospital in Chicago followed by a fellowship in clinical genetics at University Hospitals in Cleveland.  She is currently employed as a medical geneticist at the Genomic Medicine institute at the Cleveland Clinic.

Vickie evaluates children and adults with various problems, including birth defects, chromosomal abnormalities, and genetic disorders which include skin findings.   She and her husband Dr. David Joyce live in Avon Lake, Ohio and are the proud parents of two children, Katherine, who is in medical school, and Michael, who is a mental health therapist.  Vickie is indebted to her junior high science teacher, Mr. Donald Nichols, for sparking her interest in science and to her high school biology teacher, Mr. Craig Hildebrand, who introduced her to the wonders of genetics.

 

 

Mick graduated from Fairless High School in 1975 and was a distinguished athlete for the Falcons. He was a 4-year letterman in baseball. His career stats included a .317 batting average, 9 home runs, and 42 RBIs/66 hits in 66 games. He had 65 career stolen bases. 

He continued playing baseball at Malone University where he was named NAIA District All-Star Best Offensive Player, Team MVP, and 2nd Team All American. In 1978, Mick had a try-out in Three River Stadium for the San Diego Padres, he was signed on the spot and played Class A baseball for the Walla Walla Padres in Walla Walla, Washington - the Class A affiliate for the Padres. He played Class A baseball for Canton and pro-softball for Cleveland. In 1993, he was elected to the Stark County Amatuer Baseball Hall of Fame.

 

Mick was an impressive basketball player. He was a 3-year letterman and scored 618 career points and 445 rebounds in his career. Mick was a member of the 1975 Varsity Basketball team which became the first team in Fairless to go to the regional competitions. 

In 1975, Mick was a member of the baseball and basketball teams who both went to the regionals - he is one of only four Fairless athletes to have done so. 

Mick has been a life-long supporter of Fairless Local Schools through service groups.

 

 

Jan graduated from Fairless High School in 1978 and went on to earn her bachelors and masters degrees in Political Science from the University of Akron and her PHD in Political Science from Washington University.
Jan’s professional career as a teacher, Assistant Professor, Editor, and Professor is impressive. She has taught at the University of Akron, Rice University, Washington University, the University of Arizona, and the American University. 

She is a published research author whose work has appeared in dozens of scholarly journals. Her research has produced grants in excess of hundreds of thousands of dollars. Her main focus has been on voting behavior.

 

 

John graduated from Beach City High School in 1945 and was a life-long public servant to the Fairless Community and Stark County.  He was a member of the Fairless Local School Board from 1962-1979. During his tenure the Fairless Schools evolved from three separate districts into one and an operating and bond issue were passed to construct Fairless High School. He was on the school board when RG Drage was formed with Fairless Local as a charter member. 

From 1980-2007, John served on the Stark County Educational Service Center Board of Education. 
John partnered with his brother Ralph to own and operate Regula Brothers Milk Transport with for over 50 years.  He was an active member of the Beach City Lions Club, Grange, and United Methodist Church.  He also volunteered for Meals on Wheels, was a member of the Stark County Fair Beef Committee, and various other community activities.

Above all, John was a family man married for over 58 years to his wife Rhea and dad to his four children - Joyce, Tim, Barb, and Pam.

 

 

A lifelong resident of the Fairless Community, Mr. Griffith graduated from Fairless High School in 1966 and went on to play baseball at Kent State University. He taught English at Fairless for 28 years and served as Head baseball coach for 24 years. Known as “1” for his jersey number, he had a 259-220 winning record, was inducted into the Stark County Amateur Baseball Hall of Fame and the North East Ohio Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame. In 2015, a group of former players helped to name the baseball complex in his honor.

 

 

Graduated from Fairless High School in 1975 as Co-Valedictorian. Mr. Muller was very active at FHS and was a role model for paying it forward. He was the Vice President of the National Honor Society and was a member of the Key Club. He was a 4-year letterman on the golf team and was the MVP for the Federal League in 1974 & 1975. He went to Kent State University where he majored in Business Admin and was a member of the golf team. After graduation Dan was hired by the Timken Co and embarked on an amazing 35-year career that started in Information Technology and led all the way to Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer of the Timken Co. While at Timken, Dan traveled the World and spent a great deal of time in China developing their aftermarket business. As President of Development and Services, Dan was part of a team that tripled sales and improved profitability by significantly expanding market share and product range. Dan is most proud of his blue-collar roots, the foundational education he received at Fairless High School, and that he was able to do great things with his small town background.

 

 

Graduated from Fairless High School in 1980. She was the Fred Brideweser Outstanding Athlete Award winner in 1980. Ms. Spurgeon was a 4-year member of the volleyball and basketball teams – and still holds school records. During her sophomore year, she was named All-Ohio for girl’s volleyball on the All-Star Team. She was All-Ohio in basketball two times where she averaged 21.4 points a game – it is important to note that during her career there was no 3-point line and the girls used the same size ball as the boys.  As a senior, she was named Class AA Player of the Year for basketball and she broke the 1,000 point mark. Her career points in basketball was 1,429. Upon graduation, she went to Malone University where she played basketball all four years. She is in their top 50 all-time scoring list with 523 points. Ms. Spurgeon has taught physical education at Clearmount Elementary School in the North Canton Schools for over 30 years.

 

 

Attended the Fairless Local Schools and became a certified nurse. She earned her doctorate in nursing from the University of Texas Health Science Center in 2010. Over the course of her career, Dr. DiSabatino-Smith has presented at medical conferences throughout the United States and around the world. She has been awarded hundred of thousands of dollars for research grants and has published dozens of articles in scholarly journals.

 

 

Graduated from Brewster High School in 1959. He went on to join the family business – Brewster Dairy. During his tenure as Chief Executive Officer, Brewster Dairy has become the largest producer of Swiss cheese in the United States. Brewster Dairy has been very supportive of the Fairless Community. He also owns and operates the Fritz Leeman Farm and has served as the president of the Ohio Quarter Horse Association. He has been a member and served as president of the Fairless Local School Board.

 

 

Graduated from Fairless High School in 2004. He joined the US Marine Corps to serve his country immediately following graduation. Mr. Zumbro achieved the rank of Staff Sargent and obtained top security clearance which allowed him to work for the President of the United States at Camp David and the White House. He served on the front lines and in the mountains of the war in Afghanistan in missions that are top secret and still labeled classified. He currently serves as a police officer, member of the National Guard, and operates two small businesses.

 

 

Ms. Frailly graduated from Kent State University with a Bachelors of Science Degree in Secondary Education. Soon after, the Fairless Board of Education hired her to teach English. She served as a teacher with Fairless for 30 years. Lucinda founded the Falcon Playhouse and served as its director for many years. She also spearheaded a highly successful Integrated Arts program at Fairless. Frailly has worked as a director/choreographer for the Canton Symphony, Massillon Tiger Swing Band, and Stark County Anti-drug Videos. The YWCA has inducted her into the Academy of Women as the Outstanding Woman in Fine Arts. Since her retirement from teaching, Ms. Frailly has served as a docent at the National First Ladies Library in Canton.

 

 

Mr. Haas graduated from Navarre High School in 1946 and was an outstanding athlete. Wilbur was a truck driver and the owner/operator of H+H Trucking Company. He has been a life-long supporter of Fairless Academic and Athletic programs. Wilbur helped to create the Fairless Academic Booster Club and has contributed to a scholarship awarded to a Fairless senior for over 20 years. He was the voice of the Falcon Football team for over 20 years. As a leader in the community Mr. Haas served on both the Fairless Local and RG Drage Boards of Education and has been a lifetime member of the Navarre Kiwanis and St. Paul United Church of Christ. He has also served on the Bethlehem Township Zoning Board. 

 

 

Alumnus of Brewster High School Class of 1940. A lifelong resident of Brewster, Ms. DeAngelis was the daughter of Italian immigrants and a member of the Women’s Army Corp. She taught business math, typing, bookkeeping, recordkeeping, and business for several area schools including Navarre and Fairless High School. Ms. DeAngelis was an inspiration to her students, several of which followed in her footsteps to become teachers themselves.

 

 

Known by his many students and colleagues as Señor, Mr. Hissong served Fairless High School as a foreign language teacher for 37 years. He was not just a teacher, but a mentor as well to students, other teachers, and also Spanish-speaking families as they assimilated into the American culture. In addition to teaching, Señor was a Department Chair, Junior Class Advisor, and Spanish Club Advisor. He took many students out to explore the world with trips to Spain and Mexico.

 

 

Alumnus of Fairless High School Class of 1980 and Malone College. Mr. Marchand is a cross country and track legend across the state of Ohio. He was a 5-time state champion, 6-time All American, and National Champion. As a junior he broke the school’s two-mile record and cross country mark, and as a senior eclipsed both records again. While at Malone College, he won the All-Ohio Cross country meet as a freshmen. He is also a member of the Malone College Hall of Fame.

 

Mr. Brideweser graduated from Capital University and was posthumously inducted into the Capital University Hall of Fame in 1978.  “Bridey” was appointed head football, basketball and baseball coach at the former Navarre High School in 1931, and coached there until 1959 when he was hired as the Athletic director and head baseball coach at Fairless High School. He became well known in Ohio scholastic athletics.  He amassed a 436-151 baseball record with five teams playing in the state finals in Columbus.  He coached several undefeated football teams with an overall coaching record of 140-51-13.  His basketball teams won several league championships including county and sectional tournaments.  He retired from Fairless in 1967 and passed away in 1975.  The Fairless Football stadium bears his name. 

 

 

Mr. Cooke graduated from Navarre High School and Kent State University.  He spent 36 years serving the children of the Fairless District as a teacher and elementary principal at Brewster and Navarre.  Throughout his life, he has been very active in preserving the history of our local community.  He was active in helping the Village of Navarre establish its Bicentennial celebration, assisted with the creation of the “Canal Corridor” and he presently works as a charter member and President of the Mathews House Museum in Navarre.  Don has been a life-long resident of the community.

 

 

 

Mr. Stuck was born on Oct. 21, 1887 in Wilmot, Ohio.  He graduated from the Sugarcreek Township High School (Justus) in 1905.  He attended Case Institute of Technology where he received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Civil Engineering in 1915.  He began working in the steel industry by designing and constructing blast furnaces and coke plants and eventually constructed a steel plant in the USSR.  Ray handled the construction of the Zeppelin Airship Hangar for the Goodyear Company in Akron, Ohio and finally ended up accepting a job in the Office of Chief of Engineers, U.S. Army, Washington DC where he was in charge of overseeing a budget of $6.5 billion.  In 1949, he accepted a position with the Atomic Energy Commission as Chief Engineer in Richland, Washington. 

 

1946 Graduate of Navarre High SchoolCo-founder & CEO of Church’s Fried Chicken and naturalist who converted 5,500 acres into a showpiece of environmental restoration.

 

 

1938 Graduate of Brewster High School
Anthropologist, Archeologist, and Museologist, professor emeritus at the University of Idaho, who authored many books, including Introduction to Museum Work, which is still used on college campuses today.

 

 

 

Longtime Fairless High School Art Teacher (1973-2004) & Civil War Historian/Reenactment group member. Craft impacted thousands of students with his talent and enthusiasm for art and Civil War History.

 

Athletic Complex Team 1 - Designed, fundraised, & constructed the Fairless Athletic Complex. An extraordinary group of volunteers whose work has impacted thousands of Fairless students.

 

 

Benjamin Franklin Williams Fairless was born in 1890 in Pigeon Run, Ohio to David and Ruth Williams. When he was two years old, his mother was badly injured in a buggy accident, and Ben went to live with his aunt and uncle in Justus, Ohio. Ben stayed with the Fairless family and eventually was adopted by Sarah and Jacob Fairless thus becoming known as Benjamin F. Fairless. Ben graduated from Justus High School in 1907 and at the age of 17 became a teacher and janitor at Riverdale and Rockville Schools near Navarre, Ohio. He attended Wooster College and Ohio Northern University where he studied Civil Engineering. In 1913 he became a civil engineer for the Wheeling & Lake Erie railroad. At age 23, Mr. Fairless worked as a surveyor for the Central Steel Company in Massillon, Ohio. He climbed the ranks and became the manager and vice president of Republic Steel in Youngstown, Ohio. From 1938-1952 he served as President of the United States Steel Corporation, and from 1952-1955, he served as Chairman and CEO of that same company. During that time, he served on President Dwight Eisenhower’s committee of Citizen Advisers on foreign aid. Mr. Fairless retired in 1955 from U.S. Steel but remained president of the American Iron and Steel Institute until his death. Mr. Fairless was married in 1912 to the late Mrs. Blanche Truby Fairless, a school teacher. They had one son, Blaine. In 1944 Fairless married the former Mrs. Hazel Hatfield Sproul. Benjamin F. Fairless passed away in Ligonier, Pa on Jan. 1, 1962 at the age of 71.

“What is the recipe for successful achievement? To my mind there are just four essential ingredients: Choose a career you love….Give it the best there is in you….Seize your opportunities….And be a member of the team….In no country but America, I believe, is it possible to fulfill all four of those requirements.” Benjamin F. Fairless

 

Dr. Edward Hill was born on April 26, 1919 in Washington D.C. and moved to Brewster, Ohio in 1920. He grew up in the Brewster community, played high school football, was captain of the baseball team, and served as class president for three years. Dr. Hill graduated from Brewster High School in 1937. He attended the Ohio State University, majoring in chemistry and pre medicine. Graduating in 1945 from medical school, Dr. Hill then went to Toledo’s Maumee Valley Hospital to complete his internship and residency. He returned to Beach City, Ohio in 1947 with his wife Mary where he opened his medical practice. Dr. Hill has been serving the residents of the Fairless and Massillon communities ever since. He is the most senior member of the American Academy of Family Practice in the United States, the most senior physician to pass board certification (2008), and has had the longest practice of family medicine in the United States (1947-present). Dr. Hill was married to Mary Booth Hill for 47 years (deceased 1986) with whom he had six children. He was married to Clara Jane Slayman Barnhart until her passing in 1998. At the age of 91, Dr. Hill continued to see patients twice per week at a free clinic where he is the director.

 

 

Louis Marini, Jr. is a 1963 graduate of Fairless High School who grew up in Beach City. Lou is a well-known saxophonist, arranger, and composer. He is one of the original members of the Saturday Night Live Band and Blues Brothers Band. Lou still tours world-wide with the Blues Brothers Band as well as accompanying singer James Taylor in his "Band of Legends.” "Blue Lou" has played with some of the industry's most prominent bands and musicians including the Rolling Stones, Aerosmith, Billy Preston, Frank Zappa, Blood, Sweat and Tears, Stevie Wonder, Diana Ross, Tony Bennett, Woody Herman, Stan Kenton, Buddy Rich, Doc Severinson, Luther Vandross, just to name a few.

Ken Marini (brother) lives in Philadelphia, PA and Susan Marini Ely (sister) lives in Raleigh, NC.

 

Louis Marini, Sr., graduated from Mount Union College and earned his Master’s Degree from Vander Cook. He was the former band director of Fairless High School and composer of the Fairless High School Alma Mater. He taught at Bowling Green State University for 15 years, where in addition to teaching woodwinds, arranging, and conducting the jazz band, he wrote over 180 arrangements for the Bowling Green Falcon Marching band.

 

 

Born July 26, 1948 in Navarre, OH. As a high school athlete at Fairless High School, Ted Provost lettered three seasons as a quarterback and defensive back. Ted was also outstanding in basketball and track. He qualified for the state finals in track his senior year. He was inducted into the Stark County High School Football Hall of Fame in 2004.

Mr. Provost attended the Ohio State University from 1967 to 1969. He was a key member of the 1968 national championship team as a safety. He was twice an All Big Ten All Star (1968 and 1969) and was an All-American in 1969. He was inducted into the Ohio State Varsity O Hall of Fame in 2006.

He was drafted by the Rams in the 1970 NFL Draft and traded to the Vikings. He played with Minnesota in 1970 and the Cardinals in 1971.

Provost continued as a professional with the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League from 1972 to 1977. He was twice named an All-Star.

Ted Provost has been successful after his football career as the owner of Ted Provost Builders, a construction company in Hilliard, OH. He and his wife Ruth have three children.

 

Ralph Regula was born in Beach City, Ohio on Dec. 3, 1924 to Oscar and Orpha Regula. He graduated from Beach City High School in 1942 and served in the U.S. Navy from 1944-1946. Mr. Regula attended Mount Union College and the William McKinley School of Law. He served as a teacher and administrator in Stark County, Ohio, became a member of the Ohio Board of Education, was elected to the Ohio House and Ohio Senate before becoming a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Ohio’s 16th District on Jan. 3, 1972. Mr. Regula served 18 consecutive terms and retired on Jan. 3, 2009.

Congressman Regula was the ranking minority member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee for Labor, Health, Human Services and Education funding in the 110th Congress in which his committee was in charge of over $140 billion.

Although Mr. Regula is a Republican, he crossed party lines many times to do what was best for our nation. The former congressman has always been a friend of education and has supported numerous projects at several area colleges and universities including Malone, Walsh, Mt. Union, NEOUCOM, and Stark State. Not only has Mr. Regula served the local communities by directing Federal monies back to Ohio by championing such initiatives as the Towpath Trail, improvement of reading skills, development of teacher training programs, and fuel cell technology, but he has also increased by millions of dollars the amount of federal money committed to research in fighting cancer, heart disease and birth defects.

Recently, a new Federal Building was constructed in Canton, Ohio and was named after him. Mary and Ralph Regula have three children, Martha, David, and Richard, and four grandchildren.