Mr. Parker was a first baseman for the Los Angeles Dodgers from 1965 – 1975. He played in three World Series games and was voted to be the Spalding-sponsored Best First Baseman in the Past 50 Years contest. He currently works for the Dodgers in various public affair and charity projects.
General Ritchie is an Ace from the Vietnam War. While flying the F-4 Phantom, he was credited with five aerial victories over the MiG-21. BGen Ritchie is the recipient of the Air Force Cross, four Silver Stars, 10 Distinguished Flying Crosses and 25 Air Medals.
Brigadier General Richard S. (Steve) Ritchie USAF (ret.) Read More »
Bill Heard, CAPT, USNR (Ret.) served as the Foundation’s Public Information Officer for 13 years. He is a retired Navy Reserve captain with almost 30 years’ experience in Navy public affairs. Earlier, he served eight deployments in Vietnam from October 1966 to May 1968, while his ship was operating along the coast of Vietnam. Heard’s decorations include the Combat Action Ribbon, Meritorious Unit Citation, Vietnam Service Medal, Vietnam Campaign Medal, and Naval Reserve Medal.
Heard’s professional background includes 40 years’ experience in public relations counseling in government, corporations, and advertising and public relations agencies. Early in his career, he was …
Richard Sells graduated from Washington University in St. Louis, Mo., in 1961. He served in the U.S. Army, Armor Corps from 1962 until 1969, attaining the rank of Captain, USAR.
Sells qualified as a Certified Public Accountant in California, and worked for Arthur Anderson & Co. He also worked for thirty-three years as an executive in the Cemetery Industry. He retired from Service Corporation International (SCI), the world’s largest owner of funeral homes and cemeteries, having served as a Senior Vice President for Domestic and International sales, and President of SCI’s Western States operations.
Sells devised and constructed the traveling …
A native of Richland Center, Wis., Dennis Schoville joined the U.S. Army after graduating from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and trained as a helicopter pilot. While serving in Vietnam, he was awarded two Silver Stars, the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Bronze Star, and three Purple Hearts, along with several other Air Medals and service awards.
Following his medical retirement from active duty at the rank of captain, Schoville earned a law degree from the Illinois Institute of Technology in 1973, and a master’s degree in law at Northwestern University in 1974. For the next 23 …
Dennis A. Schoville Read More »
Born Aug 26, 1971, in Monticello, Il., Charles R. Bailey graduated from Unity High School in 1989. He served in the United States Navy from 1990-1994, as a Torpedoman’s Mate, Third Class Petty Officer.
Bailey attended Miramar College to become an Emergency Medical Technician and studied Liberal Arts at Mesa College. He is a Licensed Funeral Director and mortuary manager at Glen Abbey Memorial Park and Mortuary in San Diego.
Bailey recently was elected President of the San Diego County Funeral Directors Association. He also is the Dignity Memorial Homeless Burial Coordinator for San Diego County, and …
Rear Adm. McGrath, USN (Ret.) completed thirty-three years of service in 2012. His last assignment was as the Deputy Commander of the U.S. Third Fleet. He is a 1979 graduate of the U. S. Naval Academy and a native of New York City.
RADM McGrath was designated as a naval aviator in 1981, reporting to the Helicopter Antisubmarine Squadron (Light) 35. While at HSL-35, he completed multiple deployments to the Indian Ocean and Western Pacific. He completed a tour as a flight instructor in HSL-41, and then as officer-in-charge in HSL-45, completing a deployment to the Persian Gulf aboard …
Patrick E. McGrath Read More »
Colonel Michael Cardenas, U.S. Air Force (Ret.) was born in Washington D.C. and grew up in a large military family. They were stationed all over the U.S. and eventually settled in San Diego in 1973. He left San Diego to pursue an aviation career and received his commission from the U.S. Air Force Academy in 1980, and earned his wings a year later.
Cardenas became an aircraft commander and instructor in C-141 Starlifter. During his three flying assignments in California and Washington he flew airlift missions around the world including in Southwest Asia, conducted Special …
Jeff Simonides was born and raised in San Diego. He graduated from Herbert Hoover High School in 1976, and attended Miramar College, San Diego City College and National University studying fire science and criminal justice.
Simonides is a former fire chief and earned several life saving citations. He is the owner and operator of an electrical contracting business. Simonides has been a certified mediator and has served with the Restorative Justice Program and San Diego Legal Aid, where he also works on conflict resolution within the juvenile justice system, both criminal and civil.
Simonides is a certified firearms instructor, and …
Fiorelli attended the University of Arizona, and is a graduate of Northern Arizona University, where she earned a Bachelor’s Degree of Science with a double major in Criminal Justice and Psychology, graduating Magna Cum Laude.
She worked as a Court Clerk at the Flagstaff Municipal Court in Flagstaff, Ariz., before moving to San Diego in July 2000 to pursue a Masters Degree in Forensic Science. She currently is General Manager of Evergreen Mortuary, Cemetery & Crematory in Tucson, Ariz.
Fiorelli is a Licensed California Cemetery Manager, Cemetery Broker and Funeral Director. She enjoys spending her free time with her miniature …
Catherine Fiorelli Read More »
A Vietnam era veteran, Victoria A. Nenner served four years as a staff and charge nurse in an Air Force hospital at Tachikawa AFB, Japan, where she treated soldiers wounded in battle. She met her late husband, Paul, while serving in Japan. She left active duty as a captain, and continued in the reserves until 1977.
Nenner comes from a long line of nurses – her grandmother, mother, uncle and sister were all nurses, and another sister is a physician. She earned a Bachelor’s degree in nursing science at Texas Woman’s University, Denton, Tex., and a Master’s degree in family …
Victoria A. Nenner Read More »
Amy L. Magnusson, M.D., is a staff physician in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Sharp Memorial Rehabilitation Hospital in San Diego. She also is a staff physician in spinal cord injury services at VA San Diego Healthcare System in La Jolla; Medical Director for Learning Services, Southern California; and Medical Director of physical medicine and rehabilitation at CareMeridian in La Mesa and Escondido.
A native of Phoenix, Dr. Magnusson graduated from San Diego State University in 1988 with a degree in nursing sciences. She earned an M.D. degree at Loyola University Chicago, Stritch School of Medicine in 1997.
Dr. …
Amy L. Magnusson, M.D. Read More »
A retired U.S. Army intelligence officer with more than 20 years’ service, Sallay Kim holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Campbell University in North Carolina, and a master’s degree in Tourism Administration from the George Washington University in Washington, D.C. She is the owner of Serenity Event Solutions of San Diego, a firm that plans and manages events ranging from multi-day conferences to large dinners and receptions. Notably, she coordinated a Wounded Warriors Motivational Speaker Series at Walter Reed Army Medical Center.
A native of Washington, D.C., Kim enlisted in the Army in 1990, and graduated from …
George Fellows is a native of the Pacific Northwest. He graduated from Yakima High School in 1947, and received a congressional appointment to the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point, N.Y., that same year. He graduated from Kings Point in 1951, receiving a BS degree in Nautical Science, a commission in the U.S. Navy Reserve, and a Coast Guard license to sail as an officer on any steam or motor vessel of unlimited tonnage in any ocean.
He sailed as a deck officer with American Export Lines until late 1952, when he volunteered for active Navy duty during the …
Charlie Inot was raised in a U.S. Navy family. In 1964, he enlisted in the U.S. Army, serving in the 82nd Airborne Division and with the 6th, 5th, and 10th Special Forces Groups. During the Vietnam War, he saw combat with the 5th Special Forces Group, and was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for valor, and the Purple Heart Medal. He was honorably discharged from the Army in 1970.
Inot joined the San Diego Police Department in 1971 and, over the years, served in various assignments, including the Metro Arson Strike Team. He retired as a detective in 1993.…
Carlos “Charlie” Inot Read More »
