PORTALES—Eastern New Mexico University is presenting five alumni awards during the ENMU Foundation 34th Annual Breakfast at 8 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 3 in the Campus Union Ballroom during homecoming activities.
ENMU will present Distinguished Service Awards to Shirley Gail Ferguson (posthumously) and Jimmy Shearer, Outstanding Alumni Awards to Lyn Brinckmeyer and Don Holden, and an Honorary Lifetime Alumni award to Sen. Timothy Jennings.
Below are their bios.
Distinguished Service Awards
Gail Ferguson (posthumously)
Shirley Gail Ferguson received her undergraduate and graduate degrees in communicative disorders from Eastern New Mexico University. After graduation, she became an instructor in the Department of Communicative Disorders at ENMU. She led a very long and distinguished career as a teacher and friend.
She was devoted to her students inside and outside of the classroom. Hundreds of students went through the department under her guidance and nurturing. Ferguson had a passion for her profession of speech-language pathology and was considered “top notch” by her students. Even after graduation, many of her students continued to stay in touch asking her advice about a particular client or patient or just to visit. Often while traveling, she would visit her former students at their place of employment.
She received many honors throughout her 25-year career. In 1993 she received a Distinguished Faculty Emeritus Award from Eastern New Mexico University. She was a member of the American Speech and Hearing Association, the New Mexico Speech and Hearing Association, and a faculty advisor for the local chapter of the National Student Speech, Language, and Hearing Association as well as the Alpha Delta Pi Sorority.
Jimmie Shearer
Jimmie Shearer, president, chief executive officer, director and owner of Sunland Inc., and ENMU teamed up to produce scholarships for students. Together with ENMU's Department of Communicative Arts and Sciences, Department of Art, and College of Business, Shearer spent the better part of a year preparing the groundwork for the new scholarship program.
The ENMU "Peanut Project" is a student-run effort. With guidance from faculty members, students began the campaign, "Investing in Education: One Peanut at a Time." Sunland Peanuts has donated peanuts at cost for the fund-raising effort. Net profits benefit ENMU scholarships that all students are able to apply for. ENMU is one of very few universities in the nation to team up with a local business to fund scholarships.
Sunland is a charter member of the Foundation Flagship giving club at the $10,000 Stellar Level annually. Shearer received his undergraduate and graduate degrees in management and data processing from Eastern New Mexico University.
He was appointed to the National Peanut Standards Board by the United States Secretary of Agriculture and named the NM Marketer of the Year by the NM USDA and has been the treasurer of the New Mexico Peanut Research Board since its inception. Shearer has served as the president of the Portales Rotary Club and president of the Portales School Board.
Outstanding Alumni Awards
Don Holden
Don Holden received his undergraduate degrees in psychology and sociology from Eastern New Mexico University in 1973. Holden was instrumental in establishing the social work program at ENMU. Social work is both an academic and an applied discipline based on values of service, social and economic justice, dignity and worth of the person, importance of human relationships, and integrity and competence in practice.
The essence of social work is helping people, organizations and communities. The curriculum is designed to provide the basic knowledge, skills and values necessary for competent and ethical generalist social work to those entering the profession, as well as those already practicing in social service settings. The curriculum helps prepare students and practitioners for licensure and advanced study.
Holden once held the position of director of CARC Inc. in Carlsbad, whose mission was to provide services for people with special needs and helped found the Oasis Program, a voice for sexually abused children in Roosevelt County. He is currently the regional manager of the Children Youth and Families Department for the southeast counties of New Mexico.
Lynn Brinckmeyer
Lynn Brinckmeyer received a Bachelor and Master of Music Education from Eastern New Mexico University. She later earned her Ph.D. in Music Education from the University of Kansas. Since graduation, she has served as the national president of the Music Educators National Conference, the largest Arts Education organization in the world, with more than 120,000 members from all levels of teaching from elementary to graduate schools.
In New Mexico she taught elementary music and middle school choir and went on to teach higher education in the Pacific Northwest. In addition to chairing the Eastern Washington University Music Department for six years, she received both the PTI Excellence in Teaching Award and the CenturyTel Award for outstanding faculty. Now at Texas State University, Brinckmeyer serves as associate professor of music and director of choral music education. She is a contributing author in The Music Director’s Cookbook: Creative Recipes for a Successful Program and The Choral Director’s Cookbook: Insights and Inspired Recipes for Beginners and Experts. She has conducted, lectured, presented master classes and performed across the United States, Korea, Taiwan, Amsterdam, Italy and the British Isles.
Honorary Lifetime Alumni Award
Senator Timothy Jennings
Senator Timothy Z. Jennings was appointed to the New Mexico Legislature in July of 1978, serving District 32 which includes Chaves, Eddy, Lincoln and Otero counties. During this time, Sen. Jennings has held numerous positions on various committees and has been instrumental in the Senate's leadership.
He has served as the Minority Whip, Majority Whip, Majority Floor Leader and, most recently, the President Pro Tempore. Born and raised in Roswell, N.M., Sen. Jennings attended the New Mexico Military Institute and earned a Bachelor’s Degree from Creighton University in Business Administration. He is a rancher and businessman.
Sen. Jennings has established himself as a strong and tireless advocate for the unique opportunities his constituents are confronted with in southeastern New Mexico, as well as the entire state. Sen. Jennings is the state's second-longest serving senator. Not only is he a leader in the state, he is active in his community, having served as past board chair of the Red Cross and Sertoma.