Schools

Riverview To Host Celebrated Alumni

Accomplished alumni of Riverview School District will celebrate their incredibly variety of achievements Saturday night.

The red carpet is coming to Oakmont tonight to celebrate the Hollywood success stories, U.S. Air Force Lieutenant Colonel, sports stars, scientists, doctors and writers who once called Riverview their school.

Eight awardees of Riverview School District's Distinguished Alumni will gather for a special dinner tonight to be recognized for their achievements after graduating from Riverview.

The program is part of Riverview's 40th anniversary celebration.

"We're trying to celebrate the fact that we've been here for four decades, and great people have come out of the school," Superintendent Charles Erdeljac said.

Riverview's Distinguished Alumni class consists of 11 graduates spanning from the class of 1972 to the class of 2000.

Graduates who have been out of Riverview for at least 10 years were nominated by members of the community — former teachers, coaches, parents and friends.

The most famous nationally is 1981 graduate Tim Kaiser, producer of "Seinfeld" and "Will & Grace."  Kaiser hoped to attend but is currently busy editing the final episodes of his newest project, CBS show "$#*! My Dad Says," Erdeljac said.

A member of the same class, Singrid Hammer Wolf, acquired a taste for Hollywood, too. After working as student director for class plays at Riverview, Wolf began an award-winning career in stage set design and construction.

Her credits include two "Junkyard Wars" segments and six independent films in Los Angeles. She currently is negotiating a position as host of a new home improvement show.

The Riverview Class of 1977 graduated with a hero in their midst. Lt. Col. Gregg Holden has participated in Operation Desert Shield, Operation Desert Storm, Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Beginning as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force straight from officer training school, Holden has since achieved the lieutenant colonel rank.

In 2004, he took on his own war against blood cancer and survived. He currently works as a pilot for American Airlines.

Two sports stars have graduated from Riverview — Bob Shoop, a former college football coach from the class of 1984 who was recently named to the Alle-Kiski Valley Hall of Fame, and football-player Scott Higgins, two-time winner of the Kodak All-American Award, who graduated in 1980.

Valedictorian Kristopher Howard of the class of 2000, the most recent graduate included in the Distinguished Alumni program, became a world traveler. He is an employee of Merck and has visited 30 countries.

He has mentored teens in prison, taught math to Mexican immigrants and taught kindergarten as a volunteer in a poor area of Argentina.

Howard currently lives in Ireland but his parents plan to attend in his honor, Erdeljac said.

Local historian Gary Rogers, who graduated in 1976, will be honored for his local volunteer work and commitment to researching Oakmont and Plum history for his published works, "Tales of Our Towns" and "Edgewater."

The most seasoned Riverview graduate, from the class of 1972, is award-winning lawyer Joseph Luciana III, who remained active in the school district as president of the Riverview Athletic Association and coach for multiple sports.

The class of 1990 produced Steven Daniel Brownlee, national knowledge domain manager for Pharmaceuticals and Life Science at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) in Tampa, Fl. He currently is studying law at Stetson Law School.

The class of 1975 produced its own mayor. David Ricupero, owner of Ricupero's Auto Detailing was elected mayor of Verona last year and serves as one of the borough's most dedicated volunteers.

Graduate Kathy Roth Pizzella finished her high school career in 1992 as valedictorian and went on to to serve Oakmont with chiropractic services at Health Horizons, including several community service programs.

"The diversity of what people have done is so impressive to me," Erdeljac said.

This is only the first time for Riverview in recognizing distinguished alumni, but school leaders hope to continue the program, he said.

"We hope the program continues, evolves and always gets better."


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