Aug. 19, 2009
EASTON, Pa. -
The Lafayette Maroon Club has announced the four members of its 2009 Hall of Fame Class. Football and baseball player Bob Howard '61, baseball standout Joe Maddon '76, soccer player and benefactor Dr. Wilbur Oaks '51 and track and field athlete Noreen Chamberlain Wagner '88 will be inducted at the annual Maroon Club Hall of Fame dinner on Friday, Nov. 20 at the College's Marquis Hall.
For tickets to the event, which is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m., please contact the Maroon Club at (610)-330-5122.
Howard was a two-sport athlete at Lafayette. His greatest success came on the gridiron where he was the starting center on offense and a starting linebacker on defense for three seasons. During the 1959 season, the program won its 400th game and Howard was named the Lafayette-Lehigh Defensive MVP. Howard served as co-captain his senior year during which he was selected as center on the 1960 Mid-Atlantic Conference First Team, beating out Rutgers' Alex Kroll, who went on to earn National Football Hall of Fame status.
Howard was also the starting catcher for the baseball team during his junior and senior years and played semi-pro baseball during the summers. The baseball team also saw success during Howard's years, amassing 56 victories. The 1958 squad captured the District 2 title with wins over Penn State and NYU and advanced to the College World Series. Following graduation and while serving with the U.S. Army in Germany, Howard was recruited by the Darmstadt Comets Air Force Team to be their catcher and played in the U.S. Forces Europe League.
Howard and his wife of 48 years, Margie, have four children: Rob, Nancy, Chuck and Sue, and have eight grandchildren. After a 41-year career in sales, he retired as President and owner of the EV Dunbar Co. in 2004 and family, golf, travel and volunteering now take up most of his time.
Also a baseball standout and catcher, Maddon played three years of baseball under Norm Gigon and helped the Leopards to a 49-28 record during that span. Initially recruited to play football, Maddon played one season as a quarterback on the team. In his final game, he completed 14 of 17 passes for four touchdowns in a win over Lehigh.
Following his tenure at Lafayette, Maddon spent four seasons as a catcher in the Anaheim Angels' minor league system. After his playing career ended, he remained with the organization in several roles, including minor league manager and bench coach for the Angels, who advanced to the postseason three times and captured the 2002 World Series title.
His greatest success came after being named the manager of the Tampa Bay Rays in 2005. He led his 2008 Rays squad to their first-ever postseason and World Series appearances en route to being named the unanimous selection for American League Manager of the Year. Maddon recently had his contract extended through the 2012 season.
Maddon married the former Jaye Sousoures on November 8, 2008, ten days after the World Series. Joe has two children, Sarah (25) and Joey (23) and two grandchildren Tyler (8) and Coral Ray (3).
For the past three winters between Thanksgiving and Christmas, Maddon has hosted "Thanks-mas" for needy individuals in the Tampa Bay area. Last December, he personally shopped, cooked and served spaghetti, sausage, meatballs, pierogies, pasta and salad for approximately 1,000 individuals at Salvation Army shelters in Bradenton, St. Petersburg, Port Charlotte and Tampa.
During the 2008 postseason, Maddon wore a bracelet from the John Challis Courage for Life Foundation. A native of Beaver County, Pa., John was 18 years old when he passed away from cancer in August 2008. The two formed a bond when they met at Pittsburgh's PNC Park prior to a Rays-Pirates game the previous June.
This past May 12, Maddon was honored by the Pennsylvania State House of Representatives. The House unanimously voted in favor of a resolution highlighting Maddon's accomplishments on the baseball diamond and his continued ties to the city of Hazleton, Pa., the manager's hometown.
Oaks was a member of the men's soccer team from 1947-1950 and served as team captain in 1950. He continued his involvement with the College and Lafayette athletics following his days as a student-athlete. He served as an Alumni Trustee from 1996-01, was the President of the Alumni Association (1994-96) and served on the Athletics and Student Affairs Committee (1996-99). He also completed a two-year stint as the President of the Maroon Club.
The list of Oaks' awards and accolades is a lengthy one with perhaps the most notable being the Lafayette Medal for Distinguished Service, the College's highest honor, which he received in 2001. He received the Danny Hatch Sports Award in 1983 as well as the George T. Woodring Alumni Association Service and Volunteer of the Year Award in 1997.
He remains a constant presence at Lafayette soccer matches and numerous other Lafayette events. In 2005, the soccer venue was named in his honor: Bourger Field at Oaks Stadium.
Oaks and his wife, Mary Ann, have three daughters, all of whom graduated from Lafayette and were members of both the field hockey and lacrosse teams. Susan '78 was a two-year captain of both the field hockey and lacrosse teams and was the recipient of the Charles L. Albert Award as a senior. Cynthia '80 won the Division II lacrosse championship in 1980 and received the Class of 1913 scholar-athlete award. Sally Lou '84 also joined her sisters as a member of the field hockey and lacrosse squads. Oaks and Mary Ann also have nine grandchildren, including two granddaughters who attend Lafayette as members of the class of 2013.
The lone female in the class, Wagner was an 11-time East Coast Conference (ECC) champion. A member of the indoor and outdoor teams from 1984-88, she still stands in the top-10 of 10 events in the Lafayette record books.
Wagner, who competed in both track and field events, captured six indoor and five outdoor ECC titles. She was an All-East selection in three events (pentathlon, 60 meter hurdles, weight throw) and was named the 1988 ECAC Athlete of the Meet.
The teams on which Wagner competed were highly successful. She was a member of a championship team every year in both indoor and outdoor track and field and served as team captain in 1988.
Wagner also received the Charles L. Albert Trophy as a senior (1988), presented annually to a student-athlete at Lafayette who is judged to be the most outstanding athlete.
Wagner currently resides in Harrisburg, Pa. with her husband, Tim, and daughter Abigail (7). She currently works with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection as an engineer, a job she has held since 1988. Wagner also served on the Executive Committee of the Central Pennsylvania Chapter of the Lafayette Alumni Association.
