York High School has named six alumni who will be honored this year as Dukes of Distinction, a recognition program launched in 2013.
The honorees in the York Distinguished Alumni Program are nominated by a panel of alumni judges and recognized for having distinguished themselves through significant or extraordinary accomplishments, service or an outstanding contribution to society.
David Bosse, Blake Byrne, Thomas Fisher, Linda French, Judith Bond Johnson and Mary McEnerney Wooley will be inducted during a reception at 6:30 p.m. Nov. 2 at the York High School Commons, 355 W. St. Charles Road, Elmhurst. The program is free and open to the public.
Bosse, a 1980 graduate, has worked as a firefighter for the Lisle/Woodridge and later Bartlett departments. During his career, he worked the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, receiving the Armed Forces Humanitarian and Mutual Aid Box Alarm System medals for his service.
He also assisted the New York Fire Department after the 9/11 attacks. He received the Medal of Merit after saving a man from a burning building and taking him to safety.
Bosse retired in 2016 after 20 years of full-time service.
Byrne, a 1953 graduate, spent 35 years in television broadcasting before retiring in 1997. He is chairman of Byrne Acquisition Group, with TV and radio stations in Wisconsin and South Carolina. He founded the Skylark Foundation, advocating for the protection of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered rights and supporting diversity.
Byrne is a supporter of the arts and an avid art collector. He is a lifetime trustee of the Museum of Contemporary Art and was the founding chairman of the Nasher Museum. He was honored with a Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, an honor given for making a significant contribution to the arts in France.
Fisher, a 1966 graduate, is a brigadier general. He began his military career in the Michigan Army National Guard and continued with the Utah Army National Guard. He was promoted to brigadier general in 2016, a position appointed by the president of the United States and confirmed by the U.S. Senate.
He serves as land component commander. He was deployed to Iraq from 2003 to 2005 and graduated from the U.S. Army War College with a masters of strategic studies.
French, a 1982, is a 12-time U.S. National Badminton Champion. As captain of her team, she led York High School to a second-place finish in the team state finals in 1981 and 1982. She won the Illinois state badminton singles title in 1979, 1981 and 1982.
French was selected to join the U.S. Olympic Badminton Team in 1992 and was also on the 1996 U.S. Olympic Team. Extensive travel inspired her to serve as an immigration lawyer. She represents athletes, businesses and individuals.
Johnson, a 1955 graduate, is a nurse and was the first to receive a Ph.D. from the adult education program at the University of Minnesota. Her company, HealthQuest, serves individuals, companies and hospitals whose interest is living with chronic illness.
Johnson’s Ph.D. thesis, the I Can Cope cancer patient education course, was adopted by American and international hospitals. Johnson has lived and traveled abroad. She was appointed as a Fulbright Scholar in 2010. She is editor of the journal Asian Pacific Journal of Oncology Nursing and presents on living with chronic illness and patient education.
Wooley, a 1964 graduate, is an influential medical and health research advocate. She is president/CEO of Research!America, a nonprofit alliance dedicated to making health research a higher national priority.
She is a member of the National Academy of Sciences Board on Life Sciences and a founding member of the Board of Associates of the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research. She holds two honorary doctorate degrees.
Wooley was awarded the Adam Yarmolinsky Award for distinguished service from the National Academy of Medicine and is a member of the visiting committee of the University of Chicago Medical Center.
