Two successful businessmen, a longtime College of Creative Arts professor, and a nationally respected college basketball coach are being honored as “Most Loyals” during the 65th annual Mountaineer Week, a celebration of Appalachian Heritage, Oct. 26 – Nov. 4, on West Virginia University’s campus.
The 2012 honorees are Richard Adams, Most Loyal West Virginian; Doug Van Scoy, Most Loyal Alumni Mountaineer; Joann Spencer Siegrist, Most Loyal Faculty Mountaineer; and Bob Huggins, Most Loyal Staff Mountaineer. The group will be honored during halftime ceremonies of Saturday’s (Nov. 3) WVU-TCU football game.
The Most Loyal West Virginian and Alumni Mountaineer awards have been presented since 1974, while the Most Loyal Faculty and Staff Mountaineer award was created in 1994 and split into two separate awards in 2001. The award recipients are selected by a joint committee representing the WVU Foundation, WVU Alumni Association and the Mountaineer Week organizing committee.
Most Loyal West Virginian
The Most Loyal West Virginian exemplifies faithfulness to the ideals and goals of the state of West Virginia through business, professional and civic achievement as well as support for WVU.
Richard Adams is chief executive officer and chairman of the board of United Bankshares, Inc., the state’s largest bank holding company, headquartered in Charleston.
Adams’ career in banking is marked by his exemplary leadership. Since 1971, he has held executive level roles at various banks, leading to his current positions which he has held since 1985.
Adams currently serves on the board of directors of the West Virginia Bankers Association and is a member of both the International Financial Conference and the Financial Services Roundtable.
He was named to the West Virginia Business Hall of Fame in 2002, and was named “Banker of the Year” by the West Virginia Bankers Association in that same year.
Adams, of Parkersburg, received his bachelor’s degree in political science from WVU and also holds a master’s degree in banking from Stonier Graduate School of Banking at Rutgers University.
Most Loyal Alumni
The Most Loyal Alumni Mountaineer exemplifies faithfulness to the ideas and goals of the University and exhibits support for WVU activities and operations through leadership and service.
After receiving bachelor’s and master’s degrees from WVU and completing a stint in the U.S. Army, Doug Van Scoy started his investment career in 1969 with Blyth, Eastman, Dillon.
In 1974, he went to work for the investment firm of Smith Barney until his retirement in 2001. He held various positions during that period and ended his career as deputy director and senior executive vice president. During his career, he served on the board of Robinson Humphrey and earned the leadership award from the Georgia Securities Association in 1994.
Van Scoy, of Sullivan’s Island, S.C., is founder and partner of Pit Partners, a hospitality business in South Carolina, where he and his partners own and operate several restaurants. He is also a partner in two restaurants (Taziki’s Mediterranean Cafe) located in Morgantown.
Van Scoy serves on the WVU Foundation Board of Directors and has served as a board member and chairman of the WVU Alumni Association. He currently is chairing the comprehensive campaign committee for the WVU College of Business and Economics.
In June, Van Scoy and his wife, Pam, announced a $1.5 million gift to the WVU College of Business and Economics.
Most Loyal Faculty and Staff Mountaineers
The Most Loyal Faculty and Staff Mountaineers exemplify faithfulness to the ideals and goals of WVU and exhibit support for University activities and operations through leadership and service.
Joann Spencer Siegrist is professor of puppetry and creative dramatics, and director of the WVU Puppet Mobile in the School of Theatre and Dance at WVU’s College of Creative Arts.
Over the years, Siegrist has gained national recognition for her work in puppetry, serving as president of the board of directors of UNIMA-USA, the international puppetry organization. She also served as national education consultant for the Puppeteers of America, and has conducted numerous workshops statewide, regionally and nationally on creative drama and puppetry production.
Siegrist, of Clarksburg, has developed educational puppet videos and worked as a consultant for national groups such as Very Special Arts, The Learning Channel, and National Environmental Education and Training Foundation in Washington, D.C.
She received her bachelor’s degree from WVU, master of fine arts degree from the University of Georgia and completed post-graduate studies at both the University of Northern Colorado and Rutgers University.
WVU men’s basketball coach Bob Huggins has not only led his alma mater to an unprecedented level of sustained success on the court, but has used his stature and notoriety to raise awareness and funds for causes off the court and close to his heart.
Foremost among these causes has been the Norma Mae Huggins Cancer Research Endowment, established in memory of the coach’s mother who died of cancer. Through various fundraising efforts, he has mobilized an incredible number of donors around the state and nation in support of cancer research at WVU’s Mary Babb Randolph Cancer Center. The endowment has quickly grown to over $700,000 with no indication of slowing down. Earlier this year, Huggins received the WVU Foundation’s Outstanding Volunteer Philanthropist award.
Huggins is a two-time Academic All-American, and graduated from the College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences, magna cum laude, in 1977. He received his master’s degree in health administration from WVU in 1978. Huggins was a three-year letterman for the Mountaineers from 1975-1977. He is also a member of the WVU College of Physical Activity and Sports Sciences Hall of Fame.
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CONTACT: Bill Nevin, WVU Foundation
304-284-4056; WNevin@wvuf.org
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