The Indian Hill Foundation is proud to announce
the 2019 Alumni Award honorees. The
awards honor and recognize the Indian Hill alumni legacy of commitment,
integrity and achievement. Nominations
submitted in November were reviewed by a committee of alumni representing 5
decades of graduation years. The
finalists were then approved by the Board of the IHF. Award recipients will be an inspiration to
current and future alumni and exemplify what it means to ‘be a Brave’ in the
years beyond school.
Dean J.
Kereiakes, M.D. (IHHS ‘70) - Indian Hill Distinguished Alumni Award
Distinguished
Alumni is the top honor for an alumnus for outstanding personal
accomplishments, honors or recognition in one’s career or on behalf of the
community.
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| Dean Kereiakes |
Dean J. Kereiakes, M.D. is Medical Director of the Christ
Hospital Heart and Vascular Center, Medical Director of the Carl and Edyth
Lindner Center for Research and Education at The Christ Hospital, and Professor
of Clinical Medicine at the Ohio State University.
After attending the University of Cincinnati undergraduate
for three years where he was President of Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity, Dr.
Kereiakes received his medical degree and was valedictorian of his graduating
class of the University of Cincinnati, College of Medicine in 1978. Following training at the University of
California, San Francisco and the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, he
completed fellowships at the University of California, San Francisco, at the
San Francisco Heart Institute and the Sequoia Hospital. Dr. Kereiakes has pioneered most of the
leading edge cardiovascular technologies introduced over the last three
decades. In addition to lecturing nationally and internationally, he has
participated in thousands of research protocols and is a prolific contributor
to scientific journals, abstracts, and book chapters.
Dr. Kereiakes has been selected as Outstanding Alumnus,
University of Cincinnati School of Medicine and the Ohio Valley American Heart
Association’s Kaplan Visionary Award for cardiovascular research. He was honored with the Honorary Doctorate of
Sciences from the University of Cincinnati in 2014. He and his wife, Anne, have been involved in
multiple civic activities and have chaired and/or been honorees for the annual
AHA Heart Ball and the annual USO Gala.
“Along with my siblings, Tom (IHHS ’73), Penny (IHHS ‘74),
and Beth (IHHS ’79), I was fortunate to be afforded unparalleled public
education in a community that was actively engaged in all aspects (academics,
athletics, performing arts, etc.) of our school experience. The Indian Hill school system is remarkable
in that it is common to see multiple generations of graduates and students at
school events,” states Dr. Kereiakes. He continues, “It was very emotionally
gratifying for me to have had all four of my children attend Indian Hill K -12
and be given the same tremendous opportunity that I had.”
Carol
“Buffie” Rixey (IHHS ‘72) – Indian Hill Brave Service Award
This award
recognizes an alumnus who has generously dedicated his/her time and talent to
the service of the IH School District and its mission. Service can include volunteer time as well as
resources.
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| Carol “Buffie” Rixey |
Carol “Buffie” Rixey has served as a committed community
volunteer and has made a positive impact both for the Indian Hill School
District and the Greater Cincinnati area and beyond. After graduating from University of
Cincinnati with both RN and BSN in 1977, she pursued her nursing career in both
hospital systems and in private health care services. After retiring, she has continued to give
her energy to supporting numerous non-profit organizations with a focus on
education, women, children and health.
Within the Indian Hill School District, Rixey has had leadership
roles throughout the PTO. She created or co-chaired many fundraising events
that have become long-standing traditions within the district such as the
International Parents Network and the event which has become Spring Fling. She worked on and ultimately chaired the
early “Party on the Hill” events, raising over $200,000 for the schools. Additionally, she co-founded the now annual Odd
Couples Dance to raise funds for After Prom, and was Chair of After Prom
twice. She is also a founding member of
the Indian Hill Foundation and served on its Board for ten years.
Outside of her dedication to Indian Hill Schools, Rixey has
served the city in many ways. She has been President of Kindervelt #50,
President of the Kindervelt City Wide Board of Trustees, raising over $1
million dollars for Cincinnati Children’s Hospital during her two-year term.
She has served on the American Heart Association’s Heart Ball Committee,
supported The Friends of Boyscouting Campaign. She currently serves on the
University of Cincinnati College of Nursing Advisory Board, among many other
civic roles.
“Our three children graduated from IHHS as
well, and our entire family credits so many of our life successes to the
education, opportunities, support and encouragement we received in the Indian
Hill Schools.” Rixey continues, “As a parent, I wanted to help the Indian Hill
Schools in as many ways as I possibly could, out of gratitude for my wonderful
experiences there and with the hope that future generations would continue to
have the same opportunities as my children, Eppa, and I had.’ She concludes, “I am proud to be an Indian
Hill High School graduate and thankful for the many opportunities I had to
become involved in supporting an outstanding school district.”
Adhrucia Apana (IHHS ‘ 01) - Indian Hill Young Brave Award
The IH
Young Brave Award celebrates the outstanding personal achievements in career or
on behalf of the community within 20 years of graduation.
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| Adhrucia Apana |
Adhrucia Apana is currently the Managing
Director of Creative Wealth Media the finance arm of Bron Studios best
known for Oscar nominated films such as Fences
and Roman J. Esquire. Creative
Wealth Media is an industry leader in gap financing solutions to producers and
distributors of motion pictures, television, and animated
productions. Creative Wealth finances 15-20 theatrical releases a
year including studio hits from top directors such as Paul Feig, Jason Reitman,
Clint Eastwood, and box office talent such as Anna Kendrick, Blake Lively,
Joaquin Phoenix and Charlize Theron.
Apana has executive produced three major
motion pictures including Tom Hardy's "Fonzo" directed by Josh Trank,
John Ridley's "Needle in a Timestack" starring Orlando Bloom,
Frieda Pinto and Leslie Odom Jr., and a third project to be announced soon.
She is a board member of The Athena Fund,
started by Selma Hayek, that champions women-based stories, and a founding
member of M Group, an invitation-only organization that supports collaboration
between creatives and executives within the entertainment industry.
Apana has been a featured speaker
representing women and minorities in her field in the last few years at
prestigious industry events as Sundance, Toronto International Film
Festival, Relativity School's Hidden Numbers Program, and La Femme Film
Festival.
Apana is a
supporter of the Art of Elysium that works with the Children's Hospital in LA
bringing art and artists to kids struggling with cancer and other terminal
diseases. She also has given her time to help support The Young Storyteller's
Organization of LA promoting storytelling and the arts in public schools.
While in Cincinnati, she was the founder of the Cincinnati Chapter of 85
broads, member of the Cincinnati Symphony YPO board, FUEL board for funding
non-profits in the area, and an avid supporter of the Cincinnati Cystic
Fibrosis Foundation.
Alumni Awards will be presented at a ceremony in
April 2019. The IH Foundation engages alumni with current students over the
year to inspire future Braves to be a powerful force in the world. For more information about the IH
Foundation’s work, please visit www.indianhillfoundation.org.
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