The Keystone Central Foundation Alumni & Friends
Hall of Fame Class of 2022
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Yvonne Weaver
LHHS Class of 1966
For Yvonne Weaver, a 1966 graduate of Lock Haven High School, her life has been dedicated to making an impact in her community of Loganton. Yvonne has a passion for preserving and sharing the rich traditions of the Sugar Valley and the surrounding areas.
In 1995, Yvonne was a part of a group of local citizens who worked to create the Sugar Valley Historical Society. Soon after, with a cancer diagnosis and treatments in progress, Yvonne worked with others to create the Bull Run One Room Schoolhouse Museum. Her work at this time included cataloging items, writing grants, and helping with the many administrative functions required to create a new non-profit organization.
Prior to her work with the historical society, Yvonne served as an officer for the Sugar Valley Sports Boosters that created the Haunted Hayride for Sugar Valley in the 1980’s, when it was at its peak and one of the largest in state of Pennsylvania.
Yvonne is a current member of the Clinton County Community Foundation and the United Methodist Church in Loganton. She was a founding member and current trustee for the Sugar Valley Concerned Citizens and served on the committee for the 175th Sugar Valley Anniversary Celebration. Yvonne was also instrumental in rebooting the Sugar Valley Good Ole’ days after a two-year hiatus and organizing the presentation of quilts for the Veterans of Sugar Valley.
Yvonne dedicated her professional life to working as a para-professional at the Sugar Valley Elementary School for over 25 years and then transitioned to the Sugar Valley Rural Charter School for almost another decade before her retirement in September 2009. In the early 1980’s, Yvonne took free business classes and started her own business with Weaver Awards and Trophies until she sold the business in the early 1990’s and became the Loganton Tax Collector. She has been proud to serve as a Senior Project Mentor for at least 5 students over the years.
Stephen "Turbo" Toboz
LHHS Class of 1987
Petty Officer, Stephen "Turbo" Toboz, currently of Virginia Beach, VA is a decorated retired U.S. Navy SEAL. A 1987 graduate of Lock Haven High School, Stephen Toboz was honored by Lt. Colonel Oliver "Oli" North with a Defender of Freedom Award. He is also the recipient of a Purple Heart, Silver Star with Valor, Bronze Medal, and Presidential Unit Citation.
A dual athlete in football and wrestling at LHHS, Turbo went to Clarion to wrestle his freshman year.
He took his athleticism to defend his country and completed the toughest training in the military, BUDS (Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL) training. He succeeded and became a member of an elite unit of Navy SEALS.
In 2002, Toboz was a part of Operation Anaconda, one of the first large-scale battles fighting the Taliban in Afghanistan. His team was on a mission to secure an OP (observation post) in which the CH-47 Chinook helicopter took a RPG and 30+ rounds of small arms fire resulting in his teammate Neil “Fifi” Robert’s falling out of the helicopter and surrounded by Taliban terrorist fighters. The helicopter crashed landed 7,000 meters away from the mountaintop and they immediately knew they were going back under some of the most adverse conditions any person could or would endure to rescue their brother.
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The meaning “Never leave a man behind” is true and held highly to these warriors. Toboz and his fellow SEALS took a new helicopter to rescue their captured teammate.
The snow was deep, the temperatures were below freezing, and they were deep in Taliban territory. Turbo was shot in his left leg. His ankle was shattered, and he later discovered the bullet was lodged under his big toe. Turbo lost nearly 3 liters of blood, but refused morphine so he could continue to provide cover for the rest of his unit. He battled and fought for 18 hours before he could evacuate the area with ALL of his brothers.
After numerous surgeries, Turbo made the decision to amputate his shattered leg. Turbo wanted redemption for himself and his brothers. He worked out even harder knowing he would return to his teammates with a mission to fight those who took so much from him. He returned to his team 9 months later and was victorious over those who changed his life forever.
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Turbo served a few more years and retired with honor, integrity, perseverance, and dedication to our great country. He is a civilian now and works as a training manager for the Department of Defense.
Turbo was honored in August of 2021 with the naming of the First Island Bridge to the “Petty Officer Stephen “Turbo” Toboz Jr. Bridge. He has attended the Army / Navy Game with Lt. Colonel Oliver "Oli" North and President George W. Bush, where Bush gave him a hug and a kiss for his service to his country.
Toboz currently lives in Virginia with his wife Linda and daughter Bianca.
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Howard Peters
BEN Class of 1958
First in his family to finish high school, Howard Peters, Ph.D., Bald-Eagle Nittany Class of 1958, has had an incredibly successful career as a chemist, patent attorney, and now as a chocolate lover.
Howard Peters earned a B.S. in chemistry in 1962 at Geneva College in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania and a Ph.D. in organic chemistry at Stanford University in 1967. He is the author or co-author of many technical and legal publications and holds several patents, mostly in high explosives on Department of Defense or Atomic Energy Commission matters. As a chemist, he led research projects on volatile anesthetics, organic fluorine compounds, herbicides and high explosives.
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In 1978 Howard received a law degree from Santa Clara University. He practiced patent law in the Silicon Valley for 30 years. During this time he wrote and obtained over 300 patents.
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He is a 50-year member of the American Chemical Society and has served as a voting member of the ACS Council for 35 years; he has served on all national ACS elected committees and was an elected member of the ACS Board of Directors for 2005-7.
Howard has received awards for his diversity and inclusion efforts, and for his public outreach explaining science issues to general audiences. He received the ACS Henry Hill Award in 2007 for advancing chemistry as a profession. In 2006 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry (London) and a Fellow of the ACS in 2010. He has been an invited judge for chemistry for the INTEL International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF - the world's largest high school science fair).
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In 2012 the ACS Division of chemistry and the Law created the annual Howard & Sally Peters Award to recognize long term ACS member achievements in non-traditional careers in chemistry.
Howard took an interest in researching his family history rooted in Western Clinton County. Some of his research suggests he may be a distant relative of Milton Hershey - which may have contributed to his love and passion for chocolate!
For over 20 years, Howard and his wife Sally (also a chemist) have toured the United States to present about "Chocolate, Food of the Gods." They have been invited scientist-author lecturers on Cunard's Queen Mary 2 and the Princess Cruise lines.
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Their presentation and passion about chocolate earned them the 2016 Helen M. Free Award for outstanding public outreach from the American Chemical Society (ACS) for successfully explaining the wonders of chocolate’s chemistry to non-scientists.
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Howard, and his wife Sally live on the outskirts of Silicon Valley in Cupertino, California - about 6 miles from Apple headquarters.
Harris &
John Lipez
LHHS Class of 1933 and 1961
The name Lipez is synonymous with radio broadcasting in Clinton County. Whether it’s John Lipez on air today with our high school sports play-by-plays or his father Harris, who co-founded WBPZ radio back in 1947.
For Harris Lipez, his entire professional life was that of a communicator, from news reporting to sports broadcasting. He received myriad commendations and awards for this life of connecting people with one another and with the larger world.
Harris was the co-founder of Radio Station WBPZ in 1947, bringing radio to Lock Haven for the first time. He also did a broadcast on WRAK Williamsport from the Piper Aircraft plant during World War II, helping the war effort. He served in the US Army during the last year of the war. Harris was considered a pioneer in sports broadcasting, especially wrestling, in PA, and received many accolades and awards for these efforts over the decades.
He was the original host on the WPSX-TV show "TV Quarterbacks" with Penn State football coach Joe Paterno in 1967. He also did early television coverage of Lehigh University wrestling and Penn State gymnastics. He was a member of the Pennsylvania Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame.
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Harris was involved in many aspects of Clinton County civic life from his active membership in the Kiwanis Club to his run for the state Senate. He also served on the PA Horse Racing Commission, multiple terms on the Keystone Central School Board, and coaching for Little League and American Legion Baseball. He was also a longtime members of baseball for boys, the organization that oversaw Little League Baseball in Lock Haven during the early years of the league.
His ongoing involvement in the PA Broadcasters Association was evidence of his continued effort to understand and meet new challenges in the radio business and its place in the social and economic life of the commonwealth.
Perhaps his greatest contribution was his lifelong promotion of team and individual sports as models for good citizenship. Harris promoted teamwork in all aspects of life, and especially in sports. His famous sign-off at the end of his nightly sports news broadcasts was, "If you like good sports, be one."
Harris’ son John certainly followed in his father’s footsteps. John is a 1965 graduate of Penn State School of Journalism with a degree in Broadcasting. He has continuously learned to hone the craft of providing news to the readers and listeners as radio and newspaper have evolved over the decades. He transformed the oldest newspaper in Clinton County from a paper copy to an online media outlet, reaching people around the world.
Since 1965, John has made a career as a communicator. His reach is wide with radio programs such as “Talk Back” and broadcasting local elections and sporting events at all levels.
John’s impact in our community has extended beyond radio and print. He served in the National Guard. He helped locally during the 1972 flood and served on city council. He coached various levels of local youth baseball including little league, junior league, and legion baseball. He served the public interest as a public trustee while owning the local radio station.
John has also collaborated with many community groups to enrich our local area. He served as an early member of the Clinton County Community Foundation - where he served on the board for four decades. He worked with officials to develop the summer concert series and streams many local events of interest such as Flaming Foliage. His work with sports broadcasting took on a whole new level with the pandemic. When parents were not allowed to attend their children’s sporting events, John worked with the school district to stream even more sports – home and away. In doing so, he and The Record Online have been able to engage those who now live out of the area too.
Malcolm Heimer
BEN Class of 1958
A National Merit scholarship recipient and a 1958 graduate of Bald-Eagle Nittany High School, Malcolm Lee Heimer started college close to home at Bucknell University. After he earned his BS in Electrical Engineering from Bucknell, he moved west and earned his Master’s degree from the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, CA in 1963.
Malcolm reflects that the pivotal point in his life came when he decided to move back to live near his paraplegic father and switch to Biomedical Engineering so “my work can help people like my dad”. He never regretted that decision! He was awarded his Ph.D from Penn State University in 1976 after completing his dissertation research at Milton S. Hershey Medical School. He worked in biomedical for the remainder of his career.
Malcolm has been the recipient of many awards and accolades as an electrical and biomedical engineer. He holds three U.S. patents and has authored articles on blood volume pulse signals as indicators of exercise response, characterization of radiator detection for bio-applications, and measuring bioluminescence with a photomultiplier tube.
His early work in industry began as a member of the Technical Staff for Bell Telephone Laboratories and the Hughes Aircraft Company. Later on, he was the Director of the Biomedical Division of Fidelity Electronics from 1979 until 1981. There he developed myo-electric prosthetic arms for amputees and voice-controlled systems to enable paraplegics to control their environment from a bed. Then, he worked as a Principal Engineer at Cordis Corporation in Miami, designing implantable cardiac pacemakers and defibrillators. He also served as an expert witness in patent lawsuits and as a consultant for nearly two decades.
Malcolm has been a member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers since 1976 and is a member of the American Society for Engineering Education from 1983 until 2002.
For Malcolm, above all, he followed his passion for designing and building electronics and for teaching others what he knows about electrical and biomedical engineering.
He worked in a college setting for over thirty years, beginning as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Electrical and Biomedical Engineering at Vanderbilt in 1976. After his work in the biomedical industry,
he joined the faculty of Florida International University in 1983 helping their transition from engineering technology into a fully accredited 4-year engineering school. He developed some courses in advanced electronics and later developed courses in biomedical engineering.
During his time at FIU, he served as an Associate Professor and Associate Chairperson. He authored articles on the “Evolution of Engineering Education at FIU” and “How to Institutionalize – The Gateway Experience at FIU.” He also worked on curriculum revisions and monitoring student alertness to create a more interactive classroom experience.
He was the recipient of the Wertheim Excellence in Teaching Award in 2000 and the Teaching Incentive Productivity Award at FIU in 1994.
He retired from Florida International University in 2007.
After retirement, Malcolm and his wife moved to a retirement community in FL where he was very active. He was a moderator for the Current Events Club and was an officer in the Democratic Club. He was also elected president of the American-Israeli Club, mostly because of his many visits to Israel with his wife (who holds Israeli citizenship).
Malcolm and his wife recently moved to their current home in Roseville, CA.
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Rich Wykoff
Bucktail Class of 1968
Rich Wykoff could just be called a local renaissance man. Rich, a Bucktail Area High School Class of 1968 graduate, has made an impact throughout Clinton County.
An educator for many years, Rich has a love of history - particularly local history. He has received recognition for his involvement in the development of the Clinton County CCC Camp Project, a 10+ year effort to research, commemorate, and preserve the heritage of the 10 Civilian Conservation Corps Camps located in the county.
Rich regularly presents talks about the history of Rafting and the Great Log Drives on the West Branch of the Susquehanna River and about Civilian Conservation Corps history for local organizations like Leadership Clinton County, the Clinton County Genealogical Society, and the Clinton County Historical Society.
Whether it is helping develop events like the LH JAMS Music Festival, Renovo ATV Cruise For A Cure, a driving tour of CCC camps, or helping expand ATV trails in the area, producing the “Renovo Through Time” podcast, or helping to establish a Renovo Area 4-H program, Rich is an asset to many local groups and organizations.
He is currently a board member and the past president of The Greater Renovo Area Heritage Park, Inc. and is a long-standing member of the Clinton County Arts Council Board. Rich is a former board member of the Kettle Creek Watershed Association, the Clinton County Cooperative Extension, the Keystone Central Foundation, and Central Mountains ATV Association, Inc.
Rich is also a strong advocate for our local tourism and natural resources. He was recognized with the Carl Bergdahl Tourism Award from the Clinton County Economic Partnership for tourist promotion for his continued efforts. He served as a member of the Northcentral PA ATV Trail Initiative development team and has represented Heritage Park in meetings, workshops, and projects with the Susquehanna Rivertown Committee (Renovo Region), the Lumber Heritage Region, and the PA Wilds.
Rich is a member of the Renovo Elks Club, Sons of Italy (Renovo), and the Clinton County Tourism Committee and is also a former member of the Lock Haven Area Jaycees, which he credits as the organization that sparked his life-long interest in community service.
Each of us has a passion or a special interest that serves as a pathway we find weaving through our life experiences leading us to interesting people, places, and discoveries. For Rich, it has been education, living in Clinton County, and working with those innovators and visionaries in our communities who are driven to find unique and enjoyable solutions to our challenges - especially when those solutions benefit our youth and life in our Clinton County neighborhoods.