Alumni Award Nominations
Since 1959, the Pfeiffer Alumni Association has recognized the extraordinary contributions of alumni by presenting two annual awards to deserving individuals. In 2015, the Office of the President created the Presidential Merit Award to recognize young alumni. These awards are presented during the Annual Alumni Gathering at Homecoming.
We encourage all alumni to nominate those deserving of recognition. The submission deadline for award nominations is April 30th, each year. Click below to download nomination forms. Please note that individuals may only be nominated for one award per year. The Alumni Board of Directors reserves the right to determine which award category is most appropriate/applicable for nomination in the case of an alumnus being nominated for both Outstanding and Distinguished Awards.
- Distinguished Alumni Award Download here
- Outstanding Alumni Award Download here
- Presidential Merit Award Download here
Print and mail nomination forms to Pfeiffer University Advancement Office, P.O. Box 960, Misenheimer, N.C. 28109, or email forms to advance@pfeiffer.edu.
2026 Alumni Award Recipients
Steve Lemons ’68 Named 2026 Distinguished Alumni Award Recipient
Dr. Steve Lemons, the recipient of Pfeiffer University’s 2026 Distinguished Alumni Award, has been keeping in touch with fellow members from Pfeiffer’s Class of 1968 over quarterly Zoom calls since the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I don’t think I’ve missed a single Zoom call since that time,” Lemons said recently. “I’ve realized not only what great things Pfeiffer has been doing, but also the great things some of the people in my class have been up to.”
The Zoom meetings also led to a deeper appreciation among Lemons’ classmates for all that he accomplished after graduating from Pfeiffer, from which he earned a bachelor’s degree in Psychology and sociology, which is now offered as a minor. Jane Cashion Brietz ’68, a Pfeiffer alumna who nominated Lemons for the Distinguished Alumni Award, hadn’t heard from him until the Zoom calls started; she said she “was truly amazed by the breadth and depth of his contributions since graduation.”
Awarded by the Alumni Association Board of Directors to honor excellence in one’s profession or community service.
Jim Keever ’71 Named 2026 Outstanding Alumnus
Jim Keever ’71, the recipient of Pfeiffer University’s 2026 Outstanding Alumni Award, played so well on the golf teams of his alma mater that he was inducted into the Pfeiffer University Sports Hall of Fame in 2016.
But Keever’s impact on Pfeiffer athletics didn’t stop there. He has also made numerous monetary and in-kind donations, each aimed at advancing objectives such as providing equipment for golfers, enabling soccer players to bond better off the pitch, furnishing special caps for fans of particular teams, and building collective pride in the accomplishments of Pfeiffer athletes.
Jane Edwards Crenshaw ’72, a Pfeiffer alumna who recommended Keever for the Outstanding Alumni Award, praised him for “quietly and consistently” supporting Pfeiffer since the year he graduated. She added that he “has an exceptional ability to recognize needs — often before they are formally identified — and willingly offers his time, resources, and expertise to address them.”
Awarded by the Alumni Association Board of Directors to honor one’s significant contributions to Pfeiffer University.
Meg Peters ’13 Named 2026 Presidential Merit Award Winner
How is Methodism evolving in the country of its birth?
Reverend Meg Gaston Peters ’13, the recipient of Pfeiffer University’s 2026 Presidential Merit Award, is providing some intriguing answers. She has been working in England for the British Methodist Church as one of its Ministers of Other Churches, having committed to do so over a five-year period that began in September 2025.
She once aspired to teach math, having majored in that subject while minoring in secondary education. After deciding a career as a math teacher would not be for her, though, she earned a master’s degree in Divinity/Ministry from the Princeton Theological Seminary in Princeton, N.J. and was ordained as a minister in the United Methodist Church. Before her appointment in England, Peters pastored two churches in her native North Carolina, and she served as Associate Minister of Outreach at Centenary United Methodist Church in Winston-Salem, N.C.
Awarded by the President of Pfeiffer University to alumni who are 35 years of age or younger, who have excelled early in their careers, and who show potential for continued success.
1962 Rev. Lloyd G. Lowder ’42
1963 Dr. Garmon B. Smith ’40
1964 Rev. Dr. William K. Quick ’52, ’72 (Hon.)
1965 Rev. Dr. Ernest A. Fitzgerald ’43, ’86 (Hon.)
1966 Edwin W. Woodhouse ’58
1967 Rev. Herbert E. Blackmon ’36
1967 Dr. Earl W. Vaughn ’47, ’83 (Hon.)
1968 Dr. Samuel H. Johnson ’46, ’94 (Hon.)
1969 J. Walt Braxton, Jr. ’63
1970 Dr. Joseph A. Ross ’48
1971 J. Keith Crisco, Sr. ’64
1971 Rev. W. Kirk McNeill ’59
1972 Dr. L. Gordon Clarke ’44
1972 Dr. D. Larry Crumbley ’63
1972 Dr. Maeburn B. Huneycutt ’42
1972 Dr. H. Mitchell Simpson ‘64
1974 Rev. Fred Falls, Jr. ’61
1974 Dr. Samuel H. Johnson ’46, ’94 (Hon.)
1974 Dr. Franklin D. Martin ’66
1976 Joseph R. Kluttz, Jr. ’60
1977 Dr. Thad Woodard ’68
1978 J. Russell Helderman ’27
1979 Dr. Edward B. Tyson ’64
1980 Dr. R. Andrew Murphie ‘66
1982 Frank E. Watson, III ’71
1983 Dr. Juanita Lee Long ’46
1984 Dr. Lee W. Kinard, Jr. ’50
1985 The Honorable Don Maddox ’64
1987 Dr. Richard B. McKenzie ’64, ’01 (Hon.)
1988 M. Jane Williams ’66
1991 Rev. Dr. William K. Quick ’52, ’72 (Hon.)
1992 Dr. Mary Nell Saunders ’70
1993 Dr. Gerry D. Martin ’63
1995 Dr. Wilbur S. Avant, Jr. ’63
1997 Carl M. Hill ’58
1997 Dr. Thad Woodard ’68
1998 Henry E. Farmer, Sr. ’60
1999 Dr. Monteic A. Sizer ’93
2000 Rev. Dr. James B. Long, Jr. ’63, ’93 (Hon.)
2000 Dr. Lawrence J. Wheeler ’65, ’12 (Hon.)
2001 Dr. Joseph D. Armstrong ’82
2002 Herman A. Stone, Sr. ’64
2006 Thomas M. Grady ’63
2006 Betty Coates Mar ’69
2007 Rev. Julianne Brittain ’77
2007 Rev. Cecil E. Donahue ’77
2007 Annabeal Waller Lefler ’66
2008 James G. Griffith, Jr. ’58
2009 E. Jack Ingram, Jr. ’74
2009 Richard W. Thames ’75
2010 Sharon K. Bard ’79
2010 April Jones Havlin ’76
2011 Kevin G. DeSanctis ’74
2011 Harold M. Eagle, Jr. ’63
2011 Mary Earnhardt Eagle ’64
2012 Thomas D. Lewis ’68
2013 Dr. Samuel J. Chewning ’08
2013 W. Craig Estep ’83
2013 Dr. Russell H. Sharples ’75
2014 John K. Boggs ’75
2014 Albert L. Rose ’63
2015 P. Duane Dunston ’97, ’99 MSOM
2015 David B. Miller ’04
2016 Rev. H. David Melton ’76
2016 George E.J. Singleton ’68
2017 Dawn Harwood Allen ’81
2017 Alejandra Buchanan Miller ’03
2017 Dr. Marissa Shuffler Porter ’04
2018 Ashley Zeek McMichael ’12
2018 R. Lawrence Monaghan, Jr. ’68
2018 Dr. Margaret Earley Whitt ’68
2019 Brittany Cox Hudson ’13
2019 Frank W. Lea, III ’68
2019 Gary R. Weart ’71
2020 Dr. David W. Barham ’11
2020 Dr. D. Matthew Gianferante ’05
2020 Barry L. Roberson ’80
2021 Robert C. Gulledge ’68
2021 Dr. Reggie L. Hudson ’74
2021 Christopher A. Matthews ’12 MSL, ’16 MFT
2022 Robert J. Brietz ‘65
2022 Heidi Honecker Grant ‘87
2022 Jimmy D. Molina ’16, ’19 MBA, ’19 MSL
2023 Dr. Wayne T. Davis ’70
2023 Charles R. Ingram ’11, ’14 MBA
2023 David M. Smith ’70
2024 Dr. Katherine A. Collins ’15
2024 Kathleen E. Kennedy ’74
2024 Rev. Joy Thornburg Melton ’77
2025 Dr. Catherine Benson Laws ’02
2025 Paul T. Childress ’93
2025 Lindsey A. Russell ’15