Over the past 30 years, Anne ('88) and Randy Ruch ('88) have shown a deep commitment to serving the marginalized, providing medical care and so much more to people in Guatemala and in one of the poorest neighborhoods of Toledo. Last year, the Ruches received the Dr. Lawrence V. Conway Lifetime Distinguished Service Award by the UT Global Medical Missions Hall of Fame.

Retired NASA astrophysicist and UT alum Fred Espenak ('76) was in his element last summer. Known as "Mr. Eclipse," the scientist emeritus at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center has participated in 34 eclipse expeditions around the world. He even has an asteroid named after him. Last summer, just before the eclipse, the U.S. Postal Service issued a special stamp featuring Espenak's photos.

UT alumna Samantha Rhodes, along with her dad, Steve Rhodes ('85, '91), and stepmom, Tami, embarked on an adventure to "electrify Africa." The family climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro to raise $30,000 for the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA) International Foundation’s rural electrification efforts in Africa.