During the Annual Gathering of the Alumni Association on June 6 at Reunion, three alumnae received association awards for their contributions to Bates and to the wider world:
- Dr. Patricia Sullivan Doyle ’79, a longtime rural Maine physician and advocate for health-care reform, was awarded the association’s Alumni Community Service Award for “distinguished leadership and commitment to serving the community in which they live or work.”
- Rachel “Rae” Harper Garcelon ’62, who has served Bates alumni as a valued employee and an effective volunteer, received the association’s Helen A. Papaioanou ’49 Distinguished Alumni Service Award for “truly distinguished service — both in quantity and quality.”
- Emily Buchanan ’89, a painter whose work has been part of a Department of State global visual arts program and featured in the 2014 White House holiday card, was awarded the association’s Sesquicentennial Prize, which honors an alumnus or alumna for “a single academic, artistic, or scientific achievement.”
Rachel “Rae” Harper Garcelon ’62, recipient of the Alumni Association’s distinguished service award, congratulates David Longdon ’14, a member of the Board of Trustees who received a Bates’ Best award at Reunion 2019. (Rene Roy for Bates College)
Also during Reunion, the college presented Bates’ Best awards to seven alumni to honor their Reunion volunteer work: Dwight Harvie ’54, Jonas Klein ’54, Jack DeGange ’59, Michael Nolan ’69, Alicia Hunter Warner ’94, John Harvey ’09, and David Longdon ’14.
And on Friday evening of Reunion, Professor Emeritus of Psychology John Kelsey received the College Key’s Distinguished Service Award during the organization’s annual meeting.
Here are the three Alumni Association awards:
Dr. Patricia Sullivan Doyle ’79: Alumni Community Service Award
The citation for Doyle’s award reads, in part:
How fortuitous for the small community of Moose River Valley that doctor Pat Doyle landed there 30 years ago and never left…. Here, she cares for a community of roughly 1,000 people with limited staff and resources. Where others would have left after their five-year stint, Pat put down roots and rolled up her sleeves to serve a community in need.
Patricia Sullivan Doyle ’79 received the Alumni Community Service Award at Reunion 2019. (Rene Roy for Bates College)
Rachel Harper Garcelon ’62: Helen A. Papaioanou ’49 Distinguished Alumni Service Award
The citation for Garcelon’s award reads, in part:
In addition to her contributions as an employee of the college, Rae has volunteered repeatedly and tirelessly as a class officer…. Her devotion and commitment to the college is reflected in the enthusiasm and high attendance of class members at Reunion gatherings. Friends recount how Bates is her love and how she has always been present and engaged with the college, both as a student and alumna: As one former classmate puts it, “She is not just a person of our class, but the highlight of our class.”
Rachel “Rae” Harper Garcelon ’62 receives the Helen A. Papaioanou ’49 Distinguished Alumni Service Award. (Rene Roy for Bates College)
Emily S. Buchanan ’89: Sesquicentennial Prize
The citation for Buchanan’s award reads, in part:
Complementing [her]t training has been her willingness to work hard, which she attributes to her Bates education. In an interview for Bates, she remarked: “My greatest asset as a painter is that I’ve worked hard and consistently at it over the years. If I hadn’t had the experience at Bates, I’m not sure that I would have had the maturity to pursue my art as I have.”
For many years, Emily has been involved with a U.S. Department of State initiative called Art in Embassies, which places artwork in embassies around the world. It was through this connection that she was commissioned to paint the White House annual Christmas card in 2014.
Emily Buchanan ’89 (left) receives the Sesquicentennial Prize from Jen Crawford ’01, vice president of the Alumni Association. (Rene Roy for Bates College)
