By Megan Kelley
Staff Writer
ORION TWP. — Lake Orion Community Schools welcomed two alumni to their Wall of Excellence last Friday at Lake Orion High School.
The two inductees; Tim Myers and Dr. Eric Bartelink, make up the 2022 class of inductees.
Bartelink is a 1992 graduate of Lake Orion and is a professor of biological and forensic anthropology at California State University.
He received his bachelors degree from Central Michigan University, his masters degree from California State University and his Ph.D from Texas A&M University. Bartelink has assisted law enforcement with the recovery and analysis of human skeletal remains at crime scenes as co-director of the Human Identification Laboratory.
He has also supported the United Nations with the recovery of genocide victims in Bosnia and the identification of World Trade Center victims from 9/11. Bartelink was a member of the LOHS track and field team.
Bartelink was unable to attend the ceremony.
Myers is a 1984 graduate of Lake Orion and is the CEO of Arconic. He earned his degree in Mechanical Engineering and received an MBA from the University of Michigan.
Myers is a successful businessman who has run businesses and overseen operations in over 20 countries.
Myers credits his interest in engineering and manufacturing to his former LOHS calculus teacher Mr. Gary Kibby and his local baseball coach Mr. Doug Rusnell.
“I’m obviously deeply honored, it’s so meaningful to me to be recognized,” Myers said at the ceremony.
Myers spoke briefly about relationships and the community, recognizing his mentors, Kibby and Rusnell, who he credits much of his success to.
“When I think about that saying ‘it takes a village to raise a child’, I was very fortunate that my village was Lake Orion,” Myers said.
Myers spent a good portion of his day at LOHS; speaking with students during the day and then attending the Wall of Excellence ceremony and subsequent football game later in the evening.
In addition to his attendance, The Arconic Foundation provided LOHS with a $10,000 STEM grant that Myers matched with a personal donation.
The Wall of Excellence has been a relatively recent addition to LOHS and serves as both a way to honor past students who have gone above and beyond in their career paths as well as inspire current LOHS students. Debuting in 2017, Myers and Bartelink become the 23rd and 24th additions to the wall.
“This Wall of Excellence just is happens to function as a monument. It’s passed by every single day,” said LOHS Assistant Principal Tony Palmeri. “When you pass by it, I hope it serves as an every day reminder that excellence and accomplishment are a possibility, a distinct possibility. I also want to remind our students that the ingredients are very simple: hard work, resilience, overcoming obstacles, taking risks and putting yourself in positions to succeed.”
If you know of a Lake Orion alumni who has achieved great success in their chosen career path, consider filling out a nomination form at www.lakeorionschools.org/district/alumni/wall-of-excellence. LOHS holds annual induction ceremonies to honor and recognize each year’s inductee class.