Three people have been named 2017 Distinguished Alumni at Stillwater Area High School.
Marilyn “Lynn” Bruette Abercrombie, Denis McDonough and Lee Valsvik will be honored at a dinner June 2 at Lake Elmo Inn Event Center and at the school’s graduation ceremony June 3 at Roy Wilkins Auditorium in St. Paul.
Abercrombie, who graduated in 1948, is an award-winning photographer who has traveled the world capturing rare images of exotic locations as a freelance photographer for National Geographic.
Her career spanned more than three decades, with assignments to all seven continents.
McDonough, a 1988 graduate, served as White House chief of staff for President Barack Obama. Before becoming one of the president’s closest advisers,
McDonough, also a graduate of St. John’s University in Collegeville, Minn., was an aide to the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee and a senior foreign policy advisory.
Local media personality Valsvik graduated in 1978 and began her radio and television career in the 1980s.
She worked for five of the metro area’s largest radio stations and made weekly appearances on KARE-TV’s Saturday morning news program. During the late 1980s and early 1990s, she co-hosted the popular KDWB Morning Show with Steve Cochran.
The June 2 dinner is open to the public. It is sponsored by the high school and the Partnership Plan, a nonprofit group that raises money to benefit students in Stillwater Area Public Schools.
Tickets are $35; online reservations can be made at partnershipplan.org.