Charles Bush Class of 1963 Chuck Bush aspired to get an exceptional education and make a difference in the lives of as many people as possible. These core values were instilled in him by his father, an administrator at Howard University. Thus, in 1954, at age 14, Bush became the first African-American page of the Supreme Court of the United States, an appointment he received from Chief Justice Earl Warren. Bush had attended Howard University for two years when he was approached to be among the first individuals to integrate the Academy in 1959. He entered with two other African-Americans and in 1963 he became the first African-American to graduate from the Academy. Bush served in Vietnam as an intelligence officer and separated from the Air Force in 1970. After leaving the Air Force he attended Harvard Business School and went on to enjoy an outstanding career in the private sector. He became a senior executive with Hughes International, a senior executive, corporate controller and treasurer for Max Factor Cosmetics and the president of Marnel Investment Corporation, a merchant bank in Los Angeles, Calif. Over the years he has become a singular voice on diversity issues in the United States. Linda Cubero Class of 1980 Linda Garcia Cubero is the first Hispanic woman to graduate from any of the nation’s service academies. After graduating from USAFA, Cubero spent seven years in the Air Force. While serving as a liaison to the White House, Cubero supervised the development of a commemorative postage stamp that honored Hispanics in defense of the nation. The stamp, which was designed by the then ten surviving Hispanic Medal of Honor recipients, was unveiled by President Reagan in 1984. After her Air Force service, Cubero began a successful private sector career in account management and service delivery. In 1998 she was inducted into the National Hispanic Engineering Hall of Fame. In 2002, Hispanic Business magazine named her one of the “100 Most Influential Hispanics” in the United States. Cubero is currently a global account executive at NCR Corporation. General Janet Wolfenbarger Class of 1980 On June 5, 2012, Janet Wolfenbarger became only the second woman, and the first in Air Force history, to reach the rank of four-star general. Wolfenbarger is a challenge seeker and the allure of being one of the first women to enter a service academy was irresistible. She joined the Class of 1980, and despite some ups and downs, never considered leaving. In the end, she and her fellow female classmates proved that women could survive and thrive in a service academy atmosphere. After nearly 32 years of service, Wolfenbarger has risen to lead the Air Force Material Command, the command she spent her career serving. Wolfenbarger is a role model—for being a member of the first class with women, for what she has accomplished since, and for what she stands for. “I grew up in a military family and I’ve always felt great pride and satisfaction in serving our country,” she says. “I believe that serving in the military allows me to have no other agenda than simply to do what is right.” Shawna Kimbrell Class of 1998 Growing up in Shawna Kimbrell’s family virtually guaranteed that she would gracefully hurdle many of the obstacles she might encounter in life. Before she was born, her parents moved to the United States from the South American country of Guyana seeking opportunity. Her father earned a degree from Howard University and obtained his doctorate from Purdue before taking a job in Colorado. In fourth grade Kimbrell decided she wanted to be a fighter pilot. In 1999 she earned her pilot wings and became the first black female fighter pilot. Kimbrell went on to fly combat sorties in Operation Northern Watch. As an aviation pioneer, Kimbrell has this advice for anyone looking to break barriers, “Nothing’s easy. Expect road blocks, expect that there are going to be people out there who don’t want you to succeed, expect people are going to tell you no. But the desire that comes from within—if it’s something that you really want—will carry you through.” Harry Pearce Class of 1964 During his Air Force career Harry Pearce was a Staff Judge Advocate and was certified as a military judge. On his return to civilian life he served in some of the highest posts in corporate America. From 1996 to 2001, he was a vice chairman and director of General Motors Corporation before serving as chairman of Hughes Electronics Corporation. Pearce is a member of the USAFA Endowment Board of Directors and is currently the chairman of MDU Resources’ board of directors. MDU is a company that sells products and resources primarily related to supporting energy and transportation infrastructure. Pearce’s support for improving education, increasing minority opportunities, encouraging local economic development, and ending the trauma of life-threatening diseases has earned him numerous national awards. In spirit, character and accomplishment, Mr. Pearce’s career has epitomized the values and ideals of the United States Air Force Academy. In 2001, Pearce became one of the first two recipients of the Distinguished Graduate Award. Richard Schlosberg Class of 1965 Throughout his notable career, 2003 Distinguished Graduate Award recipient Richard Schlosberg has demonstrated principled leadership and selfless commitment to his institutions, community and country that exemplify the values of the Academy. As a young officer, Capt. Schlosberg was awarded the air medal with five oak leaf clusters after serving two tours of duty in Southeast Asia where he flew over 200 combat support missions as a KC-135 pilot. After graduating with honors from Harvard Business School, Schlosberg began a career in publishing that spanned 25 years. He served as publisher and CEO of the Denver Post; and president, publisher and CEO of the Los Angeles Times. Under his leadership, both the Denver Post and the Los Angeles Times won the Pulitzer Prize, journalism’s highest honor. In 1999, Schlosberg became president and CEO of The David and Lucile Packard Foundation, one of the nation’s largest philanthropic foundations, where he led efforts to: improve early childhood education and health, to support emerging scientists, protect the oceans and slow the rate of world population growth. During his five-year tenure, the Foundation provided $2 billion in grants to non-profit organizations worldwide. Nancy Kudla Class of 1980 Entrepreneur and businesswoman Nancy Kudla is the president of the Kudla Foundation, a non-profit organization that focuses on two primary mission areas: developing servant leaders of character and integrity and helping ensure our nation’s cyber security. She is also the executive vice-president of commercial real estate ownership and management company FNK Ventures. Kudla gained prominence as the co-founder, chairman and CEO of dNovus RDI, a federal contracting company that specializes in applied information technology. Under her leadership, dNovus was transformed from a one-person consulting firm to one of the largest woman-owned businesses in Texas employing more than 350 professionals nationwide and earning over $35 million in revenues. In 2008, Kforce Inc. acquired dNovus for a staggering $38 million dollars. Kudla graduated with honors in the first class of female graduates at the United States Air Force Academy and was a Rhodes Scholar National Finalist. She has previously served on the USAFA Board of Visitors and is a member of the USAFA Endowment Board of Directors. Richard Lewis Class of 1989 After serving his country in Operation Southern Watch and various international assignments, Richard Lewis separated from the Air Force at the rank of Captain after fulfilling his commitment. In his civilian life, Lewis has built a successful technology services company from the ground up. This self-starter had to learn much of his craft the hard way—by taking risks, following his heart and getting a little less sleep at night. Since starting RTL-Networks in 2002, Lewis’ company has enjoyed healthy growth with offices in Denver and Washington D.C. He is also the chairman of the Colorado Black Chamber of Commerce and was selected as the 2010 recipient of the Colorado Leadership Alliance’s 9News Leader of the Year award. Lewis intimately understands the challenges of starting a business from little more than an idea and then molding it into reality. He took great personal risk to build a business that he believed in, even going so far as to mortgage his home and put up the title of his car to provide loan capital. The risk was worth the reward. Today, RTL-Networks is one of the fastest growing companies in both Denver and Washington D.C. Fred Gregory Class of 1964 Fred Gregory is a national hero and striking role model. A retired Air Force colonel and formerly one of the highest ranking NASA officials, Gregory has served the Air Force and the nation’s space program with self-sacrifice and an enduring commitment to the safety of space travel. After graduating in 1964, Gregory went on to log 7,000 hours in more than 50 types of U.S. aircraft, including 550 combat missions in Vietnam. In 1978, Gregory was selected as a pilot astronaut, where he continued his career at NASA as an officer in the U.S. Air Force. Gregory would soon become the first African-American to pilot a space shuttle and to command any space vehicle. In 1993, Gregory retired from military service but continued to serve at NASA. In 2002, Gregory became NASA’s deputy administrator, making him the first African-American deputy in the agency. Gregory was entrusted with ensuring the safety of some of science’s most prized technological assets—the space shuttle and International Space Station—and for setting the course for the next stage of space flight.