Alumni to receive accolades for KU service

The Alumni Association and its Board of Directors will honor the 2005 winners of the Fred Ellsworth Medallion Sept. 16 at the Adams Alumni Center. The four honorees are William R. Docking, c’73, b’77, l’77, Arkansas City; Sally Roney Hoglund, c’56, Dallas; A. Scott Ritchie, c’54, Wichita; and Gale Sayers, d’75, g’77, Chicago.

Created in 1975, the Ellsworth medallion honors longtime Association leader Fred Ellsworth, c’22, who was known as “Mr. KU.” He retired in 1963. Each year, a committee of representatives from the Chancellor’s Office and the Alumni, Endowment and Athletics associations meets to choose the recipients from nominations submitted by KU alumni and friends.

Docking, chairman and CEO of The Union State Bank in Arkansas City, in June completed his most recent term as a member of the Kansas Board of Regents, which he joined in 1995 and chaired from 1998 to 2000. Though his tenure on the Regents has ended, Docking’s commitment to higher education continues at a brisk pace.

For the Endowment Association, he is a trustee and a member of the Executive Committee, a KU First major donor and member of the Chancellors Club. His leadership gifts have benefited the schools of business, law and journalism; the School of Medicine-Wichita; the Dole Institute for Politics; and KU Libraries. For the Alumni Association, where he maintains life and Jayhawk Society memberships, Docking has been active in the Kansas Honors Program and Jayhawks for Higher Education.

Along with his work at Union State Bank, Docking also maintains banking and oil interests in Oklahoma and is president of Cowley County Broadcasting, Inc. He also volunteers for Pittsburgh State University, Cowley County Community College, the Kansas Health Foundation, the Kansas Bankers Association, and, as a former director, the University of Kansas Hospital Authority. Docking is the eldest son of the late former Gov. Robert Docking, b’48, himself an Ellsworth Medallion winner as well as a Distinguished Service Citation honoree.

While at KU, Docking was inducted in Phi Beta Kappa and in 1977 received the School of Law’s Samuel Mellinger Leadership Award.

Hoglund, a joint life member of the Alumni Association with her husband, Forrest, e’56, and a member of the Jayhawk Society, is co-chair of the advisory board serving Women Philanthropists for KU. She served the KU First capital campaign as a member of the steering committee and was an active partner with Forrest, KU First chairman.

Among their numerous gifts to KU, Sally and Forrest are responsible for the Hoglund Brain Imaging Center at KU Medical Center and the stained-glass American flag at the Dole Institute of Politics.

Sally is a member of the Chancellors Club, the Elizabeth Watkins Society and the Williams Educational Fund, was a Campaign Kansas leadership donor and regional-committee member, and remains active with KU’s School of Engineering, Natural History Museum, Hall Center for the Humanities, and departments of theatre and film, biology and geology. She is a trustee of the Hoglund Foundation, and among many volunteer interests are the Arthritis Foundation of North Texas, the Alzheimer’s Association, Family Place Partners and Easter Seal Society.

For the Alumni Association, Sally has been active with Rock Chalk Ball, Flying Jayhawks and Jayhawks for Higher Education.

Ritchie, chairman of Ritchie Exploration Inc., also maintains business interests in ranching, cattle feed and Pizza Hut franchises. He is a joint life member of the Alumni Association with his wife, Carol Swanson Ritchie, d’54, with whom he created the Ritchie Alumni Programming Fund.

The Ritchies belong to the Jayhawk Society and Gold Medal Club, and they are active in the Kansas Honors Program, Rock Chalk Ball, Jayhawk for Higher Education and Flying Jayhawks.

For the Endowment Association, Scott is a trustee and chair of the Property Management Committee, a KU First Leadership Donor and was a member of the KU First Steering Committee. He also is a member of the Chancellors Club and Athletics’ Williams Educational Fund, and worked on Campaign Kansas in many roles.

Sayers, a life member of the Alumni Association and past member of the Board of Directors, is president and CEO of Sayers 40, a national computer equipment and supply business based in the Chicago area. He chairs the Gale Sayers Golf Tournament, a 10-year tradition benefiting the School of Education, for which he is also a member of the advisory board. He also worked for four years as KU’s assistant athletics director and is a member of the K-Club, for former athletes.

Sayers’ business and educational successes follow his legendary college and professional football careers. At KU, Sayers was named All-American and three-time All-Big Eight running back. For the Chicago Bears, Sayers was the 1965 Rookie of the Year and, though his career was cut short by serious knee injuries, he established himself as one of the game’s greatest running backs and kick returners.

His autobiography, I Am Third, led to the beloved movie “Brian’s Song,” which told the story of Sayers’ friendship with his late teammate Brian Piccolo. Sayers has been inducted in Professional Football, KU Sports and Chicago Area Entrepreneurship halls of fame. His name is included on Memorial Stadium’s Ring of Honor, the Bears retired his No. 40 and he is a recipient of the KU School of Education’s Apple Award for Distinguished Achievement.