2005 Hall of Fame Inductees

Jim Buckley, '49 - Jim Buckley's work as an attorney made him a pioneer in developing the concepts and framework that became New York state's no-fault insurance laws in the 1970s, and he made himself a force for good with his volunteer and charity work in Buffalo and western New York. After graduating from Canisius College, he was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in the US Army reserves, where he served six months of active duty, then seven and a half years of active reserve duty before being discharged as a Captain. After earning his law degree from University of Buffalo, Jim's long legal career saw him handling a wide variety of personal injury negligence cases, and he served as an arbitrator on New York's no-fault vehicle insurance program. Jim served on the Board of Directors of the Erie County Bar Association from 1978-81, was on the American Arbitration Association, and had numerous decisions published in the New York State No Fault/Sum Arbitration Reporter journal. He has served on the Board of Directors for Holy Angels Academy in Buffalo, and is a member of the St. Thomas More Guild.

Dale Choate, '52 - President of his OACS graduating class, Dale went on to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, where he lettered in football and majored in chemical engineering. He began a 38-year career with Mobil Chemical upon his graduation from college, soon becoming a refinery manager on his way to becoming one of Mobil's top 100 executives out of more than 50,000 worldwide employees. With Mobil, Dale earned a reputation as a visionary leader whose technical expertise and business savvy could be put to work saving some of the company's worst-performing facilities, a feat he accomplished with three different refineries, saving more than 1,000 jobs and winning citations for his achievements. Aside from his Mobil duties, Dale made time to be President of the United Way in two different communities, and president and vice president for Chambers of Commerce in two different regions. His applying some of his successful business practices to United Way fundraising - particularly creating a tiered recognition system - resulted in substantial increases in donations. Dale's civic work, and the impact he had on saving jobs in multiple communities, won him recognition in interesting ways: The Joliet Rialto Theater awarded him a seat. Another refinery town made him its "Man of the Year."

Jerry Foster, '63 - Perhaps the most compelling part of Jerry's biography is the numerous heartfelt testimonials of the profound influence he has had in the lives of his students. Virtually any OACS alumnus born between 1955 and 1985 can tell of a significant role Jerry has played in his or her life. Motivated by his own experiences growing up, Jerry vowed at an early age to be a teacher who could identify with and reach all kids he taught, even the most uncomfortable or isolated ones. His lifetime of going the extra mile again and again, and leading by his example, created a generation of students whose love of community and civics went far beyond anything that could merely be memorized from a textbook. Honored in 1974 as "Outstanding Young Educator" for both Genesee County and New York State, Jerry also served as President and other officer roles for the Oakfield-Alabama Teacher's Association. His civic involvement and contributions to Oakfield have been numerous, from organizing an elementary-age Saturday basketball program, to serving as a village trustee and deputy mayor, to numerous roles with youth sports, politics, and community service. Moreso than any single accomplishment he achieved however, it is through Jerry's indelible impression on so many students, of all levels of ability, who passed through OACS in the last third of the 20th century, that he will be best and longest remembered.

Louise Greene Richards, '41 - Valedictorian of her OACS class, three-time alumni president of her Cornell class of '46, Louise attained honors and recognition in home economics, her Cornell major, before switching fields in 1957, to social psychology. She went on to be a national leader in this field, earning her PhD from Cornell in 1965 and becoming the Chief of Epidemiologic and Psychosocial Research for the federal National Institute on Drug Abuse. In this role in 1974, she launched the National Survey on Drug Abuse, which continues to be conducted today. Louise held many significant positions in the Food and Drug Adminstration, National Institutes of Health, and other government agencies, and has won numerous awards for her research work.