Join the Milpitas community in honoring three inductees for upcoming Hall of Fame event

By Shannon Carr, Board Support and Communications Specialist

The Milpitas community will come together to honor three of the newest additions to the Milpitas/Samuel Ayer High School Hall of Fame on Friday, March 15. Seats are still available for the 12th annual event that will kick off at 6:15 p.m. preceded by a reception with a no-host bar starting at 5:30 p.m.

Jeff Lamb, chairperson of the Milpitas High School Hall of Fame Committee, said the event was founded when teacher Dennis Gori suggested it since a building couldn’t be named after deceased counselor Ned McIver. He said the committee, which consisted of 13 people this year, is usually looking for a former teacher, classified employee, and a former student.  

This year he said was the most nominations he has seen since being on the board, particularly in the student category. Inductees are chosen after the person who nominates them sends in a writeup justifying their reasoning and the committee sits down and goes through the candidates.

“We recognize people for a lot of different reasons,” he said.

This year’s inductees are:

-Lillian Bogovich: 2015 Milpitas High School teacher retiree, who taught 25 years at Milpitas High School. She also served as the theater director for many school productions, designing sets and coaching students as actors and actresses. She mentored other teachers in many ways, including planning and leading a writing workshop and always sharing her classroom, ideas, lesson plans, and wisdom.

-Mike Downs: 1973 Ayer High School alumnus, 2010 Washington State High School Coaches Hall of Fame Inductee. Downs begins his 32nd season as the head coach of the Vikings, with his teams advancing to the state tournament the last 11 out of 12 years, winning two years in a row with a 24-2 record each time (2005 and 2006). He has been named coach of the year several times in leagues around Washington, and in 2006 he was named by the National Federation of High School Sports as the Coach of the Year in Washington. That same year he was also named Sportsman of the Year by the Pacific Northwest Officials Association.

-Vic Parrette: 1978 Ayer High School alumnus, VP of Operations Radiation Power Systems/Milpitas High School football coach. Parrette was a football player at Ayer on the 77 championship team and coached the Milpitas Knights in the early 1990s before joining the Milpitas High football staff, where he coached 17 years.

“We think it’s a good thing to recognize people from the high school and to recognize other people in the community,” Lamb said.  “We think it’s a great thing for the school district but also for the Milpitas community. “

Lamb said he is hoping at least 100 people attend the event in which profits from the evening go to the annual Milpitas High School Hall of Fame Scholarship. This scholarship is awarded to a graduating male and female senior, distinguished by academic achievement and service to the community.

“We like to give up to three $500 scholarships,” he said.

Donations will be available during the evening for additional scholarship contributions. For those who cannot attend the dinner but wish to make a donation, mail your donation to Lamb at the address listed below.

The cost of the dinner is $45 per person. Seating is limited so complete the form below today and send it with your check to Lamb at Milpitas High School, 1285 Escuela Parkways, Milpitas, CA 95035. The deadline is March 4.

​For more information, email Lamb at jlamb@musd.org or call (408) 592-4918.