The Pekin Community High School District No. 303 Board of Education has established the Distinguished Alumni Award to recognize individuals who were educated and inspired by our school system. Those selected for this honor have distinguished themselves by virtue of their outstanding contributions to the school, community, or society in general. They serve as role models to inspire current and future generations of students.
This year we are honored to recognize four individuals who make up the Class of 2024 Distinguished Alumni. These recipients will be honored in conjunction with Pekin Community High School’s Homecoming festivities on Friday, October 4, 2024.
Dr. Suzanne I. Barchers
As a member of the class of 1964, Dr. Barchers was a member of the band and orchestra studying and fostering her love of music under Mr. Larry Fogelberg. Upon graduation, she enrolled at Illinois Wesleyan University eventually transferring to Eastern Illinois University to pursue a degree in education. Dr. Barchers received her Doctorate in Education from the University of Colorado at Boulder, which also resulted in the publishing of her first book, Creating and Managing the Literate Classroom.
After teaching for fifteen years, she began her career in publishing in earnest and has since published more than 300 books and songs for a variety of publishers and educational organizations. These publications range from a 60-word children’s book to a 600-page college textbook. She has built and managed the teacher resource division for Teacher Ideas Press and Fulcrum Publishing. She currently serves as the Chair of the Educational Advisory Board for Lingokids, an international company focused on teaching English and literacy and appears on news broadcasts across the US on a variety of parenting topics.
Dr. Barchers has consulted and advised various organizations such as LeVar Burton’s Reading Rainbow and Kindermusik just to name a few. And, she has been recognized and received numerous awards for her contributions to education and literacy such as The Gillett Burgess Award, Storytelling World Honor Book, and AEP Distinguished Achievement Award among others.
In her free time, Dr. Barchers loves to travel and both teach and perform music, but her greatest joy comes from her two sons and the five grandchildren.
Mr. Michael Bockler
As a member of the class of 1994, Mr. Bockler’s journey began as he pursued his private pilot's license at the age of 15, earning his pilot’s license even before earning a driver’s license. Upon graduating from PCHS, he pursued a Bachelor’s Degree in Aeronautics from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Dayton Beach, Florida. He completed his degree at age 36 after taking a hiatus to pursue his commercial pilot’s license, flying for Piedmont, American Eagle and US Airways and also becoming a licensed stock car driver.
Drawing on years of professional aviation experience, Mr. Bockler excels as a pilot, instructor, and check airman for Berry Aviation, Inc. Berry Aviation contracts aviation services to the Department of Defense. In addition to his work at Berry Aviation, he is an experimental test pilot for Universal Hydrogen. As a test pilot and leading expert on the De Havilland Dash 8 aircraft, Mr. Bockler is part of a diverse team consisting of two test pilots, engineers, maintenance, and support staff at Universal Hydrogen. This team's goal is to build and conduct test flights on the United States largest hydrogen powered electric fuel cell airplane ever to take to the skies.
Mr. Bockler takes the most pride in flying the country's first hydrogen powered electric aircraft on March 6, 2023. In honor of Universal Hydrogens achievements, when retired from test flights, the airplane's electric engine is slated for display in the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum in Washington DC. Though hard work and dedication have brought him far in his career, he credits his success to his steadfast drive to excel and his drive to improve upon his skills.
Mr. Bockler has been honored by the Marquis Who’s Whos in America as well as been featured in the Wall Street Journal. He continues to bring about changes in how planes fly, which, in turn, will impact both climate control and aircraft emission in the atmosphere. Some would say he is a “modern day Wright brother”.
Dr. Nicole Johnson
Dr. Johnson is a 1995 graduate who went on to earn two Bachelor Degrees from the University of Illinois in both 1999 and 2001 as well as a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from the U of I in 2003. She has since spent her life taking care of and treating animals as a veterinarian, starting her career in locations such as Florida and Maryland before settling back in her hometown. Since 2008, she has worked as a Veterinarian at Pekin Animal Hospital, purchasing 50% of the practice in 2014, and becoming 100% owner and the Chief Veterinary Officer in 2020. She also served as a contract veterinarian at both Tazewell County Animal Control and the Peoria Zoo.
As a part of her career she has been actively involved in several professional organizations as a member as well as in leadership and advisory positions; The American Veterinary Medical Association, the Illinois State Veterinary Medical Association, and the Association of Reptilian and Amphibian Veterinarians just to name a few.
Outside of her professional work and activities, Dr. Johnson is highly involved in her community as a vocalist/soloist and performer for Corn Stock Theater and Peoria Players Theater as well as local groups such as the Pekin Civic Chorus, Friends in Harmony, and the Pekin First Church of the Nazarene. She is an active brown belt in the Korean Martial Arts and enjoys long-distance running, taking part in the St. Jude Memphis to Peoria Run since 2012. She is also an artist who focuses on drawing, watercolor and acrylic, and fluid acrylic painting.
Mr. Larry Kenney
A 1965 graduate of PCHS, Larry Kenney got an early start to what has become a phenomenal career. As both a member of the speech team and intricately involved in broadcasting home football games it was clear Larry had a gift. At the age of 15, he was hired as a disc jockey for a radio station in Peoria.
Upon graduation, he studied at both Bradley and Western Illinois University while also working at various other radio stations. He was known to be a regular cast member on Imus in the Morning for 34 years where he was known for impersonations of the likes of General George Patton, Andy Rooney, and even Ross Perot. Those pale in comparison to the notoriety he would garner for his work as an award-winning DJ in New York City being named the Best Country Disc Jockey for a metropolitan area station in 1976 and the Best Country Music Personality in 1978.
His voice work on several animated series and commercials may also strike a chord. He is widely known as the voice of Liono from the cartoon Thundercats, Bluegrass from Silverhawks, and Dolph from TigerSharks while also voicing several breakfast cereal characters, most notably Count Chocula and Sonny the Cuckoo Bird. Over the years, his voice could be heard on radio coverage of Monday Night Football, in the Grand Theft Auto IV video game, and VH1’s Best Week Ever!
Married to Carol, Mr. Kenney has three children, Kerri, Ashley and Tanner and now lives in New Canaan, Connecticut.