- College/Dept. Alumni Groups
- Alumni Groups

Lou Liay Spirit Award for Extraordinary Alumni Service

The Lou Liay Spirit Award for Extraordinary Alumni Service was established in 2001 to commemorate the selfless dedication and loyalty to the University expressed by alumni volunteers. The honor is named for distinguished University of Illinois graduate Louis Liay. Since graduating from the Urbana campus in 1962, Liay has given the Alumni Association more than 20 years of service, retiring in 1998 as president of the organization.

2009 Recipient

No matter how you define school spirit, Dr. John C. Mason Jr. ’53 COM, MD ’55 COM, embodies it. A resident of Danville, he drives six hours round trip, four times each year, to attend the College of Medicine’s Alumni Council. As Alumni Council chairman, Mason has written letters, spoken at events, made phone calls and lent his name to support various initiatives. Mason led the effort to create the Class of 1955 Memorial Scholarship program, and he can be counted on to participate in first-year student orientation and medical-related ceremonies. Additionally, Dr. Mason works with the College’s admissions office to help recruit top students to the program, and he has been known to don an apron and assist with the annual holiday luncheon that the College puts on.