Dr. Betsee Parker ‘69

Dr. Betsee Parker (‘69) is the 17th Baroness of Locheil, Scotland,  a noted philanthropist, naturalist, conservationist, and an early woman ordained as an Episcopalian priest. Betsee is a decorated member of the United Nations, serving in multiple capacities, with an emphasis toward sustainable development and climate-change issues in Africa.

In 2001, at the World Trade Center Disaster, Dr. Parker was a First Responder Leader for the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner of New York City and received two Honorary Doctorates and Distinguished Service Awards for her service in 9/11.

Through her service with the United Nations, Dr. Parker’s team was asked to create a model to attack the health care crisis caused by Ebola. They were able to contain it in two-and-a-half years.

In 2018, Dr. Parker made a substantial financial gift to the Southwest Foundation with the requirement that it be equitably distributed with maximized impact. Half of the contribution will be allocated to women’s athletics while the remaining portion is provided to teacher development and innovation.
2019 Honoree

Cora Jane
Blanchard ’52

Committed to providing girls and women with access to golf. Chaired tournaments, served as a Rules Consultant (over 15 years for the US Women’s Open) and devoted 25 years to the USGA. Recipient of numerous golf recognitions, she is in the Minnesota Golf Hall of Fame.

2016 Honoree

Burt Cohen ’48

Former Magazine Publisher (MPLS ST PAUL and other publications) and current columnist. Over 40 years of participation and leadership in the local philanthropic community.

2016 Honoree

Harvey Feldman ’61

Local business owner who has made Southwest and the students of Southwest a priority in his retirement. He initiated and was the primary funder of the campaign to put lights on the football field, provided air conditioning for the auditorium and was the first funder of the ACT test prep class for at risk students. More recently he has funded the renovations to the West Gym, including a new floor. He also awards generous college scholarships to four Southwest students annually.

2016 Honoree

John Hetland '48

John Hetland ’48 attended the University of Minnesota and the University of Minnesota Law School where he was the first in his class and the Editor of the Law Review. During law school he joined the Navy and continued with the naval reserves until 1965. After graduation, he worked as a law clerk for the Minnesota Supreme Court. In 1959 he joined the law faculty at Boalt Hall, University of California, Berkeley and became a full professor in 1960, one of the youngest full professors in the history of the school.

In 1963 he published the definitive book on California secured transactions, which is still cited today. That was followed by many other books that became the leading authorities for bench and bar. He was also a popular and humorous teacher at the law school and in continuing legal education courses. Later in his career he opened a successful consulting practice. Hetland was an enthusiastic supporter of Cal sports and he and his wife Anne were known for their Big Game parties. Hetland died in California on February 16, 2017 of heart failure. He is survived by his wife Anne, two daughters, two step-daughters, ten grandchildren and one great-grandson.

2017 Honoree

Tracy McMillan ’82

Author, television writer and relationship expert. 2011 Time Magazine recognized her Huffington Post viral blog “Why You’re Not Married” as a top-ten opinion piece. Received a 2010 Screen Actors Guild award for her work on Mad Men. I Love You and I’m Leaving You Anyway is her memoir chronicling her childhood in the foster care system and the important relationships throughout her life (including her time at Southwest).

2016 Honoree

Iric Nathanson '57

Iric Nathanson is an author and historian who writes about Minnesota history for a variety of Twin Cities publications, including the Star Tribune, MinnPost, Hennepin History, and Minnesota History. His 2010 book, Minneapolis in the Twentieth Century, was a finalist for the Minnesota Book Award. Nathanson has authored several books in the popular Arcadia Publishing series on Minnesota, including Downtown Minneapolis, The Minneapolis Riverfront, and World War I in Minnesota. He is currently working on a biography of former Minneapolis Mayor and Member of Congress, Don Fraser.

Nathanson also had a long professional career in public service, working for over a decade for Congressman Dan Fraser and for 22 years in city planning and development for the City of Minneapolis. He is on staff of the nonprofit Metropolitan Consortium of Community Development, which works on housing and economic issues. Nathanson lives with his wife Marlene in Minneapolis.

2017 Honoree

Tom Neiman'65

Tom Neiman ’65 is an educator and leader in the Southwest community, serving as the Southwest Community Education Coordinator for over 40 years. Highlights of his career include starting the Southwest Community Education Program in 1974 and adding the Southwest Super Summer Program for kids in 1985. In his community education work he has brought people together in thousands of activities, including a midnight to dawn bike ride annually for 38 years and 19 bi-annual trips to Glacier National Park. He also mentored many Southwest students when they served as staff for the Super Summer Program. Neiman was a mainstay of Southwest High School’s after-school activities for students as the leader of The Green Team, Southwest’s environmental club.

Neiman’s curiousity, adventurous spirit, love of young people, and commitment to making education interesting and fun continues to enrich the Southwest neighborhood. His leadership in community education helped build the active, engaged, and connected community that continues to support Southwest. Neiman lives with his wife in Minneapolis.

2017 Honoree

Dr. Mark Ptashne ’57

Sixteen years as Ludwig Chair of Molecular Biology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. Recognized as the first scientist (’65) to demonstrate specific binding between protein and DNA. Extensively published in the areas of Genetics and Molecular Biology and the recipient of numerous recognitions in his field.

2016 Honoree

Bob Rishovd ’59

Decorated Vietnam (Army Veteran) Helicopter pilot. Implemented an emergency medical helicopter service in Minnesota that expanded and eventually became the standard nationally and has saved countless lives. Recently inducted into the Minnesota Aviation Hall of Fame.

2016 Honoree

Gene Winstead ’68

Gene Winstead ’68 is the Mayor of Bloomington, Minnesota, the state’s fourth-largest city. He has served Bloomington for over 20 years as a City Council Member and Mayor. He also currently serves on the Bloomington Port Authority and the Bloomington Convention and Visitor’s Bureau. He is a founder and co-owner of the popular Ike’s Food & Cocktails restaurant chain. Winstead had a long career in the coin-operated machine business, making deals with bar and arcade business owners for jukeboxes, pinball machines, Pac Man, and darts machines. His first political cause was an effort to convince the U.S. Government to stop using the dollar bill and switch to coin dollars.

Winstead grew up at 51st and York, playing sports in Pershing Park, working as a paper boy, and enjoying dinner-table conversations about current events with his parents and siblings. He credits his parents as an inspiration for his public service career; they made sure the Winstead kids knew that not everyone was as fortunate as they were. Winstead lives in Bloomington with his wife Debbie. They have three daughters and seven grandchildren. 

2017 Honoree

Lizz Winstead '79

Lizz Winstead is a comedian and writer who is known as one of the top political satirists in America. As a co-creator and head writer of The Daily Show and a co-founder of Air America Radio, Winstead helped change the very landscape of how people get their news. Winstead also brought her political wit to The Daily Show as a correspondent. Winstead was also a co-host of Air America Radio's mid-morning show, Unfiltered, working with Chuck D and Rachel Maddow. She has been recognized by all the major media outlets including The New York Times and The Washington Post and has been named one of Entertainment Weekly's 100 Most Creative People.

Winstead began her stand-up comedy career at the Brave New Workshop in Minneapolis and went on to appear on HBO's Women of the Night and many early Comedy Central shows. She has also produced comedy shows and has appeared as a panelist on many political news shows on CNN and MSNBC. Winstead is the author of Lizz Free or Die and is currently working on a second book. She is currently a co-founder and active leader of the reproductive righs orgnaization Lady Parts Justice, which uses humor and outrage to expose efforts to restrict repreductive rights. She lives in New York City.

2017 Honoree

Libby Larsen ’68

Composer of over 500 works with numerous professional achievements, including: Grammy Award Winner, Minnesota Music Hall of Fame, Lifetime Achievement Award from Academy of Arts of Science.

2016 Honoree