Each year during Homecoming, we take time to honor and celebrate Madras High graduates who have gone on to achieve great things and make a difference in their communities and beyond. Through our Distinguished Alumni program, we recognize individuals whose accomplishments, service, and leadership reflect the values of MHS. This program aims to inspire our current students by showing them what is possible and what individuals who used to walk the same halls they do now have gone on to accomplish.
This year, we’re proud to welcome two new inductees to our Distinguished Alumni: Lewis E Pitt Jr., and Angie Namenuk. We recognized both of them at our Homecoming Assembly on October 3. Lewis E Pitt Jr could not join us unfortunately on that day in person due to health reasons.
Lewis E Pitt Jr.
Born in 1948 at the Warm Springs Indian Health Service Hospital, Lewis E. Pitt Jr., Yowan Swickt, is a proud Tribal Member of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs.
Throughout his career, he dedicated himself to protecting natural resources, strengthening Tribal sovereignty, and making sure that his people’s collective voice was heard. He served as Assistant Director of Planning and Implementation for the Warm Springs Natural Resources Department. During his time there, he worked to restore streams on the reservation and protect waterways across the region. His leadership extended past Warm Springs, as he represented the Tribes in other management plans throughout Oregon that included the Lower Deschutes, John Day, and Metolius rivers.
He also served eight years on the Columbia River Gorge Commission and played a key role in educating the state legislature about the Treaty of 1855 with the Middle Oregon Tribes. His primary focus was focused on reminding leaders of honoring his people’s off-reservation rights to fish, gather roots, hunt, and pick berries.
He has served the Tribes well throughout his roles. Those include service on the Tribal Appeals Court and Director of Government Affairs. He also served for three years on the Pacific Northwest Conservation and Power Council where he focused on serving as a representative for our state and fighting to improve issues affecting fisheries across the state.
Angie Namenuk
Angie Namenuk spent her childhood growing up in the high desert of Oregon, splitting her childhood between Culver and Madras, to becoming a leader for one of the largest pharmaceutical companies and leading providers for cancer treatments globally, Roche.
She moved to Madras just before high school, where she was an active student, participating in both athletics and student body leadership. These activities instilled in her the values of hard work and collaboration that would prove to be foundational throughout her life. Inspired by her love of science, she studied chemistry at Willamette University. Following that, she earned an internship in Genentech’s research labs to start her career.
Since then, she has held positions of increasing global responsibility in Research, Drug Development Project Management, scientific operations, and Finance. Through her roles, she’s had the opportunity to travel the world. Visiting different countries, such as Switzerland, Japan, Spain, Costa Rica, Canada, and Tanzania, regularly. She is currently the Global Head of Research and Early Development Procurement Partnering for Roche.
She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Chemistry from Willamette University, a Master’s in Business from Pepperdine Graziadio Business School, a Certificate in Project Management from UC Berkeley, and is a Certified Professional Coach. In 2021, Angie was recognized by Pharma Voice as one of the top 100 inspiring leaders in the life sciences industry.
Beyond her professional accomplishments, Angie truly believes in community service. She helped lead a campaign that ultimately raised $74M for local schools. She has coached more than 30 boys and girls youth sports teams ranging from softball, baseball, basketball and soccer and volunteered her time for a number of school events.
She also co-founded the Kahawa Foundation, which built a healthcare clinic in rural Tanzania and funded women’s health projects. She continues to pursue these passions by seeking out local and global volunteer opportunities.