2014 Outstanding Alumni
2014
Steven Blankley – Landscaping/Garden Center—’99
Jeff Houser – Engineering—’97
Melissa Bentley – Adult Education-Paramedicine—’07
Landscaping/Garden Center—’99
Steven Blankley graduated in 1999 from the Landscaping/Garden Center Program. Unlike many of the recipients of this award he did not go on to accomplish outstanding achievements in the Landscaping/Garden Center field. Instead he fulfilled Tri-Rivers’ mission of preparing students to be outstanding community members and citizens. Without a doubt, Staff Sergeant Steven Blankley has done that.
Sergeant Blankley served 13 years of active duty in the US Army including two tours in Iraq during which time he earned his Combat Action Badge for actively engaging or being engaged by the enemy. Following his tours in Iraq, he served as a US Army Recruiter and, in that capacity, he has helped to guide, coach, and mentor over 200 recruits. He has helped students enroll in college and insured that they received tuition assistance and Montgomery GI Bill benefits. He earned the highest award in recruiting, the Glenn E. Morrell Award as recognition of his excellence in recruiting.
He completed training to qualify as a Suicide Prevention Counselor for the Army and completed the Master Resilience Training in addition to being a Middle School Baseball Coach, Salvation Army volunteer and mentor for Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts. He talks to students about staying in school, and working hard. He never seems to be talking with them in order to recruit someone, rather, he genuinely wants to help them learn some of life’s most important lessons whether they ever intend to join the military or not.
Staff Sergeant Steven Blankley epitomizes the ideals we hope for in all of our graduates—service to both his country and community, dedication, leadership and excellence in his chosen profession.
Engineering—’97
Co-Founder of Houser Racing.
Jeff Houser grew up with engineering. His dad, John, is a former Dean of Engineering at MTC. When Jeff came to Tri-Rivers his Senior year, he was in the Engineering program. He was also very active in ATV racing and was winning a lot. Born from a true passion for ATV racing, HOUSER Racing was founded in 1998 by Jeff and his dad. The company is a division of John Houser & Associates, a consulting engineering firm that has been designing high-speed equipment for Whirlpool Corporation for the past 20 years. When the young Houser began participating in ATV hare scrambles and motor cross races, both he and his dad caught the bug to win and to find new ways to do it. Like most racers, they pumped up the motor and went a little faster, but they soon realized that having a strong motor wasn’t enough.
To really improve speed and performance, it was going to take the kind of suspension upgrades that empower an aggressive rider. Frustrated with their inability to find the type of quality parts, the father and son began to design and produce components to maximize the performance of their own ATVs. They created the design on the computer, designed and built a fixture, then created and welded the parts and finished them with powder coating. As time went on, more and more of their friends wanted to buy the growing list of innovative products they were making. Today, the company that got its start as a father and son team trying to find ways to push the limits of performance on their own ATVs has become a leader in the industry. As they continue to grow, Houser Racing has grown into larger facilities two times. They now have state-of-the-art equipment like CNC (computer numerical controlled) lathes, CNC mills, powder coat paint systems, robotic welders, and TIG welders. Their expanded facility includes separate assembly, customer service, steel receiving, engineering and shipping departments.
Melissa Bentley –
Adult Education-Paramedicine—’07
Director of Research for Occupational Health & Safety at the National Registry of EMTs
The Mission of Tri-Rivers is to prepare secondary and adult students to contribute, advance and succeed in the 21t Century workforce…to be responsible community members, and to embrace learning as a life-long process. The Outstanding Adult Education Alumnae Melissa Bentley has fulfilled that mission. In 2007, Bentley had already completed a Bachelor of Science degree from Kent State University when she applied to Tri-Rivers/Marion General Hospital School of Paramedicine. While at Tri-Rivers she completed her Paramedic training, passed her National Registry and became certified as a paramedic. That same year she became the third Research Felllow to enter into the NREMT Research Program.
Bentley has continued her life-long learning by completing a Masters in Science in Environmental Health Science from The Ohio State University and is currently finishing up a Doctoral in Epidemiology at The Ohio State University. He love of research and writing is evidenced by her many published articles and research studies.
