Class of 1976

View your classmates' news and accomplishments by selecting your graduation year! The most recent class notes entries appear first on each page. If you have anything that you would like to include as a class note, you may submit a class note online or contact Becky Shepherd.

Lonnie N. Groot has been appointed to the advisory board of the Florida Center for Government Accountability which is a non-partisan 501(c)(3) organization that focuses its government accountability and journalistic efforts primarily on local governments, providing support and assistance for citizens and investigative journalists working to hold government accountable. Posted 8.11.23

 

Lonnie N. Groot instructed the City of Sanford’s Race, Equality, Equity & Inclusion Committee relating to the laws of open government and transparency at it's inaugural meeting. Coordination of the committee is being administered by the Peace and Justice Institute and involved the Institute of Valencia College. Posted 3.20.23

 

Lonnie N. Groot served as a judge in the 2022-2023 American Bar Association's Mediation Competition. The competition introduces law student participants from many law schools throughout the nation to the challenges of representing clients in mediation. Posted 3.10.23

 

Lonnie N. Groot was a featured speaker at the Veterans Recognition Event at Daytona State College at the college’s New Smyrna Beach/Edgewater campus. Posted 11.9.22

 

Terry Lewis has published a legal thriller titled Fast Break, which combines Lewis's legal knowledge and story telling skill. Prior to his retirement, Lewis served as a state circuit judge, presiding over cases in the Second Judicial Circuit Court of Florida. Posted 6.2.22

Lonnie N. Groot has been appointed to the board of directors of the Daytona Beach Shores Community Foundation. The Foundation is dedicated to promoting community undertakings and programs and to support the arts and cultural projects of the City of Daytona Beach Shores. Posted 8.6.21

 

Joyce M. Davis passed away in July 2020. The 2021 Asheville Area Habitat for Humanity Women Build House will be named for and dedicated to her memory. Posted 2.16.21

Joyce M. Davis passed away of metastatic cancer on July 4, 2020. From her time in the Peace Corps in Turkey to her avid support for Habitat for Humanity, her professional and personal life was directed to the betterment of others. Posted 8.17.20

Jeff Ward recently self-published, Bow Wow Needs a “Real” Lawyer! A Public Defender’s Life, featuring his top ten list of memorable cases over his forty-four years as a criminal defense attorney in Miami and Minneapolis. It is "gritty, graphic, unfiltered and highly irreverent in describing the behind-the-scenes workings of our criminal justice system." Ward has recently retired from the Hennepin County Public Defender’s Office in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Posted 6.24.20

 

Eleanor M. Hunter passed away on November 16, 2019. She was a former executive director of the Florida Board of Bar Examiners and retired as an administrative law judge at the FL Department of Administrative Hearings in 2011. Posted 11.22.19

Groot_Lonnie_web.jpgLonnie N. Groot spoke at the Constitution Day event at Embry Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach on September 17, 2019. He serves as city attorney for the city of Daytona Beach Shores and assistant city attorney for the cities of Sanford and Oviedo, while also serving on the adjunct faculty of Seminole State College. Posted 11.18.19

 

Groot_Lonnie_web.jpgLonnie N. Groot judged the "We The People" mock congressional hearing competition at Father Lopez Catholic High School in Daytona Beach on May 22, 2019. Groot serves as city attorney for the City of Daytona Beach Shores and assistant city attorney for the City of Sanford and the City of Oviedo, while also serving on the adjunct faculty of Seminole State College. Posted 5.24.19

 

Groot_Lonnie_web.jpgLonnie N. Groot taught six class periods at Creekside Middle School in Port Orange, FL. He discussed the Bill of Rights of the United States Constitution. Groot serves as city attorney for the City of Daytona Beach Shores and assistant city attorney for the City of Sanford and the City of Oviedo, while also serving on the adjunct faculty of Seminole State College. Posted 3.14.19

 

The Honorable Lewis M. Killian, Jr. was named to the 2018 edition of Best Lawyers in America for business reorganization. He is of counsel at Berger Singerman LLP and a member of the firm's Reorganization Team in Tallahassee. Posted 8.18.17

caparello_dominic_web.jpgDominic M. Caparello, a shareholder at Messer Caparello, P.A. in Tallahassee, was named a 2017 Florida Super LawyerPosted 6.28.17

 

Jeffrey C. Bassett is now retired and living in Lynn Haven. Posted 6.1.17 (Correction from spring 2016 magazine.)