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Brian W. Lathrop was an academic and athletic standout during high school. He graduated third in the class of 1983, was a member of the National Honor Society and was awarded seven letters in three sports.
Lathrop received bachelor’s and master’s degrees in aerospace engineering and began his career in 1990 as an engineer and scientist at McConnell Douglas Aerospace in Huntington Beach, Calif.
In 1993, he became a guidance and performance engineer for Hughes Middle Systems Co. in Tucson, Ariz.
Three years later, he became a senior engineer in flight design for Lockheed Martin Astronautics in Denver. There, Lathrop performed mission design, optimization and integration for the Atlas launch vehicle and was the lead flight design engineer for all Atlas launched NASA payloads.
His work with the launch vehicle trajectory for the Pluto New Horizons mission led to the successful January 2006 launch of the spacecraft that will travel almost 10 years before arriving on NASA’s first mission to the ninth planet.
Since 2006, Lathrop has served as a systems engineer for United Launch Alliance in Denver, where he is working with LRO and LCROSS spacecraft, which are planned to go to the moon in 2008.
He is married to Shelly Bjorge-Lathrop, also a member of the class of 1983.
Joseph W. Maier Jr. graduated from Logan High School in 1966 and served in the Army from 1967 to 1969. He was a squad leader with the 1st Division 18th Infantry in Vietnam, obtained the rank of E-5 and received the Silver Star, two purple Hearts and other decorations.
Upon returning to the U.S., Maier attended Dunwoody Institute in Minneapolis, studying architectural drafting and estimating. He completed an apprenticeship with Sheet Metal Workers Union Local No. 316 and formed All Facets Sheet Metal Inc. as a partnership. He has been president since its inception and sole owner since 2005.
Maier has served on the board of directors for the La Crosse Builders Exchange, including three years as president; is a member of the American Legion Post 336 in Onalaska, Wis.; Wings Over Wisconsin; Whitetails Unlimited; and Ducks Unlimited. He was Torchlight Parade marshal in 2004.
He served three years as president of the Logan Alumni Association and six as chairman of the Ranger Rally. Under his leadership, more than $250,000 has been raised for a perpetual scholarship fund for Logan graduates.
