The Lane Tech Alumni Association Hall of Fame was created to increase awareness and broaden recognition of the accomplishments of Lane Tech graduates. Inductees have made exceptional contributions to the greater good and have inspired us all to live out our motto:
Wherever you go, whatever you do, remember the honor of Lane.
Each inductee has achieved a level of excellence in their specific field that brings distinction and honor to themselves, and in turn to their alma mater. Induction into the Alumni Hall of Fame is the highest honor bestowed upon an alumnus or alumna by the Lane Tech Alumni Association.
2021-22 Hall of Fame Inductees
Tracy Baim
Class of 1980
Tracy Baim was the co-publisher of the Chicago Reader who guided the weekly newspaper to non-profit status in 2022 and is the co-founder of Windy City Times. Baim received the 2013 Chicago Headline Club Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2014, she was inducted into the NLGJA: The Association of LGBTQ Journalists Hall of Fame. She is also in the Association for Women Journalists-Chicago Chapter Hall of Fame and the Chicago LGBT Hall of Fame. She is a film producer and the author/co-author of 13 books.
Ertharin Cousin
Class of 1975
Cousin has graced Forbes “100 Most Powerful Women” list, TIME Magazine’s “100 Most Influential People” list, and the list of the “500 Most Powerful People on the Planet” by Foreign Policy magazine. As one of the first female students at Lane, this trailblazer’s career has focused on global agriculture and food insecurity. Cousin served as Executive Director of the UN World Food Program from 2012-2017. Prior to that, she was U.S. Ambassador to the UN Agencies for Food and Agriculture.
David F. James
Class of 1941
David James was an original Tuskegee Airmen, flying combat missions over Europe during WWII. He was the first African American attorney hired by the ABA and served as Illinois Deputy Director for the War on Poverty which led to the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964. James was the first African American homeowner in Winnetka and worked tirelessly to improve race relations through various organizations including TWIG summer camp for youth from the city and north shore, which he founded and remains active today.
Jack T. Nelson
Class of 1915
One of the things that makes Lane unique is our school song, Go Lane Go! Surprisingly, many Laneites are unaware that it is an original composition written by Jack T. Nelson, Class of 1915. Nelson was the assistant conductor of the orchestra and manager of the Glee Club, as well as one of the first editors of the school newspaper. His song debuted on December 15,1914 and was quickly adopted by the student body. Go Jack Go!
Kurt Sacksteder
Class of 1971
As Deputy Chief Technologist at NASA Glenn Research Center, Sacksteder has dedicated his 40-year career to aerospace innovations that predict the effects of extreme environments on aerospace materials. Microgravity combustion systems, equipment for planetary surface mining, and sustainable energy storage systems called Thermal Wadis are just a few of the breakthrough projects Sacksteder has coordinated. The results of his work enable NASA to explore the Moon and Mars more efficiently and for longer periods of time.
Warren Winiarski
Class of 1947
Winiarski is a Napa Valley resident, former winery owner/winemaker, grape grower, and philanthropist. He and wife, Barbara, co-founded Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars in 1970 and their first commercial release, the 1973 Cabernet Sauvignon, edged out French top Bordeaux wines and took first place for red wines at the Judgment of Paris tasting in 1976. A bottle of his winning wine is part of the Smithsonian’s permanent collection.
This inaugural list represents the alumni installed on the Lane Tech Wall of Fame between 1990 and 2008:
James Ascot, 1969
Franz Benteler, 1943
William J. Cormack, 1951
Anna Davlantes, 1988
Admiral Robert F. Dunn, 1946
John Gianopulos, 1949
Evon Greanias, 1940
John Herrera, 1974
Bernard Joseph, 1940
Robert Juengling, 1958
General Donald Kutyna, 1951
Chuck Logan, 1960
Aloysius Mazewski, 1934
Harrell McDemmond, 1938
Admiral Richard W. Mies, 1962
Edgar Muenzer, 1945
Frederick Douglass “Fritz” Pollard, 1912
Marty Robinson, 1950
Mitchell L. Saranow, 1953
John Schwan, 1961
Ted Schwartz, 1971
Howard K. Soehrmann, 1941
John C. Stetson, 1938
Phil Cavaretta 1930-1934
Carl Giammarese 1962-1965
Francesco LoVecchio (Frankie Laine) 1926-1930
Johnny Weissmuller 1918
