PALMER GUEST OF BASEBALL BANQUET JAN. 23

B. Luke Newman, president of Greenwich Kitchens Center, will be honored as the 27th recipient of the Bud Metheny Award at the ACS Systems "Meet the Stars" Banquet, Friday, Jan. 23, at the Sheraton Norfolk Waterside.

The banquet begins with a social at 6:30 p.m., followed by dinner at 7:30 p.m. This year's keynote speaker will be Baltimore Oriole pitching great and baseball Hall of Famer Jim Palmer.

Tickets for the banquet are $50, and on sale at the Old Dominion Athletic Ticket office in the Athletic Administration Building, 683-5484. The Greenwich Kitchens Baseball Clinic will be held Saturday, Jan. 24, in the Old Dominion University fieldhouse. Tickets are $5 for the session, beginning at 9 a.m. Proceeds from the dinner and clinic support baseball scholarships at Old Dominion.

This year marks the 10th anniversary for Greenwich Kitchens with the Old Dominion baseball clinic. Greenwich Kitchens became the event's first title sponsor in 1995.

"This is quite an honor," said Newman. "It has been a positive and an enjoyable relationship for myself, and our company with Old Dominion University, and it's athletic department. I look forward to continuing this great relationship."

Newman has been active and supportive of local youth sports. He coached baseball for two years in the Virginia Beach Youth Leagues, as well as youth basketball for six years in Norfolk.

Closer to Newman's heart is his work with the National Kidney Foundation. A kidney recipient himself, Newman has served as a director on the state board for the National Kidney Foundation. As an athlete, he competed in the World Transplant Games in both basketball and golf. He also competed in the Salt Lake City Games in 1996 and in the Columbus, Ohio games in 1998.

Newman is a 1970 graduate of Carolton Oaks (now Norfolk Collegiate) High School. As an undergrad at Old Dominion, he became a member of the student senate and was very active in school activities, which included following the Monarch baseball teams under the direction of Bud Metheny as well as the Monarch and Lady Monarch basketball teams. He currently serves as a Director of the Board of the ODU Intercollegiate Foundation.

For more information about the clinic and banquet, please contact the Athletic Ticket Office at 683-5484.