Northwestern to present alumni awards

Northwestern College will present three of its alumni with awards recognizing their accomplishments and service during the college’s Raider Days homecoming and family weekend Saturday, Oct. 25.

Dr. Mark Muilenburg of Orange City will receive the Distinguished Service to Northwestern Award for 2014–15; Henrietta Van Maanen of Fort Dodge, Iowa, the Distinguished Service to Humankind Award; and Dave Vellinga of Clive, Iowa, the Distinguished Professional Achievement Award.

Muilenburg is a family practice physician with the Orange City Area Health System who specializes in sports and musculoskeletal medicine. He has cared for Raider athletes as the team physician since 1993—a role that has him on the sidelines for Northwestern home games. He also sees athletes on campus once a week and serves as the medical director for the college’s accredited athletic training major.

Muilenburg majored in biology at NWC, graduating in 1984, and earned his medical degree from the University of Iowa’s Carver College of Medicine. He holds a Certificate of Added Qualification in sports medicine. He and his wife, the former Lisa Waite, a 1983 Northwestern graduate, also have two daughters who graduated from Northwestern.

Van Maanen, a 1955 graduate of Northwestern Junior College, earned a bachelor’s degree in home economics from Iowa State University and a master’s degree in education from the University of Maryland. She spent a distinguished career as a USDA extension home economist in Iowa, Washington and Nevada, often serving low-income families. Her work as an extension district program leader earned her recognition by the National Extension Home Economists.

Now retired, Van Maanen volunteers in educational settings as a Volunteer in Mission with the Presbyterian Church. She travels extensively, often spending months at a time in locales from North Carolina to Alaska. She has also worked with Habitat for Humanity in Nicaragua, volunteered with Hospice in Fort Dodge, and served as an elder, deacon and Sunday school teacher.

Vellinga holds multiple executive roles in the health care field. He is president and CEO of Mercy Health Network, which consists of 40 hospitals, 140 clinics and 13,000 employees that handle 27 percent of inpatient and observation discharges in Iowa. He is senior vice president for operations for Catholic Health Initiatives. And he serves as CEO of Mercy Medical Center in Des Moines, where he oversees three hospital campuses, more than 50 clinics and nearly 8,000 employees.

A 1972 Northwestern College graduate who majored in business administration, Vellinga earned a master’s degree in hospital and health care administration from the University of Iowa. He was recognized as one of 10 emerging leaders in healthcare by the Healthcare Forum and received the Ship’s Wheel award from the Iowa Hospital Association.

Northwestern’s Distinguished Alumni Dinner begins at 6 p.m. Oct. 25 in the Vermeer Dining Room. Cost is $20. Reservations are required. Contact the Northwestern College alumni office at 712-707-7127 or alumni@nwciowa.edu for tickets.