DIXON, CA (MPG) - At the annual Dixon Hall of Fame Dinner, which is hosted by a group of dedicated volunteers on a mission to raise funds for the athletic programs at Dixon High School, ten high achievers and an entire basketball team were added to the long list of prestigious inductees.

"Thousands of dollars are raised each year [from the dinner] and those funds have bought uniforms, equipment, and signs," said organizer Linda Barrett who explained the group was formed to keep alive school traditions and to honor those persons who have excelled in one or more high school athletic programs. "We are trying to bring back the spirit of Dixon we grew up with," she added.

Here's a brief about the inductees:

John Watson 'Watsie' Kilkenny Jr., Class of 1949, was a life-long Dixon resident and big supporter of sports in the community. He was a 3-sport athlete during his time at Dixon High School participating in football, basketball and basebal and had numerous achievements. He was the quarterback all four years and was appointed as team captain in his junior and senior year. He was part of the Class A Champions for football and one of the leaders of the Hall of Fame 1947 Championship football team and again the SCAL championship team in 1948. He owned and operated Farmers Exchange in Dixon for 35 years.

Marvin Van Curen, Class of 1958, was nicknamed “Marvelous Marv” during his time at Dixon High School. He was a highly touted two-sport athlete in baseball and basketball. He was a three-year varsity baseball player and was selected to the all-league team his senior year. He was nationally recognized for his offensive play and named to the Far Western Conference All-Star Team two years in a row. After college, the Dodgers offered him a professional baseball contract that he ultimately turned down due to family commitments.

George Shields, also known as 'Butch,' Class of 1969, was a standout three-sport athlete participating in basketball, football and track. In track and football, he helped lead both teams to back-to-back league championships. During his senior year, Butch was selected to the football All-League Team as an offensive end and named to the Sacramento Valley All-Star Team for the 13th Annual Optimist Football Game. In track, Butch excelled setting records in the 120-meter high and 180- meter low hurdles, which are still Dixon High records. He also set a record in the 440-meter relay with teammates.

Kim Moriel, Class of 1978, grew up in Dixon. She was a four-year varsity softball starter, receiving SCAL All League Team selection three years in a row. Most notably, during her junior year Kim was lauded for pitching 51 strikeouts during seven league games, pitching every inning plus three pre-season games. Kim also played varsity volleyball for three years and was an honor student. She graduated from UC Davis with an Interior Design degree.

Ronny Kitchen, Class of 1980, was a four-sport athlete at Dixon High School, participating in football, track, wrestling and baseball. Through hard work and dedication Ronny lettered in all four sports. In football, Ronny was an all-league linebacker and running back. His senior year Ronny rushed for over 1,000 yards and made 90 tackles which he received unanimous voting for All SCAL small schools outside linebacker. He was also a member of the undefeated mixed 440-meter relay team with Linda Barrett, Edwin Contrera and Chris Step. After high school, Ronny was an all-league linebacker at Solano College and named the most valuable defensive player. After his playing days, he came back to Dixon High and coached JV football for five years. He also continued to coach numerous youth softball and basketball teams in the community.

Trever Boler, Class of 1995, was an all-around student-athlete at Dixon High School excelling in academics and participating in cross country, basketball, and track. He ran cross country for four years and participated in the State meet. He also played basketball all four years, earning honors of All-League Rebounder his senior season. He ran Track varsity all four years, was Subsection Champion in pole vault, and received the Most Valuable Athlete Award at the Largest Small School Track meet in California (760 athletes). He became a three-time All American and the first UC Davis student-athlete to ever win a national title in track and field when he won the pole vault in 2000.After college, Trevor became the head pole vault coach at UCD for 5 years. After college, he became the head pole vault coach at UCD for five years and was then hired by the Japanese National team to work with athletes using American style of training.

He transitioned to high school coaching track at Cathedral Catholic High School in San Diego for ten years where he helped the girls track team become the highest ranked program in Section history, including winning the State Championship. He went on to establish a track club that is still a prominent program in the San Diego area. Eventually returning to Northern California, he continued his career at Rio Americano High School and served as the League Chairman and CIF Advisor. Trevor is currently in his 21st consecutive year of coaching track.

Danica McGreevy, Class of 2009, was a three-sport star at Dixon High School, participating in volleyball, basketball and softball. She was captain of the volleyball team for three years and won the league championship her senior season. Danica was also captain of the basketball team and led the team in points, rebounds and steals, leading them to the playoffs all four years. As captain of the softball team her junior and senior season, she played center field, first base and catcher. She was voted all conference in all three sports her senior year. She earned a degree in communications at the University of California, Santa Barbara.

Jeffrey Anderson, Class of 2010, was a star football player at Dixon High School. He played quarterback and had a stellar career. He was the league most valuable player his junior and senior seasons. Jeffrey was also voted Davis Enterprise Player of the Year and All Metro his senior year. He played football in college for Contra Costa College and Texas Southern University and graduated with a major in liberal arts. He coached football at Contra Costa College where the team won two conference championships then coached for Northern Colorado, San Jose State and Cal Poly. Ultimately, he became an assistant coach for the Cleveland Browns in 2022.

Barb Iten grew up in Northern California and attended UC Davis, where she was a standout three-sport athlete in basketball, volleyball and softball. Among her accomplishments, she led the 1971 basketball team to the National Collegiate tournament in North Carolina. Barb earned degrees in political science and education at UC Davis, and a Master of Science degree in physician education from Western Illinois University. She was inducted into the UC Davis School’s Athletic Hall of Fame for all three sports and invited to try out for the US Olympic Women’s Basketball team. She served as head women’s basketball coach at Cal State East Bay. After moving on to coach at Dartmouth and then Iowa State, Barb began her 20-year career teaching and coaching basketball, softball, volleyball, golf and football at Dixon High School. From 2004 on, she took teams into championships, and earned numerous awards, honors, and recognition for her achievements.

Pat Granucci was an active community volunteer in Dixon for over 30 years. In addition to her strong civic engagement and committee work, Pat coached cheerleaders at Dixon High School for ten years and helped students of all ages outside of school as a community swim team coach for more than 20 years. Pat took over the local swim team which became the Dixon Dolphins. The Dixon community pool was named the Pat Granucci Aquatic Center in her honor.

Other honors given at the Hall of Fame included the 1979-1980 Boys Basketball Team and Coach George Skezas. Skezas and team players Rob Adams, Kevin DeGarmo, Tim Fitzpatrick, Abrain Garcia, Keith Hamilton, Mike Hansen, Tavo Lizarraga, Chris Luttges, David MacDonald, Abel Martinez, Greg Pryor, Todd Rehrman, Bill Slater, and Troy Sorensen. Led by the Most Valuable Player of the Division III Section tournament Mike Hanson, and All-Tournament selections Chris Luttges and Greg Pryor, they finished as one of the best teams in school history. Both Hanson and Luttges were named All-League, Keith Hamilton as 2nd team All-League and George Skezas receiving league Coach of the Year.

For more information, go to DixonHallofFame.org. Events guests were tasked to 'Save the Date' for next Year's Hall of Fame which will be Saturday, November 11, 2023.