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Allison Janney Among 2017 Dayton Regional Walk Of Fame Honorees

Jerry Kenney

Since 1996, more than 160 influential people with ties to the Miami Valley have been inducted into the Dayton Region's Walk of Fame. Thursday at Sinclair Community College, seven more people were honored with a spot on the walk.

This year's honorees included actress and Oakwood native Allison Janney. The popular West Wing and ‘Mom’ sitcom star says her inclusion on the walk felt a little overwhelming.

“It’s very cool, and my mom and dad and I walked down to Third and Williams and saw where my little stone will be and it was really exciting," she said. "I got chills and felt very proud to be part of the fabric of Dayton, Ohio.”

 

Oscar and Marjorie Boonshoft were also honored for their many charitable contributions to the Dayton area. They’re both deceased. But the Boonshofts’ son David participated in the ceremony, and says much of the money they donated came from his father’s success as a commodities trader.

“He used to talk about how giving made him feel good - not like he had less when he got done, but he had more, and that’s how he fulfilled himself in life,” he says.

Also honored Thursday were Brig. Gen. Benjamin Davis, Sr., who was the first African American to be promoted to the rank of General in the U.S. Armed Forces in 1940, and CathyGuisewite, creator of the comic strip Cathy, which drew attention to women’s and social issues, and ran in newspapers around the world for more than 35 years.

 

Former Ohio State Sen. and U.S. Congressman David L. Hobson, who represented parts of Dayton and Springfield for more than 20 years, and Shawnee Chief Tecumseh, were also inducted into this year's walk of fame.

Listen to the full interviews below

Janney.mp3
Allison Janney
Guisewite.mp3
Cathy Guisewite
Robert_Stewart.mp3
Robert Stewart Speaking for Brigadier Gen. Benjamin Davis.
Hobson.mp3
The Honorable David L. Hobson
Tecumseh2.mp3
Governor Edwina Butler-Wolfe, Twila Parker, and Jason Bender with the Absentee Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma speak on the legacy of Chief Tecumseh.
Boonshoft.mp3
David Boonshoft talks about his parents Oscar and Marjorie Boonshoft

Jerry began volunteering at WYSO in 1991 and hosting Sunday night's Alpha Rhythms in 1992. He joined the YSO staff in 2007 as Morning Edition Host, then All Things Considered. He's hosted Sunday morning's WYSO Weekend since 2008 and produced several radio dramas and specials . In 2009 Jerry received the Best Feature award from Public Radio News Directors Inc., and was named the 2023 winner of the Ohio Associated Press Media Editors Best Anchor/News Host award. His current, heart-felt projects include the occasional series Bulletin Board Diaries, which focuses on local, old-school advertisers and small business owners. He has also returned as the co-host Alpha Rhythms.