Great Bend High School has announced its 2014 inductees to the GBHS Hall of Fame. Recognized will be two individuals, one who has worked as an engineer on such projects as the Space Shuttle and own who has served as the voice of the Panthers closer to home.
 Honored will be George Nossaman and Randy Goering.
The Hall of Fame ceremony and luncheon are scheduled for Friday, Feb. 20, at the Club at StoneRidge. The induction ceremony will take place between the girls’ and boys’ basketball games with Dodge City in the GBHS gym. A reception will follow the games in the Jack Kilby Commons and the public is invited.
 Ticket sales and prices will be announced at a later date.
This marks the seventh year for the HOF. Past inductees include globe-trotting JanSport founder Skip Yowell and microchip inventor Jack Kilby.
After the nominations come in, a committee made up of administrators, teachers, School Board representatives and local residents make the final determination. Nominees must be students, teachers or community members who have made a significant contribution to community or country.
A display case in the GBHS commons contains plaques and memorabilia paying tribute to all the recipients.
Below are the biographies of the inductees.
 
George Nossaman
George Nossaman spent 40 years working as an engineer and manager in the US Aerospace Industry. In his career, he led design for over $1B of complex electronic systems, systems which perform command and control functions on the ground and in space for major US National Space Systems. The ground control centers include the Space Shuttle Mission Control Center at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston and the Hubble Space Telescope Mission Control Center at NASA’s Goddard Space Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. Later in his career, he managed one of the two facilities in the world that manufacture radiation hardened computers and microelectronics that serve as the electronic brains for spacecraft orbiting Mars, Saturn, Mercury, and Earth and exploring the surface of the Mars.
He was born and raised in Great Bend, Kansas, where he graduated from Great Bend High School in 1963. He received a Bachelor’s Degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Kansas, where he also completed his M.S.E.E. He also earned an M.S. in Mathematics from the University of Houston, CLC.
His first job was with Bell Aerospace in Buffalo, NY, where he developed a research laboratory dedicated to image scanning and analysis.
In 1974, he joined Philco-Ford (later Ford Aerospace) in Houston, TX, where he was appointed lead system engineer to redesign the Mission Control Center (MCC) at the Johnson Space Center to support the new Space Shuttle. Leading a design team of 150 engineers, he originated a system design capable of supporting three shuttle missions simultaneously. He also led design of a system to support payloads in the NASA Spacelab and modified the Shuttle MCC architecture to allow one of the Shuttle missions to control launch of a classified payload.
In the early 1980’s, he led Ford’s system team in the design and implementation of the Hubble Space Telescope Operations Control Center at NASA’s Goddard Space Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.
In 1984, he was named to lead Ford Aerospace’s team to competitively design a new Shuttle Control Center, to be located at Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado Springs. After the AF Shuttle program was cancelled, he formed and managed a successful Grumman/Ford proposal to perform Systems Engineering Integration Services for the Space Station.
In 1988, he joined IBM Federal Systems and served as Director of Strategic Planning for a $500M/year division during several Aerospace Industry consolidations, including Loral, Lockheed Martin and BAE Systems.
In 2001 he was appointed Director for Space Systems and Electronics in Manassas, Virginia responsible for development and manufacture of electronics and computers which operate in the harsh radiation environment of deep space. His team refreshed the site’s radiation-hardened semiconductor manufacturing technology, and then developed a new generation of radiation-hardened computers and microchips, electronics which now control the Mars Rovers and spacecraft in orbit around three planets, as well as hundreds of spacecraft in earth orbit. These satellites deliver satellite radio to listeners worldwide, provided worldwide telephone communications, and control many scientific and reconnaissance spacecraft. During his tenure, annual business at the site doubled to $120M/year and employed 400 high-tech professionals.
He is a Senior Fellow of AIAA, served on the AIAA Space Launch Subcommittee, was Section Chairman for the IEEE Group in Information Theory, and contributed to Studies of the National Research Council.
He retired in 2008, and now resides in Clifton, Virginia, with his wife of 38 years, Judi (nee Hurwitz). He spends time relaxing with mathematics, tracing his family tree, mentoring research projects at George Mason University, studying languages, and enjoying his two children and four grandchildren.

 
Randy Goering
 While a senior in high school, a surprise phone call from the McPherson radio station opened the door for a long and successful career in the broadcasting industry for Randy Goering. As a 4-H Junior Leader, Randy had helped collect audio bites which the McPherson station used to promote the 4-H Fair. Station Manger Claude Hughes recognized the talent, and offered Randy the next part time opportunity to work at the station. That experience lead to a Degree in Broadcasting and a 40+ year career in the industry. Over the years Randy has worked in radio stations in Hutchinson, Hays, Liberal, Junction City, and for the past 30 years in Great Bend.
In 1984, Randy and his wife Annette stepped out in an entrepreneurial leap and purchased a business in Great Bend. The plan was for Annette to operate the business while Randy would find some kind employment to supplement their income while they grew the business. Randy feared he’d have to get a “real job” as he put it. Fortunately, the week they moved to Great Bend, the local Radio Station KVGB, had a position come open, which he quickly accepted. During his time in Great Bend, Randy has worked in a variety of capacities with the local stations. Currently he is the Sales Manager for the cluster of four stations operated in Great Bend by Employee Owned, Eagle Communications.
While known in the community for his many years of Sports Play by Play as the “Voice of The Panthers” (1988-2006), Randy has been involved in many school and community activities. Every Jefferson Elementary 5th Grader for the past 15 has learned to give a speech, in part, from a classroom project Randy has been asked to present. He has served on Site Councils for Elementary and High Schools in the district and was a member of the Panther Booster Club board. He has helped judge debate and forensic tournaments, assisted with vocal music programs, and worked as the public address announcer for Track & Field, Bowling, and Football. In ____ the USD 428 Board of Education recognized Randy with the ‘Rose Award’ and the Confidence in Kansas Public Education Task Force presented him the “Friend of Education Award” for his involvement in public education. He is currently a member of the Board for the Golden Belt Community Foundation, a leader in his Church and a Past President of the Great Bend Optimist Club.
Among his top professional awards was the 1996 Sportscaster of the Year award presented the Kansas Intercollegiate Athletic Administrators Association and the Hod Humiston Award for career achievement in sports broadcasting, presented in 2008 by the Kansas Association of Broadcasters.
Over the years, Randy has strived to use his position in the media for focus “Positive Attention” on the youth of the community. “So much media attention is on the problems in our community, nation and world,” he said. “I wanted to do what I could to encourage and promote those students who were doing things right, and who were consistently representing their school and our community by their action on the court and field.” It was a privilege to broadcast many many games where our students performed at a high level and were an asset to the community of Great Bend.”
Each of his Sports Broadcasts concluded with a cannon from “The Optimist Creed.” A few of his favorites were:
• Give so much time to the improvement of yourself, that you have no time to criticize others.
• Be just as enthusiastic about the success of others, as you are about your own.
• Wear a cheerful countenance all times, and give every living creature you meet a smile.
• Think only the best, work only for the best, and expect only the best.
Other Biographical data;
Graduated from Moundridge (Ks) High School in 1974
Graduated from Huthinson Community College in 1976
Married to his wife Annette for 33 years
Two adult children, Lindsey and her husband Cory Elsen, and Kendra Goering.