WIBX Announcers, Among Those Honored by Boilermaker at Park Ceremony

The Boilermaker Road Race honored community members and media on Thursday during a brick laying ceremony and WIBX's Jim Rondenelli and Bill Keeler were among the recipients. Rondenelli was awarded the Les Diven media award in 2015 and Bill Keeler received the honor this year.  WKTV's Gary Liberatore was the 2016 winner.  Each honoree placed their brick in the park's walkway, which is a brick replica of the race course.  The award is in honor of Les Diven, a highly acclaimed and colorful sports reporter for the Observer Dispatch who before his death in 2014, had served several years with his wife Pat as dedicated Boilermaker volunteers.

The Boilermaker also honored recipients of the Peter DeStefano Volunteer of the Year Award. Lou Matrulli – 2015; Bob Malinowski – 2016;  Julie Fatata (posthumous) – 2017; and Ted Petrillo (posthumous) – 2017 each received bricks in the park. Petrillo and Fatata both passed away late last year.

Boilermaker Executive Director Tim Reed was also awarded a brick to honor his national recognition, being named the MarathonFoto/Road Race Management Race Director of the Year award in 2016.  Reed announced right after this year's 40th running of the Boilermaker in July that he's retiring as soon as a replacement is found.