Blaiklock, Kite and Sharpe to receive Hanover’s top alumni honors
The accomplishments of graduates A. Richard M. Blaiklock ’90, Wiley Kite ’90 and Rachel Slade Sharpe ’13 will be recognized with the presentation of Hanover College’s highest alumni honors during a May ceremony.
Blaiklock and Kite will receive Hanover’s Alumni Achievement Award (AAA). Sharpe will be presented with the Distinguished Young Alumni Award (DYA).
The AAA/DYA presentation ceremony will be held during an event Friday, May 15, at the Fairfield Inn in Madison, Ind.
Presented annually since 1960, the Alumni Achievement Award recognizes graduates who have enhanced Hanover’s reputation by making significant contributions to their community, state or nation through professional service, public service and/or civic activities.
A. Richard M. Blaiklock ’90
Blaiklock has served the legal community for more than three decades. He has worked as Marion County (Ind.) Superior Court judge since a 2024 appointment by former Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb ’90 and currently presides over the civil docket.
He was a partner at Lewis Wagner, LLP from 2005-24, working as managing partner from 2022-24, and served as an associate from 2001-04. He litigated business, First Amendment and statutory cases at the trial and appellate levels, arguing before the Indiana Supreme Court, Indiana Court of Appeals, U.S. Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals and U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals.
A 1997 summa cum laude graduate of the Indiana University McKinney School of Law, Blaiklock worked at Ice Miller as an associate from 1997-2001 and law clerk from 1996-97. He was a law clerk at Lewis & Wagner from 1995-96.
He joined the Marion County Department of Public Welfare in 1990. He served the probation department of the Marion Superior Court’s juvenile division from 1991-95, including stints as probation officer (1991-93), probation supervisor (1993-95) and community relations coordinator (1995).
Blaiklock and his wife, Mindy Pflum Blaiklock ’91, live in Indianapolis. They are the parents of two children.
Wiley D. Kite II ’90
A member of Hanover’s board of trustees since 2017, Kite currently serves as senior vice president of relationship management at Fidelity Investments.
Kite has worked at Fidelity Investments for 25 years, including three years in his current role. He served the previous three years as senior vice president for relationship management services and, prior to that, was vice president and managing director for 14 years, where he guided service delivery and corporate relationships supporting benefits outsourcing the administration of 401(k), pension, health/welfare and equity plan disciplines.
Prior to joining Fidelity, Kite worked nine years in various management, quality and operation roles for Valvoline Inc.
Kite, a chemistry major at Hanover, was a member of Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity and an Alumni/Senior Award recipient.
After graduating from Hanover, he earned a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Cincinnati Carl H. Lindner School of Business.
He resides in Chicago with his spouse, Tim Kendrick.
The Distinguished Young Alumni Award has been presented annually since 2013. The honor celebrates graduates under the age of 40 and recognizes alumni who have enhanced the reputation of the College through their outstanding professional achievements, personal accomplishments or their loyal service to their alma mater.
Rachel Slade Sharpe ’13
Sharpe serves as manager of the Norton Healthcare Foundation, which supports Norton King’s Daughters’ Health as an advocate for the local community.
In her role with the foundation, Sharpe leads strategic fundraising initiatives, develops key donor relationships and partners with hospital and community leaders to advance projects that strengthen the region’s healthcare access. She is also active in the community, serving leadership roles with Romanian Handicap Ministries, Tri Kappa sorority, Women’s Giving Circle of Jefferson County (Ind.), and Leadership Jefferson County (Ind.).
Before transitioning into healthcare philanthropy, Sharpe served five years as head coach of Hanover’s men’s and women’s track and field teams. As a three-time Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference coach of the year, she helped produce academic all-American teams, three NCAA Division III national qualifiers, an all-American, and multiple indoor and outdoor school records.
Sharpe was a health and movement studies major at Hanover. She earned a master’s degree in organizational leadership from Lewis University.
Sharpe resides in Madison, Ind., with her husband, Devon Sharpe ’13, a 2022 recipient of the Distinguished Young Alumni Award.
