2018 Hall of Fame Inductees
Dave Aguilera ('83)
B.S., Mass Communications-Journalism, CSU-Pueblo. Certificate in Broadcast Meteorology, Mississippi State. Certified Broadcast Meteorologist, American Meteorological Society. Pueblo born and raised. Work: Weather anchor, KREX-TV, Grand Junction; KOAA-TV, Pueblo/Colorado Springs; and KRQE-TV, Albuquerque. Emmy Award-winning weatherman for CBS4-TV in Denver, where he’s been since 1993. Newsman at KHOW and KOA radio, Denver. Disc jockey for KCCY, KRYT and KDZA radio, Pueblo. Teaches weather to thousands of elementary school children a year along the Front Range. He emcees many non-profit group fundraisers, among them diabetes and spina bifida.
Dr. Donna Jo Blake ('69) (deceased)
Last lived and practiced in Durango. B.S, Physical Therapy, CU. Doctor of Medicine, University of Wisconsin-Madison. Board certified in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, and Spinal Cord Medicine. Work: Practiced 30 years in direct clinical care, medical director of acute inpatient rehab services, VA PMR and other programs, including low-vision outpatient and Regional Amputation Center. She was a recognized expert on applying clinical video telehealth for rehab services with the VA system. Dr. Blake also was an associate professor for CU in the physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Department. She also advocated for the World Health Organization’s International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health in providing rehab services. Awards include VA Service Award and VA Employee of the year from the Paralyzed Veterans of America (Mountain States chapter), Golden Goniometer Teaching Award for CU’s Rehabilitation Medicine Department. Accepting her award was her husband, Aaron Gordon.
Carole Ricotta Guinane ('74)
B.A., Registered Nurse, MBA, USC-Pueblo. Work: Parkview Hospital, as a nurse and later an administrator. She was the lead clinical administrator there before joining Quorum Health in Nashville, where she helped start quality patient care programs that also helped lower patients’ costs. She also helped build MedCath, a 14-hospital company specializing in quality care of heart patients. From there she went to work on numerous quality initiatives for Novant Health, a multi-state hospital system located in North Carolina. Today she serves as Interim President and VP for System Orthopedics for Sentara Life Care, a not-for-profit group of 12 hospitals, outpatient care centers, imaging centers and more, based out of Virginia Beach, VA. She is the author of many books and articles on health care topics and has been a national and regional presenter. She chairs her company’s board of directors and National Chairperson for the NAHQ Competency Commission for Healthcare Quality.
Ruth Power Taravella ('64)
Ruth Power Taravella B.A., Physical Education, A.A., Early Childhood Education, USC-Pueblo. Work: Teacher at Vineland Middle School, where she was awarded the first Distinguished Teachers Award, 1985. M.A., Education Administration, K-12, CSU. Taught at North Mesa Elementary, then became D-70’s coordinator of State development. Named first female high school principal for the District in 1997, for the new Pueblo West High School, she oversaw construction of the school and growth of the student body from 198 to 1,003 students when she retired in 2004. Since then she has mentored principals throughout Colorado before becoming the Central High principal in 2011-12 during the search process. Central won the Lamp of Knowledge trophy for the first time that year. She also is active in her church.