Awards and honors

Joe Beegle, Sample Media Group CEO, owner of the Bedford Gazette and 75 publications in four states, will receive the 2024 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Pennsylvania NewsMedia Association. The award recognizes exceptional service and outstanding accomplishment spanning a career in journalism.

The 2024 Lifetime Achievement Award will be presented to Beegle at PNA’s 100th Anniversary Gala & Annual Dinner Nov. 14 at the Hershey Country Club.

Kathy Woods and Shelva Smith were honored by Stuckey Automotive at an Altoona Curve game to mark their 50th anniversary with the company. The ladies each threw out the ceremonial first pitch.

Woods, accounting specialist at Stuckey Automotive, started with the company on Aug. 26, 1974. Smith, payroll specialist, started shortly after on Sept. 4, 1974.

Conferences and seminars

Dr. Alan Kivitz, president and founder of the Altoona Center for Clinical Research and the Altoona Arthritis and Osteoporosis Center, recently presented at the 26th Asia-

Pacific League of Associations for Rheumatology Congress in Suntec, Singapore.

The research study evaluated the efficiency and safety of zasocitinib in patients with active psoriatic arthritis and psoriasis, treated over 12 weeks. This study was a randomized, placebo-controlled, phase 2b trial for patients with moderate to severe psoriatic arthritis. The results of the study showed that the investigational medication zasocitinib in dosage of 15 mg and 30 mg demonstrated greater efficacy versus the placebo in treating patients with active psoriatic arthritis, with a reassuring safety profile.

Miscellaneous

Joe Hurd has been appointed to the board of trustees of Pennsylvania Highlands Community College as the college’s new Blair County representative.

Hurd’s duties as the Blair County representative will be to bring forward the interests of the region regarding educational advancement. His initial term will expire on July 31, 2026, when he will be eligible for a three-year reappointment.

In August, Hurd retired as the CEO/president of the Blair County Chamber of Commerce, a position he held for 27 years.