BJEF announces Distinguished Bluejacket Award finalists

The Bluejacket Education Foundation (BJEF) is excited to announce the finalists for the inaugural Distinguished Bluejacket Award.

The award was created to recognize graduates of Cambridge-Isanti High School or Cambridge High School who have distinguished themselves through remarkable professional, community service or personal accomplishments.

The winner of the Distinguished Bluejacket Award will be announced at the BJEF Future Fest fundraiser on Friday, April 19.

Out of the many impressive Bluejacket nominations received, BJEF has selected the following three finalists (in alphabetical order):

Son Duong, Class of 1975. Duong has had a distinguished career as a machinist, welder, plant manager and instructor, currently working as the Assistant Production Manager at Arrow Tank and teaching welding and blueprint reading classes at Anoka Technical College.

He believes strongly in giving back to the community that welcomed him in when he arrived here from Vietnam, and the local educators that helped him overcome his language barrier and achieve his goals.

Duong has served as a volunteer with Cambridge Jaycee’s, Faith Lutheran Church, Cambridge-Isanti Schools and coached many local kids’ sports teams over the decades.

In 2021, Duong retired from the Cambridge Volunteer Fire Department after 22 years of service and was part of the Isanti county Safety and Rescue for more than 19 years.

He has won numerous awards for his community service, most recently a Lifetime Achievement Award from the MN State Fire Department Association.

Chris Lovrien, Class of 1991. A graduate of Harvard Law School, Lovrien’s thriving law career began by clerking for a district court judge in Memphis Tennessee, then joining international law firm Jones Day where he is now a partner specializing in commercial litigation.

From the firm’s Los Angeles office, he also serves as Partner-in-Charge of the Australia Region, where he oversees 90 lawyers in 4 offices, and in 2020 he was named a Trailblazer in First Amendment Law by the National Law Board.

Lovrien gives back by serving on the Board of Advisors for the Children’s Bureau of Southern California and the Board of Advisors for the RAND institute of Civil Justice.

He credits CIHS basketball coach Mike McDonald with instilling the lesson that intensity, commitment and hard work can take you as far as you want to go.

Christine Miller, Class of 1967. After a remarkable 30 year teaching career and roles as Director of Teaching and Learning and Assistant Superintendent in Cambridge-Isanti schools, Miller decided to “retire for good” volunteering her time to bring good to the community.

She has served on the boards of several local foundations over the years, as well as volunteering with Christ the King Catholic church.

In 2005, Miller put her considerable grant writing skills to work, securing funding to bring the Reach Out and Read program to Allina Health Cambridge and Isanti Clinics. The program focuses on building a literacy foundation for children by providing free books at every well-child visit and has handed out more than 65,000 books in the community – and counting.

In 2018, Miller was named to Minnesota’s “50 over 50” list, by AARP Minnesota and Pollen, in recognition of her community service leadership.