The head of a civic foundation, a physician, a retired executive and a dedicated higher education administrator will be honored as”Most Loyals”during 53rd annual Mountaineer Week activities. The celebration of Appalachian heritage is going on at West Virginia University Nov. 10-18.

This years honorees are:

• Lyell B. Clay and Dr. C. Carl Tully, Sr., Charleston, Most Loyal West Virginians

• G. Thomas Harrick, McMurray, Pa., Most Loyal Alumni Mountaineer

• Paul R. Martinelli, Morgantown, Most Loyal Faculty and Staff Mountaineer .

The foursome will be honored during halftime of the WVU vs. East Carolina football game Nov. 18.

The awards are presented by the WVU Student Foundation, co-organizers of Mountaineer Week.

The Most Loyal West Virginian and Alumni Mountaineer awards have been presented since 1974, while the Most Loyal Faculty and Staff Mountaineer honor was created in 1994.

The Most Loyal West Virginian exemplifies faithfulness to the ideals and goals of West Virginia through business, professional and civic achievement as well as support of WVU . This the first year that two individuals will receive this award.

Lyell Buffington Clay, who received an MBA from WVU in 1975, has been a long-time financial supporter of WVU with special emphasis on the College of Business and Economics and the College of Creative Arts Music Extension programs.

Clay, an accomplished musician and composer, wrote and composed”West Virginias Home To Me.”

In 1956, Clay was elected president of the newspaper his stepfather, W. E. Clark, purchased in 1914 The Charleston Daily Mail.

Lyell, along with his brother, Buckner, established the Clay Foundation, Inc. in 1987. The Clay Foundation has been a strong supporter of the Kanawha Valley. The Foundation also has supported WVU , the University of Charleston, the Charleston YMCA , Kanawha Bicentennial, Inc., Salvation Army, the United Way of Kanawha County and many other charities.

One of the Foundations recent projects has been support for the new Charleston Arts and Sciences Center, now called the Clay Center for the Arts which will house the Sunrise Museum, a performance hall for the WV Symphony Orchestra, a planetarium and movie theater.

Clay has been honored several times for his civic activities. In 1992, he was named”West Virginian of the Year”by The Charleston Gazette. He also received the prestigious”Spirit of the Valley”award in 1993.

He and his late wife, Patricia Kennedy Clay, have four children Ashton deLashmet, Courtney Buffington, Leslie Staunton and Whitney Kennedy.

The second recipient of the Most Loyal West Virginian award is C. Carl Tully, Sr.

Tully, who received a B.S. from the WVU School of Medicine in 1945, has supported WVU and the medical school in many ways over the years.

Tully also received a B.S. Magna Cum Laude from Morris Harvey College in 1937, and a M.D. from the Medical College of Virginia in 1947.

He interned with the U.S. Marine Hospital from 1947-48 and then served his country in the U.S. Army. He was on staff at the H.J. Thomas Memorial Hospital in South Charleston and later practiced medicine at the Kanawha Valley Practice.

Dr. Tully was a director and a member of the executive committee of the First National Bank of South Charleston and remains active in civic and community affairs. He was named Citizen of the Year for South Charleston in 1956-57.

He has three grown children: Christopher Carl II, Richard R. and Margaret A. Plumley.

The Most Loyal Alumni Mountaineer exemplifies faithfulness to the ideals and goals of the University and exhibits support for WVU activities and operations through leadership and service.

G. Thomas Harrick has been an enthusiastic alumnus and a friend to the Department of Chemical Engineering, the College of Engineering and Mineral Resources and WVU for many years.

Harrick, who received his B.S. in chemical engineering from WVU in 1960, recently retired as senior vice president of the Polyurethanes Department of Bayer Corp. He was inducted into the WVU Academy of Chemical Engineers in 1990.

He was elected president of the Academy in 1993 and served until 1996.

During his career, he has worked tirelessly on behalf of students. He played a leadership role in the Academys challenge to raise funds for graduate fellowship and undergraduate scholarship endowments. He set the tempo by developing corporate support from Bayer for a major contribution, resulting in an initial commitment of $90,000 and an additional pledge of $250,000.

He actively supports the hiring of WVU students for summer employment at the Bayer plant in New Martinsville, and also works to place WVU graduates in permanent positions throughout the corporation.

Deerfield Academy (Deerfield, Mass.), Purdue University, the Pittsburgh Symphony and the United Way have also been the focus of Harricks fund-raising activities.

Harrick is married to the former Kathleen Herndon of Akron, Ohio. They have three sons Stephen, Gregory and Christopher.

This is the first time that this honor was awarded to multiple generations of a family. Thomas Harricks father, the late Steven Harrick, was also a graduate of WVU , and served as head baseball and wrestling coach from 1947-67. The elder Harrick was selected as Most Loyal Mountaineer in 1981.

The Most Loyal Faculty and Staff Mountaineer exemplifies faithfulness to the ideals and goals of WVU and exhibits support for WVU activities and operations through leadership and service.

Paul R. Martinelli has served WVU for more than 30 years. His belief and advocacy for the students who make WVU so successful speaks highly of his devotion, dedication and commitment to WVU and the state. He has worked to secure legislative commitment to provide over $7.5 million for the Higher Education Grant Program for West Virginia students.

His education and public contributions extend far beyond the typical campus or classroom setting. He has served the University System of West Virginia in many capacities. Martinelli was elected as the first WVU representative, as well as first classified staff employee on that panel, and was Chair of the Board of Trustees Advisory Council of Classified Employees in 1993.

He graduated from the West Virginia Career College in 1962 and is currently pursuing a Board of Regents Bachelor of Arts degree from WVU .