Hewlett-Woodmere Alumni Association inducts six honorees into Hall of Fame

Six men who graduated Hewlett High School between 1957 and 1979 will be inducted into the Hewlett-Woodmere Alumni Association’s Hall of Fame during the 19th annual ceremony on Sunday that begins at 11:30 a.m. with tours of the high school, a brunch at noon and then the induction.

The half-dozen are: Dr. Philip W. Askenase, class of 1957; Peter F. Gold, ’63; Ph.D. Robert Benezra, ’71; Doug Lipton, ’72; Ph.D. Roderick “Cliff” French, ’79, and Dr. Marc E. Rothenberg, Ph.D., ’79.

Dr. Philip W. Askenase
During a more than 50-year career, Askenase founded the AIDS clinic at Yale University, his alma mater, and served the school as a tenured professor and the chief of allergy and clinical immunology. He identified the inflammation component of asthma that can be treated with steroids, and discovered the essential role of allergy mechanisms in responses to parasites and cellular immunity.

Recently, Askenase has demonstrated the power of previously unknown nanovesicle exosomes to specifically transfer gene-altering RNAs between cells in allergy and immunity. He participated in discovering Lyme disease; holds three U.S. patents trained many doctors and scientists for more than 40 years and published numerous articles.

Peter F. Gold
As co-founder and chairman of First Book, the nation’s largest privately funded literacy organization, Gold has helped distribute 140 million first new books to at-risk children, along with clothing, blankets and healthy snacks. Begun in 1992, First Book is partnering in a White House-led initiative to provide access to e-books valued at $250 million.