2017 ALUMNI AWARDS DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI Doug Branham ’71 As CEO and president of Colonial Claims, 1971 Pikeville College graduate Doug Branham oversees one of the nation’s largest catastrophe adjusting companies. Branham lives in Dunedin, Fla. and Lexington, Ky., with his wife Felicia Rivas Branham. Together, they have an extended family of six children and 11 grandchildren. Branham is also involved in the breeding, racing, and selling of Thoroughbred horses, Angus cattle, and farming hundreds of acres in Bourbon County, Ky.
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UPIKE MAGAZINE | FALL 2017
The University of Pikeville’s 2017 Alumni Award recipients are entrepreneurs, educators, athletes and servant leaders. The honors for distinguished, rising and honorary alumni, volunteer of the year and the Gary Thrash Outstanding Ambassador Award were presented during the Homecoming celebration on Oct. 28. In conjunction with the Office of Advancement, the Alumni Association works to enhance the student experience, foster alumni connections and engagement, and honor the traditions of the past.
RISING YOUNG ALUMNI Kyle Sineath ’07
HONORARY ALUMNI Kelly Wells
As president and CEO of Paxeon Reconstruction, Kyle Sineath, a 2007 graduate of Pikeville College, oversees a company that builds best-in-class orthopaedic products, including derivative and emerging products. Prior to joining Paxeon, Sineath sold his first start-up company to Redken Cosmetics and helped guide NuTech Medical to an $86 million acquisition. He and his wife Lauren live in Tennessee with their son Kamp. The Sineaths have an extended heart for Christian missionary work. They also enjoy visiting the mountains.
In 2011, UPIKE men’s basketball coach Kelly Wells led the Bears to the NAIA Men’s Basketball Division I National Championship, earning Rawlings Men’s Basketball Coach of the Year honors in the process. Last year, Wells became UPIKE’s all-time basketball wins leader. Off the court, he has helped raise awareness of organ and tissue donation as the spokesperson for the Kentucky Organ and Donation Association and through his Wells Tough organization. He and his wife Shawne live in Pikeville with their children, Kaylee and Mason.