Note: The following information and photos are provided courtesy of the Saucon Valley Alumni Association.
The Saucon Valley Alumni Association, in conjunction with Saucon Valley School District, will be recognizing two distinguished alumni for inclusion on the district’s Wall of Fame on Thursday, Nov. 16 at noon in the Auditorium at Saucon Valley High School. The 2023 recipients are Dr. Nicholas Kalynych (Class of 1977), founding and managing partner and Chairman of the Board for Sunbelt Health Solutions/Sunbelt Anesthesia Services, and Glenn Hetrick (Class of 1990), an Emmy Award-winning special makeup effects artist and television star.
Dr. Nicholas Kalynych
Dr. Nick Kalynych, Class of 1977 (Contributed photo)
Dr. Kalynych has been in healthcare service for over 48 years. His experience began while he was in high school, when he was one of the youngest Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs) and volunteer junior firemen for the Dewey Fire Company in Hellertown. Following graduation, he pursued honorable service in the United States Navy for 23 years.
Dr. Kalynych is a fully credentialed and Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA), and he is the founding and managing partner and Chairman of the Board for Sunbelt Health Solutions/Sunbelt Anesthesia Services. He is considered an ambassador for healthcare quality, change and implementation of initiatives at local, state and federal levels. He has been in continuous practice in clinical anesthesia academics, research and in support of mental health practice. He is an adjunct clinical instructor and research mentor, and actively mentors the University of North Florida Nurse Anesthesia Program (NAP) and Doctorate (DNP) students.
Dr. Kalynych also has both clinical and various senior executive level duties with Revitalist by providing on-site monitoring, management and oversight of protocols during the micro-dosing of ketamine with assisted psychotherapy for patients meeting clinical indications for depression, anxiety, suicidality, postpartum depression, chronic pain syndrome and other mental health conditions resistant to traditional therapy.
He has participated in the development and implementation of therapeutic interventions to address the nation’s veteran suicide crisis with the use of integrative multi-discipline therapeutic modalities and the use of known organic and emerging psychedelic agents.
Glenn Hetrick
Glenn Hetrick was drawn to horror films and sci-fi/fantasy during his junior high and high school years. He was involved in various theater projects as both an actor and a make-up artist, including playing the villain, Bill Sikes, in the high school production of the musical Oliver.
Glenn Hetrick, Saucon Valley High School Class of 1990, is known for his Emmy Award-winning special make-up effects on series such as Star Trek Discovery. He is also known to millions as a judge on the Syfy series Face Off. (Photo by Justin Stephens/Syfy)
After graduation, he attended York College as a public relations major and landed his first acting role in a horror film. He also secured a position as Special Effects Make-up Artist and began creating multitudinous gags on his first films. After graduating with a B.A. in Speech Communications, he worked on an array of projects and collaborated with world-renowned musical acts such as Type-O-Negative and horror punk icons, The Misfits.
Glenn then made his move to Hollywood to facilitate his acting, writing and make-up career. He landed his first job at Optic Nerve and was a lab technician, fabricator, painter, sculptor and designer on several seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel and The X-Files, to name a few. He worked at other studios as well working on Pitch Black: Chronicles of Riddick and Bioshock. He also landed acting roles in The Shield, Committed, Charmed, Scrubs and Heroes, as well as various other projects including the first Pirates of the Caribbean film.
Glenn then returned to the Optic Nerve as the CEO by reinventing the business and artistic perspectives of the studio from the ground up, with a focus on cross-training core crew in adapting more easily to multiple production schedules. After more than a decade of amazing shows, Glenn evolved the shop even further into the newly-renamed Alchemy Studios, expanding services including 3D Conceptual Design and cutting-edge 3D Printing Techniques and seamless integration with CGI Visual Effects. He has personally supervised hundreds of forensically accurate make-up applications and corpses for Crossing Jordan, Hugh Jackman’s body replicas for The Prestige, all of the make-up illusions and prosthetics for Heroes and CSI:NY, and the surreal effects in Sony’s Legion. The list goes on, all the way through Star Trek Discovery. In 2018, Glenn was nominated for an Emmy award for his work on Star Trek Discovery. The following year, he won the Emmy award for Outstanding Prosthetic Makeup for A Series for his work on the show. He was also selected as a judge for Face Off on the Syfy channel, where young makeup artists are challenged each week with the tasks of creating and making up characters.
Dr. Kalynych and Glenn Hetrick join a long and growing list of alumni who are honored on the Saucon Valley Wall of Fame. Previous alumni recognitions include: Grant H. Hoffert (Class of 1942); Dr. Frank J. Rauscher Jr. (Class of 1949); Harry L. Rinker (Class of 1959); Monroe H. Fabian (Class of 1953); Dr. Carl Manone (Class of 1941); Stanley (Bud) Prosser (Class of 1954); Col. James A. Fraley Jr. (Class of 1968); Sophie Pasternak (Class of 1940); Jane Rieger (Class of 1962); Dr. Lillian Hinckley Bauder (Class of 1957); Dr. Martha Reid (Class of 1964); Dennis Scholl (Class of 1969); Frederick J. Munson, M.D. (Class of 1940); Jane Werner (Class of 1977); and Scott Fabian (Class of 1985).
Visit the Saucon Valley Alumni Association’s website for information regarding previous recipients.
Former classmates, family and friends are welcome to attend the Wall of Fame induction program on Thursday, Nov. 16 at noon in the Auditorium at Saucon Valley High School. Following the recognition, their names will be revealed on the Wall of Fame plaque.
The Saucon Valley Alumni Association is always looking for more member participation. All Saucon Valley graduates are automatically part of the Association. Please visit the website and/or the SVAA Facebook page for more information.
