An astronaut and the public works minister of Egypt are among the University of California, Davis, alumni who will be honored for their outstanding personal and professional accomplishments at an event on Saturday, Jan. 26.

The Cal Aggie Alumni Association invites the public to attend the 2008 Alumni Awards Gala, including a reception, sit-down dinner and awards ceremony in Freeborn Hall on campus. Tickets for the event, which begins at 6 p.m., are $85.

Among the honorees:

• Tracy Caldwell, who earned a doctorate from UC Davis in 1997, served as mission specialist last year on her first space flight aboard the space shuttle Endeavour.
• Mahmoud A. Abu-Zeid, minister of public works and water resources for Egypt, earned a master's degree in 1960 and a doctorate in 1962 from UC Davis.
• Alan R. Hoefer '55 is a retired investment banker from Hillsborough, Calif.;
• Timothy Bucher '86 of Geyserville, Calif., is the chief executive officer and chief product officer at ZING Systems;
• Jon R. Jessen '56 of Yuma, Ariz., is chair of the board of Gowan Company; and
• Cheryl Harrison '79 of San Francisco is president and creative director of San Francisco-based Harrison Design Group.

The alumni association will also award Citations for Excellence to alumni whose accomplishments have been recognized by their college, school or program.

To purchase tickets, please contact event organizer Jennifer Thayer at (530) 754-9098 or jsthayer@ucdavis.edu.

For more information about the recipients, please visit http://www.news.ucdavis.edu/search/news_detail.lasso?id=8454.

With more than 28,000 members in 44 countries, the Cal Aggie Alumni Association creates ambassadors for UC Davis and enriches the lives of alumni, students and friends worldwide.