LOWELL -- There was something different about this year's Distinguished Alumni induction ceremony at Lowell High School.

It wasn't the caliber of the achievements of the honorees, and it wasn't just the time of day -- it was the roar of applause from every student in the auditorium.

Thursday afternoon's ceremony marked the first year in which students were able to attend during the school day, and it appears the intent of that change was achieved.

LHS Distinguished Alumni inducted five more graduates who went on to do extraordinary things, and students walked away inspired.

Honorees this year included:

* Michael J. Kuenzler, Class of 1979, who served as a Lowell police officer for many years and founded the department's Drug Abuse Resistance Education program.

* Robert J. Kilmartin, Class of 1976, a lawyer and decorated Marine colonel who spearheaded disaster-relief efforts in Sri Lanka and Indonesia after the 2004 tsunami and served in Iraq around the same time. He has also served as an assistant attorney general in Massachusetts and Kentucky.

* Marilyn Swartz-Lloyd, Class of 1962, who has spent 40 years identifying Boston's economic growth centers and working with stakeholders from all sectors to bring them success. She previously served as executive director of Boston's Economic Development and Industrial Corp.

* John J. Lardner, Class of 1949, a former Marine and Secret Service agent who served on presidential details from Dwight Eisenhower through Ronald Reagan, but had a special attachment to John F. Kennedy and his wife Jacqueline. Following Kennedy's assassination, Jacqueline Kennedy personally requested Lardner for an extended assignment with her and the children.

* James F. Linnehan, Class of 1939, who served in the Navy during World War II and went on to be an assistant attorney general and one of the first commissioners of the Lowell Historic Park Commission.

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LHS Distinguished Alumni feted