DAPHNE, Ala. — Daphne High School has begun a “Hall of Fame” to celebrate excellence within the school’s community; and it needs nominees for stardom by Friday.

The organization and selection committees ask that all affiliates submit names of teachers, faculty, supporters and graduates from 1990 to 1999 who shined in accomplishments and community service.

“This is our school — it represents our community. We want those folks involved in early years to submit those folks’ names so we can get them on the hopper,” Principal Don Blanchard said. “A lot of those guys that were excellent members of the band, chorus, academically — we may have lost touch with those. We want them to come back to the high school and just be a part of the family.”

An anonymous selection committee will choose 20 nominees from the submissions to be a part of the “Hall of Fame”; so far, the committee has received about 30, Blanchard said.

For induction into the “Hall of Fame” one must receive seven of nine votes from the committee, he said. An annual induction will occur each fall after submissions are taken and votes  are tallied in the summer.

This year, after votes are in, the 20 hall-of-famers will be recognized at a Sept. 4 gala at Trojan Hall and at the Sept. 5 football game against Mitchell High School of Memphis, Tenn. They will receive individual plaques and will have their names inscribed on a plaque to hang on the “Hall of Fame” inside the school, Blanchard said. Honors will go to those with various achievements.

“It’s accomplishments that the students had while they were here at Daphne High School,” he said. “Whether it’s band, academics, athletics, ROTC — it’s a school-wide “Hall of Fame.”

The new program comes at a historic time for the school, Blanchard said.

“It’s for the 20th birthday of Daphne High School,” he said. “We’ve had a great deal of success; 20 years of students and teachers coming through here.

The awards should remember the past and inspire the future, he said.

“It should give new students something to shoot for,” he said. “A lot of outstanding people come through here and we want to celebrate that.”

Nomination forms can be found at the school office on Lawson Road and at daphnehs.com.

For more, call 626-8787.