Class Notes

Class Notes are compiled by Betsy Holmquist ’67, M.A. ’83. Submit news to the UM Alumni Association, Brantly Hall, Missoula, MT 59812. You may fax your news to (406) 243-4467 or e-mail it to alumnote@selway.umt.edu. Material in this issue reached our office by September 20, 2002. Please contact UMAA with all name and address updates at the above address or phone 1-877-UM-ALUMS.

’30s

W. G. Gilbert ’36, J.D. ’39, and Florence “Murph” Gilbert celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary and Murph’s 90th birthday this summer in Dillon. They were married May 15, 1942, in Muskogee, Okla.

’50s

Calvin R. Davis ’53, Spokane, retired in June after 43 years in education—15 years at Sheridan Elementary School and 28 at Westview Elementary. In 1992 Calvin was named to the National Honor Roll of Teachers and in 1993 was one of only six teachers from throughout the country chosen to visit the aircraft carrier USS John F. Kennedy. A Billings native, Calvin’s retirement plans include returning to Montana to fish.

Leslie Lind Gunlikson ’53 and Richard D. Gunlikson ’53 celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary, June 14, by taking their six children, spouses and grandchildren to Disney World and on a Disney Cruise. The Gunliksons lived in Cut Bank from 1955 to 1984 and now reside in Kalispell.

Jane Valentine Forvilly ’54, M.F.A. ’57 and her husband, LaMar M. Forvilly ’56, are retired teachers living in Noti, Ore. Jane is the first recipient of the McManus Distinguished Service Award. Presented by the Oregon Music Educators Association, the award honors her “career achievement, excellence and distinguished contribution to music education in Oregon.” Active as a conductor, adjudicator and clinician, Jane instituted and now coordinates a statewide mentor program between retired and active music teachers for the Oregon Music Educators Board of Control.

’60s

Larry A. Strate ’64, associate professor of business law at the University of Nevada Las Vegas, received the UNLV Alumni Association’s Distinguished Faculty Award for 2002. Larry served as an administrator and faculty member at UNLV for 21 years. He was honored for his teaching, advising, dedication to students, research, publications and service to campus and community.

Nancy Halverson Cabe ’65 began a three-year term in April as moderator of Presbyterian women in the Synod of Alaska Northwest. A resident of Chattaroy, Wash., Nancy is one of 16 moderators serving in this position throughout the United States and Puerto Rico.

Lester H. Loble, II, J.D. ’66, is executive vice president, general counsel and secretary for Montana Dakota Utilities Resources Group Inc. in Bismarck, N.D. Les has served in MDU’s legal department since 1987. In 1999 he received the Excellence in Corporate Practice Award given by the American Corporate Counsel Association and West Publishing Group. In 2000 Les was elected president of the North Dakota State Bar Association. He and his wife, Terye, have three grown children and two granddaughters.

Ira E. Robison ’68 is the new choral director at Billings Central Catholic High School. Ira received a Master of Theology degree from Boston University in 1972 and was a United Methodist pastor for 30 years. He is active in the Billings Symphony Chorale and the Billings Studio Theatre.

Mary Cheryl Fay Beeby ’69 received the inaugural Professional Tennis Registry Member of the Year Award for Montana at an August ceremony in New York City. Formerly Missoula’s city bicycle coordinator, Mary Cheryl now resides in Helena where she is executive director for the United States Tennis Association Montana District.

’70s

George A. Venn, M.F.A. ’70, La Grande, Ore., was named Eastern Oregon University’s 2002 Distinguished Teaching Faculty Member. Retiring after 32 years as writer-in-residence at EOU, George writes, “I’ve now read and responded to approximately 300,000 pieces of student writing, and I can still see!” He taught all levels of composition, American literature, started the university’s writing lab, created the English-as-a-second-language program, and taught and directed the university’s creative writing program. George has published four books, most recently “West of Paradise,” a finalist for the 2000 Oregon Book Award. He has edited 16 works including the 2,000-page, six-volume “Oregon Literature Series.” Retirement plans include “writing full-time to complete several works-in-progress—a collection of essays, a biography, a novel and a new and selected collection of poems.”

Robert A. Jackson ’71 retired from his medical practice in Belgrade and accompanied his wife, MSU scientist, Frances Drew Jackson ’92, “into the field.” Frankie explains, “For the first time in 13 years Bob was able to join me in the field—digging up a Triceratops in 104-degree heat, worrying about range fires, and doing a lot of hard work. It was great to have him along, although I may not be able to convince him to go again. He always complains that our ’vacations’ involve desolate, arid badlands . . . not that I see anything wrong with that!”

Alice Lyden Chumrau, M.Ed. ’73, received the National Excellence in Leadership Award at a June ceremony in Washington, D.C. Alice was honored in the “Person in the Public Sector” category for her achievements at Salish Kootenai College, where she is associate academic vice president. Noted were her development of a childcare system and policies to increase awareness of sexual harassment and leadership for women students and women working at the college. In 2001 Alice received the State of Montana Excellence in Leadership Award.

Michael O. Holm ’73 became the superintendent of Glacier National Park in August. Mike began his career with the National Park Service in 1975 as an interpreter at Grant-Kohrs Ranch National Historic Site in Deer Lodge. Most recently he was superintendent of Carlsbad Caverns National Park in New Mexico. Mike and his wife, Patti Robinson Holm ’73, have two sons, Nathan and Eric.

Dennis R. Lopach ’73, J.D. ’76, is NorthWestern Energy’s senior vice president for administrative services, responsible for legal services, government and regulatory relations, communications and human resources in Montana, South Dakota and Nebraska. Dennis and his family reside in Helena.

Gregory L. Redekopp ’73, M.Ed. ’79, Butte, is district governor of Toastmasters International District 17 for 2002-2003, overseeing approximately 700 Toastmasters for 37 Montana clubs. Greg is a training/development specialist for NorthWestern Energy. His wife, Katherine Brunell Redekopp ’74, a teacher at Butte Central High School, participates in the UM Alumni Band at Homecoming.

Kristina Zallinger, M.F.A. ’73, a resident of New Haven, Conn., has produced 30 pieces of found object sculpture, beginning with her 2000 piece “Self Portrait.” Kristina has shown twice in New Haven, been in a juried show in New York City, and will take part in a group show at the Artsforum Gallery in NYC next March.

Thomas G. Mihara ’75 received a Doctor of Philosophy degree from George Washington University School of Business and Public Management in May. He is a faculty member in the university’s School of Public Health and Health Services. Commander Mihara is also the director of Healthcare Financial Policy and Simulation with the Office of the Secretary of Defense (TRICARE Management Activity) in Falls Church, Va. Thomas and Irene Lenore “Leni” Mihara ’75 met while students at UM and celebrated their 30th wedding anniversary September 1st. Leni teaches math in the Montgomery County Public Schools in Maryland.

Bruce C. Peterson ’76 received a Master of Divinity degree in May from Luther Seminary in St. Paul, Minn. Bruce is pastor at Concordia Lutheran Church in Crosby, N.D. When interviewing for the position, he met the local mortician who was wearing an MSU “Stomp the Griz” T-shirt. Bruce writes that he foresees some good, local Griz-Cat rivalry in his new position.

James Patrick Colyer ’77 earned a master’s degree in business administration in July from Pacific Lutheran University. James has worked in the pharmaceutical industry for the past 25 years; he is the western national account director for emerging markets for AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals in Poulsbo, Wash. Jim and his wife, Marcelia, have three children: Caelan, Jon and Reagan.

Barbara Cox Merchant ’78 of Ridgecrest, Calif., is vice president of human resources for the Orthopedic and Neurological Rehabilitation Inc., home office in Los Gatos, Calif. Her sister, Mary Ellen Cox Iserman ’67, of Gilroy, Calif., works for Santa Clara County, developing residences for the elderly and low-income families.

Elizabeth Simmons O’Neill ’78 was recently named the Distinguished Teacher of the Year for the Department of English at the University of Washington in Seattle. Elizabeth and her husband, John O’Neill ’76, both teach in UW’s interdisciplinary writing program. Their daughter, Emma, is a sophomore at UW; daughter, Zoe, is a senior in high school; and their son, Liam, is in second grade.

J. K. Kim Simmons ’78, recently seen in “Spider Man,” has finished filming “Off the Map” and “Hidalgo,” in which he plays Buffalo Bill Cody. Both films are due out next fall. Kim was honored by UM’s School of Fine Arts at its April 2002 “Odyssey of the Stars” production celebrating the school’s graduates. He and his wife, Michelle Schumacher, and their children, Joe, 4, and Olivia, 1, live in Hastings on the Hudson, N.Y. Kim and Michelle met when he was Captain Hook and she was Tiger Lily in Cathy Rigby’s production of “Peter Pan.”

’80s

Cheryl Jackson Hall, M.A. ’80, has moved from Gunnison, Colo., to Phoenix. This fall, she began teaching in the Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies Program at Arizona State University in Tempe.

Dale Kerkvliet ’81, Certified Forester, is a senior forester for Plum Creek Timber Company, Clearwater Unit, in Missoula. He received one of 11 Presidential Field Forester Awards from the Society of American Foresters at its October, 2002 national convention in Winton-Salem, N.C. Dale was recognized for his “uncommon talent and innovative methods used to achieve a record of excellence in the application of forest management.” A member of SAF for 20 years, Dale is the chairperson for the Montana Natural Resources Youth Camp Board of Directors.

Brian E. Parker ’82 is vice president for technology with Scott Foresman, Glenview, Ill., where he coordinates the development of video, audio, CD-ROM and on-line components. Brian, his wife, Rosemary, and daughters, Brenna, Maura and Bridget, live in Gurnee, Ill.

David W. Simmons ’83 leads two contemporary services, writes the music, and directs a vocal quartet and combo at the Incarnation Lutheran Church in Minneapolis. He teaches vocal music at his son’s middle school and writes scripts and scores for a Minneapolis youth theater program. David was commissioned to compose a score for a NASA film showing at the St. Paul Planetarium. He and his wife, Nancy, and son, Niko, live in White Bear Lake, Minn.

John C. Hauck ’87 writes from Billings that he and Marlene Blaesius were married on June 29. He adds, “I am finally paying for a lifetime membership to the Alumni Association. I knew I would not be able to remember to pay annual dues if I didn’t. I went through the House of Delegates program last Homecoming and thought it was great. Keep up the good work with that program!”

Carl L. Wackerman ’88 is director of bands for the Christian Academy in Japan, Tokyo. This is Carl’s sixth year as an international educator, having previously taught four years in Bangkok and a year in Rome.

Bonnie Christensen ’89, M.A. ’92, has written “Red Lodge and the Mythic West: Coal Miners to Cowboys,” due out this fall from the University Press of Kansas. Her book describes how and why a little coal mining town of the 1910s became a postmodern community of the 1990s. Excerpts from the book appear, beginning this fall, in the Montana Historical Society publication, Montana: The Magazine of Western History. Bonnie received a Doctor of Philosophy degree from the University of Washington and currently teaches at Punahou School, a private college prep school in Honolulu, Hawaii.

’90s

Paul J. Staso ’90, ’93 owns and operates the Missoula-based Web development firm, OnTrack Designs. He and his wife, Vicki Opstad Staso ’87, have four children. Vicki is a teacher and volleyball coach at Valley Christian School.

David H. Pyron ’92 is founder and president of Pyron Technologies Inc. of Missoula. The company designs and builds Web applications, offers consulting, marketing and full technical support for the Internet and Web, and provides Information Technology solutions for orthopedic clinics around the U.S. Nearly all of Dave’s ten employees are UM grads.

Kelli Criner Sanders ’92 is a member of Trigger Hippies, an ultimate Frisbee team that took third in the World’s Ultimate Frisbee Championships this summer in Hawaii. A resident of West Yellowstone, where she is co-owner of the biking and Nordic skiing store Freeheel and Wheel, Kelli also tosses together a mean cappuccino at the store’s Mocha Mammas coffee bar.

Kelly J. Magnuson ’94, community affairs coordinator at UM’s University Village, is coordinating a Resident Assistant Reunion for the summer of 2004. Kelly asks all former RAs to contact her at KMagnuson@mso.umt.edu

Jeana-Marie Johnson Fiumefreddo ’95 received her Master of Divinity degree in May from Luther Seminary in St. Paul, Minn. Jeana-Marie’s home congregation is Missoula’s Prince of Peace Lutheran Church. She plans to serve a congregation in the western states region of the Evangelical Lutheran Church.

Cameron M. Hardy ’97 is working in public relations for Spiker communications in Missoula. Cameron previously worked as a reporter, photographer and editor at newspapers in Camas, Wash., Gresham, Ore., and Casper, Wyo.

Adam L. Turco ’98, M.A. ’98, is a CPA for Global Risk Management Solutions, a division of Pricewaterhouse Coopers LLP in Portland, Ore. Adam has taken up ice climbing and is pictured at 10,300 feet on the Silver Horn of Mt. Athabasca in Canada’s Jasper National Park.

Todd D. Oberg, Ph.D. ’99, assistant professor of mathematics at Illinois College in Jacksonville, Ill., was designated a Dolciani Fellow by Project NExT (New Experiences in Teaching), in recognition of his work and interest in teacher preparation.

’00s

Laurie Nicole Brown ’00 and Jon Paul Wretling ’00 were married June 29 in Breckenridge, Colo. In 2001 Laurie received a master’s degree in education from Indiana University. The Wretlings reside in Denver where Laurie teaches seventh grade math and science.

Nathaniel G. Heffter ’00, a teacher at Antioch High School in Antioch, Tenn., received one of 56 James Madison Fellowships awarded in 2002. This award recognizes promising and distinguished teachers with the purpose of strengthening their knowledge of the origins and development of American constitutional government.

Carl Brandt Beatty ’01 began the pursuit of a Master of Business Administration degree with a focus on banking and financial markets at the University of Miami (Florida) School of Business this fall. He spent the previous year living in New York City and traveling throughout the United States.

Susan D. Ellison ’01 is a reporter for the Bigfork Eagle and writes the column “Serendipity with Sue.” A resident of Swan Lake, Susan has two children. Her daughter attends UM.

Delight M. Scheck ’01 appeared as Mimi in Puccini’s opera “La Boheme” with The University of Colorado, Boulder, in November. Delight is completing her master’s program in opera performance at UC.

New Life Members

Cordell Almond ’80, Redmond, Wash.

Nancy Almond, Redmond, Wash.

LeRoy Aserlind ’50, Livingston

Margot Luebben Aserlind ’50, Livingston

Amber Baldwin ’94, Missoula

John Barch, McKinney, Texas

Cheryl Gordon Burnham ’86, Salem, Ore.

Mark J. Burnham ’84, Salem, Ore.

Brian L. Caraway ’83, Bellevue, Wash.

Megan Yung Caraway ’84, Bellevue, Wash.

Daryl J. Clingingsmith ’81, Glendive

Roberta K. Dahl ’76, Santa Monica, Calif.

Douglas Ford ’70, M.S. ’72, White Bear Lake, Minn.

Colleen Richardson-Harper ’80, Butte

Wayne Harper ’81, J.D. ’87, Butte

John C. Hauck ’87, Billings

Diane Boyer Jerhoff ’63, Billings

Timothy F. Jerhoff ’62, Billings

Karen Walker O’Neill ’80, Butte

Michael J. O’Neill ’80, Butte

Marilyn Moore Reynolds ’57, Kalispell

James A. Stephens ’76, Newcastle, Wyo.

Anna C. Swallow ’85, J.D. ’92, Derby, Kan.

Paul H. Timm ’86, Chino Hills, Calif.

Gregory R. Todd, J.D. ’77, Billings

Gene Tripp ’65, Missoula

Emily Hazelton Wells ’92, Portland, Ore.

Thomas E. Willard ’68, Irvine, Calif.

Deborrah Willard, Irvine, Calif.

Robert H. Wilson ’51, ’52, J.D. ’53, Sun City West, Ariz.

Betty Bernhardt Wilson ’52, Sun City West, Ariz.

Annie Richards ZurMuehlen ’61, Missoula

In Memoriam

To be included in In Memoriam, the Alumni Association requires a newspaper obituary or a letter of notification from the immediate family. We extend sympathy to the families of the following alumni, faculty and friends.

Anne Ross Lebkicher ’26, Rollins

Otho LeRoy McLean ’27, Walla Walla, Wash.

Gladys Martz Pritchett ’27, M.A. ’57, Olympia, Wash.

Isabel Lentz Staat ’27, Beaverton, Ore.

Ann Stephenson Tanner ’27, Bozeman

Thelma Bourret McFarlin ’28, Red Lodge

Jess L. Campbell ’29, Bainbridge Island, Wash.

Faye Morrison Couey ’30, Kalispell

Herbert L. Eastlick ’30, Pullman, Wash.

Dorothy Ann Kiely ’30, Seattle

Charles H. O’Neil ’32, Kalispell

Doris E. Reid ’32, Winston Salem, N.C.

Dorothy Clarke ’33, Wilmington, Calif.

Ann Hammond ’33, Wilmington, Calif.

William Thomas Hawke ’34, Ramsay

Elma Cerise Mele ’34, Rexford, N.Y.

Richard B. Farnsworth ’35, Turlock, Calif.

Antoinette LaCasse Roffler ’35, Madison, Wis.

Gerald B. Schnell ’35, Kalispell

C. Lowell Purdy ’36, Longview, Wash.

Viola Keene Chittim ’37, Helena

James Haviland Jensen ’37, Missoula

Marian Weydemeyer Johnson ’37, Centralia, Wash.

Jesse P. Lacklen ’37, Arlington, Va.

William C. Andreasen ’38, Belmont, Calif.

Helena Eck Bardwell ’38, Lewistown

Andrew C. McDonald ’38, Great Falls

Jennie A. Johnson ’39, Neenah, Wis.

John A. Rambosek ’39, Milton-Freewater, Ore.

Thomas P. Koch, J.D. ’40, Hamilton

Laurence R. Olsen ’40, Ashland, Ore.

John Robert Rice ’40, Spokane, Wash.

John P. Robinson ’41, Toutle, Wash.

Annette Sadoski Durnford ’41, Missoula

Samuel E. Walters ’41, Aurora, Colo.

Lawrence M. Eichorn ’42, McLean, Va.

J. Roy Elms ’42, Elk Grove, Calif.

William Albert Groff ’42, Victor

Harrington Harlow ’42, New York

James Grover Higgs ’42, Tracy, Calif.

Susan Pigot McCormick ’42, Portland, Ore.

J. Everett “Sandy” Sanderson ’43, Reno, Nev.

Betty Sias Scott, J.D. ’45, Kalispell

Thomas E. Bogardus ’46, Sebastopol, Calif.

Helen Sugrue Jacobs ’46, Hoover, Ala.

Joseph G. Mudd ’46, J.D. ’47, Great Falls

Kendall T. Eernisse ’47, St. Louis

C. Richard Pedersen ’47, Ridgefield, Conn.

Robert Chapple Balsam, J.D. ’48, Billings

Lawrence Persson, J.D. ’48, Hamilton

Robert L. Switzer ’48, Spokane, Wash.

William C. Wafstet ’49, Spokane, Wash.

William M. Caplis ’50, Lolo

Charles Christman, M.A. ’50, Salem, Ore.

Paul W. Gjefle ’50, Kenmore, Wash.

Henry D.”Bob” Hilger ’50, Glendive

Albert E. Thurston ’50, Lebanon, Ore.

Barbara Best Townsend ’50, Memphis, Tenn.

William C. Hafferman ’51, Libby

Fred B. Hunnes ’51, Miles City

Betty Lou Mathisen Carver ’52, Missoula

Loraine Thom Crossr ’52, Dillon

Loren A. Gerdes, J.D. ’52, Salem, Utah

Anthony L. Kadlec ’52, Oxford, Miss.

Edward C. Wyldman ’52, Edmonton, Alberta

Harold Raymond Maus ’53, Hamilton

Kenneth A. Nash ’53, Milford, Conn.

Charles E. Snyder, J.D. ’53, Billings

Leon E. Turck ’53, Sun City, Ariz.

Norman D. Anderson ’54, Towson, Md.

Helene McConnell Longan ’54, Clarkston, Wash.

Kenneth G. Reynolds ’54, M.Ed. ’58, M.A. ’63, Billings

Mary Currie Sobotka ’54, Glendive

Jeanne Thomas Waterman ’55, Elliston

Walter William Ylinen, M.A. ’55, Kalispell

Benjamin W. Hilley ’56, J.D. ’59, Bigfork

L. Kelsey Smith, II ’57, Osburn, Idaho

Harry O. Lomnes, M.Ed. ’59, Wetaskiwin, Alberta

Elsie Guthrie Hallford ’60, Philadelphia

James Leo Mehrens ’61, Seguin, Texas

Glenn Allan Carmichael ’62, Missoula

William B. Emison ’62, Diamond Creek, Australia

Bruce L. Tisor ’62, San Marcos, Calif.

Lynn Chris Christopherson ’63, Lompoc, Calif.

Carol Rohel Mennie ’63, Edmonton, Alberta

Clarence D. Bertino ’64, Salt Lake City

Rogert A. Spaulding ’65, Ormond Beach, Fla.

Virginia M. Collins ’66, Missoula

Winnifred A. Gustafson ’66, Apache Junction, Ariz.

Sherry Bauer Miner ’66, Billings

Benjamin C. Sams ’67, M.F.A. ’70, Snohomish, Wash.

Robert H. List, M.S. ’70, Hamilton

David B. Ainsworth, Ed.D. ’71, Fair Play, Mo.

Ronald Bourke MacDonald, J.D. ’71, Missoula

Patricia Ann Manlove ’71, Missoula

Daniel William Schneider ’71, Reno, Nev.

Gerald W. Sowden, M.Ed. ’71, Billings

James Fredrick Duggan, M.Ed. ’72, Great Falls

Thomas S. McMahon ’72, Superior, Colo.

William J. Eidel ’73, Great Falls

William A. LaForest ’74, Missoula

Edward L. “Ned” Smartt ’74, Great Falls

Carolyn Miller Daniel ’76, Spokane, Wash.

Paul G. Fitzgerald ’76, Billings

Dale Arthur Gunderson ’76, Kalispell

Barbara Lynn Daly Keller ’76, Bigfork

Christine Rosemary Moore ’79, Missoula

Wilma V. Jensen, M.Ed. ’81, Choteau

Louise Riley, M.B.A. ’82, Dillon

Richard R. Rhodes ’83, Florence

Robert E. Quade Jr. ’86, Kirkland, Wash.

Edwin Brian Fleming ’84, Monument, Colo.

Catherine Erickson Jackson ’86, Santa Cruz, Calif.

Nancy Jean Wheeler Carter ’87, Kalispell

Eleanor Challen, M.S. ’89, Missoula

Derek E. Kiner ’90, Missoula

Michael Andy Kavulla ’99, Missoula

Frederick James Treichel ’99, Plains

Ashley Elizabeth Pierce ’02, Missoula

Jennifer Lynn Olson Servo ’02, Columbia Falls

Audra Browman, Missoula

Mary Zoe Craig, Missoula

Louis Dubay, San Francisco

Rosemary Gallagher, Missoula

Verda Mae Grenfell, Vancouver, Wash.

Ismene Kalaris Bethesda, Md.

James A. Poore Jr., Missoula

BIRTHS

Sean Riley Devers to Julie Ladewski Devers, M.F.A. ‘90, and Philip Devers ‘91, August 2001, Gobles, Mich.

Ann Marie Killen to Judy Tipton Killen ’88 and Michael J. Killen, December 28, 2001, Cody, Wyo.

Anja Jean Severtson and Brynja Ann Severtson to Molly Walden Severtson ’96 and Eric B. Severtson ’97, June 27, 2002, Missoula