1950s
Donald B. King (’54 Psych.) recently gave the main banquet address at a castle in Bamberg, Germany, on the history of the International Academy of Commercial and Consumer Law which he founded in the early 1980s. King is currently a professor of law emeritus at Saint Louis University in Missouri.
Eugene Curnow (’55 D.V.M.) recently published Life, the Hard Way: Up From Poverty Flat, a memoir covering a childhood during the Great Depression, his time as a medic during the invasion of Iwo Jima, coping with post-traumatic stress disorder, and helping others with the affliction. After graduating from WSU, Curnow went on to practice veterinary medicine in Portland, Oregon, pioneering a mobile veterinary clinic. The book has been published by Bennett & Hastings Publishing of Seattle.
Mario Ascarrunz (’56 Arch. Eng.) since retiring from his job as a project architect in 1996 has been painting water colors and modeling for portrait classes.
1960s
Gary Schwendiman (’62 Sci.) co-founded Ethanol Capital Management LLC (ECM) in 2003. ECM is the largest alternative energy private equity fund in the United States for ethanol investments. Before co-founding ECM, Schwendiman served as a professor and Dean of the College of Business Administration at the University of Nebraska for 17 years.
Dawes Eddy (’65 Gen. Studies) of Spokane is planning on climbing Mount Everest this spring. If he succeeds, he will be, at 66, the oldest U.S. citizen to summit the mountain. To follow news of his preparation and climb, visit http://eddyoneverest.com.
1970s
Janel (Shroy) Johnson ’70 was named the 2008 Idaho Foreign Language Teacher of the Year for the Idaho Association of Teachers of Languages and Cultures.
Gary Schulz (’76 Tech. Ed.) was recently named executive vice president of both the California Raisin Administrative Committee and the California Raisin Marketing Board. A fifth generation farmer, Schulz managed Tulare’s International Agriculture Center for fifteen years, and, most recently, served as program director for the Central Valley Business Incubator.
Shauna C. Pierson (’78 Phys. Ed.) recently finished a master’s program in guidance and counseling through City University. In 2008, she received National Board Certification from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. She works in the Highline School District in Sea Tac as a counselor at the Academy of Citizenship and Empowerment.
Lowell Kenney (’79 Ind. Tech., Ed.) was awarded a contract to his company, Eagle View Research Center, to supply advanced tactical sighting systems sight and illumination mounts for the M2HB .50-caliber machine gun by the U.S. Special Operations Command. These mounts allow modern sights and illumination lights and lasers to be attached to the oldest machine gun in the US arsenal.
1980s
Charlena Holl Grimes (’84, B.F.A. ‘87) recently retired from nearly 38 years in the College of Engineering and Architecture at WSU. She has received numerous university awards for her work at WSU including her time as director of the women engineering and minority engineering programs. In April she was inducted into the hall of fame at her alma mater, Unity High School in Tolona, Illinois.
Kelly Jones ’84 was recently elected associate technical fellow, Flight Controls, at The Boeing Company in Everett, Washington. His current assignment is airframe systems integration for the 787.
Jon Piper ’84 was named Katherine Esau Distinguished Chair in Plant Science in November 2008. Piper is professor of biology at Bethel College, North Newton, Kansas.
Brian Setzler ’85 received an M.B.A. in sustainable business from the Bainbridge Graduate Institute in June 2008. Brian works as a CPA/business consultant in Portland, Oregon.
Paul Morley ’89 was promoted to professor at Colorado State University in July, where he works as an epidemiologist and as the Director of Biosecurity for the Veterinary Teaching Hospital.
1990s
Jacqueline van Wormer ’90 of Richland, Washington, was named a Champion for Change in juvenile justice reform for her work to improve the lives of court-involved kids, their families, and communities. As Models for Change Washington site coordinator in Benton and Franklin counties, van Wormer bridges the gap between school administrators and the juvenile justice system to create more effective responses to truancy. Models for Change is a John D. and Catherine T. McArthur Foundation national initiative to reform juvenile justice. Van Wormer works at the Benton Franklin County Juvenile Justice Center in Kennewick. She is a PhD candidate in the criminal justice program at WSU, where she received her M.A. in criminal justice with emphasis in public administration in 1992.
Alva R. George (’91 Arch. Studies, Ed.) has recently joined Davis Architects as an intern architect in Birmingham, Alabama.
Jeff Nottingham (’91 Econ.) is the new director of large commercial and industrial sales at Current Energy in Dallas, Texas. He has worked the last 18 years in energy and power conglomerates.
Kurt Dolan ’92 has joined the law firm of Kramer & Frank, P.C. in Missouri where he is specializing in subrogation litigation.
Patrick Kramer ’92 and his family are relocating to Colorado after 21 years in Pullman. He will be vice president of development at the University of Colorado Foundation.
David Haldi ’96 has joined the Commercial Insurance Division of Kibble & Prentice, a USI Company, as a sales executive. David works with Northwest businesses to develop commercial insurance and risk management programs. Kibble & Prentice is a financial services firm located in Seattle, Washington.
2000s
Althea (Schelvan) Bjune ’00 and her husband Geir ‘01 moved back to Norway in the fall of 2008. He is working as a software engineer and she is a pre-school teacher.
Heather Mickelson ’01 launched a new company: GoMobile Commerce. It is the first in the nation to offer wireless credit card machine rentals. www.GoMobileCommerce.com
Carol Lyn Vanevenhoven (’00 Pharm.) has been named the 2008 Distinguished Young Pharmacist of the Year for the state of Washington. She lives and works in Yakima.
Dawn Davidson Gardner ’01 recently earned the certified meeting professional designation from the convention industry council. Dawn is the group sales manager at Marriott Residence Inn-Portland RiverPlace.
James Guzman ’01 was promoted from lead recruiter to Giant Campus summer programs recruiting manager. Giant Campus is the leader in youth technology camps, with more than 46 camps at prestigious academic institutions across the country.
Bryan Long ’01 and his wife Autumn welcomed their second child, Danica Jade, on September 26, 2008.
Ronald J. Shurer II, ’01, a U.S. Army staff sergeant, was awarded a Silver Star for rendering aid to four critically wounded U.S. soldiers and 10 injured Afghan commandos under intense fire in a battle in northeast Afghanistan in April 2008. The special forces medic ran through heavy fire to help his fellow Green Berets, and despite being hit in the helmet and wounded in the arm, saved the lives of four critically wounded casualties over more than five and a half hours. He received the Silver Star, the U.S. military’s third-highest combat award, in December at a ceremony at Fort Bragg, North Carolina ,with his parents, his wife Miranda, and son Cameron watching.
Joelle Wasson (’01) and Matthew Thomas (’98) will marry on June 27, 2009 in Camas, Washington. The couple resides in Seattle.
Dawn Wirz (’01 Bio. Engr., ’05 M.S. Engr.) recently joined Murray, Smith & Associates, Inc., a consulting engineering firm located in Everett, Washington. Wirz will be involved with a wide range of MSA water, wastewater, and stormwater planning and design projects.
Gretchen (Herndobler) McFadden (‘02 Ed.) married Kevin McFadden (‘03 Comm.) on April 5, 2008 in Coeur D’Alene, Idaho. They recently purchased their first house in Kennewick.
Peter Barnhart ’03 and his wife Angela celebrated the birth of their daughter Emilynn Grace on September 5, 2008. Peter works as a project manager/estimator for Pacific Glass and Door, Inc. in Mukilteo, Washington.
Bernadette Flynn ’03 gave birth to Nora Anne Flynn on September 12, 2008. They live in Kennewick.
Jeffrey Moller ’03 and Jillian Armey ‘04 were married May 17, 2008. They reside in Spokane.
Justin Steiner ’05 graduated from Vanderbilt University Law School in Nashville, Tennessee, and is now an attorney at Givens Pursley in Boise, Idaho.
Kimberly Adams ’06 is public relations manager for the Washington State History Museum and Washington State Historical Society.
Theo M. Leonard ’06 recently saw his master’s thesis on the behaviors of metals in sediment and their effect on water quality published in Water Research. He is co-author of the piece along with Marc Beutel, an assistant professor at WSU. Leonard now works at an engineering firm Seattle.