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Spring 2024

Pat Caraher

Fall 2004

WSU Mom of the Year listened to her heart

In the early 1980s, Susan Jackson of Lakewood wasn’t interested in marriage, but longed for a child. Although single-parent international adoptions were rare in those days, within four years she adopted two little girls from India. Jennifer graduated in May 2004 from Washington State University, and Krissy will complete her WSU degree in December.

In a five-page letter of nomination, Jennifer successfully spelled out why her mother should be honored as 2004 WSU Mom of the Year last spring.

Jackson worked relentlessly for 18 months to be placed on the waiting list for a child. “While many women would have given up, my mother persevered, … » More …

Fall 2004

WSU honors five alumni

Washington State University created the Alumni Achievement Award in 1969 to honor alumni who have rendered significant service and contributions to their profession, community, and/or WSU. In recent months, five individuals have been recognized.

William H. Moos

As University of Oregon athletic director since 1995, William H. “Bill” Moos has initiated more than $140 million in improvements to the UO athletic complex. The 1974 history graduate was honored February 14 on Friel Court.

The captain of WSU’s 1972 football team earned first-team All-Pac-8 and All-Coast honors as an offensive lineman, and played in the East-West Shrine game. Beginning in 1982, he directed WSU Athletic Development … » More …

Fall 2004

Big little man Bill Tomaras touched many lives

Father of Washington State High School Wrestling

 

Bill Tomaras discovered early there wasn’t much demand for a five-foot-three, 120-pound basketball player. So he turned to wrestling. The repercussions of that decision have been felt in Washington wrestling for more than a half-century.

World War II interrupted Tomaras’s athletic career. After fighting at Omaha Beach, he married a four-foot-11 Royal Air Force nurse. That union produced three sons. Bill and Dolly celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary in January 2004 at Port Orchard.

Tomaras resumed his education at the University of Illinois (’47 Political Sci.), where he placed third in NCAA wrestling championships as … » More …

Fall 2004

Recycled shoes furnish Kid's Cave

FieldTurf now provides soft landings for more than 160 pre-school children playing in the “Kid’s Cave” at Washington State University. In April the 16- by-21-yard carpet was installed in the alcove beneath the WSU Children’s Center, formerly Rogers-Orton Dining Hall. The same rubberized synthetic material covers WSU’s football and baseball fields.

Judi Dunn headed the successful effort to collect 5,500 pairs of running shoes to qualify for a $20,000 grant from Nike and the National Recycling Coalition.

“I think I personally touched each shoe,” says Dunn, who is WSU’s recycling education coordinator. Rubber from the discarded shoes is chewed up and used in the FieldTurf … » More …

Fall 2004

Broadcasting as public service: Peter Jennings refreshes the Murrow vision

What would veteran newsman Peter Jennings tell students seeking a career in broadcasting today?

His wife posed the question to him when they were in Pullman for Washington State University’s 30th Edward R. Murrow Symposium April 14. The answer came that evening in Jennings’s presentation, after he accepted the Murrow Award for Lifetime Achievement in Broadcasting from WSU.

“If you believe that broadcasting is a public service, then please come into the profession,” he told the largely student audience of 2,500 in the Beasley Performing Arts Coliseum theater.

ABC’s World News Tonight anchor had been on assignment in Iraq a week earlier and shared some … » More …

Summer 2004

Patterson enjoyed best of both worlds as alumni director, state legislator

Eugene G. “Pat” Patterson always thought there was something special about the loyalty of Washington State University alumni. Analyzing that phenomenon, he concluded the University’s location, traditions, and residential campus, which provided the opportunity for a 24-hour student experience, were key factors in developing those fierce loyalties.

A Pullman native and WSU graduate himself (’46 Political Science), Patterson served as alumni director at his alma mater for 26 years. When he stepped down in 1978, he said, “Working in a college environment has to be one of the most gratifying experiences one could ever have. Young people with new and differing ideas presented different challenges.”

… » More …

Summer 2004

Harrison National Public Radio pioneer

Whether plinking on the piano or pounding out scripts for public radio on his manual typewriter, Burton D. “Burt” Harrison enjoyed life to the fullest. During 27 years on the Washington State University communications faculty, including 17 as manager of KWSU Radio, he figured significantly in the formation and development of public broadcasting. Moreover, he exerted a positive influence on scores of students pursuing careers in broadcast journalism.

Harrison, 87, died January 22, 2004, in Centralia. Dee, his wife of 63 years, preceded him September 4, 2003.

To help finance his education at Kansas State Teachers College, the Atchison native played honky-tonk piano in nightclubs … » More …

Summer 2004

Arlington National Cemetery hallowed ground for Carson

Rarely do people have their work viewed by U.S. presidents, congressmen, and millions of tourists. But that’s the kind of scrutiny Kent Carson encounters. He is construction engineer at Arlington National Cemetery outside Washington, D.C.

The cemetery accommodates four million visitors annually. “It’s exciting to know that decisions you make will impact hundreds of people every day,” he says.

His work at ANC has included historic preservation of the white marble structures and monuments, as well as renovation of the granite plazas at the John F. Kennedy gravesite. Current projects include developing 45 acres for burial sites that will last into 2050, and a $6 … » More …

Summer 2004

Among old friends in Lahore

WSU has long-standing ties to Pakistan

 

M. “Ghazi” Ghazanfar (front row center, red tie) is among friends, many of them Washington State University or University of Idaho alumni. (See caption below.) In December 2003 he was invited to Pakistan to lecture at a seminar hosted by the University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences (UVAS) in Lahore. He formerly lived in Karachi for nearly 11 years. In 1958 he enrolled at WSU as a freshman, and earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees, as well as a doctorate in economics. He taught for 35 years at Idaho, where he chaired the economics department from 1993 … » More …