Alumni

Class Notes

How to submit a class note

Spectrum is published three times a year. If you do not see your class note in this issue, it will appear in the Spectrum that follows. Please note that Spectrum cannot publish pregnancy and engagement announcements.To submit a note, send in the enclosed postcard, e-mail spectrum@lakeforest.edu, or fax 847-735-6272.

Edited by Emily Holmes Nordstrom ’99 

1931
“My move to Lake Forest Village in Denton, Texas, has proven to be a happy choice,” writes Dorothy Nissen Rea. In addition to being near her dearest friends, Dorothy has made numerous new friends and maintains an active schedule of meetings, lectures, and music.

1948
Happy 80th birthday to Dorcas Brausch Thompson of Arlington Heights, Ill. Dorcas enjoyed multiple celebrations with her seven children and eight grandchildren, who span the country from Upstate New York to Phoenix.

1949
Mary Lou O’Dell Robertson is doing well at Chateau Pacific, a large retirement community in Lynnwood, Wash. She has three grandchildren and five great-grandchildren – all boys! Mary Lou sends her love and invites visitors, “Come to Lynnwood. I’ll put you up in style and comfort.”

Kathryn Swanson Esser of Toano, Va., writes that she remembers “the happy times” she had at Lake Forest. “Please give my greetings to all and particularly the Class of 1949,” she writes.

1952
“After 55 years in education (the last 23 at Boylan Catholic High School in Rockford, Ill.), I have retired and moved to our motherhouse in southwestern Wisconsin,” writes Sister Clara A. Blozis of Sinsinawa,Wis. “If you’re in the area, come visit. It’s definitely worth the trip.”

On May 29, Harvey D. Cain of Sacramento, Calif., completed the inaugural Underground Railroad Bicycle Tour. One of 14 cyclists to finish the ride, Harvey covered 2,285 miles in 47 days, traveling from Mobile, Ala., to Owen Sound, Ontario, carrying 35+ pounds of personal camping gear.

1954
Robert H. Felgen of Laguna Niguel, Calif., has published $elling $ecrets that $how You the Money! Compiled from the experiences of his 47-year career in sales, Robert wrote this book to help others in the sales profession.

1955
Charlie and Liz Krohne Hill of New York celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary on Friday, July 13, with a small party at their home, and renewed their vows at church the following Sunday. Liz also reports that a granddaughter, Isabella Francesca, was born to her son, Thomas, and his wife, Pat, on February 18.

“I loved my Lake Forest years,” recalls Bessie Tsausis, who commuted to the College from Waukegan, Ill. After graduation, she taught school in Waukegan for 38 years. Bessie retired in 1994. “I love it!” she writes. “I spend winters in Florida.”

1956
“My husband, Fred, and I are celebrating our 50th anniversary by hosting our children and grand­children to a week at the Rocky Mountain Y Camp. There will be 14 of us!” writes Barbara Hansen Roeming of Monument, Colo. An abstract artist, Barbara’s work is available at www.purcellgalleries.com.

1958
Beloved basketball coach Jim Dudley has retired from Lake Land College in Mattoon, Ill. Jim spent a total of 21 years building the college’s nationally recognized program in addition to coaching at SIU and the University of Cincinnati. He was inducted into the Illinois Basketball Coaches Hall of Fame in 1998.

To date, author Charles Walther of Pleasant Prairie, Wis., has sold 21 stories to publishers in the
United States, several of which were included in Dear Old Golden School Days.

1959
On June 29, Kay Smith Severns of Lake Forest, Ill., officially retired, but she will continue as a consultant to School District 113. Retiring was hard, but Kay is getting used to it, and, so far, she and her husband, Harold, “have not killed each other.”

1965
Earlier this year, William French of Chesterfield, Mo., celebrated 30 successful years of his company, Wm French Buyer’s Real Estate Services, the nation’s first exclusive buyer’s agency that focuses on relocating major corporations to the St. Louis area.

1966
Marc Apter (pictured at right) of Annapolis, Md., recently received the Governor’s Award for Global Marketing. Presented by the Governor Martin O’Malley, the award recognized Marc’s efforts to increase tourism by cross-promoting music festivals held in St. Mary’s City, Md., and Alba, Italy. Marc is the associate vice president of marketing and public relations for St. Mary’s College of Maryland.

1970
Margaret Shopen Thompson of Plainfield, Vt., received her master’s of fine arts in creative writing from Goddard College. “Returning to school at this point in life was truly transformative,” Margaret writes. “Future possibilities include teaching college English and pursuing publication of my master’s thesis.”

Since moving to the West Virginia woods several years ago, Irene Vartanoff and her husband, Scott Edelman, have hosted an annual daffodil party in the early spring. This year, Ronald Erickson ’72, Diane Jayson ’69, and Sheree West ’70 attended the festivities. Irene, an Internet romance editor and writer, reports that Ron is a computer and networking consultant, Diane is a psychologist, and Sheree is an environmental psychologist.

1971
Robert E. Gross of Gardiner, Maine, reports the publication of Facing the Music, a biography of folk singer and composer Steve Goodman X’70 by author Clay Eals. Diagnosed with leukemia in 1969, Steve struggled with the disease throughout his adult life, until passing away in 1984. He released 11 critically acclaimed albums, won two Grammy Awards, and remained an integral part of Chicago’s Old Town School of Folk Music. Steve’s well-known compositions include “City of New Orleans,” popularized by Arlo Guthrie in 1972, and the WGN jingle, “Go Cubs Go!” Jon Rose ’71, Carol Laciny ’71, Arthur Neil Tolciss ’71, and Spike Gummere were also interviewed for the book.

1972
“I have been retired for a few years now and seem to be busier than ever,” writes former teacher Claire Curtiss-McDonald of Mohegan Lake, N.Y. “Our son, Benjamin, is now a junior in high school, and we are beginning the college search.”

1975
“I have served in public education for 31 richly rewarding years,” writes Eddie Ray Dunn, who is superintendent of a public school district of 5,800 students in Ennis, Texas. In 1996, Eddie completed
his doctorate in education at
Baylor University.

1978
Howard Fredric Molen, owner of a large construction company
in Mamaroneck, N.Y., welcomes calls at 914-698-6363 to “discuss and review the days of yore.”

Rex Peters is the executive of the IBM Service Oriented Architecture Leadership Center in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The center aims to bring educational offerings and subject-matter experts to work
with clients and business partners in the Middle East.

1982
In July, Angela Mojekwu of Chicago joined Rock of Africa Mission, a nonprofit relief organi­zation working in sub-Saharan Africa. Angela traveled to Zimbabwe and Zambia to assist with a children’s Bible school, distribution of relief supplies, vocational training, and street ministry.

1987
On June 2, Virginia Mosbaugh married Lars Christian Horne. Margaret Donohue DeFrancisci ’88 and Leonard DeFrancisci ’87 attended the celebration. Ginny and Lars honeymooned in Longboat Key, Fla., and currently live in Indianapolis.

1988
“Life in the San Diego area is fresh and energizing,” reports Laura McKelvy Basanese, who serves as a director on the board of the Hendrix Foundation and contributes to a number of nonprofit newsletters in addition to thoroughly enjoying her three-year-old twins.

Kristin Pearson-Wajda and Jim Wajda ’87 live in Dexter, Mich. Jim is vice president of Prospect Airport Services and based at Detroit Metro Airport. Kris recently “retired” from accounting and is a full-time mom to Mark, 14, and Lexi, 11. Jim writes, “In another three years, we are going college shopping! Boy, have things changed from 1987!”

1991
On June 3, Suzanne Generous of Wallingford, Conn., set off with 2,000 other Team in Training partic­ipants on a 100-mile bicycle ride in Lake Tahoe, Nev., to benefit the Leu­kemia & Lymphoma Society. Suzanne dedicated her ride to her mother, Diane, who was diagnosed with multiple myeloma in August 2006.

1993
Timothy State of Chicago reports that Love, Bourbon Street, the New Orleans-focused anthology including two of his short stories, received the 2007 Lambda Literary Award for Best Anthology. Timothy is also a contributing blogger at www.chicagoist.com.

1994
 “I work two days a week in sales,” writes Jody Strauss Figura of Riverwoods, Ill. “My husband, Rich, and I welcomed our son, Carter, on June 28, 2006. Carter joins his sister, Olivia, 5, in keeping me busy.”

1995
Tamara Haegerich of Atlanta is a behavioral scientist for the federal government. At the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Tamara oversees the development and testing of programs and strategies to prevent youth violence in schools and communities.

“Everything is great,” reports Kelly Farber Mallon on behalf of her husband, Ed Mallon ’94, and their daughter, Madeleine, 4. She continues, “Ed and I just celebrated our 12-year anniversary!” The family lives in New York.

1997
Kimberly Hindes Schubert and Jason Schubert ’96 of Hummelstown, Pa., are thrilled to announce the birth of Hayden Allen on February 26. He joins big sister, Grace, 4, and big brother, Mason, 2.

“Baby Snyder has arrived,” writes Jeff Snyder of Philadelphia. Jeff and his wife, Melanie, welcomed Zachary Allen on May 25. Two months later, Jeff, along with 10,000 other cyclists, biked 477 miles in the 35th Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa.

On May 27, with the help of the firefighters who answered their 911 call, Megan Thomas Vignocchi and Bill Vignocchi ’98 unexpectedly delivered their second child, Kathryn Elizabeth, in their home in Lake Forest, Ill. A Waukegan News Sun article, “Baby can’t wait,” reported that the baby was healthy and the family doing well. The Vignocchi kids are the grandchildren of Bunny Gallagher, Lecturer in English, Emerita.

Hilary Keever married Contrano Rosettani in Fermo, Italy, on May 7, 2006, where they now reside. Lake Forest alumni at the wedding (and pictured) included her uncle, James Palumbo ‘73, and her college roommate Christina Ridolfi ’97. In September 2006, the couple held a reception in Cape May, N.J., which was attended by her good friend Kuhl Brown ’97. She would love to hear from fellow Foresters at hilarykeever@mac.com.

1998
Allison Huang ’98 and Bernard Liu of Santa Barbara, Calif., are delighted to announce the birth of their first child. Born on May 5, Emmory Jiahao Liu weighed 8 pounds, 6 ounces, and measured 21 inches.

Adam Blumenthal ‘98, executive director of the Baltimore Architecture Foundation, donated two books to Special Collections in the Donnelley and Lee Library: Niernsee & Nielsen, Architects of Baltimore by Randolph W. Chalfont and Charles Balfourt and The Architecture of Baltimore: an Illustrated History by Mary Ellen Hayward and Frank R. Shivers Jr. Adam’s senior thesis was on Lake Forest architecture.

1999
Hollie Kowalczyk Bolerjack, Brad Bolerjack ’98, and their daughter, Brooke Ashley, 4, are proud to announce the birth of Nicholas Bradley on July 22, 2006. Hollie loves being a stay-at-home mom. Brad works as an attorney at Reed Smith Sachnoff & Weaver, specializing in criminal defense and federal investigations. The Bolerjacks live in Barrington Hills, Ill.

“I recently accepted a visiting position in the philosophy department at Seattle University,” writes Yancy Dominick. “It’s almost perfect, since my wife, Emily, has accepted a position as associate archivist at Providence Archives, also in Seattle.”

2000
Last spring, Kathleen Gapinski Peters, Deborah Sjoberg Carlson ’85, and Shelley Dunson-Allen ’84 were reunited in hospitals in Georgia. Dr. Dunson-Allen delivered Lucy Rose Carlson on March 2, and Tyler John Peters was delivered on March 28. Kathy writes, “Our Georgia Peaches might become Foresters one day!”

On October 21, 2006, Nicole Zanon and Dale Tocke II ’03 were married in the College’s
Lily Reid Holt Memorial Chapel. The wedding party included maid of honor Kristen Zanon ’04; bridesmaids Melissa Glynn ’00, Alayna Watkins Weinstein ’00, Lisa LeBoeuf Drobinski ’00, and Randi Estes ’02; and groomsmen Bradley Howe ’03 and Derrick Tiveron ’03. Additional Forester guests included Billy Fenton ’04, Patrick Gillihan ’04, Jordan Jaffe ’04, Bill Kushner ’04, Anthony Smith ’03, Scott Smith ’04, Tom Starnicky ’04, Kristin Brandt Tiveron ’03, and Eric Weinstein ’00. In May 2005, Nicole completed her master’s degree in mental health counseling at Roosevelt University. She works as a mental health counselor for adults with disabilities at Glenkirk. Dale recently completed his MBA and works as a project manager at Volkswagen Credit. The couple lives in Wauconda, Ill.

2001
On November 12, 2005, Adi Menachem married Louis Reinstein. Foresters in attendance included bridesmaid Iliana Nikolova ’00, Anna Plucinska ’00, and Joanna Plucinska Slaby ’00. Adi and Louis met in law school and both practice law in south Florida.

Negin Pour-Moghaddam Royaee of Medford, Mass., recently completed her master’s degree in social and behavioral sciences from the Boston University School of Public Health.

In July, Elizabeth Ruedi received herPhD in biology with a focus on be­havior genetics from the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign. Beth accepted a postdoctoral position at North Carolina State University in Raleigh.

2002
Inc.com named Kathryn Kerrigan number five on their “30 under 30” list of “America’s Coolest Young Entrepreneurs.” Katie was recognized for her business www.KathrynKerrigan.com, which sells dress shoes to women with larger feet. Earlier this year, Katie opened her flagship store in Libertyville, Ill.

2003
“It’s hard to imagine that I have been in China for four years,” writes Kirsten Hafkemeyer Allen. After being married for two years, she and her husband, Mark, recently bought an apartment. Kirsten works for the British Chamber of Commerce, South West China, and enjoys reading and taking yoga classes.

Keri E. McCoy of Wheeling, Ill., graduated with a master’s of science in communication from Northwestern University in June. She works as a creative relationship manager for Discover Financial Services.

2004
Joel and Megan Carroll Guthrie of Newton, Iowa, celebrated the arrival of twin daughters, Kerrigan Kay and Jamesyn Ann, on April 9.

In August, Blaire Skinner earned her master’s of science in conservation biology and sustainable development from the University of Wisconsin. She works as a corporate educator at Epic Systems in Verona, Wis.

2005
Brien Rea of Austin, Texas, is the director of broadcasting and media relations for the Austin Ice Bats, the AA affiliate of the NHL’s Minnesota Wild. Brien also serves as the team’s play-by-play radio voice.

2006
Penko Gadjev was accepted to the master’s program at the Brussels School of International Studies at the University of Kent in Belgium. He plans to major in international political economy.

Andrea Richmond trained to run the 2007 Chicago Marathon in October. In support of her father, she ran for the Arthritis Foundation as a member of the Joints in Motion training team. Andrea, a personal trainer, lives in Boston.

2007
Katherine Stankiewicz of Des Plaines, Ill., has joined the business development department at BSA LifeStructures, a national leader in designing healthcare, education, research, and technology facilities.