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The University of Minnesota Duluth
BRIDGE - Fall 2006, Volume 24, #2
Alumni Notes
The University of Minnesota Duluth Bridge publishes Alumni Notes. You can send us notes by e-mail: alumni@d.umn.edu, by fax at 218-726-6186. If you are in the U.S., you can send your note to: Alumni Director, University Relations, University of Minnesota Duluth, 315 DAdB, 1049 University Drive, Duluth, MN 55812. This issue of the Bridge reflects the notes we received before May 15, 2006.
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1999 2000 2002 2003 2004 2005 |
Dennis Ojakangas is with the University of California, Davis.
Darlene Esko was recently appointed academic publications coordinator/editor in the Publications/News Services Office, University Advancement Division at Metropolitan State University. She will be responsible for planning, preparing copy, editing and coordinating production of Metropolitan State academic and admissions publications.
Caroll (Keck) Melby is retired and living in northern Minn.
Robert Bennett is retired and lives in Duluth.
Greg Jannetta is recovering from recent hip surgery in Grass Valley, Calif. and hoping to visit the detachment this year.
Peter Rennebohm announces the release of his second novel and third book, Blue Springs.
James Hanko is President and CEO of North Country Health Services in Bemidji, Minn.
Jim Koepke has just published his third book, My North Korea Vacation .
Robert Roach completed his teaching certification in middle school science for Florida, where he has lived for the past 10 years. He also received his Doctor of Ministry in Leadership Development, and after moving back to Minnesota, was named the academic dean for two lay schools of ministry. He and his wife, Laraine, are busy building spiritual and educational bridges to the Ojibway community in their area.
Pat Travnicek is Chief Arms Control at Minot Air Force Base, N.D. He will retire this summer after 28 years of active duty.
Bob Tirevold will move from Virginia to Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, this sum mer.
Rob Roningen is Maintenance Squadron Commander with 148th Air National Guard in Duluth.
Christine Heikkinen is at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas.
Bradley Jensen is with the 158 Fighter Wing Air National Guard in S. Burlington, Vt.
Pete Bussa is 353 Assistant Director of Operations, Combat Training Squadron, at Eielson Air Force Base, Ala., and will retire this fall.
Dan Claveau and Tracy (Minor) Claveau , '87, are at Tyndall Air Force Base. Dan is a flight commander, South East Air Defense Sector and will be Chief, C2 Plans, 601 Combat Plans Squadron. Tracy is a self-employed early intervention nurse. They have two children, Emily and Luke.
Steven Cowles is returning from Afghanistan to Ramstein Air Force Base. In April he will start teaching at the United States Air Force Academy.
Deanna Cooper (Johnson) is at Hill Air Force Base, Utah.
Raan Aalgaard , is Commander 2nd Communications Squadron, Barksdale Air Force Base, La.
Andrea Gravelle and Brian Kough , '88, are married with two children, living in Tampa, Fla. Andrea is a faculty member of the International Academy of Design and Technology, teaching English and humanities. Brian is a Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Marine Corps and has deployed numerous times to the Middle East and Africa supporting the War on Terrorism.
Scott Pleus is Commander, 63rd Fighter Squadron, Luke Air Force Base.
Todd Arvidson is chief of Reconnaissance Operations for United States Air Force in Europe at Ramstein Air Force Base, Germany.
Scott Brown is Chief, Ground Software Division, Space Based Infrared Systems program at Los Angeles Air Force Base, Calif.
Jodi (Terzich) Gallik was recently named a 2006 "Rising Star" by Minnesota Law & Politics magazine. Jodi is a partner who practices family law at Rider Bennett, focusing on paternity, divorce, custody, and child support actions.
Phil Opela is Chief, Nuclear Surety Programs at Langley Air Force Base, Va. and will move to Washington, D.C. in June.
Joyce Peppin was elected to the Minnesota House of Representatives in November, 2004 and is serving her first term representing District 32A, which includes the cities of Corcoran, Dayton, Greenfield, Hanover, Hassan, Rogers and southwestern Maple Grove. She serves on the Health Policy and Finance Committee, the Commerce Committee, and is vice-chair of the State Government Finance Committee.
Julia (McNurlin) Reed and Eric Reed are at Laughlin Air Force Base where Eric is Chief of Wing Exercises, 47 Flight Training Wing.
Troy Carlson is a geography instructor at the Air Force Academy.
Mark Kronforst recently became an assistant chief accountant in the Division of Corporation Finance of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in Washington, D.C. He resides in Silver Springs, Md.
Mark Schramek is at Langley Air Force Base, Va.
Peter Harrison and Karin Markes , '96, were married in October 1998. They live in South Carolina where Pete is the manager of a state park and Karin works in human resources. The couple celebrated the birth of their first child, Natalie Arlene, on February 23, 2006.
David Wallin is at Dyess Air Force Base.
Jennifer (Dolezilek) Sternberg and her husband, Paul, live in Duluth and are co-owners of a daycare center in Chester Park.
Ann Olson and Matthew Brenny were married in December 2005. Ann is an art teacher, currently substituting in the Ely schools. Matthew is a mine equipment operator.
Heather (McFarland) Meyer and Josh Meyer , '97, are at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio.
Paul Thalacker has been promoted to senior manager of customer insight at Best Buy Company corporate headquarters in Richfield, Minn.
Deborah Collins is now a contractor and lives with her husband, Todd, in Woodbridge, Va.
Keri (Muench) Leroux and Andre Leroux, were married in October 2005. Keri was an A&E writer for the UMD newspaper.
Brian Chellgren is Officer in Charge, Environmental Sciences Branch, Molecular Sciences Division, Air Force Technical Applications Center, Patrick Air Force Base, Fla. His family is enjoying living near the beach. (Jess, Aryana, Brock and Cole)
Marian (Watson) Costello lives in Duluth with husband, Mitch.
John Engesser is Chief, Modeling & Simulation Branch, NAISC/ADIM, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio.
Jon Scott Findley is 355th Fighter Squandron Flight Safety Officer at Eielson Air Force Base, Ala. He and his wife, Lysandra, should have just had their first child.
Tim Higgins is in Spangdahlem, Germany.
Kelly (Klein) Polsgrove is at Schriever Air Force Base where she works with GPS satellites as a program liaison officer.
Sean Smith and his wife, Michelle, celebrated their fifth wedding anniversary in May 2005. Michelle is a social worker. The couple also runs a photography business out of their home. They reside in Altura, Minn.
Michael Crooks is a scheduler at Grand Forks Air Force Base, N.D.
Joanne Harvala , still of Minneapolis, is working as an advanced analytical chemist with the Pharmaceuticals Division at 3M in Maplewood, Minn.
Jeremy Holmes is in Operations at Minot Air Force Base, N.D.
Becky (Smit) Eckhardt and her husband, Jim Eckhardt, welcomed a new baby girl, Josephine Rose, born on December 20, 2005.
Andrew Wistrcill is at Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho, with Andrea and new daughter, Alyssa.
Jana (Johnson) Zwilling and Paul Zwilling arrived from Germany this summer at Grand Forks Air Force Base, N.D., with daughter, Abigail. Paul is Operations Officer, 319th Security Force Squadron, and is currently in Afghanistan. Jana is a family practice center nurse.
Zach Anderson is at Wright Patterson Air Force Base, Texas, working for L-3 Titan in the Recon Systems Wing. He married Timea, who is from Slovakia, in September.
Stephanie Cherrier will arrive at Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho, from Turkey this summer.
Mike Cohen is security forces officer with the 571st Global Mobility Readiness Squadron, Travis Air Force Base, Calif.
Erik Dahlgren and Jennifer Nelson were married in July at Scott Air Force Base in Illinois. Erik has served in the Air Force since 2001, where he is in the Air Force Band of MidAmerica at Scott Air Force Base. Jennifer is a seventh-grade math teacher.
Matt Dinneen and Jennifer (Wishard) Dinneen , '04, are at Minot Air Force Base, N.D., with daughter, Madison Mae.
Travis Grenke , a Lester Prairie, Minn. native, made an appearance on the TV show Desperate Housewives , which aired March 12, 2006. Grenke played a policeman who arrested the character, Paul, played by actor Mark Moses. Grenke, who has lived in Los Angeles for over a year, is used to working with celebrity actors. He has been on approximately 300 sets including: CSI, CSI-NY, CSI-Miami, West Wing, Scrubs, How I Met Your Mother, NCIS, Desperate Housewives, Commander in Chief, 7th Heaven, Las Vegas, House, Crossing Jordan , and Boston Legal . He performs as a background actor on film/TV, music video, and commercial sets in Hollywood.
Beth (Toepke) Hazelton and Vance Hazelton were married in October 2005. The couple resides in Grand Marais.
Geoff Zahn is Acting Commander/Civil Engineering Budget Analyst, 45th Comptroller Squadron, Patrick Air Force Base, Fla.
Ashley Hubert and Matthew Krogh , '04, both of Duluth, were married in October 2005. Ashley is a personal banker for US Bank in Edina and Matthew is an accountant for Mahoney Ulbrich Christiansen & Russ P.A. in St. Paul.
Ben LaLone and Carlie Peck , '03, both of Ames, Iowa, were married in November 2005. Ben is a commercial heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning sales representative for Plumb Supply. Carlie is a second-year graduate student pursuing a doctorate in interdisciplinary genetics at Iowa State University.
Kristen Modean married Seth MacDougall in September 2005. Kristen is employed by Maurices in Iron Mountain, Mich. Seth is a recruiter for the Air Force.
Timothy Freitag and Laurie Moland , '05, were married in August 2005. Timothy is a manager at Sam's Club in Hermantown, and Laurie is pursuing a certificate in medical transcription at Lake Superior College, while working at the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center.
Bryce Howitson and Jackie Graham , '04, were married in December 2005.
Kristina Santori and Alec Bildeaux , '04, both of St. Joseph, Michigan, were married September 17, 2005. Kristina is a circulation manager for Advanstar Communications in Duluth and Alec is a demand administrator for Whirlpool Corporation in Benton Harbor, Mich.
Dan Schone is a navigator at Dyess Air Force Base, Texas, and recently enjoyed a TDY island hop to Crete. He and his fiancee, Michaela, were married this summer.
Suzanne (Dobbe) VanderWeyst works at St. Cloud State University, Minn., and is with the Air National Guard in Wisconsin.
BethAnn Ellingson and David Chamberlain were married in August. BethAnn is focusing on her athletic career in biathlon training for the U.S. Development Biathlon Program in Maine.
1939
Kathryn R. Hallamek, BA
April 11, 2006
1943
Robert J. Williams, BA
December 21, 2005
1949
Marshall G. Dahlen, BA
January 4, 2006
1949
James "Coach" Patrick McIntire , BA, MA '62
January 1, 2006
1950
Ione Thompson Goodman, BA
September 26, 2005
1950
John "Jack" MacDonald Reid, BA
March 30, 2006
1952
Adrian Blake MacDonald, Attended Duluth State Teachers College, April 9, 2006
1955
Lewis J. Oakland, BA
January 1, 2006
1956
George A. Bogart, BA
November 23, 2005
1956
John L. Kroening, BA, MA '59, PhD '62
March 23, 2006
1957
Richard E. "Dick" Jones, BA
February 24, 2006
1958
John R. Stoner, BA, MA '66
January 26, 2006
1958
Gustavo C. Zanoni, BA
March 28, 2006
1961
Orville "Ozzie" Hatlestad, BA
January 23, 2006
1962
Helen L. Wicklund Willis, BA
January 27, 2006
1964
David T. Smolnikar, BA
April 2, 2006
1966
Lydia Elizabeth Maki, BA
December 17, 2005
1966
Charlotte Kaye (Hill) Powers, BA
April 6, 2006
1969
Lester G. Curphy, BA
April 10, 2006
1969
Peter McKenna, BA, Ph.D '73
March 27, 2006
1970
Fred E. Mattson, BA
March 6, 2006
1970
Barbara Jane Senich, BA
January 20, 2006
1973
Thomas P. Bradley III, BA
April 2, 2006
1973
Nancy E. Burke, BA
January 8, 2006
1978
Danny Andre Beedy, BA
January 29, 2006
1980
Joanne Larsen Line, BA, MA '92
January 13, 2006
1992
Carol A. Yeager, MA
March 22, 2006
1996
Christopher Radke, BA
July 29, 2005
UMD FACULTY
Sylvan Burgstahler
Department of Mathematics and Statistics
September 28, 2006
Kamal S. Gindy
Department of Psychology
March 7, 2006
James Rowell
Department of Mathematics and Statistics
February 2, 2006
Grace Caroline Peterson
Department of Mathematics and Statistics
May 27, 2006
Jeane Sword
Department of Education
June 13, 2006
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BRIDGE, the UMD Magazine, 1049 University Drive, Duluth, MN 55812
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