1940s

Lucy Rowton Calfee ’49, Gresham, Ore., says hello to her fellow 1949ers, in their sixty-fifth year since graduation. Last May, Lucy enjoyed a visit in Palm Springs, Calif., from her old roommate, June Dipple Duncan ’49, Cut Bank.

1950s

Milton N. Burgess, San Diego, Calif., published a novel, Water Shock: The Day Southern California Went Dry. A Sigma Chi brother and student at UM in 1951-52, Milt earned his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering at Montana State University and is a fellow in the American Society of Plumbing
Engineers.

Jimme L. Wilson ’53, Missoula, received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Western Montana Stockmen’s Association in Polson. Jimme served as president of WMSA in 1982, of the Montana Stockgrowers Association in 1986, and of the National Cattlemen’s Association in 1992. His wife of fifty-five years, Eileen Polk Wilson ’53, died in 2008.

Zane G. Smith Jr. ’55, Springfield, Ore., retired as a regional forester with the U.S. Forest Service. Zane received a doctoral fellowship in public administration from Cornell University in 1968. He is married to Betty Blake Smith ’55.

Arley W. Levno ’58, Columbia, Md., taught at Towson University in Maryland for thirty-two years after teaching English and French in Montana and Washington schools, studying in France, and earning master’s and doctoral degrees from the University of Maryland. Arley recently wrote a textbook, Recontres
francaises-americaines, and published a collection of cross-cultural mini-dramas titled Close Encounters of the French Kind.

1960s

Donald Watne ’60, M.A. ’61, Portland, Ore., has worked for twenty years for banks currently part of the U.S. National Bank system, Weyerhaeuser, IBM, two CPA firms, and as director of information systems for the city/county government in Barquisimeto, Venezuela, before entering the Haas School of Business doctoral program at the University of California, Berkeley. Upon completing his degree, Don joined the faculty of Portland State University, where he focused for twenty-five years on auditing and international accounting. During that time, he was the lead author of Auditing Electronic Data Processing Systems, a textbook that has been used in colleges and universities in sixteen countries. During sabbaticals he taught in Australia, China, Lithuania, and New Zealand. He enjoys golfing and has traveled to more than thirty countries. He says, “The start that I received through my education at the University of Montana has enabled me to have a very rich and rewarding life.”

Ralph B. Lawrence ’61, Spuyten Duyvil, N.Y., attended the 2014 inaugural ceremonies at City Hall in New York City and was welcomed by Mayor Bill de Blasio and his wife, Chirlane McCray. Ralph retired as an administrative manager for the City of New York in 1999 and celebrated his seventy-eighth birthday
this past June.

Lorna Mikelson ’63, Bozeman, just completed fifty years in Montana symphonies [two in Great Falls and forty-eight in Bozeman]. She still is involved in teaching oboe and performing with Gallatin Woodwind Quintet, OBoze [double-reed trio], and playing organ. Lorna has played in Copenhagen, Paris, Singapore, Japan, and even the U.S. Embassy in Hanoi, Vietnam, in addition to Montana and the Northwest.

Linda Sue Thompson Greuling ’67, Duncanville, Texas, is a retired lifetime educator. The first in her romance and international adventure series, You May Have the Universe, was published in 2012 under the pen name L. Sparklingwater, a name derived from the translation of Missoula. Linda was a Rotary International Fellow and Ambassador of Good Will in South America, Golden Poet in San Francisco, award poet of the International Society of Poets in Washington, D.C., the Dallas Association of Bilingual Educators’ Secondary Bilingual/ESL Teacher of the Year, and an adjunct college instructor in Europe and Texas. She and her husband, Werner, reside between Dallas-Fort Worth and Stuttgart, Germany, and love to visit Montana.

Lana Russ ’69, Lacey, Wash., has been employed with various newspapers and television stations throughout her career. Since retiring, she has been quilting and writing a monthly column for the Washington Stars Quilt Guild in the Lacey, Wash., area, and has been published in the Quilters Newsletter. Lana and her husband, Gordon, often visit their three grown children, five grandchildren and one step-grandson, who reside in Portland, Ore.

1970s

John Cheek ’70, Butte, was inducted into the National High School Athletic Coaches Association’s Hall of Fame in Jackson, Wyo., in June. A highly successful coach of athletes from around the state for forty-three years, John is the fourth track and field coach in Montana history to receive this award and the first to represent smaller Class B and C schools. He spent thirty-three years in education as a teacher and administrator, retiring in 2005. John currently is an assistant coach at Butte High School and record keeper for the Montana High School Association.

Gerald Christensen ’70, M.Ed. ’76, Huson, retired in 2005 after working in Montana and Alaska since 1976 as a school administrator and school psychologist. Gerald has two grown children who are UM grads. As the District 5 commander for the American Legion, he is planning a Patriots’ Day parade Sept. 13 in Missoula for all area veterans and first responders. He and his wife, Georgia, reside on the Clark Fork River in Huson and enjoy fishing, hunting, and traveling.

Rebecca J. Manring ’73, Bloomington, Ind., is associate professor of religious studies and India studies at Indiana University, Bloomington, where she has taught for the past eighteen years. Becki has published three books and currently is working on a translation of the poet Rupram’s seventeenth century Bengali epic, Dharmamangala. She and husband Tim Bagwell have been married eleven years. She enjoys gardening, Scrabble night, and frequent trips to India.

Larry “Morey” Jeffery ’74, Cary, N.C., should have graduated in 1966, but during his senior year took a leave of studies to serve in the armed forces from 1966 to 1972. Graduating from UM with a degree in business administration/accounting and earning his certified public accountant certificate from the state of Montana, Larry began a forty-plus-year government service career with the Central Intelligence Agency. His first assignment was as a member of the CIA’s inspector general audit staff. Over the years he has served in various assignments and senior management positions, spending the majority of his career overseas. Although fully retired from the agency, Larry stays active as an independent contractor with the federal government.

Ralph Kirscher ’74, J.D. ’79, Helena, was appointed to his second term as Montana’s bankruptcy judge. A native of Livingston, Ralph is the only full-time federal judge on the Montana bankruptcy court, which handled more than 1,800 cases in fiscal year 2013. He worked in private practice in Missoula before his 1999 appointment to the federal bench.

James Mariska ’74, Billings, is the Army Reserve Ambassador for Montana, joining more than 100 ambassadors throughout the U.S. who help promote awareness and understanding of Army Reserve units and soldiers. A retired Army colonel, James served as both enlisted and officer for thirty-four years, during which time he earned the Legion of Merit, the Meritorious Service Medal, and the National Defense Service Ribbon with Bronze Star. He worked as a financial adviser and banker until 2006, was a trustee for the UM Foundation, and was a member of the Service Academy Selection Board for U.S. Rep. Steve Daines.

Larry M. Klette ’77, ’93, Missoula, wrote to the Alumni office with the names of sixteen UM alumni in his direct family since the 1920s, with at least one graduate from every decade since 1950. His wife is Cynthia Biggerstaff Klette ’79. His uncle, Norman Oliver Johnson ’50, passed away in March 2014.

Lex Runciman, M.A. ’77, McMinnville, Ore., published a new book of poetry, One Hour That Morning. A professor of English at Linfield College since 1992, Lex has published four other poetry collections and cowritten three writing textbooks. He reviews books on his blog, www.farcornerreader.blogspot.com.

Bruce Miewald ’78, Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, was appointed to the committee for the National Board of Medical Examiners that writes questions for the United States Medical Licensing Examination, Step 3—the test all physicians have to pass in order to be fully licensed. Bruce has served six years with the Idaho Board of Medicine and practices child psychiatry in Coeur d’Alene. His eldest son, Ross, graduated from UM this year.

Charlotte Schmiedeskamp ’78, Harlowton, accepted a new call to the Upper Musselshell Lutheran Parish [ELCA] and began serving her new congregations of American Lutheran in Harlowton, Grace Lutheran in Barber, and Trinity Lutheran in Lennep on March 1. Charlotte graduated from Luther Seminary, was ordained in 2008, and served as pastor of Our Savior’s Lutheran Church in Thompson Falls for six years.

Sue A. Finstick ’79, M.S. ’86, Duluth, Minn., in 2010 completed her Master of Science in biology at the University of Nebraska at Kearney, where her research included a genetic analysis of thermophilic microorganisms collected at hot springs in Utah. She cowrote Earth and Space Science: Your Changing World, an introductory textbook that integrates Earth system science in exploring physical geology, oceanography, meteorology, and astronomy. Sue is a professional geologist and adjunct faculty member at several universities, including Florida State College.

1980s

Patricia Clark, M.F.A. ’80, Grand Rapids, Mich., is chair of the writing department at Grand Valley State University, where she also serves as poet-in-residence. Since earning her doctorate from the University of Houston, Patricia has published four books of poetry and has taught at GVSU for twenty-four years. She fondly remembers her fellow writers from the “volcano year,” when Mount St. Helens exploded and ash drifted over Missoula, closing down campus for a few days.

Mike Covey ’80, Spokane, is chairman and CEO of the Spokane-based Potlach Corporation. For the past twenty-three years, Mike has worked for Plum Creek timber company.

Warren Bartlett, M.B.A. ’81, M.S. ’84, Palm Harbor, Fl., retired in 2011 after twenty years with AT&T. 

Dore Schwinden ’81, Helena, is executive director of the Montana Public Employee Retirement Administration. A former legislator, Dore has served as deputy commissioner of the Department of Labor and Industry and director of the state Commerce Department. In addition, he has owned and operated Schwinden Farms, a fourth-generation farm near Wolf Point, since 1983. 

Ann Deegan ’83, Billings, is president of the board of directors for the Montana Society of CPAs for 2014-15. An associate at the Billings firm Summers McNea and Company, Ann is active in the Billings chapter of the American Federation of Women Accountants, the Magic City Optimists, the St. Pius Parish
Finance Committee, and the Montana Sapphire Chorus of Sweet Adelines. Her awards include the AFWA Spirit of the Northwest Award, Optimist Life Membership and the Optimist Youth Service Award. Dave Sather ’73, Lewistown, was chosen to be Ann’s ex-officio.

Lynn Bersch ’85, Sausalito, Calif., received a 2013 Transformative Leadership Sharing the Power Award, presented by InsideCounsel Magazine. The award is given to a senior leader in a corporate law department who collaborates to increase the economic empowerment of women in a law firm. Lynn is assistant general counsel and senior director for global employment law at KLA-Tencor Corporation, a semiconductor capital equipment company with more than 6,000 employees in seventeen countries. She is responsible for all of the company’s employment-related legal matters worldwide.

Craig Holtet ’85, and Ron Ramsbacher ’86, of Missoula, took ownership of the Orange Street Food Farm at the end of 2013. Robert Korman and John Lubbers ’73 previously owned the local grocery store and Missoula icon for more than twenty-seven years. Craig and Ron were friends while attending UM and kept in touch over the years as they pursued their careers, Craig in the grocery business and Ron in accounting.

Richard Periman ’85, M.A. ’87, Duluth, Minn., is deputy forest supervisor of the 3-million-acre Superior National Forest in northeastern Minnesota. Richard earned a doctorate in environmental science and technology from the University of New Mexico and worked previously as the social science and economics coordinator in the Southwestern Regional Office for Ecosystem Analysis and Planning, Watershed, Soils, and Air.

Martha Sheehy ’85, J.D. ’88, Billings, was appointed to the Montana Board of Regents. She is past president of the Montana Bar Association and has served on numerous court, community, and education boards.

Larry Geske, M.B.A. ’88, Mesa, Ariz., is retired and living with his wife, Rosa, at Sunland Village, where they teach a power brain class and attend the Gold Canyon United Methodist Church.

Jim Shea ’88, J.D. ’91, Helena, was appointed to the Montana Supreme Court by Gov. Steve Bullock. Jim was the Montana Workers’ Compensation Court judge since 2005 and practiced civil law as an attorney in private practice, most recently as a partner in Paoli and Shea in Missoula.

Russ Blank ’89, Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, was recognized by Working in Support of Education, a national educational nonprofit organization, for his work preparing students at Lake City High School for the Financial Literacy Certification Test. His students earned the fourth-highest scores in the nation, and one student earned a perfect score. Russ, who teaches marketing, business, and finance and heads Lake City High School’s nationally successful DECA Club, was honored at a ceremony hosted by the New York Stock Exchange in April. Now in his twentieth year of teaching, Russ is the assistant wrestling coach, track coach, and defensive coordinator for the Lake City High School football team. He played football for the Grizzlies and competed in track while a student at UM.

1990s

Paul D. Makela, M.S. ’90, Boise, Idaho, assumed duties in January 2014 as wildlife program lead for the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, Idaho State Office. Paul lives in Boise with his wife, Amy, and daughter, Kelly. 

Dave Hays ’92, Susanville, Calif., is forest supervisor on the Lassen National Forest in Susanville. Previously, Dave worked as a district ranger on the Klamath National Forest in Fort Jones, Calif. He earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in English from California State University, Sacramento, and a master’s degree in rangeland ecosystem science from Colorado State University. He has taught junior high and worked as a park ranger with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Washington state, a field manager for the Black Rock Field Office for the Nevada Bureau of Land Management, and a firefighter and advanced
EMT in Etna, Calif.

Raphael Cristy, M.A. ’92, Albuquerque, N.M., retired from the City of Albuquerque Cultural Services Department in 2009. Raphael earned his doctorate in U.S. History of the American West in 1999 from the University of New Mexico and published Charles M. Russell, The Storyteller’s Art in 2004. He still performs Charlie Russell’s Yarns, a one-man-show with music by Bruce Anfinson, and recently staged a performance in Helena. In 2011, Raphael adopted four grandchildren. 

Dale Bickell ’92, M.Acct. ’93, Missoula, is director of central services for the City of Missoula. Dale has worked for Missoula County for fourteen years and has served as chief administrative officer since 2008. He worked for a local accounting firm for five years while a partner in the then-startup Big Dipper Ice Cream. He serves on several boards, including United Way of Missoula County. His wife, Lisa, is education director at the Montana Natural History Center.

Aaron Parrett ’92, Helena, recently published Montana: Then and Now on the occasion of Montana’s 150th territorial anniversary. A native of Butte, Aaron teaches literature and philosophy at the University of Great Falls and his work has appeared in many books and journals, most recently The Complete Montana Gothic and The Old-Time Herald. 

Angela Janacaro ’94, Townsend, released her first novel, The Dishwater Tree, which follows three generations of women through two different time periods and is set in Miles City. The book is available through The Bookstore at UM and Montana-based Raven Publishing. 

Jennifer Strazzella ’94, Bay Village, Ohio, has joined the law firm of Calfee, Halter & Griswold as a senior counsel with the public law and finance group. A member of the National Association of Bond Lawyers, the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association, and the Ohio State Bar Association, Jennifer earned her law degree from the University of Toledo College of Law in 2000.

Dori Gilels, M.Ed. ’96, Missoula, is the chief operating officer for Mamalode [www.mamalode.com], a Missoula-based media company that last year joined the Montana Technology Enterprise Center [MonTEC], a business incubator for startup companies run by the University. Previously, Dori was executive director for Women’s Voices of the Earth and project director for the Center for Environmental Politics. 

Sara Hayes ’96, Brazos, Texas, was named statewide interlibrary loan program coordinator at the Texas State Library and Archives Commission in March 2014. After earning her Master of Science in information studies at the University of Texas in 2005, Sara spent four years as a young adult librarian with the Los Angeles Public Library and four years as a reference librarian with the Texas State Library and Archives Commission.

Karel A. Morales ’96, Alexandria, Va., works for the National Park Service in Washington, D.C. He served under General John Walsh as an officer in Iraq while serving in the Montana National Guard, 2004-05. Karel has several commendations, including the Bronze Star and Combat Infantry Badge. He was a first lieutenant, executive office, and was promoted to captain upon returning from his tour in Iraq.

Janie Chodosh, M.S. ’99, Santa Fe, N.M., published her first novel, Death Spiral, with the young adult imprint of Poisoned Pen Press. Janie has spent the past decade teaching high school English and middle school science. When not writing or obsessing about writing, Janie can be found with her daughter, stepson, and husband in various outdoor pursuits, including bird watching, rock climbing, or trying to grow a garden in the arid Southwest.

Allison J. Farrell ’99, Jane Lew, W.Va., has been promoted from associate to counsel at Steptoe & Johnson in Bridgeport, W.Va. Allison focuses her practice in energy litigation. She has been named Super Lawyers Rising Star and is a founding board member of Young Professional Women in Energy, West Virginia chapter.

2000s

Jordan Y. Crosby ’01, J.D. ’04, Great Falls, was promoted to partner in the law firm of Ugrin, Alexander, Zadick & Higgins. Jordan clerked for U.S. Magistrate Judge Carolyn S. Ostby from 2004 to 2007 and worked in private practice in Great Falls. She serves as board president for the Federal Defenders of Montana Inc., is a board member for the Cascade County Law Clinic, and has been appointed as a lawyer representative for the District of Montana, 9th Circuit Judicial Conference.

Eleven of the Missoulian’s 2014 “Twenty Under Forty” top business professionals in western Montana are UM alumni. Dave Prather ’00, Arlee, is general manager of the Western Montana Growers Co-op, which is relocating to Missoula. Holly Truitt ’03, M.S. ’09, Missoula, is director of the University of Montana’s spectrUM Discovery Area. She also is a member of the Clark Fork Coalition and Montana Cancer Institute Foundation boards. Megan Birzell ’05, Missoula, is projects coordinator and conservation specialist for The Wilderness Society. Kelly Hughes ’05, Missoula, is owner of Hughes Tutoring in Missoula. Gavin Ricklefs, J.D. ’05, Hamilton, is executive director for the Bitter Root Land Trust. Jeff Grant ’06, Missoula, is co-owner of Draught Works Brewery in Missoula. Eva Dunn-Froebig, M.A. ’06, Missoula, was the executive director of Run Wild Missoula from March 2009 through June 2014, and now is the public affairs director at the Missoula Organization of REALTORS. David Bosler ’06, Missoula, co-owns LB Snow, a ski and snowboard tune and repair shop in Missoula, with Luke Morris, his former roommate at UM. Dan Torti ’08, Missoula, is adviser to UM Productions and owner of Stonefly Media Entertainment. June Noel ’10, Missoula, is the Web designer for Washington Corp. She also is cofounder of Women for the Web, a community organization, and Treats on a Trike, a small business. Ben Sokoloski, Missoula, is owner of Market on Front in Missoula.  He attended the UM School of Business Administration and earned funding through the John Ruffatto Business Plan Competition along with Brint Wahlberg ’13 and Suzanna Simmons ’11.

Alan Fugleberg ’01, A.A.S. ’02, M.P.A. ’04, Kodiak, Alaska, is director of Kodiak College for the University of Alaska, Anchorage. A former assistant director for Academic Affairs at UM and associate dean of the UM College of Technology, Alan has served as assistant professor at Kodiak College since 2011. 

Susan Edwards ’02, King Salmon, Alaska, is chief financial officer for the Lake and Peninsula Borough in Alaska, managing the finances for a borough the size of West Virginia. 

Kevin “Kash” Cashell ’02, Las Vegas, won an Emmy Award for his 2013 photographer composite from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, Pacific Southwest Chapter. Kash currently works as a photojournalist for KLAS-TV in Las Vegas. He began telling stories twelve years ago as a photojournalist at KULR-TV in Billings before moving to Eugene, Ore., and later to Las Vegas.

Angelina Urbina ’02, M.Ed. ’08, Andrews AFB, Md., Air Force captain, was awarded the 2013 Air Force District of Washington Annual Awards Company Grade Officer of the Year trophy. As deputy chief of senior leader management at AFDW, Angelina provides personnel support for more than 1,400 active duty Air Force colonels in the National Capital Region and worldwide. Previously, she worked for UM’s Upward Bound program for ten years and still mentors her former students. Angelina is a native of Helena.

Lucy K. Ednie, M.B.A. ’03, Butte, was appointed to the Healthier Montana Task Force by Gov. Steve Bullock and elected vice president of the Montana Nurses’ Association board of directors. An employee of St. James Healthcare for more than five years, Lucy holds an associate’s degree in nursing from Montana Tech and a bachelor’s degree from Rocky Mountain College in Billings.

Teresa Heil, M.A. ’04, Wolf Point, was named 2014 Montana Art Educator of the Year by the National Art Education Association. This award recognizes excellence in professional accomplishment and service by a dedicated art educator. Teresa teaches K-12 visual arts at Frazer School and is an adjunct instructor at Fort Peck Community College, both located on the Fort Peck Indian Reservation in northeastern Montana. You can view her school’s online gallery at www.artsonia.com/schools/Frazer2.

Rob Schlegel, M.F.A. ’04, Walla Walla, Wash., was awarded the 2014 Grub Street Poetry Prize for his new book, January Machine, a book-length poem composed of sonnets and sonnet sequences. Rob is a visiting professor of English at Whitman College and coeditor of The Catenary Press.

Nicolas Jon Wilkins ’04, Cape Girardeau, Mo., is a tenure-track assistant professor of psychology at Southeast Missouri State University. Nicolas earned his master’s degree in experimental psychology in 2010 and doctorate in cognitive psychology in 2013 from Kent State University. 

Haines Eason ’06, St. Louis, currently serves as a Peace Corps volunteer in Morocco along with his wife, Joni. As youth development volunteers, they teach English and create and implement original activity programming in YMCA-like youth centers. Previously, Haines taught high school English at Mary Institute and St. Louis Country Day School. 

April Wilder, M.F.A. ’06, Salt Lake City, published This is Not an Accident, a book of short fiction. April’s work has appeared in literary journals such as Zoetrope, McSweeney’s, and Guernica Magazine. A former James C. McCreight Fiction Fellow from the Institute for Creative Writing in Madison, Wisc., she holds a degree in math/actuarial science from UCLA and a doctorate in literature/creative writing from the University of Utah.

Megan M. Boehnke ’07, Missoula, is a senior consultant at Boehnke Water Consulting. She focuses primarily on transboundary water security and conflict in the Middle East and North Africa region. 

Timmy L’Heureux ’07, Los Angeles, a native of Great Falls, has steadily been building a career in Hollywood. In addition to acting in several TV advertisements, including a recent nationwide ad for Las Vegas, Timmy works as a stage manager for The Groundlings, a popular comedy troupe based in Southern California.

Aaron Jackson ’07, Helena, is the first softball coach for Carroll College. Aaron spent three seasons as head softball coach at Eastern Oregon University and has coached softball at MSU-Billings and Sentinel High School in Missoula. 

Tyler Miller ’07, Indianapolis, spent three years conducting research at the National Institutes of Health before attending the Indiana University School of Medicine. Last May, Tyler began his residency in orthopedic surgery at the University of Buffalo in New York.  

Logan L. Baker, J.D. ’09, Orlando, Fla., joined the firm of Shuffield, Lowman and Wilson as an associate in the tax section, with emphasis in the areas of estate planning, trusts and estates, and business taxation. Logan holds a master’s in business administration from Florida State University and an advanced legal degree in taxation from the New York University School of Law. He formerly served as a law clerk to the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance.  

2010s

Ashley Larkin ’10, Missoula, was named the Montana Independent Bankers Association Outstanding Young Banker for 2014. The award is presented each year to one community banker who exemplifies good citizenship and good character, and donates time to their community to make it a better place. A Billings native, Ashley has worked for First Montana Bank since 2011, serving first as teller, then credit analyst, and currently is a commercial portfolio assistant. She serves as a Big Sister through Big Brothers Big Sisters of Missoula, is a graduate of Leadership Missoula 31, and participates in the Missoula Downtown Association.

Caitlin Hofmeister, M.F.A. ’12, Sarah Meismer ’13, Josef “Tuna” Metesh and Rachel Stevens, M.F.A. candidates in the UM School of Media Arts digital filmmaking program, won awards at the 2014 Hot Docs International Documentary Film Festival in Toronto for their short documentary film, 20/Nothing. The film received the award for Best Experimental Film and the prestigious P.O.V. Award from the Public Broadcasting System, which comes with opportunities for theatrical screenings in major cities and television exposure. 20/Nothing was created in just five days as part of the International Documentary Challenge, and was selected as one of twelve finalists from more than 100 entries to premiere at North America’s largest documentary film festival. Watch the film at http://theaudienceawards.com/film/20nothing83.