2012 – Spring ’21 Class Letter
Greetings, Class of 2012!
Hello, Class of 2012, and Happy Spring!
I always enjoy reading your updates, and this year it seems especially optimistic to see many of you doing well despite all the extra challenges to overcome. Thank you to everyone who contributed to these updates, as well as to those who have contributed financially to Ripon College over the past year. I’ve really appreciated seeing how our alma mater has adapted to our weird reality and wish all the current students and faculty well! I encourage you to visit http://www.ripon.edu/news to learn about what’s happening and to participate in the life of the college. They have been offering tons of virtual programming on a variety of subjects, too. Additionally, please save the date for #OneDayRally, Ripon’s annual giving day, on Wednesday, April 28!
We have good news regarding Alumni Weekend. Alumni Weekend 2021 will be unlike anything we’ve ever seen with two distinct summer weekends of Ripon alumni programming for us. No matter how you’d like to connect, virtually or in person, the Office of Constituent Engagement is developing a variety of activities to continue to follow CDC, Fond du Lac County and College guidelines in both June and August. Full schedules, lodging, and programming details will be posted soon to www.ripon.edu/alumni-weekend.
JUNE 2021
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In honor of our June Alumni Weekend traditions, virtual alumni programming will be held Tuesday, June 22 through Saturday, June 26, and will include: an alumni town hall, R Connections webinars, affinity socials, a summer book club, and special recognition of the 2020 and 2021 Athletic Hall of Fame Inductees.
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The only in-person event, the Doc Weiske ’50 Memorial Golf Scramble, will be held off-campus on Friday, June 25.
AUGUST 2021
A combination of virtual and in-person Alumni Weekend programming will be held the first week of August. We will continue to evaluate the state of COVID-19. If circumstances change at the local and national level and we need to cancel in-person programming, that decision will be made and communicated by July 1, 2021.
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Virtual programming will be held Tuesday, August 3 through Saturday, August 7 and will include: a reunion-focused alumni town hall that also previews the new academic year, additional R Connections webinars, the summer book club capstone, and the traditional “That Was Then” storytelling session.
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In-person, on-campus programming will be held Friday, August 6 through Sunday, August 8 and will focus on alumni awards recognition; 2020 and 2021 reunion celebrations, and will feature other outdoor events like Rally Run and prairie walk.
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Additionally, the Class of 2020 will officially be welcomed to our alumni community with a special commencement ceremony.
Here’s what our group has been up to:
JESSICA BRUNGARDT LARSON ’12 of Colorado Springs, Colorado, added another dog to her zoo, leaving them with two dogs, three cats, and a toddler. She also got promoted to Assistant County Attorney III and still works in child protection. She loves her job even though it’s been a trying year.
ARIEL DICKINSON ’12 of Madison, Wisconsin, adopted a second dog, Cookie Monster, in February of 2020. She likes to sleep with her feet near her face. Ariel celebrated working at her company for five years and they’re expecting their first baby – due in July!
HEATHER GAIE SCHULTZ ’12 of Appleton, Wisconsin, and husband Kory welcomed their little girl, Kelsey, on August 20! She left her job at St. Elizabeth Hospital in November and is now working at Primary Care Associates of Appleton. She is still working as a medical laboratory scientist, but now gets to enjoy clinic hours and no longer has to work weekends and holidays!
STACEY HAMILTON ’12 of Groton, New York, is about to celebrate her three-year anniversary as an Assistant Director in the Financial Aid Office at Cornell University. This year will also be her five-year wedding anniversary!
KATE HAMM ’12 of West Allis, Wisconsin, is welcoming two babies in May 2021!
LISA HILLEREN ’12 of Chicago, Illinois, co-founded a women’s bike racing team and they’re now sponsored by Schwinn.
BRANDON KASUBASKI ’12 of Olympia, Washington, and his wife, Sarah, welcomed their second son, Everett, in October. The Army moved them to Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington in April. He also earned his Masters of Science in Space Studies from American Military University in April.
SHARON KLAPPERICH DOLL ’12 of Green Bay, Wisconsin, w
elcomed a new fish into her family. This little guy gets his own tank, away from the other three fish, to keep her company while she’s teaching from home for now. She is still teaching English Language Arts (ELA) at Preble in Green Bay. She finally conquered knitting with double-pointed needles.
KATLYN LEE SCHUMACHER ’12 of Monroe, Wisconsin, welcomed her first child, Isaac, in May of 2020–he’s the happiest boy! She switched her career over to the web side of merchandising in August.
JEFF MARQUARDT ’12 of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, just celebrated his second wedding anniversary, started a handmade dumpling business with his wife, and is working as a Private Chef for the Milwaukee Bucks. #FearTheDeer
MEGAN MCGEE NORRIS ’12 of Kenosha, Wisconsin, and husband, Adam, had their second baby in April. Their son, Colton, is two and keeps them on their toes. They made it through 2020. Adam’s still with the post office and she’s loving her job as a solo practitioner doing juvenile and family law. Her office building survived the riots with just a few broken windows. Like most of downtown, we are still boarded up. #blacklivesmatter #kenoshastrong
ALAINA NESBITT BENNETT ’12 and AJ BENNETT ’12 of Greenville, Wisconsin, are living in the Appleton area and are still running and trying to keep up with their daughter, Madison, who is a year and a half and full of sass!
EMMA ROBINSON ’12 of Madison, Wisconsin, adopted a hedgehog in 2020. Her name is Mabel and she helps Emma grade papers when she’s not too busy sleeping or eating bugs.
ERIN SCHAICK ’12 of Concord, New Hampshire, is the Assistant Vice President, Director of Development and Community Relations at CATCH Neighborhood Housing. She misses her friends and family in Wisconsin terribly and she hopes to safely visit soon!
KATRINA SCHAULAND WATKINS ’12 of Kodiak, Alaska, is still in Alaska where her husband is stationed with the Coast Guard. They added to their Alaskan adventure on January 16 with the birth of their daughter, Rosalee.
KATHARINE SHADLE GAILS ’12 just got promoted to office manager of a newly opened Aspen Dental office in her hometown!
BRANDON TAYLOR ’12 of San Francisco, California, started a new job at a consulting firm after taking some time off from his previous employer. He purchased a house with his fiancée in February 2020, just before lockdown, and got his puppy, “Waffle”, shortly thereafter. They are currently debating new dates for their wedding that was originally planned for this summer.
BRY TUDOR GAWLIK ’12 and JUSTIN GAWLIK ’12 of De Pere, Wisconsin are enjoying living in the Green Bay Area. Justin still works in athletics at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay (UWGB) and BRY is a deputy with the Brown County Sheriff’s Office.
BRYANT VANDE KOLK ’12 of Baltimore, Maryland, completed a one-year fellowship with the National Nuclear Security Administration, took a position with Northrop Grumman, and moved to Baltimore – all in June last year. Lockdown inspired him to fill a few planters on his patio with herbs, start a paint-by-numbers project, and hike a bit more. Plus, he’ll be an uncle this February!
NIKKI WEICHBROD BEEK ’12 and ZACH BEEK ’15 of Oshkosh, Wisconsin, welcomed a baby girl, McKinli, to the world on September 16, 2020.
SARAH WEINBERG UNDERHILL ’12 and JORDAN UNDERHILL ’11 of Minneapolis, Minnesota, got married on Halloween with just their parents and siblings. Sarah started her graduate program for a Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS) at St. Catherine University in St. Paul, Minnesota. She also learned to roller skate and can’t wait until the snow melts so she can get back out there!
Thank you again to everyone who shared their updates! Please stay safe and healthy and we hope to see you at a reunion soon!
Erin Schaick ’12
(920) 312-3825
Brandon Taylor ’12
(406) 274-4708
Katlyn Lee Schumacher ’12
(608) 558-9073