R Connections

Hey, Class of 2018,

It’s been a minute since you’ve heard from us, but we were so happy to receive your updates this time around. I don’t know about you, but we had the realization the other day that it has been four years since graduation. For most of us here, these four years have marked many significant milestones. Some of you have completed professional degrees and are now working in your dream fields. For others, you have started climbing in your career into new roles and responsibilities. You’ve gotten married. You’ve started families (pets included). You’ve moved to a new city, or maybe you’ve made a completely life-changing decision and are now starting down a new path. Wherever you are, don’t forget to take a moment and recognize how far you’ve come since crossing the stage at Harwood Memorial Union. They say life after college flies by, but that doesn’t mean we can’t stop and take a minute to appreciate everything Ripon has given us. What part of your life do you owe to Ripon?

Many of you have already given back to the College through #OneDayRally or the Ripon Fund. Others have attended Alumni Weekend to reconnect with old friends. Whatever way you choose, don’t forget to stay connected and grateful for the unique experience we all got from our Alma Mater. We hope you all have a great 2022 and don’t forget we’re just one year closer to our five-year Reunion! Alumni Weekend this summer will be June 23-26, 2022.

Below are some updates from your fellow classmates:

EMMA ALLEN ’18 is working as a COVID-19 epidemiologist in New Haven, Connecticut.

JAKE BAUS ’18 of Merrill, Wisconsin, graduated from UW-Madison with a doctorate in physical therapy last May. He has been working full-time in Merrill, Wisconsin, as a physical therapist with Marshfield Clinic.

COLLEEN ELZINGA ’18 of Evergreen Park, Illinois, recently passed her veterinary licensing exam (NAVLE) and will be graduating with a doctor of veterinary medicine (DVM) degree from the University of Illinois this May.

LAUREN HINCE ’18 still resides in Chicago where she works for Chicago Debates supporting debate-based programming for Chicago Public School students. She also has been helping to coach the UW-Madison ethics bowl team alongside fellow alumni, J.J. GRINDE ’16. She adopted a dog last year named Franklin.

ELLIOT HOERDEMANN ’18 moved to Fayetteville, Arkansas, to work as a distributor sales executive for Molson Coors Beverage Company.

KAT KULAS ’18 is working as an RN in Appleton while also attending Marian University to get her degree as a nurse practitioner.

EMMA MCDONALD ’18 of Ripon, Wisconsin, is working as an outpatient physical therapist at Ascension Mercy Hospital in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.

WILLIAM PENTERMAN ’18 of Columbus, Wisconsin, was recently elected to the Wisconsin State Assembly in a special election last July. He also re-enlisted in the United States Army Reserve in May of 2021. He and his wife ABBY HILKER PENTERMAN ’19 have enjoyed exploring new hobbies such as swimming across Devil’s Lake and gardening.

MERRANDA SCHMID ’18 of Ripon, Wisconsin, is an adjunct instructor of chemistry. At Ripon, she majored in chemistry with a minor in biology. This year, she graduated from Colorado State University with a master’s degree in chemistry with a concentration in material science. For two years at Colorado State, she was a chemistry teaching assistant there working with both chemistry and non-chemistry majors. She now is a laboratory technician with STgenetics. She is from Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. She is the first in her family to receive a graduate-level degree and she has a Mexican heritage on her mother’s side.

EMILY STANCZAK ’18 of Indianapolis, Indiana, is celebrating passing her qualifying exam. She is now officially a Ph.D. candidate at Indiana University.

KATELYN VAN SWOL ’18 of Sturtevant, Wisconsin, started a new position at Uline as assistant to the Vice President of consumer relations. She is also working on a master’s in communication from Arizona State University. She will graduate in December.

CARYSSA WAITE ’18 of Princeton, Wisconsin, is working as a universal banker for Fortifi Bank.

SOPHIE WIDMAN ’18 moved to Irvine, California where her husband JAMES BALESTERI ’19 is completing his master’s in theater.

See you soon!

LAUREN HINCE ’18
(763) 706-7473

HOLLY ERICKSON ’18
(262) 497-7796

ELEANORE MUELLER WOOD ’18
(920) 539-2935

Your 2018 Class Agents

Submitted by: Class Agents: Lauren Hince, Holly Erickson, and Eleanore Mueller Wood

Hi, Class of 2016!

It is time to say goodbye to winter and welcome spring with open arms. As the sun starts to peek out for longer and longer, don’t forget to spread some light to your friends as well! The Class Letter is a great time for us all to touch base and connect with one another, so don’t forget to check in on your classmates and be sure to share a smile.

Please join me in thanking, ELIZABETH KONIECZNY YAMAT ’16 for her service to Ripon College and her dedication as a co-Class Agent for the past six years. ELIZABETH has expressed that she would like to have someone else take over the role of co-Class Agent, and as such, we are actively seeking one or two interested individuals to join me as co-Class Agent. As her fellow Class Agent, I want to recognize ELIZABETH for helping to keep us all connected since graduation.

What does it take to be a Class Agent? We write a Class Letter each fall and spring, and we include updates from classmates as we receive them. Being a Class Agent gives us a direct line of communication with a staff member at Ripon College, and we collaborate closely with the Office of Constituent Engagement to write Class Letters. The College will take care of sending out Class Letters both through email and through snail mail.

Here are some reasons why you may want to consider being a Class Agent:

• You will have unique opportunities to get information, often before our general alumni population, and you will get to know campus staff and administration on a more personal level.
• You will help the College keep track of the contact information of classmates, helping ensure that all of us get to keep in touch. This is also important to help keep classmates connected to the larger Ripon College family.
• It feels good to give back to your Alma Mater in such a tangible way.

Please email me, SARA DRIEBEL, at [email protected], or email [email protected], with any questions or to state your interest in becoming a new Class Agent for our class.

Some fun news from our Alma Mater: During the search for Ripon’s next president, Interim President Dr. Andrea Young has joined us on Twitter and Instagram as @RiponPrez. Make sure you are following along for all sorts of exciting updates and Ripon news!

Thank you to everyone who participated in the #OneDayRally and in all of our other fundraising efforts this fiscal year! Your contributions go far and are appreciated. And don’t forget to mark your calendars for our annual Alumni Weekend, taking place this year over June 23-26.

Finally, a great big thank you to all who reached out and responded with updates on their lives. You all continue to inspire and amaze me, and I am proud to be part of your class! Now, on to the updates!

GARRISON ANDERSON ’16 of Chicago, Illinois, designed a limited-run poster for the singer, rapper, and writer Dessa.

GISELLE TIMOTHY THOMAS ’16 of Madison, Wisconsin, formerly known as Matthew Thomas Schultz has so many life updates to share. She’s come out as a transgender woman and is going by a new name since her last alumna update. She has also made plans to leave being an optician at Costco to live her lifelong dream of being a travel writer. GISELLE is working with Ripon alumna AMANDA FINN ’14 on AMANDA’s new travel website geared towards including stories from the types of travelers whose stories aren’t shared in most travel blogs and guides. Dream Suitcase is focused on giving an authentic voice back to travel while highlighting marginalized voices and stories. GISELLE is definitely still a work in progress, but is excited to share her journey with everyone who wants to tune in as she’s preparing to take flight into a new career and more fulfilling life. While there’s not much from GISELLE there now, going forward the best place to keep tabs on GISELLE between these class updates will be via her and AMANDA’s new website, www.dreamsuitcase.com. Both GISELLE and AMANDA would encourage all of their Ripon friends to check out the site and like Dream Suitcase on Facebook because they are excited about what they have been cooking up the past few months.

KATIE TREDINNICK ’16 of Fitchburg, Wisconsin, is pursuing a DVM/MPH dual degree at UW-Madison. She is expected to graduate in May 2024.

NICK LUEDTKE ’16 of Appleton, Wisconsin, is finishing his Ph.D. in chemistry and recently made a protein containing an unnatural amino acid. He is looking forward to sharing those new experiences and discoveries at Ripon College in two oral presentations. There is a lot of momentum in NICK’s life with post-graduate job hunting, and he is excited to get married on May 14, 2022!

MADESON WALGENBACH LEWIN ’16 of Waupun, Wisconsin, is a Spanish teacher at Waupun Junior High.

MINH DO ’16 is still working at a bank in Vietnam. He just got promoted!

RACHEL ROKUSEK GASSER ’16 of Chesapeake, Virginia, started a new job in August 2021. She and her husband, Andrew, were married in November, and they just bought their first home together!

SARA DRIEBEL ’16 of Pewaukee, Wisconsin, had her first flat tire and made it far worse than it needed to be. It’s truly what she deserves for treating a cube car like it can offroad on hiking adventures. Otherwise, SARA is still working in HR during the week and teaching at the zoo on the weekends and has been enjoying doing as much wildlife photography, reading, gardening, and crocheting as possible in her free time.

Thank you for sharing your updates and news with us!

With love,

SARA DRIEBEL ’16
(262) 347-1484 / (262) 439-8124 

Your 2016 Class Agent

Submitted by: Class Agent: Sara Driebel

Hello, Class of 2015!

How has life been? Whether it’s been seven years(!) since you’ve stepped foot on campus or you live nearby, it’s lovely to be in your inbox today. I hope this letter brings fond memories, where fresh-baked cookies (not cows) lingered through the air, where your friends were just a room away, and where you finally hit the hay after grinding through an essay at 3 a.m. (just me?). Ripon will always connect us.

As I’m closing my first year at my second post-college “adult job,” I’ve had some thoughts about work, life, relationships, and identity, and I’d love to share three notes with you. If this is too long, skip ahead, but know that you are appreciated and that both SAM KAY ’15 and I (KAYLIE LONGLEY ’15) hope life is okay!

Some learnings about attempting to balance life and work in this very strange world:

• Your identity is not simply your job title(s). If you base your life’s satisfaction on your job and you get let go or quit, you may start questioning your life’s meaning. That is natural. However, I recommend basing your identity or identities on much more, such as the work you do that doesn’t come from a paycheck, “likes,” or attention.
• Your worth is not dependent on marriage, family, career, or status. As a human, you are enough. Period, end of sentence.
• I hope you are doing work you’re proud of. As humans, we contrive meaning(s) as coping mechanism(s), but I truly wish you good work and a life well lived.

Now, onto those updates from our very cool classmates:

KATIE BIEDLER ’15 of Saint Cloud, Minnesota, will be working as a financial solutions representative for Alight Solutions, starting this spring.

ANDREW CARBALLO ’15 of Minneapolis, Minnesota, will be marrying his girlfriend, Emily, this summer.

ZACH CONNORS ’15 of Madison, Wisconsin, works as recruitment coordinator at Raven Software which is part of Activision Blizzard studio. ZACH and his boyfriend, Weston, got engaged last summer.

STEPHEN COVALT ’15 and KORRINE PETERSON COVALT ’15 of Crystal Lake, Illinois, celebrated their son Carson’s first birthday last February. KORRINE is working at Karcher Middle School as a Special Education Teacher, and she is also still coaching softball.

EMELIA ERICKSON ’15 of Cincinnati, Ohio, recently celebrated five years with the Lodge Retirement Community. She looks forward to putting a few more thousand miles on her bike and hopes that everyone reading this knows it’s ok to be turning 30 without a marriage, kids, or salaried career.

CHRISTIAN ERTEL ’15 of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, married Emily on May 19, 2021.

KAYLYN FREEMAN MACKIN ’15 of Beaufort, South Carolina, was married in April 2021 and hopes to start a family soon.

WYLIE GAHART ’15 of Kenosha, Wisconsin, is currently working as an Elementary School Counselor in the Elkhorn Area School District. She recently got engaged to Ty Iverson and is planning to be married in September of 2023.

CHELSEA GRAHN ANDREWS ’15 moved back to Wisconsin and is now lecturing for UW-Madison in the Psych. Department.

PETER HAYES ’15 of Chicago, Illinois, is working as an investment product manager at Envestnet. He is currently in a part-time MBA program at DePaul and expects to finish in the winter. He plans to move in with his girlfriend at the end of April.

GISELLE DAVIS KAUFFELD ’15 of Ripon, Wisconsin, writes, “I graduated from UW Madison in May 2021 with a Masters degree in Social Work and I recently accepted a job offer at the Fond du Lac County Department of Community Programs as a Children’s Long-Term Support Service Coordinator or CLTS Service Coordinator for short. I am loving it.”

SAMANTHA KAY ’15 has been working with the American Society of Gene & Cell Therapy for five years as the Global Outreach Manager. Her work helps to increase access to potentially curative gene therapies in resource-poor countries. SAM bought a duplex in Riverwest, Wisconsin, in 2021 and spent most of last year renovating it. She also adopted an orange cat named Theo, who is waiting for his turn to use the single brain cell that all orange cats share.

JADEE KELLOGG SEN ’15 and AKASH SEN ’16 moved to Colorado Springs, Colorado. They and their dog, Apollo, are enjoying seeing the mountains every day and going on hikes on the weekends.

SAM KLEIN ’15 and SERGE FEDOROWSKY ’15 of Aurora, Colorado, have been playing a lot of video games and board games while eating vegan tasties in their pockets of free time. They also adopted chinchillas, bought a house, got engaged, and married each other.

LUKE MORGAN ’15 and JESSICA SKIBA MORGAN ’15 bought an 1800’s farmhouse in Myra, Wisconsin. They have been updating their home and doing lots of fixer-upper projects. They celebrated a year in the house this past February and also welcomed their son, Cyrus.

KAYLIE LONGLEY ’15 is loving life in the Colorado sunshine in Denver. She works at the Montessori School of Denver as marketing manager, co-coach of Girls on the Run, and designer of the yearbook (yep, the yearbook is back in her life!). She’s building partnerships with other creative entrepreneurs on kaylielongley.com and on Instagram @kaylieadventures. When not working, she’s climbing trees, sipping coffee, reading for fun, or playing with doggos.

NICOLE MALLI ’15 of Washington, D.C., joined the America250 Foundation as the Senior Manager of National and Community Partnerships. In her role, NICOLE is building relationships with national and community organizations and leading cultural institutions to support larger-than-life partner programs and initiatives that weave a tapestry of diverse American stories in honor of our nation’s semiquincentennial. Her cats are living their best lives and are an active representation of Feline American planning semiquincentennial events.

KATIE JO MCGEE ’15 is loving her role as English Specialist for Etonkida in Nanjing, China.

CHLOE PIEPHO COREY ’15 of Rochester, Minnesota, started a new job recently. She is back at the Mayo Clinic as a Communications Specialist supporting the Department of Surgery.

MADDIE POULLETTE ’15 of Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, got engaged at Peninsula State Park in Door County to her boyfriend, Peter, in November. They enjoy vegan brunch and raising cats together.

BRISTOLE RYFF ’15 of Orland Park, Illinois, is halfway through her first year teaching and loving it. She is a kindergarten special education teacher. Nothing beats the optimism and honesty of kindergarteners! She got engaged to her fiance, Mike, over the summer, and they are in full planning mode for their September 30th wedding this year. They are also beginning to pack up their apartment in hopes of moving in the near future!

KARLYN SCHUMACHER ’15 of Ripon, Wisconsin, the assistant librarian-access services at Lane Library, wrote a blog post titled “Starting from Scratch: OER at a Small Liberal Arts College” for OER and Beyond, posted October 6, 2021. The blog post is about open educational resources.

SAM SEILER ’15 of Cleveland, Ohio, is finishing her family medicine residency this summer and moving back to Wisconsin, possibly even the Ripon area.

LAURA SHIVELY ’15 of Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, has celebrated getting fully vaccinated by getting engaged to her boyfriend of five years. They adopted a puppy this summer, named Fraser Lloyd, and purchased a beautiful house for him with a giant backyard in February 2022. She looks forward to turning dead Wisconsin winter grass into lush vegetable gardens and convincing her future husband that no, they will not have white walls in their house.

JOHN ’15 and KRISTY OGLESBY SPADONI ’15 are enjoying life in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, with their pups, Izzy and Bruce. KRISTY recently decided to quit her previous job to dedicate her time to taking over her family business, Oglesby Hardwood Flooring. If you’re in need of new floors, please reach out!

SHAUNNA BAUMHARDT STEGGALL ’15 and husband KYLUN STEGGALL ’14 of Watertown, Wisconsin, are having baby boy number four in early March.

NATE ’15 and BRI MILROY SIUDAK ’15 of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, had a wedding so nice they did it twice! They were wed in December of 2020 and celebrated their union again in December of 2021 with friends and family. BRI is working as a school counselor in West Allis, and NATE is working at Titus Talent Strategies.

ANTHONY TAUSIG ’15 ​​of Chicago, Illinois, celebrated four years at Broadspire. ANTHONY is living with his girlfriend of seven years, ALLISON MACKNICK ’17… maybe 2022 will be the year he proposes?

ROB ’15 and KAMELLE VAN DER LEEST WATERS ’15 of Blue Mounds, Wisconsin, welcomed their son, Theodore, on October 6, 2021. He has already visited Ripon for the Alumni Track and Field Meet in January. KAMELLE is still a Grievance & Appeals Specialist at Dean Health Plan, and ROB is working for Schmidt Landscaping out of Belleville. They are looking forward to getting together with friends and family in 2022.

JILL VANEPEREN BEILFUSS ’14 of Fremont, Wisconsin, writes, “My husband, MITCHEL BEILFUSS  ’15, and I welcomed our sweet baby girl, Jordyn Alyse, on January 3, 2021.”

KAITLYN WELZEN ’15 and David Spruill recently traveled to Kauai where they got engaged. In April, they are moving to Durham, North Carolina, to be closer to David’s family. KAITLYN is going to miss working at Woodland Park Zoo but is looking forward to her next adventures in North Carolina.

CETONIA WESTON-ROY ’15 of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is expecting a baby girl this spring wth husband, MAX ROY ’14. She has purchased a historic building in the Bronzeville neighborhood of Milwaukee to open her bookstore, Niche Book Bar.

KEVIN WHITENEIR, JR. ’15 of Chicago, Illinois, writes, “I resigned from the Art Institute of Chicago after almost five years and becoming their first Black librarian. I’m now an archives director for a Black nonprofit called the Black Lunch Table, and I had a solo gallery exhibit with a gallery called An Sylvia Exhibitions last June.”

Don’t forget to save the date for this summer’s Alumni Weekend: June 23-26, 2022.

Take care,

KAYLIE LONGLEY ’15
(262) 212-7394

SAMANTHA KAY ’15
(414) 587-5958

Your 2015 Class Agents

Submitted by: Class Agents: Sam Kay and Kaylie Longley

Hello, Class of 2014,

I (TIM HOLME ’14) hope everyone is doing well. I’m hopeful that we can all reunite at Ripon for Alumni Weekend pending another Greek letter COVID variant emerging this summer. I can’t believe it has been three years from our Class Reunion and eight from graduation, time really does fly by. I have been living in Portage, Wisconsin, for three years now. I recently took a new position within the DNR as a Conservation Biologist Crew Lead. I still live with KATIE WILLIAMS ’13 pending I do the dishes and make her breakfast. Here is what the rest of the Class of 2014 is up to.

Class Notes:

AMANDA LAMAL CLARK ’14 of Green Bay, Wisconsin, writes, “WYATT CLARK ’15 and I had baby #3! Briella Rose Clark was born on 11/24/21 and celebrated our five years of marriage this past June.”

SAMANTHA ANGELL EASTBERG ’14 of Marshfield, Wisconsin, and her spouse recently welcomed a new baby to the family, Joseph Anthony Eastberg, on November 10, 2021.

BREANNA GRACZ FORSETH ’14 of Saint Louis, Missouri, writes, “DAVID FORSETH ’13 and I are growing our family by adding another little boy next month. We are enjoying every minute of the beautiful life we’ve built in St. Louis. Our son will start Kindergarten this year and our daughter will be turning three right before her baby brother is born. I’m currently working as a Sales Executive helping Americans gain access to 401(K) plans and have the opportunity to retire with dignity.”

NICK FROM ’14 of Brookfield, Wisconsin, writes, “ADRIANA SERIU FROM ’14 and I recently built our new home in Waukesha. This past year she took a new job as Head Accountant for Connected Technology Solutions. I have been working for Enterprise going on eight years now. Our son, Remi, will soon be one and a half.”

CASEY GOTT ’14 of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, was written about by the Hunger Task Force in honor of Indigenous Peoples’ Day. They write that CASEY has been working to end hunger with Hunger Task Force since April 2021. CASEY is quoted to say, “As long as I can remember, Hunger Task Force has always had a powerful presence in the community. We all knew about the good work happening there.”

LIZ GREVER ’14 writes, “I moved to Seattle, Washington, and started a new position as a Product Manager at Guild Education.

AMANDA FINN HAGGERTY ’14 of Chicago, Illinois, was profiled in the November issue of the American Theatre Critics Association publication. To read more information about this visit https://ripon.edu/2021/11/24/amanda-finn-haggerty-14-profiled-in-theatre-critics-publication/.

MADELINE SOCKNESS HERRMANN ’14 of Appleton, Wisconsin, is an educator at Appleton Area School District.

KARLYE WEHNER KRIEN ’14, her husband Marcus, and their son, Kane, are living in Burlington, Wisconsin. KARLYE is working for Children’s Wisconsin at Kenosha Pediatrics as a Behavioral Health Consultant.

LEXIE SCHAFFER LAU ’14 of Kaukauna, Wisconsin, writes, “My husband and I started our own small business making mead (honey wine). We officially opened in September of 2021! We are still a relatively small operation but are slowly gaining more interest from the public. We are currently only doing online sales and curbside pickup due to our location and state regulations. But, you can follow us on Facebook at Hex Meadery and on oznr.com for purchasing if interested. It’s been an exciting process, to say the least! I am also in my fourth season as an Assistant Track and Field coach for Hilbert High School. I’m currently working for Calumet Country as an administrative assistant, as well as, managing all the paperwork for our business.”

ERIC LANGMAN ’14 of Oak Creek, Wisconsin, writes, “I am a middle school science teacher in Cudahy. I am also the head football coach at Cudahy High School.”

ALICIA BARNES MOEHR ’14 of Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, writes, “My husband, Joe, and I were married in October 2021. We’ve been enjoying the newlywed life with our dog, Chance, who will be three in May. I am excitedly growing my business and Joe is a cheesemaker at Grande Cheese.”

LUKE MORGAN ’14 of West Bend, Wisconsin, writes, “JESSICA SKIBA MORGAN ’15 and I became parents this year: Cyrus Joseph Morgan was born 1-29-22, 6 lbs., 5 oz.”

ALI NEMECEK ’14 of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, writes, “Well, Zadie, (Mike and my pup) officially now has more clothes than any dog I know – but, Zadie needs a Ripon sweater! I’m still living in Milwaukee and working as an attorney at Church Mutual Insurance Company. My mom (BETH PALMBACH NEMECEK ’79) is really in need of a kidney donor now – if you’re interested in a donation, please let me know!”

KARL OSTERMAN ’14 of Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, writes, “In May 2021, I made a major career shift and started a new dream – beer brewing! I was recently promoted to Head Brewer of Broken Bat Brewing Company in Downtown Milwaukee! My wife, Kimmy, continues to work as a School Psychologist in Hartford.”

AMANDA SPATCHEK PETERMANN ’14 of Reedsville, Wisconsin, writes, “This March, I am celebrating one year as a corporate accountant with Miller Electrical Manufacturing Company. I celebrated five years of marriage this past fall with my high school sweetheart, Adam. Every day it’s exciting to watch our son, Liam, who is now two-and-a-half years old, learn new things and explore this world!”

MAXWELL ROY ’14 of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, writes, “CETONIA WESTON-ROY ’15 and I are expecting a baby girl in late April. Our son, Xavier, recently turned eight! I’m enrolled at the Medical College of Wisconsin in the Doctor of Public Health Program, focusing on the mental wellbeing of leaders in non-profits and community-based organizations for my dissertation. I am still serving as the Director of Operations for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Washington County.”

KATIE RAYMOND ’14 writes, “I started a new job in November 2021 as the Waushara County Treatment Court Coordinator!”

TY RUTKOWSKI ’14 of Dundee, Illinois, writes, “I’ll be celebrating six years of employment with the Michigan State Police where I have been working as a Michigan State Trooper.”

LIZ WALSH ’14 is wrapping up her postdoctoral fellowship in Alberta, Canada, after accepting a job offer from the USDA-ARS Honey Bee Breeding and Physiology Laboratory. She is Baton Rouge bound for a permanent position as a research scientist.

NIKKI GLASHEEN WEAVER ’14 and CHRIS WEAVER ’16 of Genoa City, Wisconsin, are married! They bought a home together and now reside in Southern Wisconsin.

RACHEL WEDEWARD ’14 of Oak Park, Illinois, writes, “I started a new job as a Research Project manager for the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry, in November 2021 in Chicago.”

Thank you all for the updates and small glimpses into your lives. We are looking forward to seeing everyone June 23-26, 2022 for Alumni Weekend and just a friendly reminder #OneDayRally is on April 27th this year so be on the lookout for more updates on that to follow.

Thanks again, and go Red Hawks!

Sincerely,

TIM HOLME ’14
(608) 333-9526

MARA JENSEN POULLETTE ’14
(920)-946-8498

Your 2014 Class Agents

Submitted by: Class Agents: Tim Holme & Mara Jensen Poullette

Dearest Class of 2013,

What a year 2020 2021… I mean, 2022 is already. It feels like just 84 years ago we were sitting outside of the quad in the spring air, at various garden parties; tea and crumpets in hand. Not a solo cup or plastic bottle in sight. While those beautiful, relatively carefree days are behind us, there are a lot of daily Ripon reminders.

Personally, I (LAUREN OTT ’13) am planning a wedding to KYLE GREENE ’15. We have been engaged for a little over a year and in that time I left my job, started a garden, KYLE started a new job, we got another puppy (Gus- he is perfect), I bought a truck, we’re building a chicken coop… a lot has been going on.

Similarly, a lot is going on at Ripon. As you likely know, our friend President Messitte left Ripon College and we have an Interim President, Andrea Young. Dr. Young is the first woman to lead Ripon College in its 170-year history. You can actually follow her on social: Twitter/ Instagram.

If all of this isn’t enough, our classmates are doing some cool things too:

EMILY ANDERSON ’13 of Hartland, Wisconsin, writes, “My dog just had a litter of five puppies: two girls and three boys. They’re all the most fantastic little land potatoes and getting chunkier by the day.”

HANNAH ANDERSON ’13 of Janesville, Wisconsin, started working at UW-Whitewater as an Academic Advisor within the College of Business and Economics in January of this year. She is also moving in with her boyfriend of two years, Brendan, in March.

LIZABETH BARANCZYK ’13 of Green Bay, Wisconsin, is one year into recovery from brain surgery. GO LIZABETH!!

ANDY ’12 and KATE AMELL FEHRENBACH ’13 of Minneapolis, Minnesota added a second dog to their mix. KATE writes, “We got Franklin, a miniature schnauzer/pug mix, this fall. He’s a loveable little munchkin who we are convinced is actually part cat and part goat (he loves to climb and perch on things).”

DAVID ’13 and BREANNA GRACZ FORSETH ’13 of Saint Louis, Missouri, are expecting a baby boy at the end of March! Their oldest (Caleb) and youngest (Noelle) are patiently awaiting his arrival.

EMILY MEYERS HAHN ’13 of Cottage Grove, Wisconsin, is due at the beginning of April with a baby boy!

EMILY KIJEK SCHWANDT ’13 of South Milwaukee, Wisconsin, writes, “My sweet and perfect fur baby, Mia (pictured here), will be three years old this month!”

JOHANNA BURTON LANPHIER ’13 and husband, MICHAEL LANPHIER ’15, moved into a house in Lincoln, Nebraska, last summer. He won a trip through work to Japan next year! MICHAEL and JOHANNA also shared their career wisdom and scientific insight with Ripon College students through Zoom for the Biology Senior Seminar course, which took place in Bear Auditorium in early October. JOHANNA successfully hatched and hand-raised Lincoln Children’s Zoo’s first-ever Humboldt penguin chick!

TREVOR LYNN ’13 of Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin, completed the superintendent program through Edgewood College. He will be issued his principal and superintendent licenses in a few weeks.

PAUL MEUER ’13 of Fitchburg, Wisconsin, was lucky enough to go on a vacation this summer to the North Shore of Minnesota with his beau KATIE TREDINNICK ’16. KATIE starts her second year of vet school in September.

SHAUNA PICHETTE ’13 of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, started a new position as the Clinical Training Specialist at NOCD, a telehealth company specializing in OCD & related disorders.

STEPHANIE RHYNER ’13 of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, writes, “Got married to my lovely wife Maria Remley and I am continuing to work at UW-EC, UWM and MIAD.”

MATTHEW ROHRBECK ’13 and DARCIE FIRST ’13 of Columbus, Wisconsin, were married in November 2021.

KASEN RUMPF ’13 and SARAH GUSTAFSON RUMPF ’10 of Brookfield, Wisconsin, welcomed their second child, Rollins, to the family in June 2021.

CASEY SIMONSON ’13 of Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, and his wife, Merisa, are having a baby girl! The due date is June 24, 2022.

AMANDA VIRTUE ’13 of Lake Mills, Wisconsin, sold her half-duplex and bought a different house. She is now closer to work and just down the street from EMILY MEYERS HAHN ’13. She shares that the best part of the house is the fenced-in backyard for her pup!

CHARLOTTE LEE WAHLE ’13 and her husband, Marty, of Marshall, Minnesota, are expecting their second child in mid-April!

KAITIE JO STUMBRIS ’13 and NICK WEISS ’13 of Mayville, Wisconsin, bought a new house out of quarantine. They are chasing their two girls around, River and Winter. KAITIE JO has been promoted to Regional Manager for Aspen Dental. NICK is now Nationally Board Certified for teaching. They report that their levels of alcohol intake have greatly increased since college, which is to be expected.

ZACH WIELAND ’13 of Appleton, Wisconsin paid all of his student loans off! He is a free elf!

As you continue on with your beautiful lives, consider making plans to attend Alumni Weekend: June 23-26, 2022. Next year is our TEN YEAR REUNION, so please block your entire June 2023 (June 22-25, 2023, officially). I would be remiss if I didn’t also thank those of you who have donated to Ripon over the last year, with the reminder that #OneDayRally is scheduled for Wednesday, April 27.

That’s all for me. I hope you are all warm, healthy, and content.

Stay cool,

LAUREN OTT ’13
(651) 399-4363

ALI PELTIER ’13
(608) 228-0733

CHARLOTTE LEE WAHLE ’13
(971) 222-5905

Your 2013 Class Agents

Submitted by: Class Agents: Ali Peltier, Charlotte Lee Wahle, and Lauren Ott

Dear Class of 2011,

Greetings! I come bearing zero gifts. Sorry. I did just see the Uncharted movie and honestly, it was pretty decent. It was a fun, adventure-type movie without requiring much thinking. So, if you’re in the mood for something easy, I’d suggest it. Based on that review I don’t see much of a future in movie criticism for me, so here are a few updates from the College for this upcoming year.

Set aside the weekend of June 23 to June 26, 2022, for Alumni Weekend. It’s not a reunion year but the College still gives us “free” beer! Better to drink on their dime than on our own! Fun fact, Alumni Weekend registration opens April 1 online and we can register for the whole weekend for a modest amount and eat and drink to our heart’s content.

From July 2020 to July 2021, our Class had a total of 20.31% participation in donations made to the Ripon Fund. I think that’s an exceptional accomplishment, especially given the circumstances and uncertainty we’ve all been enduring the past year. Obviously, it’d be awesome if we can get the number higher. Any donation counts towards participation so I encourage everyone to participate if they can. Thanks to all those who participated this past year in any way, shape, or form. This year, #OneDayRally is set for Wednesday, April 27.

Entering year three of the COVID-19 pandemic, I find myself reflecting on what this past year (and, really, the whole pandemic) has done to my own relationships – professional and personal. I know I’ve lost touch with some people I wish I hadn’t, that my friendships have changed in how they look, and even my own actions and reactions to things have changed. Just a friendly reminder to go easy on yourself – everyone reacts differently and I think it’s safe to say that we’ve never experienced something like this before nor have any of our role models. We’re all sorta just figuring it out as we go. So be kind to yourself.

I hope you continue to stay healthy and happy and that you consider reaching out to me and maybe to someone you haven’t in a while. I’d welcome the chat and I’m sure they would, too!

Class Notes:

AMANDA HASSEN ’11 of Deerfield, Illinois, recently got promoted to Lead Operations Data Specialist! (SHANE’s note: Congratulations!) She also has a trip planned to Paris this spring after postponing four times over the last two years.

PATTY DETERMAN TAKAWIRA ’11 of Henderson, Minnesota, shares that if she suddenly woke up as JORDAN SALZER O’BRIEN ’11 Freak Friday style, she would immediately run to her enormous pantry filled with 1,000 different kinds of candy and eat it in her kitchen that had been meticulously cleaned by BRENDAN O’BRIEN ’11. Then, PATTY (in JORDAN’s body) would get into her nice car, also meticulously vacuumed and polished, drive to Minnesota, and figure out how to get her regular body back.

CARISSA TURK ERICKSON ’11 and her husband, GRANT ERICKSON ’09, bought a house in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, and moved there in April 2021 with their three sons. GRANT owns his own law practice and CARISSA is working for the YMCA of Dane County.

SARA SISCO ’11 of Bothell, Washington, married her best friend, Mike Newman, in the summer of 2020. They live in the woods with their two Vizslas, Dexter and Dobbins. They are expecting their first baby this spring. SARA recently was promoted to Senior Manager of Mobility Education & Outreach at a Seattle-based non-profit.

NICK OSENBERG ’11 of Royal Oak, Michigan, is continuing to teach high school drama during a pandemic. He shares that it is super fun with the ever-changing COVID-19 regulations and diminishing respect for the teaching profession. In what little spare time he has, he has begun reading again with a special interest in books by the classicists. He’s currently listening to the 2004 tour version of Mamma Mia since he’s scenic designing it in the spring. NICK also suggests that his favorite book is “A Fatal Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum: Murder in Ancient Rome” by Emma Southon. He’s hoping to go to NYC to see the Funny Girl revival and to Toronto in the near future. (SHANE’s note: He answered one of my prompts rather inappropriately so if you’d like to know what he said about his Freaky Friday experience, text me).

KRISTIN MERKER GREENBERG ’11 of Chicago, Illinois, shares that Baby Greeny is expected in April of 2022!

ZACH SMITH ’11 of St. Louis, Missouri, shared that he got hitched, got a new dog (SHANE’s note: He put a “?” after this so the jury’s out on whether he actually did get a new dog), and “ef the man.”

TIFFANY SEERING WATERS ’11 of Ormond Beach, Florida, shares that she’s a science teacher at Seabreeze High! Go CRABS! She and her family are living on the Atlantic side of Florida and mention that nothing is better than sand and surf. TIFFANY also got to see her two best friends, CANDACE ELLEFSON DORO ’11 and CASSY ZUMMALLEN ’11, and that none of them feel as old as they are and, in fact, it felt like they were just walking through Johnson Hall yesterday.

MISSY MEIERHOFER ’11 has been working as a postdoctoral researcher at the Finnish Museum of Natural History in Helsinki, Finland. Her current project is focused on identifying viruses carried by bats found in Finland. Since she’s been in Finland for a couple of years now, she’s grown accustomed to the ways of sauna and ice swimming. Her future travel plans include more traveling around Europe and hopefully Japan. MISSY is likely going to end up in the U.S. in August for a conference and is excited to visit family in Wisconsin.

AMBER RICO ’11 is working in Madison, Wisconsin, for Thermo Fisher.

ANGELA AUDLEY ’11 of Cedarburg, Wisconsin, started her MBA this year. She’s working in the lab at Kemps Dairy and has a new horse named Gent that she’s currently riding.

Take care and stay healthy,

SHANE ROEBER ’11
M: (262) 617-7707 / H: (262) 695-0555
Your 2011 Class Agent

Submitted by: Class Agent: Shane Roeber

Dear Class of 2010,

We write this Class Letter hoping everyone enjoyed the holiday season and most importantly stayed healthy and safe. We are excited to share the many updates we have received from our class throughout the past few months.

As many of you know Ripon College is currently searching for its 14th President after it was announced in September President Messitte would be leaving the college to return to his hometown. During his time on campus, he has helped Ripon College bolster the endowment, and many capital improvement projects such as the Willmore Center were completed under his watch. Through his leadership, the College has weathered the pandemic and once again is able to operate with students on campus, a feat many colleges were unable to reach. It should be celebrated that our Ripon College peers have been able to learn on campus and experience the life we all remember at Ripon. As we write this, memories of bid day, study abroad, and more flood back and remind us of the fun we all experienced on campus.

Just a friendly reminder that this year Ripon College will again be holding an annual day of giving, known as #OneDayRally on April 27, 2022. This is a perfect time to make a give to your alma mater or even sponsor a donation challenge! We will also be celebrating Alumni Weekend during its usual time slot of June 23 to June 26. We hope to see everyone there!

Class notes:

NICK BAKER ’10 of Carol Stream, Illinois, received the Excellence in Claims award at Farmers Insurance for his superior service in claims handling.

MISTY BRUM ’10 of Kewaskum, Wisconsin, and her fiance, Matt Reible, were planning for a May 2020 wedding, but COVID had other plans. The couple pivoted and celebrated instead with an intimate wedding later in July at the beautiful Swan Barn Door in Wisconsin Dells. Then in June of 2021, they welcomed their daughter Evelyn Mae Reible. While the pandemic has been tough, they are grateful for these wonderful life events!

JEFF ’10 and GWENDOLYN CASEY DAVIS ’10 of Stoughton, Wisconsin, welcomed the birth of their son, Eamon Archibald Davis. GWEN and Eamon are doing great along with his four siblings while JEFF is “losing his mind.”

CPT. BRUCE KUKOWSKI ’10 of Raeford, North Carolina, writes, “I am the assistant operations officer for the 83rd CA BN at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.”

MATT DWYER ’10 of Watertown, Wisconsin, writes, “My wife, AMIE PRUDHOMME DWYER ’13, and I moved to Watertown with our daughter in August 2021 after being in Missouri for seven years. I am a PE and Health teacher at Mayville, and AMIE is a special education teacher at Fort Atkinson.”

CHRISTOPHER SCHAEFER ’10 of Madison, Wisconsin, has been promoted from Legislative Assistant to Research Assistant in the Office of State Representative Rob Brooks, and will serve as Clerk of the Special Assembly Committee on Supply Chain and Trade.

We wish you all the best as this new year gets going!

NICK BAKER ’10
(931) 444-4466

TOMISSA PORATH FREISLEBEN ’10
(715) 853-6104

Your 2010 Class Agents

Submitted by: Class Agents: Nick Baker and Tomissa Porath Freisleben

Hello All!

We hope you all are doing well as we emerge out of winter and head into the spring of a new year! Looking back, spring was always a beautiful time on campus, when everything started blooming back to life and we could enjoy more time outside without the air hurting our faces. And of course, Springfest was always a highlight at the end of a long academic year!

As we write this, JOSH LEGREVE ’09 is staying busy, splitting his time between preparing his first cohort of IB Diploma Program students for their IB exams and working on the Central States Conference on the Teaching of Foreign Languages’ upcoming Virtual Conference as a member of the organization’s board of directors. He has also been working on a committee with the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction’s Teaching and Learning Team for a project focusing on designing sample unit plans based on our newly revised state standards.

EMILY MEYER ’09 is in solo-parenting mode for the long haul as her husband, STEPHEN KENNELLY ’98, has been deployed. Lily is six-years-old and James is about to turn three. She is also in the middle of staff selection at her university, working on hiring new RAs for the next school year. Other than that, she has been buried in snow during the ridiculously cold Fargo winter.

Here are some updates from the College:

#OneDayRally:
Thank you so much to everyone that gave last year to both the Ripon Fund and on #OneDayRally. This year, #OneDayRally is scheduled for Wednesday, April 27. More information regarding #OneDayRally will be coming soon, and watch for information from both the College and from us on challenges and donation matching.

Alumni Weekend:
Alumni Weekend will be June 23-26, 2022, this year. Watch your email for more information and registration from the College as the dates approach. We would love to see you all there and have a great Class of 2009 showing! Also, we will be celebrating EMILY’s birthday that weekend!

Staying Connected:
Ripon’s Interim President Dr. Andrea Young has a new Twitter: twitter.com/RiponPrez and Instagram: instagram.com/riponprez/. Follow these accounts to stay updated on campus happenings! You can also keep up to date on campus happenings at ripon.edu/news to find out if any of our classmates or favorite faculty members have been featured in a recent news story.

Class Notes:
NATALIE GEENEN ANDERSON ’09 of Evansville, Wisconsin, will be inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame during the 1851 Awards Dinner and Program on the Friday evening of Alumni Weekend on June 24 in recognition of her achievements in softball. Congratulations, NATALIE!

MATTHEW BARRILE ’09, Ph.D. of Los Angeles, California, entered a new role as Manager of Instructional Design and Development for the Sol Price School of Public Policy at the University of Southern California.

IAN HILL ’09 of Saint Francis, Wisconsin, writes, “After being a contractor for them since summer 2020, I’m happy to announce I’ve been hired on as business analyst for Landmark Credit Union! I look forward to continuing my journey in the project management world with this amazing company!”

ZAC MANS ’09 of Minneapolis, Minnesota, has started working at Anoka High School where he is teaching social studies and also serves as the Auditorium Manager and Technical Director for the Theater program.

We are always looking for more updates! You can send your updates to either of us and we will make sure they are included! We hope that you are all doing well, and hope that many of us can reconnect this summer on campus!

Be well,

EMILY MEYER ’09
(920) 369-8707

JOSH LEGREVE ’09
(414) 839-7222

Your 2009 Class Agents

Submitted by: Class Agents: Emily Meyer and Josh LeGreve

Hello Classmates,

Time continues to fly by, whether it’s with family activities, participating in or watching sports (Olympics), shopping for new cars, or even playing the latest craze, Wordle. What continues to be amazing is how much Ripon College has changed since we attended, but is still the same great place. If we’ve learned anything these past few pandemic years, it is to appreciate and foster connections like the ones we made at Ripon. Let us know who you are staying in touch with from Ripon and how – We’d love to hear from you.

While we just celebrated our 15th Reunion this past summer, we are way too young to be sharing such somber news. ANDY BESWICK ’06 passed away on January 26, 2022 from colon cancer. Initially diagnosed in August 2017, his wife, JESSICA FUOCO BESWICK ’07, shared that he went peacefully and pain-free at the end. News like this hits hard as we reflect on our own memories of ANDY while on campus or after college. Those memories and days seem like just yesterday.

Hard to transition to brighter news… we have a few updates from classmates to share:

MICHELE BERGMAN ’06 and Max Lamberg of Madison, Wisconsin were licensed for foster care and public adoption in Fall 2021. They welcomed two amazing siblings shortly after that and are loving being parents.

ANDY KITSLAAR ’06 and Laura Kitslaar of Monona, Wisconsin welcomed their second son, Oliver Rowdy Kitslaar, in January 2022. Their hospital stay was made that much better because their attending doctor was Ripon grad, NICOLE BAUMANN-BLACKMORE ’01. They will be getting a mini-van for their expanded family, mainly to provide adequate space for their dog, Bodie.

JILLIAN BURRIS BLAZIEWSKE ’06 of Kenosha, Wisconsin, writes, “We have expanded our family! We welcomed a healthy baby boy into the world on February 15 and his big sister also turns two in the same month!”

REBECCA NOWAK ENDERS ’06 of Omro, Wisconsin, writes, “My husband and I welcomed our first baby in December of 2021. She is our pride and joy! We couldn’t be happier!”

Please send any updates you have now or in the future so we can share them in our next Class Letter! You can do so easily through this Google form.

In campus news, things have been busy. As you likely know, President Zach Messitte left the college and our Interim President is Dr. Andrea Young. You can follow her activities on Twitter and Instagram. The search for a new president is ongoing with a hopeful conclusion later this spring.

Also changing is where you can find your Ripon apparel when on campus. The new Rally Store is inside the Ben Franklin in downtown Ripon. I’m sure we’ve all been there, now we have a great excuse to visit to not only pick up Tic Tacs but also a Ripon t-shirt. Finally, the Class of 2006 has always had great attendance during Alumni Weekend. This year it’s moved back to the usual summer date so mark your calendars for Alumni Weekend on June 23-26, 2022.

Thanks to those who continue to support Ripon College and thanks to everyone for staying in touch. Again, we look forward to hearing from you. In the meantime, take care, be well, and have some fun!

Your 2006 Class Agents,

ANDY KITSLAAR ’06

NICOLE KLAAS HANDS ’06

ED HANSEN ’06

Submitted by: Class Agents: Nicole Klaas Hands, Ed Hansen, and Andy Kitslaar

Greetings, Class of 2005!

Guess what?? #OneDayRally, Ripon’s day of giving, is scheduled for April 27! Also, it’s been announced that “Ripon College is planning major infrastructure projects over the next two-to-five years. It plans to remodel Farr Hall of Science, modernize residence halls, and is in early stages of developing a campus stadium.” (Ripon Commonwealth Press) Our women’s basketball team has clinched its spot in the Division III tournament with our men’s and women’s indoor track teams both clinching Midwest Conference Championships! It’s a GREAT time to be a Red Hawk; the excitement on campus is infectious!

In early January, I (AMANDA ZAHN PRZYBYL ’05) tested positive for COVID-19, and, subsequently, so did my youngest. That put us home together for about two-and-a-half weeks in total, with two glorious days in the middle where I was out and about. Having that much time together, at home, with no outside distractions was eye-opening. It was almost as if life for us was paused inside our house while life went on around us. It reminded me how important it is to take time to pause your life, even if it’s just for an hour, a day, a weekend, etc. to really think about what’s important to you and your family. Is being in three traveling leagues and every sport possible allowing you to make the most memories with them or do you need to sign them up for camp or travel league so they can grow? Do you make it a point to talk regularly with your parents/loved ones? Are you spending too much time at work? Is the work you do rewarding for you? Do you need to go on vacation or spend more time at home? Are you active in your community or do you need to focus more attention on loved ones? Have you been putting off that home project- a simple declutter or major renovation? I hope you find a pocket of time to reflect on your life, what you want out of it and what you need to do to get there.

As for me, at the end of September, we sold our home and bought our forever home. We moved back into Ripon from Green Lake, and we now have 3.6 acres, a five-car garage (which my husband has already filled), a sledding hill for the kids, a small creek, and a park right next door. Our home was built in the late 1840s, so even before the College but has an updated feel to it! As much as I really love everything about our new home, I forgot just how much work moving is- ugh. Since the beginning of July when we got an accepted offer on the new house, all I’ve done is clean, pack, sign paperwork, clean, pack, pack some more, paint, paint some more, spend a ton of money at Menards and Ikea, unpack, paint, build storage, unpack more. It was completely exhausting but the holidays were picture perfect in our new house! There have been some fun adulting moments as well, like when I got to get new silverware that replaces the stuff we bought 14 years ago! I hope each of you has had some good adulting moments recently.

Here is what is going on with your Classmates:

HALLIE BROWER ’05 writes, “I’m living in Chicago, just started a great new job with Radiology Partners, recently got a new baby bird (Eli the Parrotlet) and I can’t wait for winter to end.”

CHARLES JOHNSON ’05 writes, “Currently, my family and I are still living in Minneapolis. I’m still in the automotive industry at this time. It’s currently myself, my fiance, Raven, our daughter, Charli, and our pet pig, Cami, and we picked up a new kitten, Carter. Our house is full at this time! We look forward to a wedding later this year.”

PHILICIA KING ’05 writes, “I had my first year as the Principal of Becker Middle School in Las Vegas, Nevada. There’s also a Ripon College connection! Former professor Suzanne Katz was a drama teacher at the same school during her time in Las Vegas in the 90s. What a small world!”

PAUL ’05 and SARAH MCGILL LARSON ’05 of Green Bay, Wisconsin, write, “Our puppy, Colby, left us in December at only eleven months old. We were very quick to get another. His name is Munster (cheese theme). He entertains PAUL while he continues working from home for Humana as an actuary. He thinks he gets to return to an office in March. The kids are great. Parker (nine in May) is reading the Harry Potter series. Tanner (seven in May) reads all the animal nonfiction books the library will let her have. We have plans for a trip to either British Columbia or Yosemite in June with PAUL‘s extended family.”

DAPHNE MYERS LEIGH ’05 of New Berlin, Wisconsin, writes, “I started doing a podcast with a local friend. We read and break down books, fiction and non-fiction, geared toward the anti-racism movement and have recently added a feature on commonly banned books. We look for pieces that we, and our listeners, can act on to begin their own journey in anti-racism and activism while broadening our reading spectrum. We’re not perfect, but we are in it to share what we learn and to grow together, by starting with small things. Find us on Google or Apple podcasts or on Spotify, at Starting Small: An Anti-Racist Book Chat.”

CARLY CORSUN MACHANOVITCH ’05 writes, “I’m still living in France. I haven’t been stateside since before the times of Coronavirus. I was a city youth leader and worked on a toy and game library (Ludothèque) project with my manager and department head a few years back. Now I am a toy librarian and I work literally across the street from my apartment. My kids are ages ten and four and… I’ll be married 15 years this summer! Time flies!”

ASHLEIGH SMITH ’05 of Hohenwald, Tennessee, writes, “While Don and I enjoy being empty nesters, our house is still filled with the pitter-patter of little feet, our three dogs, five cats, two ferrets, and two turtles…and during the week our nearly three-year-old grandson. He comes over while our son and daughter-in-law are at work. I was enjoying being a stay-at-home Nana through the end of last year. But, I got the opportunity to return to my former (and favorite) job as an elephant caregiver at The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee. Don is now loving being a stay-at-home Papa, playing and having adventures with our grandson.”

A few more thoughts from me: Reflection was my theme for this Class Letter; I hope as you look back you remember the good times you had here at Ripon. We’re still holding those warm memories as we wait for you to return to visit. But until then, we’re always in need of your donation. It’s what helps our current students make those same warm memories. The website is simple: ripon.edu/give and is open 24/7. Give now, give on #OneDayRally or give every month, as long as you give something!

All the best!

AMANDA ZAHN PRZYBYL ’05
(920) 299-1081

DAPHNE MEYERS LEIGH ’05
(414) 841-7210

Your 2005 Class Agents

Submitted by: Class Agent: Amanda Zahn Przybyl

Dear Class of 2004,

As I write this update on the Sunday morning of the Super Bowl, I can guarantee that I was sleeping in Brockway Hall at this exact time twenty years ago. How can I be so certain? By mid-February, the swim season had just come to a conclusion which means I was undoubtedly enjoying life as a college student well into the morning. BEN ROTH and I “embraced” life that year with a fervor that provided us with a close relationship with the Dean of Students Office. (Yes, Dean CHRIS OGLE ’80 is still there!) Given how peculiar the past two years have been, it’s oddly comforting to be able to look back at a point in time with such clarity, something that seems to be in short supply lately. I am fairly confident that clarity was also in short supply the morning of February 13, 2002.

Working next to me right now are my fourth and sixth-grade daughters, cranking through their homework earlier than normal so that we can enjoy the Super Bowl with some friends tonight. While U2 was a decent halftime show in 2002, I’m infinitely more excited for the Dr. Dre/Snoop Dog experience that we have in store for us tonight. There is a pretty good chance that Dre or Snoop were also a part of that Sunday back in ’02.

One last note of update from the College. After a few years of goofiness, the traditional Alumni Weekend programming is making a return in 2022. June 23-26 are the dates, and as always, all are welcome regardless of reunion year. Related, and to reaffirm the aging process is indeed unstoppable, our 20th Reunion is coming up in 2024. If watching Dre and Snoop didn’t make you feel old, that sure will. Way to end on a low-note, right?

Life is weird, sure, but it’s also pretty amazing. Hopefully, you and yours find ways to focus on the amazing as you move out of this winter into the spring. I hope you enjoy these updates from your classmates.

Class Notes:

ABBY BINDER of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, writes, “I have grown my company, Abby Windows & Exteriors to a multimillion-dollar company with a team of over 25 employees. I also recently got engaged to my fiancé, Mandy. We split our time in Milwaukee and have a lake house on Legend Lake that we enjoy to fish, boat, and relax on with our three dogs. I hope everyone is well!”

LISA HENKE GRAF of Hortonville, Wisconsin, writes, “I recently accepted an IST Tech Integrator position with the Oshkosh Area School District. I miss teaching eighth-grade science, but I am enjoying my new role in coaching teachers to deliver content in engaging ways with technology. Pandemic Positive: We bought a new house and are enjoying settling in & making it our own!”

TAMMY JOHNSON of Antioch, Illinois, writes, “My wife, Becky, and I welcomed Finnegan Lee Johnson into the world a couple of weeks early on April 22, 2021. Big brothers Ryan (nine) and Reed (seven) cannot wait to teach him all about the joys of burping, wrestling on the couch, and Minecraft. We spent time this summer vacationing in Florida and Pigeon Forge, Tennessee as a new family of five. I am still teaching special education at Antioch Upper-Grade School and I am co-leading the Diversity Club. I am also very excited to be back on the court this year coaching girls basketball.”

DIANE KEELING of Darien, Wisconsin, writes, “I am closing out my two-year term as president of the Organization for Research on Women and Communication this February. TOM BECKER ’05 and I spent January skiing in Crested Butte, Colorado. Positive thing: I started water coloring weekly with friends across the U.S. online.”

KATE PETERSEN KINGREE of Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, writes, “We have a precocious, creative, kind, and loving two-year-old boy, William David Kingree, and my husband and I started a business in September 2021 called Kingree Law.”

LINDSEY GORSKE MICHELS of Ripon, Wisconsin, writes, “Last October, I started a new role within the Police Department: Community Liaison and School Resource Officer. During the school year, I am in our 4K-12 schools and in the summer I focus on community outreach. Joe and I continue to try and keep up with our almost eight-year-old son and our five-year-old daughter…Never thought the day would come when I would be sitting in the bleachers watching my kids in their activities, crazy how time flies!”

One positive thing that has happened over the past two years is the plethora of family time that we have gotten to spend together as we weren’t constantly busy!

LIZ KOEPNICK MILLER of San Marcos, California, writes, “We welcomed our son, Lane Allen Miller on November 1, 2020. He has brightened our days and Arielle (six) is the best big sister.”

CANDICE NORTH of Carmichael, California, writes, “My husband, Mo Cisse, and I are still actively funding the education for orphans in Nalerigu, Ghana through our nonprofit BOCAT. Although the pandemic definitely was a barrier to some efforts to expand the program, we have acquired land to someday build an actual orphanage there. If you’d like more information, check out our website www.bocat.net.”

RACHEL SCHMIDT PUFALL, previously of Ashland, Wisconsin, writes, “The Pufalls are now Kentuckians. At the start of 2022, we made the move to Berea, Kentucky where Rachel’s husband, Frank, is now the head baseball coach at Berea College. Rachel continues to work as a statewide coach for the Wisconsin Center for Resilient Schools. One positive thing to come out of the past two years: Having the space to realize that it was time for me to leave schools and become a statewide coach to help educators implement and sustain trauma-sensitive social-emotional learning and comprehensive school mental health systems.”

AMANDA SCHELLINGER of North Prairie, Wisconsin, writes, “I was recently promoted to Senior Director of Campus Services at Carroll University.”

NICK SPAETH of Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, writes, “2021 should have been the year I moved into my Past-President role (year three of a three-year term) with the Wisconsin Association for College Admission Counseling, but the President took a job outside of the state. So here I am, with an extraordinarily long term. While I’m looking forward to passing the torch, so to speak, I’m honored to be able to continue to serve my colleagues around Wisconsin and at the national level.”

MICHAEL TIMM of Cudahy, Wisconsin, completed a nonlinear storytelling course with Aubrey Hirsch in January 2022 and participated in the Bending Genres writers retreat in September 2021. With the small but mighty Milwaukee nonprofit Reflo, Michael creates and curates videos, interactive maps, games, and other content to engage the next generation with our connection to water and inspire hopeful actions in the face of climate change.

PAULA RICHARDSON TOMPKINS of Oshkosh, Wisconsin, writes, “A big positive that happened in our life is that we have one new addition to the family, an Aussiedoodle named Desmond aka Desi. He is our first dog and we couldn’t imagine life without him.”

Be sure to send updates to [email protected], and as always, be safe and be well.

NICK SPAETH ’04
(262) 227-6097
Your 2004 Class Agent

Submitted by: Class Agent: Nick Spaeth

Class of 2001!

As many of you have heard, Ripon’s 13th President, Dr. Zach Messitte, has left the institution to return to his hometown of Washington, D.C. Our beloved Alma Mater has now launched a full hiring campaign to replace the President. One of your very own, DANTE A. C. HOUSTON ’01, has been selected as a member of the Search Committee! Rest assured, the College is in great hands as we make this transition. Dr. Andrea Young has been named Interim President and has already paved the way for many new and exciting initiatives to come.

If you are anything like us, you needed something to look forward to in order to get through the struggle that continues to be the Global Pandemic. Great news from our Ripon – in-person events are back! The College has done an amazing job with ensuring faculty, staff, students, and alumni alike are kept safe on and off-campus and Ripon is ready to host upcoming events! Mark your calendars for these critical dates:

• April 27: #OneDayRally (nation-wide)
• May 14-15: Senior Class Commencement Weekend
• June 23-26: Alumni Weekend

#OneDayRally and Ripon Fund Updates: 

• Thank you to all who contributed to the 2021 Ripon Fund. Because of you, Ripon College achieved the highest fundraising year ever! This support will allow the College to continue to be one of the most affordable and accessible private colleges in the state while supporting critical campus projects!
• SAVE THE DATE! Ripon’s annual giving day, known as #OneDayRally, will be held on Wednesday, April 27.
  • All alumni are encouraged to sport their Ripon College attire and post it on their social media platforms.
  • If you are interested in being a Social Media Advocate to promote #OneDayRally, please email Kelly Nielsen, Director of Annual Giving, at [email protected] to receive a toolkit with resources in the days leading up to #OneDayRally.

Class Notes:

DANTE HOUSTON ’01 of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, has been promoted to Director with AMN Healthcare. AMN is the largest healthcare recruitment firm in the nation. He was also named to the Ripon College Board of Trustees, where he serves as Co-Chair of the Advancement Committee.

CLINT PRACHER ’01 of Austin, Texas, has accepted a role as Senior Technical Project  Manager with Insider, Inc. of New York, New York. He recently welcomed a new bundle of joy, his fur baby, Bacon.

DANA DELACH GARCIA ’01 of Plainfield, Illinois, serves as a Medical Doctor with a Hospice Facility in a Southern Suburb of Chicago, helping to provide quality, end-of-life care. She keeps busy with her three, rambunctious boys and her family’s Airedale fur baby, Chuey.

MIKE MISSAK ’01 of McHenry, Illinois, continues to run his annual fundraiser, Jeeps On The Run in Lake County, Illinois. It provides donations and support to the CEO Marine Toys for Tots Foundation. This was the ninth year he has led this effort. To date, he has helped raise over $800,000 in toys and donations.

We can’t wait to see you soon, whether it be in person or virtually. Keep sending us your updates or drop us a note/text just to say “hi.”  And please continue to stay safe, healthy, and happy!

DANTE A. C. HOUSTON ’01
(414) 378-4937

NICOLE BAUMANN-BLACKMORE ’01
(608) 513-9078
Your 2001 Class Agents

Submitted by: Class Agents: Nicole Baumann-Blackmore and Dante Houston

Class of 2000,

Many thanks to those of you who supported the College this past fiscal year, especially those who supported the Ripon Fund, as well as #OneDayRally. Our class giving information is included in the linked Annual Giving Report. Two dates to put on your calendar for 2022: April 27, which is this year’s #OneDayRally, and June 23-26, which is Alumni Weekend 2022. The search for a new President is still underway at the time I’m writing this. Our interim President Dr. Andrea Young is on Twitter and Instagram with a uniform handle: @RiponPrez.

Some impressive news to share about a classmate:

KARL DAHLSTROM ’00 of Winnetka, Illinois, has been promoted to Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of PNE USA, Inc. (“PNE”). PNE is a renewable energy development company based in Chicago, Illinois, with a focus on creating, financing, and operating commercial-scale wind and solar power plants across the U.S.

I have been writing these Class Letters for over twenty years, and, unfortunately, my service as your Class Agent is waning. Someone who does not eschew social media as I do would be better suited for the coming years. Staying connected and “in the know” is important to me, but the Class of 2000 deserves a Class Agent who can add more value than I can. If you are interested in learning more about the position (a co-Class Agent to work with me on future Class Letters such as this one) and are interested in serving your classmates in this way, please reach out to me or directly to JOLENE RUEDEN SCHATZINGER ’07 at [email protected], who serves as the College’s Associate Director of Engagement.

Red Hawk forever,

ANDRE MIKSHA ’00
(317) 219-9275
Your 2000 Class Agent

Submitted by: Class Agent: Andre Miksha

Dear Classmates,

We hope this Class Letter finds you well. We are not celebrating a reunion in 2022, but for those of you interested in visiting the campus and participating in reunion activities during Alumni Weekend, please mark your calendars for June 23-26, 2022.

We received word about some great efforts that two of our classmates have been up to. Please read about the community service efforts by U.S. Army Veteran JOSE TORRES ’99 here.

Another community service effort of interest led by ANDY VAN WIE ’99 of Waunakee, Wisconsin, is described here.

Please mark your calendars for the annual #OneDayRally, scheduled for Wednesday, April 27, 2022. We hope that you can participate in this annual effort to keep our alma mater strong. Every contribution helps!

Class Agent CHRISTINE GUY WINGET ’99 came up with a great idea in the interest of supporting diversity and inclusion within our 1999 class. For anyone interested in updating their Ripon College profile with the use of pronouns that best represent them as a valued classmate, please follow this link and complete this Google form.

The same form can be used to share any class updates you’d like to share. We are also hoping you will input any new hobbies you’ve started during the pandemic!

Class Notes

RACHEL THOMPSON CASEY ’99 proudly reports that her son, Alex Casey, will be attending Ripon in the fall as part of the Class of 2026.

CHRISTINE GUY WINGET ’99 has worked in traditional higher education for 22 years. She started a new job (virtual) at Keypath Education as a Placement Specialist where she helps find clinical placements for Family Nurse Practitioner students.

If you have any class updates, please send them our way, and we can include them in our future Class Letter.

Sincerely,

MIKE BERENS ’99
(617) 512-5753

CHRISTINE GUY WINGET ’99
(252) 367-9335
Your 1999 Class Agents

Submitted by: Class Agents: Mike Berens & Christine Guy Winget

Dear Class of ’98,

Thanks as always for responding to my call for updates! It’s good to hear from you, especially when photos are involved.

Presidential Search
Former President Zach Messitte announced his departure last year, and the search for the next President is currently underway.

The leadership of the College is in the excellent hands of Dr. Andrea Young, who took over as the interim president in January. Keep up with her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/RiponPrez and Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/riponprez/.

Classmate News
LARRY DAUGHERTY ’98 of Eagle River, Arkansas, will be climbing Mt. Everest in April/May 2022. LARRY attempted the peak in 2017, but had to turn around 335 agonizing feet from the top due to high winds on the South Summit.

KRISTIN DODDS ’98 of Greendale, Wisconsin, writes, “2021 was an exciting year for my family. I returned from a ten-month deployment to Lithuania as part of Operation Atlantic Resolve in May, I was named the first female parade marshal for our community Fourth of July parade, and we adopted a rescue dog, Nala (FKA Sky), in July. Nala joins our dog, Sensi, and cat, Callie.”

TREVOR DURHAM ’98 of Colfax, Washington, has a new role as Associate Vice President for Executive Communications for Washington State University Advancement.

As a reminder, we are all invited to attend Alumni Weekend this summer from June 23-26. Even when we are not celebrating a Reunion, Alumni Weekend is a great time to reconnect with fellow alumni and the Ripon College community.

KEVIN WEBER ’98 of Limerick, Pennsylvania, is a 2022 Ripon College Athletic Hall of Fame Inductee for his achievements on the tennis court. KEVIN will be honored on Friday night of Alumni Weekend (June 24) at the 1851 Awards Dinner and Program with his doubles partner, MIKE MILBURN ’97.

Congratulations, KEVIN!

Lastly, a couple of news bites from staff members of our era… former Director of Student Activities Eric Tammes is now Dr. Eric Tammes, after getting his Ed.D. this past December. And former Scott Hall Director Chris Clarke is returning to Wisconsin as the Dean of Students at Lawrence University. Welcome back to the Midwest, Clarke!

Until next time,

SARAH ENG ’98
(312) 404-6732
Your 1998 Class Agent

Submitted by: Class Agent: Sarah Eng

Happy Spring, Class of 1996!

I am hoping that 2022 is turning into a more normal year than the past few. I know that like a lot of you, this year I have several events that were postponed, so I am looking forward to trekking across the states again, hopefully, able to run into some of you during my travels.

I want to personally THANK all of you who have supported Ripon College this past fiscal year, especially those who supported the Ripon Fund, as well as #OneDayRally. Our class raised almost $16,000 with 20% of our class contributing. Let us try to match that or beat it in 2022!

Even though it is not our Reunion year, I encourage you to still consider making plans to attend Alumni Weekend on June 23-26, which, as of now, will be much more like the reunions that we knew from the past. The College hosts a wonderful weekend and is open to all alumni with lots of different activities.

We have one class note to share:

BRIAN NORTH ’96 of Madison, Wisconsin, is a Colonel in the U.S. Army. He recently completed two years in command of the 11th Signal Brigade at Fort Hood, Texas. He is currently on an Army fellowship to complete his Ph.D. in American History from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. This summer he will report to the Pentagon where he will serve as the Director of the Army Initiatives Group, the army’s internal think-tank and strategic planning element. His wife, TANYA HENNES NORTH ’97, is currently completing post-graduate certifications in Biotechnology and Stem Cell Research before their move to Washington, D.C.

Lastly, thanks to everyone that keeps us posted on Facebook, Instagram, Zoom calls or whatever other social media platform you are using. It’s great to see the family pictures, amazing adventures, or those crazy status updates. It is wonderful to keep track of each other and their lives even though we might not see each other on a regular basis.

Here is to a great summer of 2022!

Regards,

JASON WOOD ’96
(201) 747-7719
Your 1996 Class Agent

Submitted by: Class Agent: Jason Wood

Dear ’95 Classmates,

We survived a somewhat mild winter here in Wisconsin and have turned the corner towards spring. I’m sure everyone is looking forward to more daylight, summer vacations, outdoor concerts, and sporting events, and for some of you, college graduations or weddings for your children!

I was a bit hesitant to tell this “Ripon Pride” story, so I will keep it PG-13.
While attending a high school football game at Ingalls Field, seated directly behind me were a couple of cocky high school boys from Waukesha, who were bored with the game and started to get obnoxious. One of them said: “Who would want to go to Ripon College? Probably a bunch of morons.” “I’m sure they let anyone in this school.” I just couldn’t help myself, so I turned around and said: “Look, you little dips**ts, I went to Ripon College. It’s a great school. You would be lucky to earn a degree from there.” They didn’t say a word the rest of the game. Sometimes, you have to stand up for your school!!!

Graduation 2022:
The Commencement Ceremony for the graduating Class of 2022 will be held on Sunday, May 15th. Certainly, it would be nice to have a sunny, 75-degree day.

2022 Alumni Weekend:

Alumni Weekend is less than (four) months away.
The dates are June 23-26, 2022.
Although our Class does not have an official celebration planned, you are always welcome to attend any year.  More information will be available at alumni.ripon.edu/special-events/alumni-weekend/.

ROB NEUMAN and I will likely be there supporting the Athletic Hall of Fame Induction of KEVIN WEBER ’98 and MIKE MILBURN ’97, two tennis stars from the 1990s.

Giving and Upcoming #OneDayRally:
Thanks to all our Classmates who supported the College this past fiscal year, especially those who supported the Ripon Fund, as well as #OneDayRally.

The next #OneDayRally is scheduled for Wednesday, April 27. More information regarding #OneDayRally will be forthcoming. If you haven’t made your gift for this fiscal year as of yet, you can visit alumni.ripon.edu/give/make-a-gift/.

Hidden Gem in Ripon:
Next time you’re visiting Ripon College, check out J’s BBQ. They have great food, a nice selection of beer, and are right next door to campus. (No, they didn’t pay me to plug the restaurant) 😊

Links to News & Social Media:
Ripon College news: ripon.edu/news
Ripon College publications: ripon.edu/about-ripon/publications
Ripon College Center for Politics and the People: facebook.com/RiponCollegeCPP
Ripon College Center for Diversity and Inclusion: facebook.com/ripondiversity

Class Updates:
I did not receive any updates since our last Class Letter….no worries. If you have something to share, feel free to let me know and it will be included in the Fall 2022 Class Letter. It would be great to hear from you!

Have a great Spring and Summer, Class of 1995!

Take care and see you soon!

Sincerely,

TOM LUFT ’95
(920) 479-5323
Your 1995 Class Agent

Submitted by: Class Agent: Tom Luft

Hello, Class of 1994,

I hope you are all staying healthy and strong – we are all going to need our strength as the majority of us turn 50 this year. We are now likely as old (or older) than our parents were when they dropped us off at Ripon in the summer of 1990.

Milestone birthdays make me reflect on what I have accomplished and what I still want to achieve. If you are on Facebook, you may have seen KATE MCELDERRY HARRISON ’94’s post on January 19 regarding her five reflections for five decades. I loved what she wrote. So with her permission, I’m sharing portions of her post. I hope it inspires you as much as it did me.

1. Every stage of life is a gift. Don’t wish to be a different age. Own it! Adopt a Growth Mindset and the learning never stops, whatever age you are. This mindset, in my opinion, is the tonic of youth and has nothing to do with age!

2. Time is a non-refundable resource. You never get it back. Time simply doesn’t stand still. How and with whom we spend it matters and shapes your life accordingly. Spend time on things that matter and remember that those things take time. Combine time with effort and you have a beautiful, winning combination–one that leads to trust, experiences, memories, not to mention lasting, and enduring relationships. (There are no shortcuts to this!)

3. Children don’t always suck. [OK, I confess this is my snarky title, not KATE’s – her version was much more positive.] Whenever and if ever children–one’s own or someone else’s–grace your life, celebrate them and learn from them. (They are some of the best teachers you will EVER have!) Moreover, children give purpose and meaning to life. They motivate us to clean up the oceans and make the world a more peaceful, just, and sustainable place.

4. Difficulties, loss, and pain are real. They hit us all in some shape or form. It’s not a comparison game and one’s truth and experience is one’s personal reality. Hence, empathy is the way, as is patience. (Patience with others and also ourselves.) If we are patient and willing to push through, adversity can bring with it energy, and if we choose it, a positive energy that can lead to creative and good works.

5. Shared humanity is a gift. Tea with a friend, a beer in the pub, a meal with your family… and also clapping as part of an audience, having a conversation with a stranger, being part of a community, working for a cause… it’s not about you. It’s not about me. But it really IS about the WE in life. Shared humanity is rich and life-affirming. It reminds us what a beautiful, diverse, and interesting world we live in and that everyone deserves a chance. The energy, wisdom, warmth, and LOVE that we can gain from learning and sharing within our local patch, and the world at large, adds a richness and joy not to be missed out on! Shared humanity is a global mindset; it keeps us connected, validated, open, and humble.

Update on the College

In September 2021, President Zach Messitte announced his plan to leave the College at the end of the 2021 fall semester following nine years of impressive leadership. The Board of Trustees of the College approved the formation of the Presidential Search Committee to actively engage the immediate and extended Ripon College community to search for, and review the credentials of, interested candidates. The Search Committee will ultimately select a group of finalists to interview and then present to the Board of Trustees a candidate they believe is best-prepared to lead the College into the future. CARRIE ROCA-DAWSON ’94 and I are both on the Search Committee, along with nominated faculty, staff, students, community members and other alums. We know that the next President of Ripon has the power to shape the future of the College and impact the students significantly, so we take this obligation very seriously.

Ripon’s annual giving day, known as #OneDayRally, will be held on Wednesday, April 27th. Please save this date and if you can donate, support the Ripon Fund and post about it on social media. I know many of you give to the College on an annual basis. Thank you for all of your contributions. If you cannot help financially, please consider reaching out to the College to volunteer on behalf of the alumni or admissions office, or become a mentor to current students for career and professional development.

Alumni Weekend is June 23-26, 2022. If you are looking for a chance to connect with fellow classmates, Alumni Weekend is always fun. Please stay tuned for updates on the event.

Class Notes

Thank you to the classmates who reached out to me with updates. Here are what some of our classmates are up to:

ANDREW LIMOURIS ’94 of Glen Ellyn, Illinois, is the recipient of the 2021 Hellene of the Year Award from the Hellenic Bar Association Foundation (HBAF). He is the president and CEO of Medix and Talentoday, a family of companies specialized in connecting talent to the right career opportunities and supporting employers with the right workforce solutions. ANDY founded Medix in 2001 based on the mission and purpose of positively impacting lives and strives to recruit others who live the company’s core values. He is a proud Hellene and supporter of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Chicago. He and his family are parishioners at St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church, Elmhurst, Illinois. ANDY served on Metropolitan Nathanael’s transition team and as a member of the Metropolis Council of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Chicago from 2018-2019. ANDY is also a frequent speaker for young adult ministries in the Metropolis focused on inspiring leadership in our youth.

DREW PETERSEN ’94 of Verona, Wisconsin, is the Senior Vice President of Corporate Affairs at TDS Telecom and is receiving additional responsibilities and will now supervise broadcast television operations with Zolo Media. Zolo operates KOHD-TV the ABC affiliate, KBNZ-LP the CBS affiliate, COTV11, CO4 Visitors Network, and Central Oregon Daily, which provides targeted advertising solutions. Drew has been with the company for 24 years and is the past president of the University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents.

KATY HERBOLSHEIMER LINDBERG ’94 of Hastings, Minnesota, just bought a building in Historic Downtown Hastings that was built in 1876. She will be moving her Farmers Insurance office there after a total renovation. She would be happy to quote anyone’s insurance who lives in Minnesota, Wisconsin, or Illinois.

Our classmate SUSAN YUDS SHERBON ’94 of Machesney Park, Illinois, could use some support. SUE has been battling an aggressive form of breast cancer. She recently had brain surgery to remove lesions and at the time of writing this letter it appeared that surgery went well. SUE is also battling with tumors in her lungs that were not responding to a clinical trial. SUE is trying to keep positive but she needs her classmates to send her some “good vibes, well wishes, and love.” If you would like to help support SUE, please contribute at the following site: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-sue-her-kids?qid=c3b49d026b1406920a4feca9312a2fde

LISA SPROSTON SUTTER ’94 will be writing our next Class Letter in the Fall. If you have updates that didn’t make it into this letter, please reach out to her at [email protected] or contact me and I will make sure LISA receives the update.

In the meantime, I hope you have a very happy 50th birthday!

All the best,

KIMBERLY WOOLLEY ’94
LinkedIn / Facebook
Your 1994 Class Agent

Submitted by: Class Agent: Kimberly Woolley

Hi All,

I hope you are all doing well, staying healthy, and keeping busy. It seems like there’s never a dull moment lately, right? I, for one, could use a few dull moments right about now. Anyway, let’s jump right into some Ripon updates!

The search is on for Ripon College’s 14th president. Dr. Andrea Young currently serves as the interim president while the search continues. Read more about it here.

Remember walking downtown from campus? Did you know that Ripon was recognized as having one of the “7 Best Downtown Areas in Wisconsin?” Actually, Ripon, Wisconsin has received numerous accolades recently:

• One of the 10 Most Magical Christmas Towns – Dec. 2021
• One of 7 Best Downtown Areas – Dec. 2021
• 11 Magical Main Streets in Wisconsin – Oct. 2021
• 7 Small Towns in Wisconsin that are Perfect for a Weekend Escape – Aug. 2021

Also, this summer’s Alumni Weekend will be June 23-26, 2022. Even though we are not celebrating a Reunion this year, we are all invited to attend. It is always a memorable weekend.

And now, news from our Class:

DON FRANCIS ’93 of Platteville, Wisconsin, rejoined the workforce this past summer after a long pandemic hiatus. DON began employment in a new field: the nonprofit sector. He serves as a nonprofit administrative assistant for Inspiring Community, Inc. in Platteville. He continues to volunteer for the PTO along with a local arts group that created an annual Chalk & Cheese Fest for chalk artists of any level. While virtual-schooling his two kids is in the past, his wife, Kelly, will work-from-home permanently, and the addition of a mini-Aussiedoodle puppy named Georgia is a reminder of something good that came during the pandemic.

Make sure you keep your contact information updated so you don’t miss any Ripon College news. Contact the Office of Constituent Engagement directly with changes at [email protected] or via U.S. mail to Alumni Office, Ripon College, 300 West Seward Street, Ripon, WI 54971.

Check in on the College’s website and/or social media for the latest College updates. If you’re not part of the “Ripon College Class of 1993” Facebook group, please join!

Thank you and stay well!

MELINDA TRAINOR HUTCHINSON ’93
(215) 704-6478
Your 1993 Class Agent

Submitted by: Class Agent: Melinda Trainor Hutchinson

Dear Class of ’89,

Hope this finds you all well. Hard to believe we are entering our third year with the cloud of COVID-19 hanging over us all, but with vaccines, it seems possible to get back to some of things we love like travel and seeing friends and family. ERIK ’89 and I, in fact, are looking forward to a very belated anniversary trip to LA at the end of February, where we will have the pleasure of seeing MITCH ROSIN ’89 and JAMES MADDISON ’89 and BETH VASEY MEYER ’90 (even celebrating JAMES’ birthday)! As for MITCH, he is in the middle of writing his doctoral dissertation. . . Yup, who would have ever thought! He also splits his time between California and New York, so drop him a note if you are in the neighborhood.

Many of you may be aware through Facebook that we lost our classmate, KEVIN “FLOUNDER” NORRIS ’89, who passed away on January 2. DAVE TROY ’90 wrote a nice tribute online: “KEVIN was a great person who loved life. Those of us who fondly remember him from his college years, recall ‘Flounder’ being a source of joy to all his friends. Whether playing Santa, training a profane parrot, playing rugby, inner tube water polo or drinking upside-down while doing a headstand, KEVIN made us all smile. We love and miss you, Brother.”

Other updates since our last letter:

In November, Ripon College finally paid the respects due to our classmate, Army Capt. PAUL J. CASSIDY ’89 who died of non-combat injuries in 2003 during Operation Iraqi Freedom. He became the most recent designate to the College’s War Memorial (see picture). As a civilian, he was assistant to the clerk, Mary Helmbrecht, at Meridian Township in Michigan. “PAUL had made a life out of helping people in troubled regions,” Helmbrecht said. “His mission to Iraq with the Army Reserves was similar to previous duties in Kosovo, Bosnia, and Kuwait, where he distributed food and blankets and helped reconstruct power grids, improve phone lines, re-establish farms, provide water and repair houses. He was basically in there to help people, doing humanitarian deeds, the nice things.” Here is an article that was featured by Ripon College.

TED HARWOOD ’89 of Conroe, Texas, is celebrating 20 years with ExxonMobil, currently in Global Security. His oldest daughter is attending Texas A&M in the engineering program, and he reports that, “the dog doesn’t freak out anymore when we wear masks.”

KRIS PEHLE GRASSE ’89 of Bristow, Virginia, will be retiring in June from teaching elementary school for 17 years, and says she is, “looking for a new adventure!”

Congratulations to Battalion Chief CHRIS HANNES ’89 of Kenosha, Wisconsin, who received his final tone-out in December, closing out 24 years of service with the Kenosha Fire Department.

Starting last October, ALICE GALLAGHER ARCHABAL ’89 of Northbrook, Illinois, is on the Board of Trustees for the College. Way to represent, Al Gal!

RODNEY DEAN SCHULZ ’89 of Slinger, Wisconsin, writes, “Our first grandson turned one in August. Number two is due in December.”

It is fun to see the gatherings of classmates through Facebook, whether it is for a football game, wedding, or simply dinner. Keep sharing and we will look forward to our next chance to see you all in real life.

Truly,

NIKKI ZENS LINDBERG

MITCH ROSIN

Your 1989 Class Agents

Submitted by: Class Agents: Mitchell Rosin & Nicole Zens Lindberg