Foos for Thought

BY MOLLY MASTANTUONO

Mythical lion-like creatures revered for their strength and loyalty, foo (or fu) dogs have been celebrated among Asian cultures for nearly 2,000 years. Jonathan Yu ’18, MSMA ’19 is turning these ancient symbols to a fresh new purpose.

“I want to help modernize Asian art and promote cultural inclusivity,” says the alumnus, who lives in Los Angeles and has adopted the professional name Johnny Haiki.

Through his “We are the FOOS” project, Yu honors and shares his heritage with diverse audiences. He uses Discord, a social media platform popular with gamers, to offer foo-inspired art as NFTs: digital assets authenticated via blockchain technology that can be bought, sold and traded. Buyers can join Yu in developing storylines for the characters in his artwork.

Yu’s inspiration stems from his first weeks at Bentley. Exploring Boston, he came upon the two giant foo dog statues that flank the entrance to Chinatown.

“I instantly felt a sense of comfort,” says Yu, who was born in Taiwan and raised in the Philippines. “As soon as I got back to my dorm, I began sketching my own foos. I wanted to replicate that sense of home and create something tangible I could take with me.”

Today, the alumnus also produces electronic/house/hip-hop music with fellow members of the LA-based trio Torsades and creates paintings that have found homes with NBA player Andre Drummond, Grammy-winning musician Post Malone and other notables. And that’s all while working full time as a business analyst for a marketing technology firm.

“I need something to exercise the analytical part of my brain,” he says, adding that the job’s focus on marketing trends helps him “think strategically about ways to monetize my art.”

Yu hopes that his artwork, like foo dogs, can be a conduit for goodwill and harmony. “At the end of the day, you need to build a community, you need to be connected to people. You need to take time to understand other people’s stories.”

Follow Yu on Instagram: @haiki.studio

Read about his fall 2022 visit to Bentley: bentley.edu/yu

Falcon in Focus

After 30 years in higher ed Carolyn (Hoey) Livingston, MSCIS ’91 (right), Peabody, Mass., retired in 2015 and fixed her lens on a new subject: bees. A member of the Greater Lynn Photographic Association, she has earned first-place ribbons and an affectionate nickname, “the bug lady.” For the story on page 12, she helped daughter and staff writer Kristin Livingston capture the spirit of Elizabeth McAuliffe ’45 (left), one of the school’s first woman graduates. In the process, Livingston discovered that she and Trustee Professor Patricia Flynn (p. 19) were just a year apart at Lynn Classical High School. Also, like all the alumnae featured, Livingston was the first in her family to earn a college degree.

1997

John Taylor, MSA , Beverly, Mass., joined Zozimus, a Boston-based advertising agency, in November 2021 as controller. He has been to Red Sox and Celtics games, and numerous Boston restaurants, to celebrate the agency — and looks forward to sharing Bentley with his colleagues! The alumnus attended the Bentley Boston holiday party in December 2022, where he caught up with Joe Guth, MBA ’87 and Larry Gazda ’00. “It was a blast!”

Tiffany R. Warren, Montclair, N.J., was recognized by New York Women in Communications with the Matrix award. She is EVP, chief diversity and inclusion officer for Sony Music Group, the founder of ADCOLOR, and a Bentley trustee.

1999

Isaura Beltre, MSIAM ’02 , Lynn, Mass., earned Bentley’s Dr. Earl L. Avery MLK Leadership Award for 2023. The lecturer in marketing, adviser for Coming Full Circle, and associate director of the FirstGen Fellows Program was praised for her teaching skills and for mentoring students inside and outside the classroom. She received the honor in January, at the 37th Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration.

2000

Angela Nuss, Braintree, Mass., completed all requirements to qualify for the Toastmasters District 31 Pathfinder Award, which recognizes individual members who have demonstrated a high level of achievement in the Toastmasters Pathways Learning Experience. The alumna is a real estate agent and director of special projects at Jay Nuss Realty Group LLC.

2001

Janak Joshi, MBA , Wakefield, Mass., led the successful exit of Life Image Inc. to Intelerad Corp. on a full-cash acquisition in September 2022. “Our broader engagement with Intelerad now leads the global medical image exchange market, impacting close to a billion patients annually,” writes the alumnus. Joshi stayed on as chief technology officer and head of strategy until March 2023.

2002

Deniz Ozturk , Cambridge, Mass., joined Community Teamwork as director of development. The organization’s mission is to help people help themselves with child care, family support, nutrition, fuel assistance, housing, skills training, employment, financial education and individual asset and small business development.

2003

20th Reunion

Sean Roy, Wilton, Conn., earned a PhD in organizational leadership at Indiana Wesleyan University, successfully defending his dissertation: “Empowerment and Intrinsic Motivation of Employees: A Case Study of Virtual Team Leaders.” His wife, Sara (Yousefi), and their two children joined Roy at the graduation ceremony. He has been at Oracle Corporation for 15 years, most recently serving as senior consulting practice director; he works on clinical trial software in the Health Sciences Global Business Unit.

2004

Harold Mateo, Wakefield, Mass., is now vice president of Linkvest Capital, an alternative real estate co-investment platform founded by investors for investors, and by a private lender based in Miami.

2006

Kat (Kaufman) Emery, McLean, Va., was elected secretary of the Mid-Atlantic Ninety-Nines in June 2022. The nonprofit organization of women pilots promotes aviation through education, scholarships and mutual support, while honoring their unique history and shared passion for flight.

“I’m honored to give back to women in aviation and to support new generations of female pilots,” writes the alumna, whose term as secretary runs through June 2024.

2007

Blake Reynolds, Attleboro, Mass., has been promoted to senior operations manager at CBRE, which ranks No. 122 on the Fortune 500 and is the world’s largest commercial real estate services and investment firm. The company has more than 105,000 employees and serves real estate investors and occupiers through approximately 500 offices worldwide; clients include more than 90 companies on the Fortune 100. Reynolds leads operations of the firm’s New England offices, overseeing finance, human resources, facilities and administration, information technology, and marketing.

2008

15th Reunion

Katelyn (D’Eramo) Campbell and husband Christopher, Burlington, Mass., welcomed Emerson Shea on January 9, 2023. “Big sister Kennedy was so excited to welcome home her little sister,” writes the alumna.

Eric Jackson, Waltham, Mass., is now senior vice president, head of residential lending at Everett Co-operative Bank.

2009

Patricia (Pires) Barbosa, Brockton, Mass., is now director of administration at Brookview House, a nonprofit that provides families experiencing homelessness with safe housing and support services. The alumna oversees daily operations there, including financial and business functions, and human resources responsibilities.

Alexander Esposito, MBA ’10, Amagansett, N.Y., is co-founder and CEO at Circuit, an all-electric, on-demand shuttle service. The company received funding through an $85 million competition sponsored by the New York State (NYS) Transportation Authority. Circuit will apply its share of the NYS Clean Transportation Prize to establish new services in the Rockaways and Brentwood/Suffolk County, Long Island. The services aim to benefit these communities for years to come, create jobs, reduce emissions and set an example for how community mobility should be delivered in underserved areas around the state.

Courtney (Somerville) Rahamin, MSA ’10 and husband Andy ’10, Sagamore Beach, Mass., welcomed baby boy Colin on July 2, 2022. Colin joins big brother Ashton.

2010

Andy Rahamin and wife Courtney (Somerville) ’09, MSA , Sagamore Beach, Mass., welcomed baby boy Colin on July 2, 2022. He joins big brother Ashton.

Kimberly Royer and Jeff Strittmatter tied the knot at Solitude Mountain in Utah on September 24, 2022. Bentley guests included Katy Fuller, MBA ’11; Brooke Bronkovic ’09, MSFP; Angela DeBarros, MSIT ’11; and Heather Hamilton. The newlyweds honeymooned in Italy and live in Salt Lake City.