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Class Notes
In the News: Personal and Professional Updates by Class Year
1960s
Chellie Terry Powell ’61 is a birth and postpartum doula. She lives in California.
1970s
Penny Rafferty Hamilton ’76 received the 12th Annual Spirit of Flight Award by the Spirit of Flight Foundation. Hamilton was inducted into both the Colorado Aviation and Women’s Hall of Fame. Her current book is Inspiring Words for Sky & Space Women: Advice from Historic and Contemporary Trailblazers. Penny lives over Lake Granby, Colorado, and is the co-founder of the Grand County Historical Association Emily Warner Field Aviation Museum.
1980s
Andrea Luchen ’81 retired in May 2020 after 23 years as an elementary teacher. She continues to volunteer at an assisted living center and enjoys traveling with her family.
Curt Krebsbach ’85 retired as director of training for Valley Hope, a substance abuse organization. He holds a doctorate in addition psychology career as an online instructor for Fort Hays State University and Arizona State University in 2021.
Donald Buckner ’88 has been named to the board of Caring Solutions, a St. Louis nonprofit that meets the unique needs of children and adults with development disabilities and their families. Buckner is the manager of grants and funds administration for St. Louis’ Foundation of Barnes-Jewish Hospital.
1990s
Michael Fuller ’93 has been named the president and CEO of Berkeley Electric Coop in Charleston, South Carolina. Fuller has 31 years of cooperative experience.
Carlos Holt ’94 & ’09 is an audit manager for the Department of Defense. The Holts enjoy being a part of the military community, which encouraged Carlos to transition from municipal government auditing to his new position at Randolph Air Force Base in Texas.
Kim Loose Reynolds ’95 is a program administrator for the Colorado Address Confidentiality Program. She lives in Thornton, Colorado.
Sarah Jane Hunt ’96 is a food stylist based in her hometown of Omaha, Nebraska. Her work was profiled in the June 2020 issue of Omaha Magazine.
2000s
Margaret McCormick ’00 has been promoted to assistant vice president of operations for the division of force protection at SRC, Inc., a not-for-profit research and development company in Syracuse, New York. McCormick has been employed with SRC for more than 27 years.
Nikki McGruder ’00 has joined University of Missouri Health Care as director of diversity and inclusion. She was previously director of the Inclusive Impact Institute in Columbia, Missouri.
Valerie Wedel ’02 exhibited a peaceful installation titled “GROUNDED” for the month of September in the Greg Hardwick Gallery located in the Columbia College Art Department.
Brian Weimer ’02, major of operations for the University of Missouri Police Department, was appointed interim chief in July 2020. He began his career at MUPD as an officer in 1992.
Tylisha Dade ’06 ’10 & ’16 has been named assistant principal for Jefferson City Public Schools in Missouri. She has taught in middle school and high school for more than 15 years. Tylisha married Marlin Dade Sr. on June 18, 2019, in Columbia, Missouri.
Judson Ball ’07, co-owner of Logboat Brewing Co., celebrated the business’s expansion with the opening of Waves Cider Company in Columbia, Missouri.
Gunnery Sgt. Louie Sanchez ’08 is retiring from the U.S. Marine Corps after 23 years of faithful and honorable service. He resides with his family in Gulf Breeze, Florida.
Jessica Upchurch ’09 has been named chief operating officer of the Girl Scouts of Southern Illinois. She joined the council in 2017 and has been with the organization since 2009.
Adam Voight ‘09 has been promoted to manager of Marketing and Consumer Sales at Socket, a Missouri-based telecommunications provider with its headquarters in Columbia, Missouri.
2010s
Zaneta Adams ’10 has been appointed Midwest District Vice President of the National Association of State Directors of Veterans Affairs (NASDVA). She will represent Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota and Wisconsin, while also serving on the NASDVA Executive Committee.
Dan Barnett ’10 is assistant executive director of Operations for the St Louis Metro Bar. He holds a law degree from St. Louis University School of Law.
Eliga Walker ’10 is a human resources specialist at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama.
Patrick Warren ’12 was named manager of Regulatory Affairs – Cellular and Regenerative Medicine at the Vericel Corporation, a biotech company in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He began a graduate program at Harvard in the fall of 2020.
Jesse Walters ’12 and his wife, Megan Meier-Walters, have expanded their business, Camacho Coffee, to a brick-and mortar location in Columbia, Missouri. The new space includes a tasting room and second air-roaster, a process that floats coffee beans on a bed of hot air to produce a smoother, lighter taste.
Amanda Wells ’12 has been named senior staff accountant for Security Equipment Supply in Earth City, Missouri.
Christopher Itai Cardona ’13 received a Distinguished Service Award by Orange County for a senior community pop-up pantry he opened in response to COVID-19 restrictions in the spring. In July, he continued philanthropic efforts by raising more than $1,200 to provide morale-boosting meals and snacks to healthcare workers at Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs, California.
Jennifer Gates ’14 is a purchasing administrator for the Grand River Dam Authority in Oklahoma. Jenny (Shala) married Jerry Gates on Sept. 9, 2019, in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. Courtney Pfeifer ’15 is a forensic toxicologist for St. Louis County.
Nic Reynolds ’17 has been named assistant men’s basketball coach and facilities and events coordinator for Purdue Northwest in Hammond, Indiana. Reynolds played four seasons with the Cougars men’s basketball team.
Tausha Martinez ’18 is a marketing and public relations specialist for Catchphrase Communications in Worcester, Massachusetts.
Katie Smith ’18 displayed two art pieces in the juried show, Monochrome, at the Columbia Art League. While she studied business, Smith also took many jewelry and art courses at Columbia College. Since graduating, she launched a silversmith businesses, Be Gutsy Jewelry.
Chontelle Wilson ’18 published her first book. “The Process” is a short story reflection on her personal and spiritual journey. Levon White ’19 is working on his first novel while pursuing a master’s degree in elementary education. He regularly volunteers with his local food bank in Port Angeles, Washington.
2020s
Jordan Alford ’20 is a graduate assistant for the women’s basketball team at Southern Illinois University. She was a point guard for the Cougar women’s basketball team from 2016 to 2019.
Gina Czeschin ’20 is a claims specialist for the State of Missouri Department of Employment Security. She lives in Jefferson City, Missouri.
Thibault “Tebow” Benabid ’20 has signed to play basketball professionally in La Roda, Spain, for the 2020-21 season. The native of France played on the 2018-19 Cougar men’s basketball team.
Nick Kaiser ’20 is a graduate assistant coach for the Lawrence Tech ice hockey team in Michigan. Kaiser played lacrosse for the Cougars. –CP
Entrepreneurial Spirit
Mikel Fields ’08 likes to keep his goals simple. He wants his business to provide a service to his community and help others. Mikel and his wife, Luana Branco Fields ’10, purchased Cracked Up Mobile in the spring of 2019. 49 Affinity Fall 2020“I like that [owning your own business] puts all the responsibility on your back,” says Mikel, a former Cougar basketball player. “The opportunity is exponential when it’s all up to you.” Luana, who played volleyball for the Cougars, is a commercial loan officer at Hawthorne Bank. Read the article, originally published by the Columbia Missourian, at connected.ccis.edu/alumni.
