EXTRAORDINARY E GLES
Each year the EWU Alumni Association holds a gala event to honor a select group of Eastern’s most impactful alumni. This year, as always, the stories of our inspiring Eagle honorees made it an occasion to remember.
BENJAMIN P. CHENEY LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT
Before he retired as an account executive at Avista, Doug Kelley ’83, our 2024 honoree for Lifetime Achievement Award, was always known as the guy who said “yes.”
“Yes” to projects with vision. “Yes” to opportunities in the making. “Yes” to empowering the dreams and ambition of his co-workers and staff.
When, in 2019, Kelley was honored with another Lifetime Achievement citation — this time from the West Plains Chamber of Commerce— it was this spirit of positive influence that the Chamber celebrated. “Our winner is one who has not only been a champion in the West Plains, but throughout the greater Spokane region,” said the board’s executive director at the time, Toby Broemmeling.
Given that his degree from EWU is in recreation management, it’s not surprising that Kelley has most often said “yes” to supporting projects and programs involving recreation, especially when these involved the great outdoors. Over the years he has served in countless local and regional volunteer committee
positions — so numerous, he says, that the actual number eludes him — as well as the race director for the quintessential Spokane event, Bloomsday. As a graduate of Leadership Spokane, he has also said “yes” to participating in solutions to one of our region’s most devastating challenges: violence against women.
Along with Manny Hochheimer of Numerica, Kelley was a founding member of the YWCA Spokane ‘Good Guys’ group — men from Spokane who have joined together to support the YWCA’s efforts to end domestic violence. He has also been proud to volunteer at Hope House, a transitional living facility for women, many of whom find themselves in need of assistance due to violence directed against them and their children.
Finally, there is what might be Kelley’s most consuming postretirement passion: international travel. It may be that visiting foreign lands is just an extension of his lifetime obsession with making connections; of sharing with strangers that affirmative energy that has for so long defined Kelley’s life and work here in the USA.
Or maybe he’s just determined to monopolize the “On the Road” section of this magazine (see Page 30).
LT. COL. DANIEL CARTER MILITARY SERVICE
Just after earning his bachelor’s degree in history, our alumni honoree for military service, Command Sergeant Major Christopher D. Clapin ’97, entered active-duty service in the United States Army.
His decision to serve his country didn’t surprise those who knew Clapin. Even as a young person, the talented musician and athlete chose to dedicate himself to service and teamwork. His first duty assignment was with 75th Ranger Regiment at Fort Moore, Georgia. He has continued to serve for 26 years, 23 of them with the Rangers, rising to the rank of Command Sergeant Major for two different battalions.
Clapin’s awards, citations and decorations, which include the Purple Heart, are far too many to detail here. But the long list is a testament to a career of dedication, courage and heroism. This telling detail from his nomination letter tells you all you need to know: “Even when injured in Afghanistan, and waking up paralyzed in a German hospital, Clapin was most concerned about his Rangers remaining in Afghanistan, not himself. It was his determination to be there for his troops that helped him recover and return to serve his nation and his band of brothers.”
More recently, Clapin successfully completed a 16-month peacekeeping deployment in the Sinai. He is now working towards a master’s of science degree in organizational leadership at Eastern. EWU celebrates his return, a true eagle among Eagles.
RISING EAGLE
This year’s Rising Eagle award honoree , U.S. Army Captain Katie Emery ’15, is another Eastern profile in courage.
As a member of EWU’s ROTC Cadet Corps, Emery left no doubt that she had the right stuff for success. A communications major with minors in military science, psychology and Spanish language, she graduated from Eastern with a summa cum laude distinction. After receiving her honors degree, she was commissioned as a U.S. Army Aviation Officer while also being recognized as a Distinguished Military Graduate — an honor distinguishing her as one of the top 20 percent of all ROTC cadets nationwide.
After first completing a challenging training course to become a pilot of Apache attack helicopters, Emery landed at Fort Riley, Kansas, where she joined the fort’s elite Aviation Attack Battalion. Soon, she and her comrades were headed off to Syria in support of Operation Inherent Resolve, a joint task force leading our nation’s ongoing fight against the Islamic State.
From a remote outpost in Syria, Emery led a platoon of four attack helicopters as they logged more than 300 combat flight hours, missions which often encountered fire from hostile forces.
At every stage of this, her first deployment, Emery distinguished herself. When assigned the role of assistant battalion operations officer, for example, she stepped up to plan attack, reconnaissance and security missions — operations that she herself participated in.
These efforts, according to her nomination letter, “directly contributed to the significant elimination of hostile forces, which enabled stability in the region.
“Captain Emery’s story serves as an inspirational example of the success that EWU students can achieve immediately after graduation by demonstrating the traits of an Eastern Eagle: grit, grace, gratitude and greatness. Captain Emery also serves as an outstanding example for women who are aspiring to lead, on and beyond the campus.”
SANDY WILLIAMS TRAILBLAZER
Back when she was a 21-year- old freshman at Eastern, Freda Gandy ’96, our Sandy Williams Trailblazer Award honoree, got an early lesson in the importance of feeling included and supported as she started her journey to earning a bachelor’s degree.
Gandy had traveled from her home state of Mississippi to study developmental psychology at Eastern. As she recalled in a 2022 interview, she knew she’d arrived at the right place as soon as she stepped into the classroom of Scott Finnie, beloved professor of Africana Studies at EWU. “Walking into Dr. Finnie’s class and seeing another person of color, and other students of color made me feel welcome here in Spokane and made me feel a sense of pride to be here,” Gandy told The Coeur d’Alene/Post Falls Press
Over the years, Gandy has worked tirelessly to ensure that other young people feel similarly supported, included and positioned to succeed. Even before graduation, she began working as a volunteer at Spokane’s Martin Luther King Jr. Family Outreach Center, then joined the staff as a teacher after earning her degree. As her contributions at the center grew, Gandy rose through the ranks to serve as family services coordinator, then director of children’s services. She was named the center’s executive director in 2010.
Through it all, she has never tired of advancing the center’s critical mission; that is, “improving the quality of life for children, youth and families in Spokane through an array of culturally responsive educational and social services within the framework of Dr. King’s vision of equal respect, treatment and accessibility for all people.”
Among the nominating materials filed on behalf of Gandy, Chad Heimbigner’s letter — he is the COO of Coffman Engineers in Spokane — described her perfectly: “Gandy is an incredible person with a huge heart. She constantly and unconditionally gives her time, shares her talents, and does whatever she can to positively impact the lives of others. The programs she leads make a huge difference in the lives of newborns to seniors ... and every age in between.”
As Gandy told The Spokesman-Review back in 2019 after being named a YWCA Women of Achievement: “I just have a passion for helping people.”
GOV. CLARENCE D. MARTIN EDUCATOR OF THE YEAR
While an undergraduate education major at EWU, Kevin Alley ’07, our Gov. Clarence D. Martin Educator of the Year honoree, received a shocking diagnosis that no young person should ever be forced to face: He had a life-threatening form of cancer.
Multiple surgeries followed. These seemed to be a success, and Alley was able to return to Eastern and resume his previous role as an RA in Eastern’s Dressler Residence Hall.
Unfortunately, Alley’s health care odyssey wasn’t over. After waking up with back pain during Finals Week, Alley learned that he had shattered a vertebrae in his spine (a consequence of the earlier cancer treatments). And there was even worse news. The cancer was back — this time at Stage 4.
Alley spent the next nine months in a Seattle hospital bed, his mom constantly by his side. Support also poured in from his church, his hometown community and, of course, his fellow Eagles. Especially his fellow Eagles. Here’s how Alley puts it: “We were so surprised by the flood of support from Eastern: professors, students, dorm officials and athletic staff. Coach Giacoletti of our 2004 EWU men’s basketball team delivered a signed ball, EWU Residential Life held 3-on-3 tournaments, and others held fundraisers to support me and my family. And, most special, were the letters, emails and cards that were sent from so many in my Eastern Eagle family.”
Alley beat the odds, and returned to EWU — cancer free — to complete a bachelor’s degree in special education and, later, a master’s degree in educational leadership with a principal’s certification. Today his experience informs every aspect of his career as a beloved teacher and coach in Washington’s Columbia School District, where, outside of the classroom, he has provided guidance to young male athletes as a baseball coach and football coach, helping them to become, as he puts it, “a great son, brother, husband, and father.”
Alley’s drive and dedication have not gone unnoticed. Earlier this year he was honored with the Crystal Apple Award for Teaching Excellence in the greater Tri-Cities area, a distinction that is given to teachers that go above and beyond in their classrooms and schools.
TAWANKA SERVICE
Erik puthoff ’05, our 2024 Tawanka Service Award honoree, moved to Spokane from his hometown of Chewelah in 1999. After starting out at Spokane Falls Community College, he transferred to EWU to pursue a degree in communication studies.
It was no accident that Puthoff became an Eagle; his mom and sister had gone to Eastern, and their experience instilled in him a strong desire to finish his studies in Cheney.
To make that transition work, however, Puthoff, like a lot of Eagles, had to help finance his Eastern education by working in Spokane. This meant he didn’t have time to participate in the campus-based clubs and activities that help define the collegiate experience for so many EWU students.
But that didn't stop him from making the most of his time as an undergrad. On a personal level, he made lasting friendships and found a sense of belonging. As a scholar, he found inspiration from professors like Jeff Stafford, a renowned communication’s faculty member who has always put his students first.
These days, as a successful member of the community development team at STCU, Puthoff is committed to making his own contributions toward putting student success first at his alma mater.
The nomination letter of STCU’s Traci McGlathery provides a sense of his commitment: “Puthoff has served on the EWU Alumni Association board, delivered financial education to EWU classrooms, and served as the STCU representative for STCU and EWU partnerships for nearly 10 years. From serving pancakes at Moonlight Breakfast, quizzing students on the campus STCU golf cart, or connecting with others via the Eagle Career Network, I know he takes great pride in his connections and affiliations with EWU.”
EAGLE4LIFE SPIRIT
This year’s Eagle4Life Spirit honor went to not one, but two exemplary Eagles: Paul Terrell ’05 and Landon Luiten ’03. Both Terrell and Luiten have long been among Eastern’s most tirelessly enthusiastic backers, sharing their love for the university in countless ways. But it’s a more recent, behindthe-scenes project which will ensure that the generosity of their Eagle spirit will be felt for years to come.
Together, Terrell and Luiten spearheaded the effort to remake EWU football’s locker room. It was a much-needed face lift that has transformed the severely outdated space into an attractive, functional place. Funding from the generous backers of the Eagle Football Network made the work possible, but Terrell and Luiten made it sing.
Both put in countless volunteer hours on design, construction and recruiting the volunteers who stepped up to assist in the project. Last summer, for example, they were often on site until the early morning hours. The result is a new, fresh space that every Eagle, and potential Eagle, can be proud of.
“You do it for your football family first, and then hope that enhances the football family in the future,” Coach Aaron Best told The Spokesman-Review last summer. “The newness of something in a place we hold sacred makes it that much more special. The guys hang out, play games, watch film, dress and have some of their greatest memories in that room.”
For Terrell and Luiten, the locker room renovation project was just the latest iteration of their Eagle4Life spirit, according to their nominating letter. “A great deal of the branding,” the letter read, “was designed by Terrell himself. Luiten is very engaged with basketball’s 6th Man Club. Both of their families also represent EWU on a regular basis. And you can be sure that both of these individuals are going to be first in the tailgating lot on Eagle football Saturdays.”
By Charles E. Reineke
The somewhat inevitable story of how alumnus Marcus Robert became one of the nation’s top cider makers.
Every morning during Washington’s annual apple harvest, an army of pickers descend upon the vast orchards surrounding the city of Yakima. Working through the day, they skillfully traverse the seemingly endless lines of trees, plucking ripe fruit and filling industrialsize bins with apples. Lots of apples. Literally tons of apples.
Last year, according to the Washington State Tree Fruit Association, growers in the Yakima Valley produced an estimated 134 million 40-pound boxes. Each of these boxes, depending on the size of the fruit they hold, contains around 80 pieces. For those of you keeping score, that’s an astonishing 10.7 billion apples.
Most of this apple abundance ends up on grocery store shelves, both here in the United States and around the world, where — if not munched straight away — it makes its way into pies and tarts, cobblers and crisps, muffins and cakes. Some of it goes to commercial processors, who turn their own slice of the harvest into jams and jellies, sauces and spreads, even extracts and essences.
None of this is news to EWU alumnus Marcus Robert ’03, a man for whom no aspect of the apple experience is unfamiliar. Robert comes from a family of orchard keepers, and he was raised atop the loess and alluvial soils that — along with its sunny, temperate climate — make the Yakima environs so fruit-friendly. Since 2008, he’s used this knowledge to become a leader in the movement to popularize yet another way of enjoying apples’ healthful bounty, a product that demonstrates that everything old can, in fact, be new again.
In this case , the “old” is hard apple cider, that slightly fizzy, mildly alcoholic beverage that has been around, in one form or another, since antiquity. Here in North America, cider was once ubiquitous, as newly arrived Europeans grew apples, fermented juice and drank it in abundance. In fact, according to a history published by Washington State University Extension, cider was so widely consumed in Colonial America that even children drank it in diluted form.
While undoubtedly enjoyable, our ancestors had practical reasons for hitting the hard (cider) stuff. Because water was often not safe to drink, pressing and fermenting apple juice allowed families to make and store a healthy alternative to H2O. Making cider could also contribute to a household’s bottom line. Demand was so robust that taxes, wages and tithes were often paid with it.
Hard cider’s popularity began to wane in the middle of the 19th century, as industrialization and urban living provided alternatives to rural folkways. By 1900, an oft-cited report from Connecticut lamented, “… not one family in ten has even one single barrel on tap as a beverage.” Nineteen years later, Prohibition almost killed off cider completely.
Which brings us back to Marcus Robert.
a retail channel — to supermarkets. The Campbells were interested in adding something different, in their case cider making, and so they invested about five acres in producing fruit for the project.”
You know, I’m a grower. I know everything from the dirt to the bottle.
Robert is the cider maker and co-owner of Tieton Cider Works, a Yakima-based cidery that takes its name from the small town where the company’s first few barrels of artisan cider were produced. Those early Tieton (pronounced tie-uh-ton) products, crafted from apples harvested at Craig and Sharon Campbell’s Harmony Orchards, were of the homespun, value-added type of offerings. But their potential was undeniable.
“They didn’t really have a fermentation background,” Robert says of those early days. “But they had a building, a few tanks and some high-quality apples. And so we kind of just started from there.”
“Basically,” he continues, “they were farmers who wanted to diversify. Most of the apple crop that you grow there goes directly into
After bringing Robert on board, they leveraged his experience as a grower to introduce some 40 different types of cider-friendly, heirloom apples — varietals with evocative names such as Golden Russets, Winesaps, Gravensteins and Newtown Pippins — on those five acres. The goal at the time, as Robert remembers it, “was just to see how they did in the Yakima Valley.”
This was well before today’s international cider boom, and Robert recalls that he and the Campbells felt like they were flying blind. “No one was growing them then,” he says. “There was no research, nothing. You know, we tried to talk to WSU about them, but they didn’t really have any good information about these varieties that are specifically grown to make cider.”
And yet the experiment was a success. The trees thrived, and soon Robert and the Campbells were bottling (no canning in those days) hard cider made from their fruit. Trial and error, along with Robert’s unerring nose and sensitive palate, led them to heirlooms — and some more common “dessert apples” — with just the right flavors, aromas and textures for making higher-end cider.
“You know, I’m a grower,” Robert says. “I know everything from the dirt to the bottle. So it just kind of made sense for me to be there. We had maybe a thousand cases that first year, 2008. It was before
Angry Orchard, the ad blitzes and the boom in national sales. There were, I think, only 12 cideries at that time in the whole of the Pacific Northwest. All of them were very small, making a thousand, maybe a couple of thousand cases each year.
“At Tieton, we thought that if we could make and sell maybe 1,000 cases, that would be pretty good. But we eclipsed that number right away, and that was just selling in local markets in Seattle and Portland.”
These days, the Tieton Cider Works is located in a 30,000 square-foot, state-of-the-art facility just north of downtown Yakima. When running at full capacity, Robert and his team produce some 9,000 gallons of cider each week. Their canning line, in total, cranks out more than 250,000 cases each year. They’ve also got a well-appointed tasting room with an outdoor patio that attracts both casual visitors and hard cider aficionados from across the nation.
During a recent visit to the production side of the building, 900-pound bins of plump Pink Lady apples were lined up to begin their juicing journey, a trip which will include sorting, washing and “milling” into mash for pressing. The resulting juice will then be tanked, fed yeast, fermented, then “racked” or filtered to remove the accumulated sediments or “lees.”
“We’ll press about 500 to 600 gallons an hour, and we run about four days each week,” Robert says over the rumble of the machinery. Some of the juice goes into blending tanks, where different varieties of apple juice are commingled to make some of Tieton’s best-selling ciders. Other juices stand alone as “single varietal” offerings, while still others get co-fermented or blended with other fruits, hops and flavors. Robert’s Lavender Honey Cider, for example, is a customer favorite and perennial award winner, including earning a double-platinum award from Cidercraft magazine in 2020.
“We’ve had to do a lot of research,” says Robert. “When we first started,
Above: Marcus Robert on the canning line at Tieton Cider Works.
Below: An aerial view of Yakima’s Harmony Orchard.
as I said, we had a lot of trees growing that we didn’t know what the fruit was going to be like. Later, I did a lot of research on yeasts, racking regimes, cooling — all the different kinds of stuff you need to think about to produce a good cider. At the end of the day, as a wine maker or cider maker, to make the best product you need to have the least amount of inputs. So that’s what we do now. We press juice, we add yeast and then, eight-to-ten days later, we’ll have a fresh, dry cider that we can use to make our blends.”
Robert, who graduated from EWU with a biology degree, didn’t always think he’d find his calling turning apples into cider. As both a talented athlete (he spent his first year at Eastern as an Eagle running back) and serious science student, he imagined he’d one day become a physician specializing in sports medicine.
But as fate would have it, a summertime gig fighting fires, led, after graduation, to a full-time career as a wildland firefighter. The job involved long hours in challenging conditions, but Robert loved that it was important, fulfilling work. It also offered up, when fire season slowed, sustained periods of downtime. Among other activities, the seldom-idle Robert used these respites to continue a fascination with fermentation, especially beer brewing, that he’d developed as an undergraduate living in Dressler Hall. [Reporter: “I’m assuming the beer making was happening outside of the dormitory?” Robert: “Uh, sure. Let’s say that.”]
While he still appreciates a quality brew, it was the vinification side of the fermentation arts that later became a passion — which the quality of his finished wine bottles soon reflected. As word of his winemaking prowess got around, he started crafting vino for friends in Yakima, typically from grapes grown on small side plots on their farms.
Meanwhile, in his Spokane-based day job, Robert rose to the level of fire-crew captain, eventually spending more than a decade fighting wildfires across the PNW. As the years went by, however, he and his wife, Amy, a Yakima native and fellow Eastern graduate whose family boasts deep ties to the university, began thinking about returning back home. Perhaps, they thought, they could make wine professionally. Having their first child helped accelerate the process.
“My parents lived there,” says Robert. “Amy’s parents lived there. It was just like, a no-brainer. We wanted our kids to grow up around their families.” So when Amy ’03 heard about a listing for an historic, picturesque apple-packing warehouse near where they’d grown up, she and Robert were intrigued.
The Robert family, from left: Elise, Amy, Genevieve, Marcus and Marceil.
“In the process of our moving back,” Amy says, “my dad’s friend approached him and said, ‘Well, there’s this piece of property that’s been for sale before, and now it’s kind of in limbo. But I think the bank would be interested in getting rid of it.’ So we looked at the property — it was just around the corner from where Marcus grew up — and we were like, ‘Well, it does have a really cool old building. But what would we do with it?’”
For his part, Robert recalls, he wasn’t at first convinced there was anything to be done with it. “The windows were shot out, probably because I shot them out when I was a kid,” he says with a laugh. “And it was full of trash and everything else. But we made an offer on it, and got the land, the building and everything with it.”
Today the apple warehouse is beautifully restored and home to the Robert’s Fontaine Estates Winery, a boutique production facility and event space. Robert still makes wine for the Fontaine label, while Amy manages events. Due to the vagaries of fine wine making and, especially, the burdens of distributing and marketing retail wines, it is now the event side of the business that predominates.
“We were booking stuff and were otherwise about as busy as I wanted us to be,” says Amy. “So we decided that maybe we were at that place where the event part of it was the thing to focus on, rather than trying to do the wine tastings and getting people out here to buy wine. So we shifted that focus and really dug into the events, primarily weddings.”
Wknowledge base on cider,” says Amy Robert. “I think it was in 2014 that we went back East to a big cider festival with Craig and Sharon. It was just crazy. There were all these people there who knew exactly who Marcus was, all because of the things he was doing at Tieton.”
As a current board member of the American Cider Association, Robert is still working to extend cider’s reach, says Michelle McGrath, the council’s CEO.
Flavorful, fruit-forward, bubbly, convenient, fun, non-pretentious, health conscious: These are all things that are driving the beverage trends these days. Cider checks all of those boxes, with the additional box that none of the other categories have: it’s made from natural whole ingredients, and it has an agricultural story.
The ACA was founded in 2013, McGrath says, with the straightforward goal of growing and protecting the cider industry. “Like most associations,” McGrath says, “we’re really focused on education and advocacy… We are working really hard to help the hospitality and wholesaler industries learn more about cider, so that they will embrace the category with open arms and understanding.”
Robert came on board in 2016, just after McGrath became its leader. As someone with a background in promoting value-added options for farmers, she says, she immediately recognized Robert as a uniquely positioned asset: “For a long time, Marcus was one of the sole grower voices on the board. And definitely he’s the largest orchardist on the board. So Marcus is in an interesting position, because he represents the grower-maker, but he also runs a retail-driven cidery that is doing very well in the regional market.”
hich makes good sense, given the size, scope and growth of Tieton Cider Works. And as the business has grown, so has Robert’s reputation.
Over the past decade, in fact, Robert has established himself as a key player in a national cohort of cider makers who have captured the imagination and allegiance of America’s next-generation imbibers, especially younger adults aiming to expand their foodfriendly drinking options.
Last year, according to statistics compiled by Beverage Industry magazine, retail U.S. hard cider sales topped $474 million, with more than 10 million cases consumed by thirsty consumers. Much of the energy in the “cider segment,” the magazine said, was driven by the type of creative flavor offerings — ciders featuring blends with apricot, peach, raspberry and other fruits — that have long driven Tieton’s selections.
Robert doesn’t take credit for inventing these creative infusions. But his early, and successful, embrace of expanding cider’s boundaries has made him something of an inspiration to many of his fellow cider makers. You might even say he’s a celebrity in cider circles.
“He really has just learned and grown and amassed this huge
“He’s been especially helpful in thinking about how to create value for the association and for our members,” she adds. That value, she continues, is centered around helping cider — that ancient, once almost forgotten beverage — further establish itself among a young, diverse set of consumers.
“Flavorful, fruit-forward, bubbly, convenient, fun, nonpretentious, health conscious: These are all things that are driving the beverage trends these days,” says McGrath. “Cider checks all of those boxes, with the additional box that none of the other categories have: It’s made from natural whole ingredients, and it has an agricultural story.”
An agricultural story: The land, the soil, the climate. These are the things, says Robert, that make the Yakima Valley unique, and make Tieton cider so special. It’s also why he always knew, somehow, that he’d be coming back to the orchards.
“I grew up here,” Robert says. “Up the road in Naches. I’m a fourth-generation orchardist. I was raised on an orchard, and I still own and operate that orchard. About 60, maybe 70 acres of apples and pears and peaches. That’s something you inherit from your parents, these places, these ties to the land.”
Want to visit Tieton Cider Works? Their child and pet-friendly tasting room is located at 619 West J Street in Yakima. It is open on Fridays and Saturdays from noon – 8 p.m., on Sundays from noon – 5 p.m.
Big Sky MVP Jamie Loera reflects on a spectacular season for Eastern women’s basketball.
In a year that saw a certain shooting guard from Iowa create an extraordinary surge in the popularity of women’s college basketball, Eastern’s hoop stars also completed a season for the history books. Led by their own front-court sensation, Jamie Loera , the Eagle women earned both regular-season and tournament championships in the Big Sky Conference, scoring their first NCAA Tournament berth in 34 years. For her part, Loera, a recent master’s degree graduate in EWU’s organizational leadership program, was the unanimous MVP choice of conference coaches, while also earning her second straight Defensive Player of the Year award and a first team All-Big Sky selection. Loera, a Moses Lake native who transferred to EWU from Arizona State in 2022, announced this spring that she will forgo her final year of eligibility. Before moving on, she spoke with Eastern magazine about her role as the anchor of what many are calling the greatest-ever EWU women’s basketball team.
Thanks for taking time out to talk with us! Congratulations on an amazing season. At what point did you realize that this team was something special?
When I first arrived at Eastern [before the beginning of the 2022 season], I saw that this was a group of girls that really showed up for each other. It was a true sisterhood. And with the success we had that first year, I was like, ‘Wow!’ This team has great potential.
So knowing that — just how good we could be —I prepared for this season trusting that we were going to be Big Sky champions. I just strongly believed that we were great, and I showed up every day with that belief.
There were a lot of us who believed, actually, and we talked about it every day. We set big goals, we set process goals. And we worked hard; we grinded all offseason and in the preseason as well. I think that was our strength: We were able to just focus on who we were as a team and focus on our preparation.
And the work paid off, for sure. Still, you and your teammates had a couple of tough defeats early on. I’m thinking of the two-point loss to Gonzaga at home, and the loss on the road to Cal — a game that you led most of the way. Two things I wanted to ask: What did Coach [Joddie] Gleason talk about after those early defeats, and what was it about you and your teammates that helped you move on to the success you enjoyed in conference play?
One of the things Coach Joddie talked about was how we had to not let [the losses] define our season; to not let them define who we are. I think that statement was just so powerful in creating a positive environment, keeping spirits up, keeping our mindset level…
When we watched the film, Coach Joddie — and all the coaching staff — made a point of highlighting the areas that we did well in. It was super beneficial for them to take some time and say, ‘Okay, what did we do well in this game?’ But also to look at those areas where we needed to grow. Like rebounding, turnovers,
getting stops on defense. Those were areas that we definitely needed to improve on.
But I think it was just super reassuring for our coaches to talk about how setbacks like these were going to prepare us for much tougher moments in the future — moments in the middle of the season and at its end. So I think they were reassuring and very positive after those losses. And, you know, we actually didn’t let the losses define us. We kept moving forward.
During that first season with the Eagles, you quickly emerged as a real force on defense, something you’ve obviously carried forward and taken to new heights. Was defense always a big part of your game? Or did it become a particular focus here at Eastern?
I want to say defense was always my strength. But I definitely give a lot of credit, especially for the knowledge that I've developed about defense, to my previous school, Arizona State. We were very defense oriented, and our coach took a lot of pride in emphasizing the defensive side of our system.
When it came to my own game, I really wanted to develop into a player that could make an impact on both sides of the ball. To know that, if my shot wasn’t falling or I couldn’t get a good look on offense, I could make an impact on defense. I took a lot of pride in that.
So yeah, I just really focused on all of the areas I could make an impact in the game, not just on offense. But I take a lot of pride in defense, and it’s definitely elevated my game.
I think a lot of basketball fans — especially casual fans — don’t always appreciate how critical the defensive side of the game can be. Can you talk a little bit about the role defense played in this year’s historic season?
It plays such a significant role! Defense has kind of been getting a little bit lost in the process of, you know, the game changing: the shift to a greater emphasis on scoring and offense.
But on our team, we really took a lot of pride in understanding our opponents’ offensive systems so that we could get stops, force turnovers and limit them to one shot per possession… When you do that, you're forcing people to change their pace on offense; forcing them to change ball movement. They're just not going to run their offense as smoothly or as comfortably as they want to.
For us at Eastern, we scored a lot of points off turnovers. So that defensive game really pushed our momentum on offense. Personally, as a player, I thrive off the defensive stops and big plays by my teammates. When Jaydia [Jaydia Martin, junior small forward] takes a charge, or when Jacinta [Jacinta Buckley, senior guard] blocks a shot, I get high from that! I’m like, ‘All right, let’s
go! Let’s go score!’ There’s a lot of energy that comes from playing good defense.
And a lot of negative mental energy for your opponents, too. It seemed like there were so many times this year that you guys really disrupted other teams — got them rattled. Am I right?
Oh yeah. That was the goal.
As a graduate student, I’m guessing you are a little bit older than many of your teammates. Did age and experience help you take on the leadership role that you assumed with this team? Is that something you and your coaches talked about going into this year?
When I first got to Eastern, I definitely held back. Just being a new face on the roster and coming into a group that had really strong chemistry, I didn't want to say too much. I was focused on developing relationships. Of course I think that’s part of leadership, too: building trust, building relationships on the team.
This season Coach Joddie encouraged me to take charge a little more, at least on the basketball court. And I think that was a difference between my first and second years — really taking on that role as a leader; taking more shots on offense and pushing the ball, being a little more selfish on the court.
I definitely got more comfortable having a year under my belt, after building relationships and people getting to know me. But leadership was definitely one of the key roles I had to take on, really from the time I first got to Eastern. Because our coaches believed in my experience, they believed in my abilities… they were amazing. And the girls, too: I think the girls knew that I really loved the leadership role, and loved being the sort of impact player who would do whatever I could for them
After you and your teammates won both the Big Sky regular season and tournament championships, you came back to Cheney to prepare for a tough draw in the NCAA Tournament. But first, there was some celebrating, right? A big greeting when your bus rolled in?
My goodness, it was so cool! All of us were just so happy and excited to see everybody. The love that we got from campus was just so amazing. We were very, very happy to represent Eastern.
Then you had to go back on the road for the first round of the Big Dance. It must have been really exciting, but also incredibly daunting, to play Oregon State, a highly ranked team on their home court.
Just the idea of being in March Madness itself, you know, it’s a bit
overwhelming. It had been 30 years since [Eastern women’s basketball] had been there, a long time. That just adds pressure…
Our coaches reminded us to embrace the moment, to embrace the opportunity and to have the confidence that we could win. We had played really well — matched up really well — against them last year. So we had those conversations about going out there and having fun while staying confident in our team and in our play. We absolutely thought we could make it to the second round. We’d proven ourselves, we’d been through every situation that you can think of.
We were a bit disappointed about the outcome. But, all in all, super proud, too. Just to get there, and in how we were able to represent EWU.
You were the unanimous choice for the Big Sky’s MVP, were the conference’s defensive player of the year, and a first team All-Big Sky selection. What were you thinking and feeling when the accolades started rolling in?
Wow, I don't know. On the day when it came out, I was just really grateful. Honestly, awards and accolades just weren’t really something that I thought about. I try to be an impact player. You know? To control what I can control. That’s how I was going to impact this team, and to help us win.
Sure, I'm definitely, selfishly, proud of myself. It’s been a tough journey for me. But mostly I'm just super grateful that I could play the way I played for our team. The accolades, as I said, were never a goal for me. The goal was for our team to win, and to be the best that we could be.
Still, it must have been amazing to experience the outpouring of support you received…
That’s all I could really focus on! I was just overwhelmed with love and gratitude, Yeah, just super, super grateful. It was a humbling experience. But like everything else, I was just trying to stay present in each moment, and to focus on not getting too high or getting too low.
Speaking of lows — at least for your many fans here at EWU — I’m told you are not planning to exercise your remaining year of eligibility? Is that a done deal, or might you reconsider?
I definitely made the decision not to take it right now, and I’m just looking to move forward to a position where I can continue to make an impact on the game. I am very excited for what’s to come. And I know that EWU has my back, always!
— Interview by Charles E. Reineke. Photos by Braeden Harlow. Questions and responses have been edited for length and clarity.
The Magic Bus, reborn.
A Big Night in Boise: Loera and her teammates celebrate a Big Sky Tournament Championship.
1. Cara Hernandez ’09, ’12 on the hill where the world’s greatest skiers met for the giant slalom competition during the Sapporo 1972 Winter Olympic Games. Her visit was part of a 14-day trip to Japan.
2. Beneath the granite spires of Patagonia’s Mount Fitzroy, Doug Kelley ’83, takes a break during a recent trek in southern Argentina. Kelley is this years’ EWU Alumni Association Lifetime Achievement honoree.
3. Matt Murphy ’04 visited Rome’s Colosseum in February. He traveled to the Eternal City as part of a celebratory European tour with his daughter, Katelyn, who is a recent graduate of Wenatchee High School.
4. During a recent Caribbean cruise, Jason ’93 and Stephanie Barthell ’93 celebrate a sunny day on St. Thomas.
5. Team USA member Myra Klettke ’82, brought home gold in the 60+ age group at the 2024 World Snowshoe Championships after shoeing her way through Spain’s Cantabrian Mountains.
6. In May, Dan Robisch ’77 and his wife, Colleen, visited Kunratice u Cvikova in the Czech Republic. Robisch’s ancestor, Charles Robisch, left the town in 1867 to emigrate with his family to the United States.
7. Myrna Driskill ’63 and Aubry Blad ’15 display their magazine — and Eagle pride — at the iconic Fernsehturm (television tower) in what was formerly East Berlin.
8. While on a Scottish sojourn to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary, Kathy Montague ’73 and her husband, Larry, donned their Eagle gear to tour Edinburgh Castle. Larry Montague recently retired as EWU’s director of facilities maintenance after 33 years of service.
Where will Eastern magazine be spotted next? Share a photo of you, our latest issue and the details of where your travels have taken you. We'll print as many as we can, with extras appearing on our website. Send images to easternmagazine@ewu.edu.
1960s
’68 Bill Yeend, BA speech communication, is one of the region’s most celebrated newscasters, earning five Edward R. Murrow awards for journalistic excellence over the course of his 44year career. Yeend, a former member of EWU’s golf team, has also been an ardent supporter of the golf community in the PNW. For this dedication to the game, he was honored in January with the Pacific Northwest Golf Association’s Distinguished Service Award.
’68 James Zimmerman , BA business, and his wife, Nancy, recently traveled to Antarctica, our planet’s southernmost continent. The trip marked the successful culmination of the Zimmerman’s quest to visit all seven of the Earth’s great land masses.
1980s
’83 Jeff Colburn, BA marketing, was recently elected president of the Silver Mountain Resort by the Idaho Ski Areas Association’s Board of Directors. Also known as Ski Idaho, the organization represents the interests of Idaho’s 19 alpine skiing destinations. Colburn, who has spent more than 30 years working in the resort industry, was previously Silver Mountain’s general manager.
’89 Mark Winter, BS economics, is a founding partner of Air Warranty, a new company specializing in aerospace contracts and warranty administration for airlines and aircraft maintenance service providers in the Middle East and North America. After 33 years of service, Winter retired from Boeing in 2021.
1990s
’92 Rob Carney, MFA creative writing, earlier this year was awarded the X. J. Kennedy Poetry Prize for his 2023 collection of poems, The Book of Drought The prize, presented by the Texas Review Press, includes a $10,000 cash advance,
a residential fellowship at the Vermont Studio Center, and a standard royalty contract. The Book of Drought will be available this fall from the Texas A&M University press.
’93 Erik Powell, BA English, in January published Toward Self-Directed Learning in the Secondary Classroom. The book, from Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, explores challenges faced by teachers implementing self-directed learning in a pandemic and post-pandemic context. Powell, a classroom educator and consultant, has recently completed his 30th year of teaching, 25 of them at his current school, Ferris High School in Spokane.
’93 Colene Rubertt, BA interdisciplinary studies, director of special projects for the Kalispel Tribe of Indians, leads the Kalispel Career Training Center in Cusick, Washington. In January, she was named one of Spokane YWCA’s 2024 Women of Achievement, an honor that was bestowed for her “profound impact on the tribe through her commitment, passion, and influence.”
2000s
’00 Darby McLean, BS biology, was profiled as part of The Spokesman-Review’s “2024 People of Influence” feature. She is the CEO of Spokane’s Spiceology Inc., a fast-growing purveyor of gourmet spices and blends.
’01 Janée Baugher, MFA creative writing, is a Seattle-based writer. Earlier this spring her most recent poetry manuscript, The Andrew Wyeth Chronicles, was selected for the 2023 Tupelo Press Dorset Prize. The honor came with a cash award, a writing residency, publication by Tupelo Press and national distribution though the University of Chicago Press.
’03 Levi Spencer, BA education, earlier this spring was selected to
serve as assistant principal at Ephrata (Washington) Middle School. Spencer, who boasts more than 20 years of experience as an educator, most recently served as the principal of Soap Lake Middle/High School.
’05 Lisa Gardner, BA communications, in December was named president of the Spokane chapter of the NAACP. Gardner, who is currently the communications and community engagement director for the Spokane City Council, told The Spokesman-Review that her priorities as NAACP leader will include increasing membership and mobilization while rekindling cohesion in the Black community. She had previously served as the organization’s vice president.
’05 Stacy Mills, BA interdisciplinary studies, in December was elected to serve as director of the North Kitsap School Board, District 5, and was appointed to act as the tribal liaison to the two federally recognized Native tribes the district. Mills is the only current school board member to be born and raised in the district.
’07, ’20 Kevin Alley, BA, MA education, one of our alumni award winners (see Page 18), in March was the recipient of a Crystal Apple Award, an honor recognizing outstanding educators in the southeastern Washington region. Alley is a teacher and life-skills mentor at Columbia High School in the Tri-Cities area.
’09, ’14 Alexis Alexander, BS engineering, MBA, this spring was appointed by Gov. Jay Inslee to serve a six-year term as a member of EWU’s Board of Trustees, the university’s governing body. Alexander currently serves as chair of the EWU Foundation Board. Look for additional coverage of his BOT appointment in our Fall/Winter 20242025 issue.
2010s
’11, ’20 Tim Harse, BA, MA education, in May was named assistant principal and athletic director of the Cheney School District’s Westwood Middle School. Harse was previously the dean of students at Spokane’s North Pines Middle School.
’12 Danielle Walker, BA marketing, was recently named senior vice president for business development at Xactus, a Spokane-based verification services provider for the mortgage industry.
’12 Kate Bylstone, MA urban and regional planning, in February was confirmed by county commissioners as director of the Department of Planning for the County of Maui (Hawaii). She had previously served as a senior planner.
’13 Samantha Clark, BS biology, in January was honored as one of the YWCA Spokane’s 2024 Women of Achievement. Clark, the executive director of MultiCare Behavioral Health, was recognized for her role in bringing the first MultiCare Behavioral Health Clinic in Eastern Washington to Hillyard, a socioeconomically challenged neighborhood in Spokane.
’14 Erik Meyer, BA interdisciplinary studies, in April was elected to the Big Sky Conference Hall of Fame. Meyer, an EWU quarterbacking legend, in 2005, won the Walter Payton Award, a prize awarded each year to the most outstanding offensive player in NCAA’s FCS football subdivision.
2020s
’22 Kashaila Rocheleau, MBA accounting, was recently named CEO of Icon Foods, a Portland, Oregonbased company specializing in natural sweeteners. Rocheleau, had previously served as the company’s CFO.
Powerful Competitor
Brendon Merritt, an Eagle basketball great with an indomitable will to win, died on May 16, 2024.
The force behind Eastern’s first-ever appearance in the NCAA Basketball Tournament, Brendon Merritt was the kind of guy every coach and every player wants on his team. Tenacious, tough, passionate, loyal, driven-to-win: all are descriptors both teammates and competitors used to define him. The attributes of a champion.
Merritt arrived at EWU as a junior transfer from Tacoma Community College, where he led the TCC Spartans’ 2001 team to a 28-5 record including a 25-game winning streak (He was inducted into the TCC Hall of Fame in 2013.)
After a redshirt year due to a back surgery — Merritt’s uncanny ability to overcome injury was a hallmark of his legendary toughness — the 6-foot, 4-inch-tall guard immediately made an impact. As his close friend and
2010s
’18, Mercedes McLain, age 34, died Feb. 13, 2024.
’11, Ryan Brown, age 40, died Dec. 15, 2023.
’10, Mindy Wilson, age 35, died Feb. 03, 2024.
2000s
’02, Brenda Ventress, age 66, died Jan. 12, 2024.
1990s
’99, Thomas A Carroll, age 65, died Feb. 9, 2024.
’96, Diana Sanger, age 81, died Jan. 31, 2024.
’95, John G. Marshall III, age
Eagle teammate, Keith Brown, told The Spokesman-Review : “Every single game would be a highlight. He was the ultimate competitor.”
The highlights were especially bright during Merritt’s second Eagle season. Alongside fellow All-Big Sky Conference guard Alvin Snow in the backcourt, during the regular season Merritt played a key role in positioning Eastern for a post-season run. During conference tournament play, Merritt dominated the stat sheet, leading Eagle scorers with 22 points as they cruised to victory over Northern Arizona University in the 2004 championship game. After cutting down the net with his coaches and teammates, Merritt was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player.
The Eagles’ head basketball coach at the
58, died Dec. 17, 2023.
’94, ’96 James “Jim” Desautel, age 75, died April 7, 2023.
’94, Dyke Taylor, age 58, died Feb. 12, 2024.
’92, Barbara Shields, age 94, died Jan. 23, 2024.
1980s
’89, Michael Harris, age 62, died Dec. 8, 2023.
’87, Beatrice (Bea) Tysor, age 77, died Dec. 13, 2023.
’84, Kevin Schmuecker, age 66, died Dec. 09, 2023.
’83, Gerald Buckenberger, age 65, died Jan. 13, 2024.
time, Ray Giacoletti, has said that, if not for the injuries that continued to pile up, Merritt had a legitimate shot at a successful NBA career. Instead, he played for two professional seasons in Europe before returning to his hometown of Tacoma, where he loved being a husband to his wife, Erin, and dad to his son, Brendon Jr., and stepson, Brantley. Brendon James Merritt was 43 years old.
’82, Maria “Missy” Bradford, age 75, died Feb. 10, 2024.
’82, ’90 Cindy Wilke-Hooper, age 68, died May 2, 2023.
’81, Marilyn “Lynn” Guy, age 81, died Dec. 23, 2023.
1970s
’79, Shirley Riley, age 70, died April 10, 2024.
’78, ’85 David McVicker, age 67, died Dec. 20, 2023.
’76, Dee Lorenz, age 90, died Feb. 21, 2024.
’75, ’83 Richard Adams, age 73, died March 22, 2024.
’75, Kyle Pugh, age 85, died
Feb. 13, 2022.
’73, George “Skip” Bonuccelli, age 73, died March 14, 2024.
’73, Timothy Houck, age 79, died April. 24, 2024.
’72, John Whitcomb, age 75, died Feb. 12, 2024.
’71, Randy Santora, age 75, died Dec. 5, 2023.
’70, Carolyn Johnson, age 77, died Oct. 25, 2023.
’70, Henry Muller, age 88, died March. 29, 2023.
1960s
’69, ’76 Carole Korff, age 77, died Dec. 28, 2023.
’68, Jerry Byrd, age 83, died Jan. 21, 2024.
’68, Iva Sands, age 78, died Jan. 7, 2024.
’68, ’70, Frank Sauser, age 79, died Dec. 25, 2023.
’66, Danny Brown, age 81, died May 25, 2024.
’65, Lynn “Girk” Gurley, age 84, died Aug. 18, 2023.
’64, Carol Sullivan, age 82, died Feb. 20, 2024.
’61, ’69, Robert Bullis, age 86, died March 1, 2024.
1950s
’56, James Rogers, age 93, died April 21, 2024.
’56, Aubrey Verstegen, age 91, died March 6, 2024.
Faculty and Staff
Vandana Asthana, died on Jan. 16, 2024. Asthana, a professor of political science and public policy at EWU, was an internationally recognized authority on global water policy. “She was also a dedicated teacher who shared her expertise with her students while pushing them to do their best work,” said Kristin Edquist, professor and chair of political science and public policy at Eastern.
Martha “Marti” Brzoska, died on Feb. 27, 2024. Brzoska ’83, joined the EWU faculty as an art instructor in 1985 before transitioning to an administrative position with the university’s General Undergraduate Academic Advising program. She retired in
2010 after 25 years of service.
Peggy Gazette, died on Jan. 23, 2024. An emerita professor of health and physical education at EWU, Gazette was a pioneer in the development of women’s athletics at Eastern. She served for 21 years as head of EWU’s women’s physical education programs, while also serving two separate terms as women’s athletic director. In 1998, Gazette was inducted into the EWU Athletics Hall of Fame.
Leland Graese, died on Nov. 17, 2023. A veteran of the Korean War, Graese ’58, earned an economics degree at EWU and soon joined the university staff. He retired in 1988 after 28 years of service.
Jack Geraghty, died on Dec. 7, 2023. Geraghty earned renown as a journalist, former mayor of Spokane, commissioner for Spokane County and a senior member of the Expo ’74 organizing team. At Eastern, he served from 1982-1994 as a member, and two-time chair, of the university’s Board of Trustees.
Patricia (Trish) Hahn, died on Nov. 23, 2023. A professor emeritus in communication disorders, Hahn joined the EWU faculty in 1968. She retired in 1994 after 26 years of service.
Cecil Jose, died on Nov. 10, 2023. Jose ’74, a scholar of Native American studies and urban and rural planning, held a master’s degree from EWU and a doctorate from WSU. He served as a member of Eastern’s faculty for 19 years.
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Summer to Remember: For students at Eastern, EXPO ‘74 marked both an opportunity and an inconvenience. The opportunity involved attending, and in many cases working for, a once-ina-lifetime event that attracted exhibitors and guests from around the world. The inconvenience stemmed from sharing the Cheney campus with visitors. Pearce and Dressler residence halls, for example, became $5 per person “hotel” rooms, while the “Magic Bus” from Spokane to Cheney and back (30 cents each way) was often crowded with fairgoers. Still, there were very few complaints, and student leaders saw a distinct upside in the increased visibility that visitors provided. “If the impressions they leave with are good ones,” an editorial writer opined in the Easterner, “perhaps when it’s time for Bud and Sis to go to college, EWSC will be the first one that comes to mind.”
