GeDUNK Spring 2010

FOCUS ON CELEBRATING

FAMILY

Dear Alumni and Friends, Family … it is one of the greatest joys in life. I’m certain that with 25,000-plus alumni, we all have a different definition of this word. In this issue of The GeDUNK, we’ve tried to capture some heartfelt stories of family. I’m so grateful to those who allowed us to tell their stories and live a day or two in their lives. I loved hearing about their journeys of faith and love. Hopefully, you’ll find a story that is similar to yours and one that puts a smile in your heart … I know I did!

When I think of family, I think not only of my own very special family at home but also the family I have in my friends from Grove City College. That family is one that has been beside me in the ups and downs of life and one that I love to celebrate. I hope you will take a moment to reflect on your Grove City College family.

Speaking of that, this Homecoming’s theme is Matters of the

Heart. It will be a celebration of those things about Grove City College that mean the most to you. I hope you will bring your family and join us October 8-10, 2010. It’s going to be an amazing weekend.

This May, we graduate another class of students who will join the Grove City College Alumni Association. It will be the largest class in our 134-year history. On behalf of the entire alumni body, congratulations and welcome!

Grab your cup of coffee and enjoy this issue of The GeDUNK!

Melissa (Trifaro ’96) MacLeod Senior Director of Alumni and College Relations

Dear Alumni and Friends, “We are Family!” When thinking about our Grove City College community of knowledge and Christian fellowship, I cannot help but recall this Pittsburgh Pirates’ 1979 theme song (when they won the World Series) by a then-popular singing group. We are indeed a family at Grove City College and this family of students, alumni, faculty, staff and administrators is the foundation on which we have built this remarkable American college.

This edition of The GeDUNK celebrates the family, in all its aspects. You will read about alumni of the College who have been blessed with wonderful families through the gift of international and domestic adoption. You will meet grads dedicated to providing a loving home for their children with special needs. All of them have answered God’s beckon to serve as parents and guardians in the lives of their loved ones.

In a time when the importance of family may be downplayed, these stories remind us how essential a family atmosphere can

be, not only to the emotional, mental and spiritual well-being of children, but to the parents as well.

We all recognize, however, that raising a family is not an easy task. Every family, even the Grove City College family, has its share of obstacles to overcome, but when a family perseveres to accomplish its goals, it makes you reflect on the special nature of the family bond.

As the seasons change (and many had a winter to remember!), I hope you have an enjoyable spring and summer season spent at the labors of your life’s work and in the company of cherished friends and family.

Richard G. Jewell ’67 President

Cert no. BV-COC-071201

2

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

SPRING 2010

GROVE CITY COLLEGE ALUMNI MAGAZINE The GeDUNK Editorial Board Jeffrey D. Prokovich ’89 Vice President for Advancement Melissa (Trifaro ’96) MacLeod Senior Director of Alumni and College Relations Melinda Miller Senior Director of Marketing and Communications Editors Michael Baker ’09 Communications Associate Janice (Zinsner ’87) Inman Communications Project Coordinator Rebecca Miller ’04 Assistant Director of Communications Contributing Editors Ryan Briggs ’01 Tricia Corey Amy Clingensmith Mongiovi ’96 Kelsey (Pollock ’06) Rhea Charlene (Griffin ’83) Shaw Amy (Bacher ’02) Vernon Cover Photo Dean Riggott, Riggott Photography Minneapolis, Minn.

On the Cover...

Darryle ’89, Dawn (Jurewicz ’90) Owens and their son, Kefe, 2, enjoy non-traditional family life in Minneapolis. Read more on page 4.

Design Amy Clingensmith Mongiovi ’96 SWP | www.swpagency.com

COVER STORY

4

Darryle ’89, Dawn (Jurewicz ’90) Owens and their son, Kefe, 2, enjoy non-traditional family life in Minneapolis.

FOCUS ON PARENTING

8

Step-families work to build healthy, happy homes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 ’03 grad fosters 17 children, adopts four . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Families of ill children deal with struggles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Special needs bring special joys to families . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Grove City parent authors parenting books.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Campus couple raises baby in Memorial Hall . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Multiple blessings comes from sibling adoptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Checking in with triplets, five years later . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Homeschoolers share insights about education. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

ALUMNI EVENTS & NEWS

10

28

Alumni Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Alumni News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

SPORTS

34

Winter Wrap-up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Spring Preview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Sports News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

FACULTY

12

42

Faculty Feature: Dr. Shawn Ritenour. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 Faculty News. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

CAMPUS NEWS

46

CLASS NOTES

51

IN MEMORY

62

ALUMNI BABIES

65

37

Printer Printing Concepts, Inc., Erie, Pa. Alumni Association Officers 2009-10 Douglas E. Knable ’79 President Allyson (Baird ’88) Sveda Vice President Melissa (Trifaro ’96) MacLeod Executive Secretary Roger K.Towle ’68 Treasurer Donald L. Balla ’93 Annual Giving Chair Gerald Bullock ’92 Alumni Trustee Laura (Ritchey ’87) Havrilla Alumni Trustee Andrew J. Kozusko ’96 Alumni Trustee Grove City College 100 Campus Drive Grove City, PA 16127 (724) 458-2300 (888) GCC-GRAD www.gcc.edu alumni@gcc.edu

The GeDUNK is a magazine published three times a year for alumni and friends of Grove City College and highlights campus news, student features and alumni achievements. Gedunk is a word that resonates with Grove City College alumni and friends. Named after the on-campus gathering place/snack bar for students since the early 1950s, the word Gedunk made its way into the Grove City College vernacular when World War II Navy veterans returned to campus, bringing with them the word that defined the place where snacks could be purchased aboard ships or the snack items themselves, everything from potato chips and candy to ice cream and sodas.The name stuck. For decades, the Grove City College Gedunk has been the place to come together to share news and ideas, and this magazine strives to do the same.

Finding the Balance Dawn (Jurewicz ’90) Owens greets son Kefe after getting home from work as the chief executive officer of OptumHealth.

CEO Dawn (Jurewicz ’90) Owens, stay-at-home dad Darryle ’89 make it work as a family

K

efe Owens ponders the contents of the refrigerator shelf, a bright blue Thomas the Tank Engine backpack almost swallowing his compact 2-year-old frame. His task: choose which plastic sippie cup he wants to drink from.

The choice is too hard. He grabs two, one for each hand.

His father, Darryle ’89, leans down to his level, gently admonishing. He’s going to have to choose one.

Kefe’s face scrunches unhappily.Tears begin to well up behind his tiny, round tortoiseshell glasses. He takes one cup and is briefly distracted. It doesn’t last.

4

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

The tears come.

Darryle sweeps him into his arms, soothing.“Kefe, it’s only a cup.”

The tears stop as Kefe looks out the kitchen window and is distracted again, this time by a sedan pulling into the driveway.

“Mommy’s home. I don’t think she’s going to let you have two cups either,” Darryle said wryly, still holding his son.

Kefe wriggles happily in Darryle’s arms.

He wants to get down. Darryle complies.

Dawn (Jurewicz ’90) sweeps in a minute later, sharply dressed in a skirt suit and heels. She scoops Kefe into her arms, both grinning happily.

It’s a window into the life of a family who does things just a little differently.

Changing it up Just a few years ago, both Darryle and Dawn had careers in NewYork City.

Darryle was working in marketing and account management with MedcoHealth Solutions, a pharmacy benefit management company headquartered in New Jersey. Dawn was in management with a division of UnitedHealth Group.

They were both successful. By contemporary standards, it seemed they had it all.

Story by Rebecca Miller ’04

But life was crazy.They saw each other less than two days a week.

“Our schedules never seemed to mesh,” Darryle recalled.“Something had to change.”

Darryle had almost 15 years of experience in the corporate health care sector, but he believed it was time to make a move.

He resigned from Medco to begin a new phase in his life – as a volunteer. His first job was with Harlem-based Newsong Community Corp. as the coordinator of the after-school program. He began working with The Heritage Foundation efforts in NewYork; he also joined the capital campaign initiated by Redeemer Presbyterian Church, their home congregation.

The change was immediate – as were the benefits.

“It was nice to actually be able to work on things that I actually cared about,” Darryle said.And he was able to be home at the same time as Dawn, who was traveling about four days a week for her job.

“We were able to spend quality time together,” Dawn said.

They were seeing each other more often, finding time to be with friends and giving back to the community. It seemed equilibrium had been reached.

But that was only the beginning.

Non-traditional approach Dawn and Darryle may be a Grove City couple, but they didn’t follow the traditional path.

Dawn, a Buffalo, N.Y., native, fell in love with the campus following a visit with a friend, applied early decision and was accepted as an international business and German major. Darryle, originally from Cleveland, was convinced by his parents to attend Grove City only after trying another school and then taking some time off. He graduated with a degree in business administration.

Although they had mutual friends, they didn’t know each other well during college. It wasn’t until they were both working for Aetna Health Plans that they

Dawn (Jurewicz ’90), Darryle ’89 Owens and 2-year-old Kefe look through a book chronicling their trip to Ethiopia. The Owens adopted Kefe when he was 6 months old.

began to see more of each other, at the instigation of a co-worker.

“She was very persistent,” Dawn recalled. Darryle laughed.“Yeah.”

They married in 1994. In the decade that followed, they carved out a life together.They didn’t have children, but that was all right. Life was good.

But after a while, they decided it was time to start a family.They wanted to adopt and began to consider domestic options.

In 2006, the Owens’ attended a one-day conference called “Hope for Orphans,” sponsored by the FamilyLife organization.

Photography by Dean Riggott

They sat in on a session about African adoptions led by alumni couple Peter and Rebecca “Becky” (Dunbar ’96) Bowersox (see story, page 20).The Bowersoxes themselves were close to knowing if their adoption from Liberia was going to be approved.

That session changed the Owens’ perspective.

“They just had a lot of faith and trust in the Lord and how it was going to work out,” Dawn said.“They were very inspiring to us, and kind of opened our eyes to African adoption.”

See FINDING the BALANCE, page 6

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

Finding Balance the

The wheels were set in motion, but it would be almost two years before they would welcome another family member.

Building a bond The Owens’ still vividly remember that first meeting.They had waited a while for it.

It was midnight when they stepped off the plane onto Ethiopian soil.They had traveled for 24 hours.They fought nervousness mixed with exhaustion.

Doubts crept in.Would he like them or would he reject them?

It was a defining moment.

International adoptions match families with children depending on their spot on the waiting list.

“They call you, and they say, you have a child,” Dawn said.They had only one picture of their son and one piece of paper describing him.After a review by a pediatrician with international adoption expertise, they decided to move forward.

They waited two months for the adoption to be finalized by Ethiopian and U.S. authorities.

From page 5

It felt like a lifetime.

“Now you know who you’ve been praying for,” Dawn said.“You just want to bring him home.You just want your child at that point.”

That moment came. Once at the orphanage, they waited for the nannies to wake the 6-month-old.The fear that had crept in gave way to an immediate bond.

A photo snapped as Darryle picked up the infant shows Kefe’s tiny hand reaching for Darryle’s face.

They spent a week in Ethiopia getting to know their infant son and observing how the nannies cared for him.

Before the Owens traveled to Africa, they planned to name their son “Joshua.”

His given name was “Kefeyalew,” which they found hard to pronounce.

But that changed as the week progressed.They learned how to pronounce the name (Keh-fay-yellow) – “and it was beautiful,” Dawn said.

“He was Kefeyalew,” she said.“That’s what the nannies called him.That’s what the people who knew him and loved him called him.”

The name’s meaning?

“One of higher purpose.”

Purpose-driven Purpose.

Talk to the Owens for any period of time, and it’s evident that they approach life with a good dose of that – and realism.

In 2007, Dawn was promoted to chief executive officer of OptumHealth, a Minneapolis, Minn.-based division of UnitedHealth.The company serves its 60 million customers through a variety of supplemental health care plans, as well as employee assistance programs and life insurance.

Dawn joined UnitedHealth Group in 1997 and had most recently served as chief marketing officer of Ingenix, another subsidiary. Before joining Ingenix, she was president of Uniprise Strategic Solutions.

When she was first approached with the offer to be CEO, she declined. She didn’t feel that she was the best person to take on the role or that she had the necessary experience.

But that’s not what upper management saw.They saw a woman who had done well in sales before tackling challenging management positions – and had excelled there as well.

It’s a long way from her first months out of college.After spending a year studying in Germany, she was determined to move back overseas. She had turned down multiple offers domestically.

Her mother even worried that she wasn’t interested in working.

But doors didn’t open overseas and reality kicked in.A chance meeting with Darryle at a mutual friend’s wedding landed her an interview and job offer with Aetna.

It was her first foray into the health care sector – and even though she didn’t know it at the time, it was a great fit for her skill set.

In many ways, it was the perfect time for the Owens to get into the industry. It was changing rapidly and young employees could adapt to the changes with more ease than veterans. Dawn AT LEFT: Kefe Owens, 2, has the run of the house as his parents chat in their Minneapolis home.

6

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

credits mentors throughout her career that “trusted me beyond my experience level” and guided her through tougher assignments.“I was given opportunities that I wouldn’t have otherwise gotten.

“You have to, in a business environment, look at the marketplace, look at change and determine how to embrace it, because it will change and if you don’t change with it, others will,” Dawn said.

She accepted the offer – with the caveat that she stayed in NewYork. She had already been traveling four days a week.

Why not one more?

It seemed she had found a workable solution.

Then she and Darryle had a talk.

They were in the adoption process and a placement would be coming through sooner or later. He missed her being around; they should move to Minneapolis, Darryle said.

They loved NewYork – but Dawn realized he was right. It would be a sacrifice, but they needed to move.

“I needed to re-prioritize those things that were important to me.”

Family life Dawn may be comfortable in a board room with business executives, but she isn’t above letting loose and dancing around the basement playroom with Kefe.

She treasures moments like those.

“I’ve been deliberate about making choices and actually compromising in areas that were important to me to create worklife balance.”

Even with more than their share of transitions – moving to Minneapolis, adopting Kefe and settling into parenthood – the Owens say they have been blessed with how smoothly it has gone.

“We really enjoy Minnesota,” Dawn said.“It’s a great place to raise a family.”

So much so that they’re considering a second adoption, this time domestically.

That work-life balance is the key to making it work, according to the Owens.

Dawn makes sure she gets ready for the day before Kefe wakes up at 7 a.m. so she can spend time with him. Sometimes, her

Stay-at-home dad Darryle Owens ’89 divides his time between his day-to-day responsibilities and volunteering with several non-profits.

schedule allows her to eat breakfast with him too.

From there, her work days are filled with meetings. She still travels for business and back to campus for the College’s Board of Trustees meetings. (She joined the Board in 2008.)

Her goal is get home before Kefe goes to bed, so she can tuck him in.

As the stay-at-home dad, Darryle takes care of the typical household tasks – laundry, dishes, cooking, grocery shopping and paying the bills. He mixes in walks and other activities with Kefe throughout the day.

But that’s not all he does.

Darryle helped launch The Heritage Foundation’s Minneapolis-St. Paul Community Committee and currently serves as chairman. He also serves on the boards of two Minneapolis-based non profits: Project SUCCESS, a youthdevelopment organization that works with inner-city public school students over a six-year period, from middle school through high school; and the Plymouth Church Neighborhood Foundation, a housing organization that owns and develops housing to meet a range of community needs.

His roles, which include fund raising and event planning, require a fair amount of time in meetings, writing e-mails and letters and phone calls, so during the day, a nanny takes care of Kefe.

Making it work “I think what Darryle does is actually harder than what I do,” Dawn shared in a follow-up conversation.

In traditional terms, it might be hard for people to identify with what he does, caring and nurturing for their child and volunteering.

“He has to be much better about selfdirecting his time,” she said.“He is masterful at being able to balance those things really well … and secure enough that he isn’t threatened by what I do.”

And their family is strengthened by that aspect of the relationship.

“One part of the partnership is not more important than the other,” Dawn said.“It’s very synergistic. It’s a wonderful partnership.”

Dinner is over, and Kefe is still hungry.

He wants a muffin. Darryle begins to cut one up for him.

“Never did I think I would be changing diapers and cutting up muffins,” Darryle said.

But those are important tasks, ones that he wouldn’t be doing if he’d stayed in the corporate world.

“This was definitely the right thing to do,” he said.“For us, we’re fortunate that one of us actually can stay home and … get involved in our community.”

(Rebecca Miller ’04 is assistant director of communications at the College and an editor of the GeDUNK Alumni Magazine.)

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

focusoncelebratingfamily

One Step at a Time Blended families take journey together to build healthy, happy homes

H

By Amy Clingensmith Mongiovi ’96 olly (Haff ’95) Muchnok waited a long time for the fairy tale.

Single until 32, she did everything the good Grover was supposed to do to find that perfect mate. Meet people through Christian friends, go online, and when it didn’t work out, be patient and focus on her career.

Ten years after college graduation, Muchnok found who she had been waiting for.

“We met at church, and I knew very quickly he was the type of person I wanted to marry,” Muchnok says.

“Because he was so much the man I had prayed for, it was an easy decision.”

But her perfect mate, Marty, came with a few extra packages – three kids from a previous marriage, ages 5, 10 and 15.

Growing up, Muchnok saw herself living the traditional family story, but being a part of Marty’s life meant being a part of his children’s lives, too.

As she and Marty began dating more seriously, Muchnok couldn’t wait to get to know the kids better.While 5-year-old Alec was excited about a new friend, 10year-old Lauren and 15-year-old Matt were less enthusiastic.

The entire family remembers stress early on in the relationship. In fact, Holly and Marty went through pre-marital counseling, knowing that some of their family issues in their Pittsburgh-area home might take a little extra work.

By the time Holly and Marty married in 2005, Muchnok got what she calls the

8

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

whole package, and quick.

“The twist is, I got the fairy tale,” Muchnok laughs.“I’m just the wicked stepmother.”

Holly, Marty, Matt, Lauren and Alec certainly aren’t alone.Today in America, approximately one-third of all weddings form stepfamilies, according to the National Center for Family and Marriage Research.And there are between 11 and 18 million stepmothers in the U.S., and 35 million Americans who are remarried.

But possibly no two of these families are alike. For instance, Ron Deal, author of “The Smart Step-Family,” writes that there are 57 different combinations of blended families.

Muchnok, however, still sometimes felt she was on an island, especially when so few of her friends were in blended family situations, and there was very little outside faith-based support to find.And as her wedding to Marty grew closer, she began to dwell on the awesome responsibility she was taking on, the difficulty that might lie before her and how unprepared she felt to be a bride and a mom on the same day.

So she did the only thing she could think of.

Panic.

Then pray.

Muchnok knew she had to strike a delicate balance, always wanting to promote a relationship between Marty’s ex-wife and the children. But she also had to step up as the female mother-figure in her household.

It was a balance that didn’t come easy.

“I had to figure out how to love kids when they are unlovable,” she says,“and know that when they were having a bad day, I didn’t have to take it personally.”

Marty, who was six years older than Holly, had worked through many issues in his first marriage, figuring out the man he wanted to be and the father he could be.

“But kids don’t understand or care about that,” Holly says.“They just know that their parents aren’t together anymore and they’re put into a situation now they didn’t choose.

“I think if you’re going to marry someone with kids,” Muchnok continues, “you have to choose to love the kids no matter how difficult the situation is and love like Christ would love.”

Muchnok worked to find ways to invest in the lives of her stepkids and spend time with them individually, not solely to be a friend but also an authority figure who had a parental role.

“My language to them was,‘I’m a third adult who loves you,’” she says.

With so much time and energy being placed on the new family, Holly and Marty also concentrated on finding a way to manage their relationship.

“By the time he came home at 5 or 6, I was exhausted,” Muchnok says, adding that selfishness can come easily and acknowledging that stepmoms get little time alone with their husbands at the beginning of the marriage.

“When you walk into an instant family, you forego the newlywed stage,” she says.

focusoncelebratingfamily “That’s why it’s important to make time for date nights and time together, or you will become part of that 60 percent of second marriages that end in divorce.”

One difficult aspect of being a part of a blended family came during holidays.

Being a new wife and stepmom, Muchnok wanted to bring in some of her own family traditions and start new ones as well. But holidays were filled with a couple of hours with mom, a couple of hours with dad, and very little time with grandparents on both sides, let alone Holly’s parents, who wanted to form relationships with their stepgrandchildren, too.

“The holidays were hard,” she says.

“The nuclear family is broken but still exists.This year was the first Christmas it felt normal.You have to create experiences that are yours with them. It’s a whole new family that we all need to figure out how to function in.”

Holiday traditions were even more important for Muchnok once she and Marty had their own daughters: Eliza, born in August 2006, and Emmerson or “Emme,” born in July 2008.

And while the addition to their family brought excitement for Holly and Marty, it was another hurdle for her stepchildren.

“We had a lot of conversations about it,” Muchnok says.“There were feelings of excitement and some hesitation, too.”

She tried to engage Matt, Lauren and Alec in picking out names, baby clothes and making other plans.Again, each of the kids took the news differently.

“The youngest was so excited, but the older ones didn’t want to talk about it,” Muchnok remembers.“As a new mom then, seeing someone not be thrilled about your baby was hard.”

Even in the difficult times, when Muchnok was sometimes painfully aware of her own selfishness and impatience, she saw strong facets of her personality emerge, too. Five years later, with five kids at age 38, Muchnok knows all the hard work has paid off.

“Each year – I can’t believe it’s five

The kids in the blended family of Holly (Haff ’95) Muchnok and her husband, Marty, include, clockwise from top, Matt, Lauren, Eliza, Alec and Emmerson. / Contributed photo

already – it gets better and better, and we have a great family,” Muchnok says.“And each of them in their own time has been able to tell me they love me, too.”

Today, the littlest girls absolutely love their siblings:Alec, now 11, Lauren, now 16, and Matt, a 21-year-old student at Grove City College.

Perhaps as the oldest, Matt had the most difficulty adjusting to a new type

of family life.

“Change can be a difficult thing to deal with,” he says,“especially with something supposedly set in stone. On top of this … the ages of the children can have a huge effect on how easily integration may occur. I know that my younger siblings were more accepting of the change than I See STEP, page 27

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

focusoncelebratingfamily

Fostering Love

’03 grad fosters, adopts children; hires college roommate as nanny

G

By Sarah (Fuhrey ’05) Huber rovers shine when it comes to caring for the least of these – the orphan in Kenya, the widow in the Appalachians.

But sometimes our neighbors – the foster child, the teenage mom – need us most. And that’s where Kim Hacker ’03 shines.

Hacker, a fifth grade teacher in Sharon, Pa., has been a foster parent to 17 children – and has adopted four of them. A single mother, she persuaded her college roommate, Katie Anderson ’03, to work for her as her children’s nanny, and together the Grovers are transforming the lives of some of the most helpless of the helpless.

Yet Hacker and Anderson are quick to say they’re not heroes.

“I didn’t intend to adopt,” Hacker said.“But then I loved them, and I knew they were mine.” Anderson, a music major, concurred:“I never planned on being a nanny. I never planned to stay in Pennsylvania for that matter.” Both agreed that God moves in mysterious ways, beginning with Hacker’s “out of the blue” desire to be a foster mom.

Hacker, who said she can’t remember not empathizing with foster children, signed up to foster parent after moving to Sharon about six years ago.“Each step I took I prayed over, but I didn’t know where I was going,” she said.“I was totally at peace with the steps, but the outcome has been, well, almost hilarious.”

Kim Hacker ’03 and her adopted children. / Contributed photo

10

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

She particularly saw God’s hand in her housing situation.

Hacker and Anderson co-rented an apartment in Grove City for a year after graduation, during which time Hacker substitute taught and Anderson gave music lessons at the local YMCA. After Hacker landed a position at a nearby elementary school, she decided to purchase, rather than rent, a home and Anderson planned to rent a room from her. But Hacker couldn’t seem to finalize a deal on a small house.Then she called the owner of a larger home on the market, told him she could give him twothirds of the asking price, and amazingly, he agreed. She moved into the big house with multiple bedrooms and praised God on behalf of her future foster children.

Making her children hers While Hacker pours herself out for every child who enters her home, four children particularly caught her heart – and she speaks of her now-adopted children with glee. She tells how they first came to her as foster children, how she dreamed of them before she met them and how she immediately loved them.

“They’re beautiful,” she said, alternately laughing and choking up as she recalled their smiles and struggles. Hacker’s children share the same birth mother, but Hacker welcomed them separately.

In July 2005, Keon, then 18 months, and Christian, then 9 months, arrived.The boys’ sister, Nina, was born later that year and went home to Hacker within 48 hours.A year later, Noah was born. Hacker was away for Thanksgiving when she was told of his birth, so he was given to a different foster family. Devastated, she fought for him, insisting to the case worker that siblings ought to stick together and praying God might make it so.

She drove to Erie at least once a week to make her case before the judge, and at Christmas, she sent the foster agency a card with Keon, Christian and Nina’s pictures – and an empty brown snowflake.The empty snowflake, she told the agency workers, was her “missing angel.”Three weeks later, Noah was hers.

Nina’s arrival was similarly tense. Her birth mother had led a case worker to believe she had had an abortion, and Hacker, who had already pledged to be Nina’s foster mom, grieved for her as a mother.“It was losing my child,” she said. Hacker lived in suspense for six weeks; finally, a case worker called, saying Nina had entered the world and could still be Hacker’s. Hacker

From left, siblings Christian, Keon, Nina and Noah were adopted by Kim Hacker ’03 in 2005 and 2006. / Photo by Nate Weatherly ’05

brought her home and again praised God. At the time, Hacker was teaching school from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., while Anderson stayed with the children; at 3:45, Anderson rushed to work, and Hacker took over Nina’s late-night feedings.“We never saw each other, just passed,” Hacker said.“We had forms we filled out for each other saying what was for lunch, who got his medicine.Thank goodness Katie’s my best friend and not just my nanny.” Hacker eventually persuaded Anderson to quit her afternoon job and become her children’s nanny full time.“I joke that Katie didn’t know she was making a lifetime commitment when she agreed to be my roommate in college,” Hacker added.

Adopting children of a mixed race has made for some funny stories, said Hacker, who takes it all in stride. She said an African American beautician who overheard her mispronounce Keon’s name told her, much to her relief, how to say her son’s name correctly. Hacker said, “We only went there once, but I’m so thankful we did just so I could learn how to pronounce his name.”

Once Noah joined her family, Hacker determined to make her children hers. It

took about a year-and-a-half and a lot of paperwork, but all four are now little Hackers.Today the Hacker children – ages 3, 4, 5 and 6 – keep their mother and nanny on their toes. Anderson doesn’t see herself nannying indefinitely, she said, and would someday like to work for an orchestra or band. For now, however, she is content.“The best part is the kids,” she said.“I love them so much.”

God-designed parenting Hacker said God provides “exactly what we need when we need it.” She works two jobs, serving as a foster recruiter on the side, and earned her master’s degree the year Nina was born.

Random friends have donated monetary gifts, and last winter someone bought them a bedroom set just in time to allow Hacker to take in two foster children, on top of her four adopted children.The state of Pennsylvania allows foster families to parent up to six children at a time.

“I believe so strongly in foster parenting that that’s why I am bringing more children in with my own children,” she said.“These children are hungry for love.” She believes foster children’s intense need for love and stability is often best met in joyful Christian homes. She

pointed out that while she cannot overtly share the Gospel as a teacher in a public school, she’s allowed to talk about God and the Bible with the children she fosters.“If anyone is seeking a relationship with God, it’s these kids,” she said.“They crave hugs and attention and stability.”

Hacker fosters through a private secular agency and is at times the only Christian foster parent working with the agency.

She said non-Christian case workers have commented that foster children seem to particularly thrive in Christian homes.

“Some children have stayed with me three days,” she said,“others, three years.

All have noticeably changed.” At the time of this writing, she had two young teens in her home who heard the Gospel for perhaps the first time at Hacker’s church.

Hacker’s case for parenthood and foster parenting is strong. She noted that adoption and foster homes are not part of an ideal world, but both are “needs” – needs she feels called, and loves, to meet.

She said,“In the beginning, I would have said that this is a ministry. But now, my children are mine, and I couldn’t live without them.”

(Sarah (Fuhrey ’05) Huber is a freelance writer living in Dallas with her husband and son.)

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

focusoncelebratingfamily

A Perfect Plan

Fleming, Benton families find strength through trials

W

By Rebecca (Beinlich ’95) Sodergren hen young couples dream of parenthood, they usually envision cooing infants, cute clothes, school buses and milestones like graduations.

They rarely think of hospital rooms, chemotherapy, stacks of medical bills, or even grieving the deaths of their children.

Yet two Grove City College alumni families have dealt recently with a heart-wrenching side of parenting: caring for gravely or terminally ill children.

Scott ’96 and Nalene (Carpenter ’97) Fleming have shepherded their 6-yearold daughter, Anna, through almost three years of intensive cancer therapies.

And Amy (Willerup ’95) Benton and her husband, Allan, have lost two of their five children to a rare mitochondrial deficiency disease – son Eric in 2003 and daughter Ava this past winter.

Both families have found hope in the midst of pain, and both have chronicled their journeys through Internet blogs that communicate their faith.

Caught off guard Both families were caught entirely unaware when their children first became ill.

The Bentons’ first child, Eric, was born five weeks early with some hearing loss but otherwise seemed healthy. Even after he lost his partial hearing, the Bentons still expected to raise a child whose only physical

12

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

Eric William Benton, 2½ months old, and Amy (Willerup ’95) Benton / Contributed photo

limitation was deafness.

Then, on the day after Thanksgiving in 2003, the situation changed abruptly.

Amy was holding her three-month-old son when he suddenly lost muscle tone.

Emergency room doctors were “throwing darts in the air,” taking puzzled stabs at what was wrong with Eric, Amy said.

As Eric’s condition deteriorated and then stabilized, the couple prepared to take home a child who was “possibly blind, definitely deaf and might not have been able to move.”

But he developed breathing problems, returned to the pediatric intensive care unit and died six days later, when he was four months old.

A long haul Similarly, the Flemings were going about their usual business when Anna, at age 3½ in the summer of 2007, developed stomach cramps.

An emergency room doctor saw a mass in Anna’s abdomen on a CT scan but couldn’t diagnose it without surgery.

Normal life shifted to high drama when Anna was flown by helicopter from Grove City to Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, with Nalene riding along.

Anna had surgery and then a year of grueling chemotherapy and radiation.

Although her cancer scans have remained clear, Anna developed a preleukemia condition caused by her cancer

treatments. She had a bone marrow transplant this past Christmas Eve, spent two months in Children’s Hospital and, at press time for this story, was moving to the adjacent Ronald McDonald House for several months.

Since the transplant, the Flemings have been “a separated family,” Nalene said.

One parent stays home with the healthy children, the other in Pittsburgh with Anna.The parents alternate every other day. Grandparents Larry Fleming, retired Grove City College professor of accounting, and his wife, Peggy, provide lots of childcare.

For nearly three years, the Flemings have juggled commuting to Pittsburgh, cancer treatments, parenting their other children (Nathanael, 9, and Emma, 2), homeschooling Nathanael and Anna, and outside work. Scott pastors Rocky Springs Presbyterian Church in Harrisville and teaches Greek at the College, and Nalene teaches Spanish for a homeschool study center in Grove City.

All in God’s plan Despite their trials, both families express trust in God. Nalene sees the Lord’s hand in every detail of Anna’s illness – even in the diagnosis. Anna’s cancer, called embryonic rhabdomyosarcoma, formed inside her when she was still in the womb.

“It’s a scientific reminder that this was all a part of God’s plan for Anna before she was even born.”

Anna’s little sister arrived in God’s timing, too: Nalene was pregnant when Anna was diagnosed.The first thing that popped into their minds, Nalene said, was,“Oh my goodness, we would have never planned to have a third child now, at this time, if we had known” about Anna’s cancer. But anticipating a sibling “gave Anna an outward focus – something to pray for and dream about.”

On their blog, the Flemings recorded baby milestones along with cancer updates and wrote that in Emma’s

ABOVE: The Fleming family on a Make-A-Wish trip to Walt Disney World.

BELOW: Anna Fleming / Contributed photos

arrival, God had blessed them with a sense of normality.

The Flemings also see the hand of God in Anna’s treatments. Anna’s initial surgery was done – before anyone knew what type of cancer she had – by the lead surgeon on a national study committee for Anna’s type of cancer. And the cord blood bank turned up not one but two outstanding matches for Anna’s bone marrow – a rarity.

The Flemings acknowledge on the blog that they take both the good news and the hard news as coming from God’s hand, and they praise Him no matter

what. But they play up the good news.

“We celebrate everything,” Nalene See FAMILIES, page 14

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

focusoncelebratingfamily FAMILIES from page 13 said. Finishing another round of chemotherapy or having a clear CT scan meant dinner at a restaurant or a family trip to the Duquesne Incline in Pittsburgh. Since the bone marrow transplant, Anna is confined to her room, but the family still finds ways to celebrate. At press time, Anna had just found out that her blood type had changed to the marrow donor’s type – a sign of the transplant taking root. She and Mom danced around the hospital room.

Pursuing acceptance The Bentons, too, see the Lord at work even in their children’s rare disease.

“Whatever God creates is good,” Amy said.“So who are we to say,‘Excuse me, God, you forgot to put the mitochondria in my child.’”

Muscle biopsies on Eric and Ava revealed that Eric suffered from 99 percent mitochondrial depletion and Ava, 93 percent. In layman’s terms, mitochondria are the cell’s energy source. Amy believes that scientifically, her children shouldn’t have been alive.

But by God’s design, she had them for four months each.

After Eric died, doctors had few explanations.The Bentons didn’t know whether any future children would be similarly afflicted.

A year after Eric’s death, Amy had twin girls, Emily and Alexa, now 5.Two years later, Elaina came along.

In the Bentons’ minds, their family was now complete. In God’s mind, it wasn’t.

Amy was surprised to discover that she was pregnant again. On her blog, she declared that this was the child she didn’t even realize she wanted – yet she did want her very much.

Ava, like Eric, was born prematurely but looked fine – until her hearing screening.

News that she was deaf hit the Bentons like a hammer.

14

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

Four Benton daughters, clockwise from top, Alexa, Elaina, Ava and Emily. / Contributed photo

For three months, they agonized:Was Ava a deaf preemie, or did she exhibit signs of her brother’s malady? Their blog chronicled the anxiety. One day Ava slept almost around the clock and Amy’s emotions plummeted, the next Ava nursed greedily and Amy’s hopes soared.

A month before her death, Ava reentered the hospital, but even there, the rarity of the disease made it unclear whether she would follow her brother’s course. One day she seemed energetic, the next lethargic. She loved massages by her physical therapist and cooed sweetly at those touches.The Bentons held onto hope, but then the end came suddenly.

Even Amy’s blog post from Dec. 17, 2009, the day before Ava’s death, said Ava had had a “good day.”

When Ava was two months old, the Bentons held her dedication at church.

Amy’s blog post read,“Today we dedicated our precious baby to God. Our pastor asked us four questions about our commitment to prepare Ava to have her own relationship with Christ.The fourth question is about how we accept whatever God’s plan is for Ava… After Eric’s death I realized all that question

four means. Initially, Allan and I thought, ‘Of course, if our God wants our child to be (whatever), we will support it.’ But it is so much more than that… Today we made a commitment that we will pursue God’s plan for Ava, no matter what the consequences. It’s His plan and it is perfect.”

Even, it is implied, if that meant walking the path of her brother.

Calm out of chaos Both families acknowledge that the Lord’s plan has sometimes meant that He sent them earlier trials as preparation for later ones.

Amy likens facing the death of a second child to being an experienced mother.The first time you have a baby, you barely know what to do with it: Why is it crying? What do I do with this baby gear? With subsequent children, you’re an old pro.

Paradoxically, letting her children go bore similarities to bringing them into the world in the first place.

When Eric died, it felt like “chaos,” Amy said. It was so wrenching, and she needed God’s strength so deeply, that it

focusoncelebratingfamily was almost as if she could feel God’s “are not really ours – they are a hands “molding my soul and making sacred trust from the Lord.” me breathe.”

As head of his household, Scott But she realizes that “I got to contemplates his responsibility for know God in a way that was a his family. privilege” during that experience, “As a father,” Scott said, “you have and it made Ava’s illness and death to help your children walk through seem “calmer” by comparison. it – and as a spouse. It’s not just the This time, “I know how I feel individual that I’m considering. about heaven. I know how I feel Sometimes our extended family and about God, and I know God is there our church family struggle with it for me,” Amy said. more than Nalene and I do. It’s as Similarly, Scott noted that past much about the corporate as the trials in his life prepared him to face individual.”

Anna’s cancer.

The Fleming children, Nalene “Those initial life-altering said, have picked up that corporate moments have happened already” mindset. Because of the shower of and formed his faith in advance. meals, cards, monetary gifts and And enduring a year of other assistance lavished on their chemotherapy and radiation family, the children have “learned in Nathanael and Anna Fleming / Contributed photo prepared Anna and her family for a new way that God takes care of the next trial of the bone marrow His people, and He especially does it transplant. through the community of His body,” which in turn makes “Last time, we wrestled with some of the ‘whys,’” Scott said. them “more attuned when others have needs.”

“This time, not so much.You grow, not in a fatalistic sense.

The Flemings have tried to cultivate regard for others You realize that, ‘Okay, this is the way it is, and we can’t do especially in Anna, who because of her illness could have anything about it until glory.’ So you think, ‘Okay, Lord, what become self-pitying. are You teaching us, and how can we use this to help others?’”

“If she comes through this and we’ve let her character degenerate, everybody’s going to be worse off,” Scott said. So “if she feels bad, we’re going to take that into account, but she Strength through unity can’t be mean.” At 3½, she needed a princess analogy.They Both couples have also discovered the need to remain close told her she should be Anna and not Anastasia, Cinderella’s as spouses and to agree in decision-making. cruel stepsister.

After Eric died, “Allan and I just clung to each other,” Amy They are now thankful for this choice. Nurses tell them said.

Anna takes her medicine better than teens do, and she was Even when they thought Eric was only deaf, the Bentons able to lie still for radiation treatments without sedation. discussed raising a child with a disability.

The Flemings tell Anna she must “show the love of Jesus” to “We knew that it could ruin a family.We decided that it those around her. would not ruin us, or Eric, or our marriage.”

Just as both of these sets of parents are trying to do.

And after Eric died, “We said, ‘We’re not going to let this For more on these families’ journeys, see their blogs at take us apart.’”

This time, however, Amy, a hospital social worker, and Allan, www.fourlittleladybugs.blogspot.com (Bentons) and who works for Wells-Fargo, have three living children to carry foranna.wordpress.com (Flemings).

The Bentons are starting a foundation, the Joy-Hope Foundation, through the grieving process.

In a recent conversation when all three girls were crying for to raise money for mitochondrial deficiency research and to send grieving families on vacations to help them heal, just as the Bentons Ava, Amy sat them down to this monologue: “Did we have a received financial assistance from friends for a recent trip to Disney good life before Ava was born? Did we have a good life while World with their living children. Amy is making custom bracelets to Ava was alive? We can do it again.” help raise money; for information or to order, see The Flemings, too, have worked to remain unified, to the www.etsy.com/shop/4ladybugbracelets. extent that in separate phone interviews, both parents raised (Rebecca (Beinlich ’95) Sodergren is a freelance writer living in the same issues and even used the same language.

Centerville, Ohio, with husband Jeff Sodergren ’92 and two children.)

One sentiment that both repeated was that their children

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

focusoncelebratingfamily

Unexpected Joy

Alums’ journeys in parenting take them down roads less traveled

P

By Rachel (Leonard ’03) Califf arenthood can be full of the unexpected, both heartbreaking and joyful. For Misty (Wadowsky ’04) McConnell and her husband, Jim, the unexpected came in the form of a congenital heart defect in their newborn son. For Catherine (Dalecki ’75) Thornberry, the surprise was the joy of becoming a stepparent to an adult with Down syndrome.

Coming to terms The news about Nolan’s heart condition was a complete shock to the McConells.

“I had a normal pregnancy with two ultrasounds.There was nothing to worry about.When he was born, he was a big baby at 10 pounds, six ounces and 22.5 inches long.”

While doctors noted a faster-than-normal breathing rate, most attributed it to a quick delivery.When it did not decrease, an oxygen monitor confirmed excellent oxygen intake.A chest Xray established that there was no extra fluid in Nolan’s lungs.

After sending an echocardiogram to technicians for review, the McConnells were sent home with their newborn to await the results.

“When we pulled into the driveway, my mother-in-law met us at the door with phone in hand,” McConnell remembered.“The pediatrician had called.The baby and I didn’t even get out of the van.We just turned around and went back to the hospital.”

After seven days in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, the McConnells learned that Nolan had an atrioventricular canal defect.

“Basically, there was a large hole in the center of his heart.The part of his heart that pumps oxygen out was mixing oxygenated with un-oxygenated blood. His heart and lungs had to work harder to compensate.”

Over the next week, Nolan was put on two different medications to keep fluid away from his lungs and expand his bowels, arteries and heart to make blood flow easier.After achieving significant changes in his breathing rate, the McConnells roomed in with Nolan, under observation, learning to meet Nolan’s special needs.Then they took him home to await his surgery date.

“In that moment, we felt like we had the worst situation,” McConnell recalled.“Not that anyone deserved to have that happen, but I think it’s typical to ask ‘Why us? Why does it have

16

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

Jim and Misty (Wadowsky ’04) McConnell enjoy Christmas with children Landon, left, and Nolan. / Contributed photo

to be this way?’ My dad put it to me very simply one day and said,‘Maybe this happened because God knew you could handle it.’

“My husband, God love him, was the rock in the situation. I was an emotional mess. My husband said,‘It happened.There’s no time to sit and cry.We have to make sure he’s getting the care he needs and we have to be well educated so that we can do that.’ It took a few days but we got into a routine and came to terms with it.”

Surprised by joy As long as she’d known Ed Barth,Thornberry had also known that his son, Matt, the middle of Barth’s three children, had Down syndrome. Instead of the apprehension one might expect, Thornberry was surprised by joy.

“I looked at it like a blessing,”Thornberry said, recalling a childhood friend who’d had Down syndrome.“I always thought it was going to be a really good thing in my life. I welcomed that opportunity, even having no clue just what a blessing it really would be.

“It took me a while to know how to behave and act around Matt,”Thornberry recalled.“I didn’t want to be condescending or inconsiderate. It took me a few months to understand his personality.

“Right away, Matt and I would do things just the two of us.”

focusoncelebratingfamily A few years ago, they began the tradition of going on a date to Broadway each year.

“I give him the ticket as a Christmas present and he puts it on his bulletin board. It’s there for three months. If you ask him, he’ll tell you what show he’s going to see and what the date is.”

They saw “Grease” in March this year.

Learning to let go One outcome of parenting a child with special needs?

“Patience,”Thornberry said.“Lots of patience.

“Ed is someone who does the right thing, whether or not it’s the enjoyable thing. He’s a man of faith and high integrity. He’s just remarkable.You wouldn’t know that if you met him because he’s not at all self-absorbed. He’s just quietly a hero, the good parent.”

Four years ago, Barth began considering a special needs group home for his adult son.

“Letting go was not easy,”Thornberry noted.“When you’ve been taking care of someone for all those years, it’s a hard decision.”

Recalling an interview at the facility,Thornberry said,“I remember asking the woman,‘Is it a difficult adjustment?’The woman grinned and said,‘Yeah, the parents have a really hard time.’

“And it was exactly true.

“Matt had no adjustment at all and Ed just really struggled with having him go,”Thornberry said of Matt’s move to the group home.“But Matt has really blossomed. He was always happy, always loving, but this has been great because now he has a job, his own space, his own room in this home (he calls it his apartment), and there are more people in his life that care about him.

“There’s a lot of banter between them. It’s really nice.They go to church and have a special pew they all sit in together.

“I’m glad Ed was courageous and did that, because that’s what Matt wanted to do. I think he wanted to be an adult.”

‘Brave little soul’ In June 2009, when Nolan was three months old, he had open heart surgery.

“It was a very stressful day for us,” McConnell said.

After nearly five hours of surgery, the defect had been fixed.

“It was complicated, but everything looked to be doing great.

Initially, they told us that we’d be in the hospital for seven to 14 days.We were there for five. It really was the best case scenario.”

At his two week post-op visit, the McConnells learned that Nolan would not need any subsequent surgeries.

Dubbed “Nono’s boo-boo” by his 2-year-old brother, Landon, Nolan’s 4-inch-long incision, broken sternum and stitches healed slowly over the next six weeks.

Catherine (Dalecki ’75) Thornberry and stepson Matt, center, enjoy a Pittsburgh Penguins hockey game with family members. / Contributed photo

“The first two weeks were the hardest,” McConnell said.“At three months, he can’t really tell you that he hurts. So we were trying to figure out if his chest hurt or if he was tired or hungry.

After six weeks, he acted like a normal baby.

“He crawls everywhere, pulls up on everything, and gets his little self into trouble. He’s a brave little soul, not afraid of too many things. He’s a happy baby, like he knows he went through such a hard time in his life.”

Nolan celebrated his first birthday in March.

Unconditional love “I’m the bonus parent,”Thornberry said.“I’m the recipient of the bonus, because my husband and his daughters do all the heavy lifting and have all the responsibility. I get all the good stuff.

“There’s no recrimination in this relationship.That’s what happens with Down’s people. It’s very pure love. Never holding grudges. It’s just ‘You’re here and I’m here and I’m glad to see you.’ It’s wonderful.

“If you can imagine that whenever you see someone, they jump up and have to give you a big huge hug.The hug must be intense. It must last a long time and you will do a little swaying.

And if you don’t show up for that hug immediately, you will be told to ‘come here, it’s time for a hug.’ So what’s not to love about that?”

In God’s hands “While we relied heavily on our families, friends and most importantly God for strength and support, we longed for relationships with those who felt our pain,” McConnell said.“It’s awesome how God hears and answers prayer. My husband and I just recently joined a newly created chapter of the Mended Little See JOY, page 18

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

focusoncelebratingfamily JOY from page 17

‘Special and wonderful’

Hearts organization.This group is a support program for parents of children with heart defects/disease.

“This is a big deal and we understand the frustration, the happy times, the sad times, the annoying-want-to-rip-yourhair-out times.”

The very trying first year of Nolan’s life hasn’t scared the McConnells out of hoping for a little girl someday.

“We’ve been told to meet with a genetic specialist,” she said.“But it’s not something that can be predicted. In the back of our minds, yes, we’re thinking, oh gosh, what if this happens again? But that’s where we’re leaving it in God’s hands.”

Thornberry is keenly aware of the impact of Matt in her life.

“For me, when I’ve gone through some hard times, which I have, Matt has been somebody who just helped me,” she said.

“Because when you’re having a hard time and somebody is just loving you, it helps.

There were times when I needed him more than he needed me.

“It’s going to sound like this idyllic situation.And, of course, it is for me. But he’s a blessing to all of us, that’s for sure.

“I guess I just figure that Matt’s life and circumstances are no worse than any other hardships that people face, just different and not singular,”Thornberry said.

McConnell says that we’re all “special needs.”

“No child is normal. No person is normal.All of them are special and wonderful in their own ways,” McConnell said,“And families can persevere through things that you think are going to be horrible.”

Thornberry echoes McConnell’s belief that everyone is special and wonderful.

“Matt’s unconditional love is a really good representation of what God’s love is like, which is a good experience,” Thornberry said.“The world is a better place for having Down syndrome people in it.”

(Rachel (Leonard ’03) Califf is a freelance writer living in Sandia Park, N.M., with her husband Ben Califf ’03 and two children.)

Grove City parent Leman authors books on parenting

By Julia Anderson ’10 You wouldn’t expect the guy placing fourth from the bottom of his high school class to go on to be a highly successful author and psychologist.

Dr. Kevin Leman, renowned author of “The Birth Order Book” and “Have a New Kid by Friday” did just that.

“It wasn’t something I planned on,” he explains, but after being encouraged by his students and fellow professors, he decided to try his hand at writing. He has since written more than 30 books and is a well-known media personality, speaker and columnist, appearing on programs like “The Oprah Show,” “Good Morning America,” “Today” and “The View.” He is the founder and president of Couples of Promise, an organization he created to help couples remain happily married.

Perhaps it’s his laid back persona that plays to his benefit. His books are hard hitting, but lighthearted at the same time. He melds issues in parenting, such as discipline and understanding a child’s personality, with advice from a Christian

18

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

Dr. Kevin Leman

perspective that is beneficial for any parent no matter the age of their child.

Being a parent is a tough job, complex and emotional, but Leman makes his tips on parenting a fun learning process.“I want to teach people about life so they’re laughing as they learn,” Leman says.

As a parent of five children, Leman believes parents need to have a “healthy authority over their children,” a balance that can be hard to hit. Sometimes parents sway too far on either the inactive side, or the domineering side of discipline. Either extreme can be harmful to both child and parent. A “healthy authority,” he advises, constitutes good communication with your child.

One of the hardest things for any parent to do is send their kids off into the real world. Despite this, Leman remained confident in sending his daughter Holly ’95 all the way from Tucson to Grove City for college.

After one visit he was certain Grove City would be an excellent fit for his daughter, describing students as “a cut above the rest.” Even today, Leman continues to sing the institution’s praises, thrilled with his daughter’s experience and the values of the College.

(Julia Anderson ’10 is a senior communication studies major from Grove City, Pa.)

focusoncelebratingfamily

room &

Baby on Board V

Alumni campus couple raising child in Memorial Hall

I

By Michael Baker ’09 t takes a village to raise a child, or in this case, a residence hall. Elliot Richard, 1-year-old son of Memorial Hall Resident Director Sam Richard ’05 and wife Debbie (Schmaldienst ’05) Richard, has had the unique opportunity to grow up on the Grove City College campus.

“Elliot just brings us so much joy. He is a gift from the Lord,” said Debbie, who met Sam while both were members of the Grove City College marching band.

Although parenting a child, particularly in a freshman male residence hall, can be demanding, the Richards find joy in the innocence of Elliot.“His laughter redeems the half an hour of screaming he did prior.”

The continued maturity of Elliot has allowed the couple to also grow in their faith. As members of the Coalition for Christian Outreach, an organization that partners with colleges to develop men and women of strong Christian conviction, the Richards can see the beauty of the Lord through Elliot.“It reminds us that God is the great creator,” Sam said.“Elliot gives us a glimpse of what it means to be a child of God,” added Debbie.“He is very dependent on us as we are on God.” Recognizing Elliot’s need for them has allowed Sam and Debbie to see their own parents from a new perspective.“We have a greater appreciation of their sacrifices and we’re only in our first year!”The

Resident Director Sam Richard ’05, center, and Debbie (Schmaldienst ’05) Richard provide a loving home for their son, Elliot, in Memorial Hall. / Photo by Michael Baker ’09

Richards acknowledge “parenting is not about being flawless, but it is about being responsible and faithful.”This parenting philosophy, a consistent Biblical model for raising children, was the example set by their parents, which the Richards intend to continue with Elliot.

Sam and Debbie’s parents often advise to “remain connected to the community.”

The family regularly shares time with visiting resident assistants and the freshmen of Memorial Hall.“We are continuously surprised about how many guys take the time to chat with Elliot,” Debbie said.“It really brings out the maturity in the young freshman males,” said Sam.This interaction provides Elliot with the opportunity to meet new people and has proven to be a rewarding learning experience for students. Sam believes that through playing with Elliot,

students discover that “life is bigger than their next exam.”

One such student is junior Resident Assistant Zachary Jew of Pittsburgh. As a sociology major, Jew welcomes the prospect of interacting with someone younger in age.“The opportunity has helped me learn a lot of life skills,” he said. He did some babysitting for the Richards and created many lasting memories with Elliot.“Elliot and I have good times together; he even fell asleep once whenever I was reading him ‘Winnie the Pooh.’” Jew’s only complaint about living in Memorial Hall with Elliot is one that he shares with the majority of his peers.“Elliot is definitely the most popular guy in the dorm during intervis.”

(Michael Baker ’09 is the Grove City College communications associate and an editor of The GeDUNK.)

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

focusoncelebratingfamily

Multiple Blessings Alumni build families through sibling adoptions

A

By Kristin (Morgan ’04) Chapman bout three years ago, Peter “Clark” ’96 and Becky (Dunbar ’96) Bowersox were a typical couple sans children.They went backpacking, traveled overseas and enjoyed spending time with friends.

But that all changed in April 2007 when they adopted not one, not two, but three young siblings from war-torn Liberia. Almost overnight, their Norristown, Pa., household transformed from tranquil to noisy – “very, very noisy” – and became what Clark calls “a house in motion.”

These days the hallways echo with the sound of 8-year-old Joshua rhythmically beating on the drum he brought with him from Liberia. Patience, 6, likes to dance along, combining traditional African movements with the classical ballet poses she is learning during weekly lessons. Not to be left out, Garty, 3, jumps in and amuses his parents by making funny faces and telling random, rambling stories.

“Many people thought we were crazy for adopting three kids at once,” Becky said, “but it’s all we’ve ever known.”

Their journey from a family of two to five in many ways began in 1999 after the Bowersoxes married and discovered that neither one had a strong desire to have biological children but instead hoped to build a family through adoption. Over the coming years, they researched adoption but didn’t formally begin the process until 2005.

Although initially they were open to either domestic or international adoptions, a chance conversation that

20

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

Becky had with an adoptive mom directed their attention to Liberia – a country they already had ties to via a native missionary they helped support through WorldLink International Ministries. Clark works at WorldLink as a project coordinator.

“We were instantly drawn to this option but decided to wait a month and see how we felt about it,” Becky said.

About a week later,“I asked Clark if he thought any possibility existed that we would change our minds.We both agreed we wouldn’t, so we didn’t want to waste any more time.”The next day they started the paperwork for their home study.

Getting started That same year on the other side of the state, Jeff Mateer ’87 and his wife Traci were welcoming their now 16year-old daughter Eva into their Beaver, Pa., home.

It was a three-year-long adoption process that had started shortly after the Mateers committed their lives to Christ.

At their new church, Chippewa Evangelical Free Church, they encountered a number of families that had adopted – an idea that intrigued the Mateers.They were eager to have more children, but after having a difficult time conceiving daughter Kaylee, now 10, they did not expect to be able to have any more biological children.

They soon dove into the process to adopt, focusing their attention on the United States foster care system where scores of children are labeled as “special needs,” sometimes based on age alone.

Their search began within Pennsylvania,

but after months of submitting inquiry after inquiry with little response, they decided it was time to broaden their search to other states.

Although the Mateers initially concentrated their search on younger children, they said God began to reveal a different plan during their involvement with their church’s adopt-a-collegestudent ministry.Through that program, they were matched with a young woman from Geneva College who became a part of their family and just like a big sister to Kaylee.

“God really opened our eyes at that point to the possibility of moving our search from children that were mostly in the 3 to 6-year-old age range up to 10 to 12-year-olds,” Jeff said.

So when they first saw 11-year-old Eva’s picture on the Northwest Adoption Exchange Web site, “we really just felt like she would be a perfect fit and addition to our family.” And Eva’s matching team agreed.

Jeff, who was out golfing when he got the call, says he can still remember the exact hole where he was standing as he heard the caseworker say, “We have selected you and Traci to adopt Eva.” “I was elated and pretty much speechless,” Jeff said.

Triple the joy Back in Norristown, the Bowersoxes had their hearts set on adopting two siblings – but in August 2006 it became evident that God had other plans for their family.While waiting for a match, Becky said, “We received a call that started, ‘We know you’ve requested two

Clark ’96 and Becky (Dunbar ’96) Bowersox give hugs to children Joshua, 8, Patience, 6, and Garty, 3. / Contributed photo

siblings, and I’m sure we’ll have some available soon, but ...’” A sibling group of three children had just come available – but were Clark and Becky interested?

They spent the next 24 hours weighing the idea of adopting three children before calling the adoption agency to request more information. At this point they had yet to see pictures of the children because “we knew we’d never be able to say no once we saw the pictures,” Becky said. After more prayerful consideration, however, the Bowersoxes felt confident they were supposed to move forward with the match.

The first time they saw their future children’s faces, the couple was attending an annual pool party with Grove City College friends.The adoption agency had emailed pictures of the children, but “the Internet wasn’t available at our friends’ house, so we frantically took our laptop and drove into town to find a

wireless signal,” Becky said.

“We drove around until we got a signal, opened our email, and realized that the sun was too bright to see the pictures.We ended up putting the computer in the trunk and half closing it on ourselves so we could look at our kids. It was crazy and hilarious, and I was crying.When we got back to the house, we were able to celebrate with our friends. It was such an amazing feeling.”

Waiting game The arrival of those first pictures, however, marked only the beginning of a months-long wait before the Bowersoxes would finally bring Joshua, Patience and Garty home. But perhaps most difficult during those many months of paperwork hiccups and passport delays was being a world away when Garty became gravely ill – first with malaria and then with one

infection after another that doctors were never able to diagnose clearly.

“We spent long days waiting for updates from our agency and wondering if he would make it through the night,” Becky said. “Knowing we could do nothing, not even sit with him, was a terrible feeling.We’ve never felt so powerless in all our lives.”

Providentially, though, Garty pulled through and by the time the Bowersoxes flew to Liberia to pick up the children in early April 2007, the 23-pound, 10month-old surprised Becky by calling her “mama.”

Once home, the Bowersoxes began the process of slowly acclimating their young brood to their new American lifestyle. Aside from the obvious challenges inherent to international adoptions, such as learning a new language and adjusting to a new climate, the Bowersoxes encountered a whole See BLESSINGS, page 22

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

focusoncelebratingfamily BLESSINGS from page 21 host of other adjustments ranging from their children’s ravenous appetites – “Having been malnourished for a while,” Becky said, “our kids ate like you’ve never seen a kid eat!” – to addressing their psychological needs.

“With all the obvious upheaval our kids experienced, they were very emotionally needy,” Becky recalled. “They needed to be hugged and tickled and held and reassured, and they weren’t content to take turns. Everything needed to be fair. If one kid was picked up, another wanted to be picked up. If we hugged one, the other would stand there looking rejected until he or she received a hug.”

For the most part, however, the Bowersoxes say they had it easy because their children adjusted to their new home life so quickly.

Unique challenges Things had also gone very well for the Mateers as they welcomed Eva into their family – so much so that two years later they decided to look into adopting again.This time, however, they were seeking a sibling group.

The Mateers, who started with the same agencies that had connected them with Eva, eventually came across a listing for three siblings – Kodie, now 13, Dustin, now 11, and Kane, now 8.

After submitting an inquiry, they learned that the caseworker assigned to the children was the same individual who had headed Eva’s placement with them. But unlike the years-long process leading up to Eva’s adoption, within three months the Mateers were selected to adopt the three siblings and bring them home in August 2008.

“I can honestly say that we have been blessed amazingly in the process of how our family has come together,” Jeff said.

22

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

Jeff ’87 and Traci Mateer have a family of Pittsburgh sports fans. / Contributed photo

I can honestly say that we have been blessed amazingly in the process of how our family has come together. The majority of the challenges that we have are no different than those of every other family with a bunch of children.

Jeff Mateer ’ 87 “The majority of the challenges that we have are no different than those of every other family with a bunch of children” – including the amount of laundry a family of seven creates and the endless chauffeuring to various extra-curricular activities. “Neither our lives nor theirs are perfect by any means, but we are blessed to have such

a well-adjusted family with a group of kids that gets along so well.”

The more, the merrier While Jeff cautions that adoption is not for everyone, he says families weighing the possibility should not be discouraged by the price tag attached to the endeavor. Due to adoption tax credits and other resources, Jeff said, “Our experience has been that adoption does not have to be an extraordinary financial decision that can turn people away from the whole idea of adopting.”

The Bowersoxes add that families who undertake sibling adoption must realize they will often face a unique set of challenges, such as the strong dependence many adopted siblings have on each other.

“We have to constantly remind Joshua that he isn’t the mommy or the daddy and to insist that Patience comes to us instead of Joshua when she needs something,” Becky said. “She depended on him so much in the orphanage that he became her default caregiver, which

focusoncelebratingfamily adds another challenge to our bonding process.”

Additionally, inter-racial families like the Bowersoxes have to work hard to keep their children connected to their heritage. In the Bowersoxes’ living room, a mask from their children’s tribe hangs over the TV while a nearby wall shelf displays small metal crosses created from bullet casings leftover from the Liberia civil war.The family, which lives in a diverse, urban community, says diversity is now a key factor when considering where to attend school, church and other activities.

Such adoption challenges can be overcome, however, as evidenced by both the Bowersox and Mateer families.

Reaping the rewards “In our case, anyone who would come live with us for a day or a week or a month would never know that we have any adopted children,” Jeff said.

“We often don’t even talk about the fact that any of our children are adopted unless specifically asked, as all of our children are every bit a part of our family in every way.”

Jeff, whose experiences as an adoptive father spurred him in 2008 to start Adoption Connection, PA, an organization that provides services and support to birth parents and adoptive families, says for Christian families, adoption parallels what God did for His children by adopting them into His spiritual family.

“Realizing that these children are His first and foremost is such a critical part of the adoption process,” Jeff said. “The blessing is not really about what we do for these kids or in the way we hope they might display their gratitude for feeling as though we have in some way saved them.”The blessing is in

adoptionresources The following organizations are some that offer adoption services:

Financial assistance for adopting families:

Adoption Connection, PA adoptionconnectionpa.org (724) 843-8600

Abba Fund abbafund.org (888) 775-3422

All God’s Children International allgodschildren.org (800) 214-6719

Lifesong for Orphans lifesongfororphans.org (309) 747-3556

Bethany Christian Services bethany.org | 800-BETHANY

Show Hope showhope.org (615) 550-5600

Children’s Hope International childrenshope.net | (314) 890-0086 Other adoption resources: Christian World Adoption cwa.org | (888) 972-3678 Dillon International dillonadopt.com | (918) 749-4600 Love Basket, Inc. lovebasket.org | (888) LOV-BSKT

AdoptionBenefits.com A Web site identifying employers that provide benefits – such as paid leave, unpaid leave or financial reimbursements – to adopting families.

MyAdoptionWebsite.com

Northwest Adoption Exchange nwae.org | (800) 927-9411 Dave Thomas Foundation davethomasfoundation.org (800) ASK-DTFA Show Hope showhope.org | (615) 550-5600 “knowing God entrusted them to us and thus He gave us the responsibility to raise them in a loving Christian home and to provide the strong foundation that every child needs in a loving family.”

Ultimately, Jeff says families considering adoption need to remember that “there will be great rewards in the experience, but there

After adopting their daughter from China in 2004, Joe ’91 and Jennifer (Barkham ’92) Klimchak started MyAdoptionWebsite.com, a Web site design service that enables adopting families to keep family and friends updated about the international adoption process. will also be challenges … yet when the focus for an adoption decision is based on serving your Christian faith, we believe the adoption process as a whole will be a blessed experience in every way, especially as you build your new family together.”

(Kristin (Morgan ’04) Chapman is a freelance writer living in New Castle, Pa., with her husband and two children.)

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

focusoncelebratingfamily

Triple Check

Gunning triplets celebrate 5 years old

By Janice (Zinsner ’87) Inman Jennifer (Durandetta ’96) Gunning is planning a pirates and mermaids birthday party for her children. Including items of interest to both boys and girls is important when you have triplets like the Gunnings do.

Jen and husband Bob Gunning ’95 are the parents of Matthew, Joshua and Lauren, all turning 5 on May 4, 2010.As first noted in the Winter 2006 GeDUNK, the babies were born 10 weeks early, but are “doing great,” said Jen.“Everyone is on track.”

The children like to be together, Jen explained, and get along well.They are also very much individuals, she said,“and the boys couldn’t be more different.”

According to Jen, Matt is taking after his 6’4” father.“He is tall so he looks older than the other two. He is our sports fanatic and a Philly fan.”

Josh is introspective; he likes science and experiments.“He comes up with some really deep questions,” said Jen. “Lauren is our little girl. She likes dolls and princesses, yet can hang with the boys pretty well.”

The kids don’t have many triplet-like behaviors that Jen can see, although they do try to “lessen the penalty when another one is being punished,” mom said.

When Lauren was told she could move to her own girl room, “she wanted no part of that. She said ‘No, I’ll miss my brothers.’

The boys wanted her to stay, too.They were afraid she’d be lonely in her own room.”

The triplets are in preschool and will start kindergarten next year. Jen may return to teaching in the future, but right now she feels she has her own classroom at home in Perkasie, Pa. She did set up a shop at the online site Etsy to sell homemade writing journals. Bob is a regional sales manager for Masterbrands, working with new home construction.

The family is involved in church activities and Jen joined a ‘Multiple Moms’ group in her area. She wants other families awaiting multiples to know that “it is doable. It’s all good.”

(Janice (Zinsner ’87) Inman is the Grove City College communications project coordinator and an editor of The GeDUNK.) TOP RIGHT: The Gunning family at a fall wedding, clockwise from top, Bob ’95, Matt, Lauren, Josh and Jennifer (Durandetta ’96) Gunning.

BOTTOM RIGHT: The Gunning triplets at four months old, from left, Lauren, Josh and Matt. / Contributed photos

24

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

focusoncelebratingfamily

‘Do you wear pajamas to school?’

Students share insiders’ view of homeschooling

can sometimes be a problem.

“I think the question about the classic homeschooler is,” suggested junior mechanical engineer Caleb Elwell, “are the

By Anna Wood ’10 students stereotypical Caleb Elwell ’10 hree and a half years because they were ago, I had my first classroom made that way through homeschooling, experience. No, I’m not a Leap Day or were they homeschooled because baby. I was homeschooled. they were that way?”

“Really? You don’t seem like it.”

While the lack of social interaction I believe this was the best is a legitimate concern, it is one that compliment my first year in college. many families surmount through After all, people think of involvement in homeschool co-ops homeschoolers as socially inept, and groups. winners of national spelling bees, The most appealing aspect of inventors of mathematical equations, homeschooling for parents and right? children alike is the flexibility What I didn’t realize was that as afforded. Homeschooling allows part of the 1.5 million homeschoolers children to pursue things that they in the United States, I was a novelty – otherwise would not have been able not a freak. The questions come from to pursue. This necessitates a sobriety curiosity, not judgment. People love toward and discipline in education asking about how it works, what we that is essential to reap the full do, if we can wear pajamas, if we sleep benefits. in until noon.

“Homeschooling is one of those I don’t deny the stereotypical things that if you do it well it’s homeschooler does exist, but in my amazing, but if you do it badly then experience, it’s not it’s really bad,” said homeschooling that senior political My parents can hamper a child science major Luke socially, it’s the believed that because Juday. “You have to approach to work at it. homeschooling that we’ re given gifts, we Homeschooling isn’t

T

just something you can do.”

To “outsiders,” being homeschooled means being odd. For those who have experienced it though, it means learning to love Jordan Roberts ’10 learning.

“Although there a lot of people here that legitimately enjoy their field of study,” said senior English major Jordan Roberts, “even the decision to pursue it is always considered as is this effective Jacob Roberts ’13 way to an economic end.”

Being homeschooled does not impinge on your development as a person. It can, in fact, augment the educational experience.

“My parents believed that because we’re given gifts, we should be using them and developing them,” said freshman English major Jacob Roberts.

“I think some people do, but some people view it as a means to an end, getting a job,” said Elwell. “I think homeschooling instilled in us a love of learning.”

(Anna Wood is a senior communication studies major from Hershey, Pa.)

should be using them and developing them.

Jacob Roberts ’ 13

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

focusoncelebratingfamily

Legacy students look at Grove City path

By Michael Baker ’09 Grove City College is known for its tradition of excellence. Many times, this Grover tradition is passed from generation to generation, a rewarding moment celebrated by families and legacy students.

Junior Craig Bicehouse of Prospect, Pa., is a legacy to the College through his mother (Pamela McCormick ’81), father (Keith ’81), sister (Liz ’09) and uncle (Vaughn ’86). Bicehouse, a member of the Beta Sigma fraternity, recalls attending college events in his youth and desiring to be a part of the campus community. “My family described Grove City College as more than just an academic education,” said Bicehouse.“They told me I would

learn how to be a man of faith and integrity,” Brigitte Fryan, a junior from Massillon, Ohio, is a legacy student following the model set by her father (Raymond ’82) and brother (Raymond Jr. Craig Bicehouse ’11 ’08). Grove City College appealed to her as a cross-country runner because “it was an opportunity to excel in varsity sports, while still focusing on studies.” Fryan feels blessed to have chosen Grove City College.“The College has definitely met the expectations that my dad and brother instilled in me,” Fryan

said.“The best thing I will be coming out of Grove City College with is life-long friends and a high-quality education.”

Legacy students are defined as children or grandchildren of an Brigitte Fryan ’11 alumnus. Currently, there are 224 legacy students enrolled, 113 men and 111 women.The freshman class has the most legacies with 61; followed by sophomores, 59; juniors, 53, and seniors, 51.

(Michael Baker ’09 is the Grove City College communications associate and an editor of The GeDUNK.)

LIVING LEGACY: Ray Baker ’80 appeared on the cover of the 1978-79 Grove City College Bulletin, at left, with fellow student Tammie McKenzie ’80. In 2009-10, the Registrar’s Office recreated that scene on the cover of the current Bulletin with Ray’s son, Grove City senior Brad Baker.

Here, Brad poses with Grove City junior and Admissions Office tour guide Hannah Moffett. Brad’s mother is Donna Rae (Lazaroff ’81) Baker; his cousins are Brittany Baker ’08 and Nicholas Baker ’11.

26

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

STEP from page 9 was.When Holly and my dad got married, I was in the middle of my most rebellious teenage years.”

Today, though, Matt realizes the asset Holly is to their family.“Holly is a great woman who has always tried hard to gain the affection of us kids, even when some of us weren’t ready to return it.”

Now looking back on the past five years in a blended family, Matt can pass on sage words to other stepfamilies:“Give family members space when they need it, love when they don’t deserve it and let time heal any wounds that remain.”

Chris Summers ’95 was taking all the advice he could get when he met his now-wife, Claire, who had a 9-year-old daughter, Chantel.

While Summers was looking forward to meeting Claire’s daughter, she had set a boundary that her daughter couldn’t meet Chris for a certain time.

“For quite a while, we dated and it was just her and I,” Summers says.“In some ways, you would think it would be hard to adjust and have (Chantel) around, but I was pretty excited to meet her when the time finally came. In some ways, it really helps to protect the kids, too.”

While Summers realizes he wasn’t around for half of Chantel’s life and missed out on a lot, he also knows that he can’t recreate those times by just being her friend. Instead, he focuses on building their relationship as stepdad and stepdaughter.

Chantel, now 17, lives with her father after living with Claire and Chris for four years.All lived in Illinois for a time, but when Chantel’s father moved to New York, she decided to move with him.

“So it was really hard on her mom, and for me,” Chris remembers.“At the time, I don’t think I would have said I took it personally but, looking back, I think I probably did.”

Today, Chris and Claire have also moved to New York to be closer to Chantel, and they have three children together, ages 5, 3 and 1. Chantel has a

ABOVE: Chris Summers ’95, top right, and his wife, Claire, center, are at home with their blended family. AT RIGHT: Five years into being a stepmom, Holly (Haff ’95) Muchnok still takes time for date nights with her husband, Marty. / Contributed photos

younger sibling on her father’s side as well, and the introduction of the younger children was an adjustment for her, Chris says.

“There was a time when we wondered if we’d ever get through the teenage years,” he says,“and we are getting there.

She wants to babysit the kids now.”

After having mostly weekends with Chantel, Chris and Claire will have her in their home full-time this summer.

“It’s exciting because she wants to come back and she’ll be with us all the time, but it’s also a little scary,” Chris says.

“So there will be a readjustment.”

Summers, who transferred to Grove City after two years at Liberty, is now a clinical psychologist who primarily works with kids.And his profession certainly plays into his own experiences in a blended family.

While he tries hard to keep work at work, his experiences do change the way he looks at things. He also has opportunity to witness blended families that are struggling, as well as those who are doing it right.

“I get to see a lot of things that didn’t

go the right way, and now I can do it differently and keep it as good as I can,” Summers says.“Before I was married and before I had a stepchild, I had a lot of different ideas about it. But going through it really changes your perspective.”

While stepfamilies can sometimes have a black-sheep feeling of not belonging in certain circles, Matt Muchnok says the stigma shouldn’t exist.

“When you really look,” he says,“the two families are exactly the same.

“One just needed a second chance.”

(Amy Clingensmith Mongiovi ’96 is a GeDUNK contributing editor and has a 5year-old stepdaughter and an 8-year-old stepson. She lives with her husband in Lititz, Pa., where she has a communications business.)

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

alumnievents

WASHINGTON, D.C. LEFT: Alumni and friends joined students from The Center for Vision & Values at Top of the Hill in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 18. RIGHT: Class of 2009 alumni classmates Emily Dalpiaz, Marshall Birkey and Jennifer Ford shared laughs and political news at the D.C. alumni event.

PITTSBURGH, PA LEFT: Judy (Daucher ’64) Thompson and husband Tom Thompson ’65 spent time with conductor Marvin Hamlisch at the post show reception for the Pittsburgh Symphony ROCKS performance on Feb. 26. RIGHT: Students Paul Hufstetler ’10, Derek Bowen ’11, Emily Farrell ’10 and Lauren McNany ’10 performed as part of the Symphony’s Collegiate Chorus during the show.

WEXFORD, PA

CHICAGO, ILL.

Alumni and friends gathered north of Pittsburgh at Atria’s in Wexford for a ‘touch of the Irish’ at a St. Patrick’s Day mixer. From left, Scott ’80 and Jo Burkholder, Carol (MacGamwell ’79) Yannuzzi, Patty (Jordon ’84) Peterson and Paul Peterson ’82.

President Richard G. Jewell '67 and Dayl Jewell recognize Grove City College artist-in-residence Peter Calaboyias (far left) on his featured exhibit of art and sculpture at the Hellenic Museum alumni tour on March 26.

28

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

upcomingevents Mark your calendars and make time for Grove City College alumni and friends!

Visit www.gcc.edu/alumni to register or for more information.

JUNE 5

Alumni Pirates Game and Skyblast | PNC Park | Pittsburgh, Pa.

JUNE 6

Alumni & Friends Picnic | Home of Patty (Strauss ’79) & Jim ’80 Otterson | Jacksonville, Fla.

JUNE 15

Center for Vision & Values Founders Lunch | Rivers Club Pittsburgh, Pa.

JUNE 21

Alumni & Friends Golf Outing | Shannopin Country Club Pittsburgh, Pa.

JULY 30

Alumni & Friends Family Day at Kennywood Park West Mifflin, Pa.

AUGUST 7

SAVE THE DATE | JUNE 21 Alumni & Friends Golf Outing | Shannopin Country Club | Pittsburgh, Pa.

Mary Poppins Matinee | Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts | Washington, D.C.

SEPTEMBER 3-17 SEPTEMBER 18 OCTOBER 8-10 OCTOBER 16

Greece Alumni Travel Program

Phantom of the Opera | Benedum Center Pittsburgh, Pa. Homecoming 2010 | Grove City College Alumni Band Day and Night Football Game Grove City College denotes campus event

SAVE THE DATE | JULY 30 Alumni & Friends Family Day at Kennywood Park | West Mifflin, Pa.

CORRECTION The hosts of the Colorado holiday alumni event were incorrectly identified in the Winter ’09 issue of The GeDUNK. Hosts in Littleton, Colo., were Lois (Smith ’49) Jones and her husband, Earl.

Travel in style with alumni and friends The Alumni Association has begun an official travel program! The inaugural trip to Paris on April 1018 was filled to capacity.

Alumni and friends traveled around the City of Lights together while making lasting memories.

The next trip is planned for September to Greece.

Contact alumni@gcc.edu for more information.

Other trips will be scheduled soon. See details SAVE THE DATE | SEPT. 3-17 at www.gcc.edu/alumni.

Alumni & Friends Trip to Greece

d Get eggs, milk, brea ’ n Do t forget Homecoming!

October 8-10! uip.

Pick up soccer eq Call dentist

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

alumninews

College Facebook page hits 2,600-plus fans Thanks to all the students, alumni and friends of Grove City College who follow the page and choose to identify with the College on Facebook.The Alumni Relations Office looks forward to continuing the conversation and welcomes others to join. Once you log in, search “Grove City College” to find us.

Looking for other ways to easily connect right from your Facebook page?

Add the Grove City College Alumni eCommunity application today! You can connect with the Alumni Relations Office and have direct access to this private online community from Facebook. By adding this application, you will also be able to log in to the eCommunity with your Facebook login and password. Simply search “Grove City College Alumni eCommunity.”

The Grove City College Facebook page recently hit more than 2,600 fans. / Photo by Tiffany Wolfe

Merchandise discount now an alumni benefit

This photo of cheerleaders in a downtown Grove City parade is on display in the new Carnegie Alumni Center. Help add others like it by donating your pieces of College history. / Archived photo

Alumni now have the opportunity to save 15 percent off regular price merchandise at all Brooks Brothers stores, by phone and online, by enrolling at Membership.BrooksBrothers.com.The College’s organization ID is 10470 and the pin code is 14966.

This info, along with a list of all the many benefits provided by the Grove City College Alumni Association, can be found under the Alumni Association tab at www.gcc.edu/alumni.

College collecting history for alumni center

Recipients of Bechtell Award sought

No matter what year you graduated, you hold a piece of Grove City College history and we’d love for you to share it with us. Do you have some pictures, hats, Greek pins or uniforms? E-mail us at alumni@gcc.edu; the Alumni Relations Office would appreciate any donations to the archives of the Carnegie Alumni Center.

If you were a recipient of the Bechtell Science Award, formerly the Science Award, or know of someone who was, please share the information with Dr. Homer Bechtell.

Information is needed for the following years: 1951, 1952, 1962, 1965 to 1970, 1974, 1976 and 1977. Bechtell can be reached at hb74@comcast.net.

30

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

greeklife Join alumni in campus Greek life conversation Kelsey (Pollock ’06) Rhea, associate director of alumni programs and affinity relations, continues to work with all Greek groups and alumni who share a passion for connecting with fellow alums and current students.The goal is to preserve the Greek legacy while seeing all fraternities and sororities on campus flourish.

To become involved, contact Rhea at klrhea@gcc.edu, and read more about the groups who are reconnecting:

Pan Sophic The Pan Sophic Club is the latest Greek group to make major steps toward forming an alumni association.

New jackets are the most visible signs of the revitalization since it began to work with alumni. The Pan Sophic Alumni Association plans to have a 100th anniversary celebration at Homecoming 2011, Sept. 22-24, and to raise money for a scholarship to be awarded to an active member of the group.

Phil Spina ’11, left, president of Pan Sophic, and Zack Gross ’12 of Epsilon Pi are part of greek groups with alumni affiliations. / Photo by Michael Baker ’09

Kappa Alpha Phi The KAPs are launching an alumni association. It will focus on partnering with current brothers to help them reach their full potential and for the fraternity to become an even more valued and respected member of the College community. They are developing a website to establish these mentoring partnerships and to begin a student scholarship program. On April 9, alumni and actives came together for a dinner at the Carnegie Alumni Center to recognize the incoming freshmen and graduating seniors.

Epsilon Pi

Zeta Zeta Zeta

The EPs saw the Epsilon Pi Alumni Association (EPAA) Guthrie Scholarship endowment more than double in 2009, passing the $100,000 mark. In other news, Jim McElhaney ’86 and Dan Roseum ’04 were recently elected to serve on the EPAA board of directors. More information on the Guthrie scholarship and other alumni activities can be found at www.epsilonpi.com.

More than 50 past and present Tri-Zeta sisters met March 23 to listen to AllCollege Sing practice and dine together.

Plans for Homecoming 2010 and an alumnae association were discussed.

Save the Date | Homecoming 2010 | October 8-10 www.gcc.edu/homecoming | alumni@gcc.edu

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

alumninews

Star Search In a time when hundreds of job seekers apply for every job opening, wading through all those resumes and finding the best hire can be difficult.

Chad Keener ’96, who “always looks out for Grove City College grads when hiring,” knows how well his degree at Grove City has equipped him for career success and how that applies to alumni of all ages.

After leaving Grove City College with a B.S. in mechanical engineering, Keener worked for Westinghouse, earned his master’s in industrial engineering and followed with an MBA. His current position is manager of process improvement at EQT in Pittsburgh. In his role, he has hired several graduates, because he knows that “Grove City grads are going to be employees that work hard. I know that if you do well at Grove City, you’ve got a skill set; you have the ability to succeed.”

His most recent alumni hire, Janice (Barbour ’05) Brenner, is a story worth telling.When Brenner was looking to go back to school for her MBA, she contacted the Career Service Office at Grove City, and the staff recommended that she speak with an alum who had taken a similar career path.

Using information that can be found on the Alumni eCommunity, Brenner reached out to Keener at a time when, unknown to her, his company had an open position in Keener’s group.

Alumni looking to hire the best talent can look to alma mater

Alumni and students can post jobs and resumes on the eCommunity. / Photo by Tiffany Wolfe

The conversation between Keener and Brenner quickly went from career advice to a job offer. “I was confidently able to hire her, knowing her aspirations and her background at Grove City College,” said Keener.

To pursue these similar connections with more Grove City College graduates, Keener has begun to post job openings on the eCommunity. In facilitating more great Grove City hires, Keener said, “I’m sure the eCommunity will be a great tool.”

The eCommunity is designed to help not only job seekers, but also hiring managers and people such as Keener. It

is easy to sort through connections, skills and experience to find a Grove City graduate perfect for a position.

Alumni have the ability to post jobs and resumes.

“I’ve had several experiences of hiring Grove City grads, and have never been disappointed. I’d happily hire another qualified Grove City student,” said Keener. “Fortunately, with the Alumni eCommunity, it is easier than ever to find qualified Grove City students.”

Log on today at www.gcc.edu/alumnicommunity or mail your job postings to alumni@gcc.edu.

College offering yearbooks for sale from all decades Were you a struggling senior who couldn’t afford a yearbook? Is it your reunion year and you want to look at some old class pictures? Trying to think of a different gift for a loved one who is an alum?

The Alumni Relations Office is selling yearbooks. Limited quantities are available and proceeds benefit the student

32

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

Bridge organization. Most yearbooks are just $10 and include shipping and handling.

Visit www.gcc.edu/alumni, then click on “Services and Benefits” to purchase a yearbook online.This and many other benefits are available to alumni. Questions may also be directed to alumni@gcc.edu.

alumniassociation Emeritus Alumni Council members reflect What memory, quality or opportunity – however intangible – calls us back to Grove City College? Is it reverie or curiosity that brings generations to Homecoming? What prompts alumni parents to point in Grove City’s direction? Or – as in the case of Judy (Pschirer ’80) Houston, Shirley (Lunt ’52) Roth, Bob Smith ’59,Todd Snitchler ’92, Tim Sweet ’85 or John Werren ’58, Alumni Council members recently honored for their years of service with emeritus status – is it a combination of many things capped with a desire to stay connected, be of service and offer guidance to future generations of alumni?

For Houston, campus memories originally drew her back.“The classic, traditional architecture, the open grass spaces and splashes of color in spring when we finally would emerge from the bluster of winter,” are what she recalled.

“I remember junior year in Harker, when a robin nested in a tree outside our window.We watched her more than we watched our studies until the babies were grown, then laughed at how similar it was to us being launched out of the nest!”

Roth’s reason was all about that first warm welcome.“When I get out of my car and receive that first ‘hi’ from a student to whom I’m a complete stranger,” she said,“I know I’m home!”

Smith and the College are so intertwined they have become permanent fixtures in each other’s stories.

“Basically, Grove City College has been Ellie’s (Trevitt ’59) and my life.We met there and were engaged on campus senior year. Dr. Harker, president of the College at that time, officiated at our Judy (Pschirer ’80) wedding – which of Houston course was in Harbison Chapel.

Thanks to Jack Kennedy ’37, who ran Alumni and Public Relations at the time, I was offered a job that grew into 31-plus years - my entire career. Both our Todd Snitchler ’92 children graduated from Grove City College. Now we both serve on various committees and volunteer where needed. If all this doesn’t qualify as a bona fide ‘love affair’ with the College – what does?”

Werren believes that his volunteering creates a symbiotic relationship as beneficial to students as it is to him.“I volunteer to help students and, in turn, I keep in touch with the thinking and problems of younger generations.The best thing is that change does take place at Grove City College but the solid values remain the guiding principle: Christian values combined with academic

Association accepting award nominations Each Homecoming, the Alumni Association bestows the Jack Kennedy ’37 Memorial Alumni Achievement Award and the Distinguished Service Award. If you know of an alumnus who has been a distinctive success in his or her field or an individual who has made a significant contribution to the College, visit www.gcc.edu/alumni, then click on Alumni Association, Awards for more information on how to nominate. Nominators may also submit a letter stating the reasons for nomination to: Melissa (Trifaro ’96) MacLeod, Alumni Relations Office, 100 Campus Drive, Grove City, PA 16127, or alumni@gcc.edu.

Nominations are accepted on a rolling basis.

Shirley (Lunt ’52) Roth

Bob Smith ’59

Tim Sweet ’85

John Werren ’58

freedom.”

Snitchler concurred.“I particularly enjoy opportunities to interact with current students as well as recent graduates.They help me connect with today’s College rather than just memories of ‘how things were when I was a student.’”

All the new emeritus members have snippets of wisdom to offer today’s students as well as those in years to come.

Said Snitchler,“My best advice is to have both passion and a proper focus and you will make a difference in life.” Houston suggested,“Enjoy every second of every minute you are here, and let the traditions you love flow through you and to future generations.” Roth looks to a student’s future when she advised “Be confident but not cocky in taking on any new challenge – and above all else be honest with others and especially yourself.”

Smith might just sum it all their feelings the best with an old truism,“Live well, laugh often and – most of all – love much.”

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

winter

wolverinesports

By Ryan Briggs ’01 All four of Grove City College’s winter sports teams posted successful seasons during the 2009-10 season.

Both the men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams captured Presidents’ Athletic Conference titles at the Grove City Invitational/PAC Championships.

Grove City’s men’s basketball team rolled past Thomas More in the PAC Championship Tournament title game 78-61 in the Grove City College Arena while the women’s squad recorded an 8-6 mark in the league play – good for third place in the regular season standings.

WOMEN’S SWIMMING AND DIVING Grove City earned its second straight league title by amassing 862.5 points over the three-day event in the James E. Longnecker Competition Pool. It is Grove City’s eighth conference title in program history.

Head coach Dave Fritz ’94 earned the conference’s Coach of the Year award while six swimmers qualified for the NCAA Division III Championships.

Junior Lauren Baur, freshman Angela Palumbo, junior Sarah Page, sophomore Jenna Richert, freshman Kaitlin Riesmeyer and freshman Jenny Ryan all competed in the national championships March 17-20 in Minneapolis.

During the regular season, Grove City posted a 13-1 record in dual-meet action.The 13 wins are a single-season school standard.

Grove City notched victories over regional foes Allegheny, Carnegie Mellon, Case Western and Kenyon during the regular season.The Wolverines punctuated the regular season with a 176-121 thumping of Westminster Feb. 4.

Then in March, the team highlighted the third night of competition at the NCAA Division III Swimming and Diving Championships at the University of Minnesota by shattering a school record en route to a fifth-place finish in the 800 free relay.

Grove City’s quartet of Ryan, Richert, Palumbo and Riesmeyer earned fifth in the 800 relay with a time of 7 minutes, 30.03 seconds.That time breaks the previous school record by 13.50 seconds. All four swimmers earned AllAmerica distinction.

34

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

ABOVE: Seventeen Grove City athletes provisionally qualified for the NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships. Front row, from left: Jenny Ryan, Kaitlin Riesmeyer, Sarah Page, Angela Palumbo, Sarah Bargery and Lauren Baur.

Middle row: Jenna Richert, Natalie Keibler, Kate Wilt and Nick Hamilton. Back row: Kyle Grubbs, Nate Nielsen, Clay Beckner, Cam Coppelli, Eric Fairchild, Kirk Gagliardo and Ben Bowser. BELOW: Team captains Kyle Grubbs, Chris Marasco, Seth Zimmerman, Lincoln Larsen, Cam Coppelli, Katie Brunk, Amanda Thompson and Sarah Page stand with President Dick Jewell ’67 after the Grove City Invitational/Presidents’ Athletic Conference Championships in the James E. Longnecker Competition Pool. / Photos by Dave Miller

Riesmeyer became Grove City’s first individual AllAmerican this year by taking 15th in the 200 butterfly.

Palumbo, Riesmeyer and Ryan are all three-time NCAA Division III All-American. Richert earned her first career AllAmerica honor. Baur and Page also earned All-America honors during this year’s Championships.

wolverinesports

Basketball’s O’Keefe, Lamie earn season honors Grove City College men’s basketball player Andy O’Keefe earned several honors this season for his outstanding performance on and off the court.

O’Keefe earned College Division Academic All-America Second Team honors from the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) and “ESPN The Magazine.”

A 6-foot-7 senior center, O’Keefe is the first Grove City men’s basketball player to earn Academic All-America honors since Curt Siverling in 1985.

In the classroom, O’Keefe has achieved a high grade-point average while majoring in mathematics/ secondary education. He is a Dean’s List student and has been named to the PAC Academic Honor Roll.

O’Keefe also earned Second Team AllGreat Lakes Region from D3Hoops.com as well as First Team All-Eastern College Athletic Conference South honors.

This year, O’Keefe averaged 17.5 points and 5.6 rebounds per game while helping Grove City to a 19-9 overall record. He led the conference in field goal percentage, shooting 66.5 percent

from the floor.That figure ranks third in NCAA Division III. O’Keefe’s 490 points this year are the seventh-most in program history. He finished with 1,164 career points, 13thmost in Grove City history. O’Keefe is Grove City’s career leader in field goal percentage, shooting 61.0 percent from the field over his four seasons.

Additionally, the National Association of Basketball Coaches honored head coach Steve Lamie ’85 and O’Keefe in recognition of their respective efforts during the 2009-10 season.

Lamie earned Great Lakes Co-Coach of the Year while O’Keefe is a First Team All-Great Lakes honoree.

Overall, Lamie has guided Grove City to a 175-141 overall record in 12 seasons as head coach.The Wolverines have won four league titles and earned six postseason berths during that span. He received PAC Coach of the Year honors following the season.

MEN’S SWIMMING AND DIVING

Wolverines posted their 59th consecutive winning season and their fourth straight season of 10 or more wins.

Overall, Grove City now has 21 seasons with double-digit victory totals.

The Wolverines rolled to their third straight conference title Feb. 20 in the James E. Longnecker Competition Pool.

Grove City rolled up 963.5 total points to easily outdistance second place Westminster by 229 points in the team standings.

Sophomore Kirk Gagliardo earned the Grove City Invitational’s High Point Award after posting 60 individual points in the meet. He swept the sprints, winning the 50, 100 and 200 freestyle races.

Diver Kyle Grubbs, an NCAA provisional qualifier, earned the conference’s Diver of the Year award.

Grove City posted an 11-2 record during the regular season, including a 30 mark in conference meets.The

AT RIGHT: Senior Andy O’Keefe earned PAC Player of the Year honors for men’s basketball. / Photo by Kevin Hanse ’13

MEN’S BASKETBALL Led by PAC Coach of the Year Steve Lamie ’85 and conference Player of the Year Andy O’Keefe, Grove City earned its second conference title in the last four seasons this winter.

Grove City amassed a 19-9 overall record, including a 9-3 mark in conference play.The Wolverines advanced to the NCAA Championship Tournament for the first time since 1989 by winning the league title. Grove City dropped a 63-52 decision at No.

17 Wooster in the first round of the tournament.

O’Keefe finished his career 13th on Grove City’s all-time scoring list with 1,164 points. He also graduates as Grove City’s career leader in field goal percentage. His 490 points this year are the seventh-most in one season at Grove City.

Sophomore guard Brett Matson earned Second Team All-PAC honors after averaging more than 13 points and four assists per game.

Grove City closed the season by winning 12 of its final 14 games.The Wolverines went 10-2 at home this year and held nine opponents to 54 points or less this year. Grove City led the league in scoring defense and field goal defense.

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

wolverinesports WOMEN’S BASKETBALL Grove City posted an 8-6 mark in conference play and finished 12-14 overall.The Wolverines played a school-record five overtime games this year.That mark is believed to match the most overtime games played in one season by an NCAA Division III squad.

Junior forward Christine Slater led the conference in scoring, averaging 16 points per game. She also ranked second in the league in rebounding, averaging 8.8 per game. Slater earned First Team All-PAC honors.

She also became Grove City’s 10th all-time 1,000-point scorer and finished the season eighth on the Wolverines’ alltime scoring list with 1,127 career points.

Senior captains Krista Beechy and Laura Miller both earned All-PAC Honorable Mention.

Ryan Briggs ’01 is the Grove City College sports information director and a GeDUNK contributing editor.)

AT RIGHT: Junior forward Christine Slater went over the 1,000-point mark for her career and earned First Team All-Presidents’ Athletic Conference honors for the second straight season. / Photo by Dave Miller

Cross country coaches cross decades

A history of Grove City College cross country coaches was on hand for the Athletic Hall of Fame induction festivities in January. Dr. Thaddeus “Ted” Penar ’42 founded the team in 1955 and coached the sport through 1959. Jim Longnecker coached from 1960 to 1971. Dr. Allison Williams coached the teams from 2000 to 2003 and current coach Sean Severson has led the cross country team since 2004. See page 40 for more Hall of Fame news. / Photo by Ryan Briggs ’01

36

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

Women’s soccer travels again to South Africa for World Cup prep The Grove City women’s soccer team embraces a “Code of Conduct” that guides its actions on the field to be a witness for Christ during competition.

This code was first adopted after some members of the team went on a mission trip to South Africa with the organization Ambassadors in Sport.

This summer, athletes and coaches will again have the chance to serve Christ through soccer in South Africa.

Their two-week trip will include games against local high level teams, coaching clinics, prison ministry and a visit to a children’s home.

The 2010 World Cup in South Africa presents an evangelical opportunity.

While the team will not be there during this global event, they hope to help with the preparations by AIS and local churches.

spring

wolverinesports

Grove City leading All-Sports standings

By Ryan Briggs ’01 Grove City currently sits atop the races for both the Men’s and Women’s All-Sports Trophies in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference.

Grove City’s men’s teams have accumulated 30 points through the end of the winter season and own a onepoint lead over second place Washington & Jefferson.

On the women’s side, the Wolverines have 39 points.Westminster is second at 38½.

During the winter season, Grove City’s men’s teams earned 14 points by winning conference titles in both swimming and diving and basketball.

W&J earned five points for finishing third in the three-team wrestling championships.

Grove City also won the women’s swimming PAC title, netting eight points.The Wolverines’ fourth-place finish in basketball earned five points.

Grove City College teams have won a PAC-high six conference titles this season.

In spring sports news, all eight of Grove City’s spring sports teams return several veterans as they pursue conference titles in 2010. Here is a sport-by-sport look:

Senior Mike Herringshaw is at the top of the Wolverines’ starting rotation in 2010. / Photo by Dave Miller

BASEBALL The Wolverines will rely on a large junior class and a pair of senior lettermen this spring as Grove City aims for its second league title in the past three seasons. Rubber-armed senior Mike Herringshaw anchors the starting

rotation while classmate Tyler Thompson will man first base. Also back as upperclassmen are junior All-America catcher Marcus Magister, two-year starting outfielders Butch Kriger and Scott Moran and all-PAC infielder Andrew Patterson.

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

wolverinesports SOFTBALL

WOMEN’S WATER POLO

Fourth-year head coach Chelle Fuss will rely on a veteran nucleus this spring as the Wolverines continue to their climb toward the top of the PAC. The 2010 Wolverines feature improved depth at nearly every position. Grove City would appear to be strong up the middle with senior Heidi Lohr back in center field, senior catcher Jessica Hodge behind the plate and junior Lauren Pennell in the pitcher’s circle.

Junior captain Brittany Young returns in left field while All-PAC selection Christine Slater is back on the left side of the infield.

A new era of Grove City water polo begins this spring as Jonathan Miller takes over as head coach.

The Wolverines also begin a new challenge as a member of an allDivision III conference within the Collegiate Water Polo Association.

Grove City does return several key components to last year’s 13-13 squad, including seniors Kate Stiebler and Amanda Thompson. Stiebler earned AllAmerica honors from the Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches while Thompson is a three-year starter.

Also back as letterwinners are juniors Lauren Baur, Brittany LaPalme and Allison White and sophomores Amy Fleming and Chelsea Johnson.

AT RIGHT: Pitcher Lauren Pennell and the softball team look to return to the PAC Championship Tournament this spring. / Photo by Dave Miller

Senior Peter Davis and the Grove City men’s tennis team are seeking their 20th consecutive league title. / Photo by Dave Miller

MEN’S TENNIS Grove City will pursue its 20th straight conference title this season and 38th-year head coach Joe Walters will rely on an experienced lineup.

The Wolverines welcome back seniors Bill Derocha, Peter Davis, Blake Fortier and Shaun Mills, along with junior Ricky Garrett, who will likely hold down the No. 1 spot in the lineup this spring.

38

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

Amanda Thompson returned for her fourth year as a starter for the Wolverines. / Photo by Dave Miller

wolverinesports MEN’S TRACK AND FIELD Grove City will compete for its sixth consecutive conference title this year and it would appear that the Wolverines are well-stocked once again.

The Wolverines’ deep distance corps will be led by seniors Andrew Falcone, Frankie Hourigan and Derek Kruse while senior Tim Palma leads the sprinters.

Throwers Tony Clark, Matt Ridge and Matt Six all return as does versatile senior Jeff Tharnish. Grove City will host the PAC Championships at Robert E. Thorn Field.

WOMEN’S TRACK AND FIELD The Wolverines will look to return to the top of the conference this spring as an influx of youthful newcomers will look to bolster Grove City.

Versatile junior Kate Balmer is back to lead Grove City in the sprints and jumps while several cross country standouts are expected to boost the Wolverines’ typically strong distance squad.

MEN’S GOLF After a strong fall season, the Grove City men’s golf team will look to challenge for the conference title this spring.

Sophomore Ian Finney and junior Troy Demmer both placed in the top 10 at the PAC Fall Championships. Also back as upperclassmen are senior Jae Minor and junior Matt Landin.

Grove City hosted its annual McBrideBehringer-Allen “MBA” Invitational April 26 at Grove City Country Club.

(Ryan Briggs ’01 is the Grove City College sports information director and a GeDUNK contributing editor.)

Sophomore Arielle Goyzueta is a returning First Team All-PAC honoree. / Photo by Dave Miller

WOMEN’S GOLF Grove City returns a veteran squad in 2010, including seniors Michelle Peck and Renee Ward, both of whom have earned All-PAC honors through the course of their career.

Sophomore Arielle Goyzueta earned First Team All-PAC as a freshman while junior Jessica Johansen is back for her third year on the squad also.

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

wolverinesports

College welcomes standouts to Hall of Fame

LEFT: New members of the Grove City College Athletic Hall of Fame display their plaques with Grove City College President Richard Jewell ’67, left, and Director of Athletics Dr. Don Lyle, right. Athletes, from left: Ray Rawlins ’66 (on behalf of the late Thom Shear ’66), David Marovich ’66, Katherine Brandt ’82, Theresa Berg ’93, Karen (Watkins ’82) Sparks, Sheila (Moritz ’62) Buttner Law (on behalf of the late Peter Buttner ’61), Richard Manley ’67 and Earl Mays ’63.

RIGHT: Four distinguished alumni received the Grove City College Athletic Heritage Award during the Hall of Fame induction ceremony. From left: President Richard Jewell ’67, Thomas Place ’49, Dr. Thaddeus “Ted” Penar ’42, Frannie Hartzell (on behalf of Esther Post ’25), Steven Stepanian II (on behalf of Steven Stepanian ’22) and Director of Athletics Dr. Don Lyle. / Photos by Ryan Briggs ’01

Grove City inducts three into Swimming and Diving Hall of Fame Grove City College inducted three former swimming and diving standouts into its Swimming and Diving Hall of Fame Jan. 16.

Norman “Chips” Koehler ’56, Augie Beyer ’83 and Matt Husak ’90 comprised the 2010 class of inductees.

Koehler emerged as one of the most versatile performers in program history as he won Penn-Ohio titles in both swimming and diving events from 1952 to 1956. He helped Grove City to its first-ever Penn-Ohio league title in 1955 as he won the 400 free relay, the 300 medley relay and 1-meter diving titles during the meet.

Koehler captained the 1955-56 squad that finished 8-1 in dual-meet competition. He went undefeated on the 1-meter board in his final two seasons.

He did not start diving for Grove City until later in his career as the old pool on lower campus did not have diving boards.

Koehler graduated with school records

40

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

in the 400 free relay and the 300 medley relay. He also lettered in track and football as a student-athlete at Grove City.

Beyer emerged as one of Grove City’s top performers in the early portion of the 1980s. He earned NCAA All-America honors as a sophomore in the 400 medley relay and also competed in the NCAA Championships in the 100 butterfly and 800 free relay. In 1981, Beyer helped Grove City place 10th at the national championships.

As a junior, Beyer helped Grove City to a 12-0 dual-meet record. He captained the 1982-83 squad that finished 9-4 overall.

Upon graduation, Beyer owned College records in the 200 individual medley, 200 butterfly and 400 medley relay. He still ranks fourth all-time in Grove City history in the 200 butterfly.

Husak qualified for the NCAA Championships in the 100 breaststroke as a senior and held school records in the

200 IM and 200 breaststroke for seven years. He also contributed to Grove Cityrecord efforts in the 200 medley and 400 free relays.

He graduated as Presidents’ Athletic Conference record-holder in the 100 breaststroke, 200 IM, 200 medley relay and 200 free relay. He still ranks in Grove City’s all-time top 10 in the breaststroke races.

In 1990, Husak earned the Richard Jewell Team Most Valuable Performer Award after helping lead the Wolverines to a 10-2 overall record. Grove City went 19-3 over his final two seasons at Grove City.

This is the 12th class of inductees to enter the Swimming and Diving Hall of Fame.The College established the Swimming and Diving Hall of Fame in 1985 as a means of honoring those athletes who have obtained a level of excellence in the pool that elevated them to heights achieved by only a select few.

R I G H T N O W. . .

they

swim in

data

STEPHEN MOWERY and MARISSA PRIESTAP devoted eight weeks this summer to studying the effects of a common PUZLJ[PJPKL VU [OL ULY]V\Z Z`Z[LTZ VM aLIYHÄZO LTIY`VZ

;OL` ^VYRLK ^P[O +Y :\aHUUH 3LZRV .YPIISL » JOHPY VM [OL

+LWHY[TLU[ VM )PVSVN` ;OL` ^HP[LK HUK ^HP[LK MVY [OL ÄZO

[V ZWH^U Z[Y\NNSLK [V ÄUK [OL VW[PTHS Z[HPU JVUJLU[YH[PVU

HUK TLHZ\YLK HUK YLJVYKLK KH[H H[ WYLJPZL PU[LY]HSZ ;OL

\UWYLJLKLU[LK YLZLHYJO WHY[PHSS` M\UKLK I` -<33 *09*3, KVSSHYZ

offered the juniors a rare opportunity to make a contribution to ZJPLUJL ;OL` HSZV NHPULK H KLLW YLZWLJ[ MVY [OL WHPUZ[HRPUN

work required to produce the discoveries they study in advanced ZJPLUJL JSHZZLZ · WYLWHYPUN :[LWOLU H TVSLJ\SHY IPVSVN` THQVY

MVY TLKPJHS ZJOVVS HUK 4HYPZZH H :WHUPZO THQVY HUK IPVSVN`

TPUVY MVY H JHYLLY PU TLKPJHS [YHUZSH[PVU

>OH[L]LY `V\»YL KVPUN H[ [OPZ TVTLU[ `V\ JHU IL JLY[HPU [OLYL

HYL Z[\KLU[Z H[ .YV]L *P[` *VSSLNL YLHWPUN [OL ILULÄ[Z VM [OL

-<33 *09*3, -<5+ @V\Y KVUH[PVU ILULÄ[Z ZJOVSHYZOPWZ ZWLJPHS

HJHKLTPJ L]LU[Z JHTW\Z PTWYV]LTLU[Z SLHKLYZOPW PUP[PH[P]LZ HUK

THU` L_[YH J\YYPJ\SHY HJ[P]P[PLZ

Make an impact

right now by making your gift today. Thank you!

Use the enclosed envelope, call us at (866) 386-3422 or give online at www.gcc.edu.

Your gift will be applied to the July 1, 2009 – June 30, 2010 fiscal year.

facultyfeature

42

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

Leap of Faith

Professor Shawn Ritenour and wife Michelle follow God’ s path along adoption route

“I

By Michael Baker ’09 didn’t know what I wanted to do, but I did know I didn’t want to teach,” said Dr. Shawn Ritenour, professor of economics at Grove City College, of his initial undergraduate experiences at Northwestern College in Iowa. “Sometimes you need to embrace change because it is what God has in mind for you,” said Ritenour reflecting on his life journey. Through answering God’s call and taking a leap of faith, Ritenour has had the opportunity to mentor many talented students, including his two favorite standouts.

Helena and Cecily, the 6- and 3year-old daughters of Ritenour and his wife, Michelle, have learned several life lessons from their father. “There are hardly any joys better than seeing instruction come to fruition,” said Ritenour of providing guidance for his daughters and watching them continue to mature. Although teaching and parenting children is challenging and frustrating at times, the couple embraces the responsibility, knowing that having children of their own to advise was not always a certainty.

After learning the likelihood of having biological children was very slim, the Ritenours prayed, discussed their options and eventually decided to forgo infertility treatments and in vitro

AT LEFT: Dr. Shawn Ritenour and wife Michelle care for the physical, spiritual and intellectual needs of adopted daughters Helena, 6, and Cecily, 3. / Photo by Emily (Andrews ’01) Unverzagt

procedures and domestically adopt. were prepared. The couple was very “We wanted to help children who pleased with the efforts of their would be in a challenging circumstance adoption agencies, Bethany Christian otherwise,” Ritenour said. Once the Services and Love Basket, and would difficult decision of adoption was encourage others who have the means made, however, the couple could not to adopt to consider it. “God blessed us help but contemplate the direction with a remarkably smooth process,” God was leading them. shared Ritenour, “I couldn’t have “When God planned it any better.” gives you a Since the adoptions, biological child, the Ritenours have Sometimes you you know that’s dedicated themselves what He wants, to providing a need to embrace but adoption Christian environment takes more of an that will foster the change because it is intentional girls’ spiritual needs in choice,” said a positive manner. “It what God has in Ritenour of the is an awesome leap of faith. “If responsibility, actually mind for you. you don’t have a somewhat frightenDr. Shawn Ritenour ing,” said Ritenour in strong sense of God’s recognition that even sovereignty, (the adoption process) can parents are fallen. “You have to believe weigh on a person emotionally.” that God will protect them from the Ritenour believes that through myriad of influence that is beyond our “stretching areas of (his) faith that control,” Ritenour said. “God has really needed stretched,” God prepared him taught us to trust Him.” for the emotional rollercoaster of Trusting in the gifts that the Lord adopting two young girls. has given them, Shawn and Michelle, “Day to day, there were many who are both highly qualified and experienced teachers, have chosen to challenges,” Ritenour said of the adoption process, which included steep satisfy their daughters’ intellectual curiosity through homeschooling. “The expenses and masses of paper work.

Aware that adoptions are thorough only option in our mind was home or procedures, however, the Ritenours See FAITH, page 45

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

facultynews Ritenour releases economics textbook

Economics student, prof publish paper

Dr. Shawn Ritenour, professor of economics, has released “Foundations of Economics: A Christian View,” an introductory textbook to economic principles.

The book maintains that there is no conflict between Christian doctrine and economic science when properly understood. The text demonstrates how economic laws are derived from Christian understanding and explains basic principles of market economy.

Dr. Thomas E. Woods Jr., a “New York Times” bestseller, praised Ritenour’s work as Dr. Shawn Ritenour “everything a textbook on economics should be: clear, well organized, easy to understand and interesting.”

Adjunct scholar at the Ludwig von Mises Institute, Ritenour has lectured for the Acton Institute and Institute for Principle Studies. A faculty member since 2001, Ritenour has taught economics for 13 years.

A paper written by sophomore economics major Melissa Pattison and Dr. Jeremy DalleTezze, assistant professor of business, was selected as one of the five best papers at the 10th Annual International Business Research Conference at the University of North Florida.

The paper, “Managing for Financial Crises: What Business Can Learn from NonProfit Organizations,” will be published in a special issue of the “Journal of Interdisciplinary Economics” later this year.

Supported by the Alva J. Calderwood Fund, Dr. Jeremy DalleTezze the team wrote the paper in fall 2009.

The conference was co-sponsored by the University of Warsaw, Poland’s second largest university. The conference theme was how to restart the global economy after financial crisis.

The Calderwood Fund is intended to support and encourage joint student-faculty research projects.

Student-prof team publishes research article

Pisano ’94 makes strides in music technology

An article written by four Grove City College computer science students and a faculty member has been accepted by the peer-reviewed quarterly “journal of graphics, gpu and game tools.”

The article, “Integer Ray Tracing,” is the result of research conducted during summer 2009 campus fellowships that were made possible by the Swezey Fund for Scientific Research and Instrumentation.

The article was written by seniors Jared Heinly and Kevin Bensema, juniors Shawn Recker and Jesse Porch, and co-authored by Dr. Christiaan Gribble ’00 Dr. Christiaan Gribble ’00, assistant professor of computer science.

The article discusses the image synthesis method of ray tracing, which simulates the interaction of light with an environment to create highly realistic computer-generated images. The method was used to produce many of the visual effects in movies such as “Avatar,” “Shrek” and “Ice Age.” Since joining the faculty in 2006, Gribble has co-authored more than a dozen journal articles and conference papers in areas related to computer graphics and computer science education, many of which feature Grove City College students as the primary contributors.

Twenty-one students in the Albert A. Hopeman Jr. School of Science and Engineering completed Swezey-funded research on campus during the summer, under the advisement of 10 faculty members.

Dr. Joseph Pisano ’94, associate chair of music and fine arts and director of fine arts technology, continues to be on the cutting edge of the music technology field.

In February, Pisano served on the academic panel at the TI:ME (Technology Institute for Music Educators) National Conference to discuss music technology standards and music education curriculum. The conference was held in conjunction with the New Jersey Music Educators. To participate in the panel, Dr. Joseph Pisano ’94 Pisano presented clinics to music educators about creating, recording and editing digital audio.

44

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

Psychology prof published in journals Dr. Kris Homan, adjunct professor of psychology, has had several articles published in peerreviewed, scholarly journals recently.

The articles, which focus on subjects ranging from health and behavior to body image, appear in these publications: “Body Image: An International Journal;” “The International Journal for the Psychology of Religion;” “Eating Disorders: The Journal of Treatment;” and “Prevention Dr. Kris Homan Journal of Adult Development.”

facultynews College awards three semester-long sabbaticals

Potter and ’07 grad publishing poems

Grove City College has awarded semester-long sabbaticals to three professors for the 2010-11 academic year. The professors are: Dr. T. David Gordon, professor of religion; Dr. James Dupree, professor of business and entrepreneurship; and Dr. Richard Trammell, professor of philosophy.

Gordon will continue his research in Pauline studies this fall. He also intends to complete a book during his sabbatical centered on the Apostle Paul rooted in the “New Perspectives on Paul” approach.

In the spring of 2011, Dupree will research Dr. T. David Gordon the integration of the Christian faith into business and entrepreneurial practices. The focus of his study will examine and propose a solution for the perceived disconnect between clergy and Christian entrepreneurs regarding working issues and their faith.

Trammell will write a symbolic logic text, having taught more than 100 sections in the discipline during his teaching career.

Dr. James Dupree Currently, the standard text in the field, written by Irving Copi, has not been revised since 1978. His sabbatical will begin in the spring of 2011.

Since its inception in 2004, the sabbatical program has helped more than 15 faculty members pursue their research interests. The program has led to eight books or manuscripts, more than 10 published articles, 20 presentations at professional conferences and two Center for Vision & Values white papers. Dr. Richard Trammell

Professor of English Dr. Eric Potter and alumna Kelly Beahm ’07 are collaborating to publish a book of poems this spring.

Authored by Potter, “Heart Murmur” seeks to capture the desire of freedom and the need for renewal. The poems range in style and subject matter, though family and faith are recurring themes. The poems address the difficulties of parenting, aging, memory, nostalgia and the inevitability of death.

Dr. Eric Potter Many of the poems were inspired by Potter’s personal experiences; most notably the book-titled poem “Heart Murmur,” which recounts the day he learned his son would need open heart surgery. Potter hopes that his poems will encourage others to gravitate to the essential in life.

His book is published by Twisted Tree Press, an independent press company founded by Beahm.

Potter joined the Grove City College faculty in 2000. He was honored as the College’s Professor of the Year in 2009.

Calaboyias exhibits art in Chicago museum Guest lecturer and artist-in-residence Peter Calaboyias displayed an exhibit of bronze sculptures and brilliantly colored paintings at National Hellenic Museum in Chicago.

The exhibit, “Windows to the Aegean,” is inspired by Calaboyias’ childhood village on the Aegean island of Ikaria, Greece. His work was meant to symbolize simplicity as experienced through the island.

Calaboyias is known for producing a wide range of minimalist bronze forms on a large Peter Calaboyias scale. His most internationally recognized work, “Tribute,” was a sculpture created as a testament to peace for the 1996 Summer Olympic Games in Atlanta.

The Alumni Relations Office hosted a Chicago reception at the Museum with a personal tour by Calaboyias.

FAITH from page 43 private (schooling) for philosophical and ethical reasons,” said Ritenour, also an adjunct scholar at the Ludwig von Mises Institute. Through homeschooling, the Ritenours have learned that society frequently “underestimates the intelligence of children and how much they can understand things.”

Due to the “blessing of an academic calendar,” Ritenour also has had the opportunity to schedule time to take the children on educational field trips to museums, animal parks and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra on weekdays. This “fun daddy and daughter time” provides the forum for his children to “discover the world and themselves.”

For Ritenour, who later altered his perception on teaching after a stint instructing students in Northwestern College’s writing center, education is “leading others from the known to the unknown.” This leap of faith into the unknown is how Ritenour encouraged his economic students in their academic pursuits and what he has expected of himself in his personal life. “God will take care of you,” said Ritenour, who knows firsthand the blessings of following God into the unknown. Their names are Helena and Cecily.

(Michael Baker ’09 is the Grove City College communications associate.)

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

campusnews

Red-clad fans cheer during the Hoops for Haiti men’s basketball game on Feb. 10. / Photo by Kevin Hanse ’13

Campus comes together to help Haiti

By Esther Winne ’10 The earthquake that devastated Haiti in January 2010 inspired an outpouring of charitable aid across the country. Grove City College was no exception. Individual students and organizations sponsored fundraisers in the aftermath of the disaster.

These include: The Tri-Zeta sorority held a fundraising competition in the Breen Student Union for two weeks. Forty competing students raised $1,078, which was sent to Mission Evangelique Chertienne d’Haiti – a church, medical clinic and school located in a small town near Port-au-Prince.

Junior Brian Cuffman joined with students to support the “Teens for Jeans” ministry in late January. “Teens for Jeans” nationally gathered approximately 624,893 pairs of jeans for homeless shelters in Haiti.

Grove City College students contributed more than 100 pairs of jeans to the project.

Senior Lauren Howell organized the

46

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

“Rebuild Haiti” fundraiser that included a coffee concert and bake sale. Student-made jewelry, crocheted hats and Haiti T-shirts were sold. Proceeds of $1,004 were donated to Haiti through Deep Springs International, a safe water organization founded by Michael Ritter ’06.

Mortar Board, the national senior honor society, hosted the “Love Bowl” on Feb. 12.

Fifty-five students went bowling and donated $265 to the Haiti relief fund of a local church.

Senior Chris Rich and five other students combined school spirit with fundraising through the “Hoops for Haiti” basketball night on Feb. 10. More than 500 students attended the game, raising $800 in one night for DaySpring Ministries in Haiti. Students and members of the community wore red and purchased red spirit towels in the effort.

Freshman Shaina Richer, with the help of junior Andrew Parry and freshman

Kaitlin Yeatts, organized the “Beauty from Ashes” fundraiser in February. The students raised $4,400 in profits from the sale of Tshirts and plastic bracelets they designed.

The proceeds were given to the Haiti relief fund of a local church.

The Delta Rho Sigma men’s housing group hosted a karaoke night fundraiser.

Proceeds were sent through a local church to three orphanages in Port-au-Prince.

Grove City College students demonstrated overwhelming generosity in the wake of the tragedy in Haiti. In all, more than $7,500 was raised in relief efforts.

“I have been humbled by the response of our students,” says Larry Hardesty, vice president for student life and learning, “and encouraged to see the connection between our students’ faith and their compassion for those in need.”

(Esther Winne is a senior political science major from Lancaster, Pa.)

campusnews

Wendell August Forge destroyed by fire in March Wendell August Forge, an attraction for students, parents and alumni through the years, was destroyed in a fire on March 6.

The fire was accidental, believed to have started in the shop’s spray room. No one was injured and many manufacturing dies and mementos were saved.

Company president and owner Will Knecht, son of the late Trustee Bill Knecht, says the company will rebuild.

The forge has a temporary storefront at Slovak Folk Crafts in Grove City.

Currently, Wendell August also has retail locations at the Grove City Prime Outlets, in Exton, Pa., in Berlin, Ohio, and has a web site. The ornamental metalware business had been in Grove City since 1932.

ABOVE: Firefighters work to extinguish a blaze at Wendell August Forge. The Grove City landmark was destroyed by fire on March 6. / Photo by Matthew Barnette ’10 AT LEFT: The Wendell August Forge sign is seen in front of the charred remains of the forge. / Photo by Jacob Sims ’10

Juday earns Fulbright grant to study in Botswana, Africa

Students, advisers team up to launch law journal

Senior Luke Juday of Chesapeake,Va., has earned a Fulbright Full Grant to Botswana, Africa, for 2010-11. The grant is the most prestigious student Fulbright fellowship awarded.

For 10 months, Juday, a political science major, will be affiliated with the University of Botswana Debating Master’s Association, helping to develop new debating programs at colleges around Botswana and southern Africa. He will work closely with the association as Botswana hosts the 2011 World Universities Debating Championship, the largest in the world.

Juday represented Grove City College at the 2010 Worlds in Turkey. He also helped lead the College’s Speech and Debate Team to a No. 2 ranking by the National Parliamentary Debate Association for 2009-10. He was ranked best speaker in the varsity parliamentary debate in the entire country.

While in Africa, Juday will also take courses in African politics and conduct research on the role debate plays in training future leaders and how African youth approach debate on public policy issues.

Juday is the senior class president, a Collegian editor and a leader in many campus organizations. He is the College’s sixth Fulbright award winner since 2000.

Grove City College has created a new academic journal focused on law and public policy. With its launch, it is one of only six undergraduate law reviews or journals in the country.

The “Journal of Law and Public Policy,” which launched in April, strives to encourage interest in the field of law and the pursuit of scholarly research among undergraduates, faculty and alumni.

The publication includes five to seven submissions, ranging in content. The journal will produce one volume per academic year, featuring issues in the spring and fall semesters, and will be an average of 40 pages in length.

Grove City College Trustee Emeritus David Lascell, who was involved in the landmark Grove City College v. Bell case of 1984, wrote a featured piece for the inaugural issue.

James VanEerden ’12, Steve Irwin ’12 and Kevin Hoffman ’11 spearheaded the launch of the journal. The Faculty Board of Editors assisting students with the editing process and providing guidance for the selection of submissions include: Dr. John Sparks ’66, Dr. Garey Spradley, Dr. Craig Columbus, Dr. Gary Smith ’72 and Dr. Jennifer Scott ’99.

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

campusnews

The 2010 Grove City College Baccalaureate and Commencement ceremonies are set for the weekend of May 14-15, with U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole and Dr. Jay Passavant addressing 615 graduates. / File Photo

Elizabeth Dole, Jay Passavant send off College’s largest graduating class Grove City College will send off its largest graduating class in school history with a Commencement ceremony headlined by former U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole. Dr. Jay Passavant, senior pastor of North Way Christian Community in Wexford, Pa., will present the Baccalaureate address this year.

Dole will address approximately 615 graduates May 15. Passavant will offer a sermon to students at a Baccalaureate ceremony.

Dole was elected as North Carolina’s first female senator in 2002 and served one six-year term. During her term, she chaired the National Republican Senatorial Committee for two years.

She ran for the Republican presidential nomination in 2000. Prior to her campaign, she was president of the National American Red Cross for almost 10 years. Dole’s experience on the

48

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

national stage began during Ronald Reagan’s administration. She served as secretary of transportation from 1983 to 1987 and as secretary of labor from 1989 to 1990 under President George H.W. Bush.

A native of North Carolina, Dole earned her bachelor’s degree from Duke University and her master’s and juris doctorate from Harvard University. She is married to former 1996 Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole of Kansas.

Passavant was ordained in the United Presbyterian Church in 1974 and joined North Way in 1981. North Way is a thriving congregation of nearly 4,000 members in three locations.

Passavant hosts a national broadcast television show focusing on marriage and family advice, “Reality Talks!” with

Dr. Kevin Leman. He also recently began a weekly radio broadcast addressing topics like parenting and personal issues.

Under Passavant’s leadership, North Way has focused on area educational needs. In 2006, North Way collaborated with Pittsburgh public schools, Family Guidance, Inc., and other area churches through L.A.M.P. (Learning and Mentoring Partnership) to offer mentors, services and resources to inner city children.

Passavant holds a bachelor’s degree from Washington and Lee University and the master of divinity and doctor of ministry degrees from Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, Calif. He was a commissioned officer in the U.S. Marine Corps.

He and his wife, Carol, have three married children, including Grove City College graduates Amy (Passavant ’97) D’Ambrosio and Jonathan ’01.

campusnews

Touring Choir performs with Erie Philharmonic The Grove City College Touring Choir recently performed Verdi’s “Requiem” with the Erie Philharmonic Orchestra, Erie Philharmonic Chorus and resident artists of the Pittsburgh Opera.

The Touring Choir was organized in the fall of 1959 to minister to others through the medium of music, create a greater appreciation of music and enable members to share in the joy of singing. Members of the choir come from many different academic disciplines.

Recognized by the American Symphony Orchestra League as “one of the finest regional orchestras in America,” the Erie Philharmonic has received several recent awards, including the “Charles H. Bracken Award for Excellence in Nonprofit Governance” in 2006.

This Easter, the Touring Choir also performed in locations

The 2009-10 Touring Choir. / File Photo

throughout the northeast U.S., including churches in Lancaster, Pa.; Ardmore, Pa.; Avondale, Pa.; Woodbridge, N.J.; Narragansett, R.I.; Concord, Mass.; Easton, Pa.; Essex Fells, N.J.; and Towanda, Pa.

College listed as top conservative again Grove City College has once again earned recognition as a top conservative college in the country, according to the Young America’s Foundation. This is the sixth year that the Foundation has constructed such a list, which seeks to identify colleges that provide a valued overall experience to students.

The Young America’s Foundation honors 14 institutions that offer a holistic conservative experience. Besides Grove City College, the list also includes: Christendom College, College of the Ozarks, Franciscan University, Harding University, Hillsdale College, The King’s College, Liberty University, Patrick Henry College, Regent University, Saint Vincent College, Thomas Aquinas College, Thomas More College and Wisconsin Lutheran College.

President Richard G. Jewell ’67 accepted the award recognition at the Foundation's western headquarters in Santa Barbara, Calif. He also spoke to more than 150 high school students who

were visiting the Foundation.

According to the Foundation, “Many conservative students seek alternatives in higher education, but they may not be fully aware of institutions that fit these criteria. The 2009-10 ‘Top Conservative College’ list features institutions that proclaim, through their mission and programs, a dedication to discovering, maintaining and strengthening the conservative values of their students.”

The listed colleges were chosen because they allow and encourage students to explore conservative ideas and authors. The institutions also offer coursework on Western civilizations and conservative thought, and emphasize principles of smaller government, free enterprise, strong national defense and traditional values.

The Young America’s Foundation is an organization that seeks to ensure that young Americans understand and are inspired by the ideas of freedom and values.

Grove City hosts higher ed leaders In March, Grove City College hosted a “Women in Leadership” breakfast presented by the Western PA Network of the American Council on Education.

The featured speaker was Dr. Donna Burns, executive director of the council’s Office of Women in Higher Education, an organization that seeks to provide advancement to women into executive positions and campus presidencies.

Prior to leading the council, Burns, author of “Reaching: Ascending the Ladder of Academic Administration Rung by Rung,” had served as tenured member of the English department at Cleveland State University.

Roundtable discussion topics included managing various roles and stress, power of language, the vinegarhoney debate, hidden curriculum, healthy campus culture and practical ways to move forward in a career.

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

campusnews Speech and Debate team Junior picked for prestigious finishes No. 2 in country oceanographic fellowship The Grove City College Speech and Debate Team finished the 2009-10 year ranked No. 2 nationally out of 250 teams by the National Parliamentary Debate Association, the largest debate association in the U.S. The team also finished No. 2 in the Pi Kappa Delta sweepstakes, a competition for undergraduates of the national forensics honor society.

Although the team only competed in six NPDA competitions this year, it was still able to accumulate the total points necessary for second-place recognition.

It is the College’s fourth year of Parliamentary debate competition. The team finished 2008-09 ranked No. 9 nationally.

At the PKD sweepstakes, senior Luke Juday of Chesapeake, Va., was ranked the best speaker in the varsity parliamentary debate in the entire country. Three of his teammates also received top honors, allowing Grove City College to claim the best four speakers in the nation. Rounding out the top four were senior Kelsey Winther of Modesto, Calif.; junior Dan Hanson of Danville, N.H.; and junior Walter Gowen of Livermore, Calif.

The team tied for third, fifth and ninth in the varsity division at the PKD sweepstakes, while in the junior varsity division, the team took second after a split decision loss in the final round.

Juday and Hanson also represented the College at the Vehbi Koç World Universities Debating Championships in Antalya, Turkey earlier this year, competing against 400 teams from a variety of international universities and colleges.

Dr. Steven Jones, associate professor of sociology, advises the team. He joined the faculty in 2004.

Grove City College junior Anna Wargula of North East, Pa., has been chosen to take part in the highly selective Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Summer Student Fellowship.

The fellowship selects only 20 to 30 undergraduates from an international pool of applicants each year. Wargula will receive a stipend to cover her efforts, travel and housing in Woods Hole, Mass.

Launched in 1959, the fellowship provides independent research opportunities to undergraduates who have completed their junior or senior years. Candidates must be studying in a field of science, mathematics or engineering.

The fellows are paired with research scientists at the institute and are expected to contribute original research conducted in their labs. The fellows are required to present their work publically at the conclusion of the summer. The fellowship program also includes experiences that provide a broad introduction to contemporary topics and methods in oceanography.

Wargula, a mechanical engineering major, will work in the same oceanographic research group as Dr. Erik Anderson, Grove City College assistant professor of mechanical engineering and visiting investigator at the institute. The group is attempting to determine if turbulence in the ocean cues oyster larvae to settle and form communities. The research will benefit managers of this multimillion-dollar food resource.

Wargula is the second Grove City College student to earn the honor within three years. In 2008, Nate Moore ’08 was awarded the fellowship.

Click for Transcripts Grove City College has authorized the National Student Clearinghouse (NSC) to provide online ordering of transcripts. The website below will guide you through the ordering process, including delivery options and special mailing fees. A major credit card is required for ordering transcripts online.

For more information on how to request transcripts, visit www.gcc.edu/Request_A_Transcript.php.

50

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

classnotes

Winter in Naples

Keep in Touch!

We want to keep in touch with you electronically!

If you have an e-mail address, or have recently changed your address, please contact us at alumni@gcc.edu

Enjoying an alumni get-together in February at Naples’ famous Quail West Club are Al ’57 and Evie (Lucas ’57) Opitz, left, chatting with Audrey (Crux ’56) and Walter Gerlach. The event was hosted by Jim ’65 and Eileen Henderson.

The e symbol following a Class Note refers to news that has been submitted via the Grove City College Alumni eCommunity. The note is abbreviated and more news and/or a photo may be available on the eCommunity.

Visit www.gcc.edu/alumnicommunity.

1931 GERTRUDE (DENNISON) STERRETT marked her 100th birthday in Brockway, Pa., with relatives from New York, Georgia, Ohio, Massachusetts, Virginia, Minnesota, Florida, South Carolina, Maryland and Pennsylvania.

1950

1969 LAURIE (MATTHEWS) GRIMES received the Lorain County (Ohio) Community College Faculty Excellence award for 2009.

The award is given to faculty who demonstrate improved teaching through innovative practices and improvement of the educational environment for students.

Grimes was nominated by students and colleagues. She resides with her husband, Jim Grimes ’69 in North Ridgeville, Ohio.

1972

KENNETH GEORGE and his wife, Norma, celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary on Sept. 3, 2009. They live in Roanoke, Va.

JEFFREY IMBODEN was confirmed by the Pennsylvania state senate to serve another term on the Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole. The full-time position is a six-year term.

1958

1974

JOHN WERREN received the 2009 Community Leadership Award in November from The Wilderness Center in Wilmot, Ohio.

He has been with the law firm of Day Ketterer Ltd. in Canton for 43 years and is involved in many non-profit organizations and boards. He is also known as an amateur historian, speaking to many groups on the history of Stark County.

COL. STEVE FRANK returned in November 2009 from a 13-month deployment as the operations officer with the 401 AFSB in Kuwait and Afghanistan.

Steve and his wife, Kathy (Bohi ‘75) Frank, live in Cheyenne, Wyo., where Steve is employed with the Laramie County School District.

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

classnotes West Palm Party

1975 MARK MUSAUS was selected as deputy regional director for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Southeast Region. Musaus has been with the Service for 35 years and has served as the division chief of visitor services and communications for the National Wildlife Refuge System in the Washington office since 2007. He also serves as the Service’s co-chair of the Youth Initiative Coordination Team.

1976 Bill and Martha “Muff” (Rollins ’63) Poundstone hosted a gathering of West Palm Beach area alumni, as well as President and Mrs. Jewell ’67, at their home in Palm Beach Gardens on Feb. 28, 2010.

SUSAN (YOWAN) CROWLEY has been named administrator of the Wisconsin Department of Health Services Division of Long Term Care. She spent 20 years with the Dane County Department of Human Services in Wisconsin.

Leaving Your Legacy All your life you’ve made the decisions about how your assets will be used—about how you’ll provide for yourself, your family and the organizations you believe in. But will you be able to retain that same control over your legacy—over the things you will leave behind?

You can, if you have an up-to-date, well-planned last will and testament.

With a will, you can: · Provide for each of your loved ones as you judge their needs · Choose caring, responsible guardians for your minor children · Make special arrangements, such as a trust, for a loved one who will need extra care · Choose the people who will administer your estate · Make gifts to the charitable organizations that have meant the most to you during your life

Without a valid will, you put every one of these decisions in the hands of others.

Want to avoid making costly mistakes or incorrect assumptions when preparing your will?

Get the details from Marcus J. Fish ’97, director of planned giving, at (724) 458-2154 or mjfish@gcc.edu.

He will send you the free special report “8 Pitfalls in Writing your Will” or plan a personal visit with you.

52

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

classnotes SHERRY DUCARME was recognized by PNC Financial Services Group, being named to the Chairman’s Circle of Excellence. She is senior vice president and chief information officer of PNC Financial Services Group’s Retail Bank, leading a team of more than 700 technology professionals. Her award recognized performance, commitment to company values and focus on customers. Also in 2009, she and her husband, Jeff Crummie, opened two Sport Clips Haircuts stores. The nationallyfranchised stores, located in Peters Township and Washington, Pa., offer haircuts in a sports-themed environment.

Sailing and Steelers

1977 THOMAS DARR was appointed to the advisory board of the Dick Thornburgh Forum for Law and Public Policy at the University of Pittsburgh. The Forum aims to enhance the accountability and integrity of state, local and national governments. Internationally, it seeks to advance those values as well as the commitment to the rule of law. Darr is deputy court administrator of Pennsylvania and served as deputy secretary for legislative affairs in the Thornburgh governor’s office.

Omicron Xi brothers from the Class of 1970 met in Chicago last fall prior to the Steelers/Bears game. On the dock, from left: Fred Purdy, Bill Coburn ’72, Bob Chulack, Wayne McKee and Bill Kennihan. They spent time sailing and eating at Mike Ditka’s restaurant while in the city.

Gathering in the Garden

1978 WILLIAM JACOBSEN recently became a fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives, a leading professional society for healthcare leaders.

Jacobsen is chief executive officer of Carilion Franklin Memorial Hospital in Rocky Mount, Va. He also serves as vice president of the Carilion Clinic.

1982 TOM BERRINGER authored a technical paper that was recently published in a trade journal, “Industrial Lift and Hoist.” He works for Gantrex, Inc., in Pittsburgh and specializes in material handling equipment.

Phi Sig sisters from the Class of 1971 enjoyed a reunion in Vienna, Va., and toured Washington, D.C.,’s Botanic Garden. From left: Ashley (Mainard) Weston, Sue Travis, Emmy (Starrett) Bocek, Vicki (Gott) Liggitt and Carol (Doctor) Bowman.

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

classnotes KATHERINE BRANDT has been named the new partner-in-charge of Thompson Hine LLP’s New York City office. At the business law firm, Brandt focuses her practice on complex commercial loan transactions, asset securitizations and creditors’ rights.

D’Phi Weekend

1983 MARK PODVIA co-authored a 131-page paper titled “The Citizen’s Guide to a Modern Constitutional Convention.” It encourages debate on how to improve and modernize state and local government. Podvia works with The Civic Research Alliance.

1985 CHRISTINE (BUTTIGNOL) WILLIAMSON accepted a position at Valspar Corporation in Pittsburgh as process design engineer. e

1986 LISA (FULTON) WALTER and her husband, Kip, are the parents of son Christopher Arthur, born May 13, 2009, and adopted by the Walters shortly thereafter. The adoption was finalized on Jan. 21, 2010. The Walters live in West Caldwell, N.J.

Several D’Phi sorority sisters gathered at Anne O’Planick’s cabin in the woods at Tappan Lake, Ohio, in May 2009. The getaway weekend was filled with food, good conversation and laughter as the ladies browsed old photos and scrapbooks. Row 1, from left: Nancy Foster ’75, Anne (Church ’75) O’Planick and Karen (Mitchell ’74) Christy. Row 2: Marla (Upton ’73) Wood, Carol Church ’72, Sally (Haller ’74) Fish and Chris Krumins-Waras ’75.

’76 Friends

College Fair

The Class of 1976 was well represented when friends met in September 2009 at Stan Hywet Hall and Gardens in Akron, Ohio. Row 1 (from left): Carolyn (MacHose ’76) Steiner, Gail (Greenlee ’76) Moon and Janet (Mouganis ’76) Helms. Row 2 spouses: Doug Moon, Worth Helms and Richard Steiner ’76.

As principal of Northview High School outside Atlanta, Ga., Pamela (Hays ’77) Spalla helps host a large college fair each January. This year, the first table she saw upon entering was Grove City College. She and Admissions Counselor Stephen Johnson ’06 discussed the latest Grove City news and shared the College with many southern high school students.

1990 FERNANDO SALAS and his wife, Belen, welcomed son Oscar on June 17, 2008. The family lives in Sunrise, Fla.

1991 CARRIE RIGGLE was honored in November with a Golden Tower award by her employer, First Commonwealth Financial Corporation.

The award recognizes Riggle’s community involvement, including the board of Valley Points Family YMCA in southwestern Pennsylvania; health ministry co-chairperson, elder and mission volunteer at church; organizer of March of Dimes and other fundraising events; youth cheerleading coach and local speaker. Riggle is senior vice president/human resources manager at First Commonwealth and chairs the internal group, First Commonwealth for Women.

54

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

classnotes Summer Sorority Sisters

BRIAN RITZ and Laura Guffey were married March 7, 2009, in Asheville, N.C. Brian is general counsel of Ahern Rentals, Inc., and Laura is a vice president at Wachovia Bank. They reside in Las Vegas.

LISA (PASCAL) SOBOLAK and her husband, David, announce the birth of daughter Madison Elisabeth on Jan. 13, 2010.

1996

Several Gamma Chi sorority sisters met in August 2009 at the summer home of Tara Schneider in Lake Norman, N.C. Kneeling: Carol (Michal ’83) Hamel and Sandy (Stemitz ’84) Hyde.

Seated (from left): Lisa (Kaiser ’85) Titus, Michele (Peckman ’84) Griffin, Mimi (Sawyer ’84) Flaherty, Jami (Russell ’83) Sundberg, Tara (Lighthiser ’83) Schneider and Gretchen (Weber ’84) Nystrand.

1992 STEPHANIE (GRAHAM) ADAMS joined the Grove City College team as staff assistant in the Albert A. Hopeman Jr. School of Science, Engineering and Mathematics.

She provides support services to the dean and assistant dean of the Hopeman School.

NICHOLAS GRENZIG and his wife, Heather, are the parents of son Seth Nicholas, born Nov. 14, 2009. He joins siblings Sophia, Ian, Karsten and Henry.

DAVID MAZEROSKI and his wife, Kelly, welcomed third child Thomas on Jan. 28, 2010. e

1993 JENNIFER (MORRONE) and MATTHEW BATES are the parents of son Levi Daniel, born May 4, 2009. The family lives in New Bethlehem, Pa.

MELISSA (SMITH) CHEN and her husband, Carey, announce the birth of son Myles Carey on Jan. 20, 2010.

1995 ELVA ANDERSEN and Jefferey Yaschur were married April 19, 2008, and are now the parents of daughter Marjorie Elva, born June 24, 2009. The family resides in Doylestown, Pa. MICHAEL DUDA and his wife, Paula, announce the birth of son Mark David on Dec. 8, 2009. He joins siblings Lauren, Mary and John.

JENNIFER (MONTGOMERY) and PHILLIP ’93 MCMURRY welcomed twins Jackson Douglas and Alexa Rose, born Oct. 21, 2009. e STACY (IRVIN) and SCOTT ’96 MITCHELL welcomed daughter Mariska Reese on May 30, 2009. She joins sisters Summer, 9, and Heidi, 3, and brother Jarrett, 7.

KAREN (DUTKA) BOLUMEN was selected to operate the new stand-alone Chick-fil-A restaurant in Columbus, Ohio. She and her husband, Mark ’96, opened the Chick-fil-A at Market at East Broad store this winter.

AMY (SCOTT) CAMPBELL and her husband, David, announce the birth of son Matthew Kemp on Sept. 30, 2009.

BRIAN CYGAN was appointed director of institutional research at the Pennsylvania College of Technology in Williamsport. Penn College is an affiliate of The Pennsylvania State University. Previously, Cygan was director of institutional research at Lock Haven University.

CLAIRE (FARAGALLA) HANNA and her husband, Mohab, welcomed son Aaron Henry on April 14, 2009. Aaron joins siblings Natalie, 4, and Luke, 2, in Baltimore, Md.

1997 BECKY (REES) DUMMERMUTH and her husband, Matt, welcomed son Micah Judson on Dec. 10, 2009. Siblings are Caleb, 4, and Lydia, 2.

HOLLIE (SHAULL) and MARCUS FISH announce the birth of daughter Lydia Joy on Dec. 9, 2009. Lydia joins sister Madelyn, 4.

The family lives in Grove City.

MICHAEL HEMMERLIN and his wife, Carrie, announce the birth of daughter Merynne Carrie on Nov. 12, 2009. Merynne and sister Michaella, 2, live in Grove City.

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

classnotes MARISSA (BOTHELL) and ANDREW ’96 KMIEC welcomed daughter Megan on Nov. 13, 2008.

SARAH (OTTO) and RON ’96 LANG announce the birth of son Winston Knox on Oct. 28, 2009.

DANIEL MILLER and his wife, Christi, welcomed daughter Madeline on Feb. 23, 2009.

DR. MELISSA RAYBURG joined the Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University and its group practice, ECU Physicians. Rayburg is a cancer specialist and is board certified in pediatrics.

NATE SMITH and his wife, Beth Ann, welcomed daughter Sarah Kate on Nov. 3, 2009. The family lives in Allison Park, Pa. PHILIP TALARCEK and his wife, Alison, announce the birth of daughter Caroline Alice on Oct. 14, 2009. e

Opening Doors for Grove City

1998 STACEY FOX and Paul Seibert Jr. were married May 10, 2008, in Stuarts Draft, Va. The couple resides in northern Virginia.

Stacey works in public accounting and Paul is a project manager.

AMANDA (ZIBNERS) NAPRAWA and her husband, James, welcomed daughter Olivia Kay on April 17, 2009. The family lives in Columbus, Ohio.

JILL (BATISHKO) SNAVELY and her husband, Nate, welcomed daughter Emily Rebecca on May 15, 2009. Emily’s brothers are Ben, 4, and Gabe, 2.

LISA (PASCAL) SOBOLAK and her husband, David, announce the birth of daughter Madison Elisabeth on Jan. 13, 2010.

KELLY (OSBORNE) and KEN WOODARD are the parents of son Iain Osborne, born Dec. 23, 2009. He joins brother Rhys, 4, and sister Cammie, 2. e

Five of the teachers at Hickory High School in Hermitage, Pa., are graduates of Grove City College.

When the school had a door decorating contest to represent the teachers’ colleges, these alumni got to work. From left: Gail (Paxton ’69) Hogue, Tim Peterson ’98, Alissa (Hermann ’96) Sgro and Barbara (Stull ’80) Mannion. Missing from photo: Julie (Freeman ’97) Morris.

Holiday Happenings

Friends held a mini-reunion in Philadelphia in December. Adults, from left: Megan (Opdyke ’97) Owens, Jennifer (Peluso ’97) Harrington, Jenni (Fields ’97) Oyler and Jason Oyler ’96.

56

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

classnotes 1999

Faraway Friend Joins Reunion

KELLY (NICHOLSON) CONAWAY and her husband, Eric, announce the birth of son Graham Nicholson on Dec. 28, 2009. He was welcomed by brother Ian, 2. e AMY (SCOTT) and JON ’00 COUGHLIN announce the birth of daughter Cora Grey on Oct. 15, 2009.

JAMIE (WILLIAMS) and KEN ’97 GOOD welcomed son Titus Ryan on Oct. 25, 2009.

ANDREW JOHNSON and his wife, Sonja, announce the birth of son Evan Alexander on Jan. 10, 2010.

ALANNA (MACK) and JONATHAN ’00 NICHOLS are the parents of daughter Emmalyn Rose, born May 1, 2009. e STEPHANIE (STURGEON) and BRAD STRAUCH welcomed son Quinn Bradley on June 9, 2009. He joins Ella, 3.

JODI (GILBERT) YOUNG and her husband, Trevor, welcomed daughter Juniper Lucy on Feb. 25, 2009. Juniper joins siblings Pippa, Romilly and Beatrix in Abingdon, Pa.

2000 REBECCA (YEAGER) BOWMAN and her husband, Stuart, welcomed daughter Anna on June 28, 2009.

EMILY (ROCHE) CANTILINA and her husband, Jeremy, announce the birth of daughter Naomi Helene on Oct. 3, 2009. She joins brother Peter, 3.

JON and EMILY (JOHNSON ’01) FITZPATRICK welcomed daughter Ada Christiana on Dec. 9, 2009. Jon graduated from Indiana University (Bloomington) in May 2009 with his MBA from the Kelley School of Business. The Fitzpatricks now reside in Chicago, where Jon is employed by the Robert Bosch Tool Corporation. He is working through their Marketing Leadership Rotational Program within the Power Tool division.

LAURA (HOGUE) FUSZ and her husband, Bill, announce the birth of son William Carlos “Liam” on May 1, 2009.

COURTNEY (CHRIST) and JEREMY HASSEMAN welcomed daughter Annelise Elizabeth on Jan. 20, 2010. She joins brothers Tristan, 5, and Oliver, 2, in Leesburg, Va.

Classmates continued an annual reunion this year while meeting in August in Luray, Va. Row 1 adults (from left): Kristen (Doherty ’00) Dean, Nate Smith, Maureen (Conwell ’00) Smith, Christina (Norris ’00) Hancock and Annamarie (Zambito ’00) Kibler. Row 2: Michael Dean, Jennifer (Mannon ’00) Campbell, Kevin Hancock and Andrew Kibler ’01. Row 3: Colin Campbell, Kara (Sedwick ’00) Doran, Lynn Stutzman and Natalie (Gallagher ’00) Sutzman. Not pictured: Jennifer (Mannon ’00) Campbell. Joining the group via webcam was Traci (Zimmerman ’00) Jones, who was stationed with the military in Iraq, now in Germany.

RACHEL (STONER) and EDEN MACK are the parents of son Aaron Elijah, born May 28, 2009. e DR. KATE (WEBER) PAYLO has joined the staff at UPMC Horizon’s Pain Management Center in Farrell, Pa. Paylo completed a physical medicine and rehabilitation residency and a pain management fellowship at the University of Virginia Health System in Charlottesville.

JESSICA (BRALLIER) and JAMES ’99 RANDALL are the parents of son Brady, born Oct. 19, 2009. Brady joins brother Peyton.

ROBERT RIGGS completed his Ph.D. in Arabic and Islamic studies from the University of Pennsylvania. He is a visiting assistant professor in the Department of History at Franklin & Marshall College.

MICHAEL STEPPENBACKER and his wife, Linda, welcomed daughter Elle on Oct. 15, 2009.

LACEY WAGERS and Erick Craig were married Oct. 3, 2009, in Colorado. Now in Peyton, Colo., Lacey is a curriculum developer with Focus on the Family and Erick teaches Spanish.

2001 EMILY (JOHNSON) FITZPATRICK and her husband, Jonathan, welcomed daughter Ada Christiana on Dec. 9, 2009.

ANGIE (SABELLA) and SETH JENNY (attended Grove City) are the parents of son Miles Frederick, born Dec. 21, 2009. The Jennys live in Turkey, where Angie serves the U.S. Air Force as a family practice physican.

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

classnotes BETHANY (MORGAN) and CORY NORDMAN welcomed son Noah Robert on Oct. 15, 2009. The family resides in Pittsburgh.

TOBEY (FAST) ROGOWSKY and her husband, Michael, welcomed daughter Ellery Worth on Oct. 4, 2009.

ADRIENNE (CARLBERG) and JEREMY SHAW welcomed daughter Maya on April 9, 2009. They live in Pittsburgh.

LISA (POTTS) SMITH and her husband, Eric, announce the birth of daughter Hannah Rowen on Oct. 15, 2009. She joins brother Josiah, 3, in Greensburg, Pa. CARLEY (PACEK) WYANT and her husband, Rob, are the parents of son Dexter Malone, born April 2, 2009.

View from the Top

2002 BRIAN BEIRNE earned his national board certification in early adolescence social studies and history.

BRIAN CAMERON and his wife, Jenny, welcomed son Ryan on April 27, 2009. e JILL (CUNNINGHAM) and RYAN ’00 GILMORE welcomed third son Seth on Jan. 1, 2009. e ALLYSON (LYDIC) and STEVE ’04 GRETZ announce the birth of son Samuel Pascal on Oct. 12, 2009.

KAREN (GRAZIER) NOBLE and her husband, Sean, announce the birth of son Spencer James on Aug. 12, 2009. e KATHY (KEEHLWETTER) and MICHAEL ORLANDO welcomed son Nolan Michael on July 8, 2009. The Orlandos live in Sewickley, Pa. MELISSA (SNOWDEN) and JOHNATHON ’01 SABELLA welcomed son George Kenneth on Nov. 6, 2009. George joins siblings Grace, 7, Lily, 6, Sarah, 4, and Timmy, 2.

DAVID SMITH and his wife, Beth, are the parents of son Benjamin David, born May 29, 2009.

2003 LAURA (BAKER) and KYLE ’04 CRUM welcomed son Elijah on Dec. 24, 2009. e JILLIAN (FARMER) and RICHARD ’02 KLEIS are the parents of daughter Laura, born June 10, 2009.

58

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

Pictured atop Colorado’s Pikes Peak are, from left, Tim Bishop (attended 2001-03), Associate Chair of the Department of Physical Education and Athletics Dr. Allison Williams and Hans Robinson ’05. Williams was supporting a friend running in August’s “The Race to the Summit,” which Bishop and Robinson also ran. It is a 13.32 mile race uphill to the top of Pikes Peak. Bishop and Robinson both ran cross country while at Grove City College.

SARAH (FEUCHT) and ANDREW FLANAGAN announce the birth of son Liam Isaac on July 22, 2009. e BILL KNECHTEL and his wife, Alice, welcomed daughter Sarah Grace on Dec. 22, 2009.

ABBIE (TURNER) and LUKE ’04 MICHAEL announce the birth of daughter Madison Virginia on Nov. 11, 2009. e JILL (CHESS) PAXTON and her husband, Scott, announce the birth of daughter Ella Grace on Aug. 2, 2009. e ANDREA (DEACON) and ETHAN SMITH welcomed son William Christopher “Liam,” on Oct. 8, 2009.

CORY VERNON received a Master of Science in Taxation degree from Robert Morris University. He also became a Certified CORPTAX Professional in the area of provision. He works for Global Tax Management in Wexford where he was promoted to tax manager. e

AMY (LUCAS) VONCANNON graduated from the University of Maryland Baltimore with a master of science degree in the adult primary care nurse practitioner program. e

2004 MELODY BRIAND and ADAM RUNKLE ’08 were married Dec. 19, 2009, at Harbison Chapel. In his second year at The University of Akron School of Law, Adam is a law clerk for Starkey Law Firm in Uniontown, Ohio.

Melody graduated from The University of Akron School of Law in January 2009 and was admitted to the Ohio bar in May 2009.

She is a staff attorney for ValMark Securities, Inc., in Akron. The couple resides in Akron.

classnotes LUKE BURNS graduated from Ave Maria School of Law in May 2009, passed the Hawaii Bar Exam and is employed as a deputy prosecutor at the Kauai County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.

KRISTIN (MORGAN) and JARRETT CHAPMAN announce the birth of son Caleb Jarrett on Sept. 17, 2009. Caleb joins sister Grace.

ELIZABETH (BOWERS) DEACON and her husband, Matthew, announce the birth of daughter Cathryn Rebecca “Caty” on April 23, 2009.

BRIANA (BAILEY) and DUIE LATTA are the parents of son John Bailey, born May 20, 2009.

JULIE MIKER earned her Ph.D. in mathematics from the University of Kentucky in December 2009. She is now an assistant professor of mathematics at Spring Arbor University in Spring Arbor, Mich.

TAMMY (HAMSHER) and DR. KEVIN ’95 SHAW welcomed daughter Julia Katherine on Dec. 1, 2009. Brother Christopher is 2.

The Shaws live in Grove City.

ANDREW VLAJKOVICH completed his second year as head men’s basketball coach at Rootstown High School, Rootstown, Ohio.

Outside of the sport, he is a freshman social studies teacher at the high school.

2005 ADAM BENJAMIN and his wife, Ashley, announce the birth of son Andrew Thomas on Feb. 13, 2010.

KELLI (BURNS) and BRAD DUTTON welcomed daughter Emmalyn Adele on May 2, 2009. The family lives in Grasonville, Md. MEGAN (SMITH) FOWLER and her husband, Lindon, announce the birth of son Levi Smith on Nov. 6, 2009. e

GeDUNK Alumni Magazine Class Notes are gathered from alumni and news reports. The editorial board reserves the right to edit, hold or not publish notes. Weddings and births must be submitted no later than one year after the event date.

ELIZABETH HOOVER and Joel King were married Sept.

19, 2009, in Reading, Pa. The couple resides in Lancaster, Pa., where Elizabeth is an accountant with Sager, Swisher & Co., LLP, and Joel is a full-time student at Lancaster Bible College.

SONJA (BERGLUND) and MARK INGRAM announce the birth of daughter Adelaide Ruth on Nov. 22, 2009.

ALEX INTIHAR completed the Ironman Louisville Triathlon in August 2009. e EMILY (LAWRENCE) and JACOB JEFFERIS announce the birth of daughter Elizabeth Willa on July 16, 2009. They reside in Gaithersburg, Md. ELIZABETH (THOMPSON) and JEFF JONES are the parents of daughter Eliana Hope, born Dec. 5, 2009. The family lives in Muncie, Ind. AMY (BOWERS) and ERNIE MATHEWS announce the birth of daughter Jane Evelyn on Nov. 22, 2009. They live in Dover, N.H. JESSICA PROL is now legislative assistant for constituent communications at the U.S. House of Representatives – Office of Rep. Bob Inglis (R-S.C.).

BARBARA (SIMA) and NATHAN WEIDERSPAHN welcomed daughter Sarah Jane on Jan. 5, 2010. They live in Allison Park, Pa.

2006 PHILIP BRESSON is an associate with the national law firm of Quarles & Brady.

Bresson is part of the firm’s corporate services group in Naples, Fla. He earned his law degree from the University of Florida in 2009.

KEITH EVANS and his wife, Melissa, welcomed daughter Audrey Elise on Dec. 20, 2009. The family lives in Pittsburgh.

MATTHEW LISK and his wife, Larissa, are the parents of son Matthew, born May 6, 2009.

ASHLEIGH (HAY) MACHAK and her husband, Darren, welcomed daughter Grace Alaine on Nov. 6, 2009.

JOEL MOMPER and his wife, Erica, are the parents of daughter Colette Sophia, born 5-13-09. They reside in North Huntingdon, Pa. JOEL SETTECASE is teaching Bible and consumer economics at Chicago Hope Academy on the Near West Side of Chicago.

SARA STEVENS and JOSHUA BERGMAN were married Sept. 12, 2009, in Gibsonia, Pa. The couple resides in Seven Fields. e MIKE WHITNEY and his wife, Lindsey, announce the birth of daughter Abigail Eternity on Jan 10, 2010.

2007 KELLY BEAHM recently started her own independent press and is publishing her first book with Professor of English Dr. Eric Potter. It is a book of poems by Dr. Potter and is scheduled to come out in the spring of 2010.

SCOTT FICHTER has been nominated for 2010 Man of the Year for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society of Western Pennsylvania and West Virginia. As a candidate in the charity event, he will raise funds for cancer research and patient services. Each dollar is a vote and the winner will be announced in late May. Fichter is the owner/creator and fitness instructor at SPR Dance, LLC, in Pittsburgh.

ASHLEY METCALFE and MARK MURCHIE were married Aug. 23, 2009 in York, Maine.

They now live in Windber, Pa., where Mark is a youth minister.

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

classnotes 2008 JENNIFER THOMPSON and CHRIS BORDERS ’07 were married May 30, 2009, in Harbison Chapel. The couple now lives in Murrysville, Pa. RACHEL (DILLARD) and TYLER FITCH announce the birth of daughter Abigail Grace on Oct. 28, 2009.

RACHEL SCOTT and Kenneth Locke were married Sept. 19, 2009, in Spotsylvania, Va. Rachel is enrolled in the master in mathematics program at George Mason University and Kenneth is the assistant director of the University’s Events Production department. e DIANA (CAMPBELL) WILLIAMS accepted a position as administrative assistant at Fellowship International Mission in Allentown, Pa. e

Icelandic Trip

Five young alums spent Thanksgiving weekend in Reykjavic, Iceland, during a 10-day trip to the country. Pictured in front of the Jokulsarlon glacier lake are Daniel Elbrecht ’08, Carl Hawkinson ’08, Jason Spanogle ’08, Matt Wilson ’07 and David Crosby ’09. Other highlights included a road trip along Iceland’s Ring Road, seeing the Northern Lights, swimming in a geothermal pool, hiking along the continental divide, eating Hakarl (rotten shark) and meeting locals.

Sightseeing in Japan

2009 JACK ADAMS has joined the staff of Penn State New Kensington. He will coach the men’s and women’s soccer teams in their inaugural seasons in fall 2010.

PATRICK WEEKS graduated from the U.S. Marine Corps Officers Candidate School and was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Marine Corps, Quantico, Va. He is now assigned to a sixmonth officers training program at Quantico.

transcripts Get your Grove City College transcripts fast and easy! Alumni can now order transcripts online.

Visit www.gcc.edu/Request_A_Transcript.php.

60

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

Three young alums traveled to Japan in July 2009 to see Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka, among other highlights. Pictured in Nikko, Japan, during the two-week trip are Erin Magee ’08, Chase Parsons ’08 and John Eslea ’09. Both Parsons and Eslea were members of Grove City’s Tri-Rho housing group.

Signs Point to an Event to Remember

Carnegie Alumni Center is now available for wedding receptions, business meetings, conferences, parties, showers and other celebrations.

Contact the Alumni Relations Office at (888) GCC-GRAD or alumni@gcc.edu to learn more.

inmemory

ELEANOR (DUFFORD) GARY ’33 died Feb. 21, 2009. She worked at the Polk (Pa.) State School and at Union Carbide Corporation. After living in Ohio and Florida, she moved to Conneaut, Ohio, where she volunteered with her church, civic clubs and the hospital volunteers. Survivors include two daughters, two stepdaughters, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

S. ICEL (GILMORE) DOTTERER ’35 died Nov. 24, 2009. She taught Latin and French at Stoneboro, Utica and A-C Valley (Pa.) schools. She also operated beauty shops in Franklin and Emlenton, and worked with her husband at the Emlenton Post Office. She was active in her church. Surviving are a daughter; three sons, including Donald Dotterer ’75; seven grandchildren, including Ian Hughes ’06 and Allison Hughes ’10; and a great-grandson.

ADELINE (BLAIR) HUMPHREY ’35 died Dec. 27, 2009. She lived in Erie, Pa. AGNES (MCGLINCY) TURNBLACER ’35 died Nov. 30, 2009. She taught Latin and English in the Butler (Pa.) School District, retiring in 1975. Living in Butler, she belonged to several teachers’ associations. Survivors include nieces and nephews Kenneth Kelly ’51, Jeffrey Kelly ’80, Scott Kelly ’85, Bill Blaine '69 and Mary BlaineLemmo '74.

he Grove City College Alumni Association places a book in Henry Buhl Library in memory of each alumnus for whom the Alumni Office receives written notification of death, including a copy of the obituary. In addition to paying tribute to the lives of deceased alumni, the books will benefit current and future students.

If you would like to support Grove City College through a will bequest or other charitable estate plan, contact Marcus J. Fish ’97, director of planned giving, at (866) 386-3422 or mjfish@gcc.edu.

62

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

JOHN C. OWENS ’36 died Feb. 6, 2010. After early work with U.S. Steel, he taught English at Vandergrift (Pa.) High School and retired from Gateway High School in Monroeville. He was an expert on the Pennsylvania Canal, an accomplished wood worker and built four sailboats. He was a World War II Marine veteran. Survivors include a niece.

VIRGINIA (MCCORMICK) COOKSON ’37 died Jan. 19, 2010. She lived in Grove City for many years before moving to Mechanicsburg, Pa. Surviving are daughters Lynne (Cookson ’65) Jackson and Carla (Cookson ’77) Malingowski; four grandchildren, including Carl Jackson ’95 and Krista Malingowski ’06; two great-grandchildren and a brother. Gifts in her memory can be made to Grove City College.

K. LEORA MCCOMMON ’38 died Nov. 10, 2009.

She lived in New Castle, Pa., and belonged to the Pennsylvania Association of School Retirees. She was formerly a church deacon and Eastern Star member. Surviving are niece Karen (Burns ’70) Chanadet and nephew Todd Burns ’69.

MARJORIE (MCCUNE) SIEFERT ’38 died Nov. 12, 2009. She lived in Grove City, where she was a homemaker and former high school teacher.

Survivors include daughters Priscilla (Pickens ’68) Wilbur and Kathleen (Pickens ’70) Cashdollar; five grandchildren; six greatgrandchildren; sister Ruth (McCune ’39) Stewart and brother Frederick McCune ’51.

NANCY (EVANS) PATTERSON ’39 died Dec. 28, 2009. She lived in State College, Pa., for many years with husband and former Trustee the late Dr. Robert Patterson ’39. Recently, she lived in North Myrtle Beach, S.C. She is survived by a daughter.

MARGARET (LURTEY) GIBSON ’40 died Nov. 8, 2009. She lived in Philadelphia and is survived by a son, a daughter, three grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.

DOROTHY M. MEHL ’40 died Dec. 29, 2009. She was an executive secretary for Mobil Oil for 30 years. She served as church secretary and elder and as a board member for the hospital auxiliary in White Plains, N.Y. During World War II, she was a Red Cross nurse’s aide. A niece and cousins survive.

HARRIETTE (VOGT) STOUGHTON ’41 died Feb. 9, 2010. She lived in Tulsa, Okla., and was a homemaker. Later, she obtained her real estate agent and broker license. She tutored at the Tulsa Boys Home and enjoyed cooking and painting. A daughter, a son and three grandchildren survive.

THE REV. DR. WILLIAM J. BROWN SR. ’42 died Nov. 23, 2009. An ordained Presbyterian pastor, he served churches in Pittsburgh, Ebensburg and Clearfield, Pa., and was the executive presbyter of Donegal Presbytery for many years. His civic involvement included Lancaster City school director, organizer of Millersville University Campus Ministry and Heifer International. He was a World War II Army veteran. Surviving are his wife, Nancy, daughter Susan (Brown ’74) Dunham, a son, five grandchildren and 12 greatgrandchildren.

MARGARET (BILLINGS) JAMISON ’42 died Feb. 17, 2010. She lived in Knoxville, Tenn.

Surviving are four children and many grandchildren.

DR. THADDEUS H. “TED” PENAR ’42, former vice president of academic affairs, dean of the College and professor of education, died Feb. 1, 2010. He served the College from 1953 to 1990, receiving a Jack Kennedy Alumni Achievement Award in 1984, the Florence E. MacKenzie Campus-Community Award in 1987 and the Athletic Heritage Award on Jan. 30, 2010.

After retiring from Grove City, he was president of Butler County Community College for three years.

An Army veteran, he was active in education organizations, the local community and church.

Surviving are children Dr. Nancy (Penar ’70) Houston, Col. Robert Penar ’72, Dr. Martha (Penar ’74) Drobnak and Carolyn (Penar ’78) Wood; a brother; nine grandchildren, including Stacy Houston ’93; and a great-grandchild.

inmemory RICHARD W. PRICE ’42 died Dec. 7, 2009. He taught math at Navy Pacific University and the University of Hawaii. Later, he worked in sales, primarily with Sears Roebuck in Youngstown, Ohio. He excelled in sports, played for 15 years in Youngstown’s AA baseball league and was inducted into several sports halls of fame. Most recently, he lived in Largo, Fla. He was a Navy veteran. Survivors include a daughter, daughter-inlaw, son and many grandchildren.

BETTY (FEICK) ROTH ’42 died Feb. 4, 2010. A businesswoman, she worked in the family’s Brentwood Motor Coach Company. She assisted many volunteer organizations and loved to knit for family and those in need. She lived in Reading, Pa., and is survived by a son, two daughters, grandchildren, great-grandchildren and a sister.

MARY (BLACK) SCHEIDEL ’42 died Nov. 10, 2009. She lived in Chestertown, Md., with husband Julius Scheidel ’41.

JAMES F. STEVENSON ’42 died Feb. 19, 2010.

He rose to executive vice president of Mead Containers, managing Mead Corporation paper mills in Ohio, Massachusetts and Virginia. He later formed his own SAS International consulting firm. He received the paper industry’s TAPPI Man of the Year award and Grove City College’s Jack Kennedy Alumni Achievement Award in the field of business (1980). He was an avid sport fisherman and mariner. He lived in Cincinnati. Surviving are four children, five grandchildren and a brother.

GEORGE H. GETTY ’43 died Nov. 21, 2009. A professional photographer, he owned and operated Seavy’s Studio for 40 years. He lived in New Castle, Pa., where he was a Rotarian, Shriner and hospital volunteer. He was a World War II Army veteran. Wife Dorothy, a son, two grandsons and six great-grandchildren survive.

CATHERINE (SNAITH) WAYNE ’43 died Dec. 27, 2009. She trained in business but focused on raising her family. Her home was in San Diego, Calif., where she was a life master in bridge and member of the PEO Sisterhood. Survivors include her husband, Mark, three sons, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

MIRIAM (MILLER) WILSON ’44 died Feb. 10, 2010. She and pastor husband Paul Wilson ’43 served churches in New York and New Jersey, and in retirement they helped Heifer International and Habitat for Humanity. Miriam

also worked for 16 years with New York’s Department of Labor. She lived in New Oxford, Pa. Surviving are her husband, four daughters, a sister, a brother, nine grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren.

JOYCE (MCMAHON) CHATFIELD ’45 died Jan. 24, 2009. She opened her own commercial art business, later becoming a teacher and tutor in the Attleboro, Mass., community. Surviving are three sons, a sister-in-law and grandchildren.

MARJORIE (WERTMAN) KREPP ’46 died Jan. 9, 2010. She was an educator who taught in Warren and in the Redbank Valley School District (Pa.) for many years. She lived in Lancaster and enjoyed animals, books, Penn State and music. Surviving are two daughters, a son and three grandchildren.

I. JEWELL (COULTER) STRIGHT ’46 died Feb. 8, 2010. She lived in Hermitage, Pa., and for 30 years was a business teacher at West Middlesex High School. She was a secretary for the township supervisors and belonged to Eastern Star. Survivors include a sister, nephews and nieces.

VIRGINIA (HARLAN) BARNETTE ’47 died June 15, 2008. She made her home in New Castle, Pa. ROBERT E. DUFFORD ’47 died Dec. 30, 2009.

He lived in San Marcos, Calif., and survivors include sister Edith (Dufford ’51) Morgan.

KATHERINE (ASKINS) DUFF ’49 died Feb. 14, 2010. She lived in Apollo, Pa., and was a high school business teacher in the Armstrong County School District for 28 years. She advised the Future Business Leaders of America, belonged to Eastern Star and served as elder in her church. Surviving are daughter Deborah (Duff ’74) Bower, two sons, five grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

Gifts in her memory can be made to Grove City College.

RALPH J. GUYTON SR. ’49 died Oct. 13, 2009. He lived in Canonsburg, Pa., and owned Johnson Brothers industrial contracting company. A World War II Army Air Force veteran, he served as a North Strabane Township supervisor, enjoyed harness horse racing and was proprietor of Linden Creek Farms. Surviving are three daughters, five sons, three siblings, 26 grandchildren and 29 greatgrandchildren.

DONALD W. KEIL ’49 died Jan. 31, 2010. An Army veteran of World War II, he lived in New Castle, Pa. He served the Union Area School District as a teacher, guidance counselor and school sports photographer. He also helped his church as an elder, trustee and Sunday School teacher. Surviving are his wife, Lucille; two daughters, including Jane (Keil ’75) Wetzel; two grandchildren and a brother.

CHARLES E. MOSCA ’49 died Nov. 30, 2009.

He was a pharmacist at his family’s drug store in Blawnox, Pa., later retiring as director of pharmacy at Ohio Valley General Hospital. He lived in Crescent, Pa. and was a Navy veteran of World War II. Surviving are his wife, JoAnna, four children, 11 grandchildren, two greatgrandchildren and a sister.

ROBERT D. BLACK ’50 died Nov. 7, 2009. He worked in the furniture industry in Pittsburgh and Cincinnati, employed with Broyhill from 19521985. He was a Mason, loved sports and was an Army veteran. Most recently, he lived in Ocoee, Fla. Surviving are a daughter, two sons, two grandchildren and brother Richard Black ’48.

LESLIE L. HILGAR ’50 died Feb. 18, 2010. A resident of Butler, Pa., he was a systems analyst for Spang Co., retiring in 1982, and also sold real estate. He played baseball for the Army Air Corps in Austria and for the Butler Cubs. He enjoyed woodworking, hunting and fishing. Survivors include his wife, Delores “Dee Dee,” six children, 10 grandchildren, seven great-grandchildren and two sisters.

JACK M. TOWER ’51 died Dec. 1, 2009. He spent his career in sales and had been with Lord Corporation prior to being vice president of investments at Prudential Securities. Living in Erie, Pa., he was involved in his church and played violin with the Erie Philharmonic.

Surviving are two daughters, two sons, five grandchildren, a sister and a brother.

STEPHEN F. FACINI ’52 died May 11, 2009. He lived in Franklin, Pa. LEONARD L. RAYMOND ’53 died May 24, 2009. He lived in Columbus, Ohio. Survivors include granddaughter Alyssa Raymond ’10.

JAMES H. STARRETT ’53 died Dec. 25, 2009.

An Air Force veteran living in Massillon, Ohio, he was employed by the JCPenney Company, M. O’Neil Company and retired from Ben Franklin stores. He was an avid sports fan and had been

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

inmemory a Boy Scout leader, swim team booster and church trustee. Survivors include his wife, Janet, four sons, grandchildren, great-grandchildren and a sister.

JAMES R. TURNER ’53 died Nov. 15, 2009. The mechanical engineer worked for Westinghouse Air Brake Company in Wilmerding, Pa., and later as vice president of sales and marketing for Railroad Friction Products Corporation in Laurinburg, N.C. He lived in Pinehurst, where he was active in his church and its choirs. Wife Marion, four children, two stepchildren, seven grandchildren and four great-grandchildren survive.

JOHN R. GAYLOR ’54 died Dec. 16, 2009. He taught geography and history for 33 years and retired from the Clearfield (Pa.) Middle School.

He coached junior and senior high track and field, football and basketball. He was an avid fly fisherman, hunter and golfer. Survivors include three children, six grandchildren and three greatgrandchildren.

DR. WILSON J. HOFFMAN JR. ’55 died Feb. 6, 2010. He lived in Hiram, Ohio, and was an emeritus professor of history at Hiram College.

He served in the Ohio National Guard from 1961 to 1964. Survivors include brother Frank Hoffman ’61.

DR. HAROLD L. PEEBLES ’55 died Feb. 1, 2010. His working career in education involved schools and colleges in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. He lived in Cinnaminson, N.J., was an Army veteran and had a love for pets. Survivors include a brother, a nephew and niece, and Thomas Ash. DR. ROBERT C. STREETER III ’55 died Nov. 24, 2009. He was a retired chemist for Bituminous Coal Research, the University of Pittsburgh at RIDC and IT Corporation of Monroeville, Pa. He served in the Air Force and was a Boy Scout leader for more than 30 years.

He lived in Murrysville, Pa. Survivors include his wife, Jean, two sons and four grandchildren.

DAVID A. YARD ’55 died Feb. 4, 2010. He taught math in Corry, Pa., and later worked for 30 years as principal at Fort LeBoeuf High School. He served at local and regional levels of the Pennsylvania Association of School Retirees, was a Mason and enjoyed hunting and fishing.

Surviving are his wife, Dorothy; three sons, including Allen Yard ’89 and Donald Yard ’93; daughter Carol Yard ’98; and three grandchildren.

64

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

DONNA M. DEMARSH ’56 died Dec. 8, 2009.

After Grove City, she received a second degree in graphic arts and worked for “The News Journal” in Daytona Beach, Fla. She also taught graphic arts from her home in Daytona Beach.

Surviving are two sisters; two brothers, including Chester DeMarsh ’50; and many nieces and nephews.

JOHN S. REICHART JR. ’57 died Aug. 31, 2009. He was a salesman for Nystrom, where he sold maps, globes, models and educational programs. He lived in Butler, Pa., and was on the Seneca Hills Bible Conference Board. He was a former Gideon and a Marine Corps veteran.

Survivors include his wife, Sylvia, four sons, grandchildren, great-grandchildren and two sisters.

JAMES L. MCCOY ’58 died Nov. 13, 2009. A Navy veteran and reservist, he worked as a certified professional engineer and established his own consulting business. He lived in Jackson, Mich., and enjoyed sports and hunting.

Surviving are brother Charles McCoy ’59, a sister, a sister-in-law, nieces and nephews.

NANCY M. WELLER ’58 died Dec. 24, 2009.

She lived in McKeesport, Pa., and was a guidance counselor for Francis McClure Middle School for more than 30 years. She belonged to teachers associations and volunteered for the McKeesport Heritage Center. She was an avid bridge player and Steelers fan. Surviving are cousins.

DR. JAMES A. NASH ’60 died Nov. 5, 2008. A social and ecological ethicist, he worked for the Massachusetts Council on Churches for 21 years and later directed the Churches Center for Theology and Public Policy. He taught at Wesley Theological Seminary and Boston University School of Theology. His hobby was birding.

Surviving are his wife, Mildred (Leonard ’60) Nash, two daughters, a granddaughter and a brother.

JAMES C. KEEFNER ’62 died Dec. 31, 2009.

An electrical engineer, he worked with IBM in Vermont for 14 years. After moving to San Diego, he became interested in the martial arts and Taoist lifestyle. He is an Army veteran.

Survivors include three children and four grandchildren.

DAVID G. ALLEN ’64 died Feb. 17, 2010. As an electrical engineer, he worked in industrial automation, quality control and communications

at places including the Library of Congress and the Defense Department. He lived in Rockville, Md., then Inverness, Fla. He was a watch collector. Survivors include two sons and three grandchildren. Gifts in his memory can be made to Grove City College.

JOHN W. SINCLAIR ’66 died Jan. 11, 2010. He was an Air Force veteran of the Vietnam War. He made his home in New Kent, Va. Burial took place at Arlington National Cemetery. Survivors include a daughter and son.

BOE W. GILLESPIE ’67 died April 20, 2009. He was a Navy veteran who retired as administrator of Iron Workers Welfare and Pension Fund, Local 3. He lived in Cranberry Township, Pa. Survivors include two children, two stepchildren and three grandchildren.

RICHARD E. BROWN ’68 died Jan. 28, 2010.

His work was dedicated to helping children with special needs. He lived in Lewisberry, Pa., where he enjoyed hunting, fishing and antiquing.

Survivors include his wife, Diane, two brothers and three sisters.

JEANETTE (HARVEY) CALER ’71 died Dec. 24, 2009. She was a retired teacher and gifted singer who lived in Huntsville, Ala. Survivors include her husband, Charles, a daughter, two granddaughters, four great-grandchildren and a sister.

JUDITH (DUNNING) JANNEY ’73 died Nov. 22, 2009. She was retired from the Department of Defense and lived in Alexandria, Va. Surviving are her husband, John, a son and daughter, a stepson, a grandson, her father and a brother.

MARGARET BLACKMON CLOSSON ’87 died Nov. 15, 2009. When living in Pennsylvania, she worked at both Grove City and Mercyhurst colleges. She also served on the Grove City school board. Most recently, she lived in Royal Palm Beach, Fla. Surviving are her husband, George, six children, six grandchildren, a brother and a sister.

JASON M. IBRAHIM ’03 died Feb. 26, 2010.

He lived in Altoona, Pa., and was employed as a senor web developer for Link Computer Corporation. He also served Altoona as a city councilman. Survivors include his wife, Elizabeth (Henry ’03) Ibrahim, three children, his parents, sister Noelle (Ibrahim ’10) Witthohn, and several Grove City College in-laws.

alumnibabies Congratulations New Parents!

Grove City College welcomes your new bundle of joy. We want to send your newborn a Grove City College T-shirt. So between the feedings and late-night lullabies, be sure to send the Alumni Relations Office your child’s name and date of birth. Shirts are available only in infant size. Due to the popularity of the Alumni Babies feature, photos will be limited to babies under the age of 3 in Grove City College shirts only. Digital photos must be high resolution, 300 dpi. Please do not imbed photos in the body of an e-mail message, but rather attach a highresolution image. Send to Alumni Relations Office, Alumni Babies, 100 Campus Drive, Grove City, Pa. 16127 or alumni@gcc.edu.

Aubrey and Grant Abeyta Born 4-19-08 Erin (Hanselman ’95) and Thomas Abeyta

Brian Francis Beirne III Born 2-16-09 Brian ’02 and Megan (Wittenwyler ’02) Beirne

Eugene Willis “Liam” Brabston IV, Born 7-26-09 Will ’03 and Danielle (Causer ’04) Brabston

Drew Salveno Buffington Born 7-23-09 Mindy (Steinacker ’04) and John Buffington

Caleb Jarrett Chapman Born 9-17-09 Jarrett ’04 and Kristin (Morgan ’04) Chapman

Nathaniel Isaac Cooper Born 4-2-09 Laura (Leemhuis ’02) and Greg Cooper

Clair Elizabeth and Caleb Joseph Corbett Born 5-22-09 and 6-11-07 Adam ’02 and Sarah (St. Clair ’02) Corbett

Caleb Brooks Dutton Born 2-21-08 Brett ’99 and Katy (Wiant ’01) Dutton

Jessica Rose Goerlich Born 10-23-08 Dave ’94 and Lynne (Humphreys ’96) Goerlich

Aaron Henry Hanna Born 4-14-09 Claire (Faragalla ’96) and Mohab Hanna

Conrad Michael Kocak Born 7-22-08 Marisa (Geibel ’99) and Craig Kocak

Gabriella Faith Leach Born 6-23-09 Leah (Edwards ’01) and Brad Leach

Ava Grace Burgess Born 10-15-09 Rob ’02 and Erica (Jones ’02) Burgess

Autumn Rebecca Hill Born 7-21-08 Josh ’07 and Natalie (Bannon ’07) Hill

theG –eDUNK

|

Spring 2010

alumnibabies

Jane Evelyn Mathews Born 11-22-09 Ernie ’05 and Amy (Bowers ’05) Mathews

Isaac George Miller Born 1-13-09 Lynn (Cygan ’05) and Tim Miller

Spencer Loyal Mitchell Born 10-2-08 Ryan ’99 and Bethany (Cauvel ’02) Mitchell

Miyanna Elsie Pittman Born 5-10-08 Randy ’07 and Andrea (Simila ’04) Pittman

Haddon Paul Reeves Born 12-9-08 Jen (Freeman ’05) and Zachary Reeves

Elliott Jack Richard Born 3-3-09 Sam ’05 and Debbie (Schmaldienst ’05) Richard

Oscar Salas Born 6-17-08 Fernando ’90 and Belen Salas

Wren Ione Sary Born 3-15-09 Anna (Gee ’96) and Christian Sary

Samantha Rae Schulz Born 6-21-09 Sara (Scott ’02) and Andrew Schulz

Maya Kathryn Shaw Born 4-9-09 Jeremy ’01 and Adrienne (Carlberg ’01) Shaw

Cousins

Elle Capri Stoffer Born 5-3-08 Dan ’02 and Amber Stoffer

Samantha Paige Walker Born 5-25-07 Vicki (Hull ’00) and Charlie Walker

Friends

Ethan Michael Chipley, left, and Lincoln Marshall Sangster, born 11-25-08 and 2-21-09 to Rachel (Godfrey ’00) and Phil Chipley; Lisa (Miner ’00) and David Sangster

66

Grove City College Alumni Magazine

Christopher Arthur Walter, Born 5-13-09; adopted by Lisa (Fulton ’86) and Kip Walter

Juniper Lucy Young Born 2-25-09 Jodi (Gilbert ’99) and Trevor Young

Cousins

Sarah Grace Kobulnicky, left, and Samuel David Plitt, born 9-14-08 and 8-25-09 to Claire (Plitt ’00) and Adam Kobulnicky; David ’03 and Jody (Hansell ’03) Plitt

Cathryn Rebecca “Caty” Deacon and William Christopher “Liam” Smith, born 423-09 and 10-8-09 to Elizabeth (Bowers ’04) and Matthew Deacon; Andrea (Deacon ’03) and Ethan ’03 Smith

As a Grove City alumnus awoke to face his day,

he saw that his closet was bare.

And this grad sadly realized, to his dismay, he had no Grover gear to wear.

If your closet is seriously lacking a Grove City College presence, visit Crimson Connection, the downtown Grove City store for alma mater apparel—either in person or online.

Crimson Connection 231 S. Broad Street | Grove City (724) 264-4460 www.gcc.edu/crimsonconnection

Grove City Grove Cit y C College ol lege A Alumni lumni M Magazine agazine Grove Gro ve C City it y C College ol lege Drive 1100 00 Campus Campus D r ive Gro ve C it y, P A 116127 6127 Grove City, PA

Non-Profit Organization Non-Profit Organization U.S. Postage P PAID AID Permit No.869 Erie, PA PA

CELEBRATING

OUR FAMILY

We asked alumni, students and parents to describe their Grove City College experience in one word.

Homecoming 2010's theme represents those memories; we hope you’ll make new ones with us this October! Check out www.gcc.edu/Homecoming.