SPRING 2021
TERESA’S TOP 10 How Knox has changed since 2011
Jeff Douglas, Library Director 3 1
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PETER BAILLEY ’74
Librarians at Knox tend to have lengthy tenures—since Seymour Library opened in 1928, only six people have served at its helm. Jeff Douglas, who retires at the end of the 2020–2021 academic year, has put in 30 years among Seymour’s stacks, during which the library has transformed in ways that previous librarians could have hardly imagined: a digital catalog that enables students and faculty to search for and request materials from dozens of other libraries, wireless internet, and, since fall 2020, Knox Primo. Douglas is particularly excited about Knox Primo’s “virtual browse” feature. “Instead of going into the stacks to browse around, you can do that online, and just go from one book to the next and open up the descriptions of those books instead of going down the shelves.” As you can imagine, after 30 years, Douglas’s office has accumulated many interesting finds, both from the library’s collections and elsewhere. He graciously allowed us to take a closer look before he starts packing up.
Welcome to his office.
Open Door 7 6
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1. A photograph of Abraham Lincoln. Taken in Springfield, Illinois, in June 1860, Douglas says it’s the last, best look at Lincoln before he grew his beard and before the presidency and the war took their toll. 2. Barack Obama bobblehead. Douglas got the bobblehead as a souvenir at a Quad Cities River Bandits game, where attendees could choose between an Obama or a Romney bobblehead. “You might start a riot if you did something like that today.” 3. A painting by Steve Fineberg. It was lost for many years, but discovered when the art department moved to Whitcomb Art Center. 4. A painting of Old Main. “This tiny oil painting is by Carlotta Kinney, a 1919 Knox graduate. I found it in the bottom of a rack of old frames at a rummage sale that the Central Congregational Church used to have every year.” 5. A framed gingko leaf. Douglas received possession of the leaf, the “trophy” for a staff competition to guess the date all the leaves will fall from the gingko tree in front of the library, in 2019—his first-ever win. He says that his subsequent 2020 victory was “just a lucky guess.” 6. Library of Congress bookends. The bookends depict door panels at the entrance to the Jefferson Building at the Library of
Congress. “James Bowman ’48 was a cataloger at the Library of Congress for many years. These were given to him when he retired, and he sent them to us.” 7. A bas-relief of John Huston Finley. “Before he was president, he was not only a student here but also the student librarian when the library was just an upstairs room in Old Main. His jobs included keeping the stove going to warm the library. He edited the first good catalog of the library’s collections, and even set the type for it—we might think of that today as his senior capstone project. I think his spot in that corner was well-earned.” 8. Stepladder. A gift from Verna Louise Haws Little ’1919. “I don’t know how it came to be here, but it is handy for reaching the top shelf where I keep extra copies of various Knox histories. If you really need another copy of They Broke the Prairie, I’m your man.” 9. The fireplace. Douglas believes his might be the only campus office with its own fireplace, dating back to when the office was part of a larger room where art history classes were held. “I don’t know if the fireplace was ever regularly used, but I like to think of Depression-era students learning about Rembrandt or other artists considered worthy of study back then while warmed by a fire— nothing like today, when we can download and manipulate millions of images of works of art on our phones or laptops through Artstor.”
MAGAZINE VOLUME 104, ISSUE 1
Spring 2021
Teresa’s Top 10 As Knox’s 19th president prepares to retire on June 30, the magazine takes a look at some of the signature achievements of her tenure.
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Meeting Every Moment with a Growth Mindset
Departments
After 30 years with Ford Motor Company, its CFO John Lawler ’88 is helping to lead the company through a marketplace that looks wildly different than it did in the early 1990s. He says his Knox education has been key to keeping up in a constantly evolving industry.
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How to Succeed in Business without Changing Your Major
Open Door
Inside front cover
2 East South Street
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The South Lawn
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Knox Writes
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Class Knox
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Parting Shot
Inside back cover
Knox’s Business Intensive Seminar has a singular mission: to help students put the skills they’ve developed in their major to work in a business setting.
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A Year without a Season For 12 months, Prairie Fire student-athletes were poised like sprinters at the starting blocks—trying to stay focused without knowing exactly when conditions would permit them to resume competition. Here’s how they made it through.
Knox’s 19th president, Teresa Amott, photographed by Kent Kriegshauser inside a building that didn’t exist when she arrived on campus—Whitcomb Art Center.
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EDITOR Pam Chozen LAYOUT DESIGNERS
CONTRIBUTORS, WRITING & PHOTOGRAPHY
Special thanks to Sarah Dean and James Stevens.
Peter Bailley ’74
Knox Magazine is published twice yearly by the Office of Communications, Box K-233, Knox College, Galesburg, IL 61401-4999; Phone: 309-341-7760; Fax: 309-341-7718; Email: knoxmag@knox.edu.
Sam Beem ’20
Becky Hale
Adriana Colindres
Ami Jontz
Brea Cunningham Kent Kriegshauser Sarah Lohmann ’21 Shuchita Poddar ’22 Lisa Van Riper Jan Wolbers
It is distributed free of charge to Knox alumni, students, parents, and friends. The magazine welcomes information and story ideas. Please query before submitting manuscripts. ISSN: 0047-3499 Visit us online at magazine.knox.edu.
WHOA! Assistant Professor of Biology Nick Gidmark mimics the stance of a rearing horse to demonstrate how the animal’s skeletal structure provides the support to enable it to strike at a forward threat or throw off a predator from its back. The horse skeleton is one of several reconstructions completed by students in Gidmark’s Comparative Vertebrate Anatomy course during fall 2020. Class members brought their projects to the new atrium in the Umbeck Science-Mathematics Center in November for an impromptu presentation. (It took a team of six students to transport the horse down the stairs.) Photo by Brea Cunningham
From the President Some Parting Thoughts on Our Students’ Futures
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or the past decade, it has been my privilege to share my thoughts with you in this column. I’ve written about many topics over those years, including the value of a liberal arts education, the challenges facing small colleges like Knox, my admiration of the Knox alumni I have met, and the need for civic engagement and open dialogue in a polarized society. And I have been grateful that many of you have not only read my columns, but responded to me in person or over email with your thoughts. This column has surely been the hardest to write, as I approach my retirement with a flood of emotions and many parting thoughts. I have started and scrapped so many versions of this final column—should I write about the important role of liberal arts colleges in educating for democracy, the opportunities created for remote learning, the racial equity imperative, the urgency of climate change, the sustainability of the liberal arts college business model?
KENT KRIEGSHAUSER
But the deadline has finally arrived, and so I have decided to devote my last column to the future: today’s students who are tomorrow’s leaders, inventors, entrepreneurs, artists, changemakers. This is our mission, and we are privileged to “touch the future” in our work, as teacher-astronaut Christa McAuliffe said 35 years ago. The profession of educator is a profoundly hopeful one. Every fall orientation is a fresh beginning, every Commencement a sending forth, each of these an opportunity to make the future different from the past. We work together for outcomes we may never see, and yet we trust that our students will create a better future for themselves and generations to come.
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Today’s students have experienced a set of hardships unique in our history as the past year has forced upon them a kind of college experience that is completely unprecedented: masked, socially distanced, confined to their rooms during quarantine times, separated from family and friends. As I have thought about these COVID-era students, I have wondered how they will be marked by the hardship and the grief that we have all experienced during this past year. These musings lead to thoughts of my parents, both them born in 1922, my father in Kansas, my mother in Rio de Janeiro. My father grew up in very modest circumstances during the Great Depression. He served in the Army during World War II, graduated from college with the help of the GI Bill, and then served his country in the U.S.
2 East South Street Foreign Service. He and my mother, who had an 8th grade education, sent me to college and to graduate school and took great pride in my career. Their generation endured prolonged hardship, made extraordinary sacrifices for their country, and transformed this country as they built families, careers and communities. And for this reason they have been dubbed “the greatest generation.” Each year at Commencement, I repeat our Galesburg poet Carl Sandburg’s remarkable words when he spoke at the rededication of Old Main in 1937. Of Old Main, he said: “Here from my windows generations of the young have gazed out on the world, gazed in on themselves, some asking questions: ‘How and why do we live? And while we live what is worth looking at, what is worth listening to? What might be worth dying for?” Of youth, he said, “What young people want and dream across the next hundred years will shape history more than any other motivation to be named... None shall look at this hour and say we did not have hope and faith in them.” Today’s students are digital natives; they are creative, entrepreneurial, empathic, deeply angered by inequities, passionately committed to making the world a better place. And at Knox, they have developed the disciplined habits of an inquiring mind. They exemplify the particular strengths found in every Knox alum: breadth and range of interests, zest for lifelong learning, a commitment to service to humanity. I have hope and faith in this pandemic generation, that their experience of a global pandemic will mark them for good; that they will indeed shape history and take up the many challenges laid bare by these pandemic times: to heal a troubled world, push back the frontiers of scientific knowledge, bring home the millions displaced or imprisoned by climate change, violence, and persecution, address the root causes of group hatreds.
“The profession of educator is a profoundly hopeful one. We work together for outcomes we may never see.”
It has been the privilege of a lifetime to lead this institution during this difficult and frightening year. Thank you, every member of the Knox community, for giving me this opportunity to serve.
The entire Knox community—faculty, staff, students, parents, friends, and alumni— has risen again and again to the disruption and loss posed by the pandemic, and I am so very proud of all we have done together during this time. I look forward to Andy McGadney’s leadership in this next chapter of the Knox story; he is the right leader at the right time. And I close this last magazine letter with one abiding hope and faith: that this generation of students will be the next greatest generation. —Teresa Amott
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It’s difficult to imagine a more fitting leader for Knox College over the past decade than Teresa Amott. Born in Bolivia to a Brazilian mother and American father, she lived and studied abroad through much of her childhood before enrolling at a small liberal arts institution (Smith College). After earning a Ph.D. in economics from Boston College, her research focused on how race and gender discrimination affect the workplace experiences of women and people of color. As the first woman ever to lead Knox, she presided over a moment when the College not only welcomed the largest numbers of international students and students of color in its history, but also faced the challenge of increased competition for a declining number of college-bound students, as well as growing income inequality that made it difficult for many of those students and their families to afford college. As Teresa leaves the College for a welldeserved retirement on June 30, 2021, Knox Magazine takes a look at 10 of the College’s most significant achievements during her tenure.
TERESA’S
KENT KRIEGSHAUSER
TOP TEN
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PHOTOS BY KENT KRIEGSHAUSER, STEVE DAVIS, RAY MILLER, ELENA IATROPOULOU-BANNAT ’20, PETER BAILLEY ’74, BREA CUNNINGHAM
2019 Pumphandle
Teresa and husband Ray Miller in Alumni Hall, 2021
THE REOPENING OF ALUMNI HALL
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When Teresa arrived on campus, Alumni Hall, built in 1890, had been largely unused since 1978. Former Knox trustee and Galesburg community leader Mark Kleine recalled, “When I joined the Board in 2007, one of the first projects we discussed was to get Alumni Hall renovated. My initial reaction was, sure, that’s not a big deal, and then I found out it had been attempted two or three times before. I thought, what am I getting myself into?” Teresa proved to be the catalyst the project needed. She joined Kleine’s Gateway Task Force—so named because of Kleine’s and then Dean of the College Larry Breitborde’s vision of the building as a gateway between Galesburg and Knox. “She had really great insights about why the building was so important to the campus and how it should be used,” said Kleine. Housing the Office of Admission, it would be the first place prospective students visited. Separate centers for global studies, career success, research, and community service would provide current students with the opportunity to put what they learned at Knox to work in the world. For returning alumni, the Office of Alumni Engagement would offer an official welcome back to campus. Within 18 months, donors—including Kleine and wife Jeannette and other members of the Board of Trustees—had contributed more than $11 million to the project. Within another 18 months, the building was open for business.
Thanksgiving at Ingersoll House, 2019
A $200 MILLION ENDOWMENT AS OF DECEMBER 31, 2020
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On June 30, 2011, Knox’s total endowment was valued at $84 million—a respectable figure, especially after the Great Recession. As of December 31, 2020, Knox’s endowment has grown to $200 million, providing the College with its strongest financial foundation in history. That growth has provided a crucial safety net as the College continues to feel the financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the demographic decline in college-bound students. “All of this sounds challenging,” says Board of Trustees Chair Chuck Smith ’84. “But I’ve observed a great deal of optimism. Knox has made substantial investments over the past decade in tremendous faculty, first-rate facilities, and endowed student scholarships. Those investments will help us weather this storm.”
“It’s one of those very rare things where you set out an idea, and someone says, ‘I think we should do that.’ And then makes it happen. That’s the kind of leader Teresa is.” 8
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Rededication of Alumni Hall, 2014
Cheering the Prairie Fire, 2016
WHITCOMB ART CENTER
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Early in her tenure, as Teresa was still learning her way around Knox, she asked Art Department Chair Mark Holmes to show her all the campus spaces where art was being taught—painting in the Ford Center for Fine Arts, design in Borzello Hall, photography in SMC, and art history in the Old Jail. At the end of their walk, they stood in a parking lot on Prairie Street gazing out toward a disused lumberyard. “My Knox colleagues and I had often talked about how that would be a great space for a new building, and I just casually shared that with Teresa,” remembered Holmes. Within moments, “she was struck by the idea. We walked back to her office, she showed me some building projects she’d been a part of at other institutions, and we kept talking. And, within a year, she had secured a $5 million gift from Richard ’57 and Joan Whitney Whitcomb ’56 to start construction.” Whitcomb is an ambitious building—an award-winning architectural showpiece that is also a model of sustainable building practices, as well as a tangible connection between the campus and Galesburg’s thriving downtown arts scene. “It’s one of those very rare things where you set out an idea, and someone says, ‘I think we should do that.’ And then makes it happen. That’s the kind of leader Teresa is.”
Galesburg Portrait Project, 2016
“PEOPLE WHO ARE FABULOUSLY NOT LIKE YOU”
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That’s how current admission publications describe the Knox community, trying to convey the excitement and opportunity that comes from being part of what has become one of the most diverse student bodies of any U.S. liberal arts college. Knox’s current student body reflects both its historic commitment to welcome students from all backgrounds and the changing demographics among U.S. high-school students. In 2011, nearly two of every three Knox students were white and came from the United States. Ten years later, the majority of students are either international (20 percent) or U.S. students of color (35 percent). “It’s beautiful, coming to a campus where I knew no one; it was my first time in the United States, and Knox became a home for me,” said Oluwabamise Afolabi ’21, a biology major from Nigeria who currently serves as student senate president. The people he has met here “helped me move out of my comfort zone and become a better version of me.”
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MWC Championship, 2016
Signing diplomas, 2015
Homecoming, 2016
HUMAN-POWERED CAREER DEVELOPMENT
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As a labor economist, Teresa has spoken repeatedly about the value of a liberal arts education in an increasingly automated and specialized workplace. One challenge is helping students understand that their opportunities aren’t limited by their major. Career development “is really a relationship-building process with each student,” said Scott Crawford, executive director of the Bastian Family Center for Career Success. Students are encouraged to start working with career counselors as early as their first year and welcome to stop by any time. “We’ve hired and trained 10 peer career leaders (current students) who do much of what our full-time staff does,” including helping with resumes, cover letters, and interview prep. The Center proactively emails students when it receives specific opportunities that seem like a good fit for them, connects them with alumni working in their desired fields, and works with alumni to help them hire Knox students for internships and jobs. “When I started, there were literally 35 jobs or internships in our old system,” said Crawford. “Right now, we have 4,430 jobs and 1,490 internships available.” In recent months, students have gotten offers from Tesla, Microsoft, Bank of America, and insurer Zurich North America, among others.
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Unplugging Wilson House, 2017
BACK-TO-BACK-TO-BACKTO-BACK SOCCER CHAMPIONS
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In November 2019, both the men’s and women’s soccer teams won the Midwest Conference (MWC) regular season titles and the MWC Championships to advance to the NCAA Division III national tournament. Collectively, it was Prairie Fire Soccer’s fourth consecutive visit to the national tournament, with men’s soccer winning the MWC championship in 2016 and 2019 and women’s soccer taking those honors in 2017, 2018, and 2019. Those accomplishments reflects the College’s renewed commitment to athletic excellence. During Teresa’s tenure, Knox has hired full-time coaches for every sport (economics professor Jonathan Powers still coaches the swimming and diving teams). The College has also invested in new equipment and facilities, including an indoor golf training simulator and artificial turf for Jorge Prats Field. Funding for many of these initiatives has come from Knox’s K Club. “As former athletes, we feel like we’re teammates to the current athletes,” said K Club President David Anderson ’89. “We want to make it so the current teams can have the success both on and off the field that we had at Knox.”
Day of Service, 2012
Commencement, 2018
SUSTAINABLE SUSTAINABILITY
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Student-led initiatives are responsible for many of Knox’s moves toward sustainable practices, so it’s no surprise that it was students who asked Teresa to hire the College’s first full-time sustainability expert—someone with both education and experience helping organizations become greener. Within its first year, the Office of Sustainability had started a bike share program, added more recycling drop-offs across campus, and implemented a plan for a campus farm to provide Dining Services with fresh produce. Subsequent directors have built on those earlier successes, coordinating the waste-free move of eight offices and 45 staffers into Alumni Hall, waste-free Commencement, and waste-free student move-in and move-out. Knox students, of course, continue to lead the way. A student-led (and funded) effort brought the campus its first solar power array, installed atop Wilson House in 2017. In 2019, the campus chapter of the Food Recovery Network donated more than 50,000 pounds of unused food to community organizations. Deb Steinberg, the College’s sustainability director since 2015, also lauded the work of Students for Sustainability, particularly their outreach to other clubs and organizations. “It gets students working together to help the campus learn about being better stewards of the Earth.”
THE RETURN OF THE BUSINESS MAJOR (PLUS OTHER NEW PROGRAMS)
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What are prospective students looking for? For many, it’s a business major. Building off the success of its popular business and management minor, the College introduced a reimagined business major in 2018 with a distinct Knox flair. It’s interdisciplinary, with a strong emphasis on ethics, leading diverse teams, and finding creative solutions for the world’s most pressing problems. It is already one of Knox’s most popular majors—only creative writing and biology had more graduates among the Class of 2020—as well as a top draw for future students, generating a 27 percent increase in applications for admission during the first year it was offered. That’s not the only academic innovation. Since 2015, the College has added 10 new minors in fields from astronomy to arts administration, plus four new majors in environmental studies, data science, journalism, and public policy. It’s all part of helping Knox students learn how to apply the skills they’ve developed as liberal arts graduates for the marketplace. “Things that require the application of different modes of thinking to solve real problems are really right up the alley of a liberal arts institution,” said Rothwell C. Stephens Distinguished Service Chair in Mathematics Kevin Hastings ’76.
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Commencement, 2014
Umbeck Science-Mathematics Center, 2020
Umbeck Science-Mathematics Center groundbreaking, 2018
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THE ONGOING TRANSFORMATION OF SMC
Knox’s Umbeck Science-Mathematics Center (SMC) is the oldest science building among its peers in the Associated Colleges of the Midwest. In the decades since it opened, Knox’s approach to teaching the sciences has evolved to a more hands-on and collaborative model, and many aspects of the building’s original design are ill-suited for 21st century teaching and learning. The College is now in the midst of an ambitious phased plan to update and renovate large sections of the existing structure even as students and faculty continue to work there. Phase 1 renovations, completed at the start of 2020, focused on the central core of the building. On the first floor, the space that was once a large amphitheater-style classroom has been transformed into the Amott Learning Commons— where students can access the latest research publications and work on group projects. New classrooms on the second floor accommodate classes of all sizes, with whiteboards around the perimeters for impromptu problem-solving. The oncegloomy interior of SMC is now flooded with natural light from a two-story glass atrium that both expands the building’s footprint and visually connects the space with the rest of campus. It’s also home to a 55-foot whale skeleton, transported from the East Coast to Galesburg, that was painstakingly restored and mounted by a team of faculty and students. The cherry on top, so to speak: a brand-new observatory with a larger dome, multiple telescope mounts, and an outdoor classroom to serve the growing demand for astronomy courses. 12 KNOX MAGAZINE Spring 2021
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2,867 GRADUATES (AND COUNTING)
Teresa often says that the world needs Knox graduates more than ever before, and Knox’s mission of access has inspired it to support historically underrepresented students more than ever before. For many first-generation students, making the transition to college brings challenges no one prepared them for. Add to that the challenges that college students have always faced—discovering who they are, what they stand for, and how that identity fits into the larger community—and the effort that went into each of those 2,867 degrees is inspiring to behold. Fortunately, students don’t have to shoulder those burdens on their own. In the last decade, the College has created the SPARK (Student Preparation and Readiness for Knox) Program for incoming first-years to develop their academic skills before courses start and expanded tutoring through the Center for Teaching and Learning. The College has also worked hard to provide a welcoming environment for students from all backgrounds, with expanded programming for students of color, students exploring their religious practices, and students just beginning to understand their gender and sexual identities. “My hope is that we can help our students, through their experiences here—joy, excitement, stress, frustration, or even occasionally feeling overwhelmed—always remember there’s a reason they’re here earning that degree,” said Tianna Cervantez ’06, executive director for diversity, equity, and inclusion. “It’s so they can take everything they build here, everything they learn here, and use it to make the world better.”
SUBMITTED
John Lawler: Meeting Every Moment With a Growth Mindset BY LISA VAN RIPER
The first car John Lawler ’88 owned was a white 1983 Ford Mustang. In October 2020, almost 40 years after that Mustang rolled off the production line, and 30 years after he first joined Ford as a finance analyst, Lawler was named as the global automaker’s chief financial officer. Today, his preferred ride is still a Mustang—the 2015 anniversary edition.
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Despite his penchant for Fords, Lawler didn’t set out to pursue a career in the automotive industry. After he graduated from Knox and completed an MBA in finance from the University of Iowa in 1990, he decided to apply for a position with the automaker because it was known as an excellent training ground for finance professionals. It turned out to be an interesting moment to get into automotive manufacturing. The early 1990s were a period of transformation, when the focus in vehicle development had shifted to safety and reducing carbon emissions. Non-domestic competitors were a threat; back then, they had better technology than domestic automakers. The product development cycle was also much longer than it is today; it took five to six years to develop a product. “You’d build a vehicle, launch a vehicle, and then, after a few years, we knew that the consumer needed a new vehicle,” said Lawler. Today, the global auto industry is an intersection between industrial
“Any time I got the itch to do something different at Ford, I did it. There was some familiarity because it was the same company...but it was still dramatically different, like starting a new job in many ways.”
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manufacturing and high tech, and the product development cycle has been cut almost in half. The accelerated product development time frame reflects a much greater pace of change. “The threat today is not just from other auto manufacturers; there are now lots of competitors from the tech world. Cars are now connected, and we use the data from cars and consumers to ensure we are providing what our customers want,” explained Lawler. “The capability to upgrade the vehicle over the air slows the aging of our vehicles and provides upgraded features.” So how was Lawler able to adapt and thrive in an industry that has changed so dramatically? “A great liberal arts education teaches you how to live with a growth mindset,” he said. A “growth mindset” is the term Stanford psychologist Carol Dweck coined to describe how successful people approach setbacks and failure. Instead of assuming they have reached the limits of their abilities, those with a “growth mindset” are motivated by those challenges to learn more, try different approaches, and keep developing their talents. Lawler discovered the difference this mindset could make when he took his first overseas position within Ford. In 1996, he was sent to Japan to run financials for one of the first programs in a collaboration between Ford and Mazda. “When I got to Japan, I started there approaching my new role from a closed point of view—a ‘this is how we do things’ way of thinking.” He realized that wouldn’t work if Ford wanted to become a truly global organization, and he looked back to his undergraduate experiences to show him a better way. “At Knox, we worked on group projects and completed projects with classmates from different cultural
and educational backgrounds. We pushed the edges, and kept an open mind about everyone else’s point of view.” As time went on, he developed a deeper awareness of the team around him in Japan, and adjusted to a much more open way of working within other cultures. His success in Japan led to other international assignments. Lawler served as controller of Ford Europe’s product development organization for three years. He then moved to China with wife Inga Johnson Lawler ’90 and their three children. There, his role expanded far beyond his previous focus on finance—as CFO for Ford Asia Pacific and Africa, he found himself as part of the team setting the company’s business strategy in that region. In 2012, he was tapped to lead Ford China, where the company was making aggressive investments to grow its market share, as its CEO. During his tenure, Ford’s growth in China reached record levels, selling more than 1 million Ford vehicles in 2015. Lawler also led an initiative to help reduce traffic congestion by partnering with Dida Pinche, China’s largest carpooling app, to pair Ford drivers with ride seekers. “I believe that if I had graduated with a degree in business from a large public university, I would not have been able to adapt to other cultures as well as I did; to understand their perspectives. Every time I went overseas, I approached the new role and team with a respect and understanding that I was coming into their culture and was going to learn from them, versus the attitude that they were coming into my culture.” Lawler’s most recent roles within Ford—where his responsibilities have included everything from global strategy and data analytics to preparing
SUBMITTED
John Lawler (second from right) helps to introduce the new Ford Taurus at the 2015 Shanghai Auto Show alongside members of Ford’s global development team.
the company’s entry into the autonomous vehicle market—highlight how much the company has changed since he joined it three decades ago. Exciting innovations are on the horizon at the automaker, with a focus on electric vehicles. “I am especially excited about the electric van and the F-150 [pickup truck]—which will be introduced over the next year or so [E-Transit late in 2021, F-150 in mid-2022], and they will be game changers,” said Lawler. “We are thinking about these vehicles as connected ecosystems that will improve productivity and enhance our consumers’ commercial businesses. Ford is now transitioning from what’s traditionally been a transactional model to a lifecycle engagement model.”
In his industry, change has been a constant, but it is hardly predictable. “Everybody talks about managing change. Is anyone really managing change? How are you managing, growing, and adapting to new environments? Think about the different frameworks you use to make decisions and how you are influenced based upon your background. Should you be thinking about different mental models and how you approach a problem? Look at it from a different angle.” The constant transformation that has marked the industry helps explain how Lawler has spent his entire career at a single company without losing touch with the growth mindset he developed at Knox. “Any time I got the itch to do something different at Ford, I did it. I’ve had multiple careers within Ford. Living and working overseas was something Inga and I, and our children, enjoyed.
There was some familiarity because it was the same company, and that made it a bit easier, but it was still dramatically different, like starting a new job in many ways. Now, I lift my head up and it’s been 30 years.” As he looks forward to a world of autonomous vehicles and electric vans, however, some things haven’t changed. Lawler’s all-time favorite Ford vehicles, the Mustang, the Bronco, and the F-Series truck, are still in production. And the work of keeping Ford in step with the needs of the next generation of drivers still requires the skills he learned in Galesburg back in the Eighties. “My Knox education gave me a lifelong appreciation that there’s never one right point of view; that issues are complex and there’s never a perfect answer—just a good answer. You pivot and adjust, and you keep learning, and learning how to learn.” KNOX MAGAZINE Spring 2021 15
In Knox’s Business Intensive Seminar, students learn how to apply the skills and knowledge they’ve developed in other disciplines to help companies grow. BY ADRIANA COLINDRES
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aelon Brooks ’22 and his teammates haven’t yet completed their Knox degrees, but last fall, they were able to take on the role of turnaround consultants— experts in reversing the fortunes of struggling companies. Tasked with developing a turnaround plan for Crocs, the team asserted that the casual shoe company should expand its product line by selling rain gear, swimwear, and shower footwear, too. “In the long term, we want to see Crocs continue to stay in the footwear industry, but we need to see them add new items,” Brooks told a panel of alumni judges. “We believe that Crocs will be successful in adding
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rain and aquatic apparel because they create the rubber materials already.” Fellow team member Behrooz Dinyarian ’23 called on the company to beef up its e-commerce efforts, a move that would expand its global presence. Those insightful recommendations represent just a couple of examples of the skills and knowledge that Knox students gain at the Knox College Business Intensive Seminar. Led by Jim Foley ’78 since 2017, the short-term immersive experience helps students understand how the business world likely will have an impact on their careers, no matter what their academic interests are. Students in the program explore various business-related topics, including leadership, innovation, marketing, emotional intelligence, ethical business decision-making, design thinking, and entrepreneurship. For their final project, a case study, students analyze a specific company and come up with recommendations to improve its outlook. Learning about business fundamentals “shouldn’t be something scary and shouldn’t be something that is in any way meant to force [students] down a path different from their real passion,” said Foley, who directs the Turner Center for Entrepreneurship and the Illinois SBDC International Trade Center at Bradley University. “It’s just that the truth is business really does touch so many segments of our society. Regardless of your major, you very likely will have some sort of a career involved in business.” “Business needs the perspectives and insights that English majors and scientists and mathematicians and
economists bring,” Foley added. “There is a role for quite narrow-focused people in the business world. But on the whole, there’s a stronger need for the more holistic, broader-perspective individual, which you get naturally through a liberal arts student. That’s why studying business from the context of the liberal arts is a very natural combination.” Foley is exceptionally qualified to lead the Knox Business Intensive Seminar. The Galesburg native started off as a computer science major at Knox and later decided to create a self-designed major that blended business and computer science. Nowadays, he said, that field of study is known as management information systems. He launched a career in the software industry after graduating from Knox and then earned an MBA from the London Business School at the University of London. Before taking on
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“because I love giving back to Knox.” Knox loves him, too. He consistently earns positive feedback from students, faculty, staff, and alumni for his work. “It’s a great fit,” said Knox faculty member John Spittell, Joseph E. and Judith B. Wagner Distinguished Professor of Business and Management, Executive in Residence and chair of the Department of Business and Management. “He brings an energy, he’s got a good personality, and he’s engaging. He can power students up.” Spittell observed that while the Business Intensive Seminar allows students to pick up new businessrelated skills, they’re also integrating lessons they’ve already begun to learn during their time at Knox: how to think critically, how to analyze critically, and how to deliver effective oral presentations. Foley “helps students think beyond the surface of business and ask
Regardless of your major, you very likely will have some sort of a career involved in business. – Jim Foley ’78
his current responsibilities at the Turner Center, Foley worked all over Europe, in Los Angeles, and in Mexico City. His overseas business experience includes positions in marketing, sales, and corporate management in the computer industry. Foley said that one reason he became, and has remained, involved with the Business Intensive Seminar is
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questions and go deeper, tying in the liberal arts,” said Eric Johnson, the Knox associate director of alumni engagement for campus connections who works with Foley on planning the seminar. “They really value that he’s an alum, that he’s been where they are. He’s showing them how business can help them wherever they decide to go in their career field.”
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An Authentically Knox Approach to Business Knox’s Business Intensive Seminar is an outgrowth of a previous short-term business immersive experience, the Fullbridge program, that Knox offered in 2015 and 2016. At the 2016 Fullbridge seminar, Foley joined other Knox alumni to evaluate students’ final presentations. He also sat in on some of the sessions and started thinking, excitedly, about how he and his colleagues at the Turner Center “could easily facilitate an experience that might even more strongly align with the needs of the Knox students.” Not long afterward, Foley met with President Teresa Amott and developed a proposal that led to the debut of the Knox Business Intensive Seminar in June 2017. Students who completed that first BIS gave the program an enthusiastic thumbs up. “It was hard work, but the experience was realistic,” Deja Jenkins ’19 said at the time. Jenkins, who majored in creative writing and minored in psychology, has stayed connected with the program. In 2018 and 2019, she volunteered as a student mentor who helped the teams prepare their final presentations. In 2019 and 2020, she served as a judge for those presentations.
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“I’ve stayed involved so long because I had a great experience with BIS the first year I participated,” Jenkins recently said. “It was exhausting, don’t get me wrong, but I had a lot of fun in the various learning modules, especially on emotional intelligence and the SWOT [strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats] analysis. Before I attended BIS as a student, the whole thought of business was intimidating and seemed out of reach.” Afterward, she recalled, she was confident and well-prepared for her summer 2017 internship at the National Association for the Exchange of Industrial Resources, a Galesburg nonprofit commonly known as NAEIR. Since graduating from Knox, Jenkins has been working in Galesburg, and she also is pursuing a master’s degree in library and information science through an online program at the University of North Texas. Jenkins reinforced the idea that the BIS is well-suited for Knox students from all academic disciplines. “The seminar helped me connect the dots between creative thinking and the business world. There’s so much to be explored in what could be, but hasn’t been done yet, and I think that notion can be applied to many aspects of life, not just coming up with ways to help turn around failing businesses.”
The seminar helped me connect the dots between creative thinking and the business world. It’s ... not just coming up with ways to help turn around failing businesses. – Deja Jenkins ’19
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Alumni Volunteers Make Business Challenges Feel Real and Relatable Knox alumni have played increasingly influential roles as the Business Intensive Seminar has evolved, and their involvement resonates strongly with students. “When you integrate the alumni into this program, it’s so powerful,” Foley said. The BIS students often experience what he described as “a-ha moments” when they hear from alumni—not only because of alumni’s business successes, but also because of their varied academic backgrounds. From the program’s inception, alumni always have served as judges for students’ final presentations. That remained true in 2020, when alumni also took on additional duties. Because of the pandemic, the BIS shifted to an all-online format—a change that paved
BREA CUNNINGHAM
At the 2019 Business Intensive Seminar, Jim Foley ’78 (center) takes a look at Ajay Gutsafon’s work in progress as Neori Yasumaru (right) completes her own sketch.
the way for a larger number of alumni to interact with students throughout the seminar. The alumni represented every decade going back to the 1960s. Some served as team consultants and mentors, working informally with students during the evenings and sharing personal experiences and insights to help the teams produce well-researched, compelling final presentations. Other alumni led panel discussions: one on ethics, emotional intelligence, and communication strategies and another on business innovations, design thinking, and effective presentations. Students peppered the alumni panelists with questions: What do you do when your business is failing? What kinds of challenges have you faced in business, especially during the pandemic? How can you help your business pivot effectively?
Students also used the alumni panels as a tool for collecting advice that would help shape their final presentations. For instance, when Dana Brown ’19 and Jessie Johnson ’12 spoke at the session on business innovations, design thinking, and effective presentations, Brooks—whose team was analyzing Crocs—sought tips on marketing online casual apparel. He was asking a couple of experts. Brown, who was calling in from Italy, works with a luxury digital marketing agency, and Johnson is the founder and CEO of Life as a Strawberry, which originated as a blog and has developed into a food media company. Brown and Johnson encouraged the Crocs team to harness the marketing power of user-generated content, namely, the social media posts that Crocs owners create organically. The company could repost some of that content and use it as a way to build stronger authentic connections with the customer base, the two alumni said. Their advice made its way into the Crocs team’s final presentation when Joseph Saoud ’22 talked about new marketing tactics, including usergenerated content and collaborations with celebrities and other influencers. That presentation, along with the presentations from the other teams, earned high praise from the alumni judges, who described the students’ work as impressive and thoughtful. The students, in turn, reflected on how they benefited by completing the Business Intensive Seminar. “I learned how to apply a lot of the skills that were taught in the classroom, or in this case over
Zoom, in a lot of ways,” Saoud said. “I also learned how to collaborate with a group in order to come up with recommendations and the presentation. Those cooperation skills that I learned are unforgettable.” Hearing such positive comments is rewarding to Foley, who is already thinking about the next Knox Business Intensive Seminar he’ll lead sometime in 2021. Alumni will keep playing important roles in the program, and virtual interactions between alumni and students are likely to continue even after the pandemic ends because they are so effective, he said. The online video chats also are convenient for alumni, who can participate from all over the world and across numerous time zones. In addition, alumni help hammer home one of the key messages to BIS students: that the students have what it takes to follow in the footsteps of past Knox students who have developed successful business careers—even though many didn’t major or minor in business. What Foley wants BIS students to understand, and what alumni help him communicate, is this, he said: “You can do it! You are getting the same outstanding education these alumni received, and look at what they were able to do. This could be you in a few years!”
Alumni provide crucial financial support for Knox’s Business Intensive Seminar, which is funded by David ’65 and Dian Barth and the Robert ’66 and Carol Romsa Parke ’67 Ethics Fund.
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A YEAR WITHOUT A SEASON Without intercollegiate competition, Knox student-athletes look to the future and each other BY SAM BEEM ’20
What exactly does it mean to be a student-athlete when your team can’t compete? It’s a question that every member of the Prairie Fire has had nearly a full year to try to answer.
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hile Knox has done an exceptional job so far of containing the spread of COVID-19 in classrooms and residence halls— there were only about 50 positive COVID-19 tests among the campus community during the fall term— finding a way to safely participate in athletic competition proved a much tougher challenge. As of the beginning of 2021, the Prairie Fire have now lost the spring 2020, fall 2020, and winter 2021 seasons to the pandemic. While limited competition has resumed at the start of the spring 2021 term, it’s still not the experience that most studentathletes imagined when they came to Galesburg.
Members of the men’s soccer team take a breather during practice at Jorge Prats Field. Players and coaches remained masked even while running drills and scrimmaging.
KENT KRIEGSHAUSER
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Jack Craig ’21, a member of the Knox football team since 2017, had been contemplating ending his athletic career even before the Midwest Conference announced it would suspend all competitive play during the fall 2020 season. At the time, he was recovering from knee surgery—his fourth. Each surgery, he says, “took their toll on me, mentally and physically. After my third surgery, I told myself that if I needed another, I would be done with football.” Instead, despite the intense physical and emotional demands he faced, Craig decided to return to football for his senior year, even without the guarantee that the team would be able to compete. “The coaches, the guys on the team, and the trainers were supportive all the way,” Craig said. “It made me realize that I enjoy being a part of Knox Football too much to just walk
“I hope [new student-athletes] have been able to see how I come in ready to work, and I’m never satisfied with where I am.” – Jack Craig ’21 22 KNOX MAGAZINE Spring 2021
KENT KRIEGSHAUSER
BREA CUNNINGHAM
Jack Craig ’21
away, even if things haven’t been the easiest.” For Craig, part of his motivation stemmed from setting a good example for newcomers on the team. “I hope they’ve been able to see how I come in ready to work, and I’m never satisfied with where I am,” he said. “Not only will this help them be better players, but it will help them be successful for the rest of their lives.” But from a competitive standpoint, Craig said that the football team’s goal for the season—whenever that may come—was clear. “We all believe we can put together a winning record, so we all are training as hard as we can to prove that the next chance we get.” “Competition is core to what we do as serious athletes,” acknowledged Director of Athletics Daniella Irle. “I felt like many of our sports were on the cusp of new levels of success, and for them to not be able to experience the ‘pay off’ by competing at improved levels continues to disappoint.” Still, Irle noted, there have been important lessons learned as the Prairie Fire have had to adapt to its new normal. That began with finding new ways to keep teams connected to each other. Irle says that the Student-Athlete Advisory Council (SAAC) was instrumental in developing virtual events and activities for teams after Knox students were sent home in the spring. “That was a jarring experience for many, and
Maya McEwen ’23 reaches for a ball during practice as Kaitlyn Kashishian ’23 backs her up.
KENT KRIEGSHAUSER
alyx farris ’21 first-year students new to the team, but organizing social events like “family” dinners and pumpkin-carving contests after everyone had been tested helped. “We just want them to feel like part of the team without seeming overbearing or patronizing.”
Senior Clare Hensley takes practices hitting off a tee during softball practice.
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BREA CUNNINGHAM
our SAAC stepped up throughout that virtual term and created spaces to keep our teams connected,” Irle said. “They did this while dealing with their own emotions.” Individual players have also stepped up to help their teams. Alyx Farris ’21 says her role as the women’s soccer team’s only senior captain shifted after she learned that their fall season would be postponed. “It’s not just the season that’s cancelled, but all the memories associated with the season. Pre-season, having a locker room, and travelling together are cancelled,” she said. “My role has become less about soccer and leading on the field, and more of emotional support. I really want to maintain the cohesiveness and closeness of our team, which is—not surprisingly—really hard to do during a pandemic.” Farris explained that this process was especially hard with
“We wanted a season so badly,
lydia mitchell ’22
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New Assistant Men’s Basketball Coach Randy Jackson offers advice to players during a fall practice.
KENT KRIEGSHAUSER
Lydia Mitchell ’22, a dual-sport athlete on the track and women’s soccer teams, agreed that events like these helped keep the team strong. “I think both teams did a great job of finding creative ways to do team bonding through Zoom and trivia nights,” she said. “It is hard to pass down our traditions, standards, and team atmosphere when we aren’t allowed to spend time together, but I hope that my teammates on both teams get to see what it truly means to be a woman in athletics at Knox College.” Irle credits the creativity and perseverance of the coaching staff throughout the pandemic with keeping spirits up. “Staying engaged with their teams is one of the most important factors in retention and enjoyment of life,” she said. “The coaches understand that running practices consistently, even with all the cumbersome and ever-changing COVID parameters, is critical for the wellness of our student-athletes.”
BREA CUNNINGHAM
BREA CUNNINGHAM
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kaitlyn kashishian ’23
Kaitlyn Kashishian ’23—a member of both the volleyball and track and field teams—explained how both sports adapted their practices by using drills that fit with each phase of COVID restrictions. “At times we had no contact with each other or any shared equipment,” she said. “Even as we were tested and allowed to have a few less restrictions, social distancing was still encouraged whenever possible.” With occasional scrimmages to hold them over, student-athletes at Knox looked to their teammates and the
so we did what we were asked to do.” – Alyx Farris ’21 we have a real reason to keep working hard: for the good of the team and to make ourselves and each other better.” Alyx Farris agreed. “I think there was a fair amount of complaining and groaning involved, but we just stuck to the restrictions as closely as possible. We wanted a season so badly, so we did what we were asked to do. Coach Taylor made absolutely certain we sanitized before and after practice.” It helps that there have been glimpses of a better future. For members of the women’s soccer team, their patience paid off on the last practice of the fall season, in which they had a full-team, full-field scrimmage that the players treated like a real game. “It was such a good feeling to get
Football players line up for drills at the Knosher Bowl.
KENT KRIEGSHAUSER
prospect of competitive play as a catalyst for improvement. Kashishian expressed that it was difficult for her to keep motivated during the past two terms. However, she explained that she and her teammates had persevered by holding each other accountable and encouraging each other. “When any of us start slacking, others come and remind us why we play,” Kashishian said. “We play for each other, not just ourselves. I think this has been really helpful because even though there isn’t competition,
out and play as hard as we could against each other,” Mitchell said. “One thing I love about our team is that we love competition, and we also love to have fun. The scrimmage was a great way to showcase our hard work and talents and to do something we all love.” As Prairie Fire teams gradually return to competition, Irle said that the resiliency of the coaches and student-athletes at Knox keeps her centered and forward-thinking. “I can’t spend my time worrying about ‘what might have been’ when ‘what could be’ lies ahead. I walk into the building every day motivated to find a way to keep all our programs growing and evolving.”
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SÉAN ALONZO HARRIS PHOTOGRAPHY
Knox Names C. Andrew McGadney 20th President C. Andrew (Andy) McGadney was appointed the 20th president of Knox College following a unanimous vote by the Board of Trustees at its February 2021 meeting. McGadney will succeed President Teresa Amott on July 1, 2021, following her retirement in June 2021 after 10 years at Knox.
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McGadney joins Knox after nearly four years as vice president and dean of student advancement at Colby College in Waterville, Maine. Before that, he served for three years as Colby’s vice president and secretary of the college, a role that made him the principal liaison to its Board of Trustees.
A native of Connecticut, McGadney earned his B.A. at Wesleyan University, majoring in sociology and African American Studies. He later earned a master of public administration and policy degree from Columbia University and an Ed.D. in higher education management from the University of Pennsylvania, writing his dissertation on “Crisis Management at Small Liberal Arts Colleges: Perspectives on Presidential Decision Making.” “Andy has demonstrated an uncanny ability to build momentum through visionary leadership, a talent for creating and spearheading student-focused, innovative programs that deliver results, and a deep understanding of the need to inspire a college community to attain aggressive goals through collaboration,” said Chuck Smith ’84, Chair of the Knox College Board of Trustees. “As a passionate advocate for the power of a liberal arts and science education, I am deeply honored and humbled to serve as the 20th president of Knox College,” said McGadney. “During the thoughtful search process, I engaged with members of the search committee, the full Board of Trustees, faculty, students, staff, and several members of the Galesburg community. The commitment and dedication for the College was felt from my initial conversations.” Andy will be joined in Galesburg by his wife, Camille A. McGadney, a Wesleyan alumna who has worked in career counseling at Wesleyan and three other institutions. Andy and Camille have three children.
The South Lawn
Katy Coseglia ’20 (left) and cooperating teacher Kristin Picciola
Connor McClelland ’20 teaches virtually from a GDH classroom.
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Jaynee Bowker ’20 with colleague William Shakespeare
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As Eric Thompson ’20 was completing his student teaching assignment last fall, his second graders—visible only on computer screens—sometimes talked about how much they missed seeing their friends, their teachers, and the school playground. On rare occasions, some of the children simply said that remote learning was hard. “It was tough because they were saying what we were thinking as well,” recalled Thompson, who taught at Steele Elementary School in Galesburg, Illinois, with Molly Kleine as his cooperating teacher. Thompson is among 27 Knox College educational studies students fulfilling their student teaching requirements during the 2020-21 academic year—an especially stressful time for many schoolchildren, families, and teachers because of COVID-19. The pandemic has forced school districts to continually revise their plans on how to provide students with an education. As a result, student teachers have to prepare to work in environments that can run the gamut from all-online to all-in-person learning, with some schools operating under a hybrid model that includes elements of both. Kristen Strom, coordinator of teacher education at Knox, said that since spring 2020, she and other members of the Knox educational studies faculty have adapted classes and assignments to ensure that student teachers would be prepared for a remote or hybrid teaching environment. “What we’ve been saying is for the students to keep in mind flexibility, adaptability, and understanding that everyone right now is going through a learning experience, even the cooperating teachers,” Strom said. “Technology will fail, a lesson won’t go the way you wanted it to, and you will have bad days. These things will happen, and you need to be able to roll with the punches and keep moving forward,” said Jaynee Bowker ’20, who completed a hybrid student teaching assignment at Knoxville High School last fall and was recently hired by the school as a long-term substitute. Katy Coseglia ’20 completed her assignment teaching first-graders at Gower West Elementary School in Willowbrook, Illinois, which she attended as a child—first with a hybrid schedule and then all in-person. “I really learned that it is important to take one day at a time because student teaching during this time is definitely very different than in years past.” Some Knox student teachers have been working from on-campus classrooms in George Davis Hall (GDH) this winter, using the building’s computers, whiteboards, and other equipment to help them teach online more effectively. Connor McClelland ’21 set up a classroom in GDH to teach biology and environmental science at Galesburg High School, where he teamed up with teacher Carole Buebe. McClelland said his cooperating teacher shares a similar perspective. “Mrs. Buebe always says, ‘handle it with grace.’ These troubling times call for grace, and it is our job as teachers to try and provide some of that grace to our students.”
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Student Teaching During a Pandemic
The ’Burg The Little Bar Next to the Train Station
Students to graduate in two sessions, some guests permitted
BY SHUCHITA PODDAR ’22
SHUCHITA PODDAR ’22
Situated in the old Knox County Assessor’s office, La Cantinita (240 East Simmons Street) is Elvith Santoyo-McNaught ’13 and husband Justin McNaught’s latest venue, following the closure of their massively popular Mexican restaurant Acapulco in 2019. Elvie was still a student at Knox when she purchased that restaurant from her father, and she and Justin originally purchased La Cantinita’s site (the former Carriage House) in 2016 with the intention of turning Acapulco into a larger restaurant. When the projected costs skyrocketed, the couple decided to downsize and go upscale—creating a tequila bar with a limited menu of Mexican food. The 1,500-square-foot space features 100-year-old floors, brick walls, and tall tin ceilings. The name is derived from la cantina, which in Mexico was an establishment that was developed for railroad workers who would leave the train station at the end of their shifts and go to the bar next door to get a drink. “So it was called the bar next to the train station,” said Elvie. (The diminutive suffix -ita means the space is little.) It hasn’t been easy launching a new establishment during the COVID-19 pandemic. La Cantinita was nearly ready to open when the pandemic interrupted the construction process. The bar finally opened on September 8, 2020, but had to temporarily shut its doors two months later as infection rates in Illinois rose and the state restricted in-person dining. Opening again in January, La Cantinita is once again ready to welcome guests. Elvie stresses that La Cantinita is “a bar that houses food” rather than a restaurant. They offer an array of cocktails, mocktails, and coffees, along with finger foods. She says her favorite is a drink called El Chapo—a margarita made with a quality reposado tequila, infused with fresh cilantro, jalapeno and mango—with a side of ceviche. “I wanted to be close to Knox, and I really wanted to cater to Knox students and faculty. There are so many gems downtown, and we have Knox, and all these beautiful small businesses … it’s just really nice to be part of that.”
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College to Hold Modified In-Person Commencement for Class of 2021
Following discussions with public health officials and Class of 2021 leadership, the College announced it will hold in-person Commencement exercises on Saturday, June 5, 2021, with Sunday, June 6, as the severe weather contingency date. Commencement exercises will be split into two sessions on that day, and each will be ticketed. The smaller number of participating graduates will enable the class to safely bring two guests, as long as they agree to observe appropriate safety protocols. Should public health metrics continue to improve as the date nears, it is possible the College will allow more guests per graduate. As in past years, Knox will livestream the Commencement, as well as prerecording the presentation of honorary degrees and the speech from this year’s Commencement speaker. Student speakers may address attendees live, and, at this time, the College plans to present diplomas during the event. Because conditions are subject to change, the public is advised to visit knox.edu/commencement for updates. Meanwhile, members of the Class of 2020, whose Commencement exercises were postponed last June, have overwhelmingly voted to hold a separate celebration during Homecoming Weekend, October 8–10, 2021. That event is tentatively scheduled for Sunday, October 10.
The South Lawn Knox Alumni Among Key Players at Super Bowl LV
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Though they didn’t make any tackles, catch any passes, or kick any field goals, two former Knox Prairie Fire student-athletes nonetheless played key roles in the 2021 Super Bowl. Andrew Isaacson ’99 and Jordan Anderson ’19 were hard at work behind-the-scenes to enhance the experiences of fans in the stadium, as well as those watching from home. Isaacson is executive vice president of The Famous Group, a Los Angelesbased fan experience company that often works with the National Football League. For this year’s Super Bowl LV, The Famous Group produced a seven-hour social media show for real-life fans in the stadium, giving them a sense of the game-related excitement outside the building. The company also powered virtual fans to the “Showtime Cam,” a piece of technology that enabled players to virtually celebrate with fans at home. Working from Raymond James Stadium, Isaacson monitored fans’ tweets and Instagram posts and decided which posts to highlight on a giant video board. One of those posts was a photo of Knox Prairie Fire Head Golf Coach K.C. Harding and his family, all decked out in Kansas City Chiefs gear. “That’s a great example of what I was doing. We were powering fans to be part of the game [even if] they couldn’t be there,” said Isaacson, who had been in touch earlier with Coach Harding. “I said, K.C., post a photo, use the hashtag #SBLV, and I’ll find it, and I’ll put it on the video board for you,” he explained. “It was great. He kept popping up in the feed. I kept seeing him and his family go by, even as late as the fourth quarter. It was like, oh, there’s K.C., there’s the family. Sorry your Chiefs aren’t winning, but at least you’re on the video board.” Anderson, a social media producer for the NFL, worked from his home office on game day. His job involves various responsibilities, such as integrating social media into live television broadcasts, collaborating with on-air talent to produce and curate social media content, and creating content that appears on Instagram and Twitter. On Super
Bowl Sunday, he worked on a digital show, GameDay View, created graphics to be used on social media after the game, and created full-screen graphics for another digital show, Super Bowl Today. Because of the pandemic, the NFL limited the number of employees who could attend the game. While working remotely, Anderson collaborated closely with colleagues, communicating through different apps to largely simulate the environment of being together in a control room during a live broadcast. “Although you’re a little bit separated, it still feels like you’re kind of in the action,” Anderson said. “You still feel a little bit of the atmosphere from home.” Anderson took on similar responsibilities for the NFL during last year’s Super Bowl, when he teamed up with colleagues in the league’s Los Angeles offices. While Super Bowl LV represented Anderson’s second Super Bowl experience, it marked the 15th time around for Isaacson. “It’s a real privilege to do what I do. I feel really blessed,” Isaacson said, expressing appreciation for the longtime support of his wife, Holly Engelhart Isaacson ’99. KNOX MAGAZINE Spring 2021 29
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Above: Andrew Isaacson ’99 takes a gameday selfie with one of the enormous video displays he managed during the game. Right: Jordan Anderson ’19 monitors social media from his home office.
Meet Knox’s Newest Endowed Professors An endowed professorship is the highest accolade a college can bestow on a faculty member— identifying recipients as particularly essential to the College because of their teaching, scholarship, and service. We talked to each new honoree about how their teaching has evolved, their favorite courses, and what they hope to accomplish next.
Lynette Lombard Chancie Ferris Booth Distinguished Professor of Art
BREA CUNNINGHAM
Richard P. & Sophia D. Henke Distinguished Professor of English Specializes in: Poetry, creative writing, 21st century American literature At Knox since: 1998
PETER BAILLEY ’74
Monica Berlin ’95
Specializes in: Landscape painting, feminist theory and modernism, contemporary painting, printmaking, and drawing At Knox since: 1990
What does receiving an endowed professorship mean to you?
You’ve been teaching since 1990. How has your teaching style changed over time?
I am humbled, knocked over really. Not a day goes by when I don’t recognize the extraordinary company I keep: brilliant peers, brilliant students, esteemed alumni and friends. This coming fall will mark 30 years of my being here, and in my own small way I guess I’m now a part of the history of the College, a place and an ethos deeply ingrained in my being in the world. So, yes, I am humbled to be considered by the institution worthy of such recognition, and humbled by my colleagues whose recommendation led to the distinction, and moved by the Henkes’ generosity and belief in Knox. As I told Dr. Henke, I hope to honor their commitment as I carry their name alongside my own.
I like the intellectual freedom that Knox gives faculty, encouraging all of us to teach courses that are engaging and are critical to our discipline within the liberal arts. Students are always challenging and take me out of any comfort zone I think I have. One of the things I love about teaching is that it’s unpredictable; you never know how students are going to respond to an idea or how a class dynamic exerts a particular energy and sense of community.
Any items remaining on your professional bucket list? I want to wake up every day and make a poem. I want to want to make a poem every day. I want to read poems other people have made. I want to look at art. I want to continue to be in a community that values the arts, honors the arts, and that makes room and offers resources and support for the arts, that recognizes that all the remarkable parts of our lives are made in tandem with artmaking. So, I’d like to continue doing what I have done all these years here, which is that I’ve been supported in my writing and have supported others in making writing.
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What’s your favorite course to teach? Generally, I like all the courses I teach, especially the ones I’m teaching right now, which are Open Studio and Painting 213. The demands of teaching the advanced classes are about challenging students on a deeper level, assisting and directing them to find what has meaning for them and how they construct that complexity visually and materially. Another course I like to teach is Knox in New York, which will be offered hopefully in fall 2021, once everybody has been vaccinated. It’s a course that involves teaching art history from an artist’s point of view and a course that combines academic and studio practice. I think it’s always a transformative course. Students can envision themselves in an art world career. We go to all the major museums, many galleries, artists’ studios, meet alums, and attend lectures. It’s a very rich experience, and we’re always exhausted and exhilarated when we return to campus.
Andrew Mehl
Julio Noriega
George Appleton Lawrence Distinguished Service Professor of Chemistry
Burkhardt Distinguished Chair in Modern Languages (Spanish)
Specializes in: Biochemistry, proteins and enzymes; biological spectroscopy At Knox since: 1993
What does being named to the George Appleton Lawrence Distinguished Service Professorship mean to you? I feel honored that my fellow colleagues nominated me for this professorship.
You’ve been teaching at Knox since 1993. How has your teaching evolved over that time? Patience—early on, I covered the material too quickly, and I think I’ve developed a good pace so that students can reflect and ask questions. I also think I’ve developed a good feel for when students are struggling with the material, and I know when to spend a longer time with certain concepts.
Do you have a particular favorite course to teach? BCHM 302: The Chemistry of Metabolism. This is always fun to teach because I can always relate the material to something everyone likes: food! And discussing how the components that comprise food—protein, carbohydrates, etc.—are utilized by our metabolic pathways. Discussing how certain diets relate to metabolism is always interesting. When teaching general chemistry, I love to see the excitement when a student understands something new and this sparks an interest in chemistry/biochemistry.
What’s the most difficult part of teaching chemistry? Keeping the material interesting for students. The basic concepts have to be learned first before you can understand and appreciate the later, more interesting material.
Are there any items remaining on your professional bucket list? It would be nice to see additional spaces in SMC renovated. We have a wonderful new A-Core! I’d love to help with future renovations.
PETER BAILLEY ’74
STEVE DAVIS
The South Lawn Specializes in: Spanish-American migrant literature and indigenous cultures of America At Knox since: 2009
How has your teaching style evolved over time? Directing the Barcelona program from 2013 to 2015 and chairing the Latin American Studies program from 2017 to the present helped me to gain a better understanding of my role as a Spanish language, culture, and literature instructor. Because of my experience in Barcelona, I was able to craft and implement successfully a travel component of my course entitled “Cultures of Spanish Speaking World-Andean Class.” My efforts to explore new avenues to expand the Latin American Studies curriculum led me to create the Bilingual Indigenous Literature in the Americas course, with the future goal of including trans-indigenous studies in our Latin American Studies program. I would say that I expanded the classroom-oriented teaching style to embrace a teaching style that is student-centered and interdisciplinary in nature. Consequently, I am more confident teaching outside the classroom and participating in interdisciplinary and international workshops, seminars, and collective projects. I highly recommend this teaching style especially for classes offered remotely.
What’s the most difficult part of teaching Spanish and/or Latin American literature? To replicate in the classroom not only the complexity but also the uniqueness of the Latin American social and cultural situation. No matter what bibliographical or media source you use as evidence, there is always a risk of overly simplifying or misrepresenting the pressing and conflictive realities of an area where multi-ethnic traditions and languages intertwine. This challenge could be mitigated in part when there is a travel component option added to our curriculum. I earnestly believe that direct and presential observations are crucial if I want my students to truly grasp the compelling realities of the Latin American world.
Interviews have been edited for length. Read extended Q&As with all four professors at magazine.knox.edu. KNOX MAGAZINE Spring 2021 31
I am Knox — David Zavala ’21 Vitals Hometown: Stickney, Illinois Major: Chemistry Minor: Biochemistry Campus Involvements: McNair Scholars Program, Ultimate Frisbee, Food Recovery Network
Four Facts about David David is a first-generation student and was heavily influenced by his uncle to attend college as a pre-med student. One of his favorite bands is Radiohead. His favorite album by the group is In Rainbows. His favorite class that he took at Knox outside of the sciences was his First-Year Preceptorial, Creating Monsters, with Professor Brandon Polite ’03. David has been accepted to a Ph.D. chemistry program at Stony Brook University, which he plans to attend following his graduation in the spring.
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BREA CUNNINGHAM
Is there a professor or a class that you had that had a significant impact on your expereience? Sophomore year, I took Organic Chemistry. What I really got out of that class was learning reactions and predicting products. Professor Diana Cermak did a really good job of giving us the conceptual tools for figuring out what those products are going to be. And I started to really enjoy it. So after that, I was like, “I think I’m going to stop pre-med, and see if chemistry is a possible route.” For me, Cermak was a really big influence. After the class, I talked to her about possible research. From there, I saw her as guidance for graduate school. Tell us about your McNair research. The McNair staff not only care about you succeeding in college and with the research, but they also care about your personal growth. And especially after my experience doing research with Cermak, I thought it could be a pretty cool opportunity. As far as the research project goes, it was creating two new methods of synthesizing repaglinide, an anti-diabetic drug. I thought that was pretty cool, because it’s an application of those synthesis problems that I learned in Organic Chemistry. My job was a whole lot of looking up journal articles using Knox’s online database. After that whole experience, I started to realize that I am capable of doing quality research, and I’m capable of using the knowledge that I learned in chemistry to help others.
The South Lawn Spanish Students Translate Immigrant Testimony from Detention Centers
Sparks
BY SARAH LOHMANN ’21
properly transcribe them, it was necessary to listen to it multiple times," said Pineda. Even more difficult, though, was the emotional aspect of listening to people’s traumatic and heartbreaking experiences. “The things I heard on there were things I believe no human being should be forced to experience,” said Pineda. The recordings reported on the lack of medical resources, crowded conditions, and the absence of COVID-19 precautions within the center. Individuals also recounted details about a hunger strike and retaliation. “I know that the individuals in those audios have families, and I can't begin to imagine how it must feel for them to actually have their loved ones in those situations.” Ragan’s innovative approach to language learning is getting attention and acclaim from a wider audience. Late last year, she was selected for a Modern Languages Association Humanities Innovation Grant. In addition, the American Council for Teachers of Foreign Languages recently presented her with the Global Engagement Initiative Award, recognizing outstanding communityengaged learning experiences within the world languages curriculum. Ragan recently gave a virtual presentation to the Knox community about this type of work. “This will definitely be an experience that I will never forget and will consider one of my highlights from Knox,” said Pineda. “This project gave us the chance to actually make a difference.”
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Truly learning a language requires more than a knowledge of vocabulary and grammar—it’s learning how to use the language in real-world situations. That’s an essential part of Professor Robin Ragan’s Spanish 205 course, which last fall included a project translating audio testimonials from immigrants detained at the Otay Mesa Detention Center in California. Ashley Pineda ’22, one of the students who participated, said, “I chose Spanish 205 because as a first-generation immigrant child, I had a lot of experience translating for both my parents and grandparents. I also wanted to take this opportunity to get proper training in Spanish translation. When I enrolled in this course, I did not know what projects I would be participating in, but if I had known, I would have been that much more excited.” The experience proved to be more challenging than she and other students imagined when they started the course. The sound quality often was poor on the recordings, and some individuals spoke faster than others. “The audios were extremely hard to listen to, and in order to
“As a nation, we are at one of those points in history where we must decide which way our country will go. Let us
CHOOSE WISELY.” Burkhardt Distinguished Chair in History Konrad Hamilton speaking at Knox’s annual Martin Luther King Day Convocation, January 19, 2021
“Home is your place of comfort. Home is where you’re not scared to be you. Home is where you are free. Home is where you grow. This is
WHAT KNOX IS to many.” Student Senate President Oluwabamise Afolabi opening Knox’s annual Alumni Achievement Awards Ceremony, presented online on February 12, 2021
The US Postal Service persisted and I finally received my @KnoxCollege1837 Calendar!!! The first photo was of spools of thread in the beloved theater costume shop. I spent countless hours in that theater. #KnoxCollege
#THEATERGEEK #thesmallthings Nicole Havelka ’95 on Twitter, February 5, 2021
“I learned how to
EMBODY SOMEONE I felt I could not be, rather someone I did not know how to be.”
Prison educator Jon Gripshover ’06 on what he learned from studying acting
In 2017, students in Robin Ragan's SPAN 205 course enacted a simulated legal proceeding at the Knox County Courthouse, taking the roles of of interpreter, judge, jury, lawyer, and witnesses.
KNOX MAGAZINE Spring 2021 33
New Student Research Projects Funded by Richter Program For Anelisa Gamiz ’21, an anthropology and sociology major, Richter funding gave her access to primary source materials she needed for a project analyzing the effect of small-town jury trials on defendants of color. “My project focuses on Galesburg because small towns have fewer people and [less] diversity, meaning a jury composed of the surrounding community cannot be as equal,” she said. “I used a big part of my funding for court transcripts, which are pretty expensive, and I would not have been able to finance that on my own.” Sakrani and Gamiz are just two of 11 students who received funding during the fall 2020 term. Other projects include: • Janki Bhalodi ’21, “Characterizing the Requirement of Upregulated Genes for Proper Regeneration in Stentor Coeruleus” • Mussadiq Javed ’20, “Business Analysis at Baroque” • Riya Dahal ’21, “Changes in Alpha and Theta Oscillations by Focused-Attention and Open Monitoring Meditation” • Loislove Boakye ’21, “The Effects of Different Surgical Techniques on the Healing Process of Wound Closures in Carassius Auratus (Goldfishes)” • Keegan Proctor ’21, “Cold Stage SEM Analysis of the GBH-1 Protein Based Hydrogel” • Kelly Feng ’21, “Possible Modulation Effects of Bacopa monnieri on EAAT-3 in C6 Glioma Cell Culture” • Tina Jeon ’21, “Teachers’ Experience During / After the Pandemic: Comparison of America and South Korea” • Madelyn Turner ’21, “Open Studio Project” • Melissa Magana ’21, “Recognizing Perceived Care for Hispanic/Latinx Cancer Patients”
Go Figure
6,289 34 KNOX MAGAZINE Spring 2021
Tests administered (as of March 15, 2021)
52
Number of COVID-19 cases on campus during fall 2020
BREA CUNNINGHAM
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It’s no secret that independent research projects are one of the hallmarks of a Knox education. What may be surprising, however, is how much financial support is available to students pursuing this kind of work. Since 1995, the Paul K. Richter and Evalyn Elizabeth Cook Richter Memorial Funds, Bank of America, N.A., Trustee, have provided more than $1.3 million to support Knox College students “pursuing projects that foster independence of thought and expression beyond the classic classroom setting.” Grants have paid for student travel to conduct or present research, summer housing and internships, and even the purchase of material and supplies. For Ibrahim Sakrani ’21, Ibrahim Sakrani ’21 who is pursuing a double at Green Oaks. major in biology and environmental studies, Richter funding enabled him to purchase “camera traps”— motion-sensing cameras that automatically collect images of wildlife—to study coyotes and bobcats at Green Oaks and assess their population densities. “I was meant to conduct some sort of field research project while I was abroad in Tanzania last winter; however, I was unable to because of [the pandemic],” said Sakrani. “So, if I had not received Richter funding, I most likely would have had to pursue a different project or used a different technique to estimate populations. Data collection in the winter would not be as doable without the use of camera traps.”
The South Lawn Isaac Hughes ’21 Named Lincoln Laureate Photos from this year’s Lincoln Laureate presentation Knox may look a little different from previous years, but Isaac Hughes ’21 is the quintessential honoree. A double-major in environmental studies and philosophy from Vashon Island, Washington, Hughes is a member of the Prairie Fire cross country team, a Phi Beta Kappa member, plays on the Ultimate Frisbee team, has studied abroad in Chile, regularly works and volunteers at the Knox Farm, and participates in Students for Sustainability, Spanish Table lunch gatherings, and Knox theatrical productions. “Isaac is a surprising fellow,” read his nomination. “It seems that wherever you go on campus and sometimes off, Isaac pops up.” He is finishing his Knox career pursuing Honors research into the shortcoming of Illinois’s Livestock Facilities Management Act.
0.06%
COVID-19 test positivity rate when students returned to campus for the second half of winter term 2021
6
number of tents erected for outdoor classes (and other group events) during spring term
KNOX MAGAZINE Spring 2021 35
“It’s officially official”: Sigma Theta Nu Is K Student Organization
SHRUTI MUNGI '19
From left: Jade Carless ’23, Vanessa Jackson ’23, Khadijah Clark ’23, and Madison Sparks ’23 at a Diversity Dinner in early 2020.
Thanks to a student-led initiative, Knox will soon have a new campus sorority. Sigma Theta Nu, its organizers say, will offer a welcoming space for people of color, especially Black students. Founding members Madison Sparks, Jade Carless, and Khadijah Clark—all sophomores—say the idea to create Sigma Theta Nu developed from conversations involving about a half-dozen Knox students. All of them are in TRIO, all are first-generation college students, and all are Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC). “We felt like something on campus was missing,” Sparks recalled. The group decided that by founding a new Black-centered sorority at Knox, they could do more to promote Black culture and connection.
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Planning for the new sorority began in early 2020, with Sparks, Carless, Clark, and a few friends hosting a Diversity Dinner in the Hard Knox Cafe in early 2020 and talking with students to build support for starting the sorority. The group also started meeting regularly to help select Sigma Theta Nu’s colors (green and silver) and to write a mission statement. As part of their planning, the small group of students drafted an introductory letter to send to the Knox Student Senate and various College officials who would play a part in deciding whether the new sorority could be established. “African American men and women have a prominent history of conquering the challenges presented to them and, in
The South Lawn nox’s Newest
Fired Up / Burned Out Fired Up
establishing Sigma Theta Nu, we will create a new history,” the letter stated. “A history in which Black women are the administrators of their lives economically, politically, and socially, thus strengthening the community as a whole.” With the COVID-19 pandemic intensifying and students completing the academic year remotely, the team had to conduct much of the work via email, phone calls, and online chats. To win the consent of Knox faculty—a requirement for achieving recognition as a campus organization—they conducted a long-distance outreach campaign. “We did a lot of networking and promoting, expressing what we were trying to do and why it’s needed on campus,” said Spark. Preparing for approval “took the whole summer,” added Carless. “We worked on editing, coming up with plans, banking, fundraising, resources.” In November, all of those efforts paid off. After hearing a presentation by the sorority’s founders, Knox faculty members deliberated among themselves and formally approved the creation of Sigma Theta Nu. Sparks, Carless, and Clark were chatting online when they simultaneously received the email telling them the good news. They reacted with what Sparks described as “lots of screaming, lots of excitement, lots of texting friends and family members, saying: Hey, we did it! It’s officially official!” Clark recalls being "in disbelief." Carless also celebrated with her family and a special beverage. “My mom had this bottle of sparkling cider and she told us we couldn’t open it unless something exciting happened,” she said. “So I ran downstairs immediately after it happened and said, ‘We’ve got to open it. We need to open this right now.’” Now that Sigma Theta Nu is an official sorority, the founders are developing plans to recruit members. The ideal candidate, Carless said, is “someone who knows how to make a difference and wants to make a difference.” “We are three people who’ve seen that there was a need for change and we went for it,” she adds. “So of course, we want other people who are like us, but also have their own values that they can bring to the table, and somebody that we can learn from, and they can learn from us.”
Before you read this, get out your rabbit’s foot, cross your fingers, or knock on wood to prevent any jinxes: After nearly a full year, life is returning to something more like “normal” at Knox College. After conducting the first half of winter term remotely while COVID infection rates were at their highest, the College welcomed students back to campus in mid-February with just a single new case of COVID among them. Sports teams will compete for the first time since 2019. The Class of 2021 will get to walk across a stage to receive their diplomas in June. And though it will look different, Flunk Day—on campus!—will be happening.
Smoldering Zoom fatigue is real. We’ve all gotten better at managing our onscreen appearance and remembering to mute when we’re not speaking, but you can be forgiven if you’re ever tempted to freeze mid-sentence and pretend that your connection has timed out. Still, the widespread adoption of videoconferencing has led to innovations that are likely here to stay. Alumni who typically live too far away to attend Homecoming have told us they loved being able to reconnect remotely in fall 2020. Virtual events, including lectures from faculty members including Ole Forsberg (statistics) and Professor Emeritus Lance Factor, regularly draw sizable audiences. It may also enable Knox to work with faculty and staff based outside Galesburg in the future. Here’s hoping that when videoconferencing is no longer the only option, we’ll continue to take advantage of the opportunities it offers.
Probably every person reading this? It’s been a hard year, from the pandemic and its attendant financial hardship to the regular reminders that we still have a long way to go in the fight for racial justice. Congratulations for making it through—and let’s remember to take care of each other. KNOX MAGAZINE Spring 2021 37
A Socially Distant String Ensemble The scene: Kresge Recital Hall. Onstage, seven students—all wearing masks—make last-minute tuning adjustments before rehearsal. Professor Pierce Gradone, interim director of the Knox String Ensemble, stands on the edge of the stage looking over a particularly tricky section of “Les Cinq Doigts” by Igor Stravisnky. Gradone’s dog, an old beagle named Marlyn, finds a cozy spot between the rows of empty seats for a quick nap. This is the Knox String Ensemble, reconfigured for pandemic conditions. The six feet of space between each member of the ensemble presents unique musical challenges, their repertoire is demanding, and they’ve only got 30 minutes of rehearsal time a week to learn it. But they’re all here, and they’re ready to play. For Gradone, though he has participated in countless ensembles, this has been his first time actually directing one. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the ensemble —which has typically consisted of both Knox and Monmouth College students under the direction of Monmouth’s Carolyn Suda (who also teaches cello at Knox)—is made up of Knox students exclusively. It also features some uncommon instrumentation: one violin, two violas, two cellos, and two basses. (Traditionally, as with a string quartet, violins are the predominant instrument in a string ensemble.) Because there are hardly any pieces written for this collection of musicians, Gradone has adapted by arranging piano works by Hungarian composer Béla Bartók and Russian composer Igor Stravinsky for stringed instruments. “In doing so, I was hoping to introduce the students to music of the 20th century, as well as provide a chance to incorporate some of the contemporary playing techniques that these composers used in their music,” he said. This new ensemble experience has done wonders for students like Sarah Borchert ’24. As a first-year student—and as the only violinist in the group—Borchert initially felt timid about playing with the ensemble. However, the environment cultivated by Gradone and the other students gave her the confidence to take on the challenge. “The dynamic of the group as a whole is really supportive. You don’t have to worry about making mistakes because we all make them; we all just want to have fun and make music.” Bassist Wesley Breyer ’21 believes the ensemble has offered a sense of serenity that would otherwise be difficult to come
38 KNOX MAGAZINE Spring 2021
BY SAM BEEM ’20
ABOVE (from left): Bassist Theresa Matlak ’23, violinist Sarah Borchert ’24, viola players Shannon Hall ’22 and Diego Gutierrez ’22, and bassist Wesley Breyer ’21. The string ensemble features a nontraditional collection of instruments: two bass, two cellos, two violas, and only a single violin. RIGHT: Cellists Kendra Noyes ’23 and Sahani Giri ’22, with bassist Wesley Breyer in the background.
by during this time. “Even if there is no one there to listen, musicians play for a variety of reasons: to express emotions, to find peace, and to understand a little more—both in ourselves and outside ourselves. When we are able to play with others, we share this: bringing everyone together.” Borchert agrees. “All of my classes are via Zoom, so rehearsals are one of the only times I get to see people that I wouldn’t normally see face-to-face. “Music is like therapy for me. It is hard being a college student, especially during a pandemic, but playing my violin gives me an escape.” Gradone emphasized his admiration of the students’ professionalism and musicality. “One of the biggest reasons that I volunteered to continue the String Ensemble is that we have many talented string players at Knox this year, and I really wanted to give them a chance to make music with their peers.”
The South Lawn
KENT KRIEGSHAUSER
Mirza Jazz Residency Goes Virtual for 2021 The Jerome Mirza Jazz Residency traditionally brings top jazz musicians to the Knox College campus for workshops, lessons, and a concert with students. This year, the entire Knox community can enjoy the event. "KeyNotes: Knox College presents the Jerome Mirza Virtual Jazz Residency" spotlights seven different musical artists from across the globe in free online events for both Knox students and the general public. A committee, including Knox students, Associate Professor of Music and Residency Artistic Director Nikki Malley ’98, and Managing Director of the Knox Jazz Year Andy Crawford ’00, reviewed a total of 52 submissions from accomplished jazz musicians to develop this year’s lineup. The Mirza Jazz Residency is funded by the Jerome Mirza Foundation of Bloomington, Illinois. The foundation, which supports programs in education and the arts, was created by a bequest from Jerome Mirza, an attorney who served as president of the Illinois State Bar Association and Illinois Trial Lawyers Association and who wrote several books on personal injury law. Mirza’s daughter, Candace Mirza of Wilmette, Illinois, is a 1981 Knox graduate.
KENT KRIEGSHAUSER
Camila Meza presents “Storytelling Through Music”
Allison Miller presents “Creative Making RIGHT NOW!” Sunday, February 21, 2021, available to watch at youtube.com/knoxcollege Fabian Almazan presents “Developing a Voice: Approaches to Self-Teaching” Sunday, March 7, 2021, available to watch at youtube.com/knoxcollege Nduduzo Makhathini presents “Improvisation in Jazz as Divination: A (South) African Context” Sunday, March 27, 2021, available to watch at youtube.com/knoxcollege Ulysses Owens Jr. presents “The Musician’s Career Guide: Turning Your Talent Into Sustained Success” Sunday, April 11, 2021 available to watch at youtube.com/knoxcollege
Sunday, January 24, 2021, available to watch at youtube.com/knoxcollege
Jeremy Cunningham presents “Breaking Down the Fourth Wall”
Amir ElSaffar presents “Beyond the Other Shore—Transcultural Music Making”
Sunday, May 2, 2021, 3 p.m. CDT The Weather Up There, in concert, Sunday May 16, 2021, 4 p.m.
Sunday, January 31, 2021, available to watch at youtube.com/knoxcollege
Visit knox.edu/jazzyear to learn more about the artists. KNOX MAGAZINE Spring 2021 39
First Impressions “One summer night in 1845 thirteen slaves escaped from a plantation in northern Kentucky and ran for the Ohio River, led by Louis Talbert.” Opening sentence of Robert H. Churchill’s The Underground Railroad and the Geography of Violence in Antebellum America (Cambridge University Press) The research of Owen Muelder ’63, director of the Knox College Underground Freedom Railroad Center, served as a significant resource in the writing of Churchill’s book, which examines differing regional attitudes toward enforcement of the Fugitive Slave Act. Churchill interviewed Muelder in Galesburg several years ago and worked in the Seymour Library archives. They have also appeared together on conference panels in the United States and Canada to discuss their scholarship on the Underground Railroad.
Looking Back on the Fa Paul W. Werth ’90, a history professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, is the author of the newly released 1837: Russia’s Quiet Revolution, published by Oxford University Press. By coincidence, of course, that is the same year as the founding of Knox College. Werth refers to Knox in the book’s preface, pointing out that 1837 marked the founding of both his alma mater and the city of Chicago, near his hometown of Evanston, Illinois. Werth also is the author of The Tsar’s Foreign Faiths: Toleration and the Fate of Religious Freedom in Imperial Russia and At the Margins of Orthodoxy: Mission, Governance, and Confessional Politics in Russia's Volga-Kama Region, 1827–1905.
At what point did you realize the coincidence involving the year 1837? I don’t think it was quite immediate. I started out with this book idea that the 1830s were really important for Russian history. Most people don’t realize this. The period of 1836 to 1839 was a period I thought was filled with all kinds of interesting episodes that have long-term consequences. But I figured for the purposes of marketing, I had to choose one year. The death of Russia’s greatest poet, Alexander Pushkin, who was killed in a romantic duel in January 1837, suggested to me that that was the year I should go with. I think I had to come down on that particular year, as opposed to one of the years immediately adjacent to it, before I could make that connection. But then I did. I think I asked myself: Wasn’t Knox founded in 1837, too? These are utterly and completely unrelated things, and yet at the same time they’re just fun to think about.
We know why 1837 is important for Knox. Can you boil down why is it important for Russia? What I try to suggest in the book is that there are a whole lot of really, really interesting and consequential things that are unfolding in the 1830s, more generally, and that by looking at 1837, we see how they kind of congeal and gel. We see many points of birth, you could say, many moments of origin. We can go down a very brief list: the death of Pushkin, which creates the conditions for a new cult of Pushkin which in some sense exists to this day; the first steam railway appears in Russia in 1837; a decree that basically led to the creation of the provincial press in Russia. 40 KNOX MAGAZINE Spring 2021
Knox Writes teful Year of 1837 For me, the confirmation that 1837 needed to be the year that I focused on, rather than, say, 1836 or 1838, was that the Winter Palace, which was the residence of the Romanov dynasty in St. Petersburg, burned in a fantastic fire in 1837. What was really striking was that the palace was completely reconstructed over the course of just 15 months—very rapidly. One of the greatest art museums in the world is the so-called Hermitage Museum, a state museum in St. Petersburg. The Hermitage was an appendix, you could say, to the palace. That was saved from the fire. The whole thing now is known as the Hermitage Museum. That museum you visit today is the one that was reconstructed in 1838 and 1839. What I try to argue, basically, in the book is that 1837 is the year in which Russia entered the modern age. It’s a bit of an overstatement. It’s obviously an exaggeration. It involves some stretching and pulling here and there, but the larger point is that Russia as we know it, many of its attributes appear or at least become visible to us in 1837. The tagline, if you will, is that to understand Russia, you really have to comprehend the year 1837. Mild exaggeration, but I think actually, ultimately, it’s true. The larger point is there are a whole series of remarkable, unique events that signal Russia’s entry into the modern age.
Books by Members of the Knox Community How to Exterminate the Black Woman PANK Books, 2020 Monica Prince ’12 Prince’s choreopoem casts a literary spell as it illuminates the struggle of the Black woman trying to thrive in a society seeking to consume and erase her. By utilizing chanted sestinas, yoga-inspired dances, and more, How to Exterminate the Black Woman confronts readers and audiences with the terrors and triumphs that mark Black women in the United States.
Ekstase und Elend: Deutsche Kulturgeschichte 1900 bis heute (Ecstasy and Misery: German Cultural History 1900 to today) Hackett Publishing, 2020 Todd Heidt, Claudia Kost, and Emre Sencer Knox faculty members Heidt (associate professor of Modern Languages–German) and Sencer (associate professor of history) teamed up with University of Alberta’s Kost on this German-language intermediate/advanced textbook for German studies courses. The book presents the cultural history of German-speaking Europe from roughly 1900 to now, offering the necessary historical, political, and social context.
KNOX MAGAZINE Spring 2021 41
Knox Writes Making School Integration Work: Lessons from Morris Teachers College Press, 2020 Paul Tractenberg, Allison Roda, Ryan Coughlan, Deirdre Dougherty Dougherty, assistant professor of educational studies, co-authored this exploration of the story of two New Jersey school districts—one a predominantly white and wealthy suburban community and the other a more diverse and urbanized community. They combined into a single district to work toward a solution to school segregation, and the authors focus on how the merged district succeeded.
Understanding Elections through Statistics: Polling, Prediction, and Testing Chapman & Hall/CRC Press, 2020 Ole J. Forsberg Based on his research into what citizens can learn from claimed election polls and from claimed election results, Forsberg, assistant professor of mathematics-statistics, wrote this book to help people become better informed about polls. He explores the subject from two points of view: predicting the election outcome using opinion polls and testing the election outcome using government-reported data.
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Imagine the Dog Texas Review Press, 2021 Cecilia Pinto Harriman ’81 Winner of the Clay Reynolds novella contest, Imagine the Dog centers on the personal journey of Ricky Rudolph, who comes to believe that he is supposed to help others by impersonating Jesus. Financial, romantic, and family challenges complicate his life.
Vulnerable Constitutions: Queerness, Disability, and the Remaking of American Manhood Temple University Press, 2019 Cynthia Barounis ’03 Recipient of the National Women’s Studies Association’s 2020 Alison Piepmeier Book Prize, Barounis’s book presents an alternative queercrip genealogy of American masculinity in the 20th century. She examines the writing of Jack London, William Faulkner, and others in an evolving narrative of medicalized sexuality and anti-prophylactic masculinity.
Class Knox
Flashback Social Distancing at Pumphandle? One Knox tradition that has not yet made the transition to the COVID-19 era is Pumphandle. Maybe we can take inspiration from this historic Pumphandle, when an enterprising young student brought an actual pump handle to the event for other students to “shake.” Do you know when this particular Pumphandle occurred? Can you identify the two students grasping the pump handle? Let us know at knoxmag@knox.edu. KNOX MAGAZINE Spring 2021 43
Alumni News KnoXplorations Connect Students with Alumni for “Micro-internships” Students seeking additional experience to build out their professional resumes, grow their networks, and find future professional references have a new option: KnoXplorations connects students with alumni on short-term but realworld work experiences. "These alumni have often traveled the same Knox path [as the student]," said Scott Crawford, executive director of the Bastian Family Center for Career Success. “We let the students and alumni work out the details of the projects, which involved design, writing, marketing, and social media consulting in a variety of fields.” Shuchita Poddar ’22 completed a KnoXplorations project as a digital marketing strategist for Mend Body Professionals with co-owner Casey Gatz '05. “Casey Gatz and I would meet weekly to talk about the progress and what new ideas we have,” she said. “I drafted a social media calendar for one year and organized and planned posts on Instagram and Facebook, keeping in mind the audience’s interest in the particular month.” Poddar, a creative writing major, works as a social media assistant in the Office of Communications at Knox, so she had quite a bit of experience in the field already. “I love curating graphics and playing around with words and colors, and the KnoXplorations project
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SHUCHITA PODDAR ’22
BY SARAH LOHMANN ’21
gave me complete freedom to do so, which helped me learn more about the different software I use,” she said. After completing the project, Poddar was offered a paid position at Mend. Another KnoXplorations participant, Frances Santiago ’21, noted that her interview with Brian Tanaka ’15 was refreshing. “It set the tone for the rest of the project.” Santiago worked in communications at REAL Star Property Management. “It’s not always easy to find correlations in what you’ve learned and real life but through this opportunity, I gained experience in doing just that. It was extremely satisfying to see those skills and concepts actually having application in real life,” said Santiago, who studies business and management. “This has been a great motivator for pushing me to think more critically about what I am learning and daring me to
apply them to other situations.” “I was tremendously impressed with our student,” said Kyle Dinse ’17, whose startup worked with Rocky Myers ’21, a classics major. “They did an exceptional job, and really helped to finalize our art direction for the project,” he said. “The program was a wonderful way to connect Knox students with alumni, and show them different aspects of various alumni projects.” At this time, KnoXplorations is a pilot initiative. The career center will be taking the feedback from alumni and students to create a more robust, structured program. If any students or alumni are interested in a future KnoXplorations project, they are welcome to contact the career center at careers@knox.edu. More details on the expanded KnoXplorations program will be announced later in 2021.
Class Knox Birthday Greetings from Carolyn Swartz Park ’55 She’s mailed more than 30,000 cards to fellow alumni since 1998 BY JAN WOLBERS
Birthday greetings from the Fifty Year Club! As you are celebrating your birthday, the Knox campus is busy as the students are moving into their dorms to start the fall term. So begins another Fifty Year Club (FYC) birthday postcard written by Carolyn Swartz Park ’55. Each year, she addresses, writes, and mails birthday postcards to all members of the FYC, which includes alumni who attended Knox 50 or more years ago. Carolyn began this task in 1998, seven years before she became a member of the FYC herself. As graduating classes have gotten bigger, so has the task. Carolyn only started keeping count of the postcards she sends in 2013, when she mailed 1,490. In 2020, she sent out 2,139 cards—nearly six a day. She estimates she has likely sent more than 30,000 birthday greetings over the years, each handwritten and addressed, with a personal update about Knox: The football team won their season opener! Or: Graduation was held last weekend, and 300 students walked across the stage. Carolyn took over the task when former FYC director Gail Youngren, Lombard Class of 1927, broke her leg—and kept going. She works backwards from each FYC member’s birthday to determine when each card must be mailed, and she knows that “It typically takes two days for one to get to Chicago and five days to either coast.” For many years until his death, Carolyn’s husband, Earl, helped her by making daily trips to the post office to mail the day’s letters. Even though she now must make those trips herself and finds this the hardest part of the whole process, she has no intention of stopping until she can do it no longer. Because she has arthritis in her hands, she acknowledges that a computer would make the task quicker and easier, but she plans to keep handwriting each card. She believes that doing so much writing helps to keep her joints limber. (“It’s therapeutic,” she says.) More than that, though, Carolyn believes in the beauty of a handwritten note. “I have always been a letter writer,” she said. “I had penpals growing up, and I still send long letters to friends and Knox classmates.” She knows that the Knox alumni who receive her cards truly appreciate the extra time and care. She regularly receives grateful responses, such as a note from Jane Ann Scott Bradbury ’60 last summer. “What a joy to receive my annual birthday greeting from Carolyn Park, still writing for the FYC. She amazes me!!!!” Knox recognized Carolyn with a Knox Service Award in 2008. While she was surprised and honored, she does not send the birthday cards for the accolades. She continues to send thousands of cards because, she says, “It kept me busy after I retired from teaching, and I like keeping alumni connected to the College. I’m a proud Knox graduate. And, there’s just something special about Knox.”
Knox Recognizes Notable Alumni at Homecoming 2020 While the pandemic disrupted Knox’s usual on-campus Homecoming celebration, the College was still able to recognize several individuals for their accomplishments, teamwork, and service during its virtual celebration.
2020 Knox Service Award Winners • Jun Adachi ’81 • Wendy Scherwat Ducourneau ’72 • Esther Wilson ’99
2020 Knox-Lombard Athletic Hall of Fame Inductees • Mary Whiteside Groll '92 • Joe Metzka '96 • Derek Mortensen '14 • Michael Smith '96
2020 Scroll of Honor Recipients • Holly Thompson Nelson ’68 • Margie Thomas Mason ’69 Knox thanks everyone who submitted nominations for these awards. Nominate a deserving friend or classmate! Visit www.knox.edu/nominate or contact alumni programs at 888-566-9265 or email alumni@knox.edu.
KNOX MAGAZINE Spring 2021 45
Bob Rothe ’56 spent the pandemic months writing a draft submission of a
We are Knox. You are, too.
1940–1941
1954
Barbara Young celebrated her 100th birthday in October 2020 by writing an essay about her life, her work, and her art. The essay includes photos she has asked a friend to carefully take and frame. Class Correspondent: Megan Clayton Knox College, Box K-210, 2 East South Street, Galesburg, IL 61401, 309-341-7476, pclayton@knox.edu
I have not heard much news from the Class of 1954, but I’ve kept in touch with several Knox friends from other classes. ❯ Jim Biery ’53 continues his long career in journalism which included writing for Xinhua, the international news service of People’s Republic of China. For the last two decades, Jim has edited China Call Report, a quarterly in English and Chinese editions, published by Royal Roots Global, Inc., based in Chicago with offices in Beijing and Hong Kong. Royal Roots focuses on U.S.-China business activities and provides cross-border strategies to U.S. and China companies. ❯ Ed Montgomery ’55 had a trying experience to begin 2021 when his email account was invaded and his entire address book stolen, the thief attempting to convince Ed’s contacts to use their Amazon accounts to make expensive fraudulent purchases. After several hours trying to reach a “human,” Ed finally got the problem corrected with a technician for his email provider. ❯ While hunkered down and aging in place, I have attempted scholarly research on the question of who has been the worst U.S. president ever. I’ve read the biographies and histories of 20 presidents, from Washington through Nixon, including Robert Caro’s several thousand pages (in four volumes) on Lyndon Johnson and omitting some of the lesser-knowns, but including Bob Woodward’s work on Trump. All had some imperfections, and, at least before suddenly being thrust into the office, LBJ could equal Trump in being rude, crude, and lewd. But no president has ever matched Trump in constantly and repeatedly lying. And if I had any doubt as to which was worst, Trump’s postelection actions clearly give him the title of worst ever. Class Correspondent: Jim Dunlevey 27419 Embassy Street, Menifee, CA 92586-2005, dunlevey@aol.com
1942–1947 Class Correspondent: Megan Clayton Knox College, Box K-210, 2 East South Street, Galesburg, IL 61401, 309-341-7476, pclayton@knox.edu
1948 Whether you attended Knox for one year, two years, or graduated with honors, you are a Knox alumnus/a. You are the best reflection of Knox College and the education it provides. So, keep us informed. Tell us what you’ve been up to, if you’ve been promoted or honored, or simply say hello. Here’s how: • Contact your Class Correspondent; • If you don’t have a correspondent, email, call, or “snail mail” us directly (see below); • Or have other media sources send us press releases, articles, and publicity. Please send information about births, marriages, and deaths directly to: Alumni Records Knox College, Box K-230 Galesburg, IL 61401-4999 Email: records@knox.edu Send all other updates, correspondence, or questions to: Jennifer Gallas Class Notes Coordinator, Knox Magazine Knox College, Box K-315 Galesburg, IL 61401-4999 Email: jgallas@knox.edu Please note that Class Notes may be edited for space.
46 KNOX MAGAZINE Spring 2021
Knox Magazine is sad to report that longtime Class of 1948 correspondent Sidney Norris died in November 2020 at the age of 95. We are grateful for his long service to the College, and we will miss his entertaining—and always promptly submitted—columns. We invite his classmates to continue to share their news with Megan Clayton. Class Correspondent: Megan Clayton Knox College, Box K-210, 2 East South Street, Galesburg, IL 61401, 309-341-7476, pclayton@knox.edu
1949–1950 Class Correspondent: Megan Clayton Knox College, Box K-210, 2 East South Street, Galesburg, IL 61401, 309-341-7476, pclayton@knox.edu
1951 Jay Burgess and his wife, Shay, are enjoying life in a Florida senior center. They stream their church meetings and keep in touch with family and friends via Zoom. He sends his best to all his classmates. Class Correspondent: Megan Clayton Knox College, Box K-210, 2 East South Street, Galesburg, IL 61401, 309-341-7476, pclayton@knox.edu
1952 Class Correspondent: Megan Clayton Knox College, Box K-210, 2 East South Street, Galesburg, IL 61401, 309-341-7476, pclayton@knox.edu
1953 From Audrae Norris Gruber: “Fond memories of Knox College Choir. We met after lunch almost daily and gave concerts locally as well as traveling to other communities. A great group of singers and soloists. Wonderful life experience.” Class Correspondent: Audrae Norris Gruber 2419 Woodridge Lane Brainerd MN 56401-5533, Aaudraepaul@aol.com
1955 Thanks to you Siwashers who responded to my call for news. Of course with the pandemic, none of us are going much of anywhere or doing much of anything, For that reason I’m not sure how many classmates will be reading this offering, but another reason is that the two previous issues of Knox Magazine have been online-only, and I’m almost sure there are many of us who don’t “do” online stuff. Hey—we’re on the shady side of our 80s! ❯ Tony Liberta has a great suggestion: Those of us who are “nurses” and caregivers should engage in a combined authorship of a booklet entitled Tales and Tips of Amateur Home Nurses. His experience has been helping Sue after surgeries and dealing with her Alzheimer’s.Tony, along with many of us, was sorry to miss our 65th Homecoming—seeing friends and “soaking up the beauty of the Knox campus in October.” ❯
Class Knox professional mathematics paper with some interesting revelations. Under my inexperienced and ignorant home nursing, Bud Wharton is doing better. We’re not sure he will ever be totally released from his feeding tube, but he can be “sprung” four hours a day; he takes a walk and does exercises. He has a great attitude which helps us both cope. Our daughter and husband had mild cases of COVID and are fully recovered. ❯ George Elliott is remarkable—recovering from open heart surgery, still working, staying safe, and keeping his business doing well. ❯ Carolyn Swartz Park is still remembering all our birthdays (a labor of love) in spite of several challenges in her life. ❯ Mort Weir and Ceil moved in May from Illinois to Green Valley, Arizona, with a beautiful view of the mountains. They are changing many things in their new home but not that. ❯ Russ Fuiks and Jan got in a trip to Dana Point in Southern California, whale and dolphin watching, just before the virus hit. Lately, because their two boys live nearby, they have enjoyed family gatherings, social distancing in their backyard. ❯ Al and Barb Behringer Paulus ’56 signed in “feeling fine” after both having been in the hospital with the virus. Barb’s case wasn’t as severe as Al’s, but even a mild case is very scary. After recovery, they took a trip to the Grand Canyon and stayed at el Tovar Hotel. Al goes to University of Arizona basketball and softball games, works on the family genealogy, and enjoys hiking. It’s good to know the virus didn’t slow them down a bit. ❯ Ending on a positive note, Gail Holmes Curtis writes that this is a year to celebrate the little things. She and Don Curtis ’53 welcomed their fourth great-grandchild, Elaine (Ellie) Rose Curtis. Ellie’s big brother, Miles, and parents, Dr. Danny and Kate, are at Stanford University, where Danny has a year’s fellowship in sports medicine. He completed a five-year residency in orthopedic surgery at the University of Chicago. Gail and Don spent their first summer in their “little” house on Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, after downsizing from their home of 57 years in Flossmoor, Illinois, and report it is a perfect fit. Don has turned a portion of the garage into a workshop and Gail has a top notch kitchen overlooking the lake. ❯ Wally, aka Walter, Larkin and Sue sadly have had their usual travels curtailed. Their Christmas card sent greetings from their “quaranteam” to yours. One of the highlights of the year was their 40th wedding anniversary, and another is Sue’s new career as Wally’s personal barber…a far cry from her usual job description as a surgeon. Let’s hope Wally can be back in the barber shop and they can be back on the road (or in the sky) soon. ❯ That is all the news that’s fit to print or that I have received. Please wear a mask and be safe. Class Correspondent: Dorothy Thomas Wharton 3511 S.E. Fairway West, Stuart, FL 34997-6033, 772-220-9433, dtwharton33@gmail.com
1956
1957
And the pandemic lives on! From the dearth of class news, it appears that everyone is following good medical advice and staying safely home, passing time collecting the latest fashionable masks required for rare ventures out in the world. Whoever would have thought we’d be so eager to see a vaccine? ❯ Stan Anton and wife Jenny report that they enjoyed a truly beautiful Oregon summer once the rains stopped in late spring. Daughter Georgina became engaged to be married, and the wedding took place with a minimum number of guests on August 8. It was followed by a magical reception at Menucha, a Presbyterian church retreat and conference center in the spectacular Columbia River Gorge. After months of living in Airbnbs, Georgina and husband have purchased a house. All this makes us old-timers feel blessed and thankful for the good things in life, according to Jenny and Stan. ❯ Bob and Judy Bowers Rothe ’58 have moved from their home of 55 years into a large retirement community, kept free of the virus by 500 people complying with public health recommendations. You may remember that Bob was faced with dismantling his 73-year-long construction of a huge model railroad. He separated the layout into individual pieces, enclosed them for protection, and distributed them to three local Colorado families who have declared their intention to reassemble their portions as closely as possible to the configuration in which he had built it. A website, yampavalleyrailroad.wordpress.com, has saved it for posterity. Bob has spent the pandemic months writing a draft submission of a professional mathematics paper that presents some interesting, never-before-published-anywhere revelations. Bob has communicated with the Knox math department about this. He will be happy to share this draft document with other “math nerds” via email: bobrothe1957@gmail.com. This project kept him from feeling oppressed by the pandemic or other disasters surrounding our country today. ❯ Jonathan Schneider ‘21, a senior from Wood Dale, Illinois, is the recipient of the Class of 1956 Scholarship. Jon is majoring in psychology, with a minor in neuroscience. He has been named a member of the Psi Chi Honor Society in recognition of his academic achievement in psychology. He was also inducted into the Nu Rho Psi National Honor Society in neuroscience. Jon has been on the Dean’s List for the past three years and is certainly worthy of our support. The award is in the amount of $3,328; the fund balance on June 30 was $74,637. ❯ We can hope that life will be more “normal” by the next time there is a request for class news! Meanwhile, stay safe and healthy—and pray for a happier 2021. Class Correspondent: Ricky Jung Schwarzler 854 Cessna Street, Independence OR 97351, schwarzler@msn.com
It was so good to hear from several members of the Class of 1957. Louise Shreves Renwick wrote to say she missed receiving the fall issue of Knox Magazine and that she was looking forward to the Knox calendar. ❯ Homer Johnson reports that the pandemic “interrupted his regular Wednesday lunches at the Greek Isles with Nick Panos.” Nick is a prominent Chicago attorney who recently retired. They are occasionally joined by Jim Spachman, Bob Wallace ’58, Frank Stanicek, and Art Carlson. The latter two were the starting halfbacks on Knox’s 1956 championship football team, and they look as if they could start again in the fall. Frank and wife Gretchen Haas ’58 have two sons who both played major-league baseball. WOW, what genes! Art introduced pizza to Galesburg (1956 at Pauling’s?) and later owned a three-star restaurant in Lake Barrington. Jim spends his free time playing cards with his buddy, Mike Ditka. Bob continues to write his popular nationally syndicated newspaper column. Homer also keeps in touch with June Lynch Bath who lives in Canton, Illinois, and with Ann Elwert Blum in Denton, Texas. Both are well and are “as good-looking as they were as Knox co-eds.” ❯ Casey Martin Clark writes that she and her daughter live in their own pandemic bubble, even though they have separate residences. They again enjoyed time at their cabin in the Sierra Mountains this past summer. Casey said she is mostly staying home, writing some poetry, and reading a lot, most recently Cicero’s essays. She says, “The ones on old age and friendship are so modern, although my best and forever lesson on friendship was Knox friends who I love to this day.” ❯ It was great to hear from Dick Whitcomb early in the new year. He mentioned that the Class of 1957 column was not as long as some of the classes, and he thought he would help out by sharing some news. While he and wife Joan Whitney Whitcomb ’56 have not been world travelers lately, they do spend time each spring and summer at their home in Michigan, as well as at their farm in Southern Georgia. Joan has Alzheimer’s disease, but she has full-time help at home who provide her with care as well as with interesting activities and outings to keep her involved. When they are in Atlanta, Dick works in his office at the Southern Wall Products “mud” plant. While he sold his shares in Gypsum Management & Supply Company, he kept the Southern Wall plant, which he started in 1970, and which is a subsidiary company of Gypsum Management. Dick is also still heavily involved in the sizable family business which includes golf courses, warehouse storage projects, investment accounts, and land developments. Class Correspondent: Megan Clayton Knox College, Box K-210, 2 East South Street, Galesburg, IL 61401, 309-341-7476, pclayton@knox.edu
KNOX MAGAZINE Spring 2021 47
“What better place to hide out during a pandemic than Neponset,
1958 George Matthes and wife Lynn Richardson Matthes ’59 report that they have moved again. They are now happily ensconced with family in Evergreen, Colorado, but made a quick trip last fall to the family cottage in Wisconsin, where they generally spend the summer. ❯ Letitia Luther Schactner is recovering from a shoulder injury. She reports that she is doing well and that rehab is helping regain her strength and motion. Sadly, she lost her husband, Norbert ‘Nubs’ Schactner ’55, last September. ❯ Mary Ann Jalovich Gleason said she has lived on the Magnificent Mile in Chicago for more than 30 years. She says looting and rioting last spring and summer made the city a fearful place to live. She looks forward to finally getting away from Chicago for some traveling once the threat of coronavirus has diminished. ❯ Here’s a great note from Bob Borzello: “Anyone who read the Fall Class Notes where I said I was going to write a family history for my grandchildren probably thought, Sure, Bob, and pigs can fly. Well, I am up to 255 pages with another 50 to 75 to go. I recommend it as you find out things about your parents and yourself that you didn’t know. Who needs a therapist?! I sometimes lie down on the sofa, turn the lights off with the fire on, look at the ceiling, and just remember. You will be surprised how one memory will snag another that you’d completely forgotten. I write in specific chapters, e.g. Mother, Immigrant Relatives, Work, Houses I Lived In, Being Italian. Eventually, I will edit them all together. I have family photos going back to the 1910s so my daughter will make a photo scrapbook to go with it. My sister has collected my mother’s favourite recipes so they will be included, too. Give it a go!” ❯ John Norton spent the late fall in Mesa, Arizona. He and Janet planning to travel to Europe as soon as they can do so safely. ❯ From Mike and Pat Craig Ruffolo, “Life here is much the same. We feel fortunate to be healthy and share visits with family and friends as appropriately allowed. Once all the California fires were under control, we were able to continue to take advantage of outdoor activities. We often meet friends in a nearby park for a lunch visit, followed by a good walk and conversation. Drives to the ocean are favorite outings, and spots like Lake Tahoe and Yosemite, too, when not closed per COVID guidelines. We wholeheartedly identified with Bob Borzello’s comments about getting affairs in order. Mike and I are both all over that, and going through photographs, neglected closets, etc. It seems to be never-ending. In May, 2021, we will have lived in this house for 50 years. We plan to resume some travel when it is advisable. Until then, reading, gardening, and Zooming qualify as major activities. Last month, I found Fareed Zakaria’s Ten Lessons for a Post-Pandemic World very interesting. Knox alumni might also enjoy In Defense of a Liberal Education, published in 2015.
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Not long ago, Mike got out his saxophone to play ‘Happy Birthday’ for a friend and now he gets frequent requests for it from friends and neighbors. He recently mastered ‘God Bless America’ and ‘My Country ’Tis of Thee.’ Maybe he’ll get a dance band going again!! I am sure some of our classmates will remember when his group played for many dances and events on campus.” Class Correspondent: Megan Clayton Knox College, Box K-210, 2 East South Street, Galesburg, IL 61401, 309-341-7476, pclayton@knox.edu
1959 I’d like to thank Louise Bost Wolf for her years trying to keep our class connected, many Sunday Reunion brunches, and all her participation in the various Knox alumni events. Louise is putting away her pens, pencils, papers, and has retired to a more relaxing life. ❯ I am not replacing Louise, just trying to gather news for the 1959 Class Notes. I’ll be shooting out emails and would appreciate replies. Any information will be greatly accepted. ❯ Heard from Paul Hohe and wife Elva—the California smoke has been tolerable except for a few days. We did not talk about COVID-19! They still do their daily twomile walk. Fortunately for the Hohes, they have sold the Chicago condo, and California is now their permanent residence—grandchildren are keeping them in California. Since July, Elva has been working for the census. ❯ Barbara Fowler Nagel emailed that Karl Nagel ’60 has a serious health problem and is in full care, and he still looks great—Karl always was a handsome guy. Their three children and families live within six blocks of her and offer great support. ❯ Georgia Raft Souris and husband Pete love Arizona, and the heat does not bother them. They were staying active, now that COVID keeps them very close to their home. Pete is marking time until he has knee surgery. Their two sons, one in Arkansas and one in Connecticut, are working from home. I asked Georgia about her email address ithaki1@q.com. She explained that Ithaki is the Greek island where her father was born. It is a mountainous island located in the Ionian Sea. A bit of interesting geography, a class no longer taught to our children. ❯ I had a long conversation with Jan Shroyer. She and her dog have moved to Winston-Salem, North Carolina, from Michigan. Jan has kept her small vacation home in Northern Michigan; she says summers are very hot in North Carolina. Since 1959, she has lived and taught math in Michigan. We laughed about the trip we took after graduation, east to Quebec, west to Michigan, in her green stick-shift Chevrolet. I drove the highways since I did not know how to drive a stick shift! Jan taught me as I was getting onto the expressway— pedals, shift, gas—chugging, bumping along, with very happy male drivers behind me. ❯ Have a happy and healthy 2021.
Class Correspondent: Conny Tozer 11125 Thyme Dr, Palm Beach Gardens FL 33418-3528, connytozer@yahoo.com
1960 Four cheers for our virtual 60th Class Reunion, one for each of us four participants: Host Robert Hajostek and three Cincinnatians—Chuck Dunn, Mary Lu Hudson Aft, and me. Mary Kent Knight hoped to reune with us but was among those giving surprise tributes to President Teresa Amott in celebration of her final Homecoming as the 19th President of the College. Robert’s Pleasant Hill, California, experiences clearing wildfire ash off of his car each morning highlighted the conversation. Infectious disease specialist Chuck shared COVID-19 science with us, while Mary Lu and I joined in the group’s reminiscences about the days and professors we shared at Knox. ❯ Bob Bennett chose telephone contacts over our Zoom Reunion and spoke with Charlie Hurmence and Dianne Mitchell Townsend. He wrote that he and Lynne live in Sarasota, Florida, where they have been for almost 23 years. They are active in their club, Palm Aire. Bob plays golf four times a week, participates in the men’s book club and imparts great wisdom to a few committees. Lynne is a member of the Art Club and a group called Flying Needles that knits and crochets items for military troops, homes for the elderly, and crack babies. They, like most of us, miss their places in performance audiences. As they celebrate their 61st anniversary this year, they are glad to be in Florida, where it is always possible to be outside—where it is safer. Bob reports that Charlie and wife Bettye live in Warwick, New York, where golf has been on hold due to closure of the local courses. Charlie reads a lot, and Bettye does beautiful Japanese needlepoint and cares for a sizable garden in the yard. Dianne and husband Ken Townsend live in Fairfax, Virginia, where they retired from the Army. Both are getting along well, though a bit isolated and unable to go to their home in Michigan due to the pandemic. ❯ Bob Baker wrote, “What better place to hide out during a pandemic than Neponset, Illinois, in the heart of ‘Forgottonia,’ where Susie and I manage and care for 200 acres of forests, native prairie grass, and wetlands. We do get occasional visits from Bill Baker ’58 and Bill Studley ’58 but otherwise are pretty isolated. Happily, I received a liberal arts education so I have been reading a lot, and I sure that it will make Marcia Muelder’s day to know that I have finally figured out Alfred North Whitehead after the confusing classes of Bill Matthews. Since it looks like we will have several more months of seclusion, I urge my classmates to read Process and Reality, a slog that will eat up their leisure time.” ❯ When Ed Vondrak had experienced trouble swallowing, he wrote that he went to see a throat specialist, who made a video of his diagnostic procedure—not
Class Knox Illinois, in the heart of ‘Forgottonia’?? —Bob Baker ’60 attractive, but quite interesting. Among other things, it revealed that his vocal cords had become weak. A handful of sessions with a vocal therapist gave him a few more exercises to add to his daily exercise regimen. One of these seemed to him to be like little kid stuff: He puts water in a plastic cup, inserts a straw into the water, then blows bubbles while humming. Ed noted that when he was a youngster, he was told not to do that. Another exercise is “trilling,” i.e., fluttering his lips and tongue while humming. He recalled that when he was very young, he made noises like that while pushing little wooden cars and trucks around on the floor. “It’s like starting my life all over again,” he commented. In October, his wife, Mary Alice Soeldner Vondrak, had bilateral cataract surgery. Ed recently had SLT surgery on his right eye to prevent fluid pressure buildup in the eyes, which leads to undesirable glaucoma. Surgery on his other eye was scheduled for December. “Modern technology is amazing,” he observed. ❯ From his home in Arizona, Maury Klein wrote, “Brightened days are no problem in a year with a record number of 100+ degree days and virtually no rain. Most of this year has been spent adjusting to the radically changed circumstances, environment, climate, and distance from friends elsewhere that we can’t easily visit. Hopefully all that will change once the pandemic lifts, but it may last longer than many people think. What we miss most during the pandemic is the ability to do most of what we moved out here to enjoy. People and friends elsewhere ask us how we like living here, and we shrug and say that we’ll let you know as soon as we get to live here rather than cope with such abnormal conditions. But it’s hard to complain when you look at what people went through during the great influenza pandemic of 1918– 1919, which killed an estimated 60–100 million people worldwide just as the Great War was winding down. For any old friends and classmates who wish to get in touch, my email in Scottsdale remains mauryk1@verizon.net and my cell phone 401-864-2287.” ❯ Sue Brown Cowling wrote that she has built a poetry post out in front of her house after seeing one at a friend’s house in Portland. “Three times a week,” she wrote, “I post a short poem of mine or one that I like by somebody else (an occasional dash of Ogden Nash). I try to choose poems that will connect with people who may not read much poetry. Sometimes I write a new poem about something happening on our circle. I just posted #50 this morning. The poem post has become a neighborhood thing that people check like they would the mail, a relief from 2020 gloom and routine. Out the study window, I can see and hear people reading and enjoying the latest, people biking or jogging by, neighbors walking themselves or their dogs, surfers on their way to the shore, even workmen here for the day. A very satisfying way to ‘publish.’ What I miss most under pandemic restrictions? Hugging—such a basic part of the culture in Hawaii. Also having
friends around the table, sharing a meal, being able to see my son who lives in in Portland, or even to know when we will be able to see each other again. What I don’t miss? Being overscheduled and expected to be several places in a day. So it’s not just the things we can’t do, but the things we don’t have to do that are a result of COVID, and the time that frees up to think and just be is a definite plus.” ❯ Donald England writes that his golf scores have been enhanced by his skill with an eraser. “Although, I did play on the esteemed Knox College Siwash team,” he reported, “my game has declined year-by-year. However, by my own standards, I have improved upon my own refreshments consumption standards and established indelibly at the BV bar run by the legendary Ray, our bartender and friend. I do miss the money and banking classes held at the BV by Dr. George Melville. What a guy he was!!” Don would love to hear from my classmates at dlincoln20@aol.com. ❯ Golf is also Mary Kent Knight’s favorite activity when she makes her winter home at a Stuart, Florida, golf resort. She spends her summers in Lake Forest, Illinois. “In addition,” she wrote, “I’ve become the Zoom-master for several different groups. And I must say, it’s nice to be able to see old friends who’ve spread around the country more often. I even reconnected with my high school graduation class. Most of my classmates have remained in California, and I’ve been out there maybe 10 times since I left for Knox (sight unseen) 64 years ago. I had a hard time recognizing most of them at first. But now I email regularly with several of them and the whole group Zooms once a month. This COVID thing has changed life for all of us. But I’ve still managed to see my grandsons (who live near me in Illinois) pretty often over the summer. In fact, we all revisited PAWS UP resort in Montana this summer...spent a wonderful week doing outdoor activities of all kinds. My boys are 10, 11, 12, and 13 years old, so the ‘glamping’ trip was perfect. Glamping stands for glamorous camping. . . .great big tents with two sleeping areas and a modern bath. Like safari tents. A good time was had by all. My other son and his partner spend the winter in Cabo and summer in Michigan. I didn’t get to see them this summer due to Illinois restrictions on visiting that state. And of course, I wasn’t able to make my annual trek to Cabo. Maybe next spring? I exchange daily emails with Roger ’63 and Anne Zwiefel Taylor ’63, Bob ’62 and Barb Cady Schmid ’62 are neighbors in Lake Forest, and I keep in touch with Monica Heidecker Graham and Lis Reed Mitchell. So that’s it from me! I’m sorry I didn’t get to see you and Mary Lu during our virtual 60th Reunion. But with Zoom, we could give it another try...soon, rather than waiting till next fall.” ❯ Rob Schock has started a new business. Called “Nubo Learning,” it provides a digital learning portal for online and hybrid classes. The company enables faculty to create coursework in easily replicated modules that benefit students
through video coaching, labs, and the use of games. ❯ Next fall will be our “makeup SPECIAL 60th!” Cross your fingers and hold the dates: October 8–10 in Galesburg! Class Correspondent: Dick Aft 775 Windings Lane, Cincinnati, OH 45220, aftd@fuse.net
1961 As a former class correspondent, Susan Shea Worthington knows how hard it is to get news. She kindly sent in the following memory, “The ‘new’ Gizmo opened in the fall of 1960, so the event I recount took place in the winter of the months of 1959 or 1960. At that time, the Gizmo was located on the lower floor of Alumni (Adelphi) Hall. The bookstore was next door. It was a small, dark, and cozy place with a very limited menu. Coffee drinkers ordered ‘black’ or ‘beige.’ Do they still do that? One brisk winter morning, we waded through new snow to discover the Gizmo well (the only entrance) was completely filled with snow. Some pranksters had acquired shovels and performed the deed during the night. It was quite a sight and very funny until we realized our source of coffee was unreachable. Students and faculty pitched in to empty the entry, and life returned to normal. I wonder if anyone thought of taking a picture? I also wonder if the culprits would ‘fess up’ now that 60 years have passed?” Class Correspondent: Megan Clayton Knox College, Box K-210, 2 East South Street, Galesburg, IL 61401, 309-341-7476, pclayton@knox.edu
1962 Class Correspondent: Kate Bloomberg hankandkate@msn.com
1963 Class Correspondent: Ramona Reed Landberg 400 Avinger Lane, Apt 136, Davidson, NC 28036 Phone 704 896-1136, landberg.group@outlook.com
1964 Since everyone else is talking about it, we won’t mention COVID-19. However, this was certainly a sparse year for adventures. Among the most exciting contributions to these notes involved squirrel watching. That tell you something? ❯ We’re at the age for consolidations. Mike Pope and wife Marsha write, “We were expecting to move into our new home that we are building with our daughter here on January 18. Lots of building delays but finally we see a light at the end of a very long tunnel…yea!!! This new home is still here in Burleson, and we will advise you when we are actually there.” ❯ We have had our share of sad news too. Leslie Martens Nauta wrote: “2020 has been a doubly tough year—not
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“It is time to sit on the beach and sip a tropical umbrella just COVID lockdowns, but my husband, my best friend, passed away in June. Now dealing with home maintenance issues and learning what it’s like to be alone! Luckily, I am busy with my art and virtual exhibits, as well as being on the boards of two art galleries! Virtual book club discussions, mahjongg and bridge, as well as finally editing my crime novel for the nth time— getting ready to publish and start a new one! Funny, though I majored in history and French as well as getting my secondary teaching certificate, none of what I do now is related to my education. Retired from real estate after 46 years, and don’t miss it! Even with lockdown, I still go to the gym! Keeps me sane!” ❯ In October, we lost fellow classmate Larry John Auten after a prolonged illness. Following his graduation, Larry received both graduate degrees in both law and history from the University of Illinois. He later served as an administrator for the Illinois Community College System. He then graduated from Divinity School at the University of Chicago and became an ordained minister. It was in this role that he served the homeless population in California, providing hot breakfasts in a public park in Santa Barbara. Larry left his mark, for which many are grateful. ❯ To end on a happier note, recall that I received a 1,227-word contribution from Elizabeth Ayson, which I promised to serialize when space permitted. Liz not only agreed but sent me an additional 328word “P.S.” on life in Hawaii. She wrote: “Forgot to tell you that since the social distancing rules were established, we now live like royalty, as all our meals and snacks are delivered to our rooms. The wide hallways allow for neighbors to stand in their doorways for conversation, so you can often hear conversations and laughter floating in the building. My one trek a day is to fetch my mail, sometimes stopping to chat with others in the vicinity. The beach is about a block away, and many go for a walk or a short drive for the early morning breezes or in the evening to savor a gorgeous sunset. You can see that my life is full, which is how I like it. When I have a taste for something not on our menu, I drive to the fruit stand for mango, lychee, mountain apples, lemons, limes, lilokoi (passion fruit), fresh salsa, and sugar cane sticks. My studio has enough space for my Yamaha grand piano (same model as Sir Elton John’s white one that he brought to Maui a few years ago), sofa, loveseat, round dining table for six, TV and my desk with desktop computer, bookshelves, a two-drawer filing cabinet, and punee (smaller than a single bed)—which doubles for sitting space with two body pillows, along with a JFK rocking chair, and a lanai with rocking chair, table with four chairs, potted plants of varying sizes, including orchids from my neighbors. Simple living suits me nicely.” [Emphasis mine!] Class Correspondent: Terry Klopcic klopcicjt2@roadrunner.com
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1965 Class Correspondent: Terry Rothstein, M.D. 220 N. 32nd Street, Parsons, KS 67357, antiquarian@wavewls.com
1966 Dear ’66ers, I always enjoy hearing from you, especially in these times when we are living through a deadly pandemic. Our age group makes us very susceptible to COVID-19, so I can tell you that my husband and I have been sheltering in place, with our youngest daughter and her young family nearby. We do see them and love having Teddy (almost 4) and Madeline (3 months) here with us often. Husband Jan and I enjoy walking outside at a nearby Prairie Restoration Project—what we used to call a swamp!—with our six-month-old Havanese puppy, Wiggins. I hope you all are safe and sound. I am so grateful you continue to send me your news. Some of you responded to the news of Jan’s and my move to Minnesota’s Twin Cities at the end of 2019. If you pass through St. Paul or Woodbury, please let us know! Otherwise we’ll just have to wait for our 55th Reunion at Homecoming 2021. ❯ It was great to hear from Kathe Murphy: “I lived in Minneapolis from 1967 to 1984. I got my MBA in night school at St. Thomas (it was the ‘College’ of St. Thomas then, and now it is a ‘university’.) My favorite job was working at Tonka Toys. I left when I had a midlife crisis at age 38! I moved to Idaho where my sister had lived since the 70s. I love it here. Anyhow… stay well, enjoy the Twin Cities, and, yes, my email is auntiegoo@gmail.com.” ❯ Here is Mike Dennison’s contribution to our news, telling us that he and wife Maxine are doing well: “The Twin Cities is the place for theatre and art. We used to go to Chanhassen Dinner Theater, the Guthrie, and the Walker Art Museum when we lived in the Midwest; all are first-rate. Let’s hope they remain going concerns. Here in Atlanta, our favorite Mexican and seafood restaurants have shut their doors for good. The Atlanta Symphony is producing some really top-drawer streamed concerts. The camera work is exemplary, and it is more satisfying than I thought it would be. Seeing a violinist struggle with a mask as he/she tries to play is both amusing and emotionally stirring. I am embarrassed by the pandemic effort. COVID should not have taken this many lives nor disrupted us as much as it has. Regardless of the outcome of the election, it is going to be a difficult fall and winter season. I do not see quality leadership on either side, now or in the future. What have I accomplished? On the positive side, I installed a new sink in the bathroom and did some interior painting. Some pegboards were mounted in the garage and basement to help organize our stuff. I am improving at Sudoku. The carbon dioxide detector I am building looks like it is going to
work. Bread-baking is going well, and I am finally able to get good quality flours again. I like watching ancient mysteries and dramas on the BritBox streaming service. On the negative side, I miss eating a monthly lunch with my buddies. I miss not being able to travel. As I may have said before, the opportunity costs of this pandemic are immense for older folks. We were planning to do certain activities this year. For some of us, a trip delayed will be a trip denied. We have rescheduled our Eastern European trip for late September, but who knows what 2021 will bring?” ❯ Dick Mogensen and Trisha Barrett write: “I guess I’m a little late. Thought I would pass on some news. It’s hard to believe that nearly 55 years have passed since graduation in 1966. I won’t dwell on COVID for 2020. Recently, Trisha and I were laid off due to COVID. She was working as a consultant for a major hospital organization in California. In 2017, I retired from active dental practice but continued to teach clinical dentistry, lasers, and computer design and imaging at UCSF in San Francisco. The school was losing $1 million a week since March and laid off about 40 percent of staff and faculty. Since then, they have downsized the entire school. So finally we are retired. We were originally planning to spend a month in Europe during June, but for obvious reasons that didn’t happen. We bought a motorhome to travel the country and go to Canada in May. However, the West Coast fires were everywhere with heavy smoke into November. So we weren’t able to go to many of the parks because the fires closed pretty much everything. Breathing smoke is not good. Visibility was very poor, so we stayed home and rode our bikes. Fires came close to where we live, but we were lucky. We are in good health and are looking forward to October 2021 at Knox. Stay healthy, Dick and Trisha.” ❯ Larry and Joanne Nelson Sommers ’67 send their greetings: “We have enjoyed our time of semisolitude paying greater attention than usual to gardening, yard maintenance, and home repair. COVID has brought us closer to our grandchildren Elsie, 11, and Tristan, 8, as we host them for a day of ‘independent study/enrichment’ every Wednesday. But we itch to be on the road again. Still aim to take Elsie and Tristan, with their mother, Katie Sommers ’98, to Italy in 2021 in a one-year-delayed celebration of our 50th wedding anniversary. Larry’s third career as a literary lion is satisfyingly on schedule, with two novels written plus a growing inventory of short stories and blog posts. Recently had a couple of near brushes with publication of my first novel, Freedom’s Purchase, a Civil War-era tale, but still waiting for the right query to hit home. The second novel, Dizzy on Wry, is completely different, a Fifties-era coming-of-age story pitched to middle-grades readers. Gearing up now to seek feedback from beta readers on the first draft. Feel free to read and comment on my stories at https://LarryFSommers.com. We remain in good health, except for a few creaky bones and
Class Knox drink.” —Judy Crawford DeLeon ’67 joints, and look forward to resuming a more active lifestyle (including Homecoming!) in 2021.” Larry and Joanne live in Madison, Wisconsin at 438 Hilltop Drive, ZIP code: 53711-1212, email: LarryFSommers@gmail.com, tel: 608-238-7731. ❯ Please send your ’66 class notes to me. I’ll be waiting to hear from you after you’ve hopefully had a lovely holiday season with the promise of a vaccine in the New Year! Class Correspondents: Judith Holland Sarnecki judithsmamabear@gmail.com
1967 Greetings, Class of 1967! One of the pleasures of this position as Class Correspondent is hearing from class members I have had no contact with in over 50 years! Here is my report from our home in the glorious Pacific Northwest, where we have been self-quarantined since early March! ❯ Doug Mustain from Galesburg checked in just to say “HI!” ❯ Doug Hunt writes that he and “loving wife Susan Frant are hunkered down in our comfy apartment in Haverford, Pennsylvania for the duration of the COVID calamity. I’m retired but still politically, climate change-, and economic justice-active (via email, Zoom, etc.). Hope all are well and COVID-protected. WEAR YOUR MASKS!” ❯ Sam and Mireille Henninger Griswold are enjoying retirement in South Carolina. They divide their time among their home in West Columbia, their farm in Saluda County, and their home on Edisto Island—about 40 minutes south of Charleston, South Carolina. Sam is still active with the State Retirees Association and lobbies the General Assembly on their behalf. ❯ Judy Crawford DeLeon writes that she and husband Jorge headed for Puerto Vallarta in November. “We have lived through riots and looting all around our Chicago downtown neighborhood this spring, summer, and fall. It is time to sit on the beach and sip a tropical umbrella drink. Because of COVID-19, we missed all the wonderful summer festivals here like Taste of Chicago, the Air and Water Show, events at Navy Pier, hiking and biking along the lakefront, and the historical Renaissance Faire just over the border in Wisconsin. I was able to volunteer helping with the census effort with the Hispanic population.” She concludes, “Enough of this feeling sorry for ourselves as I know there are some in our class who have suffered with COVID-19, and I sincerely pray that all have recovered. May 2021 royally kick the virus in the ass!” ❯ James Nordin wrote a fascinating tale of the around the world cruise he and his wife Linda began in Los Angeles on January 20, 2020, heading west for 111 days. “By the 40th day, COVID was going crazy all around the world. (NOT on our ship. We never had a single case among passengers or crew. The crew was wiping down the ship every time we touched anything, and the handwashing police were out on force.) Several ports had been
closed to us, so when we stopped in Sri Lanka, we were not allowed to disembark. The ship refueled and took on food and we headed west once again. But not for long. One day out of Sri Lanka, on March 12, we were informed that the cruise had been cancelled, effective March 1. We made a big U-turn and headed for Australia. Suffice to say, we declined flying home from Australia (three legs, 26 hours) and insisted on riding back to L.A. on the ship. On April 20, we arrived in L.A. The Centers for Disease Control would not allow us to drive home, so the cruise line put us in a tinted window Cadillac Escalade and drove us 380 miles to our front door. Officially, a 40-day cruise that took 90 days. (Plus, cruise credits for the 71 days cancelled.) Since April, we have been like everyone else, sheltering in place, wearing masks and practicing physical distancing. Oh yeah; there is the election and, in our opinion, the gross misbehavior of the incumbent in the White House. An eventful uneventful year.” But wait, there’s more! “I left out most of the good/ fascinating/frustrating parts. Like who is in charge when your ship flies a British flag, is registered in Panama, has 70 percent American passengers, and has to send people home from Australia? The short answer is no one knows, but everyone is claiming to be in charge. It was just as confusing/frustrating just dealing with American officials: CDC, Border Patrol, Customs and Immigration, Homeland Security, the State of California, the Port Authority of Los Angeles. All were attempting to call the shots. There was no coordination, no protocols; everything was made up minute by minute. I could go on, but you get the picture.” WOW!!! ❯ A group of 18 Knox 1967 classmates reconnected at our 50th Reunion three years ago and decided to continue the fun with a get-together for a few days each fall. This has resulted in two wonderful mini-reunions, 2018 in Pacific Beach, Washington, and 2019 in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Needless to say, any chance of a 2020 gathering was foiled by COVID-19. To compensate, here is our group report of “What the Andy House Girls did during the COVID pandemic:” • Cancelled all plans for trips, family and friend visits, meetings, parties, appointments • Adjusted to never leaving home without a mask, and shared fashion pics of ourselves wearing our masks • Made (and then revised) family rules for how to have safe gatherings… • Planted gardens and undertook landscaping projects • Cleaned closets, organized our homes, and started projects • Supported political races remotely • Became very familiar with Zoom and FaceTime for any contact with others • Shifted any business, consulting, committee, church, club activities to remote format • Became experts at online ordering and delivery, as well as curbside pickup
• Checked the news way too often, especially political news • Tried new recipes for all the required home cooking • Relied on our Kindles for a steady stream of books to read • Walked our dogs, walked our neighborhoods, chatted from a distance with neighbors, bought exercise equipment, found a way to swim for exercise and recreation • Learned how to cut our own hair, as well as that of others • Learned to love the natural color of our hair • Tried to entertain very small groups from opposite sides of our porches, fully masked • Those of us on the West Coast survived the fires and smoke, as we mourned the loss of our magnificent forests • Counted our blessings many times over! • VOTED! Class Correspondent: Helen Gilbert helengilbert@learningenrichmentcenter.org
1968 Chip Evans shares that our class has increased its participation in our Knox 68 Facebook group, up to 90 classmates per week. In addition to the FB group, we have had an online Zoom meeting every other month during the last six months. It averages about two hours. All classmates are welcome. In one Zoom, Chip found out why Dave Mueller and Joe Hammon did not know each other at Knox even though they were both biology majors and spent a great deal of time at Green Oaks. Dave focused on water creatures, while Joe focused on squirrels. Now they are friends, and Joe participates in Dave’s weekly show, currently on Facebook Live, featuring musicians, poets, and storytellers. Joe sings and plays either his banjo, guitar, or ukulele. ❯ George and Mary Mangieri Burgland started a holiday tradition on North Prairie Street in the late 1970s that has now become a tradition on many Galesburg streets and parks. The Red Bow Initiative hung up red holiday bows from the ornamental street lights as well as some bridges and in parks. The Burglands have teamed up with Galesburg on Track and the Sunrise Rotary Club. George and Mary were on “Galesburg’s Morning News” to talk about the project. ❯ In October 2019, Will Millard and partner Trish Jackson (Scripps ’82) walked along the medieval trail from Canterbury to Rome for a twelve-day guided trek. “Blithely we entered St. Peter’s Square unaware we would not travel again for more than a year because of the pandemic.” It was an otherworldly experience then and in memory. Since 2001, they have lived in Norwich, a small town in the shadow of Hanover, New Hampshire, Dartmouth College, and the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center. Though it snowed last week, there may be no ski season. Will recommends Hilary Mantel’s three-volume fictional account of Thomas Cromwell in the
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Ed Kucera ’70 started a band after court of Henry VIII. Start with Wolf Hall (2009). ❯ Susan Van Kirk has been very busy writing. In 2021, the new Harlequin Worldwide Mystery Club will receive Marry in Haste in March, Death Takes No Bribes in July, and sometime in 2021, an audiobook of A Death at Tippitt Pond. In December she’ll work with Level Best Books to go over Death in a Pale Hue, slated for June 2022. In the meantime, she’s writing another book, five chapters in, only 34 to go. ❯ Pam Harrison Stoffel shares “Having spent September, October, and most of November at our home in Georgia, we are beginning to think we should have stayed there. Back in Rochester, New York, we are seeing record numbers of COVID cases each day. We have tested twice in the past week per the order by Gov. Cuomo and remain negative, but it’s hard to know where it is safe to go. We ordered Thanksgiving dinner for 12 from our club. Our youngest son and family stayed in St. Louis; our middle son came and picked up enough food for his family and took it home. Our oldest son and family came and had dinner with us. It was great, but it just wasn’t the same. Our annual birthday bowling party had to be put on hold. I am working on a script for the March musical I will be directing and for which auditions will be held the next three days. It is possible that the production will be presented virtually. I will be glad when I can finally say this is the year that was, and just leave it at that! We will undoubtedly add this year to our lifetime memories. Thanks to all who have shared their stories and anecdotes on Facebook as you have helped to keep us all sane and remind us that we are not alone.” ❯ An Anonymous Knox Graduate contributed that “It’s pretty hard to summon up something newsworthy when hunkering down. We started wearing masks what-seems-like-forever ago. Now we don’t give it another thought. Everyone I know seems to be spending time with one project or another: cooking, cleaning out the attic, staying up to date on computer skills, etc. A good day is when we show no signs of COVID! So far, so good!” ❯ Rich Nelson reports, “On May 1, I was admitted to the ICU with extreme pneumonia. I could not breathe; my saturation was mid 80s. Spent three weeks in the hospital, two weeks in ICU on a ventilator and intubated. Tested twice for COVID—both negative. After discharge, I have had heart questions and painful arthritic movement in my back. My lungs have cleared up completely, but I’m not yet back to full voice. This has been an experience I don’t wish for others.” ❯ On September 7, 2020, Greg Duick retired from the Kansas Heart Hospital in Wichita, Kansas, as president and Chairman of the Board. “It actually was a ‘second retirement,’ having initially retired from the practice of interventional cardiology in December 2010. For the past 10 years, I have exclusively devoted my time to administrative duties at the hospital. Peggy and I plan to continue spending time at our primary home in Wichita and secondary
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residence in San Rafael, California, where our children and grandchildren reside, COVID-19 permitting.” ❯ Rod Barker shares, “For me, 2020 has been the most tumultuous year since 1968, when I graduated from Knox planning to become a criminal defense attorney, only to find my plans diverted by the military draft. This year has also been a time of political chaos, social upheaval, and personal angst, amidst the loss of life on a wartime scale as COVID-19 amasses a body count greater than Vietnam. Now, like then, I became obsessed with a national election that I thought of as nation-defining, and have found myself binge-watching the news like it was a Netflix show. These times, like those, brought out the activist in me. I wrote letters to voters in swing states. Just as I had to put my future on hold in the Sixties, I’ve had to push the pause button on my plans for the Twenties…. If there has been any positive to the pandemic for me, it has been a reminder of my mortality, forcing me to take stock of my life and think about the time I have left, and how to make the most of it. I have begun assembling a legacy capsule, storing and labeling with back-stories such family heirlooms as a Nicaraguan dime belt my great-Uncle Horace brought back from his 1900 world travels, my grandfather’s gold pocket watch, my father’s military medals, and my mother’s diaries, in hopes that down the road there will be a descendant who will take an interest in their ancestry. Thanks to the career path I followed as a freelance investigative writer whose books introduced him to interesting people, put him in challenging situations, and took him to exotic places, I have some special memories. In short, I have been fortunate to lead an independent life rich with travel and adventures. As we emerge from the pandemic, I find myself wanting to add the footage of more adventures. I have already booked a two-week house-hunting trip to Costa Rica, whose rainforests I think of as the gateway to a grand Last Act before the curtain closes.” ❯ David York writes, “In the midst of the pandemic, we have had two very special events to celebrate as our daughter was married in April and our son and wife had triplets born in September. Needless to say, we are thrilled to welcome Brett into the family, along with Molly, David and Peyton. I finally retired in 2019 after a 45-year banking career and have quickly made the adjustment to more time with family, more time with friends, more time for golf, and more time to appreciate life especially with COVID-19 lurking around. A few closest remain ‘available’ for cleaning this winter. Best to all….stay healthy and mask up.” ❯ Thanks so much for your contributions. I really enjoyed our Zoom conversation! We had about 30 classmates. My husband has adapted to memory care. I visit once a week, separated, outside. I think the quarantining has given me more time to adapt to this new way of life but it would be awful without Zoom. Stay safe.
Class Correspondent: Susan Meyer Mika 1519 North Kennicott Avenue, Arlington Heights, IL 60004, 847-253-7719, pottatea@comcast.net
1969 Our 50th Reunion now seems a distant memory, since 2020 brought changes to multiple aspects of our lives. Some of those changes affected my output of post-Reunion class notes for this publication, so some of the following information dates back to that Reunion. ❯ Based on my information, it appears that, despite it all, Knox ’69ers seem to generally be weathering the storm of this pandemic with their usual good humor and logic. My own activities have been reduced to unavoidable sporadic local trips to the grocery store, to commune with my horses, and to the gas station. Having retired from my law practice in 2016, my daily routines were already pared down, but the inability to travel outside Wyoming during the pandemic has grievously curtailed visits with family. Others have endured more significant disruptions, and I hope you are all coping with similar snags in your life better than I am. My usual email contacts with the Knox community seem to have dropped off, as all are likely dealing with more pressing personal struggles during these times. Nonetheless, some have provided information, and have shared diverse video clips, jokes, and music to raise our spirits. ❯ Judy Barath-Black (Birdie) and husband Michael faced an added assault from the wildfires on the West Coast; they had to evacuate their Northern California home this summer. I talked with Birdie regarding their evacuation status. Fortunately, she and Michael are back in their home, which the fires spared, and are finishing their cleanup of the aftermath. ❯ Kathy Deutsch ’70, Mike Webster, Birdie, and others, kindly notified me about a phishing scam on me that solicited donations from my email contacts list by posing as me. Thanks, you guys, for that heads-up. Problem mostly solved. ❯ Meanwhile, Harvey Miller ’68 has shared many humorous cartoons with a bunch of us; Jim Hallock has shared photos and music with the same group; and Rob MacCarthy ’70 has done the same. Thank you, brothers, for the welcome diversions from disturbing daily events. ❯ Paul Behnke forwarded images from our Reunion to those of us depicted. Paul also shared details about his week-long family fishing trip to Mongolia and noted that his three children and four grandchildren reside outside Boulder, Colorado. Although Paul referred to potential visits to them as an opportunity to connect with the Rocky Mountain Knox contingent, subsequent events apparently interfered with his travel plans this year. Keep us posted, Paul—we would all welcome the opportunity to share your company. ❯ Please stay safe, my friends. Class Correspondent: Bill Combs bcombsi@yahoo.com
Class Knox “fully retiring” in 2016. 2021 Alumni Achievement Award Virginia Steen ’69 Virginia Steen has been described as the “absolute rock star” in her area of medical expertise: the study and treatment of scleroderma, an autoimmune condition that affects the skin, connective tissues, and internal organs. The disease can cause severe complications, and it is five times more likely to affect women than men. Dr. Steen has been a professor of medicine for more than two decades at Georgetown University, where she also serves as a primary care physician for scleroderma patients and as the fellowship director of the rheumatology division. Her groundbreaking work has led to better outcomes for patients with scleroderma. There isn’t enough room on this page—or in this magazine—to provide a comprehensive listing of her research, scholarship, and professional accomplishments and awards. How did you get interested in scleroderma, and what has sustained that interest? I wanted to specialize in a field that was a thinking field that encompassed the whole person—not just one organ, not just the heart or the kidneys or something. I wanted a specialty that I could deal with the patients in a long-term relationship, and rheumatology was clearly what fit with me extremely well. I went to a rheumatology program that happened to be one of two centers in the country at that time that specialized in scleroderma, and my original mentor was one of the grandfathers of scleroderma. The first half of my career, I spent trying to identify the risk factors of who would get the different problems, the different treatments, and what their outcomes would be. And then the last 10 years, I’ve spent developing clinical trials. We've been very fortunate. Once they got treatments for rheumatoid arthritis, all the pharmaceutical companies decided they were going to now work with scleroderma and try to come up with treatments and trials for this complicated disease. That has been very successful. It’s been a wonderful career, and we’ve made a lot of progress. We have treatments that we never had before for scleroderma. We have identified people and can get them treated early and save lives. SUBMITTED
Instead of reviewing memories of our wonderful Reunion in October 2020, I am inviting all of you to try again this coming fall to share a weekend with the Class of 1971. Make sure your contact information is updated so you can receive the mailings, etc. You can contact me at knox1970@zoominternet.net. ❯ From Nancy Anderson: “We remain Texas Hill Country hermits. Moved up here last year, and it’s a great place to isolate. We did drive in a travel van to McCall, Idaho, last summer for six weeks at our cabin by the wilderness. Another great place to chill. Can hardly wait for a vaccine so I can freely move about the country including a visit to Knox for our 50th Reunion celebration. Till then, stay safe.” ❯ From AJ Smith: “In the middle of COVID health concerns and travel restrictions, the two-flat building where I had been living for 23 years was sold. And the new owners had no interest in retaining the long-term renters. I had already decided that within the next few years I would move closer to my sister in Charleston, South Carolina. So I began my search and research for a location near enough to make visits easier, but not mean living in the Low Country that requires access to air conditioning all year round. (Believe it or not, I actually liked Illinois weather—most days.) After a week of driving around northwestern South Carolina and southwestern North Carolina I settled on Hendersonville, North Carolina. Online searching from back home yielded a few potential new residences, so I drove out one more time to determine which would suit and sign the lease. Three months, and lots of household purging, later my belongings were unloaded at my new home: 66 Eastbury Dr Apt F, Hendersonville, NC 28792-2686. There’s still unpacking and settling in to do, but it already feels like home. Driving through the surrounding mountains, I definitely feel like it is where I am supposed to be. And being able to spend my sister’s birthday with her for the first time in possibly 50 years, and Thanksgiving with her family without requiring a full day’s drive or airplane flight, was definitely worth it. Even though Galesburg is now the destination that will require the long drive or flying, I am still planning to attend our 50th/51st Reunion in 2021—as had been my plan for 2020 until everything changed! ❯ From Doug Youngren: “In the midst of the pandemic, Sandy and I became first-time grandparents. On October 13, son Jonathan and his wife Laura welcomed Elisabeth Lucia Youngren (Elsie for short) into the world. We are beyond excited and fortunate to live just a few blocks away from Jon, Laura, and Elsie in Naperville, Illinois.” ❯ Ed Kucera writes: “I semi-retired in 2010. Worked part-time as a software consultant until 2015. Then fully retired in 2016. Started a band. I had a band at Knox with my brother, Ken Kucera ’72, and Randy Purdy. The band is on hold due to the pandemic.” ❯ From Bill Byers:
Alumni Achievement Award Winner
1970
What advice do you have for current or future Knox students? Take advantage of everything at Knox. That’s what going to a liberal arts school is. Even if you’re going to be a doctor or a scientist or an artist or whatever your focus and passion is, which I think is very important to have, it's still important to have the whole spectrum and the whole experience of being at a liberal arts school.
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Jerry Tatar ’71 invites you to fill in the blanks: “Due to the “Thanksgiving 2020 was a COVID-19 shut-in allowing us to reminisce about Thanksgivings Past. In 2018, Donnie and I had Dave and Judy Waggoner Lambert ’71, Dick Garner and wife Jean, and Bob McDonald and wife Pam, come stay with us for a delightful Kansas weekend. Dave recently sent me this photo as a reminder. If it fits into Class Notes, great. If not, I thought it would be fun for you to see this relatively YOUNG gang.” (The photo is posted on our class Facebook page.) ❯ A note from Max Utsler: “I am currently co-chair of the newly formed C-10 Leadership Program in Kansas City. Kansas City Royals general manager Dayton Moore’s “C” You in the Major Leagues Foundation is funding the program. The intensive character-based leadership program will start in the fall with 1012 high school sophomores and juniors from underserved areas of Kansas City. Each student will have a mentor and meet for group activities once a week for 10 months.” He also sent me an article regarding an award due in spring of 2021: “The Edward L. Bliss Award for Distinguished Broadcast Journalism Education (2020) goes to Dr. Max Utsler of the University of Kansas. The Bliss Award Committee of the Electronic News Division announces Dr. Max Utsler, former associate professor with the University of Kansas William Allen White School of Journalism, is this year’s winner of the Edward L. Bliss Award for Distinguished Broadcast Journalism Education.” ❯ From Sue Schlaufman Deans: “More than 50 of us have joined the Knox1970 Facebook page. As we ramp up once again for a fall get-together, reacquaint yourselves with classmates. One of the most fun things on it is all of our New Faces photos from the fall of 1966! It’s a private group so if you’d like to join, go to the group on Facebook, Knox1970, contact me via my FB page or email me at suedeans01@gmail.com.” Class Correspondent: Nancy Hoover Debelius 865 Gayer Drive, Medina, OH 44256-2901, 330-723-5658, Knox1970@zoominternet.net
1971 Today, we will play “fill in the blanks” with Class of ’71 news. This applies to most classmates: “Due to the pandemic, I/we have stopped _________ for now. Instead, I/we have spent most of the time ____________ing. I/We also watch a lot of ____________. I/We really miss _____________ and cannot wait until I/we can ___________ again with friends. We are thankful for having a lot of ________________! One benefit of staying at home is that I/we have learned how to ________________. It is really a lot of fun! Looking forward to seeing all my/our classmates October 7-10, 2021, at our 50th Reunion!” OK, now to other news! ❯ The absence of live theatre has not deterred Larry Baldacci (lbaldacci@earthlink.net). In October, he performed virtually for TimeLine Theatre in Chicago in a reading of Campaigns, Inc., a new play based on the true story of Upton Sinclair
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running for governor of California in the early 30s. Larry and husband Ray also did a virtual reading of the radio play version of Miracle on 34th Street with the Free Readers Ensemble. Thank goodness for Zoom. ❯ John Castle (jrcastle@cox.net) has been socially isolating at home in Virginia with his two dogs. ❯ John Hayes (jehesq@aol.com) reports that Carolee Burns Hayes ’72 recently underwent significant spinal fusion surgery which has required them to stay close to home. They sold their Seattle condo and are closing on a new home in Seattle with their daughter and son in-law. ❯ Sue Bailey (swbailey@socal.rr.com) knows that she and her husband are fortunate to have a 42’ boat so they can get away. They sailed to Catalina Island, where restaurants were serving on the beach, and cruised to Newport Beach for a few days. Sue was really happy to have Delta Delta Delta reach out to the Knox chapter alumna so she could reconnect with friends like Lynda Greco Saelens. ❯ Ann McConachi (amcconachie71@ gmail.com) writes, “I had Driveway Bistro evenings with grilled goodies and chilled drinks. Great horned owls hooted and lightning bugs added to the candlelight.” Ann is glad that she traveled “outrageously” in 2019, going to supercold Yellowstone in January, then spring in Italy and Cumberland Island, Georgia, with Knox friends Betsy, Meredith, and Lonnie, summer in San Francisco (with her daughters to celebrate turning 70), and finally kayaking and biking “up north” with Betsy. Needless to say, she has spent the pandemic staying home and paying off her credit cards. Ann now attends a Zoom yoga class for Knox Class of ’71 alums led by Charley Stivale (“a great teacher”) every Friday morning since last May. ❯ If that yoga class grabs your attention, Charles Stivale (ad4928@wayne.edu) reports that what has helped make the recent long months more exhilarating is one of the several weekly yoga classes he has taught via Zoom, but this one has some Knox friends: Bruce Wyatt and wife Carol, Ann McConachie, Sara Treacy, Jane Langer McGuire, Laura Fredenhagen Schaefer, and others. Besides the joy he brings to his class, Charlie has found the class to be a magnificently grounded way to get through the pandemic. Let Charlie know if this appeals to you—11 a.m. Eastern every Friday! ❯ Lynn Strand McIntosh (lynnmcwho@yahoo.com) and Mark McIntosh ’72 have spent 40 years in mid-Missouri. While COVID kept them from attending, they report that they added two new McIntoshes; one by wedding (Jesse McIntosh ’07 married Allie) and one by birth: Casey and wife Kate added Lynn and Mark’s eleventh grandchild, Annie, the couple’s second child. Mark is planning retirement so they hope to visit family and friends. Lynn is looking forward to our 50th in October...she’s hoping that’s enough time to lose the “COVID 15!” ❯ Larry Kusch (twams67@comcast.net) is still working with the Bank of New York Mellon until the pandemic is over. He also has another new grandson, Sean
Lawrence McMahon. Larry reports that “All my grandkids thrill me every waking moment.” ❯ Chris Poelma (jadeprairie@yahoo.com) relates that her late husband, Dan, was a prolific artist. Besides his many paintings, he created a large rock installation in their yard that Chris hopes to preserve. Chris wants to start carving more and work in her gardens. ❯ Ted Fagerburg (ted@fagerburg.com) reports on the many travels he and his wife have taken during COVID: “…from the bedroom to the bathroom…to the kitchen…” and an occasional venture into the living room via the dining room.” [Editor’s note: Judy and I do the same but first we hide bottles of wine in the rooms and call it a tour of wine country.] Most important, Ted reports that they are “…and looking forward to a longer trip in October 2021 to the ’Burg!” ❯ Sharron Vincent Porter (sharronvporter@gmail.com) recently moved from Sedona to Scottsdale, Arizona. While in Sedona, Sharron was active in the local art scene and was published in Sedona’s Best Artists. Four years ago, she reconnected with her former college fiancé, Jim Hatfield, who had contacted her to do a portrait of his late wife, and they are now very happily married and more in love than ever. Check out her art at www.sharronvporter.com. ❯ Paula Irrgang (irrgang@outlook.com) reports, and I quote: “I have no news.” Thank you, Paula! ❯ Betsy Harris Bowen (rbowen@wi.rr.com) did not sit around during COVID. Partway through 2020, she surpassed 5,000 miles on her bike, a great accomplishment! ❯ Cathy Grafton (cathygrafton@gmail.com) saw 12 historic festivals she usually attends canceled, along with two possible trips to France. She is still busy running a small library with joy. ❯ Judy and my son, Michael, got his wedding and honeymoon in just days before the shutdown. He married a lovely woman, Erin, who is the daughter of one of my campers from summer camp in 1970! Judy also had successful aortic valve replacement surgery in February as the hospital was getting rooms ready for COVID patients. I was lucky enough to get my full hardball season in. My 60+ team made it to the championship series for the sixth season in a row and my 65+ team returned to the championship game. ❯ Make plans now: Galesburg, October 7-10, 2021!!! Class Correspondent: Jerome A. Tatar 333 Wilshire Drive West, Wilmette, IL 60091-3151, 847-251-4889, jerry@tatarlawfirm.com
1972 Ellen Brady writes, “I’m healthy, meaning COVID-free. My biggest challenge at age 70 is essential tremor, a neurological movement disorder. I inherited it from my dad and it causes my hands to shake when I try to do something like eat, write or various other tasks. It’s much more common than Parkinson’s and it is progressive. Just curious if anyone else is dealing with this. I hope everyone is doing well.
Class Knox pandemic, I/we have stopped ______ for now.” ellenbrady9@hotmail.com.” ❯ John Durham writes, “I was in Northern Italy in early February, just before the pandemic broke out there. I was able to visit family in Bologna and do some train travel to Torino (Turin), Verona, and Mantua. Apparently, the pandemic broke out in a soccer stadium near Milan the day I returned home. Some well-intentioned neighbors reported me to the New Mexico Department of Health, and I was tracked for 14 days without incident. I’m doing remarkably well in the lockdown and am— like other Knox grads—walking, reading, doing the NYT crossword puzzles and thinking, critically, of course! Veritas to all!!” ❯ Bob Fairbank writes, “Arizona has legalized pot. WOO HOO!” ❯ Ron ’74 and Carol Smith Giometti write, “Ron retired in November 2019, after 42 years in his dental practice and 12 years teaching senior dental students at University of Illinois Dental School. Carol retired again, working as Ron’s receptionist since leaving Argonne National Laboratory seven years ago. We thoroughly enjoyed a vacation in St. Lucia in January, oblivious to the impending pandemic. Since March, we have been spending our time at home doing lots of improvement projects both inside and outside. Carol had a bumper crop of zucchini. Plans for an RV trip to the Pacific Northwest are on hold pending better times ahead. On the family front, all are doing well. In fact, our fifth grandchild is due to arrive in March 2021. We are hopeful that our Knox friends are staying safe and look forward to seeing some of them in our future travels.” ❯ Sandy Hanna writes, “Just received notification that my published memoir, The Ignorance of Bliss: An American Kid in Saigon, was nominated as a finalist for the Best Book Awards in the General History category from the American Book Fest. Over 4,000 books are submitted each year for this competition. Very excited to receive this honor. In the meantime, I am just finishing up my second novel and hope to get it to the publisher for review before the end of the year. One way to keep busy in the middle of COVID: write.” ❯ JD McMillan writes, “Very little in the way of news. We just feel fortunate to be healthy and to be able to travel by RV camper to see family. While I am still working some, it will be from our home in Florida for the next five months. We usually have lots of visitors in the winter, and are looking forward to that being possible again sometime soon. Another milestone for our class: Most of us are turning 70-1/2 and our contributions to Knox are now tax deductible, if paid out of our IRA accounts!” ❯ Jim Rosenthal writes, “Not a lot of news from this part of the world. I’m still working, trying to stay away from patients with COVID so I don’t catch it. Planning on retiring from Kaiser Permanente in about eleven months—and then looking for another job in medicine, probably unpaid. Looking forward to spending more time with my cats, my boat, my cars, and my godchildren.” ❯ Wendy Scherwat Ducourneau is back to swimming and looking
forward to competitions starting up again, having “aged up” to a new age group. Thrilled to have been recognized with a Knox Service Award. Best news of all—we have a new grandson. Sending warm hugs and wishes for continued good health to all our Knox friends. ❯ Bill Sowle writes, “Returning on March 30 from my aborted trip bicycling in the old Yugoslavia, I found closed gyms, restaurants, and empty thoroughfares. It felt like the 80s when Arizona had half of today’s population. As I traveled in my Roadtrek Sprinter through the West, I found bars and restaurants with brand new outdoor seating. Telluride and Salida had blocked off downtown to vehicles; Crested Butte reduced traffic to one lane. Several restaurant owners said they had been trying to encourage street closures through the city councils for years and were very happy to see these changes enacted. It created a wonderfully festive environment. Other side effects of the pandemic were hiking trails that had an inordinate number of people and many campgrounds were full. Sadly, Colorado experienced its worst fire season in history (mostly west of Denver) so to avoid the choking smoke I spent most of my time in Southern Colorado and Northern New Mexico. I enjoyed river rafting on the Arkansas and Taylor Rivers, hiking part of the Colorado Trail over Cottonwood Pass, and Wheeler Peak’s 13,261foot summit. As fall turned the Aspen golden they were particularly impressive around the Taos Ski area and Flagstaff’s Snowbowl. Another great summer; a few times I was able to step into a bar with my bandana over my nose and mouth and say, as Woody would have said, “Reach for the sky!” ❯ Mark Widmer writes, “Not too much going on here. We have both managed to remain COVID-free as have our kids and their families. Have only seen them once since March! Looking forward to a vaccine, a new administration, and trying to get back to ‘normal’, whatever that is. Enjoyed Zoom calls with other Sigma Nus. Hope our friends and families are all staying well and warm. Can’t wait for a new year!!” ❯ Dave Wood writes, “Finally became a grandfather when daughter Sara presented us with a boy named Dean Raymond, named after her two grandfathers. She is still in the Marines with the rank of major. Golfing whenever possible and staying connected to fellow Fijis Gene Brandt, Jim Leech ’71, and Terry Denoma ’71.” Class Correspondent: Wendy Scherwat Ducourneau wjsd@jps.net, Facebook Group: Knox College Class of ’72
1973 For this issue, I asked classmates what they have been doing to keep sane in these crazy times. I knit for charity and do yard work. ❯ Liz Brasure retired in November from teaching chemistry at Carroll University in Waukesha, Wisconsin. She said that chemistry labs were a challenge to teach
in person with COVID restrictions, and she made several tutorial videos. Like many of us, she and husband Steve Giles have had to postpone travel plans. ❯ Marilyn Canna Costenbader announces that last year, she got married to Jan, a DePaul University math professor. They honeymooned in Vienna and Venice. For 2021, they planned retirement, extensive travel, and living abroad in Germany, but had to delay their plans. What keeps them upbeat are Rudy Maxa travel videos, foreign apartment rental sites, and, of course, studying German! ❯ Elizabeth Cernota Clark reports that she and husband Tom are happily retired. She misses the students at Texas State University, but not all the grading and class prep. They are keeping busy with a couple of profession-related projects and plenty of house projects, which have been on the back burner too long. ❯ Don Corrigan was recognized by the Missouri House of Representatives in a resolution offered by Rep. Deb Lavender of Kirkwood, noting his induction into the St. Louis Media Hall of Fame in October. His acceptance speech for the Hall of Fame was published in the monthly magazine of the International Society of Weekly Newspaper Editors. Corrigan was recognized for his blog, environmentalecho.com, where he recently published his research on the “Missouri Gravity Low” in the state’s scenic river region in the Ozarks. ❯ Isabelle Czarkowski Goossen contributes that she retired from her second career in March 2017 and was enjoying more travel until last March. She hopes to resume as soon as it’s safe. In the meantime, she is enjoying her first grandchild, Christine Jane Kalnow, born May 27. After finally attending a Reunion (our 45th) she looks forward to our 50th. ❯ When she is not walking at least three miles a day, Amy Dooha reads and does beadwork. She also admits that she watches junk TV (British mysteries are her favorite). Aside from Zoom meetings with Knox friends and a cousin’s group, she has her bubble friends/family that she distance-visits for coffee every couple of weeks. ❯ Jane Goeltz Stetson was finally able to do some volunteering at the Denver Zoo where it was so good to be outside. ❯ Leonard Green and Karen Claus submitted this jointly: Leonard participated in an amazing vacation trip during September and October of 2019 with a family group of eight people that included wife Helaine and daughter Rebecca Morphis and her whole family. Three of four grandchildren were on the trip. They did an extensive tour of Turkey and Italy. Karen and husband Wolfgang Schuh live in the Italian part of Switzerland and met Leonard’s group in Bologna, Italy. They toured Bologna together and enjoyed the incredible food. During the spring of 1971, Karen and Leonard participated in the unique, world-famous Knox College Farm Term in Southwest Wisconsin. They both have fond memories and a great deal of gratitude for the rich experience enjoyed during that program. ❯ Roberta Hoffman is not suffering during
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“I never dreamed my work and my social life would become lockdowns in Germany—she has too many projects. She wrote a book about her experiences as a blonde, green-eyed foreigner, which took many hours of editing and is now being printed and bound. Church is livestreamed, Bible study, home office, dog schools closed. Still she keeps busy in the yard and surrounding fields, harvesting black walnuts from a tree in Bremen and cracking them in the driveway with a sledge hammer. Their freezers are filled with fruit and veggies from nearby picking plantations. Roberta used the time to get a new knee and go to rehab. ❯ Steve Kaufman reports that they live in Florida, so have been keeping sane by playing golf, where the game has been modified for personal safety. They have made frequent trips to Disney World, where they feel safe due to masks and social distancing. ❯ Ed Kleitsch stays sane by working for the Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System in North Little Rock, Arkansas. They were closed from March until mid-October for new neuropsychological assessments, so he volunteered to coordinate the contact tracing program for asymptomatic employees. In addition, he continues to chair the Arkansas Psychology Board. Fun activities include four or five weekly work-outs and weekly visits to his daughter and her family. These activities, along with grocery shopping, getting take out, and watching Notre Dame football (he went there for graduate school) are now his current highlights. He’s looking forward to socializing and getting up to the Chicago area to visit family and friends. ❯ Tom Kroupa states emphatically that he will never retire. “I’ve already been tired. Why would I want to be “RE-tired?!” ❯ Jeff Seidell retired a year ago after 46 years with IBM and spends as much time as possible playing golf. He and his wife enjoy entertaining one couple at a time for dinner on their deck, while maintaining social distance. They were able to spend a week at the beach in Stone Harbor, New Jersey, with their son and his fiancé. ❯ Mark Skipworth Zooms monthly with his cactus club. Starting in February he was inspired to write again. He wrote two short fictionalized Bible stories, had two pieces accepted for publication in the monthly newsletter (Bonsai Hai) of the bonsai club, and is scheduled to present Success with Succulents for the DuPage Organic Garden club in January. He says “My creativity is waxing as my body wanes.” ❯ John Straus states that “Retirement, COVID notwithstanding, has been all I’d planned and hoped for. A group of engineers I worked with 25 years ago hired me to consult on business management so I get paid for what used to be ‘free advice’. Staying political I’ve been a citizen advocate for AARP Illinois for a variety of legislative issues. I continue volunteering at a local legal clinic (‘I’m not an attorney; I just play one on TV’). Finally I talk regularly with Roger Onken ’74, Gene Tadie ’74, and Owen Muelder ’63.” ❯ Chris Winick organized two Zoom calls for our class during Knox’s Virtual Homecoming
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in October. She is thinking ahead to our 50th Reunion in the fall of 2023, and asks for suggestions on venues for our class cocktail party. Class Correspondent: Nancy Bakos Hunter 5280 Easley Way, Golden, CO 80403-1161, 303-278-3163, geo_hunters@q.com
1974 Getting our classmates to provide updates about their lives to put in this issue of Class Notes was tougher than I expected. The lack of response was no doubt due to not being able to talk excitedly about travel plans or visiting friends whose names we would recognize. Maybe they wondered if working around the house would count. Their response at the end of 2020 when the call for updates went out speaks to what all of us have gone through in this age of COVID and isolation. Few of us will look back on these times with fondness. Indeed, we are all changed by this horrible experience. As Annie Reinke reminds us, “We are living through history.” Yet, amid a raging pandemic, partisan rancor, and national disasters, there was and still is hope. That arose when we learned a vaccination was coming or leveraged technology to keep in touch with loved ones. Mindful these days that life is short. Several of you, like Sherri Malkin, are starting to look forward to our next Reunion, Now, there is a challenge on the table: Why wait for the 50th? ❯ Here are how our classmates have weathered COVID: ❯ John Porter: “I am still attempting to perfect my retirement in Durham, North Carolina. It is not easy, especially in Corona times. My goal of two naps a day remains elusive. During the last economic crisis, I became a bicycle technician for the local REI, and really enjoyed working with my hands again. So, I have a little shop on my property. When not doing my own chores, I am enjoying repairing friends’ and neighbors’ bicycles, leaf blowers, etc. My beloved dog, Delilah, gets me up early every day, and gives my home another heartbeat. My hopes are high that our community, and our country, is about to turn a corner, and to enjoy better days. All old friends are welcome to reach out to me at johnporter@me.com.” ❯ Kathy “Yama” Yamasaki: “Been Zooming with my family— there are usually 17 of us on the call (and five dogs)—the meetings are never long or frequent enough to get everyone’s stories in. Social distancing has brought my creative side back out—but instead of the acrylics on canvas and print making from my Knox days, I am revisiting Shibori tie dying, sewing, origami, and color pencil sketching. I really missed traveling ‘back home’ to the Midwest for in-person visits with my longtime friends (Jackie, Jan, Jeanne, Margie, Annie, etc.) and family at holiday times this past year.” ❯ Sherri Malkin Stevens: “I’ve been looking for Sue Rice as she’s a distant cousin and my Phi Mu daughter, but haven’t found her. Nothing much to report—no vacation this year so ended up doing home improvement. Still
happily employed, despite economic chaos out there. I missed the last Reunion, but am excited about only four years to our 50th Knox Reunion. I remember seeing the 50-Year Club folks on campus when I was a student thinking how old they were. Now, almost that age myself Not old, just experienced. The only Knox person I see or talk to regularly is my brother, Mark Herbster ‘89.” ❯ Scot Silzer: “In July, I welcomed a new granddaughter, Lena Rain, who lives in Littleton, Colorado.” ❯ Annie Reinke: “Good to hear everyone is coping in their own way… I keep telling the kids that ‘We’re living through history’…. though there’s hope that some of the 2020 drama and trauma will end soon… who knows when the vaccine will really be available to us old folks… Illinois still hasn’t provided clear plans on who gets it and when. I’m surviving COVID the same way I survived four years of Trump (aka Satan)...lots of alcohol to numb the pain! My lifeline moments are Manhattan Happy Hour FaceTime sessions with a special someone in Chicago. When I retired, I looked forward to traveling throughout Europe and managed two trips to France and one to Spain before lockdown. As soon as air travel opens up, I’d love to continue my wanderings abroad. Assuming we are all vaccinated by fall, I challenge my 1974 classmates to a 47th Reunion at Knox. If we’ve learned nothing else during this pandemic, it’s knowing that life is short. Why wait until our 50th to gather to eat, drink, and make merry?” ❯ Don Sanders: “Scot Silzer’s comment in the fall 2020 Knox News class notes about his graduation seeming to be ‘only a few short years ago’ finally prompted me to submit something…. After practicing law for almost 43 years, I finally closed my office in Springfield, Missouri, have been on “Licensed But Inactive” status with the Missouri Bar since late July, 2020, and have embraced on a full-time basis now my quest to become Oliver Wendell Douglas of Green Acres fame. Wife Beverly, and I continue to live as we have for the past 30 years on our 20-acre “farm-ette” outside Springfield and keep chickens and pigs, along with the obligatory horses, cats and dogs, while tending to a vegetable garden which—with no competing office obligations anymore—we were able to considerably expand this past summer. Lockdown or no lockdown, neither of us get out all that much and I figure I’ve spent more hours behind the wheel of my tractor since last April than I have behind the wheel of my pickup and passenger car combined. ❯ Lane Sunderland’s poli sci classes failed to address issues such as the proper construction of secure pig pens or how to quickly attach a three-point brush hog to a John Deere tractor, but the education I received from Knox did enable me to learn where to find the resources needed to acquire such necessary skills….” ❯ Monta Lee Dakin: With Zoom, our best new tech buddy, I have been Zooming with lots of high school and Knox friends. Having conversations with dear friends who I have not talked to in decades has been an unexpected
Class Knox two-dimensional. Thank you, Zoom.” —Terry Walsh Roberts ’75 delight. Since the summer, Pam Brockman ’75, Fran Ansell Zimmerman, and I, along with our husbands, have talked frequently about current issues like the election and Confederate monuments. An unexpected Zoom found me watching election results with Stan Jaworski, Trapper Dawson, and Larry Lawless. And because the results did not come in that night, we Zoomed the next night with Brian Howell joining us. It took me back to our days in Seymour Hall where we enjoyed late-night conversations on any and all topics. Seeing friends in their living rooms and being able talk to them after a lapse of many years has given me hope about getting through this weird time and a desire to broaden the Zoom circle to include other wonderful friends. Class Correspondent: Monta Lee Dakin 303-979-9307, mld780@aol.com
1975 In the midst of the canceled events of 2020, the Class of 1975 held a fun 45th Homecoming Reunion! After we each watched the movie 45 Years, a 2015 British domestic drama, Knox’s English and film studies professor Emily Anderson led us in a fascinating Zoom discussion with insights about the film. Turns out, we’re all still pretty smart! A couple Zoom screenshots served as Official Class Photos (you should have received your copy by email), and we snickered at our “changed” hairstyles and shared some life highlights. Feedback on the Reunion was great! Thanks to so many who participated. For this Magazine issue, my request was for your hometown, number of kids, number of grandkids, number of nieces/nephews, and a six-word phrase describing something you learned in 2020. My example was Jeanne Pankanin, Palatine IL, 0, 0, 12, “I had not known noses sweat.” ❯ Richard Burke wrote St. Louis, 2, 0, 10, “Democracies always end by suicide.” ❯ Gail Sand Doescher, 0, 0, 0, “I never knew I would appreciate Mondays until I retired.” ❯ Jo Hammerman, Skokie IL, 2, 2, 1, “You can do anything on ZOOM.” ❯ Dave and Linda Nelson Langston, Cedar Rapids IA, 2, 1, 2, “I’ve learned words I wish I could forget forever = COVID, Derecho, Donald, Ivanka, Jared, Melania.” ❯ Deb Griffin Brown, Woodridge, 2, 0, 0, “Why do people hoard toilet paper?” ❯ Tim and Valerie Hiatt Burke, Superior WI, 2, 3, “We did not know how sanity-preserving streaming old movies could be.” ❯ Jack Dare, Downers Grove IL, 2, 4, 6, “Forest walks make good brain hygiene.” ❯ Michael Cinquegrani, Elm Grove WI, 1, 0, 8, “Things are more likely to start getting better than worse.” ❯ Scott and Maxine Dombkowski Grigg, still together, now in Richmond KY, 3, 1, “Learned KY governor is intelligent and compassionate during pandemic, and people refusing to wear masks are upset children saying, ‘You’re not the boss of me!’ (Sorry, more than six words.)” ❯ Carol Hansen-Waite, Hayden ID, 4,
0, 5, “Spinach seeds are only viable for one year.” (Carol explains, “Obviously, I planted some left over from 2019 and nothing grew.”) ❯ Other classmates revealed a bit more. Sarah Boydstun Ross, Galesburg Illinois, has one son in Missoula, Montana, 0, “Home is where the heart is.” Sarah continues, “After 38 years in Tucson, Arizona, and Missoula, I happily returned to Galesburg in 2017 to be in my hometown with childhood and Knox friends. I’ve retired but work part-time from home doing deposition summaries for an attorney in Atlanta.” ❯ Diane R. Mayer, Scottsdale AZ, 0, 0, 1, “Slow down and be grateful.” Diane continued, “My first day of retirement was Cinco de Mayo in challenging 2020. My whole career was in healthcare, both in non-clinical hospital operations (VP of a 900-bed county teaching medical center at age 29) and healthcare marketing and business development. I acquired two advanced degrees along the way (MHA and MBA). Twenty-five years ago, after Dallas, Texas, and Columbus, Ohio, I moved to Scottsdale, Arizona. Although my short-term retirement plans aren’t going exactly as planned right now, I’m hopeful that in the coming years I’ll be able to do all that traveling I’ve wanted!” ❯ Dr. Gwendolyn Carol Webb (“I no longer have a hyphenated last name”), Associate Professor in College Station TX, 2, 3, 11, plus 10 great nieces and nephews! She writes, “In 2020, I have learned that our nation is struggling with truth and moral character. So many of us have lost relatives as a result of COVID-19, and we are so politically polarized that it appears we are frozen morally. As a result, I know I have a responsibility, professionally and personally, to step up my ‘game’ as it relates to championing, through purposeful action, social justice and equity. Our nation’s children deserve so much more. I will always be grateful to Knox, which taught me so much, to take a stand and not accept mediocrity.” ❯ Terry Walsh Roberts, Washington, D.C, 1, 0, 11, plus 4 great nieces and nephews! Terry is senior staffing coordinator for the soon-to-beopened Center for Advancing the American Dream. “I never dreamed my work and my social life would become two-dimensional. Thank you, Zoom. Reminds me of the days we traveled with our daughter and she always brought along Flat Stanley.” ❯ Sheri Sprung Morrison, Mountain View CA, 1, 0, 7, “I like spending time by myself.” Also: “I’m taking a lot of Zoom classes (exercise, poetry, various Jewish topics); workshops (exploring spirituality through music and art, political advocacy, meditation); going to online plays, concerts, and theatre discussion groups; attending and leading religious services ‘at’ my synagogue; and meeting with friends online. Our son Evan is an aerospace engineer at Boeing, and daughter-in-law Stephanie teaches computer science and engineering at a private high school, and both help lead the school’s robotics team.” ❯ Alex M. Kindler, CPA/ABV/CFF/PFS, CVA, MBA, Partner at H2RCPA, Pittsburgh PA (“home of the current 10-0 Steelers”), is married
with three children. ❯ Gary Pokorn, Pokorn Ranch in Littleton CO, has been exchanging stories of Indiana high school basketball history and coaching notables with fellow Knox teammate Greg Peden. ❯ From Rick Partin comes a thank you for the Zoom Reunion screenshots. Rick writes, “I recognized George Leiner, who looks great, and whom I have known since we went to the Knox kindergarten together. When we were five years old, George and I and our classmates performed in the old theatre in Alumni Hall in a musical production based on children’s nursery rhymes. I sang two songs. I’m not making this up. I have an 8” x 10” black and white photo of the cast on stage, with me in front and George behind me.” ❯ Sue Rehak, 1, 0, 20, “I learned I have 20 nieces and nephews...I knew about them all, I just never counted them before! And I learned I am extremely fortunate.” Sue continued, “I enjoyed the virtual Homecoming. I was particularly happy to see Shep (Joe) Crumrine. I once did a bad engraving of him playing his cello for a Knox art class, and I’m happy to learn he is still playing. Hearing about people’s careers, interests, and volunteer activities was very inspiring. I am still working as an attorney—my second or third career. I got my law degree in 2006 and have been working in juvenile law (abuse, neglect, and delinquency matters) since then; but I am trying to wind down my practice so that once the pandemic is over, I can travel with husband Keith Maskus ’76. Because almost all court hearings and meetings are done with virtual technology, these days, greatly reducing travel, I have found time to get back to drawing, and hope to start painting again before too long. My husband and I are both active in the Knox Colorado Alumni Club which is organized by the amazing Dr. Tom ’76 and Ann Feldman Perille ’76). We go to sports events, lectures, and art museums and do some volunteer activities together.” ❯ Harry Wolin (“Stay Safe and Wear a Mask!”) wrote, “So after 40+ years in the healthcare field and three years just hanging out on the beach, I decided to rejoin the workforce. About a month before the start of the pandemic, I assumed the CFO role at the Legal Aid Society of Palm Beach County (www.legalaidpbc.org). We are a 501c3 organization whose mission is to assure that all citizens in our region have access to high quality civil legal services. While most staff are working remotely, we have remained very busy addressing the legal issues raised by the current environment. Not to worry, I still spend most mornings walking along the beach and watching the sun rise.” ❯ Kathy Cummings Pearman revealed, “I’ve lived in Germany—1.5 hours southwest of Munich and half an hour from the Alps—since 1975, when I married a British man I met on my Knox junior year abroad in Vienna, Austria, in 1973-74. He got a job here as a translator and we’ve remained ever since. Due to Brexit, he actually took on German citizenship recently, so as to remain a member of the EU,
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Susan Haerr Zucker ’78 has learned to cut the hair of Paul Zucker ’78, making it easier for both of us to reside here. We have five sons—the last two twins!—three daughters-in-law, and seven grandchildren. One son and family live in Florida; the others live not far from us here, with one son living in our upstairs apartment; so we get to babysit our latest grandchild fairly frequently, which we love. From 1976 to 1986, I worked as a translator for a commercial manufacturer, and since 1991 I’ve enjoyed teaching at a local vocational language school. Though officially retired, I still teach two hours a week for the fun of it. I’m so glad we live here!” ❯ Finally, some sad news to share: Judy Middleton Anderson passed away on February 18, 2021. Class Correspondent: Jeanne Pankanin jeanne.knoxfriend@gmail.com, Knox College Class of 1975 Facebook group: www.facebook.com/groups/1509789545910382/
1976 Well, I hope you are all safe during these unusual times. But staying at home allows you to practice your kazoo for our Homecoming performance in fall 2021. The world should be back to normal (somewhat) by then, and we can attend our 45th Reunion. Glenn Ruklic is working hard on new tunes for our kazoo band, so I sure hope you plan to attend. It is always a lot of fun, especially since we all look the same as we did at Knox!... ❯ Speaking of Homecoming, I attended part of Homecoming this past fall, virtually, and found it quite enjoyable. I attended a virtual reception for outgoing President Amott, who has been an awesome champion and leader for Knox. Kudos to her for her efforts. I also attended an online class on social justice taught by Prof. Anderson (Emily Anderson, not Roy, those days are gone). Ellen Jones McNair also sat in on the class which was quite interesting. The social justice topic was stimulating and watching a prof teach a class online made you appreciate it takes a special educator who can monitor a chat room and an online classroom at the same time. And, finally I took an online tour of the new SMAC. It sure looks great. The whale skeleton is unique, and now they have a huge classroom named after Prof. Pillsbury (do they pass out candy on test days like he did?) So take an online tour if you get a chance… ❯ Congrats to Jun Adachi ’81, who received an Alumni Service award from Knox. Jun has mentored many students from Japan and been a great asset to the college and its international student focus. Jun has also given me some golf lessons this past summer, which have helped, a little… ❯ Stacy Womack ’77 reached out to let me know he is doing well in Nashville, Tennessee. He is a financial advisor and wishes all the best to his fellow classmates. ❯ Congrats to Mike Fricilone for his recent political pursuits. Fritz was active in local politics in the south suburbs of Chicago and was recently in the news media quite a bit due to his pursuit of a national congressional seat… ❯ Al and Cindy Corso
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Heath sent me a note. They are “easing” into retirement as Cindy is no longer a village trustee in Frankfort, Illinois, and Al recently sold his dental practice. They have bought a home in Cary, North Carolina, where they plan to spend more time once they really retire. Their children are all well and they would enjoy hearing from other classmates… ❯ Tom Yarotsky ’77 is enjoying life in Galveston, Texas. He loves to golf, tease his grandkids, and discuss politics with Ray Albertina ’79 and Jim Straus ’78… ❯ Carol Brown Lukemeyer wrote to me to share how she has been passing the time during this pandemic. She and husband Rob have a cabin in Southern Indiana where they enjoy horse riding, berry picking and relaxing. She also has enjoyed monthly Zoom catch up meetings with classmates Sally Everett Etheridge, Marcia Bruget Matthews, and Cathy Ellinwood. Kevin Hamilton sent me a note. He and his wife Kathy celebrated their wedding anniversary on December 9. They are doing well and are focused on planning a fun retirement. ❯ Speaking of retirement, Denise Buntin sent me a note. She has now been retired for five years after a career in professional dermatology. Denise recently met up with Tom and Ann Feldman Perille in Denver and met them again when they travelled through Nashville. Denise has enjoyed her bucket list travels to Ecuador, Iceland, and Niagara Falls, Ontario, and unfortunately had to cancel her 2020 trip planned to South Africa (maybe 2021 after attending our Reunion?) In 2019, Denise had a fun visit from classmates Yvonne Johnson Richardson and Cynthia Manning. ❯ Chris Ross Gould resides in Wisconsin and sent me a note. She is excited that her first grandchild will arrive in 2021! Chris has enjoyed reconnecting with friends via Zoom over the past year, has rekindled her art skills and even wrote a few pandemic-inspired rap tunes that were a hit on Facebook. She especially enjoyed hearing from Cynthia Manning, who still has a print Chris did while at Knox! ❯ Congrats to Barb Epstien, who was recently recognized by her peers and received a distinguished award, namely the Distinguished Industrial Hygienist Award given to one who makes significant contributions to the field of industrial hygiene. Barb’s work has been particularly significant in the area of risks in the construction industry. Congrats, Barb. ❯ That is it for now, hope to see you in Gburg in the fall. Class Correspondent: George M. Pearce 1114 Forest Avenue, Wilmette, IL 60091-1655, 847-256-5968, geoknox@comcast.net
1977 Hello, everyone. By the time you read this, we will have put the dreadful 2020 behind us, and are hopefully standing in line for a vaccine. I hope all of you and your families have managed to stay safe and healthy. I have just a few updates to share, which is not surprising as most folks are
juggling a lot of things right now. ❯ Gary Jacobson writes, “Still in Indy but looking for a new opportunity. Efforts were set back a bit In late October when I tested positive for COVID19. Fortunately, my symptoms were mild, and I am back on track and playing lots of golf with Dan Calandro.” ❯ Roger Strukhoff reports that he and his family have been COVID-19-free so far. He last flew on a plane in January, for a conference in Las Vegas. “After 40 years of continuous air travel, it has been an odd experience to be grounded.” But, over time he got used to the lack of disruption in his life and had more time to contemplate turning 65. “That’s been more disconcerting than COVID19!” Roger also reflected on the value of the broad-based education he received and the friends he made at Knox. “It was 47 years ago in December that I took my first plane ride, a 747 to London to participate in the Arts of London mini-term. The 3.5 weeks in London and a weekend in Paris, supervised by Professor Charles Farley and his wife, launched me into a lifetime of wanting to travel, learn, and experience as much of the world as I could.” ❯ Kari Veblen shared, “I am writing from London, Ontario, where an icy blast of winter is settling in. A year ago, the University of Western Ontario offered me a golden handshake from my position in music education, and although I’d not planned to retire, it seemed like a good idea to switch gears. So I bargained for a contract as a research associate (no pay, no obligations) with an office, grad students, grants, and projects. Since gear switching, my co- authors and I are thrilled to have produced The Oxford Handbook of Social Media and Music Learning. And, I am playing the flute again and recently acquired a concertina. Best to all of my Knox friends!” ❯ Amy Eichengreen Andrews and husband Steve are very busy taking care of their five grandchildren. “Our house is where they go to get out of their house.” Their newest grandchildren are twins, born in June. “That was our only good news about the pandemic.” ❯ Doug Hill fell off of his bicycle in September and ripped out his rotator cuff. Ouch! He endured surgery and is facing a year of recovery time. He was feeling pretty sorry for himself and recently went out on a bike ride (against doctor’s orders, I am sure) when he came upon a motorcycle wreck and realized that the person probably didn’t make it. “I stopped feeling sorry for myself right away.” ❯ Dan Calandro writes: “After 39 years of working in high school and college sports, I retired from the NCAA in September 2020. I have no specific retirement plans, yet. My buddy Bill Colby also retired after many moons of working as an attorney. I hope to see everyone back at Knox in the not-too-distant future!” ❯ Bill Silver got in touch: “In my fifth year of retirement I headed out west to ski Colorado and Utah and golf in Palm Springs, California. This year was to be a 66-day road trip (because I am 66!), but the pandemic has cancelled those plans. Instead, I will stay in Ohio
Class Knox “that liberal arts education paying off once again.”
I think I can report that it has been a crazy year for all of us in the Class of 1978. I hope that by the time this is published we will all have been vaccinated, that we are no longer talking about the election, and we have returned to normal life. But I doubt it. ❯ Bob Voss reports that he and his wife have been hunkering down at home, except for his trips to his nearly empty office every day. ❯ Susan Haerr Zucker has learned to cut Paul Zucker’s hair (that liberal arts education paying off once again), but hers is the longest since high school. Does she not trust Paul? My wife doesn’t trust me with clippers either. Paul and Susan were headed to Florida, last I heard. ❯ Robert Milford reported that as of November 30, 2020, he retired from federal service after 41 years (26 military and 15 civilian). In 2005, he retired from the Joint Staff in the Pentagon, and followed with 15 years of civil service until retirement. He and Debbie Koch Milford were anxiously awaiting the end of the pandemic and looking forward to traveling to see sons in Texas and France! So there is some good news. Thanks for your service; we are all grateful! ❯ Jim Straus has been pretty much “Stay at Home” with a life of Zoom dominating any work that might be taking place. He has been awaiting some sought-after Illinois business licenses, but the whole process has been held up by the State due to COVID and lawsuits. Fortunately, the grandpa business is flourishing and they are lucky to have everyone healthy, so far. ❯ Susan Hughey Walker’s stepdaughter, Ashley Helmick, was married on Saturday, November 28, at the picturesque Greystone Inn at Lake Toxaway. It was a beautiful day and a wonderful venue for a small family wedding. Her son, Zach, had to move his wedding from July 2020 to July 2021. They had a small engagement party for Zach and his fiancée, Liz Wingo, on Sunday December 20, at an eclectic outdoor venue. She reports that COVID has been a challenge, but they have managed to cope quite well. She is still working from home and getting used to her new normal. You can tell that she is an expert in wealth planning—she mentioned two weddings and did not even comment on how much it cost. ❯ John (Scott/Luth) Luthy weathered the COVID by settling in at his new location in Towanda, Illinois. Thanks to assistance from Phi Delt
2020 Alumni Achievement Award Casey Jones ’87 As origin stories go, the tale of how Casey Jones decided to pursue a career in nursing is undoubtedly unique. In the early 2000s, he was working as a scuba instructor near Cozumel, Mexico, when, one day, a group of vacationing nurses told him he was such a great teacher that he’d be a natural at nursing. As it happens, Casey had briefly considered going into nursing after Knox, and with tourism in decline following the 9/11 attacks, he decided it was time to try. After earning first a B.S. in nursing from Linfield College, followed by a master’s degree in clinical trauma and critical care nursing, he now serves as a clinical instructor at the Bethel College of Nursing and Health Sciences at University of Colorado Colorado Springs. He is also a medical surgical staff nurse at UC Health Memorial Central Hospital, where he has provided dedicated COVID-19 care to patients throughout the pandemic. More notable still, he has served twice as a Peace Corps volunteer—first in Guatemala shortly after graduating from Knox, and then again in 2016, when he worked with the Global Health Service Partnership to establish a nursing education program at Muni University in Uganda. He stayed long enough to help train and graduate its first class of nurses. SUBMITTED
1978
Alumni Achievement Award Winner
until vaccinated with my girlfriend who works in administration for Mercy Medical Center in Canton, Ohio. Our children with my ex-wife, Karen, are all in the local area so we can see each other frequently...even if just FaceTime, Google Meets, Zoom, or other platforms. Knox College will always have a special place in my heart. Our classmates made the experience memorable. Stay safe!” Class Correspondent: Sarah Kaull 52 Ober Street, Beverly, MA 01915-4733, 978-810-0181, skaull@icex.com
How did your Knox experience shape the direction of your professional life afterwards? I was a first-generation college student, and I chose a liberal arts school so that I could have a broad opportunity to explore quite a few different areas. I always felt like Knox wouldn’t be my terminal degree, you know that a bachelor’s degree wasn't going to be it. I became a Spanish major at Knox, was given a scholarship to go to Barcelona, and was able to broaden my horizons in a way that I didn't think was possible. It allowed me to launch my first round in the Peace Corps because I was able to speak Spanish fluently and to feel very comfortable in the international setting. Do you have any advice for current students? My heart goes out to those Knox students who are coming in as firstgeneration college students. I feel like as much as my parents were outstanding at making sure that I was prepared to go to college, I don’t have a sense that they knew what to tell me after I got there—you’ve left the fold, and you're in a place that is very challenging. I mean, I think Knox is an environment that really helps people grow and thrive, but also is an environment that challenges you in a lot of different ways: socially, financially—certainly for some people—and intellectually. There are people there that can help you. There are people there that can make the experience more understandable. And I think Knox is really great at that.
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“I stay connected with our college group of friends, The Cadavers brother Brian Sullivan ’79, he was able to get two of his project cars transported from storage up north down to his barn/shed in Towanda. He says now the weather is cold enough it makes starting one of the projects less enticing (the barn is not currently heated!). Like many, he missed the Homecoming festivities this year and is hoping that 2021 permits us to have a physical attendance instead of a virtual reunion. “Since Bloomington-Normal is currently a hotspot for COVID, I spend the majority of my time at home, which helps with sorting through boxes determining what to keep, what to donate, and what to toss out (very little of the latter, fortunately!), and continue to decorate the house.” He also reports that there is good news in that is that the older brother of classmate Bill Anderson has recovered from COVID and continues to work to get his strength back. ❯ As for me, our adult kids from NYC and Dallas have been living with us and working remotely since May 2020. We all got COVID in November but got over it, although my wife still does not have her sense of taste or smell (which sucks). I am proud to report that I am a grandpa for the first time—my daughter gave birth in early December to little baby Mathilde (2 lbs. 11 oz.), who will be in NICU until late January, but seems to be thriving and growing little by little. If you want, I can send you about 50 pictures a day. ❯ Please stay healthy and please stay in touch! Here’s to a better year ahead. Class Correspondent: David Bates 121 W. Caramillo St.,Colorado Springs, Colorado 80907 dbates@foley.com
1979 Class Correspondent: Brian Sullivan bjpscruffy4@aol.com
1980 Class Correspondents: Roy Brandys 1818 Feather Nest Drive, Cedar Park, TX 78613-1414, brandys@barronadler.com Joe Moore 773-848-5796, joe@joemoore.org
1981 Nolan Hetz: “John, thank you for reaching out to us for our yearly updates. I remain in a part-time uro-gyn pain practice here in Manitowoc, Wisconsin. Most of my professional time the past three years has been devoted to serving as the project manager and Chief Medical Officer for GlobaLASEReach, where we have engineered and built a prototype of a novel medical device that uses photon energy to noninvasively treat chronic pelvic and bladder pain. We are scheduled to conduct a clinical human research study next summer as long as pandemic relief is forthcoming with the availability of a safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine. Jean, my wife of 37 years, and I plan to start to travel the
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world soon now that we have all four of our grown-up children married off. Our older two have given us four wonderful, funloving grandchildren, and we expect the other two will follow with a couple more kiddos once they finish their graduate school trainings. I stay connected with our college group of friends, The Cadavers (Ski, Take, Spike, Waldo, Reedo, Sue, Nolan/Me). Though we lost the one and only Reed Graf this year, he’s left us with countless hilarious & priceless memories. Stay safe.” ❯ Jan Heron: “Welcomed a new granddaughter on Nov 12, Arya Madeline, and now have seven grandchildren. I’m still building my quilting business, just added a second longarm machine. I love my farm and neighbors!” ❯ John Haser: “John, thank you so much for reaching out to me regarding 2020 Knox Class Notes – Class of 1981. I have never submitted before, but I think it’s about time, so here goes. Hello to my Knox classmates, for most of my adult life I have ‘dabbled’ in the eEntertainment industry, having acted in a number of awardwinning commercials, a couple of movies, some television shows, Second City, and even a number of years performing as a stand-up comic and emcee, trying to bring humor to those who can’t laugh. With the events transpiring this year, and society being encouraged to “shelter in place,” socially distance, and wear a mask, I thought it would be a perfect time to really develop a craft that I have always been fascinated with: ventriloquism. So, over the last number of months, I have been practicing in my basement trying to perfect my act with Molly, my dummy. Although we still have some kinks to work out, I just want to assure everyone that we are taking into consideration all of the CDC precautions to prevent the spread of droplets by properly covering all body cavities. Not to boast, but I think our act is really believable, and we are now in search of a venue where we can perform and possibly a corporate sponsor… (One can dream!) Thanks for all of your encouragement with this new vocation!” ❯ Cecilia Pinto Harriman: “Hi John,here’s some news. My novella, Imagine the Dog, won the Clay Reynolds novella contest and will be published in April 2021 by Texas Review Press. It’s available for presale now by visiting their website. I’ll be available for readings and book group visits once the book is published and would love to reconnect with people from Knox! I’ve been teaching creative writing at the Chicago High School for the Arts for the past six years, which is my dream job. Husband Jim Harriman ’82 continues to practice architecture and we have, in recent years, enjoyed a couple of trips to Italy. I hope you and yours are in good health and managing to find peace of mind during these strange times.” ❯ All good with the Nicolaus. My wife’s hospital is part of a five-facility system and her particular hospital went all-COVID in March, as the pandemic unfolded. She has weathered it well as an ICU nurse and remains steadfast in helping
others. Three of our four children are married, we have one granddaughter (18 months) and another on the way. We are so grateful that all of our kids remain here in the Chicagoland area so we can see them without having to drive very far. Looking forward to our 40th Reunion, hopefully in person and on campus in the fall. Class Correspondent: John Nicolau 930 Huckleberry Lane, Glenview, IL 60025-2302, 847-657-6311, j.nicolau@comcast.net
1982 We missed almost all of you at our Zoom Homecoming cocktail hour. Sharon Schillereff, Jeff McCasland and I did have a lovely conversation, though. I guess we need better publicity next time! ❯ An update from Jeff McCasland: “I’m living in Potomac, Maryland about 200 yards from the Potomac River,with my wife Sharon and three kids: Jake (22), Annie (20), and Susannah (14). Everyone here is distance working or learning, two kids in college and one in middle school. I feel bad for the college kids who are missing the whole campus experience which we, as Knox grads, value so highly. Not retired yet, I’m a contractor for the Defense Information Systems Agency and my current posting began two days before we were sent home to telework and I do so appreciate not fighting the notorious D.C. area traffic. Not having to commute has made retirement a little less attractive. In ‘normal’ times, I’m a singer with the National Philharmonic Chorale and play trumpet occasionally. I have season tickets to the Washington Nationals and last season’s World Series Championship was great—I did get a ‘Curly W’ tattoo as a result of losing a wager with my middle child. I hope everyone is riding out this pandemic and general ‘age of anxiety’ with some optimism.” ❯ Melissa Muldoon writes: “The Muldoons are doing well, despite this very bizarre year. After living 20 years in the San Francisco Bay Area, Pat and Melissa recently moved to Austin, Texas. We are now located west of the city in the Texas Hill Country, and we LOVE it. Ryan, our oldest, has decided to relocate from San Francisco to our neck of the woods and moved here in September. Middle son Michael will soon be joining us as well, with his new wife, Crystal. They have been in quarantine in Vancouver, Canada, since March and were married last April. Because of travel restrictions, we participated in the ceremony via Facebook livestreaming. We hope to celebrate the wedding ceremony again in 2021 when we can all be present! Kyle, our youngest, will be graduating from the University of California, Davis in December and will begin his job search after returning home to Austin.” A year ago, Pat joined the consulting firm CMG (Customer Marketing Group) in Austin as president and managing partner. He is an active investor and advisor for SKU.is, a new brand accelerator, and serves as an advisor and board member for several
Class Knox (Ski, Take, Spike, Waldo, Reedo, Sue, Nolan/Me).” —Nolan Hetz ’80
1983 Class Correspondent: Beth Anderson Schuck bschuckgal@gmail.com
1984 Class Correspondent: Valerie Jencks P.O. Box 825, Downers Grove IL 60515, knoxcollege84@gmail.com
1985 What a year this has been! I truly hope that by the time these items are published there is a vaccine and that it is well on the way to being widely distributed. In the meantime, I continue to hunker down in the apartment, thankful to have a job and one that I can perform at home. The significant other and I did make one major foray outside of the NY metropolitan area in the summer, to Lake George, where he remembered camping on an island as a teenager. We managed to snag our own private island, accessible only by
2021 Alumni Achievement Award Amy Carlson ’90 Amy Carlson isn’t just an Emmy-nominated actor. She’s also a singer, a director, and a driven humanitarian. After graduating cum laude in history and with a passion for theatre, she began her acting career starring on the soap opera Another World from 1993 to 1998. This role launched her into movies and as a series regular on television programs including Third Watch and Blue Bloods. Carlson realized one of her longtime goals in 2020 when she directed The Letter, her first short film.
How did your experiences at Knox help prepare you for a career in acting? I think what my experience did for me as an actor opened up the idea of possibility. At Knox—because of the liberal arts education—I was able to switch majors, take painting, do a dance class. And it really helped me understand that what I was most interested in was being human and having the experience of life. What Knox really helped me with was being an advocate for myself. As I left school, I realized I had to follow my heart and follow my passion.
Why do you think you’re so often cast as strong characters? What ultimately makes you decide to pursue or reject a given role? I’ve found that as I’ve changed as a person, my roles have changed. When I was younger, I played a lot of weaker characters: a lot of victims. I worked on a soap opera for a couple years; that was my first series-regular role. The character I played started out as really weak—she was a victim—but then she ended up becoming a police officer. In playing that character for so long and finding my voice through that character, things have shifted since that time. I think it’s part of who I am, and that’s what I project. SUBMITTED
Alumni Achievement Award Winner
companies. Melissa continues to promote Italian culture and language through her website StudentessaMatta.com. This year due to COVID, her two language immersion programs in Italy were postponed, but she hopes to return to Italy in June and September 2021, with two new groups. Melissa spent lockdown this year writing her fourth novel set in Italy, and it is set to publish in December. The new book is called The Secret Life of Sofonisba Anguissola: The most famous woman you’ve never heard of and tells the story of the first female artist to gain recognition in the 16th century and who was Michelangelo’s pupil. It will be available in epub and print. Over the summer, she also worked with an actress who read her previous three novels, turning them into audiobooks. All print, epub, and audiobooks are available on Amazon. You can find more about the books at MelissaMuldoon.com. ❯ And from Steve Czerwinski: “The big news I have is that our Belizean home is finally done and we are moved in! The move-in process started at the beginning of August and, just this week, the finishing touches were completed. The garage/ workshop/cistern/solar power station was the final step on this long journey. I’ll have all of the boxes unpacked by Thanksgiving—just a few short days from now—and then, RELAX! Not sure what to do next but I’m sure we’ll figure something out!” Steve also sent photos—the place looks beautiful! Next reunion in Belize, Steve? ❯ Sharon and I hope you are all healthy and muddling through this pandemic and hope to see you in person next Homecoming! Class Correspondents: Sharon L. Schillereff 7780 W 38th Ave., #404, Wheat Ridge, CO 80033, 303-885-7185, Sschil7470@yahoo.com Chris Bohm Gavlin 4246 Howard Ave., Western Springs, IL 60558, 708-246-1419, cgavlin@gmail.com
Discuss your activism with chronic fatigue syndrome and other health and social justice issues. At Knox, I wrote for an alternative student paper, and we wrote about women’s rights and social justice issues. It all started at Knox: not the feeling of it, but the action for it. I started working on ME/CFS (myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome) because one of my best friends through college ended up dying after a long struggle with ME/CFS. We started fundraising, and raising consciousness about it. I’ve worked with those organizations, and I’ve also worked with Habitat for Humanity doing the Women Build program. I also work with Hearts of Gold, which is a charity that helps homeless women and children. I just try to do what I can when I can.
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Mary Cantrell ’86 reports, “I earned the title of full professor at boat—the perfect COVID vacation. ❯ I was pleased to hear from Paul Downey, who writes: “Terry Malcom ’87 and I remain in Brookings, South Dakota. I retired from 3M in September and am patiently awaiting Terry’s retirement so that we can move on to the next phase of our lives. Once COVID has ramped down, travel and a move back to Illinois will be our focus. Our oldest son, Chris, is working on his Ph.D. at the University of Washington. Chris is in his third year. Our youngest son, Sean, started law school at the University of Minnesota this fall. We wish health and happiness to all of the Knox family.” ❯ Wendy Clark writes: “I’m coming up on 29 years as a Montana resident; for the past 20 years I’ve worked for the U.S. Forest Service as a wildlife biologist based in Choteau, Montana. I gave up fieldwork a while back and have been working for the past six years on a land management plan for the 2.8 million-acre Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest in central Montana. As that project nears completion I’m figuring out what comes next. Whatever that is, it’s likely to include much more time in the Midwest, as my son is a sophomore studying civil engineering at Iowa State University. The trifecta of the loss of a dear friend and classmate in April, the loss of my dad last month, and seeing friends battle to survive COVID has me feeling deeply the desire to rebuild and strengthen connections with family and friends. I really hope that we’re all able to gather and celebrate next fall!” ❯ Barb Reidy Moore sent me a fun anecdote: “When I was little, we lived in Lake Forest, Illinois. At 7 years old, I fell in love with a house I swore someday I would live in. Fast-forward 50 years, and the house finally comes on the market. My husband, two kids and I buy it from none other than our classmate Joe Krakora! His family had lived in the house since the 70s. I had no idea! Small world!” ❯ On a sadder note, Barb also reported that Alene Lesniak Ackerman died in late November 2020, following a heroic battle against endocrine cancer. She was only diagnosed in August. She leaves behind husband Mark Ackerman ’84 and their daughter, Natalie. She requested that any donations in her memory be made to Ronald McDonald House Charities. Class Correspondents: Margaret VerKoulen Lynn mvlynn@comcast.net Jane Davis jedavis_ill@hotmail.com
online with four virtual residencies so far, thanks to COVID. We’ve learned a lot about Zoom and livestreaming to Facebook, but they were successful and trained us for a fully virtual Eudora Welty Writers’ Symposium in October. My only disappointment was that it coincided with Knox’s virtual Homecoming! I’m department chair now, so there’s been lots to do adapting schedules and helping students and faculty adjust to more online learning, but it’s going well, and we’re staying healthy. We’ve nearly made it through the fall semester without any significant outbreaks.” ❯ Tony Phillips writes, “Life has been very boring recently, but occasional (and careful) visits with Cindy Rees Vaughn ’87 and her husband Kent have brightened the gloom of the pandemic.” ❯ And Alice Congdon Maitland wrote to say that she is working in Africa with an NGO and promised to write more soon. We’ll be watching for that update in time for the next issue, Alice! ❯ Mary Cantrell has big news! “I’d love to share two ways my Knox College education has benefited me during this crazy time. In April 2020, I earned the title of full professor at Tulsa Community College—a rank that didn’t exist prior to 2019. It’s about time! This fall marked my 30th year teaching at TCC, a job I continue to love, even during a pandemic. In June 2020, my husband Jason Brimer and I celebrated our 30-year wedding anniversary with a wedding reenactment/anniversary party over Zoom. Knox alums Rachel Hall, Anna Leahy ’88, Kendall Dunkelberg, Brigid Leahy ’89, and Rabbi Greg Kanter ’87 were all in attendance. Wish our good friend Rochelle Barron could have been there with us. May her memory be for a blessing.” ❯ Me again. We do miss Rochelle, Barb, Aimee, Rex, and all the other members of the Class of ’86 who are no longer with us. In this challenging time, may we remember all those we have lived with and loved through the years. Next year will mark 35 years since we left Knox. It’s a good time to remind ourselves of how our experiences at Knox and with one another have helped make our lives what they have been. Until then, I wish you all peace, health, and safety. Class Correspondent: Susan Bantz 2012 Shady Lane, Muscatine, IA, 52761, 563-554-9213, sbantz001@luthersem.edu
1987 1986 Greetings, Classmates! I hope this end of this year finds you all healthy and surviving quarantine with your sanity intact. So much in our daily lives has changed this year and I, for one, find myself hungry for news of how you all are faring. So here is a little taste of how the Class of ’86 has managed to weather the Pandemic of 2020. ❯ From Kendall Dunkelberg: “Things are going well here at Mississippi University for Women. The lowresidency MFA program I direct has gone fully
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Class Correspondent: Lisabeth Simms Belman 12701 York Mill Lane, Clarksburg, MD 20871-4034, 301-972-3751, lisabeth1208@verizon.net
1988 Class Correspondent: TBD If interested in serving as the correspondent, please contact Jennifer Gallas at jgallas@knox.edu.
1989 Class Correspondent: Mia Jiganti 1850 W. Cortland, Chicago, IL 60622-1035, 773-278-0814, mjiganti@prodigy.net
1990 Class Correspondent: Darcy Turner 108 West James Street, Warren, IL 61087, 919-932-9150, Bonetbien1@gmail.com
1991 Class Correspondent: Jonathan Sheinkop 260 Cary Ave, Highland Park, IL 60035, jonathansheinkop@hotmail.com
1992 Class Correspondents: Celine Gura Matthiessen 6417 Marlar, The Colony, TX 75056-7119, 469-384-1805, celmatthiessen@hotmail.com Tammy Thorsen Ragnini 912 S. Summit, Barrington, IL 60010-5057, 847-382-4022, rragnini1@yahoo.com
1993 Class Correspondent: Rebecca Gillan rebecca.m.gillan@gmail.com
1994 Class Correspondent: Lisa Preston-Hsu 217-649-7889, story.of.a.kitchen@gmail.com
1995 None of us would have ever expected to spend our 25th Reunion in front of a Zoom screen with a beverage in hand, but we did it! It was not the same as exploring old haunts on campus and getting a cup of spinach bisque at the Landmark, but we connected, shared about the current state of affairs (it was right before the 2020 election, after all), shared favorite Knox stories, and got to know each other in new ways. We established that we can have fun via Zoom even when we aren’t meeting for Homecoming! Let’s plan for more of these gatherings before our next return to campus! ❯ Mimi Doyle Russell is teaching fifth grade math in Memphis, Tennessee. ❯ Elena Rakochy is teaching ceramics at Harold Washington College in Chicago, Illinois. ❯ Peter Lyon is a senior analyst with ANSER in the Washington, D.C., metro area. ❯ Nicole Pizzurro Ortman has been teaching English in Chicago Public Schools for 24 years. Eleven years to retirement, but who’s counting? ❯ Nicole Havelka lives in Columbus, Ohio, and is starting her own coaching and consulting business blending mindfulness practices and
Class Knox Tulsa Community College—a rank that didn’t exist prior to 2019.”
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Kathy Dix Biallas: Our daily lives have changed quite a bit with the advent of the coronavirus, of course. My family stayed home from March through October, with my child returning to school and my husband to the office in midOctober, while I continue to telecommute. Managing remote schooling while still working was an unforeseen challenge that no parenting book ever covered. Over our seven-month lockdown, I learned to make a sourdough starter and got creative with my cooking. We still haven’t dined out, and we didn’t do takeout until November, so my Instant Pots (plural) have been earning their keep. I’ve picked up a few more sewing skills, crocheted a lot of little items, and caught up on a lot of reading. We’ve assembled jigsaw puzzles and finally watched the first season of The Mandalorian. I hope you all have managed to fend off the coronavirus, and that you and your families are staying healthy and well and reasonably sane, considering the inherent
A group of Class of 1996 alumni including Caitlin Muelder, Allen Doederlein, Sara Lindstrom Williams, Dan Blask, Megan Roth, and Megan Scott and Brian Tibbets gather on Zoom every Tuesday night to catch up and obsess over The Vermont Country Store.
2021 Alumni Achievement Award Regine Rousseau ’95 Regine Rousseau has built a business that’s rooted in one of her passions: wine. That passion was born in France, when, as a Knox student, she studied abroad in Besançon and met a family who owned a wine shop. The next thing she knew, she was in love with “the culture of wine.” In one of her earliest entrepreneurial experiences, and with encouragement from legendary Professor of Theatre Ivan Davidson, she produced and directed For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide/When the Rainbow Is Enuf at Knox. She oversaw all aspects of the production—casting, financing, and set design, to name a few. Now, she is CEO of Shall We Wine, a Chicago-based experiential marketing company focused on wine, spirits, and beer-tasting. Shall We Wine provides demonstrations and hosts private and public wine-tasting events. Since the pandemic, the business has adapted by offering virtual events and online classes.
What are you proudest of? What I am most proud of is my ability to connect to people. I really sit back and I am humbled by the magnitude of support that I get. I have been able to make connections with individuals who have come out of nowhere, to help support my business, to support my dreams. And I understand that that is because I am able to really connect with people. It’s not something that I did intentionally. It wasn’t this networking strategy. It’s really because I care about people.
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1996
Alumni Achievement Award Winner
leadership development. You can see what she’s up to at defythetrend.com. Class Correspondent: Rev. Nicole Havelka defythetrend@gmail.com Facebook, Twitter, Instagram: @revnhavelka
What advice do you have for current and future Knox students? When you are a young person—and even when you’re older—you will meet people who tell you, “Your ideas are not viable. You can’t do this.” I heard that so many times. So one of my favorite pieces of advice to give, and you do it in a very nice way, is you say, “Thank you for your opinion, but your fear is not my reality.” Often, even the most well-intentioned people will say “You can’t do this” because they’re afraid for you. Number two, I think, is to say to a student or a graduating student, “You have something that companies need, and that the world needs. Even though you’re young, you have had experiences that companies are looking for, so don’t doubt yourself.”
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Neha Gill ’96 recently received the Executive Scholars Certificate loneliness of lockdown. I have been reminiscing about times at Knox with my friends, sitting together at games, singing together in choir, and dining together in the caf unmasked. I cannot wait to see everyone in what I hope will be a healthier, happier, 2021. ❯ Shannon McDaniel: “I’m currently posted in Conakry, Guinea, West Africa, and have been assigned here since August 2019. When the pandemic hit, they gave us the option to come home, so I grabbed my cat and hopped on a plane and waited out Corona in the U.S. for six months. While I was home, I sold my house and bought a new one much closer to work. During those six months, I got to know my streaming services very well, watching pretty much every movie known to man on Netflix/Hulu/Amazon Prime. I came back to Guinea in September, just in time for presidential elections here, which were hotly contested (the embassy sent us home and told us to stay in our houses for a week, and people were setting fires around town and putting up roadblocks). Never a dull day!” ❯ Lora Kutkat: “We relocated from Maryland to Williamsfield, Illinois, in 2017 to take advantage of Williamsfield’s wonderful school district. Just by relocating to a rural area, we save approximately 60 hours of commuting every two weeks. That means we’ve been able to do more things in the community than we could have done back east. For example, my spouse is the village president, and I am on the school board. We’ve also been able to help the
community with other things such as establishing a food pantry with a local student and refurbishing a medical clinic so the village could have a healthcare provider. The kids are also doing well. Our oldest now lives in Oregon and has a job with an environmental company. Our two other boys attend Williamsfield school and are in kindergarten and fourth grades. COVID has presented a number of challenges and opportunities. As for opportunities, I’ve been able to see more of what the kids are doing with school. And I can help target certain areas where I specifically see gaps. But COVID has its challenges as well. Many days I have at least one and sometimes both kids at home trying to do remote learning at exactly the same time. This gets complicated because I also still work for the National Institutes of Health but from home, and sometimes my meetings also occur at the same time as their classes. It’s been quite a juggling act, but overall, it seems to be working okay. Hope everyone is well!” ❯ Neha Gill: “I recently received the Executive Scholars Certificate in Nonprofit Management from Northwestern University’s Kellogg Executive Education. I’ve also been a Leadership Greater Chicago Fellow since 2019 and the executive director of a nonprofit, Apna Ghar, Inc., in Chicago since 2013. In May 2020, I was invited to speak at Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker’s press conference on the issues faced by immigrant, refugee, and other marginalized communities during the
pandemic. In June, I spoke on alternatives to policing on Chicago Tonight on WTTW Channel 11 (Chicago’s PBS affiliate) in support of the uprising to end police brutality. In other news, in 2016, my husband and I co-founded a tea company that imports rare and fine teas primarily from Northeast India called PANG Organic Tea, so if any Knox people are interested in trying the tea, they should get in touch. :) Thanks for your update. I hope we can get through this time!” ❯ Caitlin Muelder: I’m writing on behalf of myself, Allen Doederlein, Sara Lindstrom Williams, Dan Blask, Megan Roth, and Megan Scott and Brian Tibbets. Everyone’s been doing their best to stay safe, sane, and healthy during this past year. A highlight during these challenging times has been connecting with each other every Tuesday night since the first week of March. Our “Talkie Tuesdays” or “Knox Talkx” or our “Quaran-Team Tuesdays” has been very helpful for giving us all a way to feel connected, and laugh, and go through the ups and downs of an isolating time, together. We regularly discuss our shared love/obsession with The Vermont Country Store and even made the Instagram page for the company. (See photo.) Much love to you and yours! ❯ Mike Smith: “Life is good, even in the relative chaos of 2020. My older son Ethan is a freshman (how did that happen!?) at Bradley-Bourbonnais High School. He ran cross country, is on the swim team, and will run track (if either has a season this year). He is doing well in school but isn’t a fan of remote learning. My younger son Trevor is a fourth grader and is a blast. His wit and sense of humor amaze me sometimes. He is obsessed with football and is always up for an adventure. My wife Ann is in her fifth year as a professor at ONU. She is awesome at her job and pretty much keeps our family running. I am in my 10th year as the assistant principal at Reed-Custer High School. I love what I do and still love working with young adults. As a great honor this year, I was inducted into the Knox-Lombard Athletic Hall of Fame. I am thrilled to be inducted with former teammate and suitemate Joe Metzka, along with two other great Knox athletes. It is a tremendous honor and I am looking forward to the ceremony and connecting with Joe and many other friends and former teammates.Thanks again, Kathy!” Class Correspondent: Kathryn Dix Biallas 1418 East Colter Street, Phoenix, AZ 85014, 602-944-7466, kathybiallas@gmail.com
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1997 Class Correspondent: Chip Chandler knoxclassof97@gmail.com
Knox alumni and families celebrate the release of Another Disaster by Joe Metzka ’96. Back: Logan Finke, Joey Finke ’00, Joe Metzka ’96, Matt Stines ’98, and Missy Stines. Kneeling: Cherie Metzka and Amber Finke ’96.
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1998 With snow on the ground, spring feels far off, but spring is a season that kindles hope. The pandemic feels a lot like a long winter, but connecting with Knox folks is inspiring and
Class Knox in Nonprofit Management from Northwestern University. reminds me that we are in this together. We’ll work our way forward with leadership, advancement, family, nostalgia and great memories, fresh air, great music, and lifelong friends. Like many of us, I’m looking ahead to a time when we can all connect at Knox Homecoming, and hopefully sooner rather than later. ❯ Kristin Baker wrote: “I am working as a licensed clinical social worker. After almost a decade of working for the VA, in February I took a position as the director of psychological health for the Missouri Army National Guard, just a few weeks before the office went to full-time telework because of COVID-19. Quite an interesting time to start a new job! I live in Missouri with my partner and our 5-year-old daughter, who started kindergarten via Zoom this year.” ❯ Elizabeth Flanders Monaco checked in: “All is well here in Texas with the Monacos. We are plugging along with our older two doing virtual school (sophomore in college and 11th grade) and our younger two in person for now (sixth and seventh grades). ❯ I finished my master’s degree in social work in May and passed the state licensing exam so I am now officially an LMSW. I also started a new job at a local charity as the program director this past year. I am enjoying being back to work after many years of focusing on the kids. Jason Monaco also started a new job recently as the CFO for Cornerstone Chemical. While I go into the office every day, he now works from home for the first time in his career. It is a strange year! Outside of work and school, our kids continue to keep us busy with all their activities.We look forward to the time when we can all gather together again!” ❯ Stacie Kemp sent greetings and this update: “About five-and-a-half years ago, my husband and I moved to Dixon, Illinois, after spending about 13 years in Milwaukee. We wanted to raise our kids closer to family and closer to our hometown area in Northern Illinois. I have been working at a community mental health center that provides mental health and substance use services for four counties in the area and was recently promoted to chief operating officer in July of this year. It has been an interesting challenge running an organization while the majority of the staff are working remotely and providing therapy from their homes. I have been juggling that, along with helping our kids (Ellie,11, and Ava, 6) with their remote learning while they have moved back and forth from in-school to remote-learning during this crazy time. I regularly keep in touch with Maddie Stapleton Fay ’98 who lives in the Atlanta area. We met up in Nashville last year, along with a couple of our other high school girlfriends, so I’m looking forward to a time when it’s safe to travel again so we can plan our next girls’ trip!” ❯ Kevin Gash is back in the contiguous United States: “After 14 years abroad that included starting a small farm in Hawaii as a part-time project, we resettled in the D.C. area a little over a year ago. COVID-19 shook a lot of things up, but we adapted and bought a cabin in
the West Virginia hills that my wife and I rehabilitated into a weekend retreat. I was also able to visit Knox about 1.5 years ago and saw Professors Karen Kampwirth ’86 and Duane Oldfield. It was great to catch up. I was even able to go into my freshman-year dorm and show my kids how I lived over 20 years ago. I’m looking forward to the end of the social isolation and getting Knox alumni in the D.C. area together. I’ve run into more and more from older and younger classes and hope we can get together again in-person.” ❯ Matt Hayden checked in: “My wife Sara and I live in St. Louis and have two daughters, Charlotte and Audrey. I’m the associate athletic director for external operations at Saint Louis University. We’ve laid pretty low during the pandemic but have taken advantage of the many parks around St. Louis to hike and enjoy the outdoors.” ❯ Matt Stines sent an update: “Hello fellow Knox alums! I’m not sure where to begin, because I know it has been a really long time since I have submitted anything. Life gets really busy, as we all know, and time gets away from us. Professionally, I am in my 23rd year of public education. I am currently the superintendent for Grant District 110 in Fairview Heights, a position I have held since 2009. I have truly loved working with kids and leading staff to provide a top-quality education and raise good citizens. An added bonus is that I wound up back home, serving the community I grew up in and the school I graduated from. I also have the privilege of coaching and supporting other administrators on a state level through the School for Advanced Leadership with IASA. As you can imagine, 2020 has been a challenge in education as we have bounced from in-person to remote and back again dealing with COVID. My wife Missy and I have also celebrated success and faced challenges in our personal business, the Office Bar & Grill in Red Bud, Illinois, through 2020. We celebrated 10 years in the business to be shortly faced with mitigations, closures, and tuff times in the industry. We are looking forward to getting back to normal operations and a better year ahead. Personally, we have found many blessings this year. Our kids, Sarah (32), Zach (28), and Caleb (25) are all grown and adding to our family with many grandkids… I know, that doesn’t seem right. It is the best gig ever, trust me! We have seven beautiful grandsons, and in July we got the first girl of the mix. Not sure what to do with the hair bows and ruffles, but we are figuring it out. As I think about the years that have gone by, I know we are all truly blessed to have the great friendships we built at Knox and I love that I have been able to stay in touch with so many. In December, I got to meet up with Kris Kahler and Jeremy Darnell for my first experience of pheasant hunting. Darnell gave me the best rookie advice ever, telling me, ‘Just don’t shoot my dog.’ Thanks, Brother. We didn’t come home with any birds, but we had a great day catching up and relaxing. Kris and I also had a great trip down memory lane looking through his
Knox Faces books that he found when he recently moved. On January 2, my wife and I met some old Knox friends, Joey ’96 and Amber Aulwes Finke ’96, at BB’s in St. Louis to watch the one and only Joe Metzka ’96 put on a hell of a show! Many of us remember Joe guitar shredding the National Anthem on Flunk Day and I have to tell you his skills have only gotten better over time. We celebrated his birthday and the release of his new album, Another Disaster (you all need this one–some of the best jazz and blues you will find). Life has been good and I know there are more good times ahead as we enter the new year.” Class Correspondent: Kip Conwell kipconwell@gmail.com
1999 Hey Class of 1999! Hey all! I don’t really spend too much time on social media, so I’m sure I’m missing some really great news from you. So, thank you to those who emailed! ❯ Congratulations to Michael Dale and Alexandra Liezert for the birth of their first child Thomas Stephen Dale, born October 2, 2020. ❯ Tami Gillip Rudolph has been promoted to associate director of project finance for IQVIA. IQVIA, formerly Quintiles, is a clinical research organization. Congrats to Tami! ❯ Lindsay Hansen reports: “I finally have something! Over the summer I taped episodes of Styled by Emma for IGTV (Instagram’s longform video platform): www.instagram.com/emmachamberlain/channel/. Emma Chamberlain is an influencer/YouTuber who wanted to make over librarians, firefighters, teachers, scientists, etc. She chose six people, including me, and each person has four episodes. Only my first episode has aired, but the whole series will be up by the time the magazine comes out.” Awesome Lindsay! Class Correspondent: Valerie Saks Kihslinger S3042 W. Salem Ridge Rd., La Farge, WI 54639, 608-268-6903, vsaks@hotmail.com
2000 Class Correspondent: Jennifer Parker parker_jen78@yahoo.com
2001 Class Correspondent: If interested in serving as the correspondent, please contact Jennifer Gallas at jgallas@knox.edu.
2002 Tessa Huffman Drayton and her husband, Andrew Drayton, welcomed a new baby boy last year. Lincoln Thomas was born on April 14, 2020. Congratulations! Class Correspondent: Jennifer Wreyford 1700 Bassett Street, #407, Denver, CO 80202, 813-482-4112, jwreyford@gmail.com
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Gemma Truman Billings ’03 “joined the 501st Legion,
These five teachers recently realized they are all Knox alumnae. They met over Zoom to reminisce and take a photo. From top left: Nora Heide ’08 (fifth grade), Dominique Scott ’18 (first grade), Hannah Bloyd-Peshkin Tatro ’14 (kindergarten), Tricia Monahan Groben ’02 (instructional coach), Claire Rasmussen ’03 (preschool).
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Krishan ’03 and Poornima Raghunathan ’03. He continues to thrive.” Class Correspondent: Susan C. Vitous Johnson 1312 Iles Avenue, Belvidere, IL 61008-1407, susanvitousjohnson@yahoo.com
2004
2005
Margaret Fleetwood says: “My husband Tammer and I welcomed a son, Erlend Nour Fleetwood Farid, on August 27. Having an infant around has been a fulfilling quarantine project. Hope everyone has found themselves some silver linings.” ❯ Ryan Colclasure says, “I teach psychology at Monmouth College and have a wonderful 5-year-old son named Konrad.” ❯ Teresa Lazarz Spicer: “I’m making a career change from semiconductor R&D engineer to financial technology Scrum Master. I used my on-the-job experience with data science and business processes together with a Scrum Master certification to snag a transitional job at USAA, but several of my Knox classes have certainly come in handy in actually doing the transitional job—not just CS 141 (Intro to Programming), but several math classes as well!” ❯ Jamie Koenig says, “In May, I received tenure at Augustana College; I am now an associate professor in the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience. In June, my husband (Brad) and I welcomed our new daughter, Andie, into the world! I’ve been getting great parenting advice from Eura Ryan Szuwalski and Jenny Larsen Park! During these stressful times, I’m also thankful for my wonderful long-lasting friendships with Karolina Sawicka, Erin Jezuit, Nnenna Odim ’05, and Jessica Watson ’06! We were rocking virtual meetings before they were so popular!” ❯ Rachana Rao Umashankar reports that she continues to work as a member of the Religious Studies department at Iona College, New York, where she received tenure this spring. This year also marks the 20th birthyear of her cat, Bekku—a native of Galesburg, this granddaddy kicked off his adventures as a shared undergrad cat for Rachana, Shalini
Lauren Harrison Rossato and husband Ken proudly welcomed a baby girl into the world in September. Never before has life been so joyous and so exhausting at the same time. ❯ Jacqueline Dehne Scafidi writes that she was happy to see fellow alumni at the virtual Homecoming. Trivia night was fun! It was great to catch up virtually and see what wonderful, fulfilling lives everyone is leading. Jackie, Matt (spouse), and daughters Alexandra and Vivian welcomed a new member to their family this past September—Kira Midnight! She just turned one year old this November and is a beautiful black lab/whippet mix rescue. Their house is filled with balls, squeaks, laughter, creativity, art and e-learning while Jackie stays at home for now. ❯ Tara Converse Rollins writes: “Chris and I celebrated 2.5 years in our current home and 10 years in Madison, which is hard to believe! This has been a challenging year and we are both so grateful that we and our loved ones are safe and that we both continue to be employed. I have been working at Insight Counseling & Wellness for over five years now and transitioned to doing sessions via telehealth from home in March. Chris started an exciting new job at Guaranteed Rate at the end of November. We are looking forward to being able to spend more time together now that he is working from home too for the first time since COVID-19 started. It was fun to be able to connect with some of you on the Homecoming Zoom happy hour to celebrate our 15-year anniversary. Stay safe, everyone!”
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Cynthia Barounis and Stef Boese ’02 welcomed baby Sebastian Boese into their family on April 21, 2020. Cynthia was also the recipient of the National Women’s Studies Association’s 2020 Alison Piepmeier Book Prize for her book Vulnerable Constitutions: Queerness, Disability, and the Remaking of American Manhood. ❯ Kimberly Van Winkle-Spires writes, “I am still in the bovine A.I. field. Currently, head laboratory research technician in Quality Control. I have been here 13 years now. Wow, where has the time gone?” ❯ Lisa C. Knisely reports, “I’ll be finishing up my M.S.W. this June. After earning my master’s and Ph.D. in gender studies, I worked as an adjunct professor for a bit, but decided to switch careers to become a therapist. I recently started seeing my first clients, and I finally feel like I found my life’s calling; it’s such a meaningful honor to hold sacred space for others. I am considering training as a Jungian analyst after I complete clinical licensure.” ❯ Gemma Truman Billings says, “Derrick Billings ’00 and I moved back to my hometown of Chicago in 2016 in time to hear the Cubs win the World Series. I’m now working at Bank of America Merrill Lynch as an assistant vice president–delivery lead, and have been mentoring fintech startups in project management at 1871 for the past few years since earning my PMP designation. I’m still involved with Sigma Alpha Iota as the local province officer, and in 2019 I joined the 501st Legion, the world’s largest Star Wars costuming club. It’s been wild, but fun. Looking forward to resuming my office views of the Chicago River next to Ogilvie.” ❯ We recently figured out that there are five Knox alums teaching at our school! We met over Zoom to reminisce and take a photo! We hope to have more lunches in the future. Nora Heide ’08 - 5th Grade Teacher Dominique Scott ’18 - 1st Grade Teacher Hannah Bloyd-Peshkin Tatro ’14 Kindergarten Teacher Tricia Monahan Groben ’02 - Instructional Coach
Claire Rasmussen ’03 - Preschool Teacher Class Correspondent: Allison O’Mahen Malcom 8134 Gridley Avenue, Wauwatosa, WI 53213-3049, allison.o.malcom@gmail.com
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Kourtney Grimm ’07 is an associate veterinarian at Pekin Animal Hospital and frequently works with wildlife. Here she is with two of her patients—an eagle and an otter.
Class Knox the world’s largest Star Wars costuming club.”
Class Correspondent: Megan Rehberg megan.rehberg@gmail.com
2007
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It’s been a tough time and hopefully everyone has been staying safe. We have all been affected by this in some way, shape, or form. Thankfully, it’s nice to know that you can always come back to your Knox family. Without further ado – here’s what’s been happening with some of our classmates. ❯ Tawny Wilson Boyce says, “In June, husband Bert and I welcomed a baby girl, Frances Pearl. Big sister Charlotte has taken to her new role. Our little pandemic baby can’t wait to meet our friends and family in Chicago.” ❯ Will Faber writes: “Jordan Mumma Faber ’08 (and I would like to announce the birth of our daughter, Penrose Jane Faber, on November 5, 2020. We are overjoyed, and she is settling in beautifully to life here in Crete, Illinois.” ❯ Josh Franklin says “I had my first jury trial in January; I won on one charge and lost on the other (split the baby). Back in March of this year, just before everything shut down, I bought a house in Lansing, Michigan. I just finished building a 8.5’x4.5’ farm table, and now I’m
Will ’07 and Jordan Mumma Faber ’08 are overjoyed with daughter Penrose Jane Faber, born on November 5, 2020.
Meet Archer Knox Morris, born on November 5, 2020, to proud parents Nick Morris ’07 and wife Laura.
2021 Young Alumni Achievement Award Leah Heister Burton ’08 Like many Knox graduates, the career Leah Heister Burton has today isn’t the career she imagined when she first arrived in Galesburg. Originally planning to attend law school after graduating from Knox (she majored in political science), she took a year off to work at St. Jude’s Research Hospital, an organization she’d gotten to know through her membership in Delta Delta Delta. She enjoyed professional philanthropy so much she decided to switch gears and pursue a master’s degree in nonprofit management from Columbia University while continuing to work for St. Jude’s. (She now teaches in Columbia’s program herself.) In 2016, after working with healthcare organizations for a number of years, Leah branched out into fundraising consulting, working with a broad range of nonprofits—a client roster that included New York’s Guggenheim Foundation. She quickly developed a strong working relationship with the museum’s director—a fellow Midwesterner and ACM alumnus—so when he asked her to join the organization full-time, she seized the opportunity. This year, despite the outsized impact of the pandemic on New York and the museum community, her team worked closely with donors to gain their support in helping the Guggenheim weather the crisis. “I’m immensely proud of our team,” she says. “While I hope we never experience the tumult of 2020 again, it challenged us in a lot of wonderful ways, and there are many things we hope to keep doing in 2021 and beyond.” SUBMITTED
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Alumni Achievement Award Winner
Class Correspondents: Marissa Parkin moeparkin@gmail.com Ashley Steinsdoerfer Gottlieb 815-245-3648, agsteinsdoerfer@aol.com
What’s your favorite part of working at the Guggenheim? The strength of any fundraising operation is not just dependent on the fundraising team, but the culture of philanthropy that’s built within the organization. And so I truly enjoy being able to partner with the curatorial department, with conservation, with education, with our facilities team. It’s a real pleasure, I think, to know that any given day will be a different experience. And to know that, through people’s philanthropy and their investment in the museum, they’re making an impact locally in New York City, but also internationally. What should people who want to increase their philanthropic giving consider when choosing where to invest their gifts? My advice is to take a moment to think about the impact that you want to make to think about how it could be made. Philanthropy is an incredibly personal decision. I think understanding what drives you and what you’re passionate about, is incredibly important. People come to the table as philanthropists wearing many different hats—some might be giving for purely altruistic reasons, some are giving because they feel that they want to repay an organization, and some people give because they want that community to thrive. Even for donors who are looking at giving, say $20 a month, please know that every gift is so important to organizations.
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Kat Sweet ’08 has been doing “a ton of biking” and hopes to ride 35
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going to remodel the house. I went canoeing in Indiana; climbed the dunes of Sleeping Bear; hiked through most of Mackinac Island; went golfing probably 7 times with my big brother; went roller skating for the first time in 10 years and didn’t fall on my ass; reread The Iliad, The Odyssey, and The Aeneid; and scared the crap out of my nieces with some campfire stories (they requested the scary stories).” ❯ Kourtney Grimm says “I moved to a new clinic in August. I am now an associate veterinarian at Pekin Animal Hospital. I have been able to see a lot of exotic animals, a specialty at our clinic, and wildlife. This fall I got to spay an otter for Wildlife Prairie Park. I’m looking forward to all the interesting animals that I now care for on a daily basis.” Check out some of the photos of her at her job! ❯ Eric Langston says, “I moved back to Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and am working at Simmons Perrine Moyer Bergman PLC as a bankruptcy and real estate attorney. I recently received the local business journal’s 40 under 40 award and the local newspaper’s young professional award. Partner Chris Newton and I celebrated our fiveyear anniversary in January and welcomed a cat into our family last October, MoMo. Trying to repair the damage from the derecho storms on August 10, 2020; we were some of the lucky ones though. I’ve enjoyed stealing away time gardening, too. We dug up a dense patch of daffodils and belladonna lilies (about 400 bulbs) and redistributed them all around our house and gave extras to neighbors and still have some in the basement. Very excited for spring.” ❯ Laura Wentink Marcasciano says, “In July 2020, my husband and I celebrated our 10-year wedding anniversary by moving to a new apartment complex down the road. It might not seem like a big change for most, but the apartment is a nightand-day difference, especially with both of us in extended work from home. The best part, after going over 12 years without an in-unit washer dryer, is that we finally have our own again. Our biggest regret was not making the change sooner.” ❯ Bill Mayeroff says, ” Big news first. I’m married, folks! I married my partner, Jessica, on Friday, November 13. That’s right. I got married on Friday the 13th. We’re looking forward to a life of dogs (just two—for now),
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grade science, living in Oak Lawn with my husband and three kids.” ❯ Marius Tam says, “I am still living in Bloemendaal, a suburb outside of Amsterdam, close to the beach, with wife Stephanie, son Tijmen, and, last year, our daughter Valentine was born. Due to COVID-19 we have been working from home, and although it is a bit boring, we have been coping well. We had a lot more time to go to the beach almost every day during the summer, and work at Heineken has been good. I had the chance to catch up with a couple of TKE buddies since we all started video-calling more during this crisis. There are some upsides to this crisis :)” ❯ A. Hamed Aziz says ”Here is my update for this heck of a year: I excelled at making my own kombucha tea and kefir! Colleen Harden Aziz ’10 and I potty-trained our two-year-old son, and I have been working from home since March 2020! We can’t wait for 2021!” ❯ Megan Hall joined a professional aerial dance company, In The Wings, based out of Denver, Colorado. ❯ This past year, the book Jessica Platt published in 2018 was released as an audiobook, available at Audible: Flair, by J. L. Platt. In addition to working as an activity specialist at Parc Provence, she is halfway done with a master’s degree in rehabilitation counseling from Maryville University. ❯ Kat Sweet recently started a new job as a senior security consultant at Luta Security. She has also been doing a ton of biking, with the goal of riding 35 miles on her 35th birthday. ❯ Greg and Andie Allison Leibach had two very bright spots in 2020. They were thrilled to welcome twin daughters, Layne Allison and Blake Louise on July 31. Big brother Wesley is three years old and loving his new role. Greg and Andie are also navigating the new world of elearning through their teaching. ❯ Bailey Rewoldt relates, “I continued to work as a librarian and during the shutdown cleaned out my parents’ basement and barn and in the process found treasure in the form of a box of old family photos. And now to work on genealogy!”
2008 Jenny Golz says, “I just started my second season as an assistant college basketball coach and high school softball coach. I am teaching seventh
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Will Gallmeyer ’09 shows off Charlotte Sonnier GallmeyerBreaux, born on July 27, 2020.
White Sox baseball (though we’re both pissed about the Tony LaRussa hire) and radically progressive politics (f*** racists, f*** homophobes, f*** transphobes, f*** nazis, f*** bigots, f*** religious zealots, f*** old white guys who try to tell women what they’re not allowed to do with their own bodies and f*** republicans). In other news, I recently (re)launched my dog training and walking business, Big Wags Chicago (www.facebook.com/BigWagsChicago), so check it out for all your dog training and care needs.” ❯ Nick Morris and wife Laura welcomed their third son, Archer Knox Morris on November 5, 2020. Look at the cute photo of their wonderful bundle of joy! ❯ Megan Sarver ran her first marathon! ❯ Jennifer Presley Trocke says she and husband John “have lived in Holland, Michigan for eight years. Our 10th anniversary was in January 2021. We welcomed Jack Frederick in July. We enjoy the beautiful hiking, beaches, and culture here with our two girls, two boys, and two senior dogs. Jennifer mothers at home and sits on the board of Living Vine Mental Health Clinic, attends Bible Study Fellowship International, and heads a weekly mothers’ prayer group. John, an architect, now works in the basement due to COVID, with the noise of little feet and loud voices above.” Class Correspondents: Laura J. Wentink Marcasciano 5650 Abbey Drive, Apartment 3P, Lisle, IL 60532-2558, ljmarcasciano@gmail.com Michael C. Sales 8 Maillet Street, Winslow, ME 04901, KnoxClassof2007@gmail.com
Cory Bieber Beck ’10, Kevin Beck ’11, and daughter Geneva Rae Beck.
Lindsey Murrell Steffens ’10 with her family.
Class Knox miles on her 35th birthday.
2009 Jill.Bergantz@gmail.com is watching it all burn to the ground. Literally. You too? I want your work for an anthology: Line of Fire. ❯ Erin Warford: “In June, I accepted a full-time job as an assistant professor of history at Hilbert College in Hamburg, New York, where I’ve been a part-time adjunct for five years.” ❯ In July, Rachael Goodman-Williams completed her Ph.D. in community psychology at Michigan State University. Completing her dissertation over Zoom during a pandemic gave her the unique opportunity to defend her dissertation in a suit jacket (visible) and boxer shorts (hopefully not visible). Rachael accepted a position as assistant professor in community psychology at Wichita State University. She and her fiance now live in Kansas, where they’ve recently adopted a dog. The cat considers retaliation daily. ❯ Audra Adolph Bair: “I moved to Michigan City, Indiana, during the fall of 2019 to be closer to the family of Karl Bair ’12, so I missed the Reunion. I’ve been working as a COVID-19 nurse since March and working on my master’s in nursing education. I’m physically and emotionally exhausted during this pandemic, but I’m staying
2021 Young Alumni Achievement Award Melati Nungsari ’10 Melati Nungsari is an applied microeconomist and educator by profession, as well as an exemplary activist in practice. After graduating from Knox with a degree in math and economics, she taught at Butler University, Davidson College, and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she earned a Ph.D. in economics. She has taught students at every level— undergraduates, M.B.A.s, M.A.s, and Ph.D.s—and in three different countries (the United States, Thailand, and Malaysia). Nungsari has also received multiple awards throughout her career for her ingenuity and unique teaching style. Today, she is an assistant professor of Economics at the Asia School of Business in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and also serves as a research affiliate at MIT Sloan School of Management. Her research interests span industrial organization, public policy, market design, and economics education. Her work often focuses on labor with vulnerable groups in Southeast Asia. What have you taken away from your experiences at Knox? One thing that I really cherish about Knox, and something that I have tried to do as a professor, is being really open with students. I remember my first fall at Knox being a bit disoriented as an international student and having professors invite me over for dinner—having the class over for dinner and talking over a meal. I used to think to myself, “This is so crazy, because people actually care what you think.” That was really incredible for me. That sort of openness and a willingness to be open-minded has been something that I carried with me throughout my career. SUBMITTED
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❯ Brittany Alsot has spent the pandemic working with the mutual aid network in her Chicago neighborhood and editing her feature documentary Finding Your Laughter, about a Chicago comedian using improv techniques to care for her dad, who is a person with Alzheimer’s. ❯ Angie Martin shared, “Last winter I catered a film called Nomadland, starring Frances MacDormand, set for release December 2020. Me and a buddy traveled in and cooked out of a cargo van in six different states over the course of three months. We cooked on propane burners in parking lots, in deserts, and in motel rooms and kitchens. This year partner Marc Mathy and I got engaged and started a small vegetable farm in Ann Arbor, Michigan, called Hindsight Farm. We grow mixed vegetables and operate on a rented half-acre of land on a friend’s farm, Whitney Farmstead. Next year we will also be renting an additional acre on another neighbor’s farmland. Check us out at hindsightfarm2020.com or @hindsightfarm on IG.” ❯ Congratulations to Leah Heister Burton, who received the Young Alumni Achievement Award from Knox this year! ❯ As for us! Miriam Gillan: “I have done basically every DIY project that I can think of in my apartment and many puzzles. Can’t wait to explore the world outside my neighborhood again soon.” ❯ Erica Stringfellow Tully: “I have been teaching remotely since March and enjoying the company of my fourth graders, even if just online. I am in the process of getting National Board Certified in literacy.” Class Correspondents: Miriam M. Gillan miriam.gillan@gmail.com Erica Stringfellow Tully e.stringfellow4@gmail.com
Describe your work with the refugee community in Malaysia. Once I got back to Maylasia, I asked myself: What are some issues that I can study, that someone with my expertise and background can help with? One of the biggest things that I’ve done in my career is try to figure out how to best get refugees legal work rights. This has not been easy. Malaysia did not have an existing network of academics working on these topics to try and promote or produce public policy. And so, I started this research workshop together with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). For the past two years, we’ve brought people from 15 countries together to Malaysia to talk about refugees. And we also gave refugees a platform to speak about what impacts they would like to see in their community. If the community needs something researched, then a researcher will come in and try to address that question with the guidance of the refugee community itself, and then propose policy that is not only data-backed but also participant-pushed. It’s going to be a long fight. But I’m really hopeful that someday, refugees can legally work in Malaysia, because I think that access to livelihoods is a basic human right.
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Leigh Witzling ’14 reports she has “started a optimistic about the future. ❯ Will Gallmeyer is still running Green Projects Group, focusing on utility rebate programs. He and wife Samantha Breaux welcomed Charlotte (Charley) Sonnier Gallmeyer-Breaux to Planet Earth on July 27, 2020. Class Correspondent: Sam Jarvis samuelpaulleejarvis@gmail.com
happened, just because I’m 32.” ❯ Lindsey Murrell Steffens is currently leading the stakeholder engagement team at Centene Corporation in the product management division. When she’s not working in the office, Lindsey is an aerial acrobat in St. Louis and has had fun navigating the virtual show space for 2020. Her favorite job of all is being a mom to two adorable little nuggets! ❯ Katherine Williams Booth was awarded a fellowship to pursue a Ph.D. in mathematics at Georgia Tech. ❯ Sandy Guttman was promoted to assistant curator at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in Washington, D.C., and is working on a book about the museum’s collection, out in 2021. ❯ Kay (Kathy) Brown just celebrated being one year cancer-free after she was diagnosed with breast cancer in spring 2019. She recently officiated fellow classmate and best friend Mary Vanden Plas’s marriage. She has been working in the wine industry in a Chicago-based auction house for five years now, where she manages operations. ❯ In 2020, Lauren Assaf-Holmes shifted her legal practice to focus solely on securities regulation and corporate governance. She balanced out working from home with video games, multiple D&D campaigns, and fiction writing. Class Correspondent: Lauren Assaf-Holmes knoxcollege2010notes@gmail.com
2010
2011
Kate McManus Olejnicak ’11 with husband Dusten Olejnicak and daughter Ella Rae Olejnicak at Lake Superior.
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Sara DeMaria ’11 with the signatures of some of Mammoth Cave’s most prominent explorers.
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For all the stress of 2020, the Class of 2011 found a lot of joy—congratulations to all the future members of the Knox College Class of 2041! ❯ Alex Davis and fianceé delayed their wedding due to COVID after getting engaged in June 2019. They did buy a house in the Peoria area! ❯ Alix “Z” Dewald is growing house plants, dreams, and a stepfamily in Prescott, Arizona,
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Tasha Coryell adopted a former racing greyhound named Summer. ❯ In August 2020, Cami Woodruff started working at Wizards of the Coast as a depth painter on Magic: the Gathering Arena. In the near future, she hopes to acquire a 12-foot skeleton to be her friend and confidant. ❯ In 2020, Alana Ogilvie added more letters to her name with formal certification as a sex therapist and completed her presidential term with the Oregon Counseling Association. She teaches in the graduate program at Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Oregon, and she and her husband are looking to buy a home in 2021. Her private practice celebrated its fifth birthday and went entirely online in March. Phew. In her (very little) spare time, she has taken up sewing, and her friends are pestering her about opening an Etsy store! ❯ Marc and Erin Souza Dreyfuss and their two daughters, Martha and Clara, are watching a lot of Disney+ and singing along to Hamilton on repeat. ❯ Kevin ’11 and Cory Bieber Beck welcomed the newest member of their family, Geneva Rae Beck, on October 7, 2020. The Beck family still live in Chicago and look forward to watching their little girl grow! ❯ Michael Yu has a Civil War-esque mustache because it’s 2020 and nothing matters. He got a Quest 2. His username is mikebikes. Virtual mini golf is great. ❯ Shane Donegan shared: “My shoulder hurts today, not because anything
with partner Devin. In addition to pursuing her master’s degree in clinical counseling, she plans to play with other adults out-of-doors daily using adventure therapy. Good riddance to 2020! ❯ Amelia Gant Aitken and husband Nick are expecting their first child in summer 2021. ❯ Brett Daley started teaching at Crestwood High School in Cresco, Iowa, in August teaching science and American government, as well as coaching ninth grade girls’ basketball. ❯ Brigette Atcheson-Demke and Cole Atcheson ’13 have been juggling furlough and essential workerhood. She did run the virtual Chicago Marathon between the constantly changing protocols and physical distancing requirements at work. ❯ Calvin Zerkle is doing nothing. ❯ Caroline Coatney and Peter Walker moved to Portland, Oregon, three years ago and are loving it. Caroline works as a cross-function project manager at a dog DNA testing company and recently joined the board of directors for the Western Ultimate League, a professional ultimate frisbee league for women and nonbinary athletes. ❯ Cat Dodman and husband Paul welcomed their second baby and he, like their first-born daughter, is perfect in every way. ❯ Chloe Bohm had a 2020 full of changes. In April, she joined PFM (a public finance consulting firm) in the Center for Justice and Safety Finance. Then, over the summer, she bought her first home and moved with her husband to upstate New York. ❯ Courtney Jude and his beautiful family are in St. Louis, where he started his first year as a principal. His wife has almost completed her masters and is a school administrator now, too. He plans to start his Ed.D. in the fall! ❯ Hye Sun Jeong works as a senior clinician for the Youth and Family Services at Fairfax County, Virginia. She recently started private practice and can be found on Psychology Today. Her baby boy was born in March and keeps her busy when she’s not at work. ❯ Kate McManus Olejnicak started a new position at Richfield High School teaching government, while also finishing her master’s in education policy. ❯ Katie Pelayo is a French teacher! ❯ Kelly Wiggen finished her
Sasha Murphy ’11 shares Silas’s first snowfall!
Class Knox private practice and moved from a dairy farm to a bee farm.” (veterinary) cardiology residency at the Mizzou, and they kept her on the faculty, too! She also got married in October, a courthouse-COVID affair, but she and her husband are happy to be married and hope to have a celebration next year. ❯ Tyler’10 and Laura Johnson Hopfauf spent a year and a half traveling internationally and domestically before buying a home in the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia. They are blessed to be welcoming their first daughter this winter. ❯ Lexie Frensley and husband welcomed son Ari Alexander Gersten in September 2020. ❯ Marnie Shure is the editor-in-chief of The Takeout, an online food and drink publication. She and husband Kevin Morris are living in Chicago. ❯ Sam Harrison struggled through finals of his first semester at Jane Addams School of Social Work. Also: He has a new beard. ❯ Sara DeMaria continued working for the National Park Service as a guide at the world’s longest known cave—Mammoth Cave National Park. ❯ Sarah Juist became a televangelist thanks to COVID moving everything online. She also moved from Ohio back to Michigan to start a new job as a pastor of Parkwood Presbyterian Church, where she continues to be a televangelist. ❯ Sasha Murphy and Sean Frohling ’10 bought a house in Centennial, Colorado, just in time for son Silas to experience his first snow! ❯ Shruti Carr joined The Hub Project as the policy and research manager to advocate for an economy and democracy that works for everyone. ❯ Zak Kahn liked it and so he put a ring on it. ❯ Ruby Goh went through her second lockdown in Paris and enjoyed waking up at 8:55 a.m. to log in for work at 9— although she could do with shorter working hours! Class Correspondent: Tim Schmeling trschmeling@gmail.com
partner Ian proposed to each other in May and are planning an August 2021 wedding in their front yard in McCarthy. She’s working on her Alaska Master Gardener certification, taking circus arts classes, and recently bought a sea kayak. She’s also watched more television in the last six months than she has in the last six years. ❯ Martin Yeager and wife Crystal were expecting their first child, due Christmas Eve! Martin continues working on affordable housing and economic development in the southeast and tries to get together with Krista Anne Nordgren as often as possible for dog walks, river parties, and pie. ❯ Alexandra Rauland writes, “Living and working in Hong Kong at the Canadian International School since 2018 and really loving this city! I’m playing soccer and softball in my free time and taking salsa lessons, too. Really looking forward to continuing my travels around Asia once COVID passes!” ❯ Diana Preshad writes: “Husband and I moved to the South Loop of Chicago amidst COVID-19, but love our new neighborhood! I joined Aon as a senior human resources analyst in October after facing a COVID layoff, but it was a blessing in disguise as my new company, team, and role have been a great fit for me!” ❯ Katie O’Connor decided to stay in Richmond, Virginia, after finishing her MFA in craft/ material studies from Virginia Commonwealth University in 2016. She lives with partner Clay and their two cats, Hank and Neko. She was recently named the interim executive director of Art on Wheels, a local arts nonprofit that collaborates with and travels to Central and Southside Virginia communities to deliver therapeutic arts programming and community made public art initiatives. Additionally, she is an elementary school art teacher and still finds pockets of time for her own studio work. ❯ Nellie Ognacevic started an Etsy shop in September 2020 and loves having a boundless creative outlet. She was inspired to start selling after making several handmade toys for her niece and nephew. Needless to say,
2012
Class Correspondent: Danny Schaefer danielcschaefer19@gmail.com
2014 Allison Fabino Carr: “After being underpaid and undervalued at my job, I recently started a cool new job at a biopharmaceutical company! I was really nervous to switch jobs during a global pandemic, but I’m loving it so far. I also volunteer with Miracle for Youth to tutor a second grader in math and science, and with the American Chemical Society to work with a third grade teacher to enrich their science curriculum. In these scary times, it’s been an extremely rewarding experience. Other than that, it’s mostly Netflix and podcasts on the couch.” ❯ Jessica Ranard: “I am one year sober (traded in the 4 lokos for coffee), living in an eight person co-op, and sometimes making powerpoints about Owen Wilson’s nose.” ❯ Leigh Witzling: “I’m still dancing, doing therapy, and being queer, but I started a private practice and moved from a dairy farm to a bee farm.” ❯ Marika T. Montgomery:
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Shih Yi Goh ’11 enjoys a short walk in Paris during a day off in between lockdowns.
2013
Diana Preshad ’12 and husband Ripu Jain enjoy a tropical vacation.
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Katy Sutcliffe recently relocated to Amherst, Massachusetts to work for Mount Grace Land Trust. In her free time, she is reading, hiking, visiting ten thousand local farm stands, and recently hosted a socially distant visit from Michael and Agnes Mahung Kolbeck. ❯ Erin McKinstry is waiting out the pandemic as a public radio reporter in Sitka, Alaska. She and
Wholly Creative Studio is allowing her to get through this quarantine with a smile! ❯ Michael and Rachel Clark Cole live in Coralville, Iowa, with their two cats, Mae and Aspen. They (the people, not the cats) both work at the University of Iowa Hospital—Rachel as a postdoc researcher studying Parkinson’s disease and Michael as a pediatric neurology fellow. Rachel continues the COVID-19 routine of teaching virtual Zumba classes. All are welcome for as long as virtual classes are a necessity. (Send her an email at rachel.clark1@gmail.com if you want to join for some at home workouts!) Rachel and Michael are staying sane by going on walks, watching The Great British Baking Show, and teaching their cats tricks. ❯ Monica Prince’s choreopoem, How to Exterminate the Black Woman, was published by [PANK] Books in April 2020. Her poem, “Do Not Pray,” appeared in American Poetry Journal in July, and was nominated for “Best of the Net.” Over the summer she committed her life to her partner, Robert Barkley, and she’s currently navigating her third-year review for her tenuretrack assistant professorship at Susquehanna University. Class Correspondent: Aparna Kumar Boehm aparna.kumarboehm@gmail.com
Monica Prince ’12 with partner Robert Barkley.
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“Came out to my family as non-binary. Started a worm farm. Joined
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2015 Class Correspondent: TBD If interested in serving as the correspondent, please contact Jennifer Gallas at jgallas@knox.edu.
2016 Jonathan Grant: “I obtained my J.D. from Southern Methodist University in 2019. I am currently an assistant district attorney in Dallas, Texas.” ❯ Laura Rae D’Angelico: “I am a first grade teacher in Palm Beach County, Florida.” ❯ Rebecca (Becky) Hixon: “I received my master’s in English and am currently working towards my Ph.D. at the University of Michigan. I also adopted my furry son, Felix!” ❯ Shannon Wachowski: “I had a baby! Her name is Rowan!” ❯ Lorena Amarillo: “I moved to Seattle, Washington, for a promotion with Brookdale Senior Lifestyle.” ❯ Laura Lueninghoener: “I started a new job a week before the country shut down for COVID! I work as a senior marketing analyst for LivCor, a multi-family real estate company. The challenge of onboarding from home has been interesting, but I’m loving the new job!” ❯ Angela McNeal: “I graduated with my master’s degree in recreation administration from Illinois State University in December 2019. I not only graduated with honors as a 4.0 student, but I completed my degree in 1.5 years rather than two.” ❯ Ellen Lipo has spent 2020 teaching in person and online simultaneously on the South Side of Chicago. ❯ Jiaqi Li: “Work from home full-time as a product designer at my dream company, absolutely love it! Still live in Pilsen/Little Village, Chicago, with my three cats. Finally learning how to drive. Came out to my family as non-binary. Started a worm bin. Joined a CrossFit gym and actually like it. Been going to
Becky Hixon ’16 shared this photo of her “furry son” Felix. (He’s adopted.)
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Angela McNeal ’16 earned a master’s degree in recreation administration from Illinois State University in December 2019.
open houses, and saving for my first home. :)” ❯ Holden Meier and Julie Wertheimer got engaged and will be married in July 2021! Julie is pursuing a dual Ph.D. and J.D. degree in psychology and law at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, a seven-year degree program she is only two years away from finally completing. In her downtime, she likes to do contract work for the ACLU and study for the bar exam—you know, just to relax. Holden finally landed the dream job: In addition to some freelance editing and dramaturgy, he is now group sales manager at the Lied Center for Performing Arts, one of the 100 biggest theatres in the world. That finally answers the question: What do you do with a B.A. in English? Sell theatre tickets for a living! His professional acting debut was delayed due to COVID-19, but he still hopes to appear in the Flatwater Shakespeare Company’s Twelfth Night when it reopens in 2021. Miss Frizzle (Frizz) and Grizabella (Izzy), the two greatest cats of all time, have been loving lockdown—they are even more spoiled now than they used to be. On the other hand Julie and Holden are going a little crazy, but still happy and healthy in Lincoln, Nebraska. ❯ Sofia Drummond-Moore: “I graduated with a Master of Fine Arts degree from the American Film Institute in 2018. After I graduated I went on to work for author Ottessa Moshfegh (My Year of Rest and Relaxation, Eileen). I recently worked on a pilot for streaming and have just optioned my first feature screenplay.” ❯ Yimi Zhao started the MBA program at Cornell University. ❯ Pragyaditya Mukerjee: “I have started a digital venture with a partner named Not A Design Agency (NADA). NADA is the lovechild of the pandemic mind and a creative heart. Our sole mission is to work with brands across the world and put them on someone else’s Pinterest moodboard. We offer social media marketing, design, print, and other digital solutions. Here is our Instagram handle which showcases some of our work: @not_a_design_agency.” ❯ Julie Wertheimer: “I graduated from law school in
women through the lens of feminist affect theory.” ❯ Quiana Klossner: “I got married (in the spring), I joined two(!) wine clubs, and I canned 25 jars of salsa made from tomatoes and peppers we grew in my first-ever(!) garden. I guess those are in order of importance already, but like...do not underestimate how excited I am about the salsa.” Class Correspondents: Esther Farler-Westphal Natalia Binkowski Kaplan Knoxnotes2014@gmail.com
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“This past summer, my family and I celebrated our daughter’s first birthday. I completed my master’s degree in chemistry from the University of Iowa in December 2019. I currently work as a radiochemist making drugs used for PET scans. Being a mom who works third shift can be difficult at times, but I love every moment I spend with my family.” ❯ Ryan Hill-Paulus: “In February, I started a new job. Then in March, we became first-time home owners. In April, Danika Hill-Paulus and I welcomed our little baby boy to our family (Knox Class of 2042 perhaps?). And then nothing has happened in the last seven months. But that gives us a lot of time to spend with the little one.” ❯ Hannah Black: “I started teaching! I teach high school biology at Deforest High School here in Wisconsin (all virtual thank goodness). I recently started making better choices to take serious care of myself. My new favorite hobby is cooking with the tools and recipes my grandparents used. Happily surviving this pandemic and the anxieties it brings with my boyfriend of four years and our cat, Charlie.” ❯ Kat Kleine: “I traded my chest for a clinical social work license, and then I took up fishing.” ❯ Paige Anderson Lowe: “I accidentally adopted another cat at the beginning of the pandemic. He has three legs, and is dangerously smart (at least, for a cat). Grant Lowe finally broke down and started an instagram for them (www.instagram.com/jonesdaphnehiccup/). We’re both still working in tech in Seattle, which means that our panic buying is less toilet paper and more vitamin D and happy lamps. We’re getting through the pandemic with a ton of tabletop RPGs.” ❯ Samantha Paul Huebner: “ In October, Franz Huebner and I got married. We are living in Bloomington with our dog, Scruffy.” ❯ Chelsea Embree: “In September, Danika HillPaulus and I celebrated 10 years of friendship! I’ve been hiking and rock climbing as frequently as possible, I just tried shawarma for the first time, and I’m continually singing to my cat. Otherwise, I’m still schlepping my way through grad school, which has been moved entirely online. In the spring, I’ll (hopefully) be writing and defending my master’s thesis! I want to analyze contemporary grief memoirs written by
Matt Hendrick ’14 and Carolina Gonçalves ’16 are engaged! Congratulations!
Class Knox
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Lady Laura Lira shares, “I married my high school sweetheart, and we have a handsome boy. After having a fantastic experience at my delivery hospital, I decided to go back to school, and I am now part of an accelerated nursing program.” ❯ Kam Wells started a new job as a Data Engineer at The General Insurance in Nashville, Tennessee. ❯ Sarah Pawlicki says, “On March 2, 2020, I passed my history Ph.D. prelim exams,
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A holiday card from Elisabeth Zarnoti ’17, Sean Ramsey ’18, Madison Belka ’17, and Cat Boi. Not pictured: Sparkles the Betta Fish.
becoming ABD at the University of Minnesota. Since finishing my exams, I’ve gotten more involved with Faith in Minnesota, a progressive statewide political organization. Phone banking and organizing has been as challenging as my prelim exams were!” ❯ In January, Jakub Dulak cast the Jubilee Spectrum episode “Do All Men Think The Same?” (featuring NFL player Kyle Long). “It’s free to watch on YouTube,” he says. “I also assisted in casting several films for Planet Muzick Studios earlier this year. I then placed top 20% in the Austin Film festival script competition with a drama TV pilot.” ❯ Ryan Foxall moved back from the UK when the pandemic hit. He is currently working on a small local farm and has taken up tattooing. ❯ During quarantine, Theresa Murphy started focusing
2017
Sofia DrummondMoore ’16 earned an M.F.A. from the American Film Institute in 2018. She recently optioned her first feature screenplay.
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Shannon Kline Wachowski ’16, husband Daniel, and daughter Rowan.
more on her art. “I grew my fanbase on social media and created hundreds of drawings, earrings, stickers, and more. I’ve improved and discovered so many new skills by working extra hard the past several months.” She moved out of her parents’ and up to the North Side of Chicago to Buena Park in the summertime. “It’s great to live near so many of my friends including Emma
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December 2020. Also, Holden Meier and I got engaged and are getting married in July 2021.” ❯ Ned Babbott: “I’m living in North Carolina, where I’m a legal advocate in a community agency for survivors of intimate partner violence and sexual assault. In the next year, I’ll enroll in graduate school to pursue a masters of graphic design!” ❯ Amalia Hertel Prohofsky married Timothy Prohofsky in September in an outdoor COVID-19 friendly ceremony. Tim and Amalia are living in Minnesota with Amalia’s dog Teegan (’16). ❯ Kate Mishkin recently moved back home to L.A. to work as a reporter/producer for a podcasting company. She lives with Matt McKinney ’13. She still reads TKS. ❯ Gavin Crowell-Williamson: “I am currently a graduate student at Vanderbilt University’s community development and action program and am set to graduate in May.” ❯ Krystal Pitts Fritz: “I got married to a fellow soldier in September 2016, making me a stepmother. Matt and I had a baby girl, Adrian, in December 2017. We moved to California, where he got stationed in January 2019. I started a gourmet dessert business the same year, then we welcome our son August in November 2019. I was able to cater to Denzel Washington with some friends during this past fall/winter. My husband and I are still serving and have some plans we hope to achieve soon.” ❯ Carolina Gonçalves : “I am currently in my second year of a doctoral program in child development at Tufts University. I am also currently engaged to Matt Hendrick ’14.” ❯ Kati Stemple started graduate school at the University of Denver. She is studying human rights and global health. Class Correspondent: Kati Stemple kstemple2012@gmail.com
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a CrossFit gym and actually like it.” —Jiaqi Li ’16
Krystal Pitts Fritz ’16, husband Matt, and children Adrian and August celebrate a Disneythemed birthday.
Pragyaditya Mukerjee ’16 has started Not a Design Agency, which specializes in social media and digital marketing.
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Tevin Lao ’17 has a new black kitten named Nyx that “I Lipson ’18 and Ren Barkey ’18.” Additionally, she joined the guest service team at “The Friends Experience: The One in Chicago.” ❯ Jen Ripka shares, “Andrew Jacobs ’18 and I got married at Knox in October. Our pictures (including the one attached) were taken by Mark Muniz ’15. It was a very brief micro-wedding—only our immediate families and Emma Thornton-Kolbe in attendance—and everyone conducted themselves safely. We were all six feet apart and masked, and we had a beautiful day for all of our time outdoors. The circumstances may not have been ideal, but we enjoyed our ‘Knox-themed’ COVID wedding all the same!” ❯ “I am very thankful for how this year has panned out— all things considered,” says Emily Malec. “After being evacuated from South Korea and having my third year of my Fulbright teaching grant cut short, I accepted a position with Compass AmeriCorps in Pittsburgh and am currently serving with Literacy Pittsburgh as an English teacher for beginning-level virtual ESL classes. I’m lucky to be able to give back to the community during this difficult year, and I look forward to hopefully accepting more refugees into our program in the coming year!” ❯ Sarah Lottman started a job as a rural carrier associate with the United States Postal Service. “It’s been wild with COVID and everything. Even more wild than insane package volume and an election dependent on mail-in ballots, is that I got engaged to my girlfriend of one year. We hope to have a wedding in 2022 so that we can have a safe ceremony to share our love with as many people as possible!” she shares. ❯ Max Wallace has adopted a dog! “His name is King, he’s a pitt-lab rescue and 65-pound cuddler extraordinaire.” ❯ “Little has changed in my world,” says Tevin Lao. “I’m an academic success coach at Bryant & Stratton’s online college and spend my days helping students learn how to be successful in an online environment. I celebrated one year with my furry friend, Mox, and have brought a new friend into the family—a black kitten that I have named Nyx and affectionately refer to as my voidling.” ❯ Sarah Gaynor says, “I am currently taking some more classes to be able to be eligible to apply for dental hygiene school hopefully in 2021!” ❯ Rachel Cheng finished a music therapy internship in January at VITAS Healthcare, and moved to Evanston, Illinois, this summer. She also passed the music therapy board exam in October and is now a board-certified music therapist. ❯ Kalie McGuire spent most of 2020 working on the Biden-Harris Presidential campaign in North Carolina. She is back in Missouri now and hopes to continue working on campaigns for many years to come. ❯ “I can’t sit still, even in a pandemic,” Elisabeth Zarnoti says. “I was extremely fortunate to stay employed by YWCA St. Paul and work from home to maintain a sense of normalcy. I am constantly video-calling friends and colleagues, and even committed to be one of my sorority’s chapter advisors at Knox. I mostly focus on teaching and mentoring the sisters on recruitment and business strategies to
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strengthen chapter operations. I was also selected to be an Association of Fundraising Professionals IDEA (inclusion, diversity, equity, and access) fellow for 2021, which means I will have access to the many networking and educational sessions and resources related to fundraising and philanthropy alongside six other BIPOC fundraisers, for free.” She still lives with her partner, Sean Ramsey ’18, Madison Belka, Cat Boi, and Mr. Sparkles the Betta Fish. Class Correspondent: Elisabeth Zarnoti elisabeth.zarnoti@gmail.com
2018 Class Correspondent: TBD If interested in serving as the correspondent, please contact Jennifer Gallas at jgallas@knox.edu.
2019 Class Correspondent: TBD If interested in serving as the correspondent, please contact Jennifer Gallas at jgallas@knox.edu.
2020 Class Correspondent: TBD If interested in serving as the correspondent, please contact Jennifer Gallas at jgallas@knox.edu.
Marriages and Unions Marilyn Canna ’73 and Jan Costenbader on 10/13/2019. Bill Mayeroff ’07 and Jessica Johnson on 11/13/2020. Jesse McIntosh ’07 and Allie Fisch on 7/18/2020. Mary Vanden Plas ’10 and Ralph McGeary on 10/31/2020. Kelly Wiggen ’11 and Robert Kutz on 10/9/2020. Samantha Paul ’14 and Franz Huebner ’14 on 10/10/2020. Amalia Hertel ’16 and Timothy Prohofsky on 9/6/2020. Jenny Ripka ’17 and Andrew Jacobs ’18 in October 2020.
Deaths Elizabeth C. Brook ’41 on 11/13/2020. Keith Bratton ’44 on 5/13/2020. Marynell Durland Kirkwood ’44 on 11/26/2020. Patricia Poyer McDonald ’44 on 11/7/2020. William H. Rippey ’44 on 1/14/2021. Gale Schugmann Munson ’45 on 10/15/2020. Margaret Lord Castendyck ’47 on 1/2/2021. Maxwell E. Gibson ’48 on 12/25/2020. Margaret Nelson Landis ’48 on 12/16/2020.
Joann Westerfield Lundeen ’48 on 1/17/2021. Yvonne Spielman Turnquist ’49 on 11/12/2020. Rosemary Edgar Bunch ’50 on 11/19/2020. Karl F. Gengler ’50 on 10/29/2020. Phyllis Westphal Pence ’50 on 10/11/2020. Margaret Weir Sandberg ’50 on 2/10/2021. Shirley Fries Simandl ’50 on 11/25/2020. Madison G. Sterne ‘50 on 12/3/2020. JoAnne E. Kenney ’51 on 2/22/2015. Lovina Stych Stancl ’51 on 3/20/2017. Richard B. Stranahan ’51 on 10/16/2020. Richard H. Clawes ’52 on 3/26/2016. Joan Muelder Grinter ’52 on 6/20/2020. Jolene Crislip Hermalin ’52 on 11/17/2019. Douglas B. Green ’53 on 2/25/2020. Len A. Kuchan ’53 on 12/25/2020. Ruth McGee O’Dwyer ’53 on 1/6/2021. James L. Albrecht ’54 on 2/10/2021. Marilyn Moore Collopy ’54 on 10/22/2020. John R. Lawrence ’54 on 10/8/2020. Diana Todd Irish ’55 on 11/20/2020. Franklin Scherer ’55 on 1/29/2021. William E. Schulze ’56 on 11/12/2020. Diane Ayer Seidel ’56 on 11/27/2020. Lorene Craig Shepard ’56 on 12/14/2020. Barbara Selden Hope ’57 on 4/30/2020. Anita Tosetti Johnson ’58 on 11/11/2020. Robert G. Klein ’58 on 1/5/2021. Robert L. Mason ’58 on 1/21/2021. Richard F. Owens ’58 on 10/12/2020. Judith Pacey ’58 on 12/26/2020. Theodore Sampson ’58 on 12/19/2020. Victor Simonsen ’58 on 1/17/2021. Catherine Witschey Tompson ’59 on 10/3/2020. Albert L. Wagy Jr. ’59 on 12/14/2020. Janet O. Dahl ’60 on 11/18/2020. Sandra Christman Garland ’60 on 12/2/2020. Charles W. Davis Jr. ’61 on 11/28/2020. Stephen A. Hawley ’61 on 10/3/2020. Brooks B. La Grua ’61 on 11/10/2020. Ralph Morrison ’61 in 2020. Patricia Baumgardner Walker ’61 on 1/19/2021. Barbara Nelson Benson ’62 on 12/31/2020. John L. Hintzsche ’62 on 12/3/2020. J. Jay Graening ’63 on 12/8/2020. L. John Auten ’64 on 10/21/2020. John P. Hesemann ’64 on 11/14/2019. Robert John Peters ’64 on 10/10/2020. Vicky Anderson Andrews ’65 on 10/1/2020. Rita Gingrich Black ’65 on 12/15/2020. Richard Vincent Gronemeyer ’65 on 6/17/2019. Cheryl Hauflaire Johnson ’66 on 1/14/2021. Monique Walters Bruns ’67 on 1/6/2021. Michael J. Budds ’69 on 11/19/2020. John M. Phillips III ’69 on 11/17/2020. Joel E. Wilson ’69 on 4/3/2020. Thomas L. Doyle ’70 on 11/30/2020. Sally Hunt ’71 on 2/11/2021. William R. Hiatt ’72 on 12/8/2020. William C. McConnell ’72 on 1/10/2021. Janet Blaisdell Metzler ’72 on 10/31/2020. Leslie Johnston Ortman ’72 on 1/10/2021.
Class Knox affectionately refer to as ‘my voidling’.”
Deaths of Friends David S. Dahl, spouse of Janet O. Dahl ’60, on 2/26/2017. George T. Dupont , spouse of Dolores Mills Dupont ’69, on 12/8/2017. Roland Stanci, spouse of Lovina Stych Stanci ’51, on 6/11/2018. Roger Mouton, spouse of Lisa Bussler Mouton ’84, on 9/20/2019. Carl Sandberg, spouse of Margaret Weir Sandberg ’50, on 12/15/2019. Debra D. Hannam, mother of Matt Hannam ’98, on 3/23/2020. Mac McCasland, father of Jeff McCasland ’82, on 5/12/2020. Carol Foster, spouse of Edwin T. Foster ’70, on 7/28/2020. Ruth Irene Filosa, mother of Mary Filosa Brown ’82 and mother-in-law of Rick Brown ’83, on 8/29/2020. Reverend Dr. Karan Lee “Kay” Ridley Jezek, mother-in-law of Daniella Irle, athletics, on 9/30/2020. Phyllis Ann Miller, mother of Steve Hall, information technology services, and grandmother of Natalie Clark, associate dean’s office, on 10/1/2020. Waneta L. Hoppock Asbury, former College employee, on 10/3/2020. Faylene Blaine, mother on 10/23/2020. Donald Blaine, father of Yvonne Bower, building services, on 10/29/2020. Betty A. Foster Gomer, mother of Jeff Gomer, visiting instructor in business and management, on 10/29/2020. James C. Clayton, father of Jamie Wollrab, Advancement, and father-in-law of Megan Clayton, alumni engagement, on 11/2/2020. Alice Augusta Myers, former College employee, on 11/5/2020. Patricia Ann Leeson, former College employee, on 11/14/2020. Pamela Ann Barclay, former College employee, on 11/19/2020. Musetta Elizabeth “Liz” Schramm, wife of Peter Schramm, Watson Bartlett Professor Emeritus of Biology, on 11/25/2020.
Patsy Lou Beasley Brush, mother of Colleen Culbertson, formerly of Communications, and grandmother of Will Culbertson ’03 and Randy Culbertson ’05, on 11/30/2020. Leslie E. Hallmark, spouse of Eloise Unger Hallmark ’84, on 12/7/2020. Mary Ella Smith, former College employee, on 12/16/2020. Pete Thierry, friend of the College, on 12/19/2020. Michael J. Collins, spouse of Laura Foster Collins ’63, on 12/20/2020. Marc Zimetbaum, former visiting artist and lecturer, on 12/20/2020. George V. Frondorf, father of Joseph Frondorf ’91, on 12/21/2020. Charles Edward Farley, Robert W. Murphy Professor Emeritus of Music, on 12/21/2020. Rhonda DeWeese, former College employee, on 12/23/2020. Daryl E. McPherson, spouse of Carolyne Swanson McPherson ’68, on 1/25/2021. Marie Smith Olinger, mother of Donna Browne, Office of the Registrar, on 1/29/2021. Donna B. Willett, spouse of Robert L. Willett Jr. ’50, on 1/31/2021. Josephine Huss Dyer, mother of Jim Dyer, assistant professor and chair of journalism, on 2/15/2021. Ian Templeton, father of Jennifer Templeton, professor of biology, on 2/23/2021.
In Memoriam Charles E. Farley Robert W. Murphy Professor Emeritus of Music Charles Edward Farley, Robert W. Murphy Professor Emeritus of Music, died on December 21, 2020, in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. He was a member of the Knox College faculty for 38 years, from 1959 to 1997, and taught a variety of music courses, including The Musical Experience in the Western Tradition, History of Sacred Music, and Keyboard Music. He also directed the program now known as First Year Preceptorial (FP) for nine years. At the time of his retirement, Farley held the positions of Robert W. Murphy Professor of Music and chair of the Music Department. A May 1997 article in The Knox Student called him “a legend as both a musician and a member of the Knox community.” The article also described his custom of giving a weekly “listening quiz” to all of his students so they could “demonstrate their familiarity with various music examples.” Farley was a gifted organist who performed recitals and concerts throughout the United States and Europe. While living in Galesburg, he served as organist at First United Presbyterian Church and Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church and as a member of the Knox-Galesburg Symphony Board of Directors. After retiring from Knox, Farley and his wife, Beverly Poplett Farley ’66, moved to Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. He served as organist at First Presbyterian Church there from 1997 to 2011 and as accompanist/assistant director of the Hilton Head Choral Society from 1997 to 2010. Farley was born in Township County, Michigan, and earned his bachelor’s degree from Western Michigan University, where he also received a master’s degree in music education. He received a doctorate in music theory from Florida State University. Friends may make memorial contributions to the Hilton Head Choral Society, P.O. Box 22235, Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, 29925. FILE PHOTO
Steven M. Decosola ’73 on 4/5/2017. Paul L. Kregar ’73 on 1/19/2021. Robert M. Hewes IV ’75 on 2/5/2021. Peter J. Hopkins ’75, date unknown. Alison Adams Tappan ’78 on 11/16/2020. Carl L. Bibbs ’82 on 12/20/2020. Alene Lesniak Ackerman ’85 on 11/24/2020. Robin Carre ’85 on 4/2/2020. Greg H. Fiedorow ’89 on 3/2/2016. Beth Potter ’89 on 4/2/2020. Bryan L. Balgemann ’94 on 9/25/2020. LaShanda Ladson Barree ’96 on 9/18/2020. Alexandra M. Feldt ’08 on 9/17/2020.
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Parting Shot
Take Me Out to the Ball Game Prairie Fire sophomore Noah Sainato from Ballwin, Missouri, connects for a double against University of Chicago on March 21, 2021—Knox’s first home baseball game since 2019. While players must wear masks in the dugout, they are allowed to remove them while at bat and on the field. Photo by Roger Perry
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HOMECOMING 2021 October 8–10, 2021 Conditions look promising for a return to Galesburg this fall! Join us as we celebrate two sets of Reunion Years, including 50th Reunions for the Class of 1970 and the Class of 1971, as well as milestone Reunions for Classes ending in 0, 1, 5, and 6. (And, if you’re interested in hosting a virtual event with classmates who aren’t able to make the trip back this year, contact Alumni Engagement at engage@knox.edu.) Look for more information about specific events in July, and make your hotel reservations now.