11 minute read
Class Notes
MEMORIALS
55 Cletus Creach (’55 MES) of Mabank, Texas died July 27, 2021. His career was in the manufacturing of oilfield related tools, and he enjoyed playing golf, fishing, gardening and spending time with family and friends. He is survived by his wife, Barbara, stepson, Gary Lyons (Gayland), sons, David Carroll (Michelle), John Dennis, Terry Neal and extended family.
58 James A. Lewis (’58 MES) died at the age of 90 on May 15, 2021, in Springfield, Missouri. Jim served in the National Guard and worked as an electrical engineer for 30 years at Dayco, Springfield, Missouri. He holds six U.S. Patents, was inducted into the International Snowmobile Hall of Fame in 2020, earning the Edgar Hetten Memorial Award of Merit. He is survived by his four children, Cristy Baldwin, Scott Lewis, Farley Lewis (Kelly), Gary Lewis (LaCinda), 11 grandchildren, 8 greatgrandchildren, and extended family.
59 Thomas “Tom” Hunt (’59 ES) died on July 12, 2021, at his home in Longview, Texas. He retired from Siemens Energy and Automation and taught over 100 Defensive Driving courses. He loved spending time with family and friends, was passionate about bowling, and devoted much time to his church. He is survived by his wife of 62 years, Betty, daughter, Cynthia Hutton (Keith), son, Bradley (Janay), four grandchildren, four great-granddaughters, and extended family.
61 William “Bill” Thompson (’61 MES/ IE) died on October 13, 2021, in Spring Hill, Florida. Bill served proudly in the United States Air Force and was a founding member of LETU’s Alpha Omega society. He is survived by his wife, Gloria, his children, and many extended family members and friends.
64 Paul Trimmer (’64 AMT) died on July 18, 2021, in Shawnee, Kansas. He worked at Phoenix Aerospace in the avionics department for more than 50 years, was a licensed pilot and a member of Lambda Alpha Sigma. He will be remembered most for his devotion to the church, his loyalty, his love of aviation, and his support of worldwide missions. He is survived by his daughters, Jennifer Richards and Jessica Brashears, six grandchildren and extended family.
66 Larry Dickson (’66 AET) died in Swanton, Ohio on January 1, 2021. Some things he was passionate about were tinkering on small engines and mechanical things and never taking his car to a mechanic. His insight for the potential of computers and the internet led him to change spark plug cataloging from manual to electronic format for which he received a Catalog Award at Champion Spark Plug. Larry is survived by his wife of 52 years, Norma, daughters, Brenda Brough (Tommy), Rachel; six grandchildren, one great-grandson and extended family.
70 John Boone (’70 ATBS/ETMT) died October 6, 2020, in Mineola, Texas. He loved teaching others about solar energy, Ham Radio, computers and all things mechanical. He spent his last years building solar powered, Ham Radio communication modules for missionaries so they could communicate with the world. He is survived by his brother, Daniel Boone, grown nieces and nephews, and extended family.
80 Keith Carpenter (’80 AU) died on July 24, 2021, in Kansas City, Missouri. He had a 32-year career as an Aircraft Mechanic with TWA, which was acquired by American Airlines. He also enjoyed traveling and cruising with family, and motorcycle trips with his wife. He is survived by his wife of 39 years, Patrice, daughter, Suzie Miles (Donnie), grandchildren Callie and Jaxon, and other family members.
84 James “Jim” Smith (’84 ATBS) of Rockford Illinois, died August 8, 2021. Jim received his pilot’s license before his driver’s license and spent
his career in the area of his dreams, aviation. Family was very important to him, and he is survived by his wife, Cheri, children Jack (24), Kate (24), James (21) and Meg (16), extended family, and special friends of the family.
89 Paul Beatty (’89 ME) of Ringgold, Georgia, died July 30, 2021. Paul worked mainly in the carpet industry as a Research and Development Mechanical Engineer and has three patents pending to his name. Paul was known as an avid mountain biker and hiker and had a loving, selfless, and humorous personality. He is survived by his wife, Carol, children: Elizabeth Estes (Jesse), Scott, Christopher, Bethany Setzer, Johnmark, and Matthew; two grandchildren and extended family.
92 Adrian Bonilla (’92 ATBS) died October 25, 2021, in Houston, Texas. His professional career started as a flight instructor and led to over 20 years as a jet plane pilot. He had a commitment to live for Christ, was dedicated to his family, was an avid outdoorsman, and had a passion for motorcycling. He is survived by his wife of 32 years, Donna, children, Ashley Morgan (Micah), David (Brittany), Stephen, and Matthew; seven grandchildren, numerous family and friends.
05 Cody Hawkins (’05 BBA) died unexpectedly in his home on September 28, 2021. He was a Compliance Integration Manager with Enterprise Risk Management, Dallas, Texas. He is survived by his father, Wayne Hawkins and siblings, Keelie Davis (Greg), Cory Hawkins, Cortney Person (James), and extended family.
BIRTHS
10 Eva Langton (’10 ELE1) and her husband, Jeremy, welcomed the birth of Calvin James, on April 24, 2021. He joins siblings Atticus (8), Rachel (6), and Simon (3) in their home in Fairbanks, Alaska.
13 Luke Sjoblom (’13 AFFS) and wife, Rachelle, welcomed their fourth child, Martin Davis, born on October 25, 2021. He joins siblings, Ransom, Adelaide, and Stephen. Mark (‘78 MI/ATBS) and Cheryl (’80 MABS) Sjoblom, are his very proud grandparents who serve with JAARS and live in Lancaster, South Carolina.
18 Natalie Neal (’18 EE) and husband Cameron, welcomed their first child, Daisy Grace, born June 12, 2021. Natalie works for Collins Aerospace as an Electrical Engineer and they live in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
20 Kourtney McLeese (’20 TEC6) and husband, Eric, and big sister, Adalynn (8) welcomed baby Oakley into their family in February 2021. The family lives in Gilmer, Texas.
CLASS NOTES
75 Michael Smith (’75 BUBS) is now retired and he and his wife, Sherry, live in Friendswood, Texas.
76 James “Jim” MacKay (’76 ATBS/ MI) recently retired as a full-time professor of aviation technology and his wife Julie (Niewald) MacKay (’77 RE) also retired as an elementary teacher of science and social studies. They are co-owners of Winds Air, Owosso Michigan, an airplane rental and flight instruction company. They plan on staying active with Winds Air during retirement as well as with their seven grandchildren, traveling, and the grass runway airport (identifier 56M) on their 450-acre farm.
81 Donald Beiler (’81 ATBS) and his family are now living in Justin, Texas and he has been a pilot with American Airlines for 35 years!
82 Mark Williams (’82 MT/ATBS) recently retired and is now living in West Palm Beach, Florida.
90 Jeffrey “Jeff” Short (’90 EE) is now a Senior Design Engineer at Micro Technology Services, Richardson, Texas.
94 Brent Palmer (’94 ATBS/ATFL) celebrated 25 years as career staff with Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF) in June 2021. After serving 17 years as a pilot and IT Manager in Indonesia, he now serves at MAF’s headquarters, Nampa, Idaho, on the Disaster Response Team as both Pilot and IT Specialist. He and his wife, Melanie, live in Meridian, Idaho.
99 David Huber (’99 EE) was recently promoted to Electrical Engineering Manager at Komatsu Mining Corp., Longview, Texas.
07 Anne Downer (’07 DW) debuts her middle grade novel, Best Friends Playbook, from Chicken Scratch Books, December 1, 2021. It was her creative thesis while earning her MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts. She currently teaches English and Creative Writing classes online and locally to elementary and middle school students. She and her husband, Paul Downer (’11 MJE), and daughter, Hope, live in Molt, Montana. https://awdowner.com
15 Caleb Gibson (’15 AAMM) was recognized as one of the National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) top 40 under 40 honorees for 2021. Caleb is a Pro Ownership Maintenance Specialist with Textron Aviation and lives in Wichita, Kansas with his wife, Corrie, and son, Samuel.
15 Paul Zettler (’15 BBM) has a new position at Texas State Technical College, Waco, Texas as Instructor of Industrial Controls and Robotics.
16 Amy Thompson (’16 MEA) was named the Region VII Teacher of the Year on August 3, 2021. She teaches digital media, computers and American Sign Language and is often described as her student’s favorite teacher at Lindale High School, Lindale, Texas. 17 Dorothy Cantu (’17 MBA) recently took the position of Associate Director at the University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, Texas.
17 April Nenjerama (’17 LPC/LMFT) was recently promoted to Family Therapist at The Heights Treatment, Houston, Texas. She and her husband, Yeukayi, and their children, Tendayi, Tinashe, and Tanaka live in Richmond, Texas.
18 Zachary Anderson (’18 MJE) has taken a position as Materials and Process Engineer in the Process Control group with Lockheed Martin, Fort Worth, Texas.
19 Chelsea (Hembrough) Garcia (’19 MCI-Med) has been promoted to Lieutenant in the United States Coast Guard and is at a new duty station, Coast Guard Forces Micronesia, Sector Guam. 20 Michael Simmons (’20 HRBB) says two weeks after graduation he accepted the position of HR Manager at Chelsea Building Products South, Greenville, Texas. “My dream job came true with the help of my degree. Thank you LETU for helping me to achieve this goal so quickly in such a competitive field!”
21 Gabrielle “Gabby” Gutierrez (’21 BBMK) is a Finance, Member Relations Specialist in Longview, Texas.
The loss of a loved one, friend or colleague often inspires us to ensure that their memory lives on. Many people find that supporting LETU is an ideal way to honor someone who has passed away. Gifts made "in memoriam" offer lasting honor to a loved one while providing family and friends with the satisfaction of knowing they have helped others. If you would like to give a memoriam to LETU, please call 1-800-259-5388 or donate online at www.letu/give. The family will be notified of your generosity when a memoriam is made.
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As we work alongside your advisors, we can help you assure that the stewardship you have sought to consistently demonstrate throughout your life is reflected in your estate planning. The design of your giving solutions can then be one that first serves you. That purpose fulfilled, those giving solutions can then become a means to paving the way to obedience on the part of future generations. The LeTourneau University Foundation is the arm of the university charged with assisting our many alumni and friends with more complex forms of advantageous giving as we grow the university’s endowment. With more than 20 years of experience in estate and succession planning on our team, the LeTourneau University Foundation can help you in these allimportant areas.
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• letu.edu/tv/now-connect-sep2020 • letu.edu/tv/now-connect-oct2020 • letu.edu/tv/now-connect-nov2020
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INSPIRING FUTURE GENERATIONS
This fall the LETU Chapter of Women in Aviation hosted the international event, Girls in Aviation Day! The event allowed over 100 girls from the East Texas community to experience one of the top aviation programs in the nation, interact with our current students and faculty, and hear from amazing alums in the aviation industry.
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