TUESDAY APRIL 16, 2019
Mankato remembers LGBT activist and leader Friends and family gather to celebrate life of Jessica Flatequal “We go back so long, that she was going through that awkward heterosexual phase of hers, and she had terrible taste in men.” He talked about first meeting Flatequal and how he connected with her instantly and could see how they were a perfect match, “Within minutes, not seconds, I felt like we really had been friends for life. That really seems to be her defining characteristics, the ability to make people feel at ease and befriend them in an instant.” Haas then welcomed Laura Schultz, the director of the Violence and Awareness and Response Program, to the stage as she sang “Stand by Me” in remembrance of Jessica.
MARIA LY STAFF WRITER The Mankato community gathered together to celebrate the life of Jessica Flatequal in the Mankato Civic Center Grand Hall, April 13, 2019. In memory of Jessica, family and friends wore a bowtie to the celebration. Art made by Jessica was displayed throughout the room for guests to appreciate. The celebration began with a moment of peace as “Fall On Me” by Andrea Bocelli played overhead. According to Tim Haas, a good friend to Jessica and wife Maria Bevacqua, stated, “Jessica chose this piece because for her it represented a mixture of what she thought was optimism through sadness.” Haas then began the celebration as he reminded
Photo courtesy of LGBT Center’s Facebook
the audience, “Jessica would be pissed beyond belief if all we did was cry and no one
had any fun!” He then began to recall stories of when he met
Bevacqua in graduate school in the Women Studies Program about 26 years prior,
FLATEQUAL page 2
Media Day to bring back Mav alums JOSHUA SCHUETZ STAFF WRITER Minnesota State University, Mankato, will recognize the contributions of its esteemed Department of Mass Media on Tuesday. The event will take place from 3 to 9 p.m. at the Ostrander Auditorium, located on the first floor of the Centennial Student Union. It is sponsored by the Nadine B. Andreas fund. Mass Media Day is an event dedicated to recognizing the achievements of prominent students in the Department of Mass Media, which awards degrees in Mass Media and
Photo courtesy of Flickr
Film and Media Studies. The event will also recognize Dr. Ellen Mrja, a professor of mass media and senior member of the Communications
Department. Dr. Mrja retired at the end of the fall semester, this academic year. In addition to awarding scholarships and recognizing student and faculty
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achievements, the event will also host five alumni of the department and its programs, who will discuss the transition from college to work in the field of mass media.
The alumni attending the event are: Valisa Fair, an email marketing specialist for Lifetime Fitness, Kyle Ratke, a digital content writer for the Minnesota Timberwolves and Lynx, Jessica Suave, a media manager at Broadhead + Co., Travon Sellers, a digital marketing specialist at Hamline University who also runs a design firm of his own, and Lamarr Sullivan, a marketing coordinator for Memorial Blood Centers. The event will be split into two parts. The first part, a scholarship presentation and roundtable discussion with the alumni attendees, will take place from 3 ot 5 p.m. The second part, featuring the alumni panel, will take place from 7 to 9 p.m., closing out the event.
WEATHER OUTLOOK: TUESDAY (4/16)
H: 63 L: 48 Morning fog, cloudy.
WEDNESDAY (4/17)
H: 54 L: 41 Rain at times, cooler.
THURSDAY (4/18)
H: 49 L: 39 Rain; breezy.
FRIDAY (4/19)
H: 61 L: 39 Low clouds.
SATURDAY (4/20)
H: 68 L: 46 Partly sunny, warmer.
Have a story idea? Email News Editor Madison Diemert madison.diemert @mnsu.edu