ALUMNI UPDATES

from Northwestern Pilot | 2022

ATHLETICS

1950s

Edwin Blomberg ’52 of Ogema, Wisconsin was welcomed into heaven on Feb. 6, 2022 surrounded by his loving family. In the early 2000s, his wife Jewell was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and Ed lovingly and faithfully cared for her for over 13 years until she went home to be with the Lord after 63 years of marriage.

1960s

Rev. Vernon Anderson ’60 was promoted to heaven on May 12, 2021 at the age of 98. He served the Lord faithfully as a pastor in Wisconsin and Minnesota.

Conrad Krieger ’61 and Donna (Baker ’61) Krieger are officially snowbirds, spending half of the year in Florida with their son and the other half in Kansas with their daughter.

Eugene Dalager ’66 went home to be with the Lord on Mar. 11, 2021. He is survived by his wife, Alice (Gloyd ’64) Dalager.

1970s

Dr. David Kolb ’75 and his wife Joni retired to River Falls, Wisconsin in 2017, after serving as missionaries in Mexico for 23 years.

Thomas Houvenagle, Jr. ’79 and Paula (Abraham ’79) Houvenagle became grandparents to Holland Iva Ann Kerber, born on Dec. 17, 2021.

1980s

Gloria (Wray ’83) Mayo and Tim Mayo ’82 were instrumental in starting a new ECO (Evangelical Covenant Order of Presbyterians) church in Plum Borough, Pennsylvania in 2018.

Darla (Avery ’84) Jones lost her husband, Michael, in June 2021 to COPD and congestive heart failure, just two months short of their 25th wedding anniversary.

Dr. Toby Travis ’84 published a new book, TrustED: The Bridge to School Improvement.

Bradley Gabbert ’85 abruptly returned to the United States after almost 15 years of serving in international schools in China due to Covid evacuations and settled in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. He was then diagnosed with Lipo Sarcoma in October of 2020 and continues to receive treatment.

Zoe Ann (Zoebisch ’88) Thruman enjoys writing, training for triathlons, and gardening after three decades of educating her children and grandchildren. She also started a music conservatory in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho and leads evangelism training for local groups and churches.

Robert Samuelsen ’89 is enjoying life as a husband, father of four, and celebrating 25 years of service as a soldier. As an Army Colonel in the JAG Corps, Robert leads a legal office at a large training post which transforms American volunteers into Soldiers.

1990s

Rev. Gerald “Jerry” Appelquist ’92 is enjoying retirement from the Minnesota Department of Corrections but still serves as a Wisconsinlicensed substitute teacher.

Marsha (Isakson ’01) Appelquist works for Polk County, Wisconsin. Both have been leaders at Celebrate Recovery, led Bible studies, and helped with various children’s programs.

Todd Morrison ’93 and Kara (Kuhls ’93) Morrison, who celebrated their 29-year wedding anniversary this year, live in Woodinville, Washington. Kara graduated with an Education degree from Northwestern, earned a master’s degree in Education, and is a much beloved kindergarten teacher in the Northshore School District.

Ethan Blomquist ’94 and Cheri (Pardue ’94) Blomquist moved to southern Tennessee after many years of living in Colorado. Ethan is a highlevel IT engineer and Cheri is an online English teacher and the author of two books, both released in 2021.

Jon Albert ’96 recently stepped down as the director of Canyon Ministries and now leads a Christian retreat ranch, Gloryview Ranch, in northern Arizona. Jon and his wife Kathleen welcomed their first grandchild in May 2022.

Ron Stewart ’97 was announced as one of four finalists in this year’s Great American ThinkOff, an annual philosophy contest held in New York Mills, Minnesota.

Brad Aust ’98 became the lead pastor at Heartland Community Church in St. Charles, Minnesota in Aug. 2021 after 16 years of youth and family ministry at various churches.

Christine Rogers ’98 returned to the United States after 35 years of serving with TEAM (The Evangelical Alliance Mission) in Austria, where she started and developed churches. She is involved in her church through a women’s Bible study and serves on the care team for global partners.

Melinda (Eisenlohr ’99) Anderson began serving on the board of directors for Degrees of Change. She is currently pivoting careers after 15 years at Microsoft to pursue opportunities focused on migration or education.

2000s

Angela (Arthur ’02) Agner was married on Mar. 12, 2022 in Becker, Minnesota. She and her husband now reside in Omaha, Nebraska.

Elizabeth (Baltus ’02) Miller and her husband Barry welcomed their son, Calvin Josiah, into the world on Aug. 30, 2021.

Benjamin Hemmila ’03 relocated back to Minnesota from Anchorage, Alaska in Nov. 2019. He and his wife Amanda welcomed their second son, Silas, on Mar. 28, 2021.

Kristin (Miller ’04) Lindeen and her husband Erik continue to lead Mosaic Church in Maple Grove, Minnesota after planting the church in 2015.

Rev. Perrin Werner ’04 and Jodi (Christensen ’04) Werner, along with their kids Ellie and Jo, are moving to Japan after recently being appointed as missionaries with Resonate Global Mission. After intensive language study, Perrin will be involved in training pastors and lay leaders.

Nathan Bird ’06 is celebrating his fifth year producing and performing in A Three Tenors Christmas at Chanhassen Dinner Theaters. He also passed his LHA, SIE, and Series 7 and 66 exams to become a financial advisor with Thrivent.

Shar (Carlson ’06) Marthaler married Dave Marthaler in June 2021.

Luke Rasmussen ’06 started a new job as a Client Relations Coordinator at Messerli Kramer, PA law firm in Dec. 2021. Luke plans on going back to school for his paralegal certificate. His wife, Elizabeth, is pursuing her Nursing degree.

Alisa Matheson ’07 launched Life History, a non-profit that is receiving national recognition on the important topic for young people who have experienced out-of-home care. Matheson is also scheduled to be a keynote speaker at the 2023 Association of Children's Residential & Community Services Conference where she will be representing the nonprofit, Power of Story, and will speak about how residential staff and administration can help ensure that young people who have experienced outof-home placement have equal, consistent personcentered access to their history, stories, photos, and medical information.

Rochelle Behne ’08 married Joel Bendell on May 23, 2020.