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Developing Tomorrow’s Responsible Leaders Olivet College President’s Leadership Institute Presents First Graduating Class SPRING 2013

Olivet College Shipherd’s Record Shipherd’s Record is named in memory of “Father” John J. Shipherd, who established Olivet College in 1844. The magazine is published twice annually for Olivet alumni and friends.

From the Office of the President Dear Friends: The past month has seen a flurry of celebrations – of students, faculty, alumni and community leaders. For those of us who live life on an academic cycle, we know this is the season for such things.

When immersed in the day-to-day activities of college life, we may forget about the achievements and excellence occurring around us. I’m thankful the spring season brings with it the opportunity to pause… giving us permission to step back and observe all that’s good about the work we do here at Olivet College.

Much of this issue of Shipherd’s Record is about these various celebrations and recognitions of achievement. One of the most significant was the commencement ceremony, where we conferred degrees to a near record number 200-plus undergraduate and graduate students. As our cover photo previews, we also inaugurated the first class of President’s Leadership Institute Fellows, a group of our best leaders on campus who have committed themselves to advancing and promoting leadership among each other and our campus community. Our top five graduating seniors and their faculty mentors were also recognized as Morris Awardees, symbolizing both academic excellence and the power of the relationship between students and faculty at Olivet College.

And these are but a few of the celebrations of accomplishment and substantial achievement you’ll find highlighted in this issue.

This issue also highlights a number of alumni and their distinctive careers and experiences—shaped and made possible through the foundation they built while here at Olivet College. This includes Bill Telling ’67 and his wife, Anne, who have become good friends of Traci and me, telling their story of adventure and accomplishment around the world. Ben McFall ’71 and Buzz Luttrell ’67 also tell their stories, along with a great profile on former art faculty member Jim Hay and his adventures and explorations of art, Japan, and Japanese culture. I hope you’ll enjoy each of these great stories.

And, once again, you’ll note that Olivet College has received national recognition, this time as a member of the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll.

Last issue, we shared with you our recognition by U.S. News & World Report in its listings of Best Colleges in the Midwest Region and our designation as a Military Friendly college. Whether it’s academic accomplishment, service to the greater community, or the impact Olivet College makes in the lives of others, it’s good to know we’re doing it better than most and that, together with your help, we’re making a difference.

With very best wishes and regards,

Steven M. Corey, Ph.D. President

Steven M. Corey, Ph.D. President

Board of Trustees OFFICERS David T. Hayhow, L.H.D., Chair, Okemos The Hon. Judge Denise Page Hood, Vice Chair, Detroit William Middlebrooks, Vice Chair, West Bloomfield Robert M. Lawrence ’57, Secretary, Grosse Ile Stanley Dole, L.H.D., Treasurer, Grand Rapids Members G. Asenath Andrews ’72, Detroit Sandra Boyer ex’85, Ann Arbor Thomas Burke ’82, Carmel, Ind. Dennis Daugherty ’70, Mattawan Mike Dieterle ’77, Farmington Hills Robert Ewigleben, Elizabethtown, Ky. Douglas Federau, East Lansing James T. Fitzpatrick ’86, Grand Ledge George F. Francis III, Southfield David E. Hathaway, J.D., Ada Rod Hathaway ’81, Wayland Sharon R. Hobbs, Ph.D., East Lansing Timothy Hodge ’83, D.O., Mason Thomas Hoisington, Lansing Thomas E. Kolassa ’69, Battle Creek David Labrecque ’84, Battle Creek Dean Lewis ’55, J.D., Kalamazoo Charles McPhail ’64, Houston, Texas Ken Milner, Bingham Farms Karen Van Hentenryck ’81, South Lyon Jeff Wildern, Charlotte Janet Zeaiter ’07, Mechanicsville, Va.

MAGAZINE Staff Shannon Tiernan Assistant Vice President for Marketing and Communications Molly (Reed) Goaley ’05 Director of Media Relations and Senior Writer Bruce Snyder Director of Publications and Web Services Marty (Mason) Jennings ’67 Alumni Relations Geoff Henson Sports Information B.J. Hull Advancement Julie Krueger Contributor Editorial Becca Anderson Jackie Bounds Corey Kilgannon Christine Moulton ’11 James Sanford Linda Jo Scott Sarah K. Smith Holly Whetstone Send change of address notices to: Office of Alumni Relations 320 S. Main St., Olivet, MI 49076 Olivet, MI 49076 • (269) 749-7644 mjennings@olivetcollege.edu Campus Administration Steven M. Corey, Ph.D. President Barb Spencer Executive Assistant to the President Bill Kurtz Senior Vice President and CFO B.J. Hull Vice President for Advancement Maria G. Davis, Ph.D. Provost and Dean of the College Larry Colvin Vice President for Administration Linda Logan, Ph.D. Vice President and Dean for Student Life Suresh Acharya ’99 Assistant Vice President of Technology Melissa (Sobie) Casarez ’02 Assistant Vice President of Admissions Shannon Tiernan Assistant Vice President of Marketing and Communications Karen Chaney, Ph.D. Associate Dean for Academic Affairs

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Cover Story President’s Leadership Institute Recognizes First Class of Fellows

Student Responds to Tragedy Through T-Shirts

10 Entomology Student Catches Teaching Bug

12 At Home with Millions of Books

Departments 2 Around the Square 22 Advancement 24 Comet Athletics 26 Class Notes

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12 As you read through Shipherd’s Record, we invite you to look for the following graphic which represents key attributes of the strategic plan in action. For more info, visit www.olivetcollege.edu/about/2020_beyond.php

Olivet College is committed to the principles of equal opportunity and non-discrimination. The college, in its employment, student admissions, recruitment, and personnel policies and practices, will not discriminate against any individual on the basis of age, color, sex, gender identity, disability or disability status, height, weight, marital status, national origin, political persuasion, race, religion, military or veteran status, or sexual orientation.

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Students Spend Spring Break Serving Others

Kirk Center Gets New Look The college is working to enhance the dining experience on campus by renovating the Lester K. Kirk Center throughout the summer. The entire first floor of the Kirk Center, including the cafeteria, will be updated to accommodate the college’s growing student population. When completed, the seating capacity will be increased by 200. Chartwells and Design Smart architecture have

For the 15th consecutive year, Olivet College students spent their spring break serving others at Heifer International Ranch in Perryville, Ark. Heifer International is a world hunger relief agency that believes in long-term, sustainable solutions to poverty and hunger. Students spent half of the day in service to the ranch, doing farm chores and construction. The other half of each day was spent in team building exercises and education about world hunger.

Students also spent one day and night at the ranch’s Global Village, where they shared a small meal and slept on the floor of a home that simulated living conditions in the developing world.

Commencement Celebrated

From left: Stephanie Wilson, Rebecca Gaarde, Nicolas Adsit, Cassie McDonald and Erin Jarvie.

Top Five Recognized Olivet recognized the best of its student body at Honors Convocation April 17 in Mott Auditorium.

The Donald A. Morris Awards are presented each year to the top five graduating seniors with the highest grade point average, and the professor whom each student deems the most influential in his or her academic career.

The 2012-13 recipients are: Nicolas Adsit of Muskegon, Erin Jarvie of Rudyard, Rebecca Gaarde of Parma, Cassie McDonald of Battle Creek, and Stephanie Wilson of Greenville.

Adsit selected Lisa Furman, Ph.D., assistant professor of music, for the award. Jarvie chose to honor Leah Knapp, D.V.M., professor of biology. Gaarde selected Nancy Van Hoozier, associate professor of health and human performance. McDonald chose Janine Peters, associate professor of mathematics and computer science, and Wilson chose Dina Battaglia, Ph.D., assistant professor of psychology.

Donald A. Morris served as president of Olivet from 1977-92. ▲

Students at Heifer Ranch New plans for the Kirk Center will increase seating by 200.

been working together to design the new plans with suggestions from the Olivet College Board of Trustees’ Building and Grounds Committee, as well as student feedback.

The new plan will provide a variety of seating from booths, lounge chairs, bar stools, and traditional tables and chairs, along with two community tables that will sit 12 to 16 people. The plan also includes a new color scheme and two new private dining areas. Along with the renovations, the Kirk Center will feature new late night hours to better accommodate students. ▲

Olivet Earns Place on National Honor Roll for Community Service Olivet College has been named to the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll for the third time. It is the highest federal honor a college or university can receive for its commitment to service learning, volunteering and civic engagement.

Each student at Olivet completes a service learning course, with 40 or more hours of service outside of class, as a graduation requirement. In addition to many locally based projects, some classes travel to other countries, including economically depressed areas in the rural central high plains of Mexico and the southern coast of Jamaica.

The college has also hosted an annual trip to aid with Hurricane Katrina relief efforts in New Orleans and Mississippi since 2005, as well as numerous other service trips throughout the academic year. Twenty-six service learning courses were offered during the 2011-12 academic year, resulting in more than 8,000 hours of community service. ▲

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The Class of 2013 celebrates at The Cutler Event Center.

A second group traveled to the Bread of Life Mission in Plant City, Fla., which serves low-income families in the area. Students painted and moved furniture for an after-school program, and worked directly with the children the program serves. In addition, the students spent an afternoon assisting farm workers in the field by picking strawberries. They also donated new shoes to the workers’ children. ▲

More than 200 seniors were recognized as part of graduation ceremonies May 18 at The Cutler Event Center.

Adam Gross, of Marshall, served as the senior class speaker for Commencement. Gross enrolled at Olivet College as a freshman in 2009. An environmental science major and biology minor, he has been involved in a number of organizations and activities as a student. He was active with WOCR-89.1 FM, the Olivet College radio station, and served as a campus tour guide for the Office of Admissions all four years. Gross plans to continue his education at the graduate level pursuing a career in environmental science.

Speakers at Baccalaureate included graduating seniors Joshua Crawford, of Birch Run; Colin Madden, of Kentwood; Arthur Moore, of Niles; Mario Rodriguez, of Holland; Macy Rose, of Kalamazoo; Kathryn Stickney, of Union City; and Meghan Wilkerson, of Charlotte. Joanne Williams, associate professor of journalism and mass communication, was also chosen by the senior class to speak as part of Baccalaureate. ▲

Petoskey Wins Full-Tuition Scholarship Nate Petoskey, a senior from Constantine High School, has won a full-tuition scholarship to Olivet College as part of the second annual Global Citizen Honors Program (GCHP) Scholarship Competition, held Jan. 25 on campus.

Petoskey, who plans to study environmental science and biology, competed with more than 70 incoming Olivet freshmen during the event. The college also awarded $123,000 in additional scholarship money to qualified students as part of the program.

Students were selected for the competition based on their academic standing. All of the competitors are high achieving, President Corey and Nate Petoskey incoming freshmen who met specific grade point average and ACT score requirements.

During the event, students participated in an interview session with faculty and staff members, in addition to an essay writing competition. The program also included information about the GCHP and honors classes at Olivet; a question-and-answer session with President Steven M. Corey, Ph.D., and other college officials; and individualized visits with admissions and financial aid representatives. ▲

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Faculty and Staff News and Notes

VanMeter selected for Governor’s Economic Summit Olivet College senior Katelyn VanMeter, of Sturgis, was one of 20 Michigan college students selected to represent the state’s top young talent during Governor Rick Snyder’s Economic Summit March 17-19 in Detroit.

VanMeter served as part of the Young Talent Panel during the summit, which consisted of college students from across Michigan who hope to become an integral part of the state’s workforce.

Part of the students’ roles was to speak about their professional goals, their future ambitions and why they want to pursue their careers in Michigan. Governor Snyder highlighted the contribution these students can make to the state and the importance of developing opportunities for them in Michigan.

“These are Michiganders,” Governor Snyder said. “We should be very proud of that. And we should all have a passion to have them stay here. That’s our opportunity.”

As a future Michigan professional, VanMeter was given the opportunity to participate in all conference sessions, including: networking with business leaders around Michigan; Young Talent Panel general and regional breakout sessions; strolling dinners at Ford Field, the Madison Building and Fox Theatre; and a preevent career coaching session.

A business administration/accounting major, VanMeter is involved in several leadership roles at Olivet College. She serves as vice president of the accounting student organization; is a member of the President’s Leadership Institute, and Phi Beta Lambda, the college’s business professional organization; and has been named to the Dean’s List numerous times during her college career. She was nominated by Renee Smith, assistant professor of business at Olivet College, to attend the summit.

“The Business Administration Department had several, very qualified students who were nominated for this opportunity,” said Smith. “We were thrilled that Katelyn was selected to represent the college and our academic program.”

The Governor’s Economic Summit was designed to address Michigan’s employer talent needs and create opportunities for regional collaboration and placemaking. For more information about the event, visit www.michigan.gov. ▲

The Bells Are Back Thanks to the support and organization of trustee Dennis Daugherty ’70, a new, state-of-the-art carillon was recently installed in Burrage Library—and in May, the bells chimed in celebration of Commencement for the first time in decades.

Once an Olivet College fixture, the first carillon was installed in 1961 in the library’s tower and was then replaced by a newer carillon in the Upton Conservatory of Music in 1987.

Daugherty organized the new carillon project so future generations of Olivet students could enjoy the chiming of the bells on campus. In addition, the new carillon features an emergency alert system. ▲

Rev. Mike Fales ’75 (right) plays the new carillon.

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Laura Barlond-Maas ’88, associate professor of English and Humanities Department chair, had a piece titled “The Ultimate Not-My-Will Day” published in “Mayflower Devotions: From Manger to Cross (Lent 2013),” a publication of the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches.

Norma Curtis, Laura Barlond-Maas ’88 professor of education, retired at the conclusion of the spring semester. Curtis joined the college in 1988 as a member of the education faculty after a career in the public school system in Royal Oak and Charlotte. In addition to her excellent work in the classroom at Olivet, over the past 25 Norma Curtis years Curtis also served as chair of the Education Department, registrar, faculty athletic representative and academic dean. Curtis will continue to pursue her first passion—teaching—as an adjunct professor in the fall.

Jeremy Duby joined the Olivet music program as director of bands. He is responsible for continuing to build Olivet’s strong instrumental music program and multiple ensembles. Duby will support the music program faculty and admissions staff in recruiting music students to Olivet and will serve as director of the athletic band. Other duties will include serving as assistant director of the college Jeremy Duby wind ensemble, working collaboratively with the athletic and admissions departments on events and recruitment activities, and managing a budget and scholarship program. Duby has received numerous awards and recognition for his accomplishments in music and education, including a proclamation from the Board of Commissioners of Macomb County for “outstanding contributions and years of service” to students and the community.

Tim Flynn, Ph.D., associate professor of music and Performing Arts Department chair, contributed a chapter in the forthcoming book: “Musical and Dramatic Characteristics of Gounod’s Faust” in “Faust in Music,” ed. by Lorna Fitzsimmons.

Molly (Reed) Goaley ’05, director of media relations and senior writer, and Bruce Snyder, director of publications and web services, were honored for outstanding achievement in public relations during the Central Michigan Public Relations Society of America’s PACE Awards ceremony in April. Goaley and Snyder received a Pinnacle Award, the society’s top prize, for the 2012-13 Viewbook, as well as an Excellence Award for Shipherd’s Record. In addition, Goaley earned an Excellence Award for her feature story on Robert Ode ex’38, the oldest hostage held by Iran during the 1979-81 crisis.

Lisa (Chase) Lehman ’02 was promoted to director of admissions. Her new responsibilities include managing the admissions staff and guiding all aspects of attracting quality students to Olivet.

Richard Lehman ’12 was named insurance and risk management recruiting specialist for the college. His responsibilities include collaborating with the admissions team and the Risk Management and Insurance Center faculty to attract quality students to the college’s insurance, risk management and financial planning programs.

Richard Lehman ’12 Dianne Thomas, director of the Betsy Dole Women’s Resource Center, was selected to receive the Outstanding Community Advocate Award from the Sexual Assault Services of Calhoun County. Thomas was honored with the award during a ceremony in April. ▲

Student Government Association Hosts Leadership Conference The Student Government Association organized and hosted its first-ever leadership conference in April. Theresa Abed, 71st District State House Representative, served as the opening speaker for the event.

Open to colleges and universities across Michigan, the conference was created by Olivet students to help prepare college students for leadership positions after graduation.

“Our focus is to provide the proper tools to be an effective leader,” said Branden Dyer, senior and Student Government Association president. “Our generation is soon to be the leaders of the world and this conference is Olivet College’s way to prepare students for that responsibility.”

The free conference included breakout and networking sessions, as well as presentations on effective leadership and a luncheon. ▲

Teacher Education Program Achieves TEAC Accreditation Status At its March meeting in Washington, D.C., the Teacher Education Accreditation Council (TEAC) granted a seven-year accreditation term to five programs at three institutions, including Olivet College’s teacher education program.

Olivet received a positive recommendation, allowing the college the maximum accreditation term possible. ▲

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Developing Tomorrow’s Responsible Leaders

Left: Charlie Burnham coaches students on business acumen.

Below left: Juniors Lashawna Ross and Aarin Townsend Below: The first class of the Olivet College President’s Leadership Institute.

Olivet College President’s Leadership Institute Presents First Graduating Class

By Molly (Reed) Goaley ’05

Take a moment to think about the world’s greatest leaders. Who comes to mind? Martin Luther King Jr., Mother Teresa, Ronald Reagan, Mahatma Gandhi, Marie Curie, Steve Jobs and other famous figures would likely top the list. But at Olivet College, students are learning that you don’t have to be a civil rights pioneer, an American president or a CEO to be a great leader. You don’t even have to be the best player on the team. Through the college’s very first President’s Leadership Institute (PLI), students are finding out that leadership comes in all packages.

“Anyone can be a leader,” said Dave Labrecque ’84, an Olivet College trustee and one of the founding faculty members of the new institute. “Leadership comes in all makes and models; it comes in all forms. Even though you may not be the boss, you can lead by example. That’s one of the most important things we can teach students about leadership.”

Dave Labrecque ’84, trustee, and Stephanie Craw, senior

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Bringing executive leadership to the college level Like many great ideas, the thought of establishing a program for students to become top leaders at Olivet occurred to Labrecque while he was on the golf course.

“My longtime friend, Charlie Burnham, is a former insurance executive who now runs a leadership development company called Today’s Leader with another longtime friend of mine, Mike Bivens, retired vice president for the Kellogg Company,” he said. “I got to talking to Charlie one day about the specifics around the training that he and Mike conduct for companies and executives all across the country. When he told me, I posed the question: Why can’t we offer this to college students? And Charlie thought it was a great idea.”

Labrecque, along with Burnham and Bivens, recognized the unique potential this type of training could have for college students who have not yet entered the workforce. By providing students with a “toolbox” of knowledge usually only reserved for executives who have developed their leadership skills on the job, over time, the students would have a competitive advantage – not only in their future careers, but in life. “The difference is that people in business don’t get exposed to the leadership concepts that the Olivet College PLI students learned until they have been in business five to 10 years, if ever,” Burnham said. “The students learn

because they want to, not because they have to.”

Excited about the possibilities that such a program could bring to Olivet, Labrecque presented the idea to President Steven M. Corey, Ph.D. “He is the ultimate reason that the President’s Leadership Institute exists today,” Labrecque said. “He and Maria Davis, Ph.D., provost and dean of the college, not only embraced our idea, they enhanced it dramatically from what we originally had in mind, and the result is a first class program for the students of Olivet College.”

Corey, Davis and Labrecque worked with Bivens and Burnham to establish the institute with a mission to “promote, identify and develop top leadership in Olivet College students and, upon graduation, to enable them to become the principal professional and community leaders of tomorrow.”

Using Today’s Leader’s model for executive development, an eight-segment curriculum based on the “building blocks of effective leadership” – personal assessment, business acumen, managing versus leading, setting direction and motivating others, for example – was

established. Students selected for the program were expected to attend every session and adhere to the guiding principles of the PLI, from dressing professionally to being on time. According to President Corey, it was also important that the program focus on developing a culture of leadership that would benefit Olivet well into the future.

“We wanted to be intentional about promoting a culture of leadership at Olivet College, with the idea that graduates of the PLI would remain engaged with the college and program as alumni,” Corey said. “It was important that the institute not only focus on the development of students while they are here on campus, but on building a network of leaders who 10 years from now can return to Olivet College and serve as mentors to future generations of students.”

With this in mind, PLI faculty members determined that successful graduates would be designated as Fellows of the President’s Leadership Institute, and would be invited to remain engaged in the activities of the institute in support of future leadership development, both while completing their studies at Olivet College and as alumni.

Continued on pg. 8

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A fresh approach to leadership On Sept. 26, Burnham and Bivens were introduced to 21 students—18 females and three males—who would comprise the first class of the President’s Leadership Institute. According to Bivens, from day one, the students exhibited an enthusiasm to learn that is not always present when training executives.

“The students carry much less baggage than people who have been out in the

to become an art teacher. She says one of the most important things she learned through PLI was how to empower others.

“During our sessions, we discussed how leadership means bringing out another’s full potential,” she said. “I want to serve as a leader in my career by setting an example for my colleagues and being the most effective teacher I can be. I would work toward motivating and inspiring my students to think more critically, work

Students discuss managing versus leading during one of the segments.

workforce for some time,” Bivens said. “As a result, they have taken a fresh approach to the leadership ideas and concepts we have shared with them. The leadership development roadmap was designed to help them create a vision for the leader they want to become and a strategy for how they can accomplish that vision.

Right now they believe that anything is possible—and it is.”

With many of them graduating or preparing for their senior year, the students are eager to apply their newly acquired skills to the leadership roles that await them. Stephanie Craw, of Marshall, graduated with a degree in visual arts/education in May and plans

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harder, and appreciate and understand art better than they had before taking my class.”

Ciara Wilson-Santos, of Lansing, who recently earned her degree in sports recreation management with a business concentration, says she’s carried her PLI experience into all aspects of her life—from the classroom, to coaching, and as an employee of Lansing Parks and Recreation. “My experience has given me great confidence in my strengths and has helped me recognize my weaknesses,” she said. “I’ve learned that a leader is not afraid to take risks or take the blame.

Because of the institute, I’ve become very excited about my future and have noticed a

new change in my drive and determination to become something great.”

Continuing a culture of leadership The first class of the Olivet College President’s Leadership Institute graduated during a ceremony April 10 at the Battle Creek Country Club. Brad Davidson, president of Kellogg North America, served as the keynote speaker for the event, which was attended by many proud parents, college employees, trustees and the founding faculty members of the institute.

As, one-by-one, the graduates received medals and were officially inducted as fellows, it was difficult to tell who was more pleased: the creators of the institute, or the students themselves.

“The students exceeded our expectations by a mile,” Burnham said. “I have learned that I really enjoy working with young, intelligent and open-minded people who have the same passion for leadership and helping others reach their potential that I do.”

“Everyone and anyone can be a leader,” Bivens added. “There are so many opportunities for these students and others to step up and lead. Businesses, communities and schools are all looking for more leaders. The Olivet College PLI students have an advantage that many do not—and we’ve challenged them to find ways to lead.”

Adam Rhein, of Leonard, now a senior biology and psychology major with a pre-medical studies concentration, said the President’s Leadership Institute is exactly the type of program he came to Olivet to be a part of. “When I first considered becoming part of the Olivet College community, one of the things that excited me was the possibility to truly grow with the college,” he said. “I think the success of the PLI’s inaugural class is a credit to the environment created by Olivet College.

I love this school and I will forever be grateful for the education I receive here both in the classroom and through programs like PLI.” ▲

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President Steven M. Corey, Ph.D., and Patty Groh

Senior Patty Groh

Margaret Meade once said, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world.

Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”

As Olivet College senior Patty Groh knows, sometimes it just takes one person willing to stand up and make the first move.

Stunned by the tragic school shooting in Newtown, Conn. in December, Patty felt compelled to push beyond grief and take action. “I was just trying to make sense of it all,” she said. “You feel so devastated when something like this happens. You might be feeling negative about the government or people in general, or how our kids are being raised. But my thoughts kept going back to, ‘I’m just one person, all the way in Michigan – what can I do?’”

At first, Patty planned to send in her own $50 donation to the victims’ families—but instead, she decided to put that money toward something bigger.

Patty designed a T-shirt honoring 26 of the victims—six women, 12 girls, eight boys—and posted a picture of it on Facebook.

“On the Monday after the shooting, people were wearing green and white, Sandy Hook’s school colors, to honor the victims,” she said. “But I wanted people to know I was supporting the victims, not just wearing green and white. So I designed the T-shirt and put their names

Student Responds to Tragedy Through T-shirts

By Molly (Reed) Goaley ’05

on the back.”

After seeing the design, Patty’s friends began requesting T-shirts for themselves.

“My intention was just to make one shirt for me,” she said. “But after my friends began requesting them, I thought, ‘I guess this is what we’re going to do.’ It just blew up and I learned a lot really fast.”

Patty worked with Sports Stop in Mason to make the tees at cost, so half of every $10 earned per shirt would go directly to the victims’ families. She started a Facebook page, Sandy Hook T-shirts, and also began selling the shirts online through the website http://sandyhooktshirts.com.

Though sales started out a bit slow, word about Patty’s project quickly spread through social media and local news outlets, and the fundraiser soon took off.

Patty started placing orders as fast as she could; first responding to requests for one or two T-shirts from individuals, then fulfilling large orders of 100 tees or more from businesses and organizations.

As members of the Olivet College community learned what Patty was doing, they quickly rallied to support her efforts.

The Student Government Association got involved by placing orders and helping Patty sell the T-shirts in the community.

And Maria Davis, Ph.D., provost and dean of the college, arranged for Olivet College to be Patty’s formal nonprofit sponsor

so that she could host remembrance activities such as a candlelight vigil in her hometown of Mason.

“In typical Olivetian fashion, Patty decided to take responsibility for serving others,” Davis said. “We are so proud of her efforts to make a positive difference in the world.”

Patty’s efforts even reached the college’s board of trustees. Chair David Hayhow placed a significant order for tees after seeing Patty on WLNS 6 News in Lansing. She was then invited to share her story with the rest of the board at their February meeting on campus, at which she sold even more tees.

On the last day of February, Patty made one final push on Facebook for online orders and sold the last remaining T-shirts in the Mott Academic Center lobby. Her goal at the beginning of the project was to send $5,000 to the Sandy Hook Support Fund. In total, she raised $4,759.60 – just $240.40 short.

But Patty is not discouraged by the end result. On the contrary, she’s happy she came so close to her goal and that she could finally put that money to use in supporting the victims of Newtown. “It’s been so humbling to see everyone come together to support this project,” she said, “all because they believed in a college student on Facebook.” ▲

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Entomology Student Catches Serious Teaching Bug, Now Olivet Dean and Provost Originally published in Michigan State University’s Futures magazine for AgBio Research.

By Holly Whetstone

When Maria Davis stepped in to guest lecture for a turfgrass entomology class, Michigan State University (MSU) professor Dave Smitley quickly realized his young protégé had a special gift for teaching.

“The students liked her lecture better than they did mine,” said Smitley, who was a new professor at the time. “Maria was a graduate student, and it was one of the first classes she ever taught. I watched what she did and I learned some things. I knew right then that she was going to be a great teacher.”

His prognostication was spot on. Davis has had an impressive career in academia, including a 16-year stint as a popular professor at Olivet College. In 2011, she was named dean and provost of the private, four-year liberal arts institution.

Despite overseeing a faculty of 92 and a student body of 1,156, Davis remains a teacher at heart.

“I miss teaching very much, but I feel like I still do teaching in terms of working with my faculty colleagues and learning new things every day,” she said. “I still get to do some of that just not in the classroom anymore.”

It was Davis’ fascination with insects

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that morphed into much more under the careful guidance of Smitley, her doctoral academic adviser.

“She was a good researcher, but she had even more talent in teaching,” said the MSU AgBioResearch scientist. “I just made sure she had plenty of opportunities to get teaching experience, and she took right off.”

Davis, who taught in Lyman Briggs College at MSU while working on her doctorate, said Smitley made some sacrifices in his research to help her develop into a promising teacher.

“Clearly, what Dave did for me was to hear what my dreams and aspirations were and then help me to fulfill them,” she said. “He mentored me in my Ph.D. research, but beyond that, he allowed me to explore teaching and that’s no small thing. Teaching takes time away from the research.”

But Davis’ unique approach in the classroom couldn’t be ignored. At a time when most professors spent an hour or longer lecturing in front of a class, Smitley said Davis was utilizing small groups and encouraging dialogue.

The mentor-mentee experience with Smitley helped Davis excel professionally,

Dave Smitley, Ph.D., and Maria Davis, Ph.D.

Maria G. Davis, Ph.D., dean and provost

but it also played a pivotal role in her personal life. It was in Smitley’s entomology lab where she met her future husband, Terry. The two began dating, but kept their romance a secret from Smitley until their engagement.

“It’s kind of funny because we were worried how Dave would take it, so we didn’t tell him we were dating,” she said.

“Eventually we made an appointment to go into his office and tell him that we were going to get married. He looked rather shocked and announced that he kind of felt sorry for us. I don’t know what that meant, but we laugh about that until this day.”

Smitley clarifies that he was sorry because they believed it necessary to keep their relationship from him. This year marks the couple’s 25th wedding anniversary. Terry continues to work with Smitley as a lab technician, which keeps the line of communication open between mentor and mentee today.

“With my husband continuing to work for him, I sort of feel like Dave and I have this ‘transferal connection,’” she said. “I always know what’s going on in his life, and he knows what’s going on in mine.”

Reflecting on the guidance that Smitley

provided, Davis said one of the most important lessons was his individual approach to each student.

“I think what we share is our approach to teaching and the philosophy that there is no set mold that a student is going to be in,” she said. “You have to think of that person, their goals and their aspirations.

That’s something Dave did with me and that I try to do with my students. The attention to the individual has led me to be a very successful instructor and to where I am now in terms of my leadership.

I consider myself very much a servant leader meaning that the people I serve are important to me.”

Davis recalls how Smitley’s kind, welcoming demeanor became apparent in their initial meeting. She had driven from her home in Ohio to MSU. Her mother, an intensive care unit nurse who had just worked the night shift, tagged along to ensure that her daughter made it safely on her journey. Upon arrival at the school, Davis went in for her interview and her mother napped.

“I left her sleeping in the car, and I’ll never forget when Dave said, ‘Oh, your mom is here, I’d like to meet her.’ So we went outside and there was my mom

sleeping with her feet out the window. She was so embarrassed. But that is the kind of person Dave is—he’s very personable and genuinely wants to get to know all of his students.”

Although it may not have been the ideal start for many relationships, it was the perfect beginning to theirs. From that moment, Davis knew Smitley was the adviser for her.

“He seems to have a very peaceful center and is able to keep his focus, and I struggle with that a bit,” she said. “Watching him go through some very difficult things in his life and seeing how he stayed tranquil and centered was an important lesson for me – the need to keep the calm through the storm.”

Despite an innate calmness, Davis said Smitley was quite persistent when it came to her research project on chinch bugs and residential lawns.

“He always pushed me sometimes to the point when I’d say, ‘Come on already do I really have to do that experiment?

Haven’t I already done enough?’” she said.

“Constantly pushing at me and saying, ‘How do you know, how do you know?’ I think that’s the job of a good scientist— always pushing the limit and emphasizing

the need for good data, testing it, and hoping to support our hypothesis.

Always asking, ‘Have we done enough to effectively test this hypothesis?’”

Today, Davis serves as an external member on a couple of MSU committees.

She reflects fondly on her time working alongside Smitley.

“What a mentor does for a graduate student going through a program doesn’t stop after graduation, it continues on,” she said. “For good or ill, that’s an influence that continues on. It doesn’t stop at that one person.

“At least 10 of my students from Olivet have gone back to Dave’s lab for summer projects,” Davis added. “Through his lab, he has mentored some of my students and he has just kept giving back. So if I am his academic child, those are his academic grandchildren.”

Through this pairing, the mentor lineage certainly continues strong.

“My life is really about mentoring others,” Davis said. “I’m a mentor of students, of colleagues, and now of my faculty and other employees. It really is the framework from upon which I have built my life.” ▲

SPRING 2013

11

At Home with Millions of Books 3.5

At the Strand, Ask Ben McFall; He Knows Fiction

Ben McFall ’71 embodies the liberal arts—a resident of Brooklyn, New York, he graduated with a degree in French and music from Olivet and has managed the fiction section of the Strand Book Store for 35 years. The following article was published as a “Character Study” in the New York Times Jan. 20, 2013.

By Corey Kilgannon

The oracle of the Strand Book Store can be found back in the fiction section wearing a name tag that reads: “Benjamin. Ask Me.” In the 35 years that Ben McFall, 64, has managed the vast section, many customers have: for that elusive first edition, for a good poetry recommendation, for relationship advice.

“If you really need to know, you go to the Strand and ask for Ben,” said Llew Almeida, a book collector from Southport, Conn., who was part of a group of customers and staff members buzzing around Mr. McFall on Wednesday afternoon at the mammoth bookstore at Broadway and 12th Street that has a staff of more than 170 workers and an estimated two million books in its inventory.

Mr. McFall is the dean of the clerks and the institutional memory of the fiction section, where he sorts, prices and shelves hundreds of books a day. And he is often the one pulling books off the shelves for customers.

In recent years, the store has put in place a computerized inventory system, but Mr. McFall relies largely on his prodigious mental map of the tens of thousands of books in the section to keep track of the waxing and waning of various titles.

A pristine copy of Gore Vidal’s “Washington, D.C.” had come in; so had a slightly rare copy of James Baldwin’s “Just Above My Head”; George Saunders’s new “Tenth of December” had sold out.

“It seems like a feat, but if it were your house, you’d know where things are, too,” Mr. McFall said while pulling books off shelves, almost without looking at their titles, to fill a large order.

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SHIPHERD’s RECORD

Back at his stall, he resumed his incessant sorting and culling of books that are carted over nonstop from the buying counter in the rear of the store.

There, the buyers—headed by the Strand’s owner, Fred Bass, 84, whose father, Benjamin Bass, opened the store in 1927—acquire books all day long and pass all the fiction to Mr. McFall’s book-strewn nook a few shelves away.

“I like this spot because I can hear Fred but he can’t hear me,” the soft-spoken and unflappable Mr. McFall said. “That’s how I like it, because I like to say what I think.”

Mr. McFall, who lives with his boyfriend in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, regards Mr. Bass as a father figure and calls the Strand his family.

“I don’t have to have children because these are my children,” he said, gesturing toward the group of younger staff members milling about.

“So many have come through here and then started up bookstores or teach at universities,” he added.

He paused to call a collector about several obscure books that had just come across his desk, and then a mystified young store clerk walked over and said he had a customer needing information on “Sam Jones, an 18th-century writer.”

“Probably Samuel Johnson, Dr. Johnson,” Mr. McFall said.

Another clerk brought over an old edition of “Moby-Dick,” and before she even drew close, Mr. McFall gasped and said, “Oh, is that a Rockwell Kent?”— referring to the illustrator of the edition— “Oh, you just have to own that.”

Mr. McFall grew up in Detroit, the only

child of two schoolteachers, and he studied literature and music at Olivet College.

He worked at a bookstore in Connecticut after graduation and then moved to New York in the mid-1970s to flourish as an actor, singer, poet and openly gay man.

He took a job at the Strand in 1978.

“Back then, it was a cruel place; I was the first nice person to work here,” Mr. McFall said.

Mr. Bass immediately assigned him to organize the store’s fiction section.

Mr. McFall said he had spurned offers to manage other bookstores, and added, “I’m perfectly willing to sell low-end dresses here if it means keeping the Strand in business.”

The writer Luc Sante once worked alongside him – “He did paperbacks all by himself,” Mr. McFall said – and Susan Sontag was a regular, as was the novelist David Markson, who always wanted his books displayed more prominently.

Mr. McFall has helped Cicely Tyson buy books for Oprah Winfrey, and has helped Lena Horne find a copy of the play “Cattywampus.”

Then there was the time someone intoned in a deep voice, “Who’s Ben?” He looked up and it was Tom Brokaw, who, upon Mr. McFall’s recommendation, picked up a copy of the historical novel “Giants in the Earth.”

On Wednesday, the novelist Greg Dinallo sidled up to Mr. McFall and asked him to set aside any copies of his own novels that he could buy back. After Mr. Dinallo left, Mr. McFall sighed and surveyed his section. “I’m just a shop rat,” he said, “but I’m a good one.” ▲

THE PARTICULARS NAME: Ben McFall ’71 AGE: 64 WHERE HE’S FROM: Detroit WHAT HE IS: Manager of the Strand Book Store’s fiction section TELLING DETAIL: He took a job at the store because “it was dusty, dirty, old and interesting.”

SPRING 2013

13

5

Friends Influence

B i l l Te l l i n g ’ 6 7

an international career

Inset: Anne and Bill Telling ’67. From left: Carlos Marín ’66, Telling, Hisa Shibamoto ’67, Marty (Mason) Jennings ’67 and Sandy Aranyos ’68

By Jackie Bounds

Inspired by his international friends at Olivet College, Bill Telling ’67 launched a business career that took him around the world.

Telling lived and worked in more than 10 countries including England, Jamaica, Japan, New Zealand, Puerto Rico and Russia. His well traveled career started because he was influenced by international students at Olivet.

“My good friend Carlos Marín ’66 invited me to spend one summer with his family in Costa Rica,” said Telling. “I had such a wonderful time with his family and working with his father distributing food stuffs and dry goods to small shops in rural areas. This really stimulated my interest in international travel. I spoke some Spanish, but I was not perfectly fluent to work in a Spanish speaking country.”

Another friend, Hisa Shibamoto ’67 of Japan, was also an important contact.

“Hisa helped me with physics and we talked often about his family and life in Japan. After Olivet, I was able to spend a month in Tokyo where Hisa and his family introduced me to their beautiful country and helped me develop an appreciation for their culture. This proved to be a real benefit in my future career.

“For me, it was life-changing to meet Carlos and Hisa,” said Telling. “I learned much about their cultures. Both spoke 14

SHIPHERD’s RECORD

English as a second language and that wasn’t a problem. I felt like students and faculty were open to helping them learn at a small school like Olivet.” Telling recalls a number of international students on campus during the 1960s, and because the campus was so small, students knew each other quite well.

“Olivet provided the individual attention that I needed during an influential time in my life,” said Telling.

“I have fond memories and great friends.

It takes about two minutes when we get together and we are already reminiscing about old times.”

Telling enjoyed wrestling, golf and student government as an active high school student from Port Huron. He started his college career on a wrestling scholarship to Miami University in Ohio.

However, family friends recommended he go to Olivet College to focus on academics.

“When I first came to Olivet in 1964, there wasn’t a wrestling program and that’s what I really loved to do,” he said.

“So I organized a wrestling club with about 22 guys. Mike Cronmiller ’65 and I approached Athletic Director Stu Parsell and President Gordon Riethmiller with a proposal to include wrestling as part of Olivet’s athletic program. After much discussion they agreed and our first official team took to the mats in 1965.

“The first Olivet College team started with 24 guys,” said Telling. “We had a lot of really good light-weight wrestlers, like Steve Ash ’68 and Jim McCloughan ’68 so I moved around in weight classes to help the team be more competitive. Al Nagy ’68 was an outstanding freshman wrestler, and he and I were the only two on the whole team who had any experience, so we taught the team our moves.” Both Nagy and Telling were successful wrestlers and made it to the national finals in Minnesota representing Olivet’s first team.

Besides wrestling, Telling was also captain of the golf team, voted most valuable player and named to the AllMIAA Team. “Because wrestling is not exactly a social activity, I focused more on golf after college,” he said. While overseas, Telling competed in regional, national and some international golf competitions and qualified twice for the Jamaican National Team.

“Golf provided an introduction to many people, whom my wife and I befriended,” said Telling. “Those friendships enhanced our social life and living experience in every country we lived.” Telling said one unique aspect of his golfing experience was to have made a hole-in-one in four different states and seven different countries.

While at Olivet he learned how to spend more time on academics while still

enjoying his sports, his interest in politics and the Adelphic fraternity. Telling recalls that his English instructors took great individual interest in him and helped him pursue his degree in English. One professor was very influential in teaching Middle English as a language. “Because of this prof, I can still recite some of ‘The Canterbury Tales’ in Middle English,” said Telling. “Having a good understanding and appreciation for English helped me to learn other languages, and relate to different cultures.”

“After spending that summer with Carlos in Costa Rica, I came up with the idea to go to Australia,” said Telling.

“Unfortunately my brother was killed in Vietnam, and he left me money with the stipulation it could only be used for travel.

I asked for my parents blessing though, because they had already lost one son.”

His parents agreed and after graduating in 1967, Telling was off to Australia via Japan.

He worked in advertising and coauthored a book, “A Bachelor’s Guide to Sydney,” and then met and married his wife, Anne. Telling said he really enjoyed working overseas and exploring new things, yet wanted more education to pursue an international career. The young couple came back to the United States and Telling enrolled in the American Graduate School of International Management,

now called Thunderbird School of Global Management in Phoenix.

“I did well in graduate school because I was just a few years older than the other students and already had some life experience,” he said. “I felt that I received a lot of guidance from my professors, most of whom had worked and lived overseas during their careers.”

Telling especially enjoyed his MBA program as a Thunderbird and the benefits of the international alumni program.

“Every Tuesday the Thunderbird alumni groups meet in other countries. Because of my extensive travel, I was able to connect with these alumni all over the world and glean from their international experiences.”

After graduate school, Telling was hired

by Nestle as a brand product manager and worked on juices and drinks, meat products and new product development in Chicago, London and Puerto Rico.

Telling was then recruited by British American Tobacco Company, based out of Louisville, Ky., to manage three of its brands worldwide. He was promoted to management as vice president responsible for the Middle East and Africa, based in Brussels, Belgium for eight years. He later became president of the company’s Japan and Korea operations based in Tokyo where he worked for nine years. Telling also had assignments running businesses based in New Zealand and Russia, where

he served as managing director. In 1999, he was transferred to Jamaica as CEO of Carreras. At Carreras, Telling specialized in managing the company’s tobacco, hospitality and insurance divisions for more than six years before retirement.

“I had an amazing international career,” said Telling. “Much of my success is due to my wife and her flexibility and willingness to adapt to change while raising our family.” Telling and his wife reside in Satellite Beach, Fla.; they have four grown daughters, one son-in-law and one grandson.

“I worked very hard to learn the language wherever we lived,” said Telling.

“Living in the language helped me a great deal.” He remembers studying Japanese during his lunchtime for a number of years.

“Having the opportunity to live and work in different cultures was a most rewarding experience for my family and I,” he said. “My daughters were brought up in Belgium and Japan which provided some additional language skills and a broader world view that hopefully will help them in their careers.”

The Telling family has many great friends around the world, thanks to his career and the international friendships that began at Olivet College in the 1960s. ▲

SPRING 2013

15

Just ASK Walter (Buzz) Luttrell ’67

After 51 years, Walter (Buzz) Luttrell ’67 still holds the Allegan High School long jump record at 22’ 5 1/2”. Luttrell was an outstanding scholar athlete who lettered in six different sports: football, basketball, baseball, track, cross-country and golf, earning a total of 11 varsity letters for his athletic abilities.

He was recruited with academic and athletic scholarships to colleges across the country, but he chose to attend Michigan State University because he wanted to be close to home so that his family could watch him play sports.

However, he was seriously injured in a bike accident as a freshman when he was struck by two cars. “Doctors advised me

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SHIPHERD’s RECORD

3.5

By Jackie Bounds

that I would probably not be able to play sports again, and I lost my scholarship,” Luttrell said.

A high school friend, who attended Olivet College, recommended that Luttrell enroll there to allow him time to recover from his injuries. Luttrell arrived at Olivet’s campus on crutches, with bruises all over his body and his right arm in a sling.

“The athletic director asked me if I thought I could still play ball and like a fool on crutches…I said sure,” said Luttrell, who went on to play after he healed.

“I was a good ball player, but not great,” he said. “College was much more about experiencing, learning and friendships that I still cherish today. But I must always

acknowledge that the most important lesson I learned at Olivet was very painful and lasting…do NOT drink and drive. I did and caused an accident that left my friend paralyzed for life. I feel it would be unethical to tell my story without that admission.”

Luttrell learned many life lessons at Olivet. “The importance of taking personal responsibility for my actions was drilled into me as a student,” he said. “I was amazed at how idyllic it was at Olivet.

Being from a small town myself, I could really appreciate that aspect of campus.”

Luttrell later became president of Adelphic Alpha Pi, one of few integrated college fraternities in 1965. “I have always

been someone who gets things done,” he said. “The Adelphic house badly needed updates like carpeting, new furniture and a pool table, so I asked and alumni responded with funding.” This concept of ‘just asking’ helped Luttrell address some important social issues later in his career.

“I was the first male in my family to go to college and my sister was the first female,” said Luttrell. “I remember my Olivet teachers feeling like family, plus it helped that some of the faculty were basketball fans, so I felt their support in and out of the classroom.” Luttrell earned his degree in psychology and sociology. After graduation, a fraternity brother helped him find a banking job in Detroit.

“I did not enjoy banking, but it was a job that brought me to the big city,” he said.

“After about a year, I interviewed for a job with Seymour & Lundy Associates, Inc., the nation’s largest black-owned public relations firm. My first assignment was to write an educational supplement about the role of blacks in American history.

Educators were clamoring for educational resources on black history after the race riots that swept the nation in the 1960s.”

In 1969, he published the booklet, “Black America’s Echoes of the Past;” it was used in classrooms as a supplement to American history books, and is now part of the Smithsonian Institute.

From there, Luttrell worked his way up to vice president and then director of training resources for the firm. He remembers teaching sensitivity training for white managers.

“I learned fast; my projects got attention,” said Luttrell. “In 1972, I was approached about a position as director of communications for New Detroit, Inc. I initiated a public service campaign to improve Detroit’s image.” Many cities needed rebuilding after the riots, and Detroit had recently replaced Atlanta as the murder capital of the U.S. The auto companies, leading corporations and labor unions funded the campaign. Luttrell met with Governor William Milliken and Detroit Mayor Coleman Young to incorporate their views for media relations, publications and speeches.

“Using a storyboard, I created a simple outline of the issues and then convinced

the ABC-affiliated WXYZ-TV station that we needed a news crew for a week,” he said. “With the creative help of Detroit’s legendary film community, we created a highly effective city image campaign called ‘Detroit is People.’” The key to that success was a friendship Luttrell created with Hollywood film producer and Detroit resident, Verne Nobles.

Luttrell later landed a position with WXYZ-TV in Southfield as community affairs director and talk show host. “I didn’t know much about TV broadcasting, but I learned,” he said. At the station, he was involved in many public service projects, but he is most pleased with the WXYZTV, General Motors sponsored public service salute to inner-city high school valedictorians, “The Best of the Class.”

General Motors used the campaign in 92 different cities in the 1980s. One year, Luttrell’s nephew from Cleveland Western Reserve High School, Ohio was featured among the students. “TV audiences saluted valedictorians as they slowly moved their graduation tassel across their mortarboard,” said Luttrell. “Teachers, parents and students literally cried with pride. The important message was that students could win fame in the rough streets of urban America as an academic star.”

Luttrell continued his successful TV career. The station received great response and requests to see him on TV, and this helped him move up to reporter along with his talk show, “Buzz Luttrell’s Weekly Report.” In his first year as a reporter, he won the highest award in the state for news reporting called the Advancement of Justice Award for a TV news special report on grand jury investigations.

While golfing one day, Luttrell was told by a friend from a competitive network that WBZ-TV in Boston was looking to hire a host for New England’s top-rated local talk show “People Are Talking.”

“I landed the job and hosted live interviews with everyone from presidents to prostitutes and movie stars,” he said.

“Oprah Winfrey was one of my first guests.

Shirley MacLaine, Billy Crystal…you name it; all of the stars were on the show.”

Luttrell won two Emmy Awards for his work on “People Are Talking.”

“Over the years, I had an unorthodox

and amazing career and I was always determined to convince my employers to support public service projects,” he said.

“Basically with each job, I also took time to focus on social needs and created a few public service projects which consumed many nights and weekends.”

While working for Convergent Media Systems in Boston, he produced an awardwinning video, “The Possible Dream.”

It was a public education piece about displaced aggression after racial conflict broke out at many U.S. high schools. “I requested the help of Dr. Alvin Poussaint, the psychiatrist who reviewed episodes of ‘The Cosby Show.’ It was a process to help the kids heal from the incident,” he said.

“I have an interest in using media to solve social problems,” said Luttrell. “I can look at a situation, think, read and come up with a solution. Plus, I’ve never had a fear of powerful or important people, so I’m not afraid to ask for help or ask for a TV crew to tell a story. Just ask… that’s how I have found some success in addressing social issues.” ▲

Luttrell in his early broadcasting career

Now retired, Walter (Buzz) Luttrell ’67 and his wife, Marva, live outside Boston and are especially proud of their blended brood – Mardi, Michelle, Greg and Michael and six grandchildren. In 2012, he updated his booklet for public schools. The modernized eBook, “What the World Should Know about Black History in the USA,” is a modified, easy-to-read, historical piece about AfricanAmerican contributions to U.S. history.

To catch up with Luttrell, visit www.learnaboutblackhistory.blogspot.com.

SPRING 2013

17

Quilt 2.4

by association Artist Jim Hay Takes Fabric Art in New Directions

Jim Hay Left: “Green Eyes” by Jim Hay

The word “quilt” generally brings to mind grandmotherly types in rocking chairs, sipping chamomile tea beside a roaring fireplace while stitching together a bedspread made of scraps of worn-out dresses, workshirts and draperies. That’s a far cry from what you would have seen if you’d dropped by Jim Hay’s two-day “For the Love of Cloth” quilting workshop at Olivet College.

Puffy patchwork squares were conspicuously absent. Instead, more than a dozen people were placing pieces of various fabrics on a black background to create a colorful picture or abstract pattern.

That wouldn’t startle anyone who knows Hay’s background. The Detroit native began his career as a multimedia artist and spent 12 years as a professor of sculpture and drawing at Olivet College. He also worked in the Battle Creek office of the Nordstrom, Fitzpatrick & Partners ad agency.

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SHIPHERD’s RECORD

Internationally renowned artist Jim Hay served as professor of sculpture and drawing at Olivet College from 1968-80. In January, he returned to campus to host a two-day quilters’ workshop, “For the Love of Cloth,” and to feature his work as part of the Battle Creek Artist Guild Exhibition in the college’s Riethmiller Blackman Art Building. James Sanford, arts writer for the Battle Creek Enquirer, attended the workshop and contributed the following article to the paper Jan. 20, 2013.

By James Sanford

In 1990, Hay went to Japan as a representative in a sister cities conference.

It was supposed to be a two-week trip.

“I was interested in Japanese culture and wanted to stay longer,” he said. “They said, ‘Why don’t you stay and teach? ’So I stayed on and I’m still there.”

Hay got into quilting after attempting to make his own curtains for a new home.

Excited by the challenge of working with fabrics, he took on more complex projects.

Two decades later, he’s shown his quilts all over the world. His “Broom Pig Man” has just been announced as the winner of the Excellence Award in the Tokyo International Great Quilt Festival.

“I find it’s got a lot of potential that I’m happy with,” he said of fabric work.

It’s also considerably easier to transport than the kinds of large-scale sculptures he used to do; he said he managed to roll up several of his pieces for a recent show and fit them into two suitcases.

Hay is also a member of Studio Art Quilt Associates, which identifies itself on its website as “a nonprofit organization whose mission is to promote the art quilt through education, exhibitions, professional development, documentation and publications.”

“It was always thought of as a craft, always thought of as Grandma’s quilts,” Hay said of quilting. “Well, that definition is changing a lot.”

For the workshop, Hay gave the attendees a challenge.

“The idea was to pick four diverse words and then try somehow to integrate them together into a composition,” participant Joanna Learner of Battle Creek explained.

“We started out randomly picking nouns that didn’t relate to each other and then from that we started trying to explore and imagine what we could do with them.

“It’s a way to think outside the box: We’re always locked down in traditional

ways of looking at things, and this is a springboard to give you ideas and imagination. We’re so carefully taught to think traditionally that it’s nice to fling something out and get people to explore a little bit.”

Learner’s words were “river,” “people,” “trees” and “sun.”

Three of the four items were prominently featured in her design, featuring silhouetted figures gazing at a luminous blue river flowing through the woods. “My sky was supposed to have a sun in it,” she said. “But I think I’m going to take the liberty of putting a moon in it.”

Unlike doing a watercolor or a carving, changes and alterations in a quilt pattern are simple to make; it’s not much more complicated than pulling out a few pins, changing one piece of fabric for another and then pinning the new addition into place. That was a relief for Amy Witzke of Bellevue Township, who was rethinking her plans for a scene inspired by “oatmeal,” “fox,” “shovel” and “prayers.”

Hay had shown a slide of a Shinto shrine, where the faithful leave prayers written out on pieces of paper. “I thought, ‘Yeah, I can do a quilt like that!’” Witzke said. “But then you had to pick three more words — so I think the whole idea is lost.” A white temple-like structure dominated the top portion of her quilt. Below it was a panel of a shovel sticking in the ground near a scarlet-faced fox with eyes the color of buttermilk; beneath that was a window frame and a kitchen counter, where bowls of oatmeal are waiting to be eaten.

“My next quilt, I’m going to do it first and then title it,” she said, with a chuckle.

She’s made five quilts before, some of which, she admitted, are still works in progress. She quoted a piece of quilter wisdom: “To quilt is human, to finish is divine.”

“You never finish,” she said, sighing. “It’s wonderful to get the fabrics and the patterns and the ideas and get it all started.

Then you kind of say, ‘Yep, I’ll do this next week …’ I know so many quilters who have projects in their closets, unfinished.

The fun part is just going through your stash of fabrics and picking out the cool ones — and the cool ones don’t always work together.”

Hay wandered from work station to work station, answering questions and sharing tips. “It’s nice: You have people who all started from the same basic theme or idea, but the directions they’ve gone are completely different,” he said.

Standing nearby, Learner nodded. “You don’t really know what it’s going to be until you do it,” she said. “You don’t have it carefully plotted out; it’s all coming out of your subconscious mind.”

A career that was launched when the artist needed something to hang in a window has led to quilts hanging in galleries. “These probably aren’t going to be on any beds,” Hay said of his work, adding with a laugh, “I don’t even make curtains anymore.” ▲ To view the original article, visit www.battlecreekenquirer.com.

“Michigan Wetlands” by Joanna Learner

Olivet College Shows Off its Artistic Side

By Linda Jo Scott

Olivet College’s art faculty members are delighted to be teaching in the college’s beautiful new Riethmiller Blackman Art Building for a third year.

And this winter they proudly displayed the work of no less than 23 talented Battle Creek area artists, all of whom belonged to the Battle Creek Artist Guild.

This organization began back in 1973, in the home of nowretired art teacher, Joanna Learner. Though six of the original members have died, most of the others still live in the area and are still creating various kinds of wonderful artworks.

Learner, who is still an active artist and organizer, worked together with the Olivet faculty as well as her old friends from the guild to coordinate the art show.

Another artist from the original group, Jim Hay, used to teach art at Olivet College. Since 1990, however, he has been living and teaching in Japan and specializes these days in fabric art, as was portrayed in his recent workshop at the college.

One of my favorite artists in the whole show was Ken Freed, who is a master at portraits and exhibited three self-portraits. He was featured in an art show in Battle Creek when he was just a teenager and has been a full-time painter for many years.

His wife, Denise Lisecki, another contributor, is also a professional artist and serves as an art teacher and as director of the Art School at the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts.

Gary Wertheimer, professor of art and Visual Arts Department chair, was actively involved in the whole exhibit, which he described as, “One of the biggest we’ve ever had in terms of number of artists.” It was not easy to set up, he admitted, but he added that, “it was a fun challenge.”

And finally, Don Rowe, professor emeritus, who served at Olivet College for 43 years and is now still teaching there part-time in his retirement, was an original member of the Artist Guild.

For Rowe and his equally talented artist wife, Susan Rowe, who was also a member, this was a very special, touching and memorable occasion. ▲ SPRING 2013

19

Service to Olivet College and Community Comes Full Circle for Current Student and Recent Alumna

By Christine Moulton ’11

Remember Olivet as she was good to you.

Embrace the life skills she has taught you.

Serve others, as they were here to serve you.

I left my classmates with these words as I closed my 2011 Commencement speech. It was a reminder to them, as they embarked on their futures, to remember their educational roots and give back to the institution that nurtured them into adulthood.

The reminder rings true for me on a daily basis, most recently when I was asked to interview students for one of Olivet’s most recognized awards, the Alumni Council Scholarship. It was during the interviews I met an extraordinary studentathlete; a young man who, with every answer, reminded me of every reason I chose to pursue my college education at Olivet.

A sophomore majoring in exercise science, Jalen Weaver is as down-to-earth, boy-next-door as you can get. He was born in Albion and raised by parents, Jim and Tonetta Weaver, whom he credits with his current academic success.

“God has given me two extremely wise and disciplined parents who have set me up for nothing less than success,” said Weaver. “I can’t explain enough the gift they’ve been in my life and the endless knowledge they’ve passed down to me.”

Carrying a 4.0 GPA, academics come first for Weaver, but like many students, his love of and desire to continue his sports career played a role in choosing Olivet.

“I heard about Olivet College through Jeff Kavalunas, head men’s track and field and cross country coach,” said Weaver.

“He was very consistent on informing me how Olivet College could advance me as a person, as well as, how I could advance Olivet as a college.”

In addition to Kavalunas, Weaver credits Nick Juday, associate professor and chair of the Health and Human Performance (HHP) Department, as a positive influence in his decision.

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SHIPHERD’s RECORD

“With the amount of time being spent with both of them, one on the track and the other off, I feel like I have become a much more balanced individual,” said Weaver. “From day one, they have taken an interest in me that is unparalleled to anything I had experienced from other colleges.”

As an alumna, I believe the first oneon-one interactions with future professors, department advisors and coaches can directly impact a prospective student’s final decision. It was my first experience of feeling welcome at an educational institution before I was actually an enrolled student that made the lasting impression. For when I sat down and weighed out the pros and cons between Olivet and a much larger university, Olivet won, solely based on the fact that I would be a name and face instead of a number.

The same point was reiterated during Weaver’s scholarship interview. It was more beneficial to be a big fish in a little pond, rather than drowning in a sea of thousands.

“My favorite thing about Olivet would have to be the one-on-one attention that you receive on all levels, whether it’s academically, athletically or just a general interest,” said Weaver. “The staff on campus truly cares about you as a whole and works with you to accomplish whatever you aspire to do.”

The dedicated staff and faculty,

1.1

Christine Moulton ’11 and Jalen Weaver, sophomore

committed to helping each and every student succeed both in the classroom and on the playing field, is the characteristic of Olivet Weaver enjoys the most. Personal, yet professional relationships with professors make the learning process both challenging and fun.

“My favorite professors would have to be Juday, Nancy Van Hoozier (associate professor of HHP) and Brandon Grafius (adjunct professor of writing),” said Weaver. “Professor Juday because he has never been anything but helpful.

Van Hoozier because she is known as the ‘no nonsense’ professor of our department when in reality, she is just a big teddy bear.

And finally, Grafius because he made me love something that I thought was never possible… grammar.”

As I shared with Weaver, the

relationships he forges with his professors now will extend well after graduation.

A week does not pass where I am not in contact with Joanne Williams, advisor to The Echo and associate professor of journalism and mass communication, Van Hoozier or Brenda Maynard, adjunct professor of HHP. They took the time to educate and serve me during my years at Olivet; took the time to mold me into a well-rounded adult and sent me into the professional world ready to succeed. It was during their classes that I discovered my strengths and weaknesses, what my academic likes and dislikes really were and what I essentially wanted to be when I “grew up.”

Much like me, Weaver has discovered his favorite class is exercise physiology, “because as athletes, we all like to know what makes us tick and what makes us better.” And as a student-athlete, Weaver is all too aware of what makes him “tick,” his strengths and weaknesses and where he needs improvement.

“I believe I am a very determined and hardworking individual,” said Weaver.

“But on the other hand, I would have to say some of my biggest weaknesses are organization and procrastination, at times.

Those may sound very contradicting of my strengths, but they don’t strike frequently.”

It’s his ability to accept and overcome his weaknesses that makes Weaver’s career and athletic goals more attainable.

“My goal is to extend my running career as far as possible with some form of a club team or semiprofessional track team,” said Weaver. “More importantly though, I plan on attending graduate school to continue my education to become a physical therapist. And above all, build a stable and ever growing relationship with God.” Weaver said he believes in his goals because of others who have believed in him. When asked what he would do if today were his last day alive, he said he would ask God for enough strength to spend it servings others who have served him during his lifetime.

“One of the scariest things to me is a feeling I sometimes get at night when I lay in bed and think of the people in my life who have given so much for me,” said Weaver. “If I were to never see them again, how disappointed I would be in that I never let them know how much I truly

appreciated them.”

Through Weaver’s recognition I am instantly reminded of The Compact and, as an alumna of the college, how important service to the community was and still is to those who pass through Olivet. For The Compact states, “I am responsible for service to Olivet College and the larger community,” and that service continues even after graduation.

Weaver still has two years left before he graduates. Fittingly, it’s been two years since I graduated from Olivet. Since then, I’ve embarked on a few new chapters in my life: preparing for marriage, currently working and beginning graduate school at the University of Michigan in the fall.

But, I am often reminded of the first

place that became my second home, a small town, on the top of a hill, where Father Shipherd’s horse stopped. I am reminded of a place where a missionary, wanting to serve those who followed him, felt so humbled to start an institution where no man or woman—black or white—would be turned away from an education. I am reminded of a liberal arts college where professors lead and serve students like Weaver and prepare them to lead and serve others when they leave Olivet. ▲ Remember Olivet as she was good to you.

Embrace the life skills she has taught you.

Serve others, as they were here to serve you.

Alumni Council Scholarship Winners

Alumni Council Scholarship recipients (from left to right): Chelsea Goodman, sophomore, Reed City; Helen Macqueen, junior, Hastings; Preston Treend, junior, Casco; Jalen Weaver, sophomore, Albion; Raquel Mazur, junior, Griffith, Ind.; Maria Ximena LozaLopez, junior, Lansing.

The Olivet College Alumni Council Scholarships are awarded based on academic performance, leadership, college and community service, and co-curricular involvement. The recipients submit essays on their community responsibilities and career goals, and how they would best represent Olivet College as alumni.

The students’ applications are judged by Alumni Council members, and the final 12 are interviewed to determine the six recipients. The students received their awards during Honors Convocation April 17. ▲

SPRING 2013

21

Advancement

Ready for Some Good Tax News?

news

Congress has re-authorized legislation allowing you to make charitable gifts from your IRA accounts during 2013 without incurring federal income tax on the withdrawal. The IRA Rollover provides an excellent opportunity to make a gift during your lifetime from an asset that would otherwise be subject to multiple levels of taxation if it remained in your taxable estate.

Your Annual Gift:

Cash or Appreciated Assets?

Every year Olivet alumni and friends support the college in many ways: cash, stock, etc. But can one method offer greater potential benefits to you than another?

The following is an illustration of two possible methods you could use to make an annual gift. Here is what each scenario might look like: A Donation of Cash A donation of $5,000 cash may allow you to avoid $1,400 in federal taxes because the charitable deduction you receive (if you itemize) reduces your taxable income. Therefore, a $5,000 cash gift has a net cost to you of $3,600.

A Donation of Appreciated Assets By donating appreciated stock (that has been owned for a period longer than one year) you may generate even greater tax savings. By gifting appreciated assets, instead of selling them, you avoid paying capital gains taxes and still receive the full current market value of the asset when calculating the federal tax deduction.

A gift of appreciated stock worth $5,000 will receive the same federal tax savings as an equal gift of cash, but you will also avoid paying capital gains tax on the increased value. The lower the original cost of the asset, or conversely, the greater its gain in value, the greater the tax savings. In this scenario, we assume an original cost of $1,000. By gifting these appreciated assets you will reduce your net cost of the donation by an additional $600 ($4,000 capital gain x the 15 percent capital gains tax rate) compared to an equal gift of cash. Therefore, a $5,000 gift of stock has a net cost to you of $3,000.

To secure full tax benefits, the appreciated assets should be gifted directly to Olivet College.

Of note, we focused only on federal tax benefits in this illustration depending on the state you reside in; you may benefit from deductions or credits for your state taxes as well.

If you have questions about how this may work in your specific situation, or have other more general questions about supporting Olivet College, please contact our development professionals in the Office of Advancement at (269) 749-7630.

Nothing in this article is intended to provide legal or tax advice. Please consult your professional tax advisor for specific information for your situation. ▲ For the illustration we assume the donors are in the 28 percent tax bracket.

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SHIPHERD’s RECORD

From left: Justice Conrad Mallett, Jr.; Steven M. Corey, Ph. D.; Margaret Kyser-Schmidt; and Peter Kuhnmuench.

Three Recognized During Leadership Awards Dinner

Since The Compact was approved in 1997, Olivet has become the foremost leader in developing students who understand the meaning of Education for Individual and Social Responsibility in relation to community and the greater society.

Through the Leadership Award, we seek to recognize individuals from across the state of Michigan who exhibit these shared values. Within their communities they selflessly serve others, lead by example and light the way for others to follow.

To this effect, Olivet College recognized three of Michigan’s finest citizens as part of the 17th annual Leadership for Individual and Social Responsibility Awards Dinner May 16 at the Lansing Country Club.

This year’s honorees were Peter Kuhnmuench, executive director of the Insurance Institute of Michigan; Margaret Kyser-Schmidt, executive director of Eaton Community Palliative Care; and Justice Conrad Mallett, Jr., chief administrative officer of Detroit Medical Center. ▲

Olivet and Michigan Future Foundation Partner for Scholarship

Olivet College, in partnership with the Michigan Future Foundation, has announced a new scholarship opportunity for its insurance, risk management and financial planning majors. The competition officially launched in February during the Michigan Association of Independent Agents (MAIA) Convention at Soaring Eagle Casino and Resort in Mt. Pleasant. It is open to any high school student or new transfer student who is maintaining a 3.0 grade point average or better and who also has an immediate family member working at a MAIA-member insurance agency. The Michigan Future Foundation is a nonprofit foundation established by MAIA. “The MAIA has always been a great supporter of the Risk Management and Insurance Center (RMIC) at Olivet College,” said Carol Breed, J.D., director of the RMIC and professor of business and insurance. “Students have benefited from tens of thousands of dollars in scholarships, have truly enjoyed the educational and networking opportunities of their convention, and have learned so much from agency internships. The result of this support has been many alumni who are now successful MAIA-member agents.”

To qualify, students must apply to Olivet College and plan to declare one of the three RMIC-majors. Participants must then submit an essay to be reviewed by three members of the Olivet College Insurance Advisory Board and Michigan Future Foundation board members. The field is then narrowed down to no more than 10 students who are invited to participate in an on-campus interview process.

For more detailed information or qualifications, contact Richard Lehman, risk management and insurance recruitment specialist, at (269) 749-7751 or rlehman@olivetcollege.edu. ▲

So here are the nuts and bolts…to take advantage of this opportunity for tax year 2013, you must complete your transfer by Dec. 31, 2013.

To qualify: • You must be age 70½ or older at the time of gift.

• Transfers must be made directly from a traditional IRA account by your plan provider to Olivet College. Please know that funds withdrawn by you and then contributed do NOT qualify. Gifts from 401k, 403b, SEP and other plans do not qualify.

• Your plan administrator may make the check payable to Olivet College and send it by mail with a postmark to us by Dec. 31, 2013 for the 2013 tax year.

• Gifts must be outright. Distributions to donoradvised funds or life-income arrangements such as charitable remainder trusts and charitable gift annuities are not allowed.

• Gifts can total up to $100,000 and can be directed to more than one charity.

• IRA Rollover gifts are not included in your gross income for federal income tax purposes on your IRS Form 1040 (no charitable deduction is available).

Example: Suppose John has $500,000 in an IRA and he also wants to contribute $5,000 to Olivet College. He can authorize the administrator of his IRA to transfer $5,000 to Olivet College and $10,000 to himself. The $5,000 distributed to Olivet College will not be subject to federal tax and will be counted toward his annual minimum required distribution.

As you can imagine, Olivet was pleased when the IRA Rollover provisions were approved again.

It’s an appealing opportunity that helps you and helps Olivet too. As you consider the possibility of using an IRS distribution to make 2013 charitable donations to Olivet, we want to be sure you have resources at your fingertips. We can get you the assistance you need no matter what decisions you make!

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the Office of Advancement at (269) 749-7630, or via email at advancement@olivetcollege.edu. If you do plan to make a distribution to Olivet from your IRA, please notify us in advance so we can know how you want your gift used. Thank you! ▲ SPRING 2013

23

Comet Sports

Women’s Basketball Concludes Stellar Season

From left: President Steven M. Corey, Ph.D.; Jeff Bell ’99; Larry Melendy ’64; Mark Raven ’00; and former Athletic Director Heather Bateman at the 2013 Athletic Hall of Fame ceremony.

2.3

By geoff henson The Olivet College women’s basketball team posted one of the best seasons in school history during 2012-13. The Comets finished the year with a 15-13 overall record, including a 10-6 mark against Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) rivals. The 15 wins tied the 1986-87 team for the most in school history for a season, while 10 was the most MIAA wins in a season.

Olivet was able to accomplish these totals without a dominant scorer on its roster. Sophomore Stefanie Lang, of

Valparaiso, Ind., came off the bench and led the Comets at 12.1 points per game (ppg), and junior point guard Kelsey Campbell, of Olivet, was the only other double figure scorer at 10.8 ppg.

The best part of Campbell’s game was her superior ability to pass the ball to her teammates. She led the MIAA with 143 total assists to break her own singleseason school record after recording 135 during the 2011-12 season. In addition, Campbell broke the single-game school and MIAA records with 16 helpers in a

Junior Kelsey Campbell (left)

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SHIPHERD’s RECORD

79-66 win at home against Alma College.

In the very next game, she followed that performance with what is believed to be the first triple double in MIAA and school history for a women’s basketball player. Campbell scored 10 points, dished out 11 assists and grabbed 15 rebounds in a 69-37 win over Kalamazoo College.

For all of these accomplishments, Campbell was named first-team AllMIAA by the league coaches. She also earned third-team All-Great Lakes Region honors from D3hoops.com, becoming the first women’s basketball player in school history to be a D3hoops.com All-Region pick.

“These were two great awards for Kelsey,” said Olivet Head Women’s Basketball Coach Nicole Burford. “She has done a great job running our offense the last two seasons. There is no doubt, Kelsey has helped our team improve and take a step forward as well.”

Senior Sydney Radde, of Stevensville, was a second-team All-MIAA selection.

In the 16-game league schedule, she ranked among the league leaders in rebounding (7.5 rpg), field goal percentage (.461), total blocks (25) and scoring (9.6 ppg). Overall for Olivet’s 26game schedule, Radde led the team in rebounding (7.2 rpg) and blocks (33), and was fourth in scoring (8.7 ppg).

“Sydney was one of the hardest workers,” said Burford. “No matter what happened that day or even in the previous game, she was always working hard to get better for the next one.”

Four seniors left the team this year, but there is no doubt the future is bright for the women’s basketball program. ▲

news & notes

Three Inducted Into Athletic Hall of Fame Three new members, Jeff Bell ’99, Larry Melendy ’64 and Mark Raven ’00, were inducted into the Olivet College Athletic Hall of Fame Feb. 1. They were also recognized at halftime of the men’s basketball game the next day. Photos and video from the ceremony can be viewed on the new AHOF website at www.olivetcomets.com/alumni/ahof.

Wrestling Team Named Academic National Champion The Olivet College wrestling team reached as high as No. 7 in the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) poll during the 2012-13 season. With a 3.67 grade point average (GPA), Olivet was then crowned the NCAA Division III National Champion for academics by virtue of a first-place standing in the NWCA Scholar Team awards. This award was presented at the NWCA banquet prior to the start of the NCAA Division III National Championships March 14 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

The 10 members of the Comets’ Scholar All-American team were sophomore Nick Allen, of Scotville; senior Jake Ceslick, of Alpena; senior Josh Crawford, of Birch Run; sophomore Matt Darling, of Elsie; sophomore Dan Fleet, of Ada; sophomore Anthony Giordano, of Livonia; sophomore Jeff Holm, of Battle Creek; senior Logan Renas, of Big Rapids; senior Kenny Richmond, of Brighton; and sophomore Kyle Witgen, of Romeo. This first-place finish marks the highest placement in school history.

Chad Wiseman, who took the position of head men’s soccer coach at Western Michigan University (WMU).

Ironically, Bulley came to Olivet after serving as an assistant men’s soccer coach at WMU for the last three seasons. A native of Exeter, England, he earned a bachelor’s degree in sociology from University at Buffalo (N.Y.) in 2010. Bulley was a three-year starter for the Bulls from 2007-09 after playing his freshman season at West Texas A & M University. A two-time All-MAC selection, he led Buffalo in scoring each year, totaling 27 goals and 11 assists for 65 points in his career.

Men’s Lacrosse Sees Success The men’s lacrosse team had a successful first season as a varsity sport, posting a 10-7 overall record. Cameron Bazin, of Troy, was second among NCAA Division III players in goals per game (4.06) and fourth in points per game (5.82). James Collins, of Lowell, was fourth in goals per game (3.71), and Matt Arb, of Troy, was 14th in assists per game (2.53).

As a team, the Comets finished 11th in scoring offense (14.41). For his efforts, Bazin earned second-team All-MIAA honors.

Women’s Golf is 13th in Nation The women’s golf team dominated the league’s qualifying tournament, winning by 77 strokes, to advance to the NCAA Division III National Championships in Destin,

All-MIAA Honorees Other All-MIAA honorees this spring include baseball players Jake Ball, of Cadillac; Andrew Brawley, of Niles; and Randy Young, of Wixom; women’s tennis player Caitlin LaValley, of Battle Creek; and women’s lacrosse players Taylor Guarnaccia, of East Lansing; and Geri Merrell, of Battle Creek.

Brawley, a first-team honoree, topped the team with a .355 batting average, as well as 49 hits, 27 RBI, .449 slugging percentage and .424 on-base percentage. Young, a first-team selection, led the team with 30 runs scored, while hitting .333. Ball, a second-team pick, was first among the starting pitchers with a 3.10 ERA and 5-3 record in 58 total innings.

LaValley, now a four-time second-team All-MIAA choice, won four singles matches during the 2013 season. Merrell had 30 points (29 goals and one assist), 68 shots, 56 shots on-goal, 23 ground balls and 34 draw controls.

Guarnaccia finished with 26 points (25 goals and one assist).

Earning All-MIAA honors for winter sports were men’s basketball player Blake Krum, of Schoolcraft, and diver Troy Wilkins, of Lansing. Krum, a second-team selection, led the team in field goals percentage (.455), free throw percentage (.847) and steals (42). He was second in scoring (14.0 ppg), field goals made (126), three-point field goals made (48) and assists (69). Wilkins finished in third-place on the one-meter and three-meter diving boards at the 2013 MIAA Championships.

Sports schedules now available for fall 2013 at www.olivetcomets.com!

Bulley Named Head Men’s Soccer Coach In March, Dan Bulley was named head men’s soccer coach at Olivet. He replaced

Fla. Olivet placed 13th with a four-round total of 1,337 strokes. Adrienne Plourde, of Redford, was the Comets’ top individual with a 329 total. Theresa Damico, of White Lake, earned honorable All-American and All-Great Lakes Region honors from the Women’s Golf Coaches Association.

The 2012-13 women’s golf team

SPRING 2013

25

Justin Klamerus ’99, M.D., Named Interim President, Medical Director of McLaren Cancer Institute McLaren Health Care has selected Justin F. Klamerus ’99, M.D., to guide McLaren Cancer Institute as its interim president and medical director.

“We’re proud to welcome Dr. Klamerus to McLaren Justin Kamerus ’99, M.D. Cancer Institute during this very exciting time,” said Phil Incarnati, president and CEO of McLaren Health Care. “His strategic leadership and clinical expertise will add to the strong foundation already in place at McLaren Cancer Institute and will help us launch new initiatives to treat cancer patients, such as the McLaren Proton Therapy Center.”

Klamerus is a medical oncologist who most recently served as director of cancer services for McLaren Northern Michigan in Petoskey and medical director for the Oncology & Infusion Therapy Center at Otsego Memorial Hospital in Gaylord.

Klamerus also has served as a principal investigator for McLaren Cancer Institute. He will continue to see patients in Northern Michigan.

“I look forward to building on the strengths of a network of talented professionals serving cancer patients in our system,” said Klamerus. “McLaren Cancer Institute is poised to make a real difference. With the construction of the new McLaren Proton

1960 The Cassidys, Livedotis, Nesbitts, Pynes and Spencers from the 1960s got together at the Swordfish Grill in Cortez, Fla., March 13.

Back Row: Dominic Livedoti ’65, Tom Nesbitt ’63, Bill Cassidy ’63, Larry Spencer ’64, George Pyne ’65 Front Row: Liz (Walker) Livedoti ’65, Sue Cassidy, Virginia (Thalner) Spencer ’65, Carol Nesbitt, Roseleen Pyne Terry Connon ’65 recorded a live DVD, “Terry Connon Sings Country Classics.” Many of his songs are on YouTube. Terry, still singing at 71 years old, played the bass guitar and was one of the lead singers with the Camel Drivers during the 1960s and ’70s. E-mail Terry at tconnon@tampabay.rr.com.

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Therapy Center, we will offer enhanced radiation therapy services available nowhere else in Michigan. McLaren’s commitment to fighting cancer couldn’t be more apparent.”

As interim president and medical director, Klamerus will provide leadership and direction to the medical and administrative staff. His responsibilities also include establishing and maintaining quality care standards and metrics, overseeing continued growth of the cancer clinical trials program and ensuring exceptional patient care throughout McLaren Cancer Institute.

Klamerus is a diplomat of the American Board of Internal Medicine and is board certified in medical oncology and internal medicine. He is a member of the American College of Physician Executives, and an associate to both the American Society of Clinical Oncology and the American College of Physicians.

Klamerus has authored more than 10 publications or chapters and has been the principal researcher for more than a dozen active clinical protocols.

After graduating from Olivet College, he attended Michigan State University’s College of Human Medicine and completed his internship and residency at Ohio State University and a fellowship in medical oncology at Johns Hopkins University.

Klamerus completed a Master of Medical Management from H. John Heinz III College at Carnegie Mellon University in February.

Denine (Johnson) Foulks ’66 recently published two books: “Mouse Word Ho,” a collection of cartoons, facts, vignettes, crafts and recipes centered about the “wee mouse,” and “Jimmy Pfeiffer Dragonmeyer,” about a baby dragon born with a rare craniofacial disorder who overcomes social and medical obstacles on his way to adulthood.

Denine and husband, Bob Foulks ’67, retired lieutenant colonel for the United States Air Force, divide their time between New Hampshire and South Carolina. E-mail Denine at mousescripts@netzero.com.

Stanley Keach ’66, a nationally-known bluegrass songwriter, recently wrote a song and directed a music video, “We Don’t Know the North Pond Hermit,” in homage to Christopher Knight, who lived alone in the woods for 27 years and who was recently arrested for more than 1,000 burglaries, often to steal food. In a recent 24-hour period, the song was viewed more than 1,000 times on YouTube. Stanley has several CDs which he sells at his shows, his latest being “Cry of the Loon.” Stan retired in 2011 from teaching at Maranacook Community High School.

Before teaching in public schools, Stan worked with troubled youth

and directed several private schools for children with autism and severe handicaps. He has been playing bluegrass, folk and Stanley Keach ’66 Celtic music professionally for more than 35 years, and has also written poetry and shown his visual arts. Stan has two daughters, Rachel and Carrie. He has lived in Maine since 1981. E-mail Stan at stanleykeach@hotmail.com.

Rob Kipp ’66 had his photo, “Common yellow-throat warbler feeding on crabapples,” featured on the cover of the spring edition of Marblehead Home and Style magazine. The article about the Marblehead (Mass.) Neck Wildlife Sanctuary shows 10 more images of birds that Rob photographed.

E-mail Rob at robkipp@gmail.com.

Oliver Tuthill ’68 recently produced “The Girl Who Loved Animals,” a movie about a young girl who proves that she can make a difference. Oliver has been in Seattle since 1984 where he started an educational film company, Blue Wood Films, LLC. Visit www.girlwholovedanimals.com to learn more about the movie. Oliver also wrote, executive produced and sang a song for Grammy-nominated rapper Shadowyze, “What Would Crazy Horse Say,” which was nominated by the Native American Musical Awards for the best historical song in 2011. Hear part of the music at www. blueponymusic.com. E-mail Oliver at owtuthi@earthlink.net.

Jack Stubbs ’72 is retiring June 30 after 40 years of ordained ministry in the United Methodist Church. E-mail Jack at jackstubbs@mac.com.

William Blair ’75, Ph.D., made his annual appearance at the Johns Hopkins Physics Fair in Baltimore where the public was invited for fun and learning.

Bill coordinated some of the astronomy demonstrations, including “astronomical spectroscopy.” Because many children attend, Bill dons the “rainbow wig” and becomes “Dr. Spectrum!” Bill has been at Johns Hopkins University for 29 years and is currently working on preparations for the NASA James Webb Space Telescope project, a follow-on to the Hubble Space Telescope that is slated to launch in late 2018. Bill and wife, Jean (Shaffer) Blair ’75, live in Towson, Md. E-mail Bill at wpb@pha.jhu.edu.

William Blair ’75, Ph.D.

Left to right: Sue Young, Robert “Brigham” Young ’76, Kim (Wood) Millbrook ’03 and Chuck Millbrook ’76

Rob Kipp ’66

Chuck ’76 and Kim (Wood) Millbrook ’03 and Sue and Robert “Brigham” ’76 Young recently vacationed on Hilton Head Island, S.C. E-mail Chuck at millbrookrealty@yahoo.com; Kim at Kimberly.millbrook@yahoo.com; “Brigham” at ryoung@andersonglobal.com.

1970 Left to right: Kathy Heide ’71, Erin Hurd ’70 and Cathie Rickert ’70 Erin Hurd ’70, Cathie Rickert ’70 and Kathy Heide ’71 spent three days in Las Vegas in February.

Colonel Erin (Nancy) Hurd retired from the Army in 2003, having served 28 years. Cathie retired in 2002 from the Hamilton Board of Education in Canada after teaching 32 years. Kathy retired in 2007, having taught English and physical education for 36 years. Cathie had not seen Erin since 1970 but had gotten together with Kathy four years ago for the first time since 1970. E-mail Kathy at teacherheide@yahoo.com; Erin at erin53093@live.com; Cathie at becattie@gmail.com.

“Arlo” Guthrie ’77 and Ed Heator ’80

Theodore “Arlo” Guthrie ’77 and Ed Heator ’80 got together in March in Florida. The Kappa Sig brothers had not seen each other in 33 years. “Arlo” sells software in Florida. Ed is a development officer at Olivet College. E-mail Ed at eheator@olivetcollege.edu.

Leslie Rowsey ’77 was honored March 12 at the 2013 Pioneer Music Educator and Visiting Scholar Symposium at Western Michigan University’s School of Music. Leslie received the 2013 Pioneer Music Educator Award. Leslie is the Jenison Public Schools choir director.

E-mail Leslie at lrowsey@jpsonline.org.

Kevin Hayward ’78 was recently named division compliance specialist (risk management), covering Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi for AmWINS Brokerage. E-mail Kevin at kevin102654@aol.com.

1980 Ed Heator ’80 and Todd Miller ’85, Kappa Sig brothers, got together in Bonita Springs, Fla., in March. They had not seen each other in 20 SPRING 2013

27

years. E-mail Todd at tdogmiller63@yahoo.com and Ed at eheator@olivetcollege.edu.

Left to right: Todd Miller ’85 and Ed Heator ’80 Mike Zdebski ’88 was chosen as the head football coach for the 33rd Annual Michigan High School All Star Football Game June 22. Mike has coached for 26 years. In 1994 he started as the defensive coordinator at Walled Lake Western High School and eventually became the head football coach. He also teaches math and physical education. E-mail Mike at michaelzdebski@wlcsd.org.

Sherri L. Ter Molen ’94 is a 2013-14 Thomas C. Rumble Fellow in the Department of Communication at Wayne State University in Detroit where her research centers on the complicated mediated relationships between the divided Koreas and the United States. During the 2012-13 school year, she received the Wayne State University Department of Communication Graduate Student Service Award and a Quality Matters (QM) Star Award for the course design of an online small group communication class that she teaches for DePaul University in Chicago. She also presented her research at five academic conferences, including the ninth Korean Studies Graduate Student Convention at the University of Warsaw in Poland in September, and her work has been published in “Media Asia” and “Korea: Politics, Economy and Society.”

1990

Tracey Lawie ’91

Tracey Lawie ’91 and 22 other participants finished their first half marathon April 13. It was a trial run for the Borgess Run Camp members, whom Tracey had coached. They completed another half marathon, the Borgess Run for the Health of It, May 5. E-mail Tracey at tracey.lawie@wmich.edu.

Laurie (Gorman) Moran ’91 is a marketing strategist and account manager for Full Circle, a marketing and design firm in Grand Rapids. Laurie was previously director of internal operations for Designvox in East Grand Rapids. E-mail Laurie at laurie@thinkfullcircle.com.

Marty Castellon ’95 was chosen as the assistant football coach for the 33rd Annual Michigan High School All Star Football Game June 22. Marty is the varsity assistant football coach, defensive coordinator and the new varsity softball coach at Walled Lake Western High School. Marty earned his Marty Castellon ’95, and son, Ryan master’s in administration from Wayne State University in 2008 and is a certified teacher in health and physical education. Marty and wife, Kelly (Stevenson) Castellon ’95, have a daughter, Lauren, 14, and son, Ryan, 10. E-mail Marty at MartinCastellon@wlcsd.org.

Rob Tenyer ’95 was named head football coach at Morehead State University in Kentucky, after being an assistant football coach for 12 seasons. Rob coached the running backs for 12 years, and also

Sherri Ter Molen ’94 with a Korean jango drum at The Great Chuseok Party in September, at the University of Michigan Nam Center for Korean Studies.

Olivet’s Regional Alumni Clubs Are you interested in helping shape the future of alumni initiatives? Would you like to help organize social and networking events for Olivet College alumni in your area? Now is the time to get involved. Contact Marty (Mason) Jennings ’67, director of alumni relations, at mjennings@olivetcollege.edu

Buchanan Bash Still a Smash Olivetians continue to celebrate a favorite professor a decade after his passing

By Linda Jo Scott Bill Buchanan, one of our favorite professors at the college, died in India in early 2003, just weeks before his 80th birthday. He was suffering from congestive heart failure even before he The late Bill Buchanan went there at Christmas time, but in spite of his bad health, he wanted to make a last pilgrimage to a country he loved deeply.

We had a big birthday party all planned for his return, complete with what he loved best, music, poetry, good food and rich conversation, but sadly we had to plan a memorial service instead.

The service, which took place at the United Church of Christ in Douglas, was unforgettable, with a large crowd of his students and friends recollecting memories of Bill, reading poems, playing music and singing for more than two hours.

Just 10 years later, in March, many of us went to a special luncheon at the college in Bill’s memory. It was organized by Marty Jennings ’67, director of alumni relations and a former student of Bill’s. Jim Briney ’69 presided, recalling his wonderful

Rob Tenyer ’95

was receivers coach, strength and conditioning coordinator and equipment coordinator. Prior to joining the Morehead State staff, Rob served as an assistant coach at Centre College (Ky.) from 1998-2000 and as graduate assistant at California University (Pa.) from 1996-97. In 2007, Rob earned his master’s degree from Morehead State. He and wife Jane have one daughter, Brooke. E-mail Rob at r.tenyer@morehead-st.edu.

Grant MacKenzie ’96 is the head wrestling coach at the University of Michigan Dearborn. Grant had been the assistant wrestling coach at Allen Park High School where he helped coach 20 state qualifiers, six state finalists and one state champion.

Grant teaches physical education at Allen Park Middle School. E-mail Grant at grantmac@umd.umich.edu.

Grant MacKenzie ’96

experiences as a student and friend of Bill, and telling us about the progress of the fund established in Bill’s memory. That fund supports educational, cultural and other charitable programs, projects and activities on campus.

Norm Wheeler ’73, another of Bill’s admiring students, read some of Bill’s poems and told some great stories about his classes, his pets and, most of all, his generous spirit.

Though I was never Bill’s student, he and I became close friends and colleagues back in 1978 when I moved to a house just across the street from him. We both taught in the English Department, and though he left the college just two years later, we stayed in close touch until his death. I was incredibly fortunate to go to his cottage on Lake Michigan every summer, and my friend Juli Csiszar ’83 and I inherited his bright and loyal dog, whom he had named “Hope.”

Another speaker at the luncheon was Ray Diffenderfer who, though he only met Bill near the end of his life, was a faithful caregiver to him. Even though he was the one giving help to Bill, he seemed to have been greatly enriched by Bill in those last few months of his life.

We almost felt as though Bill was at the luncheon with us, enjoying old stories and memories and catching up on the lives of his friends.

2000

Melissa (Sobie) Casarez ’02

Melissa (Sobie) Casarez ’02 qualified and ran the Boston Marathon on April 15, with a time of 3:37:47. Melissa is the assistant vice president for admissions at Olivet College. E-mail Melissa at mcasarez@olivetcollege.edu.

Kristopher Maddox ex’04 opened Muskegon Crossfit gym with a business partner in March. It is the first certified Crossfit affiliate in Muskegon County.

Nicholas Hannar ’05 earned his Master of Divinity from the Ecumenical Theological Seminary, Detroit, on June 1. Nicholas recently visited India on a spiritual quest to participate in the Kumbh Mela, a festival held in Allahabad once every 12 years. On Feb. 10, Nearly 40 million people did the ritual bathing in front of

Nicholas Hannar ’05

or (269) 749-7644 for more information.

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SHIPHERD’s RECORD

SPRING 2013

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Remembering Grafton “Mac” Thomas ’37 Sadly, Olivet alumnus Grafton McCready “Mac” Thomas ’37 died March 5 at Northport Highlands under hospice care. He was born Nov. 17, 1915 in Chicago and grew up in Hinsdale, Ill., as the oldest of seven children.

During his time as a student at Olivet College, Mac was active in basketball and track, setting a mile record for the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association and an Olivet mile record that held for 25 years.

It was here that he met Ruth Adeline Yotter ’38 of Angola, Ind., and the two were married in 1940. Ruth preceded him in death in 2011.

After graduating in the middle of the Depression, Mac held several jobs in Chicago before returning to school to obtain teaching credentials. He then took a job teaching history and coaching track at Three Rivers High School. On one road trip, he walked his team out of a restaurant when two AfricanAmerican members were denied service.

In 1942 he volunteered for the war but was medically discharged. In 1943 he was employed with Campbell Soup Company. During this time he formed an interracial group in La Grange, Ill., to address racial discrimination. The war had a profound effect on Mac, leading him to enroll at the University of Chicago Theological Seminary, where he earned a Master of Divinity. Eventually he would serve six United Church of Christ churches as a minister. Mac liked challenges and was drawn to taking on congregations that were struggling.

He worked for social and racial justice in several cities. In Ohio he initiated pulpit exchanges between an urban black congregation and rural white churches. In central Illinois he led a successful movement to thwart a local gambling syndicate

which had infiltrated the county court. He served on the Human Relations Commission in Alton and prompted a boycott of a local grocery chain for discriminatory hiring practices. In Chicago he served a church in a decaying neighborhood, where his efforts at community organization were often frustrated. He was also active in opposition to the Daley political machine and the Mafia’s interference in elections.

Mac and Ruth were active in the Northport community, attending grandsons’ sporting events, participating in the 10K Run for Funds and the Lions Club. Mac founded the Cracker Barrel and Circle groups in Leelanau County which still meet regularly to discuss current topics. He was thrilled to watch the progress of the recently completed wind turbine in Northport that began from one of these discussion sessions.

Mac loved many outdoor activities, which included his passions for canoeing and golf, playing his last round in October. In his late 80s Mac picked up a paint brush and started painting his fence and shed with folk art scenes and animals of Northport.

He and Ruth enjoyed summers in Northport surrounded by their four children and families.

A celebration of Mac’s life will be held Friday, July 5 at 4:30 p.m. at Trinity Church in Northport, with a picnic to follow at Peterson Park.

athletic administration.

He and wife, Tyshika, have a son, DeWitt Dawkins Jr., 2. E-mail DeWitt at dyastyinc99@gmail.com.

DeWitt Dawkins ’07 is a math teacher, technology information educator, AVID team member and head basketball coach at the Paul Laurence Dunbar Middle School in Fort Worth, Texas. He is also a Focus Leadership team member. DeWitt earned his master’s in coaching and

Tracey (Fix) Nofs ’07 is the director of marketing with Inter Technologies Corporation, an audio visual solutions company,

SHIPHERD’s RECORD

Mauricio “Moe” Palli ’07 is a training and development manager at H & M national corporate customer service in Chicago. He is responsible for the development of 15 to 20 agents. Since starting with H & M, a fashion retail business with more than 2,800 stores in 49 markets, “Moe” has traveled to Europe three times. E-mail “Moe” at Mauricio.palli@hm.com.

Katie Kilmartin ’08 is a full-time trauma therapist at The Center for Women in Transition in Holland. Katie works with adults and children who are survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault. E-mail Katie at katiek@aplaceforwomen.org.

Emma Henson ’09 works with the general manager of TMZ in Los Angeles to facilitate and coordinate meetings within various departments. E-mail Emma at emma.alyse@hotmail.com.

what many spiritual people in India believe to be the most auspicious day in the last 144 years. The journey was aided by great friend and fraternity brother, Navneet Singh ’01, who lives in New Delhi. E-mail Nicholas at nhannar1410@gmail.com.

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Mauricio “Moe” Palli ’07

Kelli Roe ’08, PA-C, is working in cardiothoracic surgery at Bronson Methodist Hospital in Kalamazoo. E-mail Kelli at kelli.roe@gmail.com.

Richard Rasmussen ’35, M.D.; Ruth (Yotter) ’38; and Mac Thomas ’37

DeWitt Dawkins ’07 and his wife, Tyshika

Christine Moulton ’11 finished her first half marathon in the Martian Invasion of Races in Dearborn April 13 at a time of 2:16:31. She will pursue a master’s degree at the University of Michigan this fall. E-mail Christine at moulton.c7@gmail.com.

in Mishawaka, Ind. Tracey, husband, Matt, and son, Caleb, have relocated from Sarasota, Fla., where Tracey was a marketing and traffic specialist for Coldwell Banker. E-mail Tracey at t.a.fix@hotmail.com.

Jennifer Martin ’09 earned her master’s degree in social work from the University of Southern California. Her goal is to continue to work with youth and families in the juvenile justice system. E-mail Jennifer at jmartin87@ymail.com.

2010

Mark Gouba ’12 starred as Jesus in the production of “Jesus Christ Superstar” at the Franke Center for the Arts in Marshall in March. Mark works at Farm Bureau Insurance in Lansing. E-mail Mark at mdgouba@gmail.com.

Christine Moulton ’11

Kelsey Miller ’12 is currently serving a year-long term for AmeriCorps in Arizona, working 32 hours a week at the service sight and six hours at a local church. In July she will begin a master’s program in social work at the University of Michigan. E-mail Kelsey at kmiller0726@gmail.com.

Chelsie Whitesall ’12 is in the master’s program for marriage and family therapy at Antioch University in Keene, N.H. She is an intern therapist at Wediko Children’s Center. E-mail Chelsea at cwhitesall@gmail.com.

Marriages Grant MacKenzie ’96 and Julie Lilienthal, May 26, 2012, St. Patrick Church, Wyandotte. E-mail Grant at grantmackenzie@me.com.

Chris Quackenbush ’07 and Danielle Soria, April 13, Victorian Chapel, Waterford. Chris Coon ’08, Ryan Hayes ’07, Ryan Ward ex’08 and Carl Werner ’07 were ushers.

Jennifer Martin ’09

Desmond Tillman ’07 and Melina Burciaga, January 26.

Joe Cleveland ’10 is coordinator of family and community engagement at the Gateway Middle School in St. Louis. He is also the junior varsity basketball coach at Gateway STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) High School. E-mail Joe at joecleve7@gmail.com.

Alyssa “Ali” Fredrick ’11 presented research in San Diego on the Psychophysiological and Immunological Effects of Adaptive Sense of Humor and Laughter during Stress at the Association of Applied Therapeutic Humor Annual Conference in April. She earned her master’s degree in pre-doctoral clinical health psychology from Northern Arizona University. E-mail Ali at redrick10@gmail.com.

Serafin Llerena ’11 is a paraprofessional/teaching assistant at Lighthouse Academy in Grand Rapids. Wife, Chelsey Sue SmithLlerena ’12 is a jewelry specialist at Kay Jewelers in Battle Creek.

They also own C & S Blueberry Farms in Bangor. E-mail Serafin at sllerena87@gmail.com and Chelsey at chelse2224@yahoo.com.

James Boyd ’09 and his wife, Sara

James Boyd ’09 Chris Quackenbush, ’07 and Sara and his wife, Danielle Rushford, March 2, Saginaw Valley State University Founders Hall, University Center; the reception was at the Black Forest Brew Pub in Frankenmuth.

Matthew Reinhardt ’08 was best man; Jennifer (Olson) Reinhardt ’08 read a poem. E-mail James at james.boyd@fmins.com.

Joanne Osborn ’09 and Gregory Miller, April 6, Marshall Country Club.

Mike Fales ’75 officiated; Caitlin Osborn ’11 was the maid of honor; Kellie (Carden) Gouba ’11 and Amanda (Roy) Gouba ’11 were bridesmaids; Mark Gouba ’12 and Jeremy Adams ’10 were ushers, and Jeremy sang as Joanne walked down the aisle. Joanne is the SPRING 2013

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assistant registrar at Olivet College and Greg works for campus safety.

E-mail Joanne at jmiller@olivetcollege.edu.

Memoriam

Celeste Gruber ’10 and Rick Wheeler, Dec. 29, 2012, First Congregational Church, South Haven. E-mail Celeste at Celeste.Gruber@gmail.com.

Elmer Evans ’40, Sept. 9, 2012, Crystal River, Fla.

Grafton “Mac” Thomas ’37, March 5, Northport. Wife, Ruth (Yotter) Thomas ’38 predeceased him in 2011.

Danae Hicks ’10 and Cody Longon ex’10, July 14, 2012, Village Hope Church, Jackson. Olivetians in the wedding were Joey Cooper ’12, Kristen Dey ex’11, Kaylee Hart ’11, Ben Hawes ’12, Jenessa Hicks ’12, Jeff Salmon ’11, Tyler Tarple ex’13 and junior Shane Trudell. E-mail Danae at danaeh86@hotmail.com.

M. Jane Brawner ’43, Dec. 8, 2012, Frankfort.

Dustin Mateling ’10 and Lydia Weiss, Nov. 12, 2012, Faith World Outreach Church, Bartlett, Ill. Dustin is a customer service representative for Thermo Fisher Scientific and is active in his church.

E-mail Dustin at dustin.mateling@gmail.com.

Chris Vlahakis ’51, Oct. 8, 2012, Clawson. He is survived by wife, Barbara (Brandt) Vlahakis ’51 and four children.

Patrick Clasgens ’11 and Jennifer Pitcher ’12, June 15, Round Lake, Mecosta. E-mail Jennifer at jpitcher0889@yahoo.com and Patrick at pclas02@yahoo.com.

Jarrid Lake ’12 and Emily Morford, Dec. 29, 2012, United Methodist Church, Holland. Trevor Tyler ’12 was groomsman; ushers were Joshua Crawford ’12 and Elijah Keller ex’11. Jarrid is employed

by Roscommon County Juvenile Probation and the United States Air Force. E-mail Jarrid at jarridlake@gmail.com.

Marion “Peggy” Webster ’43, Dec. 6, 2012, Palm Harbor, Fla. Peggy was one of the original “Round Robins” from Sigma who exchanged letters for decades.

Will Kyselka ex’45, July 1, 2012, Kaneohe, Hawaii.

Audrey (McCully) Snell ’49, Jan. 16, 2012, Denver, Colo.

Robert Bruce Short ’60, May 5, 2011, Christmas Valley, Ore. Joyce (Wickham) Bearden ’61, Feb. 10, 2012, Attleboro, Mass.

Richard J. Foreman ’62, Jan. 11, West Bloomfield. He is survived by wife, Patricia (Harden) Foreman ’62.

Phyllis (Canfield) Cole ’71, Dec. 10, 2012, Fort Lauderdale, Fla. William McCloud ’02, March 8, Warren.

FRIENDS

Births Tyrai Thomas ’03 and family

Tyrai Thomas ’03 and wife, Erica, a daughter, Elyssa Renee, Dec. 18; she joins brother, Tyrai Jr., 3. E-mail Tyrai at tyraithomas@gmail.com.

Bryan Gilreath ’04, MTA ’05 and wife, Larissa (Kequom) ’04, a son, Lincoln Henry, March 14. E-mail Bryan at bryangilreath@gmail.com.

William McCloud ’02

David Johnson, Dec. 8, 2012, Benoit, Wis. He was a former recruiter for men’s basketball.

Marion Schepel, Dec. 28, 2012. She is survived by husband, Charles “Chuck” Schepel ’60. E-mail Chuck at chuckschepel@world.oberlin.edu.

Jim Collins, March 1, Bellevue. Jim worked in Information Technology Services at Olivet College for many years.

Deanna (Thompson) ’06 Larson and husband, Joe, a daughter, Abigail Betty, Jan. 2. E-mail Deanna at deannamthompson@hotmail.com.

Mary Fleming, March 22, Newark, Ohio. Mary was a former business law, literature and French professor at Olivet College and the first female mayor of Olivet. She also served on the school board for Olivet Community Schools. She is survived by husband Joseph Fleming, former physics professor at Olivet College.

Craig Carpenter ’07 and wife, Heather (Wolf) ’07, a son, Zachary Scott, March 29. E-mail Craig at ccarpenter@allrisks.com and Heather at heathereileencarpenter@gmail.com.

Alumni Book Discussion Group

Jill (Lingbeek) Cangealose ’06 and husband, Joe, a son, Mitchell Brian, Nov. 25, 2012. E-mail Jill at jill.cangealose@gmail.com.

Levi Mason ’07, and wife, Stephanie, a daughter, Tessa Elizabeth Marie, Jan. 29. Levi works in student services at Olivet Middle School.

E-mail Levi at mason.levi@gmail.com.

Todd Stafford ’07 and wife, Leah, a son, Jackson David, March 27.

E-mail Todd at tstafford5455@gmail.com.

Joe Cleveland ’10 and Sarah Downing, a son, Joseph Aaron Cleveland Jr., Nov. 18, 2012. E-mail Joe at joecleve7@gmail.com.

Jennifer Pitcher ’12, and Patrick Clasgens ’11, a son, Cooper Lee-Joseph, Jan. 3. E-mail Jennifer at jpitcher0889@yahoo.com and Patrick at pclas02@yahoo.com.

Alecia (McWilliams) ’12 and husband, Dwayne White-Smith ’12, a son, Ashton Julian, Feb. 28. E-mail Dwayne at dizee04@yahoo.com.

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The 2013-14 Great Michigan Read has chosen “Annie’s Ghosts”

by Washington Post associate editor and Detroit native Steve Luxenberg for the Michigan Humanities Council and nonprofit organizations around the state to read. “Annie’s Ghosts” is part memoir, part detective story and part history about Luxenberg’s mother’s reasons for hiding her sister’s existence. Readers journey into the 1930s and ’40s, exploring how a poor immigrant family manages life in the United States with a child who has special needs.

Those who read “Annie’s Ghosts” will experience family secrets, personal journeys, genealogy, mental disability and illness, poverty and immigration.

Alumni interested in hosting an alumni book discussion group in their area should contact Marty (Mason) Jennings ’67, director of alumni relations, at (269) 749-7644 or mjennings@olivetcollege.edu.

1.1

The men’s lacrosse team served low-income families in Pittsburgh.

Athletes Spend Spring Semester Serving Others

By geoff henson

During the spring semester, the Olivet College Athletic Department participated in an unprecedented number of community service projects.

At the start of the semester, the men’s lacrosse team traveled to Pittsburgh, Pa., to become the first athletic team in the history of Olivet College to take an overnight service trip. The team, along with Olivet’s Office of Service Learning, worked with Hosanna Industries, a non-profit organization in southwestern Pennsylvania that delivers housing services for low and very low income homeowners in the form of new construction and repair/rehabilitation services.

While in Pittsburgh, the team renovated the home of a United States Air Force veteran who has fallen on hard times.

Through this experience, the team not only helped someone in need, but learned home renovation skills such as putting up insulation and drywall. Before heading back to Olivet, the group went sightseeing and attended service at the Etna Congregational Church.

The community service spirit carried into February when the athletic training department helped collect athletic training/ medical supplies, used athletic equipment and athletic apparel for Oak Grove High School (OGHS) in Hattiesburg, Miss. All of the athletic facilities at OGHS were destroyed in an E4 tornado.

In the end, the athletic trainers shipped

five boxes full of supplies and equipment.

They were also able to secure donations from two suppliers, MioTech and Henry Schein, which were sent directly to OGHS. “We thought this would be a great way for us to live the Olivet College Compact by being able to serve the larger community and being able to spread the message of the college. We were very appreciative of the support we received from the campus community,” said Assistant Athletic Trainer Amanda Cox. In late March, 10 members of Olivet College’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) delivered 40 Easter Egg Baskets and 400 candy-filled eggs to the Eaton SIREN Domestic Abuse Shelter in Charlotte.

Participating were Billyle Alman, of Lansing; Brandon Blackmon, of Madison Heights; Jack Griggs, of Brighton; Ben Hart, of Rockford; Ellie Kalahar, of Swartz Creek; Jake Maas, of Olivet; Jenna Mayle, of Ionia; Matt VanHouten, of Northville; Preston Treend, of Casco; and Lindsey Winters, of Plymouth.

“It was a great experience being able to help out these kids,” said VanHouten. “There are a lot of times when we forget how fortunate we really are, and being able to bring joy to these kids was a great feeling.”

Each basket had a container of bubbles, small toys, and a Tootsie-roll filled coinbank or a small container of play dough.

Ample amounts of candy were placed

in each basket to go along with the 400 plastic eggs that were filled with candy.

Treend and Theresa Damico, of White Lake, purchased the baskets, items for the baskets and the eggs with money SAAC received through the Student Government Association’s “grant” program.

“It was great to be able to go out and purchase Easter gifts for the kids at the Siren Shelter,” said Damico. “Being able to know we made a difference in the world and put a smile on their faces is such a rewarding feeling!”

On April 7, SAAC sponsored its second annual Jock Rock fundraiser. This year, proceeds from the event were donated to the SIREN Shelter. At the event, studentathletes showed off a different set of skills by performing skits and lip synching to a variety of songs. The teams were critiqued by three judges on originality, lip synching and creativity. For the second year in a row, the wrestling team was crowned the 2013 Jock Rock champion.

During the entire semester, the football team has logged countless hours of community service as a part of its Block “O” program. Players have read weekly to students at Fern Persons Elementary School in Olivet, helped sort and organize items at the Oak Chest in downtown Olivet, clean out the Eaton Furniture Store in Charlotte and volunteered at the Eaton County Special Olympics at Eaton Rapids High School. ▲

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