Sawdust Fall 2014

2014 FA LL THE MAGAZINE OF T HE SFA ALUMNI A SS OCIATION & S TEPHEN F. AUSTIN STATE UNIVERSITY

In the News EDITOR / PRODUCER REFLECTS ON 25 YEARS AT CNN

FIELD STATION • REMEMBERING #16 • DRIVING JACKS

one great university three ways to give

The foundation manages capital gifts for the sole benefit of the university.

The university’s Annual Fund raises monies to support academics, athletics and student activities.

Through annual memberships, the association promotes alumni engagement and scholarships.

sfasu.edu/give

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sfaalumni.com/donations

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

W

HILE MUCH OF the world looks more forward to the start of a new calendar year, on a college campus, that unmistakable sense of renewal is most prevalent at the beginning of the fall semester. Our East Texas weather may not be reflective of the changing seasons just yet, but the distant sound of the Lumberjack Marching Band rehearsing, the sight of new and returning students making their way to class, and the palpable feeling of anticipation and opportunity in the air reassure us that we are starting fresh once again.

With fall comes football, and this season we are kicking off the next era of Lumberjack football under the leadership of new head coach Clint Conque. With seven home games on the schedule, our alumni and friends will have ample opportunity to cheer on the ’Jacks. I would like to extend to you a special invitation to join us for the Homecoming game against Southeastern Louisiana Oct. 25, as well as the annual Battle of the Piney Woods with Sam Houston at NRG Stadium in Houston Nov. 1. Both weekends will provide ideal opportunities to network with other alumni while supporting the team, so I hope you will make plans to be part of our spirit-filled football tradition this season.

Recently, I was fortunate to gain a behind-the-scenes look at another popular Lumberjack tradition, the SFA Ring. I was part of an SFA group that toured the Balfour plant in Austin and explored how our unique SFA Rings are created. Each year, hundreds of graduating Lumberjacks purchase the rings, which are bestowed at the biannual Big Dip Ceremony. The SFA Ring is available to alumni of all ages and eras. So, whether you earned your degree last year or many decades ago, you, too, can be a part of our growing SFA Ring tradition.

I am pleased to share that the Board of Regents recently approved extending our current marketing campaign through the upcoming fiscal year. You will continue to see the “Lumberjacks Make Great” ads, which have been popular among current students and alumni. The first year of the campaign has been successful at increasing positive perceptions of SFA, and the next phase is intended to build on that success while boosting enrollment.

Enrolling more students who are well-prepared for the rigors of college work is one of many initiatives to be considered and discussed in great detail in the coming months as we embark on a comprehensive process to develop a new strategic plan for SFA. The document resulting from this important work will be crucial as we approach the university’s 100th anniversary, now just nine years away. The significance of that upcoming anniversary has led me to begin forming a special committee that will be tasked with planning all programs and events associated with our centennial.

I hope and expect the plans will include the addition of a very significant project, such as a statue or other enduring campus feature, that will be worthy of that extraordinary milestone.

The fall of 2023 will be upon us sooner than we think, but I hope you won’t wait until then to return to your alma mater. I encourage you to come to campus this fall and join in the excitement of a new SFA year and the promise it holds for all Lumberjacks.

I encourage you to come to campus this fall and join in the excitement of a new SFA year and the promise it holds for all Lumberjacks.

Axe ’em, Jacks!

BOARD OF REGENTS Steve D. McCarty, Alto chair Dr. Scott H. Coleman, Houston vice chair Brigettee C. Henderson, Lufkin secretary David R. Alders, Nacogdoches John R. “Bob” Garrett, Tyler Barry E. Nelson, Dallas Kenton E. Schaefer, Brownsville Ralph C. Todd, Carthage Connie M. Ware, Marshall Kelsey Brown, Flower Mound student regent ADMINISTRATION Dr. Baker Pattillo president Dr. Richard Berry provost/vice president for academic affairs Danny Gallant vice president for finance and administration Jill Still vice president for university advancement Dr. Steve Westbrook vice president for university affairs MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS Shirley Luna executive director Donna Parish assistant director–creative

Baker Pattillo ’65 & ’66 President, Stephen F. Austin State University

Amy Roquemore assistant director–editorial Hardy Meredith university photographer

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CAMPUS NEWS

Fall 2014 • Volume 41, No. 4 EXECUTIVE EDITOR Craig Turnage ’00 & ’05 Executive Director of Alumni Relations EDITOR Amy Roquemore ’93 & ’12 Assistant Director-Editorial, University Marketing Communications

STEPHEN F. AUSTIN STATE UNIVERSITY is a comprehensive institution dedicated to excellence in teaching, research, scholarship, creative work and service. Through the personal attention of our faculty and staff, we engage our students in a learner-centered environment and offer opportunities to prepare for the challenges of living in the global community.

The SFA ALUMNI ASSOCIATION is a nonprofit organization dedicated to serving the alumni, friends and current students of Stephen F. Austin State University through programs, scholarships and activities that create an attitude of continued loyalty and support.

SAWDUST is published four times a year by the Stephen F. Austin State University Alumni Association and Stephen F. Austin State University. Full subscriptions are included in Alumni Association memberships. SFA alumni and friends receive complimentary issues twice a year.

CONTACT Sawdust P.O. Box 6096, SFA Station Nacogdoches, TX 75962 (936) 468-3407 • (800) 765-1534 alumni@sfasu.edu • sfaalumni.com SAWDUST ONLINE Read past issues, watch video extras, submit Class Notes and preview upcoming features: sfasu.edu/sawdust facebook.com/sfasawdust

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Photo courtesy of Jeffrey Williams, Arthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture

ART DIRECTOR Rhonda Crim

This photo of students attending SFA’s annual Field Station last summer was taken from several hundred feet in the air using the forestry department’s new photo drone. Field Station is held annually at the Pineywoods Conservation Center in Broaddus and is a rite of passage for all SFA forestry students.

Read more about it on Page 10.

On the Cover Video editor/producer Chris Hrubesh ’88 is pictured at CNN Center. He reflects on his 25-year career at the network in a story on Page 22.

CONTENTS

22

FEATURES 10 Field Station

SUMMER EXPERIENCE IS A RITE OF PASSAGE FOR FORESTRY STUDENTS

16 Remembering #16

FRIENDS AND FAMILY MEMBERS HONOR THE MEMORY OF CALLY BELCHER

20 Grace, Poise, Style

TWIRL-O-JACK ROOTS RUN DEEP IN ONE EAST TEXAS ALUMNI FAMILY

10

10

20

28 Driving Jacks

ORGANIZATION PROVIDES SAFE RIDES HOME FOR SFA STUDENTS

CAMPUS NEWS

ALUMNI NEWS

4 Heritage Research

32 New Staff Members

5 Faculty Advising

34 Homecoming

6 Planned Giving

38 Scholarships

8 Under Armour Expert

39 ’Jacks of All Trades

9 Vista Viewpoint

40 Class Notes

19 Athletics

48 From the Archives

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Photos courtesy of Dr. Robert Selden

CAMPUS NEWS

On a trip to Brazil this summer, Dr. Robert Selden used 3-D scanning equipment to digitize artifacts at the Museum of Archeology and Ethnicity in the state of Bahia.

DIGITIZING HISTORY

Historic artifacts scanned in 3-D for future cultural research DR. ROBERT Z. Selden Jr. of SFA’s Center for Regional Heritage Research believes America’s prehistory needn’t remain out of the grasp of scholars. He’s peeling back centuries of dirt and sediment to explore a part of the story that is unfolding in the ancestral Caddo territory of Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Arkansas.

Plastered around the Center for Regional Heritage Research are maps showing the geochemistry of the ceramics Selden is studying. The maps’ bright colors are generated by geochemical data overlaid on the Geologic Database of Texas, and each of the 33 maps corresponds to a specific amount of a single element making up the chemical composition of ceramic artifacts found throughout the region.

Working with colleagues at the University of Missouri, Selden analyzed ceramics from various Caddo hamlets, burial mounds and villages through a process called instrumental neutron activation analysis, which allows researchers to differentiate between various clay types.

Researchers can then form theories about which ceramics came from what areas. Matching that with the

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maps, they’re also able to infer that a particular tribe or group of Caddo was making these pots. And that information can then be used to assume likely trade relationships among Caddo groups or tribes.

“It’s promising that we have been able to get as far as positing potential relationships between political groups using geochemistry,” Selden said.

Members of the Caddo Nation have been extremely accommodating to him and other researchers, in part because so much of their history was lost even to them, he said. Each artifact is sacred because it came from a Caddo burial, which places the objects under the purview of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act. In short, these sacred ceramics belong to the Caddo, and they will ultimately have to be returned.

In order to preserve the vessels and their value to researchers, while observing their places in the Caddo cosmology, the vessels are being scanned in great detail using 3-D rendering software. The renderings, research papers and posters are being stored in an online repository.

Some elements of the physical design have been removed to preserve cultural heritage, and the availability of the 3-D models allows unprecedented access to these important pieces of history. Rendering the ceramics in a digital format means that Selden’s team can work with different aspects of these artifacts that have

CAMPUS NEWS

FACULTY ADVISING

CADDO CERAMIC

DIGITAL REPRODUCTION

not been available in the past, and that has led to a surprising realization.

The bulk of Caddo ceramic research has focused on classifying the ceramics by motif and design elements, but Selden and his colleagues believe that there may be a story in the shape of the ceramics themselves.

In the same way that techniques for making other ancient tools are evident in how the rock was chipped away by different craftsmen, Selden says the timeline of ceramic design can be pinned down by considering how ceramic decorative and manufacturing methods changed. If the evolution of ceramic design and shape can be pinned down, it will add yet another layer to our understanding of how the culture of the Caddo expanded and retracted over time.

The 3-D models, available to the public through the center’s digital repository, can be rotated, cross-sectioned and examined up close without damaging something a Caddo potter, perhaps sitting on the bank of the Neches or Red River, molded by hand hundreds of years ago.

The scans have landed the center some sought-after space in a virtual museum hosted by Mark Melany and Ken Rigby of Millennium Inc. in Preston, United Kingdom. The digital museum, along with the digital repository and the center’s blog, are giving Selden and his team a way to share their work with a larger audience.

The 3-D scans of Caddo ceramics from one important collection recently were shared with Dr. Bernard K. Means at Virginia Commonwealth University. He printed the Caddo vessels with a 3-D printer, and his students painted them using digital photographs as a reference. Those reproductions will be displayed in various locations around campus, bringing hundreds of people in contact with pieces of Caddo culture.

Selden’s team recently received a grant from the National Center for Preservation Technology and Training (National Park Service), allowing for the creation of more than 250 scans of Caddo ceramics from 16 sites in East Texas, giving the team enough data to run a series of tests to explore how vessel shape changed over time.

“As a researcher of Caddo history and prehistory, there’s no better place for a guy like me to be than right here at SFA,” Selden said.

–TIM MONZINGO

> Looking for alternatives to harsh cleaning chemicals for your home?

Dr. John T. Moore, SFA professor of chemistry and biochemistry, provided these tips for replacing potentially hazardous substances (such as bleach) with less toxic ones.

Everyday Cleaning A good all-purpose surface cleaner can be made by mixing vinegar and salt. Four tablespoons of baking soda dissolved in a quart of warm water also will act as a good general cleaner, and it deodorizes, too. Baking soda sprinkled on a dry carpet will help eliminate pet odors.

Scrubbing fruits and vegetables with a baking soda solution will rid them of dirt, waxes and pesticides.

Drains To remove a clog, pour in half a cup of baking soda followed by half a cup of vinegar.

Wait a few minutes, and then flush the drain with boiling water. Do not use this method if you have already tried a commercial drain cleaner, as this could lead to splattering of hot, caustic material.

Floors Add about a quarter cup of vinegar to a gallon of water to clean a ceramic tile floor.

Use a more concentrated solution for brick or stone.

Research Pick an area of your home where you want to reduce the use of chemicals, spend a few minutes searching the Internet for a greener alternative and give it a try. You will be safer and may save a little money, too.

Fine Print Try any of these cleaning recipes on a small, inconspicuous spot before tackling the entire project. If you must use bleach, do not mix with anything but water, as dangerous chemical reactions can occur when bleach comes in contact with other cleaners.

If a stain resists your best efforts, you may have to resort to a commercial cleaner or do as my wife did and marry a chemist!

SELDEN

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CAMPUS NEWS

L UMBERJACKS MAKE GREAT

PHILANTHROPISTS PLANNED GIVING IS NOT JUST FOR THE WEALTHy. Almost everyone has the ability to make a planned gift.

SFA HAS RECEIVED

Planned gifts are not always money.

SCHOLARSHIPS

FACILITY UPGRADES

A will

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RESEARCH PROJECTS

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NEW CLASSROOM EQUIPMENT

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PROFESSORSHIPS

SFA also has received gifts of stock, property, artwork, mineral rights and Most donors FROM PLANNED GIFTS DURING much THE PAST FIVE YEARS. making their first more. charitable bequest commitment are plan for the future between 40 and 50 years old.

CAN HELP PROVIDE FOR THE

future of your alma mater,

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Planned Gifts Support:

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E

F

O

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When the development AS WELL AS THE Planned gifts office receives AND PEOPLE AND OTHER can support any documentation that MORE! ORGANIZATIONS specific area of SFA has been included YOU CARE interest designated ABOUT in a will, the donor MOST. automatically is enrolled in the in a will. university’s Stone Fort Society. {Sample} bequest language “I GIVE AND BEQUEATH TO THE SFASU FOUNDATION ______ (WRITTEN AMOUNT, PERCENTAGE OF ESTATE OR DESCRIPTION OF PROPERTY)

TO BE USED AS DETERMINED BY ITS GOVERNING BOARD.”

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For information about making a planned gift to SFA, contact Trey Turner or April Smith at giftplanning@sfasu.edu or (936) 468-5406.

CAMPUS NEWS

T

HERE IS A moment from the Freshin Romania means “peace” and is often used as a toast, man Leadership Academy’s recent trip similar to how we use the word “cheers.” NOROC provides to work with Romanian orphans that volunteers who take a personal interest in the children – in I believe best captures the essence of many cases they become a surrogate family. They celebrate our adventures. Prior to arriving in birthdays, encourage achievement in school and provide Romania, we had the opportunity to hugs, clothing and other important things the children need. fly through Istanbul, Turkey, and stay FLA spent the fall raising money to help NOROC start a two nights. I was with the six firstprogram to provide employment skills for individuals who year students selected to make the trip, along with SFA staff are close to leaving the orphanage. With jobs scarce in Romamembers Dr. Osaro Airen and Dr. Hollie Smith, and we were nia, the program helps the kids avoid lives of crime, human on a ferry traveling the Bosporus Straight, the thin ribbon of trafficking and other fates that would prevent them from water that separates the part of Istanbul that lies in Europe reaching their full potential. We held a 5K Glow Run that from the part that lies in Asia. We were returning from visitraised more than $2,500 to help the group start a seasonal ing the Asian side, enjoying some cherries I’d picked up at an store, helping it sustain itself while providing jobs for teenage outdoor market and discussing the trip, much of which still orphans. lay before us. I asked, “Can you believe that at this time last We were then tasked with selecting students to go to year, you were getting ready to attend Orientation at SFA? If I Romania to fulfill our project. It was hard. Many had contribwould have told you then you’d be in Istanbul now, wouldn’t uted to the project, and many would benefit from the opporyou have thought I was crazy?” tunity to travel abroad. Somehow As we looked out on the sparkling we selected Morgan Pullium, Aly blue water and the ascending hills Neely, Leah Houser, Tori Schultz, dotted with minarets and with the Bethany Craft and Jessica Taylor. historic Blue Mosque in view, we Because of their passion for the were all struck by how fortunate project, Tori and Bethany applied we were and how unlikely our to intern in Romania. While our trip was. group spent just 10 days there, The adventure began with the Bethany and Tori stayed for more students’ decision to apply for than two months.

FLA, a special program consisting While in Romania, we helped of unique sections of SFA 101, a NOROC develop a new curcourse students take in their first riculum, which provides “granny semester to help them make the packs” to volunteers who help transition to college. In addition children develop skills like tellto the regular SFA 101 curing time, learning the words for riculum, FLA challenges students the seasons, etc. We also helped to learn about leadership and design and paint a new learning prepares them to become future center containing books, computDr. Adam Peck is pictured with children who live at the student leaders. Our philosophy ers and space for crafting.

Romanian orphanage being helped by SFA students. is that leadership isn’t something By far, one of the best memolearned from books alone, so we ask students to engage in a ries was making a Texas-themed meal for the older orphans. “high-impact” project – something that demands that they We shopped at a local grocery store and somehow located work together to address an important issue, propose and all of the items needed to make chicken fajitas. We provided test solutions, and find a way to do something about the issue a toppings bar with all the fixin’s and cooked apple crisp for they select. dessert. Our host said, “The children will likely forever divide The topic we decided to address last year was the plight their lives into the period of time before this meal and the of Rroma people in Romania. Rroma, often called “gypsies” time after.” are exceptionally marginalized throughout Europe. In fact, After 10 days in Romania, we boarded a plane and spent in many languages in Europe, the term “gypsy” simply means one final night in Istanbul. As we reflected on the trip, some“thief.” It’s not hard to imagine how being called a thief from one remarked how it was a lot like the first year of college. the time you are born can impact the psyche of a child. The It gave them memories to last a lifetime, but it went by so problem is compounded by the fact that many are abandoned fast. I’d like to think that because of FLA, students were able and find themselves in orphanages. to make the most of their first year – and to help fulfill the While these state-run orphanages often are managed by university’s mission by preparing students for the challenges caring individuals, they have very few resources. The organiof living in the global community. zation that we worked with in Romania is called New Oppor–DR. ADAM PECK tunities for Romanian Orphaned Children. The word “noroc” SFA Dean of Students Photo courtesy of Dr. Adam Peck

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CAMPUS NEWS

Junior economics major Christine Tieberg spent several days at Under Armour headquarters in Baltimore, Maryland, last spring.

She learned to train other Under Armour employees to sell one of the sports apparel company’s newest athletic shoes.

Business student hits the ground running WHEN ATHLETICS APPAREL giant Under Armour was preparing for the biggest running shoe launch in its history, the company knew it needed to enlist the help of its most successful employees to get the job done.

That’s where SFA junior Christine Tieberg, an economics major from Houston, came in. Tieberg, who works in Houston as an Under Armour sales representative during summers and semester breaks, was selected to submit a video that might lead to the opportunity of a lifetime.

While working at the company’s outlet store last winter, Tieberg’s assistant store manager, Nate Newman, pulled her aside and told her that executives at corporate headquarters in Baltimore had asked store managers to choose an employee to produce a mocktraining video introducing the new SpeedForm Apollo shoe to sales staff.

Executives would view the approximately 150 videos and select the best. The winners would get to travel to headquarters and spend several days learning about the SpeedForm Apollo before bringing their knowledge back to share with employees who would sell the shoe at area stores. Newman informed Tieberg that the Houston store managers had chosen her to represent their store.

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“Christine’s passion for the brand is what stood out,” Newman said. “She was selected to be our store’s SpeedForm Apollo specialist, which is an honor because not every Under Armour store has one.

She took her position to heart and put everything she had into learning about the shoe and its benefits.”

Newman said the decision to ask her to produce the video was made during a meeting at which managers and employees discussed the company’s weekly newsletter.

“Often, the newsletter includes questions for team members,” Newman said. “That week, one of the questions was about the SpeedForm Apollo’s benefits. Christine impressed us with her response, and we knew she was the right employee to complete the video and send it forward to corporate.”

With little time to prepare, Tieberg went to work. “My video was about the first shoe in the SpeedForm line, the SpeedForm RC or racing shoe. I gave a quick, 40-second rundown of the shoe’s features. Then, I packaged the video and sent it to Baltimore.”

Several weeks passed with no word. Then, while sitting in class at the end of January, Tieberg noticed she had a missed call from Newman. After class, she contacted him, and he simply told her, “They picked your video.”

Realizing she would have to miss class for three days to make the trip to Baltimore, Tieberg contacted her professors, and they altered her class schedule so she could participate in the once-in-alifetime opportunity.

“We highly encourage our students to involve themselves in internships or some other type of work-related experience before graduation,” said Dr. Todd Brown, SFA associate professor of finance and chair of the Department of Economics and Finance. “It enhances their classroom learning experience and advances their future careers.”

Once in Baltimore, Tieberg connected with other video winners

and soon learned she was one of only 30 selected for the trip. The group visited Under Armour’s Brand House, which was packed with merchandise not yet released to outlet stores. The winners later met with company representatives for dinner and bowling. The next day, training began at corporate headquarters.

Tieberg said a highlight of the experience was meeting Under Armour co-founder Kip Fulks. “We walked into the conference room to hear Kip speak, and we were so excited. The room was set up like a small gym with product displays everywhere,” she said. “Kip began walking us through the company’s origins and the brand’s vision. It was so inspiring, and I knew it would really help me market the products.”

During the next three days, Tieberg and her fellow finalists spent hours learning about the SpeedForm Apollo. They then returned to their stores ready to hit the ground running, introducing the new shoe to sales representatives.

Tieberg was assigned to visit various athletic and sporting goods stores in East Texas. She says she incorporated what she learned in Baltimore with lessons taught in her SFA business classes to bond with her audience.

“This opportunity gave me new insight on what it’s like to run a successful business,” she said. “I also was able to use this experience toward class credit for my marketing minor at SFA.” When she’s not interning or working for one of America’s fastest-growing companies, Tieberg serves as president of the SFA Economics Reading Group, vice president of the Finance Club and an officer in Phi Beta Lambda, a student organization for future business leaders. She recently competed in Phi Beta Lambda’s annual national competition held in Nashville, Tennessee, where she placed fourth with her Under Armour sales presentation.

–DONNA PARISH

CAMPUS NEWS

VISTA VIEWPOINT

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” – Mark Twain

C

OLLEGE IS THE perfect time for new experiences and exploration. Part of my job is to make sure SFA students know about the variety of international options available to them. As director of international programs, I have the privilege of meeting and working with people from around the world, helping send students and faculty members to exciting destinations, and traveling abroad to recruit students for SFA. I recently had a “full-circle experience” with my foreign connections – more than 25 years in the making. It made me realize how important it is to encourage students to take every opportunity that comes along because you never know where it will lead.

I have always been attracted to anything international.

My first trip abroad was to Québec when I was in elementary school. I couldn’t understand why I didn’t know what people around us were saying. I guess that was the first time I had heard a foreign language spoken – weird, but intriguing. I began studying French in after-school programs and then formally in middle school, taking my first “independent” trip overseas with my French class. My friends also were globally focused. (We started our school’s first international club.)

Instead of going directly to college, three of my close friends and I chose to study abroad after high school. With my language background, I was hoping to go to France. Well, my placement papers arrived, and I was headed for Tunisia!

No one in my family had ever heard of the place. My mother was nervous, but a friend assured her Tunisia was a great place – a popular North African holiday destination for many Europeans.

My year in Tunisia turned out to be amazing – a beautiful Arabic- and French-influenced culture, a new language (French is widely spoken, but Arabic was more useful for cultural insight), living with a local family and attending a local high school, traveling to see the Sahara, the Mediterranean Sea, Roman ruins and even filming locations of the original Star Wars movie. After I returned home from my year abroad, life went on – university, teaching English abroad, graduate school, working for an international development agency in Washington, D.C., and finally moving to Nacogdoches with my husband.

In the past year, the SFA international programs office

By Heather Catton

has re-established a connection with U.S. State Departmentsponsored student programs. These scholarship programs help build the capacity of youth leaders from a variety of countries that have important or developing relationships with the U.S. Participants get a deeper understanding of American culture and new globally applicable skills and expertise to help them contribute to the economic growth and development of their countries. I reviewed applications for the 2014-15 Tunisia Undergraduate Scholarship Program. Finalists were interviewed in Tunisia in March by a bi-national committee of U.S. specialists, alumni of U.S. government programs and U.S. Embassy representatives. I also was invited to be on the selection panel to provide the perspective of a host university. It was a great honor, and I was thrilled to return to Tunisia more than 25 years after living there as an exchange student. I was able to visit some places that didn’t even exist when I lived there, and I met one of my “sisters” from my host family and her two teenage girls. The country was different from what I remembered in so many aspects, including the physical layout of the city, development, politics and social life. My visit was very short and mostly restricted to the hotel where the interviews were held, but it brought back many memories and gave me perspective on the path my life has taken in the last quarter century – from Ohio to France, Tunisia, Taiwan, Indonesia, Atlanta, D.C. and, finally, East Texas.

You never know what’s going to come along in your life, but if you walk through as many doors of new experiences as you can, some amazing things can happen. It may be intimidating to “sail away from the safe harbor,” but the results can be life-changing. I hope our current SFA students check out the international opportunities that await them here, whether studying abroad or participating in an international event on campus, and can look back some day to see how it all connects with where they are now, like I did.

HEATHER CATTON Director, International Programs

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CAMPUS NEWS

10 SAWDUST

FIELD

CAMPUS NEWS

STATION

Summer experience is a rite of passage for SFA forestry students

By Tim Monzingo FALL 2014 11

MY URBANOVSKY KEPT a wary eye on the crew of students circling the buzzing blade of the sawmill. As the graduate student assistant at the Pineywoods Conservation Center, her job was to make sure everyone’s appendages remained attached, and the hardhats and safety goggles kept other vital parts protected.

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Urbanovsky, an environmental science major, had no experience with machinery like the Woodmizer portable mill slicing through pine and hardwood like it was butter before she showed up at the center for Field Station.

For that matter, she hadn’t strolled through a working industrial sawmill or seen up close the workings of a massive, wood-fired electricity-generating facility, either.

She, along with 40 or so other SFA forestry majors, were wrapping up the fifth week of the Arthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture’s annual Field Station – an immersive six-week program that takes future foresters out of the classroom and puts them in the field.

While at Field Station, students take the skills they’ve learned in the classroom and apply them to the working conservation center some 60 miles away in Broaddus. They cruise timber and measure and take a close look at the health of stands of pine and hardwood. They also learn to catch a variety of wildlife,

Forestry students apply the skills they have learned in class to the myriad real-world experiences offered at Field Station and leave the class better prepared for their future careers.

Some photos courtesy of Arthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture

including frogs, bats and birds, recording vital information about the populations, and learn to use geographic information systems to survey the land, among other skills.

For some of the students, the combination of their education and field work pays off immediately. Ethan Sprinkle, a junior majoring in forestry wildlife management, got some good news while at Field Station. Days after the students toured the biomass generating facility in Sacul outside Nacogdoches, he got word that he’d been offered an internship working at the facility.

“In the second week of camp, I’d heard about the internship,” Sprinkle said. “I got the call the day after we visited it and got the internship.”

The biomass plant, which burns chipped waste wood from cities and commercial operations, converts it to electricity and pipes it to energy-hungry Austin on demand, is one of the largest facilities of its kind in the country. Touring the plant is one way Lumberjacks get exposed to the full cycle of forestry. It provides an example of a forestry career, as well as a chance for students to see how what they learn in labs and classes benefits the public.

That’s something that junior wildlife management major Ariana Berdote appreciated.

“I love actually being able to apply my education out here,” she said. “Field Station is really the core course you need to put things in perspective.”

Field Station also plays an important role in the lives and careers of students after graduation. During those six weeks in the summer, the students develop a camaraderie that they carry throughout their careers. They develop relationships with their classmates – many of whom they otherwise wouldn’t have gotten to know – that become connections in the job market to different industries and businesses that need forest and wildlife resource-management experts.

For the college, Field Station plays an important role in student retention, said Dr. Matthew McBroom, associate professor of forestry, who was guiding the students operating the sawmill on that blistering Friday afternoon last summer.

“Once students make it through Field Station, we have nearly 100-percent retention,” McBroom said. “After they get through Field Station, they have more practical skills, which makes it easier to get internships. (Internships) are the new entry-level jobs.”

As she watched the Woodmizer mill turn tree trunks into boards, Urbanovsky said the Field Station experience gave her a needed perspective on the industries she’ll be working with as an environmental scientist.

“You’re getting to see it come full circle,” she said.

“You really get a feel for the big picture of forestry.”

I love actually being able to apply my education out here.

FIELD STATION is really the CORE COURSE you need to put things in perspective.

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CAMPUS ATHLETICSNEWS

’JACK TALK

WE ARE EVERYWHERE! I BLEED PURPLE! I BLEED SUCCESS! AXE ’EM, JACKS! ERYN STANMORE ’10 FACEBOOK

MY EXPERIENCE AT SFA PREPARED ME FOR SUCCESS

IN THE BUSINESS WORLD.

I WILL ALWAYS CHERISH

THE YEARS I SPENT THERE

AND ESPECIALLY THE PEOPLE I MET WHILE ATTENDING SFA.

FRED BRANDENBURG ’96 LINKEDIN

A BIG THANK YOU

TO THE SFA PHYSICAL PLANT FOR GIVING

OL’ COTTON

SOME

MUCH-NEEDED

SHELTER.

THIS SHOULD LET US KEEP HIM AROUND FOR MANY YEARS TO COME.

SFA ALUMNI ASSOCIATION FACEBOOK

ENJOYED SPEAKING AT THE #SFA #2018 ORIENTATION SPIRIT RALLY TONIGHT.

ROWDY BUNCH OF NEW

#LUMBERJACKS. #AXEEM

HEAD FOOTBALL COACH CLINT CONQUE @CLINTCONQUE - TWITTER

THERE ARE GOOD PEOPLE, THERE ARE BAD PEOPLE,

AND SOMETIMES

THEY’RE THE SAME PEOPLE. THOSE ARE THE MOST INTERESTING. SFA WRITER IN RESIDENCE JOE LANSDALE HOUSTON CHRONICLE

14 14 SAWDUST SAWDUST

WELCOME, ’JACKS! Each summer, throngs of brand-new Lumberjacks and their parents descend on the campus to take part in SFA Freshman Orientation. The fast-paced, two-day sessions are painstakingly designed to assist students and families in the home-to-college transition process. Students participate in academic advising, register for fall classes, and finalize housing and tuition-payment plans.

They get a crash course in student services and involvement opportunities, meet staff members and student leaders, and learn all about campus life. Many also participate in a driving tour of Nacogdoches to get the lay of the land in the Oldest Town in Texas and visit the Convention and Visitors Bureau to learn about Nacogdoches’ unique history and attractions. In summer 2014, SFA welcomed 2,038 newly admitted students along with 1,960 parents and other family members to campus during five separate Freshman Orientation sessions. Above, attendees of last summer’s first Freshman Orientation session pose for an official photo in the beautiful three-story atrium of the Baker Pattillo Student Center.

WORK SPACE 1

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Photo by Stephanie Ballard

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What you’ll find in . . . SFA Gardens Education Coordinator Elyce Rodewald’s office: 1. A collection of teaching tools from nature, including two oddly shaped gourds, framed Missouri oak leaves gifted by an uncle, a bird’s nest in a small tree branch and a terrarium filled with layers of East Texas soil.

2. Arrows used for archery instruction during various educational programs hosted by SFA Gardens.

3. Rodewald’s first-aid backpack, which she carries when leading nature walks, bird-watching expeditions and other activities in the gardens. It is stocked with more than 65 must-have items, including bandages, assorted medications, a space blanket, a whistle, baking soda, a shovel and a deer antler. (Yes, a deer antler.)

4. A poster of one of Rodewald’s heroes, famous American scientist, botanist, educator and inventor George Washington Carver. Born into slavery in Missouri, he became a pioneer in agricultural research.

5. A magic wand made of lace, ribbon, crystals and fairy dust and given to Rodewald by Cheryl Boyette ’95, ’96 & ’02

at the very first Little Princess Tea Party held in the Ruby M. Mize Azalea Garden.

“It is used to make magical things happen in the garden.”

10. A snapshot of Denny Gerlock, the director of a day camp she attended in Indiana in 1946. “He’s the reason I started a day camp at SFA.”

6. A desk calendar that helps the education coordinator keep track of more than 17,000 visitors to the SFA Gardens each year.

11. A Bob Marley calendar. Rodewald is a big fan of music by the late Jamaican singer, songwriter and musician who became an international reggae superstar.

7. A set of iridescent dragonfly wings created by Vicki Baggett ’82 & ’13 for “Dragonfly Day” for 4- to 6-year-olds at Pineywoods Day Camp. “We are not shy about dressing up like animals and plants if it helps the children learn about them!”

12. A butterfly card she received from students who attended an after-school program. “I keep it because it reminds me of how many kind and loving people there are in the world.”

8. Bookshelves in Rodewald’s office in the Tucker House at the Pineywoods Native Plant Center packed with volumes on gardening, botany, wildlife and education curricula.

9. Her nametag necklace made from a section of a cedar tree limb and worn at day camp. Everyone at camp wears one, and a bead is added for each year of attendance. (There are 13 beads on Rodewald’s necklace.)

13. Rodewald’s walking stick, which is really helpful on long hikes in the gardens.

14. An overflowing basket of hand puppets she uses to teach young children about the animal world.

Elyce Rodewald SFA Gardens Education Coordinator

FALL 2014 15

16 SAWDUST

REMEMBERING FRIENDS AND FAMILY

MEMBERS CONTINUE TO

HONOR THE MEMORY

OF CALLY BELCHER WITH

SCHOLARSHIPS, SUPPORT

FOR INJURED ATHLETES AND AWARENESS EFFORTS

BY RACHEL CLARK

The day of SFA’s 2014 spring football game had finally come.

Fans eagerly filled Homer Bryce Stadium to catch a glimpse of the new era in ’Jacks football. Meanwhile, another group gathered on the second floor of the skybox.

The room was full; the mood was light. Heart-warming hugs were much more plentiful than handshakes. Memories were being captured through photographs, while laughter continuously erupted from friends, family and teammates remembering one of the most beloved Lumberjacks of all time, Cally Belcher.

More than 20 years after Cally’s tragic death, friends and loved ones are still working to honor his memory. >>

FALL 2014 17

ORN IN LUBBOCK, Texas, to Presley and Helen Belcher, Presley Calloway “Cally” Belcher was a tremendous athlete who excelled at any sport he chose. “Cally was a very shy and quiet little boy, except for on the field,” Helen said. “On the field, he erupted into a tornado!”

Cally started playing sports at a young age, trying soccer, baseball, basketball and swimming before finding his true love – football. No matter the task at hand, Cally always put forth the effort to help his team succeed.

On Sept. 25, 1993, his courageous effort snapped a four-season road-game losing streak against the Broncos of Boise State University. This date instantly was recorded for all time in Lumberjack sports history.

With the game on the line and one possession left, a series of stops secured the Lumberjack victory. For a brief moment, time stood still. The Broncos had driven the ball to the SFA 11-yard line. Having the game of his life, Cally, an all-conference defensive back, made three consecutive stops inside the red zone and single-

room.”

The same teammates who had hoisted their hero high six months earlier were there to carry him one final time.

“I was proud of Cally,” Helen said.

“Not so much about how he looked, but how he acted.” He had a humble spirit and disposition that could make even the loneliest person feel comfortable, she said.

Annually, the SFA Alumni Association and the Department of Athletics present the Cally Belcher Award along with the Cally Belcher Memorial Football Scholarship to a deserving athlete. This year’s award recipient, Aaron Thomas, a junior from Burnet, Texas, will wear Cally’s retired No. 16 jersey when the ’Jacks play Weber State on Sept. 20 – “Cally Day.” Additionally, Kelly and his wife, Tonya ’95, established The 16 Club in Cally’s honor. The club raises funds and promotes awareness on sports-related head injuries at both the high school and collegiate levels.

The club membership has grown from family and friends to include people who knew Cally and have heard his story, as well as other supporters and donors.

“We have raised $150,000, and 100 percent of the money has gone to Cally’s scholar“WE’VE URGED COACHES AND PLAYERS TO RECOGNIZE THE ship and concussion awareness programs,” Kelly said. “We never SIGNS OF HEAD INJURY AND FOR COACHES TO REMEMBER TO dreamed it would be so big.” He added that the club is truly a team PROTECT THESE BOYS ON THE FIELD. THEY ARE OUR TREASURES.” effort. SFA teammates, including Scott Griggs, Christian Fontana, Lee handedly secured a victory for the Lumberjacks. His Kirk, Joey Wiley, Mike Quinn and Rowdy Stovall, play a teammates stormed the field, hoisting him atop their large part to ensure Cally’s memory lives on, he said. shoulder pads in celebration.

“We certainly couldn’t do it without them.”

According to teammate Chad Kelly ’95, emotions According to Craig Turnage, executive director of were at an all-time high. No one had beaten Boise on alumni relations, the Kellys, along with family, friends the blue turf in years. “It was a definite turning point in and teammates, have been instrumental in keeping our program – our first upset victory.”

Cally’s legacy alive. “This type of support is so desperLooking forward to another successful season, the ately needed and very much appreciated by the players, team gathered for spring practice on March 22, 1994. athletic department and university.”

While walking off the field, Cally collapsed and was Approximately 75 teammates gather annually to rushed to Nacogdoches Memorial Hospital. Again, time support the club and honor Cally. Numerous fundraisstood still. One of SFA’s most courageous and passioners are held throughout the year, including an annual ate Lumberjacks died a week later from complications memorial golf tournament. The funds raised benefit of a brain aneurysm. the scholarship and help offset expenses for injured Cally was a kind soul who cared for everyone and student athletes. gave everything, Helen said. She recalled a conversaHelen and Presley are supportive of the club and tion they had prior to that fateful day. “After a discusbelieve had there been more awareness, things might sion about organ donation, Cally mentioned that he have been different for Cally. “We’ve urged coaches and wanted to be a donor,” she said. “He was a kinesiolplayers to recognize ogy major and understood the importance of such a the signs of head ingift.” When the time came, Helen made sure her son’s jury and for coaches request was honored. to remember to “He had passed, and it was time to harvest his orprotect these boys gans,” she recalled. “I remember waiting in the chapel on the field,” she with family and friends, and being told all of his Lumbersaid. “They are our jack teammates were escorting him into the operation treasures.”

18 SAWDUST

ATHLETICS

Highlights

went to the 4x400 meter relay team.

The combination of Hampton Hawkins, Torin Crowder, Cass Brown Stewart and Taylor finished in 11th place with a time of 3:06.91 in the semifinal to receive second-team honors. Brown Stewart also received second-team recognition individually, running 46.20 seconds in the semifinals of the 400-meter race to place 14th. Colton Ross rounded out SFA’s AllAmerica recognitions with his 10th-place finish in the pole vault, clearing a height of 5.40 meters (17-8.50) to give SFA two top-10 finishes at the meet.

FOOTBALL

SFA ENTERED THE 2014 season ranked sixth in the preseason Southland Conference football polls announced at Southland Conference Media Days in July in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Four players were named preseason All-SLC selections. Senior running back Gus Johnson and senior wide receiver Tyler Boyd were first-team honorees, and senior punter Nick Bruno and junior offensive lineman Byron Williams were selected for the second team.

Led by new head football coach Clint Conque, the Lumberjacks will have seven home games at Homer Bryce Stadium during the 2014 season. The Homecoming game against Southeastern Louisiana will be held at 3 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 25. The ’Jacks will take on Sam Houston State in the annual Battle of the Piney Woods at 3 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 1, at NRG Stadium, home of the Houston Texans.

MEN’S BASKETBALL TRACK AND FIELD

THE 2014 SEASON was one of the most successful in school history for the SFA track and field team, as the men garnered seven All-America honors for their performances at the NCAA National Championships. Josh Taylor finished in seventh place in the 400-meter hurdles to earn All-America first team honors. He clocked in at 53.03 seconds, scoring two points for the Lumberjacks to mark the second time in school history SFA’s men have scored points in back-toback years at the NCAA Championship. Four of SFA’s All-America awards

THE LUMBERJACKS WILL open the 201415 season in front of a national audience.

SFA has been selected as a host site for ESPN’s 24-hour Tip-Off Marathon. The ’Jacks will host Northern Iowa at 8 a.m.

Tuesday, Nov. 18, on ESPN2. SFA will be looking to preserve a 33-game home winning streak, which is currently tied with Duke for the nation’s longest. The 24-hour event begins at 6 p.m. Monday, Nov. 17, and features 24 hours of nonstop college basketball, showcasing 19 collegiate basketball games on both ESPN and ESPN2 to unofficially tip off the college basketball season.

FALL 2014 19

CAMPUS NEWS

BY ROBBIE GOODRICH

For many Lumberjack families, love for SFA spans generations. Members of one spirited East Texas clan have left an enduring mark on a particularly beloved and admired university tradition – the SFA Twirl-O-Jacks.

20 SAWDUST

CAMPUS NEWS

AT (GRIFFIN) BRIDGES ’62 started it all when she came to SFA in fall 1959. She was recruited by then Lumberjack Band director Jimmy Hudgins, who came to her home to ask her to help “build a great twirling line” and play the oboe in his concert band.

“I knew nothing about SFA at the time and had planned to go elsewhere on a piano scholarship,” she said. “But Mr. Hudgins was very convincing. When he described his love for SFA, the pride he had in that Lumberjack Band and his future aspirations for the twirling line, I was hooked.”

After becoming head Twirl-O-Jack in 1960, Pat began to change the dance-twirl style and method of constructing the routines in such a way that movements more closely reflected the moods, dynamics, rhythms and repetition of the music. Soon, the new style became known throughout the region, and aspiring TOJs started trying to learn the unique style even before they came to tryouts.

When Pat married Jerry Bridges ’61 and stopped performing in 1961, Hudgins asked her to be the SFA “twirlographer,” and she served as the choreographer/ sponsor for several years. Prior to that, her husband’s sister, Linda Bridges McKinney ’64, had joined the TOJ line and was a feature twirler.

By 1960, Pat’s younger sister, Joan Griffin (Bridges) ’68, who she describes as “a phenomenal twirler with perfect body style and a fantastic memory,” began helping her teach at summer twirling camps and some rehearsals. (Joan eventually married Jerry Bridges’ brother, Terry Bridges ’64.)

“Joan was a natural teacher and performer,” Pat said. “She knew exactly what I wanted for the new TOJ style.”

In 1964, Joan was selected head TOJ and followed in her sister’s footsteps while adding more baton difficulty to the routines. Joan’s relationship with the SFA twirling line spanned more than 40 years, including 37 as choreographer and sponsor. She established the East Texas Twirling Academy in Henderson, which became an icon for twirling excellence and produced hundreds of exceptional performers and teachers.

“Joan perpetuated the TOJ style and embellished it through her wonderful teaching methods, encouragement and active help with recruitment for her beloved SFA,” said Pat. “She kept the TOJs in a fine form that no other line could beat. They were respected and the envy of many collegiate institutions.”

Pat’s daughter, Buffie Bridges ’92, became a TOJ under Joan’s leadership in 1987 and was named head twirler the following year. Buffie had begun taking lessons with Joan when she was in kindergarten and loved twirling. She was in Henderson ISD bands and was a high school majorette.

P

“Band and twirling taught me lifelong lessons,” Buffie said. “I learned how important it is to set goals and to never give up until I reach them.”

Knowing that her family history would not be enough to win a spot on the TOJ line, Buffie worked hard and listened to her mother and aunt when they pointed out problems with her routines.

“Her body and foot work were wonderful, and her beautiful performances of the TOJ style are still remembered by those who saw her,” Pat said.

Buffie emphasized the importance of teamwork in the TOJ philosophy of success. “That attitude remains true in the organization to this day, along with the strong support of SFA band directors and administrators,” she said. “TOJ alumni who have added to the talents and expertise of TOJ choreographer/sponsors over the years also have brought TOJ lines to where they are today.”

In addition to Buffie’s parents graduating from SFA, her brother Jason Bridges ’91, sister-in-law Joey Everitt Bridges ’91 and husband Keith Walton ’90, as well as four aunts and uncles and several cousins, are SFA grads.

Buffie’s daughter, Ashleigh Walton, who is a sophomore health science major at SFA, will be on the line for 2014 in her second year as assistant head twirler.

“Ashleigh’s knowledge of twirling mechanics, how to teach and her ability to critique problems is astute,” said grandmother Pat. Ashleigh said being a TOJ “means the world to me.”

She began her college career at another Texas university but left at the encouragement of Candice Curbo ’04, a former head TOJ and the current choreographer/ sponsor, to come to SFA and try out for the line.

“I consider myself extremely blessed to be a TwirlO-Jack,” Ashleigh said. “When a group of women can practice every day in the summer heat together for hours on end, constructively critique one another, laugh, cry, spend all day every game day together, and still love and care for one another in an unconditional way, it is a pretty special thing. There isn’t another group of women I would want to be making these memories with.”

The entire family remains loyal Lumberjacks, attending football games and other SFA events together, and the women, who also share a bond through their Chi Omega sorority, are still active TOJ volunteers, helping with the Tomorrow’s TOJ Clinic each fall and a Timeless TOJ Camp last summer.

“Our motto is ‘Grace…Poise…Style,’ and I feel like the Twirl-O-Jacks have taught me just that,” Ashleigh said. “Although we are known for grace, poise and style on the field, the organization has taught me how to handle life in the same manner. The Twirl-O-Jacks may be elite twirlers, but the organization has taught us how to be even better women.”

left Pictured (from left) are current SFA Twirl-O-Jack Ashleigh Walton and former TOJs Buffie (Bridges) Walton, Joan (Griffin) Bridges and Pat (Griffin) Bridges.

FALL 2014 21

22 SAWDUST

In the News

BY AMY ROQUEMORE

HE MOST IMPORTANT thing senior CNN editor/producer Chris Hrubesh ’88 says he learned at SFA was not how to operate a camera, conduct an on-air interview or record crystal clear audio. It was to never, ever give up on your dreams.

The lesson came from his TV ad sales instructor Mark Zindler (son of legendary TV personality Marvin Zindler) who Hrubesh says changed his life one class day by sharing a quote from U.S. President Calvin Coolidge. It read, “Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence” and went on to say that not even talent, genius or education is more important than persistence and determination in achieving one’s goals.

That principle has guided Hrubesh throughout his award-winning 25-year career at CNN, beginning with the manner in which he first managed to get hired by the groundbreaking Cable News Network as a naïve 23-year-old with no professional journalism experience.

“I had applied to and been turned down by at least two dozen television stations in Texas because, unlike most of my competition, I didn’t have any internships on my résumé,” Hrubesh recalled. “I was just about to give up working in TV when my aunt revealed that she knew a guy at CNN. He hand-delivered my résumé to numerous CNN managers, but I only received more rejection letters. I never gave up hope, and then one day, my

friend told me about a job opening in the video library.

He warned me the pay was low and the work was mundane, but it would be my foot in the door.”

In a matter of days, Hrubesh had moved to Atlanta, Georgia, and was working as a video archivist at CNN. To supplement his low wages, he also was employed by a temp agency, doing everything from accounting to substitute teaching. Within a year, he was promoted to video journalist at CNN, operating studio cameras and teleprompters. After a short stint at CNN Spanish as a camera operator and video editor, he landed a spot as a video editor for Headline News. In his current position as senior video editor, Hrubesh edits stories daily for CNN, HLN, CNN International, CNN.com and CNN Spanish, occasionally shooting and producing his own stories. He frequently does work for The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer, Jane Velez-Mitchell and Dr. Drew.

“About the only thing that is typical about my day at CNN is I work from 2 to 10 p.m.,” Hrubesh said. “I edit every kind of story from human interest to weather to sports. One of the best parts of my job is that I get to learn something new every single day.”

His work also has introduced him to some of the most famous people on the planet, including four U.S. presidents, Nobel Peace Prize winner Desmond Tutu, poet Maya Angelou, astronaut Buzz Aldrin, musical artists like Jerry Lee Lewis, Elton John, and U2’s Bono, and larger-than-life sports figures, including retired NBA star Shaquille O’Neal and disgraced cycling legend Lance Armstrong.

FALL 2014 23

The greatest part of being in this field is that I get to be an eyewitness to history and go places most people on the planet will never get to see. Whether it’s flying on Air Force 2 with then-Vice President Al Gore or interviewing Priscilla Presley at Graceland, my CNN badge has opened doors that I never dreamed possible.

24 SAWDUST

FALL 2014 25

The person who has influenced Hrubesh most is CNN founder Ted Turner. “Shortly after starting my career at the cable channel, I began to adopt Ted’s views of the world,” he said. “He inspired me to recycle, eat bison and reduce my carbon footprint.”

26 SAWDUST

“The greatest part of being in this field is that I get to be an eyewitness to history and get access to people most will never get to meet,” Hrubesh said. “Whether it’s flying on Air Force 2 with then-Vice President Al Gore or interviewing Priscilla Presley at Graceland, my CNN badge has opened doors that I never dreamed possible.”

A graduate of Alief Elsik High School near Houston, Hrubesh transferred to SFA from another Texas university and briefly studied environmental science before changing his major to communication. He has very fond memories of living in Mays Hall where he served as the dorm’s president his junior year. He said his proudest SFA accomplishment was helping establish a scholarship in memory of two Mays Hall residents, Craig Williams and Robert Maluski, who died in a car crash. The scholarship continues to provide financial assistance to Mays Hall residents.

Hrubesh was a member of the SFA Judo Club and eventually earned his black belt. He also was involved in theatre, appearing in a handful of SFA productions.

While working at SFA-TV2, he anchored the news, produced shows and portrayed “The Wacky Weather Guy,” a television personality of his own creation. It took Hrubesh five and a half years to graduate “because I loved SFA so much,” but he eventually earned his Bachelor of Arts in radio/TV. “At SFA, I was given the freedom and encouragement to write scripts, report, edit, shoot, produce and go on air, whereas many of my colleagues say they weren’t allowed to touch a camera until their senior year of college. I felt very confident from the time I got here in my shooting and editing skills and was far more experienced than most of my entry-level colleagues at CNN.” He had to rely heavily on his SFA training – and his favorite Calvin Coolidge quote – when he was asked to travel to Saudi Arabia to help cover the Gulf War for CNN in 1991. It was his first international trip, and it almost didn’t happen because of a last-minute problem with his passport and then an unfortunate misunderstanding that resulted in him spending several uncomfortable hours in customs with Saudi authorities who spoke only broken English. The war pre-dated cell phones and email, so he was on his own until the issue was resolved, and he eventually joined his colleagues on the ground in the war zone. Soon he was part of a news crew convoy moving into Kuwait past burning oil fires, an experience Hrubesh described as “dangerous, exhilarating and surreal” for a young journalist.

He has since traveled to a total of 25 countries on four continents in a career that has seen its share of danger. He has been robbed at gunpoint by teenagers toting AK-47s in Somalia, slept in a gas mask under threat of chemical attack in the Middle East and felt a sniper’s bullet ricochet off his borrowed helmet while driving a Jeep in Sarajevo.

“At this point in my career, I prefer to stay warm, safe and dry most of the time,” Hrubesh said. The ma-

jority of his work day is now spent in his favorite editing bay at CNN Headquarters. The specially designed work space allows him to stand while editing, something he requested after working on many CNN stories that explained the health dangers of sitting all day.

Stateside, Hrubesh has been on location at numerous news-making events, including the sensational criminal trials of O.J. Simpson, Jodi Arias and Conrad Murray. He has helped CNN cover four presidential elections and countless other political news stories, including, most recently, President Obama’s 2014 State of the Union Address.

The “gut-wrenching” stories following 9-11 were by far the most difficult for Hrubesh to work on, he said. “I was at work when the towers were hit and watched in horror like the rest of America. I drove up to New York and witnessed the Pentagon on fire along the way. Less than 24 hours after the towers fell, I reached Ground Zero on foot with my colleagues. I will never forget the destruction. I remember my reporter breaking down and crying in the middle of a live report. I just pulled my baseball cap over my face and cried quietly.”

Hrubesh was part of a CNN team that earned an Emmy Award in 1993 for its coverage of the U.S. invasion of Somalia to restore order and help food aid reach millions in the African nation who were starving.

The winning programming included live coverage of U.S. Marines landing in Mogadishu, where he was working as a sound technician, producer and editor. In 2005, Hrubesh earned a Peabody Award for his contribution to CNN’s coverage of Hurricane Katrina. He worked on dozens of stories in New Orleans and Biloxi, Mississippi, in the aftermath of that devastating storm.

Hrubesh lives in a century-old converted John Deere factory loft in Atlanta, just a few blocks from CNN Headquarters. He loves the city but also enjoys traveling and learning about new places and cultures. His favorite travel companion is his 14-year-old son, Christopher.

An avid hiker and cyclist, Hrubesh is passionate about alternative energy and conserving resources. He owns

two electric cars and is an active volunteer with Trees Atlanta, spending much of his free time on weekends planting, pruning and watering trees downtown. He says if he didn’t work for CNN he would own a business that specialized in helping the environment.

“I am very fortunate to live and work in Atlanta, a great city that is rapidly growing and prospering,” Hrubesh said. “And I have been incredibly grateful to CNN for allowing me to do this job that I love for so long.

“Even when I haven’t been physically present at the scene of the story, I have been transported to every corner of the world through the amazing images I get to see and work with every day. It could be a kitten being rescued from a tree or a military battle or election that changes the course of history. Either way, I’m there. I get to see it all.”

FALL 2014 27

ATHLETICS

28 SAWDUST

Driving Jacks President Karissa Juhre, right, and Vice President Liz Malone

When student Amy Shields was tragically killed in a car wreck involving alcohol in 2004, her idea for a safe ride program at SFA might easily have been forgotten.

Instead, a handful of persistent friends made it their mission to carry those plans forward in her memory. >

BY AMY ROQUEMORE

FALL 2014 29

CAMPUS NEWS

Driving Jacks PARTNERS WITH ENTERPRISE RENT-A-CAR AND Safe Ride Programs United, a national organization providing resources, support and networking for safe ride programs on college campuses nationwide.

EN YEARS AFTER Shields’ passing, Driving Jacks is a thriving SFA organization that has provided more than 22,350 safe rides home for university students and other members of the Nacogdoches community. The group’s mission remains closely aligned with Shields’ original vision: to provide free, safe rides home – no questions asked.

Funded entirely through private donations and local sponsorships, Driving Jacks operates every Thursday, Friday and Saturday night during long semesters. Up to 120 SFA students of all ages, majors and backgrounds volunteer for the program each year, providing between 100 and 150 rides on a typical fall or spring weekend.

“I have been a part of Driving Jacks since my first semester at SFA, and I have met a lot of close friends through this organization,” said President Karissa Juhre, a senior marketing major from Midlothian. “We have a lot of fun, and, over the years, Driving Jacks has become a very important part of my life. But the best part is the feeling I get from giving back to the community and helping an organization that truly saves lives.”

About 20 student volunteers are needed to run the program nightly, with some serving as drivers, navigators, phone operators and logistics coordinators. Others, called “shields” in honor of the program’s first advocate, visit local bars and other hotspots

30 SAWDUST

wearing their trademark lime green T-shirts and passing out fliers reminding everyone the free service is just a phone call away.

The service relies on vehicles provided through a special agreement with Enterprise Rent-A-Car, which supports similar safe ride programs across the country.

Driving Jacks also is part of Safe Ride Programs United, a national organization providing resources, support and networking for safe ride programs on college campuses nationwide.

Nacogdoches Police Chief Jim Sevey said Driving Jacks is an important part of the city’s comprehensive traffic safety plan, which has reduced the total number of accidents by 37 percent in the past six years.

“It’s impossible to say how many accidents have been prevented by Driving Jacks – How many times has a burglar not broken into your home because you locked your door? But the program is extremely beneficial, first in just making people aware that if you overindulge, you have an alternative to getting behind the wheel,” Sevey said. “From a prevention standpoint, Driving Jacks obviously takes a large number of impaired drivers who might otherwise cause accidents off the road.”

The group’s co-advisers, Brittany Fish ’12 and Erin Childress ’09 & ’11, both were active members of Driving Jacks as SFA students. They now work full time for the university – Fish as an academic adviser and Childress as a biology lab coordinator – while serving as 0helpful links between the university and Driving Jacks’ elected officers.

All Driving Jacks’ student volunteers are vetted through a unique interview process and receive extensive training before starting work, the advisers said.

Safety is emphasized above all else in the training, from insisting all seatbelts are fastened to learning to recognize and respond to signs of alcohol poisoning.

(Anyone exhibiting symptoms of alcohol poisoning is immediately driven to the hospital.)

ALUMNI NEWS

Also critical to the organization’s success is the nonjudgmental aspect of the service, said Driving Jacks Vice President Liz Malone, a junior nursing major from Melissa, Texas. Passengers are not required to give their names, and Driving Jacks volunteers do not refuse rides to anyone in need, regardless of circumstances.

“That means when I am in my lime green shirt, I am there to take care of others, and I do not discriminate whatsoever,” Malone said. “There is absolutely no judgment if someone is under age, if they are acting crazy, if they are upset. We are not here to tell people they shouldn’t drink. That is their decision. But if you feel you should not be driving or even walking home, our job is to get you home safely – simple as that.”

Dr. Adam Peck, SFA dean of students, said Driving Jacks provides an extraordinary opportunity for student service and leadership.

“I am perpetually amazed by the amount of time, energy and talent our Driving Jacks put into keeping their fellow Lumberjacks safe,” he said. “I sleep more easily at night knowing this group is out there helping students make good decisions for their safety and for the safety of the community.”

Like most current Driving Jacks members, Malone never knew Shields personally, but she thinks of her each time she puts on the lime green Driving Jacks T-shirt.

“Our main goal will always be to carry Amy’s legacy forward, and her memory is still at the forefront of everything we do.”

Visit drivingjacks.org to learn how you can help support the Driving Jacks program at SFA.

if you feel you should not be driving or even walking home, our job is to get you home safely – simple as that.

-LIZ MALONE, driving Jacks officer FALL 2014 31

ALUMNI NEWS

ASSISTANT DIRECTOR NAMED

HEATHER HAWKINS ’00 joined the SFA Alumni Association staff as assistant director in July. She earned her SFA degree in journalism, minoring in graphic design, and previously worked in commercial insurance for more than 11 years as an account and stewardship manager at BancorpSouth Insurance Services Inc. and Joe Max Green Insurance.

Hawkins will be helping drive growth of Alumni Association membership through acquisition, retention and segmentation efforts. She also will be developing and directing the office’s marketing and communication efforts and working with other members of the alumni relations team to plan events.

She is an active member of Nacogdoches Junior Forum, serving on several committees and chairing Holiday in the Pines in 2013.

She also served as co-chair for the Relay for Life of Nacogdoches County benefitting the American Cancer Society in 2011 and 2012. She has been a United Way volunteer since 2012 and was a member of the 2011 Leadership Nacogdoches class.

Hawkins and her husband, Erik, are proud parents of a newborn son, Owen, a member of the future SFA Class of 2036.

TWO SFA ALUMNAE have joined the SFA Alumni Association staff. Hannah Franks ’13, accountant, is FRANKS excited to continue her involvement with her alma mater. She is working toward a Master of Professional Accountancy and hopes to become a certified public accountant.

Amie Morton ’09 & ’11, alumni scholarship coordinator, says one of the best parts of her job is “working for a university I have so much passion for!”

Morton also teaches public speaking at SFA as an adjunct instructor.

MORTON

32 SAWDUST

2013

Tell us what you think.

CAMPUS NEWS

FA L L

BRAD MAULE ’74 Professional Actor, SFA Lecturer

T H E MAG A ZI NE OF T H E S FA A LU M NI AS S OC IAT IO N & S TE PH EN F. AUS T I N STAT E UN IVE RS IT Y

T H E M A G A Z I N E O F T H E S FA A L U M N I A S S O C I AT I O N & S T E P H E N F. A U S T I N S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y

SUMMER 2013

FEA TURES

WEST TRAGEDY | SUMMER READING | BIOTECHNOLOGY RESEARCH

As part of our continuous effort to improve Sawdust, we are conducting an online survey to gain information about the magazine and its readers. Thank you for helping make Sawdust a better publication.

90

TH ANNIVERSARY ISSUE

CELEBRATIONS TO HONOR TRADITION & PROGRESS

HOPE & FOOTBALL ONE PLAYER’S INSPIRATIONAL STORY

LUMBERJACK BAND THE SOUNDTRACK TO SFA’S STORY FALL 2013

i

GRADS JOIN ALUMNI STAFF

sfasu.edu/sawdust/survey

FROM THE ASSOCIATION

I

N THE SUMMER Sawdust I reported that your Alumni Association, in partnership with the university, is seeking to improve efforts to engage alumni and friends and provide better services to you and our alma mater. In April, we began exploring strategies to accomplish these goals and soon realized we needed to reorganize some committees, as well as add to and revise existing programs. We have sought input from alumni, faculty and staff members, community leaders, and consultants, and we also have reviewed programs at other universities.

To be more in line with our peer institutions, SFA needs to build closer relationships with approximately 50 percent more alumni and friends. The Alumni Association board strongly believes that the best way to achieve this goal is by focusing on increased alumni engagement. We also have learned that our scholarships must become more competitive by building a broader donation base and by providing more undesignated funds for scholarships.

We have been encouraged by the positive response to our early steps in this new direction. Teaming with the SFA offices of development and marketing communications already has improved communication and provided access to key resources that will help us meet our future goals. We have heard from many association members who say they embrace this new direction, and response from SFA faculty members has been extremely positive, as well.

Alumni also are telling us they are grateful that the recent “Lumberjacks Make Great” advertising campaign has raised SFA’s visibility where they live. The new marketing push has boosted their pride and interest in SFA, and they are eager to get back to campus and get involved. We are seeking ways to nurture that newfound pride by improving services and events so that they better meet the needs and interests of our alumni. Your input is important to us; let us know what you want.

Fall is a great time to visit SFA, as opportunities to renew friendships and network with other alumni abound. Attending an athletic event is a great place to start! We had historic seasons in both men’s and women’s basketball last year, and excitement continues to build for those programs. We also are looking forward to the first season under new head football coach Clint Conque. Please make plans to tailgate with us at Alumni Corner at all home football games this fall. I encourage you to support all our SFA athletic teams by attending games – both home and away – and also to take advantage of the numerous concerts, plays and other special events hosted annually by the university. Don’t hesitate to call the alumni office if we can help you plan your visit to campus.

In closing, I want to remind you to wear your SFA purple with pride. Doing so often leads to comments or questions about our alma mater, creating prime opportunities to share information with alumni or families of prospective Lumberjacks. SFA pride is contagious; don’t keep it to yourself!

SFA pride is contagious; don’t keep it to yourself!

Mike Harbordt ’63 President, SFA Alumni Association

SFA ALUMNI ASSOCIATION OFFICERS Mike Harbordt ’63, Nacogdoches president Karen Gantt ’95, McKinney president-elect Curtis Sparks ’85, Tyler past president ASSOCIATION BOARD Charlotte Ashcraft ’80, Nacogdoches Don Cox ’71 & ’76, Nacogdoches Jeremy Cleverly ’98 Mansfield Robin Dawley ’77, Nacogdoches Bob Francis ’78, Bullard Doris Havard, Nacogdoches James Hawkins ’83, Silsbee Ron Hunt ’91 & ’94, McKinney David Madrid ’02, Bossier City, La. Justin McFaul ’04, Gilmer Phillip Scherrer ’99, Frisco Erika Tolar ’02, Spring Steve Whitbeck ’75, Nacogdoches Bob Williams ’70, Dallas Chris Woelfel ’95, Kingwood SFA ALUMNI FOUNDATION GOVERNORS Curtis Sparks ’85, Tyler - chairman Lewie Byers ’68, Rusk Ford Cartwright ’69, Lufkin Rick Couvillon ’85, Houston Shirley Crawford ’58 & ’70, Henderson Stephen Greak ’92, Lufkin James Hamilton ’77, Porter Bill Roberds ’75, Dallas Mike Harbordt ’63, Nacogdoches ASSOCIATION STAFF Craig Turnage ’00 & ’05 executive director of alumni relations Heather Hawkins ’00 assistant director of alumni relations Katy Crawford assistant to the executive director of alumni relations Samantha Mora ’08 director of events and engagement Alicia Roland Chatman gifts and records specialist Amie Morton ’09 & ’11 scholarship coordinator Derek Snyder ’01 communications and marketing coordinator Hannah Franks ’13 accountant

FALL 2014 33

ALUMNI NEWS

Tailgate with the SFA Alumni Association at Alumni Corner for seven home games!

FREE for all Alumni Association members New to this year’s tailgate are lawn games like washers, oversized Jenga, ladder ball, cornhole and more! Catch college sports at the Suddenlink “Bundle U” viewing lounge with friends before the game while enjoying tasty tailgate food and beverages.

SFA vs. Incarnate Word 6 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 6 SFA vs. Texas A&M Commerce 6 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 13 SFA vs. Weber State 6 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 20

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

THURSDAY, OCT. 9 Homecoming Kick-off Celebration 5:30 - 7 p.m.

Jack Backers College Bookstore Join the SFA Alumni Association and fellow Lumberjacks as we kick off Homecoming and recognize our sponsors’ support with complimentary Lumberjack-themed appetizers, complimentary purple beer and other refreshing beverages, door prizes, live music and the most anticipated START of our HOMECOMING ONLINE AUCTION! FREE for everyone to attend!

SFA vs. Central Arkansas 6 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 4 SFA vs. Southeastern Louisiana 3 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 25 SFA vs. Abilene Christian 3 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 15 SFA vs. Northwestern State 3 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 22 Tent opens three hours prior to kickoff.

FREE for all Alumni Association members. Nonmembers can gain access to Alumni Corner by purchasing a single-game tailgate pass online at sfaalumni.com or at the tent.

SFA Alumni Association members – FREE Non-members – $15 Kids 10 and younger – $5 (with an adult) Kids 5 and younger – free (with an adult)

34 SAWDUST

FRIDAY, OCT. 24 SFA Homecoming Golf Tournament Registration: 9:30 a.m. Start: 11 a.m.

Piney Woods Country Club Four-player scramble. Players may enter as a single or form their own team. Entry fee includes tournament play, golf cart, refreshments, box lunch and post tournament hors d’oeuvres. Tee gifts to all contestants, great prizes for all gross and net winners, and Closest to Hole prizes will also be awarded. $150 individual; $600 team

Lumberjack Homecoming Disc Golf Tournament 2 - 5 p.m.

Pecan Park Doubles, Best Shot format. Beginner, intermediate and advanced divisions. Prize packages will be given to the top three finishing teams in each division. Proceeds benefit the Dr. Raymond Lee Worsham Scholarship. $20/player; $10/player for SFA students.

Annual Alumni Association Membership Meeting 4:30 - 5 p.m.

Tracie D. Pearman Alumni Center Torchlight Parade and Bonfire Torchlight Parade: 8:30 p.m., Stephen F. Austin Statue, SFA Campus Bonfire: 9 p.m., Intramural Fields Show your school spirit as SFA alumni, students and the Nacogdoches community gather to cheer on the SFA football team, cheerleaders, dance team and band! The Alumni Association will be on hand passing out FREE drinks and 3D fireworks glasses, so be sure to stop by our purple tent. Fireworks and a special performance by the Bart Crow Band will conclude the night’s festivities!

Homecoming Online Auction biddingforgood.com/sfahomecoming 6 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 9, to 9 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 26 Visit biddingforgood.com/sfahomecoming to bid on your favorite items and help raise money for SFA scholarships! Winning bidders designate 50 percent of the proceeds to the scholarship(s) of their choice.

SATURDAY, OCT. 25 Homecoming Flap “Jack” Breakfast 8 - 10 a.m.

Downtown Nacogdoches Square (in front of City Hall) Enjoy breakfast like a Lumberjack with flapjacks cooked by the Nacogdoches Kiwanis Club. Decorate your flapjacks with purple goodies, grab a Lumberjack coloring book, take photos with the SFA Lumberjack, Ladyjack, and spirit teams, and listen to live music on the downtown stage. $6 per person.

5th Annual Lumberjack Homecoming Certified 5K Registration: 7:30 a.m. Start: 8 a.m.

Parking and Bus Pick-Up: Regions Bank Parking Lot, 300 E. Main St. Shuttles from downtown: 6:45 – 7:45 a.m.

Race Start: Lower Rec Center Parking Lot near Schlief Tennis Complex, corner of Wilson and Starr Start your day with a run around the SFA campus and beautiful Nacogdoches! All participants will receive a free flapjack breakfast downtown, and the first 100 participants are guaranteed a T-shirt! Prizes awarded to best overall male and female times, the top three male and females in each age group, and to the largest group/organization registered! Show your “Lumberjack Pride” by wearing purple or dressing like a Lumberjack! Race will end downtown, so a shuttle bus will pick up participants parking at Regions Bank. Proceeds benefit the Dr. Raymond Lee Worsham Scholarship. Pre-registration: $25 / $20 for students; Regular: $35 / $30 for students.

Homecoming Parade 10 a.m.

Downtown Nacogdoches Celebrate SFA and enjoy themed floats, music and pageantry. FREE for all to attend. This year’s theme is “Storybooks and Fairytales – Where Your Story Begins!”

BENEFIT TICKET DRAWING Winner directs $10,000 to the scholarship of his or her choice!

Noon / Alumni Corner Tickets $100

Alumni Corner Noon - Kickoff Corner of Raguet and Hayter Join the SFA Alumni Association for delicious tailgate food, beverages and the Suddenlink “Bundle U” Viewing Lounge.

NEW this year are lawn games! FREE for Alumni Association members; $15 for non-members; $5 Kids 6-10 years (with adult) (*Child Passes will be available for purchase at the door); FREE for kids younger than 5 (with adult).

Junior Jacks Kids Zone Noon - Kickoff Corner of Raguet and Hayter Bounce houses, face painting, games…FREE and fun for kids of all ages! The first 100 kids receive a FREE “Future SFA Alumni” T-shirt!

Duck Dash Noon Watch rubber ducks race to win cool prizes and raise money for scholarships. $5 each, $25 for 6. The top-selling organization will receive $500 to the scholarship of its choice. Buy ducks online at sfaalumni.com.

Homecoming Football Game 3 p.m.

Homer Bryce Stadium, SFA Campus Cheer on the Lumberjacks as they face off against Southeastern Louisiana! Visit www.sfajacks.com to purchase game tickets or call (936) 468-JACK (5225).

TICKETS & INFO Purchase tickets and register for events at sfaalumni.com or call (800) 765-1534.

FALL 2014 35

STEPHEN F. AUSTIN STATE UNIVERSITY ALUMNI ASSOCIATION

2014 SFA Alumni Honorees DISTINGUISHED ALUMNUS Lou Ann Richardson ’83 Dallas Executive Vice President, Wells Fargo

DISTINGUISHED ALUMNUS Kathryn Robertson ’57 & ’83 Nacogdoches Retired Educator

DISTINGUISHED ALUMNUS E. Russell (“Rusty”) Braziel ’72 & ’73 Houston President and Chief Executive Officer, RBN Energy LLC OUTSTANDING YOUNG ALUMNI Amanda (Williams) Robbins ’05 Houston Director of Talent Acquisition and Retention, Mattress Firm DISTINGUISHED PROFESSOR Dr. Treba Marsh ’73 & ’81 Lufkin SFA Professor of Accountancy

36 SAWDUST

REUNIONS DRIVING JACKS ALUMNI NIGHT Friday, Oct. 24 sfaalumni.com/events

Athletic Trainers Reunion

SFA ROTC REUNION Saturday, Nov. 15 SFA Campus sfaaalumni.com/event/ROTC2014 Join the SFA ROTC as we reconnect with fellow SFA ROTC alumni, current cadets and instructors/cadre.

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS 9 to 10 a.m. Donuts and coffee with ROTC cadets and staff members at the Military Science Building 10 to 11:30 a.m. SFA campus tours provided by current ROTC cadets Noon to 1 p.m. Lunch 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. Tailgate party at Alumni Corner, located at the corner of Hayter and Raguet Streets 3 p.m. SFA football game at Homer Bryce Stadium.

Special seating and recognition during game.

COST: $35 per person/$50 per couple Registration fee includes breakfast, tour, lunch, Alumni Corner pass and game ticket. All proceeds support the ROTC scholarship program.

SPONSORSHIP LEVELS: Bronze - $100* Listing on event page Listing on event emails Listing in Sawdust Listing in SFA Alumni eNewsletter Large banner listing all sponsors displayed at lunch Silver - $250* All benefits above, plus: Listing on social media posts Table toppers at breakfast and lunch Special banner at lunch check-in table Gold - $500* All benefits above, plus: A golf sign at the ROTC building at the breakfast and check in *Recognition throughout the day for sponsors.

All sponsorships support the ROTC scholarship program. Sponsorship at any level does not include ticket(s) to the ROTC Reunion.

LODGING Hampton Inn & Suites 3625 South St., Nacogdoches, TX 75961 For reservations and directions, call (936) 5609901. Be sure to ask for a room in the "ROTC" room block.

CLASS OF 1964 50 YEAR REUNION Saturday, Nov. 22 SFA Campus sfaalumni.com/event/1964 Reunion FREE for Class of 1964 members and guests.

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS 7:30 a.m. Breakfast for the Class of 1963 - We will have a full breakfast buffet in the Tracie D. Pearman Alumni Center where you will be presented with your Golden Anniversary Diploma by Dr. Baker Pattillo. After breakfast, we will gather to take a class photo. Be sure to wear purple to the breakfast.

9:30 a.m. SFA Campus Tour - Tour the SFA campus by golf cart! Members of the SFA Jack Walkers will drive you around campus and discuss points of interest. A walking tour of the Baker Pattillo Student Center also will be available while you are waiting to take the campus tour. FREE Noon – 2:30 p.m. Alumni Corner – Join fellow alumni at Alumni Corner where football fans tailgate before the game. Enjoy delicious tailgate fare and beverages (beer, soft drinks and water) as well as the new Suddenlink “Bundle U” Viewing Lounge, where you can watch other college games before SFA faces off against Northwestern State. There will be a reserved seating area at Alumni Corner for the Class of ’64.

Shuttle Service: A parking pass and map will be in the packet you pick up at breakfast. A golf cart will shuttle you from the parking lot to Alumni Corner and from there to the stadium for the game.

3 p.m. SFA vs. Northwestern State - Sit with your classmates and watch the Lumberjacks battle Northwestern State for Chief Caddo at Homer Bryce Stadium. There will be a reserved seating area at the game for the Class of ’64.

LODGING Hampton Inn & Suites 3625 South St., Nacogdoches, TX 75961 For reservations and directions, call (936) 5609901. Be sure to ask for a room in the “SFA Class of 1964" room block.

ALUMNI NEWS

September

13

LETTERMAN’S DAY Alumni Corner Tailgate 3 p.m., corner of Hayter and Raguet streets in front of ECRC

20

September

PARENTS DAY Alumni Corner Tailgate 3 p.m., corner of Hayter and Raguet streets in front of ECRC

SFA VS. TEXAS A&M-COMMERCE SFA VS. WEBER STATE 6 p.m., Homer Bryce Stadium 6 p.m., Homer Bryce Stadium

October

24

DRIVING JACKS ALUMNI NIGHT Nacogdoches For more information, visit sfaalumni.com/event/DrivingJacks.

October

24-25

22

ALUMNI CORNER TAILGATE Noon, corner of Hayter and Raguet streets in front of ECRC SFA VS. NORTHWESTERN STATE 3 p.m., Homer Bryce Stadium

- November 1

HOMECOMING Alumni Corner Tailgate, Parade, Golf and Frisbee Golf Tournaments, Certified 5K Run, Bonfire, Duck Dash, Homecoming Game

BATTLE OF THE PINEY WOODS Oct. 31, 6-8 p.m., Reception, Westin Oaks at the Galleria, Houston

ALUMNI CORNER TAILGATE Noon, corner of Hayter and Raguet streets in front of ECRC

3 p.m. Game, NRG Stadium No cost to attend reception or tailgate. Purchase game tickets at sfajacks.com.

SFA VS. SOUTHEASTERN LOUISIANA 3 p.m., Homer Bryce Stadium November

October 31

Nov. 1, 11 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.

Tailgate, NRG Stadium

4

October ALUMNI CORNER TAILGATE 3 p.m., corner of Hayter and Raguet streets in front of ECRC

October

13-17

SFA RING WEEK Tracie D. Pearman Alumni Center 300 E. Vista Drive, Nacogdoches

SFA VS. CENTRAL ARKANSAS 6 p.m., Homer Bryce Stadium

November

15

ALUMNI CORNER TAILGATE Noon, corner of Hayter and Raguet streets in front of ECRC

November

18

ESPN COLLEGE HOOPS TIP-OFF MARATHON SFA vs. Northern Iowa 8 a.m., William R. Johnson Coliseum The game will be telecast live on ESPN2.

SFA VS. ABILENE CHRISTIAN 3 p.m., Homer Bryce Stadium ROTC REUNION Nacogdoches For more information, visit sfaalumni.com/event/ROTC.

December

2

SENIOR SEND-OFF 5:30 – 7 p.m.

Banita Creek Hall, Nacogdoches sfaalumni.com/event/ Senior2014

5

December THE BIG DIP Fall Ring Ceremony Noon, Grand Ballroom, Baker Pattillo Student Center, SFA campus 2014 FALL TEACHER JOB FAIR 9:30 a.m. - noon, Norton HPE Complex, SFA campus For more info., contact Career Services at (936) 468-3305 or careerservices@sfasu.edu.

CLASS OF 1964 50-YEAR REUNION Nacogdoches For more information, visit sfaalumni.com/event/1964.

Times and dates are subject to change. Visit sfaalumni.com for the most recent information.

FALL 2014 37

CAMPUS NEWS SCHOLARSHIPS

How to Endow a Scholarship

Make the decision to help.

Future SFA alumni need your financial assistance. Plan your contribution today.

Name your scholarship.

You may name your scholarship after yourself or in memory or in honor of someone

Determine eligibility criteria.

You may include college major or GPA or restrict the scholarship to certain types of recipients.

Complete an endowment packet.

You may download and submit documents online at sfaalumni.com or request documents via U.S. mail.

Contact us.

(936) 468-3407 or (800) 765-1534 sfaalumni@sfasu.edu

THE HUBERT A. “BUTCH” ALMANY BAND SCHOLARSHIP

benefits students studying music education and was endowed in memory of Hubert A. “Butch” Almany by his wife of 46 years, Naomi. Almany grew up in Nacogdoches, graduating from high school in 1960, and attended SFA, receiving a Bachelor of Science in music in 1965 and a Master of Education in 1968.

At SFA, he served as president of the Band Alumni Association; was inducted into the Band Directors Hall of Fame in 1988; received the Distinguished Alumni Award in 1990; and, in 1993, received the Outstanding Music Alumnus Award. He also received the Lifetime Meritorious Achievement Award from the Texas Bandmasters Association in 2002; was inducted into the Phi Beta Mu Band Directors Hall of Fame in 2008; and was selected as the 2009 TBA Texas Bandmaster of the Year.

According to Naomi, his most cherished honor occurred in 1986 when the newly constructed band hall for Lindale High School was named in his honor – the Hubert A. Almany Band Hall.

The National Association of Band Directors established a NAMMB Band Director Hall of Fame in 2013, naming Almany as its first inductee.

THE CORINNE BOSWELL COCHRAN NURSING SCHOLARSHIP has

been established for students studying in the Richard and Lucille DeWitt School of Nursing.

This scholarship was endowed in memory of Tommie Corinne Boswell Cochran by her son and daughter-in-law.

Cochran was born Feb. 14, 1917, in Bodcaw, Arkansas.

She graduated high school from Providence Academy in Alexandria, Louisiana. In 1937, she received her registered nursing degree from St. Joseph’s Hospital School of Nursing in Hot Springs, Arkansas.

Cochran began her nursing career at Henderson Memorial Hospital. She met and married her husband, Charles Young Cochran, in December 1941.

During World War II, Cochran served in hospitals across the country, including South Carolina and Oregon. She enjoyed being a nurse for local doctors around the Henderson area, finishing her career as a private duty nurse.

THE MARGIELAYNE COLE KAMMEYER NURSING SCHOLARSHIP has

been established for students studying in the Richard and Lucille DeWitt School of Nursing.

This scholarship was endowed in memory of Margielayne Cole Kammeyer by her daughter, Louise Kammeyer Cochran ’70 and ’71, and sonin-law. Kammeyer received her registered nursing degree from Bethany Hospital and Nursing School in Kansas City, Kansas, in 1947.

A graduate of Flippin High School in Flippin, Arkansas, Kammeyer trained as a member of the World War II Cadet Nurse Corps from 1943 to 1947. The corps trained ladies to replace nurses from stateside hospitals who were serving overseas. During her time in the corps, she met Robert Alvin Kammeyer, and the two wed in June 1947. They have four children.

In 1950, Kammeyer became a stay-at-home mother. She devoted her energy to raising her children, teaching Sunday School, leading Scout troops and coordinating neighborhood walks to raise funds for various charities, including the March of Dimes. Three of her children, Louise, Rose and Keith, attended SFA in the late 1970s.

Your gift to support SFA students secures educational opportunities for generations of future Lumberjacks.

Contact us to create your legacy today.

SFA Alumni Association, P.O. Box 6096, SFA Station, Nacogdoches, TX 75962-6096 Phone: 936.468.3407 | Toll Free: 800.765.1534 | Fax: 936.468.1007 Website: sfaalumni.com | Email: alumni@sfasu.edu

38 SAWDUST

Photo courtesy of Wildlife on the Move.

’JACKS OF ALL TRADES

K.C. Rudy ’73 & ’75 and Eric Brittingham ’93 Wildlife on the Move

WHILE MOST PEOPLE try to keep their distance from snakes, spiders, cockroaches and creatures with similarly bad raps, SFA alumni K.C. Rudy and Eric Brittingham keep them closeby to support and facilitate a mutually shared passion – wildlife education.

As founders of Dallas-based Wildlife on the Move, Rudy and Brittingham have been working together since 2005 to spread knowledge and positive messages about wildlife and the natural world. In the last nine years, they have traveled 30,000 miles and given 800 wildlife presentations to more than 87,000 people throughout Texas and beyond.

The WOTM philosophy contains the essence of the company’s approach: “Kids learn best when they are intrigued, challenged, involved and entertained.” Toward that end, Rudy and Brittingham take audiences of all ages on creative educational journeys, capturing their imaginations by delivering fun facts and entertaining stories about various animals, including snakes, lizards, spiders, turtles, tortoises and hedgehogs.

“I load up five to seven critters that fit the program presentation theme into my SUV and hit the road for a show,” Brittingham, vice president of WOTM, said. “I will have the audience join me on a worldwide adventure, as we use an inflatable globe to show where each critter comes from while displaying the specific live animal.”

The largest snake in the WOTM collection is a 17-foot Burmese Python named W.W., and the smallest is a 10-inch Kenyan Sand Boa named “Punkin.”

Presentations offer hands-on experiences for some, as audience members often are selected to touch or hold animals to help dispel popular myths and boost comfort levels and respect for the creatures.

To ensure all audience members have a chance to interact, a python or boa constrictor is often displayed at the end of each program so each visitor can touch and get a close-up view of the snake on the way out.

Having recently concluded a successful Summer Reading Club Tour of various Texas libraries, Rudy and Brittingham are now ramping up programs at both public and private schools as the busy fall season arrives. Future plans include expanding WOTM’s reach outside Texas.

“Our main goal will always be to connect as many young people with the natural world as possible,” said Rudy, president of the company. “I still find what we are doing immensely rewarding, and I plan on doing this as long as I can.”

While WOTM is nearing its 10th anniversary, Rudy and Brittingham have been working together much longer, since the early ’90s. At that time, Brittingham was hired to work as the liaison between Arlington ISD and the River Legacy Foundation, where Rudy was working as the education director.

Through the years, their shared interests and intertwined professional paths led them both to work at the Dallas Zoo’s Lacerte Family Children’s Zoo. They remained colleagues there until finally deciding to join their strengths and experience in a new venture.

Having conducted hundreds of programs, field trips, nature walks and outreach programs between the two of them, the men were able to use their experience and expertise to form their own company, meeting a need while doing what they love.

“We collaboratively decided in 2005 that it was time to take our experience and mission into our own hands and start Wildlife on the Move to meet the ever-growing needs of schools, day cares, churches, libraries and festivals to have quality animal outreach programming,” Brittingham said.

Both men say they have enjoyed a strong, productive working relationship throughout the years.

“I wholeheartedly believe that we complement and provide a great balance for one another – each of our individual strengths sharpens the other,” Brittingham said.

The two also note the importance of the common educational foundation they received at SFA. Rudy earned a bachelor’s degree in both biology and math, followed by a master’s degree in biology. Brittingham received a bachelor’s degree in elementary education (K-8.)

“Our personal and professional relationships have always been undergirded with the commonality of the Lumberjack spirit, our focus on a mission, our dedication and our professionalism, as well as our desire to educate in an entertaining way to reach kids and help them grow,” Brittingham said.

For more information about Wildlife on the Move, visit wildlifeonthemove.com.

–STEPHANIE BALLARD

FALL 2014 39

CLASS NOTES

Pictured during a recent tour of the campus are, from left, Chris Simpson Fox ’71, Teri Cerwinske Knouse ’72, Jean Yates Bunyard ’71, Vicki Jackson ’72 and Nancy Folger Malone ’72. The women met as freshmen in 1968 when they moved into Dorm 15, which was carefully monitored by dorm mother Dorothy Kent.

The group of friends has been getting together annually for the last five years to reminisce about their college days at SFA. The alumnae fondly remember strict curfews and nightly bed checks; sending postcards home to let their parents know they were leaving town for the weekend; no showers or phone calls allowed after 11 p.m.; 7 a.m. classes; cooking with a popcorn popper in the dorm rooms; and being required to wear dresses in the lobby on Sundays.

“On our last gathering in May, we toured the campus once again,” Knouse said. “Oh, how things have changed!”

1940s

James Campbell ’48 of Center retired from the Shelby Savings Bank Board of Directors.

Alnet “Scotty” Bailess ’49 of Huntington received the Team USA Volleyball 2014 Flo Hyman All Time Great Player Award at the Boyce Banquet in Phoenix prior to the National Open Volleyball Tournament. Bailess presents her own award to SFA’s outstanding volleyball player at the annual Champions Banquet.

1960s

Dr. Tom Haygood ’67, an associate professor of psychology, retired from East Texas Baptist University and now serves the U.S. Air Force as a marriage and family counselor stationed in Yokota, Japan.

40 SAWDUST

Johnny Walker ’68 of Livingston was inducted into the Prairie View University Association of Former Athletes Hall of Fame in San Antonio in July for his efforts to recognize former black athletes in Polk County.

1970s

Lora Hammond Weber ’73 is chair of the Round Rock Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, serving until December 2015.

Teri Cerwinske Knouse ’74 of Lafayette, Louisiana, has retired from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette Child and Family Studies Lab.

Dean of the College of Business and Technology at the University of Texas

In commemoration of his distinguished career at Deloitte, his service as a member of the Nelson Rusche College of Business Advisory Board and his lifelong loyalty to SFA, friends, colleagues and fellow alumni of Mark T. Layton ’74 of Dallas have contributed donations for the naming of the Mark T. Layton East Lobby to be located in the R.E. McGee Business Building at SFA. Layton learned of the honor at his recent retirement reception. The lobby will be formally dedicated later this year. at Tyler, Dr. James Lumpkin ’74, was named an F.M. and Fannie Burke Professor for the college.

Jennifer Sanders ’74 of Waco retired from teaching third grade special education at Hillsboro Intermediate School.

Gordon Booker ’76 is the freshman football and track coach at Longview High School.

Gary Borders ’77 of Mount Pleasant is editor/publisher for the Mount Pleasant Daily Tribune.

Dwight Denman ’78 of Wichita, Kansas, assistant professor of accountancy at Newman University, has been named chair of the Business Division.

JoAnne Brooks ’79 of Pacifica, California, is owner of JoAnne Brooks Designs, a jewelry company.

Some SFA alumni have been working on the reality show Storage Wars Texas. Pictured, from left, are Allie Shields ’09, Will Short ’10, Shannon Milford ’09, Miranda Witherspoon ’09, Kwaku Hemeng ’12, Bil Arscott ’86 and Lauren Chamberlin ’12.

Charles Castle ’79 of Colorado Springs, Colorado, has been appointed by the City Council to serve a second volunteer three-year term on the Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services Advisory Board. Castle also is the board’s liaison to the historic City Auditorium and Meadows Park Community Center.

1980s

Charles “Chuck” Allen ’81 of Grapeland, baritone and director of the Houston County Choral Society, performed at the First Christian Memorial Music Gala in Grapeland.

Phil Smith ’85 of Whitehouse is president of Landmark Title in Tyler.

Leon Aldridge ’89 of Mount Pleasant is vice president at Granite Publications, which purchased the Mount Pleasant Daily Tribune, as well as newspapers in Center, Liberty and Anahuac.

Ed Walker ’87 is director of the Camp and Sport Ministry program for Dallas Baptist University.

Scott Naughton ’89 of Houston is a marketing consultant for WealthVest Marketing.

Kevin McDaniel ’88 is the president of Aviagen North America, a poultry production company based in Huntsville, Alabama.

Chris Watlington ’89 & ’07 of Center was named 2014 Center High School Teacher of the Year.

SFA is well represented on the Texas University Interscholastic League Board of Directors. Members include Dr. Alton Frailey ’83 & ’85, Katy ISD superintendent; Dr. Kay Waggoner ’81 & ’84, Richardson ISD superintendent; and Dr. Russell Marshall ’81, Mabank ISD superintendent.

Dr. Mitzi Perritt ’83, professor of interior design at SFA, was named a Fellow of the Interior Design Educators Council.

The Rev. Andrew Walker Berry ’84 was recognized as an influential member of the African American Pastors of Galveston County, and his clerical robe was displayed at the Rosenthal Library in June.

Steven ’04 and Michelle Seals of Maud, Texas, and their 2-year-old son, Brady, proudly welcomed five new little Lumberjacks into the world March 18. The babies weighed between 2 pounds, 7 ounces and 3 pounds, 6 ounces at birth. After more than four months of special care at Baylor Hospital in Dallas, all of the quintuplets are now home with their parents and big brother.

Pictured, from left, are Gracie Lou, Mia Danielle, big brother Brady, Brant Lee, Rayleigh Ann and Tessa Suzanne. Raleigh was the last of the infants to leave the hospital, joining her brothers and sisters at home in late July. The family reports the babies are doing well and getting bigger and stronger every day.

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CLASS NOTES

Blanca Burciaga ’95 of Fort Worth was appointed by Gov. Rick Perry to the Crime Institute Advisory Council, serving as director of the Victim Assistance Unit of the Tarrant County District Attorney’s Office.

LIFE MEMBERS The SFA Alumni Association would like to thank the following alumni who recently became life members.

We appreciate your support.

7923. Derek Snyder ’01, Nacogdoches 7924. Holli Snyder ’06, Nacogdoches 7925. John F. McEntire ’02, Georgetown 7926. Ruth E. McEntire ’02, Georgetown 7927. April M. Smith ’03, Garland 7928. Bill Neil, San Angelo 7929. Omar Chavez ’14, Nacogdoches 7930. Faye R. Dozier ’78, Spring 7931. Richard J. Williams ’98 , Pasadena 7932. Dr. Treba A. Marsh ’73 & ’81, Lufkin 7933. Wayne M. Wendt, Houston 7934. Sally M. Wendt, Houston 7935. Caitlin M. Dodson ’14,

Flower Mound 7936. Bruce A. Crisler ’91, Austin 7937. Steve Hellmuth, Whitehouse 7938. Linda Rudd, Whitehouse 7939. Rebecca A. Cole ’01, Houston 7941. Joshua R. Barrett ’06, Nacogdoches 7942. Jessica K. Barrett ’07 & ’13, Nacogdoches 7943. Heather D. Verell ’11 & ’13,

Round Rock 7944. Brandon E. McKinney ’12, Nacogdoches 7945. Kathy S. Staudt ’86, Pearland 7946. Rennee L. Pitts ’07, Spring 7947. Meredith M. Chambers ’86, Nacogdoches 7948. Dan Taravella ’91, Nacogdoches 7949. Emily L. Taravella ’98, Nacogdoches 7950. Judge Campbell Cox, Nacogdoches

Brandon and Malina (Meng) Andel ’10 of Ganado announce the May 15 birth of daughter Addison.

1990s

Dr. Craig Sessions ’90 is an orthopedic surgeon at the North Texas Medical Center in Gainesville.

Leo Araguz ’91 of Harlingen was inducted into the Rio Grande Valley Sports Hall of Fame as a football standout on the high school, college and professional levels.

Dr. Stephen Lias ’91, SFA professor and professional composer, was accepted into an artist-in-residency program at Glacier National Park in Montana.

Anthony Falsone ’92 is the athletic performance coordinator and head strength and conditioning coach for the San Antonio Spurs.

Michael Greer ’93, owner of Michael Greer Photography in Western Springs, Illinois, served as juror of the Nacogdoches Photographic Association and Nacogdoches Art League’s “Black and White” open gallery show.

Heather Bailey New ’93 of Dallas is a partner at Bell Nunnally & Martin LLP and was selected as one of D Magazine’s “Best Lawyers in Dallas 2014.”

Heather Morgan ’94 of Sugar Land is principal of Blue Ridge Elementary School at Fort Bend ISD.

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Taft ISD’s Chad Kelly ’95 of Corpus Christi was named Superintendent of the Year by the Education Service Center Region 2.

Malcom Brown ’96 of Center received the Farm Family of the Year Award at the Shelby County Chamber of Commerce banquet.

Aaron De La Torre ’97, athletic coordinator and head football coach at Irving High School, was inducted into the 2014 Irving Athletic Hall of Fame.

U.S. Marine Corps Maj. Alan C. Dinsdale ’99 of Cleburne obtained a Master of Science in management from the Naval Post-Graduate School in Monterrey, California.

Ray Sorrel ’99 is Pasadena’s Police Officer of the Year, an award presented by American Legion Post 521.

2000s

Rachel D. Allen ’05 is marketing director for Ford Nassen in Austin.

Mike Anderson ’05 of Palestine is principal of Landmark High School and area superintendent for Honors Academy schools outside of Dallas.

Cory Blake ’06 of Spring was voted Teacher of the Year in the June issue of Teen Ink magazine. Blake teaches AP human geography and Pre-AP world geography at Klein Oak High School.

Zach Carnley ’06 of Arlington was named the 2014 North Texas Funeral Director Association’s Young Professional of the Year and the 2014 Texas Funeral Director Association’s Young Funeral Professional of the Year. Carnley is the general manager of Emerald Hills Funeral Home and Memorial Park in Kennedale and is married to Courtney Carnley ’07. The couple have a 2-year-old son, Myles.

Ricky Thompson ’06 is the Nacogdoches County Texas AgriLife Extension Service agent.

Dr. Anthony Robinson Jr. ’09 of Orlando, Florida, obtained a doctorate in philosophy leadership from Tennessee Temple University in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

Jami Kalee Shaw ’09 of Kilgore and Charles David Aman of Goldsboro, North Carolina, were married May 10.

Heather Vessels ’09 of Nacogdoches is assistant vice president for Commercial Bank of Texas.

2010s

Rafael Auffant ’04 and Monica Jaramillo ’05 of Houston married June 23.

Alex Meng ’11 and Marie Flores ’11 of Nacogdoches were married July 19.

Rodolfo “Rudy” Becerra ’10 of Nacogdoches, a rehabilitation counseling graduate student, was reappointed to Gov. Rick Perry’s People with Disabilities committee.

Daniel Driver ’10 is the 2014 Center Intermediate School Teacher of the Year.

Jessica Johnson ’10 of Lubbock graduated with honors from Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, earning a doctorate degree in family medicine.

Angela Jeanice Anderson ’11 and Jesse Dee Cruce of Houston were married June 14 in Ashton Gardens in Houston.

Bruno ’13 and Michelle Schwartz Ribeiro ’12 & ’14 of Denton performed as the Ribeiro Piano Duo in the Tin Building Theatre of the Bosque Arts Center.

Josh Taber ’12 of Sanger graduated from the Houston Fire Academy.

Simon Adeniji ’13 is a second lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force.

IN MEMORIAM

Leslie Ann Still Adams of Nacogdoches, June 1

James Paul Maxwell ’71 of Whitehouse, May 23

Betty Sue Collins Biggerstaff ’61 of Nacogdoches, May 30

Nina Johnson McDaniel ’54 of Longview, April 26

Rainey Blaylock of Austin, July 23

Charles “Red” Meitzen, Oct. 26, 2013

Mary Ann Mouser Branch ’92 of Longview, April 27

George Henry Millard Jr. of Nacogdoches, July 9

Charles Albert Brawner II ’69 of McKinney, May 24

Carl Edwin “Bud” Monk Jr. ’41 of Nacogdoches, July 16

Susan Javiera Burris Cavazos ’68 & ’78 of Sugar Land, May 10

Larry Pardue ’78 of Arlington, May 19

Denise Ann Clifton ’91 of Alto, May 13

James David Price ’71 & ’73 of Dallas, June 11

Charles U. Coats of Nacogdoches, July 3

James E. Raney of Nacogdoches, June 21

Linda Ann Dorsett ’87 of Nacogdoches, July 6

Deborah Jean Scott-Hurst ’79 & ’81 of Center, June 19

Dennis Fleming of Nacogdoches, June 1

Maurine Graves Shepherd of Nacogdoches, July 16

Kenneth Edward Foster ’72 of Rusk, June 2

Mary Ann Slagle ’87 of Nacogdoches, May 17

John E. Frederick “Jeff ” Gaston ’76 of Nacogdoches, July 9

Morgan Gary “Monk” Strong of Tyler, June 25

Diane M. Schumacher Greule ’89 of Nacogdoches, June 11

Clois Walker ’48 of Nacogdoches, June 30

Taylor Lee Hall ’10 of Nacogdoches, May 20

Dorothy Diane Weatherly ’52 & ’53 of Richardson, June 5

Perry Honea ’65 of Garrison, July 9

Latham Harrison Wells of Shreveport, Louisiana, May 6

Louise King ’38 of Grand Prarie, July 21 Billy Ruth Davis LeBouf of Sugar Land, July 16

FALL 2014 43

The Official Ring of Stephen F. Austin State University You can still be part of the tradition!

For more information, please visit us at www.theSFAring.com or call 866-BALFOUR

©Balfour 1970–2010, all rights reserved.

44 SAWDUST

C A M 1153-10 13424

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Liberty Mutual is a proud partner of Stephen F. Austin State University For additional information about Liberty Mutual auto insurance and how we're working together to help future students please contact us at 855-323-2150 or visit www.libertymutual.com/qfs-sfaalumni

Auto coverage provided and underwritten by Liberty County Mutual Insurance Company, 2100 Walnut Hill Lane, Irving, TX. Home coverage provided and underwritten by Liberty Insurance Corporation, 175 Berkeley Street, Boston, MA. 12AFF489 2014/01

Help us build a foundation of success by participating in the SFA Walk of Recognition.

Permanently make your mark in the Sesquicentennial Plaza next to the Stephen F. Austin statue by designing a brick inscribed with your personal message. Brick prices are $100, $250, and $500.

Contact the Alumni Center today for more information about how you can help build the foundation of tomorrow’s Lumberjacks.

P.O. Box 6096 - SFA Station Nacogdoches, TX 75962-6096 Office (936) 468-3407 Toll Free 800-765-1534 Fax (936) 468-1007 alumni@sfasu.edu

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FALL 2014 45

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46 SAWDUST

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2014-2015 University Series

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Eugenia Zukerman & Friends Sept. 11 Chamber Orchestra Kremlin Oct. 16 Monty Python’s SPAMALOT

by Eric Idle, John Du Prez & Neil Innes SFA Schools of Theatre and Music 2 p.m. Saturday matinée

Performances and Exhibitions

Los Camperos de Nati Cano Mariachi musicians

Dec. 12

Turtle Island Quartet with Nellie McKay

Jan. 29

Flamenco Vivo Carlotta Santana Feb. 11

SFA Opera 2015 SFA School of Music

April 9-11

Choral Masterworks Concert SFA School of Music

May 8

Nov. 18-22

All performances at 7:30 p.m. in W.M. Turner Auditorium

For season or single event tickets,

For tickets or more information: 936.468.6407 • 888.240.ARTS •call www.finearts.sfasu.edu 930.468.6407 or 888.240.ARTS Four free art exhibitions included in the series ADVERTISEMENT

FALL 2014 47

FROM THE ARCHIVES

The East Texas Research Center and Sawdust would like to know more about this SFA photo, marked Homecoming 1971. If you have information about this photo, please contact: alumni@sfasu.edu or (800) 765-1534. The ETRC at SFA collects, preserves and provides physical and virtual access to East Texas’ unique cultural history. It also is responsible for SFA’s Records Management Program and for caring for the university’s archives. If you have SFA-related photographs, journals or memorabilia you would like to donate to the ETRC, please call (936) 468-4100.

48 SAWDUST

94 Eateries REAL TEXAS FLAVOR Each of the nine flags that has flown above Nacogdoches represents much more than a country, it represents a cuisine. French to Spanish, Mexican to American, the bistros and cafes scattered throughout town blend cultures and culinary influences to the delight of taste buds. If you really want to taste Texas, welcome to our table.

Texas on the Table Since 1779!

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FALL 2014 49

Stephen F. Austin State University Alumni Association P.O. Box 6096, SFA Station Nacogdoches, Texas 75962

Non-Profit Org. US Postage PAID Stephen F. Austin State University