2017, Fall by UNM Alumni Association

FALL 2017

M A G A Z I N E THE UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO I ALUMNI ASSOCIATION

IT’S ALMOST HOMECOMING AND THIS WOLF IS READY

Alumni Mascots Remember Their Years As Louie and Lucy | Beer: It’s a Hot Career She Drums | From Disneyland to the Super Bowl, Alumnus Puts On a Show New Coach Knows Greek Philosophers and Xs and 0s | Arts, Language and Elementary Learning

Contents

Rich Grainger (‘96 BS, ‘98 MS), a former Louie mascot, faces off against the 2017 Louie. Photo: Roberto E. Rosales (‘96 BFA, ‘14 MA)

LETTERS

5 ALBUM

Keeping current with classmates

MESSAGE

from Interim UNM President Chaouki T. Abdallah

8 CAMPUS CONNECTIONS

What’s going on around campus

12 MY, WHAT BIG TEETH YOU HAVE

Alumni mascots look back on their years as Louie and Lucy By Leslie Linthicum

15 WORLD BEAT

Alumna discovers ‘music’s heart’ in percussion By Jana Eisenberg

16 A SPECTACULAR CAREER

UNM grad Ron Miziker is Mr. Entertainment By Leslie Linthicum

On the cover: Who’s that big goofy wolf? Only a select few alumni can boast they were Louie or Lucy. Photo: Roberto E. Rosales

MIRAGE MAGAZINE

Mirage was the title of the University of New Mexico yearbook until its final edition in 1978. The title was then adopted by the alumni magazine, which continues to publish vignettes about UNM graduates.

M A G A Z I N E

Fall 2017, Volume 37, Number 2 The University of New Mexico Chaouki T. Abdallah, Interim President Dana G. Allen, Vice President, Alumni Relations UNM Alumni Association Executive Committee Harold Lavender (’69 BA, ’75 JD) President John Brown (’72 BBA) President-Elect James B. Lewis (’77 MPA, ’17 LHD) Past President Daniel Trujillo (’07 BBA, ’08 MACCT) Treasurer Dana G. Allen Secretary Karen A. Abraham Courtyard gets a party. Photo: Roberto E. Rosales (‘96 BFA, ‘14 MA)

18 BEER: IT’S NOW A 32 SHELF LIFE Books by UNM alumni POST-COLLEGE CAREER

UNM alumni find their niche in the hot microbrew industry By Gwyneth Doland

22 EARNING THE RED JACKET New UNM basketball coach

Paul Weir comes from Aggieland with four college degrees and a lot to prove By Leslie Linthicum

26 LIVING LA VIDA LOBO! Check out the calendar of Homecoming activities

28 MEET “BIG H” Harold Lavender is new Alumni Association president By Leslie Linthicum

30 GARDEN PARTY The dedication of the Karen A. Abraham Courtyard

and faculty

36 HONORING ALUMNI Meet our latest award winners

38 REWARDING COLLABORATION

Sandra Begay-Campbell (’87 BSCE) Member At Large Bill Dolan (’68 BA, ’73 MPA) Member At Large Rosalyn Nguyen (’03 BBA, ’07 MBA, JD) Member At Large Henry Rivera (’68 BA, ’73 JD) Member At Large Alexis Tappan (’99 BA, ’17 MA) Member At Large Robert Doughty (’98 JD) Member At Large Mirage Editorial

Former UNM Educators Support Arts Integration By Hilary Mayall Jetty

Dana G. Allen, Vice President, Alumni Relations

40 ALUMNI CALENDAR

Cortney Webb, Marketing Manager

41 FROM THE VEEP A message from Alumni Association’s Dana Allen

42 ALUMNI NETWORK Did our cameras catch you at an alumni event?

43 IN MEMORIAM

Leslie Linthicum, Editor Wayne Scheiner & Company, Graphic Design

Address correspondence to MirageEditor@unm.edu or The University of New Mexico Alumni Association, MSC 01-1160, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, 87131-0001. You can also contact us at (505) 277-5808 or 800-ALUM-UNM (800-258-6866). Web: UNMAlumni.com Facebook: Facebook.com/UNMAlumni Twitter: @UNMAlumni Instagram: Instagram.com/UNMAlumni Flickr: Flickr.com/UNMAlumni

FALL 2017

editor LETTERS TO THE

FROM THE EDITOR:

agazine editors plan Christmasthemed issues while sweating the summer heat and think up feature spreads about beach vacations and icy drinks while bundled up against the snow. Such are the challenges of magazine production schedules that often take six months to conceive, report, photograph, design, print and mail. So, here we are in a period of budget challenges at your alma mater and the Mirage editor somehow thought it would be a good idea to organize an issue around the concept of “fun.” Beer! Drums! Disney! Goofy wolf suits with big furry paws! It all seemed like a good idea in March after a serious Spring issue that examined some heavy topics, including medical trials, mountain rescue training and UNM’s efforts to engage in international academic dialogue. And maybe it still is. As the University is tested—with staff consolidations, lottery scholarship reductions and the rest of the challenges that are becoming the “new normal” at institutions of higher learning, maybe it’s time to take a breath (and maybe enjoy a beer brewed by a fellow alum) and remind ourselves that colleges survive and thrive because of the spirit of inquiry and innovation that each student, staffer, faculty member and visiting graduate brings onto campus. Thinking, questioning, learning—it all is fun! It’s also vital to the collective effort of solving the problems that threaten higher education today.

MIRAGE MAGAZINE

So, please enjoy this respite that introduces you to an alumna with global drumming chops, alumni who are helping craft New Mexico’s award-winning microbrew scene and a distinguished alumnus who knows how to party—big time. On the sports front, you’ll meet the coach/ scholar taking over the men’s basketball team (he’s an Aggie, but we forgive him). And my favorite fun of all: true tales of what it’s like to inhabit the Lobo Louie and Lucy mascots. As always, we appreciate your letters and dialogue. If you’re inspired, let us know your favorite Louie and Lucy moments from your college days.

Leslie Linthicum MirageEditor@unm.edu

TO THE EDITOR:

t gave my husband and me great pleasure to read the article in the Mirage about Bryna Milligan (“Global Lobos,” Spring 2017). She has received support from the Benjamin Sacks Endowment Fund to help her pursue her studies in medieval history. Benjamin, Allan’s father, was a history professor at UNM for many decades. He had also been a student at UNM, a coach at UNM, and a basketball player there. He was outstanding in all of the above areas. He received his Ph.D. from Stanford and was honored there by the history department in his 100th year. Benjamin lived to 104 and was having historical articles published in his 102nd year. Joyce Duncan Falk and Heinrich R. Falk started the scholarship in his 100th year. It gives us great pleasure to read about the young people who are benefiting from it. Please pass on our congratulations to Bryna as she continues her studies.

Allan and Lynne Sacks La Quinta, Calif.

he Spring Mirage arrived today and I've read it with pleasure. I like the Global Lobos focus; the photos and color throughout are excellent.

Thanks, John H. Morrison ('55 BBA) Evanston, Ill.

Look for a friend on every page! Send your alumni news to Mirage Editor, The University of New Mexico Alumni Association, MSC 01-1160, 1 University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, 87131-0001. Or better yet, email your news to UNMAlumni@unm.edu. Please include your middle name or initial and tell us where you’re living now. Deadlines:

he Spring 2017 issue (“Global Lobos”) had a common New World Order theme. Why? “Birds of a feather flock together.” People mingle with other people on common issues and avoid groups with different issues. Therefore, “diversity” will continue to fail. Diversity (different opinions, races, cultures) causes conflicts because people who have differences will disagree and instead “flock” to those with similarities. The Spring 2017 issue also hinted at world government. The American Union has failed to form and the European Union is falling apart. Please stop supporting forced mingling of differences. Similarity = unity.

Spring deadline: January 1; Fall deadline: June 1

here but in an alumni magazine (“Campus Connections,” Spring 2017) could one find a description of sophisticated research to conquer Zika and a few inches away a column noting research to identify victims of society discovered in rap music that might also apply to Native Americans?

1940s John P. Bloom (’47 BA) and Jo Tice Bloom, Las Cruces, N.M., have established the Lansing B. Bloom Family Award for the best doctoral dissertation and best master's thesis on New Mexico and Southwestern history. The award title honors Lansing Bartlett Bloom, a former faculty member in the Department of History who served as the first editor of the New Mexico Historical Review. William C. Overmier (’49 BSCE), Albuquerque, was recognized in the Albuquerque Journal for his survival as a prisoner of war in Japan. Overmier was captured when Corregidor fell, and was later shipped to Japan to perform slave labor in the shipyards of Yokohama.

Philip C. Whitener (’41 BSME) Silverdale, Wash.

1950s

Herbert Hartman (’56 BS) Fallbrook, Calif.

Floyd Vance SPRING 2017

Campus Connections

M A G A Z I N E THE UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO I ALUMNI ASSOCIATION

Global Lobos International Exchanges Foster Deeper Learning

Alumnus Climbs Into Mountain Rescue | New Coach Brings Running and Winning Style UNM Dance Major Takes Up Residence at Smithsonian | Finding Cures in Clinical Data What Can We Learn From Hummers’ Tiny Lungs? | Opening Restroom Doors for Everyone

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Due to its unique shape, our immune systems identify this inert protein sphere as a virus, triggering the production of virus-killing antibodies. “When Bryce and I got together about 10 years ago, we realized this could be a vaccine platform,” Peabody says. He and Chackerian are trying to attach just a small piece of the Zika virus to the surface of the virus-like particle. They hope the human immune system will develop a unique antibody in response to the vaccine that neutralizes the active virus. Identifying a candidate vaccine should happen relatively quickly. The next step lies in confirming that it stimulates an effective immune response and actually prevents disease. That’s where Bradfute comes in. “Dave and Bryce generate the vaccine,” he says. “They’ve got the technology and they can tailor the vaccine specifically to Zika. What we do is analyze the immune responses. We determine how much a response we get and whether or not it protects from infection.” Bradfute and his team are studying Petri dish cultures to see how the virus infects and kills human cells. When they have a candidate vaccine in hand, they can introduce it into the cell culture to see whether it’s protective, and at what concentration. Bradfute says that because the stakes are so high, the UNM team is in a race with researchers around the world. “I knew nothing about Zika virus until last November,” he says. “The pace at which discoveries have been happening is really incredible.”

INTELLIGENCE FACTOR

The Central Intelligence Agency, the United States government’s civilian foreign intelligence service, has a mission to gather and analyze information from around the world to preempt threats and further national security objectives. Increasingly, its mission includes counter-terrorism and cyber security and the agency is making an effort to ensure that its employment ranks are as diverse as it mission.

Former CIA Director John O. Brennan

“Improving diversity at CIA is not simply a moral imperative—it is a mission imperative,” then-CIA Director John O. Brennan said in a visit to UNM’s campus in November. To help achieve that goal, the CIA chose UNM, one of the more diverse universities in the country, to launch its Signature School Program. The CIAUNM Signature School Program is the agency's first. Four other university partnerships will be announced later. While Brennan emphasized that a diverse and talented workforce is critical to the success of the CIA’s global mission, Emile Nahkleh, director of UNM’s Global and National Security Policy Institute, said the partnership

will aid UNM students in getting a leg up in seeking competitive jobs within the agency. “It's win-win for our students and faculty,” Nahkleh said, “because the program will strengthen the students’ competitive edge in their search for careers in the federal government and in global and national companies and organizations.” Under the partnership, the CIA will regularly recruit on campus, helping students with applications for internships and full-time jobs after graduation. The agency will offer lectures and trainings and help UNM faculty develop research projects in certain courses relevant to existing security problems in the world. Brennan stressed that the CIA needs employees who represent a broad range of ethnic and cultural backgrounds as well as language fluencies. And he said students from a wide range of academic majors will be encouraged to apply, including engineering, technology and computer science but also economics and law.

NATIVE AMERICAN RAP Four UNM librarians have completed groundbreaking work in analyzing the cultural relevance of Native American rap artists. Their unique project grew out of a love of rap music and a special interest in the work of Tupac Shakur who, before his murder in 1996, rhymed about gang life, gun violence and racism and oppression in black communities.

MIRAGE MAGAZINE

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Floyd Vance (’51 BSPH), Glendale, Calif., turned 99 on June 10. A WWII veteran and a dedicated Lobos fan, Vance owned his own pharmacy store in Albuquerque for 15 years. Vance and his wife, Gladys, had four children and six grandchildren.

Manuel D. V. Saucedo (’57 BBA, ’77 JD), Lordsburg, N.M., has been appointed to serve as a Region XIII representative—covering Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, Wyoming and El Paso, Texas—of the National Advisory Council to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. He also was the commencement speaker for Lordsburg High School’s 2017 Graduation Ceremony. Saucedo was Class Salutatorian for his own LHS graduating class. N. Scott Momaday (’58 BAED, ’01 HOND), Santa Fe, N.M., was the featured focused of Jeff Palmer’s biographical film entitled, “N. Scott Momaday: Words From A Bear.” Paul Arnold (’59 BSME) and Katherine Arnold (’58) recently celebrated 60 years of marriage. The couple met while studying at UNM.

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FALL 2017

2016-17 UNM Presidential Scholarship Program

“I always wondered why somebody doesn’t do something about that. Then I realized I was somebody.” – Lily Tomlin

Students come to UNM with hopes, expectations, determination, and goals. You can help students achieve their dreams and more by making a donation to support a scholarship. Your gift can change a student’s world, and they – in turn – will change the world.

Look forward by giving back. Visit unmfund.org to make a gift today.

@UNMFund

UNMFoundation

@UNMFund

505-313-7600

Each Defines All of Us Dear fellow Lobos:

Julie Dove Higgins (‘63 BA) and Ronald Jay Higgins (‘66 BS, ‘68 MS), Dallas, celebrated their 52nd wedding anniversary.

Mirage and the alumni to whom these pages are dedicated, are a part of the ongoing UNM story—a reflection of the power of a UNM education, and of how each us truly defines all of us. Our diversity continues to result in great achievements, each of our unique perspectives, talents and successes impacting the entire institution. With our alumni ranks approaching 200,000 around the world, we are constantly thinking of new ways to engage you and keep you involved with the University. As we continue the process of refining and implementing a long-term vision and strategy for UNM, I am sincerely grateful for the role that each member of the UNM family plays in attracting outstanding students, providing them with wide-ranging opportunities and preparing them for lives of leadership; the sum of our parts will be a critical part of what guides us. Thank you, as always, for your ideas, involvement, enthusiasm and support. I look forward to talking with many more of you about our emerging vision this fall at Homecoming. Go Lobos!

Nasario Garcia, Jr. (’62 BA, ’63 MA), Santa Fe, N.M., was featured in SOMOS’s 2017 Winter Writers Series. He also was the subject of a documentary, “Nasario Remembers the Rio Puerco,” to be aired on KNME in October. Dale Kempter (’62 MME), Albuquerque, was inducted into the Albuquerque Public Schools Administration Building’s Hall of Honor. Kempter has served as orchestra director for McKinley Middle School and APS music coordinator. He is music director laureate for the Albuquerque Youth Symphony.

t is my distinct honor to address you as the interim president of The University of New Mexico. Having been a part of the UNM campus community for nearly 30 years, I have experienced first-hand that people, innovation and passion, and the challenges and the victories, are all a part of what defines this great institution.

1960s

Warm regards,

Chaouki T. Abdallah Interim President

Evelia Cobos (’65 BA, ’65 BM), Rio Rancho, N.M., has published a science fiction/romance novel entitled, “I Fought. & Believed.” Guy Wimberly (’65 BA), Elephant Butte, N.M., is the director of golf at Turtleback Mountain Resort, where he teaches youth to golf at the Sierra del Rio Gold Course. Robin Dozier Otten (’66 BA, ’81 JD), Albuquerque, was named as executive director of the Parker Center for Family Business at UNM’s Anderson School of Management. Lenton Malry (’68 PhD) and Joy Malry (’68 MA), Albuquerque, were honored at the Cotton Robin Dozier Otten Club Scholarship Gala on Feb. 18 in conjunction with the Roots Revival Revisited Festival. Larry A. Chavez, Sr. (’69 BBA), Albuquerque, committed in May to donating $10 million during the next 10 years to UNM. Chavez also was inducted into UNM Anderson School of Management Foundation Board’s 2017 Hall of Fame. Jim Danner (’69 BS, ’82 MS) has been appointed to the Belen Board of Education. Baker Morrow (’69 BA, ’97 MA), Albuquerque, took part in a day of seminars on gardening and agriculture at the Valencia County Home and Garden Expo hosted by the New Mexico State University’s College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences in April.

1970s Patrick Conroy (’71 MATSP), Arcadia, Calif., is now chapter leader emeritus after 21 years of leading the Los Angeles UNM Alumni Association Chapter.

FALL 2017

Campus Connections The School of Engineering is well into its complete renovation of the four-story, 67,000-square-foot Farris Engineering Center. Farris was built in 1967 and is getting plumbing, electrical and mechanical upgrades, including a new air conditioning system. The sleek, remodeled Farris, which sits on the southwest corner of campus facing Redondo Drive and houses the departments of chemical and nuclear engineering and computer science, will also include more lab space, computer research rooms, administrative suites and student study and event areas when it reopens. It is scheduled to be completed in the next few months.

A new $27.3 million building connects via a sky bridge to adjacent buildings in the Domenici Center for Health Sciences Education. When it opens in August it will allow for interprofessional education for students in medicine, pharmacy, nursing and population health in Active Learning Classrooms that make use of advanced technology. The energy-saving design includes windows with electrochromatic glazing that automatically darken or lighten based on sun exposure, reducing the energy needed to heat and cool the building. It will also include solar panels to further reduce energy use.

Physics and Farris buildings

BUILDING BOOM Cranes are in the air above the University campus, and not just the feathered fall flyers. Big construction equipment, beeping dump trucks and pounding jackhammersâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;along with orange traffic cones and miles of caution tapeâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;have come to roost on campus amid a multi-million-dollar building and renovation campaign. Funded by combinations of state, UNM and severance tax bonds, along with some private donations, the building boom includes renovations to or replacements of five buildings and Smith Plaza, the major cross-campus artery between Zimmerman Library and the Student Union Building.

MIRAGE MAGAZINE

McKinnon Center for Management

The $25.5 million price tag also covers building out more space for labs in the basement of the Centennial Engineering Center, the state-of-the art anchor of engineering just north of Farris. On North Campus, students returning for fall classes will have the use of 76,000 square feet of additional classroom, lecture and laboratory space at the corner of Stanford and Marble NE.

At the Anderson School, the McKinnon Center for Management is a new $24.7 million replacement building. The new 60,000-squarefoot building will hold classrooms, class labs, faculty and staff offices for the business school. An important component of the new design is group study rooms and student-gathering areas. There will also be a new Advisement and Career Center

that provides a major point of contact for students. That project is slated to be completed in Spring 2018. On tap are three other major projects. Smith Plaza, the open space in the center of campus, is set for a $3 million redo, which will include a reimagination and renovation to provide what campus architects envision as a safe and accessible “great room” in the heart of the campus. The deteriorating plaza, stairs and ramps will be removed and replaced. Beginning this November, entrances to the plaza, including stairs and ramps, will be removed and replaced with newly designed elements, including landscaping, seating areas and canopies. Work is expected to be completed in Spring 2018. The biggest and most costly project is a planned $65.7 million Physics & Astronomy, Interdisciplinary Science building on the south side of Main Campus at Central and Yale. The building will be 137,000 square feet and include upper division class labs, general classrooms and resource areas, offices for faculty, graduate student and staff offices and a variety of research spaces, including astronomy, subatomic and biological physics, and computer and optics and surface physics labs (as well as shop and limited chemical and radiological materials storage). The expected groundbreaking is this November with a completion date of summer of 2019. At Johnson Center, a planned $35 million “renewal” will focus on the southeast corner of the building,

carving a wide circulation path east and west of the building to connect Cornell Mall at the west end to Johnson Field at the east end and to improve user access. The renovation will include activity plazas at both entry points and an expansion of the gym facilities that are used by students, faculty and staff. It is scheduled to begin next spring and be completed late in 2019.

Felipe de Ortego y Gasca (‘71 PhD), Silver City, N.M., turned 90 on Aug. 23, 2016. In January, Ortego completed 10 years of teaching at Western New Mexico University. Rocky J. Long (’74 BAED), San Diego, Dr. Felipe de Ortego y Gasca Calif., head football coach at San Diego State University, has agreed to a five-year contract extension through 2021. Sara S. Sandlin (’75 BA), Albuquerque, has been named to the New Mexico Judicial Performance Evaluation Commission. Sandlin is a retired journalist. Ronald J. Solimon (’76 JD), Albuquerque, has been appointed to the city’s Commission on Indian Affairs for a four-year term. Kenton E. Walz (’76 JD), Albuquerque, retired as the Albuquerque Journal’s editor-in-chief. Thomas E. Chavez (’77 MA, ’81 PhD), Albuquerque, has been inducted into the Spanish Order of Isabel the Catholic second class with the royal sanction of King Felipe VI. Karen Guice (’77 MD), Mequon, Wis., is currently the acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs of the Military Health System. Frances J. Mathien (’77 MA, ’82 PhD), Albuquerque, presented a talk entitled, “Chaco Field School in the Summer of 1929” at the Chaco Culture National Historical Park Visitor Center in January. Karen Moses Oltmans (’77 BA), Albuquerque, was appointed editor of the Albuquerque Journal.

Lobo Rainforest Building

AND OFF CAMPUS... The Lobo Rainforest Building, a $35 million, 160,000-square-foot live/work/innovate space, is nearing completion at Central and Broadway a mile west of campus. It will house Innovate ABQ tenants, UNM’s Innovation Academy and students who want to live closer to downtown and in the center of the University’s innovation hub.

Mark Veteto (’77 BA), Hobbs, N.M., has been appointed to the State Land Office’s State Lands Trust Advisory Board by the New Mexico State Senate. Wendy E. York (’78 BA, ’82 JD), Albuquerque, received the Henrietta Pettijohn Award. The award is given by the New Mexico Womens’ Bar Association and honors attorneys who have advanced the causes of women in the legal profession.

1980s Kim Kloeppel (’80 BA, ’05 MPA), Albuquerque, helped organize BeKind UNM, an initiative of the UNM Office of Student Affairs, which collected toys for children as a means to promote kindness and safety within the community. Kathryn E. Lane (’80 BAFA), Spring, Texas, has published “Backyard Volcano and Other Mysteries of the Heart,” an anthology of short stories.

FALL 2017

Campus Connections The Innovation Academy is one of UNM’s newest academic programs, designed to inspire students at the beginning of an “idea pipeline” and work with community partners to see their dreams become reality and help fuel economic growth in Albuquerque. “The idea is that the University really drives innovation in the private sector with a lot of research coming out of the University, including the technology that’s used in our everyday lives,” said UNM’s Innovation Academy Director Rob DelCampo. “Having students here to be able to firsthand touch, see, taste and feel is something that’s very important.” Six hundred students have signed up for the academy and 14 student-run businesses have launched. A master plan for the 7-acre Innovate ABQ site was approved in 2015. A public-private partnership between the UNM, the city of Albuquerque and private developers, Innovate ABQ hopes to attract startup companies, research labs and supporting retail outlets over decades. STC.UNM, the University’s technology transfer and economic development arm, will have its staff and a venture representative on site to help facilitate new companies that form based on technologies developed at UNM. The tech engagement office of the Air Force Research Lab will also be a tenant. The Innovation Academy will take up residency on the first floor, while the student housing—with two-bedroom apartments complete with kitchens, living rooms and amazing city views, will occupy floors two through six and accommodate 310 students.

MIRAGE MAGAZINE

NEW LOOK It’s red. It does not contain a snarling wolf. Or a Pueblo-style building. And it would look right at home on a letter jacket, a T-shirt or a tailgate banner. The new UNM logo, long in the development process, in the end went simple, collegiate and retro.

Three letters interlocked in bold red—UNM—will be the University’s new calling card. The logo replaces the silhouette of Mesa Vista Hall in a half moon, which has served as UNM’s logo almost 30 years. When it came time for a new look, a committee composed of alumni, students, faculty and staff who worked alongside the communications firm of Torch Creative wanted something that would immediately say “UNM.” The logo will begin to be used in marketing materials and new printed material, although the rollout will be gradual. To economize, the University will use up all of its Mesa Vista Hall logo material before replacing it with material branded with the “UNM.” Meanwhile, the University’s new brand campaign is getting attention— and 3 million video views.

“Unexpected on Purpose,” a marketing video released last year that features scenes from campus narrated in rapid-fire beat style by Albuquerque poet Hakim Bellamy (’14 MA) was named University Recruitment Video of the Year by the Kira Awards, a higher education industry group. The widely watched video also brought home six awards— including four golds—in the Council for Advancement and Support of Education’s annual marketing awards competition.

FOR PIT LOVERS, IT’S A DREAM Larry Chavez, who received his bachelor’s degree from UNM’s Anderson School of Management in 1969, handed over a check for $1 million in May, the first installment of a 10-year, $10 million gift to his alma mater. Most of the extremely generous gift—$9 million—will go to the Athletics Department. It is the largest gift in the department’s history and it secures for Chavez’s business, Albuquerque-based Dreamstyle Remodeling, naming rights to both University Stadium and The Pit.

Randi McGinn (’80 JD), Albuquerque, is one of three women members of the Inner Circle of Advocates, an “organization of 100 of the best plaintiff lawyers in the United States.”

WisePies Arena—The Pit’s moniker in a previous licensing agreement— was nullified to make way for the Dreamstyle name. But Chavez, a Lobo Club member who knows the power of the Pit, sought public input to guide his approach to renaming the iconic basketball arena. He received more than 500 responses and sought a marketing and design firm to help come up with six options that incorporate the name Dreamstyle Arena and Dreamstyle Stadium while keeping The Pit as part of the title and a prominent part of signage. Chavez ultimately made the final call—and it aligned with what the majority of Lobo fans asked for. The sign highlights the Dreamstyle Arena name but it includes a large shield announcing The Pit. Chavez is earmarking $1 million of his gift to support UNM Children’s

Larry Chavez

Hospital, Popejoy Hall and Anderson School of Management.

PRESIDENTIAL SEARCH STILL ON The search for a new University president, which had been on a fast track, has been extended into this academic year. UNM Board of Regents President Robert Doughty announced in the spring that the search committee had recommended slowing down the process and extending the search into the fall semester when faculty and students are back on campus and can have the opportunity to be part of the process. “The Presidential Search Committee knew that our initial search schedule was ambitious and would closely coincide with the end of the semester,” Doughty said. “We are excited about our work thus far and current pool of candidates, and feel this approach gives us the best chance of achieving a successful outcome.” Provost Chaouki T. Abdallah had been acting president since Frank’s departure last December. The Regents in May changed his title to interim president and extended his contract through May 2018 or until a new president is in place. Once the search committee settles on finalists, their names will be made public and they will be invited to campus for public interviews. Doughty said that could happen as early as October.

Mary J. Johnson (’81 BSPE, ’90 PhD), Albuquerque, has written “From Overwhelmed to Inspired—Your Personal Guide to Health and Well-Being.” Luci Tapahonso (’81 BA, ’84 MA), Santa Fe, N.M., the Navajo Nation’s first poet laureate, shared her perspectives on writing poetry during the gathering of Diné writers at Navajo Technical University. Gregory A. Cajete (’82 MA), Espanola, N.M., was a speaker at the STEMarts Lab event “Lakota Cosmology Meets Particle Physics: Converging Worldviews,” part the Projecting Particles project. Melanie Mills ('83 BFA, ’92 MA) and Chris Nitsche ('90 MFA), Albuquerque, renewed their vows at the UNM Alumni Memorial Chapel on July 8 to honor their 25th wedding anniversary. Melanie provides counseling and art therapy in private practice. Chris is a professor at Savannah College of Arts and Design. Christine P. Zuni Cruz (’83 JD), Albuquerque, was honored by the Southwest Women’s Law Center at the Celebrating Women’s Stories Banquet on March 30. George Harrington (’83 MD) is the only pediatric orthopedic surgeon in Las Cruces, N.M., specializing in treating limb deformities, total joint replacement and the care of orthopedic complications. John Ray Gutierrez (’84 PhD), Oxford, Miss., has been named Humanities Teacher of the Year at the University of Mississippi College of Liberal Arts by the Mississippi Humanities Council. Matthew N. McDuffie (’84 MA), Albuquerque, had foreign rights to his film "Burning Bodhi" acquired by Imagination Worldwide. Michael J. Kamins (’85 MA), Albuquerque, directed “Taming New Mexico,” a documentary chronicling the history of New Mexico’s legal system. Marietta Patricia Leis (’85 MA, ’88 MFA), Albuquerque, presented her series of abstract paintings sourced from her time at the Gullkistan Artist Residency in Iceland at the April Price Projects Gallery. Max E. Myers (’86 MBA) is the president of the Santa Fe market for New Mexico Bank & Trust. Myers has more than 35 years of experience in the banking and financial services industry. Jamie A. Silva-Steele (’86 BSN), Albuquerque, was named a 2017 “40 Under Forty” by Albuquerque Business First. Silva-Steele is the president and CEO of UNM Sandoval Regional Medical Center.

(continued on page 29)

FALL 2017

Rare Breed C

A. Rich Grainger (’96 BS, ’98 MS) Photo: Roberto E. Rosales B. Marco Segura (’94 BA) Photo: Yuni Stephenson C. Wende Schwingendorf (’94 BA) Photo: Roberto E. Rosales D. Edward Abeyta (’92 BA) Photo: Roberto E. Rosales E. Natalie Umphrey (’06 BS) Photo: Chainey Umphrey

MIRAGE MAGAZINE

By Leslie Linthicum

For a few UNM students, channeling Louie or Lucy is the honor of a lifetime

magine pulling on a heavy carpet and a big fiberglass helmet and running at full tilt for hours on end. Maybe throwing in a cartwheel and your smoothest dance moves. You sweat buckets. People tug on your tongue. They say you have rabies. And sometimes, when things go terribly wrong, a nefarious Aggie cuts off your tail. But, oh, to be a Lobo mascot. “You’re the symbol of the University. Everyone wants to take your picture and get your autograph,” says Rich Grainger (’96 BS, ’98 MS), who inhabited the Lobo Louie persona for five years in the mid 1990s. “What a wonderful gift.” Marco Segura (’94 BA), who was Lobo Louie in 1993 and 1994: “It’s as close as you can be to being a celebrity. Everyone loves you. As much as you love it, the love that you get back is 10 times more.” Natalie Umphrey (’06 BS), who was Lobo Lucy from 2000 to 2006: “It was like being a rock star. I call it my favorite job ever.” Edward Abeyta (’92 BA), who was Louie in 1991 and 1992, says, “We had a front seat to something really special.” And, says Wende Schwingendorf (’94 BA), Lobo Lucy to Abeyta’s Louie and the victim of the Aggie fan’s scissors, “I don’t think I’ve ever had as much fun in my entire life.” As anyone who has ever cheered on a UNM team from the stands knows, Louie and Lucy (relationship status:

“complicated”) are the he and she wolves who strut, dance, clap and shake their tails on the sidelines at basketball, football and baseball games. They can also sometimes be spotted at softball games, volleyball matches, at receptions and news conferences and, if you make arrangements, even at your bat mitzvah. Do you have the picture? Big googly brown eyes, wagging red tongues, furry feet and paws, long tails just begging to be tugged. And, my, what pointy white teeth they have. Depending on the sport, Louie will wear a basketball or football uniform. Lucy prefers a cheerleading outfit. They are officially members of the Spirit Squad, UNM’s cheerleaders and dance squad members, with one important distinction: Louie and Lucy have never spoken a word. Well, how could they? They’re wolves. “Don’t talk and don’t take off your head,” are two rules Umphrey remembers. Oh, and don’t tell people that it’s you inside the suit. “You’re this anonymous being inside the skin of this icon,” says Abeyta, an Albuquerque native who earned a communications degree from UNM. “No one knows it’s you. Everything that I did—it was Louie. It wasn’t me. Louie was my alter ego. This fun-loving guy who wants everyone to have a good time.” Abeyta once wiped future Chicago Bull’s center Luc Longley’s sweat off the floor using an 8-year-old child. Grainger pantsed

the Louisville Cardinal mascot during an NCAA game. And Segura? He stood on the hood of a police car, hugged just about everybody he encountered and he once impersonated a dead horse by laying on his back and sticking all four Louie legs stiffly in the air at an away game at Texas Tech. “You get away with murder in that suit and everyone thinks it’s funny,” says Segura, now a sales manager for an oil field company in Oklahoma. Well, almost everybody. The Texas Tech fans, who had already been throwing tortillas at Segura, were incensed. The Masked Rider mascot’s live horse had been euthanized after a fall and Segura had to quick change out of the Louie suit and flee the stadium to avoid a wolf hunt. Segura was not dissuaded from mascot work by the incident. When he moved to Tulsa after college he took a job for $20 a game to be Hornsby, a big blue bull mascot for the minor league Tulsa Drillers baseball team. For Schwingendorf, who went on to a career in journalism and public affairs, the Lucy suit gave permission to unleash her inner nerd. “I could be a total dork and nobody knew,” she says. Umphrey found freedom to release herself from shyness. Each mascot develops his or her own style and Umphrey’s Lucy was girly and flirty. “I kind of put a little

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dip in her hip when she walked. I wanted her to be a little sassy.” While most of the 18,000 people in the Pit had no idea that Umphrey was that sassy Lucy, her parents did. “My mom was just so proud of me that she would tell everybody,” says Umphrey, who is a respiratory therapist supervisor at Kaiser Permanente Santa Clara Medical Center in San José, Calif. Her sorority sisters at Alpha Chi Omegaa also knew because it’s hard to hide a bag with a big wolf costume inside when it’s laundry day. “I was in amazing shape, probably the best shape of my life,” Grainger remembers from his five years as Louie. “But there were times I didn’t smell that great.” That would have to do with the sweating. Ask any former Louie or Lucy about their time in the suit and it doesn’t take long for the topic of sweat to trickle out. “I would lose eight to 10 pounds a game just in sweat,” Segura says. Running up and down the Pit steps as Lucy got Schwingendorf in the best shape of her life. She used to sweat out about seven pounds during a basketball game. “It’s basically like wearing a carpet,” she says. “It’s like putting a fur on,” is Abeyta’s analogy. “It’s physically demanding.” Abeyta believes he won his Louie audition when he did a round off cartwheel while wearing the heavy suit. Washing that suit after every game is now the responsibility of the Athletics Department, but it used to be the mascot’s job. Segura, whose family lived in Santa Fe, had help keeping the Louie suit fresh. He would take it home with his laundry and his mom would run it through the washer and dryer. Schwingendorf also had some help. Her mom and many bottles of Downey helped keep her Lucy suit fresh. Leaving the damp suit for later after a game? “It’s not a good idea to ball it up and stick it in a bag,” says Umphrey, recalling a Louie who was a little too slow to the washing machine and earned the nickname “Stinky Louie.”

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Segura forgot on occasion to air the suit out and paid for it later. “If you left it in a bag for a day…, oh my God!” UNM was without a mascot from its founding in 1889 to 1920 when the student newspaper endorsed the lobo (Spanish for wolf) and UNM athletes became “Lobos.” But the furry guy with the googly eyes and long tongue dancing up a storm on the sidelines didn’t come about until the 1980s. Before that, UNM skirted danger—and legal liability—by occasionally having a live wolf or wolf pup at games. In the late 1920s, a wolf cub captured near Mount Taylor appeared at every football game led on a leash and harness by a cheerleader. But after biting a child, the wolf was dispatched. But as recently as 1989, a wolf appeared at a football game. According to the Associated Press: “During an Oct. 28, 1989 home loss to Wyoming, All-American wide receiver Terance Mathis said he was nipped by the wolf after throwing a block and rolling out of bounds. Mathis wasn't hurt, but he was quoted as saying at the time, ‘He sure scared me. I've got tooth marks in my pants.’” Since then, it’s been all furry suit for the Lobo mascot. And that has given dozens of UNM undergrads an unparalleled opportunity— to travel, to represent their university and to be part of something big. “Being Louie opened up a whole new world for me,” says Grainger, director of development for the nonprofit Paws and Stripes. “I was able to travel and see things I never would have been exposed to otherwise. I’m so grateful for the opportunity.” Segura recalls traveling to NCAA tournaments and cheer camps. After he graduated he traveled throughout Latin America, Europe, India and the Middle East for his job and believes that a little of Louie traveled with him. “Being able to interact with people, it helped me a lot,” he says. “Louie definitely had an integral part in that.” Umphrey grew up in the Lucy suit, learning time management and coming out of her shell. She appeared in television

commercials as Lucy and even had her own trading card. “It definitely gave me more confidence,” she says. Abeyta, who went on to earn a master’s degree and a Ph.D., is now assistant dean for community engagement at University of California, San Diego. “It was always more for me than the Louie craziness dancing and holding up signs,” says Abeyta. “Louie has always been such a part of UNM tradition and a way for the university to connect with kids and the community.” Abeyta’s Lucy partner, even 25 years later, is still struck by what a privilege it was. “It’s a really special thing,” Schwingendorf says. “There’s not that many of us around. It’s really a small group. And getting to do that, to be so immersed in the university culture and to be so appreciated, it developed in me a sense of pride in being a student at UNM and a pride that I have in my community.” ❂

Edward Abeyta found some of his most memorable moments as Louie stemmed from camaraderie with other members of the Spirit Squad. Those students, who essentially volunteer to represent UNM day in and day out, led him and his father to establish a scholarship fund to help ease the burden of paying for college for Spirit Squad members. The Luis and LaMorah Abeyta Endowed Scholarship is for members of the Spirit Squad—Louies and Lucys included—who carry a full course load and have a cumulative GPA of 2.5. If you would like to support this program, please contact Bill Uher, Vice President of Development, UNM Foundation, at bill.uher@unmfund.org.

WORLD BEAT Alumna discovers ‘music’s heart’ in percussion

ercussionist Tiffany Nicely (’96 BA) found her niche—world music—in high school, when a music teacher asked her to take up the marimba. “I really, really liked it,” says Nicely, who grew up an “Army brat” and lived in New Mexico for most of her school-aged years. As opposed to classical music, where percussion is often “peripheral or a sound effect,” world music held a unique appeal. “I’m drawn to cultures where percussion is the music’s heart,” she says. That attraction led her to major in percussion performance at UNM. “Dr. Chris Shultis, now retired, had a strong program,” she says. Now 43, Nicely is a lecturer at State University of New York at Fredonia and Buffalo State College, where she founded and directs performing ensembles and leads study-abroad trips. She’s also a performing musician, a composer and a doctoral student. She was recently

— By Jana Eisenberg — recruited to the Fulbright U.S. Student Program’s national screening committee. Her instruments and musical styles include marimba (southern Mexico/ Central American style); balafon, djembe and dunduns (all West African styles); bloco afro percussion (Brazil) and bata drumming (Cuba). With Ringo Brill, her musical and life partner of 17 years, Nicely’s study trips take serious music students to encounter traditional music at the source. “To actually hear an original music style, you have to be there,” she says. “There’s hours of stuff happening. You feel the heat, smell the diesel fumes.” Nicely has traveled to Brazil, Mexico, Guinea and Ghana to study with master percussionists. Men generally outnumber women in the field of percussion and in some of the rural areas where Nicely travels, female percussionists are unheard of. Some male master musicians simply

won’t teach her. But the more open-minded ones will, especially if they understand she can help spread knowledge of their music. While she is a performer and a student, teaching gives Nicely a more fully integrated experience, closer to what other cultures achieve with their music. “An audience, no matter how enthusiastic or open, never connects the way students will,” she says. “That natural connection is what drew me to world culture. The performer and the audience aren’t necessarily separated. It’s part of life.” Nicely’s happiness comes from making music. “You are literally collaborating without words—politics are removed,” she said. “By caring about world music, I put myself in contact with others who also care about it. People who support this kind of music care about the world, about maintaining diversity.” ❂

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[Over the course of a 50-year career, Ron Miziker has staged everything from Super Bowls to Disney parades.]

Meet Mr. Entertainment UNM grad has spent a career creating memories By Leslie Linthicum

o say Ron Miziker (’65 BAED) knows how to throw a party is like saying LeBron James knows how to bounce a ball and Jacques Pépin knows how to fry an egg. Miziker is the guy who brought 10,000 dancers to the Indy 500 Speedway, put on a 17-minute spectacular with a $20 million budget for the Sultan of Oman and coordinated a block-long mass of tubas in a 1,000-person Disney World marching band. The founder of Miziker Entertainment, whose motto is “All the world’s our stage,” has spent a career inspiring people to ooh and aah. He created the first Super Bowl halftime show in 1977 and went on to produce three more, organized the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics opening ceremony and the Pan-Am Games. And he’s the man

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responsible for some enduring American memories: He created Disneyland’s Main Street Electrical Parade and the traveling Disney show that was the precursor to Disney on Ice. Now 75 and in his sixth decade of producing, Miziker continues to travel the world making spectacles. His current projects involve a casino show in Macau and a theme park in China. “It all goes back to college. I owe it all to UNM,” Miziker says from his offices in Burbank, Calif. Born in Ohio, Miziker grew up in Albuquerque, attended Highland High School and worked as a stocker and a checker at the Furr’s grocery store. His mother wanted him to be a doctor,

so he enrolled in pre-med courses at UNM and encountered biology and chemistry. Miziker remembers his reaction: “I said, ‘Uh, this isn’t going to be for me.’” So young Ron was walking past a bulletin board and saw an announcement of a new course being offered: television. “I thought, ‘That sounds like a hell of a lot more fun than being a doctor.’” And so began Miziker’s career in show business. He signed up and met two men who would be his mentors. E. Wayne Bundy and F. Claude Hempen, who ran KNME, the public television station. Within six months, Miziker had a job as a camera operator at the station and a year later he was promoted to director/producer,

becoming responsible for 20 hours of programming a week. He took classes in speech, dramatic arts, and television production on campus while putting his skills to work at the station. He also signed on to produce the Homecoming halftime show and to produce the Fall Fiesta program and managed to sign Johnny Cash for the concert. After hustling his way through college, Miziker was ready for the bright lights. “I wanted to go to Hollywood,” he says, “so that’s what I did.” He traded in his Buick for a 1965 Mustang and had his first business meeting at the Polo Lounge at the Beverly Hills Hilton. “Can you imagine?” he says. “A little kid from New Mexico.” That starstruck meeting led to a more pedestrian job, working in the advertising department of Armstrong Floors and Ceilings. He moved his young family to Pennsylvania. His next job a few years later took him to Cincinnati to produce a nationally televised variety show, “The 50-50 Club.” And then Disney called. Miziker would go on to make a career at Disney,

first as director of show development at Disneyland and Walt Disney World, then as a producer for Walt Disney Productions and finally as vice president of original programming for the Disney Channel. Those titles don’t describe half the fun Miziker had at Disney and the mark he made on the iconic entertainment company. “A spectacular isn’t a spectacular unless it’s something people haven’t seen before,” says Miziker. “You have to create a memory.” That often involves more balloons, more lights, more fireworks, more performers. In Miziker’s world, “More is always better. Instead of one finale, have three.” But, he says, “It has to have a beginning, a middle and an end. Dynamics, pacing, rhythm.” In 1984 he struck out on his own, forming Miziker Entertainment and the company has employed both of his sons and taken him around the world. In 2015, Miziker was recognized by the Themed Entertainment Association with the Buzz Price Thea Award for lifetime achievement. His son Ryan introduced him. His father, he said, “loves entertainment. He loves the

show. He lives for the moment when the lights go down, anticipation rises and the music starts.” Miziker does. But he also gets butterflies. To curb those, he always plans backups. So if, say, the block-long light display goes on the fritz, there’s something sparkly in reserve that he can swap in. A couple of years ago, Miziker realized that he had amassed a considerable body of knowledge about entertaining. He put it all in “Miziker’s Complete Event Planner’s Handbook,” which was published in 2015 by the University of New Mexico Press. The fat volume is chock-full of practical advice, everything from how to arrange banquet chairs and tables to how much alcohol to buy. The book is meant to allow home entertainers the same level of satisfaction he gets from staging a spectacular that is truly spectacular. His favorite feeling is when the show unfolds and the audience begins to ooh and aah. “Just the wonderment,” he says, “that it’s all coming together.” ❂

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New Mexico’s fast-growing craft brewing industry opens new job avenues for UNM grads.

kye Devore (’03 MBA) never intended to own a brewery. She wanted to be an FBI agent. After graduating from the accelerated 3-2 MBA program, which she heard was a good background for FBI agents, she started working at a small family-owned manufacturing company in Albuquerque. The family was involved in several side-businesses, one of which was Tractor Brewing. One day the person who had been running the brewery left and the owner came into her office and said, “How would you like to run a brewery in your spare time?” She said sure, thinking it couldn’t be different from running any other business. And it wasn’t. But adjusting to the craft beer culture took a little time. “I went for my first ride along with a distributor and they said, ‘What are you having?’ and I said ‘Miller Light!’ And they were like, ‘No you’re not,’” she remembers. That was 10 years ago. Today she owns Tractor Brewing, teaches the introductory brewing class at CNM and is a certified cicerone (like a sommelier for beer).

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Photos: Roberto E. Rosales (‘96 BFA, ‘14 MA)

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Devore’s career has paralleled the explosion of craft beer in New Mexico. “It used to be that we had to make really light beers that were really approachable,” she says, “Now we’re a destination, we’re an anchor tenant, we are the draw. It’s not like ‘Who can I trick into trying craft beer today?’” Today, customers are beating welltraveled paths to the award-winning taprooms and brewpubs that dot Albuquerque, Santa Fe and other cities across the state. And their thirst has created new job opportunities. UNM graduates—folks who studied theater arts, bioarcheology, Spanish, fine arts, business and medicine—are filling a lot of those jobs. None of them went to school knowing they wanted to work in a brewery.

What they have in common is an irrepressible passion for beer, the willingness to experiment (and fail), a strong sense of “Why the heck not?!” and a commitment to researching the product. Apparently there’s lots of research involved in making beer. As the industry has matured its employees have diversified, says John Gozigian, head of the New Mexico Brewers’ Guild. “We have a bunch of breweries that have grown so much that they now have specialized positions: accountants, HR people and marketing people, people who come out of the sciences who are running the labs,” Gozigian says. What? You were imagining a horde of bearded slackers stirring homemade IPA in five-gallon buckets? Not even close.

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Monica Mondragon (’07 MS) earned her degree in bioarchaeology and forensic anthropology and went to work at the Office of the Medical Investigator after graduation, doing toxicology labs in the autopsy suite. But in her off hours, Mondragon and her husband were making their own beer and they were active in an enthusiast group, the Albuquerque Craft Beer Drinkers. She had taken over leadership of the group when she saw a job listing come across her email. Santa Fe Brewing was advertising for a lab technician, someone to measure yeast growth and gas levels and test for dangerous microbes. “I thought: ‘Yeah, I could totally do that,’” she remembers. The work she does now is not so different, really, from what she did in the

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ZA CH G OULD ’13 autopsy suite, or what she’d be doing in other jobs; say at General Mills or Sandia Labs. But the culture is different. “The attitude is different. It does get stressful in the busy seasons and we all have to work harder, take shifts working the festivals, meet deadlines and fill orders, but it’s more fun,” she says. Mondragon runs a chapter of the Pink Boots Society, a group of women working in the industry, and through it she’s made great friends with other women across the country. “After working in academia and science for a long time, I like working with these people and hanging out with these people,” she says. Having a scientific background is helpful for Missy Begay, the co-owner of Bow & Arrow Brewing Co. in Albuquerque’s Wells Park neighborhood, but running a brewery isn’t really her day job. Begay is a resident physician at UNM Hospital. “There’s definitely an advantage because you really understand things like

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fermentation, oxidation and when things go wrong,” she says. “But it can also hinder you because brewing is definitely not like medicine. Yeast can’t talk.” Begay and her business partner at Bow and Arrow, Shyla Sheppard, are inspired by their love of the land and the pair forages for some of the ingredients in their beer. Begay is the creative director of the 15-month-old brewery, in charge of the business design, branding and social media. And she’s pretty well set up for that. Begay was a national high school poetry slam champ and she’s an avid photographer who travels around the state meeting people, taking pictures and promoting the brewery. “I love going out to Four Corners and looking for sumac, meeting farmers and people who collect herbs, and photographing them,” says Begay, an avid Instagrammer. Her interest in beer can be traced in part to her grandmother, who was a traditional Navajo herbalist. She’s fascinated by the history of beer in the Southwest, which

she traces back to corn brews made at Chaco Canyon. As Begay looks for reasons to pick up her camera, John Russell Heine (’11 BAFA) was looking for reasons to put his down. He was working as a camera operator in the film industry when he realized he was in the wrong business. “Film just didn’t do it for me. I didn’t have any passion for it,” Heine says. So he put down the camera and picked up a job at a homebrew supply store. When he decided to become a professional brewer, he enrolled in a brewing studies program the Siebel Institute in Chicago and continued with another program of study (real study, not just drinking) in Germany. When he came home from Europe he stopped by Marble Brewery and ran into a friend who was working there. Now, he’s head brewer. The Siebel program had given him a solid foundation in the science and theory of brewing, and it was geared toward medium and large operations, so Heine

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was perfectly positioned to help Marble grow while continuing to improve quality and efficiency. “It’s a really fun industry,” he says, cautioning that it’s not all fun. “I like to say making beer is 90 percent cleaning and 10 percent paperwork,” he laughs. The success of well-established breweries like Tractor, Marble, Santa Fe Brewing and Il Vicino’s Canteen Brewhouse, headed up by Gregory Atkin (’80 BBA, ’83 MBA), has paved the way for dozens of smaller businesses and created opportunities that might have seemed impossible a generation before. Zach Gould (’13 BA) is the co-founder and managing partner of Ale Republic, a Cedar Crest brewpub that got its start through a crowdfunding effort on Kickstarter. He met his business partner, Patrick Johnson, through Beer Underground, a club Johnson started while he was still at UNM. Gould, who is only four years out of UNM, describes his job as brewer,

server, bookkeeper, janitor, cheerleader and barback. Although Johnson is the head brewer, both men “wear every hat imaginable.” “We like to make beer other people aren’t making, either because its not commercially a well known style or because someone hasn’t thought of it yet,” he says. “People who live here love beer and it’s awesome to have an audience really excited about what you’re doing.” Ken Wimmer (’81 BAFA) also discovered the craft beer movement while he was at UNM, but for this theater arts major, a career in beer had to wait a little while. About 25 years. Wimmer got out of college before many other local brewers were born and long before New Mexico’s local beer movement really took off. He spent 25 years teaching drama and English in Albuquerque Public Schools, but whipped up pale ales, stouts and porters in his off-hours. When he retired from APS he decided to take a job at The Grain

Hopper, a home brew supply store in Rio Rancho. When he heard about a new brewery opening, he thought “Why not?” Wimmer approached the owners, gave them samples of his homebrews and showed off some of his recipes. They were sold. Now, he’s the house brewer for Hops Brewery, which opened this summer in Nob Hill. For Wimmer it was worth the wait. “What’s great about working in beer in New Mexico right now is how vibrant and alive the scene is,” he says. He’s thrilled that finally, customers’ tastes have caught up with the enthusiasm and wide-ranging curiosity of the brewers. Wimmer sees a bright future in the industry and encourages beer lovers to think of their hobby as a possible career. “Just do it,” he says. “Just plunge into he deep end. Get a mentor, experiment and do lots of research.” ❂

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Lifelong Learner With three graduate degrees (and a Ph.D. in the works), this former Aggie aims to make UNM proud By Leslie Linthicum

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he University of New Mexico vs. New Mexico State University rivalry was a boon to Paul Weir during the 10 years he worked as a coach for the NMSU men’s basketball team. “It’s intense and passionate,” Weir says. “I think it’s awesome.” Weir will be on the other side of the rivalry this season when he coaches his first UNM vs. NMSU game from the Lobo bench. Hired in April as UNM men’s basketball’s 21st head coach, Weir says he hasn’t given any thought to how he’ll approach the game, which is an away game in Las Cruces on Nov. 17, other than to prepare for a win and encourage the UNM community to support the Rio Grande Rivalry. “I think rivalries are great for sports and they’re great for communities,” says Weir, who, at 38, is making history as the only coach in New Mexico history to serve as head coach for both the Lobos and Aggies basketball teams. “My job now is to fight for UNM.” We were talking in Weir’s office in the basketball practice center, the same office vacated by Coach Craig Neal when he was let go after the end of a disappointing 2016-17 season. Just a month into the job, Weir was settling in and his new digs were spare. The walls had been freshly painted a light taupe and the office was empty except for a leather sofa and his “desk”—a long folding table that would look more at home at a backyard birthday party covered in casserole dishes. He had a cell phone, a stack of business cards, some folders, a stapler and a pair of scissors. “I haven’t really moved in yet,” he says. Neither had his wife, Alma, a native of Las Cruces, and the couple’s son Theodore who turned 2 in July. They were still camping out in a hotel while looking for houses and Weir was eager to get settled in and embarked on his second New Mexico adventure. Being a head coach for a Division I team in the United States was never on Weir’s radar when he took up basketball midway through high school in Mississauga, Ontario, a large lakefront suburb of Toronto. “I played hockey growing up, like most Canadians,” Weir says. When it became evident he did not have the skills to ever play professionally, he switched his energy to basketball. This was about the time the Toronto Raptors gave Canadians an NBA presence

and Weir got hooked on basketball. Either 5 feet 10 or 11 inches tall—he is not sure—he played point guard in high school and at York University in Toronto, where he graduated in 2004 with a liberal arts degree. “I wanted to be a teacher. That was the goal,” Weir says. He got a gig coaching basketball at a Catholic high school in Toronto and started looking for a job as a graduate assistant in basketball at a university where he could complete a master’s degree. This was in the days of paper letters and postage stamps and Weir sent out about 1,000 letters of inquiry. Northwestern State in Louisiana responded with an offer and so Weir headed south. He received his master’s of science in health and human performance at the end of the year. If he had taken that master’s, turned his car north and found a job teaching high school and coaching boy’s basketball in Canada, Weir thinks he would have been plenty happy. “I miss it. I miss working with kids of that age, 15, 16,” he says. “It’s a very pure time, an innocent time. They’re just really forming some habits and some personality. They’re still pliable and they’re a little more open. You can impact so much more change on a 15 year old than you can on a 19 year old.” Instead, he got a call from the University of Iowa and a job offer in Coach Steve Alford’s basketball program. He took it and it was the beginning of a new career. “I gave up my direction of going back to coach in high school in Toronto and got into college coaching,” Weir says. “I got offered my first real job and I was like, ‘I’m going to give this a shot.’ So I really just kind of fell into it and it’s been a pretty fun ride since.” Weir started at Iowa as an administrative assistant and was promoted after a year to director of operations. He also embarked on a second master’s degree there, beginning a pattern of seeking and learning that he’s still on today. “I was always fascinated by the mind and the psychology of sport,” Weir says. “Why people do the things they do. Why they acted the way they do. Just what’s going on inside kids’ heads.” So, he pursued a master’s of arts in sports psychology, fitting in classes where he could. “It kept my mind moving. I didn’t want to just be constantly, day in and day out, with my mind only thinking about basketball.

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I felt like for my own development—just as a human being—that I needed different things to enlighten me.” Recruited by NMSU as an assistant coach, Weir packed up and moved to Las Cruces, where he finished his Iowa master’s degree online and then got interested in the business school at NMSU. “I’d always my whole life thought about doing my MBA,” he says. “It was always something I was fascinated by. So I thought, ‘You know what, let me try my MBA.’” He received his master’s in business administration in 2012, but a bachelor’s of arts and three master’s degrees weren’t quite enough. Weir became interested in the entirety of universities beyond the athletics department and he enrolled in NMSU’s Ph.D. program in educational leadership. Educational leadership programs usually attract K-12 educators looking to move into administration and university-level employees who are on a career path to dean, provost or college president positions. “There really wasn’t an end goal in my mind,” Weir says. “I think the more things you’re exposed to the better you are for it. I just found it tremendously valuable.” He has completed his coursework and will try to write his dissertation while tackling the new job at UNM. Weir has found that juggling academics with the requirements and pressure of coaching at a Division I school have helped him practice better time management and bring more depth to his day job. “In time, I realized it made me a better basketball coach,” he says. His love of learning and his depth as a scholar were on display in April at the news conference where he was introduced as the new Lobo coach. Instead of talking about Xs and Os, Weir quoted the Greek rhetorician Herodes Atticus: “The doubters are just dreamers with broken hearts.” He did so to encourage Lobo fans who might have doubts about the program and its new ex-Aggie coach. But, he says, that starts with getting some wins on the scoreboard. “We have to win games,” he says. “ I can have all the greatest theories and intentions and they really don’t matter if we don’t win games.”

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Why did he choose to introduce himself with that quote? “I feel as though there is this belief among people in New Mexico that we’re always trying to prove ourselves. And some people get beaten down a little bit and they start to just think, ‘We can’t do it.’ And so that was just for them, to say we can do great things.” Weir says he doesn’t know where he picked up the quote. “I really just read a lot of books,” he says. To prove the point, Weir has in his hands a little paperback copy of “Roberts Rules of Order,” of all things. He saw it on a table at a meeting recently and thought he might find in it something useful. He is also on an American fiction binge right now, delving into John Updike’s four-novel Rabbit series and picking up some Kurt Vonnegut. Weir reads on airplanes and at night after his wife and son have nodded off. Staying busy has always been a Weir family value. Weir’s mother’s family immigrated to Canada from England when she was in her teens. His father’s family moved from the Ukraine when he was in grade school. (Weir is shortened from the Ukrainian name. Weir’s father changed it to be considered for college admission.) They were older parents and they ran an old-fashioned home. “I really learned valuable lessons from growing up in that environment,” Weir says. “The value of hard work. Their message was you need to work hard—in school, in sports. It was a strict household. I wasn’t allowed to pierce my ears or get tattoos. At the end of the day you couldn’t just sit around. You have to be busy.” Weir has translated that work ethic to the court. “Work,” he says. “I really believe that’s where success starts.” He teaches that and also models it, sometimes to excess. “I’m consumed with the job and I’ve worked really hard. To be sitting here at my age, I know I’ve missed some funerals back in Canada. I haven’t been able to go back for some events. Maybe I could have been a better son, a better brother, a better husband or parent. Those things are on your conscience. But I have worked really hard and I’m all in it. I’m addicted to it. I love it.” ❂

FALL 2017

HOMECOMING 2017

LIVING LA VIDA LOBO! UNM HOMECOMING WEEK 2017 ACTIVITIES RUN FROM SEPT. 25 THROUGH SEPT. 30. Updates to the schedule of events, merchandise orders, registration details, official hotels and online auction items can be found at UNMAlumni.com/homecoming ALL WEEK

TUESDAY, SEPT. 26

Community Service Project – The UNM

10 a.m. - 11:15 a.m. Campus Sculpture Walking Tour –

Homecoming Committee will collect

Meet at Hodgin Hall in front of The U.

protein-rich dry and canned food for

3 p.m. - 5 p.m. Networking with UNM Grads: GEO,

The Storehouse, a project of Adelante, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday at Hodgin Hall Alumni Center. Zimmerman Library Tower Tours –

OGS & Career Services 5 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.

5:30 p.m. - 7 p.m. American Studies Celebration – Speakers: Arif Khan on Frieda Kahlo

Limited to 10 people per tour, so

and Alex Lubin on African American/Arab

register now. Tamarind Institute will be open to alumni all week from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Student Activities – Check lobospirit.unm.edu for details on student

Jazz collaborations. 5:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. Architecture & Planning Homecoming Happy Hour 5:30 p.m. - 8 p.m. Hope McIntosh: Authenticity is the Pathway to Leadership presentation

events during Homecoming Week.

sponsored by GAAAC at Hodgin Hall

Buy a Homecoming brew from

Alumni Center

Bow & Arrow Brewing Co. and $1 from every pint will be donated to the Alumni Association.

Women’s Resource Center Happy Hour

WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 27 11 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. Maxwell Museum Collections Tour

MONDAY, SEPT. 25 11 a.m. - 1 p.m.

Noon - 1 p.m. Faculty & Staff Alumni Appreciation Luncheon

Homecoming Rally in the Karen A. Abraham Courtyard at Hodgin Hall.

5:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m. UNM College of Nursing Preceptor Alumni Recognition & Reception

Staff Council will serve free ice cream. UNM faculty and staff alumni can pick up their tickets to Wednesday’s appreciation

5:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. Geography Department Presents: Geography of Beer – Tasting of local

luncheon during this event. 5 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.

brews while discussing beer’s origins, regions and history.

Daily Lobo Happy Hour

5 p.m. - 7 p.m. UNM Alumni Veterans Happy Hour

5:30 p.m. - 8 p.m.

New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator Tour (RSVP required)

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THURSDAY, SEPT. 28

6 p.m. - 8 p.m.

1 p.m. - 2 p.m.

HSC Homecoming Pop in for Popcorn

3 p.m. - 4 p.m.

UNM Distinguished Alumni Diversity Scholar Don P. Trahan Jr. (’13 MA, ’15 PHD)

3 p.m. - 5 p.m. College of Education Alumni Lecture

7 p.m. - 9 p.m. UNM Alumni Lettermen Homecoming Social SATURDAY, SEPT. 30 9 a.m. - 11 p.m. The All University Breakfast recognizes

& Reception – Professor Len Kravitz

the accomplishments of New Mexico

presentation and networking at

resident alumni through the presentation

Travelstead Hall

of the Zia, Lobo and Inspirational Young Alumnus awards. $25 per person,

5 p.m. - 7 p.m. Soul of the Wolfpack Black Alumni

(RSVP required)

Happy Hour 5 p.m. - 7 p.m. Happy Hour for College of Pharmacy

Noon - 2 p.m. Chi Omega Alumnae Green Chile Stew Open House

Class of 2007 Reunion 5 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. McKinnon Distinguished CEO Lecture

1 p.m. - 3 p.m. Honors College Open House and Distinguished Honors Alumni Award

by Lamek “Humble” Lukanga (’08 BBA,

at Honors Forum

’09 MBA) Reception begins at 5 p.m., lecture begins at 6 p.m. at the Banque

2 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. Homecoming Tailgate with UNM Alumni, Anderson School of

Lofts Rooftops

Management, College of Nursing,

5:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. Chemistry of Green Chile explained by the UNM Department of Chemistry & Chemical Biology with chile tasting 7:30 p.m. - 9 p.m. Sprechtish German at UNM’s German Program mixer. FRIDAY, SEPT. 29 All day Celebrate Homecoming at UNM Bookstores – All three bookstore

College of Pharmacy and Lobo Club – Food, free alumni pompoms, tattoos,

beads and stickers. Craft beer and

food for sale. $15 food ticket can be

purchased online.

2 p.m. - 5 p.m.

UNM Alumni Lettermen’s Tailgate

2:30 p.m. - 5 p.m.

Phi Delta Theta Fraternity Tailgate

5 p.m. - 8 p.m.

Homecoming Football Game – Discount tickets can be purchased for $15 online.

locations and loboden.unm.edu offer special deals. Noon - 1 p.m.

Lobo Spirit Day & Pep Rally

2 p.m. - 3 p.m. Pharmacy Class of 2007 Reunion Tour of SIM Labs 3 p.m. - 5 p.m.

Pharmacy Class of 2007 Reunion Dinner

SUNDAY, OCT. 1 9:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. Phi Delta Theta Fraternity Golf Tournament

History Lecture, Meet & Greet

5 p.m. - 7 p.m. Black Alumni Chapter Living Legends

For more information about events, updates to

& Trailblazer Awards Ceremony

the Homecoming 2017 schedule, RSVP and ticket

(RSVP recommended)

information, please visit UNMAlumni.com/homecoming

5:30 p.m. - 8 p.m. Diner en Rouge – Rock your best all-red

or call 505-277-5808.

outfit and prep the perfect picnic dinner (or purchase a box dinner for $15 per person) and enjoy live entertainment in the Karen A. Abraham Courtyard. $20 per person reserves your spot at this new alumni event. (RSVP required)

FALL 2017

Photo: Roberto E. Rosales (‘96 BFA, ‘14 MA)

Making It Better New alumni president wants to see you at a campus event By Leslie Linthicum

is Twitter handle is @BigHLavender and when Harold Lavender enters a room, he seems to fill the doorway. He’s not stout—in fact he just dropped 40 pounds to prepare for a knee-replacement surgery— but he seems really … big. “I get that all the time,” Lavender says, clarifying for the record that he stands just 6 feet 1. “Maybe it’s the loud personality.” That optical illusion served the New Mexico native well during the 33 years he spent on the famously chaotic floor of the Chicago Board of Trade as a trader and a broker. And it might come in handy in Lavender’s newest volunteer role as the incoming president of the UNM Alumni Association. Acknowledging that universities across the nation are fighting through trying times, and that UNM is in especially challenging circumstances, Lavender is ready to put the full force of his personality to work on behalf of his beloved alma mater. “It’s tough right now. There’s a lot of distress,” Lavender says. “One of my main

MIRAGE MAGAZINE

drivers is, this is where I went to school and I’m going to do what I can to make it better.” Lavender and his wife, Judith, are regulars in attendance at a variety of alumni and campus events. You’ll see them at baseball games, receptions, golf tournaments and nearly every Lobo Living Room. Although they lived in the Chicago area for decades and raised their two children there, the Lavenders have deep roots in New Mexico. Judith Kennedy Lavender (BUS ’74) grew up in Gallup, where her parents owned the Gallup Indian Trading Co. Lavender’s family arrived in New Mexico after one of his aunts answered an ad seeking reservation teachers in Crownpoint, married a rancher there and stayed. His father followed suit when he got out of the service and Lavender grew up in Aztec and Raton. Harold Lavender Sr. served as mayor of Aztec, but he was an educator by profession. He taught and was the high school principal in Aztec before he moved the family to Raton where he served as superintendent of schools.

Harold Jr. was in high school when his father was recruited by then UNM President Tom Popejoy to come south to serve as dean of students and then vice president of student affairs. After high school, he enrolled at UNM without much of an idea of what he wanted to do. He studied English and American studies and, sick of living at home, applied to West Point and the Naval Academy. He spent one and a half years in Annapolis before deciding that home, UNM and Albuquerque looked pretty good after all. Lavender graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1969 and, after a brief stint in the Air Force, enrolled in the UNM School of Law, earning his degree in 1975. “I had a lot more fun in law school than I did practicing law,” Lavender says, laughing, today. He had been practicing at a small firm in Albuquerque for only a few months when a friend of his, a trader on the Board of Trade, suggested a possible new career.

“He said, ‘You’re loud, you’re big, you’re aggressive and you’re competitive. You’ve got what it takes to do well there.’” So Lavender hit the trading floor, a place where he immediately felt at home. A competitive athlete, Lavender found the hours in the trading pit to be exhilarating. “It’s mano a mano, dog eat dog,” Lavender says. “It was really fun.” When it was time to “retire,” the Lavenders decided to come home. “We both decided we were going to give back to ‘from whence we cometh,’” Lavender says. And they have. Judith facilitated the reopening of the Early Childhood and Family Center at UNMGallup, is the interim director of the Baby Fund at the Santa Fe Community Foundation and launched Tic Tac Grow PlayWear. Harold has been active as a trustee of the Sandia Foundation, he serves on the State Investment Council, he is director of business and financial development at ABQid and he is an adjunct professor at the Anderson School of Management. When Lavender talks to students in his Anderson class, Application of Futures and Options, he often tells them that he has been successful at a lot of what he has tried in life. “And I say that not one day have I been limited by the fact that I went to UNM.” Last year, as the president-elect of the Alumni Association, Lavender supported the initiatives of President James B. Lewis. “James set out to communicate, collaborate and cooperate—those were his words,” Lavender says. “I intend to continue that.” • Lavender played golf for UNM, although he did not letter. And he worked as a night watchman at the South Championship Course while he was in law school. • On the Chicago Board of Trade, where traders’ firms are identified by the jackets they wear on the floor, Lavender chose lavender jackets for his firm.

Communicating the University’s strengths and successes and rallying pride and spirit around UNM is one of his top priorities. “Let’s celebrate our successes,” Lavender says. To that end, he is looking at ways to involve members of the Alumni Association board in more campus events, so the UNM community and alumni can better understand the organization and so that board members, who are all alumni, can better understand their alma mater today. Lavender would also like to involve past-presidents of the Alumni Association in some leadership role. When a board member is elected president and serves the one-year term, he or she becomes past-president the following year and then no longer serves on the board. “They’ve got significant knowledge that they can bring and I want them to feel more a part of it,” Lavender says. And, with a new University president coming aboard sometime during his tenure as Alumni Association president, Lavender hopes to build a relationship quickly with the new hire. “I think it’s critically important for a president to have a very close relationship with alumni,” Lavender says, “and so that will be a priority.” Lavender, who seems to be at just about every UNM event—hovering ever so slightly above the crowd—also wants to encourage school spirit among students, faculty, staff and alumni. “Tailgates, ball games—show up,” he says. “They’re fun!” ❂ • The two Lavender children, Jay and Meredith, both have made careers in show biz. Jay, a writer/ director/producer, wrote and co-produced the blockbuster “The Break-Up” starring Vince Vaughn and Jennifer Anniston and co-wrote and co-produced “The Wedding Ringer” with Kevin Hart. Meredith was a writer and an executive producer of the country music soap “Nashville” for four seasons.

Melissa T. Stock (’86 BA), Albuquerque, is the marketing director for the Albuquerque Publishing Company. Stock has 30 years of experience in the operations, marketing and communications fields. Gary Bednorz (’87 BA), Ventura, Calif., was honored with WACAdemy Awards for “Best Animated Actor in a College Presentation” and “Every Day Hero Golden Pennant” for his recruiting work for UNM. Thomas MacLean (’87 PhD), Albuquerque, is now the vice president of clinical operations for Presbyterian Healthcare Services.

Gary Bednorz

Imtiaz A. Malik (’87 BSMT, ’93 MPA) is a physician at the Ted and Margaret Jorgensen Cancer Center at Presbyterian Rust Medical Center in Rio Rancho and at Presbyterian Kaseman Hospital in Albuquerque. Thomas R. Novak (’87 MMGT), Albuquerque, is CEO of Klinger Constructors LLC. Joseph P. Pope (’87 BS, ’91 DM), Farmington, N.M., will represent District 7 as the vice president of the San Juan College Board of Trustees. Pope has served on the board of trustees since 2007. Jennifer N. Denetdale (’88 BA), Tohatchi, N.M., spoke at a public forum on racial profiling hosted by the Red Nation at the Gallup Downtown Conference Center. Adam J. Kedge (’88 BSED, ’90 MA), Albuquerque, has been inducted into the New Mexico Sports Hall of Fame after coaching teams to 25 state championships. Col. Jim R. Keene (’88 BM), Fort George G. Meade, Md., led the U.S. Army Field Band and Soldier’s Chorus in shows in Alamogordo, Albuquerque, Socorro and Las Cruces. Joel Shirley (’88 MAEd), longtime MoriartyEdgewood School District teacher and administrator, returned to the Estancia Valley in January to serve as interim superintendent of Estancia Municipal Schools. Anna C. Hansen (’89 BFA, ‘92 MA) was elected to the Santa Fe Board of Commissioners in November 2016 and became vice chair in January 2017. She also serves as a commissioner on the Santa Fe River Commission in Santa Fe.

Anna C. Hansen

FALL 2017

Photo: Roberto E. Rosales (‘96 BFA, ‘14 MA)

At Long Last T

he grassy expanse along Redondo Drive looked like a summer garden party as the Karen A. Abraham Courtyard was officially dedicated on a warm June evening. Paid for by the UNM Alumni Association and donors and gifted to the University, the expanse east of Hodgin Hall and directly in front of the Art Annex underwent a complete renovation. The result? A soothing green space dotted with young trees, benches and a bubbling fountain, which may be used by

MIRAGE MAGAZINE

passersby desiring a respite or by University or alumni groups for functions and celebrations. Abraham was on hand to enjoy the view of an area named in her honor and dedicated to her decades at the helm of the Alumni Association. The triple alumna retired from her position as UNM associate vice president and executive director of the Alumni Association in 2015. She expressed hope that the courtyard “will always be used as a place for celebration.” ❂

Rediscover your Lobo homecoming spirit through art by your favorite alumni artists.

Celebrate by purchasing vintage homecoming posters! 1983 to 2013 Order online: unmalumni.com/homecoming

Lillian Montoya (’89 BA, ’98 MBA) was named chief operating officer for Christus St. Vincent Health System in Santa Fe, N.M.

1990s Dana Tai Soon Burgess (’90 BUS), Washington, D.C., celebrated the 25th anniversary of the Dana Tai Soon Burgess Dance Company, which embarked on its world tour with a benefit concert at UNM in March. Douglas Cox (’90 MBA), Albuquerque, was inducted into the UNM Anderson School of Management Foundation Board’s 2017 Hall of Fame. He also received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the New Mexico Society of Certified Public Accountants. L. Stephine Poston (’90 BBA), Sandia Pueblo, N.M., was named Native Woman Business Owner of the Year by the National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development in Las Vegas, Nev. Laura G. Spencer (’90 PhD), Las Cruces, N.M., received the “A” Mountain Staff Award from New Mexico State University’s Employee Council at NMSU’s Founder’s Day Picnic. The award is presented twice a year to a member of NMSU staff who illustrates the university’s core values of diversity, inclusion, accountability, excellence, discovery and engagement. Peter Wirth (’90 JD), Santa Fe, N.M., has been chosen as the New Mexico Senate majority leader. Cynthia J. Carillo-Dimas (’91 CERT) and Duane G. Dimas, Belen, N.M., celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary. Michelle D. Franks (’91 MBA), Albuquerque, sits on the boards of Studio Southwest and the Sandoval Economic Alliance. Jeffrey S. Krueger (’91 MA, ’92 MFA), Albuquerque, discussed his exhibit “Failure Is An Option— My Life With Abstractions,” featuring ceramic art, at the Roswell Museum and Art Center in April. Ries Robinson (’91 MD), Albuquerque, has joined Presbyterian Healthcare Services as senior vice president and chief information officer. Donald Usner (’91 MA), Santa Fe, N.M., published a book titled, “Orale! Lowrider: Custom Made in New Mexico.” Karen S. Wells (’91 MA), Albuquerque, is the first registered nurse to chair the board of the Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center. Katherine M. Creagan (’92 BBA), Albuquerque, is a shareholder at Modrall Sperling Law Firm. Garrett D. Hennessy (’92 MBA), Albuquerque, has been elected to the board of The American Subcontractors Association of New Mexico.

FALL 2017

Shelf Life

Books by UNM Alumni

Whither the Waters

Final Act

John L. Kessell (’69 PhD) University of New Mexico Press, 2017

Hal Simmons (’69 JD) Good Type Publishers, 2016

Noted historian Kessell, who has told the tale of colonial New Mexico through classics “Kiva, Cross and Crown” and “Pueblos, Spaniards and the Kingdom of New Mexico,” takes on the more esoteric topic of religious artist Bernardo de Miera y Pacheco and the maps he drew—errors and all—of the Colorado Plateau and Great Basin in the late 1700s. Filled with beautiful drawings and map reproductions, this book also traces how Miera y Pacheco’s cartography influenced mapmakers for decades to come.

A finalist in 2016 for the New Mexico-Arizona Book Awards, this mystery finds treasure hunter Larry Averie in Santa Fe professing to have found the Lost Adams Diggings, New Mexico’s richest lost gold mine. Rounding out the cast in this entertaining adventure are an apprentice soprano at the Galisteo Opera, a local attorney, a half-wit named Skinny Willy and a blind Christian mystic marked for murder. Longtime New Mexicans will enjoy Simmons’ references to landmarks in Santa Fe and the surrounding countryside and smile at the name of the blind mystic—Art Schreiber.

About the author: Kessell is professor emeritus of history at UNM and the author of many classic works of New Mexico colonial history.

About the author: A lawyer who represents media interests, Simmons is also the author of “Magic Lance” and “Deadly Gold.”

Kingdom Come Radio Show

Sefer Ha-Bahir: Selections from The Book of Brilliance, The Classic Text of Early Kabbalah

Joni Wallace (’85 BA, ’90 JD) Barrow Street, Inc., 2016 Maybe you think you know everything there is to know about Robert Oppenheimer, the Manhattan Project, Los Alamos, the Trinity Site and the birth of the bomb. But have you ever had the beginning of the nuclear age told to you in poems? Wallace does just that in this slim volume of inventive and truly original poems. From “Oppenheimer Drive:” “Wind shimmer where a man, Oppenheimer/ is learning his job description/ called Shadow Puppeteer.” About the author: Wallace’s poems have been published in numerous poetry reviews. Her collection, “Blinking Ephemeral Valentine,” won the Levis Prize in Poetry. She teaches at the University of Arizona Poetry Center in Tucson.

No Pretty Picture Michael Archie Hays (’76 BA, ’79 MA) Sunstone Press, 2016 This novel, based on the life of Maud Hawk Wright, takes place during the Mexican Revolution. Wright was a young woman when she was kidnapped by Pancho Villa’s soldiers from her family’s Chihuahua ranch. Her husband murdered and her infant son left behind, she rides north with Villa and becomes a witness to the raid on Columbus, N.M. Reunited with her son, Wright lived out her years until her death in 1980 in the village of Mountainair. About the author: Hays taught English in the Albuquerque Public Schools, Albuquerque Academy and schools abroad before he retired.

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Geoffrey W. Dennis (’81 BAED) Llewellyn Publications, 2017 Sefer ha-Bahir, “The Book of Brilliance,” is one of the lesser-known books of the Kabbalah, the mystical Jewish interpretation of the Bible. But as Dennis, a rabbi, argues in this book, it is the most foundational of Kabbalistic texts that “set a new standard for mystical rhetoric and speculation.” Dennis has selected several dozen passages in translation with commentary on each. About the author: Dennis is an adjunct professor of rabbinics at the University of North Texas and rabbi of Congregation Kol Ami in Flower Mound, Texas.

Losing Susan Victor Lee Austin (’82 MA) Brazos Press, 2016 The subtitle of this memoir—“Brain Disease, The Priest’s Wife, and the God Who Gives and Takes Away”—describes Episcopal Priest Austin’s greatest test of spiritual strength, the suffering, neurological decline and eventual death of his young wife, Susan, after successful treatment of brain cancer. Austin intertwines the story of slowly losing a spouse with his reflections on the life of Jesus and the test of this spiritual life. “The grace of faith,” he says, “did not shield us from darkness.” About the author: Austin, an Episcopal priest in the diocese of New York, is also theologian-in-residence at Saint Thomas Church Fifth Avenue in New York City.

Miraculous Images and Votive Offerings in Mexico

Samuel Trejo (’92 BS), Albuquerque, is now associate director of manufacturing sciences and technology with Bristol-Myers Squibb, a leading global biopharmaceutical company.

Frank Graziano (’90 PhD) Oxford University Press, 2016

David Jablonski (’94 BA), Rio Rancho, N.M., a decorated U.S. Air Force veteran, is the secretary of the New Mexico Corrections Department.

“Votive exchange,” as Graziano explains, “is practical, goal-directed, utilitarian devotion.” A person of faith asks a miraculous image for help: to pass an exam, get pregnant, have a bountiful crop. If the miracle is granted, the petitioner reciprocates with an offering: flowers, candles, perhaps a poem. Graziano explores this practice across Mexico with historical research and fieldwork that includes descriptions of shrines and interviews with votaries.

Andy D. Murray ('94 BS, ’14 MS) and Bobbie Ortiz Murray ('04 BUS) celebrated their 30th wedding anniversary in Albuquerque. Bobbie has retired after 24 years at UNM Anderson School.

About the author: Graziano is a professor of Hispanic studies at Connecticut College and the author of “The Millennial New World,” The Mystical Marriage of St. Rose of Lima” and “Cultures of Devotion.”

Lilly B. Irvin (’95 BA, ’01 MCRP), Peralta, N.M., is the executive director for Crossroads for Women. Irvin has two decades of experience in working with families in Wisconsin and New Mexico. Giovanna H. Rossi (’95 BA), Albuquerque, leads Family Friendly New Mexico, a nonprofit. She also runs the Well Woman Show and owns the Collective Action Strategies Consulting Firm.

Cooking for Halflings & Monsters

Michael F. Shannon (’95 BSN, ’97 MS), Albuquerque, won the USA Powerlifting Association military competition in March in Fort Hood, Texas.

Astrid Tuttle Winegar (’02 BA, ’08 MA) Oloris Publishing, 2016 Cookbook publishing has exploded, especially niche recipe books: vegan, gluten-free, one-pot meals. Now there is a cookbook especially for Hobbits and other halflings. Winegar, a devotee of J.R. Tolkein, set out to create a cookbook with recipes paying homage to him and his characters. Between the covers are 101 recipes for meat tart, mushroom pie, pickled ginger, braised rabbit and many other dishes that in Winegar’s imagination would be at home on a Middle Earth dining table. As tasty as the dishes are Winegar’s cheery names—Raskofim’s Roadkill, StickGlurbin’s Gutless Wonders and Meat on a Metal Stick.

David M. Stround (’95 MA), Sagle, Idaho, is a member of the Children’s Grief Center board of directors. Jamie Michael (’96 BSED), Las Cruces, N.M., the director for the Doña Ana County Health and Human Services Department, has been selected as one of the Sun-News 2017 Movers and Shakers.

About the author: Winegar returned to UNM in 1998 at the age of 36 after a 16-year absence to complete her B.A. She taught Latin while at UNM.

David Howes (’97 BUS, ’07 MA), Albuquerque, the head football coach at Rio Rancho High School, helped lead the Rams to be recognized on the 2016-17 MaxPreps Tour of Champions. Sean E. Garrett (’98 BBA, ’01 JD), Albuquerque, has joined YLAW, formerly known as Yenson, Allen and Wosick P.C. He is also the president of the UNM School of Law Alumni Association and serves on the board of directors for the New Mexico Defense Lawyers Association.

Grandpa Lolo’s Matanza: A New Mexico Tradition Nasario Garcia (’62 BA, ’63 MA) Rio Grande Books, 2016

Melani Page (’98 BSED, ’99 MA), Albuquerque, created Running 505, a youth program promoting physical and emotional wellness through the joy of running for youth in fifth and sixth grades.

Everyone has fun in this bilingual children’s book, except the pig. “Grandpa Lolo’s Matanza” continues the story of 8-year-old New Mexican Junie Lopez, the boy in Garcia’s previous work, “Grandma Lale’s Tamales.” This time Garcia tells about the fall tradition of hog butchering, watching as the family men string the pig up in a cottonwood tree and helping boil and scrape off the bristles. Then comes the fun—making chicharrones and blood sausage and eating them with homemade tortillas. As she did for “Grandma Lale’s Tamales,” Dolores Aragon illustrates the matanza story.

Mary M. Ramos (’98 DM, ’98 MPH), Albuquerque, is helping lead a study at the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation and the University of California that looks at strategies to reduce LGBTQ teenage suicides.

About the author: Garcia, a prolific folklorist, has explored many aspects of New Mexico Hispanic life, including faith, food and humor. He lives in Santa Fe.

(continued on page 35)

Matthew A. Barlow (’99 BS), Portales, N.M., has received the Presidential Award for Excellence from Eastern New Mexico University. Barlow is an advisor, instructor and faculty mentor for the Caduceus Health Society and Pre-Dental Society at Eastern. Larry Crockett (’99 BSML), Albuquerque, is the Core Lab Manager for TriCore Reference Laboratories.

FALL 2017

MIRAGE MAGAZINE

Volver Antonio Marquez (’78 PhD) University of New Mexico Press, 2017 What is the value of memoir? Some lives are thrilling, others of note because of the writer’s celebrity or place in history. This memoir of UNM English and literature professor Marquez doesn’t meet any of those tests, yet it is engaging and meaningful because of Marquez’s clear and detailed writing style and his achievements—born into a family of Mexican immigrants in El Paso and put to work at age 12, Marquez nonetheless graduated from college, then completed post-graduate degrees and a 45- year teaching career, much of it in the English department at UNM. Along the way, we learn of his political awakening as the Civil Rights Movement and then the Vietnam War protests unfold around him. About the author: Marquez is a professor emeritus of English language and literature at UNM. He lives in Albuquerque.

The Birth of the Imagination: William Carlos Williams on Form Bruce Holsapple (’00 MS) University of New Mexico Press, 2016 Readers unfamiliar with William Carlos Williams will find themselves immersed in the early 20th century poet’s writing and benefit from the close readings offered by Holsapple, a poet himself. This is not a biography of Williams, a physician who maintained a medical practice while publishing volumes of inventive, democratic verse. Holsapple examines Williams’ form, structure and content from his first collection “Poems,” published in 1909 to his “The Wedge,” published in 1944. About the author: Holsapple earned his Ph.D. from SUNY Buffalo and works as a speech-language pathologist in central New Mexico. He has published seven books of poetry, including most recently “Wayward Shadow.”

Alicia Borrego Pierce (’99 BA), Albuquerque, is the President and CEO of ECHO Inc. in Farmington, N.M., a nonprofit that provides financial, educational and technical aid to individuals and families to help them achieve self-reliance. Rosalia Triana (’99 MA), Espanola, N.M., is the full-time librarian for the Pueblo de Abiquiú Library.

2000s Laurie Weahkee (’00 BA), executive director of Native American Voters Alliance, was appointed to a four-year term on Albuquerque’s Commission on Indian Affairs. Orlando Chavez (’02 BA) was named the summer 2017 commander of the U.S. Air Force’s 344th Training Squadron at Joint Base San AntonioLackland, Texas. Cristin Heyns-Bousliman (’02 BBA), Albuquerque, has been inducted into the UNM Anderson School of Management Foundation Board’s 2017 Hall of Fame. Julia Maestas (’02 BA), Las Vegas, N.M., was appointed as the director of recruitment and retention for the remainder of the 2015-17 term by the Board of Directors of Lambda Theta Alpha Latin Sorority, Inc. Derek Meier (’02 MS), Rio Rancho, N.M., has been promoted to associate vice president at Wilson & Co. Inc., Engineers & Architects. Vidalia F. Gruber (’03 BA, ’06 JD), Albuquerque, is the presiding Criminal Court judge for Albuquerque’s Metro Court. She is also the presiding judge for the Behavioral Health DWI Court. Christopher B. Mortensen (’03 BBA) was elected to the Gallup-McKinley County Board of Education. Rosalyn Nguyen (’03 BBA, ’07 JD), Albuquerque, has been inducted into the UNM Anderson School of Management Foundation Board’s 2017 Hall of Fame.

ATTENTION PUBLISHED ALUMNI AUTHORS: We would like to add your book to the alumni library in Hodgin Hall and consider it for a review in Shelf Life. Please send an autographed copy to: Shelf Life, UNM Alumni Relations 1 UNM, MSC01-1160, Albuquerque, NM 87131

Suzanne King Amrich (’04 MA, ’05 PDCER), West Chester, PA., has joined the staff at the architecture firm of Archer & Buchanan Architecture, Ltd. Fabian N. Aragon (’04 BBA, ’06 MACCT), Albuquerque, was named a 2017 “40 Under Forty” Suzanne King Amrich by Albuquerque Business First. Aragon is the Business Operations Manager for Sandia National Laboratories. Christi Blaschke (’04 BSED, ’12 MBA), Albuquerque, has been inducted into the UNM Anderson School of Management Foundation Board’s 2017 Hall of Fame.

FALL 2017

UNM ALUMNI ASSOCIATION AWARD WINNERS

Jack Fortner, Amy Boule, Larry Larrañaga, L. Ray Nunley, Roy Solomon, Elizabeth Valenzuela, Vikie Wilcox and Megan Fitzpatrick

he Alumni Association is

Lobo Award

proud to announce the

Jack Fortner (’78 BA) Jack Fortner graduated from UNM with a bachelor’s degree in political science and minor in psychology. In 1981, Fortner graduated from the University of Michigan School of Law and returned to Albuquerque. In l983, he moved to Farmington where he continues to practice law. In l996, Fortner was elected to the San Juan County Commission, and re-elected in 2000, 2012 and 2016. He currently serves as commission chairman. In January 2017, the Hispanic Round Table of New Mexico awarded Fortner the Community Leadership Award. Fortner has been a member of the UNM Board of Regents from 1998 to 2016, serving as president in 2005 and again from 2011 to 2015.

recipients of our annual Lobo, Zia and Inspirational Young Alumnus awards. The 2017 recipients will be honored at the Alumni Association’s All University Breakfast beginning at 9 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 30, in the La Ventana Room at Embassy Suites. The public is invited to attend. Tickets are $25 per person and reservations are required. To RSVP and to purchase tickets, please go to unmalumni.com/homecoming or call the Alumni Relations Office at 505-277-5808.

Zia Awards The Lobo Award honors a UNM graduate distinguished by professional achievement or dedication to the betterment of the University. The Zia Award honors outstanding alumni who make their home in New Mexico. The Inspirational Young Alumnus Award honors emerging leaders, age 40 or below, in community service or professional achievements.

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Amy Boule (’68 BA, ’84 MBA) Amy Boule is a double alumna of UNM, graduating with a bachelor's degree in chemistry and a master's in business administration. Boule worked as a hospital clinical chemist for 15 years before working at UNM Hospital for 24 years where she acted as a hospital administrator. After retirement from UNMH, Boule worked as the director of operations at the New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator until 2014. Boule served for six years on the UNM Alumni Association Board of Directors and chaired the Awards Committee for several years. She is currently co-chair of the Lobo Living Room committee. She was recognized as a Woman on the Move by the YWCA in 1988 and was

inducted into the Anderson School of Management’s Hall of Fame in 2009. Larry Larrañaga (‘71 BSCE, ‘80 MS) Larry Larrañaga received a bachelor’s of science and master’s of science in civil engineering from the University of New Mexico. He was a partner in the Bohannan Huston Consulting Engineering firm for 15 years. He also served as deputy chief administrative officer and Public Works director for the City of Albuquerque and as Secretary of Highways for the State of New Mexico after working for the New Mexico Highway Department for 15 years. A veteran of the Armed Services, Larrañaga owns and operates a ranching business in Central New Mexico. Larrañaga has served on numerous boards and commissions appointed by presidents, governors, mayors, county commissioners and universities. He has served in the New Mexico House of Representatives since 1994. L. Ray Nunley (’62 BSPH) L. Ray Nunley, a graduate of the College of Pharmacy, operated Nunley Drug in Ruidoso from 1966 to 1982, and then spent the most of the rest of his career as a Walmart pharmacist. Nunley was named the 2015 UNM College of Pharmacy Distinguished Alumnus. He served for 10 years on the Lincoln County Commission and was its chairman from 1994 to1995. In 1990 he was appointed to the Board of Nursing where he became the vice chairman. In 2002 he was elected to the Ruidoso Village Council, and in 2006 he was elected Mayor of Ruidoso Village. He served as a professional member of the

New Mexico Board of Pharmacy from 2010 to 2013. Roy Solomon (’89 BUS) A lifelong athlete who has completed six full Ironman triathlons, has run in the Boston Marathon twice and completed the New York City Marathon, Roy Solomon is proud of his time as a member of the ski team at UNM, where he received a degree in business administration. Solomon has led a series of food and drink ventures including Friar’s Pub, The Hungry Bear, Sunset Grille, 505 Southwestern Chile Products and Bailey’s on the Beach. Solomon is the founder and developer of Green Jeans Farmery in Albuquerque. Inspired by a strong desire to be an advocate for small local business, Solomon has turned repurposed shipping containers into a new type of cooperative development at Interstate 40 and Carlisle. Elisabeth Valenzuela (‘99 BS, ‘01 MA, ‘09 PhD) Elisabeth Valenzuela is a triple alumna from UNM’s College of Education. She started her career as a bilingual teacher at La Mesa Elementary School and worked for Albuquerque Public Schools for 13 years. Since leaving APS, she was the first principal at the Dorn Charter Community School and education administrator at the Public Education Department (Bilingual Multicultural Education Bureau), where she created the Spanish Language Development and Spanish Language Arts Taskforce, which was charged with reviewing and adopting standards to strengthen bilingual programs in New Mexico. Valenzuela has taught various education courses at UNM, New Mexico Highlands University and Northern New Mexico College.

Vickie Wilcox (’95 JD) A 1988 Deming High School graduate, Vickie Wilcox attended George Washington University in Washington, D.C., before graduating from the UNM School of Law. Her Master of Laws in Taxation is from New York University. She returned to New Mexico in 1996, and has since represented clients across New Mexico, with a primary focus on estate and business planning, and charitable giving. She received the Albuquerque Community Foundation Excellence in Charitable Gift Planning award. Wilcox serves on the board of the UNM Anderson School of Management Foundation and was a past adjunct professor at the UNM School of Law. Wilcox is an American College of Trust and Estate Counsel Fellow and is one of five New Mexico Board Certified Specialists in estate planning, trust and probate law.

Inspirational Young Alumnus Megan Fitzpatrick (’08 BA, ’14 MD) Megan Fitzpatrick received her bachelor’s degree and Doctor of Medicine from the UNM. While a student at UNM, she founded and ran an organization dedicated to public health outreach implementation through partnerships with nongovernmental organizations in El Salvador. In medical school, she learned to use data to identify patterns and investigate causes of malnutrition and typhoid fever in Kenya and Uganda through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Hubert Global Health Fellowship. This year, Fitzpatrick completed the Fogarty Global Health Equity Fellowship where she had the chance to create and implement a cervical cancer public health pathology project in Zimbabwe. She is currently completing her anatomic pathology training at Stanford University.

John W. Blair (’04 JD), Albuquerque, has joined the Office of the Secretary of State as the deputy Secretary of State. Previously, Blair worked as the director of Intergovernmental & External Affairs in the Office of the Secretary at the U.S. Department of the Interior. Dr. Brea A. Bond (’04 MD), Albuquerque, is a family medicine provider for Presbyterian Healthcare Services. Terrance J. Cook (’04 BA), Tijeras, N.M., is the executive director of ABQid, an educational organization offering annual 12-week accelerated courses designed to assist local startup companies. Arellana D. Cordero (’04 BBA, ’13 MBA), Albuquerque, was named as one of 21 New Mexico Women of Influence in 2017 by Albuquerque Business First. Cordero works to help provide college savings accounts to middleschoolers from low-income families living in downtown Albuquerque. Lloyd L. Lee (’04 PhD), associate professor of Native American Studies at UNM and president of the Board for the American Indian Studies Association, was appointed to a four-year term on Albuquerque’s Commission on Indian Affairs. Brian J. Martin (’04 BA, ’10 MPA), Albuquerque, was named a 2017 “40 Under Forty” by Albuquerque Business First. He was recently named COO of Molina Healthcare, where he is responsible for directing and administrating operational departments, programs and services. Mayumi Nishida (’04 MFA), Lamy, N.M., showcased her “Inverted Pyramid” paintings at the April Price Projects Gallery. Nishida is an installation artist with a focus on light and interactive spaces. Michael M. Olguin, Jr. (’04 BBA), Socorro, N.M., is the new coach of the Socorro High School Lady Warriors soccer team. He also serves on the Socorro City Council. Ryan C. Pate (’04 MD), Springfield, Ill., is chief of the Division of Orthopedic Surgery and an assistant professor of surgery at Southern Illinois University School of Medicine. He specializes in hip and knee reconstruction and shoulder arthroscopy, but treats a variety of orthopedic conditions. Rachel Bayless (’05 JD), Albuquerque, is a judge for the New Mexico Workers’ Compensation Association. Jason W. Brooks (’05 BA), Ames, Iowa, is the new editor of the Las Vegas Optic. Brian F. Egolf (’05 JD), Santa Fe, N.M., is the speaker of the New Mexico House of Representatives. Isaac C. Romero (’05 BBA, ’06 MBA), Albuquerque, was named a 2017 “40 Under Forty” by Albuquerque Business First. Romero is a manager at Sandia National Laboratories.

FALL 2017

During Literacy Week at La Mesa Elementary School in Albuquerque, children bring to life an Aboriginal creation tale from the book “Sun Mother Wakes the World.” Photo: Katie Williams, UNM Communication and Marketing

UNM People Changing Worlds REWARDING COLLABORATION Former UNM Educators Support Two Colleges Engaged in Multicultural Arts Integration By Hilary Mayall Jetty

lbuquerque’s International District is home to large populations of native New Mexicans, settled immigrants and recently arrived international refugees. It is culturally wealthy, yet economically impoverished. In the midst of this kaleidoscope of diversity, two UNM colleges are collaborating at La Mesa Elementary School in a unique educational pilot program that delights David and Mary Colton. David served as dean of the UNM College of Education from 1982-89. Mary is an educator and accomplished weaver, and following her husband’s tenure as dean, they both taught at UNM. Their passion for education, love of art and music, and

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deep concern for children in economically challenged circumstances led them to support TECLA, the Teacher Education Collaborative in Language Diversity and Arts Integration. TECLA engages student teachers in art education at the UNM College of Fine Arts and elementary education at the College of Education who are interested in bilingual education and Teaching English to Students of Other Languages. Mentored by faculty from both colleges, these future educators blend artistic creativity and cultural sensitivity into mathematical thinking, scientific inquiry, social studies, literacy and other core subjects in La Mesa’s classrooms. Learning

becomes a joy, as youngsters demonstrate their comprehension through art, writing, drama, music and special projects. This was a perfect fit for the Coltons. “There are far too many children living in poverty in New Mexico,” David says. “We decided to look for a program to invest in that involved these at-risk kids and the arts. TECLA is remarkable because the team understands that learning in school has to relate to kids’ cultural heritage.” Although English, Spanish and Navajo are taught at La Mesa, dialects from Africa and other continents are also represented in the student body. Teacher candidates are trained to appreciate their students as individuals with abilities that reflect

knowledge they have gained through their community, heritage and daily realities. Rebecca Sanchez, associate professor in Teacher Education and Educational Leadership and Policy, is a TECLA coordinator at the College of Education. She values the Colton’s active engagement with the program. “They are both educators, and it’s exciting to have truly meaningful conversations with them,” Sanchez says. “Their generosity supports professional development for our students and the classroom teachers they work with. It also bolsters our research plans so we can collect data, as well as document and disseminate knowledge gained from this experience.” The Coltons enjoy attending events at La Mesa. Mary was particularly impressed by “classroom museum” projects, where students delve into a specific topic from different academic perspectives. Students create visual aids, exhibits and performances to other classes as well as visiting adults to help them present what they’ve learned. “One class studied chocolate,” Mary says, “and each small group in that class became specialists in an aspect of the topic, like how or where the [cacao] plant was raised, and the various stages of chocolate production. They also wrote a poem in Spanish, and one young girl nearby recognized that we didn’t understand it. She spontaneously translated it into English for me, and that was a wonderful example of her own understanding of a cultural situation.” “One of our hopes,” David says, “is that the ‘powers that be’ can be nudged past their preoccupation with test scores and STEM, because these kids are going to have to deal with a bigger world. We think if they can be engaged through the arts it will help them stay in school.” Nancy Pauly, associate professor in Art Education and Art History, is one of the founders of TECLA. She notes that the outcomes of arts integration correspond well with the Coltons’ philanthropic goals. “We frame our project under the larger term of multiple literacies,” she says. “If children dance or dramatize something or make a visual image, they engage in a

way that they can understand it differently. Arts-based learning is proven to improve reading proficiency and contribute to academic and career success, especially for children living in poverty, those with disabilities, and English language learners.” The Coltons’ admiration for teamwork and partnership in academic endeavors also extends to a College of Fine Arts program in music. Mary created the Thelma Rawcliffe Collaborative Piano Endowment to honor her mother, who

Daniel M. Alsup (’06 BA, ’09 JD), Albuquerque, is a member of Modrall Sperling Law Firm’s public finance group. Regina L. Cormier (’06 BSED), Albuquerque, has created Yummy Spoon, a one-handed, self-dispensing spoon made especially for infants. It was named Product of the Year by several prominent retailers, including Target and Walgreens, at the Efficient Collaborative Retail Marketing tradeshow in Orlando, Fla. Cristina Duran (’07 PhD), Albuquerque, after serving as the interim associate dean for the Facundo Valdez School of Social Work at New Mexico Highlands University since July 2014, has been promoted to dean. Selina Martinez (’07 BAED), Clovis, N.M., was honored as the New Mexico Association of Student Councils’ Middle Level Advisor of the Year. Carl I. Vidal, Jr. (’07 BBA), Albuquerque, was named a 2017 “40 Under Forty” by Albuquerque Business First. Vidal is the sales manager for Lewan Technology. Ivan Lopez-Hurtado (’08 PhD), Santa Fe, N.M., is provost for Northern New Mexico College.

Fifth graders in a bilingual classroom at La Mesa Elementary School in Albuquerque used a leaf to learn how to determine the area and perimeter of an irregular object. Photo: Courtesy UNM College of Education

was a pianist. Scholarships benefit students in the Collaborative Piano Program under the direction of Associate Professor Pamela Pyle. “We are grateful for the Coltons’ visionary support through their gifts,” said Fine Arts Dean Kymberly Pinder. “Their significant contributions to the art integration program at La Mesa Elementary reflect their deep desire to make a difference in our community through their conviction that the arts enrich the education of Albuquerque’s children.” ❂ If you would like to support the College of Education, College of Fine Arts, or another program, scholarship or research area at The University of New Mexico, please contact the UNM Foundation at (505) 313-7600 or visit UNMFund.org.

Lindsey A. Jacot (’08 BS, ’10 MBA), Albuquerque, has joined Titan Development. Yovanne Lucero (’08 BA), Carrizozo, N.M., was appointed Elephant Butte city manager. Ndidi-Amake Okpareke (’08 PHARM), opened the Olive Tree Compounding Pharmacy, the only compounding pharmacy in Rio Rancho. Marcos D. Rivera (’08 BSED), Albuquerque, is the head boys’ basketball coach for the Sandia Preparatory School Sundevils. Bruce J. Stidworthy (’08 MEMBA), Albuquerque, is the president and CEO of Bohannan Huston Inc. Prior to his promotion, Stidworthy served in various areas of the company for 22 years, including the executive committee and the board of directors. Laura L. Burton (’09 MA, ’16 PhD), Rio Rancho, N.M., has won UNM West’s Outstanding Lecturer or Affiliated Teacher of the Year Award. The award was presented by the University’s Center for Teaching and Learning and Center for Teaching Excellence. Douglas Carver (’09 JD), Albuquerque, is the executive director of New Mexico Ethics Watch, a new nonpartisan group aiming to encourage ethical conduct in New Mexico government. Michael Curry (’09 BBA), Hermosa Beach, Calif., is the new leader of the UNM Alumni Association Los Angeles Chapter. Damien A. Flores (’09 BA), Albuquerque, has published his first full-length book entitled “Junkyard Dogs.” Flores is a four-time Albuquerque slam poet champion.

FALL 2017

Alumni Events Calendar SEPTEMBER 2 LOS ANGELES CHAPTER*

Beach Social & Arts Festival, Hermosa Beach

COLLEGE OF PHARMACY

Women in Pharmacy Alumni Tea

9-10

WASHINGTON D.C. CHAPTER*

NORCAL CHAPTER*

Green Chile Roast, Kings Mountain Community Ctr, Redwood

AUSTIN CHAPTER

DENVER CHAPTER*

DALLAS/FORT WORTH CHAPTER

Homecoming Game Watch

CHICAGO CHAPTER

Homecoming Game Watch, Shoeless Joes

ATLANTA CHAPTER Green Chile Roast

2002 & 2007 SCHOOL OF MEDICINE Reunions

LOS ANGELES CHAPTER* SoCal and NorCal Meet Up @ UNM vs. Fresno State Football

LOS ANGELES CHAPTER*

UNM LAW ALUMNI/AE ASSOCIATION

Western Music Showcase at the Autry, West L.A. Distinguished Achievement Awards Dinner, 6 p.m., UNM Student Union Ballroom

SAN DIEGO

Surgery Alumni Reunion Reception, San Diego

School of Medicine Alumni Reception

ENGINEERING

SCHOOL OF MEDICINE

VETERANS DAY CELEB RATION

DALLAS/FORT WORTH & AUSTIN CHAPTER

UNLV @ UNM FOOTBALL

Distinguished Alumni Awards Alumni Reception, Boston UNM Alumni Memorial Chapel Texas A&M Tailgate Game Watch

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Howliday Pot Luck Party UNM vs. Colorado Men’s Basketball, Boulder

SAN DIEGO CHAPTER

LOS ANGELES CHAPTER*

DENVER CHAPTER

COMMENCEMENT

GILDAN NEW MEXICO BOWL GAME

Main Campus, Hodgin Hall Alumni Center

Posole and Red Chile Christmas Dinner Lobo Holiday Party, San Antonio Winery UNM vs. USAFA Men’s Basketball, Colorado Springs Dreamstyle Arena Dreamstyle Stadium

JANUARY

LAS VEGAS CHAPTER

DALLAS/FORT WORTH CHAPTER*

UNM @ UNLV Men’s Basketball Game Basketball Watch Party, UNM vs. SDSU

FEBRUARY

SCHOOL OF MEDICINE

ALUMNI ASSOCIATION

DALLAS/FORT WORTH CHAPTER

WASHINGTON D.C. CHAPTER*

DENVER CHAPTER*

NOVEMBER

San Diego Chapter Pre-Game Event

Homecoming Mixer, 5:30 p.m. at Public Works Coffee Bar

Thanksgiving at the L.A Smorgasbord, Downtown L.A.

HANGING OF THE GREENS

LAS VEGAS CHAPTER*

Annual Fall Wine Tasting Tour

BLACK ALUMNI CHAPTER Black Cultural Conference, UNM

UNM FOOTBALL @ SDSU

OCTOBER 7 13-14

DECEMBER

LOS ANGELES CHAPTER*

La Tierra Sagrada Dinner, Embassy Suites

SCHOOL OF MEDICINE

21-23

AUSTIN CHAPTER

Taco Picnic and Green Chile Roast, Fortuitous Farms

Living Legend Dinner, Hotel Albuquerque Winter Awards Lobo Day Lobo Day with Chris Witt UNM vs CSU Men’s Basketball, Ft. Collins

*UNM Alumni Chapters with scholarships that support students attending UNM from that city. Donate to these scholarships at UNMFund.org. Go to unmalumni.com for updated information on alumni activities and events. Events, dates and times are subject to change. Contact the Alumni Relations Office at 505-277-5808 or 800-258-6866 for additional information.

From Dana’s Desk Loyal Lobos

lthough there is a small amount of debate, the general consensus is that the University of Missouri can lay claim to starting the tradition of inviting alumni to “come home” to campus for an annual event. This first Homecoming was back in the late 1800s, with events and games. Homecoming celebrations became a more regular part of campus traditions across the country in the early 1900s. Now, in 2017, the word homecoming automatically brings with it a sense of tradition and travel, dinners Dana Allen and dances, and football and fun. I am pleased to share that your alma mater is set to deliver on all of those and more as we celebrate how we are Living la Vida Lobo. This theme causes me to reflect on how I see our alumni demonstrate the Lobo Life in every way possible. You impact your communities and make your mark globally. Whether it be to craft the finest brews or make memories for millions (both of which you’ll read about in this issue), the life skills instilled at UNM remain with our Lobos well after graduation and become an intrinsic part of who they are. As one alumnus put it: “It isn’t that I’m living the Lobo Life, it’s that my life is being a Lobo.” I want to encourage all of you to return to campus—whether that entails navigating an airport or just driving down the street—and see how UNM is impacting the lives of Lobos today. If you can’t make it to campus, use Homecoming as motivation to reach out to one of our chapters and reconnect with UNM through their events near you. You can find a full listing on our website and, if you don’t see a chapter in your area, give us a call and let’s talk about getting one started! As our brand says “each of us defines all of us,” and I cannot think of a better statement that shares how all the Lobos I’ve met live every day—as individuals, but part of a larger pack. I look forward to seeing you all on campus soon.

Woof! Woof! Woof!

Savannah D. Jermance (’09 BA, ’13 MBA), Albuquerque, is the Economic Development and Business Relations manager for the City of Rio Rancho. Tiffany E. Dowell Lashmet (’09 JD), White Deer, Texas, was among several honored at the Texas A&M Agrilife Extension Panhandle District Banquet. Lashmet’s team won the Team Teaching Award for programs conducted in 2016-17. Donovan Porterie (’09 BA), Port Arthur, Texas, former UNM Lobos quarterback, has signed to play with the Duke City Gladiators Club. Christina C. Sheehan (’09 JD), Albuquerque, is a member of Modrall Sperling Law Firm’s natural resources department. She is also co-editor of Modrall Sperling’s Energy & Resources Notes newsletter.

2010s Max C. Early (’10 BA), Paguate, N.M., was a featured poet at the opening night of the National Poetry Month celebration in Taos. Parker L. Jennings (’10 BFA), Santa Fe, N.M., held a solo show at Downtown Subscription entitled, “Opposing Forces.” The exhibition showcased Jennings’ carpentry work, as well as the work he’s completing as a set builder at the Santa Fe Opera. Thomas Weiler (’10 MD) is now a pediatric intensive care physician for Presbyterian Healthcare Services. Karsten Creightney (’11 MFA) had a solo show at 516 Arts in Albuquerque. Keith R. Gerrard (’11 MS), Isle of Man, U.K., won the half-marathon in Albuquerque’s Run for the Zoo, with a time of 1 hour, 10 minutes and 32 seconds. Lauren V. Jaramillo (’11 BSCE) and Jonathan Carter Hebert, Albuquerque, were married on Jan. 7 at the University of New Mexico Alumni Memorial Chapel. Bridget L. Mullins (’11 MA, ’11 JD), Albuquerque, previously a New Mexico assistant attorney general and assistant district attorney, has joined Pregenzer, Baysinger, Wideman & Sale PC. Amber E. Ohlinger (’11 AA, ’13 BS), Taos, N.M., is the early childhood development director of the Ensueños y los Angelitos Development Center. Alexandra N. Pulliam (’11 BA), Albuquerque, was named a “40 Under Forty” by Albuquerque Business First for being the youngest shareholder at Enterprise Builders Corporation, the seventh-largest general contractor in New Mexico.

Dana Allen Vice President for Alumni Relations

Alyson Wilson & Liam Lowrey

Alyson Wilson (’11 BA, ’14 DPT) and Liam Lowrey (’11 BS, ’14 BA), Tempe, Ariz., were married at the Anderson-Abruzzo Albuquerque International Balloon Museum on Sept. 3, 2016.

FALL 2017

Alumni Network Snapshots from Alumni events

Kelsea Gallegos (’17 PHARMD) celebrates her new degree with panache.

Golden Grad Laura Bradshaw Grissom (’42 BA) celebrates with her daughter, Dorothy Elwood, and son, Rick Grissom.

New grad Lauren Dennis (’17 BS) makes a new friend at the New Grad Bash.

Ngan T. Nguyen (’17 PHARMD) is all smiles after receiving her graduate degree.

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Arthur Beach (’67 BBA, ’70 JD) and Alex Beach (’69 BSHE) at the Golden Grads reception.

Hakim Bellamy ('14 MA) at the Karen A. Abraham courtyard dedication.

In Memoriam We remember alumni who recently passed away.

1930 - 1939

Clay B. Goldston, ‘51

J. Louis York, ‘38

Arthur A. Gorrell, ‘51 Robert E. Haebel, ‘51, ‘67

1940 - 1949 Anna Vallevik Green, ‘41 Mary Katherine (Woods) Fowles, ‘43 Bill S. Bon, ‘45 Patricia G. (Griffin) Halet, ‘45 John D. Weiss, ‘45 Sara B. Wilson, ‘45 Eldred Leroy Hein, ‘46 Sue (Marshall) Daulton, ‘47 Betty (Caldwell) Warder, ‘47 Hugh James Hall, ‘48 Charles L. King, ‘48 Jean (Chandler) Moore, ‘48 Carroll L. Riley, ‘48, ‘52, Howell E. Stone, ‘48 Barney Thorpe, ‘48 Ralph N. Calkins, ‘49 Thomas Allen Fitzgerald, ‘49 Nedra (Callender) Gordon, ‘49 Benjamin J. Melton, ‘49 Theodore Keith Roberts, ‘49 Joseph F. Tondre, ‘49

Roland W. Kurth, ‘51 Belisandro Mares, ‘51 Jo Ann (Severns) Martin, ‘51, ‘53, Donald G. Roberts, ‘51 Clay O. Keen, ‘52 Richard McGuire, ‘52 Maurice D. Weddle, ‘52 John W. Whalen, ‘52 Robert F. Ashley, ‘53 Pepper (Grove) Guzman, ‘53 Shirley (Fay) Sample, ‘53 James Lester Sands, ‘53, ‘57 Sinclair S. Wall, ‘53 Lewis Anderson, ‘54, ‘58 Gene Gardenhire, ‘54, ‘63 Frank F. Kretek, ‘54 Anthony J. Witkowski, ‘54, ‘58 Dan D. Chavez, ‘55, ‘61 Emil M. Goimarac, ‘55 Donald W. Reid, ‘55 Jean (Mckinney) Gratton, ‘56 P. Stewart McCarroll, ‘56, ‘56 George E. Woodman, ‘56

1950 - 1959 William R. Bierbaum, ‘50 William French Botwinis, ‘50 James E. Davidson, ‘50 Charles W. Ellis, ‘50 Evelyn (Chinn) Huerta, ‘50 Fred R. Peck, ‘50 Joseph F. Robek, ‘50, ‘52, Ben Chavez, ‘51 Keith M. Creveling, ‘51 Bill J. Farris, ‘51

Gary R. Raper, ‘57 Patricia Ann (Blair) Waller, ‘57 Robert I. Brasier, ‘58, ‘65, ‘81 John R. Brassfield, ‘58 Robert O. Megard, ‘58 Esther Ruth (Gibson) Rickelton, ‘58 James M. Coan, ‘59 Peter D. Hendrickson, ‘59, ‘67 Paul J. Matteucci, ‘59 Harold A. Schlather, ‘59, ‘66

Amy Greer (’12 MA), Albuquerque, a pianist, writer and teacher, performed Bach’s Goldberg Variations at a performance hosted by Mountain Entertainment for the Arts in April in Ruidoso, N.M. Kimberly A. Keller (’12 BA), Albuquerque, is a software developer with Zbyte Web. Florencio Olguin Jr. (’12 BA, ’15 MPA), Albuquerque, is the director of student services for the UNM Anderson School of Management. Claudia Sanchez (’12 MA), Albuquerque, is the senior business development associate for New Mexico Mutual. Christian B. Waguespack (’12 BAFA, ’15 MA), Albuquerque, is the curator of 20th Century Art at the New Mexico Museum of Art. His first exhibition entitled, “Imagining New Mexico,” focused on subject matter pertaining to the past 100 years of New Mexico culture and art. Devin Clem (’13 BSN, ’15 MSN) is a certified nurse practitioner at the Presbyterian Medical Group clinic in Belen. Bridget E. Condon (’13 BA), Santa Fe, N.M., is the public policy coordinator for the New Mexico Association of Commerce and Industry. Condon previously served as a field representative for U.S. Rep. Steve Pearce. Vanessa Frank (’13 AS) Tohatchi, N.M., received a $1,000 scholarship as a runner-up in Gallup’s Live Your Dream Awards. Teawnni J. Moya (’13 AA, ’17 AA), Los Lunas, N.M., was the valedictorian for the UNM-Valencia Class of 2017. Larry Rainosek (’13 HOND) and Dorothy Rainosek (’13 HOND), Albuquerque, owners of the Frontier and Golden Pride Restaurants, were honored with the New Mexico Sports Hall of Fame Award of Distinction. Matthew Eaton (’14 MA), Santa Fe, N.M., is assistant professor in sculpture at the Studio Arts Department of the Institute of American Indian Arts. Pablo Flores (’14 BA) and Lydia McHaley (’14 BS) opened The Coffee Apothecary in Taos. Erika C. Vreeland (’14 PhD), Albuquerque, was named Business First’s Woman of Influence. She has also been selected as one of Bizwomen’s 100 Women to Watch. Roberto Aguero-Blau (’15 MD), Albuquerque, is a resident family medicine physician with the Hidalgo Medical Services Family Medicine Program. Carrie J. Classon (’15 MA), Los Alamos, N.M., has written a memoir entitled, “What Happens Next” and a one-woman play based on the memoir. She is working on another book titled, “I’ve Already Told You More Than I Know.” Corey Cooper (’15 MBA), Albuquerque, was named a 2017 “40 Under Forty” by Albuquerque Business First. Cooper is the deputy chief of staff for the City of Albuquerque Mayor’s Office and the chair of the Public Sector Innovation Action Team.

FALL 2017

In Memoriam 1960 - 1969

William W. Shurtleff, ‘65, ‘67, ‘83

Paul Martin Raczka, ‘71

Richard Sam Baty, ‘60

Gary Thomas O’Neil, ‘66

Robert A. Sims, ‘71

Rondal Edward Bell, ‘60

Kenneth G. Walters, ‘66

Samuel J. Visage, ‘71, ‘72

Harriet L. (Loken) Gerding, ‘60

Alvaro Almagro, ‘67

Lois Ann Winfrey, ‘71

Frank M. Locke, ‘60

Doris M. Peterson, ‘67

Gilbert William Brassell, ‘72

Doyle R. Lyddon, ‘60

John T. Stucky, ‘67

John Brown, ‘72

Carlos Alberto Lopez, ‘60

Gerald Alexander, ‘68

Gloria E. Chavez, ‘72

Amy F. (Ferran) Naranjo, ‘60

Pearl M. Burns, ‘68

Edward W. Davenport, ‘72

Raymond E. Pettit, ‘60

Helen R. Dobell, ‘68

J. Robert Gaines, ‘72

Ann (Randall) Beier, ‘61

Richard G. Ealy, ‘68

Delores (Petty) Hatcher, ‘72, ‘76

William G. Doty, ‘61

Billy Franke, ‘68

Michael P. Jogoleff, ‘72

Janice Sowell, ‘61

Herbert Grossman, ‘68

Robert Earl Lane, ‘72, ‘78

Jack E. Thompson, ‘61

Roy S. Gunn, ‘68

Joe Fidel Lucero, ‘72

Nancy (Westfall) Worley, ‘61

James E. Henderson, ‘68

Bharat Marya, ‘72

Chuck A. Aeby, ‘62, ‘81

Justin C. Joseph, ‘68

Robert R. Moody, ‘72

Denis Charles Duffy, ‘62

Oren William Key, ‘68, ‘71

Bruce William Noel, ‘72

Allen R. Edison, ‘62

Susan P. Kubie, ‘68

Jaclyn Sue Baron, ‘73

Antonio T. Maes, ‘62

Dawn Pyle (Rhodes) Lunt, ‘68

Thomas F. Burrage, ‘73

Paul R. Tafoya, ‘62

Michael W. Sandry, ‘68

Kristina S. Orms, ‘73

Ralph L. Workman, ‘62

Joseph R. Lunardon, ‘69

Stuart James Sherry, ‘73

Ronald R. Butts, ‘63

Robert T. McCook, ‘69

Candice L. Skarsgard, ‘73

James W. Hughes, ‘63

Leslie Ann Simms, ‘69

Constance S. (Sejnost) Geldbach, ‘74

Warren Nell, ‘63

Stephen J. Sweig, ‘69

Richard T. Harrelson, ‘74

Robert P. Rost, ‘63, ‘65

Ivan Martinez, ‘74 1970 - 1979

Madeline Mcdonald, ‘74

Frances Dee (Freedle) Bratton, ‘64, ‘67

Ernesto J. Baca, ‘70

Pita L. Nabholz, ‘74

Oscar Eugene Bryan, ‘64

Peggy Flanagan Baird, ‘70

Gerard Paul Dumas, ‘75, ‘81

William P. Christie, ‘64

David Battat, ‘70

Willie Hagins, ‘75

Stanley Elmer Logan, ‘64, ‘74

Jose Jeronimo Rivera, ‘70, ‘71

Edward J. Leder, ‘75

Isidro Rubi, ‘64

Aleatha Mae Scholer, ‘70

Monty Mann Moore, ‘75

Kenneth W. Van Winkle, ‘64

Ernestine G. Arndt, ‘71

John Mungo Sugg, ‘75

William C. Boede, ‘65

Ellen L. (Smith) Balestri, ‘71

William David Tryens, ‘75

Richard Gary Daniels, ‘65

Nan Baptisti Costello, ‘71

William David Brown, ‘76

Edward Davis, ‘65

Armando Rosario Gingras, ‘71, ‘73

Loretta M Ortiz Y Pino, ‘76

Celia F. Hatch, ‘65, ‘70

V. Paige Pinnell, ‘71

Glenda M. Rauscher, ‘76

Jack Douglas Rushing, ‘65

Paul Raczke, ‘71

Joan D. (Davey) Heinsohn, ‘77

Carl J. Schmidt, ‘65, ‘68

Vance Riley, ‘71

James Richard Schulte, ‘77

Nancy J. Ruoff, ‘63

MIRAGE MAGAZINE

In Memoriam William Cohen, ‘78

Jack Louis August, ‘85

Bobbie L. Nobles, ‘78

Kent Michael Whitman, ‘85

Vicky S. Villani, ‘78

Stenson Dan Lee, ‘86

Patrick G. Evans, ‘79

Gary Philip Roberts, ‘86

Myron Jay Liberman, ‘79

Joleene Colette (Kobetich) Dye, ‘87

Tracy Allen Scanlan, ‘79

Sandra Sarah Lujan, ‘87

James Michael Stewart, ‘79

William Pinckney Owens, ‘87 Virginia (Heard) Brannan, ‘88

1980 - 1989

John Louis Ewbank, ‘88

Naida (Brown) Brown, ‘80

Sandra Louise Mitchell, ‘88

Sally C. Dallago, ‘80 Janice R. Holmlund, ‘80

1990 - 1999

Ray Lloyd Interpreter, ‘80

Karl Daniel Chavez, ‘90

Stephen Eyre Meyers, ‘80

John David Gunther, ‘90

Merida L. (Barnes) Wexler, ‘80

Susan Virginia Atchley, ‘92

Carol Sue Bodenhausen, ‘81

Virginia Wallace Haworth, ‘92

Walter M. Hisenberg, ‘81

Rebecca Catherine Miller, ‘93

David Newell Whitham, ‘81

Thomas James Skenandore, ‘93

Joan Shanks Howard, ‘82

Lance Peter Leuthner, ‘94

Peggy Gross Lazarus, ‘82

Johnson Largo, ‘94, ‘96

Margaret A. (Henderson) Greenberg, ‘83

Vincent Hart Stefan, ‘95

David J. Kammer, ‘83

Gail Lynn Chambliss, ‘96

Kathi A. Larkin-Martinez, ‘84

Shawna Kay Lucero, ‘96

Natalie R. Denipah, ‘85

Christian Sinclair Rushing, ‘96

Edward William Foster, ‘85

Kathleen R. Harris, ‘97

Nancy Sue Kruger, ‘85, ‘86

Margaret Ann Saran, ‘97

Elisa A. Iringan (’15 AA, ’17 BA), Taos, N.M., is an intern at the Taos Police Department and plans to attend the police academy. Sai Kumar Uppu (’15 MS), Albuquerque, has been hired as a product development engineer at Unirac, Inc. Austin M. Apodaca (’16 BLA), Manitoba, Canada, has signed with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League. Dakota Cox (’16 BBA), Scottsdale, Ariz., a former Lobo linebacker, was invited to a rookie tryout camp for the NFL’s Minnesota Vikings. Reno T. Henderson (’16 BLA), Ocala, Fla., joined a rookie camp with the NFL’s San Francisco 49ers as an unsigned invitee. Henderson was a second-team All-Mountain West Conference selection last season. Daniel Henry (’16 BBA), Albuquerque, former safety for UNM’s football team, has entered a free-agent contract with the NFL’s Baltimore Ravens. Henry was a team captain and an AllMountain West Conference honorable mention selection as a senior. Jared Holley (’16 BA) has been named the Farmington Frackers head baseball coach for the inaugural season. Catherine Lukes (’16 MSN), Corrales, N.M., is a certified nurse midwife at the Lovelace Women’s Hospital Clinic. Amanda D. Romero (’16 BFA), Santa Fe, N.M., was the only UNM undergraduate student to showcase her artwork at the Center for Fine Arts in downtown Albuquerque. Dustin H. Dealy (’17 AS), Veguita, N.M., graduated high school in May 2017, receiving a diploma along with three associate degrees from UNM-Valencia. Dealy is a national honor student and aims to become a nuclear engineer. Andrew D. Kastelic (’17 BA), Albuquerque, wrote and directed “Secondhand Sunset,” which won the 48-Hour Film Project last summer. The film was also screened at the Cannes Film Festival in France. Rachel K. Lott (’17 BA), Rio Rancho, N.M., has joined the officer ranks in the U.S. Air Force. Lott was commissioned as a second lieutenant. Jenee M. Madrid (’17 AS), Belen, N.M., graduated high school with two associate degrees from UNM-Valencia.

Have a Good Howl Our monthly email newsletter, The Howler, keeps Lobos up-to-date with Alumni Association news and events, as well as additional alumni profiles not published in Mirage. You can read it online at UNMAlumni.com/howler or subscribe to the email version by sending a request to alumni@unm.edu.

Michael D. Nesbitt (’17 MBA), Evansville, Ind., former Lobo basketball player, is a special assistant to former UNLV interim head coach Todd Simon. Julian A. Vigil (’17 BS), Albuquerque, has earned a 2017 American Chemical Society Division of Inorganic Chemistry Award for Undergraduate Research. Jennifer Winslow (’17 MS), Albuquerque, has joined EDI Integrative Consulting LLC as an engineer in training, where she assists the team with master planning and construction management services.

FALL 2017

In Memoriam Bernard R. Wernsman, ‘97

Raymundo M Ortega, ‘12

Elizabeth Hansbury

Kathleen Ann Rutherford, ‘98

Jeffrey Wallace Gilmour, ‘14

Mary Ann Olin Harrell

2000 - 2016

OTHER ALUMNI

Randolph M. Kessler

Marsha Dean Ogilvie, ‘00

Edward Adams

Donald P. Knode

Darrell Morris, ‘03, ‘05

Teodolo F. Arellano

Theodore J. Morelli

Melissa Ann Gutierrez, ‘04

Connie A. (Giomi) Ball

James E. Saltz

Adrian C. Byrd, ‘05

Harriet Donna (Carlock) Briscoe

Joseph G. Scartaccini

Ramiro Benjamin Ramos, ‘05

Edward L. Brown

Emmett F. Shockley

Christopher Ray Tsosie, ‘05

Harry C. Bruner

Joan M. (Gallegos) Vasquez

James P. Burnett, ‘07

Beverly J. (Houdyshell) Chappell

Antonio Vigil

James J. Hagerty, ‘07

Martin J. Crotty

Kathryn Skye Walsh

Lisa Claire Corso, ‘08

Janice B. Dorn

James Irwin Williams

Michael J. Miller, ‘08

Reed Joe Ferrari

Winston Harold Wingerd

Tommy M. Truex, ‘08

Carlos A. Garcia-Moral

Martha A. Woesch

Nathan W. Marks, ‘09

Mary J. (Mattingly) Gilbert

Marvelyn L. (Jones) Woods-Thomson

Michael J. Treviso, ‘10

Ralph David Halbower

Larrison Henderson

Pack Your Bags The UNM Alumni Association gives Lobos with wanderlust the opportunity to continue their education by traveling the world through the Alumni Travel Program. With a number of unique trip opportunities—from South Africa to Iceland and within the United States—the Alumni Travel Program sets you up for success by handling all the travel plans and arrangements for you while also offering amazing discounts. To view our full 2018 Alumni Travel Program options and book, visit UNMAlumni.com/travel. For questions, please call 505-277-5808. Journey to Southern Africa January 14-29, 2018 Southern Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe Iceland's Magical Northern Lights February 24-March 2, 2018 Reykjavik to the Blue Lagoon Southern Grandeur April 22-30, 2018 Cruise from Memphis to New Orleans Riviera Rhapsody May 9-17, 2018 Monte Carlo to Rome The Wonders of Peru June 10-21, 2018 Lima, Iquitos, Machu Picchu, Cusco

MIRAGE MAGAZINE

Gaelic Exploration June 17-28, 2018 Dublin to Dublin sailing through the Emerald Isles Maritime Coastal Wonders July 9-19, 2018 Halifax, Cape Breton Island, Cabot Trail and more Scotland August 15-23, 2018 Stirling, Trossachs, Edinburgh and Perth

ALUMNI STORY

I am a high school dropout. My Papi was a few credits short of a graduate degree, and always lamented that he should have finished. So, he made me promise that I would finish what he hadn’t—and that I would challenge myself and seek the education that I didn’t find in high school.

I knew early that I wanted to work in the nonprofit sector and dedicate my life to making a difference in the world and my community. When I moved to New Mexico in 2007, I was overjoyed at the amazing work being done by nonprofits in the state. Where better to study the impact of public-private partnerships and the myriad challenges overcome by diverse communities than a state with such a unique cultural composition? I started the MPA program in at the UNM School of Public Administration in 2008. I was enamored by the brilliant faculty, the small class sizes and the depth of the curriculum. In November of that year, my Papi’s health declined quickly. I went to see him one last time and share with him what I was studying. We talked about the paper I was writing, and he suggested some additional authors for me to research. He passed the next day. I took longer to complete the program than expected, but upon graduation the impact on both my life and career was immediate. I have been a professional fundraiser for more than a decade, and am now a major gift officer for Reed College in Portland, Ore. The MPA program at UNM helped me to see in myself what my Papi saw in me. I am smart, passionate and dedicated. The daughter of a classical bassoonist and a public school teacher. I am still a high school dropout. But I have achieved three degrees. And, I am a keeper of promises. Marina Muñoz de Martínez (’13) Stay in touch with your Alumni Association at UNMAlumni.com. Click on “Connect.”

FALL 2017

Non-Profit Org. U.S. Postage PAID Permit No. 1260 Liberty, MO 64068

M A G A Z I N E

The University of New Mexico Alumni Association MSC 01-1160 1 University of New Mexico Albuquerque, NM 87131-0001

The University of New Mexico

Desert Hillscape by Kathleen

Homecoming 2017

or the first time, the UNM Alumni Association opened the design of its annual Homecoming poster to the UNM student body. And we’re proud to announce the winner of the inaugural Homecoming Poster Artwork Contest is UNM art major Kathleen Coucke. Coucke, primarily a painter and printmaker, is working toward her bachelor’s degree in art studio with a minor in arts management. A lifelong New Mexican, Coucke draws much of

her inspiration from nature, including animals, landscapes and flowers. She is also interested in making art that tells stories. Her acrylic “Desert Hillscape” was inspired by New Mexico’s palette and personality. “When I think of my home,” Coucke says, “I think of rolling hills, warm sand, blue sky and mountains going on for miles in a vast landscape. I’ve always been interested in the layers I see when I look at the landscape and how it related to the layers that form a

Coucke

painting. Most of all, this painting simply demonstrates the personality I feel New Mexico has.”

“Desert Hillscape” by Kathleen Coucke Signed limited edition (18 x 24 print): $45. Unsigned limited edition: $30. Order online at UNMAlumni.com/homecoming or by calling 505-277-5808.