Toledo The University of
ALUMNI MAGAZINE
FALL 2004
fore words
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esearch bears fruits in many ways. As a graduate of The University of Toledo, I’ve been watching with great interest the strong leadership of President Daniel Johnson as he, in conjunction with the board of trustees, applies a developing vision. As changes and improvements are implemented, The University of Toledo has the potential to become a nationally recognized metropolitan research University. As a business professional, I’m very cognizant of how the lessons learned in the classroom can carry over into a person’s career, and how important those lessons are. Like many students, I was unsure of a major as my junior year approached. In large part because of Dr. H. H. Frisinger, who taught finance courses, I became certain that this was the field that held promise for me. With a good education, work and some luck, I have been able to be employed in the trust investment field my entire career. Many other professors — Drs. Brunner, Klein and Taoka — provided knowledge that I have utilized over the years. Dr. Richard Rudduck taught several courses in business ethics that had a profound impact on the way I have tried to conduct both my professional and personal life.
No doubt these professors and their graduate assistants conducted various types of research and contributed to the general knowledge of many fields. But the ways they shared the fruits of that research in the classroom made an impact on me, and on many students like me.
THE UNIVERSITY OF TOLEDO ALUMNI ASSOCIATION OFFICERS AND TRUSTEES PRESIDENT
Theodore T. Hahn ’65, ’67
FIRST VICE PRESIDENT Birdel F. Jackson ’68
SECOND VICE PRESIDENT Barbara Berebitsky ’91
SECRETARY
James W. White Jr. ’76, ’79
TREASURER
Constance D. Zouhary ’81
PAST PRESIDENT
Karen L. Fraker ’84
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Dan Saevig ’84, ’89
ONE-YEAR TRUSTEES
Romualdo Brown ’92 Mary Pilkington Hills ’53, ’79 Richard N. Longenecker** ’86, ’88 George E. Robinson ’02 Mark A. Urrutia* ’88 Sally M. Castillo ’89, ’01
TWO-YEAR TRUSTEES
Speaking of making impacts, our revitalized Alumni Association keeps on reaching alums nationwide, thanks in large part to the vision of Dan Saevig, executive director of the association. Activities have almost doubled since last year. In conjunction with continued upgrades of our alumni Web site, an online alumni directory is being developed. In a recently completed membership study of the MidAmerican Conference schools as well as other state universities in Ohio, The University of Toledo Alumni Association ranked first in the MAC in both penetration and retention, second in Ohio for penetration, and third for retention. The University of Toledo Alumni Association stands in excellent stead. With your continued support, your association will continue to be able to provide services that will enhance your pride in being an alum of The University of Toledo.
Walter “Chip” Carstensen ’72, ’74 Jon R. Dvorak, M.D. ’80 Mark D. Folk* ’98 Lynn Hutt ’95 Jay Pearson** ’91 Stacey Scharf* ’89, ’98 Dr. Robert J. Schlembach ’49 Suzanne Wambold PhD, RN, RDC* ’85, ’91, ’02
It is an honor to serve you as association president. My wife, Suzanne, who’s also a UT graduate, and I look forward to visiting with you during activities throughout the year.
STUDENT REPRESENTATIVE
Sincerely,
Ted Hahn ’65, ’67 President, University of Toledo Alumni Association
THREE-YEAR TRUSTEES
David D. Dobrzykowski ’95, ’99 Gary J. Corrigan PhD ’70, ’77 Susan Gilmore ’89, ’93 Donald L. Warner ’74, ’76 Brian Fisher (appointed by Student Alumni Association) *Appointed by the affiliate committee ** Chapter representative
contents EDITOR
Cynthia Nowak ’78, ’80
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Paul Helgren Vicki Kroll ’88
Fall 2004 | Volume 52, Number 1
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DESIGNER
Meredith Thiede
PHOTOGRAPHERS Terry Fell Bill Hartough
Toledo Alumni is published three times a year in Fall, Winter and Spring by The University of Toledo Office of Alumni Relations.
ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT/ PUBLISHER Dan Saevig ’84, ’89
DIRECTOR, ALUMNI PROGRAMMING Eric Slough ’95
ASSISTANT DIRECTOR Ansley Abrams ’92
OUTREACH COORDINATOR Brian Weinblatt ’02, ’04
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cover story worlds of inquiry
RECENT AWARDS
SEND CHANGE OF ADDRESS INFORMATION TO:
Toledo Alumni, Office of Alumni Relations, Driscoll Alumni Center, Mail Stop 301
The University of Toledo Toledo, OH 43606-3395
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Telephone 419.530.ALUM (2586) or 800.235.6766 Fax 419.530.4994 The University of Toledo is committed to a policy of equal opportunity in education, employment, memberships and contracts, and no differentiation will be made based on race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, sexual orientation, veteran status or the presence of a disability. The University will take affirmative action as required by federal or state law.
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features
Photo courtesy of CSX Transportation
Communicator Awards — Awards of Distinction for writing/ magazine — design/magazine cover.
Mars attacks! child laborers dark history uncovered
other traditional & un chapters/affliliates
on the cover:
Graduate students’ research puts UT on map. Photo by Ted Bacho
class notes in memoriam
RECYCLED PAPER
Toledo: traditional & un
Rocket steeplechaser one of country’s best
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riana Shook (A/S ’04) still remembers her first race. She was in fourth grade, and a cousin convinced her to run with her in the annual carnival race in her hometown of Tiffin, Ohio. Shook finished last out of about 75 runners in her age group. “I was dying,” she recalled. “I swore I would never run again. I just ran in the back and talked to my friends. I didn’t like how it made me feel. It wasn’t fun for me. But I was very competitive. I didn’t like that I didn’t do well.” So she came back the following year and raced again. This time she won. That turnaround would foreshadow things to come. Already the greatest female distance runner in school history, Shook is making a name for herself and her school. Shook shaved more than 10 minutes off her own Mid-American Conference Record in the 3,000-meter steeplechase
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Toledo Alumni Magazine | Fall 2004
and finished second with a 9:49:44 time at the NCAA Track and Field Championships in Austin, Texas, on June 12. She was the only American among the top three finishers in the arduous event that requires runners to hurdle over five barriers. At July’s U.S. Olympic Trials in Sacramento, Calif., she led from the gun and shattered the American record, but a heartbreaking error led her to miss the first water jump and suffer a disqualification. Less than a month later, though, she regained her record at the European Grand Prix event in Hesseld, Belgium, running the third-fastest time in the event’s history and the sixthfastest steeplechase time ever. Observers anticipate seeing even more from Shook when the steeplechase becomes an Olympic event for women in 2008. Her coach likes her prospects for the future. “It’s limitless,” said Kevin Hadsell, in his first year as head women’s track coach and sixth year as the head crosscountry coach. Though Hadsell said Shook’s ability as a distance runner has never been in question, he confessed her proficiency in the steeplechase took him by surprise. Back in 2001, Shook’s freshman year at Toledo, she and teammate Sara Vergote begged Hadsell to let them try the steeplechase, which was a new distance event for women. Hadsell refused. “I told Briana that I was afraid she was going to get hurt. She had suffered a lot of injuries up to that point, and the steeplechase is a tough event on the body,” Hadsell said. “And I told her I didn’t think she was athletic enough.” Hadsell laughed. “That’s not one of my greatest coaching moments.” Eventually he relented, allowing Shook and Vergote to compete in the steeplechase in an inconsequential meet. He set a goal for them of 11:20, the NCAA provisional qualifying time in 2001. Shook
blew away the field and ran it in 10:47. Hadsell said that he guessed she could do the steeplechase. Since then, Shook has planted her name all over the Toledo record books — in the steeplechase as well as other distance events. She won back-to-back MAC cross-country titles in 2001 and 2002, leading the Rockets to their first championships in that sport. She also dominated the distance events on the track, winning five indoor titles and becoming the first woman in league history to win an indoor title in three consecutive seasons in a single event (3,000 meters). But Shook’s main focus has been the steeplechase, an outdoor event. She improved to the point where Track & Field magazine named her the top U.S. woman in the steeplechase for the 2003 season. Shook’s competitiveness has taken many forms in her life. An honor roll student, Shook recently won a sloganwriting contest in the fashion magazine Marie Claire. The contest, a publicity event to promote a new perfume, was to define “chance” in 20 words or less. Shook needed only eight to win: “When your inner-daredevil and your gut instinct collide.” “I told my mom I knew I was going to win even before I sent in my entry,” she said. The prize, a four-day trip to Paris for one, was anticlimactic. Not thrilled about traveling, Shook spent four lonely nights in a Paris hotel, wishing she was home training. But the prize was not the point. Winning the contest was. “She’s the toughest competitor I’ve ever seen — male or female,” Hadsell said. “I’ve never seen anybody with the ability to push themselves the way she can. Her desire to win is unbelievable. To be a great distance runner, you have to acquire the ability to run at the point of exhaustion for a long period of time. Briana can run almost an entire race at www.toledoalumni.org
Celebrating a century of excellence the point of exhaustion. She knows the secret. The secret is it’s not going to get any worse.” On the contrary, things just keep getting better for Shook, including down the road, maybe, just maybe, the Olympics in 2008. Shook, however, has no specific predictions for the future, only a desire to compete. “As long as I still love running, I’ll keep doing it,” she said. Or as a famous perfume slogan writer once said, as long as her inner-daredevil and her gut instinct keep colliding, anything is possible. — Paul Helgren, athletic media relations
“Only connect” — to Internet, that is
It’s Internet access like you’ve never seen before! Alumni can enjoy a speedy connection powered by CoreComm, plus a customized UT Rockets toolbar that includes popular sites as well as campus news and links, alumni directories, upcoming alumni events, Rockets sports and more. It means unlimited nationwide service and the capability to browse up to five times faster than with your standard dial-up connection — for less than the cost of regular dial-up. For only $19.95/month, alumni can keep their fingertips on the University pulse. Users save $84/year off the general public price, a yearly savings of $180–$480 compared to other high-speed services. Features three e-mail accounts, spam blocker, virus protection, content filter, 24/7 technical support and more. Call 800.220.1508 or visit www.securehaven.net/utalumni.
www.toledoalumni.org
The College of Pharmacy is the first college at The University of Toledo to turn 100, and party plans are under way. Alumni, students and other friends of the college are invited to join in the celebration. Oct. 15 and 16 are dates to mark for the Centennial Gala Banquet and Silent Auction, a Centennial Display Case dedication and a special tailgate party to the UT-OU football game. For the most current information, check the college Web site: www.ut.pharmacy.org. Founded in 1904, the College of Pharmacy has grown from a two-year college with four students and eight faculty members to a four-to-six-year college with 1,300 students and 50 faculty members. Now housed in Wolfe Hall, the college’s original location was in downtown Toledo, in the Toledo Medical College Building at Cherry and Page Streets. The UT College of Pharmacy is recognized nationwide as a top-rated, accredited pharmacy school with graduate and residency programs. “Several thousand of our alumni are meeting the pharmaceutical needs of society, advancing pharmaceutical knowledge through research, and serving the profession and the community,” said Dr. Johnnie L. Early, dean of the Wolfe Hall at twilight college. “Our highly regarded faculty, ever-present staff and motivated students have also been critical to ensuring not only the past century of excellence, but the promise of the next hundred years.”
William Bonser (Pharm ’67, MPharm ’81) in training at UT
Cynthia (Farmer) Fraser (Pharm ’75) doing same
Toledo Alumni Magazine | Fall 2004
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Toledo: traditional & un
Golden Alphas of the sun
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t's 1954 at The University of Toledo. Asa Knowles is president, the new University Law Library (now Gillham Hall) is dedicated, and in the Greeks section of the annual yearbook, a new group appears: Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity’s Epsilon Alpha chapter. In April, the chapter celebrated its golden jubilee, with members from coast to coast making the trip to attend. Many had not been in Toledo since graduation, so the campus tour that was part of the weekend was a revelation to those who hadn’t witnessed the transformation of a small municipal university to the state institution of today. Special honors were given to the living charter members who attended. Dr. Lancelot C.A. Thompson, professor emeritus of chemistry and the chapter’s adviser since 1958, was also honored. Blockhouse, the University yearbook, proved to be prophetic when it noted of the chapter’s chartering, “We know that your group will bring added prestige to the campus.” Chapter alumni such as Charles Doneghy, Alfred Baker, Jimmy Gaines, Donald Baker M.D., Cleophus Brown, T.J. Hutton and Richard Jackson went on to become prominent members of the Toledo community.
Formal beginnings. Dapper with canes, members mark their 1954 debut. From left, Mickey Thomas, Harrison Chappell, James Jones, William Anderson, Richard Lemons, Merle Dixon, Burton Keith, Richard Harris, John Mouton and Robert Bostick. Three charter members — Anderson of Fort Washington, Md., Mouton of Atlanta and Thomas of Toledo — were honored at the golden jubilee. Let’s send it soaring. Springtime and kites go together like April and tulips, so it made organic sense when UT art instructor Tracey Ladd decided to require the construction of box kites as a final exam project. It also proved to be a great deal of fun for her students, who had spent the semester working on balsa wood projects. “There’s lots of engineering involved. It seems very simple, but they needed to engineer the box kites correctly to get them to fly,” Ladd said. “We went as inexpensively as we could — rip-stop nylon, dowel rods, clear tubing, double-faced tape. I helped the kids with the sewing.”
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Toledo Alumni Magazine | Fall 2004
Consolidating student loans Nelnet’s on the UT Alumni Association team for student loan consolidation. Qualifying borrowers can lock in a very low rate for the entire life of the loan and dramatically reduce their monthly payment, plus Nelnet offers incentives that can reduce low rates even further. Nelnet, a national leader in education finance, brings more than two decades of experience funding education. Get all the details and the latest rates by calling 1.866.4CONSOL(426.6765) or visit www.alumniconsoliation.nelnet.net. www.toledoalumni.org
Committed coaches association means big win for UT athletics
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roups of UT supporters are not uncommon, but not many can claim 67 years of regular weekly meetings. The Downtown Coaches Association has been holding Monday luncheons with UT coaches acting as guest speakers since its inception in 1937, and the nonprofit organization’s mission of promoting, encouraging and stimulating interest in UT athletics shows no sign of flagging.
Between 80 and 90 percent of the association’s membership is made up of UT alumni and former athletes, said Duane Horst, association president. “However, having attended UT has never been a requirement for joining Downtown Coaches,” he added. The group officially describes itself as a comprehensive forum for active sports enthusiasts, but Horst’s definition is more down-home: “We’re not a Varsity T group, not an alumni group. We’re strictly supporters and fans who want to get together to meet the coaches and other UT people.” Meeting the coaches in a face-to-face setting often makes for lively encounters, noted Bob Fountain, the association’s www.toledoalumni.org
executive director. “During the question and answer sessions that follow a coach’s talk, the questions aren’t always easy ones,” he said. “Each coach has a different personality, and every sports season is different.” What’s constant in the association’s own seasonal calendar is the financial assistance that members have given to UT. Horst estimated yearly donations of more than $50,000: “We raise money, then turn it over to UT Athletics to let them use it where the need is greatest. Most of the funds aren’t earmarked for specifics, aside from scholarships.” Along with scholarships for graduate assistants, the association can take credit for the purchase of sports equipment and supplies, scholar-athlete recognition luncheons, annual banquets for football and basketball, and many other methods of supporting the University. “The athletic department is extremely grateful for the tremendous support we receive from the Downtown Coaches Association,” said Dave Nottke, assistant athletic director. “Many of its members of DCA are also involved as season ticket holders, Rocket Fund contributors, sponsors and so on. It’s great to see all our friends every Monday!” Memberships are renewed annually; the Monday luncheons, held at the Toledo Club, are extra. “But if you never attend a lunch, you never have to pay for one,” Horst noted. “It’s a very lowdemand program. The big draw is to meet the coaches from all UT sports, and their staffs,” he said, adding that the organization’s spouse program has
brought in more women, who make up 10 to 15 percent of the membership. “I tell prospective members to come to the lunches, meet the coaches, and learn about their day-to-day challenges, frustrations and victories. There’s a lot to be said for the intensely face-to-face encounters. At the luncheons, you get the human side of athletics — and that’s a lot more real. A lot of people would love to share that, and they’d love being part of Downtown Coaches.” “People can visit the luncheons without joining the association,” Fountain added. “We encourage that. They’ll always be made to feel welcome. It’s not a stuffy group, and there’s plenty of humor at the podium.” For more information on the Downtown Coaches Association, contact Fountain at 419.382.4627.
Chill out at the pump Gas prices got you steamed? UT alumni and students can enjoy immediate savings via the Speedway SuperAmerica (SSA) program, which offers prepaid fuel and a gift card for drivers, plus a fleet fueling program for commercial customers. UT alumni and students can purchase the prepaid fuel cards from SSA at a 4 percent discount — that’s an average savings of 6 cents per gallon! SSA also offers a prepaid gift card, which can be used to purchase both fuel and merchandise. Cards are accepted at Rich Oil, Speedway and SuperAmerica. For details, visit www.speedway.com/utoledo or call 1.888.297.8112 ext. 7535. For commercial consumers, SAA’s fleet fueling credit card program (through SuperFleet) offers equally attractive discounts on fuel and servicing. Call 1.800.482.7755 ext. 5511 for details. Toledo Alumni Magazine | Fall 2004
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Toledo: traditional & un
New professorship set to build on existing excellence
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iosciences — specifically, biomedical research — are getting a boost at The University of Toledo, thanks to a $1 million gift by Julius and Joan Jacobson. The field whose practitioners have peered inside cells to understand cancer and diabetes at the molecular level will widen at UT when the Jacobson Endowed Professorship in Biomedical Research is established in 2005. Dr. Julius Jacobson (A/S ’47), director emeritus of vascular surgery and Distinguished Service Professor of Surgery at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City, is widely renowned as the inventor of microsurgery — the technique that accounts for half of all neurosurgeries performed in the United States. True to his specialty, Jacobson has, over the years, honed a micro-description of the world-changing feat: “The teaching of the time was that you could not operate on blood vessels smaller than a certain size. I brought the microscope into the operating room.”
Jacobsons at recent UT event in New York City
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Jaunty modesty aside, his medical paper on microsurgery has been called the most important of the 20th century. The graduate of John Hopkins University credits his undergraduate degree at UT for launching what would be an illustrious future, saying, “If it weren’t for UT, my career would have been different.” His gifts as a raconteur coming to the fore, he added, “This is my home town and there’s a great Toledo tradition for my family. I was named for my grandfather, who died before I was born. He was dean of the medical school and a good friend of the Mayo brothers. He was also a great surgeon and had seven sisters — whom he married off to the men who became the great physicians of Toledo.” Dr. David Stern, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, said, “With the support of the Jacobson Professorship, we will be able to recruit a renowned scientist and teacher to join our faculty. The holder of the professorship will work at the
cutting edge of biomedical research. Our hope is that the work in the laboratory and classroom will inspire the future successors to Julius Jacobson. “The holder will have to be someone who is well established as a researcher, and will be appointed at the full professor level. He or she will be expected to help lead us to a new level of prominence, joining a department that’s already a campus leader in research and graduate education, and also has one of the most successful undergraduate programs in the University.” Dr. Patricia Komuniecki, chair of biological sciences, said, “We anticipate a scholar who will not only bring research expertise to UT, but also be an inspiration and role model for our future undergraduate and graduate students, many of whom pursue professional and research careers in the healthcare field.” Readers may recall Jacobson’s accomplishments from a profile in the Fall 2003 issue of Toledo Alumni Magazine — specifically, his book, The Classical Music Experience, which comes packaged with two CDs of short classical selections. “The book will be on Internet soon, and people will be able to hear each piece of music in its entirety,” Jacobson said. “It’s a breakthrough in what they call mediafusion.” Ever the Renaissance man, Jacobson mentioned how he developed a friendship with the recording engineer who assisted with the project. “He was so enthusiastic about a certain composer that I became involved and contributed funds toward a piece the composer was working on. That composition [“Tempest Fantasy” by Paul Moravec, professor of music at Adelphi University] won the 2004 Pulitzer Prize in Music. When it’s released as a recording, I’ll get credit on jacket for making it possible.” He added with a chuckle, “That will be closest I’ll ever get to a Pulitzer.” www.toledoalumni.org
Snowbirds:
Bright lights of faculty honored
to which nest do we send your mail?
Seems it’s never too early for UT’s southmigrating alumni to begin thinking about packing up for the annual move to sunnier climes. Alumni Association staffers have heard from snowbirds — you know who you are — who are on the road the weekend after Homecoming. However, to make sure that you won’t miss any issues of Toledo Alumni Magazine or news about Alumni Association events and activities, please make sure that we have your winter address. Contact the Office of Alumni Relations at 419.530.2586 or 800.235.6766. Happy trails!
The year’s crop of outstanding teachers, researchers and advisers made for remarkable company at the annual awards dinner in April. From left are the outstanding teachers: Larry Cook, instructor in economics, has taught at UT since 1986, primarily Principles of Economics, Principles of Macroeconomics and Economics of Crime. Laura A. Frisbie, lecturer in management, began teaching at the University in 1999. As an entrepreneur, Frisbie started companies ranging from computer repair to consulting services. Deborah Orloff, associate professor of art and director of the Photography Program, works in photography, video and mixed media. Her artwork has been exhibited on four continents.
Annual meeting. The Alumni Association’s Annual Meeting in May, held at Sylvania Country Club, missed none of the usual high points. Affiliate of the Year honors, for instance, went to the Minority Affiliate, with Birdel Jackson unveiling the announcement for Norman Bell Sr. Passing the presidential gavel was handled this year by new board president Ted Hahn and past president Karen Fraker. Chapter of the Year Florida Suncoast sent along a bit of sunshine in the form of T-shirts, here ready to be modeled by UT board members Judge Richard McQuade, Joan Uhl Browne, plus UT President Daniel Johnson and Karen Fraker. Larry Clement, chapter president, looks pleased with the success of the gift.
www.toledoalumni.org
Toledo Alumni Magazine | Fall 2004
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chapters/affiliates
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3 1. The bobble and the Big Guy. Carol Smith, member of the Southwest Florida chapter, won a contest for a Tom Amstutz bobblehead — plus a hug from the head football coach himself. 2. “It needs more bravura and less vibrato, don’t you think?” The newest alumni affiliate, Visual Performing Arts, makes it a night on the town with a reception at Diva Restaurant. 3. Digital communication. Despite a loss to Western Michigan in February, UT is still Number One at the Capital City Chapter’s basketball watch party at a Columbus BW3. 4. Engineered to be informative. Members of the Engineering Affiliate gathered for a breakfast in April with Jim Murray, president of First Energy. Conversation was steady, members’ interest piqued.
5. Gems of education. Flanked by College of Education Dean Thomas Switzer and Education Affiliate President Dee Talmage, the affiliate’s honorees form a pool of renown at the Recognition of Excellence Dinner in April. From left: Dr. Berhane Teclehaimanot (Distinguished Alumnus Award); Mary Morales (Distinguished Achievement Award); David E. McClellan (Excellence in Educational Leadership Award, given by the University Council for Education Administration); Georgianna and Dorothy Saloff (Distinguished Service Award).
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6. Have Packo’s, will travel. Tony Packo Hot Dog parties are hits from coast to coast — even in landlocked states! As proof, we offer a snap from the West: the Golden Gate alumni chapter (at the home of David and Sarah Wright).
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Toledo Alumni Magazine | Fall 2004
www.toledoalumni.org
Don’t let Homecoming be your only reason to come back to The University of Toledo!
UT pride has four full seasons every year — come and be part of it!
Share your pride.
Know a future student who would like information or a campus visit?
Contact the Office of Undergraduate Admission at 800.530.8700, or use the Web: www.admission.utoledo.edu
MARTIAN EXPANSIONISM HITS OHIO! by CynthiA NowAk
C e d A r P oint slimed! L A k e E rie becomes extrAterrestriAl exur b i A ! !
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quiet farm on the outskirts of Huron, Ohio? Think again. Enter the barn — gingerly — and you’ll see where the invasion from space began. However, the invading force that accompanied Close Encounters of the Fourth Kind: Infestation from Mars wasn’t made up of space aliens, just Californians with cameras, scripts and Evian water bottles. And the locals from Huron and Sandusky didn’t run in panic; in many cases, they became part of lights, camera, science-fiction action that ran for most of June in Erie County. With a comfortably familiar storyline, the movie centers on the depredations of a Martian (Kerstin Khalfami) of malevolent intentions, modish appearance and advanced body-snatching abilities. Among the rest of the cast and crew: Barbara Sharp (Law ’91), producer and cast member, and Stacy Boals (A/S ’94), associate producer and in the cast as well. According to the film’s executive producer, Dr. Elliott Haimoff — Cambridge graduate, tropical biologist, documentary maker and sci-fi enthusiast — “The neatest story about this whole project really begins with Barbara, who was born and raised here in northern Ohio.” Sharp, who plays a detective on the Sandusky police force, continued the story while waiting for the crew to set up: “I was a writer for internal communications and public relations at the Davis-
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Toledo Alumni Magazine | Fall 2004
Besse Nuclear Station and going to law school. At the same time, I was acting in Toledo and Port Clinton. In fact, when I finished my JD, I went right across the street from the law college to study theatre at UT, but decided to go to L.A. and get more serious about acting.” “That’s when I met her,” Haimoff said.
“At the time, I was doing documentaries, so I needed a writer and a good voiceover person. I hired her on the spot, and she’s been with me ever since, doing all that, plus acting and producing. “When we were planning this movie, she said that we should come out here to do some exteriors. I thought she was www.toledoalumni.org
L to R: Barbara Sharp, as feisty detective, confronts G-man, with director Sam Oldham observing; Stacy Boals as researcher's assistant; Sharp and Boals sandwich exec producer Elliott Haimoff; set decor.
crazy. Here’s L.A., where all the production facilities are, and here’s northern Ohio, with 2,000 miles between them. “But she was pulling me by the teeth for months just to come out and look. Well, she’s been my business partner for eight years, so I value her judgment. We came out last October, and everyone we met — the business owners, the city officials, the residents — was so welcoming, so generous that I fell in love with the place. I ended up buying a summer house in Huron!” That’s Act 1. Quick segue: Stacy Boals’ involvement. Prior to marriage, the sometime model was Stacy Kinzel, a surname with conjuring power in Sandusky; her father, Dick, is CEO of Cedar Fair, the publicly traded partnership whose amusement park holdings include Cedar Point. Sharp recognized her when Boals auditioned for a role, but didn’t tell anyone about the connection. Only after he ended up casting Boals did Haimoff discover the former model’s background. That background would end up helping to open the notoriously selective doors of Cedar Point to a film crew for the first time in the amusement park’s history. Boals said, “I told my dad that wehad to have Cedar Point as part of the production. All the city businesses are involved, I told him, and how can we make a movie about Sandusky without Cedar Point?” While acknowledging Boals’ role in securing Cedar Point as a location, Haimoff also credited the community as a whole: “They could see that we weren’t some typical Hollywood mob that comes in, shoots one scene, trashes the place and leaves the locals to clean up.” So marking a probable first for Cedar Point, the early-season crowds included a Martian. With enough room in the $200,000 budget for creative leeway, writer/director Sam Oldham scripted a climactic scene www.toledoalumni.org
involving close to 700 extras at the park, including a dozen S.W.A.T. members attempting to subdue the acid-spitting Martian. “All those people got slimed, and they loved it,” Boals said. “In fact, we had hundreds of acting hopefuls begging to be in the scene.” Refined by director and producers, that kind of raw enthusiasm from visitors and area residents became integral to the movie, Haimoff said. “We might be low budget, but the film’s got class and production values. More examples — the Sandusky police force deployed 15 cars to help us, and we filled the State Theatre in Sandusky with 500 extras who streamed out screaming because of the Martian. In L.A., you can’t get that kind of effect unless you spend hundreds of thousands of dollars. Plus, we didn’t have to go through all the permits and paperwork and fees associated with making movies in L.A.” Not that there wasn’t turbulence along the way. June was a rainy month in Ohio, but the production schedule didn’t allow for shooting postponements. “I’m really learning how much work and long hours go into movies,” said one local resident hired as crew. “We were working until three a.m. in the barn where the Martian probe landed. It was raining, so we were holding an umbrella over the camera and holding flashlights.” “It costs $200,000 in L.A. to produce a rain shot,” another said, no doubt remembering a late-night pep talk. “Here you get it for free.” More than a Martian landed in that barn, it seems. Hollywood attitude gained a foothold on Ohio’s north coast, and the glitz will continue when Infestation from Mars has its world
premiere Halloween weekend at Sandusky’s historic State Theatre. “ Profits from the premiere are going to be evenly divided between four local groups,” Boals said. “That will be the Red Cross, the fire and police departments and the State Theatre. It’s one way of giving back to Sandusky. After the premiere — well, things depends on who picks up the movie for distribution.” Until then, the Californians have returned to the West Coast, where Sharp, in addition to her film career, works as a research and writing attorney with a personal injury lawyer in Marina del Rey. In Sandusky, Boals mulled over her probable future as an actress and associate producer for the sequel to Infestation, already in the planning stages. “A year ago, when I was a stay-at-home mom, I would never have imagined this. It’s great timing, because my kids are older now.” Will 2005 see Martians back along Lake Erie? If not, it won’t be for want of ability between the two UT alums, Haimoff said. “They’re the perfect organizers. Two can-do girls, and I’d love to have them both as co-producers. “Everybody involved in the shoot has had a lot of fun. That’s how movies should be made.”
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faculty essay by Dr. Ruth Wallis Herndon, associate professor of history
Growing up on the margins of history: children bound to labor in early america
I
n 1761, the Boston overseers of the poor bound out eight-year-old orphan Thomas Banks as an indentured servant to gentleman farmer William Williams, who lived at the other end of the state in Hatfield, Massachusetts. Thomas Banks was one of 18 children bound out by the Boston officials in 1761, and one of more than 1,000 children bound out by those same officials over the course of the 18th century. Thomas Banks’ story was a familiar one in early America, for binding out children as indentured servants was a commonplace method of resolving social problems created when parents died, became disabled or abandoned their children. An orphan and a servant, Thomas Banks was not a notable figure in American history, but his life tells us something about growing up poor in early America, as so many children did. This eight-year-old boy first came to my attention when I viewed the indenture — a paper contract — binding him to William Williams. At first, Thomas Banks was just one more child in a study of thousands of children bound to labor in early America, a project I have undertaken with economic historian John E. Murray of UT’s department of economics. We are trying to understand the nature and extent of this practice of “binding out,” which was widely practiced in North America
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from the late 1600s to the early 1800s. Throughout this time, practical work training constituted the bulk of “education” for most children, and many parents bound their sons and daughters in private apprenticeships to learn particular work skills from neighbors or relatives. Local officials used a public form of apprenticeship to bind needy children to reputable men (and a few women). Every master was obliged to provide the apprentice with all the “necessities of life” as well as training in some manual skill. In return, the child was to live with, obey and work for the master until adulthood. When I read a description of Thomas Banks written by his master, I decided to try to reconstruct the boy’s life. On 23 January 1770, eight years after Thomas had gone to live in Hatfield, William Williams wrote to the Boston overseers of the poor, asking that the boy’s indenture be assigned to someone else, because he had failed to mature into the strong laborer that Williams had hoped for. “He is now seventeen years and three months old and about as big as an ordinary country boy of thirteen or fourteen at most,” wrote Williams, who doubted that Thomas could do the labor or “endure the fatigues that are ye unavoidable lot of the husbandman.” Williams had already tried to find a local artisan to teach Thomas a trade as an alternative to farming, but www.toledoalumni.org
Thomas’ reputation as “a rogue in grain” had made men reluctant to take him on. Now, however, Thomas had shown a more engaging side and a shoemaker had agreed to “take him and give his trade.” The Boston magistrates did as Williams requested, and transferred Thomas’ indenture. What was behind Thomas Banks’ story? Investigation revealed that he had been born in Boston on 20 October 1752, the third child of John and Mary Banks. Some family tragedy — probably the death of the parents — occurred in the autumn of 1760, causing the four Banks children to be sent to the Boston Almshouse. The three oldest children (John, Mary, and Thomas) remained in the almshouse only briefly; they were soon bound out to different masters. Hannah, the youngest Banks child, stayed in the almshouse and died there a year later. To reach his new home in rural Hatfield, Thomas Banks traveled 100 miles west from Boston, probably by horse cart, perhaps with a sack of his meager possessions. His master, William Williams, was a well-to-do and well educated gentleman farmer, a deacon of the church, a selectmen of the town and clerk of the county court. When Thomas Banks joined the household in 1761, Williams was still a young man (27 years old), but without any children. Perhaps Thomas Banks fulfilled his and his wife’s desire to raise a family. William Williams later reported that Thomas Banks attended the town school continually in his first four years in Hatfield; this fulfilled the master’s obligation to teach the boy to read, write and do basic arithmetic. At age 12, Thomas’ schooling became less concentrated and he was expected to contribute more labor to the Williams farm, especially during peak harvest season. He soon earned a reputation as a quick-witted practical joker, which neighbors recalled years later. One 19century history of Hatfield related a story about Tom’s good-humored destruction of the garden during the Williams’ absence: [They] gave Tom particular instructions for taking care of the garden, and as they drove away, Mrs. Williams called out from the carriage, “Tom, don’t you leave a green thing in it.” On returning they www.toledoalumni.org
Boston and its harbor
found that this last charge had been obeyed to the letter, all trace of vegetation having disappeared from the garden. Mr. Williams, who had borne a great deal from Tom, thought this was a little too much, and proceeded to tie him up preparatory to whipping him. By way of preparing Tom’s mind to profit by the discipline, he said, “Now, Tom, if you had such a boy, what should you do with him?” To which Tom, with great presence of mind, quickly replied, “Mr. Williams, I should try him once more.” Tom’s rambunctious spirits and small size finally prompted Williams to transfer Tom’s indenture to a local shoemaker named Belding. After his indenture ended on his 21st birthday — 20 October 1773 — Tom remained in Hatfield, probably laboring as a shoemaker beside his former master. In 1775, soon after the Battles of Lexington and Concord, he enlisted as a Revolutionary soldier for the town of Hatfield; he enlisted again in 1778. This service probably cemented his sense of belonging in Hatfield, not the town where he was born but certainly the town that he called home. In 1780, after his last tour of duty in the Continental Army, Thomas Banks returned to Hatfield and married Sarah Wales. Tom and Sarah apparently had no children, but they left a legacy among their neighbors of friendliness and good
humor. One Hatfield resident later reminisced that Tom was “somewhat of a character about whom many anecdotes are related,” and the area where Tom and Sarah lived came to be known as “Banks Corner.” A poor orphan boy with few prospects when he arrived in town had become a true inhabitant of Hatfield. In 1826 he died in Hatfield of “decay” at age 74; his widow, “Sally,” died in 1832 at age 82. Thomas Banks was one of thousands of children who joined new households and new communities through binding out. This system declined dramatically in the early 1800s, when asylums, orphanages, poor farms and other group institutions took over the care of poor children. The system of binding out was only as good as the people who took charge of the children. Some indentured children, particularly Native American and African American youngsters, were treated harshly, put to hard labor and raised in conditions similar to slavery. Others were more fortunate, rescued from disorder and poverty, and provided with new opportunities. Thomas Banks was among the latter. He was given a promising new start and was shown consideration by his master’s family. Although he grew up on the margins of society, he became a lasting part of the community where he lived and left a positive memory that carried well past his own lifetime. Toledo Alumni Magazine | Fall 2004
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“This was old-fashioned, shoe-leather, knock-on-doors, don’t-let-people-get-away reporting, but I’m glad, too, that we had the new generation’s advantage of the Internet and the computer.” — reporter Mike Sallah, part of the team that won the 2003 Pulitzer Prize for investigative journalism. It’s been more than four months since The Blade won its first Pulitzer Prize for the series “Buried Secrets, Brutal Truths,” and almost a year since the Toledo newspaper broke the story of Tiger Force, the elite fighting unit that in 1967 cut a bloody swath of civilian deaths across Vietnam’s central highlands. At the news offices, the celebratory champagne has long since been consumed, and life for winning investigative team members Michael Sallah (A/S ’77), Mitch Weiss and Joe Mahr has gone back to normal. Normal but not quite the same — not since the day that a retired officer in the Army’s Criminal Investigation Command bequeathed some 15,000 documents to
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The Blade. On the chance that the records, memoirs and personal papers might include an interesting story, Sallah began combing through the boxes. Most of the investigations documented had already received coverage, but the contents of one manila envelope were another matter, he said. “I opened it, and my God, this is really horrific stuff, cases of elderly farmers out in their rice paddies being mowed down by out-of-control troops, women and children killed while taking shelter in a bunker. A baby was beheaded, a 13-year-old girl raped and killed. There were many, many instances of this violence, most of them between May and November 1967.” Sallah began searching libraries, periodicals and the Internet for mention of the case, but found nothing. “I realized that this story had never seen the light of day,” he said. Requests for more information under the Freedom of Information Act received rebuffs from www.toledoalumni.org
photo by Andy Y. Morrison, courtesy of The Blade
Uncovering the unthinkable
Army officials, who cited protection of the soldiers’ privacy. At this point, Sallah was joined by Mitch Weiss, The Blade’s state editor. Investigation records the team found at the National Archives convinced The Blade’s publisher to send the two reporters, along with photographer Andy Morrison, to Vietnam. Reporter Joe Mahr joined the team when they returned. As the story of Tiger Force unfolded, professional distance became harder to maintain. “I was 17 when the Paris peace treaties were signed in January 1973,” Sallah said. “Every year, the nuns in grade school, then the priests at St. John’s High School would tell us to pray for the boys in Vietnam. But I had not studied the intricacies of the war — so I did a crash course on Vietnam. Journalists have to be quick reads, but this is one time when a full understanding of the subject was crucial. “I was able to be fairly objective until we began to interview the victims in Vietnam and the soldiers of Tiger Force. Clearly the soldiers crossed the lines of warfare. They violated not only their army’s rules of engagement but also the Geneva Convention. If Vietnam was a war of atrocities, these were at level 10, and it was difficult not to be affected by it.” Tiger Force was a small platoon of about 40 soldiers, sent out into Vietnam’s central highlands. Sallah explained, “They were an elite force who wore tiger-striped fatigues and jungle caps. They were allowed to grow beards, and carried their own side arms. If you wanted to be an arsonist, one team member said, you could be an arsonist. If you wanted to be a rapist, or a killer, you did. You could do whatever you wanted when you were with Tiger Force. It was a matter of survival, a war of body counts. We were fighting a war that wasn’t about seizing territory, so the only way to measure victory was by body count.” Although the soldiers of Tiger Force reported dead civilians as Viet Cong, they knew that such a classification was often untrue, the reporters discovered. As for the body count of unarmed civilians, it’s never been officially ascertained — but they almost certainly numbered in the hundreds. Sallah remembers both the pain of the Vietnamese survivors and the anguish of some of the soldiers he interviewed. “Many of the former Tiger Force members suffer from PTSD [posttraumatic syndrome disorder] because of desensitizing themselves to what they did or what they saw and did not act to prevent. “Some ex-soldiers were relieved that we were telling the story, saying it was cathartic. Rion Causey, who’s now a www.toledoalumni.org
decision in running the story, Sallah found it professionally gratifying to hear from colleagues working for large media conglomerates. “They have budgets where they can throw 12 reporters and three photographers at a story like this. The Blade is a family-owned, middle-sized paper that gave two and a half-people a year.” That reflection segued naturally into the rewards and responsibilities of journalism. Before coming to The Blade, Sallah worked at several Florida papers — the Palm Beach Daily News, the Palm Beach Post and the Boca Raton News. When asked to advise the newest generation of journalists, he didn’t spare the passion: “It’s an honorable profession where you can make a difference in your community and in your world. Guesting in Professor Ed Whipple’s “Mass Communication Law” Journalism is more class, Sallah (right) and Mitch Weiss are research associates in the than important — department of communication and have a contract with Little, Brown it’s obligatory. The to produce book-length piece on Tiger Force. Fourth Estate is “Vietnam vets are heroes in my woven into the texture of American life. I book, because they were sent to fight an see bad stuff happen in small towns where impossible war.” little newspapers dry up or get bought The series included the bureaucratic out by shoppers: bad zoning decisions, aftermath as well. “The official invespayoffs, corruption. Newspapers and tigation of Tiger Force was killed by the television are both essential; they play Army in 1975,” Sallah said. When the case off each other. Don’t be dissuaded by was officially closed in November of that the Jayson Blairs — the vast majority of year, no one was charged. journalists are honorable and honest. “Buried Secrets” also brought national You’re not in it for the money, because attention to The Blade and to Toledo. you’re not going to get rich, but the sense Seymour Hersh, writing in The New of fulfillment is like no other. Yorker, commended the piece, as did The “It’s not for the faint of heart. It’s Nation. It was featured on World News competitive, it’s grueling, but the rewards Tonight and Ted Koppel covered it for are great if you stick with it, and if you Nightline. National Public Radio devoted care about the world around you. three segments to the series, and it caught “I got my degree in journalism here the attention of the BBC. Sallah didn’t at UT, not at an Ivy League school, and expect quite such extensive coverage, but I learned it all here,” he finished, citing said that he isn’t surprised by the interest: professors Jerry Morrow, Larry Dessner, “Vietnam is still very painful. You can Paul Ashdown and Ed Whipple. In the see that now in the presidential race, and midst of recalling past influences, he you can see parallels in Iraq, where it’s a paused to suddenly recall an e-mail counter-insurgency situation, where our from a former mentor. “It was from Sam soldiers don’t even know who the enemy Bornstein, the executive editor of the is among a civilian population. It’s very Boston Herald who retired and became a frustrating for them. consultant in south Florida. He’s 90 now “Also, there are still plenty of Vietnam and read the series. To get an e-mail from vets around, and many of us who were a him brought tears to my eyes. little younger but who remember those “He told me, ‘Congratulations, kid, I days very well.” knew you had it in you.’” Noting that The Blade faced a tough nuclear engineer in California, told me he had been waiting for the call for 30 years. Others are still very upset about the series. One Tiger Force veteran told me, ‘The only thing I regret is that I didn’t kill more.’” The vast majority of responses from Vietnam vets were positive, Sallah said: “Some, who still suffer from PTSD, felt as though they were being called babykillers again, but the story wasn’t directed at them. The overwhelming majority of American soldiers in Vietnam, perhaps 95 percent, took no part in atrocities.
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by Cynthia Nowak
Putting UT on the map: grad students as research cartographers
F
ew research projects fly solo. Whether building on earlier work or following a fresh hunch, researchers often rely on the efforts
of students enrolled in graduate programs. The University of Toledo’s graduate students are charting their coursework into areas of research with regional and global implications. Here are just a few samples of the work in which they’re involved.
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www.toledoalumni.org
Eye of newt, toe of frog and plenty of hard science
J
ohn Herman is spending eight months of 2004 pursuing the dream of every herpetologist — or anyone who’s a 9year-old boy at heart. Three times a week, he packs up his scientific equipment and becomes a census-taker for reptiles and amphibians. With classroom requirements for a master’s degree in environmental sciences completed, Herman is taking his research on the road between April and November, studying the effects that agriculture has on the creatures that are sometimes called barometers of ecological health. “Basically, I use bucket traps, funnel traps, and wood and metal cover boards to collect snakes, frogs, toads and salamanders,” he said. “By recording their numbers and other statistics, I’m seeing the impact that agriculture is having on their populations.” While such research is not new, Herman says, his approach is: “A lot of people have looked at differences
Herman with two woodland citizens
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between an agricultural setting and a nature preserve, which to me is comparing apples and oranges. Agriculture is something we have to live with — it won’t go away. We can’t compare an agricultural area to a pristine setting because a farmed site will never be pristine again.” For his
They’re the top amphibian predator out here — they’ll eat anything they can catch.” Prior to release, Herman deftly cuts a little piece of each tiger’s toe for future identification. “It’s like getting a shot. It’s a quick pain, but it’s over and it doesn’t detrimentally affect them.”
Amish kids have a “ Thename for me: Snake Man
research, therefore, he chose two distinct types of farming: mechanized and nonmechanized, the latter still practiced by millions of farmers, especially in developing countries. Luckily for the sake of his hard-used Jeep Liberty, Herman didn’t have to travel to India or Senegal to find examples of nonmechanized farms. Many Amish farms in Michigan sit cheek-by-hog-jowl with their high-tech neighbors. Determining which particular farms to use was easy as well, Herman said: “The biggest determinant was that farmers said yes when I asked permission to run my research. What wasn’t always easy was getting the permission. Some took one look at me, one look at my project and said, ‘I won’t let you on my land.’ They called me a plainclothes government agent and thought my recordings were going to result in the government taking away their land because there aren’t enough frogs or something.” His own background — he and his family own a farm near Bono, Ohio — didn’t always open doors. Despite the number of refusals, Herman’s six sites — all on interfaces between a hay field and a wooded area, with a vernal pool or pond within their borders — are producing even more data than he’d expected. “Last week I caught 28 animals in one day. When I started this project, I’d have been happy if I caught that many all year. I had no idea the traps would be so successful.” For each reptile or amphibian captured, Herman collects the vitals: length, weight, sex and probable age. His enthusiasm flares with each catch. First up are two tiger salamanders in a bucket trap: “Hey, a big guy and a little guy! This is the first little one I’ve caught. Oh, my gosh, he’s so cute.
”
Another bucket yields a wood frog. “This is his first summer as a frog,” Herman says, examining the tiny critter with a practiced eye. “Last year at this time he was a tadpole.” Before leaving, the researcher makes sure that each bucket contains water so that trapped frogs won’t dry out. An object resembling a small rock turns out to be a surprise. “My first turtle!” the former Toledo Zoo employee exclaims. Unwilling to emerge from its shell for either the camera or the weighing scale, the thumbnail-sized Chrysemys picta undergoes its measurements dans la coquille; Herman then carefully places him on a trajectory to the pond where his mother probably lives. He picks up an American toad without fear of warts: “That’s an old wives’ tale. Toads have the best personalities of the amphibian world. They just sit and take it all in, but feral cats are affecting the population — I’d love to do a study on that.” Not every occupant of a trap is suitable for his research. “I catch wolf spiders sometimes, and they chomp on you. Here’s a blister beetle. They’re called that because they exude oil from a joint of the leg that causes blistering. Oh, there’s the oil on me. I deserved that. That’s what I get for playing around with them.” Don’t mistake his enjoyment for frivolity; serious research is shaping up, and indicators are not what Herman initially expected. “It turns out that for hay fields, where neither modern nor Amish farmers use much in the way of pesticides, the difference is in the harvesting. An Amish farmer uses a horse-drawn shredder that isn’t very wide, whereas a modern farmer has a
Toledo Alumni Magazine | Fall 2004
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A leaner, cleaner way to fuel the energy-hungry future huge cutter on a big tractor going 30 mph, so pretty much nothing is going to be able to get out of the way. My thought was that the Amish sites would have more diversity and abundance because of the machinery.” Surprisingly, he explained, reptile and amphibian populations have been more diverse and more abundant in the modern-farming sites: “It’s because of the grazing. Animals crop the grass down so low that things become dried out. It shocked me — now I have to go back and rewrite everything!” He’s not ready for a complete revision, however: “A lot can change in the coming months, so what I’m seeing now might not be what I see in the summer. It might be that grazing affects amphibians but that mechanical equipment affects reptiles.” Meanwhile, the data hunt remains a pleasure. “Even if I don’t find anything in the traps, I love being out here! I couldn’t sit all day in a lab, with a microscope. I like looking at big things — big being relative in this case.” Herman’s love for his work keeps him at the sites in all weathers. “When I came out in early April, it was so cold that my fingers wouldn’t write my data. Six sites, one hour per site, three times a week. It’s a lot of work, but I love it. This is why I wanted to be a scientist. “I brought my brother-in-law out here once. He was raised in the city, but when he came out here and saw the project, he turned into a kid again, running around and being excited, like he’s in an amusement park. That made me feel great, because if I could do that for everyone, maybe people would think twice about chopping up a snake in their garden.” The Amish children, he admitted, call him Snake Man. In the end, he hopes that his research will help those who are making difficult decisions. “We have to decide between management techniques for different approaches to agriculture, and some techniques are better for the environment than others. Using fewer chemicals, for instance, or delaying the tilling of a field until the first rush of spring amphibians is over. “Sometimes it’s hard to get people to separate their wants from the needs of the environment.”
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T
hese days, a visit to the filling station pump can be daunting, but better days may be coming for drivers taking out loans to cover the weekly gas budget. A breakthrough technology to improve automotive fuel efficiency could well be incubating at The University of Toledo. The wunderkind powering the breakthrough is the fuel cell, a workhorse that takes the place of a conventional car battery. Fuel cells utilize hydrogen and oxygen, using the resultant chemical reaction to produce electrical power. The real innovation, according to Dr. G. Glenn Lipscomb, UT professor of chemical and environmental engineering, lies in the aftermath of the reaction. As with gasoline-powered engines, fuel cells create a by-product, but rather than atmosphere-polluting emissions, that product is water. “Thus, what comes out of a hydrogen-powered vehicle is not particulates. It’s water vapor,” Lipscomb said. “Hybrid vehicles look the same as today’s cars, but you can go around to the tailpipe and take a deep breath without damaging your lungs.” Dr. Arunan Nadarajah, professor and interim associate dean for research in the college, noted, “The fuel cell technology exists now. The cells are stacked together, with plates that separate each cell from the oxygen that provides the hydrogen.” Though fuel cells are a reality, factors such as size and costs limit their availability to the average consumer. However, a collaborative project between Case Western University, The
University of Toledo and several other educational and commercial institutions, funded by grants from the Wright Centers of Innovation, aims at a mass market for the technology. Case Western is involved in the design of the actual fuel cell, while UT is focused on the process of producing the hydrogen that powers the cell. Hydrogen, though abundant in nature, is rarely found in a pristine state. Fuel cells utilize purified hydrogen, which requires a specialized membrane to separate the element from contaminants such as carbon monoxide or carbon dioxide. Enter UT student Sandeep Goud, a doctoral candidate in chemical engineering. He and his adviser, Dr. Martin Abraham, dean of the graduate school, initiated UT’s entry into hydrogen production. “I started working on this project about two years ago,” Goud said. “It’s exciting. You have to work as a mechanical engineer, a chemical engineer, an electrical engineer — it’s great.” Other UT engineers are lending their expertise. Dr. Maria Coleman, associate professor of chemical and environmental engineering, is developing new membrane materials to better filter the hydrogen. Dr. Abdul-Majeed Azad, associate professor of engineering, is developing hydrogen storage systems, and Lipscombe’s role is creating hollow polymer filaments through which the gas stream passes. Thomas Stuart, professor of electrical engineering, is studying power management inside a hybrid car, making sure that the electricity is distributed evenly.
Hydrogen-powered car on display at UT www.toledoalumni.org
“There are people who will die for this cause”
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Goud in the lab
Goud’s work at the moment centers on converting conventional fuels such as gasoline, ethanol or diesel into hydrogen. “But the future is in converting biomass into hydrogen,” he says. “Glucose, for instance, is a by-product of the paper industry that could be converted. So you get a double benefit: the low emissions and enhanced fuel efficiency, and reduced industrial wastes.” Biomass, in fact, could be the economic factor that tips the scales one way or the other on fuel cells. Lipscomb explained, “To produce hydrogen from renewable resources ensures that the process is part of a natural cycle. Thus we’re not producing additional CO2 pt to enter into the environment. Rather, we’re entering ourselves into the cycle where the CO2 we produce is reabsorbed by plants, which turn around and produce more hydrogen. That’s a major change; most of the hydrogen nowadays comes from the reforming of natural gas, and natural gas prices are sky-high, likely to get more expensive. To have a hydrogen-based economy supplied by natural gas wouldn’t make much economic sense, therefore. You’d want a renewable resource like biomass to produce hydrogen. If we can cleanly produce the hydrogen, the environmental impact will be immense.” Challenges remain, and as Goud said, “My adviser always tells me 20 years until we have an actual affordable car with fuel cells.” But given the potential benefits, the game seems worth the candle — or the fuel cell.
www.toledoalumni.org
hen the subject of Native American history arises, 1975 doesn’t often come up as a significant date. However, Kathy Punches, a former journalist enrolled in the University’s Master of Liberal Studies Program, knows better. Her thesis, “There Are People Who Will Die For This Cause: The Menominee Warrior Society’s Takeover of the Novitiate at Gresham,” sheds light on a watershed event in the then-fledgling Indian Rights movement. Now director of public relations at Defiance College, Punches found that the takeover in Wisconsin hasn’t been addressed since it began early in 1975. “Although it was a major news story at the time, very little has been written about it since, particularly in the area of scholarly research,” she said. One of oldest native Wisconsin tribes, the Menominee avoided the mass relocations that were the fate of many other tribes during the 19th century. “They had strong leaders who were able to convince the federal government to allow them to stay,” Punches said. “They did lose most of their land, but they were able to capitalize on the natural timber on their reservation, eventually creating a selfsustaining industry. While still very poor, they were managing much better than other tribes.” The delicate economic balance came crashing down when the U.S. Congress instituted a policy — called termination — based on the reasoning that some Indian tribes no longer needed the assistance of the federal government. In 1961, targeting the Menominee because of their relative success, the government ended support and recognition of the tribe. “It was a disaster,” Punches said. “They were now subject to taxation, which they never had been before. They had no tax base aside from the lumber concern. At the same time, a program of relocation to urban areas began, so a lot of people left the area. The tribe was no longer able to maintain its schools, and the only hospital closed because it didn’t meet government standards. They ended up selling off much of their tribal land to make ends meet, including lakeside lots
that went to whites for vacation homes. Finally, in the early 1970s, the tribe fought back and demanded the restoration of their tribal sovereignty.” A group was appointed by the government to restore the tribe’s constitution, Punches said, but the process was slow, poverty widespread. In the meantime, many young Menominee men were finding inspiration in the activism of the American Indian Movement (AIM). The Menominee Warrior Society was the first line they drew in the sand. For the second, they chose a building that stood on a bluff overlooking the reservation. The Alexian Brothers’ novitiate, set on land believed to be Menominee tribal ground, had been abandoned for some time by the Catholic brotherhood. The Warrior Society saw it as a symbol of a
Punches at Defiance College campus
wealth built by unlawful acquisition. In the early hours of New Year’s Day 1975, about 25 warriors entered the building at gunpoint, surprising the caretaker, his family and holiday guests. Local law enforcement was soon on the scene, followed by the regional, state and national press. The number of Menominee in the novitiate grew to nearly a hundred as men slipped in through the woods adjoining the building. A standoff that eventually lasted 34 days brought in the National Guard and inflamed the passions of many white residents. “The only reason no one was hurt was because their Guard’s commander, Hugh Simonson, respected the Menominee’s desire to make a statement. Local residents hated him because he
Toledo Alumni Magazine | Fall 2004
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Chain chain chain of rules promotes good business
1975 photo: Wisconsin State Journal via www.Merlin-Net.com
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Toledo Alumni Magazine | Fall 2004
S
ometimes the most memorable research topic is the one that explodes expectations. Take the case of supply chain management, that unglamorous but essential mainstay of national and international commerce. Supply chains are the invisible systems that, just as one example, take your new plasma screen television from manufacturing to shipping to warehousing to the shelf of your favorite discount chain. The research, funded by grants from the APICS Educational and Research Foundation and the Supply Chain Council, was conducted — with the assistance of graduate students — by four faculty in the College of Business Administration: Dr. Jim Pope, professor of operations management; Dr. T.S. Ragu-Nathan, professor of information systems; Dr. Bhanu Ragu-Nathan, professor of accounting; and Dr. Subba Rao, professor of management. “It was our intention to do case studies of supply chain strategies,” Pope said. “We chose four different companies of varying sizes, covering local, national and global markets.” Interviews conducted by students produced written case studies that could be analyzed. Upon study, the trend that emerged was surprising. According to the classic model of supply chains, Pope explained, all the participants trust each other, with overall results that are good for every company in the chain. “What we found out, though, is that things don’t work that way,” he said. “What we did find was the chain master. We had an inkling that the chain master was out there, but until we did the interviews, we didn’t have the evidence.” In spite of the “Master and Commander” (or perhaps Dungeons and Dragons) sound, the reality is much more prosaic, though no less imperative. “The chain master is a company somewhere in the supply chain, cracking the whip over everyone else,” Pope said. “The issue needing command can be productivity, or shipping, or any other step along the chain.
“A chain master has to have some sort of leverage over everyone else. A company can be bigger than anyone else, so its suppliers are so small in comparison that they have to do what the chain master tells them. Or a company may
Photo courtesy of CSX Transportation
didn’t go right in and retake the property,” Punches said. Among the people Punches met in Wisconsin was Mike Sturdevant, who was 31 when he assumed the leadership of the Warrior Society. “Mike was happy that no one had been hurt. He felt that they had made their point and that many of the improvements that came on heels of protest were the result of their actions.” Charged with criminal trespassing, he spent six years in prison after the standoff ended. “He never does interviews for journalists, but he spoke with me because this is a scholarly thesis,” Punches said. “As a young man, he had had run-ins with the law, then became interested in AIM. He went to college and later was at Wounded Knee. He came back to Wisconsin when the tribe’s young men asked if he would lead them in a protest on the reservation.” Punches believes that her thesis will preserve a crucial piece of history. “You don’t hear much about it because it ended peacefully. It wasn’t a Kent State, it wasn’t a Wounded Knee. It was important, though, happening at a time when Native Americans found a voice.”
have a dominant market position. WalMart, for example, sells 39 percent of the nation’s disposable diapers, so if you want to sell that commodity, you’d better be on good terms with Wal-Mart. “A company might control a crucial piece of technology, or control part of a manufacturing process or the distribution channels.” Of the four companies researched, Pope said, one is clearly the chain master: “They’re a big firm in an industry where no single brand name dominates the market. They decided they wanted a smoothly functioning supply chain and everyone was going to fall into line. They were paternalistic about it, but they made it clear that they were going to do things a certain way. If others wanted to cooperate and be a supplier, [the company] would talk, but choosing a supplier was no longer going to be based on submitting bids and being the low bidder. “That company essentially set up the supply chain and decided how it runs.” The research indicates a limited number of supply chain models, it seems, but limitless situations to which they can be applied. If one overall rule has emerged, said Pope, it’s that “Laissez-faire
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In brief … more ongoing research doesn’t work, we found; someone needs to step to the plate.” And the implications for educators? “We need to rewrite our textbooks, for one thing,” Ragu-Nathan said. “If the reality is that someone needs to take charge, and it has to be the right company doing it, we need to teach that.” “We’ve identified this concept of chain master, now we have to examine all the implications,” Pope added, noting that the process will take an interesting turn in 2007, when new European Union (EU) rules on recycling take effect. “Then, any car sold in the EU has to be 85 percent recyclable. A supply chain that goes from raw materials to customer now has to loop around. Manufacturers have to reuse parts, and design to remanufacture. A chain master’s going to be a real necessity.” Pope concluded, “These are interesting times. We’ve got our noses under the tent but can only guess at what will happen next.”
S
ome 17 million Americans are diagnosed with diabetes — 6.2 percent of the population. They, their families and friends are likely to be interested in the work that Rhea Busick (A/S ’00), a third-year PhD student in the department of biological sciences, has been doing with Dr. Anthony Quinn, associate professor of biology. Busick’s dissertation research is on type I diabetes (or insulindependent diabetes mellitus; IDDM), an autoimmune disease that destroys insulin-producing cells in the pancreas. Between 5 and 10
percent of all diagnosed diabetes cases are IDDM. Busick is using an animal model system, the non-obese diabetic (NOD) mouse, to better understand how IDDM progresses in humans. Immune responses to the pancreatic islet cell antigen, glutamic acid decarboxylase 65 (GAD65), are associated with the progression of autoimmune diabetes in both NOD mice and humans. With research focused on the identification of physiologic components that may influence the development of diabetes, Busick has identified a pancreatic antigen that appears to fill such a role. It’s possible that targeting and blocking such cellular determinants could be used in the prevention or treatment of IDDM.
n late 1990, at the height of the Persian Gulf War, Dr. Jeanne Funk’s four-year-old son demanded a Nintendo for Christmas. Struck by television coverage noting the similarities between popular violent video games and the actual displays on fighter jets operating in the war zone, Funk, UT professor of psychology, decided to examine the research on the effects of playing violent video games. She found that there was almost no relevant research, even though the video game industry had already exceeded the movie industry in yearly profits. Funk then began a program of research on how children experience and are affected by playing violent video games. She first developed a category system by which children could label game content. She then used this system to examine relationships between a preference for violent video games and self-concept, empathy and attitudes towards violence. In all cases where a meaningful relationship was
found, a preference for violent games was associated with more negative outcomes. Funk has also studied gender stereotypes in video games, game ratings and parental knowledge of children’s game playing. She testified for the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation at a committee meeting investigating the impact of interactive violence on children in 2000, and is frequently interviewed about her research by print and broadcast media.
Photo courtesy of Toledo/Lucas County Port Authority
I
By land, air and water, supply chains circle the globe.
www.toledoalumni.org
Toledo Alumni Magazine | Fall 2004
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class notes
’40
Gid J. Searle (Pharm), retired and living in Boise, Idaho, is looking forward to returning to UT for Homecoming 2004.
’50
George W. Green (Bus, MBA ’51), Dearborn, Mich., co-authored with his sister, Mary, three articles: “Collecting Joker Novelties” and “Collecting Children’s Books of the Depression Era” in Antiques & Collecting, and “Collecting Oversize Matchbooks” in Antiques & Auction News. The Greens also made a presentation on collecting vintage newspapers at Wildwood Metropark in March, and George wrote an article, “Special Use Vehicles,” for Vintage Truck.
’62
Richard Smalley (Bus ’62), Orlando, Fla., was elected to the board of directors of Royal Olympic Cruise Lines. He also recently received recognition of his 50-year membership in Pi Kappa Phi from the organization’s national office.
’65
Jan Bissonette (Ed, MEd ’70), a kindergarten teacher for 30 years, was the guest lecturer on “Put Reading First” at Evergreen Community Library in Swanton, Ohio, in March. Dr. Jerrie C. Scott (Ed), professor of instruction and curriculum leadership in the University of Memphis College of Education, received the Harold Love Outstanding Community Service Award from the Tennessee Higher Education Commission. Among her accomplishments is the founding of the African American Read-In Chain, a literacy project that has become a tradition with more than a million participants.
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Toledo Alumni Magazine | Fall 2004
Diana “Dee” Talmage (MEd), retired educator, was presented with the Clara Barton Honor Award for meritorious volunteer leadership by the American Red Cross in March. The University of Toledo College of Education Alumni Affiliate also honored her in April, bestowing a special “Extra Mile” award for her many terms as affiliate president.
’66
John F. Hall (A/S, Law ’70) of the Hall Law Firm in Perrysburg and Fremont, Ohio, was awarded the designation of Certified Elder Law Attorney by the National Elder Law Foundation, a distinction achieved by approximately 300 attorneys in the United States and only 13 others in Ohio.
John S. “Jack” Weisheit (MEd), Galion, Ohio, who has had a practice in the field of dispute resolution since 1989, was inducted into the National Academy of Arbitrators. The organization, made up of some 500 members who have distinguished themselves in labor arbitration, works with similar groups globally to address standards of conduct and ethics of arbitrators.
’67
Carole H. (Hanf) Laasch (Ed), who teaches English at Southview High School and was honored as their 2003 Teacher of the Year, was named to the Sylvania Schools Hall of Fame in March.
Mike McKeown (Pharm) was promoted to manager of pharmacy regulatory compliance and contracting for the Kroger Co., and appointed privacy officer. He and his wife, Lavonne (MEd ’89) moved to Cincinnati, where the company is headquartered.
’68
James Austermiller (Bus) was appointed finance director of Oregon, Ohio, in April. Previously, he was an assistant state auditor. Judy Ennis (A/S, MS ’81), formerly dean of community and corporate outreach for Northwest State Community College in Archbold, Ohio, was chosen as executive dean of Owens Community College’s Findlay, Ohio, campus in April. Don Smith (MEd), who served as superintendent of the Allen County (Ohio) Education Service Center since 1995, retired in March after nearly 30 years in education. Georgeanne Vargo (Ed), business and history teacher at Jefferson High School in Delphos, Ohio, retired in June after 36 years in the teaching field.
’69
Joel L. Levitan (Pharm), manager at Clinic Pharmacy in Toledo, was the 2004 recipient of the Ohio Pharmacists Association’s Bowl of Hygeia Award, bestowed to honor a pharmacist for contributions to an Ohio community. Ronald Whitehouse (MBA), Nokomis, Fla., was among the alumni honored by Bowling Green State University with a Best of BGSU Accomplished Graduate Award in March. A founding partner and former chairman of the board of HQ Network Systems Inc., an international franchiser, he now concentrates on philanthropic activities.
’70
Essie L. Calhoun (Ed) was appointed chief diversity officer and director of community affairs for Eastman Kodak Co. She began her 21-year career with the famous Rochester, N.Y.-based company as a sales representative. She
was appointed a vice president in 1999 and elected a corporate vice president by Kodak’s board of directors a year later. She also continues to serve as director of community relations and contributions.
Calhoun ’70
’73
Ed Cieka (MS) signed on as city manager for Rossford, Ohio, in April. Previously, he was administrator of the Lucas County Commissioners Board.
’74
Marilyn Black (Pharm), Toledo, was installed in April as a trustee of the Ohio Pharmacists Association, representing District 2. Jeffrey J. Calabrese (Bus) was named chief executive officer of Century Bank, headquartered in Parma, Ohio.
Dr. Donald Kopka (Bus, MBA ’81), professor of management at Towson University in Maryland, received a Fulbright Scholar grant to teach in Vietnam at the University of Da Nang’s College of Economics and Business Administration. His project, “Entrepreneurial Development and Management,” involves two courses at the college.
Dr. Roderick McDavis (PhD), former provost of Virginia Commonwealth University, was selected as the new president of Ohio University in Athens, becoming the university’s 20th president on July 1.
www.toledoalumni.org
’76
Michael Lockwood (Eng), Houston, who is regional manager of engineering, health, safety and environmental for three Texas facilities owned by Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., was the keynote speaker at the Emerson Exchange conference, held in Nashville, Tenn.
Lockwood ’76
’77
Kenneth R. Cookson (Law) joined the Columbus law firm of Kegler, Brown, Hill & Ritter as a director.
’78
William Baker (MBA), president and CEO of Irwin Car and Equipment, a custom heavy equipment manufacturing firm headquartered in Irwin, Penn., was named a finalist in the Ernst and Young 2004 Entrepreneur of the Year Awards for western Pennsylvania. Dr. Charlene Czerniak (Ed), UT professor of curriculum and instruction, was named to oversee the new Office of Inter-Institutional Instruction, a collaboration between UT, Bowling Green State University and the Medical College of Ohio. Jim Nowak (A/S), senior producer at Buckeye Cablesystem in Toledo, was honored for the best anti-tobacco advertisement in the state by Tobacco-Free Ohio, a nonprofit group headquartered in Columbus. The television spot, “CSI Dayton,” which he produced www.toledoalumni.org
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im Schmakel (Ed ’74) has been with the Detroit Tigers for the highs — with a 1984 World Series ring to prove it — and he’s been there for the lows. As clubhouse manager for 27 years, he’s watched players, managers and coaches come and go, and kept order in the challenging and chaotic behind-the-scenes world of a major league team. “We do whatever we can for the players so when they come to the park they can think baseball, play baseball,” Schmakel said. That means fielding special requests in addition to maintaining the locker room, weight room, coaches’ offices, umpires’ room, indoor batting cage, equipment rooms, kitchen and players’ lounge. Schmakel and his six-person staff make sure uniforms are laundered and hung up, cleats are polished, and some 40 to 50 people eat every day. “For a night game, the players and coaches start to roll in around 12:30. They get there early for extra hitting, to work out, maybe to watch a video or have a simulated game,” Schmakel said. “We have food — hamburgers, chicken, pasta, soup — ready after batting practice and after the game. We need to have food for them because they’re there through 11 p.m. Plus, they’re young men and they eat like horses. “I probably get to know the players better than anyone because if they need something, I get it for them. If they have a broken window, we get it fixed. If someone’s wife is coming to town, we’ll send someone to pick her up.” He even recalled buying dog food for a pooch belonging to former Detroit outfielder Kirk Gibson, now a Tiger coach. Being the go-to guy means Schmakel has some good stories. “When Bobby [Higginson,
Photo by Whitney Meschke
Alumnus takes care of Tigers
Field day. Jim Schmakel, right, posed for a photo with Alan Trammell at Comerica Park. Schmakel called Tram “one of my best friends in baseball.” outfielder] was a rookie, he’d go into the food room at Tiger Stadium and look for cereal. He’d put Lucky Charms in his pockets before the game. And then we’d have Lucky Charms in the wash the next day because he was getting hits,” he said. For two decades, Schmakel worked at Tiger Stadium. After the last game there in 1999, he took a chalkboard as a memento. “It was a great place to play and watch baseball, but it was literally falling apart internally,” he said. “I went back a couple years ago to make a videotape to be shown at a retirement party for Travis Fryman [Detroit third basemen 1990-1997]. I was amazed — all the storage was up above and I needed to climb three ladders. How did I do that for so many years? Now the area is almost as big as a football field at Comerica Park.” The new field didn’t produce any dream teams. In 2003, Detroit’s 43-119 record was one game short of breaking the modern mark for most losses in a season. “In my job, we do the same thing every day. The only thing about last year — and really the last half of the ’90s — the end of the day wasn’t very happy.
We were a losing team,” Schmakel said. Thanks to key acquisitions, this season has been better. “We’re around the .500 mark, but I think we’re better than that,” Schmakel said in mid-June. “It’s a long haul — we could have a very good season.” Tiger Manager Alan Trammell, Detroit shortstop from 1977 to 1996, said, “Jim Schmakel is usually the first person I see when arriving at the ballpark and the last before I leave, I have known Jim for over 25 years, and he has always been a tireless worker, making sure that everyone has what they need to be comfortable and successful over the course of a long season.” Next year should be exciting as well; Detroit will host the AllStar Game. “It’ll be a lot of hard work, but it should be a lot of fun,” Schmakel said. That’s not too bad for someone who began his baseball career by winning a contest to be a batboy for the Toledo Mud Hens. — Vicki L. Kroll
Office of Marketing and Communications
Toledo Alumni Magazine | Fall 2004
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class notes
under his company, Jimages Inc., also won a Communicator Award of Distinction.
Ch. Franklin E. Wester (A/S), in a ceremony at the Pentagon Memorial Chapel, was promoted to a colonel in the U.S. Army Reserve. Reassigned from the Office of the Chief of Army Command Chaplains to the headquarters of the U.S. Army Reserve Command, in Fort McPherson, Ga., he will be training chaplains and their assistants to provide spiritual leadership in wartime and military missions.
’79
Doug Blakeman (Eng) was appointed vice president of marketing/sales and business development for the Parker Filtration Group in Cleveland, part of Parker’s international holdings. He had previously been general manager of the Filter Division for Europe.
Paul Hubaker (Ed, MEd ’86, Ed Spec ’88), director of career
and technical education at The University of Toledo College of Education, was elected to the board of directors of Ohio SkillsUSA, a technical career organization serving more than 30,000 students and advisers. Shirley Oliver (Bus), a licensed professional clinical counselor in private practice, was named Counselor of the Year by the Ohio Counseling Association. Mike Rankin (Law) joined the Brunner Law Firm in Columbus as of counsel.
’82
Mike McAlear (Bus, MBA ’90), president of Service Spring Corp., a manufacturing firm in Millbury, Ohio, was named a Northwest Ohio Entrepreneur of the Year in 2003.
Sandy Schmollinger (UTCTC, Univ Coll ’86) was promoted to senior vice president in charge of global treasury management sales in western Ohio, Michigan and Indiana for KeyBank of Toledo. She has been with the bank since 1973.
organization providing financial planning services to pastors, missionaries and other ministry leaders without charges or fees. He’s also pursuing a master’s degree at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, Calif.
’83
Donald Claar (UTCTC, Univ Coll ’84), a 10-year veteran of the Delaware, Ohio, police department, was promoted to administrative staff sergeant in April.
’80
Robert E. Gospodarek (Eng)
Protection Services Inc., a Perrysburg, Ohio-based security system installation company that he founded in 1986, formed Asset Protection Corp. to serve commercial clients. Thomas L. Shank (Bus) was promoted to vice president, supply chain management, with Wyandot Inc., a private-label snack food manufacturer with offices in Ohio and Indiana.
Dr. Virginia Keil (MEd, PhD ’94), interim associate dean of
was appointed president and chief executive officer of Mercy Hospital in Willard, Ohio.
Kim Klewer (UTCTC, Univ Coll ’81), president of Corporate
Schmollinger ’82, ’86 Eric Swierczek (UTCTC, Bus ‘85), Palmer Lake, Colo., owns two financial planning companies in Colorado Springs, and is starting a non-profit
undergraduate studies at The University of Toledo College of Education, was a recipient of the 2003 University College Fellows Award, given by the UT college to recognize outstanding teaching, research and partnership. Lester F. McCaslin (MA) was named executive director of the
What in the world are you doing? Your UT Alumni Association is interested in what you’ve been up to since graduation. Information about births, marriages, new jobs and recent promotions, and educational or professional accomplishments is published in Toledo Alumni. (Professional news reported directly to your college is automatically forwarded to Toledo Alumni.) If you have a black-and white or color photograph of yourself, send that along, too! Information that is older than one year cannot be considered for publication. Due to copy deadlines, it may be a few issues before your notice appears. Please complete the information below and attach a brief description of your news. Mail to: The University of Toledo Alumni Association, Driscoll Alumni Center, Toledo, OH 43606-3395.
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Toledo Alumni Magazine | Fall 2004
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Jacob’s journey Four County Board of Alcohol, Drug Abuse and Mental Health Services in Archbold, Ohio. He had previously served as the board’s associate director for more than nine years.
’84
Dr. Walter Koch (Pharm), W.W. Smith professor of medicine and director of the Center for Translational Medicine at Jefferson College in Philadelphia, gave the commencement address at Bryan (Ohio) High School, from which he graduated in 1979.
I
t was a warm June morning in Perrysburg, Ohio, and Jacob Cady was feeling cranky. “My belly hurts,” he said from under his blanket on a living-room recliner. Within a half-hour, though, he was sailing happily on backyard swings, smiling a disarming “Cheese!” for the camera. It’s hardly unusual behavior for a three-and-a-half-year-old, but to his parents, Ron (Bus ’88) and Christine (A/S ’97) Cady, it’s nothing short of miraculous. Jacob
Gwen (Poturalski) Micham (Bus, MBA ’88), Lyons, Ohio, is president and sole owner of Business Sense LLC (business.sense@earthlink.net), a consultation firm specializing in business evaluations, turnaround management and restructuring. Francine Todd (Ed, MEd ’93), Huron, Ohio, was named lecturer and interim director for the new radiologic technology program at the Firelands campus of Bowling Green State University.
Cameron VanArsdalen (MEd), who had been principal of Bryan (Ohio) High School for 12 years, moved to a more rural setting when he was hired as principal of Ayersville High School.
’85
Dan Burgard (Eng) joined CK Technologies, a manufacturing company with headquarters in Bryan, Ohio, as senior project engineer.
James A. Puffenberger (Law) was promoted to president/chief executive officer of Northern Arizona Heathcare in May.
’86
Angela Carter (Pharm), a part owner of Grafton Pharmacy in Elyria, Ohio, was named a trustee of the Ohio Pharmacists Association. She also practices pharmacy at Midview Drugs. www.toledoalumni.org
The Cady family has a rare form of liver cancer and was less than three months past an organ transplant. Coming up on his fourth and final round of post-transplant chemotherapy, Jake looked for all the world — except for his hairless head — like a blessedly average kid. Blessed averageness marked his life until last December, when Christine noticed a small bump under his ribs. Doctors discovered what turned out to be a large, malignant tumor. A biopsy pointed first toward hepatoblastoma anaplastic — rare in children, literally one in a million — then Rhabdoid of the liver, even more rare. Both diagnoses were grim. “All you have to do is type ‘Rhabdoid’ in on Google to see how poor the prognosis is,” Ron said. On Christmas Day, Jacob’s
oncologist called with welcome news: her research found two cases of Rhabdoid that had responded well to chemotherapy. On chemo, Jacob’s tumor began to shrink, raising hopes further. Transplant surgery was the next prescribed treatment, and Ron and Christine's research led them to the Alfred I. duPont Children’s Hospital in Delaware. “We chose them for the surgery because they have the most experience with living donor liver transplants, the path we knew we were taking,” Christine said. The liver, in fact, is the only organ of the body that “grows back,” permitting a living person to become a donor while maintaining normal health. Ron began the process of becoming his son’s donor, but his liver was not compatible. Jacob’s aunt was the next candidate, but she too was disqualified. “duPont is very particular about its donors, which is why they have such a good success rate,” Ron noted. Enter Tom Dusza (A/S ’87, Law ’90), an attorney in Huron, Ohio, and a fraternity brother of Ron. “He was one of the first friends who called us when Jacob was hospitalized,” Ron said. “He put his name forward right away to be a donor for Jake, but at the time, I thought I would be able to.” “As a universal donor, I give lots of blood away, but no one’s ever asked me for my liver before,” Tom said. “My doctor said, ‘Put it this way — what more can you do in life that’s so rewarding?’ When you take a step back and consider it that way, what else can you do? “Doctors removed the left lower lobe from my liver — about 40 percent. Mine regenerated in about six to eight weeks. Going through surgery isn’t pleasant, but it was worth it! Luckily, I have a super-supportive wife and workplace. “I don’t want any accolades.
It’s just something you do. I don’t think people realize how much they can do as organ donors. I’d do it again in a minute.” The transplant was a success, and surgeons found the tumor was almost fully necrosed (dead) because of the chemotherapy. Based partly on the success of the chemo, doctors re-diagnosed Jacob with undifferentiated sarcoma. “It’s still a nasty tumor, but that’s where we’re pinning our hopes, because the prognosis is better,” said Christine. Today, Jacob’s treatment continues. “The heavy-duty chemo’s been hard on him, but after consulting our oncologist and specialists, we had decided to go the aggressive route with four rounds,” Christine said. “If it’s going to come back, that’s out of our control, but we couldn’t have lived with ourselves if we didn’t give him the maximum chance.”
The first year following treatment is critical. “If you get through year one, there’s a 90 percent chance it won’t recur,” Ron said. Christine added, “The doctors tell us he’s done exceptionally well, almost like a miracle.” The last word, though, belongs to Jacob: “I love pizza!” he yelled from the swing. To his parents, what could sound more optimistic?
For updates on Jacob’s progress, check his Web site: www.caringbridge.org/oh/jacoblouis
Toledo Alumni Magazine | Fall 2004
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class notes
Dale Crumrine (Bus) was promoted to manager, process products, with Pro-Tec Coating Co. in Leipsic, Ohio. Tom Lueck (MBA) joined Sky Bank as a vice president/ commercial loan officer for the Toledo area. Diane B. Throop (MBA), principal of her own engineering firm in Cincinnati, received the ASTM International Award of Merit in May. The award is the highest recognition of the international standards management system, recognizing distinguished service and in Throop’s case, her numerous contributions to the development of masonry-related standards for materials and testing.
daughter, Madison Star, in January. Brandt owns a real estate investment company. Alyce Juby (Law) was promoted to senior vice president, regional trust executive for McDonald Financial Group, part of KeyCorp’s financial services companies. Her responsibilities will include parts of Ohio and Michigan.
’89
Jeffrey A. Clark (Pharm) was promoted to pharmacy development manager with Rite-Aid for the areas of Portland, Ore., and southwestern Washington state. Randy G. Earl (Ed Spec), Covington, Ohio, was hired as superintendent of Covington Schools. Eileen Sullivan (Law) joined the Personal Trust Group in the Investment Advisor Division of Fifth Third Bank, Toledo.
’90
Gerald O. Herman (Univ Coll, MPA ’98), chief of police Juby ’87 Kevin Rahe (Bus) was promoted to senior vice president, banking sales manager for McDonald Financial Group, overseeing operations for private banking clients in northwest Ohio.
Throop ’86
in Northwood, Ohio, was named an outstanding alumnus by Penta Career Center at the Perrysburg Township school’s annual banquet in May.
Lisa Kirchner (A/S, MA ’93), who has worked for Tiffin University for 11 years, was named interim dean of students at the Ohio university. Previously, she had been director of residence life and associate dean of students.
’87
Steven A. DeBolt (MPA), Reynoldsburg, Ohio, was appointed administrator for the Ohio Construction Industry Examining Board, which issues licenses for Ohio contractors in specialty trades. Teri (Teresa) Dunsworth (Pharm) was elected to the editorial board of the 5th edition of the Pharmacotherapy SelfAssessment Program, a publication of the American College of Clinical Pharmacy, after serving on the board for the previous edition. She and her husband, Carl, live in Morgantown, W.V., with their children, Holly and identical twins Grant and Aidan. Brandt England (Bus) and his wife, Jill, Las Vegas, Nev., announce the birth of their
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Toledo Alumni Magazine | Fall 2004
Deborah (Bednarski) Heisel (Pharm), Sammamish, Wash., wrote in to say that she has five children under the age of 11, and is currently enrolled in a pharmacy doctoral program at the University of Washington.
Gary C. Schroeder (Bus) was appointed director of financial planning and analysis for the global tire operations of Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. in Findlay, Ohio.
Barbara Berebitsky (Univ Coll), community president of Huntington Bank, was reappointed to the Toledo Chamber of Commerce board of trustees. She is also second vice president on the board of The University of Toledo Alumni Association.
Janine (Overstreet) Foster (Univ Coll), Lebanon, Ohio, joined Prescott-Ellen Inc., which specializes in promotional items and materials, in March as sales executive.
Edward Mack (UTCTC, Univ Coll ’93), a sergeant in the Toledo Police Records Bureau, received the Police Officer Award from the Alumni Association of Owens Community College, Perrysburg, Ohio, as part of their Outstanding Service Awards. One of 16 police, fire and emergency medical professionals honored, Mack has 10 years of public service. Timothy Oser (Pharm), Waterville, Ohio, was accredited as a Certified Geriatric Pharmacist in January, and was also named a Fellow of the American Society of Consultant Pharmacists, an honor given to those achieving the highest standards in senior care pharmacy.
’92
David Brehm (Law), a partner
Rahe ’87
’88
’91
Kirchner ’90, ’93 Kendra (McLaughlin) Peters (Pharm) and her husband, Tony, announce the birth of their second son, Gabriel James, in April. He joins brother, Christian, and the family in Kettering, Ohio. Kendra is a pharmacist with Children’s Medical Center in Dayton.
in the Delaware County, Ohio, law offices of Firestone & Brehm, joined the board of directors for the Sunbury/Big Walnut Area Chamber of Commerce. Crystal Dixon (MEd), director of human resources at a Toledo hospital, launched a new business with her product, SureLaces. The shoestring-securing system for sports shoes can be viewed at www.surelacesinc.com. Dr. Will Folger (PhD) was hired as superintendent of the Sheffield/Sheffield Lake (Ohio) school district. Previously, he was
www.toledoalumni.org
Spinning out the miles for special people
R
obert Shindell (Ed ’95) spent half the month of May pumping iron — or a metal similar to it. To be more precise, he was pumping the pedals of his aluminum-and-steel bicycle as he and 27 other members of the Pi Kappa Phi fraternity took to the road for a 16-day, 800-mile Florida trek from Miami to Tallahassee. No, it wasn’t a frat party on wheels. The trip — called Gear Up Florida — is in its seventh year and is the fund-raising brainchild of Push America, which Pi Kappa Phi founded in 1977 to promote awareness of people with disabilities. Shindell, director of the Rawls College of Business Career Management Center at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, didn’t have to spend recovery time following
rode toward a goal, not just for the sake of riding. The goal was the two or three presentations we’d make at each city where we stopped.” Educational talks at day camps and after-school programs alternated with the main focus: interacting with people who live with disabilities. These “friendship visits” were a series of trip highlights, Shindell said. “They were awesome. We’d ride to a facility for children or adults with special needs. The facilities ranged from support groups for high-functioning individuals, such as Best Buddies of Orlando, to homes for people with severe multiple sclerosis or cerebral palsy [CP], or mental disabilities. Usually there was a dinner involved. One facility — the McDonald Training Center in Orlando — held a dance, with 300 people. It was highlight of their year, and they spent weeks preparing for it.” It was at the dance that Shindell made one of the trip’s most memorable connections. “One client, named Stephanie, has severe CP and very limited communication abilities. She got all dressed up for the dance and looked just beautiful, like Easter Sunday. I didn’t do anything but share Brenot and Shindell greeted by Gear Up dances and dinner, and official: lookin’ sassy in Tallahassee help feed her — and I the trip. “I trained a lot for it told her how great she looked. She — after all, nobody wants to be just beamed. We were together in pain,” he said. It was apparent, the whole night, and as we though, that he would have were leaving, her caregiver told counted any pain a small price to me that prior to the dance, she pay for the experience. hadn’t seen Stephanie smile in “Every day, we traveled between six months. As the CP took over 60 and 80 miles,” he said. “We her ability to speak, she’d been
www.toledoalumni.org
Pain, gain and a good campaign very depressed. It took Stephanie a couple minutes to tell me thank you, and hug me — and what a moment. It opened a part of me that I don’t think had been opened before.” Shindell’s riding partner in the trip, UT student Matthew Brenot, a senior in the College of Business Administration, shared his sentiments. “I’ve been involved with Push America since I was a freshman, and this is my first time for Gear Up — but it won’t be the last,” he said. “As a matter of fact, Pi Kappa Phi also sponsors Journey of Hope, a trip from San Francisco to Washington, D.C., and I’ll probably go for that, too.” With a smile obvious in his voice, he added, “It was an amazing experience, and even though I prepared for it and had various expectations, I didn’t expect to get my butt kicked by a Special Olympics bowler!” Both Pi Kaps spoke of the team’s camaraderie, a spirit that extended to fraternity brothers they met with along the way, including Richard Smalley (Bus ’62), who bought breakfast for the team in Orlando, and Casey Cornelius (’01), an instructor at a community college.
Paramount, however, were the people for whom they made the ride. “We got much more than we gave,” Shindell said. “As I think about some of the people I met along the way — they don’t let their disabilities get in the way of what they want to do. I met one woman in Lakeland. She has severe CP and has three advanced degrees. She’s a graphic design artist. She has a chair adapted to plug right into her computer. She moves the mouse with her head, and she does very well. “It’s very inspirational to meet people who focus more on what they can do than on what they can’t do — and that’s the message we were promoting on our trip.” The Gear Up Florida team raised more than $80,000 for the cause; more information on Push America can be found at www.pushamerica.org.
Toledo Alumni Magazine | Fall 2004
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class notes
principal of McCormick Middle School in Huron, Ohio. Rob Garner (Pharm), Wellsville, Ohio, was promoted to pharmacy manager for a new Giant Eagle Pharmacy, where his partner pharmacist is his sister-inlaw, Starr (Halfhill) Ensinger
(Pharm ’03).
’93
Chris Cufr (UTCTC, Eng ’97), a design engineer with Libbey Inc., was named an outstanding alumnus by Penta Career Center at the Perrysburg Township school’s annual banquet in May.
’94
James C. Barney (Law) joined the Port Clinton, Ohio, law firm of Kocher & Gillum as an associate.
Dr. John C. Biery Jr. (Pharm) and his family relocated from Orange Park, Fla., to the United States Naval Hospital in Guam. Rich (A/S) and Michelle
(Van Steenberg) Ghrist (A/S) announce the birth of their daughter, Lauren Rebekah, in April. She joins older brother, Aaron, and the family in Colorado Springs, Colo. Rich is a systems analyst for Omitron, an aerospace engineering and technology provider, and Michelle is an assistant professor of mathematical sciences at the U.S. Air Force Academy.
Michelle (McDonald) Hathaway (Pharm) and her husband, Michael, of Hilliard, Ohio, announce the birth of their second son, Jacob Michael, in May. Michelle took a new pharmacy position with Giant Eagle in January.
for the law firm of Krugliak, Griffiths & Dougherty Co. LPA in Alliance, Ohio.
’95
Jim Butsko (Bus, MBA ’96), Lewis Center, Ohio, joined Coldwell Banker King Thompson as a residential real estate specialist with the firm’s Worthington-Powell office, near Columbus.
Dr. Kristin Casper (Pharm, PharmD ’97) received the Innovative Pharmacy Practice Award from the Ohio Pharmacists Association in April, recognizing the disease state management program she established through a Kroger pharmacy. The program provides patient care in the areas of diabetes, cholesterol management and women’s health.
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Toledo Alumni Magazine | Fall 2004
Dr. Sean B. Caine (Ed), who was previously director of physical medicine with an orthopedic rehabilitation clinic in St. Charles, Ill., opened a private practice, Ohio Physical Medicine Inc., in Brecksville, Ohio. Patti M. Driscoll (Bus), Whitehouse, Ohio, was promoted to vice president, retail operations and risk management, at Fifth Third Bank, Northwest Ohio. She has been with the company since 1980.
Columbus, announce the birth of their son, Alec David, in February. Jennifer is thrilled to be a stay-athome mom. Steven Leamy (Bus) was promoted to commercial loan officer with Signature Bank in Toledo. Joe Verkennes (A/S) married
Maegan Tansey (Bus ’97) in April. Joe is senior account executive with the marketing and communications firm of Hart Associates, and Maegan is an analyst for Burns Consulting, a health care benefits consultation firm. Both companies are in Maumee, Ohio.
of southwest Ohio at McKenna Associates Inc., a community planning and urban design firm in Dayton, Ohio.
’97
Nathan Noy (Law) was named director of government and legal affairs of the Association for Logistics Outsourcing, Des Plaines, Ill.
Keri Samiec (Bus, MBA ’03) was appointed senior client service executive at HSR Business to Business Inc.
Mary E. Widdowson (Law) joined the Cincinnati office of Dinsmore & Shohl LLP in the litigation department, focusing on product liability.
Driscoll ’96 Kevin L. Lenson (Law), Solon, Ohio, was made a partner in the Cleveland law firm of Friedman, Domiano & Smith Co. LPA. Jan Edington (Pharm) married Ron Maxwell in November. She is a staff pharmacist at St. Charles Mercy Hospital’s outpatient pharmacy in Oregon, Ohio.
Amy L. (Ed) and George (UTUTC, Bus ’97) Mergen,
’99
Michelle L. Carpenter (Bus) was promoted to banking officer in the Treasury Management Division of Fifth Third Bank, based in the company’s downtown Toledo office. She has been with Fifth Third since 2001. Donald J. Dietrich (MBA) was promoted to vice president, small business, at KeyBank. He joined the Toledo company in 2001.
Toledo, announce the birth of their daughter, Madison Ann, in March. Amy recently accepted the position of director of admissions at Lourdes College in Sylvania, Ohio. Nancy Pierson (Bus), Oregon, Ohio, joined the Bostwick-Braun Co. as a product manager.
Megan (Ekey) Reichert (MBA) was hired as director
Tansey ’97/Verkennes ’95
Bradley Schwab (A/S, MS ’02) was promoted to director
’98
Jennifer (Swanson) Kingsley (A/S) and her husband, Keith,
Dawn (Haas) Tolan (A/S), Columbus, joined the Worthington, Ohio, office of Coldwell Banker King Thompson as a residential real estate specialist. Michael A. Warkall (Law) was elected a shareholder and director
’96
of Business Development Services and the Small Business Development Center of the Toledo Chamber of Commerce. Previously, she was vice president of Reichert Stamping Co.
Dietrich ’99 Christopher Hamilton (Bus) was promoted to senior accountant at HUGO BOSS USA, at the Cleveland offices of the international apparel and fashion
www.toledoalumni.org
Gotta dance! say alums and UT staffers
manufacturer, distributor and vendor. Neil Piasecki (Eng) and his wife, Erin, Toledo, announce the birth of their son, Ethan, in May. Louise Schlatter (Eng), senior project architect/architectural department manager of the automotive specialized business unit at SSOE Inc., was included in a story, “Women Work: Some of the Area’s Top Business Women Give Advice,” that appeared in The Blade in March.
Engineer of the Year award from the Toledo Society of Professional Engineers in February.
’00
Kierstin (McLain) Joost (Bus) was appointed residential
Tiffany L. Fantine (A/S) earned a master’s degree in counseling from Edinboro University of Pennsylvania in May. Matthew T. Harrod (Bus), Wapakoneta, Ohio, received his juris doctor from the Pettit College of Law at Ohio Northern University in May.
’01
Ben Babcanec (Bus), Reynoldsburg, Ohio, was promoted to assistant administrative officer at Heartland Bank.
Rebecca Riley (Pharm) received the Esther Garrett Edgerton Endowed P.E.O. Scholar award from the P.E.O. Sisterhood, an organization that provides women with opportunities in higher education. She is attending Harvard Law School, where she is also an instructor for the school’s first-year lawyering program.
Michael Rochelle (Bus) was named team leader of the Swanton, Ohio, KeyCenter for KeyBank.
Firsdon ’02
mortgage loan originator at the State Bank and Trust Co. in Defiance, Ohio.
Christine M. Smallman (Univ Coll), director of college relations for The University of Toledo College of Engineering, was named to Toledo Mayor Jack Ford’s Coalition for Prostate Cancer Awareness and Education. She was also inducted into the Rotary Club of Toledo in February. Jessica Williams (Eng), who is working on her master’s degree in biomedical engineering at the University of Michigan, was awarded a National Science Foundation Fellowship.
’03
Darla (Stahl) Dooley (Law), Lakeland, Fla., was admitted to the Florida Bar in May.
Jeanne Drouillard (MHHS), Lambertville, Mich., was appointed administrative director, patient care services (chief nursing officer) at Bay Park Community Hospital in Oregon, Ohio.
Kellie Werschey (Pharm)
Elizabeth Kennedy (Law)
’04
’02
www.toledoalumni.org
Robert A. Ide (HHS) enlisted in the U.S. Navy in May. joined the Toledo office of law firm Roetzel & Andress as an associate.
moved to Bluffton, S.C., in the spring and works as a pharmacist.
Dan Firsdon (Eng), a mechanical engineer at TolTest Inc. in Toledo, received the 2004 Young
T
he Manhattan Dance Company, that tap-dancing troupe with its studio headquarters in Maumee, Ohio, has been an area fixture since 1991. They’ve performed at local and regional events and have been regular toe-tapping visitors to senior centers and nursing homes. Members of the company even gave a featured performance in an off-Broadway show, “Tony & Tina’s Wedding,” where they played — naturally — dancing guests. Their photo now hangs among those of the many theatre greats honored at the Carnegie Deli on 7th Avenue in New York City. Apart from their shared dedication (and the occasional pulled hamstring story), another commonality links the terpsichorean tappers: UT. A number of the company dancers are either alums or have some other connection to the University: Beverly Whitmore Schaefer (Ed ’63), who was part of the original Rockettes in the early ’60s; Sue Steele Woolford (Ed ’64, MEd ’67); Linda Storer, an executive secretary at UT’s Nanotechnology Research Center; Chris Lawless, a former business technologies instructor at UT’s Community and Technical Campus; Tina Spoon (MEd ’71); Marcia Myers (Bus ’93); Peggy Spencer (MEd ’83); and Sandy Whitman (Ed ’74), administrative
Drouillard ’03
Marvin Gnagy (Eng), an operations specialist for ArcadisFPS, a Toledo-based engineering/ architectural firm, received the George W. Fuller Award from
Have cleats will travel. Front row, from left, Spoon, Whitman, Schaefer. Back row, from left, Woolford, Storer, Spencer, Lawless and Myers. assistant at the College of Education. Whitman noted the company’s community outreach role: “I particularly enjoy the service aspects. When we perform at nursing homes, knowing how much they enjoy our being there is a great feeling. While many of the ladies will say they dance ‘for the health of it,’ everyone would agree that it’s also fun, and the support system is great!” The Manhattan Dance Company, whose approximately 35 members range in age from 36 to 74, were the only group invited to perform live this past summer at the televised Miss Ohio Pageant in Mansfield. the Ohio section of the American Water Works Association for distinguished service in the water supply field. Kenton Komives (Bus), London, Ohio, was commissioned as a 2nd lieutenant in the U.S. Army in May, and received the Superior Cadet Award, the Gen. George Marshall ROTC Award and the Distinguished Military Graduate Award.
Toledo Alumni Magazine | Fall 2004
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Biblio-files
W
hile not the original film maverick, Robert Aldrich (1918-1983) framed his career according to his own gritty ethos — and when he could, played by his own rules. The last of the oldschool bootstrap film careerists, he rose from RKO production clerk to script clerk to assistant director, production manager and associate producer, and directed his first feature in 1953. Eventually he established a production company, then a studio which produced most of his own films. He co-wrote many of them as well. Some — “Autumn Leaves” with Joan Crawford, “The Last Sunset” with Rock Hudson and “4 for Texas” with Dean Martin — are deservedly obscure now. Others, like “The Dirty Dozen,” “What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?” and “The Longest Yard,” have become certified classics. Robert Aldrich: Interviews (University Press of Mississippi), co-edited by Dr. Eugene L. Miller Jr. (MA, PhD ’75), professor of English at Appalachian State University in Boone, N.C., and Edwin T. Arnold, captures well Aldrich’s feisty independence and his commitment to what he saw as truthful story-telling, no matter how violent or unpleasant the narrative might be. The interviews also provide juicy tidbits on actors: Bette Davis, for example, sweetly revealing to Victor Buono that she fought his casting in “Baby Jane” tooth and nail. The book is a valuable record of the sort of gifted Hollywood outsider who’s all but extinct in today’s corporate mega-biz. My own Aldrich film recommendation: see “The Frisco Kid” and realize that actor Gene Wilder may have revealed more gifts under Aldrich’s direction than under Mel Brooks’! Reviewed by Cynthia Nowak, editor, Toledo Alumni Magazine
V
ision. In sports, it’s said the great ones have it. The hockey player who can see plays forming. The quarterback who can see what the defense is planning. The batter who can see the seams of a baseball as it approaches at 90-plus miles an hour. The baseball example is at the heart of More Than a Game (Swan Creek Press) by UT alum Terence O’Leary (A/S ’72). The story is set in present-day Toledo, but as the title suggests, at issue is more than baseball. It’s cancer. And the vision is more than seeing a baseball. It’s a vision of how to use technology to fight the disease. In this case, the vision, both of baseball and medicine, belongs to Brian McBride, a graduating senior who is the star of his high school team. He is torn between playing baseball professionally and going to a university to
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Toledo Alumni Magazine | Fall 2004
study nanotechnology. Pulling him are his father, Kevin, a failed minor-leaguer who lives through his son, and his mother, Karen, who was denied college and also lives that dream through Brian. The focus of their attention, though, is Marty, Brian’s grandfather, who is dying of cancer. The reader meets Marty in the prologue, set at the battle of the Chosin Reservoir in the Korean War. Amid the carnage, Marty finds solace in a baseball mitt because it reminds him of home. In an unlikely turn, Brian jumps right from high school to a top minor-league team modeled after the Toledo Mud Hens. He has decided on college, but in a concession to his father, agrees to play baseball over the summer. As the summer unfolds, events pull him back and forth from his decision. O’Leary develops these and secondary characters so well that the reader cares about what happens to them. The crisp writing style, the story development, the richness of the characters and the outcome combine to make the reader feel good, that the time spent reading the novel was worthwhile. In that sense, More Than a Game is more than a book. Reviewed by Dennis Bova, Toledo Blade
U
niversity of Toledo alum Jenny C. Deason (A/S ’72) has written New Shoes for Elizabeth (American Book Classics), a delightful tale about the struggles of a poor German farm family near Tiffin, Ohio during the Great Depression. The heroine is the resourceful, strong and loving mother, Georgette Huhn, who holds together her family of five boys and one girl, Elizabeth, despite her husband’s farm injury. The source of her strength is her Christian faith. She makes sure her family gets to church every Sunday, finds time each busy day to read and reflect on the Bible, and repeatedly offers prayers of gratitude for small blessings in the midst of her family’s desperate economic situation. Her faith, challenged by the hypocritical insensitivity of her in-laws, is confirmed by generous souls who provide a bountiful Christmas celebration for the Huhn family. The story invites further reflection on the temptations of affluence, the true sources of joy in life, and the power of faith in dealing with suffering and hardship. Reviewed by James J. Bacik, pastor of Corpus Christi University Parish and UT adjunct professor of humanities
www.alumni.utoledo.edu www.alumni.utoledo.edu
in memoriam
’20s
Virginia (Beckham) Krauss, Toledo, who attended UT from 1929 to 1933, died May 3 at age 92.
’30s
Charles R. Shelly, Scottsdale, Ariz., who attended UT from 1932 to 1934, died March 26 at age 90. He was a lifetime member of the UT Alumni Association. Miriam (Sandler) Berman, Sylvania, Ohio, who attended UT from 1935 to 1937, died April 17 at age 86. Robert J. Hart, Toledo, who attended UT from 1935 to 1937 and from 1946 to 1953, died May 23 at age 86. Robert E. Faber (Bus ’38), Toledo and Venice, Fla., died June 14 at age 87. He was a member of Phi Kappa Psi and the UT Alumni Association. James H. Fox (Law ’38), Toledo, died March 9 at age 96. A longtime supporter of various UT funds, he was a member of the Presidents Club and the UT Alumni Association. Helen (Matlack) Hatch (A/S ’38), Toledo, died June 10 at age 93. She was a member of the UT Alumni Association. Robert Segel, Maumee, Ohio, who attended UT from 1938 to 1941 and from 1945 to 1946, died May 18 at age 83. Robert L. Huebner, Toledo, who attended UT from 1939 to 1941 and from 1946 to 1948, died May 4 at age 82. Brenner H. Launder, Toledo, who attended UT from 1939 to 1941, died March 27 at age 83.
Dr. Jack C. Ransome (A/S ’39, MS ’47), Windsor, Ontario, Canada, died April 26 at age 86.
Dr. Samuel M. Schall (A/S ’39), Northbrook, Ill., died June 2 at age 86. He was valedictorian of his UT graduating class.
’40s
Kenneth E. Meier, Toledo, who www.toledoalumni.org
attended UT from 1940 to 1941 and from 1946 to 1951, died May 5 at age 83. Dorothy (Damraur) Forman, Toledo, who attended UT from 1941 to 1943, died March 15 at age 80. Gilbert L. Smith III (Bus ’41), Los Osos, Calif., died Dec. 27 at age 83. Harry A. Boyk (Bus ’42), Toledo, died April 12 at age 82. William S. Eberly (Bus ’43), Toledo, died March 21 at age 82. A lifetime member of the UT Alumni Association, he served as president of the organization from 1973 to 1974. He was also on the advisory board of UT’s Catharine S. Eberly Center for Women, named after his late wife.
G. Bernard Kuehnle (TUJC ’43), Toledo, died May 4 at age 92. Richard B. Teiper (Eng ’44), Toledo, died June 11 at age 83. William E. Carrothers Jr., Ft. Myers, Fla., who attended UT from 1945 to 1956, died May 24 at age 79. Betty E. Shiffler (Ed ’45), Centerville, Ohio, died April 13 at age 80. She was a member of Alpha Chi Omega. Julia Belcher-Boyer (Ed ’46), Ft. Myers, Fla., died May 1 at age 79. A lifetime member of the UT Alumni Association, she served on its board in the 1960s. She was a member of Pi Beta Phi and its first president at UT. Mary J. (MacKenzie) Green, Waterville, Ohio, who attended UT from 1946 to 1948, died May 13 at age 76. She was a member of the UT Alumni Association. Horatio N. Jex (Eng ’47), Toledo, died April 16 at age 81. He was a member of the UT Alumni Association. Julian Jordan (Pharm ’47), Toledo, died March 26 at age 84. He was a member of the Varsity T Club.
Robert B. Wetnight (A/S ’47, MBA ’58), Oldsmar, Fla.,
died June 1 at age 79. He was a member of Chi Beta Chi and a lifetime member of the UT Alumni Association. Richard N. Byers (Eng ’48), Toledo, died May 24 at age 81. He was a 50-year member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon, a member of Alpha Phi Omega and the Downtown Coaches Association, and a lifetime member of the UT Alumni Association.
James C. Callaghan Sr. (Bus ’48), Salem, Ore., died April 6 at age 81. As a student, he served as president of Alpha Phi Omega, and was a lifetime member of the UT Alumni Association.
John R. FitzGerald (Pharm ’48), Toledo, died March 27 at age 84. He was a member of Kappa Psi. Jack E. Shepherd (Bus ’48), Bucyrus, Ohio, died May 17 at age 81. David A. Hettel (Bus ’49), Perrysburg, Ohio, died March 7 at age 81.
letters at UT — four for football (1947 through 1950) and four in track. He was a lifetime member of the UT Alumni Association. Paul J. Dailey (Bus ’52), Toledo, died June 4 at age 79. He was a lifetime member of the UT Alumni Association.
Phyllis L. (Martin) Jenkins (Ed ’52), Toledo, died March 13 at age 73. She was a member of Chi Omega and Mortar Board, and was named Regional Dream Girl in 1953 by BGSU’s Theta Chi chapter. Dr. John G. Kramer (A/S ’53), Toledo, died May 8 at age 71. Elizabeth Place, Toledo, who attended UT from 1953 to 1960, died April 24 at age 88.
Joseph P. Lucas (Ed ’54, MEd ’65), Toledo, died March 31 at age 85.
Robert C. Martin (Bus ’54), Graytown, Ohio, died April 3 at age 75. Nancy J. Cole (A/S ’55), Oregon, Ohio, died June 9 at age 75.
Ottabee Simms (Bus ’49, MEd ’68), Toledo, died June 16 at age
Evelyn G. (Quirk) (Lipstraw) Kimble (Ed ’55, MEd ’62),
77. The longtime community educator and activist was honored by the UT Minority Affiliate in March at their annual Recognition of Excellence dinner. She was a member of the UT Alumni Association.
Toledo, died April 4 at age 93. Judith A. (Harloff) Michota, Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif., who attended UT from 1955 to 1957, died May 1 at age 66. She was a member of Pi Beta Phi. Ronald J. DeMars, Toledo, who attended UT from 1956 to 1959 and in the 1960s and 1970s, died April 26 at age 65.
’50s
Mary Jo Feak (Ed ’50), New Albany, Ohio, died April 19 at age 75. She was a 50-year member of Pi Beta Phi. Seymour Forman (Bus ’50), Toledo, died June 8 at age 82. Dr. Charles G. Casey (A/S ’51), Maumee, Ohio, died March 29 at age 73. He was a lifetime member of the UT Alumni Association.
James E. McCarty (A/S ’51), Elmore, Ohio, died April 8 at age 79.
George H. Miley (Ed ’51, MEd ’61), Bellaire, Mich., died April 4 at age 75. He earned eight varsity
Esther M. (Prueter) Gartz (TUJC ’56), Toledo, died March 26 at age 70.
David E. Bradner (Pharm ’57), Lake Havasu, Ariz., died April 20 at age 72. He was a lifetime member of the UT Alumni Association. Richard E. David (Ed ’57), Toledo, died May 14 at age 73. He was a member of the UT Alumni Association. Dr. Thomas B. Seitz (A/S ’57), Toledo, died May 10 at age 68. He was one of the founding members Toledo Alumni Magazine | Fall 2004
31
in memoriam
of Sigma Alpha Epsilon at UT, and was a lifetime member of the UT Alumni Association. Frances M. Volk (Ed ’57), Ft. Myers, Fla., died March 23 at age 96. She was a member of the UT Alumni Association. John W. Graham (Bus ’59), Toledo, died April 12 at age 69. Terry A. Young Sr. (TUJC ’59), Rossford, Ohio, died May 23 at age 64. He was a lifetime member of the UT Alumni Association.
Michael R. Casey (Ed ’65), Oregon, Ohio, died June 6 at age 61. He was a member of Pi Kappa Alpha.
’60s
April 23 at age 57. She was a member of Kappa Delta and a lifetime member of the UT Alumni Association.
Dean C. Shock, Lansdale, Penn., who attended UT from 1960 to 1963, died April 4 at age 61.
Thelma (Curstead) (Dills) Snyder (Ed ’60), Ottawa Hills, Ohio, died May 31 at age 90. Robert O. Martin, Waterville, Ohio, who attended UT from 1961 to 1964, died May 21 at age 69.
Phyllis A. Mack-Emery (Ed ’61), Sammamish, Wash., died May 30 at age 64.
Linda M. (VanGunten) Rice (Ed ’61, MEd ’87), Kettering, Ohio, died March 24 at age 64. Michael R. Konieczny, Temperance, Mich., who attended UT from 1962 to 1966, died March 18 at age 60. Chuck Oswald (Bus ’62), Toledo, died June 2 at age 64. A philanthropist who numbered among his causes UT Athletics and UT’s Center for Family Business, he also paid the high school tuition for about 15 local schoolchildren; his estate will pay for their college tuition if they attend UT or Lourdes College.
Harold R. “Dick” Ziss (MEd ’62), Oregon, Ohio, died May 29 at age 83.
Miriam S. (Stephens) Wexler (Ed ’63, MEd ’69), Sylvania, Ohio, died May 18 at age 87.
Esther (Goldstein) Levi (Ed ’64), Toledo, died June 10 at age 87. James F. Utz (Ed ’64), Toledo, died Nov. 29 at age 65. He was a member of Sigma Phi Epsilon.
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Toledo Alumni Magazine | Fall 2004
William H. Nostrant (Bus ’65), Toledo, died April 8 at age 61. He was a member of the UT Alumni Association.
Wilda (Wheeler) Collier (MEd ’66, Ed Spec ’75), Lyons, Ohio, died April 22 at age 81.
Jean C. (Mesteller) Meyers (Ed ’68), Leipsic, Ohio, died
Lorene C. (Lehman) Schmitt (Ed ’69), Sylvania, Ohio, died April 3 at age 69. She was a member of Alpha Chi Omega.
’70s
Kathryn “Katie” (Bauer) Eaton (Ed ’78), Antioch, Calif., died March 2 at age 54.
Lisa M. (Ramer) Hahn (Ed ’79), Mansfield, Ohio, died May 3 at age 47. She was a member of Pi Beta Phi.
’80s
Stella (Finn) Miehls, Toledo, who attended UT from 1980 to 1984, died April 8 at age 83.
Douglas R. Guest (Ed ’84, MA ’91), Perrysburg, Ohio, died May 15 at age 48.
Thomas C. Rosenblatt (Bus ’84), Fort Lauderdale, Fla., died March 1 at age 42.
“Shlomo” Sam Goodman (A/S ’85), Swanton, Ohio, died June 4 at age 55.
Sharon M. (Hummel) Goodell (A/S ’87, A/S ’96), Toledo, died
David A. Grey, Bowling Green,
March 9 at age 40.
Ohio, who attended UT from 1970 to 1972, died March 30 at age 53. Rev. Carlton A. Ott (MEd ’70), Norwalk, Ohio, died April 23 at age 83.
’90s
Dianne (Veler) Smyth (UTCTC ’91), Toledo, died March 6 at age 55.
Christine V. (Villhauer) Ashbacher (Ed ’72), Collierville,
Beverly K. Nickle (UTUTC ’91), Swanton, Ohio, died March
Tenn., died in June at age 54. She was a member of Chi Omega.
27 at age 69.
Anne C. (Tuite) Frazier (Ed ’74, MEd ’84), Toledo, died May
Brandon, Miss., died March 21 at age 43. Justin J. Drabik, Sylvania Township, Ohio, who attended UT in the 1990s and from 2001 to 2003, died March 27 at age 28. Weldon E. Davis (MEd ’95), Oregon, Ohio, died June 16 at age 76.
10 at age 53. She was a lifetime member of the UT Alumni Association. Kenneth C. McIntosh, Toledo, who attended UT from 1975 to 1977, died April 25 at age 57.
Jeffrey J. Wehman (UTCTC ’75, Eng ’83), Swanton, Ohio, died May 18 at age 53.
Anita M. “Sam” (DiTerlizzi) Hartzell (Ed ’76), Blissfield, Mich., died April 11 at age 54. Terry L. Turner (Bus ’76), Toledo, died March 13 at age 55.
Thelma B. (Lockett) Wilson (UTCTC ’76), Toledo, died June 8 at age 83.
Kevin J. Ireland (A/S ’77), Coldwater, Mich., died April 12 at age 49.
Gregory A. Warner (Bus ’91),
James O’Neal Colbert (UTCTC ’97, Univ Coll ’99), Toledo, died June 15 at age 54. Hiroyuki Goto (A/S ’99), Tokyo, died in January at age 30. He was on the Rocket’s football team in 1997 and 1998, and was the subject of an article in The Blade about his longtime desire to play American football, and his determination and hard work. Kelli J. Topik, Oregon, Ohio, who attended UT from 1999 until 2004, died March 8 at age 22.
Friends, faculty & staff
Danielle L. Brauer (UTCTC ’81), Toledo, who worked in UT’s Computer Services since 1981, died April 2 at age 48. She was hired as a programmer analyst and after several promotions was made senior analyst in 2002. William Coleman (MEd ’76), Toledo, who taught mathematics for UT’s Toledo Excel and Prep Tech programs during the 1990s, died May 4 at age 57. Dr. Liberato J. DiDio, Sao Paulo, Brazil, first chairman of anatomy and founding dean of the graduate school of the Medical College of Ohio, died June 8 at age 84. He taught “Anatomy for Lawyers” at UT’s College of Law in the 1970s.
Robert L. Fockler (Univ Coll ’91, MBA ’93), Temperance, Mich., coordinator of student assistance in UT’s information technology department since 1997, died June 19 at age 75. He worked at UT since 1994, when he was hired as a part-time computer operator supervisor, going full time the next year. Dorothy Lee Hawkins, Toledo, a custodial worker in Plant Operations from 1977 to 1992, died April 19 at age 76. Lovey A. Landrum, Las Vegas, Nev., who was a clerk/ stenographer at UT’s Community and Technical College from 1967 to 1972, died April 16 at age 88. Robert V. Loeb, who attended UT from 1958 to 1959 and taught data processing in the 1960s, died May 15 at age 64. Mark A. Maier, Toledo, a carpenter in Plant Operations from 1990 to 2003, died April 26 at age 42. Geraldine H. Stork, Toledo, a cashier in the finance department from 1982 to 1987, died April 26 at age 87.
www.toledoalumni.org
13. Travel mug Stainless, holds 16 oz. Toledo/ Rocket screened both sides. $12.
www.toledoalumni.org
4. Sport shirt Short sleeve navy knit, with Toledo/Rocket embroidered on left chest. $45. M-3XL.
6. Sweatshirt
Shirt
Sweatshirt
Sport shirt. Short sleeve in grey pique, with Toledo/Rocket embroidered on left chest. $40. S-2XL.
7. Sweatshirt.
Hooded pullover in navy cotton/ poly, with Toledo/Rocket screened on front. $35. S-3XL.
8. T-shirt
Hooded pullover in grey cotton/poly, with UT Tower logo/Alumni screened on front. $35. S-3XL.
Long sleeve in navy cotton, with Toledo/Rocket screened on front. $23. S-2XL.
Flag
Hat
10. Flex Fit Hat Navy with Toledo/Rocket embroidery. $20. Specify size: S-M or L-XL.
11. Hat Khaki/navy with Toledo/Rocket embroidery. $20. Adjustable size.
Umbrella
9. T-shirt Short sleeve in grey cotton, with UT Tower logo/Alumni screened on front. $17. S-3XL.
3. Sport shirt
Shirt
Shirt
Shirt
Shirt
Water resistant nylon with poly/ rayon/cotton inside. Navy with grey lining. Toledo/Rocket embroidered on left chest. $70. M-3XL.
Hat
5. Jacket
Sweatshirt
Jakcet
Fleece Vest
2. Denim shirt Long sleeve in blue, with Toledo/Rocket embroidered on left chest. $40. S-2XL.
Navy with microfilament polyester fleece, outside zippered pockets, Toledo/Rocket embroidered on left chest. $45. S-3XL.
Mug
THE UT Alumni Collection
1. NEW! Fleece Vest
12. Car Flag Navy poly on 20'' plastic flagpole. Toledo/Rockets screened both sides. $18.
To order alumni merchandise, call 419.841.5395 or visit www.toledoalumni.org for secure online ordering.
14. Umbrella Navy/gold nylon compact style with pushbutton automatic open, rubberized handle. Toledo/Rocket screened in navy. $12.
Toledo Alumni Magazine | Fall 2004
33
Toledo Football
2004 Schedule Sat. Sept. 4 Sat. Sept. 11 Sat. Sept. 18 Sat. Sept. 25 Sat. Oct. 2 Sat. Oct. 9 Sat. Oct. 16 Sat. Oct. 23 Tues. Nov. 2 Tues. Nov. 9 Tues. Nov. 23 Thur. Dec. 2
@ Minnesota (ESPN2) @ Kansas @ Eastern Michigan* TEMPLE BALL STATE* @ Western Michigan* OHIO* CENTRAL MICHIGAN* (HC) @ Miami* (ESPN2) @ Northern Illinois*(ESPN2) BOWLING GREEN*(ESPN2) MAC Championship Game (ESPN2)
8:00 pm (CT) 6:00 pm (CT) 6:00 pm 7:00 pm 7:00 pm 7:00 pm 7:00 pm 7:00 pm 7:30 pm 6:30 pm (CT) 7:00 pm TBA
HOME GAMES IN BOLD CAPS All times listed are site times. *Mid-American Conference Game Schedule subject to change. (HC) Homecoming
Season Tickets $58.50 or $117 per seat Reserved Single Game Tickets $22 (except BG for $29)
See You At The Game Call the UT Ticket Office:
Andrew Clarke Senior - Tight End
lance moore Senior - Wide Receiver
trinity dawson Junior - Running Back
Driscoll Alumni Center Toledo, Ohio 43606-3395
Steve odom
Sophomore - Wide Receiver
bruce gradkowski Junior - Quarterback
419/530-GOLD
or www.utrockets.com for more information today!