Whitworth Today: Spring 2023

Whitworth Retro

BY JULIE RIDDLE ’92

The stained-glass windows above have graced the Whitworth Parlor in Tacoma’s Bethany Presbyterian Church for nearly a century. Follow the timeline to discover their historical connection to Whitworth!

1892: Real estate developer Allen C. Mason built a 36-room mansion in Tacoma, overlooking Puget Sound.

1893: Mason lost his fortune in the Panic of 1893, a nationwide economic crisis.

1899: The crisis spurred Whitworth College to move from its original site in Sumner, Wash., to Tacoma. Mason sold his estate to Whitworth for $22,000.

1899-1914: Now named Ladies’ Hall (right), the mansion served primarily as a residence for women students.

1906: Bethany Presbyterian Church was built at 4420 N. 41st St., in Tacoma.

1914: Whitworth College relocated to Spokane. Ladies’ Hall stood vacant for six years.

1920: Lumber magnate John Weyerhaeuser and his wife, Ann, bought Whitworth’s Tacoma campus and had Ladies’ Hall demolished to make way for a Jacobean-Tudor mansion.

1923: A fire damaged Bethany Presbyterian Church beyond repair.

1924: The church reopened in a new semicolonial building. The Weyerhaeusers gifted to the church two stained-glass windows salvaged from the parlor of Ladies’ Hall.

Historical research by Alyce (Quigley) Schaffer ’59 and photography by Jeff Carlson ’92.

Grace and faith take flight in Jubilation Dance Ministry. Since 1998, dancers of all abilities have expressed worship and reflection in this student-led club. See “Sacred Steps” on P. 10.

FEATURED STORIES

06 | ‘I CAN HOLD THEIR PAIN’

08 | COMMUNAL ‘EXPERIMENT’ GROWS DEEP CONNECTIONS

10 | SACRED STEPS

14 | REAL CLIENTS, REAL PROBLEMS, REAL SOLUTIONS

18 | OH CAPTAIN! OUR CAPTAIN!

20 | CROSSOVER CAREERS

26 | CATCHING A TRADITION

28 | THE MAKING OF A MARINE

38 | IT’S TIME TO SET THE TABLE

02 | WHITWORTH RETRO

04 | A NOTE FROM SCOTT

31 | CLASS NOTES

32 | ALUMNI PROFILE

34 | IN MEMORIAM

39 | FOND FAREWELLS

STAFF Julie Riddle ’92 (Editor), Heidi Jantz (Art Director), Michaela Mulligan ’18 (Writer), Elizabeth Strauch ’04 (Writer), Garrett Riddle (Project Manager), Megan Jonas (Writer)

CONTRIBUTORS Trina Allen, Nathan Brekke, Nancy Bunker, Jeff Carlson ’92, Brian Fluharty, Mario Gonzalez ’23, Kirk Hirota, Doug Jones, Maxine Lammers, Peter Landgren ’13, Renae Lorentz, Emily McDonald, Markus Ong, Katie Peterson, Megan Rediger ’23, Adam Richins, Alyce (Quigley) Schaffer ’59, Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories, Derek Taylor ’08, U.S. Marine Corps Officer Candidates School, Ben Tobin, Tad Wisenor ’89

EDITORIAL BOARD Ayaka Dohi M.A. ’21, Dale Hammond ’98, Nancy Hines

M.A. ’22, Heidi Jantz, Megan Jonas, Greg Orwig ’91, Garrett Riddle, Julie Riddle ’92, Elizabeth Strauch ’04, Tad Wisenor ’89

ADMINISTRATION Scott McQuilkin ’84 (President), Stacey Kamm Smith ’86 (Vice President for Institutional Advancement), Nancy Hines M.A. ’22 (Associate Vice President of University Marketing & Communications)

WHITWORTH TODAY

whitworth.edu/whitworth-today

Spring 2023

SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS WITH US!

Email today@whitworth.edu or write us at Whitworth Today, University Marketing & Communications Office, Whitworth University, 300 W. Hawthorne Road, Spokane, WA 99251.

ADDRESS CHANGES: Alumni, submit online at whitworth.edu/ alumni-update. Parents of students and friends of Whitworth, email to updates@whitworth.edu. Or mail to University Marketing & Communications Office, 300 W. Hawthorne Road, Spokane, WA 99251.

A NOTE FROM SCOTT

Earlier this year, I sat with 500 of my “closest” friends in a convention center room as Google’s chief recruiter identified the particular skills the company’s positional duties require. She also highlighted a list of attributes Google looks for in their employees: an appetite for learning, teachability, adaptability, teamwork and relational skills. From my uncomfortable chair, I suppressed an “Oooh, oooh!” Arnold Horshacklike response. (You’ll find classic Horshack clips on YouTube.) “Those are Whitworth graduates!” my inner voice shouted. “We equip our graduates with exactly those things you are looking for!”

I was recently gifted time with a 2006 Whitworth graduate who majored in biology and minored in philosophy. Now a professor and surgeon, he volunteered to me how faculty and staff members poured into his academic and personal life while on campus. I was encouraged, but not surprised, because this is exactly what our people do – they go about their days thinking about how to best teach, mentor,

advise, counsel, serve, minister to and provide ways to make for a rich student experience. They are studentcentered, and then some.

Consequently, our graduates depart Whitworth not only skilled in specific fields but also able to adapt, lead and innovate. In this century’s unprecedented pace of change, a Whitworth education remains vital and applicable to the full scope of traditional, evolving and emerging career fields. As you peruse this issue, I trust you’ll enjoy reading how the alumni we profile are exactly the skilled, curious, ethical and relational Whitworth graduates the world needs. (And wouldn’t you know it – at least 12 of our alumni currently work for Google.)

Scott McQuilkin ’84, President

Linh Aven ’09 majored in biology at Whitworth and earned a Ph.D. in molecular medicine. She is now putting her science skills to work as a chef, farmer and founder of Dandelion Forest Farm. See “Crossover Careers” on P. 20.

“CHAIR”-ITABLE planned gifts yield lasting benefits

It began over breakfast 50 years ago, with six people who cared about Whitworth. They gathered weekly at a Spokane restaurant and envisioned how they could help sustain Whitworth’s future financial health. The group landed on forming The Whitworth Foundation to grow the institution’s endowment.

Since then, the foundation has provided an array of ways for donors to benefit financially while supporting Whitworth’s mind-and-heart mission. While most donors give cash or stock, others get creative with the assets they donate: a massive fishing boat, cornfields, jewelry and art collections. One donor gave two chairs formerly owned by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis!

Planned gifts from generous donors provide significant and lasting support for university priorities and for the donor-designated use of endowed gifts. For more information about The Whitworth Foundation and unique gifting opportunities, visit whitworth.edu/foundation or email foundation@whitworth.edu

THE WHITWORTH FOUNDATION TURNS 50

6

Founders who launched the foundation, in 1973

$13 million

Planned gifts currently managed by the foundation

$33 million

Total matured gifts transferred to Whitworth’s endowment

16 Current board members

$185 million

Total university endowment (as of April 15, 2023)

1 mission

Supporting Whitworth, its students, and its Christian commitment

‘I Can Hold ‘I Can Hold

BY JULIE RIDDLE ’92

Their Pain’ Their Pain’

As Russian forces invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Vitalina Tarasenko M.A. in MFT ’22 continued attending classes on Whitworth’s campus, just a few months shy of earning her master of arts in marriage & family therapy. But her mind obsessed over the news pouring out of her home country. Her heart agonized for her parents in Poltava, and for her sister in Kyiv who, the first day of the war, got in her car and headed for Poland, and for her cousin, a soldier in the Ukrainian army.

Tarasenko, who immigrated from Kyiv to the U.S. in 2014, couldn’t think clearly. She forgot to eat and struggled to tend to her young son’s needs. Back pain and headaches set in. “They call it shared trauma, when you are not witnessing the event but emotionally you are involved,” she says.

An outpouring of support helped Tarasenko begin to cope. Her internship supervisor, Alita Crosby M.A. in MFT ’22, insisted that Tarasenko take a break from counseling grade school students. A friend brought food to her home. Her professors extended her deadlines for several projects and shifted one course to the fall semester.

Tarasenko did what she could to support Ukrainians in need. She mailed power banks to her parents to charge their cellphones without electricity, and she and her husband hosted a family displaced from Ukraine (her MFT program cohort donated supplies including toothbrushes, bed linens and a mattress).

One day during class, MFT Program Director Doug Jones shared that he was organizing a trip to provide mental-health support for Ukrainian refugees in Poland. Would any students like to go? Tarasenko volunteered.

That summer Tarasenko, Ilona Mikhalchuk M.A. in MFT ’19 and Jones traveled to Poznan, where they provided therapy through Sweet Surrender Café Ministry. The trio worked 12-hour days, leading back-to-back individual

and group counseling sessions and workshops on coping with trauma. “We wanted to serve as much as possible,” Tarasenko says.

Grieving Ukrainians shared their stories of suffering and loss and their anxieties about the future. Worried mothers asked how to help their children. “We provided the moms with skills so they can soothe their children,” Tarasenko says. “We were there for only 10 days, and then we were gone. But the worry is still there. The fathers are still there [in Ukraine].”

In preparation for her work in Poland, Tarasenko sought advice from Dave Baird, an adjunct professor in the Whitworth School of Continuing Studies and a therapist for U.S. veterans. “He said, ‘Just remember: No matter how difficult their stories are, if you cannot hold their pain then you basically re-traumatize them, because they cannot hold it either,’” Tarasenko says. “And I thought, ‘OK – I can do that. I can hold their pain.’”

From February 2022-February 2023, nearly 10 million Ukrainians – mostly women and children – fled to Poland to escape the war. Most men aged 18-60 are required to stay in Ukraine and serve in the military.

“We wanted to serve as much as possible.”

Vitalina Tarasenko M.A. in MFT ’22 leads a group therapy session for Ukrainian refugees in Poznan, Poland.

Village THE

GROWS DEEP CONNECTIONS

BY ELIZABETH STRAUCH ’04

Unlike stately McMillan and Ballard halls, images of The Village – those classic 1970s wooden buildings clustered at the east edge of campus – have never graced Whitworth’s admissions materials. And yet, The Village is the first thing I picture when I recall Move-In Day during fall 2000. When I first saw Hobjob, where I would live with 18 other first-year students, I panicked. Was I about to live in a cabin in the woods, far from everything? Is this college?

Since its construction in 1972, The Village was never intended to be traditional. Built primarily for juniors and seniors, its six apartment-like buildings provided quiet quarters and intentional community. Whitworthian writer Ed Murphy ’73 described the opening of The Village that fall as “a microcosm of living on the outside... an experiment of communal living.”

Students like Jeff Smith ’83 were drawn to The Village’s off-campus feel with all the on-campus conveniences and the opportunity to study without many distractions. “People in The Village had a couple more years of maturity under their belt [and were] more focused on graduating and careers, and generally comfortable with who they were,” he says.

Penney (Slack) Veca ’99 found her home in Tiki to be foundational to her college experience. “It was a safe space that allowed me, an undiagnosed

MYTH: The Village was originally constructed as temporary housing for visitors of Expo ’74, the world’s fair in Spokane.

FACT: Although Expo guests stayed on campus during summer 1974, The Village, initially named “Hashiwit Village,” opened for student housing in fall 1972.

Students discuss issues of the day in a Village lounge, 1974.

introvert, to process all the newness of life as a university student in privacy with my best friends one door away,” she says.

Within weeks of moving in, I realized, like Veca, that the uniqueness of The Village allowed me to understand more about who I was as I connected with my Hobjob hallmates and those in neighboring Charis and Tiki. These friendships deepened with time and stretched my worldview just as much as Core 150. After 50 years, The Village is “still humming along,” Associate Director of Housing Alan Jacob says. Perhaps its resilience has something to do with how living there deepens the Whitworth experience.

“A part of Whitworth’s ‘secret sauce’ is being a small university that fosters close relationships amongst students and with faculty,” Smith says. “Take this general Whitworth camaraderie, condense it even further within an even smaller community, and then you have The Village.”

THE ORIGINAL SIX: Akili, Charis, Hobjob, Keola, Shalom, Tiki

A 1973 Whitworthian article, “Village Grows as Family,” by Paul Ellis ’75, states that each building is named after an attribute: intelligence (Akili); love (Tiki); peace (Shalom); life (Keola); grace (Charis); and cooperation (Hobjob).

Village lore holds that the buildings’ names are each drawn from a different language. Myth or fact? Let us know at today@whitworth.edu

WHERE ARE THEY NOW? Charis and Hobjob were torn down in 2006, followed by Keola in 2009. This fall, Akili, Shalom and Tiki will continue to serve students ranging from first-years to seniors.

A THEME’S THE THING

: Over the years, residents have selected a theme for their hall, organized related events, and hosted professors to lead discussions. In 1974, 14 Black students created a hall theme focused on Black history and culture, with six white students living as the minoritized population in this hall. Other themes included education, Russia, religion and life, literature and the arts, and human identity.

Clockwise, top left: Hall residents participate in a PrimeTime activity, 2010; a classic spacesaving single room, circa 2010; first-year students occupied The Village in 2014-15.

STEPS

Jubilation is… “an inclusive community where dance and faith collide.”

– Megan Rediger ’23

BY MEGAN JONAS

During the opening number of Jubilation Dance Ministry’s Fall Showcase, dancers spin, sway and leap to the acoustic ballad “Gold” from the musical Once “And I love her so / I wouldn’t trade her for gold,” repeats the song.

Although “Gold” is a love song, to Jonah Hill ’23, Jubilation’s artistic director and the piece’s choreographer, it means something more.

“I like to think of it as an expression of God’s love for us,” Hill says. “The song’s telling us we are worth more than all the riches you could find. And it’s a beautiful reminder.” Over the next hour, on this freezing December night, and amid the stress of upcoming finals, these dedicated student dancers fill Whitworth’s chapel with warmth and light as they share ballet, musical theatre, hip-hop, tap and jazz dances they have created, including sacred dance pieces set to worship music. All the while, they reflect on the showcase theme, Worthy, and ask the audience members to consider where they find their worth.

Jubilation’s semester showcases date back to the founding of the student-led club in 1998. While the club’s size has fluctuated and its dance class offerings have shifted between everything from Highland dancing to gospel hula to break dancing, Jubilation’s mission and heart have remained steadfast.

“Jubilation is Christ-centered, technique-focused, and inclusive and welcoming,” says Jeannie (Sibbett) Huskisson ’08, the club’s advisor and a former Jubilation dancer. “Those pillars have not changed.”

The goals of Jubilation, she says, are to make dance available as a form of worship to the Whitworth community and to provide a place of friendship and community for dancers of all abilities.

“Jubilation is very welcoming to students of all levels of dance experience and with different levels of physical ability,” Huskisson says. “It’s for anybody who wants to try out dance.”

Hill says Jubilation provides a great way for new dancers to learn in a judgment-free environment. “All of our classes are open level,” he says, “so you can drop in whether you’ve been dancing 10 years like me or if you have two left feet.”

Jubilation’s student leadership team consists of the artistic director, a chaplain, and dance teachers who hold free classes for students throughout the week. Every dance class begins with prayer and a devotional written or selected by the chaplain. Depending on the teacher, the rest of the time may feel similar to a secular dance class, Huskisson says, but every teacher makes sure to create a spirit of love and support. “Then some teachers will incorporate worship or elements of faith exploration into the pieces they’re choreographing,” she says.

Judy Mandeville was Jubilation’s advisor for its first 12 years and continues to provide informal support. She explains sacred dance as a “holistic way to integrate our body, mind and spirit and to love God with all of who we are. Our body is the instrument to both communicate and receive communication.”

Whitworth was a trailblazer in offering Mandeville’s sacred dance academic course and the club, founded by Penney (Slack) Veca ’99, starting in the late 1990s. At that time, sacred dance was almost unheard of on Christian college campuses. While it is much more widely practiced today, most students who join Jubilation have never experienced sacred dance before.

One of those students is Abby Hahn ’24, a dancer since kindergarten and Jubilation’s jazz class teacher. She had the opportunity to explore sacred dance more in-depth last fall when she choreographed a dance to Elevation Worship’s “Worthy” for the Fall Showcase.

“I have so much gratitude for sacred dance and for the club allowing me to connect worship to dance,” Hahn says. “Jubilation has taught me to remember that we are worthy in God’s eyes always. That is what I wanted to capture through this piece.”

At the close of the Fall Showcase, Mandeville joins the students and Huskisson to lead them in a bow. But it’s not a traditional bow. Instead, they each raise an arm skyward, bow down and spin, and raise one arm again, giving God the praise. Jubilation has closed its recitals this way since the club’s inception.

“When we dance, it is to show our audiences that this is a valid expression of worship, meditation and reflection,” Hill says, “and that it is equally valid to partake in it by observing it.”

Jubilation is… “a joy-filled dance family.” – Hannah Schultz ’25

Jubilation is… “a place for worship and reflection through movement.”

– Jonah Hill ’23, third from left above

REAL CLIENTS, REAL PROBLEMS, REAL SOLUTIONS

BY MEGAN JONAS

In the field of physical therapy, exercise and movement are often the prescriptions for a patient. But as Associate Professor of Physical Therapy David Robbins says, physical therapists have scant scientific data to rely on when making those prescriptions, even for an activity as simple as walking. Although walking can aid in a patient’s healing process, it may become a detriment if overdone.

“In rehab, we have little way to know how much patients are walking on their own time and the quality with which they’re walking,” Robbins says.

For the past academic year, a team of three engineering majors in the senior engineering capstone course has collaborated with Robbins as its client to address this need for data collection.

“The purpose of my team’s project is to create an algorithm that categorizes and quantifies patterns of gait under normal and reduced-load conditions,” Ashtyn Petersen ’23 says. “It is our goal to provide clinicians with a tool to properly track a patient’s progress and recovery outside the clinic.”

First offered in 2020, the capstone course is a yearlong class that supports Whitworth’s engineering major and is centered on working with outside clients. “The capstone experience is a good way for students to get closer to professional expectations in engineering

Engineering students Ashtyn Petersen ’23 (green sweater), Paul Idiaghe ’23 (gray shirt) and Helio Ramollari ’23 (black shirt) demonstrate the experiments their team is conducting to measure volunteers’ walking patterns. Silas Say DPT ’25 wears an accelerometer and walks on crutches in the Dornsife Health Sciences Building.

because there are real clients and real problems to tackle,” says Associate Professor of Engineering & Physics Markus Ong.

The team refined its algorithm by measuring the walking patterns of volunteers who wore accelerometers (tools that measure acceleration) on their waists while either walking normally, limping or using crutches. For team member Paul Idiaghe ’23, the project aligns well with his career interests and personal value of elevating the human experience.

“The potential of using signal processing and machine learning techniques to break the current limitations in healthcare was a growing interest of mine even before starting this project,” Idiaghe says. “I can see myself being able to contribute to humanity through an engineering career in the biomedical device and biotech industry, or through related graduate or postdoctoral engineering research.”

SCHWEITZER ENGINEERING LABS PROJECT

Another team of three students worked with Pullman-based Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories (SEL) to examine how the company could improve its recloser cabinets. Attached to power poles, these cabinets open and close sections of the electrical grid and play a critical role in minimizing power outages. The team worked to address the issue of condensation that can form inside the cabinets in certain climates. SEL may use the students’ research and recommendations as it conducts a larger overhaul of the equipment.

Engineering major Luke Knack ’23 (right) says the skills he developed through the project, including project management, file documentation, and the use of finite element analysis software, will be invaluable as he pursues his goal of working in mechanical product design for outdoors equipment, particularly high-end hard goods for rock climbing and mountaineering.

“I really appreciated the opportunity to devote a lot of energy toward one large project and produce something excellent, especially as it was in pursuit of meeting the real needs of our sponsor,” Knack says. “This experience gave me a better picture of what ‘real engineering’ looks like and made me even more excited about what lies ahead for me.”

Both teams in the senior capstone course were slated to present their research at the Spokane Intercollegiate Research Conference and to their clients at the end of the academic year.

The physical therapy team provides an update to client David Robbins, Whitworth associate professor of physical therapy.

A NEW SPACE FOR ENGINEERING INNOVATION

Whitworth University’s engineering program equips graduates to be leaders in disciplines ranging from hypersonic aerodynamics and quantum computing to nuclear energy and spacecraft navigation. A growing number of students are choosing to major in engineering, attracted to the program’s emphasis on the liberal arts, values-based learning and hands-on experience. By 2024, the recently accredited program will be at capacity in its current facility, the Eric Johnston Science Center, built in 1966.

To continue a trajectory of growth and to help meet the rising need for engineers regionally and nationally, plans are underway for a $15.5 million, 19,600-square-foot engineering building to be constructed just north of the Johnston Science Center.

This new facility will include:

» Two design laboratories with 3D printers, CNC machines, laser cutters and electronics benches

» Metal shop and wood shop maker spaces

» A computational lab with commercial and custom software

» Collaborative workspaces

Construction will begin when fundraising is complete. Learn more about the new building and watch a video about the engineering program at whitworth.edu/engineering-building

The engineering program equips graduates to be leaders in disciplines ranging from hypersonic aerodynamics and quantum computing to nuclear energy and spacecraft navigation.

O CAPTAIN! OUR CAPTAIN!

BY JULIE RIDDLE ’92

In late 2021, Whitworth’s longtime mascot, the pirate Walker D. Plank, attended a Zoom conference, “How to Plunder Treasure Under the Cover of Your Own Courage.” Inspired to reinvent his career, Walker set sail to seek his fortune. As a gesture of goodwill he bequeathed to the university his feisty parrot.

Captain Patches radiates self-confidence – this bird’s got swagger. Since February 2022, Whitworth’s new mascot has gleefully rallied Pirate fans. Captain Patches keeps a full schedule of appearances, but the jubilant parrot set aside a few minutes with Whitworth Today for a tongue-in-beak tell-all.

WT: What three words best describe you?

CP: Enthusiastic. Chaotic. Flirt.

WT: What motivates you?

CP: Crackers.

WT: What is your calling?

CP: I love to share how amazing Whitworth is with everyone I encounter.

WT: Do you have a pregame routine? If so, what is it?

CP: I have a very strict pregame routine. First, I stretch my wings; then I dance to Shake It Off by Taylor Swift. I also drink lots of water to stay hydrated.

WT: What is your favorite walk-up song?

CP: Can’t Hold Us by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, featuring Ray Dalton.

WT: How do people respond to you at athletics events?

CP: People come to games just to see me – it’s all about Patches, every time. They give me high-fives, hug me, dance with me. We are always excited to see one another.

WT: What is your proudest moment in your work as a mascot?

CP: I was recognized by a 1960s alum at a Spokane Indians baseball game. He was super happy to see me. We took a picture together.

WT: What is your most embarrassing moment?

CP: Embarrassment is a mindset. Nothing is embarrassing for me.

WT: What do you find most challenging about your job?

CP: No one gives me crackers. It’s really hard.

WT: Do you have any hobbies or unusual talents?

CP: Obviously. I’m the cup-stacking champion of Bird City, Kansas. I can also dance, and I can fit my claw in my beak. [Editor’s note: It’s true. Patches demonstrated this feat during our interview.]

WT: Where do you sleep?

CP: The Crow’s Nest [in the Hixson Union Building].

WT: What is your favorite snack?

CP: Cap’n Crunch.

WT: What is one moment that was special for you?

CP: My first day at Whitworth was super special because everyone got to meet me at a basketball game.

WT: Do you have a motto that guides you?

CP: The early bird gets the worm.

WT: What advice do you have for Whitworthians?

CP: Dream big, have fun, and spread your wings and fly!

Above left: Captain Patches poses with Whitworth students and Spokane Indians baseball mascots Otto, left, and Ribby the Redband Trout, right, at a game. Above right: Captain Patches prepares to meet his many fans at a Whitworth football game in the Pine Bowl.

Crossover Careers

BY JULIE RIDDLE ’92

New students often arrive at college bearing a weight far greater than the gear they’ve hauled to campus. They shoulder the assumptions that they must quickly choose a major, leading to a related career, and that this daunting decision will set the course for their life. They worry they’ll make a mistake and be stuck. Whitworthians, worry not.

Here, three alumni share how they put their Whitworth education to work in fields that appear unconnected to their studies, and they share useful advice. The opportunities, as Rich Caldwell MIT ’95 discovered, “are endless, and they’re everywhere.”

MEREDITH VANDEBUNTE ’20

I started as pre-med at Whitworth and quickly discovered that plant bio is not where my passion lies. I will work really hard for something if I love it, and I did not love it. When I became an English major, I had no idea what the future looked like. I loved the foundation of what being an English major was – engaging with the reading, doing research, finding the meaning in deeper subtleties, and empathizing with characters. It turns out that is exactly what the business world is.

My senior year at Whitworth, I had interned at Ortega Group [later acquired by Tinuiti]. My internship supervisor let me know that Tinuiti was hiring. I applied for a lead position, a job I was underqualified for. They said there might be another position I was more qualified for opening soon. So I kept emailing them for updates, and I got in. We are the largest independent digital marketing agency across streaming TV and with Amazon, Google, Facebook and Instagram. We’re also partners with Snapchat, Reddit and TikTok. We are a completely remote company, so I work from home.

My day to day is mostly doing outreach. In my job, no one’s going to answer a salesperson who’s coming off just with sales. As an English major, I learned to write an eloquent argument without it sounding argumentative. What makes me a good saleswoman is when I’m having conversations with potential clients after all the good emails have been written. I genuinely want to hear, “Do you think this is going to be a good fit? Do you need us

right now, or would it make sense to revisit down the line?” You have to make people feel cared for, and they appreciate that.

Oftentimes we feel so tied to our experience. When you graduate college, no one is looking at your experience –they know you just graduated. They’re looking at who you are and what you’re going to bring to the table. A high percentage of women and people of color won’t apply to jobs that they don’t check all the bullet points for. There is an onboarding time when the company will train you to use the tools and do the job.

A big misconception is that English majors only teach. I am passionate about encouraging people who come from a creative background to get into corporate spaces. There are so many avenues to go down. We are sometimes our own biggest roadblocks.

B.A.

in English Senior Business Development Representative for Tinuiti  Spokane

“A big misconception is that English majors only teach.”

RICH CALDWELL ’95

Seattle

I had been a private pilot since age 16. In the early 1990s I became a commercial pilot, then a multi-engine and instrument flight instructor for an airline academy. In the mid-’90s the airline industry was in a lull. I realized I had an interest in teaching, and I thought, “What can I do to move in that direction?”

After I graduated from the Whitworth MIT program I moved to Dallas, where I taught at an inner-city grade school for five years. From there I worked in training and operations for American Airlines and I taught with AmeriCorps for a year. At the end of that year, I walked into a recruiting office and they said, “We’ve got an aviation job in curriculum development and technical writing – is that something you’d be interested in?”

I thought, “I’ve got an aviation background and a master’s degree in teaching. Why did I not make that connection earlier?” I hadn’t realized that my teaching degree is very relevant to a job as a curriculum developer or, as commonly known, an instructional systems designer. It was just a matter of changing key terms, such as on a résumé, that helped people make the connection to my skills.

As chief instructional system designer for Boeing, I design pilot training for the three main fleet types: Next-Generation 737 and 737 MAX, 777X, and 787. I design the initial analysis, conceptualize the course, and design the curriculum. I work with a team of subjectmatter experts to compose training content. In aviation companies such as Boeing, trained school teachers provide needed skills. Even though they’re not technically skilled in aviation, they have curriculum development experience, and they’ve been adept and insightful for our work teams. We have satellite training campuses internationally, and I travel to provide training to instructors. I talk to them about teaching strategies, classroom management, objectives and assessment, and how to train in various platforms. All of this comes from my MIT background.

I encourage teachers to consider curriculum development for corporations, medical fields, aviation companies or the military. Whitworth students’ learning is tied to all kinds of opportunities. The opportunities are endless, and they’re everywhere.

Master in Teaching Degree

Associate Technical Fellow, Chief Curriculum Developer for Boeing

“In aviation companies... trained school teachers provide needed skills.”

LINH AVEN ’09, P h .D.

I started as a biochemistry major at Whitworth, but I didn’t have a clear idea of what I wanted to do. I toyed with stained glass, and finally chose biology, the study of life, which seemed broad enough to encompass just about everything.

During Jan Term my senior year, I took Christian Spirituality at Tall Timber Ranch. The course itself was impactful, and surpisingly so was the food –fresh bread, made-from-scratch meals, even a full Seder dinner. The summer after I graduated, I went back to Tall Timber to learn how to cook for a crowd. Although I had always been interested in food, I never considered it as a career.

That fall, I moved to Boston to continue my scientific studies, and earned my Ph.D. in molecular medicine. I was good at bench research and I was publishing journal articles, but I didn’t want to stay in academia. After a few years at a biotech startup, I started working for fun at a French bakery. Before I knew it, I was making croissants full time. Later on, I worked as the executive chef of a 78-unit restaurant chain. There are a lot of transferable skills between science and the food industry like precision, problem-solving, and working wth my hands. The broad thinking and research skills I started developing at Whitworth provided a jumping-off point. I felt like I could enter any field and just figure it out as I went along, so that’s what I did.

After COVID began, my husband and I became stewards of land in New Hampshire and started an agroforestry farm. Dandelion Forest Farm is our

journey to grow food in a more natural way and to revitalize our local food systems. We are exploring edible perennial plants that grow well in our region, and we hope to inspire others to do the same.

Some of my time is still in the kitchen, making products from the ingredients I grow and hosting a seasonal farm-to-table dinner series. And I employ lessons learned from my biology classes at Whitworth on a daily basis as I study the health of my plants, animal behavioral patterns, and the soil microbiome.

In college, everyone asks, “What’s your major? What do you want to do when you graduate?” It’s stressful. I think it’s more important to follow your intuition and figure out what you are interested in right now. Someone once told me that whenever an interesting opportunity comes along, take it. I took that message to heart, and it’s been really rewarding and fulfilling. I could have never predicted this path, but I am so happy to be here.

Connect for Your Career

Through the online platform PeopleGrove, Whitworth alums can now connect with each other and with current students for career development, mentorship, networking and sharing job postings. To join, go to whitworth.peoplegrove.com.

B.S. in Biology Chef, Farmer and Founder of Dandelion Forest Farm New Hampshire

“There are a lot of transferable skills between science and the food industry.”

CATCHING A TRADITION CATCHING A TRADITION

’04

BY ELIZABETH STRAUCH

The quest to catch a virgin pinecone –one that falls directly from branch to hand, never touching the ground –is a tradition that may seem as long-standing as Whitworth itself. But when, exactly, did making “the catch” become an unofficial requirement to graduate? Alumni across six decades weighed in via social media to share their memories and help solve the mystery of when this tradition began. Do you remember the virgin pinecone tradition from your era? If so, did you catch yours? Let us know at today@whitworth.edu.

JAKE PEDIGO ’22 : Never caught one. Worried that my degree is invalid.

#countit

TAYLOR FERNANDEZ ’18 : Just short on a few attempts, but my sophomore year sitting under a tree one fell right into my lap.

BECKY (FISHER) BAKER ’05 : Caught one in 2005 –ouch!

ANNE-MARIE (WILLIAMS) STROHMAN ’95 : Caught one a couple weeks before graduation!

DIANNA (COOKE) PATEGAS ’92 : Caught three during my years at Whitworth!

STACI (BAIRD) STOLLER ’91 : B arely caught mine before graduation. I remember spending a lot of time in The Loop in spring of ’91!

CATHY (LEE) SPRINGER ’90 : Caught mine in a deflection. Some say it didn’t count. I say it counts. Also, to this day, when I hear a pinecone breaking off, I am tempted to push people aside to catch it!

WENDY (JOE) PEDERSON ’89 : I caught mine while playing volleyball in The Loop, senior year 1989. I heard that familiar crackle, caught sight of it, and still have it somewhere with my Arend Hall initiation bell wrapped around it!

KRISTEN WILL-PRATT ’87 : Caught mine and graduated in 1987. I still have it.

LINDA (WASHBURN) DELONG ’87 : I caught mine fall semester of sophomore year. I was walking out of Arend and heard it fall through the pine trees. I dropped my backpack and went running. I yelled, “I caught it, I caught my pinecone!” Everyone around me yelled and clapped for me. And yes, I still have it.

SCOTT KELLMER ’87 : Caught mine in ’84 or ’85 but knew about it from my cousin who graduated in the late ’70s.

NANCY (GOODLIVE) MINGUS ’86 : Never caught one. They let me graduate anyway.

STEPHANIE (SMITH) PERKINS ’86 : I was on campus 1981-84, and although I witnessed someone catching one, it was an unmet goal of mine.

LOIS (COLLINS) DROEGE ’82 : I caught mine the day before graduation. I cried with joy! Can you believe I didn’t keep the pinecone?

DIANE (TRUJILLO) LEAVITT ’82 : It was a thing in 1982. I never caught one; maybe that’s my problem! My husband, BRIAN LEAVITT ’81 , did catch one!

JULIE (SPEAR) HILL ’81 : My friend from the Class of 1979 jumped up when there was a rustling in the pine trees and, unfortunately, caught his pinecone after it left a gash on his nose. Nonetheless, he was so happy.

SUSAN COLES ’77 : It was a tradition when I graduated, but I don’t know how old the tradition was at that time.

1976: MYSTERY SOLVED?

GARY FRANK ’75 : N ever heard of it. BARB (LAIDLAW) MURPHY ’72 : It wasn’t a tradition [in 1972].

THE MAKING OF A MARINE

BY MEGAN JONAS

Completing the first summer of training at United States Marine Corps Officer Candidates School was the hardest thing Nathan Dykstra ’23 had ever done – until he returned for a second summer. Between his training and his development at Whitworth, Dykstra is as prepared as one can be for what’s next: serving as a second lieutenant in the Marines. He will be commissioned this summer in his home state of Arizona. Here, Dykstra reflects on the people and experiences from the past four years that have proved instrumental.

TRACK & FIELD COACH TOBY SCHWARZ

Whitworth was my last stop as I was touring colleges. I met with Toby for 15 minutes, and I was pretty much sold after that. He’s been an important mentor and has just been awesome. I’ve learned mental tips and so many great life lessons from him. I want to take what I’ve absorbed from him over the years into the Marines.

MARINE OFFICER CANDIDATES SCHOOL

I did two six-week summer trainings at Officer Candidates School in Quantico, Va., and graduated last summer. The purpose is to teach, screen and evaluate potential for future officers. It’s very physically and mentally taxing. They’re trying to break you down to see what’s at your core and what you do when you’re tired, angry and put in a leadership position, which is really cool. You learn a lot about yourself.

MAJORING IN INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

I was really looking for an interdisciplinary major. I couldn’t quite pick one thing. I saw that international studies incorporated history, political science and language study, and thought that was perfect. A lot of what I have learned can be applied to other areas.

STUDYING IN BARCELONA, SPAIN

My courses last fall were similar to ones I was taking at Whitworth, but they took the European perspective and were taught by teachers from different countries. I was able to travel throughout Spain and to France and even Morocco. Studying abroad allowed me to really interact with people who had different views and talk to them about how they viewed Americans.

Dykstra, above, joined a youth track club while he was in Barcelona and enjoyed practicing and connecting with younger teammates.

SIGNIFICANT ALUMNI CONNECTION

One of my Whitworth Core professors connected me to Pete Swicker ’84, a former Marine Corps officer who went on to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. I talked to Pete a lot about the different federal law enforcement agencies and how he made that transition from the Marines to other government work, and that had some weight. So that is my future plan at the moment.

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER

I’ve always wanted to have a positive influence on people and be a motivator to be your best and reach your full potential. I’ve seen how I can merge that goal with my career interests through the Marine Corps and federal law enforcement. After training, I’ll start out leading a platoon of 25 to 50 young Marines and will be in a sense their mentor. Yes, the Marines is a warfighting organization, but it’s also trying to create better citizens and people.

COMPETING IN WHITWORTH TRACK & FIELD

What I enjoy most is that we are a capital “TEAM.” We support our teammates. The only reason we get to conference or win conference is as a team. I’ve always been in midpack for most decathlon events. That is OK because I’ve seen myself improve each year, which is success for me. Last year was very fun – I placed sixth in the 400 hurdles and ran a sub-minute, which was a goal of mine. I had pretty severe shin splint pain, but I was in the zone and it wasn’t about the pain but just accomplishing the goal.

CLASS NOTES

Let us know what you’re up to! Update us at whitworth.edu/alumni-update, email us at alumni@whitworth.edu, or write us at Alumni & Parent Relations Office, Whitworth University, 300 W. Hawthorne Road, Spokane, WA 99251.

Submissions received July 1, 2022-Feb. 28, 2023, appear in this issue of Whitworth Today. All cities listed are located in Washington state unless otherwise noted.

2020s-10s 2022

Josey Pardini-Atkins is a certified training manager at Caruso’s Sandwiches and Artisan Pizza in Spokane.

2021

Levi Russell is a test engineer at F5 Networks in Liberty Lake.

2020

Lauren Clark is the social media and public relations coordinator for Washington State University Spokane. Joel Diaz Jr. is a talent acquisition coordinator for ENGIE Impact in Spokane. Samuel Holzer is a software engineer at Gestalt Diagnostics in Spokane. Anya (Nordling) Jones and Caleb Jones were married May 28, 2022. The couple lives in Nashville, Tenn., with their cat, Louie. Heidi Mickelsen teaches second grade in Nine Mile Falls. Emma Much is earning a master of science in speech and hearing sciences at Washington State University Spokane.

2019

Jonathan Hammerstrom is an events coordinator for Breckenridge Outdoor Education Center in Breckenridge, Colo. He earned an M.A. in the history of art from The Courtauld Institute of Art in London, England, in 2022. Nick Healey lives in Bremerton and is a digital territory account manager for F5 Networks, based in Seattle. Will Liening and Joëlle Payette, of Caldwell, Idaho,

were married July 10, 2021. John Macias lives in Spokane and is a business development representative III for F5 Distributed Cloud Services. Miriam Nokes is a neonatal intensive care nurse at Providence Sacred Heart in Spokane. Abby Nye is in her third and final year in the education specialist in school psychology degree program at Gonzaga University. In May 2022, Christina Reeves earned a master’s degree in youth ministry from Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary, in partnership with the Center for Youth Ministry Training. Kelsey Segren is the assistant sports information director at Bushnell University in Eugene, Ore. Hunter Smit and Katriel Sahlstrom Smit ’20 were married June 12, 2022, at The Historic Davenport Hotel in Spokane, with the Rev. Forrest Buckner, Whitworth campus pastor, officiating. Katriel is a student in Whitworth’s doctor of physical therapy program. Robyn Stevenson MSAT ’22 is an athletic trainer at Olympic Sports & Spine in Bonney Lake. Annie (Samuelson) Sturtevant teaches third grade at Brentwood Elementary School in Spokane. Sonia Torres-Hochrein and Maxwell Hochrein were married Sept. 25, 2022. Sonia is an account executive at Ruby Receptionists, Inc. in Yakima.

2018

Dominique (Cruz-Reyes) DeGraaff and Bret DeGraaff ’17 were married May 23, 2020. Dominique is in her third year at the University of Washington School of Medicine and intends to apply to the cardiothoracic and general surgery residency programs. The couple bought their first home, in Sacramento, Calif. Denin Koch and Carryn Slage were married March 20, 2021, and live in

Greeley, Colo. He received a 2023 Herb Alpert Young Jazz Composer Award from the ASCAP Foundation, and Pathways to Jazz and Greeley Arts Alive! grants to record an album with Ryan Keberle ’02 and Shane Endsley, scheduled for release in September. Andrew Langbehn and Alexis Chan, of Seattle, were married July 16, 2022.

ALUMNI CONNECTION

Save the Date

All alumni and families of current students are invited to enjoy One Big Whitworth Weekend, Oct. 1315! This combined Homecoming and Family Weekend will be full of fun opportunities to connect with one another and experience Whitworth. Milestone reunions will be held for the classes of 2013, ’03, 1993, ’83 and ’73, as well as the classes of ’72 and earlier Watch your inbox for details and updates. See you in October!

ALUMNI PROFILE

MISIKIR ADNEW ’ 19

Misikir Adnew’s strong faith fuels her confidence to follow God’s leading: first to Whitworth, then to Yale University, and now in her work with Samaritan’s Purse.

As an international projects apprentice with Samaritan’s Purse, Adnew has so far worked in the Philippines and South Sudan, supporting the Christian nonprofit’s humanitarian aid outreach. “I love that I get to serve with people who are passionate about meeting the spiritual and physical needs of hurting people,” she says.

From her first semester at Whitworth, Adnew, who is from Ethiopia, wanted to earn a master’s in public health and to work in global health. To prepare, she double majored in health science and community health, which allowed her to explore the full spectrum of healthcare. She joined the Whitworth Honors Program, undertaking teaching assistantships, research with her professors, and an internship in Washington, D.C. She also took on extracurricular student-leadership roles.

Stretching her limits and developing her tenacity wasn’t easy, but God’s faithfulness and Whitworth’s supportive community saw her through. “I knew that challenging myself would get me ready for the intensity of grad school, and it paid off,” she says.

Did it ever: Adnew was accepted into six competitive graduate programs. She followed God’s call to the Yale School of Public Health, where she continued to challenge herself – as a research assistant, as co-founder and president of the Yale-Connecticut Hospice Advisory Board, and as a fellow with the Yale Institute for Global Health.

In her work with Samaritan’s Purse, Adnew has observed the need for mental health support for communities that have endured crises. “Someday I would love to work with kids who have gone through traumatic life events and help them piece together a safer reality,” she says. “We’ll see where God takes me.”

Jian Shiraishi-Rzeszewicz and Kirby Shiraishi-Rzeszewicz, of Kapolei, Hawaii, were married Jan. 13, 2022. Jacob Sturtevant is an occupational therapist at Hand Therapy Advantage in Spokane.

2017

Hannah Langbehn is a victim advocate at Lutheran Community Services Northwest in Spokane. Megan McCart and Bradley Riggs were married July 16, 2022. The couple lives in East Wenatchee with their dog, Max.

2016

Brittany (Roberson) Aden and Kadir Aden, of Visalia, Calif., were married Oct. 1, 2022. Amanda (Cowan) Monroe and Joshua Monroe were married July 1, 2022. The couple plans to move to Japan this fall to serve as full-time missionaries. Elizabeth Porter is the acute care services supervisor at Sound in Bellevue. In May she earned her master’s in social work from Simmons University in Boston. She serves as vice president of the board of directors for the Tacoma Area Coalition for Individuals with Disabilities and is a moderator for Dysautonomia International Washington Support Groups.

2015

Kaurie Albert is the proprietor of the Pour House Saloon in Fort Benton, Mont. Crystal (Palmer) Rapp and Tim Rapp were married Feb. 20, 2020. Crystal is a social worker at Beacon of Hope Hospice in Bullhead, Ariz.

2013

Whitney (Larimer) Price and Casey Price, of Centralia, were married June 26, 2022.

2012

Mae Simmons and Jasmine Walker, of Rochester Hills, Mich., were married Oct. 16, 2022.

2010

In June 2022, Kendel (Huff) Froese, of Spokane, opened Thrive Law PLLC, a solo law firm focused on estate planning and probate.

DEBUTS

Viola, to Tiffany (Wong) Davisson MBA ’19 and Christopher Davisson, Nov. 7, 2022

Eloise, to Andrea (Rupke) Smith ’19 and Brian Smith, April 21, 2022

Birdie, to Kelley (Boblick) Olson ’15 and George Olson, June 21, 2022

Joshua, to Hannah (Ackerman) Lane ’14 and Alexian Lane, Sept. 29, 2022

Hallie, to Melinda (Leavitt) Hedquist ’12 and Luke Hedquist, May 18, 2022

Eli, to Jannah Vander Houwen ’12 and Henry Vander Houwen ’13, May 30, 2022

2000s 2009

Kelley (Boblick) Olson lives in Chehalis and is an e-learning specialist with the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife.

2006

Alise (Delzell) Mnati is the CEO of Mnati Consulting, LLC in Waddell, Ariz.

2005

Joshua Dwight earned a Ph.D. in information technology from University of the Cumberlands in August 2022. He is a lecturer at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology in Hanoi, Vietnam.

2004

Adrianne (Tursick) Loetscher lives in Spokane and is the owner and director of Allied Residential Care, an assisted living facility for people who need mental health services. Ariane Mondragón Oglesbee is associate vice president & chief human resource officer at Whitworth University. Tod Weber lives in Victoria, B.C., and is semiretired after living in four countries and working in more than 20 countries for a variety of companies as a corporate change leader, corporate director and senior project manager.

2002

Elysia (Hanna) Spencer manages the sponsored programs office at Whitworth University.

2000

Katie (Thwaites) Stark is the missional expeditor and cyclical co-director at Presbytery of the Inland Northwest in Spokane. She earned a master of divinity degree from Portland Seminary in 2020 and was ordained as a minister of word and sacrament PC(USA) in 2021.

Silas, to Anna (Zedekar) Bush ’08 and Justin Bush, May 5, 2022

Livia, to Ariane Mondragón Oglesbee ’04 and Brett Oglesbee ’03, MBA ’18, Nov. 20, 2021

1990s 1999

Jason Struthers, of Port Orchard, is a sales manager for filtration and contactors at Apex Industries.

1998

Monica Parmley-Frutiger is a licensed clinical social worker in Portland, Ore. She also teaches in the School of Social Work at Portland State University and serves on the steering committee of the Clackamas County Coalition to Prevent Suicide.

1990

Jim Wilkins-Luton is interim vice president of instruction at Clark College in Vancouver.

1980s 1989

Susan Estinson is director of manufacturing information technology for Kite Pharma in El Segundo, Calif. She previously managed the IT program at Genentech to build its first cell and gene therapy manufacturing plant.

1988

Kristine (Smith) Marshall, of Mead, retired as a speech-language pathologist in August 2022.

1987

Marilyn (Magney) Newkirk works with Slice of Heaven Educational Farm, a nonprofit in central Texas that buses in students during the school year to learn about farming, animals and agriculture.

Jubilation Dance Ministry members show off their moves outside Warren Hall in spring 2014. From bottom right to top: Logan (Shenkel) Hope ’16, Brooke (Grissom) Levine ’15, Sam Schweizer-Prager ’16, Jennifer Rudsit ’16, Laura Venemon ’14, Brittany (Roberson) Aden ’16 and Sondra Willmann ’14. (See story on P. 10.)

DEBUTS

Suhani, to Sarah (Huyck) Bhatia ’09 and Kabir Bhatia, Nov. 15, 2022 Abigail, to Julie Wootton-Greener ’09 and Cody Greener, March 21, 2022

1982

Sheila (Linn) Gephart teaches class piano as an adjunct professor at Columbia Basin College. Her spouse, Roy, passed away in 2021.

1980

Casey (Hartley) Handrop and her spouse, Ronald, welcomed their second grandchild in September 2022.

1970s 1976

Debbie (Radoll) Ossewaarde retired after teaching English and history for 31 years at Juanita High School in Kirkland. She and her spouse, Mark, live happily in their newly built retirement home on five acres in Chelan, where she raises golden retrievers.

1960s 1965

Dave Gunderson, of Spokane, won a gold medal in men’s softball at the Huntsman World Senior Games in St. George, Utah. Eddie Matthews lives in Gig Harbor. His spouse, Susan, passed away in November 2022.

1963

Jeanne (Echelbarger) Beresford and Lou Beresford were married June 26, 2022, in Bothell.

IN MEMORIAM

Obituaries received Oct. 1, 2022-Feb. 28, 2023, appear in this issue of Whitworth Today. Bolded names without class years indicate those who attended Whitworth but did not graduate. All cities listed are located in Washington state unless otherwise noted.

2020s

Caitlynn Lee ’23, of Portland, Ore., died Dec. 12, 2022.

1990s

Jane (Dohrmann) Fallon MAT ’95, of Hayden, Idaho, died Jan. 16. Survivors include her spouse, Cliff Fallon. Correction: Timothy “Tim” Werner ’94, of Sandy, Ore., died May 28, 2022. Survivors include his spouse, Carrie Werner; his mother, Judith (Grewelle) Werner; and his aunt, Gloria (Werner) Kaiser ’56 He was predeceased by his father, Donald Werner ’60 Whitworth Today regrets the error. Patricia (Bjaaland) Greeley ’93, M.Ed. ’96, of Spokane Valley, died Sept. 11, 2022. She was predeceased by her uncle, Robert Cole ’50 Survivors include her spouse, Gary Greeley. Lance Abendroth, of Moscow, Idaho, died Sept. 29, 2022. Survivors include his spouse, Lisha Abendroth.

1980s

Sergio Fossa ’88, of Kennewick, died Nov. 30, 2022. Kevin Kopp ’86, of Seattle, died Oct. 15, 2022. He was predeceased by his sister, Kimberly (Kopp) Ellis ’92 Survivors include his father, John Kopp ’63; cousin Katherine (Kopp) Jones ’90; and nephew Jackson Jones ’25 and niece

Madeline Jones ’26. Craig Dander ’83, of Tracy, Calif., died Feb. 20.

Anita (Howard) Eaton, of Spokane, died Sept. 15, 2022. Lynda (Egger) Hayashi, of Spokane, died Dec. 8, 2022. Survivors include her spouse, Art Hayashi. Ann Marie (MacDonald) Baker M.S. in health science ’82, of Spokane Valley, died Jan. 8. Frances Stacey M.A. ’82, of Seattle, died Jan. 13. Jeanne (Thompson) Varnell M.A. ’82, of Memphis, Tenn., died Feb. 26, 2021. Survivors include her spouse, Henry Varnell.

1970s

Joyann (Ward) Montgomery ’77, of Spokane, died Oct. 15, 2020. Camilla Phillipson M.A. ’77, of Spokane, died Oct. 14. Survivors include her spouse, Wally Phillipson, and son-in-law, Dennis Beemer ’82 Leta (Cook) Walters

M.Ed. ’77, of Spokane, died Dec. 31, 2022. Survivors include her spouse, Tracy Walters; son Kelly Walters ’88; grandchildren Brian Walters, Daniel Walters ’08 and Trevor Walters ’12; and granddaughter-in-law Kayla

Strahm ’12 Donald Murray ’76, of Spokane, died Jan. 17. Survivors include his spouse, Mary Ann Murray, and grandchildren Rachel Murray ’19 and Aaron Murray ’22 Jacquelen “Jacquie” Baucom ’73, of Spokane, died Dec. 21, 2022. (See Employees & Friends.) Kathy (Middleton) Davis ’72, of Rocklin, Calif., died Oct. 2, 2022. Survivors include her spouse, James Davis. Michael “Mike” Weir M.Ed. ’72, of Spokane, died Feb. 9. Daryl Triplett M.Ed. ’71, of Spokane, died Jan. 1. Survivors include his spouse, Carol (Schmitz) Triplett ’66, and daughter Diana (Triplett) Putnam ’96. Georganne (Retter) Copas ’70, of Salinas, Calif., died July 28, 2022. Benedict Lynch ’70, of Spokane, died Dec. 19, 2022. Survivors include his spouse, Julie (Gruber) Lynch ’71

Josh Klute ’12, left, and Jeff Podmayer ’12 stand on the edge of glory at Smith Rock State Park in Oregon. The daring duo and other students camped, rock climbed and hiked during an Outdoor Rec trip over Fall Break 2011. Klute and Podmayer remain avid outdoors adventurers today.

1960s

Suzanne (Dermody) Myra, of Willows, Calif., died Feb. 5. Dwight Fowler ’68, of Spokane, died Dec. 28, 2022. The Rev. Theodore “Tedd” Lyons II ’68, of Clovis, Calif., died April 15, 2022. Survivors include his spouse, Dione Lyons, and daughter-in-law Deborah (Bennett) Lyons ’04. Gayle Stringer ’68, of Edgewood, died May 13, 2022. Karen (Ricketts) Gray ’66, of Hagerstown, Md., died Jan. 1. Ronald Schaal ’66, of Endicott, died Dec. 13, 2022. Peter Coffin ’64, of Deer Park, died Oct. 12, 2022. Survivors include his spouse, Judy Coffin. John Crawford ’64, of Pasco, died Nov. 29, 2022. Marie (Miller) Buckley ’62, MAT ’69, of Spokane, died Oct. 25, 2022. She was predeceased by her spouse, Vernon Buckley ’53, and sister-in-law Eunice (Buckley) Wilson. Survivors include her sons Paul Buckley ’78 and Steven Buckley ’73 Marilyn (Kirsch) Carter ’61, M.Ed. ’81, of Spokane, died Jan. 28. Frank Clark ’61, of Missoula, Mont., died Oct. 24, 2022. Survivors include his spouse, Lana Clark.

1950s

Allayne (Nelson) Dinkel ’59, of Wasilla, Alaska, died May 21, 2022. Survivors include her spouse, Gene Dinkel. Marshall Rogers ’59, of Fort Bragg, Calif., died Dec. 31, 2022. Survivors include his spouse, Cynthia Wall. Leslie “Les” Hogan ’57, M.Ed. ’63, of Spokane, died Jan. 3. Survivors include his spouse, Anna Mae (Rosholt) Hogan ’57; daughter Lynn (Hogan) Harding and son-in-law Raymond Harding ’77 Virginia “Ginny” (Mallett) Snodgrass ’57, of Suwanee, Ga., died Oct. 22, 2022. She was predeceased by her spouse, George Snodgrass ’56, and sister-in-law Lorna (Snodgrass) Fink ’55. Survivors include her children Julia (Snodgrass) Farrenkopf ’81, David Snodgrass and Daniel Snodgrass ’79; and daughter-in-law Leigh (Becker) Snodgrass ’79. Louise Adams ’53, of Olympia, died Oct. 30, 2022. Survivors include her spouse, Roy Adams. Shirley (Aeschliman) Isaak, of Star, Idaho, died Oct. 2, 2022. Arden (Gruenberg) Buchanan ’53, of Wenatchee, died Sept. 20, 2020. Betty (Burdin) Mitchell

EMPLOYEES & FRIENDS

Jacquelen “Jacquie” Baucom ’73, of Spokane, died Dec. 21, 2022; adjunct professor for the School of Education, 2001.

Berge Borrevik Jr., of Spokane, died Jan. 26; athletics director, 1972-76. He was predeceased by his spouse, Julie (Astrup) Borrevik ’75. Survivors include his son, Andrew Borrevik.

Gail Edward “Ed” Henning, of Spokane, died Nov. 18, 2022; adjunct professor for the physics department, 2006. Survivors include his spouse, Karen Henning; children Marc Henning ’01, Krista (Henning) Clapp and Greg Henning ’92; daughters-in-law Molly Henning ’02 and Kara Henning ’92; and grandchildren Claire Henning ’22 and Nicholas Henning ’25

’51, of Walla Walla, died Nov. 19, 2022. She was predeceased by her spouse, Edward Mitchell ’52. Survivors include her daughters Judith Mitchell and Nancy Mitchell Jeanne (Eiseman) Nichols, of Seattle, died Nov. 1, 2022. The Rev. Walter Sauer ’50, of Spokane, died June 28, 2022. Survivors include his cousin Arnold Stueckle ’55

1940s

Marion (Ruby) Johnson, of McCall, Idaho, died Jan. 20. She was predeceased by her brother Robert Ruby ’43. Survivors include her sons Brent Johnson ’75 and Craig Johnson ’73; nieces Edna (Ruby) Elavsky ’76 and Esme (Ruby) Davis ’81; and nephews Henry Ruby ’77 and Robert Ruby ’78. Paul Oss, of Hermiston, Ore., died May 11, 2022. Dr. George Rodkey, of Hayden, Idaho, died Nov. 30, 2022. (See Employees & Friends.)

Dr. George Rodkey, of Hayden, Idaho, died Nov. 30, 2022; trustee, 1961-73. He was predeceased by his brothers Dr. Grant Rodkey ’39, Frederick Lee Rodkey Jr. ’42 and John Rodkey ’47, and sister-in-law Marjorie (Boughton) Rodkey ’42. Survivors include his spouse, Dorothy Rodkey; children George Rodkey and Chris (Rodkey) Shaver; and nephew the Rev. Paul Rodkey ’74

PATRICIA “PAT” MACDONALD

Professor Emerita of Psychology Pat MacDonald died Feb. 1 in Spokane. She was 99. Having earned a Ph.D. in psychology at the University of Rochester at a time when few women earned a bachelor’s degree, “Dr. Mac,” as she came to be known by thousands of Whitworth students, was a trailblazer. Pat taught in the Whitworth Psychology Department from 1955-94, chairing the department for 22 years. While her impact on the department was profound, her influence was felt across campus.

Pat was a strong and vocal advocate for women faculty; she founded and led the Women’s Task Force, which worked for equity in pay and advancement. She was a tireless champion of women students and students of color, and she mentored generations of students.

“I was so fortunate that Pat was my colleague, a woman embodying strength, principle and commitment to justice,” Professor Emerita of Psychology Kathy Storm says. “How inspiring it was to see how one person can make an entire institution better.”

Survivors include her life-friend, Carolyn Gowdy; grandson, Sather Gowdy ’11, and his father, Professor Emeritus of English Leonard Oakland; one cousin; and seven nieces and nephews, including Norman MacDonald ’08. Donations in her honor can be made to the Pat MacDonald Scholarship for Whitworth Students in Psychology.

LESLIE “LES” FRANCIS

Associate Professor Emeritus of Education

Les Francis died Feb. 3 in Spokane. He was 85. Prior to coming to Whitworth, Les taught and coached in the West Valley School District and for six years was the supervisor of reading and language arts for the Washington State Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. As an associate professor of education at Whitworth from 1984-2002, Les taught reading courses and supervised student teachers. “Dad was proud of his life at Whitworth and the impact he had on future teachers, and he loved the many friends he had there,” his son Greg Francis says.

One of Les’ legacies is the Whitworth Writing Rally, a family literacy initiative he founded and directed for 18 years. Each spring, hundreds of children and their parents or guardians came to campus for a reading and book signing by a popular children’s author, and the children became authors themselves by writing stories. “Many of those youngsters came back to Whitworth as students, and in the latter years of the rally we were hosting young people with parents who had attended the rally themselves as children,” says Dennis Sterner, professor emeritus of

education and dean emeritus of the School of Education. “The writing rally was a true labor of love for Les and scores of volunteers, and it influenced the lives of thousands of children.” The 30th and final Whitworth Writing Rally took place in 2014.

Survivors include Les’ wife of 40 years, Pamela Kelly-Francis; children John Francis, Sean Kelly, Heather Marie Kelly, Melissa FrancisShearer ’92 and son-in-law David Shearer ’08, and Greg Francis and daughter-in-law Stacy (McNamee) Francis ’89; 16 grandchildren and step-grandchildren; and 11 step-greatgrandchildren.

IT’S TIME TO SET THE TABLE

BY DEREK TAYLOR ’08 DIRECTOR OF THE EMMAUS SCHOLARS PROGRAM

Jesus is rarely alone. I walk into a room, and people tend to ignore me (well, I’m tall, so they glance my way before ignoring me). Jesus walks into a room, and everyone flocks to him. The sick find him. The crowds swarm him. Even the skeptics are drawn to him. You’re just as likely to find him at the table as at the synagogue.

This realization first motivated me to begin the Emmaus Scholars Program here at Whitworth. Life with Jesus is, by definition, life with others. Many of us have a me-and-Jesus spirituality. But there are no Lone Ranger Christians.

If you’re an introvert like me, you might find this terrifying. But it gets worse. As one theologian says, only half joking, “Christians don’t get to choose their friends.” We like to live in safe, self-selected communities. But we don’t self-select our way into discipleship. Jesus calls, we follow.

Community, fellowship, togetherness, belonging. These words depict the new social reality that arises around Jesus. These words also name the essence of Christian hope: We long for a time when we fully experience our reconciled fellowship with God, each other, and all of creation.

We Americans love our buffered lives. The fences in our yards are perhaps the defining symbol of our time. Literal fences enclose our property; others cage our imagination. I am free from my neighbor. Free from the hassle of others. Free to be me.

When Jesus calls us, we forfeit this freedom. Or more accurately, we swap the freedom of a fence for the freedom of a table. In his presence I am no longer free from my neighbor; instead, I become free for them.

Paul claims that Jesus tore down dividing walls (Ephesians 2:14). What if we took this seriously? What if we unfenced our possessions and shared them with our neighbors? What if gathering for meals became a spiritual discipline? What if we saw our neighbor not as a burden but a blessing?

The two disciples walking the Road to Emmaus received the gift of fellowship when they invited a stranger to join them for a meal (Luke 24:29). How might we receive it? When we do, we become living witnesses to a reality the world desperately needs to see. In Jesus, the walls have been torn down. Our lives have been unfenced. It’s time to set the table.

FOND FAREWELLS

Whitworth bids goodbye to these staff and faculty members who retired in 2022-23. Their faithful care and significant contributions have made a lasting impact on our community and well beyond.

BOB BAKER

Manager of Printing & Mailing Services

Years of Service: 27

KEITH BEEBE

Professor of Theology

Years of Service: 22 Permanent, 5 Adjunct

CHARLIE BOUCK

Security Officer

Years of Service: 3

JOHN BUJOSA

Director of Operations & Information Systems, Human Resource Services

Years of Service: 16

LULÚ GONZÁLEZ

Assistant Director, International Student Services

Years of Service: 27

WENDY OLSON

Director of Institutional Research

Years of Service: 31

LARRY PROBUS

Vice President of Finance & Administration

Years of Service: 6

JUDITH SCHOEPFLIN

Professor of Music

Director of Keyboard Studies

Years of Service: 36

ANNE WILCOX

Assistant Professor of Education

Director of English Language Learner

Endorsement Program

Years of Service: 12

GREG WINTZ

Founding Director of Occupational Therapy Program

Years of Service: 3

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