1970s Class notes

Submitted within the past year

1970
Rich Saykally (BS) and his wife, Chris Read, recently enjoyed a two-week tour of India, with Rich presenting a series of four named lectures, including the prestigious J.C. Bose Memorial Lecture at the Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science in Kolkata. At the Indian Institute of Technology in Delhi he gave the Golden Jubilee Thematic Lecture titled "Water Music: The Latest Word on the Most Important Substance in the Universe"; while at the IIT in Kanpur, he presented "Selective Adsorption of Ions to the Water Surface, and its Effects on Evaporation" as the Institute Distinguished Lecturer. At the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore he delivered the Morris Travers Lecture. Their trip also included sightseeing in Agra and Mysore and two research lectures at Kanpur and Kolkata. The most memorable aspect of their trip was, according to Rich, "the incredible warmth and kindness of the Indian people."

1972
Johanna (Shager) Hocker (BM) is now retired from private practice as a licensed psychologist in southern Minneosota. She has led a full life and a rewarding career encompassing music therapy, recreational therapy and counseling in a variety of settings, ending in private practice. Johanna was career oriented for many years, then married in her mid-40s. Her first husband was killed in a car accident just eight years after they married. A year later Johanna met her second husband while doing missionary work in China. Together they traveled the globe doing ministry. They were married just shy of nine years when he died of cancer. Johanna is enjoying retirement and continues to travel and minister.

1973
Brian Goldbeck (BA), '79 (BA-E), U.S. consul general to Guangzhou, China, supported Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's July 2011 visit to Shenzhen in Guangdong Province to hold talks with China's State Councilor Dai Bingguo. The two discussed North Korea, the South China Seas, Taiwan, the Dalai Lama, and the U.S. debt situation, among other issues. This was the first ever land border crossing by a secretary of state from Hong Kong into mainland China. Goldbeck also was congratulated by Jon Huntsman, U.S. ambassador to China, for exemplary leadership during a ceremony in April 2011. He also was recognized for his 30 years of service to the nation as a member of the State Department's foreign service.

Marcia Oftedahl (BS) and Douglas Spragg were married in November 2008. Marcia retired from American Empire Underwriters in January 2011, after 35 years in the commercial liability insurance industry. Over the years she earned a number of professional designations specific to the insurance industry. Marcia and Douglas live in the Sugar Land, Texas, area.

Dana Saar (BBA) was elected as a governing board trustee for the Maricopa County (Ariz.) Community College District. The five-member board governs the largest community college district in the nation, with 10 colleges and two skill centers. The district enrolled more than 260,000 students during the 2010-11 school year. Dana's six-year term began in January 2011. He has been on the Arizona State Board of Education's Professional Practice Advisory Committee for more than eight years and recently completed 14 years on the Fountain Hills (Ariz.) School District Governing Board.

William Skroch (BS-E) received the Dedicated Service Award from the Illinois Athletic Trainers Association in November 2010.

1974
Marilyn Kaufmann (BSN), chair of the nursing program at Lakeshore Technical College, was named to the board of directors of Shady Lane Nursing Care Center in Manitowoc in February 2011. She holds a master's degree in public health from the University of Minnesota and a doctorate in nursing from UW-Milwaukee. A native of Manitowoc County, Kaufmann has served on the board of the Wisconsin Board of Nursing and Holy Family Home Care and Hospice. She is a member of the Wisconsin Nurses Association and Trinity Lutheran Church.

Warren Kraft (BA) and Elizabeth (Detmer) Kraft (BS-E) were part of a daylong home building event in October 2010 in Chalmatte, La., for the St. Bernard Project, a nonprofit, community-based organization whose mission is to create housing opportunities for Hurricane Katrina survivors. Also, while attending the 75th annual conference of the International Municipal Lawyers Association in New Orleans, Warren moderated a land use panel discussion on the recovery efforts, was a luncheon speaker and presented a report on family responsibilities discrimination. Elizabeth is a special education teacher in the Berlin Area School District. Warren is the assistant city attorney and human resources director for the city of West Bend and serves of-counsel for the Murphy-Desmond law firm in Madison. They live in Oshkosh.

Mark Wheeler (BS) has been named chair of the North St. Paul-Maplewood-Oakdale (Minn.) School Board, where he has served since 2002. Mark is currently employed as an information technology architect at UnitedHealth Group in Plymouth, Minn. He lives in Oakdale with his wife and two sons.

1975
Mary (Bentley) Johnson (BS-E) retired from teaching at the completion of the 2010-11 school year. She worked in the St. Croix Falls School District for her entire 35-year career. Mary says she is looking forward to this new chapter of her life.

1976

Doug De Broux (left) and Chuck Larscheid

Chuck Larscheid (BS) reports that in his freshman year at UW-Eau Claire he was told that friends from the university would show up at his doorstep in 20 years to say "Hi." One of his best friends from Eau Claire, Greg Kamps '77 (BBA), looked Chuck up after 32 years. Their reunion spurred them to contact Doug De Broux (attended 1972-76), whom Chuck sees regularly, and Jim Van Gemert (BS), whom Chuck hadn't seen in 30 years. The four old friends have gotten together twice in Madison and reminisced about many great times in Eau Claire. Greg is an insurance manager in the greater Milwaukee area, Doug is a pharmacist in Madison, Jim is a dentist in Madison and Chuck is the port and solid waste director for Brown County.

Kathy McDougal (BA-E), '77 (MS) retired in June 2010 after 33 years as a speech-language pathologist in the Shawano School District. She lives in Oconto.

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1977
Patrick Cattanach (BBA) was appointed to the position of general manager at Sandoval, a 524-acre gated Bonita Bay Group community in Cape Coral, Fla., in April 2011. He oversees the community's management and operations. An experienced club manager, Cattanach most recently was general manager of Troon Golf communities in Ave Maria and Fort Myers, Fla. He previously was associated with Bonita Bay Group as general manager of Copperleaf Golf Club and Spring Run Golf Club, both located within The Brooks in Bonita Springs, Fla. Cattanach is a certified community association manager and a member of PGA of America. He holds a master of science degree in recreation administration from UW-La Crosse.

1978
Jeff Ash (BA) edited "Green, Gold and Glorious: The Green Bay Packers' Magical Run to Super Bowl XLV," which was published in February 2011. It is his fourth Packers book for the Green Bay Press-Gazette, where he has worked for more than 20 years. Jeff is a member of the Press-Gazette's online staff. His wife, Janet Roberts (BA), is a marketing communications consultant specializing in email. Their son, Evan, is a student at Green Bay East High School. The family lives in Green Bay.

Jeff Gollmar (BS-E) retired from the Tomorrow River School District in Amherst in June 2011 after 33 years of teaching. During that time Jeff taught everything from seventh-grade math to AP calculus. He also was an assistant football coach for 12 years and an assistant baseball coach for 21 years.

Steven Halliday (BA) began a doctoral program in communication in 2008 at Regent University in Virginia Beach, Va. In October 2010 he passed his qualifying exams with distinction, so he now is ABD, "all but dissertation." Steven plans to have his dissertation finished by the end of 2011 and hopes to graduate in May 2012. His focus of interest is convergent media, especially enhanced e-books.

David Kamm (BBA) has been named director of finance for Carma Laboratories Inc. He is responsible for the company's financial and accounting activities. Carma Laboratories, located in Franklin, is the manufacturer and distributor of the Carmex brand line of consumer products.

Kate Perkins (BS-E) retired from Alcatel-Lucent in May 2008, where she had worked as an engineer since 1984. Since retiring, Kate has ridden the RAGBRAI (Register's Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa) twice, remodeled parts of her house, hung out with her family and earned her EMT-B license. She lives in Warrenville, Ill.

Charlie Strey (BA) was hired as the associate dean of student life at Central College in Pella, Iowa, in August 2011. Prior to accepting that position, he served as assistant dean of students and director of residential life at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minn. Strey previously held positions as director of residence life at Augsburg College in Minneapolis, Minn.; coordinator for residence hall administration at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln, Neb.; complex director at Minnesota State University-Mankato; residence hall director at UW-La Crosse; and graduate resident director at UW-Platteville. He holds a master of science degree in guidance and counseling from UW-Platteville.

1979
Gary Berg (BA), the founder and CEO of G.L. Berg Entertainment in St. Cloud, Minn., has introduced a new name and new look for his company — G.L. Berg Entertainment, Performing Artists & Speakers. After 21 years of providing entertainment services, the agency now has expanded its speaker and performing arts areas. More information about the company is available online at www.glberg.com.

Jim Campbell (BA) recently was named interim vice provost for lifelong learning and dean of the division of Continuing Studies at UW-Madison. His wife, Jane (Borrell) Campbell (BS-E), is a language arts teacher at Prairie View Middle School in Sun Prairie.

Harry Kaiser (BA), the Gellert family professor of applied economics and management at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y., has co-authored a new book titled "Mathematical Programming for Agricultural, Environmental, and Resource Economics." The textbook, published by Wiley, is designed to help students develop the quantitative skills necessary for cutting-edge research and techniques. Kaiser, who also serves as director of the Cornell Commodity Promotion Research Program, teaches and conducts research in the areas of price analysis, marketing, industrial organization, policy and quantitative methods.

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