1990s Class notes
Recently submitted
1994
Tim Gross (A&S) and his wife, Lori (Zalaznik) Gross '97 (B), welcomed their son, Matthew Ryan, into the world on Dec. 29, 2007. He joins siblings Katelyn, Ashley, Abbi, Christian and Felicity. The Gross family lives in Hudson.
Laura Sowinski (E) represented the Wisconsin chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society at various events during summer 2008, including a conference at the Wisconsin Executive Residence with Gov. Doyle for the announcement of the World Stem Cell Summit. She also spoke during a national teleconference about MS and its effect on families. Laura was interviewed for the Sept. 18, 2008, Wisconsin Public Television program, "In Wisconsin," the subject of which was stem cell research and multiple sclerosis. The show can be viewed online. Laura was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2001, but is living a full life both personally and professionally. She lives in Waunakee.
1995
Sarah Oitzinger (A&S) and her husband, Aldo Franciscolo, were married in a religious ceremony in March 2008 in Peru and in a civil ceremony in May 2008 in northern California. The couple live in San Francisco, Calif.
1996
Melanie (O'Brien) Peterson (N) and John Peterson (A&S), '98 (MSE), '00 (EDS) announce the arrival of their fourth child, Tesfanesh "Tess" Faith, born April 7, 2008, in Ethiopia, Africa. Tess was placed in the Peterson's arms forever on Sept. 12, 2008. She joins big brothers Samuel, Drew and Owen. The family lives in Fort Atkinson.
1998
Jay Edenborg (A&S) now is the corporate communications director for Luther Midelfort. He lives in Menomonie.
1999
Denae (Hafner) Coates (E) and her husband, David, were married June 14, 2008, in Lakewood Colo. The couple live in Lakewood.
Tara Pederson (A&S) and Jay Van Loenen '96 (A&S), '99 (E) were married July 26, 2008, in the Poudre Canyon in Colorado. Tara is a freelance graphic designer, and Jay is a high school English teacher working on his master's degree in creative writing. The couple live in Broomfield, Colo.
Submitted within the past six months
1990
Judy Hoffman (A&S) has been promoted to the position of implementation consultant for a payroll company. She and husband Quentin, who is from the UK, met in Minnesota while he was working as a computer consultant. Judy and Quentin lived near Oxford, England, for two years. They now live in Lawrenceville, Ga., with sons Rhys and Eric. Judy would enjoy hearing from UW-Eau Claire friends by e-mail at judykayet@gmail.com.
Shanna Laube-Anderson (A&S) and husband Steve Anderson announce the birth of daughter Majorie Jean on Jan. 11, 2008. She joins big brother Alex. The family lives in Burlington.
1991
Jeff Cichocki (N) and wife Laura (O'Toole) Cichocki (N) proudly announce the birth of son Eric Matthew on Dec. 31, 2007. Jeff and Laura both are nurse anesthetists in Highland Park, Ill. The Cichockis live in Burlington.
Renee (Bragonier) Lanka (A&S) and husband Andre were married Dec. 29, 2007. Renee is a licensed marriage and family therapist at Rice County Social Services in Faribault, Minn. The couple live Lakeville, Minn.
James Vyvyan (A&S) is the 2008 recipient of the Peter J. Elich Excellence in Teaching Award. The award is given annually to a faculty member of either the College of Humanities and Social Sciences or the College of Sciences and Technology at Western Washington University. Selection is based on nominations received from alumni, students and faculty members. Vyvyan joined the WWU chemistry faculty as an assistant professor in 1997, was promoted to associate professor in 2002 and to professor in 2005. He lives in Bellingham, Wash.
1992
Jennifer (Michel) Bacon (A&S) and husband Mark are proud to announce the birth of son Brady Michel on July 26, 2006. Jennifer is a marketing specialist for Metro Transit in Madison. The family lives in Madison.
Rita (Johnson) Rahoi-Gilchrest (A&S), an associate professor of communication studies at Winona State University, has been named the 2008 e-Professor of the Year at WSU. The award recognizes professors who are considered outstanding at integrating technology into the curriculum. Rita also previously received WSU's Professor of the Year Award in 2003. She credits UW-Eau Claire emeriti professors Sally Webb and Richard Kirkwood, as well as her husband, Jim Gilchrest '85 (E), with inspiring her teaching. The couple live in Buffalo City.
Marlo Welshons (A&S) has joined the University of Minnesota Libraries as the director of communications. She had been the assistant dean for publications and communications at the University of Illinois Graduate School of Library and Information Science in Champaign, Ill., for the past nine years. Marlo, husband Jim Proefrock and daughters Edie and Eleanor now live in Hudson.
1993
Jill (Bonkoski) Petersen (A&S) and husband Matt announce the birth of second child Karsten Matthew on May 3, 2006. He joins sister Evie, 2. The family lives in Sioux City, Iowa.
Daniel Portillo (B) has worked for Dell Inc. in Panama since May 2008. Daniel says it was a great experience working for the Panama Canal for almost 10 years. He now looks forward to building on what he learned at UW-Eau Claire in his new position. Daniel lives in Panama.
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1994
Dorothy (Simich) Hoeltzer (N), '02 (MSN) is a critical care nurse at Luther Hospital in Eau Claire. Dorothy would enjoy hearing from former classmates. She lives in Whitehall.
1995
Lisa (Bolduc) Donley (E) and husband Blake Donley (B) are proud to announce the birth of son Nathan John on March 30, 2008. He joins big sister Karli, 2. Lisa is an American Sign Language interpreter for Intermediate District 287, and Blake is a senior information technology business systems analyst for Great River Energy. The family lives in Delano, Minn.
Vicki (Gohs) Mezydlo (A&S) and husband Jeff are proud to announce the birth of first child Matthew Michael on April 1, 2008. Vicki is a technical writer in the Human Resources department at the University of Illinois. The family lives in Chicago, Ill.
Allison Whittenberg (MA) had her second novel, "Life Is Fine," published by Random House in 2008. She says the novel has received great reviews. Allison lives in Philadelphia, Pa.
1996
Kristin Weaver Bowman (A&S) and husband David Bowman announce the birth of son Zachary Edward on May 21, 2007. He joins big brother Alexander. The family lives in Fullerton, Calif.
Brian Carlson (B) now is one of the two partners of Ambrion Inc., in Bloomington, Minn. Ambrion specializes in the placement of accounting and finance employees on a permanent, contract and consulting basis. Brian looks forward to the continued growth of Ambrion. He lives in Chanhassen, Minn.
Aleesha (Branton) Drost (A&S) and husband Randy Drost '95 (E), '00 (MEPD) announce the birth of third child Clara Grace on Jan. 7, 2008. She joins siblings Victoria and Ben. The family lives in Rice Lake, where Aleesha is the student life coordinator at Wisconsin Indianhead Technical College and Randy is the principal of Hilltop Elementary School.
Paul Herrick (E) has been promoted to the position of principal at Glacial Drumlin Middle School in Cottage Grove. He will begin the position in fall 2008. Paul has worked in the Monona Grove School District for the past six years. He and wife Dawn (Measner) Herrick (A&S), who works as a research administrator at UW-Madison, live in DeForest with their children, Riley and Caden.
Ken Maki (E) and Karen Washburn-Maki (A&S) are pleased to announce the birth of second child Lukas Mathieu on March 13, 2008. He joins big sister Aila Rose. Ken is a respiratory therapist at Children's Hospital in St. Paul, Minn., and Karen is the assistant manager of customer information systems for U.S. Bank in St. Paul. The family lives in Cottage Grove, Minn., and can be reached by e-mail at kenkarmaki@hotmail.com.
Christi (Seubert) Zaleski (A&S) and husband Brian announce the birth of daughter Lucy Ann on May 14, 2008. She joins big brother Henry. Christi is a senior genetic counselor at Marshfield Clinic.She'd love to hear from Blugold friends by e-mail at brianandchristi@tznet.com. The Zaleskis lives in Stratford.
1997
Krista (Clough) Dahm (E) '00 (MS) and Kyle Dahm '99 (N) announce the birth of son Gavin on March 13, 2008. The family lives in Aurora, Colo.
Michelle (Styer) Kressin (MSE), a learning disabilities teacher at Menomonie High School, was honored by the Greater Menomonie Area Chamber of Commerce as the 2007-08 Outstanding Educator of the Year for Menomonie High School. She was nominated by her co-workers for the award. Michelle received the award at the 45th annual Excellence in Education Banquet April 16, 2008, in Menomonie. Michelle lives in Menomonie.
Brandee (Alexander) Ortery (B), '01 (MBA) and husband Ken Ortery '01 (A&S), '04 (MSE) were married Aug. 8, 2008, at Fanny Hill in Eau Claire. Brandee currently is an instructor in the supervisory management program at Western Technical College in La Crosse. Ken is a school psychologist in the School District of La Crosse. The couple live in La Crosse.
1998
Rebekah (Gradinjan) Fawcett (A&S) and husband Shane welcomed second child Samara Raine into the world on May 4, 2008. She joins big brother Cooper. Rebekah is a communications manager at SUPERVALU Inc. The family lives in Richfield, Minn.
Billie Jo (York) Hays (A&S) and Corey Hays were married Aug. 20, 2005, at Grace Lutheran Church in Eau Claire. They live in Altoona.
Steven Klukas (A&S) and wife Amy welcomed third child Ava Elizabeth Jan. 9, 2005. She joins brother Matthew, 6, and sister Emma Grace, 4. Steven is an insurance analyst for Clark Consulting in Bloomington, Minn. The family lives in Woodbury, Minn.
Jamie LaVora (A&S) graduated from Marquette University Law School May 20, 2006, after five years working full time and attending law school at night. She was sworn in at the state capital in Madison on May 22, 2006, by Justice Patience Roggensack. Jamie will be joining the law firm of Kirchner & Buchko in Sheboygan as an associate attorney beginning in August 2006. She lives in Grafton.
Carrie (Mathewson) Rosenstein (B) and husband Joshua were married May 24, 2008, in Santa Monica, Calif. The couple live in Redondo Beach, Calif.
1999
Jessica (Briggs) King (E) and husband Daniel are happy to announce the birth of son Levi Matthew on Nov. 30, 2006. He joins siblings Rose, Samuel and Amelia. The family lives on a farm in Luck.
Jay Williams (A&S) recently left the bartending/bike-messengering/substitute-teaching lifestyle in Madison to teach seventh- and eighth-grade math and science in the Milwaukee Public Schools. He continues to facilitate leadership programs around the state and still finds time to rock climb, windsurf, bike and snowboard. Jay's old van, often seen limping up the UW-Eau Claire hill, has been retired. He lives in Milwaukee and can be reached by e-mail at runout23@hotmail.com.
Karen Wridt (A&S) has completed her master's degree in integrated marketing communications at Roosevelt University in Chicago, Ill. She also has been promoted to the position of account manager for customer relations for Arbitron, Inc., and Scarborough Research. Karen lives in Chicago and would enjoy hearing from UW-Eau Claire friends by e-mail at wridtkl@yahoo.com.
