a 1960s
In November 2015, John Geisler ’61, professor emeritus from Western Michigan University, spoke at the Lenawee County Historical Museum in Adrian. The program was about the history of the Sauk Trail along US 12 from Detroit to Chicago. John resides in Kalamazoo, Mich. G. Stanford Bratton ’63 is completing his 25th year as executive director/CEO of Network of Religious Communities, a multifaith organization serving western New York. Program areas include combating and finding solutions to hunger, spirituality and medicine programs for the University of Buffalo medical school and area universities, colleges, hospitals and healthcare institutions. They also produce and broadcast three monthly TV programs and a weekly radio program. Stan received some awards for his work: the Community Service Award from the Muslim Public Affairs Council WNY; the first annual Id al-Fitr Award from the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community; and the First Interfaith Award, given at the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. annual celebration. Stan and his wife, Marietta, live in Buffalo, N.Y. Rick Wilcox ’63 wrote a book, Two Generations: Visions of Life, published in May. Rick stated his primary reason for writing it was to bring to the public his father’s amazing life story, and, second, to share the incredible times his wife, Carole Taylor Wilcox ’64 and he experienced during their years at Adrian College and living in Germany while he served in the U.S. Army. Rick and Carole met on campus during Friday evening of the first week of the 1960-61 school year at the “Getting to Know You Dance” at Ridge Gymnasium. They were married during Carole’s senior year on Dec. 21, 1963. The couple now lives in Kingswood, Texas. To contact Rick, email rcw1970@embarqmail.com. The book is available through amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com.
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Dennis ’66 and Connie Black Nagle ’68 enjoyed a visit to campus in October 2015. They re-created a special moment in time of Dennis proposing to Connie as they sat on the “A.” Dennis, a former member of the Adrian College Alumni Association Board of Directors, and Connie reside in Ann Arbor, Mich. ▲ Larry Olsen ’69, P.h.D., was honored with a retirement celebration and “roast” by the entomology department of Michigan State University on April 28, at the Kellogg Center in East Lansing, Mich. Larry worked for MSU in the fields of integrated pest management, IPM and pesticide safety, coordinator for the department of entomology, associate extension director for the college of agriculture and natural resources, and co-director of the North Central Regional IPM Center. His future plans include continuing his development project in the central highlands of Peru, where people live a subsistence life depending on potato production. Larry is also hiking the Appalachian Trail piece by piece over several years, and will travel to more national parks with his wife, Bev. Joe Balsanek ’68 was featured in the December 28, 2015 edition of the Twin Cities.com Pioneer Press for his doll house restoration. What pulled him away from full-time retirement was a beat-up dollhouse salvaged at a garage sale and the request to fix it up for his granddaughter. That was over eight years ago. He is now sought after for his craftsmanship. Every dollhouse has a story, and the detail and intricacies of each one are what fuels his creative process as they become works of art. Joe also builds dollhouses from scratch, with costs averaging about $5,000 depending on the size. With a theatre degree from Adrian College, and as a theatre and speech professor for over 20 years, including the creation of over 100 set designs, Joe’s experience came full circle, in miniature fashion. He and his wife, Elizabeth Blackburn Balsanek ’69, live in Hastings, Minn.
