Leading
NEW ERA OF GROWTH
President Neil MacKinnon steps up to lead CMU with a bold vision
On the cover
Neil MacKinnon brings more than 25 years of higher education experience to his role as CMU’s 16th president. He came to CMU from Augusta University in Georgia, where he served as provost and executive vice president for academic affairs.
Photo by Adam Sparkes
8
Beaver Island
The CMU Biological Station on Beaver Island is a natural wonder for scientists and artists alike. Get a glimpse of some of the fascinating work happening in this uniquely Michigan setting.
20
Big Picture
As a first-generation college student, Neil MacKinnon attended universities in both Canada and the United States. Now, he’s fully immersed as Central Michigan University’s 16th president.
50 Years of Special Olympics
Fifty years ago, Central Michigan University played host to a global event that left a lasting mark on campus and in the community. It’s a tradition that continues to thrive a half-century later.
Executive Editor and Executive
Director of Alumni Relations
Marcie Otteman, ’87
Editor Betsy Miner-Swartz, ’86
Managing Editor
Robin Miner-Swartz
Creative Media Director
Amy White
Graphic Designer
Erin Rivard, ’07, MBA ’16
Photographer
Steve Jessmore, ’81
Adam Sparkes
Writers
Aya Ahmed
Eric Baerren, ’93
Kelly Belcher
Kevin Essebaggers, ’98, M.A. ’01
Jason Fielder
Terri Finch Hamilton, ’83
Jaime Griffis
Bryan Whitledge, M.A. ’19
Research Associate
Bryan Whitledge, M.A. ’19
Editorial Assistant
Alison Foster
Vice President for Advancement
Jennifer Cotter, ’01
Deputy Chief Marketing Officer for University Communications
Abby Dean
Executive Director for Strategic Communications
Ari Harris
For advertising information
Call Cindy Jacobs, ’93 (800) 358-6903
Send change of address information to:
Alumni Relations
Carlin Alumni House
Central Michigan University Mount Pleasant, MI 48859
Phone: (800) 358-6903
Fax: (989) 774-7159
Email: alumni@cmich.edu
Web: alumni.cmich.edu
How do you stay Fired Up?
alma mater
Marcie Otteman, ’87, Executive Director of Alumni Relations
I am asked all the time: “How can I stay in the loop with what’s happening at CMU?” The good news is it’s easy (and fun!) to stay connected with your alma mater.
First things first — make sure we have your current contact info. It sounds simple, but it’s one of the biggest reasons alumni miss out on event invites, updates and news. If you’ve recently moved or changed your email, let us know so we can keep you in the maroonand-gold loop.
Next, give us a follow on social media. We share tons of great photos, campus happenings, alumni spotlights and event details. It’s a quick and easy way to feel that Fired Up spirit — no matter where you are.
Another great way to stay in touch? Subscribe to the Our CMU newsletter. It lands in inboxes every Wednesday with highlights from across campus — stories, events, even a few hidden gems you might not hear about otherwise. Faculty and staff get it automatically, but anyone can sign up. Just head to the CMU news page, scroll down to “Stay Connected,” and click on the Our CMU link. Boom — weekly CMU updates at your fingertips.
And speaking of being Fired Up … have you noticed a little surprise on your windshield recently? Our Fired Up squishies are popping up on cars with CMU plates all over the place. It’s our playful way of spreading some Central love. If you’ve been “hit” by the flame, let us know — we love seeing where the Fired Up spirit ends up!
Finally, if your summer travels bring you through Mount Pleasant, I hope you’ll swing by the Carlin Alumni House. We’d love to say hi, hear your story, and send you off with a little CMU swag. Got kids with you? We’ve got some goodies to keep them smiling too.
However you stay connected, just know this: once a CMU Chippewa, always a CMU Chippewa. We can’t wait to see you, hear from you and cheer you on — wherever you are.
Forever maroon and gold,
Stay FIRED UP
Connect with CMU alumni at upcoming Alumni Association events across the country! Find the complete schedule of in-person and virtual opportunities here: go.cmualum.com/alumni-events
Get SOCIAL
Follow our activities and updates on your favorite social channels:
CMU Alumni shape the future through their work and service
Our graduates are turning their education into action
Central Michigan University’s mission statement tells the world we measure our success by the success of our students and the impact of our alumni on communities. While some may see graduation as the end of their time as a student, for many it is the beginning of their impact as CMU alumni.
At CMU, we are proud of the way our alumni demonstrate our core values of integrity, compassion and innovation in the world. Whether you’re launching a business, teaching in a classroom, working in a lab or leading a nonprofit, your contributions matter.
Making a difference often starts with small, meaningful actions. It can happen through mentoring a young professional, advocating for a cause, or using your skills to lead change. Many of you are shaping industries and communities in remarkable ways, and I am inspired by the stories of alumni who turn their CMU education and experiences into action.
If you’re looking for ways to deepen your engagement, reconnect with your alma mater. Our alumni network is a powerful force, offering mentorship opportunities and professional connections that benefit our entire university community. By staying involved, you not only enrich your own journey but also inspire the next generation of CMU graduates.
The world needs leaders, problem solvers and compassionate changemakers. These are the qualities that CMU alumni exemplify. Keep making a positive difference every day — knowing that as you do, you’re helping CMU meet its mission.
Thank you, and Fire Up Chips!
Neil MacKinnon, Ph.D. President, Central Michigan University
President Neil MacKinnon, Ph.D.
CMU TODAY
Doctor’s gift advances
CMU medical research
Generous donation supports College of Medicine students, faculty
Dr. Marilyn Haupt wanted to be a scientist from a young age. And when she decided to dedicate her life to medicine, her passion for science followed her.
Haupt spent 45 years as an intensive care physician and educator, including nearly a decade with the CMU College of Medicine. She also conducted research throughout her career, seeking answers to some of the most difficult questions related to fluid resuscitation, sepsis and acute lung injuries in critically ill patients. The physician and professor recently retired and has made a $2 million donation to the CMU College of Medicine. This legacy gift establishes the Marilyn T. Haupt Chair in Medical Research and the Marilyn T. Haupt College of Medicine Student Research Endowment, supporting student and faculty research into etiologies of diseases and a vast range of scientific endeavors.
Not all future physicians are interested in
direct involvement in research, but Haupt’s gift will find and inspire those who are.
“I’d like my gift to seek out those unusual students, perhaps it’s one or two per class, who want to be physician scientists,” she said. “These students have a spark for incorporating research into their practices and careers, and we must train them in the skills they need to do quality research.”
Dr. Sethu Reddy, CMU’s senior associate dean of research, a national expert in diabetes research, assumes the Marilyn T. Haupt Chair in Medical Research position. This is the first endowed chair in the college.
Haupt said her investment in the CMU College of Medicine combines her values
CMU Online announces new partnership with DTE Energy
BY JAIME GRIFFIS
Central Michigan University Online is proud to announce a new partnership with DTE Energy, providing a 10% tuition discount to DTE Energy employees, their spouses and dependents under age 24. This collaboration expands educational opportunities for nearly 10,000 employees and their families, making it easier to pursue career advancement through flexible, high-quality online programs.
“At CMU, we are committed to supporting Michigan’s workforce by providing accessible and affordable education,” said Rob VanDorin, executive director of business and community outreach. “Through this partnership with DTE Energy, we are helping employees and their families gain the skills and knowledge they need to grow professionally and achieve their goals.”
CMU Online offers a variety of undergraduate and graduate programs designed for working professionals. With flexible online learning and experienced faculty, students can balance their
with the opportunity to continue to inspire tangible results.
“We need to look for better ways to care for people with the modern medical issues we’re experiencing,” Haupt said. “I could have given to a larger research institution, but at CMU, I know the people. And they’ve encouraged me to stay involved. Continuing to interact with faculty and students sold me on the contribution and reflects the work I’ve pursued throughout my career.”
Haupt earned her medical degree from Cornell University Medical College in New York and trained in internal medicine and critical care at North Shore University Hospital, Memorial-Sloan Kettering Institute and Albany Medical College. Prior to becoming a founding faculty member of the CMU College of Medicine in 2011, she worked at the Wayne State University School of Medicine, Oregon Health and Science University, and Geisinger Health System.
She also established the Dr. Marilyn Haupt Endowed Scholarship in 2017, awarded to qualifying students who reside in central or northern Michigan. Haupt remains an instructor and student advisor for the College of Medicine. •
education with their careers and personal commitments.
For more details on this partnership and how to apply, visit online.cmich.edu/ DTEEnergy •
CMU President Neil MacKinnon meets with Dr. Haupt to recognize her gift to the College of Medicine.
CMU TODAY
Retired faculty create university’s first nursing scholarship
Endowment honors faculty member who worked to develop nursing education in 1980s
Central Michigan University was at the heart of Sydney and Mary Walston’s lives, and they, in turn, helped shape the university — including the new Bachelor of Science in Nursing.
The Walstons were warm and kind faculty and leaders, steadfast CMU champions, and a force behind ideas for how the university could serve students and the state.
Mary taught courses such as women’s health, gerontology and cadaver anatomy. In the 1980s, she also started the development of a CMU bachelor’s degree in nursing, driven as a nurse herself to address the need for skilled graduates.
After the BSN effort stalled, she helped develop Central’s highly regarded physician assistant program.
From 1971 through 2001, Syd taught health sciences courses and served as department chair. He is described as a diplomat who pushed students and faculty to be better, and his strong relationship with then-President Leonard Plachta helped make progress happen.
Memorializing leadership
After Mary died in June 2023 at age 83, Syd began efforts to create the Mary Walston BSN Scholarship. It is the first scholarship for students in CMU’s long-awaited, on-campus nursing program, which launches this fall.
“Syd wanted to be a trailblazer for the nursing program, memorializing Mary’s
leadership,” said Jennifer Cotter, CMU vice president for advancement.
“He and Mary had profound impact on Central Michigan University, its students and faculty. They always worked hard to give students the support and experiences they needed to excel.”
Syd died on Jan. 24, at age 84, before meeting the scholarship’s first recipient.
The couple also started a financial award in 2000 supporting CMU juniors or seniors majoring in school health education or public health education, or students in the Master of Public Health program. The award funds attendance and participation in professional conferences.
The Walstons, who were married 63 years, gave $160,000 for the two endowments, which will support CMU students in perpetuity.
‘A beacon of inspiration’
Greg Zimmerman, interim dean of The Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow College of Health Professions, was among the Walstons’ thousands of students.
“More than 40 years ago, I sat in Syd’s classroom. He was a beacon of inspiration — a catalyst for so many of us to dream beyond our current aspirations,” Zimmerman said.
“Mary and Syd’s legacy will be intertwined forever with the heart of this university.”
The BSN program will begin with 30 students this fall and admit 30 each semester for the first two years, increasing to up to 45 students per semester thereafter. Nursing students will be immersed in high-tech lab simulation experiences, use of AI for medical care and real-life, community-based clinicals. •
New program benefits industry partners and CMU students
Metro Detroit’s SAPA Transmission gains pipeline to future employees; students gain real-world experiences
A partnership between CMU and metro Detroit’s SAPA Transmission — a leader in advanced transmission technology solutions for military vehicles — shows the power of collaboration between business and higher education.
This partnership with the university’s School of Engineering and Technology — the first through CMU’s new Industrial Affiliate Program — gives SAPA access to future engineering professionals and will help keep talented individuals in Michigan.
At the same time, it allows CMU students to engage in joint research projects with the SAPA team, helping find solutions to real-world challenges.
“Engineering is a major part of our industry, and we wanted to find a way to capitalize on CMU’s expertise while also creating a pipeline for new employees,” said Ryan Howell, SAPA’s vice president for government affairs and business development.
New major blends science, human decision-making
BY AYA AHMED
A new interdisciplinary major designed to help CMU meet anticipated demand by today’s high school students looking for careers related to sustainability will launch this fall.
The sustainability, environment and society major challenges students to look at science through the lens of human decision-making, said Matthew Liesch, chair of the Department of Geography and Environmental Studies.
“We have to understand how humans make decisions,” Liesch said. Courses will integrate natural and social sciences to help answer key questions society will face in the 21st century.
Students who enroll in the program will develop problem-solving skills applicable
“This partnership with CMU provides a way for us to give back to the community and to keep talent in Michigan, specifically in the Detroit area,” he said.
CMU’s Industrial Affiliate Program engages partners with academic programs and students, offering tailored options to advance their companies, recruit talent and invest in the future of their industries. CMU students will gain scholarships, professional experiences and problem-solving skills through projects and research.
“Central Michigan University has a long history of mutually beneficial partnerships with corporations and businesses,” President Neil MacKinnon said. “More than ever, businesses need students, graduates and faculty researchers with deep knowledge, the ability to identify and implement solutions, and a style that balances collaboration, action and leadership. That’s exactly who we are at CMU.”
to business operations and decisionmaking in a time of environmental change, he said.
The exploration of intersections between science, management and policy can open a variety of career paths, including sustainability compliance for automakers, land conversation and environmental data analysis.
The major represents an evolution of the environmental studies major, which CMU has offered since the 1970s.
Dana Gingrich Doman, CMU director of corporate and foundation relations, said the Industrial Affiliate Program provides an exciting platform for companies to invest in their businesses and communities. They’ll also foster a culture of philanthropy across their organizations and have life-changing impact on students.
Doman said CMU leaders look forward to learning from the SAPA partnership and expanding the Industrial Affiliate Program to other businesses and corporations in collaboration with academic areas across the university. •
The existing environmental studies program already provides a firsthand look at this through internships with area governments such as the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe and the cities of Mount Pleasant and Midland.
Liesch said he expects those to continue.
“We’ve had internships at local and regional agencies for societally important tasks like energy efficiency and adapting the Mount Pleasant residents’ perception of climate change risk,” he said.
These projects and internships are key because students can see decision making firsthand, he said. They get to watch decision makers weigh competing needs, including what science and stakeholders tell them.
Freshmen can enroll in the sustainability, environment and society major in the fall. •
EVERYTHING AND MORE
you think it should be, It’s
CMU Biological Station on
Beaver Island is a natural wonder for scientists and artists alike
BY TERRI FINCH HAMILTON, ’83
When you hop off the ferry at Beaver Island, you might be excited to hit the pristine beach or grab a tasty ice cream cone at the legendary Daddy Franks, but Kevin Pangle beckons you to one of his favorite spots — a bog.
“You’re walking on a big mass of moss that literally bounces,” said Pangle, longtime CMU biology professor.
“It’s like a big sponge. There’s life out there that you don’t see outside the bog, like sundews, these tiny insectivorous plants. If you’re not looking hard, you won’t see them.”
You’ll need to kneel down on this squishy mass of ancient plant life, he said, nose to bog.
If this sounds like a guy who should run the CMU Biological Station on Beaver Island, you’re right. Pangle took over as director in September, after spending 12 summers teaching science classes on the island, leading excited, wader-clad students into the marshes, lake and streams.
Pangle loves the bogs, birds and beaches here so much, he brought his whole family, including wife Wiline Pangle, a longtime CMU biology professor who has taught animal behavior and field ecology on the island for years.
The Pangles’ summer family adventures on the island started when their daughters, Solène, 13, and Anaïs, 16, were just 1 and 4.
“They’ve grown up there,” Kevin said. “It’s their favorite place in the world. Our daughters were pressing plants with a botanist at 5 years old and learning the names of plants along the trails. They’re out in creeks collecting insects and amphibians.
What is this wondrous place?
This kind of gleeful exploration has been happening here since 1960, when CMU opened the field station on land the university purchased on Beaver Island, in northern Lake Michigan, 22 miles northwest of Charlevoix.
There’s a lodge with a dining hall where students and faculty share meals and conversation; student dormitories and faculty housing; a classroom building with an auditorium and library; research labs; and a campground.
Students with waders and nets have been studying freshwater biology and Michigan amphibians here for decades and doing rich research for graduate science degrees. It’s a biological station, after all, nestled on a 58-square mile island packed with science-y potential.
“For an ecologist, the island is an absolute paradise,” Wiline said. “You spend mornings in the classroom teaching theory, then you step outside and see it.
“They don’t have a fear of snakes, that’s for sure,” he said, laughing. “They’ve been handling them since they were little.
“It’s a nurturing place for a family,” Kevin said. “Every day is an exploration.”
“It’s everything you think it should be, and more.”
There’s so much more than science
The same bountiful nature that makes Beaver Island such a paradise for science
Anaïs (from left), Kevin and Solène Pangle do some exploring on Beaver Island during an early summer on the island.
Wiline (from left), Anaïs, Solène and Kevin Pangle live on Beaver Island every May through August.
lovers inspires writers, artists, poets, musicians and photographers, too.
Science guy Kevin is all about it.
“The island is such an amazing resource, I’m looking for opportunities to get more students outside of biology to come up here,” he said. “It’s so unique. It’s an experience we can offer students that other universities can’t.”
He tells of an evening last summer when poetry and art students gathered to present their nature-inspired work. He listened to a poetry student named Janessa read about Pitcher’s thistle, a native beach plant he knows well.
She spoke of its “short life in shifting sands,” its velvety leaves low to the ground. It can only live by dying, shedding its seeds so more can grow.
“You surge forward,” she wrote, “only to die.”
Kevin was captivated.
“She looked at it in a different way than we’d look at it in my ecology class,” Kevin said. “It showed the importance of bringing science and art together. I was learning, for sure. This learning and sharing atmosphere is the key to the station, I think.”
There are honors classes, too, including Community Service on Beaver Island, where students tackle home and yard maintenance for elderly and disabled island residents, clean up beaches and trails, and mentor students from the island’s K-12 school.
This class meets another of Kevin’s goals — more interaction with the close-knit Beaver Island community.
“They’re wonderful, and very supportive,” he said. “I want to grow our relationship and collaboration. It’s a subculture of Michigan most people aren’t aware of — a small community that supports and relies on each other to get things done.”
An astrophysics workshop this summer is set for a portion of Beaver Island designated as an International Dark Sky Sanctuary.
“Seeing the Milky Way spread across the sky is not anything most students have seen in their lives,” Kevin said. “Having those quiet moments is just amazing.”
Kevin Pangle directs the CMU Biological Station on Beaver Island. It offers a unique opportunity for students immerse themselves in hands-on, field-based learning.
Last August, everyone watched, spellbound, as the Perseid meteor shower rocketed through the northern lights.
The scientists as Mom and Dad
Kevin and Wiline are both impressive scientists with Ph.Ds. Wiline researched spotted hyenas in Kenya. Kevin is an expert in Great Lakes ecology and fisheries with close to 100 research papers bearing his name.
But when they teach on Beaver Island, they’re also in full view as a mom and dad, and they love that.
The Pangles live in the faculty housing every May through August, right on the beach. They share meals with a fascinating mix of students, writers, ecologists, artists and sociologists as faculty rotate throughout the summer. Their daughters often tag along on student expeditions during the day and watch movies or play chess with students at night.
“We love being a family up there,” said Wiline, director of CMU’s InSciTE program that teaches students skills for careers in science, technology, engineering and math.
“The students see us as teachers and researchers but also as parents,” she said. “They see us have bad days and good days. They’ve seen us running around after children looking for their shoes. They see how we navigate that space as scientists and parents. It kind of demystifies us. I love that.
“Students who had a harder time fitting in played hide-and-seek with our daughters and that’s how they fit in,” Wiline said.
“I have picture after picture of students holding our daughters when they were young.”
Shannon McWaters, ’16, is one of them. She was a biology major when she took Wiline’s animal behavior class in the summer of 2015.
“I wasn’t that great of a student,” McWaters said. “I didn’t take school too seriously.”
Then she studied rabbit behavior on Beaver Island, sitting quietly in the woods for hours as families of raccoons scampered past. She connected with classmates and faculty in a way she hadn’t before.
“I became in love with research,” McWaters said. “I got invigorated.”
Now she’s close to completing her doctorate degree in ecology and evolutionary biology in a prestigious program at the University of Arizona.
“If I hadn’t taken that Beaver Island course I don’t know where I’d be,” McWaters said. “I definitely wouldn’t be a Ph.D. student.”
Wiline saw potential in McWaters that she didn’t see in herself during extraordinary time immersed in nature.
“You can watch students grow in front of your eyes,” Wiline said.
Meanwhile, Solène and Anaïs get to see their parents as teachers, researchers and scientists.
“It’s priceless,” Wiline said.
Anaïs wrote about her Beaver Island life recently, an essay packed with passion.
“When an entomology class arrives, I help collect bugs,” she wrote. “When the botanists come, I press plants. I wade in the streams with nets during my dad’s stream ecology class and wake up at two in the morning to join the astronomers. I read poems with the English professors
and use metal detectors to scan the beach with archaeologists.”
She’s who she is, in part, because of her summers on Beaver Island, Anaïs wrote, viewing the world “with wonder, curiosity and hope.”
“We got choked up when we read it,” Wiline said.
Cell service is spotty on the island. Nature is available 24/7.
“I see students arriving to the station suddenly not having to juggle 10 different things all at once,” Kevin said. “You’re immersed in nature, and you can focus with no distractions.”
Then what happens?
“Joy.”
The CMU Biological Station on Beaver Island offers an array of summer classes.
The sweet smell of support
When Dina Richard talks about her drifts of fragrant lavender waving in the Northern Michigan breeze, you can almost hear the bees buzzing.
“In the height of bloom there are about 20 big bumblebees on every plant,” said Richard, a member of CMU’s Advancement Board. “It’s really something.”
In a field of 1,000 lavender plants overlooking Grand Traverse Bay, that’s a lot of buzzing.
Dina and her husband, Bob Richard, senior vice president at DTE Energy, turn the lavender from their Mission View Farms into lotion, soap and candles and sell it. The profits go to a scholarship they started for CMU students to study at the CMU Biological Station on Beaver Island.
The couple’s love for CMU started with their daughter, Kayla McClung, ’16. A kinesiology major, she now works as a physician assistant.
As nature lovers, they’re passionate about preserving Michigan’s Great Lakes, helping the environment and encouraging careers in science.
“This project combines all those interests,” said Dina, senior vice president of treasury and chief investment officer at Trinity Health.
The Joanisse-Richard Endowed Scholarship for Study on Beaver Island — named for Dina’s and Bob’s fathers — is awarded to students who plan a career that benefits and protects the Great Lakes.
The couple makes all the products
themselves, from distilling the lavender into oil to pouring the wax for the candles. They craft candles, soap, lotion, sachets and purse-sized rollers that apply the stress-reducing lavender scent to your skin.
“You have to distill lavender to get the oil, and that’s right up Bob’s alley as a chemical engineer,” Dina said. “He’ll disappear for hours back in our outbuilding distilling lavender, keeping track of everything in a little notebook.
“He loves that, and I love gardening,” she said. “It’s nice for us as a couple. And when we sell our products, the money goes to our scholarship, to make it bigger.
“It helps make it possible for students who want to help our lakes to study on Beaver Island,” she continued. “So, the lavender is not only good for the land and good for the bees, it’s good for students. We’re really excited about it.”
Learn more about the products at www.missionviewfarms.com.
The
RT of the island
Humanities classes give students a new lens for discovery and expression
BY TERRI FINCH HAMILTON, ’83
Stop by the CMU Biological Station on Beaver Island and of course you’ll see plenty of science. Keep looking.
Poets write as waves lap at their toes. Photographers crouch beneath dewdappled spider webs. Artists create with gathered ferns and feathers.
“Everybody understands the value of bringing scientists to the island,” said CMU English Professor Robert Fanning, who teaches a poetry writing class there. “But there’s so much value in bringing the humanities there, too. When you look at the island through the scientific lens, the poetic lens and the artistic lens, it gives you a whole picture of the human soul.”
Come see for yourself. Wear comfortable shoes — we have a lot of ground to cover.
Feeling connected and curious
Art students marveled at monarch caterpillars growing fatter by the day, contemplated sunsets, and listened to waves lapping the shore. They turned berries into pigments and nature into art.
“Mostly we explored, honing our vision,” said Denise Whitebread Fanning, the CMU art professor who teaches a natureinspired art class on Beaver Island.
“What am I drawn to? What makes me feel something? Maybe it’s a reflection on the water, or bark or stones or the changing light.”
They carried small aluminum boxes packed with watercolor paints and brushes. When inspiration struck, they plopped down on the beach or in the woods, or at the edge of a spongy green bog, and painted.
Students worked together to create ephemeral art installations under the trees, using found sticks and feathers, animal bones and ferns.
“It’s kind of a dance,” Denise said, “where you’re creating things in a space that makes other people pay attention differently. How did this get here? Did an animal make it? Did a person make it?
“What we leave behind has the potential to illuminate somebody’s curiosity.”
Students transform here.
“It was beautiful to hear them come alive with what they noticed and how they saw things,” Denise said. “As they got to know each other, they’d pick up things for each
other, once they knew what they were drawn to.”
One artist loved fallen birch bark. Another collected animal bones for a mobile.
When grief struck the small group in the form of sad news from home, they stopped everything, spending a quiet day in the forest, crying, painting and crafting prayer vessels of twigs to set sail on a creek.
Nature heals.
“They kept talking about how this experience changed their whole perspective on nature,” Denise said. “Nature was just a thing they moved through to get to the next place. Now they feel connected and curious.
“It’s such a short amount of time to feel like you’ve done something transformational,” she said of the week-long class. “But it becomes transformational over time.”
One student, a ceramicist, found her artistic vision on the island, Denise said, and started embedding natural objects in her work.
“She said she felt like her work was coming from her heart now not just her brain,” she said.
“It changed the way they view the world. If that’s all that happens, that’s a victory.”
‘They were visibly transformed’
Poets see things in ways that awaken the rest of us.
The student poets on Beaver Island last summer wrote of “shattered crumbs of shells”; of night swimming, “suspended in cold black glass”; of the dying breath of a velvety-leaved beach plant; of star gazing “in the sash of the Milky Way.”
“Poetry is an art of attention,” Robert Fanning said. “You have to be present in the world.”
The handful of students who took his nature poetry class on Beaver Island last summer were present, gazing intently at beach grass, sitting quietly in a bog, experiencing shooting stars rocketing through the northern lights. Words tumbled out.
They started each morning with a meditation circle, then read dozens of poems about nature before heading out into it, pens poised.
Robert, a CMU professor of English, offered prompts to get them started. Write about something in nature that frightens you. Find an object in nature and write a poem thanking it. What would the lake say to you? Write about it.
“My goal is to get them to listen, pay attention, be calm,” he said. Back in Mount Pleasant, “we’re all picking up our phones
every 10 minutes and scrolling. We’re so fractured.”
Not here. As Maddy Welch wrote to the northern lights:
You offered me your auraed hand
In this painting you have built
No pressure or a certain way
No demands, no guilt
“You write where your imagination takes you,” Robert said. “You might be looking at a stone but end up writing about your grandfather’s knuckles.
“Students got personal, connecting to other memories,” he said. “One student found a ballad about a Michigan shipwreck, did research and wrote a really complex poem about a person who died.
“It wasn’t just a bunch of poems about trees.”
Everybody says time slows down on the island. But a week passes quickly.
“There was a big group hug at the boat,” Robert said. “They didn’t want it to end. Back on campus they were still sending each other pictures of insects and nature poems.
“It wasn’t just, ‘Oh, that was fun,’” he said. “They were visibly transformed. They were shaken to their core and made new.”
‘Inspired by everything we see’ Grab your camera. Now, point it just about anywhere.
Welcome to Steve Jessmore’s nature photography class on Beaver Island. Don’t blink.
“Anywhere you point your camera is fair game,” said Jessmore, ’81. “It’s like one big lab and you’re immersed in it 24/7.
“Every step is inspiring,” he said.
“Wherever you turn your head you see a different plant on a beach or in a bog — plants you’ve never seen before. You might see a beaver. You might see a coyote. You stop and take notice of tiny little things like spider webs and butterflies. No two days are the same, and every day you’re inspired by something different.”
He knows something about seeing nature through this lens. Jessmore’s bird photography has won top prizes in the National Audubon Photography Awards and has been featured in several nature magazines.
When he took this same Beaver Island class as a student more than 40 years ago, it was offered through the biology department. Now, it’s a journalism class, and Jessmore brings his decades of experience as an award-winning photojournalist.
He teaches nature photography as storytelling.
“There’s nothing wrong with just having a beautiful, creative photo,” he said.
“But it’s fun to get people thinking about what their photos say. When you share a
photo on social media, write a good caption to explain what’s going on, where you were.”
There’s a lot of talk about good light — that early morning and evening glow that transforms photos.
“You have to get up early if you want good photos,” Jessmore said. “The first morning only one person was out there at sunrise. By the last morning, everybody was.”
After quiet mornings in nature, they return to the classroom midday. Jessmore projects students’ photos on a big screen. What’s good? What could be better? They talk about their nature photography goals. He shares camera tips.
CMU students in Steve Jessmore’s nature photography class on Beaver Island aim their lenses at what inspires their curiosity.
“One student brought a microscope lens for his camera so he could take extremely close-up pictures,” Jessmore said. “He took a real close up of a spider that just blew me away.”
If you’ve never watched a spider on a dew-dappled web, glistening in the early morning light, you should.
“Sometimes I put my camera down and just appreciate something,” Jessmore said. “Yes, taking photos is a goal of the class but it’s also a goal of the class to be inspired. We’re inspired by everything we see.”
Students find their focus capturing nature in many forms on Beaver Island, photographing their surroundings from the early glow of sunrise through the waning light of the day.
PHOTO BY PHIL COX
PHOTO BY KENNEN WHITE
PHOTO BY STEVE JESSMORE/ STEVE
JESSMORE PHOTOGRAPHY
PHOTO BY STEVE JESSMORE/ STEVE JESSMORE
PHOTOGRAPHY
Commences
LEADERSHIP
Since stepping into his role as president last fall, Neil MacKinnon said he noticed a high level of pride and loyalty among alumni, faculty and staff, and found CMU students to be engaged, accomplished and motivated. He also has been impressed by how students and the entire community step up to help each other.
PHOTO CREDIT: JO KENOSHMEG
Celebrating 50 YEARS:
CMU’s history with the International Special Olympics Games
BY BRYAN WHITLEDGE, M.A. ’19
Fifty years ago, Central Michigan University played host to a global event that left a lasting mark on campus and in the community. From Aug. 7-11, 1975, more than 3,000 athletes from across the United States and several other countries came to Mount Pleasant for the fourth International Special Olympics Summer Games. They stayed in CMU residence halls, competed in newly built facilities like Perry Shorts Stadium and the Rose/Ryan Center, and were cheered on by national media, dignitaries and local volunteers.
Just three years earlier, CMU became the headquarters of Special Olympics Michigan. In 1973, the university hosted its first State Summer Games — an event so successful it inspired CMU to bid for the 1975 International Games. With the enthusiastic support of Eunice Kennedy Shriver and the Special Olympics organization, CMU was awarded the honor in 1974. A letter from Shriver to then-President William Boyd expressed confidence that CMU would deliver “the biggest and finest Special Olympic Games yet staged.”
Planning spanned months and included help from 750 volunteers — students, faculty, staff and local residents. The campus buzzed with anticipation as the city and university prepared to welcome athletes, celebrities and media outlets like ABC’s “Wide World of Sports,” which covered the event.
The 1975 Games were a major success and helped solidify CMU’s role as a longtime partner of Special Olympics Michigan. Today, CMU continues to host the State Summer Games annually, carrying on a tradition of inclusion, pride and community.
Archival materials at the Clarke Historical Library preserve this legacy, honoring the athletes, families and volunteers who made those unforgettable days in 1975 possible — and who helped shape a tradition that continues to thrive 50 years later.
Let us carry this LIGHT FORWARD
MacKinnon focuses on innovation to fuel success
BY KEVIN ESSEBAGGERS, ’98, M.A. ’01
The Central Michigan University Board of Trustees officially bestowed the responsibilities of university president upon Neil MacKinnon during the investiture ceremony on April 4. The ceremony is a university tradition typically held during the first year of a president’s service and includes an opportunity for the new leader to share a vision for the institution’s future.
Faculty and delegates in their formal academic regalia joined students, staff, alumni and guests from around the U.S. and Canada for the ceremony in Warriner Hall’s Plachta Auditorium.
The event officially invested MacKinnon with the authority to lead the university as its 16th president.
The Board of Trustees unanimously appointed MacKinnon president in September 2024, and he began serving as the university’s top administrator on Nov. 1, 2024.
The CMU Graduate String Quartet provided a prelude concert, followed by a processional led by honorary grand marshal Carl Lee, faculty member from the College of Business Administration.
CMU Board of Trustees Chair Todd Regis presided over the investiture ceremony, welcoming all attendees to the celebration. He said MacKinnon is the right person to lead CMU, saying the president has proven it repeatedly since taking office.
“In the first six months of his presidency, Dr. MacKinnon has shown himself to be a person of great integrity, strong faith and courage in his convictions,” Regis said.
“We look forward to continuing to work with you and watching, together, as Central Michigan University achieves new levels of excellence.”
Regis also unveiled the official Central Michigan University tartan, which he said has been registered with the official Scottish Register of Tartans and will be a new way to share pride in the university.
Regis was joined by Vice Chairs Regine Beauboeuf and Denise Williams Mallett as he formally installed MacKinnon as president and presented the President’s
Medallion and Chain of Office. Also present for the investiture to office were Trustees Sharon Heath and Jeff Stoutenburg.
“Dr. MacKinnon, you were unanimously selected by the Central Michigan University Board of Trustees to serve as the sixteenth president of this great institution,” Regis said. “We are confident that, under your leadership, Central Michigan University will continue to grow in reach and reputation, contributing to the health, wealth and wellbeing of the state of Michigan and its citizens, and to the world at large.”
‘A source of light in the world’
In his investiture address, MacKinnon described the transformative power of
higher education and the ways he hopes CMU will harness that power to help students succeed and impact the world.
“We don’t just prepare students for jobs. We prepare them for lives of purpose. We prepare them to lead. We prepare them to be a source of light in the world,” MacKinnon said.
MacKinnon highlighted ways the university is already building momentum to achieve the priorities of CMU’s 20232028 strategic plan. He pointed to the Go Grant program and the newly formed University Transformation Office as innovative initiatives with potential to help CMU realize its potential.
“We are innovating to build something
better at CMU — tangible changes for a bright future.”
MacKinnon asked those in attendance to imagine what the year 2028 will be like if CMU achieves its strategic plan. He described it as a time “where we are experiencing enrollment growth, and the number of students and alumni who are succeeding and improving their communities is growing as well.”
Concluding his address, MacKinnon asked the audience to raise small, batterypowered candles to symbolize the power of higher education and CMU’s mission.
“Let us carry this light forward — not just for ourselves, but for the communities and the world we serve.”
ALUMNI NEWS
Central Michigan University Alumni Association Board of Directors
President
Erica (Lagos) Romac, ’13, Carmel, Indiana
Vice president
Jonathan Eadie, ’93, Grosse Pointe Park, Michigan
Past president
Scott Nadeau, ’89, Dexter, Michigan
Directors
Brooke Adams, ’11, Detroit, Michigan
Kevin Bautista-Mancilla, ’22, Ferndale, Michigan
Lester Booker Jr., ’08, MSA ’10, Canton, Michigan
Lisa (Laitinen) Bottomley, ’97, Kentwood, Michigan
Chris Cantrell, ’99, Mount Pleasant, Michigan
Catherine (Bomber) Claes, ’90, Gladstone, Michigan
Melissa DeJesus, ’01, M.A. ’09, Dexter, Michigan
Elizabeth Dilg, ’22, Mount Pleasant, Michigan
Megan Doyle, ’03, Chicago, Illinois
Norma Eppinger, ’91, Lansing, Michigan
Matthew Franklin, ’04, Grand Blanc, Michigan
Griffith Gatewood, ’14, Grand Rapids, Michigan
Chris Gautz, ’04, Adrian, Michigan
Jonathan Glenn, ’06, M.A. ’11, Alma, Michigan
Spencer Haworth, ’12, MPA ’22
Kalamazoo, Michigan
Sean Hickey, ’88, M.A. ’90, Traverse City, Michigan
LaMarcus Howard, ’09, M.A. ’12, Flint, Michigan
Bret Hyble, ’82, M.A. ’86, Mount Pleasant, Michigan
J.J. Lewis, ’06, Howell, Michigan
Jennifer Peacock, ’18, Ann Arbor, Michigan
Karenia Randle, ’08, MSA ’13, Lansing, Michigan
Kandra (Kerridge) Robbins, ’90, Jena, Louisiana
Abby M. (Hagland) Watteny, ’02, Berkley, Michigan
For a full listing including emeritus board members please see go.cmualum.com/ alumni-board
Central Michigan University Board of Trustees
Regine Beauboeuf Sharon Heath, ’96
Ashok Kondur Denise Williams Mallett
Edward J. Plawecki Jr., ’75 Jeff Stoutenburg
Todd Regis
For a full listing of Board of Trustees meeting schedules please see https://www.cmich.edu/bot/Pages/default.aspx
New Smithsonian exhibit puts CMU’s logo on display
Laptop used in criminal investigations decorated with Action C sticker
BY ERIC BAERREN, ’93
An exhibit featuring a laptop adorned with Central Michigan University’s logo was unveiled in January at the Smithsonian Institute’s National Museum of American History. It will be on display there for at least a decade.
The laptop’s CMU connection began one fateful Thursday night at a coed accounting fraternity event.
That evening, an FBI special agent pitched government work to Alpha Psi. In attendance was Chris Janczewski, who picked accounting as his major because he said it was a readily employable degree.
Janczewski, ’06, said he was intrigued by the idea and set his sights on a career catching criminals. After graduation, he worked for the IRS as a tax auditor but moved to criminal investigations to become a special agent after a few years.
High-profile undercover work
The laptop with CMU’s Action C signature mark over the C key was instrumental to his work, particularly a Bitcoin theft case that became the focus of a Netflix
documentary called “Biggest Heist Ever.”
The exhibit is about the history of money, and Janczewski’s IRS-issued laptop was incorporated to demonstrate how money evolved from tablets and giant, stationary stone wheels to digital currency.
Normally, the IRS wouldn’t let someone decorate one of its laptops, he said. However, since the laptop was used for undercover work, the agency was more relaxed about enforcing those rules.
The IRS Criminal Investigations Division focuses on the money side of crime, Janczewski said. He often worked as part of a team of investigators from other agencies like the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security. They’d build a criminal case doing what he was trained to do on day one.
“Follow the money,” he said he was told.
Award-winning work
He followed the money on a case that helped him bring down the dark net’s largest child trafficking ring, operated by someone living in South Korea, he said. The takedown led to the rescue of 25 children and more than 340 arrests around the world.
The case was featured in the best-selling book “Tracers in the Dark.” For his contributions, the Secretary of the
Treasury awarded Janczewski the Meritorious Service Award in 2019.
He also helped break up terrorist financing rings linked to Hamas, ISIS and Al-Qaeda. And he investigated multi-hundred-million-dollar thefts by North Korean spies.
A letter-perfect job
After he helped start the IRS-CI cybercrimes unit in 2015, Janczewski began working on cases involving cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin.
A year later, a married couple began swiping Bitcoins off a virtual exchange in Hong Kong. By the time Janczewski helped bust them in 2022, the value of the stolen cryptocurrency went from $71 million to $3.6 billion.
He’d also since decorated the C key of his laptop with a sticker of CMU’s Action C, which his wife first saw as part of a Facebook alumni group and purchased as a Christmas gift from an Etsy vendor.
The sticker highlights the influence his time at CMU had on his law enforcement career.
“Going to Central Michigan was a pivotal point in my life,” he said. “IRS-CI took it to another level. I love how this laptop was able to help bring my career as a special agent full-circle with my time at CMU.” •
ALUMNI NEWS
College of Medicine Class of 2025 achieves 100% residency match rate
Future physicians from CMU take the next step in their medical education
BY KELLY BELCHER
This spring the CMU College of Medicine Class of 2025 gathered to celebrate Match Day with their families, friends, faculty and staff at Dow Diamond in Midland.
Match Day is a momentous occasion in a medical student’s career. It’s the day they find out where they will begin their residency program, which is the next step in their medical training. During their residencies, the learners will pursue specialty choices and begin more independent patient care.
For the second year in a row, the graduating class achieved an outstanding 100% match. All 97 students successfully matched with health care systems around the country. In keeping with the college’s mission, just over 50% of the class will remain in Michigan for their residency training, and 74% of students are pursuing primary care specialties.
“I couldn’t be prouder of our students and our program. We have a dedicated faculty who provide our learners with a comprehensive education,” said George E. Kikano, M.D., dean of the college and executive vice president of health affairs for CMU. “This class has shown true devotion to medicine, embracing both the scientific and human elements that are so important for quality care. I have no doubt they will continue to grow as doctors and become strong advocates for their patients and the communities in which they serve.”
When the students simultaneously opened their envelopes, there were shouts and cheers of excitement. For
every student, it was a moment of utmost accomplishment and marked the achievement of a long-held goal.
From teacher to pediatrics
For Ian Kuo, that goal became clear while he was teaching in Chicago. He had considered medical school while he was an undergraduate but at 22 years old, that didn’t seem like the right path, so he decided to enter the education field. He loved his work as a teacher but felt like something was missing.
After connecting with friends who were in medical school and taking the opportunity to do some shadowing, Kuo made the switch from teacher to medical student. With his background in teaching, Ian decided to pursue a career in pediatrics. He matched in the pediatric residency program at the University of Chicago.
Kuo shared this advice for other medical students: “Make the most of the opportunities you have, even if it’s hard,
because you don’t know if you will have the chance to do it again.”
Landon Saipale was working in the financial industry in Arizona and became friends with Justin Field, an orthopedic surgeon in the area. The two played a lot of tennis together and developed a mentor/mentee relationship. Through this connection, Saipale recognized that a different career path could provide more fulfillment. Saipale spent a week shadowing Field in a clinic and found his love for medicine. Saipale matched in the psychiatry residency program and Prisma Health University of South Carolina Greenville/Greer.
To current or aspiring medical students he said, “The journey is long and challenging and tiring. Don’t lose sight of why you’re doing this. It’s going to be hard, no matter what. Find a way to get back to the original motivation, that feeling of joy it can bring you, it’ll make the years more manageable.” •
Ian Kuo proudly displays the results of his match.
Alumnus caps legendary sports camera operator career
Cornelli made final mark at Super Bowl LIX
BY JASON FIELDER
At sporting events, camera operators are typically anonymous, their names never mentioned despite capturing the moments fans cherish. But Don Cornelli, ’85, a recently retired professional sports cameraman and CMU alumnus, is an exception.
From filming student productions in Moore Hall to his recognition in a national hall of fame and on live television, Cornelli has had a legendary career.
Even if you don’t recall his name, you might remember the unprecedented moment when he was honored on live TV with most of America watching.
During the fourth quarter of Super Bowl LIX, before the Philadelphia Eagles defeated the Kansas City Chiefs 40-22, FOX play-by-play broadcaster Kevin Burkhardt took a moment to acknowledge Cornelli’s work. The broadcast cut to a shot of Cornelli on the sideline, camera on his shoulder, as Burkhardt told nearly 183 million viewers:
“That’s a Hall of Famer right there, the great Don Cornelli, who got started in ’87
with CBS. He’s done as many big games as anyone. The greatest handheld camera person in the history of what we do … retiring after today. Nobody better, and there might not ever be anyone better.”
Within minutes, Cornelli’s phone was flooded with messages from friends, family and colleagues. The man who spent decades behind the lens was suddenly in the spotlight, recognized for his unparalleled career.
sporting events in the world.
“I was shocked,” Cornelli said. “The main show producer made the decision to do that, and I can’t thank him enough. I had numerous people text me saying they’ve been in the business 35, 40 years and have never seen a camera person get that kind of recognition during a Super Bowl.”
Capturing unforgettable moments
Cornelli’s career spanned nearly four decades and covered the biggest
He shot over 20 Super Bowls, multiple Olympic games, NCAA tournaments, World Cups, Stanley Cup finals, NBA finals, PGA majors and the biggest automobile races.
Along the way, he captured some of sports’ most unforgettable moments, like Plaxico Burress’ game-winning touchdown catch in Super Bowl XLII, when the New York Giants upset the undefeated New England Patriots. Cornelli was inducted into the Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame in 2020. •
CMU alumnus named chief meteorologist at CBS News Detroit
Dearborn native lands dream job
BY JASON FIELDER
Growing up in metropolitan Detroit, Ahmad Bajjey was terrified of thunderstorms. A first grade teacher helped turn that fear into a passion. Soon after, he decided his dream job would be to become a chief meteorologist at a Detroit TV station.
Now, that dream is a reality. In January, CBS News Detroit named Bajjey, ’15, its chief meteorologist.
“I am honored to serve southeast Michigan and beyond,” Bajjey said. “Especially getting to cover the weather in my hometown of Dearborn.”
Bajjey’s TV career began in 2012 while he was a CMU student. He was hired by WEYI-TV in Flint when the station needed someone to fill in on weekends during a holiday break. What started as a part-time gig quickly turned into regular opportunities. Within a year, he landed a full-time position, balancing reporting on weekdays and forecasting the weather on weekends.
“I commuted to CMU from Flint on Tuesdays and Thursdays,” he said. “I loved the classes and the campus.”
A promotion to morning meteorologist soon followed. Then in 2015, Bajjey graduated from CMU’s College of Science and Engineering with a degree in
meteorology. Over the next six years at WEYI, Bajjey steadily climbed the ranks — first as an evening meteorologist, then as the station’s chief meteorologist.
In 2022, when CBS Detroit launched newscasts for the first time in almost three decades, Bajjey jumped at the opportunity to work in his hometown TV market. He was hired as an evening meteorologist and spent nearly three years in that role before earning the chief job.
“There are so many meteorologists from Central who have gone on to do great things, and it’s because we really did get an education that gave us a step up in our careers,” he said. “At CMU, you get the one-on-one instruction you need when you need it.” •
ALUMNI NEWS
Alumna named to prestigious Forbes 30 Under 30 list
Calls her time at CMU ‘life-changing’
BY JASON FIELDER
Kara Agby, ’18, has been honored by Forbes magazine as a “30 Under 30 2025: Sports” recipient. Among the honorees joining her are wellknown professional athletes Caitlin Clark, Jayson Tatum and Christian McCaffrey.
“It’s an unexpected honor of a lifetime, beyond anything I could ever comprehend,” Agby said.
Honors for CMU Chippewas
Mike Guswiler, ’89, was named Chief Executive of the Year by Sports ETA, the only trade association for the sports event and tourism industry. Guswiler is the president of the West Michigan Sports Commission. He is only the second person to receive this recognition and was selected from executives from 800 member organizations. The award honors professional excellence of its members who embody visionary leadership, exhibit an unwavering dedication and make an enduring impact on their organization, the Sports ETA, and in the sports events and tourism industry.
Tyler Conklin, ’17, has agreed to a one-year deal with the Los Angeles Chargers. The veteran tight end spent the past three seasons with the New York Jets, establishing himself as a reliable possession receiver. He had 170 receptions for 1,622 yards and seven touchdowns.
Agby, who is 29, works as a director of partnership development for the Golden State Warriors. According to Forbes, she “has been trusted with bringing some of the organization’s largest partnerships to life. Beyond her official duties, she is a leader in Golden State’s partner summit committee and serves as vice chair of Women of the Warriors, an employee resource group focused on gender equity.”
“I absolutely love what I do!” Agby said. “There is never a boring day working in sports and entertainment, and being surrounded by like-minded, competitive, and genuine people creates an exciting and supportive work environment.”
Agby, who holds a Bachelor of Applied Arts in integrative public relations, was
Kasee Stratton-Gadke, Psy.D. ’06, received the Trainers of School Psychologists’ Presidential Appreciation Award. As the executive director of the Mississippi Institute on Disabilities, Stratton-Gadke supervises the centers housed within the institute including the university’s T.K. Martin Center for Technology and Disability. She is also an associate professor of school psychology.
Rachel ReevesThelemaque, ’16, was named the new director of Ferris State University’s Student Success Hub in Flint. The hub is intended to help students earn their degree faster and more affordably through a partnership with Mott Community College. ReevesThelemaque specializes in student recruitment, enrollment growth, strategic planning and community engagement.
Carla Sineway, ’88, president of Saginaw Chippewa Tribal College, was named the 2024-25 Tribal College President Honoree of the Year by the American
hired by the Warriors in May 2021. She previously worked in partnership development with the Detroit Lions. She said her IPR degree gave her the tools to be successful in whatever career route she chose.
“I’m so grateful CMU helped me find my voice and passion. My time at CMU was life-changing,” she said.
“I know that sounds incredibly cheesy, but in my five years there, CMU created a safe space for me to discover myself, and as a result, I have approached life and my career with a different level of confidence and passion.” •
Indian College Fund. This prestigious award recognizes people who have made a significant and lasting impact on the tribal college movement. SCTC was chartered in 2000. Sineway was named president in 2024 and has built the institution from a staff of three to a team of 20 full-time and 30 part-time employees.
Karry Kiste-Toner, ’06, M.A. ‘11, was appointed the dean of student success at Delta College. She has nearly 14 years of experience in higher education, always with a focus on student success and well-being. Student success is something Kiste-Toner understands firsthand — she completed her bachelor’s and master’s degrees while raising two children under the age of 2.
Dion’trae Hayes, ’10, has been selected to serve as the next chief resilience officer for the City of Tulsa, Oklahoma. She will supervise the Department of Resilience and Equity and is responsible for leading citywide resilience strategies. She also serves on the Tulsa Area United Way’s 2025 Community Investment Panel.
In Memory
Jean (Rogers) Hansen, ’48, ’52, Austin, Texas, died Jan. 17, 2025, age 97
Lucille A. (Skutecki) Duch, ’49, Essexville, Mich. , died Oct. 9, 2024, age 97
Gilbert H. Erbisch, ’49, Saint Simons Island, Ga. , died Oct. 8, 2024, age 99
Myrtle Bosma, ’50, ’62, Brooksville, Fla. , died Dec. 16, 2024, age 98
Carl F. Brennan, ’50, Crossville, Tenn. , died Mar. 12, 2025, age 98
Alberta M. (Arquilla) Sabin, ’50, ’63 MA, Chelsea, Mich. , died Mar. 6, 2025, age 97
Alma K. (Puterbaugh) Schaefer, ’51, Midland, Mich. , died Jan. 30, 2025, age 95
Rita (Kaminski) Askler, ’52, Battle Creek, Mich. , died Feb. 16, 2025, age 93
Margaret H. (Abbott) Bilsky, ’52, Grand Rapids, Mich. , died Feb. 28, 2025, age 94
Joyce N. (Lattin) Nisbet, ’52, Ann Arbor, Mich. , died Oct. 13, 2024, age 92
Patricia M. (Tobin) Pioszak, ’52, St. Johns, Mich., died Jan. 29, 2025, age 94
Phyllis L. (Gordon) DeVoss, ’53, Grand Rapids, Mich. , died Oct. 28, 2024, age 92
Marilynn J. (McCartney) Gorham, ’53, Port Huron, Mich. , died Oct. 18, 2024, age 93
Chriseda (Spiris) Allen, ’54, Mount Pleasant, Mich. , died Oct. 15, 2024, age 92
Janice L. (Wilcox) Maier, ’54, McMillan, Mich. , died Nov. 16, 2024, age 91
Lawrence F. McConnell, ’54, ’62 MA, Portage, Mich. , died Dec. 21, 2024, age 92
Eugene L. Suprenant, ’54, Port Hope, Mich. , died Dec. 20, 2024, age 98
Mary A. Causley, ’55, Key West, Fla. , died Oct. 22, 2024, age 93
Charles B. Hurley, ’55, Cosby, Tenn. , died Mar. 25, 2025, age 91
Kenneth L. Simms, ’55, Ludington, Mich. , died Nov. 30, 2024, age 91
Lawrence A. Budreau, ’56, Anderson, S.C., died Nov. 4, 2024, age 89
Colleen A. (Boss) Cushway, ’56, Big Rapids, Mich. , died Feb. 14, 2025, age 91
Jean L. (Carroll) Gibbs, ’56, Flushing, Mich. , died Dec. 9, 2024, age 90
Jerome R. Krenselewski, ’56, Grand Rapids, Mich. , died Oct. 31, 2024, age 89
Ralph LaParl, ’56, Algonac, Mich. , died Nov. 26, 2024, age 91
Donque Ellis, ’57, Jackson, Mich. , died Feb. 1, 2025, age 91
Gerald A. Host, ’57, Franklin, Mich. , died Mar. 1, 2025, age 89
Nancy A. (Kiblinger) Roe, ’57, Garden City, Mich. , died Nov. 26, 2024, age 89
Thomas E. Stone, ’57, Muskegon, Mich. , died Jan. 16, 2025, age 89
Barbara A. (Buck) Budreau, ’58, Anderson, S.C., Feb. 13, 2025, age 90
Lorraine E. (Schwartzkopf) Figg, ’58, Gainesville, Fla. , died Mar. 8, 2025, age 90
Mary J. (Watterworth) Geerlings, ’58, Kalamazoo, Mich. , died Nov. 25, 2024, age 88
Barbara A. (Whitaker) Palin, ’58, Gaylord, Mich. , died Nov. 13, 2024, age 88
Richard A. Hunt, ’59, Montague, Mich. , died Oct. 10, 2024, age 87
Ronald J. Kowalkoski, ’59, Elizabethtown, Ky. , died Jan. 23, 2025, age 89
Judith E. (Davis) Kuhn, ’59, Auburn, Maine, died Jan. 4, 2025, age 86
Theodore E. Metiva, ’59, ’62 MA, Bridgeport, Mich. , died Dec. 23, 2024, age 87
Loretta M. (Hayward) Pankow, ’59, Granger, Ind. , died Oct. 29, 2024, age 99
Lennis E. Record, ’59, Gibsonia, Pa. , died Oct. 20, 2024, age 93
Kathryn L. Wiese, ’59, Saginaw, Mich. , died Mar. 1, 2025, age 87
Ronald C. Wilson, ’59, Kalkaska, Mich. , died Jan. 12, 2025, age 89
James L. Ferrier, ’60, ’65 MA, Dimondale, Mich. , died Jan. 16, 2025, age 86
Gordon H. Gilchrist, ’60, ’61 MA, Clare, Mich. , died Feb. 25, 2025, age 92
Kent L. Gray, ’60, ’62 MA, Traverse City, Mich. , died Feb. 16, 2025, age 87
Richard E. Laplaunt, ’60, ’70 MA, Petoskey, Mich. , died Nov. 5, 2024, age 93
Connie (Mason) Phelps, ’60, Clio, Mich. , died Jan. 4, 2025, age 86
Donald A. Snitgen, ’60, Columbia, S.C., died Nov. 4, 2024, age 88
Albert O. Starr, ’60, ’62 MA, Midland, Mich. , died Dec. 30, 2024, age 94
Kenneth A. Thomas, ’60, Bay City, Mich. , died Dec. 23, 2024, age 93
Marinus W. Verwey, ’60, Rosebush, Mich. , died Oct. 21, 2024, age 91
Thomas D. Burr, ’61, St. Johns, Mich., died Oct. 12, 2024, age 86
Helen N. (Noffze) Joerger, ’61, Oakland, Calif. , died Feb. 3, 2025, age 85
Elynor I. Kazuk, ’61, Saginaw, Mich. , died Feb. 10, 2025, age 84
Norma L. (Peschel) Kelly, ’61, Huntsville, Ala. , died Nov. 26, 2024, age 85
Margaret J. (Cathcart) Beck, ’62, Southfield, Mich. , died Mar. 3, 2025, age 87
Eugene J. Campbell, ’62, ’67 MA, Ludington, Mich. , died Feb. 5, 2025, age 86
Carolyn M. (Pappin) Johnson, ’62, Southbury, Conn. , died Jan. 15, 2025, age 84
Judith A. (Kapusto) Kreiner, ’62, Mount Pleasant, Mich. , died Oct. 13, 2024, age 87
Warren D. Phillips, ’62, Lady Lake, Fla. , died Mar. 23, 2025, age 88
Patricia J. Prybyski, ’62, Jackson, Mich. , died Mar. 21, 2025, age 84
David J. Wahr, ’62, Andover, Mass. , died Mar. 30, 2025, age 85
Linda L. (Allen) Weburg, ’62, Winter Haven, Fla. , died Mar. 3, 2025, age 82
Judith L. (Collin) Welsh, ’62, ’74 MA, Mount Pleasant, Mich. , died Jan. 3, 2025, age 86
Robert E. Anderson, ’63, Manistee, Mich. , died Mar. 24, 2025, age 90
Marietta A. (Turmell) Burt, ’63, Boyne City, Mich. , died Oct. 22, 2024, age 82
Beverly J. Detwiler, ’63, Sand Lake, Mich. , died Feb. 23, 2025, age 83
Harry J. Engels, ’63, ’68 MA, Cadillac, Mich. , died Dec. 11, 2024, age 84
Ruth A. (Tremblay) Hilton, ’63, Saginaw, Mich. , died Dec. 11, 2024, age 84
Barbara A. (Brennan) MacKo, ’63, Davison, Mich. , died Nov. 18, 2024, age 83
Margaret A. (Whalin) Punches, ’63, Onekama, Mich. , died Dec. 1, 2024, age 84
Virginia (Weller) Sieracki, ’63, Acworth, Ga. , died Oct. 18, 2024, age 82
Margaret B. Zakroff-Prescott, ’63, Denver, Colo. , died Feb. 2, 2025, age 83
Stanley H. Akey, ’64, Traverse City, Mich. , died Oct. 25, 2024, age 84
Peter B. Ellithorpe, ’64, ’70 MA, Cape Coral, Fla. , died Feb. 6, 2025, age 84
Benjamin J. Frost, ’64, Bay City, Mich. , died Dec. 30, 2024, age 82
Idajean (Barnes) Krantz, ’64, Mount Pleasant, Mich. , Dec. 20, 2024, age 88
John A. Schneider, ’64, ’66 MA, Bay City, Mich. , died Nov. 9, 2024, age 82
Jack D. Sowle, ’64, Boyne City, Mich. , died Jan. 1, 2025, age 87
Willard L. Wells, ’64, Pittsburgh, Pa. , died Dec. 13, 2024, age 84
Nancy S. (Sandry) Baldwin, ’65, Clarksville, Tenn. , died Feb. 20, 2025, age 81
Louise A. (Heinzman) Bissell, ’65, Vassar, Mich. , died Dec. 5, 2024, age 81
Virginia M. (Kiddle) Cox, ’65, Metamora, Mich. , died Jan. 23, 2025, age 82
Gregg L. Lint, ’65, ’68 MA, Franklin, Mass. , died Dec. 10, 2024, age 80
Jack E. Lundy, ’65, Hampton, Va. , died Oct. 24, 2024, age 81
Linda L. (Davidson) Miller, ’65, Sanford, Fla. , died Nov. 24, 2024, age 81
Oleta P. (Kinney) Oveson, ’65, ’78 MA, Springfield, Mo. , died Feb. 6, 2025, age 93
Paul L. Parets, ’65, Delaware City, Del. , died Oct. 13, 2024, age 82
William R. Smith, ’65, Elizabethtown, Ky. , died Jan. 11, 2025, age 83
John E. Sutherlund, ’65, ’67 MA, Mason, Mich. , died Jan. 5, 2025, age 84
Sandra K. (Purcey) VanWingen, ’65, Ada, Mich. , died Oct. 26, 2024, age 81
Larry R. Wilson, ’65, ’77 MA, Grand Haven, Mich. , died Dec. 20, 2024, age 81
Beverly M. (Charest) Bodary, ’66, Grawn, Mich. , died Dec. 25, 2024, age 82
Byron J. Charters, ’66, ’72 MA, Midland, Mich. , died Mar. 5, 2025, age 79
Sharleen H. (Hadley) Hecht, ’66, Holly, Mich. , died Dec. 7, 2024, age 83
Harold F. Holcomb, ’66, Bay City, Mich. , died Nov. 17, 2024, age 81
Lenny S. Jenkins, ’66, Reading, Mich. , died Feb. 13, 2025, age 81
William C. Johnson, ’66, Harbor Springs, Mich. , died Dec. 19, 2024, age 81
John D. Oleson, ’66 MBA, Midland, Mich. , died Jan. 10, 2025, age 88
June M. (Spray) Passino, ’66, Cheboygan, Mich. , died Jan. 11, 2025, age 92
Philip K. Rogers, ’66, ’69 MA, Muskegon, Mich. , died Mar. 19, 2025, age 83
Ann E. Schelke, ’66, Bad Axe, Mich. , died Dec. 31, 2024, age 80
Lonnie M. VanTrump, ’66, Cleveland, Tenn. , died Jan. 12, 2025, age 79
Roneldon J. Bauman, ’67, Flower Mound, Texas, died Mar. 19, 2025, age 79
Roger W. Bohl, ’67 MBA, Midland, Mich. , died Feb. 23, 2025, age 96
Jerry Cavalieri, ’67, ’72 MA, Mount Pleasant, Mich. , died Feb. 10, 2025, age 79
Virginia M. (Hoyer) Granozio, ’67, Fort Mill, S.C., died Feb. 24, 2025, age 80
James J. Hayes, ’67, ’73 MA, Traverse City, Mich. , died Dec. 12, 2024, age 80
Sandra K. (Harding) Honsinger, ’67, ’72 MM, St. Johns, Mich., died Mar. 3, 2025, age 78
David J. Kolevar, ’67, Saginaw, Mich. , died Mar. 21, 2025, age 80
Robert T. Patterson, ’67, Stanwood, Mich. , died Feb. 6, 2025, age 79
Michael M. Childs, ’68, Millington, N. J., died Oct. 2, 2024, age 78
John W. Ekkens, ’68, ’70 MA, Alto, Mich. , died Nov. 13, 2024, age 78
Richard F. Garner, ’68, Blanchard, Mich. , died Dec. 8, 2024, age 80
Carolyn Marcinkewciz, ’68 MA, Big Rapids, Mich. , died Mar. 15, 2025, age 84
Katherine S. (McLain) Orth, ’68, Menominee, Mich. , died Dec. 28, 2024, age 79
Walter W. Rohn, ’68, Hemlock, Mich. , died Jan. 12, 2025, age 81
Melanie (Vanderlist) Sokol, ’68, Unionville, Mich. , died Oct. 13, 2024, age 79
Thomas J. Staudacher, ’68, Fenton, Mich. , died Jan. 10, 2025, age 80
Marilyn C. (Russell) Stober, ’68 MA, Orlando, Fla. , died Jan. 2, 2025, age 84
Kathleen S. (Dumas) Stowers, ’68, Apache Junction, Ariz. , died Jan. 8, 2025, age 82
Carl M. Woods, ’68, Midland, Mich. , died Jan. 28, 2025, age 84
Kathleen Burdick, ’69, Blanchard, Mich. , Mar. 11, 2025, age 77
Paul H. Curell, ’69, Kalkaska, Mich. , died Feb. 4, 2025, age 77
Linda M. Houghton-Reeves, ’69, Colorado Springs, Colo. , died Nov. 27, 2024, age 77
Douglas C. LaPage, ’69, Pentwater, Mich. , died Mar. 12, 2025, age 78
Gary W. Mace, ’69, Montrose, Mich. , died Dec. 14, 2024, age 81
Thomas M. McKenna, ’69, Saginaw, Mich. , died Oct. 15, 2024, age 78
Janet E. (Stock) Newman, ’69, ’70 MA, Weidman, Mich. , died Dec. 26, 2024, age 80
Ralph J. Pitts, ’69, ’70 MA, Coldwater, Mich. , died Jan. 19, 2025, age 97
Charles R. Rousseau, ’69, Saginaw, Mich. , died Jan. 19, 2025, age 80
Roland C. Street, ’69, ’73 MA, Belding, Mich. , died Oct. 9, 2024, age 81
Mitchell B. Berlin, ’70, ’77 MA, Toledo, Ohio, died Jan. 29, 2025, age 80
Thomas L. Brady, ’70, Bay City, Mich. , died Dec. 22, 2024, age 76
Carol L. Buxton, ’70, Gaylord, Mich. , died Nov. 21, 2024, age 76
Janice E. (VanDenBeldt) Casey, ’70, Fremont, Mich. , died Mar. 15, 2025, age 76
In Memory
Jane C. (Heisler) Croftchik, ’70, Elk Rapids, Mich. , died Feb. 3, 2025, age 77
Eugene L. Hagenbaugh, ’70, Mackinac Island, Mich. , died Feb. 16, 2025, age 79
Guy J. Kibbe, ’70, Montrose, Mich. , died Oct. 19, 2024, age 76
Elaine R. (Abbe) Krzeszewski, ’70, ’73 MA, Munger, Mich. , died Dec. 28, 2024, age 77
Donald E. Lehman, ’70 MA, Bridgeport, Mich. , died Jan. 29, 2025, age 87
Deborah J. (Pedersen) Livingston, ’70, Houghton Lake, Mich. , died Jan. 26, 2025, age 76
Morrie W. Scherrens, ’70, ’71 MBA, Newberry, S.C., died April 6, 2025, age 76
Kay L. (Forbes) Warmbier, ’70, Sanford, Mich. , died Feb. 9, 2025, age 76
Robert J. Wynes, ’70, ’73 MA, Saginaw, Mich. , died Jan. 3, 2025, age 77
Joseph L. Burns, ’71 MBA, Spring Lake, Mich. , died Oct. 14, 2024, age 80
Dale J. Ferrier, ’71 MA, Stevensville, Mich. , died Jan. 7, 2025, age 82
Christine A. Hoben, ’71, Traverse City, Mich. , died April 1, 2025, age 75
Cheri L. (Tietz) Hopcroft, ’71, Auburn, Mich. , died Feb. 17, 2025, age 75
Richard S. Hutchins, ’71, Northville, Mich. , died Feb. 11, 2025, age 75
Lois A. (Bottum) Tedhams, ’71, ’77 MBE, Bradenton, Fla. , Oct. 16, 2024, age 91
Marrianne (Walker) Wheeler, ’71 MA, Oscoda, Mich. , died Feb. 7, 2025, age 90
Carol M. Baranski, ’72, Metamora, Mich. , died Jan. 29, 2025, age 74
Marilyn K. (Randall) Bober, ’72, Midland, Mich. , Oct. 9, 2024, age 87
Gerald J. Frost, ’72 MBA, Saginaw, Mich. , died Dec. 28, 2024, age 80
James R. Goodwillie, ’72, Powell, Ohio, died Nov. 16, 2024, age 74
Camille E. (DuLac) Hainstock, ’72, Alpena, Mich. , died Feb. 23, 2025, age 74
Donald M. Kirkwood, ’72, Fenton, Mich. , died Nov. 15, 2024, age 74
Richard A. Knapp, ’72 MA, Allendale, Mich. , died Mar. 2, 2025, age 83
Ellen T. Leik, ’72, Rochester Hills, Mich. , Feb. 8, 2025, age 75
Martin L. Lester, ’72, Lake Ann, Mich. , died Nov. 13, 2024, age 74
James E. McBryde, ’72, Mount Pleasant, Mich. , died Dec. 30, 2024, age 74
Francene (Willnow) Pohl, ’72, Sierra Vista, Ariz. , died Jan. 3, 2025, age 74
William J. Robertson, ’72, Midland, Mich. , died Nov. 17, 2024, age 74
Marilyn K. (Hahn) West, ’72, Flushing, Mich. , died Jan. 8, 2025, age 74
Richard H. Wicklund, ’72, Burton, Mich. , died Feb. 6, 2025, age 80
Don L. Winkels, ’72, Rockford, Mich. , died Feb. 11, 2025, age 74
Ann M. (Nielsen) Bridges, ’73, ’79 MA, Springville, Utah, died Dec. 20, 2024, age 88
Laurel L. (Clark) Burns, ’73, Swartz Creek, Mich. , died Feb. 13, 2025, age 73
Charles R. Dossett, ’73 MA, Somerset, Ohio, died Oct. 11, 2024, age 89
Burl E. Near, ’73, ’79 MA, Reed City, Mich. , died Feb. 26, 2025, age 78
Tom Perrin, ’73, Kalamazoo, Mich. , died Jan. 25, 2025, age 73
Ann M. (Parrott) Raphael, ’73, Byron Center, Mich. , died Dec. 31, 2024, age 73
Carole A. Richardson, ’73, ’92 MPA, Keokuk, Iowa, died Mar. 14, 2025, age 74
Gerald A. Sinkel, ’73, ’81 MA, Manton, Mich. , died Dec. 14, 2024, age 73
Russell P. Soffredine, ’73 MA, Gaylord, Mich. , died Feb. 9, 2025, age 85
Edward R. Sprik, ’73 MA, Bellaire, Mich. , died Nov. 28, 2024, age 96
Cassandra J. Tucker, ’73, Mount Pleasant, Mich. , died Nov. 11, 2024, age 73
Mary A. Verbeke, ’73, Davison, Mich. , died Mar. 29, 2025, age 73
Michael A. Waller, ’73, Waterford, Mich. , died Oct. 13, 2024, age 74
Michael A. Bancale, ’74 MA, Dayton, Ohio, died Oct. 15, 2024, age 85
Ray E. Bishop, ’74 MA, Dayton, Ohio, died Jan. 14, 2025, age 91
Kay D. (Bowden) Bytwerk, ’74, Spring Lake, Mich. , died Jan. 15, 2025, age 71
Martha E. (Boor) Camero, ’74, Houston, Texas, died Oct. 14, 2024, age 71
Margaret C. (Cotter) Crawford, ’74, Lansing, Mich. , died Jan. 7, 2025, age 72
Mary A. (Romain) Kangas, ’74, ’84 MA, Muskegon, Mich. , died Mar. 26, 2025, age 72
David J. Krcmarik, ’74, ’86 MA, Mount Pleasant, Mich. , died Feb. 20, 2025, age 74
Richard J. LaFromboise, ’74, Belcourt, N. D., died Mar. 2, 2025, age 78
Dawn M. (West) Rizley, ’74, Muskegon, Mich. , died Mar. 25, 2025, age 73
Albert J. Shaheen, ’74, Douglas, Mich. , died Jan. 11, 2025, age 73
Harold P. Skamser, ’74 MA, Garden City, Idaho, died Feb. 4, 2025, age 88
Robert L. Taylor, ’74, Fort Gratiot, Mich. , died Nov. 28, 2024, age 73
BY
PHOTO
LANCE GASCHO
Patricia M. Wald, ’74 MA, Bay City, Mich. , died Mar. 10, 2025, age 87
Pamela J. Webber, ’74, Ontonagon, Mich. , died Nov. 21, 2024, age 72
James E. Wilson, ’74 MA, Willingboro, N. J., died Mar. 15, 2025, age 92
Andrew J. Bilich, ’75 MA, Lake Jackson, Texas, died Oct. 21, 2024, age 92
Lynn H. Brown, ’75 MA, Overland Park, Kans. , died Mar. 21, 2025, age 90
Danny C. DeCou, ’75, Chase, Mich. , died Dec. 17, 2024, age 76
Stanley L. Dombrowski, ’75, Roscommon, Mich. , died Mar. 14, 2025, age 71
Carolyn L. (Richards) Erkfitz, ’75, Saint Paul, Minn. , died Feb. 11, 2025, age 72
David H. Grimason, ’75, Midland, Mich. , died Feb. 17, 2025, age 79
Don H. Hein, ’75 MA, San Marcos, Calif. , died Feb. 9, 2025, age 88
Leslie M. (Hoders) Jordan, ’75, DeWitt, Mich. , died Mar. 3, 2025, age 72
Jim H. LaBean, ’75 MA, Sanford, Mich. , died Oct. 27, 2024, age 85
Donald H. Lindsey, ’75 MA, Charleston, S.C., died Oct. 2, 2024, age 91
Paul S. Luzynski, ’75, Grand Ledge, Mich. , died Oct. 8, 2024, age 71
Melanie J. Mily, ’75, Dearborn, Mich. , died Nov. 2, 2024, age 71
Bonnie L. (Schultz) Randolph, ’75, Matthews, N.C., died Mar. 18, 2025, age 89
Richard A. Sujkowski, ’75, Mount Pleasant, Mich. , died Feb. 3, 2025, age 72
Wanda J. Trembath, ’75, ’80 MA, Mount Pleasant, Mich. , died Nov. 15, 2024, age 72
Alice A. (Adams) Watson, ’75, Howe, Ind. , died April 5, 2025, age 71
Joyce B. (Brown) Wood, ’75 MA, Atlanta, Ga. , died Feb. 23, 2025, age 83
Steven A. Blodgett, ’76, ’77 MA, Madison, Wis. , died Dec. 12, 2024, age 70
Nicholas R. Colucia, ’76 MA, Alexandria, Va. , died Jan. 1, 2025, age 87
Barbara A. (Pendell) DeLong, ’76, Berrien Springs, Mich. , died Feb. 1, 2025, age 78
Douglas C. Frisbey, ’76, Harbor Springs, Mich. , died Dec. 18, 2024, age 71
Thomas Q. Guenin, ’76, Bay City, Mich. , died Oct. 22, 2024, age 71
Richard A. Hieber, ’76 MA, Dayton, Ohio, died Nov. 23, 2024, age 94
Robert E. Kegg, ’76, Lady Lake, Fla. , died Mar. 11, 2025, age 79
Mary E. (Cooney) Nonemaker, ’76, Atlanta, Ga. , died Feb. 15, 2025, age 70
Walter L. Purigroski, ’76 MA, Vassar, Mich. , died Oct. 2, 2024, age 80
Craig W. Searight, ’76, ’85 MA, ’90 MA, Fenton, Mich. , died Oct. 10, 2024, age 76
Lee A. Snowberger, ’76 MA, Fairfax Station, Va. , died Feb. 12, 2025, age 88
Dallas D. Thirey, ’76 MA, Dearborn, Mich. , died Dec. 12, 2024, age 93
James A. Williamson, ’76 MA, Bemidji, Minn. , died Dec. 31, 2024, age 85
Richard D. Anderson, ’77 MA, Londonderry, N. H., died Dec. 14, 2024, age 85
Julius M. Boarden, ’77 MA, Saginaw, Mich. , died Jan. 7, 2025, age 82
Lawrence E. Collins, ’77 MA, Dayton, Ohio, died Nov. 22, 2024, age 79
Sally K. (Distin) Cyr, ’77, East Jordan, Mich. , died Oct. 23, 2024, age 87
Judith E. (Freske) Hoese, ’77, Niles, Mich. , died Jan. 11, 2025, age 69
William M. Jones, ’77 MA, Plover, Wis. , died Dec. 29, 2024, age 76
Susan L. (Petrongelli) Kleaveland, ’77, Muskegon, Mich. , died Feb. 7, 2025, age 69
Roy A. McCalister, ’77 MA, Fort Worth, Texas, died Mar. 2, 2025, age 85
David C. Milne, ’77, San Antonio, Texas, died Feb. 7, 2025, age 70
William R. Murray, ’77 MA, Indianapolis, Ind. , died Oct. 14, 2024, age 85
Catherine A. Siler, ’77, Merrill, Mich. , died Mar. 18, 2025, age 74
Ron D. Burdenuk, ’78 MA, Sudbury, Ontario, Can. , died Dec. 31, 2024, age 84
Carol W. (Ward) Feider, ’78 MA, Midland, Mich. , died Mar. 20, 2025, age 80
Floyd A. Gagnon, ’78, Grayling, Mich. , died Mar. 14, 2025, age 69
Ronald D. Grimpo, ’78 MA, Reese, Mich. , died Feb. 12, 2025, age 73
John H. Johnston, ’78 MA, Durham, N.C., died Oct. 26, 2024, age 79
Patricia M. (March) Lehman, ’78 MA, Sterling Heights, Mich. , died Oct. 21, 2024, age 81
Diane L. (Brown) McClure, ’78, Brazil, Ind. , died Oct. 10, 2024, age 76
John W. Smith, ’78 MA, Greenville, S.C., died Nov. 13, 2024, age 92
Marji L. (Black) Theodoroff, ’78, Davison, Mich. , died Nov. 14, 2024, age 68
Thomas F. Wellman, ’78, North Las Vegas, Nev. , died Jan. 14, 2025, age 69
Gary A. Wirsing, ’78, Midland, Mich. , died Nov. 3, 2024, age 72
Mary A. (Sornson) Freling, ’79, Mount Pleasant, Mich. , died Feb. 20, 2025, age 67
Lorena I. (Shanks) Gray, ’79 MA, New Douglas, Ill. , died Oct. 19, 2024, age 80
Meredith J. Johnston, ’79 MA, Spencer, Iowa, died Nov. 5, 2024, age 82
Nancy L. Mullett, ’79, East Leroy, Mich. , died Jan. 26, 2025, age 68
Robert J. Beck, ’80 MA, Traverse City, Mich. , died Dec. 1, 2024, age 80
Thomas F. Brannon, ’80 MA, Portland, Ore. , died Dec. 8, 2024, age 83
Thomas W. Edwards, ’80 MA, Georgetown, S.C., died Nov. 9, 2024, age 84
Ron Hollingsworth, ’80 MA, Westminster, Md. , died Nov. 7, 2024, age 82
Richard J. Moken, ’80 MA, San Antonio, Texas, died Jan. 6, 2025, age 72
Kathleen A. (Stevens) Stark, ’80, Midland, Mich. , died Mar. 23, 2025, age 68
Barbara E. (Nesbitt) Sumi, ’80 MSA, Midland, Mich. , died Oct. 9, 2024, age 74
Thomas A. Ackerman, ’81 MA, Saint George, S.C., died Oct. 19, 2024, age 88
John W. Brennan, ’81 MA, Canton, Mich. , died Mar. 16, 2025, age 92
PHOTO BY LANCE GASCHO
In Memory
Edwin G. Corwin, ’81 MA, Urbana, Ohio, died Jan. 2, 2025, age 98
Mitchell G. Fournier, ’81, Saginaw, Mich. , died Mar. 10, 2025, age 65
Andrew L. Funchar, ’81 MA, Amf Ohare, Ill. , died Mar. 8, 2025, age 76
Candace L. (Mundt) Myers, ’81 MA, Menominee, Mich. , died Oct. 29, 2024, age 76
John B. Nelson, ’81 MA, Easley, S.C., died Jan. 18, 2025, age 81
Toni (Cutajar) Talbot, ’81, Williamston, Mich. , died Feb. 5, 2025, age 65
Barbara A. (Roberts) Wood, ’81 MA, Groveport, Ohio, died Feb. 10, 2025, age 92
Mary E. Andrews, ’82, Rochester, Mich. , died Jan. 9, 2025, age 67
Richard D. Crawford, ’82 MA, Columbus, Ohio, died Jan. 3, 2025, age 97
Carl M. Einkorn, ’82, Rochester Hills, Mich. , died Jan. 22, 2025, age 81
Jean R. Farrington, ’82 MA, Saginaw, Mich. , died Oct. 18, 2024, age 72
Richard N. Garner, ’82 MA, Federalsburg, Md. , died Feb. 1, 2025, age 75
Mary E. (Pullum) Hicks-Tibbs, ’82 MA, Nashville, Tenn. , died Feb. 20, 2025, age 87
Susan K. (Boyce) Huffman, ’82, Galt, Calif. , died Feb. 10, 2025, age 65
R.M. Shaft, ’82 MA, Williamston, Mich. , died Feb. 1, 2025, age 84
Arlene D. (Davis) Browning, ’83 MA, Pella, Iowa, died Jan. 17, 2025, age 88
Thomas J. Courter, ’83, Essexville, Mich. , died Nov. 2, 2024, age 63
Michael G. Fligg, ’83 MA, Cumming, Ga. , died Dec. 19, 2024, age 85
Randall L. Gardner, ’83, Grand Blanc, Mich. , died Nov. 28, 2024, age 64
Dean A. LaClair, ’83, Breckenridge, Mich. , died Feb. 19, 2025, age 77
Rosemary E. Nagel, ’83, Leslie, Mich. , died Nov. 21, 2024, age 63
Wayne L. Pyke, ’83 MA, Rochester, Mich. , died Dec. 31, 2024, age 88
Susan D. Thygerson-Aktary, ’83 MA, Hemet, Calif. , died Jan. 4, 2025, age 78
Michael C. Ziegler, ’83, Grand Rapids, Mich. , died Oct. 8, 2024, age 64
Donald R. Frayer, ’84 MA, Traverse City, Mich. , died Jan. 29, 2025, age 83
Roxann M. Johnson, ’84, Oxford, Mich. , died Mar. 4, 2025, age 64
Thomas A. Kobus, ’84, Kent, Wash. , died Dec. 6, 2024, age 65
James D. Lewis, ’84 MA, Dayton, Ohio, died Dec. 14, 2024, age 81
Paula J. (Constantino) MacKenzie, ’84, Grand Rapids, Mich. , died Mar. 22, 2025, age 62
Jeanne M. McLeod, ’84 MA, Bloomington, Minn. , died Jan. 27, 2025, age 81
Robert H. Mills, ’84, St. Johns, Mich. , died Nov. 7, 2024, age 66
Theresa M. (Smith) Morris, ’84 MA, Bellevue, Wash. , died Jan. 21, 2025, age 75
Ann C. (Childs) Sterling, ’84 MA, Marietta, Ga. , died Dec. 31, 2024, age 94
David J. Boshea, ’85, Naperville, Ill. , died Jan. 28, 2025, age 62
William F. Haupt, ’85 MA, Panama City, Fla. , died Jan. 12, 2025, age 90
Paige S. Kostoff, ’85, Grand Blanc, Mich. , died Jan. 20, 2025, age 62
Kevin R. Moore, ’85, Macomb, Mich. , died Oct. 20, 2024, age 61
Scott Rader, ’85, Brooklyn, Mich. , died Nov. 12, 2024, age 65
Julie P. (Weible) Robarge, ’85 MA, Ossineke, Mich. , died Feb. 8, 2025, age 72
Boyd F. Swangim, ’85 MA, Xenia, Ohio, died Mar. 2, 2025, age 93
Thomas L. Cronkright, ’86, Indianapolis, Ind. , died Jan. 10, 2025, age 82
Donald L. Diener, ’86 MA, Pinckney, Mich. , died Mar. 18, 2025, age 80
Matthew M. Henry, ’86, Ypsilanti, Mich. , died Nov. 21, 2024, age 61
Timothy R. Kuenzli, ’86 MA, Mount Pleasant, Mich. , died Mar. 18, 2025, age 66
Terry A. Smith, ’86, Traverse City, Mich. , died Nov. 5, 2024, age 62
Mark J. Adams, ’87, Jackson, Mich. , died Feb. 1, 2025, age 61
Mary B. (Clayton) Blackburn, ’87 MSA, Centerville, Tenn. , died Oct. 7, 2024, age 73
James Burns, ’87, Romeo, Mich. , died Mar. 25, 2025, age 93
Leland M. Larson, ’87 MSA, San Antonio, Texas, died Mar. 21, 2025, age 75
Steve P. Plank, ’87, Grand Rapids, Mich. , died Dec. 9, 2024, age 59
Richard S. Satterlee, ’87, Alba, Mich. , died Jan. 17, 2025, age 60
Carol J. (Vestal) Allen, ’88 MSA, Chicago, Ill. , died Dec. 27, 2024, age 88
John E. Brodie, ’88 MSA, Evans, Ga. , died Mar. 21, 2025, age 77
Jerry J. Bugni, ’88 MA, L’Anse, Mich. , died Oct. 7, 2024, age 83
Claster C. Carson, ’88 MA, Harrison Township, Mich. , died Feb. 16, 2025, age 79
Randal S. Martin, ’88, Grand Rapids, Mich. , died Jan. 23, 2025, age 64
Alex Oviedo, ’88, Saginaw, Mich. , died Feb. 24, 2025, age 64
Diana L. Schultz-Martin, ’88, Clarkston, Mich. , died Dec. 10, 2024, age 71
Mario D. Araquil, ’89 MSA, Farmington Hills, Mich. , died Feb. 20, 2025, age 81
Susan A. Knutson, ’89 MA, Oshawa, Ontario, Can. , died Dec. 4, 2024, age 72
Melanie K. (Anderson) McNitt, ’89, East Jordan, Mich. , died Dec. 8, 2024, age 57
James A. Schrader, ’89, Houston, Texas, died Feb. 3, 2025, age 59
Mark C. Werthman, ’89 MSA, Grand Blanc, Mich. , died Mar. 31, 2025, age 77
Kay C. (Crampton) Wick, ’89 MSA, Dayton, Ohio, died Mar. 3, 2025, age 83
Barringer F. Wingard, ’89 MSA, Florence, S.C., died Nov. 17, 2024, age 77
Albert F. Colby, ’90 MSA, Columbus, Ohio, died Nov. 14, 2024, age 68
Terry L. Grimes, ’90, Fenton, Mich. , died Jan. 2, 2025, age 58
Wayne F. Moore, ’90, Waianae, Hawaii, died Nov. 22, 2024, age 62
Ronald S. Roman, ’90 MSA, Rochester Hills, Mich. , died Feb. 1, 2025, age 84
Kevin M. Theisen, ’90, Caro, Mich. , died Jan. 10, 2025, age 58
Jean H. (VanPetten) Andrus, ’91 MSA, Battle Creek, Mich. , died Dec. 3, 2024, age 84
Tod H. Howell, ’91, Scottville, Mich. , died Jan. 3, 2025, age 56
Constance J. Reilly, ’91, Clarkston, Mich. , died Mar. 5, 2025, age 82
Mary M. (McKerring) Reitler, ’91 MA, Oscoda, Mich. , died Jan. 7, 2025, age 75
Nancy A. (Lawler) VanAntwerp, ’91 MA, Cheboygan, Mich. , died Oct. 15, 2024, age 79
Robert G. Burditt, ’92, Midland, Mich. , died Nov. 6, 2024, age 93
William H. Clark, ’92 MSA, Novi, Mich. , died Dec. 26, 2024, age 83
Jon T. Rarick, ’92 MSA, Dayton, Ohio, died Dec. 8, 2024, age 85
Donald J. Voyles, ’92 MSA, Canton, Mich. , died Dec. 9, 2024, age 69
Jeffrey S. Olson, ’93, Petoskey, Mich. , died Nov. 18, 2024, age 55
Rita I. Stevens, ’93 MSA, Leesburg, Va. , died Feb. 24, 2025, age 73
Carol A. (Magner) Chrisinske, ’94 MA, Byron, Mich. , died Mar. 18, 2025, age 78
Craig S. Courtney, ’94, Saline, Mich. , died Nov. 7, 2024, age 52
Michele A. Betts, ’95 MA, Owosso, Mich. , died Mar. 12, 2025, age 59
Harriet N. (Niklas) Curd, ’95 MSA, Rochester, Mich. , died Nov. 3, 2024, age 87
Gary L. Easterly, ’95 MSA, Clio, Mich. , died Jan. 26, 2025, age 76
Karen L. (Wiley) Thomas, ’95 MSA, Smyrna, Ga. , died Dec. 27, 2024, age 68
Michael C. Trombly, ’95 MSA, Woodbridge, Va. , died Oct. 10, 2024, age 55
Derrick M. Williams, ’95 MSA, Romulus, Mich. , died Jan. 22, 2025, age 66
Douglas J. Danckaert, ’96, Zeeland, Mich. , died Dec. 21, 2024, age 50
Peggy M. (Flattery) Jones, ’96, Saginaw, Mich. , died Mar. 29, 2025, age 71
Patricia L. (McDowell) McLaughlin, ’96, Haslett, Mich. , died Oct. 18, 2024, age 77
Michelle M. Dikos, ’98, Flint, Mich. , died Oct. 15, 2024, age 50
William B. Luke, ’98 MSA, Columbus, Ohio, died Jan. 2, 2025, age 72
Heather L. (Kraus) Wilbur, ’98, Fenton, Mich. , died Nov. 14, 2024, age 50
Michael Crawford, ’99 MSA, Frederick, Md. , died Dec. 1, 2024, age 59
Cynthia Davis-Townsend, ’99 MA, Saginaw, Mich. , died Dec. 31, 2024, age 65
Vincent O. Leggett, ’99 MSA, Annapolis, Md. , died Nov. 23, 2024, age 71
Brian M. Youngs, ’99 MSA, Fairfax Station, Va. , died Feb. 15, 2025, age 78
Carol A. (Hartig) Barish, ’00 MSA, DeWitt, Mich. , died Oct. 22, 2024, age 74
Malissa R. (Rice) Crawford, ’00 MSA, Richmond, Va. , died Dec. 18, 2024, age 68
Anthony B. Freds, ’00, Elwell, Mich. , died Nov. 17, 2024, age 56
Michelle M. (Tock) York, ’00 MA, Traverse City, Mich. , died Mar. 26, 2025, age 64
Ruth E. (Morales) Gomez, ’01 MA, Marietta, Ga. , died Dec. 21, 2024, age 64
Vicki L. (Young) Terpak, ’01, Brighton, Mich. , died Dec. 18, 2024, age 44
Frederick E. Hale, ’02, Saint Clair, Mich. , died Oct. 25, 2024, age 80
Velverlyn (Polk) Bussey, ’03 MSA, Augusta, Ga. , died Jan. 17, 2025, age 87
Stephen R. Lawrence, ’03 MA, East St. Paul, Manitoba, Can., died Mar. 7, 2025, age 61
Judy A. Lloyd, ’03 MA, Midway, Ga. , died Dec. 1, 2024, age 68
Richard M. Neirynck, ’03 MSA, Macomb, Mich. , died Oct. 15, 2024, age 67
William M. Tanner, ’03, Utica, Mich. , died Feb. 17, 2025, age 82
Sharon D. (Stovall) Holloway, ’04 MSA, Columbus, Ohio, died Oct. 22, 2024, age 58
Lynn M. (Beatty) Hornyak, ’04, Ossineke, Mich. , died Oct. 2, 2024, age 65
Kathy E. Schumacher, ’04 MSA, Bloomfield Hills, Mich. , died Feb. 25, 2025, age 59
Chandra D. Calhoun, ’05 MSA, Lorton, Va. , died Dec. 25, 2024, age 52
Jennifer M. Ginther, ’05 MM, Commerce Township, Mich. , died Dec. 9, 2024, age 56
Stephanie (Theuerkorn) Hoffman, ’05, Grand Rapids, Mich. , died Oct. 26, 2024, age 45
Timothy J. Ropposch, ’05, Fort Gratiot, Mich. , died Dec. 23, 2024, age 43
Timothy E. Spitzer, ’05 MSA, Hebron, Ohio, died Feb. 19, 2025, age 66
Matthew A. Burroughs, ’06 MSA, Streetman, Texas, died Dec. 31, 2024, age 55
Ginesa P. (Craig) Madar, ’07, Chesterfield, Va. , died Jan. 7, 2025, age 57
Kristen L. (Pearsall) Osborne, ’08, Brighton, Mich. , died Dec. 30, 2024, age 38
Nyeoka N. Seppala, ’08, Palatine, Ill. , died Oct. 7, 2024, age 37
Elizabeth A. (Brinkman) Zaunbrecher, ’09, Columbia, Tenn. , died Dec. 7, 2024, age 42
Brenden J. Lennon, ’11, Gladwin, Mich. , died Feb. 22, 2025, age 38
Sarah G. Crudo, ’12, Clearwater, Fla. , died Nov. 19, 2024, age 35
Baylen H. Brown, ’16, Mount Pleasant, Mich. , died Mar. 3, 2025, age 31
Ryan P. Hoshaw, ’16, Flat Rock, Mich. , died Oct. 6, 2024, age 29
Tommy A. Lazzaro, ’19, Colorado Springs, Colo. , died Dec. 22, 2024, age 27
Jose Jimenez, ’20 MPA, Grand Rapids, Mich. , died Jan. 10, 2025, age 76
Emily L. Proctor, ’21, Howell, Mich. , died Nov. 2, 2024, age 34
NON-DEGREE HOLDING ALUMNI
Betsy J. (Mathison) Banta, Mount Pleasant, Mich. , died Jan. 14, 2025, age 73
Louise A. (Hebden) Bergmann, Charlevoix, Mich. , died Dec. 31, 2024, age 81
Tom A. Binder, Knightdale, N.C., died Jan. 10, 2025, age 65
John Boley, Cadillac, Mich. , died Oct. 16, 2024, age 86
LaTisha Fambro, Columbus, Ohio, died Dec. 16, 2024, age 47
Olivia R. Geisthardt, Mount Pleasant, Mich. , died April 5, 2025, age 22
Rita Henquinet, Peshtigo, Wis. , died Mar. 18, 2025, age 83
Veronica L. (Eckenswiller) Horn, Frankenmuth, Mich. , died Jan. 25, 2025, age 70
Gordon C. Lehmann, Gallatin Gateway, Mont. , died Oct. 10, 2024, age 72
FACULTY/STAFF
Reynolds Campbell, Mount Pleasant, Mich. , died Oct. 28, 2024, age 87
Mary Kemm, Canehill, Ark. , died Nov. 17, 2024, age 88
Eleanor Baker, Mount Pleasant, Mich. , died Dec. 1, 2024, age 86
Alan Quick, Mount Pleasant, Mich. , died Dec. 22, 2024, age 88
John Warriner, Mount Pleasant, Mich. , died Dec. 28, 2024, age 83
Joan Kadler, Mount Pleasant, Mich. , died Jan. 2, 2025, age 96
Betty (Moeggenborg)
Campbell, Mount Pleasant, Mich. , died Jan. 11, 2025, age 84
Sydney Walston, Frankfort, Mich. , died Jan. 24, 2025, age 84
Barbara (Curtiss) McMullen, Traverse City, Mich. , died Jan. 31, 2025, age 81
Marilyn Webber, Mount Pleasant, Mich. , died Feb. 6, 2025, age 86
Juan Reyes, Mount Pleasant, Mich. , died Mar. 16, 2025, age 82
Michael DeBord, Ypsilanti, Mich. , died April 15, 2025, age 69
DO YOU REMEMBER
A career-making RUNWAY
Threads stitches together fashion excellence, opportunity
The Threads Fashion Show is an annual, student-run production showcasing fashion designs from current students and faculty. Its evolution can be traced back to an event called Fusion 2K in Plachta Auditorium in April 2000.
The production provides a platform for aspiring apparel designers as well as students looking to gain experience in the broad range of careers that touch the fashion world, from PR and photography to stage design and model management.
Special guests through the years have included Tim Gunn of “Project Runway,” iconic fashion illustrator Bil Donovan and Detroit designer Charketa Glover who appeared on season 13 of “Project Runway.”
The show’s venue moves regularly throughout campus. It’s been held in Finch Field House, the Biosciences Building, Plachta Auditorium, McGuirk Arena and Grawn Hall. The event draws fashion employers looking to hire. Meijer, Wolverine Worldwide, Kohl’s, Carhartt, Glik’s and Torrid have sent representatives in previous years.
Life is full of twists and turns — events that can threaten a student’s college education. At CMU, our Student Emergency Fund is there when our CMU Chippewas need a boost, often allowing them to stay in school through difficult circumstances. ignite.cmich.edu/sef
$1,430,734 dollars have been awarded 1,128 Students awarded dollars $142.3K Dollars raised since July 1, 2024 1,386 Donors since July 1, 2024
“This award allows students to pursue their dreams. Personally, I am working three jobs and going to school full time. Awards like this help students like me.”
