WESTERN MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY THOMAS M. COOLEY LAW SCHOOL ALUMNI MAGAZINE | WINTER 2016
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WMU-Cooley Benchmark EDITOR Terry Carella CO-EDITOR Sharon Matchette CONTRIBUTING WRITERS SeyferthPR seyferthpr.com DESIGN Image Creative Group imagecreativegroup.com PHOTOGRAPHY Tom Gennara, Boardman Mike Shuster, PricewaterhouseCoopers Terry Carella, Hudson and Farah SUBMISSIONS Benchmark seeks story ideas from graduates on a variety of subjects such as graduate achievements, international experiences, cultural diversity, legal information helpful to practitioners, unique law practices, advice to prospective law students, and special events. If you would like to share a story idea, please write, call, or e-mail: Communications Office WMU-Cooley Law School 300 S. Capitol Ave. Lansing, MI 48933 (517) 371-5140 ext. 2916 Fax: (517) 334-5780 communications@cooley.edu cooley.edu Benchmark is published twice a year by the administrative offices of Western Michigan University Cooley Law School, 300 S. Capitol Ave., Lansing, MI 48933 ALUMNI DATABASE The user name will always remain the word alumni. The password changes are disclosed in Benchmark on the inside front cover. Please call the Alumni Relations Office at 517-371-5140, ext. 2038, or e-mail alumni@cooley.edu if you have any problems. The current password for this term is practice.
Features Winter 2016
A Beautiful Gift This issue of Benchmark prominently features our dear friend, alumnus and nationally renowned artist Gordon Boardman, who has made a monumental gift commitment to the Law School. Through his estate plan, Gordon is leaving one of the largest gifts the Law School has ever received. But the financial value of the gift is not its most gratifying part. What moves us is the fact that Gordon is entrusting to our Law School much of his life’s work – a collection of more than 400 paintings. The Boardman Collection will make the Law School’s already outstanding art collection even more formidable. We will catalog, preserve, house, and proudly display these beautiful paintings to be enjoyed by students, faculty, staff, and guests at each of our campuses. President LeDuc has appointed Pamela Heos as curator of the Boardman Collection. Many of you know Pamela from her work as Director of Alumni and Donor Relations, manager of our Cooley Society donor recognition organization, executive secretary of the WMU-Cooley Law School Alumni Association, and organizer of dozens of alumni events around the nation annually. Adding to that assignment, Pamela will now employ her background in art, art history, and museum practice to ensure that the Boardman Collection becomes a vital part of the beauty of our campuses. Sincerely,
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GORDON BOARDMAN: JOURNEY OF LOVE AND FAITH A dedicated graduate of WMU-Cooley Law School, at age 85, Boardman shares his incredible journey of love and faith and makes a significant bequest to the law school.
PRICEWATERHOUSECOOPERS Four WMU-Cooley Law School graduates practice their skill at the second largest professional services firm in the world, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).
ANDREW HUDSON: ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL WMU-Cooley graduate and Western Michigan University education graduate Andrew Hudson never guessed he would be working as an assistant attorney general in Lansing.
James D. Robb Associate Dean of External Affairs and Senior Counsel
WMU-COOLEY BOARD OF DIRECTORS Lawrence P. Nolan Chairman of the Board Nolan, Thomsen & Villas, P.C. Eaton Rapids, Michigan Hon. Louise Alderson Vice Chairman of the Board 54A District Court Lansing, Michigan James W. Butler, III Urban Revitalization Division Mich. State Housing Development Auth. Lansing, Michigan Thomas W. Cranmer Miller, Canfield, Paddock and Stone, PLC Troy, Michigan
Scott A. Dienes Foster Swift Collins & Smith St. Joseph, Michigan
Hon.Stephen J. Markman Michigan Supreme Court Lansing, Michigan
Hon. Bart Stupak Venable, LLP Washington, D.C.
Sharon M. Hanlon Zelman & Hanlon, PA Naples, Florida
Kenneth V. Miller Millennium Restaurant Group, LLC Kalamazoo, Michigan
Dennis A. Swan Sparrow Hospital & Health System Lansing, Michigan
Don LeDuc President and Dean Western Michigan University Cooley Law School Lansing, Michigan on.Jane E. Markey H Michigan Court of Appeals Grand Rapids, Michigan
James C. Morton Morton Karrass LLP Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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JIM FLINN: FROM HOSPITAL SECURITY OFFICER TO LEADING TWO ARIZONA HOSPITALS A former Marine, Jim Flinn started work as an attorney in hospitals in California after earning his law degree. Now he is CEO of St. Luke’s Medical Center, the largest hospital in greater Phoenix.
Edward H. Pappas Dickinson Wright PLLC Troy, Michigan Hon. Richard F. Suhrheinrich U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit Lansing, Michigan
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