Denison Magazine Winter 2024

ISSUE 1 | 2024

SUCCESS 100 WAYS

WE CELEBRATE THE WILDLY DIVERSE ACHIEVEMENTS OF DENISON ALUMS

PLUS HOW LISA STEWART MCKNIGHT ’90 HELPED PAVE THE WAY FOR A BLOCKBUSTER BARBIE MOVIE

Opening shot Behold the beauty of Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks, Ohio’s first World Heritage site.

Thanks to the indefatigable efforts of visiting assistant professor Brad Lepper and a legion of collaborators, the World Heritage Committee inscribed the Ohio entry on Sept. 19, 2023. Two of the eight mounds, Great Circle Earthworks and Octagon Earthworks, are located just minutes from campus in Licking County. The remaining six are in Warren and Ross counties.

The collective enclosures mark Ohio’s first World Heritage site, and just the 25th overall in the United States. It joins a list of about 1,000 worldwide entries that include Stonehenge, the Great Wall of China, and the Pyramids of Giza.

(Cont. on pg. 75)

Doug Swift

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ON THE COVER

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Each of these items represents one — or a few — of the 100 alums featured in this issue. See if you can match the gear to the grad!

COVER PHOTO BY JAMES SCHULLER

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SCENE CHANGES Denison will always be Denison. But some exciting changes unfolded on campus in 2023, including a fabulous new Beth Eden.

SUCCESS 100 WAYS

What does success look like after you graduate from Denison? There are endless stories. We had to stop ourselves at 100.

BUILDING A BETTER BARBIE

The box office success of Barbie cemented her status as a cultural icon. Mattel executive Lisa Stewart McKnight ’90 led the effort to restore America’s doll to relevance.

#DENISONPROUD ISSUE 1 2024

Because of publishing deadlines, we’re bound to be a bit behind. Please email us with anything we’ve missed at denmag@denison.edu.

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50 54 66 &

‘PLANET’ ALIGNMENT It was a crazy year, in the best way, for comedian Kyle Gordon ’14.

PERFECT MATCH

Denison connections can be life-changing.

For this group of women, they were lifesaving.

ULTIMATE PLAYTIME

All are welcome at the Denison Frisbee Ultimate Club. Bring your sense of humor.

6 THE COMMENTS SECTION Full circle on The Hill

8 HILLSIDE CHAT

Lives shaped at Denison

76 CLASS NOTES 82 IN MEMORIAM ANCIENT OBLIGATION

A 2,000-year-old Ohio mound complex has joined Stonehenge and the Pyramids of Giza as a World Heritage site. Denison scholars championed its preservation.

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ATHLETICS

Squash isn’t just a fruit

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CROSS COUNTRY CONNECTION

THE HILL

After the death of Phil Torrens, runner Makorobondo “Dee” Salukombo ’12 reflects on his remarkable relationship with big-hearted, curmudgeonly Coach T.

Enlightening students

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LAST WORD

A career home on The Hill DENISON MAGAZINE

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The comments section There’s nothing better than hearing from Denisonians. Send us your compliments, complaints, and brilliant story ideas: denmag@denison.edu.

We may reprint part or all of your letters in this section.

THESE NOTEWORTHY MESSAGES ROLLED IN AFTER ISSUE 2, 2023:

FULL CIRCLE MOMENTS ON THE HILL W H E N I N D O U B T, S E E K T H E L I B R A RY

Hi Denison Mag! I was delighted to read your article on the library renovation, as that building holds a special place in my heart.

I came to Denison in 2007 as an international student, and because I enrolled sight-unseen, my first view of The Hill was when my airport driver dropped me off for pre-orientation. As this was before regular orientation, both my dorm and the campus were practically empty, and I had no idea where I was or how to get to where I needed to go. All I had was a map. I looked it over and told myself, “If I can just find the library, they will help me.” So I wandered around, seeing everything for the first time, until I stumbled upon William Howard Doane. Sure enough, they sorted me out.

I ended up working circulation at the library — my first “real job.” I loved it, staying on as a student worker all four years. As an international student, I often worked over breaks, too. I wrote to my parents during one break: “At the library, I shelve books, shift books, process books, mail books, cart books, and dust books. I do everything except read them.” A sad reality for a book lover surrounded by books.

I have fond memories of the library staff and my many hours there, so it's great to see that more students are using the library because of the improvements. And to any new students: If you ever get lost, go to the library. They'll sort you out.

Emily Morrison ’11

It was so nice to read the article about enduring friendships forged at Denison.

I met my best friend, Heather McIlvaine-Newsad, freshman year at Denison, and she remains so today.

We had hoped to get together at our 30th reunion, but Covid got in the way. We decided to meet anyway, since her two daughters were now at Denison and I had been wanting to have a look at the Burmese artifacts in the archive at the Denison Museum, much of which had been contributed by my father-in-law's family.

Despite the Covid restrictions, we had a wonderful visit — and enjoyed a private tour of the Spring Family collection along with German professor Gary Baker and assistant professor of anthropology John Davis. Gary had started teaching my senior year, and since I was a German major, I took a few classes with him. Thirty years later, Heather's daughter Willow is now a German major — and Gary is her advisor.

Heather was a sociology/anthropology major, and now 30 years later, her other daughter, Maren is also a sociology/anthropology major. John is her advisor.

Heather and I are in regular communication with one another, but this was a really special moment.

Thought you would enjoy this story!

Jen Spring '90

From left to right, following their tour of Denison Museum: Gary Baker; Jen Spring; Willow, Heather, and Maren McIlvaine-Newsad, and John Davis.

L A STI NG STU D E NT-FAC U LT Y R E L AT I O N S H I P S

KEEP YOUR CAREER PIVOT STORIES COMING! Thank you to all who’ve emailed us to share your career paths — and the twists and turns along the way. Please send your stories to denmag@denison.edu to be included in an upcoming issue!

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Brooke Hubbard ’18 shared this photo and note: In July 2023, Dr. Hanada Al-Masri and I met up in Amman, Jordan, when she was visiting family and I was doing a twomonth Arabic language intensive. I took Arabic classes from her all eight semesters I was at Denison (2014-2018).

Al-Masri says: Reconnecting with Brooke Hubbard in Amman this summer brought me immense joy. Seeing how much she has improved in her language skills was truly impressive. Our conversations showed how she now handles complex phrases with ease and how her deeper understanding of the Jordanian culture matured. This growth speaks to her commitment to learning and her personal development, which is incredibly rewarding to see as a teacher. Her progress from a keen student to someone so insightful in both language and culture shows the real impact of education. #DENISONPROUD ISSUE 1 2024

Pat ri c k D eM i c ha e l ’ 13

Since you’ve been gone C AM PUS H A S C H AN G E D A BI T S I N C E YO U L A ST P I C K E D U P T H I S M AGA Z I N E .

BY THEODORE DECKER

“It was a busy summer,” said Jake Preston, Denison’s physical plant and capital projects director.

SO WHAT’S NEW? ▶ First up, our before and after photos: If you’ve been on campus over the past year, you probably remember that Beth Eden was fenced off and under construction. Now finished and looking fabulous, the building houses key administrative offices of the President, Provost, Finance & Management, Registrar, Controller, Business Services, Purchasing, and Accounting. ▶ One-way traffic on Chapel Drive has switched directions. The change was made to improve access to Whisler Hall, which has been renovated and now houses Human Resources, Student Accounts, Mail Services, and the Copy Center. ▶ Whisler and Beth Eden were renovated to clear the way for Denison’s computer science and data analytics programs, which eventually will be housed in a renovated and much-expanded Doane Hall. That project, recommended as part of Denison’s Academic Master Plan, is in the planning and design stages. ▶ Thanks to a major donor gift, you’ll see dramatic renovations to the Marilyn P. McConnell Planetarium in Olin Science Hall. The updates, which you may have seen during Big Red Weekend, include new seating, a refurbished dome, and state-of-the-art projection technology. ▶ A top-to-bottom refresh was completed at Upper and Lower Elm residence halls, and work at King Hall nearly doubled the available space for students, from 44 to 85. ▶ Next to the softball fields, a new building on North Campus will house Institutional Advancement, Information Technology Services, and University Communications. That building, expected to be open in the spring, will free up space in some core campus buildings, particularly for Burton Music’s eventual conversion to student housing. ▶ North of the intramural fields, work has begun on Kienzle-Hylbert Stadium, the new home field for the lacrosse and soccer programs. (Read more about that on page 41!)

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H I L L S I D E C H AT

2024 Presidential Receptions

President Weinberg cordially invites families, friends, and alums in the region to join us for an evening reception to meet fellow Denisonians and learn more about emerging strategic priorities for Denison.

Jan. 23 MIAMI

Feb. 5

FO R T M Y E R S , F LO R I DA

Feb. 6

TA M PA / S T. P E T E R S B U R G

Feb. 7

V E R O B E AC H , F LO R I DA

March 5 B O S TO N

March 19

C H A R LOT T E , N .C .

April 30 C H I C AG O

ALUMNI .DEN IS O N .EDU/ EVEN TS

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Exploring and unlocking potential Adam Weinberg, President this issue of DENISON MAGAZINE celebrates the ways Denison unlocks the potential of our students to be the architects of their lives. When we welcome students to Denison, we want them to have a life-shaping experience filled with amazing relationships and experiences that lead to tremendous personal growth. And we want Denison to launch our students into lives and careers they never could have imagined as high school seniors.

We have purposefully profiled alums who are working in expected and unexpected ways, from alums working in business to comedy to those working in politics, health care, sports, and the arts. We even profile alums who are using retirement to explore new careers and forms of work.

Career exploration, preparation, and launch have been priorities for the college over the last few years. We want students to explore different ways people choose to live and work. We want to prepare them so they can compete for any internship, job, or graduate or professional program. And we want to launch our students quickly and successfully and help them make their initial career pivots.

This work happens everywhere on campus. It starts in the classroom and through the mentorship students receive from faculty and staff that allows them to ask big questions about themselves, the world around them, and their place within it. It extends to athletics and a range of other campus activities that help students develop important skills, values, and habits. And lifechanging experiences, such as study abroad, add tremendously to the process.

I also want to mention a new effort underway called Ask a Denisonian, an AI software program that connects students to alums and alums to each other. Students or alums can ask a question using Ask A Denisonian, which will connect you with alums who can help. The intent is to make it easy for alums to answer questions, offer professional advice, and exchange valuable wisdom and connections. It is easy to use and can be found on the Denison Alumni page.

I am deeply proud to be a Denisonian. I am proud of the way our faculty and staff work to give our students a life-shaping liberal arts education that launches them into fulfilling lives and careers. A liberal arts education should open students’ minds and imaginations, and challenge and inspire them to think in creative and exciting ways about how they want to live and work.

Putting together this issue of the Denison Magazine was fun. We were inspired by all of the ways alums are working and building lives. And we were heartened by the gratitude alums expressed for a Denison education. I hope you enjoy it!

Over the last few years, we’ve added support through these campus efforts:

THE KNOWLTON CENTER for Career Exploration is leading-edge. Students begin with our signature Journey Program, which is designed to get students started on the career exploration process, then have access to career coaches, career communities, and an incredibly robust program to help them find summer internships. As they get closer to graduation, they can use the programs at Denison Edge to close skills gaps. The Knowlton Center also supports alums as they launch and make initial career pivots.

THE RED FRAME LAB for Entrepreneurship and Design Thinking supports students interested in enhancing the campus for their fellow students, starting their own business, or learning to be a consultant.

Programs such as Red Frame Lab Consulting, Red Corps, Red Startup, and UX Design Workshop give students realworld experiences. This year many of us are benefiting from TruCha boba tea, opened by two students in Slayter!

THE LISSKA CENTER for Intellectual Engagement is our home to help students compete for top fellowship programs.

New scholar-leader programs like Exordium and Studium support students early so they can compete for prestigious fellowship programs. Denison has emerged as a top producer of Fulbright awardees, and last year had a student win a very prestigious Goldwater Scholarship.

Our expanding ALUMNI & FAMILY ENGAGEMENT OFFICE is focused on bringing affinity groups back to campus in ways that are fun and meaningful for alums and helpful for students. Over the last few years, we have been piloting ReMix, which connects alumni entrepreneurs to students to learn and network — we’ve seen all kinds of wonderful career-related connections emerging. Additionally, we host a range of affinity groups back on campus, from the Black Alumni Association to hockey to Hilltoppers.

#DENISONPROUD ISSUE 1 2024

BY TO M R E E D, T H E O D O R E D E C K E R , A N D G I N N Y S H A R K E Y ’ 8 3

SUCCESS

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You don’t need this magazine to tell you Denisonians are a successful bunch. You can

STARTUP STARS

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TECH AND BUSINESS PIONEERS

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MUSIC MAKERS

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No, it can take many forms. A hugely important job, sure. But also a cherished

LAW AND POLICY LEADERS

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relationship. Time with a beloved hobby. A trip around the world, or around

SHOW STOPPERS

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THE SPORTING KIND

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KEEPING THE PUBLIC INFORMED

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ways. We’ve got a scuba-diving traveling nurse. An investment banker turned

HEALTH CARE HEROES

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13-time Tony winner. A retired CIA officer who learned to drive a Zamboni. A

COOL PEOPLE DOING COOL THINGS

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love story that survived a homecoming queen and is now marking its 68th year.

ADVANCING EDUCATION

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REDEFINING RETIREMENT

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DENISON MAGAZINE

find flashes of Big Red in every pocket of industry, often at the head of the table.

BUT SUCCESS ISN’T JUST THAT, IS IT? the block. A career pivot — and another, and another. For this issue, we explored success through broad categories — entertainers, entrepreneurs, educators — but found that our alums break from the expected in unexpected

If you’re not in this issue, it’s only because we ran out of pages.

WITH 100 SUCCESS STORIES, WE’RE STILL ABOUT 30,000 SHORT. Please share yours with us at denmag@denison.edu.

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S U C C E S S 1 0 0 WAY S

Guardian of the

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LISA STEWART MCKNIGHT ’90 and her Mattel team helped bring

diversity, girl empowerment, and inspired

messaging to the Barbie line. It paved the way for a blockbuster movie.

BY TOM REED

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#DENISONPROUD ISSUE 1 2024

As she walked the pink carpet at the Los Angeles premiere of Barbie, Lisa Stewart McK night ’90 knew the photographers and adoring fans hadn’t come to see her.

They were there for Greta Gerwig, the writer and d i rec tor who took a concept for a mov ie a nd transformed it into a cultural phenomenon. They were there for Margot Robbie, the producer and actress who brought a plastic doll to life with radiance, whimsy, and flat-footed vulnerability.

But as McKnight and her husband, BILL ’90, soaked in the Hollywood glitz, the Mattel executive percolated with pride. It was a full-circle moment in the life of a second-generation Denisonian.

Few among the pink-clad fans assembled for the premier understood that if not for McKnight and her team’s work, Barbie never gets made.

As a child, McKnight played Barbies with her younger sister, Jessica, on the floors of their parents’ San Francisco home. Armed with Malibu Barbie and the Barbie Dream Camper, she imagined herself on the beaches of Southern California, far removed from the Bay Area fog.

As an adult, McK night and her team at Mattel rehabilitated the image of Barbie, who was losing cultural relevance and becoming a symbol of toxic gender norms. For the past decade, they’ve championed inclusion in all shapes and sizes, turning Barbie into the world’s most diverse doll line.

Surrounded by family, McKnight was consumed with emotions as the theater darkened and the screen filled with the idyllic Barbie Land images she had pictured in her youth.

“There were tears of exhaustion and then tears of joy when we finally got the movie out, and we started to hear the reaction,” said McKnight, executive vice president and chief brand officer for Mattel.

She’s been riding the tail of a cinematic comet since work on the movie and its script began, providing insight to creators about the brand’s history and values. The payoff has been immense.

In its first three months, Barbie became one of the 15 highest-grossing motion pictures of all time.

“The validation has been incredible, but the journey has been unimaginable with all the collaboration,” McKnight said. “Then, you get this reward that beats all expectations.

It’s like no other feeling in the world.”

listen. She’s well-spoken and mature, and she values what others have to say.”

McKnight followed the collegiate path of her father, John Kennedy Stewart ’61, a former San Francisco Superior Court judge. Dad put Denison on McKnight’s radar but allowed his daughter to make her own decision.

“You never want to do what your parents do, but I toured the campus twice,” said McKnight, who majored in history and mass media. “On my second tour, I took a friend with me. I met a bunch of kids, and it was really the people and students who excited me.”

McKnight credits Denison for making her a critical thinker and a problem solver, skills transferable to any line of work. She also became more curious about the world during her time on campus. She was exposed to students from an array of backgrounds, and this experience proved invaluable as she began to lead teams in the corporate world.

“It’s taught me to get multiple perspectives, to have discussions and debates that are respectful,” McKnight said.

She became an account executive for FCB Global, a marketing communications company, and a director of marketing for The Gap before starting her climb up the Mattel ladder in 1998.

McKnight made plenty of friends at Denison — and married one of them. While they never dated in college, Lisa and Bill ran in the same circles.

They reconnected in San Francisco at a 1994 Christmas party and wed four years later. The couple has two daughters.

“Lisa always had this ability to create friendships and network with other people,” said Bill McKnight, senior vice president of product management and technology at RealtyMogul. “She’s quick-witted and intelligent, and she’s not afraid to take risks, which has really benefited her at Mattel. I’m incredibly proud.”

GETTING THE MESSAGE By 2016, the woman who grew up playing Barbies with her sister had become the guardian of the brand.

The promotion to senior vice president and general manager of Barbie was both exhilarating and sobering.

Playtime was over. Sales were declining, and the feedback from focus groups was withering. Millennial parents were becoming more involved in the purchase decisions of their children, McKnight said, and they no longer saw their values reflected in the iconic doll.

BRIGHT LIGHT “They didn’t see Barbie as a role model,” McKnight Amy Christensen Curby ’90 met McKnight during Rush recalled. “But the worst feedback we heard was when Week of their first year on The Hill. They became Kappa parents said they didn’t feel good about giving Barbie as a Kappa Gamma sisters and lifelong friends. birthday present at parties for their kids’ friends. That’s a At the time, Curby could not predict McKnight’s career real sign and a signal that we had a huge issue to overcome.” arc, but the “bright light” of her persona was inescapable.

McKnight and her team began the Barbie rebrand by Curby recog nized the leadership qualities and returning to the root of its success in the 1950s, a time organization skills that McKnight eventually would take when women still could not cash checks or open a bank to Mattel and breathe life back into the Barbie brand. account. Mattel co-founder Ruth Handler, inspired by “People are drawn to Lisa,” Curby said. “She has a her daughter, Barbara, created a doll McKnight labels way of gathering people around her and making them “the original girl empowerment brand.”

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“I’ve gone from the pink fire hose of Barbie to the red Mattel water cannon, but it’s been a thrill.”

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FROM TOP: McKnight on a recent trip to campus with her husband, Bill McKnight ’90. At a Barbierelated event with her father, John Kennedy Stewart ’61. And a throwback on The Hill with Amy Christensen Curby ’90.

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“To feel I’m making a contribution — especially with younger women who are starting out in their lives and their careers — is very rewarding.”

TOP RIGHT: McKnight is joined by family at the Barbie premiere. From left: Jessica Stewart Kaludis, Bill McKnight, Lisa Stewart McKnight, Amanda McKnight, Natalie McKnight, and Linda Stewart Wiley.

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“Ruth wanted her daughter to have as many choices as Taylor Swift tours, turning the summer of 2023 into a her son,” McKnight said. “She wanted to create a doll celebration of women’s power. that inspired her daughter to dream big and to imagine Mattel, the world’s leading toymaker, has promoted that she could be anything. That’s the message we McKnight twice in the past two years. She’s essentially wanted to deliver to parents.” been working two jobs, overseeing the company brands and Three major pillars drove brand resurgence: a focus on assisting movie makers to ensure authenticity and accuracy. d iver sit y a nd i nclusiv it y, a n emphasis on g i rl Almost every movie review mentions Mattel’s willingness empowerment, and the creation of a product line that to allow Gerwig and Robbie the freedom to take a few jabs at reinforced inspiring messages. the company for comedic effect.

Mattel began producing dolls with a variety of skin “I was very vocal about the scene in the middle school where tones, body types, eye colors, hairstyles, and hair fibers. the daughter, Sasha, takes down Barbie,” McKnight recalled.

It launched an “Inspiring Women Line” that celebrated “That hurt me. But after a lot of discussion, I appreciated why it the likes of poet Maya Angelou, astronaut Sally Ride, and needed to happen in the film. Barbie has many fans, but there’s tennis trailblazer Billie Jean King. truth in the fact that she can be polarizing.

The doll is now cast in more than 250 careers, including the 2023 introduction of a sports line featuring Barbie as a general manager, coach, referee, and reporter.

“We use these dolls as ways to reinforce Barbie’s positioning around empowerment,” McKnight said, “but also to encourage girls to understand if you can see it, you can be it.”

“At the end of the day, it showed we were confident in where we are today and that we had built a strong foundation around the brand, which helped us be bold around this approach.”

In the fall of 2023, McKnight was honored with the Women I n Toys Licensi ng a nd Enter ta i n ment Trailblazer Award.

Individual recognition aside, McKnight never misses an opportunity to mention the contributions of her team and fellow Mattel executives. She’s also taken her friends along for the ride, inviting them to Los Angeles to watch the movie together on the same weekend as the premiere.

“Lisa is not a power-hungry person,” said Curby, one of her friends who received an invitation. “Success has not ‘VERY REWARDING’ changed her at all.”

There have been awards and corporate promotions over Barbie has grossed more than $1.4 billion in ticket sales. the past two years, and media requests asking McKnight McKnight is now in charge of all Mattel brands and will about the Barbie renaissance. be involved in other movie projects.

Sometimes, however, the most gratifying recognition “I’ve gone from the pink fire hose of Barbie to the red comes in less public forums.

Mattel water cannon, but it’s been a thrill,” she said laughing.

“I’ve received so many letters and texts from collegeAs Barbie prepares to turn 65, McKnight is proud of how age and young working women about how inspired far Mattel and the doll have come since parents expressed they were about the movie,” McKnight said. “To feel their reluctance to buy it as a gift for others.

I’m making a contribution — especially with younger “We had to do so much work to modernize and evolve women who are starting out in their lives and their the brand to be where we are today,” McKnight said. careers — is very rewarding.”

“That was led by a lot of people. Timing is everything — The movie’s release coincided with the Beyoncé and and this is our time.” #DENISONPROUD ISSUE 1 2024

S U C C E S S 1 0 0 WAY S

STARTUP STARS

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At ReMix 2023, ALAN PHUNG ’22 was back on the campus where his entrepreneurial spirit took flight — powered by a highly caffeinated kick.

The founder of Mai Coffee returned not only as a ReMix guest speaker but also as the distributor of two new products, Vietnamese Nitro Cold Brew and fruit-infused Cold Brew.

Inspired by memories of drinking Vietnamese coffee with his father, Phung has been running his own company since his first year at Denison. He’s the first to admit that not all progress is linear for startups, and even great ideas and quality products are subject to humbling learning curves.

“It made me frustrated in the beginning, because I was like, ‘Why is this not working?’” he recalled. “These are the pains of trying to run a Vietnamese coffee business.”

He’s so committed to Mai Coffee, however, that he walked away from a full-time job as a credit analyst at Morningstar, a financial services company, after 11 months.

While Phung still does contract work in the financial sector to pay bills, he’s invested heavily in expanding his business.

He’s partnered with a Columbus, Ohio, company that created revolutionary machinery for cold brewing coffee.

The machine uses enough pressure to bend an inch of steel, making the java much smoother and less acidic. Mai Coffee will be distributed in kegs, dispensed out of taps, and available on campus and other locations.

“When we give it to people now, it’s already brewed,” Phung said. “All they do is press a button, and the coffee comes out. No way it could go wrong.”

Through all the trial and error, Phung said he’s indebted to the encouragement and support of Denison. He got his coffee beans shipped from Vietnam thanks to a connection made possible through David Hirsh, president of Atrium Corporation and an executive-in-residence for Denison’s Global Commerce department. The university’s Red Frame Lab also leveraged connections, helping him find a roaster and places to sell his coffee.

“Denison is an amazing place,” Phung said. “I can’t imagine doing this anywhere else.”

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The brilliance and clarity of the stars over Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming brought tears to the eyes of CHEVON LINEAR ’13 in the summer of 2020.

Growing up and living in Chicago, Linear and her fiancé, Kam, were unaccustomed to seeing such a radiant firmament at night. “I started crying because it was just so beautiful,” Linear recalls.

What also stood out about the trip — the couple’s first after the onset of Covid — were the demographics of people hiking and camping.

“There were no people of color on the trails,” Linear said. “It was everyone else but Black people out there.”

The couple documented the vacation with a series of short videos that became the foundation for a TikTok account (@black.people.outside) with nearly 72,000 followers. They have more than 29,000 followers on Instagram.

Linear loves to travel and has seen plenty of diversity in her overseas trips. As for her journeys into the outdoors, not so much.

“We’re not just trying to be influencers,” Linear said.

“We really want to help other Black people get outside and enjoy nature. Spending time outdoors is better for your physical and mental health.”

As her contract ended with Google, where she was a data analyst, Linear opted not to renew or look for another full-time job in June 2023. Instead, she went all in on Black People Outside, ramping up their social media presence and building connections with tourism boards, apparel brands, and adventure travel companies.

Her Instagram followers can learn about upcoming group hikes, opportunities to f ind nature spots in the Chicago area, and tips on camping. Through videos, the couple also seeks to remove the intimidation factor in outdoor exploration.

During a three-month summer stretch in 2023, the Black People Outside Instagram account gained about 25,000 followers.

“We finally got serious about developing a business plan,” Li nea r sa id . “ We’re stable enough financially to give this a shot. We don’t have kids and we don’t have any major bills hanging over us. If I have to go back to work I will, but right now we’re focused on reaching our ultimate goal, which is getting more Black people outside.”

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“We really want to help other Black people get outside and enjoy nature.

Spending time outdoors is better for your physical and mental health.”

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LAFORCE BAKER ’10 grew up on Chicago’s South Side, in neighborhoods where retail businesses that many take for granted were absent.

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DAVID HOWITT ’90 enjoyed attending law school after graduating from Denison. He found the subject matter stimulating and quickly passed his state and federal bar exams.

Once he began practicing law, however, his view changed.

“It was soul-draining,” Howitt recalled. “I knew I needed to do something else.”

Howitt’s instincts set him on a path of sustained success.

He’s an entrepreneur with more than 20 years of experience providing business strategy and brand counsel to startups, small businesses, and Fortune 100 companies.

His career arc and business philosophies also have made for good reading. His 2014 book, Heed Your Call: Integrating Myth, Science, Spirituality, and Business, earned him a guest appearance on Good Morning America and led to a TEDx talk.

“When I turned 40, I put together a bucket list, and this was one of the things on it,” said Howitt, founder and CEO of the Meriwether Group. “I had been keeping a journal with a lot of ideas. I enjoyed the process of writing a book.”

After working brief ly at a law firm, Howitt served Adidas as corporate counsel and vice president of licensing and business development. He and his wife, Heather, also launched Oregon Chai, a company that produces allorganic tea, which they sold for $75 million in 2004.

That same year, he founded the Meriwether Group, a boutique private equity firm that supports, advises, and invests in entrepreneurs.

Howitt stays active with his alma mater, serving on a regional Alumni Board of Advisors.

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No grocery store. No pharmacy. No coffee shop. No cozy spot where friends, in the words of Baker, can “break bread and raise a glass” to celebrate a life event.

“I’ve always been interested in delivering essentials to people,” Baker said. “In a lot of black and brown neighborhoods, these kinds of amenities don’t always exist.”

Baker is serving as a change agent in his hometown.

He’s vice president for community impact at World Business Chicago, a private-public economic development agency serving the south and west sides of Chicago. He’s also a budding real estate developer in a field where few people of color run their own companies.

“We have a lot of undeveloped land and dilapidated buildings that are in need of renovation,” Baker said. “It’s difficult to bring retailers into these types of neighborhoods.”

This represents a career pivot for Baker, who had been CEO of Moon Meals, which specializes in distributing healthy plant-based grab-and-go meals in national retailers.

His love of big challenges dates to his time at Denison, where the self-described “fat kid” began training for marathons. He’s finished marathons in the past 13 years.

Baker hopes his next long run will be in real estate. He joined World Business Chicago in 2021 and has since founded Baker Enterprises, which completed its first market-rate apartment building renovation last year.

World Business Chicago recently arranged a bus tour for more than 50 national retailers, who rode through developing neighborhoods to scout potential locations.

“There have been issues with the quality of housing in south and west Chicago from the time I was growing up,” Baker said. “I’m trying to build density in neighbors that will attract more retailers. All people deserve access to neighborhood grocery stores and pharmacies.”

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LAURA KRISKA ’87 spent four years at Denison part of Denison’s study abroad program — became the acquiring knowledge and learning to appreciate first American woman to work in the Tokyo headquarters views and opinions different from her own. of Honda Motor Company.

Recently, the distinguished author and expert in intercultural collaboration was thrilled to return to campus and educate students on a timely topic.

In an age of social and political polarization, Kriska travels the world teaching businesses how to build unity within workforces. The goal is to create more productive and inclusive environments.

She brought that framework to Denison in the fall of 2021 and 2022, working with global commerce professor Karen Spierling to run a series of unity themed sessions called “WE-Building.”

“Facilitating WE-Building inside large corporations is my main job,” Kriska said. “But having the chance to inf luence young people to be WE-Builders as they prepare to take their place in our increasingly divided world is a calling.”

President Adam Weinberg frequently encourages students to talk with others on campus who don’t share their worldviews in hopes of bridging divides. This is Kriska’s life’s work. She’s written two books, The Business of We and The Accidental Office Lady, dealing with cultural issues within the workplace.

At age 22, Kriska — who spent a semester in Japan as

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Through her many experiences and associations, she’s trying to close “us vs. them” gaps created by ethnicity, race, religion, politics, and gender orientation.

Kriska touts a three-step process: foster awareness, self-assess, and act.

“A lot of times it’s a matter of taking simple steps,” she said, “and making small gestures to build relationships.”

Jones encourages business-minded college with entrepreneurial spirit and innovation. He’s a students to develop a wide visionary in the digital age who founded five startups and range of sk ills in data, launched two billion-dollar IPOs — Travelocity and Kayak. economics, and accounting.

“These are now all available But his business acumen wasn’t always a strength. at Denison,” he said.

Jones loves to tell the story of his first job as a receptionist He also cautions against at a travel agency. the idea of becoming an “On my first day, I was asked to type up an invoice, and I entrepreneur too early in said, ‘What’s that?’’’ Jones recalled. “My boss said, ‘Well, your professional career. He’s keen on gaining experience you know what a bill is, right?’ I said, ‘Yeah, my parents through working at a startup or large company. get those.’ I had to adapt and learn quickly.”

“Go work for a company, get some skills, and learn Fortunately for Jones, his Denison education prepared enough to say, ‘This company is stupid, it should be doing him to excel in a rapidly changing world. things differently,’ and then go out and do that,” Jones said.

“A liberal arts education teaches you about learning to Jones, who’s coaching four GPT startups and has served learn and to think critically,” said Jones, who majored in on 15 startup advisory boards, offers Denison students history. “That’s what Denison gave me.” one other nugget of advice.

Jones’ rise from travel agency receptionist to venture “Remember, innovation isn’t about changing the capitalist to digital disruptor has been fueled by a curiosity world,” he said. “It’s usually an incremental step, and instilled by his mother, and a willingness to learn courtesy it builds on the shoulders of others. You tweak it, you of his alma mater on The Hill. change the user interface. Today, it’s about making He’s the author of two best-selling books, ON it easy. It’s about developing something that makes it Innovation and Disruption OFF, and remains one of the easier for consumers to use.” corporate world’s most in-demand public speakers.

TERRY JONES ’70 is a name synonymous

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“A liberal arts education teaches you about learning to learn and to think critically.

That’s what Denison gave me.”

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Sisters ALISON BROWN NISSEN ’89 and MARCY BROWN STOUDT ’94 were enjoying successful careers even before they considered combining forces.

Nissen was an author working in academia. Stoudt had spent two decades in the corporate world. While thoughts of a joint venture enticed them, they didn’t want anything to jeopardize their family bond.

“We came up with the ‘sisters first’ promise,” Stoudt recalled. “It was maintaining a culture that prioritized sisterhood over business.”

Five years after they launched their new venture, Revel Coach, their relationship is as strong as ever.

They designed Revel Coach as a platform to mentor executives and entrepreneurs who wish to find career and family success. The sisters lead programs dedicated to women in leadership.

The combination of Stoudt’s business acumen and Nissen’s storytelling provide a good mix for clients.

“We’re here to help them make connections,” Nissen said.

The sisters take pride in staying connected to Denison.

Revel Coach, in fact, debuted at the 2019 ReMix entrepreneurship summit. Stoudt and Nissen attend the event each year.

They’ve also partnered with Big Red women’s athletic programs to teach student athletes how to leverage their experiences in career planning.

“I built my confidence in telling stories at Denison,” Nissen said. “Now, we’re trying to teach others why telling good stories will help them make connections and grow their audiences.”

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As founder of Crooked Ventures — a business consulting and ser vices f irm — he’s worked with about 75 businesses across all stages of maturity. Heckmann helps entrepreneurs with businesses up to $10 million in annual revenues create distinctiveness and align their professional pursuits with their personal goals.

His time at Denison taught him the value of intellectual curiosity and humility. He also served as a recent student trustee on the university’s Board of Trustees when it selected Adam Weinberg as Denison’s next president.

After graduating from Denison, Heckmann earned a master’s degree in public policy and management at Carnegie Mellon University in his native Pittsburgh.

An entrepreneur at heart, he’s a fan of self-reliance and making a lot of “small bets” instead of a single big one. It took him only one year working for an investment fund to realize that wasn’t the career path for him.

Once he founded Crooked Ventures, “I started to see business opportunities everywhere.” He thrives on creating value for other entrepreneurs and discovering people and ideas that challenge the prevailing norms of their industry.

Heckmann also serves as borough council president of Castle Shannon in Pittsburgh, while dabbling in boxing and volleyball in his free time.

“I like to keep busy,” he said.

“My Denison experience helped me build a well-rounded skill set,” Bratcher said.

“Balancing academics and athletics taught me a great deal about managing my time and excelling in multiple areas at once.”

Bratcher serves as the chief operating officer at Nature Coatings, a biochemical startup making carbon-negative pigments from wood waste. Working for companies that promote environmentally safe and allergy- and gluten-free products has been a constant for Bratcher in recent years.

He co-founded Beyond the Equator, which specialized in allergy friendly foods. He loved meeting customers with children who had never tried peanut butter due to allergy concerns and seeing them be able to eat the company’s product.

“It’s probably a mixture of philosophy and coincidence,” Bratcher said. “I’ve been in the right place at the right time for opportunities, but I do try to make sure projects I work on are making a real, tangible impact.”

His career has required plenty of travel, including working in Bolivia. He believes studying abroad in New Zealand during his junior year ignited his passion for travel.

“It opened my eyes to the wide variety of experiences the world has to offer,” he said. “Ever since then, I’ve intentionally made travel a significant part of both my personal and professional life.”

MARK HECKMANN ’11 believes hearing “no” as a budding entrepreneur is not the end of a conversation, but the beginning. His resume is evidence that Heckmann has done a lot of talking.

“I started to see business opportunities everywhere.”

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KEVIN BRATCHER ’12 didn’t understand how valuable his four years as a pitcher for the Big Red baseball team were — until he started traveling the globe to launch and operate companies.

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‘THE CLIMB IS THE FUN PART’ Author James Clear ’08 joined fellow alums and

learn valuable lessons on everything from resilience to risk mitigation. students at ReMix 2023 to network, brainstorm, The 2023 summit kicked off Sept. 20 with student and celebrate Denison’s entrepreneurial spirit. entrepreneurs pitching their business ideas. Attendees could sign up for alumni-student coaching, visit the Red JAMES CLEAR ’08 designed his own major while a Frame Lab to learn how entrepreneurship is fostered at student at Denison.

Denison, and build relationships during Friday’s Women’s Fifteen years later, with a New York Times bestseller to Networking Lunch. his name and millions of subscribers awaiting his next Anchoring the schedule were speaker sessions offering newsletter, he’s still charting his own path. a wealth of expertise, knowledge, and experience from And that, he told a packed house at the ReMix 2023 alums who have succeeded in all walks of professional life. entrepreneurship summit, might be what he likes best.

“ReMix exceeded my expectations,” said EMILY MERRELL ’09, “That’s one of the most beautiful things about it,” he said. the founder and business coach at Six Degrees Society, who “You don’t need anyone’s permission.” helped plan this year’s event. “I felt so fortunate to reconnect ReMix, created and led by Denison alums, was founded with old ReMix friends and meet many new ones. I left in 2018 to provide high-value professional development energized and inspired and more in love with Denison.” and networking for alums and to expose current students Clear, who has built a personal business empire by to entrepreneurship. writing about habits, decision-making, and continuous self-improvement, is another ReMix veteran.

He spoke of some of his early ups (winning $10,000 in an international essay writing competition) and downs (squandering $1,500 of the prize money to develop an iPhone app that flopped).

“I think it made $17, total,” he said.

But he kept following his nose, as he put it, and built a devoted online following over the span of several years.

That audience ultimately led him to land the book deal for Atomic Habits.

“Denison needs to have its foot in the door of entrepreReaching that point took persistence and hard work, but neurship,” said JACK TANKERSLEY ’72, a Denison trustee he encouraged budding entrepreneurs to enjoy the ride. who has shared his insights on venture capital, growth “It may not always feel fun in the moment, but I promise equity investing, and business creation at every ReMix. you the climb is the fun part,” he said. “If you always feel He said ReMix encourages students to see their own like happiness is somewhere else, then it’s always going entrepreneurial potential, helping them to network and to elude you.”

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BY THEODORE DECKER PHOTOS BY PATRICK DEMICHAEL ’13

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A broken ankle and torn tendons couldn’t slow ALISON ALEXANDER ’07 when she arrived at Denison in 2003.

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DIRAN HAFIZ ’04 and CRINA VASILIU ’06 met at Denison as international students.

Hafiz came from Bangladesh, while Vasiliu is a Romanian who grew up under communist rule.

Both are unwavering advocates for diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives.

In 2020, they launched CareerRecipe, a nonprofit consultancy in Chicago that helps new-to-career job seekers, especially at-risk minorities, find employment.

I n t h re e ye a r s , H a f i z a nd Vasiliu have helped place more than 225 applicants.

The couple runs CareerRecipe while continuing to work in the private sector. Hafiz is a senior vice president of analytics and decision sciences at Publicis Collective, and Vasiliu is a director of workplace planning at Morningstar, a financial services firm.

They each bring nearly two decades of experience and networking from the technology and financial sectors.

Their services include career consulting, resume building, interview prep work, and optimizing LinkedIn profiles.

“Our pro bono work is something we do because we’re passionate about it and because we want to give back,” Hafiz said. “It’s been super fulfilling, and I can connect the dots with experiences that I went through at Denison.”

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Determined to be part of a team, she made her mark sitting down — rowing competitively for the Big Red crew.

Finding a way to make a difference drives Alexander, who earned degrees in communications and studio art. She’s carved out a career in organizational change management and found her place in sustainable business transformation.

Alexander is the vice president of program, partnership, and community operations for the Unreasonable Group, an accelerator and investment house building a unique “ecosystem for good” that is nurturing entrepreneurs tackling some of the world’s most significant challenges.

“I must work for a place that’s impact-driven and is trying to make the world better for the next generation,” Alexander said. “At Unreasonable, we are repurposing capitalism in an intentional way.”

Unreasonable par tners w ith institutions and multinationals such as Barclays, Accenture, Pearson, Nike, and the U.S. State Department.

Alexander is a major proponent of finding a work-life balance, to support employees and help them understand it’s OK to ask for help. She believes changing our way of thinking about employee engagement can boost productivity and raise retention.

It’s part of being what she calls a “human-centered strategist.”

“I would never be happy in an organization where purpose-driven work was not part of my day-to-day experience,” she said.

When time permits, Alexander retreats into nature and gets out on the water whenever possible.

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ALEX GREEN ’06 squeezed every drop of opportunity from his four years at Denison.

He worked as a deejay at WDUB, founded a sound product ion compa ny, ser ved w ith the ca mpus governance association, and organized several largescale entertainment events, including the university’s first foam and laser rave.

He was even a Swasey Chapel bell ringer.

“I gained a lot of confidence in working and collaborating with others,” Green said. “Denison provided an environment that allowed me to come into my own.”

His breadth of experiences prepared him for a career with Apple, where he’s thrived for the past 12 years. Green, who majored in media technology and arts, has worked his way up to senior leadership in retail technology product management.

During his time at Apple, he’s traveled the world supporting the company.

Green draws a straight line between his successful career and his time on The Hill. While he was an energetic and enterprising student, he credits Denison’s mentors for helping him plot his future.

Despite all his hard work across campus, Green was undecided on a career path as a senior. He said Ryan Brechbill, now director of employer and alumni relations at the Knowlton Center for Career Exploration, recommended a consulting job with Deloitte.

Green spent four years learning the business side of

“He saw something in me that I hadn’t seen in myself.”

technology. He joined Apple after getting his MBA at Cornell University.

“That meeting with Ryan helped change my life,” Green recalled. “I wasn’t even thinking about consulting, but he saw something in me that I hadn’t seen in myself.”

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SAMEER BARAL ’08 has never been afraid of the road less traveled. It’s been his preferred route to success since leaving Nepal as a teenager to attend Denison.

He said the one constant on his journey has been an ability to build relationships.

“I’ve always been fanatical about solving clients’ issues,” Baral said. “The client’s experience matters more than anything else.”

A student with a love of astronomy, he majored in He honed his personal touch while learning English on phy sic s before s w itc h i ng to mat hemat ic s a nd the fly. He developed an ear for it listengeoscience. The young man from Southeast Asia ing to classic rock as a kid — The Eagles, with an affinity for acoustic guitar became the only Pink Floyd, Deep Purple, and Lynyrd international student during his time on The Hill to Skynyrd were his unconventional lanperform in the bluegrass ensemble. guage tutors.

“People often underestimate themselves,” Baral said.

Although applied sciences was his “We all have the capacity for change and the ability to make emphasis at Denison, a course in career pivots. I like to say not knowing is a tremendous public speaking also did wonders for opportunity.” his confidence.

Since graduation, Baral has worked in the energy, tech, “I’ve had an unorthodox career, but and data fields. He’s been a geologist, technologist, and I’ve enjoyed it,” he said. “The rules of financial software expert. He was recently promoted to a engagement have changed at different director of implementation-client success at Fiserv. jobs, but the fundamental elements Baral and his wife often talk about their different career have not. It comes back to knowing how paths. She’s always worked in accounting, while Baral has to deal with people.” hopscotched from one field to another.

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ELENI KARAHALIOS ’14 admits she didn’t fully appreciate one of the most valuable lessons she learned at Denison until she entered the workforce.

Karahalios, who majored in economics, recalls the emphasis some professors placed on class participation.

A decade later, she still remembers an English class that featured the works of author Jane Austen and how her instructor graded heavily on what students brought to discussions about the material.

“I tell this to people all the time when they ask me about how Denison prepared me for my career,” said Karahalios, an executive recruiter for venture-backed companies.

“When I got to my first job out of college, I understood the importance of adding value and fresh ideas to conversations. Denison helps you find your voice.”

Karahalios has worked closely with startups. There’s lots of meetings and brainstorming sessions —

environments that require innovative solutions.

She also spent two months in 2023 partnering with NASA on a climate tech incubator to commercialize advanced gas and emission monitoring products.

“I’d like to transition to executive searches for climate change technology,” she said. “I’m still using the lessons I learned at Denison as my career evolves.”

Denison remains part of Karahalios’ orbit. She’s hosted organizational group chats with students and is impressed by the university’s evolution in career services, internships, and innovation.

In 2023, U.S. News & World Report ranked Denison No. 6 in innovation, and the Princeton Review ranked it third for career services among all U.S. colleges and universities.

“I talked with Denison students while I was at GoPro and Levi Strauss, and I was blown away by how sophisticated and nuanced many of the questions were,” Karahalios said. “It says a lot about what the students are learning.”

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SARDOR TAYLAKOV ’19 wasn’t on The Hill long, but he’s not short on memories or gratitude.

“They have amazing professors at Denison who can engage you in the subject matter,” said Taylakov, who earned a degree in computer science. “I also was impressed how they built a community to bring the computer science majors together.”

Taylakov began his college studies at the University of Tashkent in his native Uzbekistan. He transferred to Denison and completed his degree in two years through hard work and the help of his advisor, computer science professor Matt Kretchmar.

“He’s very motivated and very kind,” Kretchmar said. “It doesn’t surprise me that Sardor has achieved postgraduate success.”

Taylakov is a senior software engineer at Navan, an online travel management and corporate card company, where he’s worked since graduation.

Leaving home at a young age and moving halfway around the world can be a stressf ul experience.

Taylakov believes Denison and his host family set him up for success.

“It’s a very welcoming environment for international students,” said Taylakov, who went home to Uzbekistan in the fall of 2023 for just the second time. “Denison is a place where you can learn a lot of things about yourself and the world.”

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STEVE HOLDEN ’07 worked for a tech company whose brand is so universal its very name became a verb. Just Google it.

When you reach that level of success, the pressure to stay on top creates daunting challenges and mantras.

“One of the longstanding guiding principles at Google is that ‘great just isn’t good enough,’” said Holden, who finished his run at the tech giant as a business development manager.

“Throughout my 15 years at the company, this was a constant reminder of the importance to be humble and to stay hungry by setting ambitious goals — even if it was unlikely that you would reach them all.”

Holden said working at Google required him to nimbly adapt to changing circumstances, learn quickly from others, and thrive in ambiguity.

“Those are exactly the kinds of skills I was able to sharpen while at Denison,” he said. “Applying those skills during my four years at Denison prepared me well for a career in sales, advertising, and business development.”

He continues to draw on his Denison training in his new job as a team leader at Tackle.io, a platform that helps software companies sell their products more effectively by leveraging cloud marketplaces operated by companies such as Google, Amazon, and Microsoft.

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WILLIAM YANDELL ’92 loves action and adventure. He treats life as a contact sport.

He snowboards, surfs, and paddles. As a marketing strategist, Yandell spent 12 years at Red Bull, the energy drink giant with connections to an array of sports and athletes. He also worked for Clif Bar & Company, known for its energy bars.

“I’ve always loved action sports and had an opportunity to be around them in my career,” Yandell said.

His spirit of adventure took him on a different route in 2022. He joined a startup company specializing in growing fruit in indoor vertical farms.

Oishii has become the world’s largest indoor strawberry farm, striving to change the produce industry and raise the standards of fresh fruit in America. The New Jerseybased company was founded in 2017, about a year after Yandell became a vegan.

“I had no idea about vertical farming at the time,” said Yandell, the senior director of sales and field marketing at Oishii. “But I loved the story behind the company and the technology they were using.”

Yandell, a Long Island, New York, native, said Denison taught him to open his mind to new ideas. That philosophy meshed perfectly with Oishii’s mission statement.

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DONGBIN ALISTAIRE SUH ’20 usually knows the first question he’ll be asked once someone discovers he works for TikTok.

“They want to know how the algorithm works,” he said.

“I tell them my team doesn’t handle that.”

Suh can’t tell you how to become the next great inf luencer, but his origin story from foot soldier to software engineer is compelling.

In between his sophomore and junior years, he served as a sergeant in the South Korean army. Among his duties were leading a platoon of six men in a reconnaissance mission before the South Korean president visited military headquarters. Suh also volunteered for the emergency force, which can be deployed at any moment in case of a national crisis.

“Being in the army taught me discipline and leadership,” Suh said.

He chose Denison over other American college options because of class sizes and the reputation of the computer science department. He interned and did freelance work while on The Hill, even developing a food-ordering app that was tested by the university, he said.

He learned English by listening to Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Queen, and by watching Friends and Bewitched. But it was at Denison where he was taught “good writing skills,” he said, that he carried with him into his position at TikTok. “It’s ver y impor ta nt to convey you r thoughts clearly when making presentations,” Suh said. “I learned how to organize my thoughts and provide context in my presentations.”

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He learned English by listening to Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Queen, and by watching Friends and Bewitched.

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S U C C E S S 1 0 0 WAY S

MUSIC MAKERS

BY C H R I S D E V I L L E

The band is still going strong now that he’s settled in Nashville with a job at Jack White’s Third Man Records, both in the storefront and the onsite music venue.

Bailey was impressed by the industr y connections Denison allowed him to form.

“Whether that be f ilm scoring, music publishing, or anything adjacent to the industry, alumni are always willing to connect and share their perspective,” he said.

Bailey continues to collaborate w ith current Denison students Lula Burke ’24 and Mick Smith ’24, whom he met through the on-campus band The Cuties. He’s creating demos for new Runner and Bobby music but still plays shows supporting this year’s Maui Tapes EP.

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Lela Gayle

James Schuller

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Just before enrolling at Denison, Chicago-area native PARKER BAILEY ’23 formed the indie rock band Runner and Bobby, which built up an extensive catalog of releases during his tenure in Granville.

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“I had an opportunity to become comfortable as a live performer and singer while at Denison,” said CAROLINE SPENCE ’11, a successful folk-rock singer-songwriter based in Nashville.

That process of self-discover y ranged from solo shows at the Bandersnatch to serving as musical director for a cappella group Ladies’ Night Out to visiting China with the Bluegrass Ensemble.

“Perhaps the most significant impact on my future career was from my time as an English major, specifically in the creative writing department under the guidance of Ann Townsend,” Spence said. “I would not be the songwriter I am today without the encouragement I received and tools I learned as her poetry student and teaching assistant.”

This year, Spence released a deluxe edition of her album True North and toured both North America and Europe.

Before that, she collaborated with The National’s Matt Berninger on “I Know You Know Me,” featured in the AppleTV+ series The Last Thing He Told Me starring Jennifer Garner ’94.

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Denison and music have always been tied together for BRANDON SHULL ’19. When he was 6, the Lancaster native’s fiddle teacher introduced him to a weekly bluegrass jam at Slayter Union, where he could learn to play on the fly.

“I’d go up in the summer every year and when I was on break,” Shull said.

Around the same time, he started entering fiddle competitions. By eighth grade, he was taking lessons from Andy Carlson, the world-class fiddler who started Denison’s bluegrass program.

When he inevitably enrolled at Denison, Shull was one of the most experienced bluegrass players to join Bluegrass Ensemble: “There’s not a lot of people who come in sort of primed for it.”

Though initially attending Denison on a music scholarship, Shull eventually switched to a math major but continued f iddling vigorously. After graduation, he got back into playing competitively, which led to him being crowned Grand Champion at the 2022 Ohio State Old Time Fiddler’s Contest in Nelsonville.

He also plays regularly around Columbus in the Ramblin’ Bluegrass Ensemble, performs in a swing band at square dances near Mansfield in the summer, and sits in with various friends when they call him up.

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Ashley Mercer

Kendra Bryant

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Many know ROB TATE ’16 as the neo-soul-infused rapper Sarob, but when he arrived at Denison his focus was basketball. By the end of his first year, he’d gotten up the courage to rap for his friends.

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The performer known as Joey Aich aka JOSEPH HOLBERT ’16 started rapping during high school, but his first year at Denison is when he realized he wanted to devote his life to music.

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So many people at Denison impacted WILL MACLEAN’S ’12 development as a musician.

Carving out a presence as one of a handful of emcees on campus, Holber t evolved from Bandersnatch open mics to D-Day Administrator Pamela Hughes was “one of performances. the kindest and most supportive people When not on the mic in Granville, he and I interacted with.” Jazz guitar instructor fellow alum Rob Tate ’16 aka Sarob often Tom Carroll “really developed me from a As a sophomore, he quit hoops to throw toured around Ohio to play shows or record. committed amateur into a professional level himself fully into music. He was surprised “We would split studio time,” Holbert said. “We player.” Another jazz professor, Pete Mills, when he was chosen to close out D-Day’s would share ideas.” taught MacLean “the process I use to learn student stage that year. “I didn’t have a DJ,” he After graduating, they both settled in music and assimilate new ideas.” says. “I barely had music.”

Columbus and kept building. Lately for Joey The core of his music experience at Denison Tate credits a community of creatives at Aich, that has meant releasing a deluxe edition was his time with studio instructors in lessons Denison for helping propel him forward. He of his lush and thoughtful 2020 album Open and ensembles, but MacLean’s time in the still calls fellow rapper and close collaborator Treehouse with 10 new songs. (Relevant lyric: classroom also challenged and expanded his Joey Aich ’16 his best friend. He also took “I knew I wanted this life since campus.”) views. He was impressed with classical music inspiration from, among others, his longtime He couldn’t tour in support of the original specialists Ching-chu Hu and HyeKyung Lee manager Roger Phelps ’16; basketball LP due to Covid but has hit the road hard for showing patience toward a relative novice. teammate Chris Barnes ’14, who rapped behind the deluxe. Besides shows all over the “I deepened my understanding of music more under the name KobeJamesJordan; and Najee middle and eastern U.S. (including historic in Dr. Hu’s theory class than in any other,” he Rollins ’15, an emcee who was “so far ahead in hip-hop hubs New York and Chicago and said. “Dr. Lee was always very encouraging, and a lot of things.” less obvious destinations like West Virginia), I have continued to be inspired by her creativity.”

Many from his circle settled in Columbus he played a number of festivals back home — Outside music, the Homestead program, in after college and made waves — including most prominently Wonderbus, where he also which 12 students per semester live and work Tate, whose Sarob releases, including the two- took the stage with the breakout Columbus together in pursuit of a more ecologically volume Transitions album, won widespread indie folk band Caamp. sustainable lifestyle, helped MacLean to acclaim. Now based in Chicago, Tate isn’t “discover what really holds importance in life.” pursuing music as fervently as before the Nowadays MacLean is based in Nashville, pandemic, but “I got some stuff on a hard drive,” where he plays banjo for the comedic bluegrass he says. “I guess there’s always something in band the Cleverlys and the world-folk band the works.”

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“It’s kind of like if the Rolling Stones and the band War had a kid,” he said of the group. “It was rock, but it was very funky too.”

He also took inspiration from Elliot Borishansky’s music theory class, a highlight of his first year that made him “a lifelong music theory fanatic.”

Decades after the members graduated and spread out, The Janitors still get together for shows. Recently they’ve performed in Nashville and in Ducker’s home base of Annapolis. That’s where he joined his main current musical project, a New Orleans-style second-line streetfunk brass band called the Naptown Brass Band.

Ducker makes his living as a software engineer and cloud architect — “I guess I’m what you’d call a weekend warrior” — but rarely does a weekend go by without one or more Naptown gigs. The band takes inspiration from the Dirty Dozen Brass Band and the Rebirth Brass Band, both of which they count as friends and mentors. With Naptown, he plays weddings, music festivals, and other events around Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. “Playing in frat houses, the Bandersnatch, and local bars was great preparation for the regular gigging that I do now,” he said. “Denison people definitely love to have fun, and I learned how to get them dancing.”

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Chris Scarlett

At Denison — largely through his experience playing parties as a singer, guitar player, and saxophonist for The Janitors of Anarchy — LAKIN DUCKER ’90 discovered he loves making people dance.

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The path to OLIVIA VAN GOOR’S ’19 full-time career as a jazz vocalist, composer, arranger, producer, and educator in Detroit included four years at Denison, where studies in music and economics prepared her for life as an independent musician.

Van Goor credits voice teacher Stephanie Henkle in particular — “She helped me make the biggest strides musically at Denison by guiding me to find my true voice” — but also shouts out the impact of music professor Pete Mills and econ professor Laura Boyd, among many others. Extracurriculars were influential, too, including the a cappella group Ladies’ Night Out. “The lesson that helped me the most,” she said, “was learning how to take hold of my own education.”

In the years since her graduation, Van Goor has become a fixture of the Detroit jazz scene. She gigs prolifically around the city and throughout the Midwest, and in August released her latest self-produced album, Don’t Be Mad At Me, a seven-song set that will instantly transport you back to some smoky mid-20th century nightclub.

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One reason LAUREN SAKS ’10 chose Denison was the Bluegrass Ensemble. She had been a classically trained violinist since third grade and was ready to explore other genres.

At Denison, she learned to adapt her skills to the world of American roots music and gained inspiration to make a go of it in Nashville, where she’s built up a successful career as a band member for several prominent country artists.

“Caroline Spence ’11 performed in Bluegrass Ensemble with me and sang in Lemongrass, our Denison bluegrass band that traveled to China in June of 2010,” Saks said. “On that trip, she told me she always knew she would be moving to Nashville to pursue a career in songwriting. That conversation got me thinking about moving to Nashville as well.”

The next summer, they moved to Nashville together.

Saks jumped into the bluegrass scene there and spent years paying her dues in local honkytonks en route to a longstanding gig playing fiddle with Terri Clark. With Clark, she’s played the Hollywood Bowl, Madison Square Garden, Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena, and the iconic Grand Ole Opry.

Saks also performed with rising star Hailey Whitters and toured this fall with Kimberly Perry of The Band Perry.

#DENISONPROUD ISSUE 1 2024

Found THE LIBRARY GOT SOME NEW FLAIR!

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Thanks to the generosity of John Siegenthaler ’90 and Maura Sullivan Siegenthaler ’92, we were able to add these beautiful Denison banners to give the front of the library a little love. They make a great photo backdrop, too — send us your pictures from your return to The Hill!

The Siegenthalers serve as company officers and share operational responsibilities at Lind Media Company, which John founded in 1991, and Lind SignSpring Group, formed in 2012. Lind Media operates approximately 1,600 billboards across Ohio and Indiana, and Lind SignSpring Group manufactures and distributes patented fabric graphic and signage installation systems for the outdoor advertising, banner, mural, and signage industries.

John says Denison holds a special place in the couple’s hearts, and they’re sharing that now with their son, Thomas Siegenthaler ’26. patrick demichael ’13

Join us for a gathering of Denisonians near you!

JAN. 31, 2024

6 – 8 P. M . L O C A L T I M E

Denison Everywhere is one of our favorite traditions. It’s the night when Denisonians — both familiar faces and new friends — meet in cities across the country and around the world to celebrate the bonds formed from our years on The Hill.

Learn more & register

DENISON.EDU/EVERYWHERE

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LAW & POLICY LEADERS

Also at this time, with the rise of cable television, it became obvious that the old Emergency Broadcast system needed an update. Baker oversaw the rulemaking process that established the Emergency Alert System that we have today.

Baker became the first woman to ascend the ranks to a bureau chief position, and she led the Field Operations Bureau, the FCC’s oldest and largest bureau. The staff were largely engineers. “They were somewhat upset with having a female boss,” she said, “but seriously upset by the fact that I was not an engineer.” Her Denison math major saved the day. “When I let that fact out, they thought maybe I might possibly understand their work.”

Ten years after she graduated from Denison, Her mission was to modernize and streamline the old BEVERLY BAKER ’64 went to law school. organization. She oversaw the implementation of a new “It wasn’t something many women did then,” she said, technology that significantly reduced the number of offices “but I had long been interested in law, and when the and people needed for effective operations. women’s movement gained traction, it seemed possible.” “I will never forget how these government employees — often unfairly maligned — completed that project, She graduated from law school as a single mother with which required great precision, perfectly and on time,” three children. Thanks to her Denison classmate, Scott she said, “knowing that when they were done, their jobs Whitlock, who she said “went out on a limb” for her, would be gone.”

Baker landed in his Columbus, Ohio, law firm. After only In return, Baker championed her former employees, a year, however, she decided to remarry — and packed helping most of them land other jobs in the FCC or the up the house and kids to move to Washington, D.C., to private sector. “These were very good people,” she said, follow love and law.

“And I wanted to do my best for them.”

The internet was barely a twinkle in Al Gore’s eye, and When Baker retired, the FCC honored her with their cell phone service did not yet exist when Baker joined the Gold Medal award, its highest recognition.

Federal Communications Commission staff as an attorney.

Only a handful of women had ever held management positions at the FCC, but Baker’s intelligence and innovative ideas — and, she said, “a general bossiness” — were hard to ignore. Within three years she was appointed a branch chief.

In 1987, just as the cell phone industry was gaining steam, Baker was appointed deputy chief of the Private Radio Bureau, the first woman to hold a deputy bureau chief position at the FCC. At that time, FCC policy had created regional duopolies for cell phone service and called it competition. Baker thought this system did not serve consumers well. When a third potential competitor with an innovative technology came to her, she helped them navigate the regulatory minefield and withstand the opposition from existing companies to get into business. Within a few years the FCC opened up competition even further.

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The internet was barely a twinkle in Al Gore’s eye when Baker joined the Federal Communications Commission staff as an attorney.

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Two years before JERYL HAYES ’04 began to study law, she had an epiphany. She was working for an educational nonprofit, surrounded by people who were utterly devoted to their work.

Hayes realized that, although she believed the work was important, she lacked that intensity.

Hayes wanted that same passion for her chosen career — so she began to pay more attention to the topics that lit her inner fire.

“I recognized that I gravitated toward any conversation or situation related to gender equity, especially reproductive rights,” she said. “That became my anchor point.”

Hayes had no idea how or if she could find a job aligned with that ambition. Ignited by her goal, she pursued every opportunity.

In law school, Hayes joined a chapter of If/When/ How: Lawyering for Reproductive Justice, an advocacy group for reproductive health, rights, and justice. Inner bells started ringing. She won a coveted summer internship with the nonprofit.

“That internship changed the entire trajectory of my legal career,” Hayes said. “From my first day, I knew what my future was.”

That summer, she learned to use her advocacy skills at the intersection of reproductive rights and the law. As she dived deeper into work on issues she cared about, she began to understand her calling.

Hayes pursued paid and volunteer opportunities that aligned with her passion, and created a series of career opportunities for herself. She chose to live in the Washington, D.C., area, where she found effective policy

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SAFIA KHAN ’10 speaks for people who have a hard time making themselves heard. For eight years, that was were victims of domestic violence.

Today, in her role as deputy commissioner and chief of staff for the Minnesota Department of Corrections, it’s everyone in the system — the incarcerated and their families, the victims and survivors, and the staff of the institution.

“It’s challenging work,” she said. “Definitely a marathon, not a sprint.”

Khan works to ensure that incarcerated people can transform their behaviors to reenter society successfully and assure there are no future victims. Surprisingly small things can make a big difference, she said. One example?

Phone calls home.

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work is most highly concentrated.

Ultimately, Hayes returned to If/When/How. She is currently growing and shaping programs helping law students and legal professionals to network and champion reproductive justice.

“I’m with my dream organization in my dream job,” she said — fully aligned with her passion.

Prison phone service providers charge families for calls, sometimes as much as $5 for 15 minutes. It’s a moneymaker for those institutions that receive kickbacks from the providers. But many families can’t afford to keep in touch with loved ones in prison. That’s a problem, says Khan, citing research that shows strong family connections can reduce recidivism by 25%.

She supported recently passed legislation that allows prisoners to make free phone calls to their families — a common sense answer to a big problem, as she sees it, and a victory for everyone.

“Working in the criminal justice field, I see that a lot of what happens in corrections facilities is a reflection of our society at large,” she said. “If we truly want safer communities everywhere, we have to move ideas like this forward.”

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In early 1965, the U.S. was fully committed to the Vietnam War, and the draft was imminent.

BOB HOWARTH ’65 was considering enrolling in flight school after graduation when he ran into Mark Smith, Denison’s dean of men.

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PATRICIA MOYNIHAN ’89 was a senior staffing the Slayter desk when she saw an opportunity to interview with the CIA. On a lark, she penciled her name into a time slot. Next stop: A yearlong immersion into the Russian language.

During her 27 years as a CIA officer, Moynihan has been deployed to some of the most precarious regions of the world, including Russia, Ukraine, and Pakistan.

A senior clandestine services officer, Moynihan has a resume that reads like a Jack Ryan novel. (Spy novels are often pretty accurate, she says.) Her first deployment was to Moscow. She has worked undercover, planned and led sensitive operations, and served in embassies.

What she can’t tell us would fill a book — maybe two or three.

In the course of her career, Moynihan briefed three presidents in person, “multiple times,” and met many other world leaders (unnamed, of course). But the work isn’t all glamorous. Assignments can be dangerous and unpredictable.

“A lot of what we do is after hours, in the night, alone, in not-nice places,” Moynihan said. “Espionage doesn’t work on a time table. If there’s a situation in your region, you have to be there. You’re ‘on’ all the time.”

Officially retired from the CIA, Moynihan continues to consult, and she’s checking a few things off her bucket list. She’s learned how to drive a Zamboni, serves Meals on Wheels, and has obtained her PI license, but recently decided she doesn’t want to do surveillance work anymore.

She’s also an EMT, president of the McLean Volunteer Fire Department, and has taken several turns as Santa for their annual parade.

“If you can work undercover in Moscow,” she said, “you should be able to be a pretty convincing Santa.”

These days, Moynihan is winding down her consulting work and ramping up her study skills for a master’s degree. Her next daring act: teaching social studies to middle and high school students.

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Howarth shared his plans with Smith, whose response was pithy and direct: “Are you out of your mind?”

Smith encouraged him to go to law school — and set him on an entirely new trajectory.

After law school, Howarth joined the Ohio Air National Guard as a JAG officer. In his private practice, he represented National Guard defendants in the litigations arising out of the Kent State tragedy. He also got to know Gov. Jim Rhodes, who later asked him to become his executive assistant, launching Howarth into his stint of public service.

Howarth went on with his career as senior vice president with Huntington National Bank and as a partner in a national law firm, followed by establishing his own firm, while he remained active in the public sphere.

His accomplishments include sitting on Ohio’s Board of Regents and Ohio’s Board of Bar Examiners, serving as executive assistant to the Columbus mayor, and chairing the capital city’s economic advisory committee. Howarth also served on boards for Shawnee State University, the Capital Area Humane Society, Columbus Children’s Hospital, and the Columbus Academy.

In tandem with his civilian life, Howarth continued to serve in the military for 33 years before retiring from the United States Air Force Reserves and the Ohio Air National Guard with the rank of brigadier general.

“My w ife jokes that I could never keep a job,” Howarth said. “But I’d say I’ve been blessed to have experienced so much.”

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JUSTIN WEISS ’14 never takes for granted his walk along the White House colonnade between the West Wing and the Eisenhower Executive Office Building.

“It’s the opportunity of a lifetime,” said Weiss, director of communications for the White House Council on Environmental Quality. “It’s hard not to pinch yourself and remember, ‘This is where I work.’”

He has Denison and, more specifically, two old classmates to thank for helping him land in Washington, D.C.

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Weiss, who majored in French and communications, didn’t have firm career plans after graduation. He thought of teaching English in a French-speaking country.

But Denison classmates Caleb Randall-Bodman ’14 and Adam Safer ’14 convinced the Cleveland native to move to the nation’s capital and become their roommate.

Weiss spent a few months bartending before finding work as an analyst at a government relations firm and transitioning to public relations. He made the jump from the private sector in 2019, becoming a communications director in the U.S. House of Representatives for Congressman Adam Smith and later joining NASA as its deputy press secretary.

In 2023, Weiss joined the White House as associate director of infrastructure communications before he moved to the Council on Environmental Quality.

The CEQ advises the president and develops policies on climate change, environmental justice, federal sustainability, public lands, oceans, and wildlife conservation, among other areas.

Weiss credits Denison for teaching him to become a problem solver.

“You can never prepare perfectly for anything,” Weiss said. “You can’t script out every single scenario for a situation. At Denison, I learned to become better at facing challenges head on, to think more critically not necessarily of what is asked of you, but what is needed for an answer.”

“It’s hard not to pinch yourself and remember, ‘This is where I work.’”

ELIZABETH ELLIS ’97 never thought of attending law school during her time on The Hill.

A second-generation Denisonian, she found English professors fostered her love of writing and research. Lisa McDonnell, Fred Porcheddu-Engel, and Dominick Consolo were all significant inf luences.

Ellis mulled careers in academia, public relations, and marketing. But as she spent her first year after Denison caring for her grandmother, she thought about the adaptability of her liberal arts education.

“The research and writing I had done at Denison had trained me perfectly for a legal career,” said Ellis, who ultimately graduated from University of Dayton School or Law. After two decades working in prosecutor’s offices, Ellis was appointed a judge for the Montgomery County Common Pleas Court by Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine in 2023. She must win election in November 2024 to retain the seat for the term expiring in 2027.

“In law, you have to read and think carefully, and everything I did at Denison prepared me for that,” Ellis said. “I started at Denison thinking I was going to be pre-med, and then I took a Shakespeare course with Dr. McDonnell and I was hooked.”

Ellis likes to tell the story of how she and her mother, Shirley Raizk Ellis ’64, both took literature classes from Consolo.

While Ellis made other college visits, she knew from an early age Denison was in her future.

“My mom took me to one of her reunions when I was about 5 years old,” Ellis recalled. “I remember thinking, ‘This is the place for me.’”

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A singular life in five acts 44

CARL MOELLENBERG’S odyssey ACT I: STRAIGHT TO THE TOP from successful investment banker to Moellenberg and his twin brother, Chuck ’74, arrive at smash-hit Broadway producer is worthy Denison, fresh from competing in their local quiz bowl. of its own libretto and score.

As math and economics professors feed Moellenberg’s

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thirsty intellect, he studies classical piano and sings in Despite the glamorous job titles, Moellenberg ’74 says three choirs. Graduating as co-valedictorian, Moellenberg his life is not about glitz and big money. His bouts with life- earns a berth at the University of Chicago’s MBA program. threatening illnesses have caused him to reevaluate and (Harvard makes him an offer as well, but UChicago gives discover what is truly worthwhile. him a full ride.)

He doesn’t want his epitaph to read “successful After Moellenberg completes his MBA, the Big Apple investment banker” or “13-time Tony Award-winning calls. It’s 1976 and the financial world is roaring, setting producer.” the stage for the movie Wall Street, source of the phrase He wants it to say: “Carl was a good friend.” “greed is good” — some would say, the defining theme “Success to me doesn’t have anything to do with a career,” of the era. he says. “It means connecting with people in a really Moellenberg’s career in investment banking might meaningful way, being there, and loving from the heart.” be kismet. Over the next two highly successful decades, If Moellenberg’s life were a Broadway musical, he would he works at some of the industry’s leading institutions, want theatergoers to feel there is always a way to keep including Chemical Bank, Goldman Sachs, and going, regardless of the challenges they’re going through, Morgan Stanley. and to find joy, hope, and happiness in the midst of it all.

But the hours are terrible, and the atmosphere uberThe opening of Moellenberg: The Musical would be competitive and antagonistic. conventional. Bright young man from Toledo, Ohio, enters He senses something needs to change.

Denison University.

But the magic is just beginning.

ACT II: A NATIONAL HEALTH CRISIS BECOMES The curtain opens to Act 1.

PERSONAL During those two decades on Wall Street, Moellenberg #DENISONPROUD ISSUE 1 2024

comes to a realization, and the timing is terrible. “I came out as a gay man right before HIV thrust itself into our world — turning it upside down,” he says.

He is just beginning to date men, and his first HIV test comes back positive.

In the future, treatment for HI V will become commonplace, and those with HIV will be able to live long and productive lives. But in the ’80s, it is a veritable death sentence.

“It was an incredibly scary time,” he recalls. “Friends were getting ill and dying. Nobody knew anything; we didn’t understand what caused it. People were treated as pariahs and even separated from others in the hospitals.”

Moellenberg manages to sustain his career and his health for more than a decade. Increasingly, he finds it hard to keep up with the physical demands. The emergencies multiply, and his T-cells drop to 60, about 10% of what they should be. He contracts AIDS. By now, medicine has advanced enough that he recovers, yet he faces serious medical complications for the rest of his life. Going back to investment banking is not an option.

“I was forced to realize that I couldn’t go back to that sort of stress,” he says. “I had to decide what to do with the rest of my life.”

ACT III: AWAKENING Even while Moellenberg is recovering, he can’t keep idle.

He discovers a deeply satisfying new focus: spirituality.

He studies reiki, an alternative healing technique, and becomes a reik i master. He also becomes an ordained minister, trains with a shaman from Peru, and learns meditation techniques, as well as Swedish and shiatsu massage.

As he learns, Moellenberg begins to look outward, and makes another discovery: a deep-seated desire to help other people.

He offers reiki treatments to those who needed healing, staffs Trevor Project suicide prevention hotlines, and counsels homeless youth. He’s thinking about his next career steps, too. Investment banking is out of the question, and his volunteer work, while meaningful, isn’t enough.

In the interim, for the first time in his life, he has the freedom to travel. “I had been working endless hours in banking with no vacations,” he says, “so being able to travel around the world with a friend was amazing.” They visit sites across North America, Australia, New Zealand, Italy, England, and more.

It all pales in comparison to what happens during his visit to the Loire River in France.

The defining moment of his life.

As he sits on the banks of the Loire, meditating, Moellenberg feels the light grow intense. “The sun was glistening off the water,” he says, “then it seemed like bolts of light were coming toward me.”

He hears a deep voice inside his head. He’s told he is DENISON MAGAZINE

here for a reason — and that once he returns to New York, he will create beauty through the arts.

“I went running back to my hotel room and wrote every word in my diary,” he says, “and realized that this was going to be my path going forward.”

Moellenberg has to pivot from a career in Wall Street to the arts. It’s going to take some learning.

ACT IV: BROADWAY BOUND He realizes quickly: “You can’t come in and say, ‘Hey I’m a Broadway producer,’ and wave your hand for shows to come to you.”

Fortunately, Broadway is a small community. He finds mentors and takes a class at the Commercial Theatre Institute, where teachers are often producers with decades of experience. “The most important part of that class is the networking possibilities,” he says, “and meeting 25 peers who you might end up working with.”

He learns that Broadway shows have a lot of producers, and it takes a village to put on a show.

Lead producers put together their teams of co-producers, and the teams raise the money and help lead the decisions about each musical.

Spring Awakening and Dear Evan Hansen are among the Tony Award-winning musicals Carl Moellenberg has produced.

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His financial background becomes a big asset: “We’re creating something that is really beautiful and we want to transform people, but in essence you’re running a business for every show.”

His reputation grows. His work speaks for itself. Lead producers come calling, and soon he becomes a lead producer himself.

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ACT V: DEFINING SUCCESS, HIS WAY Moellenberg is drawn to intimate shows with smaller casts, stories that ask what it means to be human. Over time, he builds a warm and artistic community of people who share a vision.

He produces 13 Tony Award-winning shows. You’ve probably heard of them: Spring Awakening, War Horse, Hair, Death of a Salesman, Pippin, All the Way, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Dear Evan Hansen, Angels in America, The Band’s Visit, Oklahoma, Hadestown, and Company.

“I can’t tell you how many times I go to shows just to look at the reactions,” he says.

Moellenberg shared his life “People have their tissues out. We really story in his memoir, released touch them. That’s what this is all about.” in late 2022.

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Denisonians everywhere can be proud of how our university is moving forward, and your support is key.

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ALSO IN YOUR PROGRAM: While it’s hard for him to choose, Moellenberg’s alltime favorite show is Hair. “I absolutely love the show. It’s about peace and freedom, expressing yourself, love, and being anti-war.”

More than just the show, he loved the total experience.

“Somehow the casting produced an amazing group of people whose personal lives and ideals matched the show: producers, cast, band, crew, and front of the house. It was beautiful.”

His biggest regret? A little show called Wicked. “It was the very first show I invested in. I was conservative and only put in a small amount of money.” Today, Wicked is the second-highest grossing Broadway show ever and has brought in more than $1.5 billion just on Broadway.

“Even at the time,” he says, “I wished I had had more confidence.”

And as always, Moellenberg’s path includes some notable Denison connections. One: He is chair of Dominion Pictures, which produced the 2016 film Wakefield with Bryan Cranston and Jennifer Garner ’94.

SAVE THE DATE!

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SHOW STOPPERS

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There have been times during his decade-long run at Mythical Entertainment when CHASE HILT ’14 has felt like he’s back at Denison, doing a bit of everything in the cinema department.

Hilt has appeared in segments dressed as the Easter Bunny, a Hershey’s Kiss, and a dart-dodging cartographer.

He’s created a strong social media presence with more than 85,000 Instagram followers.

His value to Mythical is evidenced by his climb up the company ladder, landing as a senior super vising Hilt is a senior supervising producer at the Los Angeles- producer in 2023. based entertainment company best known for the Hilt stays connected to Denison by networking with comedy and variety series Good Mythical Morning, which fellow alums in the business and interacting with current has more than 18 million YouTube subscribers. cinema students who make treks to Los Angeles for Mythical has grown to nearly 100 staff members, but mentorship and behind-the-scenes peeks. when Hilt landed his first job in 2014, he was one of just “Denison has a proud tradition in entertainment going eight employees. In those early years, he did everything back to Hal Holbrook ’48, Steve Carell ’84, and from managing props to creating strange culinary dishes Jennifer Garner ’94,” he said. “It feels good to be part to making memorable on-camera appearances with of that tradition.” co-hosts and creators Rhett McLaughlin and Link Neal.

“Across the board, the shows have maintained that kind of film-school feel that Denison created to empower us to solve challenges and to wear as many hats as we wanted to,” Hilt said. “I think it flowed really well from one to the other.”

Hilt grew up in Los Angeles and had connections to the entertainment world through friends and family — so some in his circle were surprised he chose Denison.

“A lot of people asked why the hell I went to central Ohio for film,” Hilt said, laughing.

He’s never regretted his decision. Working in the cinema department, Hilt gained experience in almost every facet of the industry. His versatility made him a perfect fit for Mythical, which debuted Good Mythical Morning on YouTube in 2012. The company’s signature show has won multiple streaming and web awards and has more than 9 billion total views.

“I’m very proud of what we’ve done and what we’ve built,” Hilt said. “I wasn’t expecting to be on camera, but that’s been fun, too.”

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The Mythical Crew helps recreate embarrassing photos with Ian Hecox and Anthony Padilla of the YouTube comedy channel Smosh.

Chase Hilt is on the far right.

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His first attempt at standup comedy earned TOM COTTER ’86 a disqualification from Denison talent show judges — but admiration from fellow students.

“Going to Denison was the best decision of my life — and I’m saying this in front of my wife right now — but it’s true.”

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While Cotter’s jokes about campus life weren’t profane, they were pointed. Two faculty members serving as judges weren’t impressed, refusing to rate the act.

“Obviously, I didn’t win,” Cotter said. “But for the next two weeks, guys who had never given me the time of the day were high fiving me, telling me how great it was. That was the first bite.”

The second was attending the standup routines of Joe Bolster ’75, who used to perform twice a year on campus as part of an athletic fundraiser.

“I fell in love with standup,” said Cotter, who was a senior political science major at the time. “Law school was pushed to the back burner and then completely off the stove.”

Cotter has made a nice living “working one hour a day,” as he puts it, in front of audiences around the country. He’s appeared on network late-night talks shows, Comedy Central specials, and the television compet it ion La st Com ic Sta n di ng. H is ca reer highlights include finishing runner-up in the seventh season of America’s Got Talent (2012) — Cotter was the first comedian to reach the finals — and returning in 2019 to compete against some of the show’s top acts through the years.

All of it started with that first performance on campus.

“Going to Denison was the best decision of my life — ­ and I’m saying this in front of my wife right now — but it’s true,” Cotter said. “I adored my time in Granville.

There’s still a group of us from school who get together every year for a canoe trip in the summer and a ski trip in the winter.”

Cotter said the idea of passing on law school took some time for his father, Walter, a respected neurosurgeon, to embrace.

“He spent a lot of money on six kids to go to private school and college,” Cotter said. “To have his youngest declare that he wants to tell jokes in basements in front of drunks was not a proud moment for him.”

But Cotter’s career longevity has validated his decision.

Along the way, he married a fellow comedian, Kerri Louise, and the couple has three sons.

“She doesn’t bounce ideas off me, she bounces frying pans,” Cotter said. “We defuse marital tension quite often with laughter. Humor brought us together and has kept us happy.

“We each wrote a book. Hers is called Mean Mommy and mine is called Bad Dad. So we know our kids are going to be in therapy, and we’re OK with that.”

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It was a life-changing moment that could have been scripted in Hollywood, a place CHELSEY WARNER ’11 now calls home.

Attending Denison’s 2009 commencement, she watched her sister, Britni Warner Eisler, receive a diploma while perusing a booklet with the names and majors of the graduates. Warner was intrigued by the number of cinema majors.

Originally a pre-med major, Warner was ready to rewrite her script and transfer to Denison. After Britni tossed her cap, Warner walked toward her destiny, making a quick stop at the admission office.

“I had started watching the series True Blood while I was at my old school,” Warner recalled. “Writing was always my passion, and seeing all the cinema majors at Denison made me realize I could pursue my dreams.”

Three years later, after earning degrees in cinema and English, she packed up her old Chevy and drove to Los Angeles.

Warner found her footing in the industry, landing work with reality shows including Survivor and The Amazing Race. She transitioned to scripted television as a writer’s production assistant on Black Sails, a show co-created

by Robert Levine ’00, before finding her niche in postproduction.

“Denison is such an amazing place,” Warner said. “I had great professors there, and when I got to Los Angeles, I had this group of Denison alumni who were willing to reach out and connect with me.”

Since 2019, Warner has worked for Amazon Studios and is the post-production associate producer on the series The Boys.

“It’s been an incredible opportunity,” she said. “It can be challenging at times, but the work is rewarding. I love what I do.”

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KERRY BAILEY ’92 spent much of the past few years in front of a laptop writing for multiple mediums.

Happy, examines three years in the 1990s when he worked as Murray’s assistant on two films. The book is semiautobiographical, as it reveals his decision to go public with his own sexual orientation.

He was busy writing and producing a pilot, while also Bailey treasured these years, which included him working on a book about Bill Murray. Yes, that Bill making a cameo in the 1996 movie Larger Than Life Murray. The ghost-busting, varmint-hunting, it’s in the dressed as a clown. hole-bellowing Bill Murray.

The book also contains several Denison references. He Bailey is also pitching his pilot, Project Paranormal — a tells how Murray wrote him a $10,000 check to help pay cross between Ghost Hunters and Reno 911 — to studios off his student debt on their last day working together. with hopes of turning it into a series.

“Bill walked out of the room, and when he came back, he He’s a 30-year veteran of the entertainment industry, handed me a personal check,” Bailey recalled. “I was working in post-production on movies such as Star Wars: shocked. I thanked him. These were the days before I had Episode 1 – The Phantom Menace. a cell phone. I remember stopping at a gas station and Disillusioned with the 2016 presidential race, he took calling my mom. I was in tears.” a two-year break from Hollywood to serve in the The book — he’s still shopping it to publishers — also Peace Corps. Bailey, who grew up on a Kentucky farm, includes tales from his time at Denison. Bailey had a crush worked on improving agriculture in the West African on a certain first-year theatre major whom he cast in two nation of Senegal. of his student films.

Since returning to Los Angeles, he’s turned his focus “Jennifer Garner was just amazing,” Bailey said. “She back to his first love — entertainment. had this magnetic personality that drew everyone in. You Bailey’s first attempt at writing a book, Keeping Bill could see she had the talent to become a star.”

immediately intrigued. The university offered cinema as a major — Ewen grew up idolizing filmmaker Mel Brooks — and the brochure noted that Denison meets 100% of demonstrated financial need.

“Denison was the most important growth experience of my life,” Ewen said. “I was a food stamp kid, and wouldn’t have been able to attend without a generous financial aid package. Once there, I was immersed in a cinema department flush with equipment and spearheaded by a pair of legendary professors — cigar-wielding Elliott Stout and unrivaled hummus connoisseur Dave Bussan.

I was immediately telling stories while simultaneously DAN EWEN ’96 feels like a kid again. studying history and theory.”

That’s what comes with working with a Ewen also joined Burpee’s Seedy Theatrical Company, 101-year-old living legend. the nation’s longest-running collegiate improv comedy troupe, which helped him hone the skill of quick thinking The writer, producer, and longtime improv performer for project pitches and fast-paced writers’ rooms. is the showrunner on the Amazon Studios series Clean These are busy times for Ewen, who wrote the feature Slate, scheduled to debut in 2024. The project is being film Dear Santa, starring Jack Black, which debuts during produced by Norman Lear, who created iconic 1970s the 2023 holiday season. sitcoms such as All In The Family, Maude, Sanford and Beyond his film and movie credits, Ewen wrote a book, Son, and Good Times.

Laff It Off, with comedian and Atlanta native George “I am humbled to find myself a colleague of the most Wallace. Ewen and Wallace also teamed up with actor and storied television producer of all time,” Ewen said. writer Laverne Cox to co-create Clean Slate.

Ewen himself has built an impressive resume and “We are both Georgians, and we share a sensibility,” credits his time at Denison for launching his career in the Ewen said. “What started as just k ick ing around entertainment world. material has blossomed into a dream project. (Wallace) He recalls seeing a “cozy Denison booth” at a college went to college in Akron, Ohio, but I looked past that fair in his hometown of Athens, Georgia, and being and am so glad I did.”

“I remember stopping at a gas station and calling my mom. I was in tears.”

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THE SPORTING KIND

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Two serious knee injuries suffered a year apart marked the end of BRIAN MASON’S ’09 football career at Denison.

They also set him on a course to the NFL. Instead of walking away from the game, he transitioned to the sideline and accepted an invitation to become a student-coach for the Big Red. “I wanted to find a way to stay in football,” said the former running back.

Over a 14-year span, Mason has ascended from smallcollege student assistant to NFL special teams coordinator with the Indianapolis Colts. The journey has been paved with lots of stops and many late nights in coaches’ offices.

He toiled as a defensive line coach at Division III Bluffton University before taking a series of graduate assistant jobs at Kent State, Purdue, and Ohio State universities.

Mason credits his time at Denison — he majored in economics and history — for helping him work his way up the coaching depth chart.

“A liberal arts education teaches you to get out of your bubble and become a problem solver,” he said.

Mason became the director of recruiting and the special teams coach at the University of Cincinnati, where he developed his niche in special teams. Between stints at Cincinnati and the University of Notre Dame, his units led the nation in blocked punts three times in a four-year window.

His NFL debut in 2023 saw him return to his native Indiana, where he grew up cheering for the Colts.

“It’s an unbelievable opportunity,” Mason said. “Both me and my wife are from the area. It’s a homecoming.”

“A liberal arts education teaches you to get out of your bubble and become a problem solver.”

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The onset of the global pandemic gave JAKE PRIMACK ’21 plenty of time to think about his life and reassess its direction.

He loved his days at Denison, where he majored in data analytics, economics, and global commerce. But as students were sent home in March 2020, Primack began to waver on his career path. All roads kept leading him back to his true passion.

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Not many graduates are exactly where they want to be in life at age 24.

JILL REINER ’22 is among the exceptions.

She’s an analyst in the hockey research and development department for the Toronto Maple Leafs, one of the flagship franchises in the NHL. Reiner gives thanks to Denison for helping her land the job right out of college. She became a hockey fan at age 8 and has been building toward a career in the sport since majoring in data analytics on The Hill.

“I could talk about Denison’s influence for hours, for days,” Reiner said. “The data analytics department not only teaches you the skills to succeed but also lets you carve out your own path. I was doing hockey-related projects when I was in school.”

Denison’s data analytics program was founded in 2016 — among the first of its kind at a liberal arts college — and Reiner has helped elevate its profile. In 2021, she was named a collegiate-level winner in the NFL’s Big Data Bowl before being hired by the Maple Leafs a year later.

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“Prior to the pandemic, I was looking to get into the retail industry,” Primack said. “I was planning to take what I was learning with data analytics and apply it to that field. But it really didn’t speak to me the way baseball did.”

During time away from campus in the spring and summer of 2020, he was inspired to pursue a career in baseball after reading The Alchemist, an allegorical novel that teaches readers to listen to their hearts and follow their dreams.

“I understood the odds were stacked against me because I hadn’t played or worked in baseball since high school,” Primack said. “But the broad skill set I developed at Denison gave me an opportunity.”

It took him about nine months after graduation to land an internship with the Philadelphia Phillies. Primack made such an impression that the organization offered him a fulltime position in its player development department.

He’s based in Clear water, Florida, the player development hub and spring-training home of the Phillies, where he helps the franchise develop its next generation of major leaguers.

At Denison, he learned the value of empathy and the need to become a lifelong learner, which now has him learning Spanish to better communicate with Spanishspeaking ballplayers and coaches.

“I came from a pretty homogeneous area in Wisconsin,” Primack said. “At Denison, I was exposed to a more diverse community and learned to look at life through a different lens. That’s really helped me with my job with the Phillies.”

“I understood the odds were stacked against me ... but the broad skill set I developed at Denison gave me an opportunity.”

Few NHL teams are more heavily invested in analytics.

She’s part of an eight-person staff in Toronto that assists the hockey operations department.

“It’s been really rewarding to be a part of an organization with great people in it,” Reiner said. “I’m learning something every day. As someone who grew up loving hockey, it really is a dream job.”

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There was a time when ALI TEOPAS SPUNGEN ’08 dreamed of becoming a sports broadcaster. Once at Denison, she discovered another career path in athletics.

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After their final game, the football careers of most Big Red players are over. Not for MAX PAULUS ’13, the program’s second all-time leading passer with 6,545 yards. He’s still in the game and trying to win a Super Bowl with his boyhood team.

Paulus is the director of college scouting for the Cleveland Browns. He’s been with the organization for a decade and was an area scout in 2020 when the Browns won their first playoff game since 1994.

“The most exciting part of the job is being able to contribute to the pursuit of building a championship roster and organization,” Paulus said. “To have a small role in pursuing a goal that is shared by many, in the sport that has given me so much and taught me so much, is rewarding.”

Paulus was one of at least seven Big Red alums with NFL jobs during the 2023 season. Paulus grew up in Massillon, Ohio, a town so obsessed with the sport that a local hospital tucked miniature footballs in the cribs of newborns for decades.

While few attend Denison expecting to reach the NFL, Paulus said his education prepared him for his career in scouting.

“I did not know this at the time, but being a student athlete going to a liberal arts college teaches you how to manage your time at a young age, while also exposing you to multiple disciplines and ways of thinking,” said Paulus, a double major in history and economics.

Denison also taught Paulus the value of adaptability and being a steady leader.

“In any profession, there is a learning curve, but especially in professional sports where you are constantly being evaluated and experiencing shifts in leadership,” Paulus said.

“These two qualities have aided my career.”

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The enterprising former Big Red softball player started down the road of sports administration. Two decades later, Spungen works for the NCAA as the associate director of Division III. “I’m Division III for life,” she said, laughing about her time in small-college athletics as a softball player and an administrator.

While on The Hill, Spungen became president of student-athletic advisory committees for Denison and the North Coast Athletic Conference. She credits the mentorship of former longtime coach and athletic administrator Lynn Schweizer for fueling her interest in the field.

“Lynn was a major influence,” Spungen said. “I’m proud to call her a friend.”

After spending four years as an assistant athletic director at Wittenberg University, Spungen was hired by the NCAA in 2013. She’s worked in various capacities for the governing body of college athletics.

Spungen narrowed her focus to Division III in 2019.

Among her many responsibilities, she coordinates the conference grant program, is the primary liaison to the national student-athlete advisory committee, and oversees sportsmanship and game environment initiatives.

She maintains her Big Red ties as the vice president of the Denison Alumni Council and as a member of the Denison Varsity D Association.

“No day is the same, but I love what I’m doing,” Spungen said. “I’ve found my home.”

“I love what I’m doing.

I’ve found my home.”

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Pat r i ck D e Mi chae l ’1 3

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The sweetest ride on campus arguably belongs to an 88-year-old grandfather with helping hands and a lead foot. BILL MASON ’57 drives a metallic blue 2019 Corvette Grand Sport.

His passion for sports cars is such that at age 85, he couldn’t resist the chance to take a spin around a Nevada closed-course track in a Corvette similar to his own.

“Down the back straightaway, we were running 107 miles per hour,” said Mason, who’s owned 15 Corvettes in his life.

It seems nothing can slow down the former Denison athlete, educator, on-field official, and man for all seasons.

Father Time cried uncle years ago.

Mason remains part of the Big Red coaching staff for the swimming and diving team, serving as its strength coach. His trim, athletic physique is the envy of ex-jocks half his age.

“Bill is a terrific ambassador for Denison and our swimming and diving programs,” coach Gregg Parini said.

“He’s a strong advocate for our student athletes and, in the nearly 20 years he’s been with us, he’s been consistent in bringing a positive ‘can do’ attitude to our program.”

It’s been that way since he arrived on campus from

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Chagrin Falls, Ohio, in 1953. He played basketball and lacrosse for the Big Red. As a senior, Mason captained the lacrosse team, won MVP honors, and led it to a conference title. After graduation, he worked as a Denison assistant coach for a decade and played the sport late into his 50s.

Mason is enshrined in four athletic halls of fame. He’s the only person to be inducted into the Ohio Lacrosse Hall of Fame in four categories: player, coach, official, and pioneer. He’s also a member of Denison’s Varsity D Association Athletic Hall of Fame and the Orange High School Hall of Fame.

In 2023, the Ohio High School Athletic Association added him to its officiating hall of fame for his 65 years of work in basketball and lacrosse.

Sports and sports cars are only part of Mason’s story.

He loved empowering students as a teacher, principal, and, for 22 years, an assistant superintendent of Newark (Ohio) City Schools.

Back on campus, he serves as the Sigma Chi alumni house director, a role that comes with a designated parking spot where you’ll sometimes see his Corvette.

“How many 88-year-olds get to do what I’m permitted to do?” Mason asked. “I’ve been so fortunate. I’ve never had a job I didn’t like.”

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It seems nothing can slow down the former Denison athlete, educator, on-field official, and man for all seasons. Father Time cried uncle years ago.

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A voice that’s been heard by sports fans across the nation has a message for prospective students and fellow alums:“Saying ‘I went to Denison’ is a great way to start a conversation,” said SHELDON FREEMAN ’18.

“He’s incredibly talented, but most importantly, he is a genuinely good person who treats everyone with kindness and respect.”

BY TOM REED

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You may not recognize his name or his face, but there’s a decent chance you’ve heard Freeman’s work in hype videos or teasers for high-profile sporting events.

He spent more than three years working at ESPN as a producer and a voice-over artist before founding his own company, Suspended Media, in 2021. His scriptwriting and narration for teasers are so valuable that he continues to deliver content for ESPN and Bleacher Report.

Freeman gained media experience during his senior year with the Denison Sports Network while also finishing his economics degree and playing for Big Red basketball.

“I loved my time at Denison because it taught me the importance of having a mission,” Freeman said. “I had a great advisor in economics professor Andrea Ziegert and a great mentor in Brandon Morgan ’16, who showed me how to edit video and gave me the freedom to explore what I liked.”

He values his Denison diploma in part because his path to commencement wasn’t a smooth one. Freeman embodies the philosophy of President Weinberg, who wants students to learn to “fail forward” and see stumbles as opportunities for growth.

Freeman, a Nashville native, ran into academic problems during his junior year but was determined to graduate. He went home and enrolled in Nashville State Community College in the spring and Tennessee State

in the summer to get his educational aspirations back on course.

While at home, Freeman’s pastor spoke to him about the importance of “w r it ing dow n my v ision a nd making it plain.”

“That really helped me,” he recalled.

“I knew I wanted to get into media and into the arts.”

He returned to Denison and, with the help of Ziegert, Morgan, and his former basketball coach, Bob Ghilony, built a platform for a professional career in media. Ghilony put him in contact with George Bodenheimer ’80, the former ESPN president who’s become another mentor for Freeman.

“Sheldon was curious, always looking to learn more and grow his skills,” said Morgan, a former assistant director of athletic communications and digital media at Denison. “He was ambitious, knew what he wanted, and went above and beyond to achieve his goals.”

Freeman landed a job at ESPN as a production assistant, climbing the ladder to become an associate producer. He relished the opportunity to work with the network’s biggest personality, Stephen A. Smith, whose ESPN+ show he helped produce.

While performing his primary duties, Freeman also impressed colleagues with his strong voice and his ability to rap. His bosses suggested trying to incorporate those talents into voice-overs for network teasers. They even encouraged him to write his own scripts for the segments.

“Sheldon is one of the most talented people I’ve worked with,” said Jaren Yang, a content producer for ESPN. “He’s creative, he has a great voice, and he’s a good editor and writer. He’s such a hard worker, and he’s a perfectionist. He puts everything into his craft.”

After nearly four years at ESPN, Freeman formed his own company. The name, Suspended Media, carries a double meaning — it’s a reminder of the adversity he overcame during his junior year and the idea that suspended can also mean “to hang in the air so as to be free.”

His Nashville-based multimedia company delivers a wide range of services, from music and voice-overs to film and photography.

“I’m not surprised that he joined ESPN, and I’m even less surprised about all his success after Denison,” Morgan said. “He’s incredibly talented, but most importantly, he is a genuinely good person who treats everyone with kindness and respect.”

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Hıll THE

F O L L O W S TA D I U M CONSTRUCTION U P D AT E S A N D LEARN HOW TO GET I N V O LV E D AT DENISON.EDU/ S TA D I U M L ACROSSE & S O CC E R

A game-changing stadium THIS IS THE FUTURE HOME OF DENISON LACROSSE AND SOCCER — A PREMIER FACILITY QUICKLY TAKING SHAPE ON THE NORTHERN PART OF CAMPUS. The new stadium, complete with a multi-use synthetic turf field, press box, permanent bleachers, lighting, and a new scoreboard, will open for the spring 2024 lacrosse season.

Kienzle-Hylbert Stadium marks a significant upgrade to Barclay-Thomsen Field, the home to men’s and women’s soccer programs named for former Denison coach and athletic director Ted Barclay and former men’s lacrosse coach and professor Tommy Thomsen. (Denison will continue to recognize and memorialize Barclay and Thomsen in this space.)

The stadium gets its name from two sets of generous donors: Rick Kienzle ’85 and his wife, Cindy, and Paul Hylbert ʼ66 and his wife, Katharine.

Today, Kienzle is retired and living just outside Philadelphia and attends Big Red men’s and women’s lacrosse games as often as possible.

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PAUL HYLBERT ’66

Hylbert, a Denison life trustee and chair of the board of directors for Kodiak Building Partners, has enjoyed a lengthy career in general management, mergers and acquisitions, and startups.

He launched his career at Wickes Corporation, where he spent 21 years, and later served as CEO of PrimeSource, Lanoga Corporation, and ProBuild.

RICK KIENZLE ’85 Denison and Big Red Kienzle, a Denison trustee and former Big athletics are a tradition Red lacrosse midfielder, launched his career in sur- in the Hylbert family. gical sales. Over time, he used that training and Hylbert ’s father, Paul exposure to partner with biomechanical engineers Sr. ’43; uncle Ray Johnand launch his own company to develop and support son ’42; brother Tony non-invasive spine implants. ’72; daughter Jennifer “Early in my training, I had to learn the things ’88; and sons Scott ’91 and Brian ’01 all played varthat were available to me at Denison, like biology, sity sports, including basketball, golf, soccer, and chemistry, and physics,” he said. “It was a pretty lacrosse, and competed in club ice hockey and rugby. circuitous route after majoring in history at a college Many of Hylbert’s teammates remain among his in central Ohio.” best friends.

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AN EXTRAORDINARY BOND BETWEEN COACH AND RUNNER T h e re lat io ns hi p betwe en the l ate P h i l Tor rens and st a r ru n n e r D e e S a l uko m b o ’ 1 2 m end e d broken he ar t s and b rou g ht hel p to k i ds i n wa r - to r n Central Afr i c a.

Dee Salukombo evolved into a six-time All-American under the watch of Phil Torrens. Even after leaving Denison, Salukombo called his old coach before every race.

RIGHT: Joe Torrens

“Dee was the athlete my dad waited his entire life for.”

BY TOM REED PHOTOS BY PATRICK DEMICHAEL ’13

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Sarah Torrens and her daughter, Ellen Carter ’09, sit on the porch of a two-story farmhouse surrounded by cornfields and filled with memories of a loveable curmudgeon who called it home for nearly 40 years.

The women are joined by a former Denison longdistance runner who remains as ebullient as the day he walked into their life at its lowest point.

Makorobondo “Dee” Salukombo ’12 is a six-time All-American and Olympic marathoner from the Democratic Republic of Congo.

To Sarah and Ellen, he’s even more — a spark of joy who could make coach Phil Torrens smile through his pain.

“Dee was the athlete my dad waited his entire life for,” says Ellen, recalling Torrens, who coached the university’s cross-country and track teams from 1980 to 2015. “He didn’t always have a lot to say, but he lit up when he talked about Dee.” It’s a lazy summer night on the eve of a Celebration of Life ceremony that will attract more than 200 people to Denison’s Lamson Lodge. Salukombo, an active-duty member of the U.S. Army, requested leave to attend the July 15, 2023, service.

“I wouldn’t have missed this for the world,” he says.

Denison is a place that inspires connections that last a lifetime. Few run as deep or global as the one between Salukombo and the Torrenses. Theirs is

a bond that’s helped strengthen a Central African village riven by decades of war.

Whatever solace Salukombo provided the Torrenses in the wake of family tragedy has been repaid through the educational and athletic opportunities afforded to those in his Congolese village. “ Nothing happens by mistake,” Salukombo says.

“God had a plan. I came to Denison for an education and left with a family who helped make great things happen back home.”

A DEVASTATING LOSS At Denison, Salukombo worked all four years for Sarah in the library’s circulation department, a remarkable turn for a refugee who never held a textbook until his family emigrated to Cleveland in 2004.

After winning his first cross-country meet, he showed up at the library and listened to Sarah tell him how thrilled her husband was with the race.

It was the first time Sarah spoke to Salukombo about the death of their son.

Joe Torrens, 24, was killed in a single-car accident on June 16, 2007. He was a passenger in a Ford pickup that struck a mailbox and a guardrail before it overturned, sliding down an embankment.

“From that day, it gave my running more meaning,” Salukombo says. “I just wanted to see Coach T smile.”

Torrens and his son were much alike. Each played and coached football. Both were loyal, sarcastic, and opinionated, rarely willing to see the world in shades of gray.

Few things gave the Denison coach more pleasure than farming his 500 acres of land, sipping a Coors Light, and spending time in the barn with his sheep. Beneath the gruff exterior was a man who loved his family and seeing his athletes reach their potential.

The yearlong recruitment of Salukombo helped Torrens deal with his son’s death. The runner’s prolific high school career produced offers from major college programs, but Torrens’ unwavering interest, coupled with the dogged work of a high school guidance counselor who secured financial aid, brought Salukombo to Denison.

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“Coach T would call me and ask how I was doing in classes,” Salukombo says. “He came to see me run races.

He made it personal, and he showed that he cared.”

GIVING BACK Torrens spent his entire life in tiny Utica, Ohio, living out his final four decades on a road that bears his family name. Salukombo spent his childhood in chaos, his family fleeing a nation that’s buried more than six million of its own since 1996.

“In my country, you didn’t run for sport,” Salukombo often says. “You ran for your life.”

His family escaped harm and lived in a Ugandan refugee camp for three years before a Catholic organization helped relocate them in Cleveland.

“It wasn’t just his ability as a runner that attracted Phil,” Sarah says. “He was drawn to the family’s story of survival and how grateful Dee was for everything he received.”

From their first training session, Torrens and Salukombo made for a wonderful contrast in personality and temperament: the coach rarely cracking a smile beneath his bushy handlebar mustache, the pupil radiating joy across campus.

When the popular Salukombo received his diploma — he majored in chemistry — his fellow seniors gave him a thunderous ovation.

“My education from Denison is what opened doors for me,” Salukombo says. “I wanted the same for kids back home.”

The Torrens family helped make it a reality. Using a $10,000 grant from Davis Projects for Peace, they and Salukombo established Project Kirotshe, named for his village in Congo. Sarah spearheaded a donation drive that shipped 13,000 tex tbook s , 55 computers , and athletic equipment to Kirotshe to build a learning center and start a running team.

From 2012-19, Salukombo traveled back and forth to Congo to ensure the program’s survival. In 2016, he and one of its students, Beatrice Kamuchanga, represented Congo in the Olympics.

Sarah dreams of visiting the village and touring the Torrens Learning Center. She and Ellen had bought tickets to fly to Congo in 2012, but civil unrest forced them to cancel the trip.

“My biggest accomplishment in life, other than having my two kids, is getting this project off the ground,” Sarah says. “There are many others at Denison who helped along the way. Dee has a goodness about him that makes people want to help.”

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‘I WANT TO BE LIKE HIM’ Guests stream into Lamson Lodge on a rainy afternoon to honor Torrens, who died Jan. 15, 2023, and whose ashes were buried at his son’s gravesite.

Torrens was c ynical ab out the nature of posthumous tributes. He never believed all the “nice things said” about the deceased in obituaries, and he asked his wife not to hold a service for him.

It’s one request Sarah denied.

“We need to be more like Coach T,” Salukombo tells the audience huddled under a large white tent. “I want to be like him. I want to take what I learned from him and give that to other people.”

Salukombo, now an American citizen, was inducted into the Varsity D Athletic Hall of Fame on Sept. 29, 2023. Married with two children, he continues to run competitively, and he’s working toward a master’s degree in project management.

Before every big race, Salukombo used to call Torrens for last-minute words of wisdom.

Now, he calls Sarah.

He also remains in contact with former Denison wellness coordinator Stephanie Agosta, who serves as a fundraiser for the village project, renamed the Kirotshe Foundation. They’ve built a bakery and developed a tract of land to grow plantains to help feed the village.

More than 1,000 children have seen their lives improved through Salukombo’s vision.

Salukombo tells the audience that kids in his village want to see pictures from the service. They want to hear more stories about Coach T and his family. He concludes his remarks by asking guests to stand and cheer for Sarah and Ellen.

Bathed in applause, Salukombo places a hand on Sarah’s shoulder, a bond unbroken after all these years.

“Dee is this warm, loving person who we needed in our lives,” Sarah says. “He didn’t replace Joe, but he enriched our lives. He is part of our family.”

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“In my country, you didn’t run for sport,” Salukombo often says.

“You ran for your life.”

FROM LEFT: Dee Salukombo ’12, Ellen Carter ’09, and Sarah Torrens, share stories about former Denison track and crosscountry coach Phil Torrens.

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sociology, with a concentration in narrative journalism.

He was a President’s Medalist and received a Distinguished Leadership Award.

After graduation, he started at NBC as a news associate, which ser ved as a yearlong introduction to NBC designed to jump-start careers at the network. He learned all facets of the business, working closely with anchor Craig Melvin, producing social media content of all kinds, and interviewing the likes of musician Darius Rucker and presidential hopeful Nikki Haley.

In spring 2023, he accepted a full-time position as a production assistant with NBC News NOW, the network’s streaming news channel. Ask him how Denison prepared him for this career, and he’ll flip the question on you.

“How didn’t Denison prepare me?” he said. The Knowlton Center helped guide him. His professors challenged him. And his classmates inspired him.

“I got excited seeing my peers doing great things,” he said. “I was already driven, but I wanted to do so much more because everybody (at Denison) was doing so much.”

Since moving to New York City, Walker found a passion There are still times when RAY WALKER ’22 outside of work. He joined the running community and marvels at his landing place after Denison: became so committed to it that he ran in the Berlin at 30 Rockefeller Plaza, where that famous gigantic tree Marathon in October 2023. sparkles through the holidays, where he might hop on “It was one of the most amazing experiences of my life, an elevator and discover he’s sharing the ride with NBC magical in both the struggle and freedom that comes Nightly News anchor Lester Holt. with it,” he said.

He has his professional sights set on becoming a That happened just the other day, as a matter of fact. national news correspondent.

But gradually, the professional life taking shape for “I want to travel the country, telling stories,” he said. “To Walker is starting to feel — dare he say it? — like another me, it’s all about connecting with people.” day at the office.

He said he learned that at Denison, too.

“It kind of becomes the norm, where you’re not even “I think sometimes people think it’s clichéd,” he said. starstruck anymore,” he said.

“It’s not a cliché for me. It’s real. It’s ingrained in the Walker majored in communication and anthropology/ framework and fabric of what Denison is.”

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“To me, it’s all about connecting with people.”

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Ask ALLIE VUGRINCIC ’17 what drew her to journalism, and the radio reporter who deals in words and voice might hesitate.

which I thrived. I had a camera around my neck and a new story to tell every day. And the stories mattered — especially at a time where fewer and fewer communities had people to tell them.”

“In truth, I did not so much choose journalism as it Radio allows her to lean into her theatrical flair and use chose me,” she said. the sound-editing skills she learned at Denison. But at its Vugrincic works for 89.7 NPR News in Columbus. core, the job is the same — tell a new story every day.

Before that, she spent four years as a reporter, features writer, and photographer at two Youngstown, Ohio-area newspapers, the Tribune Chronicle and The Vindicator.

At Denison, her primary medium was film.

“I have always loved storytelling in all forms, which is why I decided to study cinematography at Denison,” she said. “I saw it as the perfect marriage of writing, photography, and theater.”

However, it was a creative writing teacher who set her on course to study abroad in Ireland, both over a summer as an undergraduate and again for a master’s program in creative writing at University College Cork in Ireland.

“I was there to write, but more than anything, Ireland taught me how to listen to other people’s stories,” she said.

A year wiser and a degree richer, she came home to Warren, Ohio and waited for the next part of her life to start.

“When I took the job at my local newspaper, I thought it would be a temporary thing,” she said. “But over the course of the next four years, I discovered a career in

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A few years after graduation, COURTNEY VINOPAL ’13 was working for the French Embassy in Washington, D.C., fielding questions from the U.S. press about terror attacks in France, including the killing of 12 people at the offices of Charlie Hebdo, a satirical weekly newspaper in Paris.

It was g rim work, but Vinopal realized while dealing with the media during those tense moments — when getting reliable and unbiased information to the public was paramount — that she wanted to cover the news herself.

Now, Vinopal is a business journalist based in New York City, covering human resources and the workplace.

She reports for HR Brew, an industry-focused vertical published by Morning Brew.

“In the seven or so years I’ve been working in the media, I’ve written on everything from foreign affairs to gender to real estate,” she said. She has seen her work published by The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, and PBS NewsHour.

(Cont. on pg. 46)

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(Cont. from pg. 45)

“The curriculum at Denison encourages students to be curious, which is essential for any journalist.”

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Vinopal double-majored in French and English literature and minored in communication. She admits she didn’t expect to use her French skills much. Still, they came in handy when she worked as an English teaching assistant in France during the year after graduation and later at her embassy job.

She earned her master’s degree at Columbia University in 2016 and has worked as a reporter since.

“When I was at Denison, it was hard to envision how the courses I was taking would translate to a career, given I didn’t really know what I wanted to do with my life at that point,” she said. “It’s a lot clearer now how they served me, and I’m forever grateful to all the wonderful professors, particularly Drs. Christine Armstrong, Sylvia Brown, and Kirk Combe, who helped me hone my language and writing skills.”

She said the college prepared her well for journalism, even before the major was an option at Denison.

“The curriculum at Denison encourages students to be curious, which is essential for any journalist,” she said.

“You’re constantly asking questions and learning a little bit about everything.”

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Uncertain about his future, JOHN WENDLE ’02 got his international start at a Denison career fair, where he happened to see a table for the Peace Corps.

He signed up then and there.

“Everyone should do it,” he said. “Hugely formative experience.”

Within a few months of graduation, he was studying Russian in Kazakhstan and living with a local family.

After two years teaching on the shores of the Caspian Sea, where he once swam with giant sturgeon, he landed a job in Baku, Azerbaijan, where he worked at a regional newspaper. It was there, during violent anti-government protests, that he started taking photos — mostly blurry ones of his running feet.

His newfound passion for photography propelled him to Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism, and his experience in the former Soviet Union helped him land a job at the Moscow Times. Wendle also began to shift his coverage to war.

In 2008, while working for Time magazine, he rode in on Russian armored vehicles to report on that country’s invasion of Georgia.

Then, a friend from the Peace Corps hired him for a job in Afghanistan, in Helmand and Kandahar. Later, he worked as a Time Afghanistan correspondent.

In 2014, after five years of embeds, close calls with snipers, suicide bombs, and a girlfriend’s kidnapping (which fortunately ended with her quick release), he moved to Ukraine to cover the war with Russia. He was one of the first reporters to arrive at the scene of the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 by Russiancontrolled forces, an act that killed 283 passengers and 15 crew members.

He met his wife, a British journalist, in Ukraine. From Kyiv, he worked for National Geographic and other outlets. He wrote about Russian polar bears and sailed the Svalbard archipelago to cover climate change research.

In 2 018, the couple moved to Dakar, Senegal.

Now based in West Africa, Wendle has pivoted to video and television production, though he still writes and takes photos.

He has searched for long-snouted saiga antelope in Kazakhstan and manatees in Guinea. He said he is happy, at this stage of his life, to have replaced soldiers with scientists and Kalashnikov rifles with roaring lions.

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SEALE OF APPROVAL

On the weekend of his 60th class reunion, RICH A RD SE A LE ’63 was admiring the campus landscape when he bent on one knee like a prospector to sift through loose organic material surrounding a red maple tree.

“This is a one-season black dyed hardwood fiber mulch,” How a Denison he said, “not a pine bark multi-year mulch.” alum brought If anyone should know, it’s the mulch king of North standards to the Carolina. Seale has spent the past 50 years processing mulch industry mostly pine bark mulches to supply homes, gardens, golf — and likely courses, and businesses. saved you some The greatest achievement of this proud Denisonian landscaping cannot be measured in the truckloads of mulch he’s money along sold, however. It’s the scales of justice he’s tipped in the the way. favor of consumers, who reportedly spend $1 billion annually to cover soil with layers of decorative moistureconserving matter.

Seale, the CEO of Kamlar Corp., went state to state for The lack of industry regulations was threatening his two decades to regulate bag quantities and ensure that company’s finances, however. A vendor told him she was professional landscapers and amateur green thumbs alike dropping Kamlar as a client because a competitor could weren’t getting cheated. While he might not be as well- fill a 40-foot truck with 900 bags of bark compared to his known as Delta Upsilon frat brother Michael D. Eisner ’64, 750 bags for the same price.

Seale has contributed to consumer confidence.

“I knew darn well what was wrong,” Seale said. “She “He’s made certain everyone is playing on a level field,” was getting short-pack product. What’s worse is she said son ERIC SEALE ’91, the vice president of sales and didn’t care. She was cheating the customers, and we marketing at Kamlar, a mulch manufacturer and recycler came to realize other retailers were doing the same.” of forest residuals in Rocky Mount, North Carolina.

Seale designed wooden boxes with hinges to replicate Richard Seale arrived in Granville, Ohio, in 1959 to two- and three-cubic meter bags, which is how mulch participate in a unique five-year program in which often was sold then. If you emptied a bag’s contents into he split time between Denison and Duke University. the volume verification box, the mulch needed to fill it He became Denison’s only alum who completed to the proper declared volume. Seale and his partners the “Denison-Duke 3-2 forestry program,” earning a took the boxes on the road looking to get state regulatory bachelor of science in biology at Denison and a master’s commissions to endorse his plan. of forestry economics degree at Duke.

Eventually, the National Conference on Weights and After graduation, he spent two years in Nigeria Measures adopted the idea. The standards Seale helped working for the Research Triangle Institute before develop are still in use, his son said. enjoying a six-year run at Procter & Gamble as a “I wasn’t looking to gain an advantage,” Seale said. “I national packaging manager. In 1973, he was offered the was trying to do something that was fair to all concerned.” opportunity to buy into Kamlar.

Seale, 82, spends much of his time hunting, fishing, Few Denison alums have a more memorable first-day- model railroading, and traveling. He’s visited all seven on-the-job story. continents, riding trains on each except Antarctica.

“I had just left P&G, sold my house, and drove from His commitment to Denison and his classmates Cincinnati to attend a board of directors meeting,” Seale remains strong. recalled. “They wouldn’t let me in the meeting. Finally, a Seale and his wife, Linda, who earned a degree from guy comes out and says, ‘Kamlar is bankrupt.’” the Duke School of Nursing, have established multiple Seale’s business acumen helped change the company’s scholarships. There’s one at Denison and several endowed fortunes. So did the 1970s energy crisis. summer scholarships at the Duke University Marine Lab “The high price of gas had people staying at home for qualified Denison and Duke students. instead of traveling,” Seale said. “They spent more time “We love coming back and seeing old friends,” he said. working around their yards and gardens. God moves in “Denison has always been a special and friendly place for mysterious ways.”

Linda and me.”

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THANK YOU VERY MULCH: Richard Seale leveled the playing field for consumers by helping to develop standards on mulch sales by volume only.

BY TOM REED PHOTOS BY PATRICK DEMICHAEL ’13

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Health Care Heroes 66

R. GRANT ROWE ’03 long had been interested in science and medicine. Denison introduced him to the “Eureka!” moment.

Rowe is an assistant professor of pediatrics at Harvard Medical School, an attending physician for the Stem Cell Transplantation Program at Boston Children’s Hospital, and director of the Pediatric Bone Marrow Failure Clinic at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

“I am a physician-scientist who cares for children undergoing bone marrow transplantation and with bone marrow failure disorders,” Rowe said. “I also oversee a research laboratory at Boston Children’s Hospital where we study normal and diseased blood stem cells to better understand blood diseases of childhood.”

Rowe credits mentors at Denison with shaping his career.

“My experience in basic science under the supervision of Eric Liebl showed me how exciting discoveries in the laboratory could be,” he said. He also built formative relationships with Professor Emeritus Thomas Evans and associate professors Peter Kuhlman and Chuck Sokolik.

As a varsity swimmer, he found another key mentor outside the lab, in head swimming coach Gregg Parini.

“Swimming is an important part of my work-life balance to this day,” Rowe said.

His dual roles of doctor and scientist make the work fulfilling.

“Being able to care for children with blood diseases and also work in the laboratory to understand the most fundamental basis of blood stem cells brings both parts of my work full circle,” he said. “It provides unique perspectives both at the bedside and in the laboratory that can hopefully benefit patients and drive our experimental work forward.”

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TYLER GIBSON ’14 worked through Covid as a nurse in Washington state, and as the pandemic wound down, he and his then-girlfriend needed a change of scenery.

Their plan was bold. They’d move to Australia, where he’d work as a traveling nurse and she could work remotely.

“We had been talking about moving abroad, just to try something new while we were still fairly young,” he said.

They started in Brisbane but eventually decided that their routine too closely resembled what they’d left behind in the United States. So they bought a van and began road-tripping south along the coast, to Sydney, Melbourne, Tasmania, Adelaide, and Perth.

“I was working at various hospitals along the way,” Gibson said. “That was about 10 months of traveling.”

Then they upped the adventure. They sold their van and decided to backpack through southeast Asia. They spent a month in New Zealand and got engaged, then jumped to southeast Asia, beginning in Bali. They toured Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand, scuba diving along the way. For a time they lived a life of eat, sleep, dive. Their single coolest underwater experience might have been their close encounter with a hammerhead shark.

“We had been looking for sharks, and then this hammerhead swam up from the depths,” he said. “He circled us a few times before deciding we weren’t his type of food and swam away.”

They wrapped up the trip with a motorcycle tour through Vietnam before returning stateside for a friend’s July wedding. Back in his hometown Atlanta, Gibson is working at a local hospital.

Reacclimating to working life in the States has been difficult, but Gibson doesn’t regret heeding the advice so many offered: Live a little. You’ll have plenty of time to settle down later.

“It’s easy to get complacent, to get comfortable, and when you’re comfortable you don’t necessarily want to change and uproot everything,” he said. “I guess I viewed that as a challenge, and the more you do it, the easier it gets.”

Now, the hard part for the couple is deciding where they might settle down. Mountains, coral reefs, small towns, cosmopolitan cities — they’ve seen and enjoyed them all.

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MATT CHRISTIANSEN ’05 remembers impromptu, reverse house calls.

His father is a primary care physician in rural West Virginia, and the family home was ideally located for anyone feeling ill in town.

“Our house was on the way up the hill to the hospital,” Christiansen said. “They’d stop at our house first and ask my father if they really needed to go.”

Christiansen was named the state health officer of West Virginia in January 2023. But his path to that point wasn’t exactly a straight line.

“It wasn’t my intention to go to medical school while I was at Denison,” he said. “It almost felt rebellious, like, ‘I’m going to chart my own course.’ And I always loved the outdoors, fishing, and hunting.”

So the biology major and Denison Homesteader headed west after graduation to work as a fisheries observer in Yellowstone. After that, he set his sights on Alaska, working as a conservation biologist in the Bering Sea. Eventually he made another change of direction.

“While I was in Yellowstone and in Alaska, I really felt that I wanted to do more,” he said. “I wanted to affect people’s lives more directly.”

He returned to West Virginia for medical school at Marshall University, where he still teaches.

For a time, Christiansen worked directly with patients as a primary care doctor, seeing firsthand the health challenges found in a largely rural state with high levels of poverty and rampant opioid abuse brought on by the over-prescription of pain meds. He took a specific interest in addiction treatment and felt himself again pulled in a new direction, toward the policy side of public health.

In 2020, he was appointed by the governor to serve as director of the state’s Office of Drug Control Policy, a role he held until his 2023 appointment as the state’s top health official.

The new job introduced a host of other health issues to address — obesity, diabetes, infectious diseases, substance abuse — but a common challenge in a rural state like West Virginia is connecting effective health strategies to the right places.

“We have lots of great medicines,” he said. “What we’re not good at in medicine is getting those things to the people who need them. It should never be harder for someone to get addiction treatment than it is for them to get drugs on the street.”

Though he majored in biology, Christiansen said the value of his Denison education was much broader. The liberal arts “exposed me to lots of different ideas and taught me to acknowledge the limits of your knowledge.”

Denison “helped me understand that there is a much broader scope of thought out there,” he said. A public health officer like himself might have strong feelings about how best to approach the opioid crisis, while an official within the prison system might have markedly different ideas.

“I work with people I disagree with on a fundamental level every day,” Christiansen said. “The trick is being able to say, ‘I think we do agree that we want to reduce the preventable deaths of West Virginians.’”

The new job has proven hard but rewarding, although he admitted sometimes missing the type of personal medicine that had patients stopping by his dad’s front door.

“I love sitting across from someone on the exam table,” Christiansen said. “There is nothing that replaces that one-on-one, doctor-patient relationship.”

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Climbing down from the cockpit of the C-5 Galaxy for the last time, the Air Force captain went on to fly jets for commercial airlines for 37 years. Then he retired and “moved to the lake as old pilots need to do.”

But he didn’t just kick his feet up and pass his days gazing out over the water.

A licensed professional counselor, he now owns and operates Altus Counseling Services PLLC in Spring, Texas. He specializes in treating patients with depression, anxiety, and trauma, particularly post-traumatic stress disorder. Fellow vets are among his patients.

“Therapy can allow people to move through difficult emotions and gain a greater sense of stability and peace, finally putting the past in the past,” he said. “Healing is possible through hopeful, future-oriented counseling that relieves childhood and adult trauma.”

But helping children past those rough spots is remarkably fulfilling, the Pickerington, Ohio, pediatrician said.

Barnes-Mullett majored in physics at Denison and went home to West Virginia after graduation, where she attended medical school at West Virginia University. She returned to central Ohio for her internship and residency at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, where she served as chief resident from 2006-2007.

Nearly 25 years after graduating, she remains confident that her chosen path was the right one for her.

“Kids are fun to talk to,” she said. “They have fun personalities. And they’re resilient.”

She and her husband have settled in that quintessential small town just down The Hill with their two children — a son in high school and daughter in sixth grade.

“It’s fun, seeing your professors while trick-or-treating or at the coffee shop,” Barnes-Mullett said. “Granville just felt right. This is where I belong.”

ROB BENSON ’75 spent 10 years in the U.S. Air Force, flying a military transport plane so large it would take up two-thirds of Deeds Field, its wingtips spreading 30 feet beyond each sideline.

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“While I was in Yellowstone and in Alaska I really felt that I wanted to do more. I wanted to affect people’s lives more directly.”

“Children can’t always tell you what’s wrong,” said CARRIE BARNES-MULLETT ’99. “They’re scared sometimes when they’re in the office.”

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FO R K Y LE GO R DO N ’ 14

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There’s a chance you first noticed DJ Crazy Times on Twitter, staring at you through polarized sunglasses, aggressively rapping couplets like “Life, it never die/Women are my favorite guy” and grinding on a singer named Biljana Electronica.

Maybe you first encountered the persona on TikTok, where comedian KYLE GORDON ’14 had already built up a following more than 3 million strong before “Planet of the Bass” — his viral hit under the Crazy Times guise — broke out this summer.

Or perhaps you saw Gordon perform as DJ Crazy Times or one of several other genre-specific musical characters in the New York comedy venues where he honed his craft — or even back in Granville, Ohio, in the early 2010s.

“I developed that character at Denison,” Gordon said.

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It’s true: DJ Crazy Times debuted on a 2013 album by the Denison Hilltoppers a cappella group, which then counted Gordon as a member — one of many ways music and comedy intersected during his undergrad years.

G o r d o n g r e w u p i n N e w Yo r k ’s Westchester County and chose Denison after a series of Ohio college visits with his dad, a Case Western Reserve University alum. He pursued an East Asian Studies major and even studied abroad in Tokyo, but his extracurriculars led him to an unrelated career path.

Under the name DJ Boutros BoutrosGhali, Gordon deejayed at campus radio station WDUB all throughout his time at Denison. “Each week I would have a different theme for the playlist,” Gordon said. “The themes were always demented. I’d do Christmas music in March, or Bulgarian Top

40. I had a jingoism theme where I’d do propaganda music from around the world.”

His time at Doobie Radio led to a performance at the inaugural Doobiepalooza. “A bunch of Denison bands set up a tent outside of the Sunnies,” Gordon said. “I played this pop-punk parody song that I wrote.”

During his first year at Denison, Gordon befriended ORI SEGEV ’14 , now part of the successful Denison-founded production company Loose Films. “Kyle pretty much acted in every one of my short films,” Segev said. “He’d always be doing a bit. It’s kind of cool to see them develop over the years, and for some of them I was definitely there for that first joke.”

While living in Granville over the summer of 2013, Gordon decided to try open mic night at the Funny Bone in Columbus. Per Gordon, it was “very alt, anti-comedy, kind of a Tim

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The comedian’s smash hit Eurodance parody “Planet of the Bass” traces back to his Denison days.

BY C H R I S D E V I L L E Heidecker ripoff,” but he did well enough to keep trying. After graduation, he moved to New York to pursue a comedy career.

In New York, Gordon joined an improv comedy group. At their weekly shows, he crafted many genre-specific music gags: bossa nova, pop-country, an “anti-English Irish drinking song.” But his comedy career didn’t really take off until he got on TikTok. In 2020, when the world went on lockdown, a Denison student messaged Gordon to say she loved one of his old YouTube videos and that he would do well on TikTok. Gordon resolved to post a daily video every Monday through Friday. He quickly went viral starring as “this kid who is very excited that his uncle made him enchiladas.”

Gordon was an established TikTok celebrity by the time “Planet of the Bass” introduced him to the rest of the internet.

On July 28, he posted a 50-second preview

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video to his social accounts. ​​C aptioned “ Ever y European Dance song in the 1990’s,” it was a note-perfect pastiche of Eurodance hits like Real McCoy’s “Run Away ”: broken English, irrepressible energy, impassioned singing punctuated by intense, deep-voiced rapping.

Suddenly “Planet of the Bass” was everywhere — especially on Twitter, where it accumulated over 100 million views.

Within a week, GQ declared it “the unlikely song of the summer.” Celebs including Amy Poehler and Charlie Puth paid tribute. Aqua, of “Barbie Girl” fame, left an approving comment. Gordon’s TikTok follower Nick Jonas even invited Gordon and Audrey Trullinger (the first actress to portray Biljana Electronica) to perform “Planet of the Bass” at their stadium concert in Boston.

“Before that show, the biggest audience I’d

ever performed for was like 400 people,” Gordon said. “I was playing pretend rock star.”

But there’s nothing pretend about the success of “Planet of the Bass.” In a fullcircle moment, the phenomenon led to an official music video filmed in Columbus with Segev and the Loose Films team. The clip surpassed 2 million views on YouTube within weeks, pushing “Planet of the Bass” onto Billboard ’s Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart.

The track will next appear alongside other parodies on Gordon’s debut album Kyle Gordon Is Great, set for release in early 2024.

It’s a trajectory he never imagined for himself growing up.

“I was funny and sort of always had a class clown personality, but it didn’t even click to me that comedy could be something that you could realistically pursue,” Gordon said, “until I tried.”

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In a digital age, MARY LADKY ’81 still operates by the book in her approach to childhood literacy.

“There’s evidence to support the belief that physical books still matter quite a bit to young kids,” Ladky said.

That’s why the longtime educator became the executive director of the Children’s Book Bank of Canada seven years ago. The nonprofit provides free books and literacy support to children in high needs neighborhoods across Toronto.

From its two locations, six full-time employees and 30 volunteers give away about 140,000 “gently used” books a year.

“The goal is for kids to build up their personal libraries,” Ladky said. “Studies show home libraries with at least 80 books have a significant effect on literacy later in life.”

Running the charitable operation is Ladky’s way of giving back for valuable advice she received at Denison. The Milwaukee native described herself as an “indifferent student” until former English professor Tony Stoneburner encouraged her to study abroad in Ireland as a junior.

After majoring in English and history at Denison, she earned a master’s degree in Anglo-Irish literature at University College Dublin.

“Professor Stoneburner’s advice changed the whole course of my life,” she said.

Ladky taught at Trent University in Ontario before becoming a principal at the Linden School in Toronto.

Now, she’s trying to inspire young students to become lifelong readers. The book bank distributes books and hosts storytime programs at the two shops.

“We are trying to develop that interest and curiosity at a young age,” she said.

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Not long after graduation, MANNY HORSFORD ’13 traveled to Madagascar with the Peace Corps, falling in love with a woman and a country.

He took one with him and vowed to return for the other.

Horsford and his f iancée, A ngela, are back in Madagascar, helping run a luxury eco-lodge in a rural seaside community adjacent to the country’s largest rainforest and national park. The couple helps manage a staff of about 50 workers while overseeing the guest experience, food and beverage, and private charter logistics.

The region is so remote it’s accessible only by boat.

“I don’t know where to begin,” Horsford said, “but I fell head over heels for Madagascar almost immediately after landing in the capital of Antananarivo for the first time in February 2016.”

He credits his time at Denison for helping develop his spirit of adventure. Horsford, a U.S. Virgin Islands native, has traveled the world, working in Italy, China, and Thailand before spending five years in Denver.

“I have Denison to thank for giving me the confidence to embark on this nontraditional career path I’m on,” Horsford said. “I embrace the unknown and follow my curiosities wherever they might lead.”

After their 27-month Peace Corps stint, Horsford and Angela knew they would return to Madagascar. They figured it would be for a long visit, not a job opportunity But when the Masoala Forest Lodge offered to hire them as managers, the couple said goodbye to Denver and returned to the country where they met.

“Madagascar is considered one of the poorest nations on the planet, and while that may be true from an economic perspective, I’ve been so moved and inspired by the generosity of the Malagasy people,” Horsford said. “They value the intangibles — love, friendship, family, cultural traditions, storytelling — in ways I wish were more prominent in the U.S. and the Western world.”

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After purchasing a 1782 New England farmhouse, ALISON HARDY ’81 recalls feeling the draft that seeped through the ancient windows, some of which were painted shut and rotting in spots.

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If you were an employer looking for job candidates with a wide array of skills and experiences, the LinkedIn page of SCOTT ROBERTS ’00 would blow you away.

He’s worked in corporate America and academia. He’s studied the behaviors of people, dolphins, and chimps.

He’s taught a course called the Psychology of Evil, volunteered as a firefighter and EMT, and ran a business that sold T-shirts of reversed images for self-affirmation.

Roberts’ resume is so long and in-depth it should come with CliffsNotes.

“I thrive on feeling like I’ve mastered or accomplished something that I didn’t think I could do, so for me I’m always pushing myself to find things outside of my comfort zone,” Roberts said. “If I’m not challenged, I’m stagnant, and at that point, I have only myself to blame for being bored.”

Currently, Roberts is senior manager at Capital One, leading a team that collaborates with executives to define learning outcomes, develop strategic goals, and recommend appropriate change management solutions.

He spent 11 years at the University of Maryland in a variety of positions, including as an assistant dean and the director of undergraduate studies in the psychology department. Roberts also worked in Hawaii at a dolphin research facility and, as an undergraduate, conducted an independent study at the now-shuttered Ohio State University Chimp Research Center.

Along the way, he’s enjoyed side hustles involving photography and graphic design.

“I have a great deal of energy that needs an outlet, and sometimes the best way to balance out a long day is to stay up even later and create something,” he said.

Roberts, who earned a degree in psychology at Denison, credits his professors for sharpening his approach to research and application.

“In so many ways, that inspired me to embrace being a lifelong learner,” he said, “and it gave me the confidence that I could do anything if I committed to the process.”

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The easy solution was to buy replacements, but Hardy wasn’t sold on the idea. She and her husband didn’t move into a 200-year-old home to start adding windows that didn’t fit the antique aesthetic.

Hardy borrowed woodworking tools and read reference books on window restoration. It took her several months, but she repaired her windows and discovered her calling in the process.

After years in the textile industry, she quit her job and founded Window Woman of New England in 2003.

“If human hands can make these windows, human hands can repair them,” Hardy said.

Over the past 20 years, she has gone from a one-woman operation to a 14-person team that serves north Boston and southern New Hampshire.

In a 5,000-square-foot workshop, her team repairs and restores about 1,500 windows a year. Her business has been featured on the home improvement TV show This Old House seven times.

Hardy could not have picked a better region of the country to launch her business. She said nearly half of the houses in her hometown of Amesbury, Massachusetts, were built before 1960.

Her team has restored plenty of windows dating to the 18th century.

Hardy believes the craftsmanship that went into older windows is far superior to what’s on the market today.

Older homes also have lots of specialty windows that come in unusual shapes and sizes that would be difficult and costly to replace.

“We are about restoring and repairing, but not replacing,” Hardy said. “It’s very labor intensive, but we get to see the fruits of our work every day.”

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BY TOM REED

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‘I knew this was my purpose’ W H E N K AT I E M C C O N N E L L O L I V E R N E E D E D A K I D N E Y, A N O L D F R I E N D F R O M T H E HILL VOLUNTEERED. BUT THE STORY DOESN’T END THERE.

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In need of luck, KATIE MCCONNELL OLIVER ’90 tried semester of their first year at Denison. They became purchasing some in the winter of 2007. fast friends.

Married with two small children, Oliver was facing an “Monica was a lot of fun,” Oliver said. “I liked her uncertain future due to kidney failure. A transplant was immediately.” recommended, but some potential donors within her “Monica was the life of the party,” Stivers said. family had the wrong blood type, while others had their Adult life has a way of loosening college bonds. Friends own health issues. often go their separate ways after commencement. Careers On a whim, Oliver bought a wishbone charm necklace. and family obligations add distance.

“The string was like dental floss,” she recalled. “The But Denison’s requirement that all students live on idea is to make a wish, and when the string breaks, your campus creates bonds that are hard to break. wish will come true.”

“We were always around each other,” Oliver said. “Nobody Oliver didn’t want to publicize her illness, but she did was living down The Hill, so we all stayed really close.” confide in close friends, including her Denison classmate When Weakley, a real estate agent in Cincinnati, read AMY BAUMSTARK STIVERS ’90. They had met in their first Stivers’ email, she was overcome by a feeling she remains year on The Hill and discovered to their delight that each at a loss to explain. was a St. Louis native.

“I knew at that moment, I was going to be the one,” Oliver and Stivers were among a group of eight women she said. from the Class of 1990 that remains tight. They have Weakley’s wife, Sharon, tried to temper her enthusiasm. vacationed together and attended each other’s weddings. The living organ donation process is long and complex. Any When Oliver gave birth to her daughter, Emmie, she number of factors could lead to disqualification. asked Stivers to be the godmother.

Medical personnel require assurances from the donor With her friend’s permission, Stivers wrote an email that they understand the risks involved. They remind to their circle of Denison friends, explaining Oliver’s prospective donors that they can change their mind at any condition. It wasn’t a solicitation for donors; it was a time. Some decide not to donate because a family member simple request to keep Oliver in their thoughts. might someday need the same organ.

“Looking back, all of us relied on each other at Denison,” Weakley never hesitated. She was the first person Stivers said. “We had gone through a lot of things to be tested. together and we stayed in each other’s lives.”

“I knew this was my purpose, and it was a lot bigger than Two months after the diagnosis, the string on Oliver’s me,” she said. wishbone necklace broke. Within hours, she received a phone call from an old classmate.

‘I FELT BETTER IMMEDIATELY’ “Katie,” the voice on the other end of the line said.

On the morning of Sept. 11, 2007, Oliver and Weakley “We’re a match.” were lying on gurneys in the hallway of the University of Utah Hospital. They embraced and wished each other luck ‘THIS WAS MY PURPOSE’ ahead of their surgeries.

MONICA WEAKLEY ’90 met Oliver during the second “It was super emotional,” Weakley recalled. “Both families #DENISONPROUD ISSUE 1 2024

were there, both sets of parents. Everyone was nervous.”

Doctors could not believe the women weren’t related because the organ match was almost perfect.

“When I woke up, the doctor told me the kidney was already working,” Oliver said. “I felt better immediately.”

Oliver and her loved ones have difficulty expressing enough gratitude to Weakley. The families got together the following year in St. Louis for a celebration, and every year on Thanksgiving, Oliver’s parents send Weakley a bouquet of flowers.

“What people sometimes forget is the donor gets something out of this as well,” Weakley said. “They get a feeling of great purpose and joy.”

As the families gathered for the St. Louis reunion, nobody could imagine there would be one more twist in the tale.

One more Denison connection to add to the story.

PAYING IT FORWARD Weakley could not believe the timing of her friend’s 2019 phone call. Oliver just wanted to chat — two old Denisonians catching up.

What Oliver heard staggered her. Weakley’s mother, Nancy, had taken ill. She needed a kidney transplant.

Weakley chose her words carefully, neglecting to mention that mother and daughter shared the same rare blood type and likely would have been a match. She reassured Oliver there were no regrets.

“I didn’t want her to feel guilty, and I knew in my heart we would find a donor,” Weakley said.

She recorded a video talking about her mother’s health issue and posted it on Facebook. Within days, Weakley heard from 15 volunteers willing to get tested.

“What Monica had done for me brought so much awareness to kidney donation,” Oliver said. “A lot of people stepped up to help her.”

And this is where the story circles back to Denison.

After graduation, Weakley moved to Washington, D.C., with Anne Bearry Nicholson ’90, another member of their friend group.

Two years later, Weakley returned home to Cincinnati. She needed a job. Nicholson recommended interviewing for a sales rep position at her uncle’s company, Aerospace Alloys.

Weakley got the job and became friends with a woman in the accounting department, Robin Tackett.

Tackett agreed to get tested and proved to be a good match.

Nancy Weakley received her transplant in 2020. Today she is 75 and in great health.

“If Anne doesn’t tell me about her uncle’s company, I never meet Robin,” Weakley said. “The power of Denison connections.”

According to the National Kidney Foundation, the average time on a national transplant waiting list can range from three to five years. That’s why volunteers willing to donate a kidney to friends and loved ones is invaluable.

“Monica and Katie were always really good friends,” Stivers said. “Now, they share a bond that will last forever.”

DENISON MAGAZINE

MAY 30 TO JUNE 1 A 50th Reunion celebration for the Class of 1974

MAY 31 TO JUNE 2 For the classes of 1949, 1954, 1959, 1964, 1969, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1984, 1999, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2014, and 2019

RECONNECT with classmates and friends.

REVISIT and honor the past.

REIGNITE your Denison pride.

Registration will open in January, with early bird registration available until March 15.

D E N I S O N.E D U/ R E U N I O N DENISONMAGAZINE.COM

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ADVANCING EDUCATION S U C C E S S 1 0 0 WAY S

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Fresh out of Denison, EMMA DRAVES ’01 made a move that felt almost mandatory, given her course of study.

“I went to New York first, because that’s what dancers are supposed to do, right?” she said. But a dancer’s life is about movement, not staying in one place.

Since graduating from Denison with dual degrees in dance and anthropology/sociology, Draves has become versed in dance forms from contemporary to ballet to Bharatanatyam. Her choreography has been presented in Chicago, New York, Scotland, and Canada. Her research interests have included Indian dance in the diaspora and dance in rural communities. She’s curated dance festivals and for the past 12 years taught dance at Columbia College Chicago, a private art school in downtown Chicago.

Her anthropology/sociology degree came partly at the urging of her parents, who worried that focusing solely on dance might limit her career opportunities.

“The liberal arts approach at Denison allowed me to have options,” Draves said. “It wasn’t one bubble here, and one silo there.”

The humanity of the second major suited her, and it dovetailed perfectly with the performing arts. She studied dance forms from around the world, and she was tapped to help reshape her program’s curriculum through more nuanced attention to equity, diversity, and inclusion.

She’s found teaching at Columbia deeply rewarding.

“I have a real love for it,” she said. “I need to know that what I’m doing has a greater impact. I feel that through teaching.

“There are art kids here, theater kids, dancers,” she said.

“They’re following these interconnected pathways. You get to see how they burst into new ideas and activities, and you see them at the end of the semester, standing full on their feet, what they turn into. That’s really lovely.”

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MARK DANIEL WARD ’99 recalls how his Denison mathematics professor, Don Bonar, could be found working in his Olin Science Hall office on Saturday mornings. Students were welcomed to pop in for weekend chats with the beloved professor, who died in 2023.

Ward, a professor of statistics at Purdue University and the executive director of the school’s innovative Data Mine program, has kept Bonar’s relentless academic spirit alive.

On weekdays, he usually arrives at his office by 4:30 a.m.

The data-driven dynamo oversees 1,700 students, works with more than 80 corporate partners and, by the way, has seven children with his wife and college sweetheart, Laura Eilar Ward ’99.

“When I was at Denison, the faculty made sure everything was student-centered,” Ward said. “For Laura and me, that was the hallmark of Denison. It was all about the students and making sure they had a high-quality experience. We’ve tried to bring that small college feel to a larger learning environment at Purdue.”

The Data Mine, founded in 2018, is open to students of all disciplines and majors. It’s a pioneering living-learning community for students, faculty, researchers, and corporate partners alike.

“It’s meant to be the university’s ‘data science for all’ initiative,” said Ward, whose program has a 23-member staff. “Students from any background can come and work on data projects, research projects. They can learn how data science is used and practiced.”

Ward is sending so many quality data analysts into the world it’s encroaching on his love of baseball. He had to remain neutral for the 2023 American League Championship series between the Texas Rangers and Houston Astros. (The Rangers prevailed on the way to their first World Series title.)

“We had former students working for both teams,” Ward said. “Companies everywhere are eager to hire problem solvers who know how to use data science.”

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Fields-Battle is the assistant principal at Centennial High School in Columbus, and the kids were clearly comfortable with her. Interspersed in the banter was a message Fields-Battle works to communicate to all Centennial students: I see you, and I believe in you.

“I help t hem t r y to accomplish whatever their plan might be,” she said. That goes for all her students.

“I’m very honest with the kids all the time,” she said.

“You have to be upfront in order for a young person to make a good choice.”

When Fields-Battle sees a certain kind of Centennial student, a self-starter who thrives both in and out of the classroom — a student who harbors great potential — she has been known to introduce them to Denison.

Jay Jackson ’25 was one such student. Sara Abou Rashed ’21, a Denison President’s Medalist and poet, was another. Grace Davenport ’28 is the latest.

“Denison to me is for students who want to raise their voice, who want to grow their voice, who want to be active in their community,” Fields-Battle said.

Among his “most engaged students” are those who don’t have access to college campuses and learn from behind prison walls. For the past five years, Smith has taught in the Northwestern Prison Education Program, which aims to provide a liberal arts education for those incarcerated in Illinois. It’s the only U.S. bachelor’s degree-granting program for incarcerated students offered by a top-10 university.

Smith has taught at Stateville Correctional Center, a maximum-security prison near Joliet, Illinois. In 2023, he also worked inside Logan Correctional Center, a women’s prison in Lincoln, Illinois.

“Here’s a group of people who want to better themselves through education,” Smith said. “In many ways, it’s the ultimate ideal of higher education to get these people to think beyond the prison walls and to learn the freedom that can exist through intellectual growth.”

Smith has taught students formerly on death row — Illinois abolished the death penalty in 2011 — who are serving life sentences. With no chance for parole, they’re still eager to learn, Smith finds.

In the spring of 2023, he made a once-a-week, threehour drive to teach statistics to students in the women’s prison. Smith also taught virtual classes twice a week.

“For me personally, it’s been a transformative experience,” Smith said. “These are human beings, and they deserve our respect.”

The rapport that KAY FIELDS-BATTLE ’95 has with her students was on full display as she chatted with a handful of after-school stragglers gathering for their club in the library.

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KRISTINA K. BETHEA ODEJIMI ’06 came to Denison by way of her Virginia boarding school, where an administrator and Denison alum urged her to consider a college she’d never heard of in Granville, Ohio.

She threw herself into life on The Hill. She played basketball, worked as an RA and tour guide, joined the Black Student Union and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., and delved into student affairs.

“When I think back to my time at Denison, there are these joyful moments I had with key people,” she said. “I was very involved and made really close connections.”

As her college career progressed, she realized she wanted to encourage that involvement in other students.

She set her sights on higher education, particularly student affairs.

“I thought, ‘How can I serve, and be that for others?’” she said.

In June 2023, Odejimi joined Emory University in Atlanta as dean of students and associate vice president for belonging, engagement, and community. University leaders described her as a tremendous asset in student affairs.

DENISON MAGAZINE

Psychology professor HARRY DAVID SMITH ’87 has been teaching at Northwestern University for more than two decades.

“In many ways, it’s the ultimate ideal of higher education to get these people to think beyond the prison walls.”

“Kristina has dedicated her career to championing student growth and development,” Emory Provost Ravi V. Bellamkonda said in announcing her hiring. “She believes that belonging, well-being, and purpose can empower students to make a difference in their communities and serve humanity — and that aligns with our mission.”

Before joining Emory, Odejimi worked as dean of students at Bowdoin College. Before that, she served as dean of students at her secondary school alma mater, St. Margaret’s School, and held positions at the University of Virginia and the University of Arkansas.

She earned her doctorate of education in leadership at Virginia Commonwealth University, and her master’s in student affairs practice in higher education at the University of Virginia. At Denison, she majored in sociology/anthropology and Black studies.

In her new role at Emory, she works on multiple fronts to improve the student experience, remove barriers to their success, and assist students in their search “for their people and their place.”

“Their voices should be front and center in all our conversations,” she said.

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When he decided to retire after 45 years practicing medicine, JACK TREHARNE ’70 knew there were things he wouldn’t miss.

“I was up to here with the rat race of insurance and corporate micromanagement,” he said. “But I still missed patient contact.”

Then Covid hit. Treharne, of Winter Springs, Florida, reached out to a friend who led the local county emergency services. The friend hooked him up with a local health organization gearing up for the pandemic.

“So I signed on,” he said. “For 18 months, we treated patients with active Covid.”

Treharne loved biology. After Denison, he went on to become a teaching assistant in the cell biology department at the University of Kentucky.

“I soon became aware, though, that research in cell biology was too restrictive for me, and that I needed something broader,” he said. “I wanted to help people, and research on the tobacco mosaic virus was not my thing.”

He spent nine years in the U.S. Navy, service that included time at sea on the USS Sellers and USS Dewey, and a three-year family practice residency at the Naval Regional Medical Center in Charleston, South Carolina.

“I chose family practice because I love kids but still enjoy interacting with adults,” he said.

Once the Covid pandemic eased, his “retirement” job ended. Now he teaches religious education at his local parish, St. Stephen Catholic Community, and belongs to the Central Florida Railroad Modelers.

“Denison gave me an appreciation for broader focus, both historical and current, both scientif ic and humanities,” he said. “I am greatly appreciative of the Denison Singers, who with their reunion in June of this year helped me get reconnected. Until that time, I had not really realized what the Denison experience meant to me.”

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ROBERT STOCKER ’65 credits Denison for helping him develop the writing and public speaking skills he’s used for five decades as an attorney.

But nothing from his liberal arts education in the 1960s prepared him for the occupational hazards of logging so many hours behind a desk.

“There’s an old saying that law is a jealous mistress,” Stocker said. “It’s a sedentary lifestyle, and over the years I gained a lot of weight.”

By 1978, Stocker had put on 100 pounds. At 250 pounds, he couldn’t run more than 100 yards without gasping for air.

Stocker always had a “can do attitude” on The Hill when it came to academics. A father of four daughters, he knew he needed to apply this spirit to physical fitness. He changed his diet, subscribed to running magazines, and devoted himself to losing weight.

The result is a body and a life transformed. Stocker, always a decent swimmer, took up running and cycling.

Those three ingredients have made him a competitive triathlete over the past 30 years.

At age 80, Stocker is fit and training for the 2024 World Triathlon Championships in Malaga, Spain. In 2023, he won the Michigan Senior Olympics triathlon for his age group (80-84), while posting a top-four and a top-six finish in two prestigious national events.

“I wasn’t an athlete at Denison,” Stocker said. “So if you would have told me back then that I’d be competing in these kinds of events in my 80s, I would have told you that you’re crazy.”

Stocker speaks so highly of Denison that his daughter, Erin Stocker Mayer ’95, decided to attend. She and her two children also inherited Stocker’s love of physical fitness.

In 2018, all four family members posted top three finishes for their age group in a Detroit triathlon.

Stocker shows no signs of yielding to age. He continues his private business law practice working closely with the gaming industry. He’s also set audacious training goals.

“As a member of the Marine Corps Marathon Runners Club,” he said, “my goal is to continue running every October in the Marine Corps Marathon through the celebration of my 100th birthday.”

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grandchildren in Oregon and Costa Rica, or chasing fish with a fly rod.

But Quarles loves the law. He took the job.

While steering clear of the politics, Quarles readily drew one parallel between the Watergate investigation and the Mueller probe decades later.

The friend was Robert S. Mueller III. The case was the “Both were led by extraordinarily principled human Trump-Russia investigation. beings,” he said. “I never saw either of them cut a corner.”

By this point in his professional life, Quarles was no Quarles worked on the Watergate case until 1975, when stranger to high-profile cases. He had handled complex he joined the Boston firm of Hale and Dorr and worked intellectual property cases for clients such as Intel and closely for years with Nixon’s lawyer, James D. St. Clair.

Apple. He had worked with Mueller before, serving as “Neither of us thought it was all that unusual,” he said. settlement counsel in the Volkswagen diesel emissions “And we never said a word about Watergate to each other.” case and investigating the NFL’s handling of the Ray Rice That firm eventually merged with the firm of a law domestic violence incident. school classmate and Watergate colleague to form And through his connections at Harvard Law School WilmerHale. Quarles’ passion was trial work, particularly — his constitutional law professor was none other than those intellectual property cases for big tech companies.

Archibald Cox — Quarles had been tapped as a young “Not only do those cases go to trial more often, but lawyer to assist with a little investigation known as you’re working with incredibly bright people who are Watergate. Cox, the special prosecutor in the investiga- doing incredibly interesting things, and they’re paying tion, hired Quarles and a classmate onto the team. you for it,” he said.

“That wasn’t such an easy time in our lives,” his wife He relished the challenge major cases presented. reminded him when Mueller came calling in 2017. “Are “I’ve always enjoyed things where they keep score, and you sure you want to do this again?” they definitely keep score in the law,” Quarles said. “I SHARON TAFT QUARLES ’70 had a point. Not noted in the always say that winning lasts a week but a loss lasts a history books: the infamous “Saturday Night Massacre” lifetime. I can tell you every case I’ve lost.” that cost Cox his job and highlighted the growing These days, though, he’s happy being a grandfather of desperation of a cornered President Richard Nixon four, co-teaching a seminar at University of Virginia Law occurred about three weeks before the due date of the School, serving on a mediation panel for the federal courts couple’s first child. in the District of Columbia, and continuing to chase fish.

So there was reason to pause and think hard about And if a special government prosecutor came calling a Mueller’s request, coming as it did at a time when Quarles third time? could have been happily retired, spending time with his “They’d better be pretty persuasive to Sharon,” he said.

JAMES L. QUARLES III ’68 was near the end of a full career in law when a longtime friend asked for help with a case.

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COLE BROWN ’68: Maybe you remember Dad splashing on some Brut cologne or Skin Bracer aftershave. Perhaps you recall the Aqua Net hairspray on the bathroom counter or the Sunlight dish detergent under your kitchen sink.

“Little did you know that when you purchased one of these brands — or one of our holiday gift sets — that I was behind the curtain pulling the strings,” Brown said.

Brown spent his career in brand management, which he found to be a perfect blend of his organizational skills and creativity.

“I can truly say that my life is fundamentally different because of Denison, and particularly Dr. Sam Schaff,” he said. “I was 17 and immature when I entered Denison, and not unsurprisingly found myself in grade trouble very quickly. The university pulled out all of the stops, got me grounded, and helped me realize my potential.”

After Denison, he earned his MBA at Columbia University.

Shortly after he met his wife, Sue, at Stratton Mountain, Vermont. Avid skiers, they bought a home there in 1975.

DENISON MAGAZINE

“I always say that winning lasts a week but a loss lasts a lifetime. I can tell you every case I’ve lost.”

The couple spent most of their working life in Westchester County, New York, about 30 miles north of the city. Brown loved his work but realized he could do without the excess baggage — brutal commutes, long hours, stress, and extensive travel for business.

He and Sue, who was an elementary school teacher, set their sights on retiring early. “Thankfully,” he said, “I achieved my goal with my health and sanity intact.”

They split their time between Vermont and Pawleys Island, South Carolina. Brown worked for about five years as a guide at Stratton, leading skiers on tours of the mountain. He and Sue traveled the world, visiting six of the seven continents.

More recent developments have underscored for him that early retirement was the right decision. Sue’s health now keeps them closer to home, and at 77, Brown is settling into a new role as caregiver.

“We miss traveling, especially to Denison, but we still try to make every day special,” he said.

(Cont. on pg. 61)

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In a world where we are told there are no true accidents, this is as close as they come. ALDER CROCKER ’85, on vacation in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, with his wife and close group of friends, decides to join them for a last ocean swim of the day.

BY THEODORE DECKER

But Crocker was no quitter.

At the rehab center, “I’d go out back in my electric wheelchair, and I’d sit in the sun, looking at the little sort of forest there, and I would tell myself every day, ‘You’re never going to walk again, you’re never going to dance again, you’re never going to swim big waves again, you’re never going to walk up steps again.’

He jogs into the surf, the sand firm beneath his feet.

“I did this for days and weeks on end,” he said. “Basically, Until it isn’t.

I bullied myself into recognizing what was not going to A patch of sand gives way, throwing Crocker off balance. happen so that I could understand what the bottom was, so His bad knee buckles. He tumbles forward. He tries to roll that I could then know how to springboard off of that and out of the fall, but his head hits the sand hard. understand what I could do.”

He knows right away. This is bad.

This was a special kind of hell for someone used to being He lies face down in a foot of water. He realizes he can’t in control. He was deeply moved by the unwavering stand up or even reposition himself to lift his face from the support of family and friends, like his Denison fraternity water. Hold your breath, he thinks. brothers, who spent hours at his bedside. But ultimately, he His wife runs to his side and turns him over. decided, the course of action was his to take. Anything that “Oh my God, I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry,” he tells her. “I felt extraneous was a source of annoyance. broke my neck. I’m paralyzed.”

Like art class, for instance.

Right then, as he lies on the ragged edge of the Pacific “Yeah, I don’t do that,” he told the art therapist who came Ocean, Crocker senses that their lives have changed forever. to retrieve him for his first class. “I don’t need any chicken soup for the soul. I’m good.”

HITTING BOTTOM The therapist shot right back with the one question In the nearly six years since that day in 2018, Crocker’s Crocker didn’t have a good answer for. premonition has played out in ways he couldn’t have “What else are you doing at 3 o’clock?” imagined. There is the obvious: He has quadriplegia and is Off to art class he went. He could move his arms but not 85% paralyzed. That is at the top of the cascade. Everything his fingers, and like everything else, painting was a chore. else in his life fell away below it. His career, a successful one Forced to clutch specially outfitted brushes in his fist, he in marketing, ground to a halt. His marriage crumbled. He was the definition of ham-handed. endured multiple surgeries and medical complications. The Yet an epiphany would be a fair word to describe what simplest of daily tasks became near impossibilities. happened when paint hit paper. His mind went After he was airlifted to the United States, Crocker spent kaleidoscopic. Flashes of colors and images burst like hours in surgery as doctors tried to repair the severe fireworks in his head. damage to his C6 and C7 vertebrae. His self-diagnosis on Time’s up, the instructor said. What? Crocker had lost the beach was essentially correct. He had broken his neck. track of time. The 45-minute class was over.

He spent weeks in the hospital and months in a New “So I’ll see you tomorrow?” he asked.

Jersey rehabilitation center. He pressed his doctors, who “Actually, we only do this once a week,” the advised that he almost certainly would never walk again. instructor said.

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He was deeply moved by the unwavering support of family and friends, like his Denison fraternity brothers, who spent hours at his bedside.

‘THESE DON’T SUCK’

Once home in Fairfield, Connecticut, Crocker painted every day, for hours on end. He tried different approaches: Jackson Pollock-style spatter paintings, color field, pouring.

Over cocktails one night, a friend looked around at the paintings filling Crocker’s house and said, “You know, these don’t suck.” His sister, an art history major, concurred.

Things started happening. Through some connections, a first gallery show was arranged. A young filmmaker made a short documentary. Crocker learned about a rare phenomenon called acquired savant syndrome, in which people who have suffered traumatic cervical or brain injuries suddenly develop — sometimes to the point of obsession — previously untapped abilities in art, math, or music.

Maybe, Crocker thought, that is what happened to me.

He was formally diagnosed with the syndrome in 2020, although he doesn’t expect his paintings to hang in The Met anytime soon. This is real life, not a Hollywood movie wrapped in a neat and tidy narrative.

But there is this.

Some friends mentioned that Crocker’s art might look good on clothing; people connected with the positivity inherent in the playful, technicolor designs. They told Crocker they could see the prints on, say, a pair of yoga pants. He sold some sample garments.

He’s calling his fledgling fashion line Whoopiecat, a Led Zeppelin lyrical in-joke. He is planning to launch the line by the end of 2023.

He is 60 now. He hopes this new business will take off, but for the moment, it’s enough that this mix of marketing and art, this melding of his old life and new, keeps boredom at bay and his mind active. Crocker remains relentless in defining what he can do, accepting the idea but never surrendering to the fear that the earth might move unexpectedly beneath him.

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(Cont. from pg. 59)

JANE DEMOS COOP ’73 races through her biography in a manner that suggests she’d rather be doing than talking about what she’s done.

Her delivery is rapid-fire, matter-of-fact, and self-deprecating. Take her summary of her academic career at Denison, for instance: “Tried to double major in biology and art. Bugs ate my research plants. Went with art.”

After Denison, Coop was uncertain about a career. She thought she might marry and have kids in a few years. “I didn’t want to ignore my kids, so medical school was out,” she said. Instead, she earned an MBA at Vanderbilt University, took IBM’s test, and did well enough that the company sent her to computer school for a year.

That wasn’t her bag, so she decided on medical school after all, at the University of Tennessee. She finished her pathology residency, got married, and ran a huge Veterans Affairs lab in Memphis.

“Two gas chromatography-mass spectrometers!” she said. “Fun!” Then came some major life changes.

“Got my boards in pathology, got a divorce, was diagnosed with macular degeneration, and was told I was going blind by 50,” she said.

“So I had to do a lot of living fast.”

Every vacation since, Coop has been part of a paleontology crew. Over 15 years, she’s had a hand in discoveries of whole or partial skeletons of Triceratops, Allosaurus, and Tyrannosaurus rex.

“I even got to help prep a T.rex,” she said. “Tedious, but fun.”

She has amassed an impressive collection of fossils that she plans to leave to a museum. She’s also taught reading to grammar school children and displayed her dinosaur fossils and minerals to school groups. And she does it all with clear vision — after “much medical intervention,” she said, her eyesight is just fine, thank you very much.

“Retirement is my favorite,” Coop said. “It’s like recess. I’m curious about too many things, so guess that’s why I stay so busy.”

+ WOMEN What if you could return to campus, not to relive the past but to dream of the future? To celebrate the current you and catalyze that next step? Ascending the ladder, starting a business, changing companies, returning to the workforce — it’s all made possible by learning from other Denisonians.

ReMix + Women is your chance to start this journey. Through breakout sessions, interactive workshops, networking opportunities, and keynote addresses, this two-day, on-campus summit connects women alums with students, all looking toward the future together. You will leave The Hill feeling Re-Connected, and Re-Fueled. alumni.denison.edu/remixwomen

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“I k new r ig ht f rom t he sta r t t hat he to support Black students in their call to increase their cohort at was the man I wanted to share my life Denison (there were only eight at the time), hire more Black faculty, with,” says JOANNE ADAMSON WOODYARD ’55. and establish a place where they could socialize comfortably. It was a “I was just glad somebody wanted me,” DAVID WOODYARD ’54 deadpans. tense time, especially for an administrator and untenured member of The Woodyards have been married for 68 years. Dave is a self- the faculty — Dave was told to leave the college by President Joel Smith. confessed social incompetent, while Joanne is “all bubbles.” Clearly, a Before that could happen, newly inaugurated Denison President sense of humor is required to sustain a relationship of such opposites. Bob Good invited Dave to stay and become chair of the religion A few tears can help things along, too. department. His first act was to hire Emeritus Professor Joan Novak, Joanne tells of a night Dave said he wanted to go out with Denison’s a “firecracker” who added feminist theology to the curriculum and homecoming queen. Joanne burst into sobs. “I must have cried for 15 helped to expand interest in the major. minutes,” she says.

Meanwhile, Dave was Dave, who was co-chair delving into the new fields of the homecoming of Black and liberation S U C C E S S 1 0 0 WAY S committee, thought he theologies. He became a w a s m a k i n g a s i mpl e close friend of James Cone, request. His response to t hen Black t heolog y ’s the deluge: “Never mind.” l e a d i n g s c h o l a r, a n d Their fate was sealed. frequently invited Cone to campus. When Cone DAVE received a n honor a r y Dave proposed to Joanne deg ree f rom Den i son , just outside Swasey Chapel, he called it “one of his and they married the week proudest moments,” and after she graduated. The noted that Denison happy couple moved to students had “given him New York Cit y, where the warmest ovation I had Dave was enrolled at Union ever received.” A number of Theolog ica l Sem i na r y.

Dave’s students, including Church had been a tangible Kelly Brown Douglas ’79 sou rce of st reng t h for and Gary Simpson ’84, his family; he was just 11 went on to study under years old when his father, Cone and become leaders Denison alum and trustee in their fields.

Wilfred C. Woodyard ’16, D ave h a s t au g ht a t died unexpectedly.

Denison for more than “Our minister stepped 60 years and still teaches into our family’s life,” he today. He has served in says. “He was a model of a number of leadership Wedding bells rang 68 years ago what a pastor could be.” roles, team-taught courses for Dave and Joanne Woodyard.

W hile Dave attended with economist Paul King Here’s what happened next. seminary classes, Joanne and anthropologist Kent

BY GINNY SHARKEY ’83 taught English, then Maynard (with whom he worked in a book store. also co-authored books), A f ter Dave ea r ned h is and ser ved as cha ir of Master of Divinity from Union, he served a church at the University the faculty twice. A sought-out professor whose classes are always of Connecticut. full, Dave continues to challenge his students to think outside Then Denison came calling. “I couldn’t believe we got to go back to conventional norms. our alma mater,” Joanne says. “It was just fabulous.”

He is religious about attending Denison men’s and women’s Back on The Hill, Dave taught classes and served as dean of the chapel, basketball games, and has off iciated more weddings of former where he spent up to 20 hours each week just talking with students. students — now friends — than he can count. The bulletin board in his President Blair Knapp urged Dave to get his doctorate, and with office is papered with photographs of those friends and their children. the support of a Danforth grant, eventually he earned a Doctor of Nearby is a thick book of letters from students, alumni, and faculty, Ministry from Vanderbilt University. Though Dave’s heart had been the result of a project by Andrew Pincus ’10 that honors Dave’s 50th set on leading a church, the good Lord apparently had other plans. teaching anniversary at Denison.

The Woodyards settled into Granville for the long haul.

When asked for the secret of his success, Dave responds simply: In 1968, Dave was one of about 30 professors who boycotted classes “I listen.”

A DENISON LOVE STORY

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JOANNE

As Dave pursued academia, Joanne got busy as well, starting with children. The couple adopted two girls, Sara and Kim. “I hadn’t told anyone I was adopting,” Joanne laughs. “When I brought out a baby one day, a house mother just about fell down.”

Being a mother was wonderful, of course, but she was itching to do more. “I thought, ‘What am I going to do with my life?’ I can’t chase children all day long.” She launched her quest to expand her boundaries.

Long before Martha Stewart introduced the world to ever y conceivable craft, Joanne was leading the way. Flower arranging, crewel needlework , gardening, herbal k nowledge, cook ing, Christmas wreath-making, paper crafts, basket-weaving, rug-making, stenciling, painting — she learned it all.

“Living in Granville has been fantastic,” Joanne says. “You find people who do things you don’t know about, and then you join them.”

Not content to simply learn something new, Joanne has become a teacher, too. She’s passed her knowledge on to legions of locals.

“Someone would say ‘I could never do that,’ and that became a challenge,” she says. “‘Never’ is a word that is not in my vocabulary. All they need is someone to show them. It became the purpose of my life.”

That mission aligns with her other big calling: helping folks feel like they belong. “People are lonely; they need someone to tell them they’re special, and I believe they are.”

As soon as Joanne learns about someone new in town, she invites them to one of her “newcomer coffees” and introduces them to a dozen of their new best friends. For 40 years, she often entertained twice a day and several times a week. Her legendary Christmas coffees featured dozens of cookies and sweets for 125 of her closest friends.

Do you have a question?

DENISONIANS HAVE ANSWERS!

How can I best position myself for a promotion?

How can I re-enter the workforce?

How did you choose between two different law schools?

With more than 30,000 alums, chances are there’s a Denisonian who can help.

Ask questions about new careers, continuing your education, expanding your network, new interests, or something else.

Patrick DeMichael ’13

I’m new to the city, and I’m looking for ways to meet people.

Can you help?

DAVE + JOANNE

When this formidable pair is actually in the same room together, the sparks fly. Their banter is fast and funny, and reveals a deep love.

An example: Dave, 91, has written 10 books, of which Joanne, 90, has read exactly … zero.

“Why should I bother?” she says.

While Joanne is deeply spiritual, books on theology don’t interest her.

His reply: “If you had just opened them, you would have seen the one I dedicated to you.”

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Can we meet for coffee so I can learn more about your career?

VISIT ASK.DENISON.EDU TO GET STARTED. DENISONMAGAZINE.COM

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Michael MacDonald, center, confers with Denison squash players.

BY ANDREW SHARP PHOTOS GEOFF BOLTE

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For some, “squash” indicates a fruit or vegetable — ­ not a vigorous athletic contest featuring racquets and a small rubber ball.

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Denison’s new squash coach, Michael MacDonald ’09, didn’t have much time to settle in last season. The former head coach at Connecticut College arrived from the East Coast just three hours before his first practice.

In the following months, he took a one-win women’s team to a 9-8 overall record — earning recognition as the women’s squash coach of the year in the Liberty League in the spring of 2023. (It was actually for coaching staff of the year, but MacDonald comprises the whole staff.)

“It was an honor to be recognized so early in my tenure,” MacDonald says. “The honor reflects the student athletes, strength and conditioning coaches, and athletic trainers who have also been committed to this growth process.”

The fledgling sport of squash might not have the same instant recognition as more familiar standbys like tennis and volleyball. For some, “squash” indicates a fruit or vegetable — not a vigorous athletic contest featuring racquets and a small rubber ball.

But as the squash program grows at Denison — the university fielded both men’s and women’s varsity teams in the 2021-22 school year — the game is also

growing nationwide. It’s not an official NCAA sport yet, but it’s overseen by the College Squash Association, which has 32 women’s teams as members. Many of the top programs are based in the Northeast.

The concept of the game of squash is familiar, even if people aren’t aware of the rules. At its most basic level, it’s a volleying contest like tennis, volleyball, or pingpong.

But in this case, players dart around a court in a small room, where the walls are fair game for ricochet shots.

Women’s junior captain Charlotte Sigg ’25, whose first year at Denison was also the varsity team’s first campaign, says about half the people she meets don’t know what squash is. She finds herself explaining it.

“I feel like once you try it, you’re not going to be able to go back to whatever other sport you were playing,” says co-captain Antoinette Ramsey ’25.

They say the sport requires fast reflexes, good handeye coordination, and confidence while playing in a tight space and maneuvering around the opponent.

MacDonald calls it a demanding, and very explosive, game.

“It’s really physical. You get a really nice workout,” Ramsey agrees.

The emergence of squash as a varsity sport

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SS QQ UUAA SSHHIINNGG TTHHEE

N N O O I I T T I I T T E E P P M M O O CC LED BY A DENISON ALUM, THE NEW WOMEN’S

TEAM IS GROWING ROOTS — AND THINGS ARE STARTING TO GET GOOD.

reflects a growing athletic program at Denison, where MacDonald played club squash as a student.

“The experience for the student athletes is a lot different than it was when I was a student here,” he said. “We’ve got the strength coaches, we’ve got the athletic trainers. It’s adding to the experience the students are having now.”

The embrace of varsity squash also puts Denison front and center in expanding the reach of squash in the Midwest. Sigg, who hails from Connecticut herself, notes that the Denison team is constantly traveling to states such as Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Virginia to play.

Former coach Pam Anckermann established a good foundation for the program, MacDonald says, and he has worked to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the players and help them get to the next level.

MacDonald is easygoing, Ramsey says, but tough when he needs to be, and has been able to push players to achieve more.

Part of the team’s improvement came from motivation, mental health, and focus, Sigg says.

MacDonald “really emphasized how we should put everything on the court, because if you’re stressed DENISON MAGAZINE

about something, or you have an essay due later that night, you can’t do anything about it when you’re playing.”

It’s a lesson the team took to heart, she says, and they’ve gelled as well. “Our team has just gotten so much closer. And we’re always cheering each other on.”

This year will mark a transition, MacDonald predicts, as quite a few seniors graduated and the coaching change disrupted the recruiting process.

The Covid pandemic didn’t help. The varsity team’s first official season was actually 2020-21, but they didn’t play any games.

MacDonald is lining up recruits and says the program is set to continue to improve. He’s glad to be building the team at his alma mater, where his wife also attended.

“I know there’s been a lot of families and alums throughout the years that have been pushing hard not only for the men’s club team to go varsity, but also to add a women’s team and to help that go varsity as well,” he said. “So it just feels really good to be here.”

DENISONMAGAZINE.COM

Antoinette Ramsey ’25, right, at the Wesleyan Round Robin in January 2023.

“I feel like once you try it, you’re not going to be able to go back to whatever other sport you were playing.”

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Ultimate, at all levels, is a sport of goofiness.

Teams often have silly names, uniforms, and rituals.

The

BY E M M E T A N D E R S ON ’25 P H OTO BY JA M E S S C H ULLER

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You don’t have to be good to join the Denison Frisbee Ultimate Club — but you have to be willing to have a good time.

Students throwing a Frisbee across a grassy lawn is a classic college cliche, one that plays out on The Hill any given warm Granville day. But three times a week on the intramural fields, the Denison Frisbee Ultimate Club takes this sunny day pastime to another level.

Ultimate Frisbee has been a mainstay at college campuses for over 50 years. The game was created in a high school parking lot in New Jersey in 1968, and its founders carried the sport to their respective colleges. Ultimate took off from there — over 800 colleges and universities now field teams, including Denison.

The Denison Frisbee Ultimate Club brings together players with different levels of experience, priding itself on a low barrier to entry. If you can learn how to throw a disc and are down to run more than you’d expect, the team welcomes you with open arms.

Men’s team co-captain Evan Goodgee ’26 started playing ultimate in middle school. Women’s team co-captain Ally Collins ’24 didn’t touch a disc until the spring of her sophomore year at Denison.

“We purposefully don’t require experience,” Goodgee said. “This could be the first sport you’ve ever played — it doesn’t matter. It just takes a little bit of time to get the basics down, but once it clicks, it’s about how hard you want to push yourself to keep getting better.”

Ultimate is a non-contact, seven-on-seven sport played on a rectangular field. The objective is to score points by catching the Frisbee in the opposing team’s end zone while adhering to a “no running with the disc” rule. Players must pass the disc among their teammates, and turnovers occur if the disc is dropped, intercepted, or goes out of bounds. The games are first to 15 points, and the sport is self-refereed.

Denison’s team competes against other schools in the Ohio Conference of USA Ultimate’s D-III division. They travel to a handful of tournaments throughout the state and spend the night, playing a few games on Saturday and the remainder on Sunday. Toward the end of the school year, they compete against the other teams in their division — Kenyon, Franciscan, Oberlin, Wooster, Xavier, and Cedarville — for the chance to play in the Ohio Valley regionals, and later the college national championship.

From 2008 until 2020, Denison had two ultimate teams — the Denison Frisbee Ultimate Club and the Denison Ladies Ultimate Club — but as numbers dwindled following the Covid pandemic, the two teams temporarily merged into one. This year, with new monikers, they’re back to two. The men are the Bunnies; the women, the Frisbee Frogs.

Ultimate, at all levels, is a sport of goofiness.

Teams often have silly names, uniforms, and rituals. Denison is no exception. The practice before Halloween, everyone shows up in costume to scrimmage.

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“We’re a goofy group and we like to have fun,” said Goodgee. “But it’s important to strike the right balance. There are moments where it’s great to be goofy, and there are moments when it’s time to be serious, and we just have to be on the same page about our common goals.”

Denison’s acceptance of all skill levels has led to its fair share of success stories. For DANNY MILLER ’13 , it started during August Orientation, when a guy who lived down the hall in Shorney invited him to throw discs. They went to practice together. Danny was hooked.

“I was garbage — I couldn’t throw, I couldn’t catch,” Miller said. “But everyone was super nice. I played a bunch of sports in high school and didn’t really have plans to play in college, but I just kept hanging out and fell in love with the game. I got a little better my sophomore year, and by junior year, I was like, ‘I’m kind of all right at this thing.’”

That random Aug-O conversation turned into a six-year semi-pro ultimate career, where Miller played for the Chicago Union of the American Ultimate Disc League.

TRICIA SMIT ’10 signed up for every sport she could at her first-year involvement fair, and the Ultimate Frisbee club happened to be the first to reach out to her. By her sophomore year, she and Kate McInerney ’08 launched the women’s team.

“The very first tournament we went to was an indoor tournament in Cleveland at Case Western,”

97 Smit said. “And we won the tournament. The very first tournament ever for the women’s team, and we went and we won it. I have some great wins in my life, but that first tournament, and having a primary role with that team, that’s up there.”

Smit and her co-captain and roommate, PAIGE KERCHER ’10 , still play ultimate, although now it’s for some of the top club teams in the world. Smit’s New York XIST and Kercher’s Seattle Mixtape are staples at USAU Club Nationals every fall. In 2022, Kercher got the upper hand, as Mixtape defeated XIST 15-13 in the semifinals on their way to a national championship.

Mixtape also went on to win the 2022 World Ultimate Club Championships in Cincinnati, earning Kercher the title of world champion back in the state where it all started for her.

“When I think back, I remember a lot of belly laughs, a lot of zaniness, and an overall feeling like I had found my people,” Kercher said. “And even as I left the Denison ultimate scene, that sense of community is something I’ve felt everywhere I’ve gone.”

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STATISTICS FROM THE CAREER CENTER REFLECT A STUDENT BODY HUNGRY FOR THE RESOURCES AND EXPERTISE KNOWLTON PROVIDES  The demand for coaching sessions has increased 104% since 2015.

Career coach Ashley Strausser addresses a group of students at a Journey Program event at the Mohican Lodge and Convention Center in Perrysville, Ohio.

Getting a career jumpstart

 Student applications for jobs and internships through Knowlton rose from 2,864 in 2016 to 15,426 in 2023.

DENISON’S KNOWLTON CENTER FOR CAREER EXPLORATION IS GAINING NATIONAL RECOGNITION FOR ITS INNOVATIVE AND PROACTIVE APPROACH.

 More than 90% of students are in one of Knowlton’s seven career communities.

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 The number of approved employers in Denison’s Handshake, an online career management system, has skyrocketed from 300 in 2016 to 17,960 in 2023.

BY TOM REED PHOTOS BY PATRICK DEMICHAEL ’13

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stubborn late-morning fog enveloped the rustic “and she doesn’t know what she wants to wear to school central Ohio lodge, limiting visibility of scenic the next day. Almost nobody at that age knows what Pleasant Hill Lake – an apropos setting for 26 they want to do yet.”

Denison students without a clear view of their future.

As steady rain fell outside the large picture window, A LEADING CAREER CENTER words like anxious, overwhelmed, and confused were The conversation was part of a two-day career explomentioned in breakout sessions. Coaches from the ration conference called the Journey Program — one of Knowlton Center for Career Exploration encouraged many initiatives offered by the Knowlton Center, which the students, mostly sophomores, to express their feel- is gaining national recognition for its work in career ings about their life pursuits. preparation.

Career coach Ashley Strausser assured those who U.S. News & World Report ranked Denison the made the 45-mile trip to Mohican Lodge and Conven- nation’s sixth-most innovative school in 2023, while tion Center they are not alone. Many underclassmen the Princeton Review ranked it third for career services deal with the same gnaws of uncertainty. among all American colleges and universities.

“I have a cousin back home in India who’s in eighth “One thing I will say about the Knowlton Center is if you grade, and she says all her friends know what they want take the initial step, their people will open the door and to do with their lives,” Disha Sharma ’26 told the group. help you any way they can,” said FATIMA HAROON ’21, a data Strausser smiled as she sat among eight students on analytics consultant for the global consulting firm Slalom. leather couches inside the lodge’s lobby.

The Journey Program, offered at no cost several times “I have a daughter in eighth grade,” the coach said, each year, features four workshops designed to get stu-

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dents thinking about their futures and breaking down sonally and professionally. steps toward desirable career paths.

Teaching students adaptability is crucial, considering Nobody is expected to emerge from the weekend most Americans hold several jobs over their lifetimes with a concrete plan. This is more about getting stu- and sometimes change careers. dents to feel excited and optimistic about their voyage.

“Your first job won’t be your only job,” Strausser said, The program exemplifies the mission of the Austin E. “and it probably will not be your dream job.”

Knowlton Foundation, which aims to advance American higher education through direct grants and contri- A RECRUITING TOOL butions to colleges and universities. The foundation has Melanie Murphy, director of career communities and awarded Denison $24 million since 2016, transforming coaching, said she’s seen others across campus touting the career center’s focus and ability to serve students. the values of the Knowlton Center.

Ryan Brechbill, director of employer and alumni relaMen’s lacrosse coach Eric Koch makes his first-year tions, recalls a time when Denison’s career center players visit the career center and his sophomores housed just three full-time staff members and two part- drop by Denison’s Red Frame Lab. He promotes these time administrative assistants. They met almost exclu- resources in recruiting pitches because he believes they sively with seniors who needed to make appointments help set Denison apart. weeks in advance.

“My goal is to get my athletes to understand that doing The Knowlton Center now boasts a staff of 24 full- all of this will help them find their professional path,” time employees who meet with students soon after they said Koch, who also connects players with Big Red arrive on campus. lacrosse alums. “I’m advising them that waiting until Haroon, a native of Pakistan, visited the center on her they stumble upon a potential career field before second day of classes. She spoke with career coach making use of the Knowlton Center is an outdated and Michele Doran, who had her create a resume and join backward approach to career exploration.” a trip to northeast Ohio, where Haroon and other stuThe Knowlton Foundation awarded Denison an $11 dents met with alums in positions of prominence at the million grant in 2023 because it witnessed the payoff Cleveland Clinic and JPMorgan Chase & Co. students are gaining from their involvement in the career center.

TAKING A PROACTIVE APPROACH “Getting highly pragmatic practical job skills inteBeyond personalized career coaching, the center grated with the liberal arts isn’t an afterthought at hosts more than 300 on-campus events each year. It also Denison,” said ERIC LINDBERG ’93 , CIO and trustee at provides stipends to help fund internships, and funnels the Knowlton Foundation. “We expect a return on our students into seven career communities that provide investment. We want to put our money to work with industry-specific resources. schools that demonstrate that they are doing something “When I was here before, we reacted to everything,” wise and making the world better with our funding. says Brechbill, who worked at the university from 2002“This is one of the best examples we have as philan2011 before returning in 2021. “Now we are proactive. thropists, and we’ve doubled and tripled down behind We can say to a first-year student or a sophomore, ‘We Denison because we’ve progressively seen success over have something for you — come see us.’” the last 10 years.”

Joel Pettit ’25 waited until his junior year to take advantage of Knowlton’s resources, but now keeps regular appointments with one of the center’s 16 career coaches. He participated in the Journey Program and is working toward a potential career involving sports, data, and mathematics.

Since his first visit, Pettit said he feels more optimistic about finding a job in his field of interest.

Strausser can relate to many students who aren’t sure what’s next.

“I was a first-generation college student in my family who graduated not knowing what I wanted to do,” she said. “That’s a tough pill to swallow.”

Stausser didn’t have the luxury of attending a university that emphasized career preparation for underclassmen. She believes Knowlton equips students with a “foundational understanding” of who they are, the fields they might excel in, and what’s important to them perDENISON MAGAZINE

DENISONMAGAZINE.COM

The Knowlton Center’s seven broad career communities offer personalized information based on student interests. Students also receive industry-specific news and internship and job postings related to the community of choice.

Many students start in the Exploration community and can later choose a more specific interest.

CAREER COMMUNITIES  Exploration  Financial services, consulting, and business  Health care, clinical research, and wellness  Marketing, sales, and communication  Social impact, education, and government  Technology, data, and science  Visual, written, and performing arts

99 G Sai Sri Prabhat ‘26 shares his thoughts during the Journey Program in the fall of 2023.

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OPEN

5 questions with Music’s Sun Min Kim HIS PATH TO PIANO, THE LATE MENTOR WHO STILL WATCHES OVER HIM, AND THE FREEDOM HE FINDS IN TEACHING AND STUDYING MUSIC AT A LIBERAL ARTS COLLEGE

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he piano looms large in the professional and personal life of assistant professor Sun Min Kim, a fact evidenced by a visit to his office, where two grand pianos take up half the available space.

Kim began playing the piano as a boy in South Korea at the encouragement of his mother, a Catholic who liked the idea of a son who played the church organ. But with Kim too small to work the organ pedals, the instructor suggested that he start on piano instead.

“The rest is history,” Kim says. “I stuck with it, and this has been my life, my passion, and my love.”

Those early lessons marked his first steps along a path that led him to study at one of the most elite music conservatories in the United States, the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York; to perform at prestigious concert venues including the storied Carnegie Hall; and to teach at Denison in 2018.

19th century composer from Hungary who really elevated the piano as a solo instrument with his innovative use of piano technique. Florence Price was a composer in the turn of the 20th century, and she was the first Black American composer whose work was premiered by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. The way she wrote music for piano was innovative and showcased her mastery of the instrument. She really understood what the instrument was capable of. Price synthesized a lot of American folk songs and Black spirituals with the western art music idioms. Her music is quintessentially American.

You have a portrait prominently displayed in your office. Who is it?

She is my teacher from Eastman. Her name is Nelita True. She was a giant, and she’s somebody I try to emulate every day when I come here to teach.

She was such a dedicated teacher and pianist. She taught me not only how to play piano, but every

“Music has taken me many places,” Kim says. “It has been the gateway to the world for me.”

BY THEODORE DECKER PHOTOS BY PATRICK DEMICHAEL ’13

Do you have a favorite composer or piece of music?

It’s an ever-evolving, ever-changing thing. If the music really talks to my heart, I immediately fall in love with the composer. Right now, I probably enjoy practicing the most when I perform music

by Franz Liszt and Florence Price. Liszt was a

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MUSIC ASSISTANT PROFESSOR

Sun Min Kim Kim, a faculty member at Denison since 2018, made his piano début with the Ulsan Symphony Orchestra at age 13,

aspect of life, like professionalism, the importance of going above and beyond, and always striving for perfection, even though that’s not a goal that can be achieved by anybody. (laughs) It can be a little scary when I mess up or am not playing well; I feel like she’s watching and is going to say something.

At the same time, because she was such a refined pedagogue, I often imagine what she would have done or said when I search for ways to improve my students’ playing. As she was a person who fueled my eternal love for music, looking at her portrait is an everyday reminder of why I love what I do.

What do you like about teaching music at Denison, and how does the study of music at a liberal arts college differ from a conservatory like the one you attended?

If I had taught at a conservatory, I would get a very specific kind of piano student. In the conservatory setting, technical mastery is the No. 1 priority.

In pursuit of technical perfection, or as close to it as possible, their musical interpretation could sometimes be sterile, not very imaginative.

At Denison, the piano students I work with are very smart, and every one of them is creative in DENISON MAGAZINE

their unique way because their interests are so diverse. They bring fresh ideas when they play and interpret music. Since they are not confined by this idea of having to play clean, they tend to take more risks, which spurs creativity.

performing Grieg’s Piano Concerto.

It often inspires me when they bring to a piece of music their ideas or interpretations that I have never thought of, and it is truly exciting.

Earlier this year, you became a dad. How is it going?

Good. Things are always changing. Before it was just food and a clean diaper, and he was very happy.

But now he has to feel entertained, either held or played with or something like that, and then whenever he doesn’t like what I’m doing at the moment, he cries. But he’s also beginning to smile now, which makes me love him even more.

Is it safe to assume he’s been introduced to the piano?

Yes. I’ll practice with him quite a bit. My mom was visiting recently, and she noticed that the baby gets calmer when I practice. I guess he must have heard me practicing since he was in my wife’s womb. I think he perceives it as a natural thing in his life.

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A life-altering trauma triggered Warren Hauk’s extreme light sensitivity. But it didn’t keep him from sharing the beauty of the natural world.

BY TOM REED | PHOTOS BY PATRICK DEMICHAEL ’13

n a morning stroll across campus, biology professor Warren Hauk pauses in front of Slayter Hall to smell the Itea virginica.

Anyone can sniff roses, but Hauk, a man devoted to the study of plants, wants all of us to broaden our horticultural horizons.

“Don’t ask me the common name of Itea virginica,” he says. “My brain, for whatever reason, can hold either the Latin name or the common name, but not both.”

The bespectacled educator is wearing a black cap, a gray Denison Biology hoodie and his trademark fanny pack. His most intriguing accessories, however, are the three pairs of shaded glasses dangling from his neck.

As the sky brightens, Hauk ref lexively reaches for h is prescr ipt ion su nglasses w it h t he f l ip - dow n polarized clip. Days like these, where the sun plays peekaboo among the clouds, are troublesome for people with his condition.

Hauk searches his cellphone for the common name of the f lowering shrub — it’s Virginia sweetspire! — and keeps walking toward a place of great inspiration.

Halfway down Presidents’ Drive, he stops along the sidewalk and calls attention to an in-ground limestone tablet bearing an inscription from French novelist Marcel Proust.

The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.

Hauk recites the quote to students in his Plant Systematics course. The message: Train your powers of obser vation to appreciate and identif y all the beauties of nature.

Since a life-altering trauma in 2018, the passage has taken on deeper meaning. That’s the year Hauk became hypersensitive to light, triggering debilitating headaches.

A professor who loves to work outdoors suddenly could do so only during certain hours of the day. His world was plunged into darkness, every aspect of life dependent on his ability to control the environment of light.

It ’s on ly because of h is u nwaver i ng love for teaching, the understanding of his students, and the support of Denison faculty that he’s celebrating his 25th year on campus.

“So many doors have closed because of this,” Hauk says. “But others have opened, allowing me to see the world with new eyes.”

‘BEGIN BUILDING A NEW SET OF DREAMS’

The sticky note outside his sixth-f loor Talbot Hall lab reads: Please knock on the door! I keep my lights turned off almost all the time — Dr. Hauk.

The shades are drawn. The frame of the desktop computer is blanketed to cover f lickering light. The computer screen is tinted. It takes a visitor a few moments to locate the silhouette of Hauk hunched over a keyboard, researching the DNA of ferns.

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BY TOM REED | PHOTOS BY JAMES SCHULLER

“Being a biologist who’s not able to work outdoors on sunny days is a special kind of torture,” Hauk says.

Hauk, knew he wanted to pursue biology in grade school, immersing himself in the majesty of his family’s gardens and farms. He was living his dream until 2011, when a pair of car accidents five months apart left him with post-concussion syndrome.

Over the next seven years, he endured occasional bouts of mild light sensitivity, but none of it prepared him for what happened next. A routine eye exam in which his pupils were dilated sparked “an explosion” later diagnosed as photophobia.

“It became almost a full-on intolerance to most light,” he recalls. “It was like my brain was unable to regulate its reaction to light, and it caused inflammation leading to headaches.”

Visits to doctors across the medical spectrum produced few answers and little hope of regaining normal vision.

Hauk fought through the pain to keep teaching in the spring of 2018. He wore sunglasses in the classroom, and his students were kind enough to not make an issue of a professor who clearly was struggling with his environment.

He spent his time away from Denison confined to DENISON MAGAZINE

dark rooms. His partner, began the task of driving him to campus, which continues to this day. Hauk required a mask and a wheelchair to negotiate airports, the f luorescent lights wreaking havoc on his nervous system.

“There’s all this bargaining you go through because you don’t want to lose hope of getting back what you’ve lost,” he says. “Mercifully, there’s a gradual awareness that, ‘It’s never going to be the same again.’ You can be bitter and angry at the injustice, or you can just face reality and begin building a new set of dreams.”

BUILDING CRITICAL-THINKING SKILLS

Hauk tells students there are 280,000 species of flowering plants. Charlie Smith ’23 once embodied a different species in the classroom — a wallflower.

That all changed when Smith took his first of three courses with Hauk.

“I didn’t talk much in other classes,” Smith says. “But in Dr. Hauk’s classes, I talked all the time. I love his teaching style; it’s very engaging. I had to resist the temptation to put my hand up every time.”

Hauk doesn’t like to lecture. He’s not one to demand his students simply memorize all the plants and their DENISONMAGAZINE.COM

The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.

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life cycles. The professor promotes discussion and builds the fundamental skills of thinking critically.

He lives by the words of forestry engineer Baba Dioum: We conserve only what we love; we love only what we understand; and we understand only what we are taught.

“I enjoy Dr. Hauk as a professor,” says Courtney Fouke ’23. “I need a positive environment to learn, and that’s what he provides.”

At the beginning of each semester, Hauk shares his story with students. He explains what happened to him five years ago, and why he won’t be able to accompany them into the greenhouse and the community garden on sunny days.

His knowledge of his subjects and his ability to teach

them are such that his students don’t mind they are learning in one of the most dimly lit labs on campus.

SWEET DREAMS

Hauk lauds the kindness and humanity of Denison facult y and administrators. W ithout their understanding, he might have retired several years ago.

His willingness to persevere also was aided by a conversation with a campus electrician. After learning of Hauk’s challenges, the staff member volunteered to replace the headache-inducing fluorescent bulbs in his lab with LED lighting. He then wired each light fixture to ensure only the middle bulbs illuminated when switched on. The light fixtures under which he teaches remain off, and the window shades stay drawn.

It was a game changer for a professor who wears tinted non-corrective contact lenses and uses steroids to treat inflammation caused by unexpected invasions of light.

“When we have staff meetings, someone will always get up and make sure the shades are down when Warren enters a room,” says Ayana Hinton, associate provost for diversity, equity, and inclusion. “He can’t participate in as many workshops and committee meetings as he once did, but it’s inspiring to still see him doing what he loves. He never gets down or has a pity party.”

Hauk lives a fulf illing life. He’s taken up yoga, introduced a Science of Gardening class for nonbiology majors, and dedicated more time to scholarly research.

His happiest hours are spent in his backyard tending to his gardens early in the morning and at dusk and playing with his three dogs. It reminds him of his idyllic childhood growing up in Missouri.

As he harvests garlic plants from a garden, Hauk is asked if he ever wakes from a dream in which he still walks through life bathed in sunshine.

“Nah, I dream of still having hair,” Hauk says, removing his cap to reveal a balding head. “I was never the guy who likes spending time at the beach, anyway.”

TOP: Hauk holds a pair of tinted glasses he wears to combat headache-induing bright lights and sunshine. His first line of defense is darkly shaded non-corrective contact lenses.

BOTTOM: Hauk touches a limestone tablet with an inspirational inscription from French novelist Marcel Proust.

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‘Special place in world history’ WITH A BIG ASSIST FROM DENISON SCHOLARS, THE HOPEWELL CEREMONIAL EARTHWORKS BECOMES THE FIRST OHIO SITE TO EARN UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE STATUS. Visiting assistant professor Brad Lepper has a cata- in numerous agencies and at all levels of government. log of stories about the decades-long quest to get the Political, bureaucratic, and legal hurdles have been Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks inscribed on the many, including a spat with Moundbuilders Country UNESCO World Heritage List.

Club, which leased its property in 1910 and developed But one story lives long in his memory — and demon- a golf course on the site of the Octagon. strates the challenge Lepper and his fellow Earthworks Gill recalls a conversation with an official from the advocates faced.

U.S. Department of the Interior as the group prepared Before convincing the World Heritage Committee of its initial World Heritage application in 2006. the cultural significance of eight Ohio earthen enclo“She told us it will take at least 15 years and asked, sures built by Indigenous people around 2,000 years ‘Do you think you can stay the course?’” he said. ago, they needed to educate local residents on the architectural wonders staring them in the face.

TIRELESS ADVOCATES Lepper, who teaches anthropology at Denison, was Gill knows of at least working at the Newark Earthworks Visitors Center four long time Earthin the ’90s when his wife stopped at a car dealership works supporters who across the street from a section of the Great Circle died before seeing their Earthworks. She explained to the salesman that her dream of World Herihusband worked at “the mounds,” a revelation that was tage status realized. It’s met with a blank stare. a process so lengthy, “His office window was facing the Great Circle,” said Gill observed, that it Lepper, who’s also the senior archeologist for the Ohio cannot be dependent History Connection’s World Heritage Program. “But on one per son or a he didn’t see an ancient monument created by people. single institution.

He saw a grassy slope with trees on it. We knew we had Lepper said it was our work cut out for us.” vital to gain the support and participation JOINING THE RANKS OF STONEHENGE of descendants of the Denison scholars have brought attention to the I n d i g e n o u s p e o p l e mounds since 1836, when the school was known as the who created the Ohio Granville Literary and Theological Institution. Lepper e a r t h w o r k s . C h i e f calls the research done at the Octagon — its findings Glenna Wallace, of the recorded by the school’s Calliopean Society and pre- Eastern Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma, joined the coaserved in the University Archives — “the birth certifi- lition around 2006 and has been a tireless advocate for cate of scientific archeology in Ohio.” inscription.

“At that time, most archeologists were just digging up “I felt it was a fulfillment of an obligation to the cool stuff to put into cabinets of curiosity or museums,” ancient Indigenous people,” Lepper said, “to see their Lepper said. “This was pioneering research that tested amazing achievements inscribed along with these a hypothesis. I asked the library to scan the original other wonders of the world.” handwritten documents so that we could showcase The Earthworks sites have seen an uptick in visitors Denison’s role in all of this.” since the World Heritage announcement, a gratifying Lepper helped found the “Friends of the Mounds” trend for those who have spent nearly three decades in group, the first of many coalitions to be formed in pur- search of the UNESCO designation. suit of World Heritage recognition. Other members “With the world coming to these sites,” Lepper said, included Michael Mickelson, emeritus professor of “maybe we can get people to appreciate what they have physics and astronomy; Dick Shiels, a Granville resi- in their own backyard.” dent and Ohio State University-Newark professor; and Jeff Gill, a Newark Earthworks Center volunteer.

Over the years, they created a vast network of allies DENISON MAGAZINE

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BY TOM REED

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ClassNotes 1950s

1950 A note and photo from Jane, daughter to Sue Ray Marquardt of Salt Lake City: “My granddaughter, Mom’s great-granddaughter, his is an incoming freshman at Denison. We took this photo at Dakota’s high school graduation party last week. Dakota lives here in Salt Lake City — she is very excited about moving to Granville later this summer to begin her studies at Denison.”

camper to central Alaska from home on the family farm in Kinderhook. “Goals were to visit Hay River on the shore of Great Slave Lake near the headwaters of the Mackenzie River, drive a portion of the Dempster Highway to see Tombstone Mountain again, spend a few days in the remote community of Eagle, Alaska, and visit the Kennicot mines and ore processing facility in western Alaska.” At the time of writing, Tuttle was fishing in central Montana while Nora was organizing after-hunt teas as honorar y secretar y of the Old Chatham Hunt Foote Beagles.

1965 Ellen Bartels, Mary Blakely, Kathleen Gemmell, and Margaret Weisenbach traveled to Italy to visit Casa Gregorio, Castro dei Volsci, in June of 2023.

1955 Jerry Gilbert, of Adamstown, Maryland, is a retired senior partner in the international law firm of Hogan and Hartson (now Hogan Lovells). Gilbert is also a retired two-star rear admiral in the U.S. Navy Reserve JAG Corps. Denison runs in the Gilbert family blood — he was married to Juliana Hauser ’57 until she passed away in 2018, and the couple had two children, Joy Chase Gilbert Sappington ’89 and Bruce Gilbert ’93, who married Dr. Stacia McMahon Gilbert ’93. That’s not all: His sister-inlaw Penny Hauser Cram ’68, and her husband, Bestor Cram ’67, also matriculated on The Hill.

1959 In March 2023, Denny Robertson moved from Rio Verde, Arizona, to Oak Bridge at Vicar’s Landing, a continuing care and retirement development in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida.

Jack Thompson, of Hendersonville, Tennessee, retired from orthopedic surgery in 2019 at 82. As he says: “A good, long run!!”

1960s

1963 John Parrish Jr., of Statesboro, Georgia, had his book, Birds of Georgia, republished by Lone Pine Publishing. He continues his avid bird research endeavors as an emeritus professor of biology from Georgia Southern University.

TELL US WHAT YOU’VE BEEN UP TO! EMAIL

classnotes@denison.edu

On Apr il 18, 2 023, Debby Draper Burgess, of Leavenworth, Kansas, was presented the President’s Volunteer Service Award with a congratulatory note from President Biden for her volunteer service at Fort Leavenworth. Her husband, Peter, a 1961 graduate of West Point and recipient of five bronze stars in Vietnam, died of cancer as a result of Agent Orange.

1967 Interrupt the Sky, the second book of poetry from John Hazard, of Birmingham, Michigan, was published by Texas A&M University Press in May 2023.

John’s first book, Naming a Stranger, came out in 2015 from Aldrich Press/Kelsay Books.

1969 Charlie Dee, of Milwaukee, reports that the Big Red dominated the results in the 25 kilometer Great Bear Chase Half Marathon Nordic ski race last

Rick Taylor, of Shepherdstown, West Virginia, says if you’ve appreciated his poetry, you’ll love his novel, Curse of the Klondike. “If you enjoyed the reading experience, I thank you again,” he writes. “If you were inspired enough to send a positive response to Amazon, my cup runneth over.”

Jim Tuttle, of Kinderhook, New York, reports that he and Nora Veress Tuttle ’63 spent the month of June driving their small off-road pickup with a pop-up

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March. Dee ‘69 f inished f irst, and Steve Biggs ‘69 f inished second in the 75+ division. Both are retired from paid gigs but are active with nonprofit organizations — Biggs in Petoskey, Michigan, and Dee in Milwaukee.

George III choked on an oyster in 1767. Things changed.

“Alas,” he writes, “my fictionalized version of Denison does not make an appearance until the last volume of the trilogy, The Scum Also Rises, forthcoming.”

1970s

1970 Chris Peifer reports that he and wife, Susan, are still loving Tampa, dodging hurricanes, playing golf and pickleball, and traveling frequently. “I’ve been keeping up with a few Sigma Chi guys over football and hockey seasons,” he writes. Peifer says he’s visited with Dan ’70 and Judy Roehm Pace ’70, Dave ’70 and Barb Crooks, and shared sports or hurricane stories with Craig Ritter ’70 and Ron Mercer ’70. He also writes of golfing with Paul Hylbert Jr. ’66 on Longboat Key, dining with Hylbert and his wife, Katharine, and playing “challenging card games into the wee hours.”

1971 Heather Johnston Brebaugh splits her time between Prescott, Arizona, and Oceanside, California, researching the scientific benefits of kindness habits and publishing her stories and findings in a free weekly newsletter called Kindness Magnet. She’s currently reaching 57 countries; her goal is to spread kindness in all 195. Check it out at KindnessMagnet.substack.com.

1972 Molly Bomberger Clark, of Munster, Indiana, recently published My French Adventure, an e-book about her adventures abroad. Clark was a French major and spent her junior year at the Institute for American Universities in Aix-en-Provence, France. Still an avid lover of French language and culture, she teaches conversational French classes to adults. Learn more at moliteachesfunfrench.com.

1973 Tap and Rap, Move and Groove, a new picture book from Connie Bergstein Dow, of Cincinnati, was published

by Free Spirit Publishing and released in October 2023.

“For all children who love to dance!” she says.

1974 Debbie Hatch is retiring after 25 years as the chief art curator for the Ann and Gordon Getty private art collection in San Francisco. Before that, she worked for Sotheby’s for 17 years in New York and San Francisco.

In 2024, she will move back to the Midwest, and while she will miss San Francisco after 30 years, she’s looking for ward to relocating to Mariemont, Ohio, near Cincinnati.

1975 Blaine McCants, of Vienna, Virginia, writes that he finally had enough time during retirement to write and self-publish his first novel, The Hands that Rock the Triggers, volume one in an alternate earths adventure/ military/mystery science fiction trilogy. On this earth, DENISON MAGAZINE

Alas, my fictionalized version of Denison does not make an appearance until the last volume of the trilogy...

& Class Notes 1 950 –1 977

— BLAIN MCANTS ‘75

1976 Fred Stuart, of Johns Island, South Carolina, is the wine lead at FortyEight Wine Bar & Kitchen, providing wine education to clients and serving as assistant wine manager. He’s also been spirits store manager at Island Sport LLC, managing a staff of four at the top spirits store in South Carolina by square footage revenue. He’s sitting for the Wine & Spirit Education Trust certification advanced level and reports that his second career path has been very fulfilling.

1977 Matt Smith, of Mt. Lebanon, Pennsylvania, retired in May 2023 after a career of more than 40 years in journalism. He began at The (Lorain, Ohio) Journal, worked at The Associated Press and The Pittsburgh Press, and spent 26 years at the Pittsburgh PostGazette, where he was a reporter and editor. He wrote extensively about the 1994 crash of USAir Flight 427, in which 132 people died. He also was part of the staff that won a Pulitzer Prize in 2019 for coverage of the shooting at Tree of Life synagogue, in which 11 people were killed and another six wounded. He also proposed a series on grief that won several awards, including first place for public service from The Associated Press. He and his wife, Clare Ansberry, a columnist for The Wall Street Journal, are co-founders of The Jessie Games, an annual event that has raised more than $300,000 for Catholic Charities of Pittsburgh. He enjoys running, craft beer, Irish whiskey, and the Grateful Dead. He also enjoys time at the family’s cottage in Lakeside, Ohio, where one of his neighbors is Dale Knobel, who didn’t graduate from Denison but claims to have some connection with the school.

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& Class Notes

1979 Marc Litt, of Jacksonville Beach, Florida, shares that his son Alex and a friend walked 100 holes of golf in the Texas summer heat and humidity to raise money and awareness about A LS, which Litt, a longtime Baptist Health cardiologist, is battling.

Bob Price, of Strongsville, Ohio, writes that on a recent trip with his family in Alaska, he discovered that one of their fishing guides was Ashley Christopherson ’09. “Ashley asked us where we were from, and I said Cleveland,” he wrote. “Then Ashley said that she went to a small college in Ohio — Denison. Yes, it’s a small world, and we had a great time reminiscing about our Denison days. My family of five also caught 20 salmon!

We shipped the fish home and are looking forward to some grilled salmon this summer.”

1986 Katie Bowman Coleman has been an active member of the automotive business community for 30 years. Under her leadership, Bowman Chevrolet in Clarkston, Michigan, has grown to 100+ employees, its sales have soared, and the dealership’s footprint has more than doubled. Bowman Chevrolet is now among the top 20 Chevy dealers in the country and has been named a Chevrolet Dealer of the Year for six consecutive years. In 2019, Katie was invited to

join the Chevrolet National Dealer Council as one of only two women representing more than 3,000 U.S. Chevrolet dealers. Bowman Chevrolet actively supports dozens of local organizations, nonprofits, and community events, and in 2019 launched an annual scholarship program for local high school seniors. Coleman lives with her husband in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, and enjoys spending time with her three adult children.

1980s

1980 David Trimble, of Oxford, Pennsylvania, writes that he’s “loving life in semi-rural PA, where gridlock normally involves Amish buggies.”

1984 Nancy Nicoll Rustia, of Concord, North Carolina, is vice president for indirect CoE at Retail Business Services, a company of Ahold Delhaize US. 1985 Robert Hayashi, of Amherst, Massachusetts, is a professor of American studies at Amherst College.

His new book, Fields of Play: Sport, Race, and Memory in the Steel City, was released by the University of Pittsburgh Press in September 2023.

Jim Mahaney, of Camillus, New York, opened a financial planning firm and self-published a book, How to Craft a Resilient Retirement Income Plan.

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Brian Gearinger, of Santa Rosa, California, maintains a solo law practice and was part of a three-attorney team who obtained an $8.25 million jury verdict in federal court for civil rights violations.

1987 Josh Rodefer, of Winston-Salem, North Carolina, was promoted to associate professor of psychology and neuroscience at Mercer University.

Chris Wailes, of Houston, is director of public relations and global media at Schlumberger.

1990s

1992 Todd Gutnick, of South Orange, New Jersey, writes that his first work of children’s fiction — Golem Goes to Camp, written during the pandemic as a side project — was published by Apples & Honey Press/ Behrman House. Professionally, he’s senior director of communications at the Anti-Defamation League. At Denison, he was best known as a station manager for WDUB-FM.

#DENISONPROUD ISSUE 1 2024

Eric Michael and Julie Schildt Michael ’93 traveled to Maine in September and met up with Alex Lippincott ’92.

1993 Debbie W hite, of New York, is partner at Loeb & Loeb, LLP.

division for the Greene County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. Ellis received her juris doctorate from the University of Dayton School of Law in 2001.

Eric Michael and Alex Lippincott

1995 Aletta Merz, of Smyrna, Georgia, has launched College Rangef inder, an independent educational consultancy designed to help students and their families navigate the complex and ever-changing college search and application process. “My goal,” she writes, “is for students to walk away with critical self-assessment, planning, and decision-making skills they can leverage at their best-fit college and beyond.”

My goal is for students to walk away with critical selfassessment, planning, and decision-making skills they can leverage at their best-fit college and beyond.

— ALETTA MERZ ’95

1996 Eleanor Crow, of Wilmington, North Carolina, is a real estate broker and agent with Intracoastal Realty in Wilmington and surrounding areas. She recently received the National Association of Realtors’ GREEN designation, which helps her educate clients about the resource efficiency and performance of the homes they live in, sell, and buy.

Oyauma Garrison, of Columbus, Ohio, is celebrating his one-year anniversary as President/CEO of Maryhaven, central Ohio’s 11th largest nonprofit organization.

1997 Elizabeth Ellis Barrentine, of Dayton, Ohio, was appointed to the Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas, General Division by Gov. Mike DeWine. She previously served as an assistant prosecuting attorney for the Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office, the civil division chief for the Greene County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, and the chief appellate counsel and chief of the juvenile DENISON MAGAZINE

1998 Cou r tenay W hite Mc A lea, of Garden City, New York, is director of digital product strategy for social media at Vericast.

1999 Sara Compher-Rice, of Knoxville, Tennessee, was selected as a regent of the board of directors for the National College for DUI Defense.

& Class Notes 1 979 -2004

2000s

2000 M i nd y Z at t a L ac o c k , o f Wa s h i n g to n , Pen ns ylva n ia , wa s recog n iz ed at Way ne sbu rg University’s 2023 commencement.

2002 Makiva Harper McIntosh, of Columbus, Ohio, joined the YWCA Columbus executive leadership as chief advancement and engagement officer. McIntosh has made a career in fundraising strategy, previously working as associate director of development and director of annual giving at The Wellington School, Central Ohio’s 13th largest private school. Before that, she spent eight years in similar roles at Denison, where she also earned her bachelor’s degree in sociology.

John Wendle and his wife summited the 16,762-foot Margherita Peak in Uganda’s Rwenzori Mountains for their honeymoon. The equatorial glaciers there are dying because of climate change, a story he reports for Yale Environment 360.

2003 Ryan Mills, of Granville, Ohio, was presented the Granville Rotary Club’s prestigious Vocational Service Award on June 5, 2023, the 28th member of the Granville community to receive the honor since its inception in 1993. The award recognizes volunteerism related to one’s occupation. Mills is currently president of the Granville Investment Group. Over the past 10 years, he has served as a volunteer in an array of organizations, among them the Licking County Foundation, Hospice of Central Ohio, the Rotary Club of Granville, United Way, Habitat for Humanity, and his church. He has also been a coach for the Granville Recreation District in soccer and basketball.

2004 In late 2022, Corey Babb, of Tulsa, Oklahoma, opened the Haven Center for Sexual Medicine and Vulvovaginal Disorders, the only clinic of its kind in the Midwest. The center specializes in complex gynecologic disorders and routinely has patients travel from across the country, as well as internationally.

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& Class Notes

Shelley Jones-Jackson, of Magnolia, Delaware, is a high school English teacher at Calvary Christian Academy in Dover and an adjunct psychology professor for Cairn University in Langhorne, Pennsylvania. She’s working on her second master’s in English. She and her husband, Christopher, just celebrated 15 years of marriage and hope to visit Denison soon with their twins as they embark on their college search.

2010s

Shawn Princell, of Oxford, Ohio, founded RIBBIT in 2020, raised series A funding in 2021, and acquired (and rebranded to) ValidiFI in 2023.

Cara Downs Higgins welcomed a daughter, Alice Catherine Higgins, in August 2022.

2005 Jennifer Hart joined Virginia Tech as the new chair of the Department of History. Hart is a historian of technology, infrastructure, mobility, and urban space in Africa, with a focus on 20th century Ghana. Her interest in African history sprang from the friendships she developed during her time in a choir with individuals from Zimbabwe. Her writing has appeared in numerous news and academic outlets, including The Washington Post, The Conversation, Africa is a Country, Nursing Clio, and Clio and the Contemporary.

Sheronda Palmore, of Columbus, Ohio, completed her doctorate of social work from the Suzanne DworakPeck School of Social Work at the Universit y of Southern California in August 2023. She successfully defended her capstone project to address intimate partner violence in the Black community through the planned implementation of a family-centered education and engagement curriculum.

2007 Births: Chris Day and Janel Day, of Columbus, Ohio, welcomed their first child, Witten Gatsby, in May 2023.

2009 Bert Bathiany is the new head football coach at Archbishop Moeller High School in Cincinnati. He was a standout football player in high school, captaining a team that won the Kentucky state championship in 2004. As a college coach, Bathiany helped Tiffin University to a 9-1 season and a conference title in 2019. From 2013-18, Bathiany served at his alma mater, during which Denison rose to prominence in the North Coast Athletic Conference, winning 30 games, including an NCAC championship, and advancing to the 2018 NCAA Division III Playoffs.

Jon Mecoli, of Clarkston, Michigan, is managing director for the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation.

Lee Morris, of Orange Village, Ohio, is a business development executive at Schneider-Dorsey.

Michelle Oyakawa, of Columbus, Ohio, is an assistant professor of sociology at Muskingum University.

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2010 Births: Jane-Coleman Harbison Cottone and Michael Cottone welcomed a daughter, Mary Frances Clare, in December 2023. She joins older brother Morris Cottone, born January 2020. The family lives in Nashville, where JaneCottone is an architectural historian and preservationist.

Safia Khan, of St. Paul, Minnesota, was appointed deputy commissioner of corrections for the state of Minnesota in June 2023.

Kate Partridge, of Denver, is an assistant professor of English at Regis University. Her second collection of poems, THINE, was released by publisher Tupelo Press in September 2023. THINE explores what it means to have children and create art in the context of climate change. Set amidst the rapidly changing landscapes of Colorado and California, THINE’s observational approach draws together eco-poetics with art, myth, and queer family-making, conversing with sources as disparate as Agnes Martin’s paintings, Dorothea Lange’s photographs, and Virgil’s Aeneid.

2011 In 2023, Sophia Chen was elected to a three-year term on the board of directors for the New England Center for Circus Arts, a nonprofit circus school in Brattleboro, Vermont, that teaches both recreational and professional level students and promotes circus education across the country. NECCA graduates perform worldwide with Cirque Du Soleil and other circus companies. “I’ve been training and teaching circus arts as a hobby for years now, and I’m so excited for this opportunity to contribute to one of the premier circus training institutions in the U.S.,” Chen writes. She has more good news — she married John Reilly on Oct. 23, 2021.

2012 Elisabeth Giffin Speckman, of Indianapolis, was named a finalist for the Eugene O’Neill Center National Playwrights Conference, an honor less than 5% of the 1,200+ applicants receive. Since its founding in 1964, the National Playwrights Conference has developed over 700 plays, many of which have gone on to full production around the world.

2013 Births: Katie Reynolds Passen, of Columbus, Ohio, and John Passen welcomed son Patrick “Pat” Reynolds Passen in May 2023. He joins big brother Jack.

2014 Catalina Esparza, of Schaumburg, Illinois, is a human resources business partner at Leica Microsystems (a Danaher company).

#DENISONPROUD ISSUE 1 2024

2015 Marriages Emily Siegel and Joshua Osborne ’13 got married on June 17, 2023. Both were geology and geography majors who met at Denison through the geology department. The couple lives and works together as professional geologists in Oakland, California. “We are always thankful to Denison for bringing us together!” Siegel writes.

Ceci l ia Sa lomone received her Ph. D. i n mas s communications from the Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications at Penn State University in summer 2023. She is now employed as an assistant professor of communications at West Liberty University in West Liberty, West Virginia.

&

2017 James Le, of San Francisco, works in developer experience with Twelve Labs.

Class Notes 2004 -202 2

Sydni-Marie Harmon Miller enjoyed an exciting 2023. In January, she started a new position with the University of Michigan in the School for Environment and Sustainability in the Career Center. On June 24, 2023, she was happily married to Cordell Miller.

Cole Stern, of State College, Pennsylvania, is a geochemistr y researcher who recently joined the Ingalls Lab at Penn State as a Ph.D. student. He studies phosphate groups in Neo-Archean rocks associated with early life on Earth.

2019 David Geracioti and Jax Preyer ’20 got engaged in August 2023. Both Geracioti and Preyer live in Brooklyn, New York, and celebrated the proposal with quite a few Denison family and friends. Their wedding is set for June 2024 in Richmond, Virginia.

JT Tannahill, of New York City, married Sydney P. Shope on June 10, 2023, at a family home in Hudson, New York, with a beautiful view of the Hudson R iver. The couple, amateur falconers, enlisted a flying ring bearer — a juvenile Harris hawk flawlessly delivered their wedding rings after f lying down the aisle. Tannahill collected the rings; Shope graciously accepted. Tannahill is a second-year MBA student at Cornell University and works in private equity.

Brandi Hart earned her Master of Science in library and information science from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in May 2023. She is now an interdisciplinary librarian and Librarians of the Future program resident at the University of Colorado Boulder.

2020s

2020 Will Brady, of Chicago, is a corporate finance analyst at Kite Realty Group.

Kyle Mares, of San Diego, is a teaching fellow at the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences at Maastricht University in the Netherlands.

Jack Ruddy, of Lakewood, Ohio, is a sales operations coordinator at Waste Dynamics in Cleveland.

SEND YOUR PHOTOS ALONG WITH YOUR CLASS NOTES TO denmag@denison.edu

Clay Watters graduated in the spring of 2023 from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a master’s in global studies and global economy.

2022 A kshat Agar wal, of Harrison, New Jersey, is an analyst in investment Operations at PGIM in New Jersey.

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Obituaries WE WILL CONTINUE TO UPDATE CLASS NOTES AND OBITUARIES AT DENISON.EDU/ MAGAZINE

1946

Margery Hoffman, 98, of Cincinnati, Dec. 28, 2022. She was loved and cherished by many, including her parents, Charles Grimm and Lily Grimm, and her children, Jana Ruxton, Ritchie Zaeh, and Colley Bishop.

1945

Eleanor Ford, 97, of Rohnert Park, California, June 10, 2021. Ford, nicknamed Nane, grew up in an Illinois home built by her grandfather.

At Denison, she was a member of Kappa Alpha Theta. She married Clifford D. Hensel, a lieutenant in the U.S. Army, and the couple raised a son, Andrew, and two daughters, Martha and Sarah. Ford was a publications editor at California State Polytech University and loved gathering with family at the cottage in Torch Lake, Michigan.

Jan Seng Shaker, 100, of Darien, Connecticut, on Aug. 25, 2023. Shaker and her family spent summers at their working farm in Crystal Lake, Illinois, which they lovingly called The Farm Sengri-La. During World War II, she volunteered with the American Red Cross, driving an ambulance transferring wounded soldiers to hospitals around Chicago. She married her high school sweetheart, Theodore “Ted” Frederick Shaker, in 1946, following his service in World War II. Ted’s career in broadcasting took his family from Detroit to Chicago, then to New York City, Milwaukee, and finally back to New York, where the couple and their young family settled in Darien in 1953. Preceded in death by Ted, she is survived by her three children, Susan, Ted Jr. (Sheryl), and John; eight grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren.

1947

Barbara Stein Boeckling, 97, of Dayton, Ohio, April 12, 2023. Boeckling grew up in the first funeral home in Huron, Ohio, opened by her father in 1925. At Denison, she studied retail management and was a member of Alpha Phi. During the summers she worked at Plum Brook Research Facility in Sandusky, doing her part to advance the World War II effort. After college she worked at Halle’s Department Store in Cleveland and married George A. Boeckling, a grand-nephew of G.A. Boeckling, the developer of Cedar Point. The couple and their children traveled the world, but part of every summer was spent at the family cottage at Chaska Beach in Huron, a resort developed by her father. She is survived by a son, George Wright Boeckling (Carolyn Joyce); two daughters, Elisabeth Boeckling Spiro and Carolyn Marie Boeckling; sonin-law, Monty Gamble; four grandsons; three great-grandchildren; a step-great-grandchild; and a niece and nephew.

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Preceded in death by her husband; daughter Martha Louise Boeckling Gamble; sister, Florence Dutt Santoro; brother-in-law, Anthony Santoro; and a niece and nephew.

Peter Dysert, 98, of Tulsa, Oklahoma, July 9, 2023. Dysert served in the U.S. Navy during World War II, sang in the Navy choir, and played the soprano saxophone. At 21, he met Zula “Gene” Harrell on a blind date. They were married for 59 years, until her death in 2004. At Denison, Dysert was a member of Lambda Chi Alpha. Having lived through the Great Depression, he learned the importance of thrift and, naturally, became an accountant. He spent his career in the oil and gas industry and retired as a director and executive vice president for exploration and production of Amerada Hess. He didn’t stay still, becoming involved in civic affairs and traveling with a core group of family and friends who called themselves “the Six Pack.” After his first wife’s death, he fell in love with Willa “Jean” Jenkins, and their marriage lasted until her death 13 years later. He then moved to Tulsa to help care for his daughter as she fought cancer. Dysert was preceded in death by his first and second wives; his daughter, Linda Dysert Mann; his son-in-law, Tom Mann; and siblings. He is survived by two children, Peter Dysert II (Linda) and Teresa Dysert Dailey Fields (Rusty); seven grandchildren; and 13 great-grandchildren.

Nonny Price Harrison, 97, of Monroe, Ohio, July 21, 2023.

Harrison grew up in the small town of Ironton, Michigan, where she began her school years in a one-room schoolhouse. At Denison, she was a member of Kappa Alpha Theta and met her husband, Bill Harrison ’48. She was active in many social and philanthropic organizations and was one of the first women to be asked to sit on the board of the Middletown YMCA. She and her husband visited all 50 states and every continent except Antarctica, a miss she always regretted. She is survived by her sons, Thomas W. Harrison (Shelly) and David A. Harrison (Karen); four grandchildren; and six great-grandchildren.

Margaret Nielsen Lyons, 98, of Buffalo, New York, July 1, 2023. Childhood summers at her family home in Angola on Lake Erie instilled in Lyons a love of the water and swimming, and she never came across an ocean, lake, river, or pool that she didn’t eagerly dive into. At Denison, she was a member of Alpha Phi. For more than 20 years, until the age of 93, she worked every Tuesday at the St. Vincent DePaul Soup Kitchen in Buffalo. She also worked with special needs children at The Children’s League in Springville, New York.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Richard C. Lyons Jr.; daughter Catherine A. Lyons; and sister Alice Anderson.

She is survived by children Karen Lyons Goodman (Steve), Mary Stein, Melissa Lyons Eyeington, Richard N. Lyons (Sheila), and Jennifer Lyons Greco; sister Patricia Fornes; 14 grandchildren; and one great-grandchild.

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1948

Doris Mae Hawk Mochel, 96, of Downers Grove, Illinois, July 12, 2023. At Denison, she was a member of Delta Gamma and PEO. She was preceded in death by two children, Cynthia Louise Mochel and Lawrence John Mochel. She is survived by husband, John W. Mochel, Jr.; children Leslie Ann Rueckert (Craig) and Linda Mochel Paulsen (Tom); four grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.

1949

Mary Morris Damron, 96, of Mansfield, Ohio, April 15, 2023. She majored in chemistry, was a member of Chi Omega, and met her husband, Carroll Damron, while at Denison. While he finished medical school and his internship and residency, she worked at Cincinnati General Hospital in the cardiac lab research department. There, she assisted in the fluoroscopy room, where the early cardiac catheterizations were being performed entirely for research. The Damrons started their family in Mansfield, where Carroll went into general practice with his father. Once her six children were grown, Damron pursued her lifelong dream of learning the organ and ultimately played the Wurlitzer in front of audiences at Mansfield’s Renaissance Theatre. She also drew floor plans and designed houses, notably their family home and their cottage on Charles Mill Lake. She was preceded in death by her husband and is survived by her children, David Damron (Kristy), Susan Damron (Donna Bonifield), Barbara Damron, Donald Damron, Debra Morella (Michael), and Robert Damron (Leah); five grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.

1950

Barbara Hawes Blake, 94, of Nashville, April 15, 2023. Blake graduated from Denison with a degree in English and a fondness for archery. She was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma. She met Joseph Hingeley Blake working at American Hospital Supply Corp. in Chicago. They married and had two children. A banker’s daughter, Blake impressed upon her children the importance of money management right down to the purchase of a popsicle on a hot summer evening. Though her vision faltered in later years, her mind remained sharp. She never had any prescription medications and she drove into her 90s, admittedly while steering clear of the freeways. She was preceded in death by her husband and her son-in-law, Richard Warren Mays. She is survived by her children, Joseph Hawes Blake (Anna) and Elizabeth Mays; five grandchildren; and a great-grandchild.

1951

Norma Coe Anderson, 93, of Hickory, North Carolina, March 6, 2023. At Denison, Anderson was a member of Alpha Omicron Pi. She was a lifelong swimmer, worked for 25 years at the Mahoning County DENISON MAGAZINE

Public Library, and was active in many civic organizations.

She was preceded in death by her oldest son, Christopher Anderson (Susie). She is survived by two children, Kitty Szpyrka (Rick Hebard) and Robert Anderson (Ester); sister, JoAnne Gill; seven grandchildren; three great-grandchildren; a niece; a nephew; and two cousins.

Dick Ransom, 93, of Williamsburg, Virginia, March 31, 2023. At Denison, he was a member of Phi Delta Theta.

He served in the U.S. Air Force and retired from General Electric’s Aircraft Engine Group. He was preceded in death by his first wife, Jennie, and his sister, Susan. He is survived by his wife of 38 years, Martha; children, Susan Clemens (David), Amy Greenberg (Danny), Jennifer Franklin (Milton), Carol Gray, Adrian Parris, and Timothy Parris (Jessica); brothers, Kent Ransom and Kirk Ransom (Suzanne); 17 grandchildren; and six great-grandchildren.

1952

Fred Bogaert, 93, of Grand Rapids, Michigan, June 23, 2023. Bogaert had moved nine times by age 13, forcing him to develop an outgoing personality that later served him well on the stage. He majored in theatre at Denison, was a member of Kappa Sigma, and forged lifelong friendships with classmates who went on to careers in theater. He briefly followed that path, working in professional theater until the U.S. Army claimed his talents for their Special Services division. With the Korean War in progress, he was assigned the job of entertaining troops at a large military hospital in Stuttgart, Germany. Following his service, he returned home to marry his college sweetheart, Julie Cartland ’53. After a long career in sales and management throughout the Midwest, he retired and returned to the stage. He performed over the next 22 years in a variety of roles at Grand Rapids Civic Theater and other area theaters.

He was preceded in death by his wife of 47 years and his cherished companion of 16 years, Jean Boyden. He is survived by his “honorary daughter,” Sue Troke (Jerry); sister-in-law, Dorothy Cartland Lutz; and extended family and friends.

Whitney Buck, 93, of Arcata, California, May 13, 2023.

After graduating from Denison, he was commissioned as a line officer in the U.S. Navy and served with the U.S. Marine Corps during the Korean War. After his military service he earned his Ph.D. at the University of Michigan and taught English literature there, at Wayne State University in Detroit, and at Humboldt State University in California. He was appointed the dean of undergraduate studies at Humboldt State and retired in 1993. He was an avid runner, a founding member of the board of the Morris Graves Museum of Art, and a lover of music who learned to play both the piano and cello later in life. He was preceded in death by his sister, Miriam. He is survived by his wife, Jean Santi; a sister, Barbara Wolf (Phillip); children, Jesse Buck (Mimi Nadya), Jason Buck (Teri), and Emily Armstrong Buck; and five grandchildren.

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& Obituaries 1952–1957

Edwin Cook, 93, of Mansfield, Ohio, April 11, 2023. At Denison, he was a member of Lambda Chi Alpha. He transferred to Ohio State University after his sophomore year to enter the ROTC program there and entered active service with the U.S. Army Transportation Corp. In Greenland, he was part of Operation Blue Jay, a successful effort to build Thule Air Base, from which Strategic Air Command bombers stood ready to fly over the nearby polar ice cap if needed. He remained in the reserves until 1962 and returned to Mansfield to run H.L. Reed Co. with his father and brother. He was key to the development and commemoration of the Korean War Memorial located on Mansfield’s town square. Cook was preceded in death by his sister Mildred Switendick and a daughter, Judith Cook Albright. He is survived by his wife of 67 years, Leah Tyler Cook; children Princess Cook Norris and Edwin Cook Jr.; brother, John Cook, Jr.; sister Margaret Cook Liebig; seven grandchildren; and a great-grandchild.

Peggy Pole Taylor, 93, of LaGrange Park, Illinois, April 6, 2023. At Denison, she was a member of Kappa Alpha Theta.

She spent many years as an elementary school teacher and instructor of watercolor painting. For over 35 summers, she taught painting and other crafts at Camp Highlands for Boys in Wisconsin, and she cherished her family cottage on Razorback Lake. She was preceded in death by her husband of 65 years, Kent Parsons Taylor. She is survived by four children, Craig (Leslie), Chris (Julia), Kent (Susan), and Chandler (Liesl); 11 grandchildren; and one great-grandchild.

1953

Donald Brauning, 92, of Nashport, Ohio, May 26, 2023. At Denison, he was a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon. He went on to dental school at Case Western Reserve University and served as a captain in the Dental Corps during the Korean War. He spent most of his life in Zanesville, Ohio, farming, growing Christmas trees, and flying experimental aircraft. He was preceded in death by his wife of 65 years, Suzanne B. Brauning; a son, Christopher B. Brauning; two brothers, John F. Brauning and Robert C. Brauning; and a sister, Dorothy B. Hill. He is survived by two daughters, Melanie B. Stas (Ronald) and Marcye J. Van Dyke (Timothy); a son, Darby Brauning; daughter-in-law, Sarah E. Brauning; 13 grandchildren; five great grandchildren; and several other relatives.

Barbara Hayes Olmsted, 92, of Columbus, Ohio, Aug. 19, 2023. Olmsted grew up in Bexley, and at Denison was a member of Kappa Alpha Theta. She and her husband, Pete, built their house in Worthington and raised three children there. Olmsted and her best friend, Peggy, started a luminaria that became a holiday tradition in Worthington. She wrote thank you notes for thank you notes and during walks on the beach picked up sand dollars with her toes. She enjoyed a good glass of red wine, cross-stitch, and puzzles with her grandchildren.

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1954

Phil Rees, 91, of Chapel Hill, North Carolina, May 1, 2023. He majored in art at Denison and was a member of Lambda Chi Alpha. He received an M.S. in library science from Western Reserve University and worked as a librarian for institutions in New York, where he met his wife, Margaret “Peg” Stamm. He later worked as the art librarian at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. Retiring in 1998, Rees collected books, built bookcases for those books, gardened, traveled, and relished American art and architecture. He was a dedicated volunteer at Habitat for Humanity and for many years led weekly nature walks. He is survived by his wife; sons, David and Peter; daughter-in-law, Alaina Rose Lawson; and a grandson.

Alan Vogan, 90, of Colorado Springs, Colorado, April 16, 2023. Vogan was an accomplished gymnast and passionate race car driver who competed in many East Coast races when he was younger. He loved to ski on snow and water and moved to Colorado because he could do both on the same day. He also paddled kayaks and canoes, climbed rocks, and collected guns. He loved to write short stories and devise strategies for complex problems. He spent two years in the U.S. Army and later worked for Lockheed/ Martin as a human factors engineer. He and his first wife, Nola Walker Vogan, had two daughters, Kimberly and Allison. Later he married Shirley Childress Thompson, and the couple had three children. Vogan is survived by his wife, Carol; children Jeni Sharp, Jill Dewar, and Lance Vogan; stepchildren, Gwen Morgan, Todd Allen and Casey Allen; four grandchildren; and a great-grandson.

1955

Martha “Marty” Brooks Donovan, 90, of Port Charlotte, Florida, June 19, 2023. At Denison, she was a member of Delta Delta Delta.

Phyllis Garrod Roehm, 87, of Fort Myers, Florida, June 29, 2021. Known by her friends as Peg, a nickname started at Denison, Roehm studied art and was a member of Chi Omega. She taught art in Dayton and later worked as assistant art director at Rike’s department store, where she was responsible for the holiday window displays and storewide decor. This, upon reflection in later years, was her favorite job. After leaving the workforce to raise her children, she kept up her artistic side by silk-screening Christmas cards and fashioning elaborate Halloween costumes. She painted with acrylics and watercolors and was involved in several arts groups in the Fort Myers area. Roehm is survived by her husband, Thomas E. Roehm Jr.; daughters, Leslie Roehm Reese and Susan Roehm Ryan; son, Thomas E. Roehm III (LeeAnne); six grandchildren; and a great-grandson.

Marge Hoeppner Saunders, 89, of Lake Elmo, Minnesota, May 2, 2023. At Denison, she studied biology and was a member of Chi Omega. She sewed skating dresses, dance

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1956

Carol Neuman Barker, 88, of Ashville, Ohio, June 10, 2023. Barker, a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma, attended Denison with her twin sister, Lyda Neuman Cook ’56. The sisters were extremely close and shared a double wedding in 1956. Barker spent her last few years living with Cook and her husband in Pickaway County, Ohio. Prior to that, Barker spent much of her adult life in Sharpsville, Pennsylvania, where she played key roles in the Julia F. Buhl Girls Club and Buhl Park, as well as a youth golf program that served over 5,000 children through the years. Barker was preceded in death by her husband, Thomas Barker. She is survived by her sons, Kurt and Chris Brautigam; two grandsons; twin sister; brotherin-law, Jim Cook ’56; and various nieces and nephews.

Carol Davis, 86, of Cleveland, Ohio, June 14, 2021. At Denison, she was a member of Alpha Omicron Pi. She worked for Stouffer Hotel Corporation for 35 years. Her interests included volunteering at the Animal Protective League of Cleveland, Friends of the Fairview Park Library, and Lakewood Christian Service.

Gordon Smith, 88, of Lake Worth, Florida, Aug. 3, 2023.

Smith worked for a number of companies and ultimately ended up in the sales of mausoleum crypts and burial plots, for which he would win awards. He honed his a cappella singing at Denison, and played piano and the organ. He had a passion for cars, motorcycles, and automotive history. He is survived by his wife of 50 years, Norma Lee; stepson, Steven (Violet); sons, Jeffrey and Gordon Jr.; daughter-in-law, Charla-Faye; two grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren.

1957

Darrel “Bibs” Bibler Jr., 88, of Corvallis, Oregon, April 24, 2023. Bibler was an Eagle Scout and at Denison was a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon, serving as its president his senior year. He went on to Harvard Medical School and while there joined the Aesculapian Club, an organization dedicated to welcoming and giving white coats to incoming first-year students. During his surgical internship at King County Hospital, Bibler fell in love with a surgical floor nurse, Jean Priscilla Jacobson. They married, and while they lost their first child, Karen Leslie, DENISON MAGAZINE

gisela goppel

line costumes, and quilts for her family. She could be counted on at Christmas to bake at least a dozen kinds of cookies. She was perhaps happiest at the cottage her father had built in Door County, Wisconsin, where she and her husband, Norman Saunders, spent at least six months of each year for more than 20 years after retirement. Saunders was preceded in death by her husband; sister, Pricilla Murphy; and brother Walter Hoeppner Jr. She is survived by brother Harvey Hoeppner; children, Jeff Saunders, David Saunders, and Catherine Schultz; and their families.

Don Bonar

PRO FE S S O R E M E R IT U S , M AT H E M ATI C S A N D CO M P U T E R S C I E N C E IN MEMO RIAM

Professor Emeritus Don Bonar, whose all-encompassing devotion to Denison spanned 50 years and included trips to the office on Christmas mornings, died July 4, 2023, at age 84.

Bonar taught mathematics and computer science, but his greatest role was that of ambassador for Denisonian values. He mentored and engaged students, helping them plot career paths through his knowledge, kindness, and unique catchphrases that were codified by one of his protégés.

“Teaching wasn’t work to him,” says Mark Daniel Ward ’99, a statistics professor at Purdue University and author of a webpage entitled Bonarisms. “Don was so passionate about mathematics and about being a mentor to his students.”

Bonar’s greatest loves were his family, his family’s farm in West Virginia, and all things Denison. He was a walking catalog for university bookstore apparel.

Bonar was an avid supporter of the athletic program, attending numerous games and meets. He earned the nickname “Peppermint Pat” for passing out peppermint patties on campus.

“Don came to Denison in 1965, and he had no background in the liberal arts,” says computer science Professor Emeritus Zaven Karian. “People like that usually need time to adjust, but Don fit in immediately. He became popular with students for all the right reasons, mainly that he was attentive to their needs.”

That commitment meant Bonar was never off the clock. His daughter, Mary Bonar ’01, recalls her father spending Christmas mornings in the office, getting a jump on the spring semester and writing letters of recommendation.

“It was not uncommon to walk into Olin Science Hall, where his office was located, on a Saturday morning and see him at work,” Ward says.

Bonar was such a legend that the university kept blackboards in Room 215 at Olin until his retirement in 2016 because the professor preferred chalk.

On his final day, his colleagues, some former students, and President Adam Weinberg surprised him in his classroom to pay tribute to his prolific career.

A former department chair, Bonar published two books and many articles on mathematics. He won several national awards for teaching and, upon his retirement, established the annual Bonar Family Mentorship and Teaching Excellence Award, which recognizes exemplary mentoring and teaching by a Denison faculty member.

“He was a shining example of going above and beyond in his field,” says Bill Correll ’95, a radar scientist in remote sensing. “He showed others how it’s done.”

Beyond his dedication to the university, he cherished his wife, Marty, his daughter, Mary, and son-in-law, Ken Urish II, and his three grandchildren: Katie, Isabella, and Ken III. Days before his death, the family took him home to the family farm one last time, his granddaughter Katie playing his favorite song, “Country Roads,” on the violin.

“My father loved what he did in life,” Mary says. “He embraced Denison the same way he did his family and his farm.”

– TOM REED

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& Obituaries 1957–1959

as a newborn, they later had two sons, Jeffrey Alan and Jonathan Andrew. Bibler worked as a general surgeon, helped lobby the Oregon legislature to pass one of the nation’s first mandatory seat belt laws, and traveled to Antigua and Guatemala to conduct surgeries with a faithbased mission. He was preceded in death by his wife; a brother, Ned; and Ned’s wife, Jane. He is survived by his sons; daughter-in-law, Ann; two grandsons; sister-in-law, Gwen; and brother-in-law, Bob Jacobson (Mary Lynn).

Dianne Aabye Black, 88, of Brownsburg, Indiana, March 22, 2023. At Denison, Black earned her degree in mathematics and was a member of Alpha Phi. She was passionate about early childhood education and directed the South Wales Community Center in New York before moving to Indiana. There, she worked for the Day Nursery Association of Indianapolis, operating facilities in several locations. She also had a lifelong passion for knitting, crocheting, and sewing. She was preceded in death by her sister, Nancy Aabye Batey. She is survived by sons, Michael Black (Cathy) and Scott Black (Lisa); five grandchildren; two nephews; and lifelong friend, Sylvia Mills.

Mary Fan Kiracofe Kain, 88, of Plano, Texas, April 1, 2023. At Denison, she was a member of Delta Gamma and received her degree in history. While home from winter break, she was introduced to John Kain, and the two married after graduation. While he began his doctoral studies at the University of California, Berkeley, Kain taught middle school history. The couple next lived at the U.S. Air Force Academy, where John taught economics.

When they moved to London for a year, Kain embraced The Beatles and the trends of the early 1960s, including a beehive hairdo and purple hot pants. The family returned stateside, where John began teaching at Harvard University and Kain took up numerous civic causes. She also received a master’s degree in social work and joined her husband at Harvard, working in the Office of Career Services to advise students on study abroad opportunities.

The couple traveled extensively and later moved to Texas to be closer to family. After John’s death, Kain continued to travel to destinations including Paris, India, and Australia. A stroke curtailed her world travels, but she was in the front row at a Willie Nelson concert for her 83rd birthday. Willie cheered her on as she danced with her walker as support. In addition to her husband, Kain was preceded in death by her brother, Nicholas Kiracofe; sister-in-law, Joan Kain Shaw; and brother-in-law, Richard Henry Shaw. She is survived by her daughters, Mary Jo Earle (Doric) and Joanna Kain Gentsch (John); four grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.

Dick Kruse, 88, of Westborough, Massachusetts, Aug. 7, 2023. At Denison, he was a member of Delta Upsilon and the Denison Men’s Glee Club. Kruse moved from Ohio to Massachusetts to work for Worcester Rehabilitation

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for Speech and Language. After six years, he became a professor at Fitchburg State University, teaching speech and public speaking courses from 1967 to 2000. He was a frequent tenor soloist at reunions, anniversaries, weddings, and funerals. Kruse also was a former president of and performer with the Westborough Players Club; he always relished a great character role. A lover of fruit wines, he was a longtime tour guide at a local winery. He was preceded in death by his wife, Jane. He is survived by three children, Meredith Kruse (Michael McAuliffe), Scott Kruse (Marnie), and Allyson Moreno (John); seven grandchildren; and a sister, Christina Lecumberri.

Phyllis Morrow, 88, of Oklahoma City, Feb. 18, 2023. At Denison, she was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma.

Joe Ternavan, 88, of Scottsdale, Arizona, March 30, 2023. A first-generation American, Ternavan was born to immigrant parents from Hungary. At Denison, he lettered in football and was a member of Beta Theta Pi, where he forged friendships that lasted well into his 80s.

After Denison, he served four years in the U.S. Marines.

He taught English and coached football at a Catholic school before deciding on a career change to the new field of computer data processing, forming his own firm that served small local banks. He worked into his 70s and, after retiring, worked at a golf course into his mid 80s. Over the years he coached various youth sports teams, served as a Boy Scout leader, and maintained the neighborhood pool and the school bus fleet at the Catholic elementary school his children attended. Ternavan was preceded in death by his brother Richard. He is survived by his wife of 62 years, Carol; a son, Michael (Michelle); daughters, Leanne (David) and Aimee (Mike); brother Robert; and two grandchildren.

John Thomas III, 88, of New York City, Feb. 27, 2023.

Thomas died of a heart attack on the streets of his beloved New York City. At Denison, his love for the theater found an outlet. Drafted into the U.S. Army, he served as a radio operator in Korea and deferred his entrance into the Yale School of Drama until 1960. His drama MFA in hand, he was hired as a page for The Tonight Show, first with Jack Parr and then Johnny Carson. He appeared in early television teleplays and trained Michael Eisner as a page, then moved on to the New York City Opera to work as a supernumerary actor. He could often be seen on PBS’ Live From Lincoln Center. One of his greatest opera acting triumphs was playing a corpse, a non-singing role that nonetheless earned him a solo curtain call after each performance. After discovering the Morris-Jumel Mansion in his Washington Heights neighborhood in the 1960s, he started a parallel career as gardener and tour guide and excelled at making jams and vinegars. Katherine Hepburn sought him out for his rosemary vinegar, and in 1976, he gave Queen Elizabeth II a tour of the colonial

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garden. His work at the mansion and the park in front of his apartment on Riverside Drive earned him three awards from New York City: two from Mayor Ed Koch in 1984 and 1985 and a third from Mayor Michael Bloomberg in 2003.

Despite all of this, Thomas remained with the opera until its 2013 bankruptcy, taking that as his cue to retire at 78.

He could be requested for mansion tours until the day he died. He is survived by his brother, Thomas R. Thomas, and several other relatives.

1958

Nancy Schroeder Carpenter, 88, of Chagrin Falls, Ohio, Aug. 31, 2023. At Denison, Carpenter was a member of Kappa Alpha Theta. She volunteered for many years as the treasurer of the Chagrin Valley Women’s Exchange, aka The Sassy Cat. She was preceded in death by her sister, Betsy Scher, and her husband of 62 years, David Carpenter. She is survived by her three children, Debbie Eaton (Matt), Sara Burrows (John), and John Carpenter (Alison); six grandchildren; a nephew; and three nieces.

Jim Donley, 89, of Stamford, Connecticut, April 26, 2023.

He spent two years at Denison, left to join the U.S. Army, and returned to graduate in 1958. He was a member of Sigma Chi. Donley served as a former U.S. Treasury Department press secretary for treasury secretaries John B. Connally and George P. Shultz. He also served as Connally’s press aide when President Richard Nixon named him ambassador-at-large, a role that led to travel to 30 countries in Latin America, South Asia, the Indian subcontinent, and the Middle East. He later represented Connally at the 1976 Republican Convention when he was a prospective vice presidential nominee. Donley left Washington in 1974 to start Donley Communications Corp. in New York City, representing many large investment banks, institutional money managers, and law firms involved in the merger and acquisition boom. In 1993, he decided to devote more time to economic development in poor rural countries and in 1997, was involved in the overthrow of the socialist government of Bulgaria. Donley served on the boards of several Greenwich-area nonprofit agencies and for 12 years was a director of the Greenwich Chamber of Commerce.

He is survived by his wife, Mary Todd Donley; daughters, Dana Donley Morton (Jason) and Eliza Donley Nolte; four grandchildren; stepchildren, Benny Goodspeed (Eva), Mary Todd Goodspeed Hobson (Chris), Emily Goodspeed Timchak (Steve), Jonathan Goodspeed (Brooke); 10 step-grandchildren; and two nieces and a nephew.

Peter Elloian, 87, of Perrysburg, Ohio, July 10, 2023. After studying at Denison, the Cleveland Institute of Art, and the University of Iowa — along with a two-year stint in the U.S. Army — Elloian set sail on a freighter from Hoboken to Copenhagen to launch his printmaking career. He hopped a train to Florence and circled back to Paris, visiting printmaking workshops along the way. Then he returned to DENISON MAGAZINE

the United States to work at the Pratt Graphic Art Center in New York City. He became an instructor at the Toledo Museum of Art School of Design and was a professor at the University of Toledo from 1987 until his retirement in 2001.

He twice worked in Provence, France, as a visiting artist and instructor in printmaking at the Lacoste School of Arts in France under renowned director Bernard A. Pfriem.

His printmaking is among the collections of the Library of Congress, the Art Institute of Dayton, the Toledo Museum of Art, and the Philadelphia Museum of Art. He traveled extensively throughout Europe with his wife, Carolyn, fueled by wine, cheese, and French bread. Elloian was preceded in death by his wife and is survived by his daughter, Cybele Elloian Williams (Andre); older brother, Thomas Elloian (Sonia); and two cousins.

Fred Lofland, 90, of Sun City Center, Florida, June 5, 2023.

At Denison, Lofland was a member of Kappa Sigma. He served in the U.S. Navy Reserves for two years and spent his career in the institutional and commercial laundry industry. His hobbies included flying and creating artworks out of glass. He was preceded in death by his wife, Carol Lofland. He is survived by his daughter, Christine Hauck; sons, Mark Lofland and Jeff Lofland; seven grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.

Jack Riley “Coach” Olcott, 91, of Centerville, Massachusetts, Aug. 24, 2023. In high school, Olcott was an undersized sports phenom, weighing just 120 pounds his senior year. His college athletic career at Denison was interrupted when he was drafted into the U.S. Army to serve in the Korean War as an infantryman. He returned to Denison after the war, played three sports, and was a member of Kappa Sigma. He went on to teach and coach, mainly football, at colleges and universities in Ohio and Pennsylvania.

He later coached at New England schools including Tufts University and Boston College. He wrote seven books on coaching football and was an early advocate of player safety. One of his books can be seen in the 2003 sports drama, Radio. He met his wife, Judy, on Craigville Beach and greeted her several times a day with, “Hello, beautiful!”

He is survived by his wife; stepchildren, Stacey Kennedy (John), Chris Mello (Lisa); Tim Mello (Alice); and five grandchildren.

1959

Chuck Bash, 85, of Grand Junction, Colorado, May 28, 2022.

Louis Komjathy, 87, of Avery, Texas, April 15, 2023. At Denison, Komjathy was a member of Phi Gamma Delta.

Mary Langacher Robertson, 85, of Clemmons, North Carolina, July 14, 2023. Robertson was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma at Denison and later worked at the sorority headquarters in Columbus, Ohio. She and her husband, DENISONMAGAZINE.COM

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Jim, raised their family in Worthington, Ohio. She is survived by her husband; son, Michael Robertson (Susan); daughters, Jill Hutcherson (Jeff) and Bonnie Robertson Harker (Clemmons); sister, Buff Crouch (Clyde); six grandchildren; and one great-grandchild.

& 1960 Obituaries 1958–1962

Bob Bates, 85, of Sebring, Florida, April 3, 2023. At Denison, Bates was a member of Phi Delta Theta.

He served in the U.S. Army for two years and became a reporter for the Meadville (Pa.) Tribune, an activities director for the YMCA in Reading, Pennsylvania, and Anderson, Indiana, and an employee of the Social Security Administration. He was preceded in death by his first wife, Sandra Walters; his stepson-in-law Lawrance Morrissey; and brother-in-law Jon Starn. He is survived by his wife, Jean Swickard Bates; son, Rob Bates (Amy); stepdaughter, Jennifer Morrissey; stepson, Jeff Hickman (Christie); sons, Andrew Bates (Karen), David Bates (Holly), and Jon Bates (Mallory); and 13 grandchildren. Also surviving are two sisters, Sue Starn and Becky Skeen (David); brother-in-law David Swickard (Kristine); sister-in-law Nancy Swickard; and several nieces and nephews.

Mary Gibson Bruscino, 84, of Westlake, Ohio, May 29, 2023. At Denison, Bruscino met her husband, Alex Bruscino ’61, and was a member of Kappa Alpha Theta. She taught reading, writing, and art for 28 years at Ruffing Montessori School in Rocky River, Ohio. She was preceded in death by her husband; daughter Kathryn Ann Bruscino; and brother, Thomas Gibson. She is survived by a son, David Alexander Bruscino; daughter Susan Marie Bruscino; and sister, Virginia (Richard) Piper.

Mary Ann Self Churchill, 84, of Hayward, Wisconsin, May 21, 2023. At Denison, she was a member of Delta Delta Delta. After college, she taught French at several Illinois high schools and joined the Theatre of Western Springs, where she met her future husband, Ronald Churchill. They retired in 1992 to a cabin on Moose Lake, where she volunteered for various civic, environmental, and historical organizations. She was preceded in death by her sister, Susan, and her husband. She is survived by her son, Michael (Tammy), and two nephews.

Todd Detzel, 83, of Ukiah, California, Sept. 8, 2022. Detzel is survived by his wife of 61 years, Ginny Detzel ’60; sister-in-law, Shirley Schott; brother-in-law, David Garnham (Carla); two nephews; a great niece; and several cousins.

John Fields, 88, of New London, Wisconsin, Aug. 8, 2023.

Fields, who majored in classical languages at Denison, was an actor by trade. He also loved all creatures great and small, both below and above the sea. He was a scuba diver and avid underwater and wildlife photographer. He is survived by his wife, Mary Ellen Romberg.

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Howard Kidd, 84, of Neenah, Wisconsin, May 1, 2023.

At Denison, Kidd was a chemistry major and member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon. He went on to Northwestern Medical School in Chicago and served as the director of the NICU at Theda Clark Regional Medical Center in Neenah from 1971 until 2002. He closed out his career as the director of the NICU at St. Elizabeth Hospital in Appleton, retiring in 2008. He and his first wife, Mary, had three children and were married 53 years until her death in 2015. He married Margaret Murphy after meeting her in church in Neenah, and they cherished their time at the family cottage on Stearns Lake, sailing their Sunfish and sipping wine as the sun set. Kidd is survived by Margaret as well as a blended family that includes John Kidd and his children, Devan and Lea; Ann Lorenz (Philip) and children, David, Matthew, and Julia; Fritz Kidd (Kristen) and children, Sarah, Maggie, and Kevin; Andrew Murphy (Brianna); Mary Murphy; and a sister, Marge Pachuta (Roger).

Ann Lucas Royer, 85, of Upper Arlington, Ohio, July 10, 2023. At Denison, Royer was a member of the Pi Beta Phi. She started her career at City National Bank and was a past board member and active volunteer with the Columbus Museum of Art. She was preceded in death by her husband, Richard Royer, and brother, Jim Lucas. She is survived by her sons, John (Stacey) and David (Sara) Royer; six grandchildren; a great grandchild; and many other extended family and friends.

1961

Linda Vaughn Burke, 84, of Scottsdale, Arizona, April 28, 2023. The child of a Pennsylvania railroad executive, Burke grew up moving from city to city on the East Coast. She graduated magna cum laude from Denison, where she was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma. She married her high school sweetheart, Robert Ives, and danced both on and off Broadway. Her love of the Chicago Cubs and baseball led her to Scottsdale in 1983, where she and her new husband, Gary Burke, set down roots. She owned racehorses and cowboy boots, and she loved dancing, sparkles, and Mustang convertibles. She was preceded in death by Gary; children David Chandler Ives, Richard Blair Ives, and Laurie Ives; and granddaughter Gabrielle Ives. She is survived by her children Robin Ives Moncrief (Ken) and Robert Vaughan Ives (Sarah); her sister, Dinah Vaughan Strong (Bill); four grandchildren; and six great-grandchildren.

David Jett, 83, of Richmond, Kentucky, June, 24, 2023.

Jett was an Eagle Scout, Peace Corps volunteer, and commander in the U.S. Navy. At Denison, he was a member of the American Commons Club. He ran the family business, Jett & Hall Clothing & Shoes. He was a fixture in the Richmond business community, involved in civic affairs, and active at First Presbyterian Church, where he opened and closed the church on Sundays, made the coffee, and sang

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in the choir. He relished the arts and the outdoors. He was preceded in death by his wife, Verda Margene “Genie” Hatch Jett, and a son, Stephen Wheeler Jett. He is survived by his eldest son, Neal Ottinger Jettpace (Lynn); daughter, Lucy Jett Waterbury (Ethan); four grandchildren; sisters, Sally Davis (Dick) and SueAnn Reeves; and Dabney Parker, his loving companion and travel partner.

Ann Mittendorf Marshall, 83, of Dallas, Texas, May 1, 2023. At Denison, she was a member of Delta Delta Delta.

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Charles Albert “Chuck” DuCharme III, 84, of Grosse Pointe, Michigan, March 28, 2023.

DuCharme died in Tryon, North Carolina, a frequent summer retreat that he considered his second home. At Denison, he was a member of Lambda Chi Alpha. He followed his father into a career as a stockbroker and financial advisor. He was an outdoorsman who honed his skills in Big Bay, Michigan, and Beach O’Pines in Grand Bend, Canada.

He passed on those passions, along with a love of stamp collecting and trains, to his grandsons. He is survived by his son, Charles Bagley DuCharme II; daughter, Elizabeth DuCharme Elwell (Tristan); their mother, Mary Kathryn DuCharme; four grandchildren; his sisters, Julie Haynes and Mary Janice Gunsaulus (Clyde); and his partner of eight years, Mary Jo Kellogg.

Alex Hamilton, 83, of Troy, Ohio, April 10, 2023. At Denison, Hamilton was a member of Delta Upsilon.

Upon graduation, he entered Officers Candidate School in Newport, Rhode Island, and then spent four years in the U.S. Navy. He served aboard the naval destroyer USS Newell. Hamilton returned to Troy to work with his father and brother in the family insurance business, becoming president in 1975 and retiring in 2006. He was civic-minded and a lover of nature, which led to his later calling to become a naturalist with the Miami County parks system and the DENISON MAGAZINE

gisela goppel

Ken Luchs, 85, of Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, July 29, 2023. A fourth-generation Washingtonian, Luchs was born to a prominent local real estate family and spent his entire career in the industry. His grandfather, Morton J. Luchs, founded the Shannon and Luchs real estate firm in 1906. At its peak, Shannon and Luchs employed nearly 3,000 real estate agents; the company’s green, black, and white forsale signs were a staple of the local real estate scene. Luchs graduated from Wilson High School in 1956, reporting on the school’s sports teams for The Washington Post, a gig that paid $5 per game. At Denison, he played lacrosse and was a member of Beta Theta Pi. He enjoyed spending time with his family at Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, and Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. Luchs is survived by his wife of 52 years, Susan; his children, Jay Luchs and Julie Smigel (Stephen); two grandchildren; a sister, Joan LeBaue (Samuel); sisterin-law, Penelope Suritz; two nieces and a nephew.

Ken Loats

PRO FE S S O R E M E R IT U S , B I O LO GY

I N MEMO RIAM

Emeritus biology professor Ken Loats, who grew up in the farmlands of Iowa, where he developed a love for the outdoors and natural sciences, died on June 1, 2023, at age 87.

Loats taught at Denison for 31 years until he retired in 1999. Whether in the classroom or in his free time, he was under nature’s spell.

One of his sons, Stephen, recalls Loats routinely stopping the car along the roadside to collect algae samples. A resident of Granville, Loats lived across the street from Denison’s Biological Reserve. Former colleagues vividly remember seeing the professor hand in hand with a grandchild on nature walks.

Loats was eager to share his knowledge of biology with Denison students and worked hard to ensure they grasped the material.

“If you couldn’t learn botany or plant science from Ken, it meant you were either not awake or not capable of learning,” emeritus biology professor Ken Klatt says. “He wasn’t a flashy teacher, but he cared very deeply about his students.”

Loats taught a course in algae and fungi that was popular in part because of its field trips to wineries, breweries, and ice cream parlors.

“Students loved that class,” says former biology and genetics professor Eric Liebl. “Ken would take them for ice cream because carrageenan is an additive found in ice cream that comes from red seaweed.”

His students found him highly approachable. He dispensed wisdom in a “grandfatherly” manner, biology professor Warren Hauk says.

Loats included his family in sabbaticals, taking them to Tucson, Arizona, and Carmel-By-The-Sea, California. He also enjoyed visiting national parks with his wife, Marcy, and children, Stephen, Jim, and Sarah.

Raised on a farm in Belmond, Iowa, Loats graduated from Central College in Pella, Iowa, in 1958. He spent three years in the U.S. Army before earning his master’s degree from the University of Iowa and his Ph.D. from Ohio State University.

A lifelong Hawkeyes fan, Loats loved to compete, whether it was playing poker with fellow faculty or any number of sports. His fellow colleagues remember his prowess on the golf course, basketball court, and softball diamond.

“Ken was an astounding athlete,” says emeritus biology professor Tom Schultz. “He was a phenomenal hitter in softball, and even as he got older his power didn’t diminish.”

Loats is survived by two children and four grandchildren.

“My father loved his job,” Stephen Loats says. “He took pride in being part of Denison, and in his interactions with his students.”

– TOM REED

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Overfield School summer camp. Many young people will remember him as “Asteroid Alex.” He was preceded in death by a brother, Stephan Hamilton. He is survived by his wife, Deb; sister, Jean (Grant); daughter, Leigh (Jim); son, Adam (Jaime); stepdaughter, Abbey; stepson; six grandchildren; and extended family.

Nancy Draper Jeffrey, 82, of Chagrin Falls, Ohio, and Jupiter, Florida, June 6, 2023. At Denison, she was a member of Delta Gamma. After a brief career in physical therapy, she decided to devote her time to raising her family.

She had a hand in arranging flowers for many charity benefits and will be remembered for her annual Christmas Eve parties. She is survived by her husband of over 60 years, Ed Jeffery ’62; daughters, Loraine Jeffery ’87 (Todd Clark), Margaret Newman (Raymond), and Jennifer Ricciardelli ’92 (Michael); five grandchildren; sister, Deborah Draper Burgess ’65; and sister-in-law, Ann McKnight.

Sue Shelly Jewell, 82, of Concord, Massachusetts, Aug. 24, 2023. She obtained her degree in history at Denison and was a member of Delta Gamma. She then attended Katharine Gibbs School and became a secretary in Boston’s financial district. She met and married Pliny Jewell III of Concord in 1967 and lived there until 1980, when they moved to their beloved farmhouse, Red Gate Farm. The couple ran a landscape architecture and contracting company, and Jewell loved everything to do with gardens, especially digging in her own at Red Gate Farm and at their summer home at the Ausable Club in Keene Valley, New York. She was preceded in death by a sister, MaryAnn Ballard. She is survived by her husband; daughter, Abigail Jewell (Dave Donati); stepdaughter, Lucinda Jewell; stepson, Pliny Jewell IV (Ruth); and six grandchildren.

Liz Kieffer Kidwell, 83, of Turlock, California, May 7, 2023. As a girl, Kidwell took lessons with renowned Chicago violinist and composer George Perlman, fostering a lifelong appreciation of music. She played for LeRoy Wetzel, a revered organist and composer at the First Methodist Church of Evanston, and graduated from high school with a scholarship to study in France at Fontainebleau with premier music teacher Nadia Boulanger. She filled a chair with the Columbus Symphony while enrolled at Denison, where she was a member of Alpha Phi. After college she played with the Peninsula Symphony in California. After marrying and starting a family, she began performing regularly with the Modesto, Stockton, and Merced symphonies and the Fresno Philharmonic. Kidwell is survived by Wayne, her husband of 58 years; children, Christine (John) and Douglas (Bonnie); and four grandchildren.

1963

Annemarie Rueter Bales, 81, of Winnetka, Illinois, Dec. 23, 2022. A cellular biologist, Bales enjoyed a career at Abbott Laboratories that spanned 35

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years and included work on the rotavirus vaccine and cell culture experiments sent into space. Her study of life at the cellular level was a source of great wonder and a reinforcement of her faith. She married Edward Delano Bales in 1976, and her ability to balance her passion for science with her family responsibilities served as an inspiration for her daughters and their childhood friends. At Denison, she was a member of Kappa Alpha Theta. Bales is survived by her daughters, Charlotte Bales Gosselin (Travis) and Caroline Bales (Maciek); three grandchildren; and her sisters, Melanie Newbill and Karen Nagel Kamp.

Rodge Bickerstaff, 82, of Bellevue, Nebraska, March 15, 2023. Bickerstaff spent 12 years as an officer in the U.S. Air Force and later worked as a developer. An avid skier, he also worked as manager of a ski resort. He took up the hobby of woodturning in retirement and made over 2,000 pens, along with many bowls, vases, and other objects. He was preceded in death by his brother, Glenn A. Bickerstaff Jr.; brothers-in-law John T. and Nicholas Lavenz; and sistersin-law Rebecca Lavenz and Mary A. Wirtz. He is survived by his wife of 35 years, Kathleen (Kathie); stepdaughter, Angela Larsen; stepson, Pete Miller; step-grandsons, Cole Larsen and Jack Larsen; brothers-in-law Richard Lavenz, Robert Lavenz, and Lawrence Lavenz; and extended family.

Thomas “Ferns” Fernley III, 81, of Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, March 27, 2023. He is survived by his wife, Sarah Fernley. At Denison, he was a member of Beta Theta Pi. Ferguson Jansen Jr., 83, of West Simsbury, Connecticut, May 31, 2023. At Denison, he was a member of Phi Gamma Delta. While studying at Cornell University’s hotel school, he and friends opened The Boxcar restaurant, and he often joked that he missed Woodstock because he had to cover for the staff who attended the legendary music festival.

After moving to Connecticut, he and partners opened The Last National Bank Restaurant. He had a strong sense of civic responsibility and was known as the unofficial mayor of Simsbury. He is survived by his wife of 43 years, Linda; daughters, Sara Pierce (Mark), Emily Safino (Patrick), and Caroline Horvat (Steven); eight grandchildren; and cherished others.

Judy Baker Peyton, 81, of Washburn, Wisconsin, April 24, 2023. Peyton discovered a love for nature as a child while beachcombing and exploring the tide pools of Corona Del Mar, California. She studied biology and psychology at Denison, where she was a member of Kappa Alpha Theta. She became a teacher in Chicago, where she met and married newspaper editor and environmental writer Thomas Edwards. She was ahead of her time when it came to environmental causes such as prairie restoration, and she led a Nature Experience Camp at Izaak Walton Lake for many years. In 1982, she married Michael Peyton, and the two built a rustic home of recycled barn wood on a bluff

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of the Mackinaw River near Bloomington, Illinois. In 1994, they relocated to an old hunting cabin between the Sioux and Onion Rivers in Wisconsin, converting the property into an off-the-grid homestead. Peyton became a professor of education at Northland College, a position she held for 11 years. She created the educational nonprofit A Natural Branch of Learning, which connected hundreds of children and parents to learning and nature. She was preceded in death by her sister, Susan Baker, and an infant son, Tasha.

She is survived by her husband, Michael; four children, Taurawa Edwards, Roth Edwards, Shalon Edwards, and Rosha Edwards; stepchildren, Shawn Peyton and Shannon Slade; and a sister, Catherine Baker.

Bob Slivka, 81, of New Brunswick, New Jersey, July 18, 2023. Slivka was the founder and president of Management and Evaluation Associates, Inc. for over 45 years. At Denison, he was a member of the American Commons Club.

He served as vice chairperson of the New Brunswick Historical Association and was a member of the New Brunswick Library Foundation. Surviving are his wife, Mary Beth Law Slivka, and his brother, Ronald T. Slivka (Marilyn).

Charlie Wilkinson, 81, of Boulder, Colorado, June 6, 2023.

Wilkinson was a law professor at the University of Colorado and a trailblazer in Native American and Western lands and water law. A devoted Brooklyn Dodgers fan, the young Wilkinson was inspired by Jackie Robinson’s pursuit of racial justice. After graduating from Denison, where he was a member of Sigma Chi, he followed the Dodgers to California, where he entered Stanford Law School. There, while fly fishing in California’s high-mountain streams, Wilkinson fell in love with the American West. He joined an Arizona law firm with a robust record of pro bono work, but his life changed forever when he accepted a job at the Native American Rights Fund in Boulder in 1971. Wilkinson fought to improve education on the Navajo reservation, restored the tribal status of the Menominee Nation and the Siletz Tribes, and advocated on behalf of the Nez Perce Tribe for the removal of Snake River dams. In 2013, the University of Colorado honored Wilkinson and fund co-founder, David Getches, by establishing the Getches-Wilkinson Center for Natural Resources, Energy and the Environment. Wilkinson received top teaching awards from the universities of Oregon, Colorado, and Michigan, and authored 15 books. He was instrumental in establishing the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in 1996 and the Bears Ears National Monument in 2016. His passion for Indian law never waned. He devoted his last years to a book covering the Boldt Decision, a seminal 1974 case affirming tribal fishing rights in Washington State.

Wilkinson is survived by his wife, Ann; his sons, Seth, Philip, David, and Ben; his daughters-in-law, Zahraa and Samantha; and four grandchildren.

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1964

Judy Armstrong Danley, 80, of Cincinnati, April 3, 2023. She was preceded in death by her husband of 56 years, David G. Danley, and is survived by children Kristin Jarvie (Mike) and Cheryl Hennessy (Rick); four grandchildren; a sister, Linda (Dale) Pirie; two nephews; and many other family members and friends.

Bob Knuti, 80, of Chicago, July 28, 2023. A lifelong Chicagoan and athlete, Knuti was captain of Denison’s football team and a member of Beta Theta Pi. He joined the Peace Corps in 1964 and served two years in Ecuador, an experience he credited with changing his life and spawning his deep-seated belief in the value of cultural exchange. He then attended the University of Illinois Law School, where he met his wife of 52 years, Carole Payne. Knuti worked as a trial and appellate lawyer for 36 years, focusing on business litigation as a partner of Lord Bissell & Brook, specializing in transatlantic reinsurance arbitration. In his retirement, he rekindled his love of the Spanish language and Hispanic cultures. He took many classes at Instituto Cervantes, taught English to newly arrived immigrants, and spent time in Mexico and Guatemala. He is survived by his daughter, Ellen Gelman (Alex); son, Matthew (Charlie Ellman); sister, Mary Ellen; brother, David (Sigrid); five siblings-in-law; many nieces and nephews; and beloved relatives from Finland to Brazil.

1965

Mary Lee Eigensee Blue, 79, of Florence, Alabama, Aug. 30, 2023. Blue was raised in Upper Arlington, Ohio, attended Denison, and graduated from Ohio State University. She was a competitive swimmer in high school and college and a member of Alpha Omicron Pi. She taught secondary high school science in New York, New Jersey, and Ohio, last serving as the department chair of the Groveport High School science department. She married Richard N. Blue in 1967. Surviving are their children, Brian Blue, Dennis Blue (Carissa), and Tina Wardlaw (Kevin); and four grandchildren. She was preceded in death by a brother, James T. Eigensee.

Cap Witzler, 79, of Littleton, Colorado, July 24, 2023.

He was given the nickname “Cap” and “Cappy” because he shared the name Captain with his father. At Denison, he earned a degree in physics and was a member of the American Commons Club. He also met his future wife, Suzanne “Suzy” Alberta Iliff ’65. After graduation, he entered pilot training in the U.S. Air Force at Webb AFB, Big Spring, Texas. He graduated from pilot training in 1966 with an assignment to KC-135 school and was later promoted to captain. He left active duty in 1970, and from 1970-73 flew C-124s out of Tinker Air Force Base and worked as an air traffic controller. He later joined the IRS. He is survived by his wife; sisters, Debra Witzler and Melissa Stone (George); niece, Emily Bonney DENISONMAGAZINE.COM

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(Kurt); and nephews, Cameron Stone (Tammy), Jason Purdy (Casey), and Tyler Stone (JaNae).

Bob Young, 79, of Johns Island, South Carolina, March 21, 2023. At Denison, he was a member of Sigma Chi. He was an accomplished traveler and lover of dogs, including his springer spaniel, Albert, his last and best canine companion. Young was preceded in death by his wife of 47 years, Deborah Young; brother, Fred Young; and Albert and many other dogs. He is survived by his wife, Nan Halbach-Merz; sons, Andrew Young (Jonathan Van Meter) and Matthew Young (Betsy); four grandchildren; lifetime friend, Merrily Smith; adopted son, Joe Compton; and adopted daughters, Jennifer and Kelly King.

1966

Connie Barsky, 78, of Granville, Ohio, Aug. 12, 2023. At Denison, she majored in chemistry and was a member of Alpha Chi Omega. She met her husband at Washington University in St. Louis while enrolled in the Ph.D. program for geochemistry. She began her career as a research associate in the geology department at the University of Missouri at Columbia and later worked at the Owens-Corning Fiberglass Technical Center in Granville. She joined the chemistry department at Ohio State University in 1986 and moved to the physics department after five years, where she collaborated for 21 years with Nobel laureate Ken Wilson. Later she worked at the Ohio Department of Education, retiring after four years. Barsky and her husband restored a grand old Victorian house, Granville’s George T. Jones Historic Home, which they operated as a bed and breakfast for Denison visitors for 29 years. She was president of Denison’s alumni society for several years and sat on the Denison University Research Foundation, where she helped direct funds for faculty research programs. She was on the village council of Granville for 12 years, four of which were spent as vice mayor. She is survived by her husband of 48 years, Steven Katz.

Mort Cook, 80, of Camarillo, California, April 27, 2023.

At Denison, he was a member of Beta Theta Pi. Pete Hummer, 79, of Alexandria Bay, New York, April 25, 2023. At Denison, he was a member of the American Commons Club. Hummer served as a U.S. Army medic in Vietnam from March 1968 until March 1971.

He moved to Alexandria Bay in the early 1970s, where he worked as a dedicated primary care provider until his retirement. He was especially fond of the post-andbeam house he had built on the 50 acres he shared with his wife of 41 years. He was preceded in death by a sister-in-law, Deborah K. Niles. He is survived by his wife, Denise Ray LaLonde; three children, Dr. Kristina K. Hummer, Sean Hummer (Kyleigh), and Denise F.

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LaLonde-Paul; seven grandchildren; siblings, Patricia Pitts (Alfred), Wendy Klinkner (Jerry), Leslie Lahue (Alan), and Scott Hummer (Rhonda); and several nieces and nephews.

Joe Kaufman, 76, Olmsted Falls, Ohio, July 28, 2020.

At Denison, he was a member of Delta Upsilon. He was preceded in death by a sister, Mary Jo Gurchik. He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Marcia; children, Lucy J. McGrath (Greg) and Eric P. Kaufman (Lisa); five grandchildren; and siblings, Georgann Latham and Jean Ann Kaufman-Robinson.

Terry Kelley, 80, of Waimanalo, Hawaii, Oct. 4, 2022. At Denison, he was a member of Beta Theta Pi.

1967

Anne Hall Brodginski, 78, of Ridgefield, Connecticut, Aug. 3, 2023. At Denison, she was a member of Alpha Kappa Theta.

Mary Ann O’Mara Rybak, 79, of Toano, Virginia, March 31, 2023. Rybak was an avid and accomplished swimmer in high school, often competing at the state level. At Denison, she was a member of Delta Gamma. She began her career at IBM training customers and met her husband there. She was preceded in death by a daughter, Heather. She is survived by her husband of 54 years, Walter; daughter Holly; son, Paul (Maggie); and two grandsons.

Brad Schooley, 77, of Indianapolis, March 25, 2023. At Denison, he was a member of Sigma Chi. After graduation, he married his high school sweetheart and enrolled in graduate school at Michigan State University. He then returned to his high school, Culver Military Academy, to teach economics and history. He also served as a guidance counselor and JV football coach. He went on to law school in Indianapolis and practiced law until his retirement in 2010. He loved the Canadian wilderness and all it offered: fishing for walleye and lake trout, shore lunches on Girl Scout Island, and eagle watching with his family and friends. He planned his trips all year long and looked forward to every summer at the family’s cabin on Sturgeon Lake, Ontario. Schooley was preceded in death by a brother, Thomas Malter Schooley Jr. He is survived by his wife of 56 years, Elizabeth “Libby” Hubbard Schooley; son, Bradley Thomas Schooley (Karin); daughter, Kathryn Elizabeth Fair; and four grandchildren.

1968

Nancy Hall Cerny, 77, of Mayfield Heights, Ohio, July 26, 2023. At Denison, she was a member of Alpha Omicron Pi. Cerny worked for 35 years at Maple Heights Schools as a teacher and vocational director. After retirement, she raised puppies for Guiding Eyes for the Blind. She is survived by her husband of 55 years, Robert

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Cerny; son, Robert Cerny (Pamela); a granddaughter; brother, John A. Hall Jr.; and many nieces and nephews.

Susie Edens Musselman, 76, of Lexington, North Carolina, July 11, 2023. At Denison, she was a member of Delta Delta Delta. Musselman was a teacher at Kiski Area High School until her retirement in 2007. She was an advisor for the senior class and drama club and was named Teacher of the Year in 1989. After retirement, she continued to work at the local hardware store and subbed in the school district for years. She is survived by her son, Gavin Pratt (Julie); two daughters, Lucy Ott (Patrick) and Lauren Musselman; nine grandchildren; her brother, Walter “Sandy” Edens (Diane); and sister, Joanne Theon (John).

1969

Henry “Sandy” Ingraham, 76, of Montpelier, Vermont, March 11, 2023. Ingraham grew up on Long Island’s North Shore, where he roved the woods and fields, played ice hockey on local ponds, and rode bareback on his pony, Red. At Denison, he was a member of Phi Delta Theta. He received his master’s degree in English from the University of Chicago and taught for a year in an elementary school in the Windy City. He then traveled through Europe on a Triumph motorcycle and worked on a sheep farm in Scotland before making his way to Vermont. He was drawn to farm life and in the early 1980s lived in Alburgh, where he worked on a small dairy farm for room and board and taught at a two-room schoolhouse. After two years, he decided he needed a better way to make a living and attended McGill University in Montréal, Québec, where he received a master’s degree in business. He accepted a job teaching at Lyndon State College in 1983 and moved to the Northeast Kingdom. In 1985, he met Amy Ehrlich, newly arrived from Brooklyn with her 11-year-old son, Joss. After a whirlwind courtship, they married and bought a hill farm in Barnet. Ingraham raised Holstein heifers and did chores twice a day while working at Lyndon State. Every morning in the summer he dove into the farm pond, then worked outside until dark, cutting hay, fixing fences, and moving cows from pasture to pasture with a series of beloved dogs.

He also found time to pursue his deep interest in improving the quality of life for animals. When he read about the Aqua Cow Rise system, a water tank invented by a Danish farmer for floating downed cows that lifted them without clamps or chains, he took on its manufacture and distribution in the United States. In just a few years, almost every veterinary school in the country was using the Aqua Cow system. In addition to his wife, Amy, Ingraham is survived by his stepson, Joss Williams (Jennie); three grandsons; siblings Mike (Sally), Steve (Sheila), Rob (June), and Polly (Rob Hirschfeld); and many relatives and friends.

1970

Deborah Brichford Cook, 75, of Naples, Florida, Aug. 16, 2023. Cook spent her career as a paralegal DENISON MAGAZINE

in the greater Los Angeles area, in the state she felt happiest.

She was headstrong and tenacious; her final fight against cancer was her second go-around with the disease. She is survived by her sisters, Sandra Ann Brichford and Barbara Ann Brichford; two nieces; and “pseudo-son” Craig Masaki.

Linda Koerner Woodworth, 75, of Albuquerque, New Mexico, July 16, 2023. At Denison, she was a member of Alpha Chi Omega and met her husband, Joseph Woodworth ’69, during an art appreciation class. She was an actuary, an economist, a teacher to pregnant and parenting teens at New Futures School, and a volunteer AARP tax preparer. She ran the family budget for decades and balanced her checkbooks to the penny. She is survived by her husband; daughter, Sharon (James); siblings, Paul, Lee, and Vicki; numerous relatives; and generations of students.

1971

Howard Wilson, 74, of Kingsbury, Texas, Aug. 9, 2023. At Denison, he was a member of Phi Gamma Delta. Wilson went to medical school at the University of Cincinnati for four years and continued his training in internal medicine and endocrinology at Baylor College of Medicine for the next five years. He taught at Baylor for 20 years while maintaining a private practice and retired in June 2017 to a life of watching cows, reading books, and being bored. That lasted about eight months, when he went back to work as a country doctor in an outpatient clinic in Luling, Texas. He was preceded in death by a sister, Ann Wilson Schneider, and sister-in-law, Frances Hartenstein Finch. He is survived by his wife, Margaret “Suzy” Wilson; daughters, Shannon Underwood (Joe) and Lauren Fowler; three grandchildren; and other family and friends.

David Wurst, 74, of Jefferson City, Missouri, March 20, 2023. At Denison, he was a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon.

Wurst worked as a professional theater performer for years before beginning a career as a bankruptcy agent and trustee.

He retained a deep appreciation for the arts. He was a musician and a book collector, and by extension a book-giver. In 2010, he converted to the Roman Catholic faith and threw himself into church service. He is survived by his wife of 45 years, Taube Wurst; daughters, Aimee Busalacki and Megan Wurst; a granddaughter; and a half-sister, Amy Poirrier.

1972

Barry Wilson, 73, of Bay Village, Ohio, Aug. 18, 2023. At Denison, he was a member of Kappa Sigma and earned the nickname Host. After college, he turned a passion for sailing into the building and international racing of sailboats. After settling down to raise a family, he coached youth hockey, basketball, baseball, soccer, and sailing, and he volunteered as chair of the Cleveland Yachting Club’s sailing camp. Wilson is preceded in death by a sister, Jane.

He is survived by his wife of 47 years, Patricia; sons, Bart and Wes; brother, Lee Wilson; and sister, Susan Wilson.

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Susie Egbert Young, 73, of Jaspers Brush, Australia, April 13, 2023. Young is survived by her partner, David; children, Nicole and Jessica; three grandchildren; and sisters, Karen, Lisa, and Gwen.

Tom Harry, 70, of Mashpee, Massachusetts, May 5, 2023.

He is survived by his daughter, Sophie Jean Harry, and his best friend, Gretchen C. Harry (Oehme). He was the brother of Timothy Harry and uncle of Chelsea and Ryan Harry.

Jane Duffield, 71, of Pittsburgh, March 21, 2023. At Denison, she was a member of Alpha Omicron Pi. Duffield was the director of the news bureau for the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center for 30 years, serving as its chief spokesperson and crisis communications manager.

She retired at 55 to pursue a lifelong interest in theology and social justice, enrolling in Union Theological Seminary in New York City and eventually serving as a minister in the Presbyterian church. She is survived by her sister, Nancy Vernon (Rick), her nephews, and other family.

Mike Krumholtz, 69, of Timnath, Colorado, April 20, 2023. At Denison, he was a member of Kappa Sigma. He went to law school at the University of Cincinnati and joined the Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office for two years. After becoming a partner in a private firm, Krumholtz served as a Montgomery County Common Pleas Court judge. He also was a past president of the Dayton Bar Association. He is survived by his wife, Janis; three children, Matthew (Christopher), Katie (Jacob), and Michael Jr. (Jacqueline); two grandchildren; and five siblings, Rick (Elena), Karen (P.G), Jack (Philip), Kevin (Stephanie), and Betsy (Phil).

& 1973 Obituaries 1972–1994

Connie Kindle, 71, of Denver, May 5, 2023. At Denison, she was a member of Kappa Alpha Theta.

1974

Corliss Primavera, 71, of Harwich, Massachusetts, July 22, 2023. Primavera spent 30 years as a paralegal and in other roles with the enforcement division of the Securities and Exchange Commission. She was an avid painter, a cat lover, and a European traveler. She was particularly proud of her Nickerson lineage and lived on property that had been in the family since the 1600s. She is survived by her brother, Gary Primavera (Christine), and two nieces.

1976 HOLLY SMITH FRENCH , 68, of Glen Ellyn, Illinois, July 26, 2023. At Denison, she was a member of Delta Delta Delta. Following graduation, she joined the Hartford National Bank, where she worked in the trust department settling estates. She spent 23 years working with the Junior League of Chicago, ultimately becoming the executive vice president in a group numbering over 2,000 women. She was honored by the Junior League of Chicago with a lifetime achievement award in 1999 and was praised for her work ethic and friendly approach. She also volunteered for 35 years at Marianjoy Rehabilitation Hospital in Wheaton, Illinois, and was president of the Marianjoy Auxiliary Board eight different times.

She helped organize an annual “Santa Believers” party, which she hosted for over 30 years. An athlete herself, she followed all major sports and every minute of the Olympics. Her family built a cabin in Vermont in the 1950s, which sparked her lifelong love of winter sports. With family, she traveled to nearly all 50 states and over 43 countries. She is survived by her husband, T. Bondurant “Bon” French; two children, Katheryn Meagher (Charles) and Taylor French (Courtney Hindo); two grandchildren; three sisters, Susie Gallagher, Mary Lee Dunn, and Annie Domeshek, and their families; and her husband’s extended family.

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1977

Curtiss Buell, 68, of Irvington, New York, May 12, 2023. At Denison, Curtiss majored in political science and studio art. He went on to Pace Law School and worked as a lawyer until his retirement. He was preceded in death by his wife, Michele Mattera Buell. He is survived by his only child, Courtney Buell.

Michelle Berry Szoliosi, 67, of Boynton Beach, Florida, Jan. 22, 2023. At Denison, she was a member of Delta Delta Delta. She and her husband both retired from the U.S. Postal Service in Florida. She loved travel, the University of Michigan Wolverines, golf, and Star Trek. She had a quick wit and penchant for goofy faces and gestures. She is survived by her husband, Denny; sisters, Lynne Frame and Holly Weber; brother, Bill Berry; and other loving family members.

1978

Wendy Phoenix, 66, of Sacramento, California, Feb. 25, 2023. At Denison, she was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma and Speaker of the Senate. She is survived by her husband, David Asch, and daughters, Emma Phoenix ’23 and Morgan Phoenix ’17.

1982

Kelly Kimball, 62, of New York City, June 30, 2023. At Denison, Kimball was a member of Kappa Alpha Theta and a theatre major. She studied Shakespeare at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London. She founded Kimball Studio in 1994 and became a known and respected film and television acting teacher in New York City. She saw beauty in the deep well of human experience — in all its moods and colors — and she imparted the courage necessary to share one’s authentic self with the world. She lived nine years with leiomyosarcoma, a rare and difficult cancer with few treatment options. She and her friend and business partner, Janine

#DENISONPROUD ISSUE 1 2024

DiTullio, worked with researchers to further research the disease and develop novel therapies. In addition to DiTullio, she is survived by many other dear friends; her mother, Karen Danielson; stepmother, Linda Kimball; siblings, Jeff Kimball (Dani) and Kristin Kimball (Mark); four nieces; a nephew; and stepsisters, Lori Shannon, Phyllis Danielson, Kara Dillon.

1984

Lynn Beran Ueltschi, 55, of Cincinnati, Nov. 30, 2017. At Denison, she was a member of Kappa Alpha Theta. She is survived by her children, Alexandra, Andrew, and Olivia.

1985

Cindy Winkle Taylor, 60, of Worthington, Ohio, April 9, 2023. After graduating from Denison, she attended Capital University Law School and worked for the Tenth District Court of Appeals and the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio before starting with the Franklin County Prosecutor’s Office. She spent more than 30 years there, serving as director of the Drug Prosecution Unit for more than 20 years. In the late 1990s, she served as a special assistant U.S. attorney who prosecuted a major drug-trafficking operation in Columbus. She retired in early 2021 and became a senior assistant attorney general in the Worker’s Compensation section. She was preceded in death by a brother, Derry. She is survived by her husband, Steve, whom she met in 1988 at the Court of Appeals; children, Becca, Derek, and Jake; brother, Eric Winkle; and a niece.

1986

Karla Thornhill Coleman, 59, of Columbus, Ohio, May 5, 2023. A native of Columbus, Coleman was a cheerleader, star student, and member of the homecoming court at Father Wehrle High School, where she turned heads with her classic green Mustang and embroidered jean jackets. She attended Denison before going on to graduate from Ohio State University. She worked as a journalist, ghostwriter, editor, and public relations specialist before founding Thornhill Communications. Coleman served as a board member for the Global Infant Safe Sleep Center and Baby First Network. She spent her last weeks enjoying the luxuries of Paris, relaxing massages, fellowshipping with the women of New Salem Missionary Baptist Church, dancing, laughing, and loving life. She is survived by her children, Sydnie Coleman Morales (Jonathan) and Trevor W. Coleman II; a sister, Tonya Thornhill Smith (Darrel); and numerous other friends and family.

Glynis Hawke, 58, of Southport, North Carolina, April 20, 2022. She is survived by her sister, Melissa Hawke Faherty ’80 (William), and their family.

1988

Chris Cheney, 61, of West Newbury, Massachusetts, April 19, 2023. At Denison, he was a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon. People would say Cheney had the biggest heart, and if animals could talk, they would have their stories, too — like when he stopped traffic to help a tortoise cross the road. He was a born entrepreneur and salesman, with one patent to his name and many other ideas in the works. He took joy in driving his tractors, working the land, and restoring his 1772 home. He is survived by his wife, Karen Diombala Cheney; children, Brittany Cheney and Noah Cheney; brothers, William Cheney and Charles Cheney; sister, Laura Cheney Heins; the mother of his children, Cynthia Clark; and many aunts, uncles, and cousins.

1991

Lisabeth Mohlere Harris, 54, of Oyster Bay, New York, August 4, 2023. At Denison, she was a member of Alpha Kappa Theta and majored in French.

Her passion for French culture led her to study at the Sorbonne in Paris. Harris began her career at Ralph Lauren, working first in human resources and later as a buyer for the antiques department. Her love of France led her to earn her master’s degree in education, and she went on to teach French at Laguardia High School of the Performing Arts in Manhattan. Harris spent every summer on Shelter Island, where she forged lifelong friendships and a love of sailing.

Harris is survived by her husband, Derek Harris; children, Luke and India; sisters, Lee Mohlere and Gretchen Brown (Ethan); and other family and friends.

1994

Mike Millar, 51, of Kalamazoo, Michigan, July 31, 2023. As a high school athlete in Tiffin, Ohio, Millar lettered in soccer and wrestling, and was captain of the soccer team and a two-time MVP. He was just as much an artist, writing poetry and short stories and singing in school groups. During the summers, he worked as an interpreter for migrant workers who found themselves in the local courts. At Denison, Millar majored in Spanish and education. He spent a year abroad in Spain and received a Ph.D. from the University of Michigan. He taught at Western Michigan University in the Spanish department until his death. While a professor there, he started a service-learning program where students worked with community organizations, and a study-abroad program in Costa Rica.

He also brought to campus and entertained Nobel Peace Prize winners. He was an avid fly fisherman and in December 2022 fulfilled a lifelong dream of catching a marlin. He is survived by two children, Marysol Millar and Keenan Millar; parents, John and Joyce Millar; brother, Stephen Millar (Kim); a nephew and niece; former wife, Katherine Millar; and many others.

Wayne Talbert, 58, of Baltimore, Maryland.

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& Obituaries 2 003 –2 02 2

2003

Joshua Jirgens, 42, of Lewis Center, Ohio, July 27, 2023. Jirgens joined the U.S. Army after Denison and served two tours in Iraq. He was extremely competitive regardless of the game being played, and occasionally controversial when he changed the rules halfway through. He loved Booths Tavern trivia night and knew all the state capitals. He received his MBA from Pennsylvania State University. He is survived by his mother, Suzy Jirgens, brother, Zachary (Meaghan); a niece and nephew; and best friend, Maggie O’Linn.

2009

Charles “Chick” Byrne, 36, of West Roxbury, Massachusetts, Aug. 30, 2023. Byrne was an accomplished artist at the John D. O’Bryant School in Boston and was awarded a prestigious Posse Scholarship to Denison, where he earned his BFA in studio art. His art has been shown in Boston, New York, Miami, Provincetown, and elsewhere. He held a coveted position as an artist in residence at the Boston Center for the Arts. He is survived by his mother, Loretta A. Lennon; sister, Lottie Welter; niece, Etta; grandfather, James F. Lennon; and many aunts, uncles, and cousins. Byrne also is survived by his other parent, Charlene Byrne, and her family, Bob, Madelyn, and Ginger.

2011 2016

Julie Gresh, 34, of Sheffield Lake, Ohio.

Laura Van Horn, 29, of Denver, May 5, 2023.

Van Horn, who had type 1 diabetes, was a proud chairperson for the JDRF youth ambassador program. She was a lacrosse coach and middle school math teacher. When not in the classroom or on the sidelines of a lacrosse game, she was usually out in nature, hiking, cross country skiing, camping, and exploring state and national parks. At Denison, she was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma. She is survived by her parents, Sue and George; older brother, Sam (Jess); twin sister, Allison; and numerous aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends.

2022

Alyssa Zino, 22, of Huntington Woods, Michigan, Feb. 26, 2022. Zino was a senior at Kalamazoo College, studying anthropology, Spanish, and environmental studies. She had just completed a term at the American University in Rome, where she made many new friends and traveled throughout Europe. Zino was an enthusiastic traveler and had visited China, Iceland, Africa, Costa Rica, and Alaska, the last with her beloved Camp Hayowentha.

She was passionate about social justice, had completed an internship with the Michigan Immigrant Rights Center, and was working for We the People Michigan at the time of her death. She loved yoga, coffee, pomegranates, ice cream, and wiener dogs. She is survived by her sister, Francesca Zino; her parents; and many relatives and friends.

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Friends

Jerry Datz, 61, of Granville, Ohio, March 14, 2023. Datz was a past member of the Granville Public Library Board of Trustees, treasurer for the Licking County Humane Society, and treasurer of the Granville Athletic Boosters. Born in Dayton, Ohio, he was a graduate of Miami University and a proud member of Phi Gamma Delta.

He earned his MBA from Ohio State University and moved to Granville with his wife and children. He was employed as the CFO of The Golf Works for several years. He is survived by his wife, Brooke Barton Datz; children, James Datz (Abigail) and Hannah Hughes (Langston); brother, Stephen Datz (Dana); sister, Pamela Madden (Patrick); stepmother, Frances Datz; and several nieces, nephews, and cousins. A special place in his heart always belonged to the Robert and Elaine Gran family, who considered him their ninth child.

He was preceded in death by a sister-in-law, Beth B. Eckels.

Ruth Heintz, 91, of Caledonia, Minnesota, March 15, 2023.

After graduating with her nursing degree, she and three friends threw darts at a map to see where they should go. Heintz’s dart landed in New York, and it was there she spent the next 25 years, finishing her career at New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center. She is survived by her sister-in-law, Virginia Heintz; numerous nieces, nephews, and their families; and many dear friends. She was preceded in death by her three brothers, Leland Heintz (Marge), Glenn Heintz (Delores), and Eugene “Sam” Heintz; four sisters, Lillian Lehmann (Ed), Eunice Botcher (Raymond), Shirley Runningen (Wallace), and Lois Lemke (Lester); four nephews; and two great-nieces.

Jehane Kuhn, 82, of Lowell, Massachusetts, Jan. 26, 2021.

Raised outside of Manchester, England, Kuhn earned her degree from Cambridge University and married her first husband, Howard Burns, who became an eminent scholar of Italian Renaissance architecture. An artist and intellectual, Kuhn harbored a deep love and appreciation for Italian language, art, and history. She spent more than a decade working for renowned industrial designers Charles and Ray Eames in Venice, California, where she made substantive contributions as a writer, designer, and photographer. She married Thomas S. Kuhn and relocated to Boston, where she continued her research as an independent scholar, focusing on the development of pictorial perspective in the Renaissance. Following her husband’s death in 1996, she remained in the Boston area, with frequent trips to Italy and England, where she continued her research and maintained close friendships. She is survived by her three stepchildren, Sarah, Liza, and Nat Kuhn; eight grandchildren, one great-grandchild; and her first husband, Howard Burns.

Lanny Martin, 77, of Denver, Colorado, Sept. 1, 2023.

Martin attributed his accomplishments in life to his upbringing in Grand Island, Nebraska, as the fifth of seven children. He excelled at sports and academics in high school and attended Northwestern University. He tended bars and

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lawns, served food, drove buses, bred dogs, and coached youth sports to pay his way. He was drafted into the U.S. Army before he could finish law school, then returned to school and practiced law for a number of years in Chicago, Denver, and Washington, D.C. For 18 years, Lanny Martin served as CEO of three public companies: Titanium Metals Corporation; NL Industries, Inc., a specialty chemical producer; and Baroid Corporation, a diversified oilfield service business. Through the years he served on and led many charitable and arts boards. His unwavering dedication to philanthropy was reflected through his generosity to many organizations, including Denison. His transformative gift to the Denver Art Museum led the campaign to raise funds for the North Building revitalization and was the largest single gift in the museum’s history. He is survived by his wife, Sharon; three daughters, Mary Lester (Kent), Sarah Stettner (Andrew), and Emily Jones (Matt); nine grandchildren; three siblings, Dianne Barker (Dave), Tom Martin (Kathy), and Janet Benson; siblings-in-law Suzanne Whitmore, Bob Noah, and Vera Martin; and more than 100 extended family members who gather every year on Memorial Day for a reunion he sponsored for many years.

Steve Symes, 84, of Port Washington, Wisconsin, March 17, 2022. Symes started his career at the Bureau of Labor Statistics before joining Sundstrand Corporation, where he worked in human resources, compensation, and benefits for 34 years. He tended his gardens, cleared invasive plants, and restored native prairies. Symes was preceded in death by his wife, Sue. He is survived by his son, Scott Symes (Irene); daughter, Sandra Genovese (Mike); four grandchildren; sister, Sonja; and brothers, Robert and Phillip.

Ann Thomsen, 89, of Meredith, New Hampshire, Oct. 1, 2020. She attended George School in Newtown, Pennsylvania, where she met her future husband, Ferris “Tommy” Thomsen Jr. They married in 1954 and were partners for 58 years. Thomsen relished her role as a coach’s and camp director’s wife as the couple moved from Bethesda, Maryland, to Needham, Massachusetts, to Granville, Ohio, and then to Holderness, New Hampshire. She rode untold miles on team buses and was intimately involved in nurturing a community of athletes, campers, counselors, and their extended families.

Joyce Cooper Webb, 95, of Springfield, Illinois, March 23, 2023. She was preceded in death by her husband, Howard William Webb Jr.; son, Howard William Webb III; and brother, Ted Cooper. She is survived by two daughters, Amy Jackson (Michael) and Sarah Berry (James); four grandchildren; sister-in-law, Jayne Cooper; four great-grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews.

Former staff

community, notably for her lovely gardens full of roses and snapdragons on Orchard Drive. For many years, Davis worked at Denison, where she provided pivotal support in multiple roles, especially as head of summer conferences.

Off The Hill, she was known for her holiday parties, her devotion to family, and the homemade cookies, mainly oatmeal, that were always awaiting visitors to her home.

Davis was preceded in death by her husband of 65 years, Col. Robert Davis; son Kerry Davis; and daughter, Kristie Green.

She is survived by son Kent Davis (Jenny); five grandchildren; son-in-law, Mike Green; brother-in-law, Mike Davis; and eight great-grandchildren.

Peter Homorody, 84, of Lewis Center, Ohio, March 30, 2023. Born in Budapest, Hungary, Homorody came to the United States in 1956 to escape the Russian occupation of his country. After a brief stay at a refugee camp in Austria, he arrived in Cleveland with only the clothes on his back and soon was joined by his brother, Gabor. He attended Ohio State University and was captain of the fencing team. He left to serve in the U.S. Army and returned to receive his degree in architecture. Homorody worked at several architecture firms and retired from the Ohio Bureau of Worker’s Compensation in 2002. He spent 16 years as assistant coach for men’s and women’s tennis at Denison, where he was named Intercollegiate Tennis Association Assistant Coach of the Year in 2009. Coaches and players alike appreciated his ability to employ various swear words in an endearing yet effective way. He and his son, Jason, played tennis together throughout the years on the National Father and Son tennis circuit, which culminated in winning a “golden slam” of tournaments in California, New York, and Florida when Homorody was 80 and his son 45. Homorody is survived by his wife, Lynda; sons, Darren Homorody (Cathy Griffis) and Jason Homorody (Stephanie); three granddaughters; brother, Gabor Homorody (Hannelore); and three nephews.

Jenny Philipps Welsh, 73, of Granville, Ohio, March 31, 2023. A direct descendant of Thomas Philipps and Theophilus Rees, who settled the Welsh Hills in 1803, Welsh was a 1967 graduate of Granville High School. She worked at Denison for over 30 years in the library’s Learning Resources Center. Welsh was passionate about helping veterans and their families and was a proud member of the American Legion Auxiliary since 1989. Welsh was preceded in death by her husband of almost 49 years, James F. Welsh; two sisters, Sylvia Dee McClain and Suzanne L. Wiget; a brother, Andrew Philipps; and a brother-in-law, Jack Tatham. She is survived by two daughters, Amy E. Welsh and Jennifer “Annie” Quintrell (Michael); a granddaughter; three great-grandchildren; brother Warren C. Philipps (Cheryl); her sisters-in-law, Patricia A. Tatham and Nancy S. Dumbauld (James); and many other relatives.

Wanda Davis, 92, of Granville, Ohio, May 24, 2023. Born in Kenton, Ohio, in 1930, Davis became a well-known part of the Granville DENISON MAGAZINE

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THE LAST WORD

100+ Dave Woodyard ’54 Gill Wright Miller ’74* Jack Hire ’74 Jack Carney-DeBord ’78 Nan Carney-DeBord ’80 David Bussan ’81* Laura Frame ’83 Ginny Sharkey ’83 Ann Townsend ’85* Kim Coplin ’85 Richard Coplin ’85 Dave Watt ’85 Christine Montgomery ’87 Fred Porcheddu-Engel ’87 Catherine Dollard ’88 David Schilling ’89 Susan Stoner Leithauser ’90

98

Denison alums always have a home on The Hill. It’s just a bit closer for some. Our last word is a thank you to those who returned to their alma mater and are making it their mission to elevate our fair college through their leadership, support, and brilliance.

Sarah Hutson-Comeaux ’91 Eric Steele ’91 Michael Tangeman ’91 Mark Evans Bryan ’96 Kent Huffman ’96 Mary Lucas-Miller ’97 Jeremy King ’97 Simone Drake ’97 Ashley Vogelmeier ’98 Emily Pelphrey ’99 Jennifer Beckner Steurer ’00 Dana Grandmaison Gilligan ’02 Jason Shuba ’02 Carrie Skowronski ’03 Melanie Lott ’04 Emily Nemeth ’04 Thomas Atha ’05

Christine Buchetto-Stevens ’05 Michael Herring ’05 Christian Kuntz ’06 Tressa Riddle ’07 Jennifer Leonard ’09 Michael MacDonald ’09 Julie Tucker ’09 Amanda Ghiloni ’10 Hayes Griffin ’10 Jesse Leary Yeager ’10 Audrey Wood Hendler ’11 Owen Beamer ’12 Akeem Costa ’12 Phil Meyer ’12 Meg Huston Ulsh ’12 Lia Crosby ’13 Patrick DeMichael ’13

Gary Fleisner ’13 Taby Arthur Fogg ’14 Vincent Cullen ’14 Sam Moller ’15 Asesha Dayal ’17 Audrey E. Metzger ’17 Harrison Ponce ’18 Sam Rice ’19 Isabelle Karlik ’20 Jacob Pedelose ’20 Diamond Karki ’21 Noah Houskeeper ’22 Liam Simmons ’22 *Emeriti faculty

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BOARD OF TRUSTEES Lewis A. (Lee) Sachs ’85 (Chair), James L. Anderson ’85, George Bodenheimer ’80, Cynthia Ooten Booth ’79, Ashley Edwards Bradley ’93, Daniel J. Brickman ’80, Marcus Colwell ’84, Kathryn Correia ’79, Tim Ewing ’89, Jesse Felker ’23, Jeremy J. Flug ’83, Kristen Fitzwilliam Giarrusso ’84, James T. Glerum Jr. ’82, Lauren S. Haarlow ’90, Matthew J. Harrington ’84, Jeryl Hayes ’04, Jeffrey Johnson ’81, Richard Kienzle ’85, Suzanne B. Kriscunas ’72, Marc B. Lautenbach ’83, Eric Lindberg ’93, Douglas W. Mabie ’86, Jeffrey Masten ’86, Amy Todd Middleton ’93, William C. Mulligan ’76, Stephen Polk ’78, Abigail Pringle ’96, Vivian Quaye ’03, George V. Russell ’88, Arthur P. Steinmetz Jr. ’80, Thomas E. Szykowny ’79, G. Jackson Tankersley Jr. ’72, Gregory N. Taylor ’86, Jamie K. Thorsen ’77, Rayshon Walker ’22, Susan D. Whiting ’78 LIFE TRUSTEES Mary Jane Le Van Armacost ’62, Charles A. Brickman ’54, Walter F. Burke ’71, John A. Canning Jr. ’66, Janet Crown ’85, Mark F. Dalton ’72, Paul A. Dimitruk ’71, Michael D. Eisner ’64, John V. Faraci Jr. ’72, Martha Dunbar Hall ’81, Dana Hart ’76, Ro Nita Hawes-Saunders ’73, W August Hillenbrand, Thomas E. Hoaglin ’71, David J. Hooker ’72, Paul W. Hylbert ’66, Crystal Roberts Jezierski ’94, Charlotte Power Kessler ’65, John D. Lowenberg ’64, Sharon Smith Martin ’65, Steven P. Matteucci ’78, William T. McConnell ’55, Malcolm A. McNiven ’51, Donald B. Shackelford ’54, Gary V. Simpson ’84, John N. Taylor Jr. ’57, Joseph H. Thomas ’56, Alexander (Sandy) Thomson ’59 DENISON MAGAZINE

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