Research. CANDICE NICHOLE SLATE wed Christian Davis Covington on June 30 at Gray Auditorium, Old Salem Visitor Center, WinstonSalem. Her attendants included Jennifer Carter ’07 ’09. She is a bereavement counselor at Hospice of Davidson County in Lexington. MARY KATHARINE LARKINS WARD wed BRANDON ALBERT HARRIS ’05 ’07 on May 19 at the home of the bride. Bridesmaids included Lauren Renn Carnighan ’05, Kourtney Elise Thompson, Catherine Leigh Reilly and Elizabeth Adrienne Smith ’06. Groomsmen included Kelly Christopher Hodges ’04 and Jefferson Haigwood Lea ’04 ’06. She is a sales representative with Package Craft Box Manufacturer, Bethel, and he is a certified public accountant with Ernest and Young, Raleigh. BRAD WILLIFORD is a construction administrator for Stewart Engineering, Raleigh. 2006 APRIL PAUL BAER ’06 ’08 was named one of Maryland’s “20 in Their Twenties” Award by the Daily Record, which features Maryland’s up-and–comers who are successful by the age of 30. She is coordinator for university wellness at Frostburg State University, Frostburg, Md. KIRSTIN BUCHANAN BURGESS is an assistant women’s tennis coach at ECU. She was a four-year letterman for the Pirates from 2003-06. She posted a career singles record of 60-48 and a doubles record of 77-31. HEATHER MARIE HOLLOMAN ’06 ’08 wed BRIAN ADRIAN DAVIS ’07 on June 2 at Proctor Memorial Christian Church, Grimesland. Bridesmaids included Jessica Hendrix ’07 and Kim Holsclaw ’03 ’05. Groomsmen included John Elson ’11 and Nathan Ford ’07. She is a speech therapist with Rehab Care at Kinston Rehab and Healthcare Center. He works at ECU. MICHELLE ROYSTER is principal of Johnson Elementary School, Rocky Mount. She was principal at Cedar Grove Elementary School, Nashville. ELIZABETH RUBY HOWARD wed Pennock Stephen Ten Eyck on March 24 at Carteret Street United Methodist Church, Beaufort, S.C. Kathleen Harrell ’05 was matron of honor and Amanda Everette ’05 was a bridesmaid. She teaches dance at Lady’s Island Elementary School and Jayne Richardson’s Dance Studio. She was president of Zeta Tau Alpha at ECU. DOUGLAS SCHILLER ’06 ’08 received his doctor of osteopathic medicine degree from Lincoln Memorial University-DeBusk College of Osteopathic Medicine, Harrogate, Tenn. He received the Emergency Medicine Award, presented to an outstanding student entering the field of emergency medicine. 2005 MERRILL GRAY BRINSON wed TRAVIS ANDREW BRIGHT ’04 on April 28 at the Country Club of the Crystal Coast, Pine Knoll Shores. Maid of honor was Lindsey Wendt ’04. Matron of honor was Erica Brinson ’04, and bridesmaids included Morgan Herr ’00. Groomsmen included Will Brinson ’04 ’06. She is the cancer registry supervisor at Vidant Medical
A lumn i S po t l i g h t An email from Gary Parisher ’87 of Birmingham, Ala. Before this venture, he worked for many years in the pharmaceutical industry, which brought him in contact with families battling cancer and genetic diseases. “A little more than a year ago, we launched an internetbased specialty gift company called Cheeriodicals (cheerful + periodicals) in Birmingham, Ala. The concept—magazines and edibles delivered in a green keepsake box tailored to the tastes of the recipient—is catching on as people look for alternatives to sending flowers, fruit or candy. “While Cheeriodicals are a great cheer-up gift for anyone, they are just what the doctor ordered for hospitalized children. We partnered with Children’s Hospital of Alabama to design a Cheeriodical for various ages of children, including magazines they’d like and playthings for their hospital rooms. The product was an immediate hit with pediatric patients. Realizing that not everyone’s family could afford to purchase one, we reached out to corporate sponsors and asked them to sponsor a Cheeriodicals Day at hospitals where every child would receive a gift box. “We’ve held Cheeriodicals Days at Children’s Hospital of Alabama, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis and Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. The most recent event was at Children’s Hospital in New Orleans, where we provided a team-building event for Wells Fargo. A team of 400 employees from Wells Fargo’s Government and Institutional Banking Group assembled the Cheeriodicals and then a smaller group delivered them room by room at the hospital.” The Atlanta event was sponsored by one of Parisher’s roommates at ECU, James McKee ‘87, who is CEO of an Atlanta-based software company, M9 Solutions. In a blog post about the experience, McKee wrote: “When my college buddy and lifelong friend Gary Parisher told me about the children’s charity work his company was heading up, I knew this was a perfect opportunity for the M9 team to help in any way we could. On Aug. 6, we traveled to Atlanta’s Children Hospital at Egleston to distribute big green boxes of goodies to over 250 patients. We wanted to share the tremendous satisfaction from participating in this incredible day. Seeing the smiles on the faces of the children, parents and hospital staff was something none of us will ever forget.”
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