ALUMNI NEWS
1979
Steven Arnold Houston, Texas sda@3lmc.com Evans Attwell Houston, Texas eattwell@gmail.com Alice Berry Houston, Texas missformicadinette@yahoo.com The big news these past few months in our class was the visit of our classmate from down under, Trevor Jack, to Texas in December. Trevor kicked off his Texas tour in Austin at a shindig hosted by Johnny Sutton and attended by selected classmates who wish to remain anonymous due to the volume of alcohol consumed :-) (Class Correspondentâs note: The real story is that this class correspondent submitted these notes at the last minute and did not have time to determine Austin attendees. We would welcome Austin attendees to identify themselves and send photos for inclusion in the next issue of the alumni magazine). Trevor ended his Texas tour at a blowout celebration at Cyclone Anayaâs in Houston. Attendees (all of whom looked great) included Jim Snoddy, Bin Halverson, Chip Gordon, Ted Erck, Ellen Weingarten Wagnon, Alice Berry, Billy Byrd, Heather Mackay Tripodo, Kevin Lewis, Johnny Sutton and a special appearance by Sara Goettsche from the Class of 1980. Other than shorter hair and a few less pounds, Trevor has not changed a bit. Trevor regaled the Houston attendees with many stories of his Crocodile Dundeelike activities and exploits over the last 30+ years in Australia. Many stories were also told of Trevorâs introduction to American football during his time with us and his accomplishments on the gridiron. We were also reminded of what a renaissance man Trevor was during our senior year as he was the only student in our class that we can remember who played football and acted in several plays. The only other tidbits and sightâems this Class Correspondent has under deadline pressure is seeing John Rutherford on his way to a meeting in Three Allen Center, Charles Cooper power lunching at Ouisieâs (where else?), and one of our other Class Correspondents
doing his best John Travolta / Barry Gibb imitation at the recent Texas Childrenâs Cancer Center Disco Legends event.
1980
Marcela Chavez Houston, Texas 2marcela@email.com Shelley Osborne and Mark Vester were married last summer in Austin. They now share four wonderful children; Corey (nine) and Jack Vester (12) and Blake (25) and Paige Allen (22). Shelley and Mark have a very busy and active household. They enjoy the fact that the older girls adore the younger girls. Congratulations Shelley and Mark! Mike Ereli and his family are still managing to keep their head above water even though itâs been a busy Fall/Winter. Mikeâs daughter Nikki is a freshman at Kinkaid this year and played varsity field hockey and soccer. Between classes, games, practices, team dinners, and the âI forgot my book in my lockerâ, Mike is driving to Kinkaid more now than the years he was there as a student. Tommy, his son, is also at Kinkaid in the seventh grade. I know in spite of spending an inordinate amount of time in front of the Xbox, Wii, and every product Apple makes, he has managed to be on the high honor roll and become a pretty good tennis player. Mike is still spending a lot of time training and racing with an amateur cycling team, Toyota/ GCCA. Last year, he convinced another classmate, Ned Barnett, to join their team. He competed in the Leadville Trail 100 last year, probably the toughest single day off-road event in the world, and is already training for this yearâs edition in August. Mike ended 2011 with two state championship medals, one on the track and the other on the mountain bike. This year, he was moved up to the 50+ category, and was able to get two wins in his first two road races. Congratulations to our mighty Falcon. He is looking forward to some more podium finishes now that he doesnât have to compete against those youngsters. Mikeâs highlight of a very restful, staycation in Houston over the past Christmas break was having dinner with his old friend Dan Seely and his family. They were in town from the Seattle area and they were able to catch up after many years of not seeing one another. It still amazes Mike how none of us have changed!
KINKAID ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT
Jason Creech â96 TELL US ABOUT YOUR CURRENT EVENTS (FAMILY, HOBBIES, ETC).: I live in San Francisco where I love running my business, Five Mountains, an organic tea company. You really get to experience the best of both worlds: on the one hand, you're negotiating with tea plantations in a foreign land who have been in the global tea trade for hundreds of years, and on the other, you get to experience the classic American entrepreneurial thrill of making the deal with some of the country's most prestigious fine dining establishments. It's pretty unique. WHAT IMPACTED YOU THE MOST DURING YOUR INTERIM TERM EXPERIENCE AT KINKAID? Interim Term for me was somewhat unconventional. While my friends were mostly all preparing for their exciting travel experiences, I found myself preparing for something very different, and nevertheless, just as impactful and unforgettable. Interim Term just so happened to overlap with the most critical period for serious competitors on the wrestling team. As we moved towards the end of the season and the State Championship qualifying tournaments grew closer, this time was the last opportunity to polish your technique, achieve optimum conditioning, and sharpen your mental edge. Coach Steve Leisz worked tirelessly with me one on one every morning before class, every afternoon, and throughout every weekend, continuously pushing me to believe I could be a real Texas State wrestling contender. Without his persistence and sincere dedication and without the crucial Interim Term preparation period, I would not have achieved the All-State title I did during my senior year at Kinkaid which was a very significant factor in my development and which continues to be a source of confidence and motivation for me in what I do today. HOW WOULD YOU SUM UP YOUR EXPERIENCES OF STUDYING BUDDHISM AT DUKE UNIVERSITY AND LATER TRAINING TO BECOME A BUDDHIST MONK? While studying economics as an undergrad at Duke, I developed a recreational interest in eastern philosophy and spirituality. I soon had a unique opportunity to take a semester off and live in a rural village in the mountains of South Korea, helping to build a Buddhist monastery, and I decided to pursue it. I never intended to stay for longer than a few months, but after living and working with the monks there and gradually embracing their simple lifestyle, I realized that there was a whole world out there of a possible life I had never fathomed. I knew that I had only touched the edge of what could be and that if I returned to Duke at that point, I would have always wondered what it was I never embraced. Long story short, I became a monk. After five years (during which by the way, my taste for excellent authentic Asian tea flourished), I returned to Duke and finished my degree, although this time around, my economics major was replaced with philosophy and my fraternity house social scene with intellectual cafe conversation. I feel extremely lucky to have had these two very different experiences which together uniquely landed me where I am now, an organic tea importer and entrepreneur in San Francisco, CA. IF YOU HAD A BLOG, WHAT WOULD YOU WRITE ABOUT? I would have to say, tea. WHAT BOOKS ARE YOU CURRENTLY READING? The Entrepreneurial Effect and Chuang Tzu: Basic Writings 33