Anthony Edwards ’96 was assigned as company commander over the
Jackie Lee ’09 and Joe Gravert—April 16, 2016
Carla Hamilton ’10 and Adam McDowell ’08—April 22, 2016
LEFT TO RIGHT: Megan Quick Romstad ’09, Jaclyn Anderson ’09, Jackie Lee Gravert ’09, and Tony Lee ’74.
FRONT ROW (LEFT TO RIGHT): Anne Carter ’10, Devan Cameron ’10, Abby Harms ’10, Laura Weiss ’09, Adam McDowell ’08, Carla Hamilton McDowell ’10, Meghan Reardon ’08, Anne Fagerburg ’08, Evan Sawdey ’07, Kristen Chmielewski ’10, Allison Smith Hahn ’10, Tony Hahn ’08. BACK ROW: Matthew Schmalz ’08, Mikah Berky ’09, Michael Callahan ’09, Alex Nimmer ’09. NOT PICTURED: Ashley Witzke Lanfair ’10, Jordan Lanfair ’11.
something that you’ve done since leaving Knox that people wouldn’t have expected of you back then? I ask this question in part because the answer is pretty obvious for me: As a young adult who spent a lot of time avoiding the institutional church, I returned to school to get a master of divinity degree and became ordained in the United Church of Christ. I have even served a “church administrator” for nearly eight years, working in several UCC Wider Church settings, training and resourcing church leaders. This seems really far away from a theatre/literature major who aspired to be a theatre critic and/or Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist. I use my abilities to communicate effectively, adapt to constantly changing circumstances, and think critically to improve organizational systems badly in need of re-invention. That sounds pretty “Knox” to me. ❯ Nancy Kunkel DeFauw responded, “I have worked for the last 10+ years designing software—not building it (I’m not a developer)—but designing how the software embodies a process, how it’s organized, how it’s structured, and how, ultimately, it gathers the data the client will need on the back end to support decision-making. Not something I ever envisioned as a history/economics major. But here’s the link: the ability to break down a complicated process into multiple interrelated threads.” ❯ I hope we have more of these conversations in the future. It’s so fascinating to hear what others have been doing the past 20 years. In the meantime, look for the Knox Class of ’95 group on Facebook. Class Correspondent: Rev. Nicole Havelka revnhavelka@gmail.com Facebook, Twitter, Instagram: @revnhavelka
1996 We are so excited about our upcoming trips this year: Disneyland and Knox Homecoming. Will you be joining us in Galesburg, Oct. 14-16, for our 20th Reunion? It’s stunning to realize that we’ve been away from Knox for two full decades
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now, and I look forward to reconnecting with so many old friends.We plan to spend a couple days in St. Louis, drive up to Galesburg for the Reunion weekend, then drive to Chicago that Sunday for a couple of days, so let me know if you would like to meet up. I look forward to singing the Knox Hymn and cheering on the Prairie Fire with all of you in a very short time. ❯ Preety Gadhoke writes, “Wow, I cannot believe time flew by this quickly! Weren’t we just hanging out at the Bowl and partaking in Flunk Day like yesterday? I teach public health, critical medical anthropology and social theories, public health program planning, and global health courses at St. John’s University in Queens, New York. This academic year will be my fourth. Three down, three more to go for tenure. It’s a long road, but it has moved steadily along. My parents and brother are all healthy and well (in Michigan and Massachusetts, respectively). So, all is well on my end in New York City!” ❯ Ned Earley says he wants to make Homecoming this year, but it remains to be seen whether he will be able to. “Singing the Knox Hymn with the Alumni Choir would be a highlight. Right now, I am in Kansas City grading AP calculus tests.” ❯ Brian Bossler writes, “Okay, I’ve never contributed a class note. Feeling guilty. Here’s my past 20 years really quickly and in no particular order: I live in Libertyville, Illinois, with wife Denise and four kids, ages 14 to nine. I’ve gone to the same barber for 20 years. College roomie Jacob Auguston was in my wedding, and I in his, but we don’t keep in touch. I miss him. My career has ranged across multiple companies in employee benefits, insurance, global manufacturing, and IT. I started a financial tech company three years ago, and it’s going well. I went to grad school at Northwestern—not as much fun as Knox. I haven’t been back since the misspent post-graduation summer I spent bartending at Cherry Street.” Brian won’t be at Homecoming, unfortunately, but he wishes everyone well. ❯ Jen Rose Schmittauer plans to attend. “Should be a fun time.” ❯ Joey and
Amber Aulwes Finke had a lot of news to share. After several years at different law firms in Chicago, Joey made the decision to consult. He also coaches a 16U travel softball team, so “the consulting flexibility makes life much easier. I’m currently a senior program manager at Walgreens and launching a new global customer satisfaction program.” Amber is a supply chain manager at Baxter Healthcare, where she has worked for 20 years now. “We have both enjoyed our careers and have had the opportunity to do some crazy travel both individually, together, and with the kids (Singapore, Ireland, UK, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Beijing—just to mention a few). Daughter Cheyenne will be a senior at Prairie Ridge High School and is super-excited for college. Right now, her top two picks are Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania and University of Glasgow in Scotland. She is breezing through all her tests right now—got a 33 on her ACT. She wrapped up her last year of travel softball and is also in the jazz band (alto sax). She is a darn good artist as well…both body paint and canvas. Anyone who follows us on Facebook has seen her work. Son Logan is a freshman at Prairie Ridge this fall and plans to be on the golf team. He is a darn good artist as well—can draw about anything and is an incredible piano player. Hard to believe, but in four years, we will be empty nesters. Where does the time go?” ❯ Angie Valetutto writes, “Through my work, I participated in a performance called the Body Discourse Project. We presented the piece this past spring at the Dell’Arte International School of Physical Theatre and in San Francisco. I did my first postpregnancy trapeze performance, which was especially exciting for me. I took daughter Stella to her first aerial class; she’s two-and-a-half and fearless. Partner Scott, Stella, and I made a trip to NYC, where we visited with Liz Huddell Webster, husband Luke, and son JJ. It was fantastic!!!! Life has been full of adventures lately.” ❯ Sara Lindstrom Williams says, “This past year has been an adventure for husband Mike and me