CLASS NOTES

David Koebel retired as vice president for administrative services for Metro Community College after 35 years.

1976

Chris Frey has published Book Two of the Hank Anderson mystery series, The Mighty Shall Fall, in his pen name Raymond Parish. A sequel to Overnight Delivery, the Hank Anderson novels are set in Iowa.

Del Olivier retired after nearly 20 years as a pastor at Augustana Lutheran Church in July 2019 and is now serving as the part-time bridge pastor at First Congregational United Church of Christ. He is also very involved with a few nonprofit organizations including the local chapters of the Alzheimer's Association and Sleep in Heavenly Peace.

1979

Kae (Tessman) Tritle received the Daisy Award for Extraordinary Nurses in the fall of 2021 from Mercy Hospital, Iowa City. In July 2022, she stepped down from hospital nursing after 43 years in a variety of facilities. Kae continues work as the well-being coordinator in the area of wholistic health promotion for the the Iowa Conference of the United Methodist Church working primarily with clergy. She is a certified Community Faith RN. Kae and her spouse Barrie Tritle '80 are at home in Iowa City, Iowa.

Jeanie Theobald retired after 35 years as a pharmacist in Indianola, Mapleton, and Cherokee, Iowa, and is now doing all the fun things that “little old retired ladies” get to do.

1983

Keith Vollstedt started a new position as the interim chief medical officer (CMO) at MercyOne Western Iowa. In 2021, Dr. Vollstedt retired from surgical practice but decided he wants to devote his time and experience to MercyOne’s Mission. He believes he can use the CMO position to improve health care for those in Siouxland.

1984

1975

Mark Stuck was honored with Baird's 2022 Rupple Citizenship Award for his extraordinary achievements and unwavering dediction to service. The Rupple Award is Baird’s most prestigious internal honor for the associate who has most generously given back to his or her community by service and commitment.

Kary (Olsen) Austin retired after 10.5 years with Sammons Financial Group where she was a business systems analyst.

1985

Randy Gaulke's battlefield tour company, Knee Deep into History, LLC, was selected by the Connecticut Heritage Foundation to offer a seven-day tour focused on the 102nd Infantry Regiment's and Yankee Division's combat during WW1.

Mark Schnaible has been named professor of voice at the Manhattan School of Music as well as adjunct professor of Voice at the Curtis Institute of Music.

Michael Langley's new album For the Life of Me, on Blue FX Records out of Boston, Mass. was released on all major virtual platforms.

Marla (Hinders) Kerr retired in December 2021 from her position of administrative librarian (circulation services manager) at the Sioux City Public Library after a 35-year career.

1993

Chris Dixon has taken a position as senior principal analyst for competitive intelligence with the U.S. Services group of Maximus.

Chad Sorenson successfully completed two terms as the president of the HR Florida State Council, representing 16,000 HR professionals across the state. He will now serve on the HR Florida Executive Committee as the immediate past president for 2023 and 2024.

1994

After 14 years on the Scotts- Miracle Gro legal team, Dimiter Todorov has been promoted to the Fortune 1000 company’s general counsel and executive vice president.

Nicole (Newberg) Goodwin was awarded the Golden Plaque of Distinction from the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union in 2022. Her team has also reached the conference tournament finals seven times, winning the conference tournament four times. Goodwin's team has played in the 1A regional finals eight times, qualifying for the state tournament on three occasions. She has been the Iowa Girls Coaches Association Coach of the Year six times, the Iowa Basketball Coaches Association Coach of the Year three times, and was awarded the National Federation of State High School Associations State Coach of the Year and the NFHS Sectional Coach of the Year in 2019-20. She also served on the IGHSAU Basketball Advisory Committee from 2018-2021. Goodwin was honored as Morningside Alumni Coach of the Year in 2018.

1996

Daniel Plathe started a new position as a business systems analyst, supporting the transmission/distribution & field services team for MidAmerican Energy in Urbandale, Iowa.

Jeree (Carlson) Menning PT, OCS opened her second physical therapy clinic in Hooper, Neb. in Dec. 2022 to serve the Hooper and Scribner area. Her primary clinic Fremont & Wellness is in Fremont, Neb.

Brian Poggenklass was promoted to court administrator at the City of Westminster Municipal Court.

1998

Karla (Engbard) Santi was named the 2022 SBA South Dakota Small Business Person of the Year. Santi is the chief executive officer and founder of Blend Interactive, Inc. in Sioux Falls, S.D.

1999

After 23 years as a newspaper feature writer and editor, Andrew McGinn graduated in 2022 with his MA in clinical mental health counseling from Bradley University in Peoria, Ill. McGinn provides therapy through Lutheran Services in

Iowa with an office in Ames. He also works regularly with incarcerated teens in juvenile detention.

2001

Rebecca (Heuertz) Kerber received her Master of Arts in Teaching degree in May 2022. She is currently teaching at Omaha Nation Public School in Macy, Neb.

Jerico (Foutch) Vinsonhaler started a new position as the chief underwriting officer at Hourly, Inc.

Sandra (Christiansen) Torry accepted a new position as a direct support staff and home health aide at Family Care Solutions in Davenport, Iowa.

2002

Jennifer (Haage) Stodden started a new position as lab manager at June E. Nylen Cancer Center in Dec. 2021.

2003

Dr. Amanda (Van Meeteren) Haverhals achieved certification as a Clinical Nurse Leader (CNL).

2005

Taera (Stille) Mulder joined Iowa Kidney Physicians as a part-time physician assistant in Nov. 2022.

Andrew Husk moved to Omaha and started a new job as the administrative assistant in the Office of Title IX and Civil Rights Compliance at Creighton University.

2009

Derek Nolan started serving as mayor of the City of Parker, S.D. in May 2022. He also serves as chair of the Emerging Leaders group of the South Dakota Bankers Association from June 2022 - June 2023.

2007

Dr. Laura Roost has taken a position at Creighton University as a resident assistant professor in the Department of Political Science and International Relations, is the interim internship director for the department, and is affiliate faculty in the African Studies Program. Rachel Morehead, marketing and engagement manager at the Community Foundation for Western Iowa, received the Council Bluffs Area Chamber of Commerce's Young Professional of the Year award in March 2022. Additionally, Rachel was recently selected as a 2022 recipient of the Midlands Business Journal's 40 Under 40 award and will be honored at a special event in Feb. 2023.

2009

Russell and Ashley (Danner) Heine will be celebrating 18 years together in 2023. They began dating during their time at Morningside in 2005.

2011

Sasha Lee (Backhaus) Foley received a Master of Fine Arts degree from Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) in Aug. 2018. Since Feb. 2020, Foley works as a full-time graphic design/marketing assistant for Performane Food Group (PFG) / Core-Mark Eby Brown. She also works part-time in the spring semester as an adjunct professor for Des Moines Area Community College teaching an online class called Art Appreciation. Brian Gesink became principal at Bell Elementary in the Papillion La-Vista Community Schools in July 2022.

2013

Briana (Schaeuble) Halse was named the director of clinical services for the Compass Center, a non-profit that offers counseling and advocacy to individuals impacted by family, relational, and sexual trauma. In addition to this leadership role, she is a registered play therapist, pursuing her supervisor credential in this area.

Justin Tjaden started Justin D. Tjaden, Attorney at Law, LLC, a general practice firm focusing on helping people first. He was also named Forward

Ohio District Captain of Ohio’s 99th District and named chair of the Forward Ohio State Bylaws subcommittee.

2014

Trevor Strong was promoted to assistant head coach for the Southwestern College football program and also still serves as the team's defensive coordinator. The team repeated as KCAC conference champions this season, with the first championship breaking a 22-year drought for Southwestern football.

2015

Lynae (Toom) Becker recently received her realtor designation by the National Association of Realtors and became a dual licensed real estate agent in both Kansas and Missouri.

Alex (Howrey)

Gerdes graduated with a master’s degree in family nurse practitioner from Morningside University in May 2022. She is currently working as a nurse practitioner caring for patients with cancer and blood disorders throughout their treatments at June E. Nylen Cancer Center in Sioux City.

2017

Allison McNeil accepted a position as senior creative designer for Target where she provides design solutions, consultations and support that align to the overall creative strategy. She accepted this position after working six years at the Walt Disney Company as a graphic design and communications specialist.