spring2014
COLLEGE MAGA ZINE
Summer Solace at Camp Kita Sydney Mosher ’10, her siblings, and Nichole Ivey ’08 create a place of comfort for others.
Effie Drew ’16, her father, Doug Drew (not pictured), and associate professor of environmental science Johan Erikson collected snow samples in the White Mountains’ Lakes of the Clouds area to determine the effect of clouds on the amount of sulfuric and nitric acids in the winter snow. The trek is part of a multi-year atmospheric chemistry project led by Erikson in cooperation with the Appalachian Mountain Club, the U.S. Forest Service, and Plymouth State University.
Above: After a day’s work during January’s International Service Trip to Haiti, Nick Landry, Morgan Harrison ’16, Elizabeth Donatelle ’16, Kayla Harris ’17, biology instructor Camilla Fecteau, Amelia Coffey ’14, and Rose LeBlanc ’15 visited the National Museum of Haiti in Port-Au-Prince. Right: As part of 2014’s Winter Carnival, Student Activities hosted a toboggan race behind Mercy Hall.
COLLEGE MAGAZINE
VOLUME 9 SPRING 2014
Features & Profiles Politics (Not) as Usual /3 Meet Political Science Club President Sara Poirier ’15
Happily Over Her Head /7 Danielle Somma ’06 makes her living under water
The Case for the Regional Alumni Chapter /10 Maybe it’s time a chapter was started near you
Healing at Camp Kita /12 Supporting children who have suffered loss, with Sydney Mosher ‘10, her siblings, and Nichole Ivey ‘08
Digital Photography Goes Social /16 What happens when digital photography is combined with camera phones and social media?
What We Talk about When We Talk about The Hunger Games /18 There’s more to this pop culture phenomenon than meets the eye
Service All Around /20 Deacon Roy Mellon ‘13 is a man of many commitments
Noted & Celebrated Dispatches /4 Peer-to-peer mentoring Aquaponics: the wave of the future? Reflecting on the Elk River incident Above: Bishop Robert P. Deeley, the 12th bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland, visited the College’s Healy Chapel to celebrate the Feast of Saint Joseph on March19.
Loring E. Hart Endowed Scholarship Alumni News /22 Class Notes /29
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president’s letter COLLEGE MAGA ZINE A Catholic college in the Mercy tradition E D I TO R David Svenson E X E C U T I V E D I R E C TO R O F I N S T I T U T I O N A L MA R K E T I N G Robert Hand GRAPHIC DESIGNER Georgia Brown P R O D U C T I O N M A N AG E R Ian J. Marquis CO V E R P H OTO Jeff Scher P H OTO G R A P H Y Murray Close/Lionsgate Alanna Conn Doug Drew Camilla Fecteau Fred Field
Dear Saint Joseph’s Community, At our Sebago Lake campus—greeted on one side by the second-largest body of fresh water in Maine, and on the other side the energy of Portland, Boston, and all points south—we see a lot of change. Class rosters. Residence hall assignments. New friendships forming at tables in Pearson’s Café in the fall and in classrooms with online students each summer. The names of graduating students read to proud families and friends at Commencement, the culmination of students’ efforts, dedication, patience, and passions—or is this the culmination? We are a community of lifelong learners. Our on-campus students continue the pursuit of excellence both inside and beyond the classroom that they began as high school students. And following Commencement, they attend graduate programs or enter fields of work where every day is an opportunity to continue learning. Our online students, most of whom are already in a career, come to us because they want to continue their education, to take that next professional step. So while change is one constant at the College we can also count on the fact
that as a group, our students and alumni are consistent in their devotion to their passions. We know that, for them, learning isn’t taken lightly nor does it take a day off. This is a special issue of Saint Joseph’s College Magazine. It covers an impressive range of the skills, talents, and passions of our students and alumni—from emerging as leaders on campus, to turning personal hardship into an opportunity to help others to heal, to fulfilling a sense of purpose through service to country, friends, and God. As we head toward another graduation, we are mindful that commencements are both endings and beginnings. Each year we share with our new alumni the feelings of accomplishment and pride that they so richly deserve. But we also hope that they will continue to be passionate about learning and about changing the world for the better— attitudes and commitments that had the chance to grow and flourish at Saint Joseph’s College. Sincerely,
James Dlugos, President
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Margaret Mellon Morgan Mosher Sean Pavone Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland Jeff Scher Scholastic Eric Smith Robert Snelgrove Vicky Somma CO N T R I B U TO R S Michael Bolanz ’00 Alanna Conn Lynn Novak Heather Plati Elizabeth Schran PROOFREADERS Susan Johnson INTERNS Michaela Hotham ’14 CHANGE OF ADDRESS Changes to name, address, phone & email: alumni@sjcme.edu (207) 893-7890 or (877) SJC-ALUM TO CO N TAC T M AG A Z I N E David Svenson Marketing & Public Relations Saint Joseph’s College 278 Whites Bridge Road Standish, Maine 04084 dsvenson@sjcme.edu (207) 893-7723 Saint Joseph’s College Magazine is published three times a year by the Marketing & Public Relations Office. We welcome your comments, correspondence, story ideas, and photos. Opinions expressed in the magazine are those of the authors, not necessarily of Saint Joseph’s College.
w w w.sjcme.edu/magazine
studentprofile SARA POIRIER ’15 P O L I T I C S ( N O T ) A S U S UA L
Sara Poirier is taking full advantage of her time at Saint Joseph’s, utilizing the campus and its connections to build a career.
S
he’s two years in and already Sara Poirier is making a case for the time she’s spent at Saint Joseph’s. As a political science major, a journalism and philosophy minor, and president of the Political Science Club, she’s made more than a fair effort to get the most experience she can and to put political science on the minds of students. But how? Astonishingly, “We don’t talk politics,” she says. In the Political Science Club, “We’ll bring up politics, but we’re mostly focused on putting on events and marketing it as an asset of the College. I want it to be about political science, policy, and government—not party politics.” There’s more to that statement than just the welcoming attitude. Since she’s taken the helm of the Political Science Club, Poirier’s done her due diligence to increase campus recognition of the major and the club’s activities. “Having a neutral club is great,” she says. “When we have forums and debates, that’s a good place for discussing politics.” And that’s a promise she’s already made good on. Poirier hosted what is thought to be the College’s first-ever student debate this spring, in the Viola George Auditorium. Two teams of students from the College discussed the pros and cons of
various items, like whether or not social media has a positive or negative impact in our lives. The seed for all this work, while it continues to grow at the College, is rooted in Poirier’s past. From Winslow, Maine, she remembers “the five o’clock news was always on around dinner time, and I have very vocal family members.” But it wasn’t until late in high school when she aimed her studies toward political science. “I had a very enthusiastic teacher for U.S. history and American government. He really inspired me.” She originally thought she’d go to college for pharmacy, but after her experience in high school her journey into political science took off. She’s since held internships in the communications office of Maine Governor Paul LePage and the office of Senator Susan Collins. Currently, she volunteers for Senator Collins’ re-election campaign. There’s no doubt that Poirier keeps a full schedule, but she’s happy with that. “Sure, it’s a balancing act,” she says, “but I enjoy everything I’m doing, so that makes it really easy. “If you follow what you’re passionate about, the rest will take care of itself. As long as I’m doing what I love, and am happy doing it, I’ll let life lead the way.” spring 2014 | 3
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dispatches
Grant facilitates new peer-to-peer mentoring initiative
Providing academic guidance and insight to first-year students at the College, a new peer-to-peer mentoring program— a product of The Academic Center (TAC) and a grant from the MELMAC Education Foundation in Augusta, Maine—is set to take off in the fall. The Peer Mentor Program accepts applications from rising sophomores, juniors, and seniors for the position of peer mentor. If accepted, the peer mentors provide students the opportunity to mentor and guide first-year students, primarily, to develop counseling and leadership skills during the 2014–2015
and 2015–2016 academic years. The program is being supported by MELMAC’s grant, in the sum of $23,500. “We are a community of faculty, staff, and students who work together to make the College experience the best it can be for every student,” says TAC’s Shanna Webster, who serves as an academic support coordinator. “Our upperclassmen have their own unique stories to share, and giving them a forum to work with our incoming first-year students allows them to not only develop their résumé but also enhance their leadership skills.” The program will recruit 12 peer mentors and one peer mentor coordinator, assigning one to each section of the FYE Seminar, a required one-credit course taken by all first-year students. Each mentor will be responsible for 25 students. One additional student will be recruited to serve as peer mentor coordinator, a position that provides the link between peer mentors and the faculty and staff. Assistant Dean of the College and TAC Director Vincent Kloskowski says, “We have faith and confidence in our College
community that through the personal and educational experiences of our mentors, those in the Peer Mentoring Program can be positively impacted with their own personal success.” To help ensure that success, peer mentors and the peer mentor coordinator must not only apply for the position but they must also attend a weeklong leadership training session, which has an outdoor component, says Morgan Rocheleau, director of Student Activities. The training session will focus on team building, leadership development, and learning about the campus and its resources in preparation for guiding new students. Selections for the highly anticipated program were made in late spring, and it’s an opportunity that current students were clearly ready for, says Kloskowski. “The development of this program created more of an excited buzz than we initially expected.” More information about the program can be found at sjcme.edu/tac/peer-mentor.
Hart family endows scholarship in Dr. Loring Hart’s memory Thanks to the generosity of the family of a former Saint Joseph’s College president, students now have one more opportunity to receive the benefit of a Saint Joseph’s College education. The Loring E. Hart Endowed Scholarship, established by Mrs. Marilyn Hart and children, Matthew and Ellen, will provide an annual award to a Maine student. The eleventh president of Saint Joseph’s College, Dr. Hart passed away in 2012. He was a native of Bath, Maine, and a Bowdoin College graduate. He
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served as president of the College from 1987 to 1995. Dr. Hart was known for his thoughtful demeanor, which also translated well into his relationships, both on campus and with the Sisters of Mercy and their mission. Honored with an honorary degree in 2004, Dr. Hart was praised for reflecting the genuine concept of Mercy. Through the generosity of Dr. Hart’s wife, Marilyn, and his family, his commitment to education at Saint Joseph’s College can live on through the sup-
port of Maine students in perpetuity. In establishing the scholarship, Mrs. Hart noted that her husband believed that the years he spent at Saint Joseph’s were some of the best of his life, and that the Hart Scholarship is, in part, a tribute to the Sisters of Mercy, whom he greatly admired. To learn more about endowed scholarships at Saint Joseph’s College and how you can contribute to the Loring E. Hart Endowed Scholarship, contact the Office of Institutional Advancement at 207-893-7890.
dispatches Aquaponics: addressing marine concerns, sparking career interest According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA), doubling aquaculture in the United States could create over 50,000 jobs and a billion dollar industry. Environmental science professor Dr. Mark Green’s class MS 360–Aquaculture: Science and Methods might help to make that happen. “The wild-caught seafood industry is struggling,” says Green. “Many of the fish stocks are being harvested at an unsustainable rate and are literally disappearing from the ocean.” In MS 360, students maintained a variation of an aquaponics system—a combination of both aquaculture (raising aquatic organisms in a controlled environment) and hydroponics (growing plants in water). A large, plastic fish tank housed the aquatic organisms—tilapia in MS 360’s case. A marine pump circulated water from the tank to trays of leafy greens. The water filtered through the plants until it eventually returned, clean and filtered, to the fish tank.
The benefits of the project are twofold, says senior environmental science major Shradha Miller ’14. “The fish waste provides nutrients, mainly nitrogen, to the plants that help them grow. And the plants maintain a healthy water quality balance for the tilapia.”
NOAA reports that 91 percent of the seafood consumed in the United States originates abroad—half of which is from aquaculture. As a result of imported seafood, the U.S. seafood trade deficit is currently valued at $11.2 billion. “There’s opportunity for tremendous growth in the aquaculture industry,” says Green. “I’m a big proponent of sustainable aquaculture.” Students are getting the hands-on experience they need to both understand and operate an aquaculture operation. Some, like Miller, are even considering going into aquaculture professionally. “I’m thinking about starting an aquaculture business some point after graduation,” she says. “It’s highly sustainable, takes stress off wild stocks, and produces a super fresh product. Not to mention how lucrative it can be if done properly.”
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dispatches On the shore of a disaster: faculty address Elk River chemical spill A January 9 chemical spill contaminated the water supply of hundreds of thousands of West Virginia residents with a chemical agent used to clean coal (crude 4-methylcyclohexane methane, or MCHM). And for two Saint Joseph’s faculty members—chemistry professor Dr. Emily Lesher and assistant professor of psychology Dr. Marion Young—the ensuing concerns and questions over this incident hit close to home. Lesher, who earned her doctorate from the Colorado School of Mines, and specializes in water quality and analysis
composed primarily of MCHM had seeped into water supply. Officials then issued a do-not-use order for tap water, but not before hundreds of people sought medical attention for rashes, stomachaches, and other short-term ailments. While there were these visible signs of people being affected by the chemical, Lesher says there is still more to be understood about its effects on the body. Passed by Congress in 1976, the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) regulates the introduction of new chemicals. But since MCHM and tens of thousands of
and mining’s impact on the environment, among other topics, was quick to point out that the chemical spill and the uncertainty of the chemical’s effects on people pointed to regulatory concerns. And for Young, a developmental psychologist who earned her doctorate from West Virginia University, the confusion over the chemical’s potential effects on the population raised a series of questions on how the ensuing mental stress could harm the residents. After receiving reports of a licorice-like odor in residents’ tap water, West Virginia state officials traced the leak to a storage containment area along the Elk River. By the time the discovery was made, as much as 10,000 gallons of a chemical mixture
other chemicals were introduced before 1976, minimal research and testing are available on them. “Any chemical introduced after 1976 has to have a baseline of testing—toxicity testing, epidemiology studies,” says Lesher. “But for the ones that came before ’76, the attitude’s kind of like, ‘These chemicals have been around for so long, and nothing bad has happened, so they must be OK.’ That’s not the case when it gets in your drinking water.” The Elk River spill and the chemical’s uncertain long-term effects “fall under the realm of disaster psychology,” says Young. “It’s defined as an unexpected or uncontrollable event: This thing happens to you, and you have no control over it. That’s
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where all the stress and anxiety actually comes from.” Typical reactions to disasters, according to the American Psychological Association, include intense, unpredictable feelings; disrupted eating and sleeping patterns; physical symptoms such as headaches, nausea, or chest pain; and more. According to Young, those effects can become even more pronounced in pregnant women. “Many pregnant women are already stressed, right?” says Young. “Then they can’t drink the water, but maybe they already did and then they’re even more stressed. We know that can affect fetal development and sometimes trigger premature labor.” The psychological toll on residents doesn’t include the potential health effects of exposure to MCHM, which, as Lesher explains, is essentially unknown. “The response was to flush out the water, wait until the concentration of MCHM went down to one milligram per liter, and then lift the ban,” she says. “That decision was based only on lethality. It didn’t take into consideration long-term effects, such as cancer.” Lesher, however, trusts that MCHM is probably safe at one milligram per liter. “The structure of MCHM is similar to other organic chemicals that have been tested at greater lengths. It’s not likely to be terribly carcinogenic or toxic.” Young and Lesher both agree that measures should be taken to make sure spills like this don’t happen again. They recommend more readily available access to chemicals’ basic toxicity levels and better safety measures for containment mechanisms. “You need to be able to say, for certain, that your drinking water is safe. There are a lot of ways to make that happen, without necessarily having to rely on regulation,” says Lesher. The results of proactive efforts could have far-reaching benefits for residents of any area—for today and the future generations.
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features
Happily
Over
Her Head INTERVIEW BY DAVID SVENSON EDITED BY AL ANNA CONN
Under water for hours at a time, Danielle Somma ’06 keeps tabs on marine infrastructure in the New York City area as an engineer diver. It’s dark. It’s cold. And she loves it. How did you get from studying on the shore of Sebago Lake to making a living under water? I started at Saint Joseph’s as a mathematics and secondary education major. When the College introduced the pre-engineering program my sophomore year, I decided to change my major. It was a three-plus-two transfer agreement with Manhattan College—three years at SJC and two years at Manhattan. I was the first person to go through it. It was a little nerve-racking to know I was the first person. I didn’t know what to expect and whether I’d make it or how well I’d do. But I set my mind to it. I took it one step at a time and figured it out along the way.
I graduated with mathematics and preengineering degrees, and then I graduated from Manhattan College with a civil engineering degree in 2008. Now I’m studying to take the Professional Engineering License exam. It warrants nearly 300 hours of study. Did you know all along that you’d become an engineer diver? Actually, I had never dove before. I went to a career fair my last year at Manhattan College, and there was this guy standing there with a dive hat. I thought, “Now that looks cool.” I went up to him and he told me what he did—it was engineering but on the coastal marine side. I grew up in
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“It’s dangerous. It’s very dangerous. You can’t be claustrophobic under water.”
Maine, always near the ocean. I knew for a fact that I wouldn’t be landlocked with a job like that. I got a job right out of college with a firm in New York City, and they put me through SCUBA training. Eventually I got a job with Ocean and Coastal Consultants (OCC), the company I currently work for as an engineer diver. OCC sent me to commercial dive school out in Minnesota to become trained as a surface-supplied diver. What type of work are you responsible for at Ocean and Coastal Consultants? As an engineer diver, I’m involved in so much. I’m not pigeonholed—I do both underwater and topside (or above water) inspections. For underwater inspections, we typically do either rapid emergency inspections or routine inspections. We had a lot of rapid emergency inspections after Hurricane Sandy. We were out there making sure clients’ structures were cleared to keep using. Routine inspections normally occur every three to five years. From the collected data, we’ll create a report that assigns a condition rating to the structure and outlines repairs or maintenance the client can do to prolong the structure’s life. Who are your clients? We work with anyone from private clients who have a house on the water and need a seawall inspected, to projects for large, liquid product terminals. The structures we typically work with
are seawalls and steel bulkheads, both of which hold back fill. We also inspect piers. Piers usually consist of timber, steel, and concrete piles. The project I am currently involved with is the rehabilitation of the timber piles on FDR Drive for the NYC Department of Transportation. Is there a normal day? I usually meet the guys at 5:30 in the morning to pick up the boat at the marina. It takes us about an hour to get to the site. Then we tie up the boat, go over the plans for the day, and get dressed to dive. When we dive, we never stay at one depth. We’re constantly moving up and down the structure. It’s a workout, especially when there’s a high current. Recently I did a dive and the current was around two knots. It doesn’t look like much topside, but when you get in the water it’s just ripping. It can be relaxing, though. It depends on what you need to do—it’s a lot more relaxing in the summertime. In the cold, the dry suit is like wearing a big rubber bag. It’s hard to move around in. But I like it. It’s better than sitting behind a desk all day. Does that mean you’re under water for a large portion of the day? The longest I’ve done was between three to three and a half hours. Typically we’re in there for two hours or so. There are many factors that affect that. But there’s a lot to the day. We put in almost eight hours or so just doing the inspection. There’s not really time to go back to the office. You go home and plan for the next day. It’s after the whole inspection that you start incorporating the data into a report that you can give to your client. What kind of gear do you have with you? With surface-supplied diving, which is what we do, the diver’s air supply is pumped through a hose to the diver from the surface by a compressor. Other hoses and cables are attached to the diver including a communications wire, a depth-sensing hose, and a video line. The bundle of hoses is called the diver’s umbilical. Unlike SCUBA, you have an unlimited supply of air, and an emergency air supply provided by the bailout tank on the diver and two high-pressure bottles topside. The redundancy in air supply and
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“As an engineer diver, I’m involved in so much… both underwater and topside inspections.” constant communications with the topside crew makes surface-supplied diving much safer than SCUBA diving. I always have my dive knife. I wear fins, too, to move about the structure. Some of the tools we typically use are folding rulers, pick hammers, calibers to measure diameter of piles, and non-destructive testing equipment, such as an ultrasonic surface thickness gauge to measure the thickness of steel elements, so we can tell how much they have deteriorated. ou’ve described the job as both relaxing and Y challenging. Is it ever scary? I was nervous on my first inspection—nervous about what I was going to find under water. There’s that weird fear of the unknown. And
when you’re diving in NYC, there’s such low visibility. You can only see six inches to a foot in front of you. Sometimes things jump out at you. You’ll see a crab or a fish. It’s startling when they come out of nowhere. Also, it’s dangerous. It’s very dangerous. You can’t be claustrophobic under water. The light on your helmet might go out in a very confined area. Sometimes you can feel the fear creeping over you, but you have to just focus on your task. When I first started diving, I was much more vulnerable to that kind of stuff. But now it’s just an everyday thing. Get in the water, do some inspections.
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feature
The Case for the Regional Alumni Chapter BY MICHAEL BOL ANZ ’00
Boston’s got one. Isn’t it time an alumni chapter opened near you?
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he 2013 launch of the College’s first regional alumni chapter was a welcoming moment for the College and its growing community of alumni. This inaugural chapter, located in Boston, Massachusetts, has set the tone for a great number of new projects for the College community, including greater outreach and a new variety of alumni events. But its launch also begs the question, isn’t it time we created more regional chapters? Alumni chapters are volunteer-driven organizations that reflect the pride of Saint Joseph’s alumni—no matter where they live. Through the activities of chapters, we are able to engage and connect with a higher number of alumni than the office of Alumni Relations and the Alumni Association Board could do through its individual efforts. Alumni chapters serve alumni by providing opportunities to socialize and network through organized socials, service events, and activities in their local communities. They also help alumni stay connected with their alma mater by keeping them informed about major events at the College or by providing the opportunity for alumni to share memories of their years at Saint Joseph’s College. They can also serve as a resource for recent grads as well as current students by offering mentorships, internships, and even career opportunities through the bond we all share as being part of the Saint Joseph’s College community.
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So, there are a lot of positives to the existence of a regional chapter, but how can we actually create more? Here’s the history of the Boston Chapter.
Getting Organized The Boston Chapter’s success came directly from the volunteer work of our alumni in the Boston area. RJ Turner ’98, who is a current member of the Alumni Association Board, took on the role as chair of the Boston Chapter. Establishing a leader is important. “Having an alumni chapter in Boston allows us to extend the reach even farther from our ‘home base’ in Standish,” says Turner. “The success we’ve come to find these last three years has allowed for this to happen, and it’s only going to get better. I am just glad I can be a part of it.” In addition to Turner, the Boston Chapter is spearheaded by a group of dedicated alumni all serving vital roles in its organization and continuing success. There’s Jen Taylor ’03,’09, who is the acting vice chair; Jesse Beer ’01, who serves as the events coordinator; Laura Conti ’04, communications coordinator; and Kelly Bedard ’06, the chapter’s secretary. Of course, there are more volunteers who are making this happen: Matt Cotreau ’10, Dan Giusti ’03, Patrick Murphy ’05, and Erin Scanlon ’98. “The Boston Chapter is good for the area,” says Beer, “as it allows alumni to generate friendships and create a closer bond to the College. As we grow
WA 134 OR 92
MT 31 ID 35
NV 36 CA 395 AZ 149
MN 92 WI 92
SD 182
WY 26 UT 22
VT 162
ND 12
IA 62
NE 27 CO 143
NM 40
HI 26
KS 36 OK 61
TX 392
IL 171
MI 228 IN 95
MO 61 AR 52 LA 72
NY 712
OH 592 KY 106
PA 902 WV 52
NC 402
TN 194 MS 29
AL 85
VA 397
GA 207
ME 3565 NH 647
MA RI 1487 CT 118 472 NJ 558 MD DE 376 43
SC 182
Alumni By State FL 902
AK 22
the Boston Chapter, I hope we can find ways to continually add to the number of involved alumni.”
The Kick-Off After determining leadership positions and formalizing the chapter’s intention to exist, thrive, and expand, there must be a kick-off event. After all, you have to give your chapter’s members what they’re asking for. The Boston Chapter, seeking to connect alumni with each other and the College, did not disappoint. The Boston Chapter was launched at a December 2013 Christmas party at The Whiskey Priest in Boston’s Seaport District. The event brought nearly 50 alumni together to celebrate the holidays and raise money and canned food items for Catherine’s Cupboard Food Pantry. Boston’s next event, on February 22, featured a “Home-Away-From-Home” social at the Cherry Tree Bar and Grille in West Newton, prior to attending a Monks men’s basketball match at Lasell College. Boston’s third event took place on March 15 at TD Garden, for a game between the Boston Bruins and the Carolina Hurricanes. These locations allowed alumni to connect with each other and to simply enjoy the perks of having a group of people who all share a common bond: Saint Joseph’s College.
The Fine Print So, that’s the “who” and the “how” of creating a regional alumni chapter. But there must be some fine print to all of this, right? Actually, there isn’t. All Saint Joseph’s College alumni are members of the Alumni Association, a non-dues-paying organization. When alumni in a specific region initiate a chapter, all alumni within that geographic area are considered members of the chapter and are welcomed to attend all chapter events. On the heels of such a successful launch of the College’s first chapter, the Alumni Office is looking to expand the network of regional chapters to serve all areas where alumni live. And where, exactly, do they live? The Association’s reach includes all 50 states. (Yes, Alaska and Hawaii, we’ve got you covered.) Whether you’re one of the 902 alumni living in Florida or one of the 134 in Washington, there are plenty of grads in your state to organize a regional chapter. If you are interested in starting a chapter in your area, contact Michael Bolanz ’00 in the Alumni Office at 207-893-7894 or mbolanz@sjcme.edu for more information.
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feature
Healing at Camp Kita
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Camp Kita is named after the Abenaki word for “listen.” And that’s what Sydney Mosher ’10, her siblings, and Nichole Ivey ’08 are doing—creating a healing environment for children who have BY DIANE ATWOOD ’77 suffered loss, guided by the insight of the Mosher family.
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few days before Sydney Mosher ’10 turned 14, her father, Christopher Mosher, committed suicide. Sydney vowed to never breathe a word of it to anyone and to start her freshman year of high school pretending it never happened. “Because it happened during summer vacation, it was easy for that scenario in my mind to work out,” she says. “But, I have a group of friends—I think my mom must have told their parents—and they showed up at the funeral. Although I didn’t plan on telling them, it was very comforting that they came and showed their support.”
Even with their support, Sydney would not talk to her friends or anyone else about her father’s death, not even her sister Morgan, who was 16 at the time, or her brother Isaiah, who was 18. “Mom was always willing to talk about it with us,” she says. “She had lost her mother when she was 13, so she realized the importance of talking, but she didn’t want to force us.” Sydney graduated from high school and headed off to Saint Joseph’s. One day a friend walked into her dorm room and noticed a picture of her father and asked if he had died. She said yes, and it turned out the friend’s father had also died. They
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made a Father’s Day trip together with a third classmate to visit Sydney’s father’s grave. “The trip was healing,” she says. “It had been looming over me and I was feeling guilty that I had never visited before, so that was nice to be able to do that. I don’t think I could’ve done that on my own.” Sydney and her brother and sister all shared feelings of confusion, shame, anger, and guilt, but still, they never talked about their father’s suicide. “Survivors of a traumatic event like a parent’s suicide often experience high levels of guilt,” says Dr. Josh Schoenfeld, associate professor of psychology and the department chair. “Guilt can really wreak havoc on a person’s ability to function
go off the deep end. It’s hard to separate yourself from the situation and to not think I should have called him more often or given him more hugs— that it was my fault. “I definitely think holding those feelings in is not healthy for anyone. It helps to be in a supportive environment, and not all children are lucky enough to have that support. We had it.”
and get along and have a happy life. Something has happened they feel is their fault that can’t be undone. It’s like a barb. Once it’s in your skin you can’t just pull it out.” It’s estimated that in the United States, every year between 7,000 and 12,000 children lose a parent to suicide. According to a 2010 study led by Johns Hopkins Children’s Center, children or teens who have lost a parent to suicide are three times more likely to also commit suicide and are at increased risk of developing a range of major psychiatric issues. “I didn’t go down a dangerous road,’” says Sydney, “but I’m sure pent-up anger and pent-up feelings could make someone else
eventually hope to have a full program with kids coming and going throughout the entire season. “Camping was very important to my dad,” says Sydney. “That was where we got to know him the most, while we were camping. It made sense that this is what we wanted to do.” Camp Kita will offer a variety of healing opportunities within a traditional camp experience. “That’s why we’re excited about this camp,” Sydney says. “We want to have that traditional therapy one-onone with a counselor, but we also want to introduce other methods for therapy, like music and art and equine therapy. They’ll be intermingled with different camp activities. It’s not necessarily getting
L
ast June, Sydney and her siblings decided to create Camp Kita, a nonprofit foundation in southern Maine that provides a therapeutic experience in a safe and supportive environment for children who have lost a parent to suicide. This year they will host a weeklong summer camp and
healed, because that’s not the point. It’s trying to find options that work and having a week of fun— the therapy is the bonus.” Nichole Ivey ’08 is a high school friend of Morgan’s and was at Saint Joseph’s with Sydney. When she heard about Camp Kita, she jumped in with both feet to help and is now director of public relations and development. “The big idea behind Camp Kita is that not everyone grieves in the same way,” she says. “Maybe talk therapy works for some people, but it doesn’t for others, and maybe equine therapy works or maybe art therapy works. By giving kids these skills for effective grief management, hopefully they’ll go on to thrive throughout their lives.” When Christopher Mosher took his own life, he left his children feeling confused, sad, guilty, and isolated. Twelve years later, they created Camp Kita to help other children heal, but it has also given them the opportunity to finally open up and begin their own healing. And no matter what he did or how much it hurt them, Sydney wants people to know this about her father: “He was really loving and supportive in other ways and adventurous and fun.”
“It helps to be in a supportive environment, and not all children are lucky enough to have that support. We had it.”
To find more information about Camp Kita, and ways to help support its mission, visit campkita.com.
An Eye on Signs, with Dr. Josh Schoenfeld When children experience a traumatic event, a well-meaning adult might feel the need to get them to a therapist as soon as possible. Imposing therapy or some other specific program prematurely can actually backfire and make things worse, says Dr. Josh Schoenfeld. “Research has shown that we don’t need to make people do ‘this or that’ after a trauma. People, including children, have coping mechanisms and often recover in their own way. What they usually need is time and a safe, loving, supportive environment.”
Dr. Schoenfeld recommends that parents take their cues from the child and be on the lookout for possible warning signs that extra help might be necessary. “Obviously, a child who has been through a trauma is going to be upset,” he says. “That’s fine. It’s when you start to see a significant, persistent, and consistent change in personality, mood, or behavior—something that really sinks in— that would be a warning sign.”
Above: After suffering their own loss, Sydney, Morgan, and Isaiah Mosher (left to right) formed Camp Kita— a summer camp providing a safe, constant environment for young survivors of suicide.
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feature
Digital Photography Goes Social
BY SCOTT QUIGLEY ’14
A spring semester course in digital photography added social media and camera phones into the mix. Is this the new norm?
A
2013 Pew Research Center survey found that 58 percent of American adults own a smartphone, providing access to cameras and photo-sharing applications to nearly 240 million people. Another study projects that sales of smartphones with cameras will top 1.5 billion in 2014. The face—or at least the ease of digital photography—appears to be changing. So, does this affect how we should approach the art?
This spring, one class at the College explored how photography can live in the public realm of social media—using both industry-standard digital cameras and students’ smartphones. Kimberly Post
Dana Robichaud
Shannon Chisholm
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Scott Fuller, associate professor of fine arts, leads the College’s digital photography course. This year, he wanted students to make photography a greater everyday activity, “to take a moment each day and think about taking a picture,” says Fuller. Sharing these images meant finding a photo-sharing platform and a method to make it easy to do, all of which led to the incorporation of using social media and camera phones in the course. One student in Fuller’s class, business management and finance major Alex Markakis ’14, says his view of photography changed after being in the class, particularly the part of the course that involved uploading images to Instagram, a photosharing application with 150 million users. Before taking Fuller’s course, “I used to take pictures of whatever,” says Markakis. “Now I’m thinking about things like composition and converging lines.” Students also realized there was more to photography than the omnipresent selfies found on social media sites, taken with their camera phones. Kaye Peabody
“I was uploading stupid stuff, like selfies, parties, and food,” says business management major Jessica Capozzi ’14. “I put a lot more thought into photos now.” Kimberly Post, director of community-based learning at the College, has practiced photography for most of her life, with a large portion of her work appearing in traditional gallery exhibits. But as far as cameras go, what’s her choice? She prefers the camera phone. Post got her start in photography in the mid1980s, developing her own prints in a darkroom. When she got an iPhone 3GS, though, she began using it as her main camera. Since then, she’s had her iPhone photos picked up for publication, most recently in The Art of iPhone Photography: Creating Great Photos and Art on Your iPhone (Rocky Nook, 2013). “I think it’s great,” Post says. “It’s bringing photography to people who normally wouldn’t think about it. Everyone can be a photographer.” For more photos from Fuller’s digital photography class, search Instagram using #sjcphotoclass and follow him at rdscottfuller. Lindsey Oldroyd
Lindsey Oldroyd
Sarah Bakun
Kaye Peabody
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feature
What We Talk about When We Talk about The Hunger Games
BY SHANNON CHISHOLM ’14
The Hunger Games series is a fan favorite in popular culture. It happens to also be a favorite on college campuses—both for the students and faculty.
T
he Hunger Games trilogy, written by Suzanne Collins, has struck a chord with the American public. In 2011, The Hunger Games ranked as the third most banned book series in America, but that did nothing to stem its popularity. By 2012, 27.7 million copies had been sold in the United States. “I saw the way students were tearing through The Hunger Games trilogy,” says Dr. Michelle Laughran, associate professor of history. “People who weren’t even avid readers had their faces buried in these
books and were blowing through a thousand pages in a week or two. It really amazed me. As educators, it’s our job to plug into that interest and make sure people get the most out of it.” To add to that interest, which was felt across Saint Joseph’s and other college and university campuses around the world, Laughran created the College’s very own Hunger Games panel, which was held last fall. So, how can we examine a fictional series about a 16-year-old girl living in a futuristic dystopia? The panel—made up of four faculty members—dug deep into the story’s plot, examining it through 18 | saint joseph’s
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the lenses of their respective fields of expertise: psychology, sociology, communications, and political science.
Authenticity & Attention In the series, popularity just may equal survival. At the annual Hunger Games event, representatives from “districts” are gathered together in a large, outdoor arena, with its perimeters sealed. These representatives—some scared, some emboldened—are forced to compete in a game of survival, battling natural and manmade dangers of the arena and each other. The Hunger Games event ends when there is one lone survivor. Aside from the shear brute nature of the event, where the worst is sometimes brought out of the individuals, there’s something to be said about how each person is perceived in the eyes of the general public. When the public is pleased with a representative, they can provide gifts to him or her— like healing balms. So, the series’ main character, Katniss Everdeen, must learn to not only survive but also how to be a winner in the court of public opinion—which she does by pretending to be in love with Peeta Mellark, another representative caught up in the arena. “The book raises the issue of authenticity,” says Dr. Josh Schoenfeld, associate professor of psychology. “Authenticity, in a human sense, means communicating and acting in a way that is true to what you are really thinking and feeling.” John Hufstader, associate professor of communications, agrees, having seen how appearance and authenticity impact even those who are perceived to be the strongest. Effie Trinket, a representative from The Capitol and who acts as an official escort to Katniss and Peeta, is literally covered in false impressions. In the film, “she’s seen as powerful and strong when the camera’s pulled back,” says Hufstader. “But when it zooms in, you can see how
phony she is,” with excessive makeup and even a jittery demeanor. Like Katniss, people are often forced to play a role to gain attention. This fabrication of identity isn’t anything new. Both on television and in everyday life people are driven to present a kind of false image in order to get attention. “We have turned attention into a commodity,” says Schoenfeld. “Attention now equals money.” And in The Hunger Games, positive attention equals survival.
The Media, Inequality & Oppression Media studies have long been a component to how experts examine society. And it’s no different in The Hunger Games. In the fictional nation of Panem, popular culture and the media play a fundamental role in the publicizing and oppression of the communities. By broadcasting the Hunger Games contest, citizens are practically forced to accept their own subjugation. Entertainment, it seems, distracts people from thinking about themselves as something more important than the contrived broadcasts. “The separation between factual hard news with serious relevance, such as poverty and inequality, and the soft news of infotainment is often hard to see,” says Dr. Katrina Hoop, associate professor of sociology. “The rise of infotainment, or informationbased media that includes entertainment, distracts the public from important issues.” The media also distracts audiences through commercials and pushes people to consume as many items as possible, even if it means going beyond their budget. “In America you can live what is considered a decent life and still be very poor,” says Hoop. “You can lack basic healthcare coverage or live in an underdeveloped community with bad infrastructure, but because of cheap goods and consumption, coupled with distraction by the media, we are led to believe inequality doesn’t exist or isn’t as bad because on the surface our lives are comfortable.”
Inequality, Inside & Between The districts in The Hunger Games vary in a number of ways, but one obvious point where they begin to take on different characteristics is in the health and skill of their representatives in the Hunger Games arena. “Tributes,” as they are called, from District 1 are often stronger and more formidable than those from District 12. Inequality exists between the districts as well as within the districts. There is a
stratification of power in the books that resembles the one that exists in the real world. “It’s not that we just have inequality amongst very rich countries and very poor countries,” says Mark Hibben, associate professor of political science. “You also have high amounts of inequality within wealthy states.” These socioeconomic differences can be seen in District 12. The poorest people of the district, like Katniss, come from the “Seam,” who work in the coal mines and are on the edge of starvation most days. People who live in the villages of the Games’ winners no longer need to work and have more food than is necessary. The contrast in the lives of people from the Seam and the winners’ villages are radically different. “Over the last 30 years, development strategies have impacted global inequality,” says Hibben. “The Washington Consensus, popular with institutions like the IMF and World Bank, is a development model that pushes opening up markets and sometimes reinforces things you see in The Hunger Games books, including inequality, dislocation, and alienation.” Two development strategies that have affected in-
“We have turned attention into a commodity. Attention now equals money.” — DR. JOSH SCHOENFELD
“As educators, it’s our job to plug into that interest and make sure people get the — DR. MICHELLE LAUGHRAN most out of it.” equality today are dependency theory and modernization theory. Dependency theory blames colonial history for the lack of growth in certain parts of the world, while modernization blames corrupt institutions. This has left some areas poor even though they are resource-rich and around a billion people live on $1.25 a day. The mass inequality described in the books is not too far off from that very reality.
Implications for the Future The Hunger Games brings to light many important issues that should be addressed both nationally and internationally. Suzanne Collins’ thought-provoking story has caught the public’s imagination because the themes are eerily relatable to the real world. This may be a simple story about one girl and her struggle to survive, but it could be something much deeper than that.
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alumniprofile R O Y M E L LO N ’ 1 3 , M AT P T SER VI C E A L L AR O U ND BY MICHAEL A HOTHAM ’14
Originally from Saginaw, Michigan, Roy Mellon spent more than 20 years in the U.S. Air Force. Now retired and living in Korea for 11 years, he’s serving the U.S., the Catholic Church, and fellow believers in his new role as deacon. For Mellon, service has never meant so much.
How has the term “service” changed for you as a member of the military? My military service gave me a background in many fields related to the aerospace industry, specifically in operations and maintenance of special mission aircraft. I am currently the area manager for my U.S.-based company’s operations in Korea. This has given me the ability to have a challenging career. It’s allowed me to care well for my family, and is also personally rewarding. The other position is that of a permanent deacon incardinated with the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA (AMS). In 2008, after attending a discernment retreat led by Archbishop Timothy Broglio from AMS, I said I would like to pursue the diaconate. I was told that the AMS did not have a program, and that I would have to wait until I left Korea to work with my home diocese. Did that mean you had to come back to the States? I explained the dilemma to another AMS auxiliary bishop. Shortly after that he asked me to help him formulate a proposal to send to the archbishop to establish a pilot program for diaconal formation for
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the AMS. He specifically asked me to work on what is called the intellectual aspect of formation, or the academic portion. I did a “trade study,” as we call it in engineering, of all the academic institutions listed by the U.S. Council of Catholic Bishops on their website. After weeks of research and discussions, I presented my analysis and findings to the bishop, and we agreed to propose the Master of Arts in Pastoral Theology (MAPT) program at Saint Joseph’s College Online as the academic qualification for the diaconate. We spoke many times with Deacon Dan Sheridan, PhD in the process. as serving abroad informed your work, both in H the military and the Church? This gives anyone a larger worldview. I believe living overseas and being multilingual inherently gives a person the ability to see things in ways that they normally couldn’t when their frame of reference consists of only one cultural environment. I am sure that living overseas has changed the way I view the world and has made me more understanding and compassionate. Everything that has happened in my life to date has contributed to my ability to be successful in my mission
“I can’t think of anything more rewarding at this
Opposite page: On August 24, 2013, an ordination Mass was held for Roy Mellon (second from right) and Joseph Pak (left), both 2013 Saint Joseph’s College Online graduates. The Mass was held at the Crypt Church of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C.
time than caring for the spiritual lives of those who are dedicating their lives and are willing to sacrifice everything for the ones they love, God, family, and country.” —ROY MELLON ’13, MATPT
as well as with my activity in the Church. The military has contributed to this calling as well. I am retired from the Air Force and have been a member of the parish community at the U.S. Army installation near my house since arrival in Korea in 2003. My language training through the military has enabled me to reach out to local residents. Does serving God as a member of the military differ from its civilian counterpart? Those who are called to serve those in service to their country are truly privileged. I can’t think of anything more rewarding at this time than caring for the spiritual lives of those who are dedicating their lives and are willing to sacrifice everything for the ones they love, God, family, and country. hen you wake up in the morning and look at W where you are and what you are doing, what goes through your mind? I feel amazement and happiness. Six years ago there was no way a permanent deacon could have been ordained for the AMS. In fact, my fellow graduate Deacon Joseph Pak and
I are the first clergy ever to be ordained and incardinated specifically by the military archdiocese. I believe in miracles, for sure. I believe that anything is possible if you truly have faith in God. My life to this point has been very rewarding. I have been blessed with a beautiful, loving family and the ability to care for them. It is now my privilege to serve others in any way I can, with the grace of God.
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alumninews 2014 –2015 S J C A LU M N I B OA R D OFFICERS
From the Chair Dear Fellow Alumni,
Ellis Baum ’98 CHAIR
I hope this letter finds you doing well and enjoying spring. Allow me to introduce myself: My name is Ellis Baum, and I have recently been elected chair of the Alumni Board, and I officially started this role this May. I graduated from Saint Joseph’s in 1998 as a history major, and have been a member of the Alumni Board for approximately two years now. I’m very excited to take on this new role, but before I dig too far into that, a few thank-yous and additional introductions are in order.
Marissa Stevens ’01 VICE CHAIR June Irvine ’09 TREASURER Pam Aliberti ’65 S E C R E TA RY CO U N C I L M E M B E R S Nichole (Long) Adams ’10 Pam Aliberti ’65 Tim Bailey ’84 Marcus Barresi ’76 Ellis Baum ’98 Patrick Brennan ’04
First, I would like to thank Todd Hamilton ’99, the former chair of the Board, for his tremendous work and dedication. Frankly, without Todd, the Board would not exist. He has been instrumental in building it up to the stage that it is currently. I would also like to thank the other departing officers: Jen Taylor ’03, ’09, vice chair, and Charlotte Stepanian ’97, ’03, secretary. June Irvine ’09, who has served as treasurer, will remain in this position, which is great news.
Cheryl Brewster ’00 Stephanie (Tutlis) Briggs ’98 Sam Butts ’13 Jenna Chase ’11 James Farrenkopf ’01 Chris Lee Toby Lindsay Ken Marino ’82 Donna O’Brien ’87 Meloney (Simpson) Santeusanio ’09, ’14 Haley Nason ’14 Ray Ruby ’05 Erin Scanlon ’98 Marissa Morton Stephens ’01 Ryan Turner ’98
F U T U R E A LU M N I O F T H E M O N K S OFFICERS Haley Nason ’14 PRESIDENT Brett O’Kelly ’16 VICE PRESIDENT Jessica Capozzi ’14 S E C R E TA RY
As chair, I hope to build upon the relationships that exist between SJC and so many alumni, as well as reconnect with alumni that haven’t visited with the College in a while. Since reacquainting myself with the College through the Board, I have rekindled friendships from years past and have formed many new ones. I hope to aid as many alumni as possible in this same process as well. In addition, I hope to aid the Board in providing more professional resources for alumni, as well as providing support to current students who will be entering the job market soon enough. The Board has a number of exciting events planned throughout the year, including several professional networking socials in the Greater Portland area, a gathering at the Waterclub in Quincy, Massachusetts, that is being organized by the Boston Chapter, and, of course, Alumni Weekend this summer. I’m looking forward to meeting as many of you as I can. Sincerely, Ellis Baum ’98 Chair of the Alumni Board
Erica Russi ’14 TREASURER MEMBERS Ryan Gallagher ’14 Doe Leckie ’15 Nic Lops ’15 Alex Lorenc ’14 James Riley ’16 Alex Valenti ’15
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Second, I would like to welcome the other new officers to the Board. Marissa Stevens ’01 will be assuming the role of vice chair, and Pam Aliberti ’65 will be assuming the role of secretary. I am looking forward to working with this group of officers and grateful for the work and accomplishments of the departing officers.
magazine
Hi, Class.
Alumni Weekend July 31–August 3
therock.sjcme.edu/alumwknd
fall 2011 | 23
alumninews
scene¬ed
n n n
Ice Ball 2014 At the third annual Ice Ball, on February 1, alumni, friends, family, and community members gathered for an evening of food, custom cocktails, and the warmth of a fire pit. All proceeds from the evening went to the Alumni Association Endowed Scholarship fund.
This Page, Top Left–Right: Back to front, left to right: Mathew Shaw ’11, Tanya Garrity ’11, TJ Tandberg ’11, Jenna Chase ‘11 n Ana Brandt Abbott ’98 and Corey Abbott ‘99 n Austin Hamann and Caelin Moore ’11 n Amy Carleton Walker, Sr. Mary George O’Toole ’51, Sr. Joyce Mahany, Sue Walker Opposite Page, Top Left–Right: Rhona Samuels and Harrison Deah ’07 n Kristi Skilling Fecteau ’99, Bryan Johnson ’13, Heather Viti-Kelly ’98, Jeff Fecteau ’98, Jessica Frank Reed ‘00 n Sam Butts ’13, Kate Mulligan, Haley Nason ’14 n Matt Olson ’05 and Melissa Duchesneau n Erin McLaughlin ’06, Ashley Burleigh Shamos ’06, Danielle Lavoie Ruby ‘06
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alumninews
spring fall 2011 2014 | 25
alumninews
Get
Connected Connect your professional network—from your classmates, colleagues, acquaintances, and business partners—by joining the conversation with Saint Joseph’s College of Maine’s Alumni group on LinkedIn. It’s the best way to stay informed as alumni advance in their professional careers, and it’s a great way to look for opportunities presented by your international network of alumni. Join the group. Expand your network.
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Capital City On February 5, alumni and College staff met at The University Club in Washington, D.C., to network and meet President Jim Dlugos. Attendees enjoyed the evening, which included discussing the role of a future regional alumni chapter for the D.C. area.
Top Left–Right: Jeremiah Cottle ’00 and President Jim Dlugos n Michael Mulhare ’79 and Mary Ellen Kennally Wolf ’82 n Claire Cook ’10 and Jeannette Wright ’90 n Melissa Dlugos and her son, Matthew
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Road Trip to Florida From Jacksonville to Fort Myers, alumni gathered in the Sunshine State in March to catch up—and to catch some rays on a river tour and at a Red Sox game. Top Left–Right: Mike Johnson ’87 and his wife, Deb (Sweatt) Johnson ’87, enjoyed the game with daughter Molly Johnson ’17, family, and friends n Bernie Pagurko, Terri (Riley) Morris ’50, Nancy (Giroux) Pagurko ’56 n Kristen Villacci ’08, Nicki Hicks ’08, Samantha (Hill) Tupper ‘09, Sam Tupper ‘07, Alison Nason ’03, Jasen Hutchinson ’95 in Jacksonville n Esther Caduto ’80 and her husband, Ralph, in Jacksonville n Pat (O’Brien) Quinn ’63 (front left) and her husband, Michael, at the Red Sox game with friends in Fort Myers n Class of 1967 grads Glennis (Bush) Chabot and Jennifer (Arouca) Fitzpatrick in Fort Myers for the Red Sox game joined by Roger Chabot and Paul Annarummo
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classnotes
Where are you now? What are you doing? Tell us your news. Send name and address changes, advanced degrees/honors received, changes in employment or family statistics, and other important information. Send us your photos, especially weddings or alumni gatherings.
1940s MARY ANN DEMERS TRUE ’46 of Branford, Conn.,
and her family celebrated her 90th birthday on Feb. 12.
1960s CHRISTINE A. BARTLETT ’61 of South Strafford,
Vt., volunteers as a reading mentor for a fourth-grade student. The program is called Power Lunch, and is the foundation of the mentoring program Everybody Wins! CAROL R. WRIGHT ’66 of Worcester, Mass., retired in July 2013 as a medical technologist at UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester. Carol worked in the clinical chemistry and renal departments.
1970s MARY ALYCE KNIGHTLY ’71 of Hampton, N.H.,
retired from Kensington Elementary School in June 2013 after 42 years of teaching at the school. NANCY L. KASHLAK ’75
of Tamaqua, Pa., was appointed as the committee chair for the Association of Pediatric
Hematology/Oncology Nurses and belongs to the Continuing Education Committee for the Journal of Pediatric Oncology Nursing. She is continuing as an instructor and course coordinator for Child Health Nursing at Pennsylvania State University, College of Nursing, in Hershey, Pa. REIS HAGERMAN ’79 of Standish, Maine, the dean of Campus Life at Saint Joseph’s College, was recently reappointed to the Board of Directors of Finance Authority of Maine (FAME). Reis was also recently invited by The New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE) to join the Regional Advisory Council and serve the Redesigning Student Aid in New England project.
Submit news to alumni@sjcme.edu, or go online at therock.sjcme.edu. You can also mail submissions to the Office of Alumni Relations: Saint Joseph’s College, 278 Whites Bridge Rd., Standish, ME 04084-5236, or call 207-893-7890.
ing officer for the Fox Networks Group. BEVERLY MATLOCK HARRIS ’82 of Allen, Texas,
moved from Paris, Texas, after selling her house to live with her son Michael. PAULA LANDRY RING ’83
of Millville, N.J., had the new Cumberland County College Paula J. Ring Education Center named in her honor on Aug. 14, 2013. ERNEST DUBOIS ’84 and his wife, Jeanne Dubois, are enjoying retirement and traveling after her 43-year career in nursing. ANNA GRANDINETTI GUNN ’86 of Pittsburgh,
ANGELA BECKER ’93 of Brentwood, Tenn., fully retired from working as a nurse practitioner at Vanderbilt University and is enjoying life.
MARK BARRASSO ’97 of South Portland, Maine, is currently working on his master’s degree in education from Saint Joseph’s College Online.
SUSAN E. WENG ’93 of Shelbyville, Mich., retired in 2005 as an RN in the NICU. She now spends her time cuddling infants in the NICU, along with quilting and volunteering at a local food pantry.
MICHAEL SIBLEY ’98 of Ormond Beach, Fla., a certified public accountant with James Moore Certified Public Accountant and Consultants, has earned a Black Belt Certification in Lean Six Sigma, a concept focused on making a process more efficient, gaining capacity, and increasing speed by first examining the needs of the customer.
1990s KATHY HOUGHTON CRONE ’91 of Mabelvale, Ark.,
KAREN RILEY-MCCRACKEN ’80 of Wallingford, Conn.,
went on a cruise with her husband, Jim, to get all of her continuing education units to renew her nurse’s license in April 2013. MATT NELSON ’91 of
RANDY FREER ’82 has been named the president and chief operat-
College for their support of the college’s soccer team. In recognition of their efforts, the college’s turf field, formerly known as Black Field, was renamed Smith Field.
Pa., retired from nursing in 2013.
1980s received the Nightingale Award for Nursing Excellence from Midstate Medical Center in Meriden, Conn.
of the Year by the Maine Principals’ Association. Matt has been the principal at Westbrook Middle School since 2010. Before that, he was an assistant principal at Westbrook High School.
Gorham, Maine, was named the state’s 2014 Middle Level Principal
TIMOTHY BONIN ’96
Kelly Smith ’94 KELLY SMITH ’94 of Oakland, Maine, and her husband, Todd, were honored by Thomas
was re-elected to the Douglas, Mass., Board of Selectmen in May. He garnered the most votes for any municipal candidate in the town’s history. Timothy serves as the chairman of the five-member board.
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classnotes
2000s PATRICIA CHISANO’S ’01
husband retired this past July, and she is planning to retire in 2014. She plans on working or volunteering for her charity with the Sisters of the Good Shepherd. THOMAS R. CHESNEY ’00 is an administrator at Stratford Health Care Center, Danville, Va. Thomas has more than 30 years of health care management experience, including skilled nursing facilities, home health, and acute care. Thomas resides in Woodleaf, N.C., with his wife, Kristin. STEVEN VITTNER ’03 of Redmond, Wash., was promoted to general manager at the Seattle Station for JetBlue Airways. THERESA M. MILLER ’06 of
Peoria, Ill., earned a PhD in nursing education from Capella University in 2013. She is the assistant professor at OSF Saint Francis Medical Center College of Nursing in Peoria. DR. ROBIN K. CARON ’06, DO of Worcester, Mass.,
will join the team at ABC News in Manhattan, N.Y., this June. She will be advising ABC News producers and correspondents on medical stories, writing health stories, contributing to health segments on ABC News, framing and formulating
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stimulating questions, and speaking to leading medical experts in the world.
presented by the mayor of Providence, Angel Taveras.
expects to graduate with the Class of 2018.
DR. WINFRED MUTHONI KIAMAH ’09 will be pro-
of Edison, N.J., was recently appointed as the dean of academics and faith formation at Union Catholic High School in Scotch Plains, N.J.
BARBARA DELLANNO ’12
viding care for Ministry Health Care in Stevens Point, Wis., and will be specializing in the prevention and treatment of adult diseases.
2010s David Morse ’07
DAVID MORSE ’07 of Kennebunk, Maine, recently opened his own law practice in Westbrook. He is helping to serve the legal needs of the Greater Portland area and its surrounding communities.
MATT KIRK ’11 of Baltimore, Md., was accepted into the Liberty University College of Osteopathic Medicine in Lynchburg, Va., and
DEANNA SCOTT GRAHAM ’12 of Exeter, N.H., was
promoted to the director of health and wellness in August 2013 at the YMCA of Greater Londonderry in Londonderry, N.H. Deanna also received the Impact Award for her branch in November.
SHELLEY DUPLISEA ’13 of Wells, Maine, has joined the audit practice. Previously, Shelley was an intern at Baker Newman Noyes. THOMAS M. GAGNON ’13
of Manchester, N.H., who earned his degree in criminal justice, obtained employment in the field six weeks after graduating. He is a correctional officer at the Hillsborough County Jail in his hometown of Manchester.
JOAN ZABOROWSKI ERSING ’07 of East Aurora,
N.Y., is the pastoral associate at St. Martin de Porres Church in Buffalo, N.Y. She is also the mission coordinator of the Pontifical Mission Society Diocese of Buffalo. JOSHUA BELL ’08 of Providence, R.I., received the City of Providence’s Veteran Civic Engagement Award for his work with veterans as a member of AmeriCorps VISTA at the Diocese of Providence. Josh was one of five awardees—one of two civilians—to be recognized. The award and Citizen Citation were
Elliot LaMarre ’11 & Sophia Joakim ’12
Meaghan Mower Richardson ’08 & Justin Richardson ’08
Paul Richardson & Jamie Clark-Richardson ’98
classnotes wedding bells STEVEN PAINCHAUD ’74
celebrated the marriage of his daughter to Kevin Preston on Oct. 5, 2013. LINDA GEERS ’89 of Cedar
Key, Fla., and Chenango Bridge, N.Y., celebrated her 50th wedding anniversary in upstate New York in September. JAMIE CLARK-RICHARDSON ’98 of Saco, Maine,
married Paul Richardson on July 25, 2013, at Acadia National Park. JUSTIN RICHARDSON ’08 AND MEAGHAN MOWER RICHARDSON ’08 married
on Oct. 19, 2013, in Ellsworth, Maine. SOPHIA JOAKIM ’12 of Wells, Maine, and ELLIOT LAMARRE ’11 of
Raymond, Maine, were married Sept. 28, 2013, in Portland, Maine.
Dec. 25, 2013. Jameson is a new baby brother to Kelson (6), Jaxson (4), and Karson (3). SARAH MCNAMEE PFIESTER ’00 and Marty Pfiester
of Cincinnati, Ohio, welcomed Benjamin James Pfiester on Dec. 12, 2012. He joins big sister Addie Rose and is a grandson to Marybeth Yeagher McNamee ’68. JAMIE MCKELLAR JOHNSON ‘08 AND MILES JOHNSON ‘08 welcomed their
first child, Aiden Miles Johnson, on Sept. 4. Jamie is a registered nurse at Maine Medical Center. Miles is a manager in corporate treasury at Liberty Mutual Insurance in Dover, N.H.
condolences & prayers The College community offers sympathy to…
Jameson Nicholas Kirkelis The family of KATHLEEN MACISSO MAGUIRE ’49
of Portland, Maine, who passed away on March 28.
new additions BRENDA BEARD ’80
of Southbury, Conn., celebrated the birth of her first grandchild, Kyle Robert Beard, on Sept. 9, 2013. Brenda says Kyle is lucky to have six great great-grandparents.
The family of EMMA SIMMERS ’84 on her passing on Feb. 2, 2013. The family of EMMA LOU-
The family of SISTER M. PATRICIA KILBRIDE ’68, RSM, who passed away
peacefully at Frances Warde Convent on Feb. 18 after a brief illness. The family of SISTER
The family of LUCIE ANN SWEENEY ’40 on her passing on Dec. 21, 2013, at her home.
Benjamin James Pfiester
CATHERINE GREEN ’69, RSM, on her passing on
March 4. Sister Catherine taught in the College’s summer programs for 21 years, beginning in 1986. The family of HARLYNE HILLIKER-GEAGAN JOY ’79
on her passing on June 3, 2013.
ISE MARSHALL GINTHER ’85, who passed away
peacefully, surrounded by loved ones in Pinellas Park, Fla., on Jan. 16, 2014. The family of WILLIAM M. MCAULIFFE ’90 on his passing on Dec. 1, 2013, at his home. Bill was a former College employee and beloved husband of longtime College employee Sue McAuliffe. Bill worked as an advisor in the College’s online program for 15 years, before retiring in 2005.
KELLEE MURPHY KIRKELIS ’97 of Westlake Village,
NANCY KONECKI TERISON ’80 of Falmouth, Maine,
The family of DELINA
Calif., and her husband, Jason, welcomed their fourth son, Jameson Nicholas Kirkelis, into the world at 6:24 a.m. on
whose mother recently passed away.
her passing in 2011.
GARUCCIO FARELLI ’99 on
a-half year battle with leukemia. The family of MATHEW S. RAIRDON ’13 on his passing on Nov. 30, 2013. DR. KATHLEEN CLEMENTS,
whose mother, Eileen Kiley, passed away on Jan. 16. PETER GEIGER, former Board member, on the passing of his mother, Anna Geiger, on Jan. 30.
The family of REUBEN HOWARD, the former director of facilities, who passed away on Dec. 3, 2013, after a long and courageous battle with prostate cancer. He retired from Saint Joseph’s in 1999, after nearly 24 years of service.
The family of TERESA
Lucie Ann Sweeney ’40
The family of JOAN MCCONNELL NEWMAN ’84 on her passing in Oct. 2013.
(TERRI) KENNEDY BISS ’09, who passed away on Feb. 25 after a two-and-
spring fall 2014 2011 | 31
classnotes
LOOKING BACK, WITH TODD HAMILTON ’99 Three years ago, alumni from multiple generations gathered together with an idea to create the Saint Joseph’s College Alumni Association. With that in mind, a list of objectives was established: • Build a network of alumni throughout the country that will benefit each other and the College. • Continue to represent the core values of Saint Joseph’s College, envisioned by the Sisters of Mercy. • Pass what we have learned forward to the next generation of SJC alumni. Our Alumni Association was formed, and with the overwhelming support from alumni, friends, and the Sisters of Mercy, we have made great strides in achieving these goals. The attendance at alumni events has grown exponentially. The willingness of alumni to donate time and knowledge to benefit the future of the College has touched many. Because of the efforts of alumni like you, who provide internships for students, volunteered for Admission open houses, attended events such as athletic competitions, and provide leadership as role models, we have demonstrated our desire to make Saint Joseph’s the best it can be.
alumnihighlight
The future of our Alumni Association is brighter because we have chosen to work together. We have passionate alumni and the potential to make Saint Joseph’s College the guiding beacon of education for the century to come. Working together, we can make connections and build a stronger SJC community. My term as the chair of the Alumni Association recently came to an end. I have enjoyed my time representing alumni and am proud to have been a part of building a great organization. I appreciate all the help and support I have received from close friends, alumni, my business partners, and members of the Alumni Board who have donated so much of their free time. I would also like to thank Heather Plati, Susan McAuliffe, Kristen Jewett ’05, ’11, Michael Bolanz ’00, and Kristina Green ’04, who provided their guidance and advice. Three years ago, alumni had an idea to build an alumni association. Today, that dream has become reality. Through our commitment and hard work, alumni from Saint Joseph’s College make a difference by doing the little things extraordinarily well. We can and do realize the promise every day. Go Monks!
Connect with us! Saint Joseph’s College—Alumni @SJCMEAlumni MyCribSheet.com/SJCME Saint Joseph’s College of Maine Alumni @saintjosephscollege
32 | saint joseph’s
magazine
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