alumni news
2000s, continued Decalogue for Ecumenical Discipleship, authored by the late Rev. Dr. Donald Charles Lacy for whom the award is named. Rev. Landry currently serves as Senior Pastor of First UMC after having served as Associate Pastor of Mission and Discipleship and Spiritual Director at Meridian Street United Methodist Church in Indianapolis. Rev. Landry credits Roman Catholic Franciscan sisters with helping him discern his call to the pastorate as a USF student. He is the author of The Franciscan Methodist blog, an associate of the Franciscan Community of Oldenburg and earned a Certificate in Spiritual Direction from the Sisters of St. Benedict. For his ecumenical writing, Rev. Landry was conferred the Doctor of Letters degree honoris causa from SPCU. Kristin (Jones) Miller (BA ’09) and Ryan Miller (BA ’09) welcomed baby Riley Quinn, who weighed 8 pounds, 10 ounces. n
2010s Jenna Oberley (BS ’10) received her Doctor of Dental Surgery degree from Indiana University School of Dentistry, where she also served as president of the Public Health Dentistry Club and member of the Indiana University Student Outreach Clinic. Following dental school, Jenna worked as a dentist in the Indianapolis area for two years. She then decided to further her education and accepted a position at the University of Colorado School of Dental Medicine Orthodontics program, where she trained the past two years. She is a practicing orthodontist in Indianapolis. Tonya Young (AS ’08, BA ’10) received the 2020 Light of Learning Award. She teaches at Queen of Angels School. Kibwe Cooper (AS ’12, BS ’13) recently performed in the Fort Wayne Civic Theatre production of “Choir Boy.” Nicole Sanderson (ASN ’12, BSN ’13, MSN ’16) joined the Lutheran Health Physicians family medicine practice in DeKalb County. She has several years of clinical experience, working locally as a registered nurse and emergency care technician. Nora Gibbons (BA ’13) started a new position as social media specialist at Elkay Manufacturing. Lauren Oberley (BS ’13) resides in Iowa and is a practicing optometrist. Amanda Pedro (BSN ’13) married Tyler Bunn on Saturday, Oct. 5, 2019. Cassandra Degood (BA ’14) is a litigation specialist at Brotherhood Mutual Insurance. Amber Wharton (BA ’14) received the 2020 Light of Learning Award. She teaches at St. Louis Academy. Jasmine Bejar (BA ’15) is the Communications and Community Engagement Manager for Indiana Arts Commission. Nathan Byrd (BA ’15) is the Director of Marketing at Kimberly Clark. Carolina Flores (BS ’15) passed the bar and became a full-time associate at Barnes & Thornburg. She is also on the USF alumni cabinet. Paul Hernandez (BA ’15, MOL ’17) is the Employer Engagement Manager at University of Notre Dame. Kaleb Ahrens (BA ’17) is an employee of Ruoff Home Mortgage and is married to Rebekah Ahrens. n
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Audra Brown (BSN ’17) has been working at Franciscan Health in Lafayette for the last two years and recently transferred to Franciscan Health in Indianapolis. Angel Colon Santiago (MBA ’17) was named the 2019 Outreach Volunteer of the Year of the American Chemical Society. He served as president of a student chapter, committee member and secretary of the Puerto Rico section. He organized undergraduate forums where professionals from academia, industry and law shared their experience and approach to using chemistry outside the laboratory. Also, Angel organized two entrepreneurial forums, where science entrepreneurs shared their experience with young scientists about how to be a scientist entrepreneur. Learn more at www.acs.org/ voty. Madalyn Steinke, PTA (BS ’17, AS ’17) was honored at the Indiana Chapter of American Physical Therapy Association Awards Dinner on Oct. 11 in Indianapolis. She is the University of Evansville recipient of the 2019 Team Rehab Scholarship. Maddie graduated from the USF Physical Therapist Assistant Program and is currently in her third year of DPT School. Rebekah (Frey) Ahrens (BA ’18) is married to Kaleb Ahrens. Madison Cafaro (BA ’18) is an Optometrist Technician in Chandler, Ariz. Ian Coffey (BS ’18) is employed with Franklin Electric and enjoys traveling globally with his role. Justin Davis (BA ’18) started a new position as retirement income designer at Ash Brokerage. Tony Hampton (MBA ’18) is a server engineer at Franklin Electric in Fort Wayne. Morgan Hubble (BSN ’18) is employed by USF as the graduate assistant of Bonzel Hall, where she has been since 2018. She is in the Family Nurse Practitioner program and will graduate in May 2020. She will be leaving the university after living in the dorms for six years. She is currently working as a nurse PRN at Dupont Hospital in the pediatric unit. Morgan is also the assistant coach for USF softball where she played four years as an undergraduate. She loves USF and is so thankful for the opportunities it has given her. She is excited to see where she will end up as a nurse practitioner in a few short months. Magdalena Mendez (BSW ’18) works at Cedar Creek Retirement Community as an independent living companion. Nanette Ambrose (BA ’19) started a new position as a corporate trainer at Platinum Retail Marketing. Kylin Bass (BS ’19) resides in Indianapolis and is the social services assistant at American Senior Communities. Eric Dunten (BS ’19, AS ’19) is a physical therapist assistant at Optimum Performance Therapy. Melody Ferrier (MA ’19) started a new job at Bishop Luers High School as a marketing coordinator. Jose Garcia (BA ’19) is working as a student engagement coordinator at Viterbo University in La Crosse, Wis. Joey Lamping (BS ’19) released his debut album, “Simpler Times,” on Spotify and is touring on his East Coast Tour, performing through New York and Washington D.C. Paige Rockett (BS ’19) works at Franklin Electric in Fort Wayne as a tax accountant. n
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saint francis magazine | spring 2020
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