class notes THE FOLLOWING PAGES INCLUDE NEWS AND NOTES SUBMITTED PRIOR TO OCTOBER 15, 2015.
40s
ALEXANDER L. PATERNOTTE
60s
Class of 1965
“Here’s to fellow 75th-ers!”
JOHN S. RAMAKER
MCD’46
50s
BARBARA TAYLOR BLOMQUIST
MDS’50
Her latest book is “Embracing the Adoption Effect”, published by Tate Publishers in 2015. Its subtitle, “29 Stories of Families Touched by Adoption,” alludes to the result of deep, intense interviews with adoptees, birth parents, and adoptive parents who revealed secrets, frustrations, and amazing love that is innate within the adoption world. All revealed how adoption positively and negatively affected their lives. Their brutal honesty provided insight into the strength, compassion, and coping skills of these remarkable people.
USM’s inaugural graduating Class of 1965 gathered to celebrate its 50th Reunion over the summer during events on June 26 and 27.
70s
CIA CHESTER MCKOY
’72
released her book “Poking Chocolates & Other Rude Habits” in January 2015. The book is described as “tracking the author as she bumps into the rich, odd, and famous in search of the sweet life.” More background is available at pokingchocolates.com.
STEPHEN FARWIG
’75
Class of 1956 The following members of the Milwaukee Downer Seminary Class of 1956 gathered at the home of Patty Van Dyke Gardner ’56 for their 59th reunion: Mimi Lang Mead, Patty Van Dyke Gardner, Shelley Ott Kotovic, Pat Seyfert Geiger, Alicia Auchter Mullins, Susan Momsen Sokol, Shelia Hannan Kirscher, Valerie Brumder, and Louise Trostel Hoffman. The group looks forward to reconnecting for their 60th reunion in June.
WILL DARLING
’92
MCD’40
visited with Jake Hedding MCD’46 and Joanie Waterman MDS’46 in April 2015 while in Arizona. He hopes to arrange a 70th reunion in 2016.
90s
was hired by University School of Milwaukee as director of major and planned gifts in September. Farwig previously served as the director of planned giving at Carroll University, and also has prior advancement experience at the Aurora Health Care Foundation, Valparaiso University, Lutheran Social Services, and Carthage College.
was featured in an August Milwaukee Journal Sentinel profile that detailed how he has utilized painting as a creative outlet to help overcome difficulties with substance abuse issues. He was the featured artist at Rock the Arts, a benefit for the Milwaukee advocacy organization Vital Voices for Mental Health held at Shank Hall.
L. KIERAN KIECKHEFER
’98
is a partner in the law firm of McDermott Will & Emery LLP based in the firm’s Silicon Valley office. Her practice focuses on patent, copyright, and trade secrets law. Kieckhefer previously worked at another top AmLaw 100 firm in Silicon Valley. During that time, she participated in nine trials involving patent, antitrust, copyright, trade secrets, breach of employment contracts, criminal, and family law subject areas. She first-chaired six of those nine trials and developed substantial experience examining and cross-examining a variety of expert and fact witnesses. Kieckhefer has litigated patent, copyright, and trade secret cases in federal courts across the country, and has a breadth of appellate experience before the Ninth Circuit, the Federal Circuit, and the United States Supreme Court. Throughout her legal career, she has been dedicated to the retention and promotion of women in the intellectual property field. Kieckhefer co-founded the Retention of Women in Intellectual Property taskforce and was actively involved in the Successful Women in Intellectual Property Forums. Kieran received her J.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison Law School. She earned her B.S. in Mathematics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and is admitted to practice in California and Wisconsin. 29