Luther alumni magazine winter 2016

WINTER 2016

18 Cultural understanding as a nursing tool

Editor Ellen Modersohn Luther Magazine Volume 49, Number 2, Winter 2016

Managing Editor Kate Frentzel

Published by Luther College

Designer Michael Bartels Contributors Sherry (Braun) Alcock ’82 Dave Blanchard

Sue (Franzen) Drilling ’78 Sara Friedl-Putnam Emily Gehlsen ’16 Michael Hagstrom ’17 Annalise Johnson ’18 Kirk Johnson ’82 Aaron Lurth ’08 Megan Oliver ’19 Rozlyn Paradis ’18 Judy Riha Blaire Shaffer ’16 Ann Sponberg Peterson

Luther Alumni Magazine welcomes articles and signed letters to the editor; submissions may be edited for style, clarity, or length. Inquiries and submissions may be sent to the Editor, Luther Alumni Magazine, Luther College, 700 College Drive, Decorah, Iowa 52101-1045; magazine@luther.edu; phone (563) 387-1350. Class Notes submissions and changes of address may be sent to the Alumni Office at the address above. Alumni news may be emailed to the Alumni Office at alumni@ luther.edu. Questions and concerns about the magazine may be emailed to magazine@luther.edu.

Contents Features Faculty views on current events

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Nursing research links cultural knowledge with care

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Luther’s biannual pop-up art show

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Recognizing distinction at Homecoming

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Three Luther faculty members weigh in on the presidential race, water shortages, and new relations with Cuba.

Angela Kueny ’02 aims to bridge the gap between Amish communities and modern healthcare.

See the artwork students created last semester and displayed in the Ultra MEGA MEGA show throughout the Center for the Arts.

Recipients of Luther’s Distinguished Service, Sperati, Noble, Presser and Hemp Family Awards, and Athletic Hall of Fame inductees

ER NEV N BEE ED CT ELE

Departments President’s Letter

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Campus

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Development News............................................ 11 Athletics.............................................................. 12

Alumni

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ANNE GOODROAD ’19

Class Notes.........................................................37 Marriages............................................................53 Births/Adoptions................................................53 In Memoriam.......................................................54

Alumni Office (800) 225-8664; (800) 2 ALUMNI Admissions Office (800) 458-8437; (800) 4 LUTHER Web luther.edu luther.edu/magazine Copyright Luther College 2016

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Calendar

inside back

Share magazine stories online The alumni magazine is online in a mobile and shareable format. Share stories through email, Facebook, Twitter, or Google+ at luther.edu/magazine. Cover: photo by Aaron Lurth ’08 Left: Conner Murphy, son of Jerry and Tracy (Klein) Murphy ’88 and a firstyear student from Tiffin, Iowa, participated in the Luther Wrestling Open on Nov. 15, 2015. Wrestling stats for the current season are at luther.edu/sports/ men/wrestling.

March 10, 2016 It’s coming!

President’s Letter

Campus News Luther takes pride in the support and success of our first-generation graduates

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Luther’s TRIO program has a long record of success in helping first generation students and students with financial need graduate along side their peers.”

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It’s a Commencement Day tradition at Luther for the college president to recognize graduates who are members of multigeneration Luther families. At the beginning of the Commencement exercises each year, the president asks graduating seniors to stand if their parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins are Luther alumni. Each graduating class includes seniors whose family ties to Luther reach back four, five, or even six generations. The number of graduating seniors from multigeneration Luther families is strong testimony to the quality and value of a Luther education and to the richness of student experience at Luther. At my first Luther Commencement ceremony in May 2015, I looked forward to asking students from multigeneration Luther families to stand to be recognized, and I was delighted to join in the sustained, enthusiastic applause for these students and Luther’s long history in their families. At last May’s Commencement, we also inaugurated what will become a new tradition. After the multigeneration Luther graduates were recognized, I asked a second group to stand: the graduating seniors in the first generation of their families to attend college. When these first-generation graduating seniors stood, the gathered community again erupted in sustained, enthusiastic applause, and I was thrilled to join in this applause. The Luther community’s pride both to recognize many generations’ commitment to Luther and to celebrate first-generation graduates was very moving to me at my first Luther Commencement ceremony. Luther has long served first-generation college students exceptionally well. Now, as when the college was founded in 1861, the Luther community is committed to offering all students—multigeneration or first-generation— opportunities to learn, grow, and thrive

at the college. It was a joy to celebrate this commitment at Commencement. In this issue of the Luther Alumni Magazine, we begin with the good news that Luther’s TRIO Achievement Program received a $1.5 million grant from the federal government this past fall for continued support of Luther’s program to serve first-generation college students and students with financial need. The college’s TRIO program serves more than 180 students, assisting students as they transition to college life and make progress toward graduation. Luther’s TRIO program has a long record of success in helping first-generation students and students with financial need graduate alongside their peers. With the renewal of the college’s TRIO grant for the coming five years, these students will continue to receive crucial support and assistance to foster their success in their college careers at Luther. At the Commencement ceremonies this coming May, I look forward to recognizing once again the multigeneration Luther graduates with their fourth-, fifth-, and even sixth-generation ties to the college. And I look forward to celebrating the first-generation college students who are joining the Luther College alumni community and inaugurating a new tradition in their families—a tradition that brings the exceptional quality, value, and opportunity of a Luther education to their families and that enriches the Luther community as multigeneration and firstgeneration students learn, grow, and thrive together at Luther.

Paula J.Carlson President, Luther College

Campus News

TRIO SCHOLARSHIPS Seven Luther students benefitted from scholarships designed specifically for Luther TRIO participants this year. Recipients of the Steven Mark Anderson ’85 Scholarship for 2015–16 include Makeda Barkley ’17, Samantha Ea ’16, MaiTeng Moua ’16, Fred Scaife ’16, Pedro Lopez Vega ’17, and Chris Wieseler ’17.

TRIO students work on applications during a drop-in Scholarship Day. This event, which is held each semester, enhances students’ searching skills and assists them in writing competitive scholarship essays.

TRIO awarded $1.5 million grant; program helps ensure success in college This fall, Luther’s TRIO Achievement Program (formerly Student Support Services) received a $1.5 million grant from the federal government to continue programming. TRIO is a U.S. Department of Education program with outreach programs nationwide that serve first-generation college students and students with financial need. More than 180 Luther students currently benefit from the program, which sees 92 percent of its participants graduate or continue toward graduation each year. Funding for TRIO programs is allocated every five years through a rigorous application process. Luther’s TRIO program scored full points on every measure of assessment. We talked to Luther TRIO director Tammy Hove to learn what Luther’s team is doing right. Federal TRIO programs are in place, Hove says, to provide equal opportunity for students to access and complete a postsecondary educa-

tion, which benefits families, communities, and society. “These programs position students to thrive in college and beyond,” she says. Students entering Luther’s TRIO program are matched with one of three advisers, who ensure that participants establish specific goals and have the resources, opportunities, and information they need to achieve them. This advising is in addition to a student’s academic advising, and it helps students gain what Hove calls “college knowledge,” in addition to fostering their personal potential. All first-year participants receive materials to help orient them to college life. Contents of the TRIO guidebook, for instance, range from a “first things first” checklist to time management tips to a chart highlighting key differences between high school and college. New TRIO students are also encouraged to enroll in a two-credit Foundations for Learn-

The 2015–16 recipient of the Karen Julesberg ’60 Scholarship was Kalinda Kolek ’17, who led a scholarship-application workshop this fall for other TRIO students. “It was a really neat opportunity to teach people about a topic that we don’t learn enough about in life or classes,” she says.

Winter 2016 Luther Alumni Magazine

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Campus News

dent may seek through other campus centers. TRIO alumnus Chad Sonka ’12 found the program’s tutoring service invaluable as a student. He became a TRIO tutor himself and discovered an unexpected love of teaching. Now a full-time private voice teacher and alumni guest lecturer in Luther’s Music Department, he says, “TRIO helps shine a light onto a potential path for students, and I’m so proud to be a product of their guidance.” Luther’s TRIO program also influences its students’ financial education. TRIO staff help students identify and pursue scholarships, fully understand state and federal financial aid, and use resources like GradReady, an interactive online tool that teaches practical money skills. While the tool is available to all Luther students, TRIO students can earn a grant by completing GradReady training and fulfilling several other requirements. TRIO also helps students financially by administering textbook and technology lending programs and offering scholarships, including the Karen Julesberg ’60 Scholarship and the endowed memorial Steven Mark Anderson ’85 Scholarship. While Luther’s TRIO program promotes students’ academic success and financial lit-

eracy, it also offers them something less measurable: a sense of fellowship and community. From workshops to panels to social events to group meals, TRIO encourages connection. In October, it hosted a BBQ&A, during which a panel of faculty shared a meal and conversation with TRIO students. Hove says that the meet-and-greet “helps students get past the intimidation factor and see that professors are interested in getting to know them and in helping them realize their goals.” TRIO also hosts an annual workshop with the Center for Global Learning and the Financial Aid Office about making study abroad a reality. “It’s too valuable and powerful an experience for them to miss,” Hove says of global study. “I don’t ask them if they’re going to study abroad; I ask, Where are you going?” It’s one of many enthusiasms that Hove and her staff share with students. Hove says, “Luther provides opportunities for a diverse student population—including socioeconomically-diverse students—because this is a wonderful place to learn. The TRIO Achievement Program is a living and breathing example of the college’s commitment to student success and mission fulfillment.”

MICHAEL HAGSTROM ’17

ing and Development course, which helps them examine their skills, attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors and think about how a liberal arts education can best contribute to their holistic—emotional, ethical, intellectual, physical, social, spiritual, and vocational—development. The course is a valuable primer, especially for students without a family history of higher education. “Our Foundation course and other programming empowers students to successfully transition to and through college,” Hove says. “More students leave college because of disillusionment, discouragement, or reduced motivation than because of lack of ability or poor academic performance. That first semester is really crucial in a student’s college experience and can determine whether they continue on in college.” Hove says that the academic background of new TRIO students is “as diverse as that of the entire student body. So TRIO’s academic support is very customized in order to meet students wherever they’re at so they can best capitalize on their liberal arts education.” The program offers peer tutoring, both group and individual, in addition to any tutoring a stu-

Student engagement. About 200 Luther students, faculty, and staff joined a walkout from classes organized by the Black Students’ Union on Nov. 13 in solidarity with protests at the University of Missouri and Yale University. At Missouri, the group Concerned Student 1950 protested that the school’s administration had not addressed issues of racism on campus. At Yale, protests focused on what students said was a discrepancy between how the college advertises diversity on campus and how students perceive it. Guy Nave, Luther professor of religion, spoke at Chapel that day about the Missouri and Yale situations and

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how they relate to the Luther campus. In an interview with the student newspaper Chips, Nave later said: “While the situations at Yale and Mizzou served as an impetus for our campus action, our campus action is also a statement to black students, faculty, and staff at Luther that the Luther College community sees, hears, and supports us in our everyday experiences and struggles with racism at a predominantly white institution.” For a link to Nave’s Chapel talk, visit luther.edu/ministries/worship/ chapel.

Campus News

Natural heritage group recognizes efforts of Luther faculty Luther biology faculty member Beth Lynch, associate professor, and Mary Lewis, instructor emerita, received the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation’s 2015 Lawrence and Eula Hagie Heritage Award. The two received their awards at a ceremony in Decorah on Friday, Nov. 13. The Hagie Heritage Award, endowed by the family of Lawrence and Eula Hagie, is given annually by INHF, a statewide conservation organization that works to protect and restore Iowa’s land, water, and wildlife. Lynch and Lewis were honored for their extensive conservation efforts in and out of the classroom, specifically for their dedication to the removal of the invasive plant species garlic mustard from Decorah-area public spaces.

ELCA scholarships promote growth of female leaders

Nordic Choir released fifth recording

The ELCA has partnered with Luther and other ELCA colleges to provide what is effectively a full-ride scholarship to six international women. In association with the ELCA Global Mission, the ELCA International Women Leaders Scholarship provides $22,000 per year, per student. Luther embraces the opportunity support the ELCA’s strategic initiative to support the growth of female leaders. Three of the six scholarship recipients were selected as a good fit for Luther—Sthela Gun Holly Hanitrinirina of Antsirabe, Madagascar; Melissa Neo of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; and Yuen Ching Lee of Petaling Jaya, Malaysia, enrolled at Luther last fall. The ELCA scholarship also provides the scholars with travel expenses, a trip home, and a technology allowance, which along with the scholarship value, totals nearly $30,000. Luther covers the rest of the comprehensive fee for the three women. As part of the scholarship requirements, Holly Hanitrinirina, Neo, and Lee have made a commitment to Luther, to complete work study and a commitment to the ELCA to return to serve their home church.

Luther’s Nordic Choir has released the recording Spirit, Moving Over Chaos, featuring selections performed during tours in the 2014–15 academic year. The title track is an evocative choral piece by composer David Ashley White with text by Patricia B. Clark. The piece is considered aleatoric music, in which an element of the work is determined by the performers. Other pieces featured on the compact disc include “Psalm 50” by F. Melius Christiansen, “Grace before Sleep” by Susan LaBarr, and “Pilgrim’s Hymn” by Stephen Paulus. Spirit, Moving Over Chaos is the fifth album for Nordic Choir under the direction of Allen Hightower. All recordings by Nordic Choir and other Luther ensembles may be purchased online at lutherbookshop.com or over the phone by calling (888) 521-5039.

Christmas at Luther 2015

LUTHER COLLEGE PHOTO BUREAU

Christmas at Luther 2015: Savior of the Nations, Come honored Christmas music from around the world including the Spanish carol “Riu, Riu, Chiu,” the Ukranian “Carol of the Bells,” and the Haitian carol “Noel Asyisyen.” The performances, Dec. 3–6, showcased the talents of more than 600 student musicians. A CD of the concert is available at lutherbookshop.com or (888) 521-5039.

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Campus News

Straight to the (primary) source Hayley Jackson became Luther’s archivist in summer 2015. A native of St. Charles, Ill., she has a bachelor’s degree from Elmhurst College and master’s degrees in information and library science and history from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee. WHY DID YOU BECOME AN ARCHIVIST?

I took a class on historiography in which we had to write a paper using primary sources. Our professor took us to our college archives, and I just had so much fun working with the materials that a light bulb went off. I thought, Hey, maybe I don’t want to go the professor route; maybe I want to do archives. WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE CLASS IN GRADUATE SCHOOL?

I took a really interesting class on appraisal, the process by which archivists decide what to preserve. That was a difficult class because there are so many theories about what should or should not be kept, and there’s no one-sizefits-all solution. HOW DO YOU HELP PEOPLE DO RESEARCH IN THE ARCHIVES?

My role in helping people find primary sources is that of a guide. Archival collections cannot be browsed in quite the same way as in a library because archival collections are organized by document creators rather than by subject matter. I talk to people about their projects, and then I search our material to find what best suits their needs. Reference work can range from a student asking precise questions that I can simply look up, such as what tuition might have been in a given year, to broad inquiries about what we might have on a given topic. Doing this kind of work gives students hands-on experience working with primary sources. Such knowledge is called primary source literacy and is an important part of information literacy, or the skills students need in order to recognize when they need information, how to find that information, and what sources provide the best information. Having the archives available to students allows them to further develop their primary source literacy, which in turn enhances their information literacy. This

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skill is particularly valuable at a college like Luther, where we encourage undergraduate research. Any student doing research as an undergraduate, regardless of whether they plan to pursue graduate school or academia, benefits from this. Faculty, too, have used the archives in many ways: Holly Moore, assistant professor of philosophy, came in with her class to learn about the papyri we have here so the students could have exposure to Greek material culture. One of our librarians, Christine Moeller, uses the Postville Project, our digital collection on the Postville meat-packing raids, as part of her Paideia course, and we have plans for a Spanish course to use records from that collection as well. HOW DO THE ARCHIVES BENEFIT ALUMNI?

We serve alumni by helping keep old memories alive, encouraging the creation of new ones, and encouraging alumni to stay connected with us—recently we helped find old photos for use during alumni reunions. In return, alumni trust us with their memories— Luther graduates have been very generous donors of archival material, sending old pamphlets, postcards, and programs. It’s a very circular relationship. WHAT ELSE DOES YOUR JOB ENTAIL?

Two other main facets of my job are collection and management. The first portion is the preservation of the institutional memory and historical record of Luther College. I preserve and make available records that document our past and show how we function as a college— everything from the bylaws that govern us to the syllabi used by professors. My other job is records management. We ensure that records essential for the college to function are kept and are readily available to those who need them, as well as those we are legally required to maintain.

WHAT’S YOUR MAIN TASK RIGHT NOW?

We’re working on planning for long-term digital preservation. I’m researching what’s new in the profession and then talking with our digital initiatives librarian and other interested people in Library Information Services about our options. I’m focusing on how to store information that comes to us in digital form. If someone brings me a flash drive full of digital images, for instance, how do we keep those in a usable way? Digital files degrade just like physical records, but their long-term preservation demands different measures. WHAT’S IN THE PHOTO

Jackson pulled out a few of her favorite things from the college collection for the photo, opposite. Left to right: The letter is from the Office of Censorship to former history professor Chellis Evanson. During World War II, Evanson published a newsletter he called Scuttlebutt and sent to Luther alumni in the armed forces. He would publish addresses and locations of various alumni abroad so they could write to one another. The Office of Censorship wrote to Evanson informing him that published materials, including Scuttlebutt, should not include specific unit or ship identities when sharing addresses. The book in the photograph is a “memory book” recently donated by Martha Ylvisaker Limburg ’56. It contains photographs of Luther’s class of 1921 graduates in their caps and gowns. The photographs in front of Jackson are of radio host Garrison Keillor and college president H. George Anderson. In 1985, Keillor received an honorary degree from Luther and delivered the shortest commencement speech in college history, about 4½ minutes. In one photo President Anderson presents Keillor with a bust of a Norwegian bachelor farmer. The violin is from the Carlo Sperati Collection. Jackson knows little about it, but would like to research it.

MICHAEL HAGSTROM ’17

Campus News

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Campus News

Music ensemble tours 2016 Details at luther.edu/music/tours NORDIC CHOIR WEST COAST TOUR

Wednesday, January 20, 7 p.m. St. John’s Lutheran Church Bakersfield, Calif. Thursday, January 21, 7:30 p.m. Azusa Pacific University Azusa, Calif. Saturday, January 23, 7:30 p.m. Ascension Lutheran Church Thousand Oaks, Calif. Sunday, January 24, 9:30 a.m. service Shepherd’s Grove Church Garden Grove, Calif. Sunday, January 24, 7 p.m. First UMC of San Diego San Diego, Calif. Monday, January 25, 7 p.m. St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church Palm Desert, Calif. Tuesday, January 26, 7 p.m. Lord of Life Lutheran Church Sun City West, Ariz. Wednesday, January 27, 7 p.m. Camelback Bible Church Paradise Valley, Ariz.

NORDIC CHOIR SPRING RUNOUT

Saturday, April 9, 7 p.m. St. Andrew’s Lutheran Church Mahtomedi, Minn. Sunday, April 10, services Hope Lutheran Church West Des Moines, Iowa SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA MIDWEST TOUR

Sunday, March 20, 7 p.m. Westby High School Gymnasium Westby, Wis.

Thursday, January 28, 7 p.m. Waterloo West High School Auditorium Waterloo, Iowa

Monday, March 21, 7:30 p.m. North Iowa Community Auditorium Mason City, Iowa

Friday, January 29, 7 p.m. Faith Lutheran Church Clive, Iowa

Tuesday, March 22, 7 p.m. Galesburg High School, Hegg Auditorium Galesburg, Ill.

Saturday, January 30, 7 p.m. Trinity Lutheran Church Stillwater, Minn. Sunday, January 31, 7 p.m. Memorial High School Auditorium Eau Claire, Wis.

Sunday, January 31, 4 p.m. First Presbyterian Church Rochester, Minn.

Monday, February 1, 7 p.m. Winona Middle School Auditorium Winona, Minn.

Monday, February 1, 7 p.m. University Lutheran Church of Hope Minneapolis, Minn.

Tuesday, February 2, 7:30 p.m. Our Savior’s Lutheran Church Rockford, Ill.

Tuesday, February 2, 7 p.m. First Lutheran Church Onalaska, Wis.

Wednesday, February 3; 7:30 p.m. Viterbo University Fine Arts Center La Crosse, Wis.

* Thursday, February 4, 7:30 p.m. Tour Homecoming Concert Center for Faith and Life, Luther

* Sunday, February 7, 4 p.m. Tour Homecoming Concert Center for Faith and Life, Luther CONCERT BAND MIDWEST TOUR

*All tour homecoming concerts streamed at stream.luther.edu/music

Saturday, March 19, 7 p.m. King of Kings Lutheran Church Woodbury, Minn.

Friday, March 18, 7 p.m. First English Lutheran Church (north site) Appleton, Wis.

Wednesday, March 23, 11:30 a.m. Dubuque Senior High School Auditorium Dubuque, Iowa * Thursday, March 31, 7:30 p.m. Tour Homecoming Concert Center for Faith and Life, Luther CATHEDRAL CHOIR TOUR

Friday, April 8, 7 p.m. Central UMC Kansas City, Mo. Saturday, April 9, 7:30 p.m. Holy Trinity Lutheran Church Ankeny, Iowa Sunday, April 10, 10:30 a.m. (service) First Christian Church Des Moines, Iowa Sunday, April 10, 7 p.m. Christ the King Lutheran Church Mankato, Minnesota * Tuesday, April 12, 7:30 p.m. Tour Homecoming Concert Center for Faith and Life, Luther

COLLEGIATE CHORALE TOUR

Thursday, April 14, 7 p.m. Trinity Lutheran Church Mason City, Iowa Friday, April 15, 7:30 p.m. Nazareth Lutheran Church Cedar Falls, Iowa Saturday, April 16, 7 p.m. First Lutheran Church Janesville, Wis. Sunday, April 17, 8:30 a.m. service First Lutheran Church Janesville, Wis. Sunday, April 17, 8:15 a.m. service; 4:30 p.m. concert St. Stephen Lutheran Church Bloomington, Minn. * Tuesday, April 19, 7:30 p.m. Tour Homecoming Concert Center for Faith and Life, Luther JAZZ ORCHESTRA MIDWEST TOUR

Thursday, April 21, 7 p.m. St. Luke’s Lutheran Church Middleton, Wis. Friday, April 22, 7 p.m. Christus Victor Lutheran Church Elk Grove, Ill. Sunday, April 24, 4 p.m. First United Methodist Church Peoria, Ill. * Thursday, April 28, 7:30 p.m. Tour Homecoming Concert Center for Faith and Life, Luther JAZZ ORCHESTRA INTERNATIONAL TOUR TO BRAZIL

May 24–June 15

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Campus News

Quote, Unquote Campus speakers, fall 2015 “You already know deep down that you are more alike to the person next to you than you are different.” —Christina Henriquez, author of The Book of Unknown Americans, during Opening Convocation, Sept. 3, 2015

“[People] don’t know about the research that shows that when you double a nurse’s workload from four patients to eight patients, mortality increases by 31 percent. They don’t know that nurses save lives.” —Sandy Summers, RN, MSN, MPH, founder of the website The Truth About Nursing, during her lecture, “Saving Lives: Why the Media’s Portrayal of Nursing Puts Us All at Risk,” November 19, 2015

“When you have a community of people who know you, they’re willing to let you take risks sometimes.” —Emily Fons ’06, mezzo-soprano, speaking on campus October 15, 2015

“The past 100 or so years, since we’ve been industrialized . . . we’ve focused our attention on accumulating things— stuff, power, money . . . And I think today we’re beginning to see that there’s a shift . . . toward what I would call preservation. And to me that indicates that perhaps peace is a possibility, that we’re not fighting over things.”

“I am more interested in not only creating a story—this happened, then this happened—but in creating a sense of feeling.” — Jonathan Rattner, documentary filmmaker and artist-in-residence for the 2016 Oneota Film Festival, speaking on campus October 7, 2015

—David Hodge, Oen Fellows lecture, “Impermanence: The Time of Man,” with Hi-Jin Kang Hodge, October 20, 2015

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Campus News

More solar arrays were installed on campus this past summer and fall, including these panels on the roof of Preus Library. The approximately 94.5kw array was installed in conjunction with a local investor, Oneota Solar LLC, which had obtained a U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Energy for America Program grant for the project. These panels will help offset energy used at the library. Two new arrays installed along Pole Line Road on the north side of campus bring the number of Luther’s ground-mount arrays to three. The first array, installed in 2012, is net metered against Baker Village. The two new arrays are offsetting energy consumption on the main campus. Luther’s goal is to be carbon neutral by 2030. Investments in energy efficiency are responsible for 62.5 percent of Luther’s greenhouse gas reductions achieved to date.

LUTHER COLLEGE PHOTO BUREAU

Up on the roof: panels soak up the sun on top of Preus

You can’t see them from the ground, but solar panels now cover the roof of Preus Library.

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day of social media awesomeness.

March 10 #luthergives16 10

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Campus News

DONOR PROFILE

ASHLEY VEESER ’18

Austads committed to conservation, learning, and Luther Do unto those downstream as you would have those upstream do unto you. ~ Wendell Berry

The Kentucky farmer and poet Wendell Berry has more than a few verses about the good discipline of farming and all that we can learn from the rhythm of planting and harvesting. Berry also comments on the merits of teaching, referring to this profession as a high calling, a cultivation of the life of the mind, and worthy of a life’s work. What a privilege it is then to share this profile of Mike ’65 and Karen (Wardell) Austad ’64, who in addition to being consistent and generous donors to Luther College are also lifelong public school teachers, farm owners, and conservationists. Mike and Karen are quick to credit those upstream. “There are some gifts we receive that can never be repaid,” says Mike. “For example, how can we repay the teacher who taught us to read? Things like the values and beliefs we learned from our parents, valuable lessons from our professors, and especially our education are the basics in determining who we are and how we go about living our lives. Karen and I have long known that we can never repay Luther College for our four years there, but each year we can join thousands of other alumni and give back to our alma mater.” Each year the Austads do indeed join thousands of others with a gift of faith as they support the Luther College Annual Fund. In addition to this unrestricted giving, the Austads annually support the Norse Athletic Association (Mike ran cross country and track for the Norse) and the Vanaheim Scholarship. During Karen’s senior year, she and 16 other women classmates lived off campus in the house on the corner of North and Ohio Streets called “Vanaheim.” Fifty years ago, living off campus was an exceptionally big deal. But perhaps more exceptional is how these friends

have remained close, exchanging round-robin letters and in recent years joining in annual summer get-togethers on the Austad farm. In 2009, at one of their Vanaheim reunions, these classmates decided to establish a legacy gift at Luther College that might honor their many years of friendship. The Vanaheim Scholarship was created with an initial combined gift of $25,000, the amount needed to establish an endowed scholarship. In six short years, through more gifts and endowment earnings, the fund has attained a market value of more than $35,000 and annually generates a scholarship awarded to a female student “who exhibits a passion for her major,” as stated in the scholarship guidelines. In the past two years, Karen and Mike each celebrated their 50th class reunions—Karen in 2014 and Mike in 2015. “Both of our reunions were wonderful,” Karen says with a smile. “The effort the college puts into these events is visible months before we ever even set foot on the campus, and when the big weekend arrives, everything goes off without a hitch!” “Being married to a member of the class of 1964, I was well aware of the tremendous reunion gift given to the college by Karen’s classmates,” Mike says. Luther had been in the Austad’s estate plans since their first will was written in the 1970s, “but we had never informed the college,” Mike says. “At the first meeting of our 1965 reunion planning committee, I learned more about the many and various ways to give financial support to the college, and so to help our class effort, it came immediately to mind that our plans should be formalized.” The result for Mike and Karen Austad is a three-part bequest intention. The first testa-

mentary distribution will significantly advance the Vanaheim Scholarship. The second distribution will establish the Luther College Track and Field Endowment, which will provide enhanced funding for the Norse team for years to come. And the third distribution will advance the college through an unrestricted Board of Regents–designated gift, to use wherever it is needed most at the time. Maria (Bringer) Smith ’95, director of annual giving, coordinates Luther College’s 50th reunion program, providing support, counsel, and encouragement to the 50-year classes as they plan their celebrations. It was her pleasure to work closely with Mike and Karen Austad as they discerned their bequest intention. “Such encounters are emblematic of our reunion giving program,” Maria reflects. “You really get to know how much our alumni love Luther and wish to provide for our current and future students. We’re deeply grateful for Mike and Karen’s generous gifts.” Beyond supporting Luther College, Mike and Karen have a commitment to conservation, giving generously to the Natural Resources Foundation of Wisconsin, and their appreciation for restoration extends even further. Mike and Karen’s life work has been teaching. However, in 1994, six years before they retired, the Austads embarked on their second life’s work—restoring a ramshackle, 170-acre slice-of-paradise homestead farm in rural Monroe County, Wisconsin. Rebuilding the farmhouse, preserving the original timbers, modernizing the mechanicals, razing dilapidated outbuildings, and making the gardens grow has become their new calling. Guests comment that this farm is a work of art, beautifully restored and providing a wonderful gathering place and landscape treasure. The good soil of stewardship runs deep for the Austads, and we thank them for their support. Through their bequest intention, we welcome them into the Luther College Heritage Club, an association of more than 1,200 members who share a vision and an inclination to support the future for Luther students. As committed teachers, Mike and Karen planted the love of learning in their students. Now they tend the land and do their part to steward creation. Thank you, Mike and Karen Austad, for tending to Luther College and to all those downstream from you. ­­—Ann Sponberg Peterson For more information on giving to Luther College, please contact the Development Office at (800) 225-8664, or go to luther.edu/giving.

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Campus News

DEVELOPMENT

Council serves as liaison between parents and college Luther’s 2015–16 Parents Council held its fall meeting Sept. 26, 2015, during Family Weekend. Parents Council is the representative body of the Luther College Parents Association, to which all parents of Luther students belong. The council, a liaison between parents and the college,

Senior class representatives, with President Carlson: Clockwise from top left: President Paula Carlson, Linda (Larson) Kluge ’84, Todd Kluge, Jonathan Joppa ’85, Sandee (Neitzel) Joppa ’87, Alan Hecht ’80, Kristin Swanson ’80, Jill (Voss) Wachholz ’89, Laura Nielsen, Brad Nielsen. Absent: Kathy and Phil Pielage.

Junior class representatives: Clockwise from top left: Roberta Curtis, William Curtis, Robert Carr ’86, Lee Hash ’84, Linda (Rosholt) Hash ’85, Jim Morrill, Todd Wildenauer, Michelle Wildenauer, Terry Morrill, Maria (Spieker) Mickelson ’89, Todd Mickelson. Absent: Peg (Ganske) Carr ’85.

ATHLETICS

New video board enhances Regents scoreboard Thanks to a leadership gift from Mitzi and Kent Evenstad ’57 of Monona, Wis., Luther purchased an indoor LED video display board and statistic panels with electronic captions to enhance the existing scoreboard in the Regents Center gymnasium. The Norse Athletic Association provided additional funding. The video display and statistic boards were installed in early September and will be phased into use over the next year. “Luther’s athletics department is extraordinarily grateful to the Evenstads for their generosity,” said Renae Hartl, Luther athletic director. “Their lead gift, joined

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is a way for parents to express concerns and suggestions to the college and to raise money for the Luther College Annual Fund through the Roots and Wings campaign. Council representatives send parents fall and spring letters that provide college news, updates, and contact information for council members. For additional information, contact the Development Office at (800) 225-8664 or visit luther.edu/parents/ parents-council.

Sophomore class representatives: Clockwise from top left: JoBeth Clark, Leofwin Clark, Gayle Christmas, Diane Gilman, Linda Floden, Thomas Floden ’82, Mary Spear, Jack Spear, Greg Miller, Mike Carney ’85, Susanne Carney. Absent: Charlie Gilman, Peggy Miller.

by contributions to the NAA, exemplifies how donor support at all levels is key to making projects a reality.” Kent Evenstad says: “My son John ’88 and I were both on the Luther basketball team for four years. When it was time to think of giving back for our wonderful years at Luther, the decision to make this gift in support of Norse athletics was an easy choice.” At Luther, Evenstad played basketball and ran track for the Norse while earning his degree, majoring in mathematics and minoring in education, physical education, and economics. He was an educator in Wisconsin and coached basketball, baseball, and football. Evenstad was inducted into the Wisconsin

First-year class representatives: Clockwise from top left: Mary Peters, Scott Peters, Kevin King, Jody King, David Finger, Naomi Palmquist, Benjamin Stewart, Elizabeth Stewart, Daniel Palmquist, Ann Hayden-Finger. Absent: Peter and Paula Tiede.

Basketball Coaches Hall of Fame in 1997 and served as an executive board member of the Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association. He received a Distinguished Service Award from Luther in 2002.

Campus News

FALL SPORTS RECAPS MEN’S CROSS COUNTRY

3rd in IIAC Tyler Broadwell ’16 and Isaac Jensen ’17 headlined the efforts of the men’s cross country team, helping to lead the Norse to a third-place finish at the Iowa Conference Championships and a fourth-place finish at the NCAA III Central Regional. Both Broadwell and Jensen earned all-conference honors (top-15 finishers) by placing fifth and eighth respectively. Two weeks later, they finished 10th and 12th at the Central Regional, earning all-region honors (top-35 finishers). They were also among the seven runners not on qualifying teams who earned a trip to the NCAA III National Cross Country Championships at Lake Breeze Golf Club, Winnoconne, Wis. At the national finale, Jensen placed 47th (25:08) from the field of 278 runners, and Broadwell placed 82nd (25:26.2). WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY

2nd in IIAC Tricia Serres ’16 claimed the individual title at the Iowa Conference Championships and was one of four Norse to earn all-conference honors (top-15 finishers). As a team, Luther finished second behind league champions Loras College by 13 points. Lauren Mordini ’16 earned her second all-conference honor finishing fifth. McKenzie Carney ’18 finished 11th, and Kara Maloney ’16 finished 15th. Serres joined Linda Swenson (1982, 1984, 1985) and Johanna Olson (1999, 2000, 2001) as the only Luther runners to be named league MVP three times. Two weeks later, Luther wrapped up the 2015–16 campaign with a fifth-place finish at the NCAA III Central Regional. Individually, Mordini placed 11th (22:51) and was one of seven runners not on qualifying teams to earn a trip to the NCAA III National Cross Country Championships at Lake Breeze Golf Club, Winnoconne, Wis. Mordini, making her first individual appearance at the national finale, placed 156 (22:42.4) from the field of 280 competitors. VOLLEYBALL

4-3 in IIAC; 20-13 overall For the first time since 2009, the Norse volleyball team posted a 20-win season. Luther qualified for the six-team Iowa Conference Tournament after finishing tied for third at 4-3 during the regular season. The Norse

dropped a 3-0 decision to Coe College in the first round that ended the year. Setter Lindsey Ryan ’16 and middle blocker Emma Veum ’19 were named to the all-conference team. Ryan, who was credited with 1,020 assists, set the Luther career record in this category, completing her four-year career with 4,365 assists. She also moved into the top-10 for career service aces tied for seventh (114) and ninth for career digs (894). Veum was named the league’s Co-freshman of the Year. She led the Norse with 286 kills, averaging 3.14 kills per set. She also led the Iowa Conference with an attack percentage of .378. WOMEN’S GOLF

3rd in IIAC The women’s golf team capped the fall portion of its 2015–16 campaign with a third-place finish at the Iowa Conference Championships. The Norse shot a fourround total of 1,389. Wartburg dominated the tournament, carding a 1,248, and was followed by Central at 1,336. Madeline Petellin ’17 and Meggie Acker ’18 earned all-conference honors by posting top-10 finishes in the league finale for the first time of their careers. Petellin finished eighth (84-81-8785, 337), and Acker finished in a two-way tie for ninth (79-82-92-87, 340). Prior to the conference tournament, Luther won the team title of its own invitational. The Norse won the five-team tournament title by 22 strokes, shooting a 36-hole total of 679 at Oneota Golf and Country Club. WOMEN’S TENNIS

2nd in IIAC, 6-1; 9-1 overall The Iowa Conference women’s tennis championship is decided in the fall and is based on dual-meet competition. The top four teams will face each other in the spring in the league’s NCAA III qualifying tournament, with the winner earning a berth at the national tournament. Luther’s only mark in the loss column last fall was a 6-3 loss to Coe for the conference championship. The Norse will enter the spring schedule ranked 20th in the Oracle/ ITA Central Region. In an Iowa Conference coaches vote, five Norse were named all-conference. Jackie Cychosz ’18, Maggie Helms ’16, and Jenna Myers ’16 were named all-conference in both

Maggie Helms ’16 was named all-conference in both singles and doubles four times.

singles and doubles, while Hailey Johnson ’16 and Lauren Welch ’17 were named allconference in doubles. Helms became Luther’s first player to be named all-conference in both singles and doubles four times since voting began in 2012. This is the first time Cychosz has been named all-conference in singles and doubles during her career. Myers is now a two-time all-conference selection in doubles, and this is the first time she has been so honored in singles. Johnson and Welch were selected to the all-conference squad for the first time. FOOTBALL

7th in IIAC, 2-5; 4-6 overall The football team finished seventh in the Iowa Conference with a record of 2-5, 4-6 overall. The Norse rushing attack, led by fullback Christian Moore ’17, averaged 310.6 yards per game, which ranked fifth in the NCAA III. Moore rushed for 1,039 yards and a team best 14 touchdowns. It was the first time he had rushed for over 1,000 yards and the second consecutive year a Norse running

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Campus News

back accomplished this feat. Quarterback Brady Letney ’18 was the second leading rusher on the team. He rushed for 679 yards and 11 touchdowns. During Luther’s 31-21 victory over Loras College, Letney carried the football 49 times for 234 yards and two touchdowns. During this game, the Norse posted a time of possession of 47:20 to the Duhawks’ 12:40. Second team all-conference honors were presented to offensive lineman James Ostlie ’17, who helped lead an offensive line that paved the way for Luther to gain 3,581 yards of total offense. This is the third consecutive year the Norse offensive unit has gained at least 3,200 yards of total offense for a season. Linebacker Aric Elton ’16 wrapped up his career leading the defense with 79 tackles. This total moved him into the sixth position all-time in this category with 279. Elton was named honorable mention all-conference along with defensive back Luke Pulliam ’18 and place kicker Cory Wirth ’18. MEN’S SOCCER

3rd in IIAC, 4-2-1; 11-6-3 overall Luther’s season came to an end in the semifinals of the six-team Iowa Conference Tournament, with a 1-0 loss to University of Dubuque. The Norse, who have qualified for every tournament since it began in 1996, had reached the semifinals for the third consecutive year. The loss gave Luther an overall record of 11-6-3. Five team members were named allconference, two for the first team and three on the second team—the first time all five have been so honored. Named first team all-conference were Myles Norville ’17 and Nigel Nielsen ’17. Norville, a defender, started 18 of 19 matches for the Norse and anchored a defensive unit that posted seven shutouts. Norville also finished the season one point shy of double digits, scoring five goals and dishing out one assist for nine points, and was named secondteam All-North Region. Nielsen, a midfielder, led the Norse in scoring. He tallied nine goals and four assists for 22 points. Second-team honors went to Josh Galvin ’16, Josh Parris ’16, and Matheus Beato ’17. The three finished the season ranked second, third, and fourth respectively for total points on the squad. Galvin scored five goals and had a team-high six assists for 16 points. Parris had three goals and five assists for 11 points, and Beato scored five goals for 10 points. Defender Taku Chawota ’16 and

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Fullback Christian Moore ’17 was ranked fifth in rushing in the NCAA Division III.

goalkeeper Tommy Breen ’17 were named honorable mention.

line that allowed just seven goals in league play. Danielson is the fifth Norse player to receive an Iowa Conference Women’s Soccer MVP award, joining Nora Farrell (1996), Jen Shinbori (1998–99), Katie Pettigrew (2003–4), and Erin Wilson (2014). Joining Danielson on the first team were midfielder Lauren Hughes ’17 and forward Melisse Chassé ’17. Hughes, who was an honorable mention selection last season, tallied six goals this year. Chassé, a secondteam honoree the past two years, led the team in scoring, with nine goals and six assists for 24 points. Six of her goals were game winners. Second-team honors went to midfielder Lydia Eager ’16, defender Madison Speer ’17, and forward Ellie Bunz ’17. Eager missed six games due to injury, but when she returned she started 12 games, producing one assist. Speer started every game and scored five goals for 10 points. Her 1,336 minutes played ranked third on the squad. This is the third time Bunz has been a second-team honoree. She started all 19 matches, tallying six goals and dishing out a team-best eight assists for 20 points. Two of her goals were game winners. Chassé was named second team All-North Region and Bunz and Danielson made third team All-North Region.

WOMEN’S SOCCER

3rd in IIAC, 4-2-1; 13-5-1 overall Following an early season 1-0 loss to UW–La Crosse, the women’s soccer team stacked up a school record 11 wins in a row. During this stretch the Norse were ranked as high as no. 22 in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America. Unfortunately, four of Luther’s five losses came in the final three weeks of the season, which led to a tie for third place in the Iowa Conference. The Norse finished the year in the semifinals of the Iowa Conference six-team tournament, dropping a 2-0 decision to Wartburg College, which went on to win the tournament title. It was the third consecutive year the Norse had advanced to the semifinal round. Luther has made the tournament field every year since it began in 1996. Six members of the Luther College soccer team were named all-conference, three to the first team and three to the second team. Erin Danielson ’17, who played her first full season after participating in cross country her first two years at Luther, was named the league’s defensive MVP. Danielson started all 19 matches, helping to solidify a back

Forward Melisse Chassé ’17 was named first team along with defensive MVP Erin Danielson ’17 and midfielder Lauren Hughes ’17.

Educated opinions We asked Luther faculty members to help us understand some recent U.S. and world events based on their own expertise or experience

What are the pros and cons of being a candidate without political experience?

NEVER BEEN ED ELECT

Only three people have been elected president without previous electoral experience, and they were all war generals.

As the presidential primary season heated up last fall, the two Republican Party candidates topping the polls were Donald Trump and Ben Carson, neither of whom had previous political experience. Carly Hayden Foster, associate professor of political science, says that while their inexperience seems like a good thing to a lot of Republican primary voters, it could hurt them if they make it to the general election. Since the 1980s, the Republican Party has espoused an ideology focused on making government smaller. It makes sense, Foster says, that voters who view government negatively would support candidates without government experience. “They’re not going to want someone who’s tainted by the experience of maybe being pushed into a compromise or accomplishing legislative goals if their ideology is that government should be doing less,” Foster says. “For them, being successful in government doesn’t translate to a positive thing.” People who vote in the primaries tend to be more ideologically focused, more ideologically committed to their party, Foster says, and choose candidates that align best with their own thinking. “But that set of voters is very different from the set that shows up in the general election,” she says. That is when more moderate voters turn out. Democrats and Republicans who are maybe not committed enough to spend an evening caucusing, or who haven’t decided whom they support by primary time, are the ones who might be concerned about a candidate’s lack of experience during the general election. Historically, government experience has been viewed as positive. Only three people have been elected president without previous electoral experience, and they were all war generals—Zachary A. Taylor in 1849, Ulysses S. Grant in 1869, and Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1953. And Eisenhower was notoriously unhappy in the job, Foster says. “As a general, you can tell people to do things and they will figure out ways to do it, but as a president that’s not how it happens. The president’s job, constitutionally speaking, is to faithfully execute the laws that are passed by Congress.” Another potential disadvantage for inexperienced candidates, if they’re popular among people who dislike government, is the challenge of getting their supporters to participate in the political process of voting. Supporters may say in polling that they like an inexperienced candidate, but getting them to actually participate in the governmental process and vote for that person is tough—especially when a candidate’s overall message is that government is bad. “It makes people want to disengage,” Foster says. “Especially in a potentially close election season, voter turnout is a huge factor in who will win.” —Ellen Modersohn

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How do shortcomings in water policy affect the environment in the Southwest? A major problem in the Southwest, says Eric Baack, associate professor of biology, is that

“In most places, if you were to divert a river, causing it to dry up, it would be illegal.”

while it has elaborate legal framework regulating surface water, its laws governing groundwater were written in the 1800s. So there’s a big gap between water laws and the ways in which we now know water supplies operate. Baack points to the case of a river drying up as the most dramatic example of law falling short of reality. “In most places, if you were to divert a river, causing it to dry up, it would be illegal,” Baack says. “But in the Southwest, in many cases you don’t even need a permit to pump water for household wells, which lower the water table and can also cause a river to dry up.” While developers in Arizona must demonstrate a sustainable groundwater supply when building a subdivision, Baack says, no such requirement exists if a house is built on its own. And so the impact in some cases is cumulative, lowering the water table one household at a time. Water policy surrounding big agriculture also lags behind the science. As drought in California persists, some farmers have turned to pumping well water for irrigation, which, again, depletes the water table. And as groundwater declines, sediments begin to collapse—and so do roads, canals, and pipelines. Many farmers in the Southwest use flood irrigation, which floods a field, leaving the irrigation water to flow off the field and into a drain. And, says Baack, “Many irrigation canals have been simple ditches with no lining to prevent water from seeping into the desert soil. ” In the desert cities of San Diego and Los Angeles, Californians have started purchasing water use from surrounding agricultural interests. In return, they are funding measures to make nearby farms more efficient— for example, by lining their canals with cement or by helping them transition to drip irrigation. But as agricultural use of water becomes more efficient, some natural areas will feel it keenly. Less water will drain from fields to areas like the Salton Sea, an important stopping place for migratory birds. It will become saltier and begin to dry up. Winds will spread pesticide-laden dust from its dry lakebed into the air. “Sound policy,” Baack says, “may require the Southwest to divert water away from both farms and cities. And lasting change requires us to recognize that groundwater and surface water are intimately connected.” —Kate Frentzel

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What are the consequences of the U.S. and Cuba renewing diplomatic relations? Immediate material consequences are few, but it has great symbolic significance, says Alfredo Alonso Estenoz, a native of Cuba and associate professor of Spanish at Luther.

“One problem in Cuba right now is that there’s not enough infrastructure to receive the potential influx of tourists.”

“The world took notice of the announcement in July, but now the press barely talks about it, and we can read that as an indication that it’s part of a process that everybody was expecting,” he says. Americans can now travel to Cuba more easily. They don’t need to apply for a license from the State Department, but they still need a non-tourist reason for visiting, whether it’s academic, religious, cultural, professional, or humanitarian. But the associated licenses can now be obtained through travel agencies and even airlines. The reestablishment of diplomatic relations will have more impact for Cubans, Alonso Estenoz says. “One problem in Cuba right now is that there’s not enough infrastructure to receive the potential influx of tourists,” he says. “For a long time, Cuba has had parts of the country that are ‘for tourists.’ So when groups from the U.S. travel to Cuba—for example, for academic, scientific, or medical conferences—they usually have a very tight schedule, and the government steers them only to the places they want them to see. If there is more tourism, that has to change.” While the U.S. still maintains an economic embargo against Cuba, the change in diplomatic relations signals that it may be coming to end. “The embargo has had a real impact on the Cuban economy,” Alonso Estenoz says, “but it has also been the main excuse for certain things the Cuban government has not been able to provide, like foodstuffs, medicines, and other basic consumer goods. These things were covered in a way when the Soviet Union and Eastern Bloc existed and traded with Cuba, but there was a real crisis when they folded, which showed that Cuba had not built an economy that supported itself and provided basic needs.” Alonso Estenoz thinks that the changes afoot offer real opportunity for Cuba, which, as a communist country, has maintained strict economic and political control over its citizens. “If the Cuban government is smart, they will be open to foreign investment but will control that investment,” he says. “For example, Cubans have lived for more than 50 years with free healthcare and free education. Will that be possible to maintain if there is widespread change in Cuba?” he asks. “It’s important that Cuba maintains what it has built in terms of a national culture—music, sports, education, healthcare, et cetera—and at the same time transitions to free elections and a different economic model.” —Kate Frentzel

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Understanding a community is key to better care by Kate Frentzel Amish families living with chronic disease face many hurdles to treatment, and because they come from tightknit, faith-based, lowtech communities, they often feel alienated in a clinical setting, where doctors can be inclined to disregard faith and lifestyle in favor of triedand-true procedural medicine. This gap between Amish culture and modern healthcare is one that Angela (Oldenburg) Kueny ’02, with help from her students, is trying to bridge. As a graduate nursing student at the University of Iowa, Kueny, who was interested in how nurses could work better with cultural communities, was invited to participate in outreach clinics for the Amish. Her experience at those clinics encouraged her to focus on how Amish families’ beliefs shape their understanding of chronic conditions and how they interact with healthcare professionals. She could identify areas where family beliefs and the traditional healthcare system didn’t always work well together, sometimes at the expense of the family’s health. Although the Amish don’t oppose modern healthcare, they are less likely to seek it, preferring to use home remedies when possible. Amish families’ faith in God guides their decisions about health and healing, sometimes coming into conflict with recommended medical protocols. They don’t believe in health insurance and in fact are exempt from the Affordable Care Act’s mandate to buy it. Rather, when one member of a community faces a health crisis, the community pools its money to help pay bills. Amish people can be hesitant to undergo costly medical treatment, Kueny says, especially when they don’t understand its function or necessity. Other factors also contribute to the uneasy

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connection between Amish and modern healthcare. Reluctance among the Amish to use higher-tech modes of communication makes it difficult to set appointments. And the remoteness of their homes makes it difficult to keep those appointments, as do the rhythms of planting and harvesting, which the self-sufficient Amish have to respect in order to flourish. In addition, Amish people often feel uncomfortable having frank conversations in a clinical setting. Many Amish families prefer natural treatment options, while healthcare providers rely heavily on medical protocols that Amish families may not understand or be able to afford. As one Amish father told Kueny, “Care is decided based on what people think is right.” Although many providers do cross cultural boundaries and reach out personally to their Amish patients, some healthcare providers have room to grow in sensitivity and respect for this community.

For her dissertation, Kueny worked with Amish families struggling with chronic conditions, since they were most likely to have frequent interaction with healthcare providers. She rented an apartment in an Amish com-

MICHAEL HAGSTROM ’17

Angela Kueny ’02, Luther assistant professor of nursing, is interested in how health practicioners can improve care for Amish patients. Last summer, she worked with nursing major Sandy Cardenas ’16 to research home remedies that Amish hemophiliacs use.

munity of about 1,000 and met with the community’s bishops, who were eager to increase understanding between their community and healthcare providers. She talked with families, often in front of a warm stove, sharing coffee and dessert at the end of a long day of farm chores, and learned about their lifestyle and struggles. She was taken under the wing of an Amish herbalist, who is often the first stop for families coping with illness. Kueny started to learn which vitamins, supplements, and herbs Amish families were taking to treat themselves for certain conditions, including hemophilia, a genetic bloodclotting disorder that occurs at high rates in Amish communities. She began to see that if healthcare workers understood more about how the Amish were medicating themselves, they could provide better care. Kueny joined the Luther nursing faculty in 2010. She continued to volunteer at the University of Iowa outreach clinics, but questions about home remedies among Amish families with hemophilia still nagged at her. Were the herbs and supplements safe? Were they effective? Did they interact with any modern medicines the Amish people might be taking? Did healthcare workers have the education they needed to guide Amish families appropriately?

When nursing major Sandy Cardenas ’16 approached the assistant professor about interning with her last summer, Kueny put her to work surveying Amish families with hemophilia. Cardenas sent letters, collected survey responses, and did a literature review to assess which herbs, vitamins, and supplements listed in the responses seemed to increase or decrease hemophiliac bleeding, as well as which were potentially interacting with drugs like warfarin, an anticoagulant. This research apSandy Cardenas ’16 proach appealed to Cardenas, who chose nursing over becoming a doctor because she wanted a high level of interaction with patients. “I like the idea of looking at patients holistically,” she says, “so in this case looking at these patients and saying, ‘Okay, they’re Amish—what part of their background might promote or inhibit their adherence to certain treatments?’ That really touched me—that’s where I saw the healthcare gap.”

Kueny is unequivocal about the value of this kind of undergraduate research: “Until students work on these sorts of projects, they rarely really understand what it means to start with a research question or a question about how things function, then go into the minute details of handling the procedures of data collection, then analysis, then the write-up, which often becomes a book chapter. It becomes the knowledge that they read about in their textbooks. And I think that whole cycle helps them see a bigger picture of knowledge and how you work inside your field and how your field changes and how even undergraduates can be a powerful component of what professionals learn about and how they practice.” Cardenas and Kueny have created a brochure detailing their findings, and it has been used at hemophilia outreach clinics like one in which they and nursing major McKenzie Brace ’16 participated last fall. In addition to catering to families with hemophilia, the clinic provided dentistry, physical therapy, and various screenings. Brace observed specialists catching problems in family members early. She says, “It definitely opened my eyes to the power of preventative care—and to the power of treating a community rather than just an individual.”

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Ultra Mega Mega is a popup art show that appears at semester’s end to showcase the creativity unleashed in Luther art classes. Dances, theatre, paintings, sculpture, photos, prints, and more fill the Center for the Arts for one frenetic evening. The energy is palpable as performances are applauded, prizes drawn, and boxes thought outside of. For this feature we asked students to tell us about their art. See more artists and their work at luther.edu/magazine.

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AARON LURTH ’08

MADDIE MILLER ’19

ULTRA MEGA MEGA

ALEXIS HOVE ’18: “Our assignment was to do some sort of body extension. My initial idea was to do a work with hair that really exaggerated the length of the hair. I really like hair. I got thinking about sexual assaults and I heard that assaulters look for women with long ponytails because it makes them vulnerable. So I got the idea to use rope as the hair strands because it makes it more aggressive and emphasizes the idea of assault even more. Then, with the casts of the hands grabbing and violating the rope and the hair, it makes it kind of scary. I really wanted to emphasize the aggressive side of assault as well as the creepy and elusive side. The absence of a face or any sort of body in a way dehumanizes the sculpture and points directly at the act itself.”

Portrait photos by Megan Oliver ’19

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HANNAH TULGREN ’18: “This started out very different. Originally, I had some cardboard pieces on here but they weren’t really working so I tore them off. I flipped it upside down and I had these drips to work with. … I decided to go with my gut and I worked out these trees—blue is my favorite color. There’s a source of light that you can’t really see coming in on the branches and the trunks, kind of integrating them with these drips. I had these lines that are actually used for tying flies for fly fishing—I make flies—and I put them down as a masking technique and then pulled a couple up to reveal these sharp white lines. That gives a good pattern to the piece and a different look at the trees—some are behind and some in front of the lines.”

PEDRO DA COSTA CADALAK ’16: “This assignment was about body extension, how to use found materials as your main source and then make that into something wearable. I saw this green wire in the recycling center so I started cutting it and putting it together on a dress form. I could see how it was coming together and becoming very rigid but still flexible, very dynamic. In a way it’s organic, and I’m really interested in organic forms. It’s also part of sustainable fashion, and as a future designer it’s my responsibility to think of new ways of treating materials and to be sustainable.” Modeling Pedro’s work in the video was Joy Okeke ’17. Björn Myhre ’16 was the videographer.

MIRANDA JOSLIN ’17: “In this class on hand-building ceramics, we were making letters, trying to learn the basic steps of ceramics. The aesthetic of the letter was supposed to match something that the letter starts with. So for this one, I did M, and I tried to make it have the appearance of metal.”

NATE ORTON ’18: “This was my first semester without a ceramics class; I just had open studio hours. So I tried to keep creating and started exploring different surface techniques and forms. These vases are an exploration of different slip materials, and the bowls are more underglazing and staining techniques. Nearing the end of the semester, I was looking at traditional teapot styles. I re-created one that was traditional and came up with one on my own that was more modern.”

NICOLE NIEHAUS ’16: “I took this photo for the ‘create a narrative’ critique in photography class. My set of photos was called Sister of a Marine. The message that I was trying to convey was that I lost my brother [Eric], and I wanted to show the things that we have left of him. I felt that this one showed my true connection to him. We have about 180 windbreak trees behind our house—we live out in the middle of the country—and we also have a Christmas tree farm, and the reason I chose the trees in the background is because my brother and I used to work on our Christmas tree farm together.”

GALI SY ’17: “This is my dad. My parents came to visit Luther when we were doing a portrait photography topic in class. I used my parents for practice and then I took a couple of shots of my dad. He sat on a chair in his hotel room and I used the bedside table lamp next to him to shine a bit on his face. I took a couple of rush shots, not knowing what it would come out like, but when I looked at my picture, I said, Wow, he could be a model!” Gali’s dad is Malick Sy, a financial consultant and professor.

MAXWELL GREEN ’17: “This is a woodblock matrix. To make a print, I would roll ink on the top and then I would run it through the press or hand-rub it after lining up a piece of paper over the top of it. It’s influenced by a lot of the traveling I did as a younger kid. Also, my brother is a professional writer, so we grew up making art together, and we are significant influences on each other. I was kind of touching on those things and experiences we’ve shared.”

Alumni reunion and recognition During Homecoming 2015, Luther honors extraordinary service, achievement President Paula J. Carlson presented the Luther Distinguished Service Award to six alumni. The award recognizes success and achievements in professional fields, service to society, contributions to community, and loyalty and service to Luther.

Luther Distinguished Service Award Ann (Christensen) Beatty ’75

Karen (Wilken) Braun ’85

Shannon (Miller) Duval ’95

Advancement consultant (special events) for community and regional nonprofit organizations in Rochester, Minn.

Professor and director, Undergraduate Accounting Program, Department of Accountancy, Weatherhead School of Management, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio

President, Mercy Foundation, Mercy Medical Center, Des Moines, Iowa

FROM HER AWARD CITATION:

“[Ann’s] leadership in shaping fundraising strategies for numerous nonprofit organizations has been vital to both the current as well as future health of such organizations as Madonna Living Community, Rochester Catholic Schools, and the ELCA’s Good Earth Village retreat center. Receiving from the city of Rochester the Mayor’s Medal of Honor for Artistic and Culture Achievement is a testament to how Ann’s community interaction has added depth and breadth to that city’s cultural landscape. “So too has her vitality and generosity been felt on numerous boards, from the public schools to Lutheran Social Service, from Rotary to the Arts Administrators Round Table. Ann is a kind of musical magpie who says yes with enthusiasm, always willing to serve by bringing her many gifts to fully play the keys of metaphorical as well as actual pianos whenever asked and wherever needed.” —Robert Larson, professor emeritus of theatre

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FROM HER AWARD CITATION:

“[Karen’s] popular Managerial Accounting textbook, now in the fourth edition, incorporates the triple bottom line: a measure of profit, social responsibility, and environmental responsibility. The sustainability emphasis teaches students that business can be profitable and green at the same time. Wendy Tietz, the textbook coauthor, sees the inclusion of the sustainability themes in the book as a reflection of Karen’s commitment to a sustainable lifestyle. Karen credits her parents with instilling within her a love of nature and a desire to protect it. “Karen is a recognized leader in the American Accounting Association’s teaching, learning, and curriculum section. Participation in the national organization unites her with fellow accounting educators who share similar goals of effective and innovative teaching.” —Ramona (Feller) Nelson ’75, professor of accounting and management

FROM HER AWARD CITATION:

“The University of Iowa, St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital, and St. Luke’s Health Care Foundation are all the beneficiaries of her considerable energy, enthusiasm, and care in her development work. For the past five years, she has served as president of the Mercy Foundation in Des Moines, leading their comprehensive fundraising efforts for a large network of health care organizations within the foundation’s circle of care. (And, I must add, increasing their productivity from $4.4 million to $15 million annually.) . . . “Those of us at Luther who worked closely with Shannon . . . were pleased to hear that she was named to the 2012 group of ‘40 under 40’ leaders in the state of Iowa, not only because of her success in the work world, but also her ability to share her time and talent with organizations in need.” —Ann Highum, vice president and dean for student life emerita

KIRK JOHNSON ’82

Left to right: President Paula Carlson, Ann (Christensen) Beatty ’75, Mary Townswick ’75, Shannon (Miller) Duval ’95, Karen (Wilken) Braun ’85, Mark Magnuson ’75, Mary (Christianson) Hansen ’80

Mary (Christianson) Hansen ’80 Chief executive officer/president Mayo Employees Federal Credit Union, Rochester, Minn.

Mark Maguson ’75

Mary Townswick ’75

Professor of cell and developmental biology, Vanderbilt School of Medicine, Nashville, Tenn.

Environmental counselor, U.S. Department of State, U.S. Embassy to Brazil, Brasília

FROM HIS AWARD CITATION:

“Luther’s accounting program prepared Mary to pursue a successful career with financial institutions. She quickly discovered her passion for helping people—providing resources and financial education to families. For over 20 years, Mary has held a wide range of community leadership roles in her schools, churches, and girl and boy scouting, and she serves as a board member for three charitable organizations. In 2014 she received a Top Women in Finance Award for the state of Minnesota for her noteworthy contribution to her profession, community, and society at large. “As a board director and secretary for Brighter Tomorrows Inc., a nonprofit organization formed to support families of children diagnosed with cancer, Mary donates over 400 hours a year to raise funds and provide organizational direction. If you ask Mary which accomplishment makes her most proud, she . . . cites her family as her favorite coconspirators in community work. . . . Last June, Mary cochaired Brighter Tomorrows’ largest annual fundraiser, where her family raised 13 percent of the event’s total proceeds.”

“Mark is one of those rare individuals able to think productively about the whole forest, not just individual trees. As a medical endocrinologist he saw and treated patients with diabetes. His research taught him what was known about the disease as well as what was unknown. His intuition and thinking has enabled him to envision the most important questions to be explored in order to achieve understanding, and to envision the tools that would be needed to research the answers to those questions as well as the procedures by which to develop the tools. Mark has been able also to envision the required level of collective effort needed to fight this disease. Mark and his own research group at Vanderbilt—where he has been for 30 years—have made extensive findings in each of these areas. . . . Even more importantly, he was key in launching the Beta Cell Biology Consortium of nearly 200 research groups scattered across the United States and Europe, and he has provided the primary leadership in developing the roadmap by which the research groups within this consortium work cooperatively in a common direction in this broad area of medical research.”

—Alexandra White, assistant professor of management

—Dale Nimrod, professor emeritus of chemistry

FROM HER AWARD CITATION:

FROM HER AWARD CITATION:

“As the tragic events in Benghazi, Libya, have recently shown again, working abroad for the United States government can be very dangerous. Mary has experienced this firsthand when trapped for 11 days in the U.S. Embassy in Cote d’ Ivoire during a civil war following failed elections she was monitoring. She and her colleagues survived on MREs (meals ready to eat) before being rescued by French troops. In Iraq, while helping to open the new embassy that came under frequent attack, or in Herat, Afghanistan, where the consulate was leveled by a bomb blast just a week after she had stayed there, Mary faced frequent danger. “Mary admits that the adrenaline rush of working in dangerous places has kept her interested in the profession. Working closely with the U.S. military in Iraq, she became sufficiently engrossed in military operations so that in 2012 she earned a master’s degree in strategic studies from the Army War College. . . . [The Luther German major] has also managed to acquire knowledge in four more languages—French, Urdu, Dari and, most recently, Portuguese. She has also taken courses that involve less talking and more doing, such as specialized training in firing weapons, emergency medical treatment procedures, and (her favorite!) driving a vehicle through barricades to avoid capture. Lifelong learning—Mary has certainly continued to excel at it!” —Uwe Rudolf, professor emeritus of accounting and management

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Noble Award

Sperati Award

The Weston Noble Award is given to a person who has made an outstanding contribution to the choral arts.

In the spirit of Carlo A. Sperati, conductor of the Luther Concert Band from 1905 to 1943, Luther annually honors a graduate who has had a distinguished career as a music educator.

Roger Henderson ’82 High school vocal music teacher in Grinnell, Iowa

Curtis Reiso ’54 Coordinator of music activities emeritus

FROM HIS CITATION:

“Early in Roger’s career it became apparent that he was not to be the typical high school music teacher that only prepared students for performances. As stated in his accepted application essay to the biennial Yale Symposium of Distinguished Music Educators, his ultimate goal as a teacher is to create ‘classroom, rehearsal and performance experiences in which students make personal, curricular, and cross-curricular connections with and through music to ensure a deep understanding of the potential transcendent power of the arts.’ He further states, ‘Music teaching in performance classes must go beyond the learning of the notes and merely making pieces performance-ready. Affective music experiences must be intentionally and effectively designed.’ ”

FROM HIS CITATION:

“[Curt’s] benevolence will for years to come continue to be a generous addition to the student experience at his alma mater. Although Curt was not a music major during his student years, his association with the music department and the touring organizations representing Luther will be remembered as one of the major contributions to the lives of thousands of students. “Following his graduation, he became a member of the Admissions staff. His time at Luther was interrupted by a couple of years in the U. S. Army, 1955–57. . . . He then returned to the college as a member of the Development staff. . . . During these years, he also functioned as coordinator of the tours for the, at that time, three major touring ensembles. He remembers that he conducted 86 domestic tours, 14 European tours, and 2 trips to Hawaii. . . . So many young people of the years responded to that booming baritone voice, Time to get on the road!”

Roger Henderson ’82

—presented by Allen Hightower, director of choral activities and professor of music

Presser Scholarship

Shayla De Jong ’16

The Theodore Presser Foundation provides a generous scholarship for an extraordinary senior music major each year.

—presented by Joan deAlbuquerque, director of bands and associate professor of music

Shayla De Jong ’16

Hemp Family Prize

FROM HER CITATION:

The Richard C. and Joann M. Hemp Family Prize for Orchestral Performance is awarded to a Symphony Orchestra senior for exceptional performance, talent, musicianship, and leadership.

—presented by Gregory Peterson, associate professor of music and college organist

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DANIEL RAY ’16 FROM HIS CITATION:

Curtis Reiso ’54

Daniel Ray ’16

LUTHER COLLEGE PHOTO BUREAU PHOTOS

“With encouragement from her great-aunt Iris, a church organist, Shayla began studying organ with Iris’s daughter, Kris De Wild, with whom she also studied piano throughout high school. She quickly became intrigued with the organ. As a young organist, Shayla was invited to perform on concerts sponsored by the Central Iowa Chapter of the American Guild of Organists and Pella Tulip Time Concerts, and she gave a solo recital as a senior in high school. She has served as organist at Peoria Christian Reformed Church, Ridgeway Lutheran Parish, and currently at First United Methodist Church in Decorah. “At Luther Shayla has been a member of Aurora, Cathedral Choir, and Collegiate Choral. She is in demand as a collaborative pianist for student recitals and ensemble performances, having been a finalist for the Distinction in Accompanying Award. She is also a frequent organist for chapel. She participated in the January Term course “Choral Singing in Namibia and South Africa” in 2014. She is majoring in music with organ as her primary instrument and completing a German minor.”

“As a double major in music performance and philosophy, Dan divides his time between practicing sublime, even transcendent violin concertos and reading very difficult, very deep, ceaselessly interesting, occasionally impenetrable books. In addition to the Hemp Prize, Dan is (for the second consecutive year) the recipient of the Dorothy M. Ansett principal second violin chair in Symphony Orchestra. In the spring of 2015 Dan was a finalist in the biennial Luther College Department of Music concerto competition. When he is not playing the violin or studying, you will probably find Dan Ray immersed in discussions of philosophy with friends or reflecting on what he should do with his life.” —presented by Daniel Baldwin, professor of music

CLASS REUNIONS Alumni celebrated and caught up with each other throughout Homecoming weekend. The college photographed class reunion gatherings, the most senior of which are shown here. You can find photos from each alumni reunion reception at luther.edu/homecoming/photos2015.

Class of 1950. Front row, left to right: Dale Peterson, Helen (Lund) Blekeberg, Pauline (Bigalk) Bailey, Bud Bahr. Back row, left to right: Bob Lee, Holger Christiansen, Roger Goulson, David Leirmo, Dick Grindeland, Ralph Scott, Dick Ylvisaker.

Class of 1960. Front row, left to right: Al Solomonson, Myrna (Johnson) McNatt, Sharon (Jacobson) Wilson, Jan Robertson, Ardis Fiskerbeck Christen, Bob Fett. Back row, left to right: Jerry Anderson, Gary Baldwin, Rolland Wilson, Curt Rotto.

Class of 1955. Left to right: Al Brudos, Clarie (Renslo) Streng-Broste, Marnie (Torrison) Blatchford, Carlyle Haaland, Jan (Campbell) Tweed, Ted Tweed, Frances (Trosin) Rehborg, Elliott Christen, Sally (Peterson) Head, Norm Gunderson, Patricia (Olafson) Savoie, John Meyer, Mildred (Lunde) Meyer.

Class of 1960. Front row, left to right: Karen Julesberg, Connie (Hill) Guetzke, Agnes (Grevstad) Hjelle, Donna (Nyhus) Benrud, Warren Boe. Back row, left to right: Ken Melby, Roger Benrud, Trygve Mathison, Bob Stoskopf, Mike Ritland.

Class of 1960. Lorna (Haugland) Anderson and Char (Fossum) Myhers. Not photographed: Carolyn (Cowan) Evenstad, Sonja (Hohertz) Selboe

Scenes from the class of 1965 Homecoming reception at De Novo Barn; class of 1965 presents a class gift of $1,152,084.17 to President Paula Carlson.

Student Activities Council’s Flamingo Ball

Luther wins Homecoming game over Buena Vista University in overtime, 41-34.

Joan deAlbuquerque, Daniel Kallman ’78, Dick ’65 and Linda Quast. Kallman composed “The Promise of Grace” for Concert Band, premiered at Homecoming.

Jazz Night at Marty’s

Above, a tiny Norse spectator at the Homecoming parade, along with parade participants. Below, Moran Lonning ’16 fires up the Homecoming pep rally crowd.

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Athletic Hall Of Fame Garrett South ’05 Business analyst, John Deere Ag Marketing Center, Olathe, Kan. FROM HIS CITATION:

“When entering Luther College in the fall of 2001, Garrett was a decorated Iowa High School student athlete. He had won the 2001 Iowa High School State Wrestling Championship at 160 lbs. with a major decision in the finals, he had a 32 ACT, a 4.0 cumulative GPA, and was valedictorian of his graduating class. Garrett was a star! . . . “Everything about Garrett’s style was a bit unorthodox and, at the same time, magnificently beautiful. From his prematch routines, where he looked like he had just woken up, to his left-handed handshake to start the match, to his hand clapping and mat slapping as a setup to his attacks during the match, Garrett used his intelligence to get into the head of his opponents. . . . “Garrett’s accomplishments in the classroom and on the mat earned him an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship and IIAC Male Scholar Athlete of the Year honors. He was the first Luther wrestler to earn each of those honors. He also was inducted into the NCAA Division III National Wrestling Coaches Association Hall of Fame. . . . He has the [Luther] record for most career pins at 58, and he also holds the unofficial record for the most cafeteria cinnamon rolls eaten in one setting at 13!” —David Mitchell, head wrestling coach

Katie (Pettigrew) Weems ’05 Physical therapist, focus on sports and orthopedics, Carrie Tingley Hospital, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque.

FROM HER CITATION:

“It’s easy to understand why many of us at Luther were excited when she chose to enroll in the fall of 2001. As [then women’s soccer coach Doug] Mello describes it, ‘It didn’t take long for me to notice she had a knack for scoring goals. Why not give her a run at forward? One hundred twenty-four goals and 297 total points later, needless to say, she exceeded all expectations. . . . She was a tireless worker on the pitch who could play through injuries.’ . . . “Katie demonstrated that same toughness and resiliency as a track and field performer. Considering the physical demand of the triple jump event, her four years of excellence is almost other-worldly—three-time IIAC indoor champion, three-time IIAC outdoor champion, four-time NCAA indoor championships qualifier (top 24 in the nation), four-time NCAA outdoor championships qualifier, twotime NCAA All-American indoors (placing seventh in 2003 and eighth in 2004), threetime NCAA All-American outdoors (eighth place in 2002, eighth place in 2004, and third place in 2005, in her final competition as a college athlete). However, Katie did much more than triple jump—her name still appears on our top 10 performance lists in eight different events!” —Jeff Wettach ’79, head track and field coach

Erika Schmitt ’95 Stay-at-home mom, Winnetka, Ill. FROM HER CITATION:

“During her four years, Erika’s determination, dedication, and leadership by performance on and off the tennis courts helped her extremely motivated team achieve many of its goals. . . . “Erika won four Iowa Conference singles titles (no. 5, 4, 3, and 3). Only five conference players have done this, all of whom are in the

Luther Hall of Fame. Erika added three conference doubles titles at no. 3, 1, and 2 with longtime partner Sara (Anderson) Doherty ’95, and the Luther teams won four consecutive IIAC team titles. In 1992 and again in 1993, Erika and Sara won the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Midwest Regional Doubles Tournaments and advanced to the ITA National Tournaments. Finishing in eighth place in 1992, Erika and Sara improved to sixth place in the 1993 ITA Nationals. In the spring of 1994, with her outstanding singles record of 24-6, Erika helped the Luther team make its first return to the NCAA National Championships since 1986. . . . She finished her career with a 69 percent winning average in both singles (78-35) and doubles (83-37). . . . “Erika received the prestigious 1995 Prince ITA All-American Scholar Athlete Award for her academic and tennis prowess. Only one scholarship is awarded each year to a female and a male player in Division III.” —Susan Oertel ’72, women’s tennis coach (1975–2006)

Paul Bunnell Jr. ’89 Journeyman wireman with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 13, Montrose, Iowa FROM HIS CITATION:

“What makes Paul’s story unique is that he did not exactly fit the traditional profile of incoming Luther student athletes. In fact, he was a football player through junior high and did not run [cross country] until his junior year of high school. However, his ascent was rapid, as he was crowned the class 2A individual state champion in cross country as a high school senior in 1984. . . . “Coach Finanger described it this way: ‘As

Left to right: Mike Carney ’85, Erika Schmitt ’95, Paul Bunnell Jr. ’89, Alan Read ’90, Garrett South ’05, Katie (Pettigrew) Weems ’05

KIRK JOHNSON ’82

a freshman, Paul challenged the upperclass runners all season for that final spot on the team that won the NCAA National Championship. That year was special, and Paul was critical to our win!’ “He would go on to run in two more NCAA cross country championships, on teams that placed 5th in 1987 and 13th in ’88. His individual highlight came in ’88 as he won the individual title at the NCAA central region meet, leading the Norse to their national meet qualification.”

yards, including two for touchdowns. Defensive schemes and coverages have changed significantly since the 1980s, but athletes with Al’s versatility to pursue laterally, play in the defensive line, blitz, and cover the flat in pass coverage are widely sought after at any competitive level. If you were carrying the ball, throwing it, or receiving it, Al was likely to run into you. . . . Additionally, the defenses he played on were honored with the fewest points allowed in a season, 89 in 1986, and the fewest yards allowed in a game, 12 in 1987.”

—Jeff Wettach ’79, head track and field coach

—Brian Solberg ’88, director of athletic training

Alan Read ’90

Mike Carney ’85

Health and wellness instructor, Vernon Middle School, Marion (Iowa) Independent School District

Director, commercial real estate, Principal Financial Group, Des Moines, Iowa

FROM HIS CITATION:

“In cross country, Mike was a three-time allconference performer, placing eighth, third, and second in IIAC conference meets. Highlighting Mike’s senior year in cross country was the team’s fifth-place finish at the NCAA Division III National Meet in Delaware, Ohio. On the track, Mike earned all-conference honors six times, three each in the 1,500-meter and 5,000-meter runs. As a senior, he qualified for the NCAA Division III National Meet

“On the gridiron Al was a fierce and driven competitor with instinctive skills for finding the ball. He earned all-conference honors as a linebacker twice, in 1988 and ’89, and at the time of his graduation he held the tackling record with 282; currently he ranks fifth overall, while recording 7.5 sacks. He also made nine interceptions over his career, with 189 return

Nominations sought Luther is seeking nominations for Distinguished Service Awards, Athletic Hall of Fame induction, Young Alumni Awards, and Spirit of Luther Awards. Please consider the following criteria when nominating individuals. Distinguished Service Award Criteria to consider for DSA candidates include meritorious service to society in areas such as education, government, the arts, business, church, labor, industry, agriculture, research, medicine, and community affairs; loyalty and service to Luther; fidelity to the ideals of Luther; and timeliness of the award. Though individuals nominated for DSAs typically have a strong Luther connection, they do not have to be alumni. Alumni recipients should have graduated at least 20 years ago; they typically receive the award at Homecoming during an anniversary year of their graduation. For the fall of 2016, for example, Luther is seeking nominees from classes ending in a 1 or 6. Athletic Hall of Fame Individuals nominated for the Athletic Hall of Fame must have been outstanding athletes or

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FROM HIS CITATION:

coaches at Luther; have demonstrated strong contributions to family, community, and career; and have graduated from college at least 10 years prior to the induction year. Nominees may be living or dead. Luther also considers factors such as the nominee’s service to Luther and service to athletics after graduation. Inductees are typically honored at Homecoming during an anniversary year of their graduation. For the fall of 2016, for example, Luther seeks nominees from classes ending in a 1 or 6. Young Alumni Award The Young Alumni Award recognizes Luther alumni who have graduated in the last 15 years for outstanding achievement in their vocation or avocation. Criteria considered for award candidates include early significant professional achievement, demonstrated leadership abilities, and distinctive service to Luther or society at large. Nominees’ lives should exemplify the college mission statement. Award nominations are received by the Luther Alumni Office; recipients are selected by the Alumni Council. The award is given at commencement each spring.

in Granville, Ohio, in the 5,000-meters. His 1985 PR of 14:41.64 in the 5K still ranks as second best in school history. “While Mike was respected for his talent, he was also recognized for his leadership, being elected a team captain three times, twice in cross country and once in track. During his four years at Luther, Mike and his teammates had a stranglehold on conference championships, winning four Iowa Conference titles in track and three in cross country. . . . “Most runners hang up their racing shoes when collegiate eligibility is completed, but Mike’s college career was only a warm-up for a plethora of outstanding performances to come. In the late ’80s, he was widely recognized as not only the top distance runner in Iowa, but one of the best in the nation. Sponsored by the Reebok Racing Team, Mike captured titles at prestigious competitions all over the country. . . . He took top honors in the Governor’s Cup 10K for four consecutive years, from 1988 to 1991. In April of 1989, Track and Field News magazine ranked Mike 15th in the nation in the 10,000-meter run, and to date, Mike is still recognized as being the fastest native Iowan at the 10K distance.” —Kirk Neubauer ’76, senior associate director of admissions

Spirit of Luther Award The Spirit of Luther Award recognizes individuals who have provided significant, sustained service to the college. Nominees should have demonstrated a personal commitment to Luther’s mission, quality, and character. Current faculty and staff are not eligible. A maximum of three awards are given each year. To submit nominations Send DSA and Spirit of Luther Award nominations with as much supporting documentation as possible to the Office of the President, attention Marcia Bullerman, Luther College, 700 College Drive, Decorah, IA 52101; bullerma@luther.edu; (563) 387-1527. Please submit your Athletic Hall of Fame nominations with supporting documentation to Dave Blanchard, sports information director, Luther College, 700 College Drive, Decorah, IA 52101; blanchda@luther.edu; (563) 3871586. Please submit your Young Alumni Award nominations with supporting documentation to Kirk Johnson ’82, associate director of alumni relations, Luther College, 700 College Drive, Decorah, IA 52101; johnsonk@luther.edu; (563) 387-1659.

Alumni News

MICHAEL HAGSTROM ’17

Telling Vesterheim’s universal stories Chris Johnson ’87 looks to position Norwegian-American museum for the future

T

he year 2025 will mark the 200th anniversary of the first organized immigration of Norwegians to the United States. With that in mind, Decorah’s Vesterheim NorwegianAmerican Museum is launching a process to determine what it should aspire to be, or be doing, in 10 years. At the helm will be Chris Johnson ’87, who became Vesterheim’s president and chief executive officer in June 2015. The heart of any museum is its storytelling, and Johnson has been captivated by the tales

told at museums since he was a boy. The New Hampton, Iowa, native recalls field trips to Vesterheim, where his imagination took off with the 25-foot wooden sailboat Trade Wind that has anchored the main exhibit building for decades. That ship will remain a key display, Johnson says, but he wants Vesterheim’s planners to think about how such artifacts are used. Could the stories they tell be more engaging, more interactive, or more relevant to museum visitors of the future?

“The challenge with a place like Vesterheim,” Johnson says, “is that when this museum was founded in 1877 at Luther College, we had more people who were much closer to the immigrant experience—people who still spoke the language, who were first-generation immigrants. With each passing generation, we have to think about what are the important parts of our cultural identity that we retain and what has fallen by the wayside? What are those things that people are interested in re-

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Alumni News

“

We look at the immigrant experience through the lens of Norwegians coming to America in the 1850s, ’60s, and ’70s, but a lot of those storylines are just as relevant today,” Johnson says. “We’re a nation made up of all different types of immigrant groups.”

kindling to connect to their heritage?” Once the museum’s strategic plan is determined, Johnson aims to take it on the road to the Decorah community as well as supporters farther afield. “We have to pull in a number of different audiences to help us answer these questions.” Then, he says, “we can figure out the next steps, whether it’s renovating our existing exhibit galleries or changing some of the configuration in the Open Air Division. Those are questions we can answer when we have a better idea about what it means to our audience if we change things.” Johnson’s love of historical storytelling took root at Luther when he changed his major from biology to history. Influential professors included Jim Hippen and John Christianson, but, Johnson says, “I kind of minored in Richard Cole.” Johnson’s first stop after graduation was an internship at Living History Farms (LHF) outside Des Moines, Iowa. He was a jack-of-all-trades, giving tours, working in the blacksmith’s shop, driving oxen, building bark lodges, and more. Eventually he was hired on full time and met his wife, Bonnie, who also worked there. Johnson spent much of his time as a site interpreter in the Ioway Indian village, an isolated spot that visitors reach via a woodland path. LHF was a good training ground for museum work, Johnson says, especially in dealing with people. He learned to

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explain the artifacts and his actions at the site in way that was clear and interesting to visitors from all over the world. After a stint as the museum curator with the Dallas County (Iowa) Conservation Department, Johnson moved with Bonnie to Nebraska, where she had taken a teaching job in Unadilla, southeast of Lincoln. Johnson entered the museum studies graduate program at the University of Nebraska. Wrapping up his studies in 1997, he returned to Decorah for a summer internship at Vesterheim. He worked in the membership and development office, while Bonnie helped create a children’s exhibit. Johnson spent the next 17 years with the State Historical Society of North Dakota. He began as a regional historic sites manager— there are 57 historic sites under the historical society’s umbrella—and in 2007 became the director for the society’s museum division. His staff managed about 63,000 objects, from thimbles to a Northern Pacific Railway locomotive. Between 2011 and 2014, Johnson, his crew, and a consulting team took on a challenge for which storytelling seems too puny a word. The North Dakota Heritage Center expanded from 20,000 to 40,000 square feet of exhibit space. For this, they needed to relate a saga. Much of Johnson’s job involved supervising the storyline development, figuring out which topics each gallery would examine. One gallery told an epic that began 500 million years ago when large swaths of what is now North Dakota lay under a vast inland sea. That story progressed from shark fossils to dinosaur bones to evidence of saber-toothed cats, mammoths, and mastodons. Another gallery dealt with the end of the Ice Age to about the 1860s and focused on the first peoples of North Dakota. Johnson’s team organized community forums for potential exhibits, similar to the discussions Johnson

hopes to have in planning Vesterheim’s future. “Some good ideas came out of those conversations,” he says. “The importance of language was something that was really stressed. And so when you step into that gallery today, you can hear audio recordings of people speaking in Mandan and Hidatsa and Chippewa and Lakota and Assiniboine.” Concerned that exhibits remain relevant as time goes on, the North Dakota team chose some themes, such as conflict and war, that tell the stories not only of the past—for instance, conflict between Indian tribes—but also of the present, reminding visitors that there are still 150 Minuteman III missiles parked in silos under the North Dakota landscape. Johnson’s experience in crafting the North Dakota stories translates to the Vesterheim project in the way he looks for that continuing relevance. “We look at the immigrant experience through the lens of Norwegians coming to America in the 1850s, ’60s, and ’70s, but a lot of those storylines are just as relevant today,” Johnson says. “We’re a nation made up of all different types of immigrant groups. That’s certainly talked about in the halls of Congress and on the news—what does it mean to be an American?—and those are storylines that are just as relevant here. These are universal stories: What cultural traditions do you retain? How important is it to retain the language or to learn the local language to become a success in life? What’s the role of education?” These are questions the immigrants struggled with nearly 200 years ago, and they’re relevant today. Johnson hopes the Vesterheim staff and board can finish an initial 10-year plan by October and then hit the road for those community discussions about how, precisely, the stories can be told. —Ellen Modersohn

Alumni News

New students in 2015 include 82 children of alumni CALIFORNIA

San Bruno Alexander Davis, son of Marie Lorenzo-Davis and Dave Davis ’91 Santa Barbara Tatiana Proksch, daughter of Irene Revenko and Roger Proksch ’87 IOWA

Adel Laura Judd, daughter of Linda (Hesse) ’86 and Paul Judd Amana Shaunessey Crozier, daughter of Shannon Miers ’90 and Galen Crozier Ames Annika Rotto, daughter of Mary (Mathews) ’90 and Hans Rotto ’90 Ankeny Joseph Cardamon, son of Staci (Hemmen) ’87 and Joe Cardamon

Collin Nimrod, son of Cristy and Andy Nimrod ’90 Annika Vande Krol, daughter of Kris (Finholt) ’92 and Scott Vande Krol ’91 Denver Sommer Stevens, daughter of Michele (Mertens) ’83 and Carter Stevens ’83 Bailey Victoria, daughter of Jodie (Kill) Victoria ’92 and Brad Victoria, Cedar Falls, Iowa Des Moines Rachel Harder, daughter of Denae (Erdman) ’87 and Steve Harder ’84 Eldridge Grace Andersen, daughter of Katherine (Paetz) ’88 and Kurt Andersen Elma Emma Ring, daughter of Michele (Baethke) ’97 and Daniel Ring Forest City Austin Lewis, son of Darrelleen (Riehle) ’92 and Randy Lewis

Clive Samantha Storts, daughter of Jennifer and Loran Storts ’87

Indianola Tyler Mattson, son of Elizabeth and Gary Mattson ’85

Coralville Benjamin Johnson, son of Jone (McDonald) ’82 and Terry Johnson ’81

Iowa City Henry Craig, son of Karrie (Knutson) ’89 and Andrew Craig

Davenport Erin Jennings, daughter of Sue (Carr) ’90 and Doug Jennings ’90 Decorah Nolan Heffern, son of Kris (Anderson) ’92 and Marc Heffern Steven Holkesvik, son of Molly (Williams) ’97 and Bob Holkesvik ’96 Linnea Kephart, daughter of Ann (Tjostem) ’90 and Jim Kephart ’87 Caleb Kvale, son of Ann (Blanchard) ’86 and Mark Kvale ’84 Isaac Marquardt, son of Jill (Johnson) ’91 and Tom Marquardt ’91

Marion Griffin Neal, son of Shari (Scoggin) ’85 and Brian Neal New Hampton Mitchell Gage, son of Janet and Brian Gage ’89 Peosta Samuel Naumann, son of Amy (Sebbert) ’91 and Randal Naumann Spencer Lauren Sather, daughter of Sonia (Albertson) ’89 and Ryan Sather ’89 Tiffin Connor Murphy, son of Tracy (Klein) ’88 and Jerry Murphy

West Union Samuel Poppen, son of Leslie (Lein) ’82 and Doug Poppen IDAHO

Boise Martel Den Hartog, daughter of Rachel and David Den Hartog ’89 ILLINOIS

Chicago Jordan Lawson, daughter of Linda Howard-Lawson ’79 and Kevin Lawson James Sinclair, son of Katy and Robert Sinclair ’86 Island Lake Kyra Morris, daughter of Thea (Tupy) ’88 and Jeff Morris Mount Prospect Katrina Meyer, daughter of Sonja (Smith) ’85 and Joe Meyer Sherrard Race Fisher, son of Heather Manderscheid and Tricia (Berg) ’98 and Dan Fisher MICHIGAN

Farmington Haley Nelson, daughter of Kari (Urevig) ’93 and Troy Nelson ’91 MINNESOTA

Apple Valley Christopher Bjerke, son of Trish and David Bjerke ’87 Jonathan Crepeau, son of Carla (Haugstad) ’83 and Jeff Crepeau Austin Claire Lunning, daughter of Janene (Chafee) ’89 and Brad Lunning Brownsdale Maxwell Tapp, son of Kristin Tapp and Mike Tapp ’88, Dexter, Minn. Cottage Grove Anna Reimann, daughter of Mary (Vaaler) ’87 and Tim Reimann

Eagan Alixandra Putman, daughter of Jill (Schroeder) ’89 and Jim Putman ’89 Edina Joseph Fewer, son of Diane (Bell) ’84 and Mike Fewer Fridley Isaac Stivers, son of Jill (Evans) Stivers ’87 and Wendy and Scott Stivers ’88, Apple Valley, Minn. Gilbert Britta Erie, daughter of Kris (Gildseth) ’91 and Erik Erie La Crescent Kathryn Waller, daughter of Diane (Robinson) ’83 and Will Waller ’83 Minneapolis Jane Pena, daughter of Julie (Johnson) ’86 and Paul Pena ’86 Christopher Porter, son of Dawn (Molenaar) ’83 and John Porter Adam Ulring, son of Ann (Aspenes) ’84 and Scott Ulring ’84 Oakdale Austin Bullard, son of Kari (Petersen) ’85 and Dwight Bullard ’84 Owatonna Elizabeth Wiebke, daughter of Polly (Anderson) ’86 and Dave Wiebke ’85 Plymouth Peter Carlson, son of Lisa (Luther) ’91 and Brett Carlson Collin Carpenter, son of Becky Murray ’75 and James Carpenter, Minneapolis, Minn. Jacob Noble, son of Amy (Stegora) ’94 and Matthew Noble Hanah Sill, daughter of Lisa Zelinsky and Mark Sill ’83, Raleigh, N.C. Rochester Jacob Halverson, son of Tami (Daiker) ’92 and Paul Halverson ’92

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Alumni News

St. Charles Torger Jystad, son of Sue (Howieson) ’90 and Steven Jystad ’88

Waterville Isaac Highum, son of Sonja (Heeler) ’93 and Andy Highum ’93

St. Cloud Kaitlyn Buls, daughter of Shirley and Gary Buls ’79

White Bear Lake Benjamin Nottleson, son of Betsy Diekema ’90 and Andy Nottleson ’90

Shakopee Jamison Root, son of Tanya and Tim Root ’93 Spring Grove Lauren Arneson, daughter of Lisa (Blagsvedt) ’95 and Rick Arneson (deceased) Caroline Hagen, daughter of Virginia (Grotz) ’88 and Don Hagen Elizabeth Johnson, daughter of Kari (Meyer) ’89 and Daniel Alstad and Mark Johnson (deceased) Watertown Anna Phearman, daughter of Gina Brown Phearman ’87 and Scott Phearman ’85

Willmar Teman Miller, son of Kristin (Nelson) ’91 and Aaron Miller ’92 Winona Erin Halverson, daughter of Amy and Scott Halverson ’89 MISSOURI

O’Fallon Hannah Rovang, daughter of Teresa and Matt Rovang ’91 NORTH DAKOTA

Fargo Thomas Eide, son of Lina and John Eide ’82

Minot Peter Mathistad, son of Janet (Hernes) ’83 and Todd Mathistad OHIO

Dublin Emily Marlow, daughter of DeeAnne (Schultz) ’88 and Rod Marlow SOUTH DAKOTA

Belle Fourche Rebecca Sandness, daughter of Laura (Libbey) ’88 and Stephan Sandness ’86

Lancaster Alexander Withey, son of Josee (Robillard) ’93 and Todd Withey Madison Nora Haugen-Wente, daughter of Kristin Haugen-Wente ’82 and John Haugen-Wente Oconomowoc Celia Gould, daughter of Karen and Mark Gould ’79 Elyse Grothaus, daughter of Shelly and Rick Grothaus ’83

TEXAS

Seymour Madilyn Heinke, daughter of Melody and Jon Heinke ’86

Laredo Jacqueline Ommen, daughter of Adriana and Erik Ommen ’91

South Milwaukee Anna Seboldt, daughter of Mary and John Seboldt ’75

WISCONSIN

Eau Claire Britta Pressler, daughter of Kris (Ritland) ’88 and Brian Pressler

Westfield Zane Kittleson, son of Lee Ann (Ewer) ’85 and Mark Kittleson

Luther College Book Shop Phone (563) 387-1036 or (888) 521-5039 lutherbookshop.com

Book Shop staff with Chris Norton ’14 (right) and co-author and father, Terry Norton (left). During Homecoming weekend the Nortons held a book signing of the father-son memoir The Power of Faith When Tragedy Strikes.

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Alumni News

CLASS NOTES Notes written by Blaire Shaffer ’16 and Annalise Johnson ’18

1954

MAYNARD ANDERSON is president of the Arcadia Institute Inc. in Arlington, Va. He serves as chairman on the board of directors for Leave No Veteran Behind, on the board of directors for the National Security Institute Inc., and as chairman on the board of directors for Anderlen Partners Inc. He is also a member of the Luther College Alumni Council.

Professor emeritus of health and physical education KENT FINANGER of Mankato, Minn., was inducted into Wauwatosa (Wis.) East High School’s first class of their Athletic Hall of Fame last May. Twentytwo coaches and 42 athletes were inducted in the ceremony. Finanger won the Wauwatosa High School Athlete of the Year award for the 1949–50 school year; was a multiple letter winner in football, basketball, and track; and was honored as a first team selection of the Suburban Con-

ference All-Conference team while a student athlete at Wauwatosa East.

1959 ARDIS FISKERBECK

CHRISTEN is an English/speech teacher and librarian for the Rochester (Minn.) Public Schools.

1961 BILL BAILEY of

Burlington, Iowa, was inducted into the Minnewaska Laker Athletic Hall of Fame last October. Bailey was the head football coach at Starbuck, Minn., for 20 seasons. His teams had an overall record of 124 wins and 64 losses. In addition to being successful in the Pheasant Conference, the Bucks played in four state tournaments in a span of five seasons, including a run to the state championship game in 1981, the same year Bailey was inducted into Luther’s Athletic Hall of Fame. Bailey recently retired and returned to his hometown of Burlington, Iowa. He is a member of the board of directors for the Purple and Gray Foundation, which is spearheading a multimilliondollar project to renovate Bracewell Stadium. The foundation aims to support the Burlington Community School District’s athletics program.

1962 BILL DAVIS III of Winona, Minn., is retired.

1963 SANDY (BILDEN)

HOEG of Decorah was honored as a “superhero” volunteer for the

Weston Noble ’43 receives Lifetime Achievement Award In honor of more than 50 years of outstanding service as a conductor and music educator, the Iowa High School Music Association selected Weston Noble ’43, professor emeritus of music, to receive a Lifetime Achievement Award.

Weston Noble ’43

Noble was presented with the award at the AllState Music Festival Concert, the final event of the 2015 All-State Music Festival, Nov. 21, in the Hilton Coliseum on the Iowa State University campus in Ames.

The Lifetime Achievement Award is also awarded on behalf of the Iowa Music Educators Association, the Iowa Choral Directors Association, the Iowa Bandmasters Association, and the Iowa String Teachers Association.

Winneshiek Medical Center at the 2015 volunteer appreciation event. ANDREA (COWLES) NELSON and her husband, Jerry, lived in Hamar, Norway, for a year, 1997–98. During that year Andrea wrote articles biweekly for several newspapers in Wisconsin and Minnesota. The Norwegian American recently posted an excerpt from one of her columns, in which she describes Christmas in Norway and the preparation days leading up to Christmas. Read it at lczine.com/nelsonnorway.

1964 DENNIS MELIN is a

member and manager of Professional Education Institute LLC in Tucson, Ariz.

1966 DAVID ROSHEIM of

Maquoketa, Iowa, is the author of The Four Sisters: A Narrative and Documentary History of Iowa’s State Psychiatric Hospitals.

1968 BRENT HERAMB is an

attorney with Brent A. Heramb PC in San Diego. KATHRYN HOLLEQUE is professor emerita of education at Valley City (N.D.) State University. GEORGE KUH received the Distinguished Career Award from the Association for the Study of Higher Education. He is the coprincipal investigator at Indiana University in Bloomington, Ind. He also serves on Luther’s Board of Regents.

DONALD MACINNIS of Tacoma, Wash., is retired.

1969 MARY (LEISTIKOW)

CASTERTON of Decorah was honored as a “superhero” volunteer for the Winneshiek Medical Center at the 2015 volunteer appreciation event.

1967 MARIANNE

CHRISTIANSON of St. Paul, Minn., returned to visit Cardiff, Wales, 50 years after she helped paint the Norwegian Church’s interior while on a summer trip with students from Luther. The church used to be the place of worship for Cardiff’s Norwegian community. MICHAELE PETERS BENN is the interim high school principal for Bridge Creek Public Schools in Blanchard, Okla.

REBECCA SKAAR ’02, JOHN SMEDSTAD ’00 (director), and MYRNA PETERSEN-KONAJESKI ’69, are choir members at Old St. Paul’s Church, Baltimore.

Noble served as conductor of Nordic Choir from 1948 to 2005 and of Concert Band from 1948 to 1973. In addition to his 57-year tenure as a conductor and music educator at Luther, he has served as guest director for more than 900 all-state bands, orchestras, choirs and festivals across four continents. In recent years, he has conducted the Pacific Summer Music Festival of Guam, the Korea National Choir in Seoul, and the International Schools Festival in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Noble holds honorary doctoral degrees from Augustana University, St. Olaf College, Westminster Choir College of Rider University, Carthage College, and Wartburg College. He was awarded the St. Olav’s Medal by King Harald V of Norway for his contributions to Norwegian-American relations and was the first recipient of the Weston H. Noble Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Choral Art from the North Central Division of the American Choral Directors Association.

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Alumni News

DALE HOUCK traveled to Gneleka Lutheran Church in Africa last summer, where he was guest preacher and lecturer and was made an honorary chief of the village. While there he also preached to his congregation at Grace Lutheran Church in Camp Hill, Pa., via Skype. STAN RAGNES of Plymouth, Minn., is retired and runs a piano tuning and repair business.

1970 NANCY (OSTERBUR) Nguni Cattle at Tshaneni, Daniel Otte, photo and digital brush

Out of Africa: alumni siblings show artwork Three alumni siblings displayed their artwork in the Center for Faith and Life last fall. Elsa (Otte) Hammond ’62, Paul Otte ’63, and Daniel Otte ’63 presented mixed media works that were inspired in part by the history, culture, and geography of South Africa Born in South Africa, the siblings are third-generation descendants of Norwegian and German missionaries. They are also secondgeneration graduates of Luther. Elsa earned a nursing degree at Waldorf College before majoring in biology at Luther. For many years, she painted theatrical backdrops for the Northfield Arts Guild in Minnesota. After earning a master’s degree in worship arts, she began to paint with oils as well. She travels extensively, teaching art and design, and conducting bannermaking workshops. Paul majored in biology at Luther before earning a bachelor’s degree in English at Augustana College. In South Africa, he taught himself batiking, the creation of imagery on fabric through the use of wax and colored dyes. He later settled in Eugene, Ore., to teach batiking to young artists at the Eugene Artist-in-the-Schools Elementary Program. Daniel majored in biology at Luther and earned a doctoral degree in zoology at the University of Michigan. He serves as curator emeritus at the Academy of Natural Sciences and professor of biology at Drexel University in Philadelphia. An expert on crickets and grasshoppers, he has discovered more than 1,600 species worldwide and is well known for his scientific illustrations.

DONOVAN FRANK is a U.S. federal district judge for the United States district court in St. Paul, Minn. He recently ruled that Minnesota’s Sex Offender Civil Commitment Program is unconstitutional due to indefinite life sentences and lack of treatment, setting the stage for major changes to the program. Frank is embarking on an initiative to monitor recently released federal offenders dealing with chemical dependency and other issues.

HINRICHS works in wellness for Quest Diagnostics in Moline, Ill.

DAVE KARK is a sales manager for Cartridges-Direct in St. Mary’s Point, Minn.

NANCY (ROEWERT) HOKANSON of Petaluma, Calif., is retired.

1974 WILLIAM NEUMAN

TANNA (TWEET) MACKENZIE is the president of Lutheran Women of Australia and the office manager of Immanuel Woden Valley Lutheran Church in Lyons, Australia. JAY YOUNG of Florence, Ky., is retired.

1972 PENNY ENGRAV-

HOFFLAND of Eau Claire, Wis., released her first album, Notes Of Love: Recordings from the Home of Penny Lynn. Information about the CD is available at lukaslight.com.

1973 BARB (DONALDSON) CHAPIN is an accountant for Incarnation Lutheran Church in Shoreview, Minn.

is pastor at Good Hope Lutheran Church in Irmo, S.C. He is also a published author under the name W. M. Neuman. Risk is his first fulllength novel and the first book in the Paul Cambridge Chronicles. BARBARA SCHULTZ is a licensedto-minister lay pastor for Elim Church in Nantwich, England. She is a volunteer hospital chaplain and also sings in the Nantwich Choral Society. ANNE TEMTE retired as president of Northland Community and Technical College in Grand Forks, N.D. She works as a consultant in executive search, executive coaching, writing and editing, and organizational dynamics. PAM (GREGG) TORRESDAL retired as director of counseling at Luther College.

GREGORY DAHLBERG retired as senior vice president of strategic enterprise initiatives for Lockheed Martin. He is a private consultant in Washington, D.C.

1975 MIKE ADAMS of

JULIANNE (ZIEMANN) DAHLEN and her husband, Derick, own Villa Bellezza, a Tuscan-style winery in Pepin, Wis.

MARILYN JOHNSON is a communications consultant for Wells Fargo Asset Management in Menomonee Falls, Wis.

Lutherville, Md., is a project director for the Department of Defense.

STEVE MINECK is the manager of flight dispatch charter operations for United Airlines in Chicago.

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1976 RAD DECKER is

senior director of drug metabolism for Sunovion Pharmaceuticals in Marlborough, Mass. ALLEN GREEN is the dean of equity and inclusion for Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, N.Y.

1977 GARY EDER is leading

training specialist of the 100K Project for the CH2M-Hanford site in Richland, Wash. MARK and LOIS (DUNLEAVY) FINANGER are retired in Decorah. ANDREW HOLMAN is the cantor for Os Kyrkjelyd, a church in Os, Norway. CORA LELAND is a certified public accountant for Messerli and Schadow PLLP in Edina, Minn. BRAD SCHNEIDER retired from teaching band for Middleton (Wis.) High School.

1978 LAURA BLOBAUM

KNOERR is administrative director for DregerLaw in Chicago. MARILYN (WANGBERG) and HANS BRATTSKAR ’79 live in Nesbru, Norway. Marilyn is the music director and cantor for Holmen Church. Hans serves as state secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Norway. He has served as director general and special envoy for climate change at the Ministry of the Environment, as the first director of the Government of Norway’s Climate and Forest Initiative, ambassador and special adviser for conflict prevention and peace building operations and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and chief negotiator for the peace process between the Government of the Philippines and the National Democratic Front.

JOHN HANEWALL JR. of Janesville, Wis., is a professional clown and was named the All Around Clown of 2015 by the Midwest Clown Association. He won the award in 2008 and 2011 as well, and his clown character’s name is “Luther.” When he is not clowning around, John is the deputy director of the Rock County Development Disabilities Board. JAN (BAKKER) KNUTSON was inducted into the Tommy Awards Hall of Fame for her career achievements in musical directing. The

Tommy Awards recognize excellence in high school musical theater. Only one individual is inducted into the Hall of Fame each year. Knutson is the choral director and instructional manager of music for the Janesville (Wis.) Community School District. KEVIN MURPHY is U.S. representative for Lohff & Pfeiffer USA LLC in Bloomington, Ind. BOB PAULSON JR. is president and CEO of NxThera Inc. in Maple Grove, Minn., a medical device company pioneering the application of its Convective Water Vapor Energy platform technology to treat endourological conditions. He was recently appointed to Sun BioPharma’s board of directors and will chair their corporate governance committee. He also serves on Luther’s Board of Regents.

1979 ANN (WISE)

MANSFIELD of Decorah was honored with the 2015 Healthy Iowa Award for her visionary leadership. The Healthy Iowa Award recognizes individuals and organizations that developed and implemented policies and practices resulting in sustainable environmental change and healthier living for Iowans. The Northeast Iowa Food & Fitness Initiative has brought together people in Allamakee, Chickasaw, Clayton, Fayette, Howard, and Winneshiek Counties to improve access to healthy, locally grown foods and to provide opportunities for physical activity in places where we live, learn, work, and play.

1980 GREG ANDREWS is an

attorney and shareholder for Jackson Lewis P.C. in Chicago. KRIS (SKOGLUND) and DAN TJORNEHOJ ’79 live in Hudson, Wis. Kris is the department chair of music at University of Wisconsin in River Falls (UWRF) and the conductor of the UWRF Symphony Band and the St. Croix Valley Symphony Orchestra, and she serves on the faculty for the International Traveling Classroom in Edinburgh, London, and Paris. She was the conductor for the 2015 American Spring Festival in Prague as well as the guest conductor for the 2015 Indiana All-State Honors Band and won the 2015–16 Professional Service Award at UWRF. Dan is an attorney and the executive director of the Minnesota Veterinarian Medical Association. He also serves on the Minnesota Agrigrowth Council and the American Society of Veterinary Medical Association Executives.

1981 LINNY EMRICH is the

clerk of court for Clayton County in Elkader, Iowa. LINDA (HAHN) KENDALL-FIELDS is a clinical assistant professor at University of North Carolina–Chapel Hill Jordan Institute for Families. BONNIE MURRAY of Decorah was honored as a “superhero” volunteer for the Winneshiek Medical Center at the 2015 Volunteer Appreciation event.

PAUL MOEN is SVP-chief financial officer for Bridgewater Bank in Bloomington, Minn.

JIM SACQUITNE is a physician assistant in emergency medicine for Affinity Health System in Appleton and Oshkosh, Wis. He was honored as the Preceptor of the Year by the University of Wisconsin–Madison Physician Assistant Program.

DU launched its Living Lakes conservation initiative in Minnesota and Iowa, Vorland has been instrumental in leading, in cooperation with DU, the enhancement of eight shallow lakes that improved nearly 6,000 acres of wetland habitat for migrating and breeding waterfowl. Vorland has also partnered with DU to restore several smaller wetlands and acquire public land and has several new shallow lake enhancement projects planned.

1982 MARTIN DORN is an independent scholar in Lübeck, Germany.

KIM GLEASON-HINK and PAUL HINK and their three daughters opened Element Six, a women’s clothing boutique filled with fair trade and ethically made clothing in Wayne, Pa. The couple chose the name Element Six because of the family’s involvement in science (the sixth element is carbon). The entire family is involved with the store through the creation of a website, trips to New York for buying, and research on suppliers/designers. The store donates 10 percent of its profits to charity and is registered as a benefit corporation with the state. CARRIE (PHIPPS) HARNEY is an independent business owner at Agility Training Solutions in Rochester, Minn. She is also the technology training coordinator for Olmsted County. BRENT JOHNSON is the chief manager at Pipeline Holdings LLC in Bloomington, Minn. GAONE MASIRE provides human resource management support for the African Union Commission in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

CURT TRYGGESTAD was named the 2015 Richard Green Scholar by the Minnesota Association of School Administrators. He is the superintendent of the Eden Prairie (Minn.) School District. JEANINE VORLAND was awarded the 2015 Minnesota Conservation Partner of the Year Award by Ducks Unlimited (DU). Vorland is the Owatonna area wildlife supervisor for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. Since 2004, when

JULIE (KLAUSEN) and DAVE MOE ’81 live in Eagan, Minn. Julie is patient care supervisor for Fairview Clinics. Dave is director of marketing for Braun Intertec. MARY BETH PETRAK DE AVILA is a performing arts and history instructor for Monte del Sol Charter School in Santa Fe, N.M. JOY (TURNER) ROYSTON and her husband, Dave, own Sport Impressions sporting goods store and JustAGame Fieldhouse in Wisconsin Dells, Wis. They were inducted into the Wisconsin Basketball Coaches

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Alumni News

Association Hall of Fame class of 2015 as “Friends of the Game.”

1983 KEVIN HARTMAN

1986 MAREE HAMPTON is a self-employed program evaluator in Minneapolis.

is the manager of IT operations and application services for Rust Consulting Inc. in Minneapolis.

Part of the Pulpit Rock team, from left: Mark Bjerke ’93, Pete Espinosa ’81, Kari (Tollefson) Espinosa ’84, and Jon Tollefson ’83

Alumni family members brew up Decorah business What do you get when you mix four Luther alumni with a love for Decorah and craft beer? Pulpit Rock Brewing Company, which officially opened its doors last August. Pulpit Rock is not only an alumni business—it’s also a family business. Founder and chairman Pete Espinosa ’81 married Kari (Tollefson) ’84, whose twin sister is Kristi (Tollefson) Wolf ’84, one of the four founders. Their brother Jon Tollefson ’83 is also a founder, and their sister Jodi (Tollefson) ’94 married Mark Bjerke ’93, the fourth founder.

ANNIKA VANDE KROL ’19

In fact, the idea of starting the brewery came up a couple of years ago on an extended-family vacation. Pete and Kari had recently bought the Decorah laundromat building at Fifth Avenue and College Drive. They’d renovated the laundromat but were brainstorming uses for the building’s other half, which at the time was an empty garage bay. Noting the growing popularity of craft beer, the group thought, “Wouldn’t it be fun if . . .”

STEVE HAYDON is chief legal officer for the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. PAM SNELL joined the Luren Singers tour of Norway in June 2015, along with other Luther alumni, faculty, students, and spouses photographed in the fall 2015 issue of the magazine.

1984 JON CHRISTY is the

Luther College director of assessment and institutional research and is one of 28 administrators in higher education selected in a nationwide search by the Council of Independent Colleges to participate in a yearlong Senior Leadership Academy. Christy will participate in two seminars in Baltimore and Washington, D.C.; undertake a mentoring program; work with experts; participate in webinars; and engage in a series of readings and case studies during the 2015–16 academic year. DENAE (ERDMAN) and STEVE HARDER live in Des Moines, Iowa, where Steve joined the faculty at Des Moines University College of Osteopathic Medicine.

The Espinosa-Tollefson-WolfBjerke clan recruited a few local investors, including Bill and NiPulpit Rock Brewery hosted 53 cole (Bullerman) Remington ’94 Luther students who were on (note: the brewery’s Doc Rem’s campus over the holiday at a offering, described as “a real bountiful Thanksgiving dinner. gentleman, low in alcohol but full of rich flavor,” is named after Bill). They announced their intention during Homecoming 2014, then went to work on the space, recruited master brewers Robert Slack and Justin Teff, and opened their doors to the public in less than a year.

MARK KVALE is senior pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church in Sparta, Wis.

Pulpit Rock currently has no plans to distribute beyond a few local establishments, like T-Bock’s and Rubaiyat. “We’re trying first and foremost to be good for Decorah,” Espinosa says. “We want people to come to Decorah to get it.”

1985 DEREK BERG is an

And come they do. “It’s amazing what beer does,” he marvels. “We’ll say to our friends, ‘Come visit our town!’ and they’ll say, ‘Maybe.’ But when we say, ‘Come visit our brewery!’ they say, ‘Oh yeah!’”

CHARLIE HOVEN is senior event planner for Hearty Boys Catering in Chicago.

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TODD VANDENBARK is the information literacy and technology librarian for Vogel Library at Wartburg College in Waverly, Iowa. TRACEY (HOVDEN) WALSH is sales manager for Hovden Oil in Ridgeway, Iowa.

insurance agent for Farm Bureau Financial Services in Rushford, Minn.

DALE KRUSE earned a doctor of musical arts degree in vocal performance from the University of Minnesota. He is the music director for the Minnesota Opera: Project Opera vocal training program and an assistant professor of voice and lyric theatre at St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minn. He was the guest conductor for the 2015 Missouri MENC AllCollegiate Honors Choir.

JIM THOMSEN was named president of Thrivent Holdings for Thrivent Financial in Minneapolis. In his new role, he is responsible for delivering strong performance and continued growth for Thrivent’s existing subsidiaries, affiliates, and sponsored organizations, including Thrivent Federal Credit Union and Thrivent Mutual Funds. In addition, Thomsen and his team lead the development of new products, services, and entities outside of Thrivent’s traditional adviser-based business to give Christians wider access to the organization. Thomsen joined Thrivent in 1986 and most recently served as the organization’s senior vice president and chief marketing officer. He currently serves on the Forrester Research Chief Marketing Officer Leadership Board and on the Luther Board of Regents.

1987 CHRISTINE (STEWART) GEMLO is an administrative assistant for Minnesota State University, Mankato.

1988 CALLISTA (BISEK)

GINGRICH is the author of Christmas in America, the fifth volume in her New York Times best-selling children’s series featuring Ellis the Elephant. LARRY GREAVES is vice president and owner of APT Resources in Apple Valley, Minn. DAVID WRIGHTSMAN is pastor at Gethsemane Lutheran Church in St. Paul, Minn.

1989 TODD FOGDALL is

president and CEO for the StrandCapitol Performing Arts Center in York, Pa.

DEBRA (LACKMANN) FREEMAN is a self-employed oil/gas assets analyst in Carrollton, Texas. TIM JACOBSEN won an Emmy Award for American Horror Story: Freak Show as a visual effects producer for outstanding visual effects in a supporting role. Tim is cofounder and executive producer at FuseFX in Burbank, Calif. NAOMI MAHLER is interim associate pastor at Calvary Lutheran Church in Willmar, Minn. YUKARI (PRATT) SAKAMOTO is a food writer in Japan. She was featured on the PBS show What Phil’s Having. pbs.org/wgbh/what-philshaving/tokyo/ KAREN (COLE) STOCK teaches English at Decorah High School.

1990 VALERIE (WANTOCH)

CAMPBELL is a nurse manager at St. Luke’s Hospital in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. MICHELLE (MALY) and CARTER HANSON ’92 live in Valparaiso, Ind. Michelle is the resident director of the International Study Center for Valparaiso University. Carter is an English professor at the university. They are directing the university’s study-abroad program in Reutlingen, Germany, from 2015 to 2017.

PHOTO COURTESY SARA (BEARD) REVELL ’84

Alumni News

Revell ’84 (left) and warden Leann LaRiva talk with an inmate at the Federal Medical Center in Rochester.

Revell ’84 starts her 14th position with the Bureau of Prisons “I sort of fell into corrections,” Sara (Beard) Revell ’84 says. “Most people do—working in a prison is not something that folks aspire to as youngsters. Some people come into it generationally, but I just wanted to help people.” Revell, who is on the executive staff of the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP), first came into contact with the profession as a social work major at Luther. She interned in her hometown of Rochester, Minn., supervising people on probation and parole in the Olmsted County Community Corrections Office. During graduate school in social work at the University of Kentucky–Lexington, she did a second internship at a state prison and a third at the Federal Correctional Institution (FCI) in Lexington, where she started in a paid role in 1986. “And as they say,” Revell says, “the rest is history.” Revell started in the BOP as a case manager but has held many roles in 12 locations over the course of her career. “The agency values having a fresh set of eyes at our facilities,” Revell says, “so normally in order to move into positions of greater responsibility in the Bureau of Prisons, you move.” In 2005, she became warden at the FCI in Greenville, Ill., 45 minutes from St. Louis. She then became warden at the high-security United States Penitentiary at Florence, Colo., and then complex warden at the Federal Correctional Complex (FCC) in Butner, N.C., which includes five institutions and 5,000 inmates. “All corrections jobs are an enormous responsibility,” Revell says. “They are jobs not everybody wants, but thank goodness there are dedicated men and women willing to take them on.” Revell can’t provide details but says that she’s been in more than a couple of dangerous situations on the job. “The goal every day you walk through that gate is to come home the same way you walked in. My job as a leader is to make the staff’s work environment the best it can be. Law enforcement is dangerous work, and as a leader, you do what you can to ensure your staff’s safety.” After FCC Butner, Revell became the assistant director of the BOP Program Review Division, which oversees compliance for the agency. In October, she assumed her 14th assignment with the bureau, as regional director of the North Central Region, where she oversees 20 facilities as far west as Colorado, east to Michigan, south to Missouri, and north to the Canadian border. As regional director, her primary responsibilities are to oversee the operations for those facilities and to provide support to their wardens. As part of the bureau’s 19-member executive staff, she helps formulate policy, manages labor-management issues, and ensures compliance for the agency as a whole. Revell says that the executive staff have addressed many emerging and complex issues in the corrections field, including restrictive housing (commonly known as solitary confinement), the treatment of mentally ill inmates, labor-management partnership, diversity and inclusion, and the reentry of released prisoners. “We want to make sure we do everything we can to prepare individuals,” Revell says. “We’re focusing on educational and vocational programming—furthering one’s education or acquiring a trade is paramount in the success of returning citizens.” She continues, “Every position I’ve had in the bureau, I’ve always had an opportunity to make a difference. That’s the cool thing about being a correctional officer or a warden or a regional director—you’re always in a position to do two important things: one, make a difference in the lives of staff, and two, make a difference in the lives of the those in your custody.”

­—Kate Frentzel

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PHOTO COURTESY OF ERIC MONSON ’92

Alumni News

Monson ’92 becomes a Cantopop sensation When Eric Monson ’92, above right, formed the four-man vocal group Metro in 1998, he had no idea that a decade later he’d be singing Cantonese pop—and garnering more than a million page views for it. Monson hails from a musical family. His grandfather was a professional trumpet player. His father is a retired choral conductor. His brother, Marty Monson ’89, is executive director of the Barbershop Harmony Society. And his sister, Ann (Monson) Shoenecker ’90, is an associate music professor at Viterbo University in La Crosse, Wisc. Monson “tried to break the mold by getting a degree in economics and accounting” at Luther, he says. But music had other plans for him. As an undergraduate, he studied voice for pure enjoyment and sang in Nordic Choir and a barbershop quartet called Water Street Junction with Jon Kohnen ’92, Travis Shaw ’92, and Brady Swenson ’92. In 1992, his quartet won an international competition. New York talent agents booked the group for a tour in Berlin, where two of the group’s members, Shaw and Swenson, still live and perform today. “That completely changed all of us,” Monson jokes. But it’s true: he was hooked. Monson returned home to work on a music degree, but then went to work producing choir festivals at Disney theme parks. In 1998, hungry to perform again, Monson used his industry contacts to recruit a few singers and founded the four-man vocal group Metro. Metro was booked to perform on a cruise ship before its members even met one another. They flew to Nashville for three days of intense rehearsal and then embarked on a cruise-ship performance run that would last four years. During that time, a Disney executive happened to catch one of Metro’s shows and was so impressed that he got the group booked at Tokyo

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Disney—a gig that Monson and company kept for three years. After that time, says Monson, “Disney gave us with a deal we couldn’t refuse: they asked us to open up Hong Kong Disney” in 2005. It was the first international city that Monson could imagine as home. A home in Hong Kong After their two years with Hong Kong Disney, Metro took a break. Monson got involved in a community choir, and during a performance of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, he met his future wife, a Hong Kong native and professional opera singer, Yuki Ip. “She was singing the requiem in the second half of the concert. I heard her voice, and I was like Wow, I need to meet this person,” he says. He spent the next year as Yuki’s assistant, and every time they’d go to an event, people would ask whether he taught voice lessons. After some creative thinking about visas, Monson established his own company, American Vocal Studio (turns out those economics and accounting majors did come in handy). “I can use AVS as an umbrella company that offers visas for performing and also for teaching,” he says. “In the hills and valleys of performing, you like to have a consistent income.” That hardly seems a problem for Metro, however. The group has gained incredible traction across Asia. People love their infectious, highly technical pop tunes, but what arguably launched them into fame was their arrangement of a song by the hugely popular Cantonese group Beyond, whose founder died in a tragic accident. “His music—the lyrics and everything are just incredible. His main theme was: music has no borders.

Alumni News

We felt we had to do that piece,” he says of the song “Under a Vast Sky.” No small challenge The group crafted its own arrangement—in Cantonese—and posted it online. Someone copied it onto Youku (Chinese YouTube), and within the first week, the video had two million views and spades of comments like, “If you close your eyes, you can’t even tell these four singers are foreigners.” Learning to sing fluently in Chinese languages was no small challenge, Monson admits. For example, in Cantonese, he says, the word ho has nine different meanings depending on inflection, and six of those nine inflections are used in singing. Mandarin, another dialect in which Metro sings, uses six different tones in speech and four in singing. “There was a time when we were singing in Cantonese, and I wanted to take a lick going up, and my wife was like, ‘No, no, no, that’s a swear word—you have to go downward!’” Needless to say, Yuki has been invaluable in the group’s pronunciation. It’s also helpful that three of Metro’s singers study Mandarin and Monson studies Cantonese. While they currently have a native Chinese speaker translate their lyrics, they’d like to eventually write them in Chinese themselves. On stage with China’s Taylor Swift Without the right cultural touchstones at hand, it’s sometimes hard for American audiences to appreciate how big Metro is in Asia. When asked about some of Metro’s highlights, Monson has to play a game of comparisons. For example, Metro has performed twice on the Chinese equivalent of the Tonight Show. They’ve been featured guests 11 times for G.E.M., China’s Taylor Swift. In the fall, they launched a three-week tour of mainland China, Taiwan, and Korea, during which they performed on the radio show of Kim Chang-wan, Korea’s John Lennon. Sometimes the group gets hints of its success via a third party. For example, when Monson’s wife learned that Metro would be performing at the Taipei National Concert Hall, she was incredulous: “What? I’ve always wanted to perform there!” When Metro was in Beijing for the Chinese New Year, doing a TV program for CCTV, the group was asked, “So, how does it feel to be the first Americans to perform on this historic TV program?” “We all looked at each other and said, ‘What?!’” Monson recalls. “We had no idea. It was quite an honor for us.” Monson, a native Iowan who still uses “Iowa” in his Skype handle, is as down-to-earth as his home state. “We don’t always know how big a deal what we’re doing is. But it’s definitely cool when you go into a high school and you’re greeted like a rock star. Still, we know that as fast you go up, you can just as fast go down,” he says. “We just try to be humble and always enjoy what we do.”

—Kate Frentzel Metro’s second album drops in 2016. Watch videos of the group at lczine.com/vastsky and lczine.com/metrofour.

JAN (STYVE) KARRMANN is a research support specialist at the Alzheimer’s Treatment and Research Center in St. Paul, Minn. GREGG LUTHER of Aurora, Colo., is senior solutions consultant and product manager for Imanage Inc. ANDREW NESSET is liberal arts dean at Century College in White Bear Lake, Minn. DANIELLE (KITTELSON) PETERSON earned a master’s degree in collaborative education from Fielding Graduate University. She teaches elementary physical education for the Amery (Wis.) School District.

1991 PAUL BLOM is interim

CEO of the National Parkinson Foundation in Miami as well as the CEO and owner of Right at Home In-Home Care and Assistance in Bloomington, Minn. REYNOLDS CRAMER of Ames, Iowa, is chief executive officer of Fareway Stores Inc. He was invited to join the Iowa Business Council, which consists of the top executives of the state’s largest employers, the three regent universities, and the Iowa Bankers Association. STEPHANIE (DUNN) DEN HARTOG is a psychology instructor for Anoka (Minn.) Technical College. JOHN FRANK is executive vice president for Arthur J. Gallagher Risk Management Services in Eden Prairie, Minn. BRIAN GARMAN of New York City is cofounder and artistic director of the Berkshire Opera Festival. AMY (MICHAELSON) IGOU earned a Ph.D. in management information systems from Southern Illinois University. She is assistant professor at the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls. LAURA JÄNNES is head of administration for the University of the Arts Helsinki Theatre Academy in Finland. SHERRY (ATIENZA) JOSEPH is a dentist at Joseph & Joseph Dental LLC and a licensed massage therapist and owner of Jade Healing Massage Eastern Therapeutics LLC in Plymouth, Wis.

LAURA (PAULSON) LANDAU is author of The Life Balance Playbook: Seven Steps to the Life You Deserve. CAROLINE WORRA is an opera singer in New York City and has performed more than 75 roles, including 20 world, American, and regional premieres at more than 30 opera companies. She was added to Onalaska (Wis.) High School’s Wall of Excellence last fall.

1992 STEPHANIE AGRESTA

is owner of Stephanie Agresta Consulting in Little Silver, N.J. She created the Bloggers Lounge at SXSW, co-created TechSet, and coauthored Perspectives on Social Media. She was ranked sixth among digital creators, innovators, and strategists in public relations by PRWeek, and Business Insider named her as one of the top 25 advertising executives on Twitter. GREG IRVING is a student in conservation ecology in Bangkok, Thailand.

1993 CATHY (CHRISTIANS)

BONESTROO of George, Iowa, is a project director for Rotary Club of Rock Valley Foundation Foster Grandparent and Senior Companion Programs. KRISTIN (ZOLNOSKY) HARNEY is assistant professor of music education at Montana State University. ANJIE SHUTTS is a partner/attorney at Whitfield and Eddy PLC in Des Moines, Iowa. Anjie was recognized by Great Plains Super Lawyers 2015 in family law and was selected by her peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2016 in family law.

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Alumni News

1994 JODI (TOLLEFSON)

and MARK BJERKE ’93 live in Edina, Minn. Jodi is a stay-at-home mom, and Mark is the regional sales manager at Bromium and a cofounder of Pulpit Rock Brewing Co. in Decorah. ROBB GARDNER earned a master of healthcare administration degree from the University of Iowa. He is the CEO of Henry County Health Center in Mount Pleasant, Iowa.

JEFFREY MCKINNEY earned a Ph.D. in biochemistry from the University of Bergen (Norway). He is the assistant manager of Charles River Canoe and Kayak in Allston, Mass.

1995 BECKI (GRINSTEAD)

ERNST of Keizer, Ore., is a compliance specialist for the state of Oregon.

TROY ROHNE ’95 is the vice president and director of sales for Amy’s Bread in New York City. Last summer Troy and his wife, Amy Scherber, opened their newest concept, The Pantry by Amy’s Bread (designed by Troy), which features companies based in Brooklyn and various New England locations whose products—such as jam, honey, pâté, smoked salmon, and cheese—pair perfectly with Amy’s Bread. They will also open two kiosks at the New York Public Library’s landmark Stephen A. Schwartzman building on Fifth Avenue and at its Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center.

JIM LEE earned a master of public health degree from the University of Minnesota. He is a supervisory public health veterinarian for the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Decorah. SUZANNE LYNDON is media coordinator in the Media Relations Office at Luther College. ANGELA (GAWRON) NELSON is a clinical psychologist for West End Consultation Group in St. Louis Park, Minn. MARK PETERING is associate professor of music at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wis. He recently wrote an octet for the Washington Island Music Festival in Door County, Wis., celebrating its 25th anniversary season in 2016.

1996 JAMIE KNIGHT is

the manager of consulting services at Nordic Consulting Partners in Madison, Wis. SCOT REISINGER is the dean of adult programs at Mount Mercy University in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

1997 MICHAEL ELSBERND

is the director of worship and music, organist, and choir director for St. John’s Lutheran Church in Sioux Falls, S.D. SARAH HESSELBACHER is a reading interventionist for Galena (Ill.) Primary School. CHRISTIAN NILSSON is senior vice president and chief financial officer for Royal DSM in the Netherlands. GEOFFREY PESANKA is a pharmacist at Walgreens in Phoenix, Ariz. NICOLE PLYMESSER NELSON is an illustrator, artist, and writer in Lockport, Ill. She runs nicplynel. com, a website and blog, as well as an online Etsy business. She also speaks and teaches in the Chicago area and Atlanta. She and writer Leslie Eaton created an online Bible study, Bible Stories from the Heart. Nicole is the illustrator for the study, and plans are in the works to publish a print version of the first six-week program.

LEAH WOEHR-GRANDE is a master’s student in divinity at the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia and a pastoral intern at St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church in Red Hill, Pa.

BERENDZEN is a family nurse practitioner at Allen Women’s Health in Waterloo, Iowa.

TYLER STRAUB is the regional vice president of North American sales, partner, and investor with Firescope Inc. in Huntington Beach, Calif.

JESS ELLIS is the primary care sports medicine specialist at Oregon Medical Group in Eugene. MATT EVANS is a risk management specialist for TrueNorth Companies in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and was named the 2015 Community Trustee by Leadership for Five Seasons. BRIAN JOHNSON is vice president

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TREVOR LOES earned a doctor of musical arts degree in choral conducting and pedagogy from the University of Iowa. He is the choir director for Assumption High School in Davenport, Iowa.

1999 MARYA (SCHROTT)

LEAICH earned a bachelor’s degree in education/early childhood education from the University of Wisconsin–La Crosse. She is an ELL specialist for the Hazelwood (Mo.) School District. JESSE WINSELL earned a juris doctorate from Hamline University in St. Paul, Minn., and is a data practices and privacy official for Hennepin County, Minn.

2000 RYAN BIES is a

shareholder at Dougherty, Molenda, Solfest, Hills & Bauer P.A. in Apple Valley, Minn. MATTHEW ERPELDING is the director of choral activities for Lebanon Valley College in Annville, Pa.

ARVIND RAMNANI is senior analyst for Gordon Haskett Research Advisors in New York City.

1998 JENNA (ZALK)

LYNNE (PERRY) POULTON is a professional organizer and owner of Wholly Organized in Stow, Ohio.

of finance and corporate secretary for Casey’s General Stores Inc. in Ankeny, Iowa.

COLIN FARBOTKO passed away in 2012 after a long battle with ALS. Colin’s wife, MARNEY OLSON ’99, and his classmates KEVIN FRANTZ ’00, KIM (TURNER) FRANTZ ’00, PETE SCHONEBAUM ’00, TIMOTHY BAARDSETH ’00, and many other Luther friends are planning a memorial golf tournament called the iColin Classic at Brackett’s Crossing Country Club in Lakeville, Minn., on Monday, Sept. 26, 2016, to raise funds in his name. The group has secured 501(c)3 nonprofit status, created social media pages, and set up a website—icolinclassic.blogspot.com—for donations, sponsorships, and registration. Funds raised will be distributed to the ALS Association to support families living with the disease and to the Colin Y. Farbotko Memorial Scholarship at Luther College.

Alumni News

SARAH (KODET) GOEBEL is an ESE teacher for Poinciana High School in Kissimmee, Fla.

NICK NELSON is an attorney and owner of Law Offices of Nicolas R. Nelson in Villa Park, Ill.

LUKAS HOFFLAND acted as Dr. Emmett Brown in the inaugural Chippewa Valley LogJam in the summer of 2015. He also cohosts the Luc & The Captain sports talk show on 790 WAYY as part of his radio work at Mid-West Family Broadcasting in Altoona, Wis.

KATYA OUCHAKOF is a pastor at Lake Edge Lutheran Church in Madison, Wis. She is also a contributor to the book There’s a Woman in the Pulpit.

ELISABETH (MARVIN) SANDERSFELD is assistant vice president and controller of GuideOne Insurance in West Des Moines, Iowa.

2001 AMANDA HAMP

is assistant professor of dance at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque. TORY HEGRENES is a lieutenant commander for the U.S. Navy in Newport, R.I.

MELODY JORDAHL-IAFRATO is assistant professor of family and community medicine at the University of Arizona College of Medicine and program director at South Campus Family Medicine Residency in Tucson.

HEATHER (CIERNIA) NELSON is choral director at Christ the King Lutheran Church in New Brighton, Minn. She is also an independent music instructor and performer with Heather Nelson Music and a soprano with Magnum Chorum. JOHANNA OLSON is changing lives two years after passing away from cancer. The 2015 Tour des Chutes at High Lakes Elementary School in Bend, Ore., expected more than 1,750 participants to ride, run, or walk during the 12th annual fundraiser for cancer survivors and their families. In Olson’s honor, the Tour des Chutes offered a 5K run/walk along with five ride options for cyclists. BEN SHOCKEY is a paramedic for Winneshiek Medical Center in Decorah. KATIE SOPOCI DRAKE is a visiting assistant professor of dance at the University of Maryland–College Park. JULIE (SATRE) SHOCKEY TRYTTEN is director of media relations at Luther College. REBEKAH (RUSCH) VOGELSBERG is director of bands at Lancaster (Wis.) Senior High School.

JOE KISSNER teaches biology, anatomy, and physiology at Eagan (Minn.) High School. He was invited to testify at the Minnesota House and Senate Joint Higher Education Committees’ hearing on issues related to the Higher Learning Commission’s adopted clarification to its assumed practices regarding faculty qualifications. ANGELA (SWEENY) LOWERY is a psychologist in home-based primary care for Roseburg VA Healthcare System and the Eugene (Ore.) Community Based Outpatient Clinic. HEATHER (SVOBODA) MORRIS is public relations manager for Entrust Datacard in Shakopee, Minn.

ARIANA (ANDERSON) WRIGHT is elementary principal for the Kasson–Mantorville (Minn.) School District.

2002 BRAD ALBERS

is a pediatric anesthesiologist for Northwest Suburban Anesthesiologists Ltd. at Arlington Heights, Ill. ERIN APPEL is a licensed professional clinical counselor at Mental Health Systems PC in Woodbury, Minn. TRISTAN LUBINSKI earned master’s and Ph.D. degrees in biology from Boston University. He is an associate scientist of next generation sequencing informatics for AstraZeneca in Waltham, Mass.

HEATHER (GUTEL) TORRES is director of children’s ministry for St. Andrew’s UMC in Omaha, Neb.

ABBY FROST is the director of choirs for Hamilton–Wenham (Mass.) Public Schools and the director of choirs at First Church. She conducted regional honor choruses in 2011, 2013, and 2014; is a national board certified teacher; and is the Massachusetts American Choral Directors Association Middle School Repertoire and Standards chair. ANN (DEHNING) HINTZ is director of academic advisement for St. Norbert College in De Pere, Wis. AMBER INGALSBE is associate pastor at St. Barnabas Lutheran Church in Plymouth, Minn.

ALLISON (PRUNTY) WALLACE is special counsel in the business division for Davis Brown Law Firm in Des Moines, Iowa. JANE (MCDERMOTT) and KENNY WHEELER II ’00 are co-head coaches of girls’ high school track and field for the Pleasant Valley (Iowa) Community School District. The team won conference and regional meets and the school’s first state team title since 1991. They were named Iowa Track and Field and Cross-Country Association Coaches of the Year for the 2014 and 2015 seasons and State Coaches of the Year by United States Track and Field and Cross-Country Coaches Association. Jane is a physical education and health teacher at Pleasant Valley High School. Kenny is an academic adviser for Western Illinois University in Moline. RYAN ELIZABETH (MEYER) WUERTZ is a development associate for the Mayo Clinic Department of Development in Rochester, Minn.

2003 JEN (RUST)

ANDERSON is a compliance officer for Group Health Cooperative in Altoona, Wis. RACHEL (HILDEBRAND) and DAN CORRON live in Waukee, Iowa. Rachel is lead IT systems analyst for Principal Financial Group. Dan is a sales and leasing associate at Denny Elwell Company Commercial Real Estate and Development.

ANDREJ KOSTRESEVIC is the CEO of Nomads in Miami, Fla. He is also a curator for Miami Startup Digest, an organizer for Miami Lean Startup Circle, and an organizer for South Florida Android Developers. Nomads, whose clients include the NFL, DirecTV, and Cerner, was named one of the 25 fastest-growing technology companies in South Florida by the South Florida Business Journal. CONRAD KWAYU is regional manager for Hartford Healthcare Organization in Meriden, Conn. KRISTINE (HOLLEQUE) LOWER is an MSR valuation and reporting analyst for U.S. Bancorp in Bloomington, Minn. JOY (GRUETTNER) and NEIL MICK live in Mount Vernon, Iowa. Neil is a senior business analyst for Rockwell Collins. NATHAN VOIGHT is a controller for Rockwell Collins in Tustin, Calif. NICOLE (VERMETT) and NICK WOLF live in Walworth, Wis. Nicole is an accountant at Mecum Auctions. Nick is supply project leader for Pentair Inc. in Golden Valley, Minn.

2004 AARON COFFEEN is

a business development director for Engineered Tax Services in Peoria, Ill.

HEIDI (JOHNSON) FELTZ of Des Moines, Iowa, is the social media manager for Casey’s General Stores Inc. NATHAN GOSS is a tour guide for Fat Tire Bicycle Tours in Paris, France.

KRISTIN DOROW is an emergency room RN for Memorial Hermann Healthcare Systems in Houston.

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Alumni News

RACHEL (FRIEDRICH) HARKEN is a compensation and benefits generalist for NCMIC/Professional Solutions Insurance in Clive, Iowa. MANDY HENDERSON is director of the counseling program at Temple Grandin School in Boulder, Colo. MATT JANSSEN is senior software engineer at the Nerdery in Bloomington, Minn. JESSICA KATH works in development and alumni research for Brunel University, London. RYAN LUHRS earned a Ph.D. in choral conducting and music education from Florida State University. He is assistant professor of music and director of choral programs at Andrew College in Cuthbert, Ga. CARRIE (MORRIS) MILLER is senior academic adviser at the University of Iowa. MIRIAM (BLOM) and PAUL SKRADE live in Decorah. Miriam is assistant tennis coach at Luther. Paul is assistant professor of biology at Upper Iowa University in Fayette. JIM STELLMACHER is praise service director for Bethlehem Lutheran Church in St. Charles, Ill. CODY TIGGES is a pediatric intensivist at the University of Iowa Children’s Hospital in Iowa City. ERIK ULNESS is operations manager for Ulness Health Insurance and Wellness in Minneapolis. AARON WARD of Des Moines, Iowa, produced a series of humorous tourism television commercials for Travel Iowa featuring “Napoleon’s Folly.”

2005 HASSAN ASGHAR is

director of IT risk and controls for OptumInsight in Eden Prairie, Minn. LINDSAY BERNHAGEN is senior instructional consultant at the Ohio State University in Columbus. CHRIS DAHL is program coordinator at Riverside Lutheran Bible Camp in Story City, Iowa.

JENN (SHIMAK) DELAROSA is a collaborative teacher at Carrie Lee Elementary School in Decorah.

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CLARISSA (RINK) EINCK is a transitional kindergarten teacher for the Decorah Community Schools. RACHEL FAUST is a student services assistant for the Mounds View (Minn.) School District. RACHEL (STRANDT) and CHRIS GILMORE live in Lawrence, Kan. Rachel earned a master’s degree in elementary instruction and curriculum from Emporia University and is a member of Te Deum Chamber Choir and Theater Lawrence. She teaches second grade at Woodlawn Elementary School. Chris is the Kansas City area manager for Noodles and Company. KIM HENRIKSEN earned a master’s degree in mental health counseling from Argosy University. She is a research assistant for Carl T. Hayden Medical Research Foundation in Phoenix, Ariz. KATE INGBER is an associate recruiter for Alliance Life Financial Services in Minneapolis. KATIE (CHAMBERS) KADUCE is the accounting manager for John Deere Commercial Products in Grovetown, Ga. GINNY KING is suspension coordinator and basketball coach for the Hannibal (Mo.) Public Schools. JULIE KNAPP teaches third grade for Northland Community Schools in Remer, Minn. THADDAEUS MORELOCK is product manager for the Wedge Community Coop Inc. in Minneapolis. TINA MUELL earned a master’s degree in special education from Simpson College and a master’s degree in educational leadership from Concordia University. She is a school support data specialist for Connections Education in Baltimore.

DAIN TEPOEL is a graduate teaching instructor and writing consultant at the University of Iowa in Iowa City.

2006 HELISSA BELL

STEVENS is a K–5 music specialist for the Chippewa Falls (Wis.) School District. MEGAN (MURPHY) and TIM BEY live in Waverly, Minn. Megan teaches music at Dassel Elementary School. Tim is a customer service representative for Proto Labs. KRISTIN (STROM) CARMODY is a registered nurse at Allen Memorial Hospital in Waterloo, Iowa. JONATHAN CURRY earned a master’s degree in public administration from Hamline University School of Business and is the division supervisor at Industrial Fabrics Association International in Roseville, Minn. SARAH (OLSON) CUTCLIFFE of Chicago Heights, Ill., is an epic analyst at LinkEHR. NATE EVANS is a graphic designer for Winter Company in Savage, Minn. MEGAN (SANTJER) and MATT GEERTS live in Omaha, Neb. Megan is a leadership and learning facilitator, and Matt is an international baccalaureate psychology and theory of knowledge instructor for the Millard Public Schools. DANIEL HERMAN is a special agent for Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation in Des Moines. ALEXANDER LASS earned a master of business administration degree in finance, with distinction, from the Kellstadt Graduate School of Business at DePaul University in Chicago.

RYAN PERSON is graduate choral teaching assistant and doctoral student in choral conducting at Texas Tech University in Lubbock. PETE RUGGIERO is a general dentist at Dental Health Partners in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. MELISSA SERRES earned a master’s degree in business administration from the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minn.

JUSTIN PAPKA is a contracts administrator, post-award, for Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute in Washington, D.C. TONY VANDEN HEUVAL is a sales representative for Teleflex Medical Inc. in Minneapolis and a licensed real estate agent with Terra Companies. LAURA (TONKIN) VAN VERTLOO is assistant professor of small animal internal medicine at Iowa State University’s Lloyd Veterinary Medical Center in Ames. TRISH YOUNG is a certified nursemidwife at Midwifery and Women’s Health Care in Anchorage, Alaska.

2007 CHRIS ANGELICA is

senior business intelligence analyst for Allstate Insurance Company in Northbrook, Ill. CHRISTINA (GAARD) BAUMGART is director of pharmacy for Winneshiek Medical Center in Decorah. KYLE BINVERSIE of Richfield, Wis., is a territory sales manager for JELD-WEN Inc. HEMIE COLLIER is assistant football coach and academic resource center assistant at St. Cloud (Minn.) State University.

LAURA (MCNAMARA) FILIPOSKI earned a master of social work degree from the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. RACHEL (APPELT) HANSELL teaches elementary music for Convent of the Visitation School in Mendota Heights, Minn. KIMBERLY (REICHERT) and MATTHEW HOEGH live in Denver. She is a registered nurse for Sky Ridge Medical Center. He is an academic hospitalist and assistant professor for VA Eastern Colorado Health Care System. KATIE HOLMBERG of Knoxville, Tenn., is a full-time analyst for STEELE CIS.

AARON MURPHY is the owner of Spruced Up Staging in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He also serves on the Theatre Cedar Rapids board of directors. In December, Aaron participated in a Christmas cabaret show with LYNNE ROTHROCK ’85.

CRAIG MYRUM is a postdoctoral fellow at the National Institutes on Aging Biomedical Research Center in Baltimore. SARAH (QUICK) OLEJNICZAK is dean for student affairs at Mount Mary University in Milwaukee.

Alumni News

PHOTO COURTESY HODA HERSI ’06

“When I hear from listeners who say the program not only entertained them but also helped them improve their lives, I know that I am doing something worthwhile.” Hoda Hersi ’06, project manager, goes on-camera with BBC Media Action.

Hersi ’06 works with BBC to help Somalis engage with communities, social issues “My dream job” is how Hoda Hersi ’06 describes her position as project manager with BBC Media Action in Hargeisa, Somaliland, an autonomous region of Somalia. “I love my work because I know I am making a difference,” says Hersi, who develops programming on social issues relevant to Somalia. “There’s also no typical day, and that definitely keeps it interesting.” Hersi grew up approximately 3,500 miles southwest of Hargeisa in Gaborone, Botswana. Her father worked for UNICEF, and she and her sisters attended Westwood International School. Her older sister, Saharla ’04, led Hersi to Decorah in 2001. “My sister enrolled at Luther in 2000 and liked it and the town a lot,” says the globetrotting Hersi. “So the year after she moved to Iowa, I asked my dad if I could join her there.” Her father agreed, and on New Year’s Day 2001 Hersi arrived in Decorah, where she was soon taking classes, making friends, and getting acclimated to Western culture at Decorah High School. “It took time,” she says, to adjust to living as a minority, but she found the town every bit as warm and welcoming as her sister had. “I was living in Decorah during the attacks of September 11, 2001, and people were very thoughtful and very kind,” she says. “That’s one of the main reasons I decided to stay in Decorah and enroll at Luther in 2002.” Hersi initially thought about majoring in social

work, but ultimately focused her studies on communications. “The classes were challenging, and communication studies really fit me,” she says. “I enjoy public speaking, logic, reasoning, and debate—and I really like to talk.” After graduating, Hersi worked briefly on a UNIFEM project with the Ministry of Family Affairs and Social Work targeting violence against women in Somalia. According to the United Nations Development Programme, the East Africa country has one of the highest rates of sexualand gender-based violence in the world. “The violence against the women (and ultimately including the children) that I worked with was so horrific I couldn’t stomach it,” she says. She resigned that job within a year. The time was right, she decided, to return to the classroom—this time in England, where she earned a master’s degree in international communications from the University of Leeds in 2008. Shortly thereafter, she returned to Somalia when her younger sister, who had just become engaged, asked her to help plan her wedding. Weeks later she accepted a job opening an office for a local NGO (non-governmental organization) that worked with abused children. A communications position with the American consulting firm DAI followed before Hersi landed her BBC job in November 2012. The aim of BBC Media Action—the corporation’s international development charity—is to inform, connect, and empower people around the world. For Hersi and her team, headquartered in

Hargeisa, that means developing and overseeing programming that fosters a sense of Somali identity and inspires people to engage in their communities and the social issues that affect them. “The programs have to be relevant to all areas of Somalia, Somaliland, and Puntland,” Hersi says, “and they must be entertaining and well written.” From 2012 to 2014, she worked to improve family health in Somalia by helping produce the radio show Tiraarka Qoyska (Pillars of the Family), which tackled subjects such as health maintenance and disease prevention, including the importance of sound nutrition and good hygiene. The show regularly reached more than 300,000 people in Somaliland alone. Currently Hersi helps create the entertaining, yet educational, radio drama Maalmo Dhaama Manta (Better Days than Today), which explores a variety of issues facing today’s youth, from jobs and relationships to migration. “It’s the first interactive program in the country where the audience gets to influence the fate of the characters,” she says. “When I hear from listeners who say the program not only entertained them but also helped them improve their lives, I know that I am doing something worthwhile.” —Sara Friedl-Putnam For more on BBC Media Action’s work in Somalia, visit lczine.com/hodahersi.

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Alumni News

EMILY PANKOW is assistant professor of sports science at Simpson College in Indianola, Iowa. SARAH PUTNAM is controller for Eclipse Automation in Charlotte, N.C. BRITT (LINDQUIST) SIMONSON earned a master’s degree in education from Northeastern University. PAUL STELLMACHER is a hospice palliative medicine fellow at Stanford University in Stanford, Calif. ANNIE (PERSHALL) STEVENSON teaches biology for the Mount Angel (Ore.) School District. ERIC THORSEN is technology manager for Wells Fargo in West Des Moines, Iowa. ALISSA (VANDERPOOL) VERMILLION lives in Vienna, Va., and is the author of Beyond Farewell.

2008 GREG COCHRANE

earned a doctor of dental surgery degree from the University of Minnesota. He is a dentist at River Town Dental in La Crosse and Holmen, Wis. JOEY CORBIN is senior executive officer at the University of Oslo International Summer School.

On the cover of the Opera News Mezzo-soprano EMILY FONS ’06, seated left, and tenor ANDREW STENSON ’08, seated right, were among the 25 “rising stars” featured in the October 2015 Opera News magazine. Editor F. Paul Driscoll said of the young artists: “We believe that these 25 rising stars have the potential for international success. We hope that they will flourish in seasons to come and look forward to watching their progress.” Fons sings with the Lyric Opera of Chicago. Stenson sang the role of Gen in the world premiere of Bel Canto at the Lyric Opera of Chicago in December.

KATIE (DANIELSON) ERLANDSEN earned a master of business administration degree and certificate in human resources from the University of Kansas. She is director of nursing at Olathe (Kan.) Medical Center. RYAN FORDICE earned a master of divinity degree from the University of Chicago Divinity School. He is development assistant at the Lutheran School of Theology in Chicago. CHANDRA (SKINNER) JENNINGS is director of the Nena Amundson Lifetime Wellness Program at Luther. DANIEL LEE is associate development officer for the Minnesota Medical Foundation in Minneapolis. LANA (WICKS) MCDERMOTT is a dentist at Westside Dental in Decorah and is an adjunct faculty member for the University of Iowa College of Dentistry. She is working on Project SEALED in northeast Iowa.

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Luther Alumni Magazine

ERIC MOHLIS earned a master’s degree in music with an emphasis in choral conducting from Western Illinois University. He is director of choral activities at Dallas Center–Grimes (Iowa) High School and artistic director of the Iowa Youth Chorus. NORA (HAUPT) ROBINSON is tutoring partnership director for the St. Paul (Minn.) Public Schools Foundation. JOEL SCHROCK earned a Ph.D. in pharmacology from Weill Cornell Graduate School of Medical Sciences and an MBA from the Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell University. He is a manager for Pfizer Consulting and Execution in New York City. MICHAEL TANGEN is the 10thgrade football coach and the strength and conditioning coordinator for Decorah Community Schools. ZACH WALROD is assistant strength and conditioning coach for the University of Iowa in Iowa City. DAVE WILLIAMS is a clinical staff pharmacist at St. Luke’s Hospital in Kansas City, Mo.

2009 CLAIRE ADDIS is an

ecologist for the United States Forest Service in Bend, Ore. JESSI COOPER is an industrial channel specialist for 3M in St. Paul, Minn. LAURA DELIKOWSKI is an adviser and transfer recruiter for the University of Wisconsin–Green Bay. ASHLEY (BEEK) FARLEY is an associate technical analyst for Tritech Software Systems in Decorah. MISCHA FLEISHMAN is a VISTA volunteer coordinator for LAF in Chicago. JESSE HALWEG teaches sixth-grade mathematics for Decorah Community Schools. KIRSTEN HANSEN teaches elementary music for Greenfield Elementary School in Baldwin, Wis. MEGAN (HELDERMAN) and BLAKE HUMPAL live in Charlotte, N.C. Megan is a physical therapist for Lifestyle Physical Therapy LLC. Blake is global sourcing manager for JELDWEN Inc.

Alumni News

JULIA SCHUMACHER earned a master’s degree in education from the University of Minnesota. She teaches middle school ESL for the Tucson (Ariz.) Unified School District.

aimed at developing real-world solutions for problems observed in practice. BloodWorks, which is currently working on the development of additional technologies, includes members of past IMIG groups, health care professionals, biomedical engineers, and attorneys.

CHRISTA (HOSKEY) SLAGLE earned a doctor of nursing practice degree from Creighton University. She is a D.N.P. at MercyCare in Tama, Iowa.

STEPHANIE CONANT earned a master’s degree in elementary education from American University. She is a teacher for Daniels Run Elementary School in Fairfax, Va.

2010 LIZ (JORGENSON)

ANDREW DYRDAL is a training solution specialist for Entrada in Nashville, Tenn.

development for Mahaska Health Partnership.

LIESL KOEHNEN is a project manager at Olson in Minneapolis. She also serves on the Luther College Alumni Council. ANNIE (DALY) and NATHAN LESCH ’07 live in Austin, Texas. Annie is an educator for the Austin Independent School District. Nate earned a master’s degree in nursing from the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio. He is a family nurse practitioner for Carlos Campos, MD, PA.

ALVARADO is assistant principal of instruction for IDEA Public Schools in Edinburg, Texas.

TAYLOR HAMMRICH earned a master’s degree in education, curriculum, and instruction from the University of Denver. He is a teacher resident in the Denver Public Schools.

ERIN MAKELA earned a master of fine arts degree in writing for children and young adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts in Montpelier.

DARIN MONROE is head coach for the Rock Valley College softball team in Rockford, Ill. The Rock Valley Golden Eagles went 52-5 for the season and won their second straight National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division III National Championship game last spring. Monroe and his assistant coaches were named 2015 NFCA NJCAA DIII National Coaching Staff of the Year. CHAD NELSON is assistant project manager for Schwob Building Company Ltd. in Dallas. KATE ROE is a forensic interviewer for Blank Children’s Hospital Regional Child Protection Center in Des Moines, Iowa. MELISSA (CONIBEAR) and ROSS SCHULTZ ’10 live in Oskaloosa, Iowa. Melissa is a registered nurse for Mahaska Health Partnership. Ross earned a master’s degree in health administration from Suffolk University and is director of business

LUIS ENRIQUEZ NAVAS is president of Anderlen Partners Inc. in Alexandria, Va.

ROBERT ANDERSON is a registered nurse in the medical intensive care unit at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics. He and the members of Iowa Medical and Innovations Group (IMIG) developed a “segmented stabilization system for IV catheter insertion” and secured an exclusive license with China-based Hangzhou Fushan Medical Appliances Co. Ltd. to bring the technology to the marketplace. The device uses a flexible guide wire to direct a catheter into a blood vessel in a way that protects the vessel’s interior wall from being broken. The team hopes this will limit unsuccessful IV placement attempts and decrease the number of pokes for patients. Anderson says the concept for the device arose out of his own difficulty inserting IV catheters, a difficulty shared by other nurses, both experienced and novice. Looking for a solution, he went to the IMIG, a campus-wide program that pairs UI students with medical professionals who have identified a need for a medical device. IMIG is cosponsored by the John Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Center, Henry B. Tippie College of Business, Carver College of Medicine, the College of Law, and the College of Engineering. To further develop this technology and bring it to market, Anderson launched BloodWorks LLC, a small medical device development company

SARA HANSSEN is a midwife’s assistant at Mamatoto Midwifery in Decorah. JEANINE LINK is a seventh- and eighth-grade choir director and fifththrough eighth-grade music teacher at Grinnell (Iowa) Middle School. ERIN LUNDE KEENAN is director of development and communications for Northwest Immigrant Rights Project in Seattle.

Center. Her research interests include safety, team cognition, interdisciplinary teams, and patient transitions. Last August, Kirstin attended the Swiss Ph.D. Platform in Nursing Science Education Summer Symposium in Switzerland. JENNA NESS, Loras College head volleyball coach, was named Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Association Coach of the Year. BETHANY NICOLL is interim head swimming coach at Luther College. PAUL SCHOLTZ is a tenor in the Cantus Vocal Ensemble in Minneapolis. AARON STENHAUG is an audit manager for Eide Bailly LLP in Minneapolis. GABE TWEDT teaches first grade for the Decorah Community Schools.

2011 MOLLY ANDERSEN is

the communications coordinator for Affiance Financial in St. Louis Park, Minn. HANNAH (WILES) ANDERSON earned a doctorate in chiropractic from Palmer College of Chiropractic. She is a chiropractor at Back In Line Family Chiropractic and Wellness in Hiawatha, Iowa, and an adjunct professor of human anatomy and physiology at Kirkwood Community College. Anderson is a board member for Feed Iowa First and is certified in Webster Prenatal Adjusting Technique by the International Chiropractic Pediatric Association. SEAN ANDERSON is an analyst for Kroll Associates in Washington, D.C. KELLY BANDMAN is AmeriCorps construction crew leader for Habitat for Humanity in Chicago.

KIRSTIN MANGES is a pediatric oncology nurse at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City and a doctoral student in the College of Nursing at the university. She is president of Students for Interprofessional Education and a member of the University of Iowa Interprofessional Education Steering Committee, the Association of Graduate Nursing Students, and the Institute of Healthcare Improvement Open School Chapter. Kirstin is also in the VA National Quality Scholars Predoctoral Nurse Fellowship Program at the Iowa City VA Medical

LEXY DETERMAN was named Softball Coach of the Year by the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC) during the SLIAC’s conference softball tournament, following a two-year stint as the head coach in Jacksonville, Ill., for the MacMurray College Highlanders. The Highlanders reversed their 6-12 record in 2014 to 12-6 in 2015 and earned a berth in the conference tournament for the first time since 1999. In July, Lexy was named head softball coach at Waldorf College in Forest City, Iowa.

Winter 2016 Luther Alumni Magazine

49

Alumni News

SONJA ECKLUND is a health coach for RedBrick Health in Minneapolis.

KATHLEEN KORNDOERFER earned a master’s degree in counseling from St. Mary’s University of Minnesota. She is a mental health therapist at Mountain Vista Psychology PLLC in Englewood, Colo. LUKE KRYSTOSEK earned a medical doctorate from the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, where he is a resident physician in radiology.

ALEX (JOHNSON) and JASON ENGELKEN ’12 live in Decorah. Alex earned a doctor of physical therapy degree from Washington University in St. Louis in 2014, and Jason earned a doctor of physical therapy degree from the university last May. In 2014, Jason worked with NFL, MLB, and MLS players during an internship in Dallas with EXOS, a performance training and physical therapy center for elite athletes. Alex and Jason are both physical therapists for Winneshiek Medical Center. MAURA GOODIN earned a master’s degree in humanities with an emphasis in music theory from the University of Chicago. She is an administrative assistant for the Santa Fe (N.M.) Symphony. ALLISON (MOEN) and WES GREGG live in Flagstaff, Ariz. Allison works in human resources for Northern Arizona Healthcare. Wes is a doctor of chiropractic at Hypo2 Chiropractic High Performance Sports Center. JASON HAGEMEIER is a farm technician for Urban Organics in St. Paul, Minn. ERIK HALVORSON is an academic adviser for Century College in White Bear Lake, Minn. REUBEN HOLLAND is an acquisition planner for Chapman Cubine Adams and Hussey in San Francisco. AMY HOOPER is a registered nurse for Park Nicollet Methodist Hospital in St. Louis Park, Minn. KIRSTEN INDRELIE earned a medical doctorate from the University of Minnesota. She is a resident physician at Tulane University in New Orleans. MERITT (SUCHOMEL) KALLAUS is a registered nurse for Parker Adventist Hospital in Parker, Colo.

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Luther Alumni Magazine

WILL LAYTON is a graduate student in divinity at Wartburg Theological Seminary and is serving as ELCA Horizon intern and vicar for Atonement Lutheran Church in Syracuse, N.Y. BETHANY LEHMAN is director of visitor services at Mount Mary University in Milwaukee. RACHEL LOEFFLER-KEMP earned a master’s degree in advocacy and political leadership from the University of Minnesota–Duluth and is the AFL-CIO community services director with the Head of the Lakes United Way in Duluth. AAIDHA MAJDHY is assistant sales and marketing manager and assistant project manager of Malahini Holdings Pvt. Ltd. in Malé, Maldives. TYLER MCCUBBIN teaches social studies and special education for Sequel Youth Services at Woodward Academy in Woodward, Iowa. JENNY ROBERTS teaches English at Hongo Student Center in Tokyo, Japan. KATIE ROBERTS earned a medical doctorate from the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine. She is an OB-GYN resident at Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center in Chicago. HANNAH (BRANDVOLD) and JOE ROSHOLT live in Owatonna, Minn. Hannah is director of communications for St. Olaf Lutheran Church. Joe is assistant Olmsted County attorney. ERIN (DANIELS) RUBACH is a dentist at Eric. J. Wisdom D.D.S., P.A., in Manhattan, Kan. WYATT SANDBERG of Minneapolis was elected to the board of directors of the Ampersand Club, which fosters appreciation for the arts essential to book production, such as typography, fine printing, binding, paper making, and book design.

JULIA WALK earned a master’s degree in mathematics from the University of Iowa in Iowa City. JACOB WESSELS earned a medical doctorate from the University of Minnesota and is a resident at United Family Medicine in St. Paul, Minn. BEN WILBUR is an IT programmer analyst for Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn.

2012 AARON BURRESON

earned a master’s degree in educational leadership from Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota. He is the professional learning program coordinator for WIDA Consortium at the University of Wisconsin in Madison. KAT (BLOCK) DENLINGER earned a doctor of physical therapy degree from Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill. She is a physical therapist at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago. MIKAELA (BELLAND) DEVINE earned a juris doctorate from the University of Minnesota Law School. She is a postgraduation law clerk for Wilson Law Group in Minneapolis. MELISSA ERICKSON is a business reporter for the Daily Times in Maryville, Tenn. ASHLEY (MATTHYS) and EAN GIBSON live in Madison, Wis. Ashley is a project manager for Epic. Ean is a business analyst for Accenture. DANIEL GRAINGER is the community engagement leader for Thrivent Financial in Decorah. SPENCER GREEN is a staff accountant for Dana F. Cole and Company in Marshall, Minn. MATTHEW IMHOFF earned a master of fine arts degree in production design from Michigan State University. He is a set designer and technical director for College Light Opera Company in Falmouth, Mass. Matthew was a national finalist in the 2013 Rose Brand Scenic Design Competition and won the 2015 Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival’s regional design award. BEN KOFOED earned a master’s degree in public health from the University of Minnesota. He is a public health planner for Aitkin-Itasca-

Koochiching Health Services Board in Grand Rapids, Minn. DAVID KORT of Green Bay, Wis., is first assistant plumbing manager for Menards. EMILY LARSON of Decorah was the featured artist in the July issue from Driftward Press. Driftward Press provides subscribers with wall-ready art prints in the mail featuring a new and vibrant artist and writer each month. COLLIN MEYER is a senior advisory consultant for Deloitte & Touche LLP in Minneapolis. CARRIE NIEHAUS earned a master’s degree in school counseling from the University of Iowa. She is a counselor for the Eagle Grove (Iowa) Community School District. KAELA (STUART) PARRIGON earned a master’s degree in clinical psychology and is a doctoral student at Kent (Ohio) State University. ALEXA PLASS earned an associate’s degree in diagnostic sonography from St. Catherine University. She is a diagnostic sonographer for Essentia Health Clinic in Park Rapids, Minn. ERIN RUTHERFORD teaches fourth grade at Ghana International School in Accra, Ghana, West Africa. AIMEE SCHREIBER earned a master’s degree in library and information science from St. Catherine University. She is youth services librarian at the Sparta (Wis.) Free Library. KALI SHAROT is a registered nurse for Regions Hospital in St. Paul, Minn. MANDIE (MICKELSON) SIEMS is a communications associate for the Hormel Institute in Austin, Minn. TAYLOR SKOGLUND earned a master’s degree in Old Testament from Luther Seminary. She is director of youth and family ministries for Abiding Grace Lutheran Church in Southlake, Texas. ERIN VOELSCHOW is an osteopathic student physician at Rocky Vista University College of Osteopathic Medicine in Parker, Colo. AMY WILSON earned a bachelor’s degree in nursing, with honors, from Duke University. She is a registered nurse at Mayo Clinic Health System in Lake City, Minn.

Alumni News

KAREN DAVISON is garden science coordinator for John Burroughs Elementary School in Washington, D.C. SIBUSISO DLAMINI is an accountant for Waverly (Iowa) Utilities. ALEXIS DORSCHNER teaches elementary special education for the Alexandria (Minn.) School District. Luther entomologists gathered at Market Bar-B-Que during the Entomological Society of America national meetings in Minneapolis last November. Eight alumni, five current students, and Kirk Larsen, Luther professor of biology, attended. Left to right: Brennen Reysack ’16, Jedidiah Nixon ’17, Austin Bauer ’14, Amy Morey ’06, Katie (Hopp) Caterino ’06, Jacob Wittman ’12, Isaac Jensen ’17, Brian McCornack ’98, Larsen, Dan Gibson ’15, Marissa Schuh ’14, Clare Brandt ’16, Liz Dykstra ’85, and Emma Stivers ’17. CASSANDRA (MOLSKI) WOLFGRAM teaches music at World of Life Lutheran School in St. Louis.

2013 EMILY BANITT earned a

master’s degree in clinical psychology from the University of Northern Iowa. She is a primary counselor at House of Mercy in Newton, Iowa. CHARLES BANTA is corporate operations engineer for Google in Mountain View, Calif. MICHELLE BOIKE earned a master’s degree in student affairs with a certificate in social justice from Iowa State University. She is the coordinator of multicultural programs in the Diversity Center at Luther College. ALEXANDER BYOM is a loan officer at State Bank of Arcadia in Whitehall, Wis.

SAM DEPAGTER is a recruiter for Experis in Chicago. SARAH EDWARDS is a policy services technician for Barkley Risk Administrators in Minneapolis. BECCA EVANS is an aquatic rehab tech for CHI Health in Omaha, Neb. SARAH FREHNER is a recovery chaplain at Minnesota Adult and Teen Challenge in Minneapolis. TYLER HAGY earned a master of music degree in choral studies from Wolfson College at the University of Cambridge in England. KIMBERLY (CAVANAGH) KEENEY earned a master of music degree focusing on theory and composition from the University of Northern Colorado. She is a creative arts academy facilitator in the Davenport (Iowa) School District.

HANNAH KRYSTOSEK is a registered nurse at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn.

Ohio State University. She is a graduate research associate in psychology at the university in Columbus.

ALYSSA LANDIN is a graduate student at the University of Colorado in Boulder.

KATELYN SPINDLER teaches elementary art for the Rochester (Minn.) Public Schools.

KIRK LEHMANN earned a master’s degree in urban and regional planning from the University of Iowa. He is a planner I for Siouxland Interstate Metropolitan Planning Council in Sioux City, Iowa.

ANDREW TJOSSEM is a correctional services specialist for Larimer County Community Corrections in Fort Collins, Colo.

ANDREW MELAND is a graduate student in religious studies and a teaching assistant at the University of Missouri in Columbia. KATRINA (HANSON) and SETH RUMAGE live in Philadelphia. Katrina is an activities assistant in the recreational therapy department of Spring Mill Presbyterian Village and a youth minister for Glenside United Church of Christ. Seth is a hospital chaplain resident at Christiana Hospital in Wilmington-Newark, Del. EMILY SCHNEIDER earned an associate’s degree in radiology and became AART certified at Northeast Iowa Community College. She is a radiographer at Southwest Health Center in Platteville, Wis. JENA SCHWAKE earned a master’s degree in communication studies from Colorado State University. She is a part of the sales execution team for Northwestern Mutual in Fort Collins, Colo. ANNIKA (ELLISON) SCOTT is an IHH care coordinator for Abbe Center for Community Mental Health in Iowa City, Iowa. HANNAH SHATZER earned a master’s degree in psychology from the

CHRISTINA (STORLIE) WECKWERTH earned a master’s degree in statistics from the University of Minnesota. She is a quality engineer for 3M in Maplewood, Minn. CHELSEA WYMAN earned a master’s degree in library science from the University of Wisconsin– Madison. She is an instruction and reference librarian at Southwest Minnesota State University in Marshall.

2014 JAYNE COLE is a

marketing assistant at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis.

KRISTA (HERRLING) and STUART DYBDAHL live in Middleton, Wis. Krista is an associate at Crack Filling Service and Stuart is an investment specialist for Madison Investment Advisors. MARIA ELLINGSON is a digital media coordinator for Arvig in Perham, Minn. JAMES GARCIA-PRATS is the assistant men’s soccer coach at Luther and the head boys’ soccer coach at Decorah High School. He has been selected to participate in the prestigious National Soccer Coaches Association of America 30-Under-30 program, a yearlong education and mentorship opportunity for a select few up-and-comers who have made soccer coaching their career of choice. This program was created to support fledgling coaches and foster their growth at a crucial point in their vocation. Garcia-Prats was one of 15 men and 15 women who were selected from 500 applicants from every level of the game, from the youth game through the professional ranks. KATHERINE (OLLMAN) GISLESON teaches kindergarten through eighth-grade music at De Sales Catholic School in Ossian, Iowa. KELSEY GUNDERSON is a project coordinator for CJ Advertising in Nashville, Tenn. ASHLEY KENT is a registered nurse for the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City. MARITA MAY is a fiddler in the musical show Celtic Fyre for Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, Va.

GRACE COLETTA is executive assistant to the president and cofounder at ContextMedia Inc., a Chicago-based health information services company building digital media technologies to deliver lifestyle education to patients to improve health outcomes.

ERIC PITTMAN is account manager for CoBank in Minneapolis and the defensive back football coach at Northfield (Minn.) High School. JAIMIE RASMUSSEN is assistant account executive for the Zimmerman Group in Excelsior, Minn.

Winter 2016 Luther Alumni Magazine

51

Alumni News

Caleb Sander ’15 and Caity Nowosatka ’15

NAOMI SANDGREN teaches second grade for New Prague (Minn.) Area Schools.

A Homecoming to remember

ELIZABETH SANKEY teaches kindergarten for the Clarksville (Tenn.) Montgomery County School System.

Caleb Sander ’15 is a planner and a romantic. Girlfriend Caity Nowosatka ’15 found out during Homecoming 2015 just how far Caleb would go to express his true feelings.

JACOB SCHNABEL is group sales and assistant box office manager for Signature Theater in Arlington, Va.

It all began when they became friends their first year at Luther. Caleb, a music major, hinted at his romantic side on Caity’s 19th birthday when he played one of her favorite melodies—Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata—for her on a piano in the Center for Faith and Life. They took their friendship up a notch during sophomore year. Caleb asked Caity’s father for permission to date her. Then, after a Nowosatka family wedding in Branson, Missouri, the two slipped off to an Ozarks scenic overlook, where Caleb asked Caity out for the first time.

PETER STORVICK is an actuarial analyst for Thrivent Financial in Minneapolis.

Last fall, when Caleb returned to Luther to work as an accompanist, he devised a surprise for Caity—an elaborate scenario for Friday, Oct. 16, the first night of Homecoming. The evening began with dinner at McCaffrey’s Dolce Vita, scene of their first-ever date. Caity’s friends were in on the plan, key elements in what Caleb called a memory tour. After dinner, Caleb told Caity he just needed to run into Jenson-Noble for a minute. While she waited outside, friends showed up and persuaded her to join them on a walk. Caity worried she’d miss Caleb’s return, but that fear soon evaporated. At the first stop, Brandt Hall, where she’d lived as a first-year, a friend presented her with a flower and a poem from Caleb. He’d written a poem for each stop along way, recalling a memory from each place.

EMILY VANDER STEL is an accountant for John Deere Product Engineering Center in Waterloo, Iowa.

MEGAN GELSINGER is a cafe server at Barnes and Noble in Ithaca, N.Y.

RACHEL WOOLSEY is marketing director for Early Music Guild in Seattle.

KATIE HALE is an editing intern for Familius Publishing in Sanger, Calif.

The last stop on the tour was a candle-lit, rose-petal-strewn CFL main stage. This time, Caleb played Romantic Flight, a song from the soundtrack of How to Train Your Dragon, one of their favorite scores. Afterward, Caleb proposed, and an amazed Caity said yes. In the lobby outside the main hall, their friends waited to join the celebration. “I was astonished when I saw all of my friends, I felt really supported and loved. I was not only being proposed to by the man of my dreams, but I had my Luther family there supporting me and this relationship,” Caity says. Caleb wanted to incorporate friends because of their strong support. “I was so excited that Caleb asked all of us to be part of their special moment,” Phillip Johnson ’15 said. “It really meant a lot that he incorporated us to help make his plan come together.” Caity and Caleb plan to tie the knot next fall, and you can bet the planning will be perfect. Did you meet your true love at Luther? Email your story and a photo to magazine@luther.edu. On Valentine’s Day, February 14, we will post the stories we receive on the magazine’s online site, luther.edu/magazine.

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Luther Alumni Magazine

MARY (MUELLER) SCHULTZ is office manager for the Salvation Army in Minneapolis.

KIERSTEN SWENSON teaches second grade at Jefferson Elementary School in New Ulm, Minn. KATHERINE TANGEN is publicity and promotions coordinator for Allied Integrated Marketing in Minneapolis.

2015 CAITLIN ALMER

teaches fourth grade for Lois Lenski Elementary in Littleton, Colo. ELISABETH ATHAS is an actor, teaching artist, and props designer for Saint Croix Festival Theatre in St. Croix Falls, Wis.

SARAH BRANDT won the “Singing with the Broadway Stars” competition, part of Luther’s Center Stage Series performance of Neil Berg’s 100 Years of Broadway. The competition, sponsored and judged by the cast of the show, invited Luther students and local residents to audition to sing with the cast during the Sept. 18 show in Luther’s Center for Faith and Life. One winner and 12 runners-up were chosen from a pool of 30 applicants. Brandt and the runners-up joined the cast to perform “Seasons of Love” from the musical RENT. Brandt sang the lead solo parts, accompanied by the runners-up and the Broadway stars singing the chorus. She is a production director and an afternoon radio announcer at KDEC FM 100.5 in Decorah. MALLORY BRODERICK is a physical therapist at Aegis Therapies in Austin, Minn.

CLAUDIA CALDERON is a global health policy intern with the Center for Global Development in Washington, D.C. She is also a research and knowledge management consultant with Ashoka, an associate consultant for i-intelligence, and a contributing editor for Southern Pulse-Networked Intelligence. RIGZIN DOLMA is an account associate for Wells Fargo in Minneapolis. ERIK DOTSETH is an implementation consultant for Fast Enterprises in Olympia, Wash. SAMI EILERS is a vocal music instructor at Peet Junior High School in Cedar Falls, Iowa. CARLY ELLEFSEN is a production artist at Design Center Inc. in St. Paul, Minn. EMILY ENGLAND is a collections assistant for Vesterheim NorwegianAmerican Museum in Decorah.

HOLLY HARRIS is a report writing specialist for Al Nasher in Amman, Jordan. MARLON HENRIQUEZ teaches kindergarten Spanish immersion at Gage Elementary School in Rochester, Minn. KAYLA HERMAN is a management trainee for Evergreen Bank Group in Oak Brook, Ill. DARREN HILL is a district sales manager for the Rochester (Minn.) Post-Bulletin. AIME KARAM is an account executive for Minnesota Premier Publications in Minneapolis. JACQUELINE KAYEBA is on the audit staff for Ernst & Young in Minneapolis. HANS KITTLESON works in technical services for Epic in Verona, Wis. CODY KLIETHERMES is a pension fund accountant for Northern Trust in Chicago. ELI KLOSTERBOER is the student coordinator of international programs for CEDEI School in Cuenca, Ecuador.

Alumni News

LIBBY LOGSDEN is an auditor for Deloitte & Touche LLP in Minneapolis. CONNOR MATTISON is a junior content strategist for Media Junction in St. Paul, Minn. HANNAH (ROWSE) and ERIC OAKLEY live in Decorah. She is a seed preservation technician for Seed Savers Exchange. He is a broadband specialist I for Mediacom Communications. ELLEN PRITCHARD is a finance assistant for Carousel Motor Group in Minnetonka, Minn. KELSEY ROSE is an accounting auditor for Deloitte & Touche LLP in Davenport, Iowa. AUBREY ROSS is a vocal music instructor for MACCRAY Public Schools in Clara City, Minn. KAIA SAND is an elementary literacy tutor at Pine Island (Minn.) Elementary School. ALDON SEVERSON is a business development associate at Baker Tilly in Minneapolis. PROMETHEU TYAGI was selected to be one of 100 Youth for India Fellows from an applicant pool of 15,000. The fellowship is a 13-month experience funded by the State Bank of India. Tyagi is assigned to carry out a development project in a rural area of India. VELVET WARNE is a program coordinator for REM Iowa Community Services in Hiawatha, Iowa. ELLE (KROGH) and ANDREW WITHERS live in West Des Moines, Iowa. Elle is an IT application analyst. Andrew teaches fifth grade for Waukee Community Schools.

1995 RACHAEL PETERSON

2012 KATHERINE BLOCK

SKODA, twin daughters, Kaya Sage and Soren Willow, Oct. 2015

JODI SCHLENDER and Stan Dabrowski, Oct. 3, 2015

CASSIE BORMANN and DAN BELAY ’13, Oct. 10, 2015

2001 MICHELLE OLSON and

ASHLEY MATTHYS and EAN GIBSON ’09, Aug. 14, 2015

SARAH HESSELBACHER, a daughter, Sadie Irene, born Aug. 2014, adopted May 2015

and Kelly Schauls, Oct. 3, 2015

Angel Navedo, July 24, 2015

JULIE (SATRE) SHOCKEY TRYTTEN and Rik Trytten, Aug. 1, 2015

2006 NIKKI GAMEZ and Josh Kuhn, Sept. 26, 2015

MEGAN MURPHY and TIM BEY, Aug. 16, 2014 KATIE OSTREM and Eric Holten, Aug. 9, 2014

2007 CASEY MCKONE and Jessica Bastyr, May 3, 2014

2008 BECKY FREDERICK and Sam Jordan, Oct. 9, 2015

2009 CHRISTA HOSKEY and Eric Slagle, June 7, 2014

SARAH KILEN and Matt Saari, July 11, 2015

1981 GAYLE BERVEN and Stan King, Sept. 5, 2015

1985 CHARLIE HOVEN and Barry Bland, April 26, 2014

1993 MITCHELL

THOMPSON and Jayme Montgomery, Sept. 5, 2015

PAIGE OFSTEDAHL and ANDREW KNIGHT, Aug. 15, 2015

2013 SOPHIA BROWN and Ryan Engelman, June 13, 2015

ALEX BYOM and McKenzee Bortle, Sept. 5, 2015 KATRINA HANSON and SETH RUMAGE ’14, June 27, 2015

2014 KRISTA HERRLING and KATHERINE OLLMAN and ALEX GISLESON ’11, Sept. 19, 2015

1999 Stephanie and J.D.

2015 ANNA BURKE and

2010 JOE COFFIELD and

JULIA MANDSAGER and TIM KOMATSU, Aug. 1, 2015

EMILY HOERMAN and Brian Grantham, Aug. 29, 2015

CAIT LONGTIN and Josh Gipple, March 28, 2015

a son, Rory James, Oct. 2014

LISA (BIEBER) and Erik Hagen, a son, Mark Andrew, July 2015

ALLI KEPHART and ANDREW TJOSSEM, Aug. 8, 2015

KATE HALLER and JON AILABOUNI, Aug. 15, 2015

1998 Meagan and DAN DAVIS,

STUART DYBDAHL, May 23, 2015

SARA VELDEN and Jacob Brown, July 4, 2015

KELSEY HAKE and Jacob Miksell, Aug. 29, 2015

ELLA ROTHGANGEL and Chris Nahm, a daughter, Noel Katherine, July 2015

CARINA SCHILTZ and Eric Hanson, July 24, 2015

AARON WECKWERTH, June 27, 2015

Jeanie Hebdon, March 14, 2014

1997

BRITTA PEDERSON and COLLIN MEYER, Aug. 21, 2015

NATHAN OSTLIE and Mariah Ambrus, May 30, 2015

LIZ JORGENSON and Cesar Alvarado, May 10, 2014 MARRIAGES

and Kyle Denlinger, Sept. 6, 2015

ALEXIS REYNOLDS and Alex Hahn, June 6, 2015 HANNAH ROWSE and ERIC OAKLEY, June 21, 2015

BURTON, a daughter, Lydia, June 2015

2000 MARTHA (OLSON) and

Tony Jensen, a daughter, Aleia Clara Joy, July 2014

2001 JOY (CHRISTIAN) and Joel Stevens, a daughter, Emma Huixin, born Feb. 2013, adopted March 2015

REBEKAH (RUSCH) and Brandon Vogelsberg, a son, Reid Patrick, Feb. 2015

2002

JEN (ROBERTS) and Brent Bachman, a son, Gunnar Thomas, Dec. 2014

BIRTHS

1995

LA DONNA (HOORNSTRA) and GREG MCGOHAN, a son, Oliver William, Oct. 2015

2011 THERESA FRANA and

MARIE DREWS and Mike Garcia, a daughter, Lucy, July 2015 JANE (MCDERMOTT) and KENNY WHEELER ’00, a daughter, Skye Linnae, Aug. 2015

2003 JEN RUST ANDERSON

Matt Elsbernd, Aug. 15, 2015

ALEX JOHNSON and JASON ENGELKEN ’12, Sept. 19, 2015

and MATT ANDERSON ’05, a daughter, Eleanor, Oct. 2014

MAC LATHAM and KYLE GRUNDMEYER ’09, June 20, 2015

ABBY FROST and Adam Boyles, a daughter, Sonia Catherine, Aug. 2015

KARL STREUFERT and Dayna Tapp, July 11, 2015

1996 René Larson and JEREMY Winter 2016 Luther Alumni Magazine

53

Alumni News

MELISSA STULL and JASON BURGART, a son, Lucas Jarold, April 2014 RACHEL (HILDEBRAND) and DAN CORRON, a daughter, Ainsley Patricia, Sept. 2014 LIZ (LANGKAMP) and DAN GULLICK ’06, a daughter, Clara Margaret, June 2015

KATIE (JURY) and Jason Hoffman, a son, Luca Jon, Aug. 2015 AMY (KRISTAPOVICH) and Joel Logan, a daughter, Marie, Oct. 2014 RACHEL (LITTLE) and Samuel Schmidt, a son, Caden Robert, June 2015

JOY (GRUETTNER) and NEIL MICK, a daughter, Anya Emily, Feb. 2014

2004 NICOLE (OLIVER) and

ANNIE HIBBS and ERIK ULNESS, a son, Arne Hibbs, Feb. 2015

Read the full obituaries at luther.edu/ in-memoriam.

ANNA (DYRUD) and TODD WEDEKIND, a daughter, Inga Jeanine, Jan. 2015

CONSTANCE (HOYME) SUNDKVIST of Glastonbury, Conn., died Aug. 19, 2015, age 94.

ARLENE ELAINE (CHRISTIANSON) RUDOLPH of Mankato, Minn., died Sept. 27, 2015, age 90.

and CHRIS GILMORE, a daughter, Hannah Elizabeth, Sept. 2014

ARDYS (HUBER) SAAGER of Poynette, Wis., died June 27, 2015, age 89.

SARAH FRYDENLUND and BEN MOORE ’02, a daughter, Alvina Lily, July 2015

1949

2005 RACHEL (STRANDT)

DAMARA (STANLEY) and Jamin O’Malley, a son, Lysander Pavey, May 2015 BRITTANY (BENIDT) and Neal Schroeder, a daughter, Sylvie Joan, June 2015 Kaeleigh and JON TRULLINGER, a daughter, Leighton Poppy, March 2015 KATIE (PETTIGREW) and Derek Weems, a daughter, Ruth Avery, April 2015 MEGAN (MURPHY) and TIM BEY, a daughter, Eliana Violet, July 2015

2006

ELISABETH (ZANT) and Wesley Daniels, a son, Elson Wesley, Sept. 2015 ELIZABETH (SPENCER) and HANS FINANGER, a daughter, Libby Louise, Sept. 2015

2007 ABBEY (CHAMBERLIN) and Nick Cummings, a son, Reid Duane, Nov. 2013

ERICA (OLSON) and Philip George, a daughter, Skye Eilidh, May 2015

54

Luther Alumni Magazine

2008 LAURA (ANDERSON) and GREG COCHRANE, a son, Liam James, Feb. 2015

KATIE (DANIELSON) and Dan Erlandsen, a son, Luke Daniel, Feb. 2015 HEIDI (ANDERSON) and Matt Farley, a son, Mason William, Aug. 2015 Beth and ETHAN GREV, a daughter, Vivienne Lake, Sept. 2015 LAURA (MONSON) and TONY VANDEN HEUVEL ’06, a daughter, Elsa Vera, April 2015

2009 SARAH (GUTGSELL)

and Arnaud Le Boyer, a daughter, Eleanore Emma Louise, Feb. 2014

2010

SAM REISER and Ryan Collins, a son, Dalen Ryan, July 2015 MOLLY (WEBER) and ERIC ST. CLAIR, a son, Isaac Paul, July 2014

CARL L. JAHN JR. of Rochester, Minn., died Nov. 1, 2015, age 89.

1942

1948

Alex Daeger, a son, James, Feb. 2015 JESSICA (JANSEN) and Mike Nicoletti, a son, Matthew Robert, June 2015

IN MEMORIAM

LAVERN W. BREDESON of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, died Sept. 3, 2015, age 90. JERRY EDWARD MOE of Valparaiso, Ind., died Oct. 28, 2015, age 88.

DARLENE J. (BLACKMAN) MONSON of De Pere, Wis., formerly of Stevens Point, Wis., died Nov. 3, 2015, age 87.

1950 FERNE (ELLINGSON) COXSON of Buffalo Center, Iowa, died Aug. 26, 2015, age 87.

PHYLLIS J. (SWENSON) FREDLUND of Burnsville, Minn., died Aug. 27, 2015, age 87.

JOYCE SHIRLEY (LAWRENCE) MARTEN of Cottonwood, Ariz., died Aug. 11, 2015, age 87. LOIS J. (WINELL) SEEGER of La Crosse, Wis., died Oct. 4, 2015, age 88.

1951

DONALD “DON” R. NYLUND of St. Cloud, Minn., died July 29, 2015, age 88. GEORGE HERBERT AUSTIN died on Dec. 16, 2014. The incorrect year was published in the magazine’s spring 2015 issue.

1952 MARY (JENSEN) BERRY

of La Mesa, Calif., died Oct. 2, 2015, age 86. LYLE C. HANSON of Bismarck, N.D., died Nov. 9, 2015, age 87.

BILL KEN HENDERSON of Des Moines, Iowa, died Nov. 26, 2015, age 85.

KONALEE “KONNIE” (KNUTSON) SOLIE of Brooklyn Park, Minn., died Oct. 6, 2015, age 83.

Alumni News

1953 RAYMOND E. NELSON of St. Paul, Minn., died Dec. 14, 2014, age 84.

1954 RICHARD “DICK”

LARSON of Tucson, Ariz., died Aug. 20, 2015, age 81. NEVA (BJONERUD) VIISE of Decorah died Sept. 29, 2015, age 84.

BARBARA (MAAKESTAD) WAITZ of Windsor, Colo., died Sept. 25, 2015, age 82.

1955 GENE A. GROTH of Surprise, Ariz., died July 2, 2015, age 85.

DON C. HOVLAND of Fresno, Calif., died Nov. 14, 2015, age 82. MARIAN (WOLD) NJUS of San Antonio, Texas, died Sept. 30, 2015, age 84.

DAVID CARLYLE RASMUSSEN of Clear Lake, Iowa, died Sept. 25, 2015, age 81.

ARNOLD H. SWENSON of Wayzata, Minn., died Jan. 6, 2014, age 80.

1956 BETH

(EVANSON) KABAT of La Crosse, Wis., died Aug. 14, 2015, age 81.

DALLAS FROHOLM (WANBERG) KNUDSON of West Fargo, N.D., formerly of Towner, N.D., died Dec. 6, 2015, age 82. RICHARD “DICK” RUNDLE of Monona, Wis., died Oct. 22, 2015, age 80.

HAROLD C. VERHULST of Sioux Falls, S.D., died Sept. 9, 2015, age 81.

1957

JOANNE M. (LEISTIKOW) GROETTUM of Edina, Minn., formerly of Decorah, died July 8, 2015, age 80. RONALD D. MARTINSON of Anchorage, Alaska, died Aug. 19, 2015, age 79.

1962 DALE

1972 DALE

1963 GARY

1973 JEFF R.

ROBERT A. SOLBERG of Des Moines, Iowa, died Nov. 20, 2015, age 74.

1974 TED N.

L. RUOSCH of Holmen, Wis., died Nov. 3, 2015, age 75.

L. RINGEN of Darlington, Wis., died Oct. 15, 2014, age 73.

1960 JOHN E. PAKE of

Wonewoc, Wis., died Sept. 13, 2015, age 77.

DARRELL L. PIERCE of Decorah died Sept. 17, 2015, age 76.

1961

ROBERT L. ZAISER of Burlington, Iowa, died Nov. 23, 2015, age 79.

EKLE of Springfield, Ill., died Aug. 4, 2015, age 63.

TIMOTHY JON BARTNESS of Atlanta died Sept. 24, 2015, age 62.

1976 STEVEN D. OLSON of

1969 KAROL (BRUE) AESCHLIMANN of Hurley, S.D., died Dec. 4, 2015, age 68. RONALD B. BACHMAN of Burlington, Wis., died Oct. 10, 2015, age 68.

1970 DAVID

W. JACOBSEN of Decorah died Oct. 31, 2015, age 67.

1971

HEBBEL of Chicago died July 29, 2015, age 64.

1975

1964

1959 HELEN J. (PETERS) BAUMANN of Marinette, Wis., died July 25, 2015, age 78.

OWEN BUTT of Durango, Colo., died April 10, 2015, age 64.

CHRISTOPHER ROBERT BURR of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, died Aug. 15, 2015, age 66.

Kapaau, Hawaii, died Nov. 6, 2015, age 62.

1981

KATHLEEN (WOJTAL) MAYNE of West Des Moines, Iowa, died Aug. 31, 2015, age 56.

1982 KIRK

D. LECLERE of Midland, Mich., died Dec. 4, 2015, age 56.

1985

MICHAEL P. SCHEETZ of Lincoln, Neb., died Aug. 17, 2015, age 52.

Winter 2016 Luther Alumni Magazine

55

Endpage

Standing up for climate action During Global Climate Action Week (October 19–23, 2015), Luther’s studentrun Environmental Concerns Organization organized a photo campaign to engage students, faculty, and staff, asking them to show why they stand for climate action. Luther students regularly take a stand on environmental issues, not only to raise awareness but also to encourage real change. On Luther’s campus, student research and initiatives have focused on issues such as generating green energy in the Legends Fitness Center, adding rain barrels on campus, reducing the use of plastic trash can liners, and more. Some of these proposed measures, like Luther’s edible landscapes, have become a campus reality. Learn more at luther.edu/sustainability/education/research.

56

Luther Alumni Magazine

Calendar Vietnam and Cambodia: A Cultural Adventure Tour

Parents’ Council Meeting Saturday, March 5, 2016 Luther College

Friday, January 22— Monday, February 8, 2016 Hosted by Ann Highum, vice president and dean for student life emerita, and Jerry Freund

Evening Prayer Service Friday, March 18, 2016 Tuscany Falls Golf Club at Pebble Creek Goodyear, Arizona SHERRY (BRAUN) ALCOCK ’82

Nordic Choir West Coast Tour Concert and Reception Saturday, January 23, 2016 Ascension Lutheran Church Thousand Oaks, California

Nordic Choir West Coast Tour Concert and Reception Sunday, January 24, 2016 First United Methodist Church San Diego, California Chamber Luncheon Monday, January 25, 2016 Luther College

Blessed to Be a Blessing Retreat Monday, January 25— Tuesday, January 26, 2016 Spirit in the Desert Carefree, Arizona

Nordic Choir West Coast Tour Concert and Reception Tuesday, January 26, 2016 Lord of Life Lutheran Church Sun City West, Arizona

Nordic Choir West Coast Tour Concert and Reception Wednesday, January 27, 2016 Camelback Bible Church Paradise Valley, Arizona

Symphony Orchestra Tour Performance and Reception Friday, January 29, 2016 Faith Lutheran Church Clive, Iowa

In August, new Luther students attended a reception at the Wheaton, Ill., home of Wendy (Jaycox) ’92 and Thor ’93 Davidson. Front row, left to right: Morgan King, Mayalyn Cott, and Claire Hess. Back row, left to right: Wendy, Natalie Delcorps, Diamond Jenkins, Thor, Reilly Tangen, Gracie Griffiths, Dell May, and Luther admissions counselor Michael Elliott ’02.

Symphony Orchestra Tour Performance and Reception

Symphony Orchestra Tour Performance and Reception

Saturday, January 30, 2016 Trinity Lutheran Church Stillwater, Minnesota

Wednesday, February 3, 2016 Viterbo University Fine Arts Center La Crosse, Wisconsin

Nordic Choir Tour Concert and Reception Sunday, January 31, 2016 First Presbyterian Church Rochester, Minnesota

Symphony Orchestra Tour Performance and Reception

Twin Cities Lunch Connection Friday, February 5, 2016 Center for Changing Lives Minneapolis

Des Moines Area Lunch Connection

Sunday, January 31, 2016 Memorial High School Auditorium Eau Claire, Wisconsin

Friday, February 12, 2016 Windsor Heights Community Center Windsor Heights, Iowa

Symphony Orchestra Tour Performance and Reception

Twin Cities Lunch Connection

Monday, February 1, 2016 Winona Middle School Auditorium Winona, Minnesota

Friday, March 4, 2016 Center for Changing Lives Minneapolis

Kent Finanger ’54 Golf Classic Saturday, March 19, 2016 Tuscany Falls Golf Club at Pebble Creek Goodyear, Arizona

Phoenix Area Reception and Dinner with President Paula Carlson Sunday, March 20, 2016 Location TBD

Tucson Area Reception and Dinner with President Paula Carlson Monday, March 21, 2016 The Lodge at Ventana Canyon Tucson, Arizona

Twin Cities Lunch Connection Friday, April 1, 2016 Center for Changing Lives Minneapolis

Alumni Council Meeting Saturday, April 9, 2016 Luther College

Des Moines Area Lunch Connection Friday, April 15, 2016 Windsor Heights Community Center Windsor Heights, Iowa

Commencement Sunday, May 22, 2016 Luther College

Luther alumni events are open to all alumni and friends of the college, including parents and other family members of graduates and students. Please note that some dates listed are tentative; specific information about upcoming events will be mailed or emailed to alumni, friends, and parents who live near the event sites. If you need more information or if you’re interested in planning an event in your area, call the Alumni Office at (800) 225-8664. We’d love to hear from you!

Nonprofit Org. U.S. Postage PAID Cedar Rapids, IA Permit No. 214

Luther College, 700 College Drive, Decorah, Iowa 52101-1045

MEGAN OLIVER ’19

CODY ARNDTSON ’17: “This is called light painting. It was taken by the tunnel on the Trout Run Trail on the way to the fish hatchery. I created it with a long exposure on my camera—about 30 seconds—and spinning steel wool on fire. The steel wool is in a kitchen whisk—you separate the steel wool, fill the whisk up, attach it to a rope or a wire, and then you set it on fire and spin it. The fibers from the steel wool fly out from the whisk and create these sparks, and then once they fall they break apart, which is why you get the bounce effect.” For this photo, Cody was spinning two whisks.

Cody Arndtson ’17 participated in the biannual Ultra Mega Mega art show in the Center for the Arts at the end of fall semester. See more artists in the show on pages 20–25 and at luther.edu/magazine.