1931
PEARL STEINER AXELSON and husband AMSDEN AXELSON '30 were featured in the 2001 Valentine's Day edition of the Central Kitsap Reporter. The article celebrated the couple's six and a half decades of marriage. Of the Axelsons' frequent handholding, the reporter wrote, "In an age of throw-away marriages and families, this simple act of devotion between a couple married for 65 years was impressive, and inspiring." The Axelsons live in Crista Shores Retirement Community in Silverdale, Washington.
1948
LAHOMA HEISA recently published a book of poetry through Watermark Press titled From Out of the Mist. Some of her poetry can also be found online at poetry.com. She lives on Kiawah Island, South Carolina.
1950
ALTHEA MOREY LAWRENCE and husband DAVID LAWRENCE '51 entered missionary training with New Tribes Mission following graduation from SPC. In 1957, they sailed to Papua New Guinea to work with the Gimi people, a tribe in the eastern highlands. Nine years later, they helped start Numonohi Christian Academy (NCA), a school for missionaries' children. In 1991, David became an outreach coordinator to help support missionaries and high school students as they shared Christ in local villages. Over the years, Althea taught every grade at NCA, eventually becoming the academy's elementary principal. She had been with NCA for a total of 35 years when the couple retired this June. Writes Althea, "Thanks to SPC (SPU now) for the part you played in bringing me to the Lord, in bringing David and I together, and ... in showing us that God could use a life made available to Him."
David and Althea Lawrence
1964
WANDA PACE DAVIES has served with Wycliffe Bible Translators since her graduation from SPC, working for the last 24 years in eastern Africa. She met her new husband, John Davies, while he was working in the same area with another organization. After their New Year's Day 2001 wedding in Vancouver, British Columbia, and visiting family in Canada and the United States, they returned to Nairobi, Kenya, to continue their work.
1969
DONALD BILDERBACK, a faculty member of Cornell University, recently received a Distinguished Alumni Award from Purdue University. Don earned a doctorate in physics from Purdue in 1975 and is now the associate director for the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source. He is also an adjunct faculty member of the Cornell University School of Applied and Engineering Physics in Ithaca, New York.
1972
MARK JOHNSON was named principal of the Chief Moses Middle School in Moses Lake, Washington, in the summer of 2000. His wife, KAREN EDWARDS JOHNSON '72, teaches second grade atLarson Heights School in Moses Lake. The couple has two children. Daughter SARAH JOHNSON '99 began graduate school at Duke University in 2000.
1976
BILL WALNER earned an Ed.D. in institutional management from Pepperdine University in Malibu, California, in January 2000. He serves as the associate director of the Southern California Region of the Association of Christian Schools International (ACSI) in La Habra, California. He recently presented a paper on "Sustaining the Mission of the Christian School" at the national meeting of the American Education Research Association (AERA) in Seattle.
1978
CHRISTY THOMPSON PRICE was awarded the Exemplary Substance Abuse Prevention Award last October for her efforts in preventing drug and alcohol abuse among children. Christy is the Washington State University Cooperative Extension 4-H youth development agent for Grant and Adams counties in Washington. She was chosen for the award by the Department of Health and Social Services' Division of Alcohol and Substance Abuse, a citizens advisory committee, Gov. Gary Locke's Prevention Advisory Committee and the state Interagency Network to Prevent Substance Abuse. She lives in Ephrata, Washington.
1980
NANCY SMITH was recently appointed by World Relief to its newly established position of chief financial officer. World Relief is the international assistance arm of the National Association of Evangel-icals, and Nancy will oversee its financial operations and prepare the organization to support worldwide program expansion and development. Nancy currently lives in Highwood, Illinois, and is a member of North Suburban Evangelical Free Church in Deerfield.
1982
KENT MURAHASHI completed a doctor of ministry degree from Western Seminary in Portland, Oregon. He and his wife, CATHERINE CLATTERBUCK MURAHASHI '83, are church planters for the Northwest Conservative Baptist Association. Their ministry, Grace Point Community Church, began holding weekly Saturday night services in south Seattle last January.
CHRISTOPHER ROBINSON has moved with his wife, Sheila, and their three children to Highlands Ranch, Colorado. Chris is the new executive director of the International Network of Children's Ministry, a parachurch ministry for Christian leaders who work with children. Sheila is director of children's ministry for Cherry Hills Community Church.
1983
ALTHEA "RAMY" BAKKE-LYSAKER released her debut album, Broken to Be a Blessing, on the Ram's Horn Record label in May 2001. Ramy, a single mother of three, wrote and produced the album. An active member of New Song Christian Fellowship and affiliated with Artists in Christian Testimony, she has also developed an online support group called Ramys_Place@Yahoogroups.com for Christian women suffering from abuse issues. She and her family reside in the Nashville, Tennessee, area.
MARK HAIGHT '83 began a men's singing group called the Pilgrims, which has performed at Free Methodist and other churches around the Puget Sound region. The group, which varies in size and includes other SPU alumni, donates all proceeds to New Horizons Ministries, a service to homeless youth in Seattle. The Pilgrims and Mark, formerly a New Horizons board member, have raised about $10,000 for the ministry through song. The group is accompanied by Mark's wife, KRISTINA ALLEN HAIGHT '82.
1984
MOLLY ARBUS HURD taught high school biology in the Federal Way, Washington, School District for 14 years. She is now "retired" and enjoying being a stay-at-home mom to her two children. Molly's husband, Markham, is a geology consultant for Delta Environmental in Bellevue. The family lives in Newcastle, Washington.
1985
BILL LAWRENZ has been living in Japan since 1991. He met his wife, Yasuko, while attending graduate school at Temple University Japan. Bill and Yasuko completed their master of education degrees in TESOL in 2000, and they are now lecturers at Konan University in the Department of Language and Culture. They enjoy hiking and traveling during semester breaks and live in Kobe, Japan. Bill can be contacted at kobeguy@asia.com.
1987
ANNELISE NYBORG PETERSON teaches health and home economics at Kwajalein Junior/Senior High School in the Kwajalein Atoll in the Republic of the Marshall Islands (Micronesia). She has an eighth-grade daughter.
RAJ KUMAR SINGH was recently admitted to the Wisconsin Bar after graduating with honors from Valparaiso University School of Law in Valparaiso, Indiana. He writes, "My next challenge lies in my realizing the specifics of how the Lord wishes me to use this valuable license, which embodies society's trust in my ability to competently assist others in preventing and solving their interpersonal conflicts with words instead of bloodshed."
1989
LINDSEY ANDERSON CHAMPION is a stay-at-home mother to three young sons. Her husband, Mike, is in regional sales with Meditech-Boston Scientific. They live in Alpharetta, Georgia.
1990
DEBRA FOLDEN KONTREC is a stay-at-home mother of two young children. Her husband, Philippe Kontrec, is in sales of cold welding products. The couple lives in Amberieu-en-Bugey, France, a town of 11,000 about 50 kilometers east of Lyon.
ANDY O'SHEA '90 is the director of regional development and recruiting at Remi Vista, a Christian social services agency in Redding, California. He also volunteers as the promotions director for an ESPN affiliate in Chico, California. In that position, he's interviewed athletes such as Barry Bonds and Ken Griffey Jr., and celebrities such as Robin Williams. Andy's wife, MICHELLE AUTREY O'SHEA '91, leads a women's discipleship group, teaches piano lessons and serves as the assistant director of children's ministries at their church, Bidwell Presbyterian, in Chico. They have two children and live in Chico.
1992
SHARELLE KLAUS was named president for the Seattle region of the Forum for Women Entrepreneurs (FEW). An experienced startup executive, she will lead the Seattle division of FWE, an organization of 250 members that helps women build and lead technology and life science companies.
Sharelle Klaus
1993
CONRAD HACKETT earned his master of divinity degree and master of arts degree in Christian education from Princeton Theological Seminary in May 2000. He will begin doctoral studies in the sociology of religion at Princeton University this autumn.
1994
LINDA ADAMS received her Certified Valuation Analyst designation from the National Association of Certified Valuation Analysts. She is a supervisor for the CPA firm, Hascal, Sjoholm & Company, P.S., in Everett, Washington. She lives in Bothell.
1995
PAUL HUBER was inducted into the International Society of Theta Phi, the academic honor society for theology and religion, on March 9, 2001. He lives in Nicholasville, Kentucky.
MARA MCCORMICK SHAW taught eighth grade health for three years at Valley View Middle School in Snohomish, Washington. She currently teaches elementary physical education with the Ferndale School District, also in Washington.
ERIC VAN DER VEEN was named manager of the Plan/Spec Division of Holaday-Parks, a mechanical contractor in Seattle. In the role, Eric will procure projects, determine bid schedules, and manage estimators and project managers. He has been with Holaday-Parks since 1995.
1996
LYNNE RATLIFFE MILINGANYO is a contract COBOL mainframe programmer analyst and is enrolled in a technical writing and communications certificate program through Bellevue Community College in Bellevue, Washington. She and her husband, whom she met at Daystar University in Nairobi, have two children.
1999
ANNE GRAHAM earned her master's degree in social work from the University of Hawaii in May 2001. She now works for the state of Hawaii as a social worker in child welfare.
KENDALL ALTIZER HOWDEN and BRADY HOWDEN live in Issaquah, Washington. Kendall is employed by the Issaquah School District, and Brady works for Blue Nile Inc.
TYLER WHITWORTH is a first lieutenant in the U.S. Army, serving as the battalion adjutant for the 440th Signal Battalion in Darmstadt, Germany.
| Please
read our disclaimer.
Send any questions, comments or correspondence about Response to
jgilnett@spu.edu or call 206-281-2051. Copyright © 2001 University Communications, Seattle Pacific University.
Seattle Pacific University |