News
1949
HAROLD BLACKWELL and his wife,
Shirley, celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary in March 2007 with a cruise to the Mexican Riviera. They began their lives together with her $42 and his 1940 Plymouth while Harold was a staff sergeant in the Army Medical Corps. The Blackwells spend summers at their home in Seattle and winters at Leisure World in Mesa, Arizona. They are active members of the First Presbyterian Church in both cities.
1950
BOB HASLAM and his wife, Fran, recently moved to Hermitage, Tennessee. He will continue freelance writing, editing books for a Christian publisher, and serving as a mentor
for online students of the Jerry
Jenkins Christian Writers Guild. The Haslams now live near their son, DANIEL HASLAM ’78, and daughter-in-law, CYNTHIA COX HASLAM ’77.
1956
ESTHER STONEBROOK EDIGER gave her 50th spring piano recital in May 2007 at the Dallas (Oregon) Alliance Church. Esther began playing the piano at age 10 and taught her first piano lesson the year she graduated from SPC. Her students have numbered in the hundreds. Today, she not only directs her church choir, but also serves as president of the Salem (Oregon) Community Concert Series. Daughter SYLVIA EDIGER LAWSON ’82 is a nurse in Dallas, where Esther makes her home.
1957
DON NEWSOME is president of UV SYSTEMS Inc., manufacturers of ultraviolet light assemblies and equipment for museums and universities worldwide. In 2006, Don donated an automated fluorescent mineral display to SPU for the Science Building. One of his current proposals is for a fluorescent mineral display for the Afghanistan Geological Survey Museum in Kabul. He and his wife, ALMA OSTRANDER NEWSOME ’58, have been married 48 years and live in Renton, Washington.
1961
DAVE QUALL, M.A. ’74, was re-elected to a seventh term as a representative in the Washington state legislature last fall. A former high school teacher, he is chair of the House Education Committee. A strong supporter of charter schools, he at one time led the passage of a bill that helped place the measure before voters, who subsequently voted against it. Dave and his wife, Allene, make their home in Mount Vernon, Washington.
1962
OPAL TOWNSEND celebrated her 100th birthday in October 2006. The 80 guests who attended the party came from more than 10 different countries. Opal herself has traveled to more than 25 countries, including Russia, India, and Iraq. For 20 years, Opal worked in the Office of Residence Life at Seattle Pacific, where she also taught international students. An avid student of history, she continues to teach and conduct Bible studies at the Warm Beach Senior Center in Stanwood, Washington.
1964
JERRY CLYDE was inducted in June 2007 into the Pierce County (Washington) Sports Hall of Fame. The former SPC Falcon basketball player went on to teach and coach basketball at
Orting (Washington) High School for 31 years. In 1997, he was inducted into the Washington State Basketball Coaches Hall of Fame. He and his wife, Kathy, live in Auburn, Washington, where Jerry now works in construction. The couple has one adult son.
ROGER KELLER retired in the summer
of 2007 following 39 years of pastoral ministry in the Free Methodist Church. He and his wife, MONIKA HEYDEL KELLER ’67, served pastorates in Grand Forks, North Dakota; Newberg, Oregon; and Auburn and Yakima, Washington. He was also conference superintendent in the Oregon Conference, and a member of the board of trustees for SPU, George Fox University, and Western Evangelical Seminary (now George Fox Theological Seminary). For the last six years, he has been the associate pastor at Cooks Hill Community Church in Centralia, Washington, where the Kellers live. Monika is a licensed real estate agent at the retirement community of Still-waters Estates, where Roger is the chaplain. The couple has three adult sons, including STEVE KELLER ’91.
1966
SHELDON EKLAND-OLSON, executive vice president and provost of The University of Texas at Austin since 1998, has returned to the faculty of the Department of Sociology. Holder of the Audre and Bernard Rapoport Centennial Chair in Liberal Arts, Sheldon was dean of the College of Liberal Arts for five years and the recipient of numerous teaching awards. He is a national expert in criminal justice and prison violence, and has authored or co-authored several books, including The Rope, the Chair and the Needle: Capital Punishment in Texas, 1923–1990. He and his wife, CAROLYN EKLAND-OLSON, reside in Austin, Texas.
1967
DAVID GRANT serves as associate
pastor of community care and outreach at Northshore Christian Church in Everett, Washington. His primary role is the development of discipleship leaders. He and his wife, CAROL EASTON GRANT ’68, have been part of the Northshore church for 15 of the 16 years it has been in existence. David says that Carol “
influences lives one at a time through her piano teaching,” and often demonstrates “
an ear for the music of their hearts.” The Grants reside in Marysville, Washington.
GENE MUMAU retired in the summer
of 2006 after 36 years in pastoral ministry in the Oregon Conference of the Free Methodist Church. Following a three-month tour of Alaska, he became interim pastor at Agate Beach Community Church in New-port, Oregon, until a new pastor was installed in the summer of 2007. Gene and his wife, Joyce, reside in Grants Pass, Oregon. The couple has two adult daughters.
DIXIE YOUNG, M.A. ’72, has retired after 32 years in education. She was recently honored by inclusion in the 2007–08 edition of the Cambridge Who’s Who Registry of Executives and Professionals. It took Dixie 15 years of attending classes nights and summers to complete her undergraduate and graduate degrees, and her principal’s credentials, from SPU. Dixie resides in Edmonds, Washington.
1969
RICHARD COGHILL retired after 37 years of service as a United Methodist pastor in the Pacific Northwest Conference. He has served Washington state churches in Everett, Bellevue, Connell, Ephrata, Fall City, and Mountlake Terrace. He and his wife, LELIA GARRETT COGHILL ’68, live in Quincy, Washington.
1974
TERRY MINNIHAN was recently named the commercial lending regional manager and senior vice president for Cowlitz Bancorporation and its wholly owned subsidiary Cowlitz Bank. The former chief financial officer for Azteca Restaurant Enterprises Inc., Terry brings more than 20 years of banking experience to the position at the company’s office in Bellevue, Washington.
1982
PAUL ABBOTT and KATHY REIMERS ABBOTT have relocated to Ellensburg, Washington, where Paul is director of technology for the Ellensburg School District. The Abbotts have five children, including KARA ABBOTT ’07; son Davis, a junior at SPU; and three younger sons at home in Ellensburg.
1984
Brian Lassinger, an English major while at SPU, earned a master of
science degree in physician assistant studies at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, in 2002. For 13 years prior to that, he was a librarian in academic and public libraries. After graduating, Brian was hired by Baylor’s Michael E. DeBakey Department of Surgery as physician assistant to help staff the several surgery clinics at Ben Taub General Hospital, which serves a predominantly Spanish-speaking population. He lives in Spring, Texas, with his wife, Kimberly, a resource teacher in the Conroe Independent School District, and their
two teenage daughters.
KEVIN PEARSON was installed as priest of St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, one of the oldest churches in Renton, Washington. He has served other congregations in Chicago, Seattle, and San Francisco and serves as chaplain to children and their families at Children’s Hospital in Seattle. He is a member of the hospital’s Institutional Review Board and reviews human subjects research.
1985
TODD FREDERICK is a major appliance technician for Sears and now a small business owner. He has started a small washer/dryer repair company called Appliance Expert LLC with
what he calls “
good cheer and lots
of naiveté.” Todd lives in Wheat
Ridge, Colorado, and attends Corum Deo Reformation Church in Highlands Ranch, Colorado.
1987
GLENN LURIE is president of national distribution for AT&T Mobility, formerly Cingular Wireless. A Falcon soccer standout, he went on to play professionally in the Major Indoor Soccer League and the National Premier Soccer League. Fifteen years ago, he began work in the wireless world. As senior vice president-West region for Cingular, he oversaw market operations in 10 Western states, representing more than 40 percent of the company’s business. Earlier this year, he served as chief negotiator for the new iPhone partnership with Apple. He and his wife, SUZANNE SCHWARTZ LURIE ’86,
a former Falcon gymnast, have two children and live in Alpharetta, Georgia.
1989
Kathryn Eilers Baak teaches in the Department of Education at the Christian University in Ede, The Netherlands. She primarily teaches English as a foreign language to Dutch teachers-in-training. She also teaches methods for English language learning for elementary students. Kathryn is also raising four children together with her husband, John, who is a Dutch country doctor. The Baak family resides in the municipality of Veenendaal.
James Caley is a lieutenant colonel
in the U.S. Marine Corps. His wife, BARBARA WILLIAMS CALEY ’94, is a stay-at-home mother to their two young children. She is also a graduate student. The family lives in Oceanside, California, following a two-year tour in South Korea.
DAN TAKASUGI is director of the Calistoga (California) Public Works Department. Dan earned a master’s degree in civil engineering from the University of Illinois and a master’s degree in computer systems management from the University of Maryland. He is a 22-year veteran of the U.S. Coast Guard, from which he retired with the rank of commander. Dan and his wife, Julie, live in Calistoga.
1990
Gary Kilburg, M.B.A., is senior vice president and chief risk officer in the Seattle office of ABD Insurance and Financial Services. Before joining ABD, Gary was assistant treasurer, risk management at Whirlpool Corporation, and he was director, insurance risk management at Koch Industries Inc., in Wichita, Kansas. He also held management positions at The Boeing Company in both its risk management and its finance organizations. In 2002, he was awarded the Alexander Hamilton Gold Award for Treasury Excellence by Treasury & Risk magazine. Because of his extensive Fortune 500 experience, Gary is a regular speaker at national conferences on risk management and a frequent contributor on the subject for trade publications. Gary lives near Fall City, Washington, with his wife, Kristine, and son. They also have two daughters in college.
1991
JONATHAN BEGGS, in association with Development Companions International of Oak Harbor, Washington, works full time with Ugandans and their church pastors to provide health reform, literacy classes for women, and the development of a leadership curriculum for Uganda’s rural villagers. The basic literacy classes he helped start have grown to more
than 300 students. An accomplished pianist, Jonathan raised funds for the work by holding concerts in the U.S. with his twin brother, TIMOTHY BEGGS ’93, also a pianist. Jonathan says he hopes for more short-term workers with business, management, medicine, and public health expertise to join him in making a difference.
KARL ERICKSON shared the story of his family’s move to the Catholic Church at the Washington State Knights of Columbus Annual Convention this past spring in Bellevue, Washington. Karl, a status examiner in the unemployment tax program for the Oregon State Employment Department, has been published in a number of periodicals, including America, The National Catholic Weekly, and Portland Tribune. He also enjoys writing for children. His wife, KIMBERLY COLLIER ERICKSON ’89, recently completed a year-long art project for Saint Peter’s Catholic Church in Charlotte, North Carolina. The process involved the ancient art of water gilding and included a painting of Saint Peter by her father, John Collier. The Ericksons have two children and live in Salem, Oregon.
1994
TIFFANY OSSANNA MCVEETY, M.B.A., is a business banking officer for Shoreline (Washington) Bank, and the former Northwest Women’s Business Center director and founder of the Latino Women and Minority Business Loan Fund. Tiffany has managed, trained, and directed a team of professionals who packaged small business loans and provided technical business assistance to small business owners throughout six Northwest counties. Her husband, MARK MCVEETY ’92, is a musician, music producer, and consultant for IOActive computer security services. Together, they founded Girandola Center to provide business assistance and business planning for entrepreneurs. The McVeetys reside in Seattle.
JAMES RAPSON, M.S., coauthored and published Anxious to Please: 7 Revolutionary Practices for the Chronically Nice (Sourcebooks Inc., 2006). Its premise is that chronic niceness can be debilitating but is a curable condition. James is a clinical member of the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapists, and focuses on human connection through such innovative programs as “
Group of Dads” and “
Couples in Motion.” He lives in Bellevue, Washington.
Yvonne Meredith Rittenhouse, M.A., and her husband, Rob, moved to Cleveland, Tennessee, in 2001 to be near Yvonne’s family. They found a church home at First Presbyterian of Cleveland, and set up an art studio for Rob. Not long after they arrived, however, Rob was diagnosed with ALS, also called Lou Gehrig’s disease. Yvonne writes that during his battle with ALS, “
God’s grace was truly amazing as he worked continuously through family and the faith community. Rob, 55, died in July 2002 while at his easel.” Yvonne then updated her K–12 teaching credentials, and taught GED classes for the county and religious studies courses at Cleveland State Community College. She currently teaches seventh-grade language arts/writing for the Bradley County (Tennessee) School District and is an ordained elder at her church.
1996
AMANDA DAY HAHNEMANN is the co-founder of the WAGS (Wives and Girlfriends) charity arm of the Reading Football Club in Reading, England. While her husband, MARCUS HAHNEMANN ’93, tends goal for the club, Angela raises thousands of dollars through charity balls and other activities to strengthen families in their community. The funding efforts even earned a visit to the club from English royalty, the Countess of Wessex.
1999
TIMOTHY HUGHES is pastor of First Baptist Church in Port Angeles, Washington. A graduate of Fuller Theological Seminary, he is a former member of the staff of Pasadena First Baptist Church. He and his wife, Stacy, live in Port Angeles.
2000
LANCE GIBBON, M.A., Ed.D. ’07, is the new assistant superintendent for the Oak Harbor (Washington) School District. A former elementary school principal in Anacortes, Washington, he has served as an adjunct faculty member at SPU. Lance and his wife, Michelle, have two sons and are active members of His Place Community Church in Burlington, Washington, where he is a member of the church council and worship team. The family makes their home in Oak Harbor.
MEGAN SCATES LYKKE is in her second year of family practice residency in Grand Junction, Colorado. Her husband, David, one of the nation’s foremost off-road motorcycle racers, is an engineer who constructs major municipal aquarium attractions. The Lykkes live in Grand Junction.
MARCUS SHELTON sang the role of Fenton in a recent production of Verdi’s “
Falstaff,” performed under the auspices of the Seattle Opera. The tenor was one of 12 singers accepted into the opera’s prestigious Young Artists Program, which annually receives more than 500 applicants. After graduating from SPU, Marcus sang with the Seattle Opera Chorus and has been in many Seattle Opera mainstage productions as a chorus member. He and his wife, TIFFANY KEENE SHELTON ’02, who coordinates schedules and publications for SPU’s Student Academic Services, reside in Edmonds, Washington.
2001
MARY BENTON was named the winner of the third annual Salute to Nursing Campaign co-sponsored by Seattle’s KIRO-TV and Group Health Cooperative. She was cited for outstanding care and compassion on behalf of patients with lung disease. For 36 years, Mary has been assigned to
the Pulmonary Clinic and teaches courses for nurses and home health care workers. She makes her home in Kenmore, Washington.
Margaret Timm Vattiat is in the dietetic internship program at Oregon Health and Science University in Portland, Oregon. Her husband, Craig, teaches at Oregon City High School. The couple lives in Portland.
2004
CHARITY VAN’T HOF DELACH. graduated from Colorado Northwestern Community College with an associate of applied science degree in dental hygiene. She and her husband, Peter, reside in Oceanside, California. He serves nearby with the U.S. Marine Corps at Camp Pendleton, California.
Christine Miller is a chaperone
with the African Children’s Choir #29. The choir is traveling throughout the West Coast, Alaska, and Canada until December 2007. Christine writes, “
Our 26 Ugandan children are singing and dancing and sharing God’s love
to those they meet in churches in
the communities we travel to.”
Christine resides in Kennewick,
Washington.
TERESA TRILLO, M.S.N., an Air Force flight nurse, was promoted to the rank of major in March 2007. A member of the Air Force Reserves for 29 years, Teresa was deployed twice in 2005 for 120-day tours in Washington, D.C., and St. Louis, to provide in-flight medical care to ill and injured service members during their transport to multiple bases within the United States. In her civilian career, Teresa is an instructor in the Highline (Washington) Community College Nursing Program and a per diem emergency nurse at Highline Medical Center in Seattle. She and her husband, Javier, have three adult daughters and reside in Burien, Washington.
SPU Doctoral Graduate Named Dean of Academic Affairs at Patrick Henry College
For LAURA McCOLLUM, Ed.D. ’05, a summer job giving horseback-riding lessons changed her life. Intent on going to law school, the college student majoring in history and political science discovered she loved teaching. “
I saw the power of mentorship,” says McCollum.
Today, McCollum mentors faculty members at Patrick Henry College (PHC) in Purcellville, Virginia, in her new role as dean of academic affairs. The college, which began its eighth year in September, is a Christian institution founded by Michael Farris, well known in home-schooling circles. According to McCollum, PHC offers a classical liberal arts core curriculum enhanced by an upper-division apprenticeship practicum.
“We hone intellectual, godly people,” states McCollum. “
You can’t overestimate the shaping influence of the faculty as advisors.”
McCollum sees opportunity in her position to apply the concepts and techniques she learned during her doctoral program at Seattle Pacific University. “
SPU trains people in quantitative research and study, which is not taught much anymore, but should be,” says McCollum. “
Students these days are affected by the swinging pendulum of teaching fads, yet no one’s testing the effectiveness of these fads.”
Instead of trying to “Christianize” secular teaching models, Christian educators need to creatively reinvent the system to meet the needs of students, says McCollum. “
To combat our cultural apathy, it’s imperative in Christian education that the hope we have in Jesus infuses our teaching.”
McCollum hopes to return to the classroom one day to explore new methodologies firsthand. But for now? “
It’s exciting to be part of something God is doing, to be a service to students and society.”
2005
JENNIFER MONTZINGO appeared regularly in the third season of “
Little People Big World” on The Learning Channel, and will continue regular appearances throughout the next season. The reality series follows the lives of an Oregon family of six, some of whom are little people and some
of whom are not. Jennifer is a little person and appears in several episodes as a friend of the family, a friendship that has lasted since her childhood. In 2004, she also appeared on Fox Network’s reality show “The Littlest Groom.”
2006
DANIEL CLEMENTS is a staff accountant for Peterson Sullivan. He lives in Des Moines, Washington. NATHAN ELLIS is production manager for Mars Hill Church in Seattle, where he trains people to run lighting, audio, and video equipment used during services. Nathan’s wife, ANNE JOLLEY ELLIS, works for David & Kurth Real Estate.
CHRISTOPHER FRANKLIN, M.S., is a family therapist for Timber Ridge Preparatory School for Girls in Clark Fork, Idaho. He has worked in both community mental health and private practice settings with at-risk youth and in the facilitation of anger-management groups for children. When not helping teenagers get healthy, he enjoys cultivating bonsai trees, creating board games, hiking, camping, and traveling with his family. Christopher and his wife, Natalie, have two children and reside in Sandpoint, Idaho.
JAYNIE REYNOLDS OSTROSSER is recreational gymnastics director of the nonprofit Surrey Gymnastics Society in Surrey, British Columbia, Canada. She has been a coach since 2000,
is a former national team member, and was named Gymnast of the Year at the American national championships in 2006. Jaynie received an internship grant from the Coaching Association of Canada to help fund her position at the society. She and her husband, Earl, live in White Rock, British Columbia.
KEELEY PENNINGTON is a staff accountant for Peterson Sullivan tax and auditing firm. She lives in Burien, Washington.
TRACI SALEMME was recently promoted to events coordinator at the Downtown Seattle Association. The communication graduate plans and executes a variety of events for downtown Seattle residents, businesses, and visitors. Traci says the events include summer concerts, holiday programs, and other activities that promote a healthy, vibrant urban core. She resides in Seattle.
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