2006 Fall Saint Benedict's Magazine

              A New Era in the Arts
in this issue
1 From the President
2 Around Campus
A New Era in the Arts at CSB
6 ‘this is the best’
8 Walk This Way
10 Theater on Ice
For the Love of the Stage
12 ‘I Thought I Was in Heaven’
14 Visual Literacy
16 Equity in the Legal Profession
18 Reunion Award Winners
19 Inspiring Women
20 A New Era in Arts Education
21 Alumnae News & Notes
A U T U M N 2 0 0 6
Cover photo by Greg Becker, Communication & Marketing Services
Saint Benedict’s Magazine
Editor Glenda Isaacs Burgeson
Associate Editors Kristin Darnall, Maureen Opitz
Editorial Assistant Kristal Sawatzke ’10
Designer Greg Becker
Contact College of Saint Benedict Magazine
Communication and Marketing Services
37 South College Ave.
St. Joseph, MN 56374-2099
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Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer
The mission of the College of Saint Benedict is to provide for women the very best residential liberal arts education in the
Catholic university tradition. The college fosters integrated learning, exceptional leadership for change and wisdom for a lifetime.
1
Imagine
F R O M T H E P R E S I D E N T
Imagine a world without art.
What would it look like? What would it sound like? A world without the color,
song, shape, movement and dramatic expression created by artists would be a drab,
pallid place.
At the College of Saint Benedict, we don’t have that problem. On Sept. 16, we
celebrated the expansion and renovation of the Benedicta Arts Center of the Col-lege
of Saint Benedict with a re-dedication and blessing ceremony. It was a time to
express gratitude for the visionary Sisters of Saint Benedict who
built the original BAC 42 years ago. And it was a time to imagine
a new era of artistic expression at the college. Our next step in
that new era will be a major new initiative, which will result in the
Center for Arts.
Education in the fine arts at CSB is not an afterthought. The
arts are an integral part of our liberal arts tradition and have been
central to our educational mission since our founding in 1913.
We are a recognized leader in the arts and our students benefit no
matter what their major field of study. Because of our Benedictine
emphasis on the totality of development – mind, body and spirit
– students are able to combine their talents and pursue excellence
in novel ways.
Consider Stacy Woodle, a piano major who won a concerto
competition at the collegiate level and also is student manager of
the CSB Blazer softball team. Or Jill Randall, a physics major/math
minor who dreams of a career in space science or aerospace engineering; she
participates in the percussion ensemble and in ballroom dance. Then there’s
Sarah Knepper ’06, who majored in computer science and theater and is now doing
graduate work at Emory. In her senior year, she competed on a CSB/SJU team that
finished second among 34 teams in a programming contest at the 39th annual
Midwest Instruction and Computing Symposium in Iowa.
The arts enrich and expand the educational experience, and thus, the lives of these
students.
The fine arts express the full range of human capacity. They give meaning and
intellectual depth to the human experience. They provoke us to hear new sounds, to
see new patterns and to consider new angles.
Imagine that.
Dr. MaryAnn Baenninger, President
AROUND CAMPUS
George Marin Anne Donaghy Laura Kelly Lovdahl Shari Lamecker Rogalski
2
The College of Saint Benedict has ap-pointed
the following new members to its
Board of Trustees: George Marin, presi-dent
of Data Tech Solutions, LLC; Theresa
Wurst, retired president of ING Reinsur-ance;
Laura Kelly Lovdahl, president of
the CSB National Alumnae Association;
Anne Donaghy, a retired educator; Shari
Rogalski, a partner at Accenture; Lynn
Newman, operations manager at Evergreen
Community Church; Sheridan Reilly, a re-tired
investment manager and a chartered
financial analyst (CFA); Virginia Arthur,
an associate professor of management
at CSB/SJU; and CSB student trustee
Gretchen Enninga, a junior psychology
and communication major from Fulda,
Minn.
Marin founded and was president of
Data Tech Services in Fort Washington,
Pa., which became Data Tech Solutions.
He has served on advisory boards at East-ern
Center for Arts and Technology; on
the alumni association board at Point Park
University, Pa.; and on the information
science technology advisory committee at
Penn State University. He has a master’s
degree from the University of Pennsylvania,
and a management of technology degree
from Wharton School of Engineering.
Wurst is the retired president of ING
Reinsurance, which is a knowledge-based
reinsurance organization that provides its
clients with reinsurance solutions. ING
Reinsurance is part of the Amsterdam-based
financial services company ING. She
graduated with a bachelor’s degree from
CSB in 1969.
Lovdahl received her bachelor’s degree
from CSB in 1985. She has 12 years of
experience in the field of human services in
licensing and social work. She volunteers
New Members Named to CSB Board of Trustees
Grant Supports Spiritual
Engagement on Campus
CSB has received a $500,000 grant from
Lilly Endowment Inc. to help prepare a
new generation of women for leadership in
church and society.
The grant will enhance and expand the
pioneering “Companions on a Journey”
program, which brings students, faculty,
staff and alumnae together to connect
their values with their life choices.
Since 2002, CSB has received nearly $2
million from the Endowment for “Com-panions
on a Journey,” which through
retreats, discussion groups and opportuni-ties
for reflection, draws on the college’s
unique Benedictine monastic heritage
emphasizing listening and community.
The program is timely and responds
to a growing national interest in spiritual
development among young people. Ac-cording
to a 2003 study conducted by the
Higher Education Research Institute at
the University of California, Los Angeles,
undergraduates have a high interest in
spirituality and spiritual development, but
often feel that colleges and universities do
little to support their search for values and
meaning in life.
“We know that young people across
the country today rank opportunities for
spiritual engagement high on their list of
what they hope a college will provide,”
said MaryAnn Baenninger, president of
CSB. “At the College of Saint Benedict,
spiritual engagement and development are
central to our mission.”
Enter the CSB program.
“My Journey Group experience was sim-ply
the best part of my time at the College
of Saint Benedict,” said Nicole Goeden,
a 2006 graduate who was a theater major
from Dillon, Mont.
Goeden said that she looked forward
to each gathering with a facilitator and
four other students in her group, “and I
nearly always (left) feeling uplifted and
rejuvenated. It is difficult to express just
AROUND CAMPUS
Lynn Newman Theresa Wurst Sheridan Reilly Gretchen Enninga
3
at St. Joseph the Worker Church, Maple
Grove, Minn.; Rush Creek Elementary
School, Maple Grove; and at CSB.
Donaghy attended Wellesley College,
where she received a bachelor’s degree in
English. She was an elementary school
teacher, employment counselor and de-velopment
officer prior to her retirement.
Donaghy previously served three terms on
the CSB Board of Trustees.
Rogalski is a 1989 management gradu-ate
of CSB. She is a partner and senior
director, business intelligence, global
with Accenture, in Minneapolis. Rogalski
served as president of the CSB Alumnae
Council for three years and ex-officio
member of the Board of Trustees during
that time.
Newman is a 1979 graduate of CSB,
with a bachelor’s in philosophy. She also
received a master’s of business adminis-tration
at the University of Minnesota.
Newman is the operations manager at
Evergreen Community Church, Burns-ville,
Minn. She has been a member and
president of the CSB Alumnae Council.
Newman previously served three terms on
the CSB Board of Trustees, during which
time she was co-chair of a CSB Capital
Campaign.
Reilly previously worked as a senior
portfolio manager and executive vice
president for Schroders Investment
Management’s Europe, Australia and Far
East investment team, based in New York.
Prior to that, he was a senior vice president
and chief investment officer for interna-tional
stocks (portfolio manager) with
Ivy Management in Boca Raton, Fla. He
attended SJU.
how rewarding and therapeutic it can be
to connect with other women in a spiritual
way.
“My group has helped me through
many difficult times on my journey at
CSB, even when they might not have
known it. They created a ‘safe space’ for
me to share my fears, my struggles and
my dreams. For this gift, I am eternally
grateful. You have made my college experi-ence
richer, more memorable and more
meaningful,” Goeden said.
“Vocation is a calling that seeks mean-ing
and fulfillment in life for people of all
faiths. It isn’t restricted to religious call-ing,”
Baenninger said. “Our ‘Companions
on a Journey’ program is a nationally lead-ing
program which brings together women
of all ages in vibrant small groups within
our larger community to discuss, reflect
upon and plan their life commitments.”
With this grant that runs from 2008-10,
CSB will enhance its signature program,
the Journey Groups, as well as its sum-mer
institute and academic courses on
discernment and vocation. CSB will add
programs in ecclesial ministry, expanding
outreach beyond the campus community
and adding a professorship in women’s
leadership in church and society.
“While many colleges and universities
have been engaging in the theological ex-ploration
of vocation, as far as I know, we
are the only school which uses the group
spiritual companioning process,” said Mar-ian
Diaz, program director of “Compan-ions
on a Journey.” “The importance of
‘Companions on a Journey’ arises from its
distinctive ability to provide our students
with programming that supports the
formation of communal bonds with peers
and women of other generations.”
CSB was one of only two women’s
colleges nationally to receive funding for
vocational exploration.
4
AROUND CAMPUS
CSB President MaryAnn Baenninger
delivered the commencement address May
13, to a graduating class of 463 women in
the Haehn Campus Center Field House
on the CSB campus. Emily Johnston, an
English major from New Brighton, Minn.,
was the student commencement speaker,
as selected by the 2006 CSB senior class.
During the ceremony, Dorothy Gorecki
was presented with the College’s Presi-dent’s
Medal, while Francis “Frank” Ardolf
received an honorary Doctor of Humane
Letters degree.
In 1967, Dorothy Gorecki, in part-nership
with her husband, Benedict,
founded Gorecki Manufacturing, special-ist
manufacturers of overhead projec-tors,
traffic controls, digital wall displays
and other products for a wide range of
Fortune 500 companies. After a long and
successful business career, the Goreckis
embarked upon a series of philanthropic
ventures. CSB honored Gorecki for her
philanthropic leadership and vision in
the renovation and expansion of the CSB
Benedicta Arts Center. The Gorecki Gal-lery
and Gorecki Theater stand as lasting
tributes to her dedication to the arts.
The President’s Medal is on occasion
awarded to those members of the CSB
community who have demonstrated ex-traordinary
loyalty, dedication and service
to the college and its mission of liberal arts
education in the Benedictine tradition.
Ardolf attended Los Angeles City Col-
CSB Commencement Activities Held May 13
(Top) President MaryAnn Baenninger with Fran-cis
Ardolf; (above) Baenninger congratulates
Dorothy Gorecki.
lege, where he studied liberal arts and
accounting. Ardolf began his career with
Douglas Aircraft but soon moved on to
co-found a general contracting business.
Eventually this business was known as
Ardolf Drazan Investments and Ardolf and
his partner earned great success developing
and managing commercial and industrial
real estate in Los Angeles. As a result of
Ardolf ’s philanthropy, the CSB campus
is a center of scientific inquiry. Located
in the heart of our campus, the Ardolf
Science Center inspires and supports each
new generation of women scientists.
Research Targets Controversial
Conversations
Sexual orientation and abortion are
two of the most controversial issues on the
CSB and SJU campuses today, according
to a survey of students, faculty and staff
regarding their experience of and participa-tion
in controversial conversations on our
campuses.
The survey was funded by a grant of
$91,657 awarded last fall to CSB/SJU by
the Teagle Foundation of New York City to
fund the study of controversial conversations
in the context of faith-based, liberal arts col-leges.
CSB is the fiscal agent for the grant.
The survey was administered last spring
to over 300 students, as well as a smaller
pool of faculty and staff and analyzed by a
summer research team composed of three
students, three faculty and one staff person.
That analysis showed that gender, ideologi-cal
affiliation, and religious affiliation all
have a significant impact on how students
value, perceive and participate in contro-versial
conversations on our campuses, said
project director Daniel McKanan, CSB/
SJU associate professor of theology. Men,
for example, are considerably more likely to
report engaging in “uncivil” behaviors such
as interrupting others, even though they
are almost as inclined as women to describe
such behaviors as extremely negative.
“Ideological conservatives are more likely
to report negative experiences such as being
penalized for expressing their views in the
classroom — though it should be noted
that the majority of conservatives do not
complain of such experiences,” he said.
The survey will help the research team
identify strategies to generate conversa-tions
regarding controversial topics among
students, especially persons with middle-of-the-
road views and those who are uncertain
of their own positions. So far, seven profes-sors
have agreed to use their classrooms as
“campus laboratories,” which will allow the
research team to conduct surveys and make
observations in order to assess their success.
The campus laboratories include courses in
the departments of management, nursing,
political science, theology and philosophy
as well as in the Core curriculum. The
research team also is co-sponsoring two
series of public forums on controversial
topics, one focused on hot button issues in
the Catholic Church and one on “Values
and the Election.”
5
AROUND CAMPUS
Ben and Dorothy Gorecki (pictured
above, to the right of President Baenninger)
have been extremely generous in their sup-port
for the College of Saint Benedict in
the past.
Now they have contributed the largest
single gift in the college’s history, a $3.5
million commitment to the new dining
and conference center.
Ben and Dorothy are tremendous friends
of the college who are deeply committed
to supporting those organizations in which
they believe. Both current and future
students have great cause to celebrate their
generosity. Because most College of Saint
Benedict students participate in the arts on
a regular basis and absolutely all of them
eat, it is assured that students will nourish
their bodies at the dining center and their
minds and spirits at the arts center for
generations to come.
For a decade, Ben and Dorothy ran a
restaurant in Milaca, a town of about 2,500
located 35 miles northeast of St. Cloud.
The restaurant was a center of community
life. Though the couple went on to found
Gorecki Manufacturing, they remember
how important it was for their local com-munity
to have a convenient place to meet
and eat and relax. The new dining center
will serve as a cozy gathering place but will
also contain state-of-the-art technologies
for both the food preparers and the diners.
Special features of the 40,000-square-foot
new building will include a coffee
shop and bakery, a gas fireplace, computer
terminals, a seven-station serving area with
choices ranging from ethnic and interna-tional
menu items to traditional comfort
New Dining Center under Construction
food options, and a banquet hall.
Student input was considered of high
importance to the planners. Although
extremely excited about the new facility,
students were concerned about what would
happen to the dining area in the Main
Building. They were pleased to learn that it
will be incorporated into the Motherhouse
plans of the Benedictine Sisters.
6
Forty-two years ago, the College of Saint
Benedict, assisted by the Sisters of Saint
Benedict’s Monastery, presided over the
visionary construction of the Benedicta
Arts Center (BAC). In effect, they erected
one of the premier performance centers
in Minnesota and launched an era of arts
education rich in the presentation of the
performing and visual arts.
Forty-two years later, at the Sept. 16
dedication of an expanded and reno-vated
BAC, College leaders affirmed the
College’s historic commitment to the
eminence of the fine arts in a liberal arts
education.
The construction of the original BAC
established the reputations both of the
architectural partnership of Hammel and
Green, as well as the College of Saint
Benedict. (The firm changed its name to
Hammel Green and Abrahamson in 1964,
when Bruce Abramson joined the found-ing
principals Richard Hammel and Curtis
Green.)
It might well have turned out otherwise.
As S. Colman O’Connell, former CSB
president and currently senior develop-ment
officer, tells the story, the BAC
was built solely for the College of Saint
Benedict, since the coordinate academic
partnership with Saint John’s University
was then in its infancy.
The BAC was part of an overall campus
expansion, she explained. A CSB commit-tee
had already selected an architectural
firm, when two young, unproven archi-tects,
Hammel and Green, knocked at the
front door.
“Green told me that they were put in
the front parlor,” S. Colman said. They
explained that they wanted to present their
proposals for the dormitories. The sister
told them a decision already had been
made but agreed to see if the committee
was willing to meet with them.
After she excused herself, the two men
sat quietly in their straight-backed chairs,
looking at each other.
“Green said to Hammel, ‘We have
laughed for the last time.’”
Moments later, they were ushered in-side,
where they convinced the committee
to sign on with them.
“The sisters scrapped the other proposal
and chose Hammel and Green,” S. Col-man
said.
The young partners went on to receive
national visibility for their work on the
BAC, which was awarded numerous
design prizes nationwide.
The sisters may not have set out to build
an award-winning facility, but they knew
they wanted something of enduring qual-ity
that would best showcase the artistic
expression they envisioned.
“When we built what’s now the Petters
By Glenda Isaacs Burgeson
best’
‘… this is the
A N E W E R A I N T H E A R T S A T C S B
S. Colman O’Connell, past CSB president, former chair of theater and dance and currently senior
development officer for Institutional Advancement, tours the new Colman Theater, named in her
honor by a generous and anonymous donor.
7
that was not available then,” S. Colman
said. Arts programming has been a success
from the start, she noted, attracting more
than one-and-a half-million patrons.
“The quality of programming was there
from the beginning,” she said, noting that
the Minnesota Orchestra performed at the
BAC opening.
Over time, as CSB student enrollment
quadrupled, the fine arts faculty grew from
eight to 48, and as coordinate academic
programs normalized with SJU, demands
for space in the BAC became more urgent.
In anticipation of an expansion, S.
Colman and Jim Fredricks, CSB facilities
manager, went to visit Green, sketches in
hand, to discuss the addition of a dance
studio, black box theater and music
rehearsal hall.
“He took one look at our sketches and
said, ‘Don’t do that to my building. You
need the best architectural firm in the
country to build theaters — Hammel and
Green,’” she recalled.
S. Colman considers the CSB partner-ship
with Hammel and Green a success.
“This addition is not only harmonious
with the original but it’s as good as the
original. Each room is exquisitely de-signed,”
she said.
When the original was built, technology
was such that there was no way to guar-antee
the acoustical quality of the music
hall, S. Colman said. An acoustical expert,
Russell Johnson, was brought in from New
York for consultation.
Last year, Johnson attended the final
concert of the season at the BAC, and
encountered S. Colman in the lobby after
42 years. He introduced her to his young
colleague, explaining that he was tour-ing
the country, showing his associate the
better music halls. But, he added, “this is
the best.”
Auditorium, we thought of it as an as-sembly
hall, where the entire student body
could meet,” S. Colman said. “It’s a beau-tiful
music hall. We didn’t mess around
and ruin the auditorium by trying to make
it too multi-purpose.
“With 400 students and a 1,000-seat
auditorium, we thought it would last for-ever.
Here it is 42 years later, and we have
546 first-year students.”
The sisters also understood that the
facility would serve the greater community
of Central Minnesota.
“We really did want to serve the com-munity
through a presentation of the arts
8
Class time is play time in Leigh Dillard’s classes.
The assistant professor of dance in the CSB/SJU theater depart-ment
believes that learning should be fun.
“You learn more when you’re having fun,” she said. “That’s how
we learned as infants; we played. We didn’t sit down with a book
to learn how to roll over.”
By linking playfulness with creativity, Dillard believes that, at
semester’s end, her students realize that they have learned to take
risks. They have the skills to put pieces together.
“Not everyone does it the same way, and they realize that their
choice is as good as the next person’s.”
Take walking, for example. In one of her first exercises, Dillard
asks students to identify how they walk, to observe their own gait,
the way they move their arms, their stride, how their feet connect
with the ground, how they hold their head. Then she asks them to
observe how a partner walks, identify three distinguishing charac-teristics
and then copy that walk.
Walk This Way …
“So then you have two people doing the same walk and the
students are just amazed at how different people’s walks are.”
By seeing, even in walking, how different individuals are – “each
of us has a distinct gait” – students begin to understand there is no
right or wrong way to walk.
While the majority of Dillard’s students (including many ath-letes)
are non-majors, she recognizes that dance instruction offers
them much more than an introduction to and appreciation of
dance as an art form.
“It’s important that the students connect with themselves. What
I give them is less about dance and more about themselves,” she
said.
The idea of having a physical experience, of being grounded and
balanced translates into a metaphysical grounding and balance, she
said. “That’s why we dance anyway – expression through the body.
What else would you express with?”
By Glenda Isaacs Burgeson
A N E W E R A I N T H E A R T S A T C S B
9
CSB/SJU Theater Professor
Appears in New York City Play
Adam Houghton practices what he
teaches.
Houghton, a CSB/SJU assistant profes-sor
of theater, appeared in the New York
City debut of “The Burial at Thebes,” an
adaptation by Irish poet Seamus Heaney
of Sophocles’ tragedy “Antigone.” The play
was produced by the Handcart Ensemble.
“I teach acting, and, for me, it is very
important to do what I teach,” said
Houghton, who portrayed Creon in
the production, which ran Sept. 7-23 at
Theatre 315, New York City. “I ask my
students to take risks in class – getting
up in front of others to do something at
which they could fail – and it helps my
teaching to take those same risks.
“I have greater understanding of my
students’ positions as actors and they have
greater trust in me as a teacher,” Hough-ton
said. “The work in New York City has
already improved how I teach.”
Houghton, in his fourth year at CSB/
SJU, has been able to perform in produc-tions
of different types each year – in a
department production, a one-man faculty
performance and in workshops and confer-ences.
He has had an association with
Handcart Ensemble since he directed “Mis-tress
of the Inn” for them in March 2001.
“This experience supports my profes-sional
development perfectly,” Houghton
said. “My work in New York City will also
help my collaboration with departmental
colleagues because I am freshly connected
to our country’s greatest theater city.”
Alumnae /Alumni in the Arts
Sally Koering and Andy Zimney both gradu-ated
in 1999 with degrees in theater and Eng-lish.
They are currently committed to teaching
“kindness, courage, and respect” through the
work of Youth Frontiers. Sally is the communi-cations
manager and coaches speakers; Andy
is the director of retreat programs.
Theater major Kate Francis ’01 is a program
officer for the Women’s Empowerment
Program of the Asia Foundation in Washington
D.C. She traveled to Bangladesh in February
and expects to get to Jakarta and Beijing this
year. She is also earning a graduate degree in
international development at George Washing-ton
University.
…
Leigh Dillard rehearses in
the Helgeson Dance Studio.
10
Edit or’s note : Readers of Saint
Benedict Magazine will recall that we last
heard from Deb, our unofficial Antarctica
correspondent and CSB theater graduate,
in the fall 2003 issue of Saint Benedict’s
Magazine, in which she described life on the
seventh continent. In this update, she describes
a flourishing arts community at the largest
Antarctic research base, McMurdo Station,
located 850 miles north of the Geographic
South Pole.
At McMurdo Station, there isn’t exactly
a New Broadway, but instead there are ad-venturous
spirits gathered together to work
and play. The most common work shift in
McMurdo is Monday through Saturday,
7:30-5:30, while others work 12-hour
shifts with a rotating day off. Either way,
we’re there to work, and the easy reaction
to tiredness is to relax after work, or even
sleep through Sunday. But luckily, some
people step forward and begin to create
artistically, theatrically and with reckless
abandonment.
There are numerous aspects of the arts
present in McMurdo. People are invited to
participate in or to instruct others in their
medium of choice: everything from quilt-ing,
knitting, stitching, painting, pencil
drawing, woodworking, even ice carving
or artistic metalworking. There is also a
small ceramics studio and general crafts
room where basic materials are available to
everyone. Each season there is at least one
station-wide art show and crafts fair, where
people display how they’ve spent their
evenings. There is also an “Alternative Art
Gallery” in the summers with avant-garde
and interactive art, among other types.
(Summer in Antarctica is from October
to February.) As for music, every season
numerous musical groups form to provide
performances of everything from jazz and
folk to the blues and rock and roll. People
bring their own instruments or they can
borrow instruments maintained on sta-tion.
In addition, the summertime also
brings the annual Women’s Soiree which,
Theater on Ice
One production at a time, one season at a time, for over five
years, Connie Fernholz Carlson ’95 and a small group of kindred
spirits, many of them graduates of the CSB/SJU theater depart-ment,
have steadily built a small company, Theatre Limina, in the
dynamic Twin Cities theatrical market.
“This is what we do in our spare time,” Connie said, explaining
that she and many members of the company have full-time jobs.
Some also are raising young children.
Connie said the reason she helped found the company was to
explore artistry in the way she had at the College of Saint Bene-dict.
To accomplish that, she contacted former classmates.
“I knew I had a bunch of people I could call on to get it going,”
in its 10th year in 2006, gathers together
women performers in a variety show and
benefit fund-raiser for Christchurch, New
Zealand charities. I had fun helping as
stage crew for the Soiree one of our sum-mers,
and thoroughly enjoyed watching
many people enjoy their first experiences
on stage: some in a beginning tap dance
class, others in a belly dancing class, some
just reading a story or poetry.
Historically, performance has never
been absent in Antarctica, beginning with
the heroic age of exploration in the early
1900s. Explorers such as Scott and Shack-leton
spent winters on the ice, and there
are many journal entries and even some
photos depicting the performances put on
by the early explorers. In the pale light of
lanterns and seal blubber-fed stoves, the
crews would create amusing stories and
tales to lighten the mood in the midst of
24-hour darkness.
In the summer of 2004, I had the privi-lege
of joining a group of theatrical players.
For the Love of the Stage By Glenda Isaacs Burgeson
By Deborah Saad Morris ’00
she said.
Along with Connie, a core group of CSB/SJU alumnae/i have
worked to establish the company: Sara Cantleberry ’95, Sally
Koering ’99, Elise Robinson ’93, Phoebe Nelson ’97 and Andy
Zimney ’99.
They have built a reputation in the competitive Twin Cities
market, which is second to New York City in per capita theater
seating. Tickets sell quickly for the company’s annual Christmas
production, “The Santaland Diaries.” “Summer Shorts,” the
annual summer festival of one-act 10-minute staged readings at
Bryant Lake Bowl, brings in new artists and gives opportunities to
directors.
A N E W E R A I N T H E A R T S A T C S B
11
when the original BAC opened. He has been directing high school theater
for approximately 25 years and theater was a family activity.
“Growing up, for me, theater was the outlet. It was how I explored art,
how I explored concepts. It’s how I explore what’s going on in the world.
It’s about how I want to make a statement about the world. It’s how I keep
my brain from getting moldy.
“I love going to rehearsal every night, meeting up with people, discuss-ing
a scene and working it out, and finding that moment of epiphany
where you stop, for that instant, living and breathing in your world and
you’re in that world – whatever world it is that you’re creating.
“You lose yourself in that moment.”
For Connie, the driving force behind her commitment is collab-oration,
a process of collective brainstorming that is an emphatic
part of the theater program at CSB.
“One of the reasons that I wanted this company is that I wanted
that collaboration I felt in college,” she said.
“That is pushed in the CSB theater department,” she said.
“Theater is a collaborative art. In order to successfully put some-thing
together, you have to work with personalities. When you are
working on art plus people, it can be like fireworks.”
Theater has been a part of Connie’s life from a young age. Her
dad, SJU graduate Carmen Fernholz ’65 was a theater student
They were doing three one-act plays and
asked me to be their stage manager. Our
performance space was the snowmobile
and small engine repair shop, complete
with an open area, concrete floors, and
an office on loan for a green room. With
a simple set of painted plywood pieces
to define our “stage” edges, we set up
the few borrowed items for lights, sound
and speakers, and set up chairs. We had
a limited number of seats, and every one
of them was filled for both performances.
The plays were short, but humorous, and
well-received. Afterwards, a long-time Mc-
Murdo community member approached
me to deliver what we found to be one of
the best possible compliments: “Thank
you for bringing the theater back into
McMurdo.” Just for that little bit of time,
we carried people outside of their jobs and
awakened something special.
Deb and husband
Glenn pose at
Cape Evans with a
floating glacier in
the background
Fr. Robert Koopmann still recalls the
excitement of the first orchestral concert at
the Benedicta Arts Center of the College
of Saint Benedict.
The year was 1964, the year the BAC
opened. The CSB/SJU professor of piano
and fine arts division head was in his first
year as a student at SJU, at a time when
the CSB/SJU academic coordinate rela-tionship
was just beginning to evolve.
He was taking a class with S. Firmin
Escher, then academic dean at CSB.
She gave him a ticket for the Minnesota
Orchestra for its first performance at the
BAC.
A N EW E R A I N THE A RT S AT C S B
“My seat was way in front and on the
side. I had never heard a good symphony
orchestra,” he said. “I thought I was in
heaven. The sound in the BAC is so won-derful.
I’ve never forgotten.”
Years later, in 1978, when S. Firmin was
dean of the fine arts, Koopmann worked
with her while he served as chair of the
first combined CSB/SJU music depart-ment.
With the combined resources of
the two departments, he presided over a
surge in faculty hiring and, thus, greater
musical opportunities for students of both
campuses.
Women in Music
Students sign up on a waiting list for
Koopmann’s popular Women in Music
course, which is offered primarily to non-music
majors. In the class, Koopmann
gives his students a cultural context for
understanding what life was like through
the centuries for women composers.
African Music
Koopmann loves all kinds of music; his
favorite music is from the late 19th and
early 20th century. He also has cultivated
an interest in African music. After direct-
B y G l en d a I saacs Bu rges o n
Heaven’
I Was in
‘I Thought
12
Spacious Rehearsal Hall Solves Space Crunch
In a sense, the new addition to the Benedicta Arts Center of the College of Saint
Benedict will bring harmony to the music department.
“We’re very excited about the new addition and renovation,” said Ed Turley, associ-ate
professor of piano and chair of the music department.
A spacious instrumental practice facility means that ensembles will have their own
practice areas, he said. It also means an end to what had been an endless game of
musical chairs for students jostling for limited practice space. Now, students can con-centrate
on rehearsing rather than packing and unpacking their instruments to make
room for other musicians in the space they formerly shared. Rehearsal scheduling
problems caused by the same space crunch also have been eased.
Likewise, three new faculty studios will ease overcrowding. Because the music
faculty includes adjunct faculty who provide individual instruction in strings, woodwinds, voice and piano, studio space has been a pressing departmental need.
ing the CSB/SJU South African study
abroad program in 2000, he stayed in
Africa an extra six weeks to visit Benedic-tine
monasteries in Tanzania. At Chipole,
a community of 400 Benedictine women,
the sisters timed his visit to coincide with
their jubilees, so that he could observe
their celebration. The sisters’ large, extend-ed
families, from different tribes, attended
the event and brought their instruments,
allowing Koopmann to go from one group
to another and hear tribal differences and
similarities in their music. He also visited
Hanga Abbey, a community of 130 young
men, and again timed his visit to coincide
with a ceremonial occasion, the ordination
and profession of vows. Again, he was able
to hear the music of families attending the
joyous event.
Koopmann incorporates improvisation
on the piano and includes African themes
in his concerts. In 2004, he recorded
“Sacred Improvisations,” which includes
hymns, spirituals and chants. He uses
African improvisation in his symposium
classroom, as well as in other music ap-preciation
courses.
13
From Bach to Rock
Koopmann has performed classical
concerts throughout the United States and
abroad.
“I absolutely adore playing music for
anybody,” he said.
In recognition of his talent, students
have extended to him the rare honor of
asking him to perform at some of their
rock concerts.
The Power of Music
Whether playing for fun or for more se-rious
purpose, Koopmann tries to convey
the influence music has.
“People don’t realize how powerful
music can be,” he said.
While in South Africa, Koopmann met
the white director of a racially integrated
choir which performed Western European
music, wearing traditional black attire, for
the first half of its concert. For the second
half, the choir appeared in traditional and
colorful African dress, and, directed by an
African student, performed African music.
This was shortly after the end of
apartheid. The idea was both daring and
provocative and met with opposition,
Koopmann said. Nevertheless, Nelson
Mandela used the choir for mixed-race
gatherings where people were distrusting
of each other.
“The choir would sing and the whole
atmosphere would change by the power of
music.”
Fr. Bob Koopmann
14
Parents give infants brightly colored toys of different shapes and textures. They give young children
a box of crayons and scratch paper for amusement. At some point, youngsters set aside such childish
things.
The CSB/SJU art department strives to restore among its students that childlike sense of
wonder, comprehension and appreciation of the visual world.
Recently, department goals have been redesigned to better define the meaning of visual
literacy in a global world and to connect that meaning with the objectives of a liberal arts
education.
Elaine Rutherford, CSB/SJU associate professor of art, highlighted some of the goals.
“We want our students to have a sense of what it means to be a good global citizen.
Jennifer Joffe will help us address that global dimension,” she said, referring to a
newly hired historian of Asian art, specializing in the art of India.
“We want our students to have a good, strong skill set, know how to use
materials, understand basic elements of design and be able to apply them
with sophistication and authority. We want them to communicate ideas
in visual form, and to understand the world in visual terms. We want
them to develop good written and oral skills to write and talk about
their work.
Critiques, which require students to engage in respectful,
honest dialog, are an important part of artistic development
and awareness that benefit students well beyond the art
world, she said. “I tell my management majors about the
importance of respectful dialog.”
Faculty also want students to have a historical and
contemporary context that enables them to under-stand
art as a cultural barometer rather than
something isolated or removed. Rutherford said it
is important that students understand that art is
not something separate from the rest of life.
Visual Literacy:
There’s More to It Than Meets the Eye
A N E W E R A I N T H E A R T S A T C S B
15
B y G lenda I sacs B urgeson
To be visually literate is to appreciate that
art is present in everyday life, she said.
“We teach perceptual skills. We teach students
to re-learn how to see, to stop and give close
examination to objects or figures, to sharpen and
hone their powers of observation, and to recognize
subtlety.”
For example, students may learn to observe more closely
how sunlight affects their perception of a cloud or they may
give closer inspection to the intentional design of an ad in a
magazine.
Faculty also work with students to cultivate and nurture an artistic
vision.
“We hope our students have a vision and are able to create a body of
work that is focused and unique to their personal experience, that uniquely
expresses what they are thinking.
“Our students are more conceptually mature because of the liberal arts tradi-tion
here. That’s one of the strengths we see in our student body. They are making
connections about the ways we understand our world and connecting ideas to create
a visual narrative.”
Pictured: “Benedicta Arts Squares,” photo
collage by art minor Elizabeth Laurie ’08
16
Equity in the Legal Profession: When U. S. Supreme Court Justice San-dra
Day O’Connor earned her law degree
in 1952, no law firm in California was
willing to hire her as a lawyer – in spite of
the fact that she had managed to complete
her degree in two years rather than three,
in spite of her status near the top of her
class, and in spite of her participation in
Stanford Law Review. One firm offered her
a position as a legal secretary.
The legal profession presents one of the
better examples of what has changed for
women and what remains to be changed
in terms of equity in the workplace.
When Amy Hertel ’99 earned her law
degree from Stanford in 2005, with some
similar accomplishments, her opportuni-ties,
both before and after law school, were
quite different from Justice O’Connor’s.
As a CSB student, Amy served as
president of the Saint Ben’s Senate, took an
aggressive and heavy course load, majored
in political science, minored in economics
and participated in the honors program.
Her summers were spent on public service
internships. Her mentors were her political
science advisors, especially the late Jim
Murphy, as well as Cindy Malone and
Scott Richardson in the honors program.
Amy welcomes the opportunity to say,
with pride, that she went to the College
of Saint Benedict and that she wouldn’t be
where she is today without having made
that choice.
Amy then won a Truman Scholarship
and used it to earn a master of public
affairs degree at the Woodrow Wilson
School of Public and International Affairs
at Princeton University. She concentrated
on domestic policy and her class work
included a macroeconomics course taught
by Ben Bernanke, the current head of the
Federal Reserve. She applied to and was
accepted by nine of the 10 top law schools
in the country, including Harvard, and
chose to earn her J.D. at Stanford. While
there, she combined her interests in law
and policy by serving as an editor, an
assistant managing editor and ultimately
as president of the Stanford Law & Policy
Review.
“Instilled with the value of seeking out
strong women role models while I was a
student at Saint Ben’s,” Amy sought out a
clerkship with Chief Judge Mary Schro-eder
on the Ninth Circuit of the U.S.
Court of Appeals. Chief Judge Schroeder
has had a “stratospheric career trajectory as
a pioneering, glass ceiling-breaking woman
in law … as the first female judge of the
largest circuit court in the country” and
Amy was positioned to make as much of
the opportunity as possible. In addition to
advising the chief judge on all the Ninth
Circuit en banc cases, she did extensive
work on immigration, criminal, constitu-tional
and environmental issues.
Now, Amy is starting the next phase of
her career with her decision to join Dorsey
& Whitney in Minneapolis as an associate
with the trial group. Her decision to return
to Minnesota surprised many people be-cause
she had other exciting job offers. But
she explained, “When I left for all these
great opportunities in the first place, it
was always with the idea that I would use
what I have learned and accomplished to
the benefit of a community that matters to
me. That community is Minnesota.”
Amy worked hard to earn all of these op-portunities.
Political Science Professor Phil
Kronebusch says that what set Amy apart
was “her first-rate intellect, her wicked
sense of humor, her passion to serve others
and her eagerness to develop the skills that
she would need to be successful.”
But Amy also had some role models. Peg
McGlinch ’95 and Emily Dahm ’97 came
before her as CSB Truman Scholars and, of
course, for the past year Amy has been able
to observe Chief Judge Mary Schroeder.
Other alumnae talk about the value of
knowing women who went before them.
Mary Gillen Fenske ’88 practiced law in
Washington D.C. for many years and cur-rently
teaches at William Mitchell School
of Law. She chose to attend Washington
College of Law at American University
because her management professor, Vir-ginia
Arthur, had gone there and highly
recommended it.
The most recent CSB alumna to be
appointed to the bench, Gina Serio Brandt
’88, credits Political Science Professor Kay
Wolsborn with instilling her with the be-lief
that she could pursue an endless variety
of opportunities with confidence.
Jacqueline Mrachek ’86, a partner at
Greene, Espel in Minneapolis and a Top
40 Super Lawyer honoree, has also put a
great deal of her energy into making law
a better career choice for women through
her many years of involvement – includ-ing
a term as president – with Minnesota
Women Lawyers. Her advice: “When you
hit obstacles, you have to keep in mind
that many women before you faced those
obstacles and pushed against them. You
need to persevere; you need to say, ‘I can
do this because she did it.’”
Jacqueline credits Judge Elizabeth
Hayden ’68 as being a trailblazer who led
through example. It continues to be, as
Amy puts it, “pretty rare but improving” to
see women at the highest level as judges, law
partners or elective policy-makers. But op-portunities
are vastly more open than when
Sandra Day O’Connor couldn’t get a job.
17
It’s a Matter of Degrees By Maureen Opitz
Amy Hertel ’99, left
Gina Serio Brandt ’88, right
18
The Decade Award honors a
10-year alumna who is outstanding in her
personal, professional and volunteer ac-complishments.
Ellen Hodges ���96 graduated cum laude
from the College of Saint Benedict in
1996. Like her sisters Pam and Elizabeth,
Ellen did not conclude her education
with a B.A. She went to medical school
at the University of Minnesota in Duluth
and went on to do a residency in family
medicine in Alaska. Since then she has
supplemented her education with training
in order to provide emergency surgical
obstetrical procedures.
For most of us who live in more popu-lated
areas, Ellen’s life is hard to imagine.
As a family practice doctor and director
of the OB department of the Yukon-Kus-kokwim
Health Corporation, she lives and
works in a community that can only be
reached by air. Her patients are primarily
Yupik (“you pick”) Alaskan natives who
come to her via airplane, boat or snow
machine. Her organization’s service area
is approximately the size of the state of
Oregon and much of the population lives
without running water. In Ellen’s words,
“The Yupik people are a resilient and
incredible people.” Ellen contributes to her
community by volunteering at the Tundra
Women’s Coalition, a domestic violence
shelter, as well as with the Teens Acting
against Violence program.
The Distinguished Award
honors an alumna for outstanding achieve-ments
in her chosen profession, having
made a lasting contribution and serving as
a role model for all alumnae. This alumna
also reflects the Christian ideals and mis-sion
of the College.
Michelle Lelwica ’86 graduated magna
cum laude from the College of Saint Bene-dict
20 years ago with a major in humani-ties
and a minor in theology. She went on
to earn both master’s and doctoral degrees
from Harvard Divinity School. Since
then she has been a professor of religious
studies and director of the women’s studies
department first at St. Mary’s College of
California and now at Concordia College
in Moorhead, Minn.
Michelle’s work has centered on the
topic of women’s troubled relationships
with their bodies in a culture that pressures
us to obsess about food and being thin.
Her current project is a book intended for
a wide audience — Loving the Body, Nour-ishing
the Spirit: Critiquing the Religion of
Thinness and the Commercial Culture that
Feeds It.
In her writing, teaching, volunteer work
and personal life, Michelle always looks
for ways to help develop whole people
— whom she defines as “individuals who
are capable of finding meaning in life by
taking individual responsibility for creating
a world in which everyone can flourish.”
Reunion Award Winners
The Benedictine Service
Award is given to an alumna whose
work demonstrates a commitment to
social justice or who contributes extraordi-nary
service as a volunteer. Lisa Peterson
Moschkau ’81 qualifies on all counts.
Lisa graduated 25 years ago with a degree
in nursing and became an oblate of Saint
Benedict’s Monastery.
Lisa’s professional nursing work has
been at the St. Cloud Surgical Center,
where she has assumed leadership roles
in quality management related to surgery
and anesthesia. Her passion, however,
has been to help the families of children
dealing with mental illness. She has gone
to extraordinary measures to make it easier
for children and families to get the support
and guidance they need to recover and
become strong community members.
The following is a partial list of Lisa’s
commitments to that goal: she is a parent
mentor, a volunteer for her community’s
suicide prevention program and has
organized a parent support group for four
Minnesota counties. In order to speak
more effectively on behalf of her cause,
Lisa has earned Toastmaster Certification.
She is a sought-after speaker for the United
Way of Central MN, a volunteer camp
nurse, sings in the church choir and leads
a women’s prayer group in her parish. She
is, in other words, a model of Benedictine
service.
19
Inspiring Women
Edit or’s Note : Sometimes it is easy to forget how much has changed for women in the
relatively recent past. Not that long ago, women did not hold prestigious university chairs, work
as electricians or fix their cars. They were also unlikely to travel to China to work on research
in analytical chemistry or Iran to speak at conferences. This section of the magazine celebrates
inspiring women who embrace new opportunities. Readers are welcome to suggest other inspiring
alumnae by contacting Maureen Opitz at mxopitz@csbsju.edu.
Noreen Herzfeld is a CSB/SJU professor of computer science and theology and director
of the CSB Koch Chair in Catholic Thought and Culture. Early this summer she attended
a conference on the confluence of science and religion at an unexpected conference site
— Tehran, Iran. Because, as she
put it, “My red hair and blue
eyes — and the way my heads-carf
kept sliding off my head
— marked me as a westerner,”
she was able to have many
conversations with Iranians
about the relationship between
the United States and Iran. The
general consensus was that the
people of both countries are not
represented by the strong words
of their leaders.
Kat Fleischhacker ’06 works
as a master electrician and light-ing
designer at Barrington Stage
Company in the Berkshires. Her
next job will be for Carnival
Cruise Line as the lighting tech
aboard the ship Destiny. Kat
was a theater major and worked
as the master electrician for Fine
Arts Programming. She also can
do both mechanical and restora-tion
work on cars. Kat may be
the only CSB alum who owns a
Model T.
Keely and Krista Sacry ’07 are seniors from Whitehall, Mont. As a chemistry major,
Keely spent the early summer in China doing analytical research on cucumber biolumi-nescence.
She returned to campus with her lab partner, Lin Xi, to work on an organic
synthesis project. Keely is considering optometry as a profession. Her twin sister Krista,
a bio-chemistry major, plans to be a dentist and spent her summer working with an oral
surgeon in Savage, Minn. The Sacrys are fixtures at the fitness center and also participate in
intramural basketball and volleyball. Both volunteered in an Australian basketball program
for native Australians.
Rosemary Lambert ’90 was named the Grand Prize winner of the 2006 Coca-Cola
Refreshing Filmmaker’s Award for her film “The Reel Monkey.” When Rosie, who works
as freelance shooting and Web site editor for CBS television, won this award, she shared
the stage with Hugh Jackman, Vince Vaughn, Natalie Portman and M. Night Shyamalan.
Her film will be sent to 21,000 theaters nationwide and, because there is no dialogue and
therefore no language barrier in the film, it also will be distributed internationally.
Nominees for
Reunion 2006
Congratulations to all of the
Reunion Award nominees for
being an inspiration to everyone.
Benedictine Service Award
Philippa Gleason Lindquist 1956
Mary Frank Thomas 1961
Laurie Fuerstenberg 1981
Lisa Peterson Moschkau 1981
Patricia Weber Gersch 1986
Cheryl Zabel 1986
Decade Award
Alexis Brunner Puerta 1996
Sheila Eldred 1996
Ellen Guertin Sweetman 1996
Ellen Hodges 1996
Distinguished
Alumna Award
Virginia Lyon 1946
Elizabeth Anderson Hartle 1956
Mary Kay Ketter Carle 1961
Mary Garrity Logeland 1966
Barbara Jacobson 1971
Sharon Hall 1976
Patricia VanDenBroeke 1976
Barbara Edwards Farley 1981
Monica Gross 1986
Amy Kuebelbeck 1986
Michelle Lelwica 1986
Jacqueline Mrachek 1986
Kat Fleischhacker ’06
20
The expanded and renewed Benedicta
Arts Center of the College of Saint Benedict
represents a dramatic step toward a new era
in arts education. Now, plans are under way
for a major new initiative that will maxi-mize
its potential.
The Center for the Arts represents a new
model for the integration of arts education
within the liberal arts tradition, said Presi-dent
MaryAnn Baenninger. It will serve as
a locus for all curricular and co-curricular
programs in the arts, thereby enabling CSB
to better leverage existing programs in the
fine and performing arts and to maintain its
leading role in the arts among undergradu-ate
colleges, she said.
“Effective leadership requires bold initia-tives
and creative thinking. The Center for
the Arts allows us to envision the visual,
performing, and literary arts in new ways to
prepare our students for new challenges.
“More and more educators are beginning
to recognize that, without an education in
the arts, students will develop only half a
brain,” she said.
“Creativity fosters thinking beyond
conventional boundaries, but
creativity combined with
the rigor of artistic disciplines
prepares students for the
demands of globalization.”
At the College of Saint
Benedict, educators recognize
A New Era in
that the arts encourage collaboration, and
demand understanding of people and of
the compelling issues that affect them; the
arts require critical thinking and problem
solving. The end result is the realization that
art – like other critical endeavors – exists for
public as well as individual good.
The benefits of the Center for the Arts
will extend beyond the campus, said Stuart
Lang, vice president for institutional ad-vancement.
The center will engage students,
faculty, staff and the broader community in
interdisciplinary collaborations, stimulate
new intellectual and creative connections,
and create insights to further the common
good.
“The Center for the Arts is a priority goal
of our capital campaign, ‘Our Place in the
World: A Campaign to Inspire and Trans-form.’
The arts support our global focus,
because they are central to understanding
our own culture and the cultures of people
throughout the world,” Lang said.
Rita Knuesel, interim provost, said the
By Glen da Isaacs Burges on
Arts educati on
arts can help students understand their
place in the world. “The arts are a vehicle
for communicating across cultures. Our stu-dents
experience the literature, music, and
arts of many cultures in their classes and
through study abroad. The center will help
us to bring artists, scholars and performers
from around the world to our campus here
in Central Minnesota,” she said.
The strength of a college is measured
by many indicators – the quality of its
students, faculty and staff, its facilities,
its curriculum, co-curricula activities and
programming, and the engagement of its
alumnae, Baenninger noted.
“At the College of Saint Benedict, we set
high standards and expectations and we
strive to meet those everyday. We are excited
about our direction in arts education and
we invite our alumnae to join us in achiev-ing
our goals, as patrons of our fine arts
programming, as mentors to our students
and as active members of our community.
“We value dialogue and feedback and
we look forward to hearing from our loyal
alumnae.”
Alumnae News & Notes
College of Saint Benedict Alumnae Association
By Laura Kelly Lovdahl ’85
The Alumnae Association of the College of Saint Benedict
has existed, in some fashion, since the early years of the college
— that’s nearly 90 years of women supporting the dreams and
aspirations of other women — and that is amazing! The Associa-tion
today represents more than 17,000 women, degreed and
non-degreed, who have
experienced and benefited
from the Benedictine tradi-tion
of work, prayer and
educational excellence.
Representing this larger
group are 31 dedicated
and enthusiastic women
who volunteer to serve on
the Alumnae Council. I
want to thank the women
whose terms concluded
this summer for their good
service to the College, and I wish you well in your future endeav-ors.
This fall, 12 women representing various decades joined the
Council to help us fulfill our mission as a liaison to the College on
behalf of our alumnae sisters, to
share information and provide
opportunities to enhance our
connections to Saint Ben’s and
to one another. As president
of the Council, I also serve on
the CSB Board of Trustees, a
position which recently changed
from an “ex-officio” role to a
“voting” member of the Board.
This change underscores the
value and importance of the
alumnae voice to the College. Our opinions are sought and our
voices are heard.
The desire for greater involvement of alumnae can be traced
directly to the vision of our college president as CSB assumes a
more national presence in the world of higher education. For those
who have not had the pleasure of meeting President MaryAnn
Baenninger, she is a woman of remarkable talent, energy and
tireless enthusiasm for Saint Ben’s! We are truly blessed to have
her as an active advocate on behalf of CSB and women’s private,
Catholic, liberal arts education. I encourage you to take advantage
21
of opportunities to hear her speak – you will be inspired!
The tradition of supporting and connecting women through the
Alumnae Council has been served by 39 past Alumnae Coun-cil
presidents. Last spring, the College invited the 25 surviving
members of this distinguished group to a reception preceding the
annual President’s Circle Dinner at Interlachen Coun-try
Club. Ten past presidents were able to join us, and
we were honored by the presence of Lucille Malone
Hittner ’34 and Kathryn (Kay) O’Rourke Brinkman
’39! These influential women have continued to serve
Saint Ben’s over the years in big and small ways. They
are tremendous role models to all of us, and we thank
them for their service.
As members of the Alumnae Association, whether
you are
a recent
graduate or
a woman
celebrating a
Golden Re-union
year,
you have a
role to play
on behalf
of Saint
Ben’s! Share
your own
Saint Ben’s experiences with a young woman you know
(a daughter, granddaughter, niece, baby-sitter, a teenager
at your church); introduce yourself to someone you see
wearing the Saint Ben’s logo and make a new connection;
wear your own Saint Ben’s logo sweatshirt with pride;
and support the Annual Fund and our current students
every year. In addition, I invite you to share with us your thoughts
and ideas for making and enhancing the connections between the
College and alumnae. To do so, please contact Kristin Darnall,
director of Alumnae Relations, at kdarnall@csbsju.edu or call toll-free
1-800-648-3468, extension 2. This is your Association and we
value your input.
During this season of harvest and thanksgiving, I wish you
peace.
YearFirst NameLast NameHome E-mail Addres
1991 Bobbi Beavers Dunbar bobbidunbar@yahoo.com
1991 Janel Halverson Goff janel.m.goff@pjc.com
1991 Margaret Schueller May megamay@comcast.net
1991 Michelle Tode Stenbeck mstenbeck@allina.com
1992 Karen Moehrle Herrera karsecadex@comcast.net
1993 Tonya McNamara Dolezal tonyadolezal@yahoo.com
1994 AnnMarie Paulukonis Johnson annmarie@new.rr.com
1995 Elizabeth Morris Otto liz@modernstorytellers.com
1996 Saundra Scheidt Snobl snoblchs@frontiernet.net
1997 Amy Foell Wojciechowski awojo@comcast.net
1998 Sarah Oberpriller Damm s@dammcreative.com
1999 Anne Rohe anne.rohe@minnetonka.k12.mn.us
1999 Melissa Sheehan Rott rott.melissa@mayo.edu
2000 Michelle Gricus mrgricus@yahoo.com
2001 Rebecca Larson Gierok rebecca_gierok@hotmail.com
2001 Leah Lindner leah.morris@genmills.com
2002 Sarah Miller sarah.miller@target.com
2002 Rebecca Weber RebeccaWeber65@hotmail.com
2002 Katina Wood Wynn katina.wynn@target.com
2003 Amanda Kelly askelly15@yahoo.com
2003 Theresa Bauer tabauer@fastmail.fm
2003 Darcie Waldvogel dwaldvogel@csbsju.edu
2004 Jasna Burza Jasna_burza@hotmail.com
2004 Courtney Drake drakeca@hotmail.com
2004 Sarah Gillis sagillis@uwm.edu
2004 Susan Matthees sjmatthees@yahoo.com
2004 Hoa Nguyen fiction62@hotmail.com
2004 Kathryn Schmucker Kate.Schmucker@mail.house.gov
2004 Jacquelyn Zitek jacquelyn_zitek@hotmail.com
2004 Megan Baxter galwaygirl82@hotmail.com
2004 Anne Sawyer anne_sawyer@comcast.net
2005 Lisa Bernardy lmbernardy@yahoo.com
2005 Caroline Frigault curlycaroline22@hotmail.com
2005 Jessica Guentzel jessicaguentzel@hotmail.com
2005 Bethany Heinzen bobkat17@hotmail.com
2005 Kristin Hunter hunterkd@gmail.com
2005 Christina Hylden
2005 Maureen Ringlein mringlein@hotmail.com
2005 Tiffany Taylor taylor.tiff@gmail.com
2005 Autumn Wolf autumnwolf@hotmail.com
2005 Briana Zenzen briana_zenzen@hotmail.com
2006 Kari Bruns krbruns06@yahoo.com
2006 Heather Cherpelis hmcherpelis@gmail.com
2006 Suzanne Conlin
2006 Rebecca Gillis rlgillis@gmail.com
2006 Jennifer Gorrell jennifer.gorrell@gmail.com
2006 Nicolette Ney nicolette.ney@gmail.com
2006 Leslie Pesarchick leslie.pesarchick@gmail.com
2006 Amy Rada
2006 Corrine Schmidt corrie_schmidt@hotmail.com
2006 Lindsey Smith LindseyL.Smith@gmail.com
22
CLASS NOTES
1942
Mary Lou Reilly Merickel will attempt to walk
with all 9 of her daughters, 4 of whom are also
Bennies, in the Breast Cancer 3-Day walk in San
Diego this fall. Each of them paid their expenses
plus promised to raise at least $2,200 apiece. It is
certainly a journey unlike any others. Two of her
daughters are cancer survivors, one battled breast
cancer and another colon cancer.
1947
Ann Rose Notermann Dietz wrote poignantly
of her sister, Elizabeth Notermann Fink, who died in
Dec. ’05. Elizabeth, a graduate of Saint Benedict’s
H.S. in ’35, went into a nursing career. Among Ann
Rose’s memories was the Christmas season when
Georgia Vern Schmidt and her mother brought a
Christmas tree to the rehearsal room where music
majors had some classes. The fragrant beautifully
decorated tree made music classes even more
delightful.
S. Luke Hoschette, OSB, of Ogden, UT, wrote of
an August day when she and Mary Heaton Gietzen
met in Richardton, ND, and had a glorious fun, 2
½-hour visit, looking at old yearbooks, laughing, and
recalling the wonderful experience that college days
really were.” Both S. Luke and Mary send special
warm greetings to all former classmates.
Marion Linneman tells of the Elderhostel at CSB
where she enjoyed the poetry class and the creativ-ity
of writing poems. A class on Australia with “stay
awake” lecturers and gorgeous pictures added to
her enthusiasm. Her second June event at CSB was
Reunion where the Class of ’46 “adopted” Marion.
Her Friday experience was visiting Saint Scho-lastica’s
in St. Cloud, where she conversed with
our former, now aged, retired teachers — Sisters
Firmin, Enid, Kristen Malloy and Margretta — the
latter whose sprightliness at age 93 Marion found
remarkable, even though S. Margretta is legally
blind. Another highlight was a re-enactment of
the Pageant, an event so special in our days there,
as was Compline, which the alumnae said during
reunion. Marion urges our class of ’47 to remember
that we in our 60th year since graduation will be
one of those classes honored at Homecoming in
2007.
Honor O’Connell Hacker notes that in Lakeview
Alumnae News & Notes
Class Representatives
YearFirst NameLast NameHome E-mail Address
1941 Margaret Hoffmann Clasby
1944 Andre Marthaler amarthaler@csbsju.edu
1945 Rosemary Gauer Menard
1947 Mary Lou Mamer Williams mlwillivy@aol.com
1948 Eileen Opatz Berger gebergers@aol.com
1949 Helen Diemert
1950 Eleanor Bohlen McHale pmchale2@cox.net
1951 Dorothea McPharlin Bemrick bemri002@tc.umn.edu
1952 Ludmila Padrnos Voelker LVOELKER@stcloudstate.edu
1955 Ann Corless anncorless@cox.net
1956 Betty Sullivan Haas dickandbettyhaas@usfamily.net
1957 Suzanne Welch Dachel Rdachel@aol.com
1957 Mary McCullough Novak
1959 Patricia Schlegel Daly pddaly@comcast.net
1959 LaVonne Schnieder O’Connor billavon@frontiernet.net
1960 Arlene Inderrieden Opstad mopstad@aol.com
1960 Patricia Rarick Seabright pseabright@earthlink.net
1961 DiAnn Tintes Vinck ddvinck@hotmail.com
1962 Mary Muchlinski Kelly marymonica90@hotmail.com
1962 Jane Rohlik Koenig JKOENIG@mn.rr.com
1963 Sharon Otten McVary
1964 Joan Strom Riebel j.riebel@comcast.net
1965 Carol Landkamer Clandkamer@cs.com
1966 Margaret Murray Ernste mcernste@yahoo.com
1966 Carol Lang Lura
1967 Yvette Lebrun Krech ykrech@yahoo.com
1968 Susan Ford Clausen clausensue@hotmail.com
1970 Elizabeth Grant Frerich lizgf21@hotmail.com
1970 Linda Hutchinson linda@haha-team.com
1972 Carol Campbell Schaffer
1973 Kathleen Domino Ohman kohman@csbsju.edu
1975 Nancy Sauer Kaczrowski kacz@iw.net
1976 Beth Garin Tomlinson bethtom_54@hotmail.com
1977 Kathi Beavers Rivard katiedid@mn.rr.com
1978 Mary Buley mbuley@mn.rr.com
1979 Carol Bishop caroljbishop@mn.rr.com
1980 Jeanne Daly McIntee jeannemcintee@comcast.net
1981 Colleen Lilly Lil2000@aol.com
1982 Mary Jane Rohe Kalina dkalina@mn.rr.com
1983 Lorene Morton Culberson lculberson@stapostle.org
1984 Megan Haas Adam adammeg@usfamily.net
1984 Suzette Sutherland sesuthrlnd@aol.com
1986 Teri Weller Durbin tdurbin@csbsju.edu
1986 Patricia Keffeler Gruenke patgruenke@cloudnet.com
1987 Catherine Walsh Kautz
1988 Diane Paulson Swanson dswanson@northcottbanner.com
1989 Lisa Pettitt pettitt_lisa@yahoo.com
1989 Robyn Corcoran Wallner Robyn.Wallner@wellsfargo.com
1990 Lisa Murphy lmurphy@ahastars.org
23
Commons, her home in a complex for seniors, she
helps out in the Memory Care Unit with Alzheimer
patients. Honor also helped organize a regular
ecumenical service in which all faiths pray together.
She describes it as a lovely service, adding there
are also Catholic services.
CSB Alumnae of the Class of ’47 from the Twin
Cities and St. Cloud area annually meet for lunch
on the 4th Thursday of August at Russells in St.
Michael’s, MN. Any out-of-state ’47 classmates
visiting MN are especially welcome. If your MN visit
is at another time, Mary Lou Mamer Williams
(651)-688-9596 will be glad to get a group together
to meet you for lunch.
1949
I’ve been in the process of moving into a seniors’
residence. With great difficulty I am trying to reduce
my possessions and organize this new apartment
for functionality. My new address is downtown in
Calgary where I can enjoy an environment of both
urban conveniences and lovely parks along the river.
I have a scooter and a good neighbor who “scoots”
with me. This is luxurious living with 3 meals
every day, laundry services, weekly housekeeping
and many other amenities. Eau Claire Retirement
Residence has its own bus which takes us on ex-cursions,
medical appointments and other errands. I
can accommodate guests and hope to be visited by
friends from Saint Ben’s. My new address is: Helen
Diemert, Apt. 613, 301 7th St. S.W., Calgary, AB,
Canada, T2P 1Y6, Tel 403 247 1018.
My sister Lila Diemert McDermott ’50 had a
stroke on February 14. Someone from the college
found her when she didn’t show up for her class.
She is recuperating quite well with a live-in care-giver.
Her 5 children from distant locations rallied
quickly in pairs and later singly to be there for her in
Santa Rosa. Lila has many friends who have been
kind and helpful. Her address is: Lila McDermott,
160 Dorchester Court, Santa Rosa, CA, 95403-1716,
Tel (707) 544-8440.
1950
Barbara Coy McGinnis continues her travels
around the world. Earlier this year she and 14
friends and relatives ages 10-80 went to Italy and
made their headquarters north of Rome in a place
with 7 bathrooms, then took day trips out of there
to surrounding sights. She said it was probably the
best trip she has ever taken since the first time she
went to Italy. Gives us hope, doesn’t it?
I talked to Phyllis Foley Johnson. She is still
the community chorus director, and still directs the
parish choir, which is the only real “choir” in her
diocese. The old ones just aren’t being replaced by
the younger members of the church.
I have had my share of ups and downs — the
latest is complications from glaucoma surgery.
So far, it hasn’t kept me down. Our band is going
strong — we call ourselves the 20-year overnight
sensation. Other bands are looking for work, and we
are trying to turn down jobs! One of our best gigs is
playing for 2 jazz services at the big Scandinavian
Lutheran church here in Omaha, and they love us!
After these jazz services, the church also has an
outreach picnic for people in the area. The first time
I sat opposite someone with brass knuckles, it gave
me pause for thought.
Please — if you have news, send it. Everyone is
anxious to hear about what we old grads are doing,
can do, and are expected to do!
Eleanor McHale (402) 551-8070
pmchale2@cox.net
1951
Dear Classmates:
Mary Ann Peffer Hagan had a medical emer-gency
and was not able to make it to the reunion as
planned. Maybe we can try to plan for the 60th! It’s
time that the Twin City gals plan a get-together, so if
you are interested please let me know.
Dorothea (Dody) McPharlin Bemrick
2217 Scudder St. St., Paul, MN 55108
bemri002@tc.umn.edu
1952
Evelyn Keefe Sexson surprised me with a phone
call on July 29 when she was in St. Cloud to see her
grandson play baseball in a tournament. His team
won the All Star Championship in Colorado and
came to Minnesota with his 11-and-younger team.
Another grandson was bat boy. Evelyn has retired
from her work in the Weskan, Kansas post office.
I told Evie I have been retired for 16 years, so she
has a lot of catching up to do.
I talked to Mary Anne Noehring Boos. She will
be directing Fiddler on the Roof this fall, the latest in
a long string of musical productions she has been
involved in. She is still accompanying “her Italian
tenor,” a splendid singer who was her inspiration
for a trip to Italy earlier. Mary Anne has had trips to
New York and Chicago recently. Her husband, Roger,
has had some health issues, but Mary Anne is feel-ing
fine and has started golfing.
Barb Pluth Thomes wrote a note: “I’ve been
retired from Catholic Charities for over 10 years,
and if you would ask me what I’ve been doing it
would be difficult to summarize. I spread myself
around to our 6 children, 10 grandchildren and 2
great-grandchildren. But my biggest commitment
is to my husband, Ray, who has quite a few health
issues and is now dealing with low vision problems.
He continues to be involved in many things — goes
to the insurance office every morning, then goes to
the bail bond office (a business he started several
years ago) for the afternoon, and travels around the
state for PIA (Professional Insurance Association) as
a PR person calling on small insurance agencies.
This keeps me hopping because I have to plan the
routes, map out where the agencies are, do the
driving and make notations after every visit. Outside
of that, I garden, read, do some art work, travel and
exercise. Ray and I attend daily Mass which is so
nourishing. Life is so full. There is never enough
time to do all that it offers. I do believe I will have to
return a second time to fit it all in.”
We see Bette Boyer Harthman and her hus-band,
Fred, each summer. They live in Sarasota, FL,
in the winter and come to their home at Cold Spring
when the weather gets warm in Minnesota.
I (Mil Padrnos Voelker) am at the computer
several hours a day working on a book that Fran
and I started in 2003. It will be The History of Big
Birch Lake when we are finished. Fran has had
some health problems for the past couple of years
and we weren’t able to work on the book. Now that
he is better, we���ve even set a date of early 2007
for publication. We sold our cabin at Big Birch last
year, so writing about the lake is “almost as good as
being there,” to sort of quote Yogi Berra!
It’s time to start thinking about our 55th reunion in
2007. Put the date of June 22-24 on your calendar!
I plan to be there. I hope you will be there too.
1955
More good news from S. Nancy Hynes. She is
now cancer-free, has 2 new hips, and is busy work-ing
on a book about MN writer, J.F. Powers, which
she hopes to publish next year.
Rom MacKenzie Thielman continues to keep ac-tive
with the North Dakota Association of the Blind
by attending an annual summer camp where she
teaches a class on Effective Communication. She
also attended her 55th high school class reunion
this year. Bet some of you did the same.
Some Bennies are building — Marilyn Yunker
Murray reports that they are adding on to their
current house to make it more “user-friendly” for
her. Shirley Marcks Batchelder will be moving to a
lot they purchased on Lake Bemidji last year. Shirley
is now wearing a uniform! She and Batch are
volunteer deputy sheriffs for their county. Bennies
are capable of anything!
Bernadette Kraemer Stein didn’t have such a good
year as she underwent major colon surgery in May.
Thankfully, it was done in time to prevent cancer
from developing. It’s a reminder that, at our age, we
need frequent checkups.
Maureen Griffin Miller reports they did some
traveling in the Northwest this past summer, which
included a 50th wedding anniversary. But her main
news is that they have a new grandson in Austin,
TX, born to son Peter.
Mary Schnettler Kolofsky has no special news, but
says hello to all classmates from Massachusetts.
I recently contacted Patricia Pung and Velma
Smith Brown via the old-fashioned telephone. Both
keep very busy. Pat enjoys going to Elderhostels
and attended one in Charleston this year.
That leaves me and Mary Krom Hebert. Naturally,
we travel. I think Mary beat me this year though
with trips to Berlin, Kauai, Prague and Hong Kong
(this November). I did Guatemala & Honduras,
Spain & Morocco, and a boat trip in the Ukraine in
September, one of the very few areas in Europe we
haven’t been to. And while many of you were suffer-ing
through the nation’s heat wave this summer, we
were relatively cool down here in Southern AZ. For
us, many days of 100+ are no big deal. Everyone
jokes about the “dry” heat, but it really makes a big
difference!
Now that I know what the college’s publication
schedule is, I will try to contact you for the May is-sue
as far in advance as possible. In the meantime,
Alumnae News & Notes
Remembering our History
A Conversation with S. Firmin Escher, OSB
recognizing and appreciating the contributions of the
Sisters of the Order of Saint Benedict
Born near Dumont, Minn., in 1915, S. Firmin Escher entered the novitiate of Saint
Benedict’s Monastery at the age of 15, while attending Saint Benedict Academy. The
example of her elementary Benedictine teachers and her older sister, S. Wilma, as
well as the inspiration of Saint Theresa Lisieaux’s canonization influenced her call to
religious life. During her years of service to the College of Saint Benedict, S. Firmin
filled many roles including music teacher, academic dean, director of planning and
dean of fine arts.
As a music teacher, S. Firmin strove to teach her students a love of the arts through
understanding and performance. “I was always concerned that they would not
use their God-given gifts or recognize the opportunities to develop those talents,”
she said. “I wanted them to build a repertoire that would serve as a foundation for
further development and enjoyment beyond the classroom years.”
S. Firmin brought that same determination to her work as academic dean, where
she worked to develop a strong curriculum and engage a well-trained faculty who
“were prepared to teach our students to thrive on the challenges of learning.” She
added, “I have always been open to learning and growing through the grace of God.”
The Benedicta Arts Center holds a special place in S. Firmin’s heart. Appointed to
the BAC Building Committee in 1959, she enjoyed the privilege of working with the
architect, Curtis Green. “It was a very meaningful experience for me,” she said.
Since retiring in 1990, she has spent much of her time playing violin and learning
to love life and “be” rather than “do.” She attends community prayer services and
focuses on lectio (very slow, meditative readings of the Gospel). Although the loss of
her eyesight makes this a challenge, S. Firmin said, “I listen very carefully and try to
apply the Scripture to my life in my community. The most important thing in my life
now is my prayer ministry. I say this prayer frequently, ‘Take courage, be strong, and
trust in the Lord.’ And I hear His words often, ‘I am with you, I love you, trust in me.’”
S. Firmin Escher can be contacted at Saint Scholastica Convent, 1845 20th Avenue
Southeast, Saint Cloud, MN 56304.
24
please drop me a note when you have something to
report. Ann Monteski Corless, anncorless@cox.net
1956
Dear Classmates,
I’ve been putting off writing this because I can’t
possibly do justice in “reporting” details of our 50th
Reunion. It was a wonderful, nostalgic weekend
with a total of 34 class members attending all or
part of the weekend. I think the detail that thrilled
me the most was that 12 of the 34 attended CSB
only 1 or 2 years. The Friday night banquet, with our
class as honored guests, was the highlight of the
Reunion. Philippa Gleason Lindquist and Mary
Kay Braus Hunt “edited” the Pageant, condens-ing
it into a 20-minute production and keeping its
full meaning and significance. Christine Gruenes
Maul played the familiar music of the Pageant,
and S. Roberta Werner followed Helen Hasling
Verkuilen’s reading of the script by showing slides
of the Pageant. Committee members comprised the
chorus. (Do you remember the Barbarians’ fierce
“We are the Franks and the Teutons, the Huns and
the Terrible Gauls. We are the Picts and the Britons,
and the wild to our Wild Blood Calls.”?) All who at-tended
the banquet had a copy of the program with
the Loyalty Song on the back. We closed with that.
I’m sure many of us remember singing that as we
waited to receive our “torches of learning.”
The only negative factor was that so many of you
couldn’t join us. Maybe some of you will be able to
attend our 55th in 2011.
The college has a big “thank you” for our class.
Forty-one of us gave a total of $5746.56 to the
Reunion Scholarship Fund. Your generous response
to my frequent reminders is much appreciated by
the college and students.
Many of us at our reunion have health problems
and know of several other classmates who would
appreciate our prayers for their problems. My
wish for all of you is that your health allows you
many more years of productive life. Write, call or
e-mail me with anything you���d like to share. Peace
and love, Betty Ann Sullivan Haas, 952-938-
9694, 4701 Caribou Dr., Minnetonka, MN 55345.
dickandbettyhaas@usfamily.net.
1961
Dear Classmates:
By now you should have received the “Memories
and Life Journeys” booklet comprised of informa-tion
classmates shared for our 45th Class Reunion.
What a talented, energetic, accomplished group of
women we are! Responses received from class-mates
unable to attend reunion were most positive;
they appreciated the updates and thoughts of their
friends made while at CSB. And, for those of us
fortunate to attend Reunion — what a special time
we had! First time Reunion attendees, Luz Connie
Latorre DeCastilla coming from Bogota, Colombia,
and Pauline Bernhardt Gerhart from Sioux Falls,
SD, were pleased at the warm, loving welcome.
Missed in our Booklet was Mary Jane Brown
Laufenberg who is living in Moraga, CA, after
spending 2 years in Malaya (Peace Corp) and
Alumnae News & Notes
25
living in Las Vegas and Honolulu while working
with Western Airlines. She received her MBA from
Pepperdine University while living in Honolulu. Mary
Jane has had various banking positions at Wells
Fargo Bank and Citibank. At age 56 she married
Rich Laufenberg and now has 2 stepchildren and 5
grandchildren. All the grandbabies are girls under
the age of 6. She states, “I really love this job!” She
and Rich are both retired and besides enjoying fam-ily/
visitors they travel and volunteer.
Kippy Manuel Stuhr’s correspondence with Lee
Reuter Klimisch tells of her busy life with family
events and a reunion thus missing our Reunion
but stated she’d “be there in spirit.” Kippy lives
in Eden Prairie, MN, and is now studying QiGong.
She is presently certified in Therapeutic Touch and
Reike. Lee Klimisch also shared that her sister, S.
Evangeline, OSB, went to her Eternal Reward just
days after our Reunion.
Mary Frank Thomas’ contact with classmates
prior to reunion brought these reponses:
Mary Zenzen, OSB, is prioress at Mt. Benedict
Monastery in Ogden, UT.
Pat Schmidt Mische is on sabbatical from
Antioch College in Ohio where she teaches full-time
Peace Studies. While on sabbatical she teaches
part-time in Greenbelt, MD.
Mary Thomas attended the Monastic Institute at
SJU in July.
Let’s keep in touch. Share your news and
updates with me and I’ll pass them along to
classmates.
DiAnn Tintes Vinck
ddvinck@hotmail.com
16752 County Hwy. 00
Chippewa Falls, WI 54729
1965
Greetings to all of you! I send wishes to you that
health, comfort and enjoyment accompany you
through that march.
Many of you responded to my July plea for news
and notes for this edition. Thanks so much! As I
have mentioned in the past, it is always such fun to
hear from you and pass on your life events. Please
consider sending news regularly, especially if you
have never done so in the past. As we head more
and more into the age of electronic communication
our sharing of information is made easier. That
having been said, I want to encourage you to utilize
the CSB/SJU Online Community. This is a marvelous
tool by which you can update your profile, search
for friends, and let the CSB/SJU community know
all about the important events of your lives.
I think it is noteworthy that many classmates have
written about a recent death in the family,
particularly the death of one or both parents.
Knowing that we can expect such events do not
preclude the sadness and sense of loss. Kaa
Rothstein Steil wrote to me about her “ever so
young” mother who, at 89, passed away on June
20, 2006, of acute smoldering leukemia. Kaa noted
that her mother lived the last few months of her life
courageously and uncomplainingly, loved and
admired by all who came in contact with her. To
Kaa, and to all who have recently lost someone
close, I send my deepest sympathy. My thoughts
and prayers are with you.
Kaa had other news as well. Her husband Dave is
currently running for a 6th term as Pennsylvania
state legislator for the 31st district���and she is now
retired.
Another poignant note came from Jeanette
Blonigen Clancy who lost her dear brother Fr. Al
Blonigen. Jeanette described her brother as an
extraordinarily creative, energetic and generous
man who had an extraordinary impact on people.
She received condolence messages from Germany,
Ireland and South Africa as well as from all points in
the United States. “His death is still shocking,” says
Jeanette, “and I’ll live with regrets for the rest of my
life.”
Margaret Sullivan also wrote of much sadness
coupled with the joy of returning to Minnesota. Her
message read: “Our move back to MN has been
filled with both joy and incredible sadness. We love
being close to children and grandchildren. To be
able to have casual lunches and walks around Lake
Calhoun has filled many days with delight. The
sadness comes from the deaths of our mothers.
Jay’s mother passed away on February 1st, just two
months after our return. She had been failing for
some time but went on a very rapid decline the end
of January. She was 89 and a very wonderful, loving
mother. My mother was really in much better health
and so I really had expected to have a few years to
enjoy her company. We spent Easter weekend with
her and she was still reciting poetry. She loved
Robert Frost and Carl Sandberg. She had learned to
love poetry from her years in college at Saint Ben’s
and spoke of those years with fond memories until
the end. The Sunday after Easter she had a massive
stroke and lived just 3 days. There are not words to
explain this tremendous loss. She missed being 90
by just a few weeks.” This ended Margaret’s
message to me but she also included her mother’s
obituary, which beautifully described this
extraordinary woman.
Both mothers were also lost to Marge Molacek
Morrissette and her husband. Marge noted that
both women were experiencing failing health but
that her own mother’s death was more sudden
since she and Marge’s dad had been living very
independently in their own home. “In both
instances,” Marge said, “we were able to be with
our moms when they died and feel very fortunate
for that blessing.” Marge goes on to say: “My other
news is much happier! Both our sons are planning
weddings during the next several months, Chris
(SJU ’99) on October 28 and Steve (SJU ’02) on July
27, 2007.” At the time she wrote this Marge said
they were headed north for a week of rest and
relaxation at the lake with daughters and their
families. “It’s an annual event that everyone
anticipates each year and adds significantly to
those grandchild memories.” Who of us can’t relate
to that!
Speaking of annual events, Louise Langenberg
Smith wrote to say that Marian Zeiner Henderson,
Jane Hertel Campbell, Mary Breiter Nolan and
she are off again to share a cabin in Itasca State
Park for 4 days. This group has been getting
together for approximately 10 years and always
“hoists one to our best buddy MIA Joyce Miller
Kloubec.” They have also compiled a cookbook,
dedicated to Joyce, and issue a copy to each one of
their children when they get married. “It keeps
those traditions going,” says Louise. Louise also
reported that in April she was invited to spend 10
days at a nutrition conference at Oxford in the UK
where the experience was super as the participants
were a limited number and it was an international
symposium. But back to Lake Itasca! In answer to
my question about where Louise and friends stay,
she wrote, “We waddle down to Douglas Lodge a
couple of nights to slurp up a malt. We actually rent
one of the cabins and split the cost. Marian and I
pack our parkas and LL Bean thinsulate socks so
we can bunk in the same quarters with Mary and
Jane who prefer subzero temperatures and then
add a FAN…really!!!! It works!”
Judy Haberman Diemer sent greetings to all of us
and wrote: “I finally touched base with many of you
at the CSB reunion in 2005. The decision to go was
a hard one, as I did not graduate with you and didn’t
think a reunion pertained to me. But with the persis-tence
and encouragement of Carol Landkamer, my
2nd year roommate, I decided to come. I was in a
position of caregiving for my dad and almost had to
cancel. I am glad I had the chance to visit with
many of you and find out where you are and what
you’ve become since Saint Ben’s. Since then I have
gotten together with several of you again. To meet
again and have a chance to reform friendships is
quite a treasure to me.” Judy goes on to say that
she married her high school sweetheart in 1964
Alumnae in the Arts
Watch for these alumnae writers’ new books:
• Judith Healey’s ’61 second novel featuring
Alais Capet, St. John’s Cup, will be published
soon. Sisters Emmanuel Renner and Colman
O’Connell have read an earlier draft and
believe that it is even better that Judy’s first
novel in the series, The Canterbury Papers,
published by William Morrow.
• Yuko Taniguchi’s ’98 novel The Ocean in
the Closet is based on the real stories of the
children of Japanese women and foreign sol-diers
during the occupational period in Japan
post World War II. Coffeehouse Press plans to
release it in May 2007.
• Sandy Longhorn’s ’93 recently published
book Blood Almanac explores, as one reviewer
states, “the weather-driven lives of rural
Iowans: The owners of drought-starved farms;
the faithful survivors set down gently by the
twister; the ‘I,’ driven, finally, a thousand miles
away from a landscape that allows one to see
too far.”
Alumnae News & Notes
2006 CSB Alumnae Reunion
26
and then raised 4 children who have become very
independent. Her oldest daughter is married and
lives in Melbourne, Australia, two sons live in AK and
her other daughter lives in Lindstrom, MN. Judy
notes that visiting her children makes for GREAT
vacations!!! In 1993 Judy was divorced and lived in
MO until 2004 when she moved back to her
parents’ home in Heron Lake, MN in order to be
their caregiver and household manager. But things
changed again: Judy’s mom now lives in a nursing
home and, like many others in our class, she lost
her father in September, 2005. Judy says, “I will be
moving in 2007, to an unknown destination as of
this writing. As in most cases, in stories of our lives,
the ‘meat’ of the story is what went on between the
lines!”
Change was in store for Patsy Aksteter Pierson as
well. She and her husband have recently sold their
Eden Prairie home in which they had lived for 33
years, and moved to a small condo in Chanhassen,
MN. Then she and Lee both retired! Patsy said, “I
was with the Eden Prairie school in the Special Ed
Department for 25 years. I have mixed feelings
about leaving my beloved job and friends but think
it was the right time.” She went on to say that they
are spending a lot of summer time at their little RV
cabin at Carefree Country Club in Big Lake, MN, and
really loving it. They plan to celebrate their
retirement with a trip to England, Ireland, Scotland
and Wales in September and a driving trip through
the southwest next winter — kind of a scouting
expedition for the future!
My “snail mail” brought a letter from Rose Schmit
Fowler and included snapshots of Jean Brown and
Jackie Barnett taken back in college days. What
fun! But Rose’s letter contained much sadness. She
wrote beautifully of the last memorable times with
her sisters before her beloved sister, S. Marian
Schmit, passed away. In addition, Rose’s husband
has been suffering heart trouble. But, Rose reported,
things are getting back to normal somewhat and
she wished she lived closer to CSB so that she
could participate in reunions, etc. Perhaps someday,
Rose — we’d love to see you!
Cory Uphoff Schlangen has retired after 25 years
at Catholic Memorial! She wrote, “I went to France
with 24 of my students this spring. It was a
bittersweet voyage, as I knew it would be my last
one with my kids. I will so miss teaching and know
that I will need to use my French in order to be truly
happy. I do, however, feel blessed to have taught
French all of these years and to have loved what I
did. And now, la grande aventure with Joe begins.”
Just recently Cory joined her sisters, significant
others and children at their place on Big Fish Lake
near St. Joseph. This was no small matter since the
families come from all over the U.S. A highlight was
her mini-reunion with Jeanne Filiatrault who came
to spend a few days. While there, Jeanne and Cory
visited the Hill Museum to view some of the original
and fine art prints of selected images from The
Saint John’s Bible. They loved it!!
And one last little surprise was an e-mail from
Carol Zimmer Janson who lives in St. Paul and has
worked for 35 years at the State Department of
Human Services. Carol plans to retire in 2007 and
hopes to “smell the roses.” She also wrote, “I live
near St. Thomas so if you’re in the area, give me a
call.”
That’s finally the end, at least for this edition. But
please do keep on writing!! I will leave you with this
thought: Life is not measured by the breaths we
take, but by the moments that take our breath
away. God Bless!
– Carol Landkamer
1967
I have no updates from anyone from the class
of 1967, but next June will be our 40th reunion.
Everyone should start planning to attend. I also have
moved and changed email addresses.
Yvette Krech
2720 Exhibition Drive
Duluth, MN 55811
218-724-4064
ykrech@yahoo.com
1969
Felicie Hazeur Kempf represented the College
of Saint Benedict at the inauguration of Dr. Eugene
B. Habecker, Ph.D., J.D., as the 30th president of
Taylor University in Upland, IN.
Deborah Merickel will join all 8 of her sisters
and her mother (5 Bennies) in the 3-Day walk for
breast cancer this fall in San Diego. They hope to
raise over $30,000 to assist in finding the cure and
treatment for this disease.
1971
Donna Schmid Mann is the superintendent of
the Sonoita School District. Sonoita is located an
hour south of Tucson, AZ, in the wine country.
1972
Jeanne Pyzdrowski Fraune is a speaker for
Minnesota Organization for Fetal Alcohol Syndrome
(MOFAS). She is also a level 3 certified Special
Olympics coach, a special education teacher, and is
involved in her church.
1974
Jan Irene Miller and her husband lived in
Santiago, Chile, 2000-2004 while Jan did team
development consulting for the state department.
They’re settled in D.C. now and recently purchased
the Miller homestead where Jan was born in MN.
Jan is looking for a business partner to develop the
site into a sustainable local food CSA. Jan is the di-rector
of program management for GTSI where she
manages a team of people delivering IT solutions
Alumnae News & Notes
27
to the government. One of the ways she practiced
Spanish in Chile was to participate in ceramic
painting classes and she has continued her painting
studies in D.C. Jan and her husband enjoy being fit
and race-walked the Army 10-Miler in Oct. 2005.
Jan did her first triathlon in 2005 too. Certified as
an ontological, somatic and business coach, Jan
mentors young women in the Women in Technol-ogy
Mentor Protégé program in Northern VA. She
welcomes connection with the CSB/SJU community.
1976
Twin Cities musician/artist Jane Becker has
arranged and recorded two solo piano Christmas
collections. Listen to the music and learn more
about Jane’s CDs and piano books at www.jane
beckermusic.com.
Rox Anne Winkels Close is a 2nd grade teacher
at Kearns St. Ann School in Salt Lake City. She was
named the Outstanding Catholic Educator in the
State of Utah in 2006.
Mary Kay Paquette is freelancing graphic and
Web design in the Minneapolis metro area. She
is divorced and living with her 2 children in a big
house south of the city. Her hobbies include sewing,
biking and painting.
Beth Garin Tomlinson has begun steps to
complete another degree. She will be attending
the FOCUS program at Northwestern College in
Roseville, MN, in September. Beth is working toward
becoming a marriage and family counselor and
should finish her degree in the spring of 2008. She
continues to work at Coon Rapids Middle School
while attending college and has been riding her bike
the two miles to work to conserve gas.
1977
Kathi Beavers Rivard writes, “Joy and sorrow.
Life is full of these and we are experiencing both
at the moment. Our joy is that our daughter Emily
graduated with honors with a degree in mechanical
engineering from Notre Dame. Our sorrow is our
daughter Molly is currently recovering from a rare
blood disorder called Thrombotic Thrombocytopenic
Purpura, or TTP for short. Good CSB friends have
been a source of comfort and support.”
On behalf of our class, I wish to extend my sym-pathies
to Deb Iten Zachman who lost her husband
Rob this spring. Rob was a SJU 1977 graduate. Our
support and prayers are with you and your family at
this challenging time.
Also, I would like for everyone to start thinking
about reserving the last weekend of June 2007 to
join your classmates for our 30th class reunion. If
you have ideas for the weekend please send me an
e-mail.”
katiedid@mn.rr.com
1979
Dear ’79ers,
I hope you’re all working on plans to celebrate
your 50th birthday in a big way. Seems like just
yesterday that we were sweating graduation, job
hunting and what to do with our hair. How rapidly
we got to menopause, college parent orientation,
empty nests and midlife crisis. There’s much to
celebrate about the women we’ve become and 50
seems a good milestone to do it. So, celebrate!
News from all of you is woefully slow to trickle
in, so here’s what I have to offer:
Marcia Meredith has completed training as an
Ayurvedic practitioner and is starting up a practice
in the Twin Cities.
Yours truly has co-authored a journal entitled,
Seasons of Change: A Journey of Self Discovery for
anyone pondering transitions in life or looking for
personal renewal.
Drop me a line! I do miss hearing from you!
Carol Bishop
caroljbishop@mn.rr.com
1980
Mary Voight notes that 2 of her 3 children
graduated this year, one from high school and one
from college. Her daughter, Lauren, graduated from
Central High School and began nursing classes at
Century College. After graduating from Carleton Col-lege
and spending six weeks traveling in Southeast
Asia, Mary’s son Geoff started a job in Los Angeles
with MAG Capital. “This has been my joy and my
full-time job for 21 years and it is a great thrill to
meet this day! I’m so thankful I have one more to
go!”
1981
Christine Musech Geist and her husband Ron
are starting their 5th year at the Department of
Defense School at Camp Zama, Japan. Christine’s
2 oldest sons are in college and they have a 10-
year-old daughter at home with them. She enjoys
teaching in an overseas school as well as learning
and traveling around the host country.
Carol Anne Weiss Wall received a masters of
science degree in technical communication from
Metropolitan State University in December 2004.
1983
Barbara Scherek has self-published 3 rhyming
stories and educational coloring books titled Ant Hill,
Monarch Majesty, and Turtle Tid Bits.
1984
In addition to her full time job writing speeches
for executives at Best Buy and her sideline radio
business, Anne Nicolai occasionally appears as a
speaker or emcee at a public event. See her press
kit at www.gigmasters.com/emcee/AnneOfSin-glesParty/.
Alumnae News & Notes
28
1985
Marguerite Putzke Dummer has just finished
her masters and is now working on her doctorate at
St. Thomas.
1988
Margrette Nemanich Newhouse will hold the
John and Elizabeth Myers Chair in Management at
Saint John’s University for 3 years.
Mary R. Weber celebrated her 50th wedding
anniversary on September 3, 2006. Mary graduated
with a bachelor of science degree in nursing after
working as an RN for over three decades. All three
of Mary’s daughters graduated from CSB — Joan
Weber Vievering in 1980, Diane Weber in 1983,
and Patti Weber Gersch in 1986 — and her son,
Robert Weber, graduated from SJU in 1984. Mary’s
granddaughter, Marita J. Vievering, is attending CSB
this fall, the 3rd generation of Bennies from this
family.
1989
Sarah Abraham Murnane and husband Timothy
’87 gave birth to their 5th child, William Timothy,
on August 30, 2005. Jodi Fogelman Olson and
Bryan Olson ’89 are the Godparents. Sarah’s oldest
child, Kate, begins high school in the fall. Annie is
in 3rd grade, Matthew is in kindergarten, and Mary
is 3-years-old. Sarah is an active volunteer at her
church and her kids’ schools. Tim is vice president
for Howe Barnes Investments in Chicago.
Mary Hobday Jurney returned from Dominica
and is settling in Apple Valley, MN, with her 2 boys
(13 and 11) and her husband Bill. She will return to
the St. Paul Public Schools, this time at Harding to
teach biology. Bill will be at Normandale. They are
currently renting, but hope to find a home by March.
Mary says it is fun to be back in the land of “so
many choices, all of the time.” Mary and the boys
are enjoying the many green spaces in Apple Valley.
They brought back 2 dogs from the island, so that
will be quite the adjustment as well.
Robyn Corcoran Wallner is still living in
Oakdale, MN, with her husband Steve and 3
children, Paige, Megan and Matthew. They are busy
with activities like dance, soccer, swimming and
gymnastics. They love to catch up with friends, so
please call!
1990
Heidi Glotfelty Conway is currently living in An-chorage,
AK, being a full-time mom to baby Grace
and loving every minute of it.
Katy Smith Lynch started a French camp this
summer out of her home. She taught week-long
sessions for preschoolers, elementary, and middle
school kids in the end of July and beginning of
August.
1992
Melissa Thompson Johnson is currently a
chief resident in General Surgery at Rush University
Medical Center in Chicago. She is joining Surgical
Associates in Sioux Falls, SD, in August 2006.
Jennifer Gossett Macki and her husband Jo-seph
Macki ’91 are living in Becker, MN, with their
4 children; Anna (11), Claire (9), Keenan (7), and
Emma Kate (4). Jennifer continues to teach music
and Joseph teaches high school physical science
in the Monticello School District. Jennifer received
a master’s degree in instrumental music and con-ducting
from St. Cloud State University in May ’06.
1993
After living in Philadelphia and working as the
social sciences librarian at Swarthmore College
for nearly 6 years, Megan Adams and partner
Amy Brunner recently relocated to Boston. Megan
is currently working as a research and instruction
librarian and group manager at Wellesley College
Library in Wellesley, MA.
Alumnae News & Notes
29
1994
Kimberly Smith Roering received a master of
arts in religious education from the University of St.
Thomas on May 20, 2006.
1996
Marydee Cich Chamberlain graduated from
medical school at the U of M in 2002. Also, she
recently finished pediatric residency at the U of M
in June 2005 and now is in pediatric emergency
medicine fellowship training. She spends most her
time working between the Minneapolis and St. Paul
Children’s Hospitals Emergency Departments.
Heather Marx Champine was just promoted to
VP of media production at Media Relations, Inc. of
Burnsville, MN. Media Relations, Inc. is a marketing
and communications company that helps clients
nationwide get news coverage on radio, television
and in print.
Saundra Scheidt Snobl is working for American
Financial Partners in Marshall, MN, as an operations
manager.
1997
Ann Montague graduated from the College of
Veterinary Medicine at the University of MN in May
2003.
Tracey Gohmann received a masters of science
in nursing/nurse educator focus from Winona State
University on May 5, 2006.
1998
Marcia Farniok is currently a first grade teacher
at Epiphany Catholic School in Coon Rapids and
made a solo pilgrimage to Gulu, Uganda, to teach
English to kindergartners for a month. She writes,
“Saint Ben’s helped me to find the strength inside
myself to know that I could do this trip as well as
instill a sense of global awareness.”
Debra Hasselbring Gottfried and husband Ben
’98 recently moved to Minneapolis. Deb works as
the coordinator of Student Disability Services at The
College of St. Catherine in Minneapolis.
Cara Haupert Nachbor received a master’s of
science degree in nursing, specializing as a family
nurse practitioner from SDSU in May ’06. She
graduated Sigma Theta Tau and was inducted into
the National Nursing Honors Society March 2006.
Cara and her husband continue to live in rural MN
with their children.
1999
Laura Fahey Michon is a stay-at-home mom.
Her husband, Peter ’99, just graduated from the
CRNA program at Mayo and has accepted a job in
Sheboygan, WI, as of April ’06.
Michelle Gerding Schmitz completed her
master’s degree in college counseling and student
development at St. Cloud State University in Decem-ber
’04 and has been the associate director for the
Career Services Center at SCSU since March ’05.
Tara Tollefson just celebrated the one-year
anniversary of creating The Buzz Company. The
Buzz provides client/customer relations research
and consulting for businesses to help them provide
an excellent customer experience and to help
them build great word-of-mouth through happy
customers. The Buzz Company is unique in its ap-proach
and is working with several businesses and
organizations in the St. Cloud area.
2001
Melinda Noll is currently working as a program
administrator for Boston Health Care Systems, Inc.
in Saint Paul.
Laura Farmer Nielsen graduated from the Uni-versity
of Denver in August of 2005 with a doctorate
in clinical psychology. She moved back to MN and
is working at Abbott Northwestern Hospital on the
child and adolescent psychiatric inpatient unit.
2002
Anna Emanuel Busman received a masters of
science degree in nursing from DePaul University in
Chicago, IL, in June 2006.
Polly Kulas is teaching 7th and 8th grade lan-guage
arts and religion at St. Peter’s Catholic School
in North Saint Paul. Her husband Chuck Berendes
’02 is entering his last year at UST Law. They live
in St. Paul.
Elizabeth Deziel of U.S. Bancorp’s community
relations team in the Twin Cities was named a
Volunteer Service Award winner by BestPrep, a
nonprofit organization located in Brooklyn Park, MN.
She was selected by BestPrep for her dedication to
the organization’s eMentors program. Elizabeth is
currently enrolled in the master of business admin-istration
program at the University of St. Thomas.
Alumnae in the Arts
Kathy Saeugling Hendrickson ’87,
humanities major, teaches at the New Actors
Workshop in New York, an acting school and
graduate program founded by Mike Nichols.
Erin Gleeson ’01, art major, teaches English
in Phnem Penh, Cambodia. She continues to
produce and present photographic artwork,
including a show at the College of Saint
Benedict in 2005.
Monica Haller ’02, peace studies major, has
a master of fine arts degree from the Min-neapolis
College of Art and Design. She is very
pleased that she will be able to use both of her
degrees as she begins a two-year fellowship
at MIT Center for Advanced Visual Studies in
Cambridge, Mass. She will work on a project
involving “art as intervention” with veterans
returning from Iraq. The director of the center
is artist Kryztof Wodiczko.
Alumnae News & Notes
SaintStock
Friday, June 22, 2007
Mark your calendars for SaintStock.
CSB Reunion 2007 will kick off with a “Welcome Back to Campus” party called
SaintStock. For the first time ever, CSB AND SJU alums will be welcomed back
to the College of Saint Benedict to open the Reunion weekend with a party on
the CSB plaza.
Watch for more details! Don’t miss this exciting opportunity to connect with
ALL of your CSB/SJU friends. The night starts out with entertainment by the
following Alum bands: The Snozberries, Fred Savage and the Unbeatables, and
Panoramic Blue. Make sure you stay for Boogie Wonderland!
30
Becca Pryor was recently promoted to assistant
director at Jack and Jill in Roseville, MN.
Susan Wimmer entered graduate school for
professional psychology masters of arts level in
’03 and graduated in ’05. Shortly after graduation,
Susan was employed at her practicum location,
as a FT Counselor. After enduring endless hours
of preparation, she sat for both the National Exam
EPPP and MN State Board Ethics Exam PRE and
passed both on the first attempt. Susan is currently
practicing counseling as a licensed professional
psychologist; upon fulfillment of 2 years of su-pervision,
she will be grandfathered as a licensed
psychologist. She recently joined the Dialectical
Behavioral Therapy Team and works with a variety
of client symptomology.
Rebecca Weber will receive a degree in culinary
arts from the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde
Park, NY, on September 29, 2006. After graduating
Rebecca is employed by Sea Island Company, Sea
Island, GA.
2003
Natalie Scheidt recently completed the didactic
year of physician assistant school at Arcadia Uni-versity
in Glenside, PA. She began clinical rotations
in June in a Level I trauma emergency room just
outside of Philadelphia and will graduate in May of
2007.
2004
Laura Cudzilo is starting her second year at
Creighton Medical School in Omaha, NE.
2005
Lisa Bernardy received a masters in social work
from University of MN-Duluth on May 12, 2006. She
is now the executive director/program director of
Como Park Living at Home/Block Nurse Program in
St. Paul, a program that helps Elders living in the
community remain in their homes independently for
as long as possible.
Joy Strunk has moved to Pullman, WA, where
she will be a teacher.
Marriages
1963 Rosie Salaba Sharkey to Jerry Kipp,
Apr. ’06
1982 Debra Crane to Greg Lance, Nov. ’05
1988 Julie Vetter to Aaron Olson, Dec. ’05
1992 Suzanne Ketcham to Peter Ourada,
Oct. ’05
1994 Katie Middleton to George Politis,
Feb. ’06
1994 Kelly Scanlan to Jevon Anderson,
Mar. ’06
1999 Nicole Christopherson to Aaron
Anderson, Feb. ’06
1999 Michelle Gerding to Jeff Schmitz,
May ’06
1998 Kristin Koos to Michael Olson, Oct. ’05
1998 Colleen Schwartz to Aaron Archbold,
Nov. ’05
Alumnae in the Arts
Mary Polta ’78 majored in home and com-munity
service in 1978, and, since 1989, has
been the chief financial officer of the Walker
Arts Center. Her work involves managing and
planning the budget of this major exhibitor of
20th century art and the largest urban sculp-ture
garden in the United States.
Jill Dykstra-Sweiven ’86 was a government
and social work major who ended up working
in films. Currently working for Eventide, a
Minnesota film production company, she most
recently worked as the media relations direc-tor
on “Factotum,” a film based on the Charles
Bukowski book of the same name starring Lily
Taylor, Matt Dillon and Marisa Tomei.
Amy Praught’s ’01 work can be found at
portpholio.com. From her student work as
assistant to the curator of the Arca Artium
collection to the many visual arts services she
provides today, her forte is the intersection of
words, images and technology.
1999 Jennifer Rausch to Randy Heyne, Apr. ’06
1998 Jennifer Siebenaler to Joel Metz,
Feb. ’06
1998 Jen Sjostrom to Matthew Smiley, Nov. ’05
1998 Julie Willard to Chad Shannon, Sep. ’05
2000 Beth Hanson to Anthony DiMarco,
June ’06
2000 Calista Kruse to Christopher Menzhuber,
July ’06
2000 Trisha Kubes to Bryce Henning, Nov. ’05
2000 Nicole Schmucker to Dallas Apold,
June ’06
2001 Gna Albury to Daniel Kersten ’99,
Mar. ’06
2001 Angela Benson to Kevin Conn, May ’06
2001 Katie Keeley to Kevin Kohnen ’01,
July ’06
2001 Jennifer Liedl to Kristopher Schwab,
Sep. ’05
2001 Tara Miller to Ryan Hochhalter, July ’06
2001 Melinda Noll to Matthew Jungbauer ’01,
May ’06
2001 Sara Pfannenstein to Nathan Goese,
July ’06
2001 Colleen Probst to Chris Chambs ’01,
Apr. ’06
2001 Caryn Smith to Jordan Anderson, May ’06
2001 Anne Witrak to Erik Meyer, Jan. ’06
2001 Bonnie Wittkop to Izaak Jordan, Aug. ’06
2002 Amy Boushek to Nicholas Schaffer ’02,
May ’06
2002 Maressa Brooks to Joshua Rousslange,
June ’06
2002 Anne Ceronsky to Tom Warrington ’02,
Oct. ’05
2002 Emily Edelbrock to Jason Anderson ’02,
July ’06
2002 Jaime Hammer to Ben Franek ’02,
Sep. ’05
2002 Kriste Johnson to Nathan Cheeley ’03,
June ’06
2002 Christin Miller to Jedrin Kassulke ’02,
July ’06
2002 Christina Miller to Andrew McCarthy
’02, May ’06
2002 Elisha Nelson to Colin Shaughnessy ’00,
Aug. ’05
2003 Stacy Ahmann to Andrew Zachman,
May ’06
2003 Jenny Bruns to Thomas Myers ’03,
June ’06
2003 Stephanie Frame to Michael Reierson
’03, July ’06
2003 Ember Francl to Matthew Hutton ’04,
’06
2003 Noelle Gunderson to Blake Elliott ’03,
July ’06
2003 Allison Hansen to Chad Schilplin ’04,
June ’06
2003 Katie Holloway to Ben Sowieja ’03,
June ’06
Alumnae News & Notes
31
2003 Radhika Lal to Seth Snyder ���00, June ’06
2003 Sarah Lehnert to Jeff Schaffer, ’06
2003 Kathryn Neubauer to Christopher Posch
’03, ’06
2003 Laura Payne to Michael Sellheim, July ’06
2003 Kate Rasmussen to Bryan Blessing ’04,
July ’06
2003 Katie Rother to Karl Slingsby ’03,
Aug. ’05
2003 Sarah Schubert to Matthew Bauer ’03,
June ’06
2003 Kathleen Ubl to Eric Bartell ’03, June ’06
2004 Julie Berglund to Edil Raffi, Mar. ’06
2004 Amanda Blank to Shannon P. Smith ’02,
May ’06
2004 Jaclyn Bodeen to Ryan Klinkner ’04,
June ’06
2004 Gina Fasching to Mark Danielson ’03,
Oct. ’06
2004 Kelly Midbrod to Ryan Mathre ’03,
July ’06
2004 Sara Pedersen to Adam Sagedahl ’00,
July ’06
2004 Lisa Wienhold to Brandon Overman ’04,
Aug. ’06
2004 Rebecca Wolf to Adam Pitz ’04, July ’06
2005 Mary Gloege to Mark Zenzen ’05,
July ’06
2005 Emily Poepping to Troy Mickelson,
July ’06
2005 Vanja Sinanovic to Michael Absmaier
’03, Aug. ’06
2005 Megan Solors to Andrew David, June ’06
2005 Katherine Wilcox to Brady Jahnke ’03,
June ’06
2006 Sarah Domine to Ryan Engdahl ’06,
Aug. ’06
2006 Ashley Fruth to Christopher Baldwin
’05, June ’06
2006 Melissa Holm to Will Robbins ’05,
June ’06
2006 Tonia Sauer to Brian Flander, June ’06
Births/Adoptions
1983 Linda Plotz Pederson & Jay Pederson,
Boy, Nate, Mar. ’06
1985 Suzanne Weinzierl Raddohl & Garry
Raddohl, Girl, Ava Frances, June ’06
1987 Karen Kuebelbeck Sattler & Tracy
Sattler ’87, Boy, Elijah Benedict, Jan. ’06
1988 Carrie Bossenmaier Peterson & Daniel
Peterson, Boy, Marc Daniel, Dec. ’05
1988 Shelly Dandurand Schoeller & Daniel
Schoeller ’88, Boy, Alexander Lyle,
Mar. ’06
1989 Sarah Abraham Murnane & Timothy
Murnane ’87, Boy, William Timothy,
Aug. ’05
1989 Ruth Ritter Primus & Danny Primus, Girl,
Cecily Elizabeth, Jan. ’06
1989 Rita Rosenberger & David Barthel ’87,
Girl, Agnes Margaret, Feb. ’06
1989 Jana Bialon Thompson & Steven
Thompson, Girl, Jessica Eileen, Dec. ’05
1990 Heidi Glotfelty Conway & Patrick Conway,
Girl, Grace, Dec. ’05
1990 Yvonne Tauer Kunzer & Mark Kunzer,
Boy, Haden, Jan. ’06
1990 Jean Thamert Levandowski & Tom
Levandowski ’86, Boy, Paul Robert,
July ’05
1991 Brenda Swenson Fulford & Tim Fulford
’89, Boy, Christopher George, Nov. ’05
1991 Bridget Dunne Mannetter & Prentice
Mannetter, Girl, Kaeli Frances, Mar. ’06
1991 Sara Cooney Preimesberger & Thomas
Preimesberger ’90, Boy, Will Patrick,
Apr. ’06
1991 Kimberly Regnier Schneider & Dan
Schneider, Boy, Eli George, Apr. ’06
1991 Julie Martinka Severson & Michael
Severson, Girl, Amanda Rae, Mar. ’06
1992 Michelle Miller Heining & Ryan Heining
’91, Boy, Nickolas, July ’06
1992 Mel Thompson Johnson & Matt Johnson,
Girl, Katherine Margaret, Oct. ’05
1992 Tammy Supan Mahony & Patrick
Mahony, Boy, Kieran Michael, May ’06
1992 Sara VanKempen & Mitch Finne, Girl,
Eleanor Irene, Aug. ’05
1993 Amy Radue Halstrom & Kurt Halstrom
’94, Girl, Lucia, Jan. ’06
1993 Jackie Hess Jager & Trevor Jager, Boy,
Jace Edward, Dec. ’05
1993 Kathy Smith Keefe & Brian Keefe, Girl,
Charlotte Frances, July ’05
1993 Liz Krick Prather & John Prather, Girl,
Kathryn Lynne, Dec. ’05
1993 Glen Werner Roseboom & Chris
Roseboom, Girl, Samantha Gail, Aug. ’05
1993 Kim Scheidt-Brown & Dan Brown ’93,
Boy, Patrick Ryan, Nov. ’05
1994 Jenny Scheidt Alexander & David
Alexander, Girl, Ellenor Margaret, Oct. ’05
1994 Lisa Gapko Barker & Jason Barker, Boy,
Jacob Andrew, Feb. ’06
1994 Stacy Abner Hanson & Dan Hanson, Boy,
Bennett Daniel, Aug. ’05
1994 Missy Herbst Lage & Jeffrey Jon Lage,
Girl, Madeline, Oct. ’05
1994 Jennifer Nord Mallard & Jay Mallard,
Girl, Lorraine Ann, Dec. ’05
1994 Nicole Perry Mareck & Kurt Mareck ’93,
Girl, Sophia Anna, May ’06
1994 Beth Schorr-Ratzlaff & Wagner Schorr-
Ratzlaff, Girl, Lillian Grace, Jan. ’06
1994 Libby Farrell Smith & Regan Smith ’91,
Girl, Delaney, Mar. ’06
1994 Sharon Welle Swallen & John Swallen,
Girl, Sierra Ann, Jan. ’06
1994 Christy Shelton Washburn & Paul
Washburn ’94, Girl, Lydia Rose, Mar. ’06
1994 Greta Wenzel & Erik Swanson, Boy,
Cooper, May ’03
1994 Melanie Peleske Zierden & Jeff Zierden,
Boy, Henley David, July ’06
1995 Suzanne Zobitz Kelly & Jason Kelly ’93,
Boy, Nolan Jason, Mar. ’06
1995 JoAnn Kannas O’Rourke & Dan
O’Rourke ’94, Girl, Kiera, Oct. ’05
1995 Lynn Schreiner & Matthew Downs ’95,
Girl, Marissa, Jan. ’06
1996 Rebecca Gibbons Alfieri, Boy, Isaac
Francis, Sep. ’05
1996 Maren Bassett & William Farniok ’94,
Boy, Liam, Feb. ’06
1996 DeeDee Cich Chamberlain & Brent
Chamberlain, Boy, Alec Paul, Dec. ’05
1996 Kerry Fierke & Gardner Lepp ’94, Boy,
Quinn DeVere, Aug. ’05
1996 Amy Orth Hammer & Jeffrey Hammer
’96, Boy, Jacob, Feb. ’06
1996 Katy Hirdler Blashack & Joseph
Blashack, Boy, Dain August, Mar. ’06
1996 Heather Marx Champine & Steve
Champine ’94, Girl, Hayden Lee, Dec. ’05
1996 Laura Bresnahan McManus & Shean
McManus, Boy, Quinn Thomas, Feb. ’06
1996 Mara Geis Peterson & Scott Peterson
’96, Girl, Scarlett Ann, Apr. ’06
1996 Nicole Wagner Steele & Craig Steele
’95, Boy, Zacarias Julio, born June ’05,
adopted Dec. 2005
Alumnae News & Notes
32
1996 Julie Theisen & Peter Pfeffer, Boy, Solomin
Jae, born Feb. ’06, adopted June ’06
1997 Liz Realmuto Dobie & Christopher Dobie,
Girl, Megan Elizabeth, May ’06
1997 Nichole Fontaine-Vonesh & Jonathon
Vonesh, Girl, Isabel Nichole, Feb. ’06
1997 Cathy Heston & Gary Plemel, Girl,
Mackenzie Rose, June ’06
1997 Jody Schindele Martinson & Todd
Martinson, Boy, Caleb Jacen, May ’06
1997 Katrina Dolezal Mersinger & Hans
Mersinger ’98, Boy, Jonathan, Feb. ’06
1997 Jess Miller & T.W. Woodward ’94, Boy,
Liam, Apr. ’06
1997 Martha Helm Neururer & Richard
Neururer, Boy, Grant Douglas, June ’05
1997 Tiffany Omann-Bidinger & Rory Bidinger,
Boy, Keegan Michael, May ’06
1997 Sarah Augustin Pegors & Eric Pegors,
Girl, Marlee Jo, June ’06
1997 Kari Malecek Petersen & Jason Petersen,
Girl, Ashley Jade, June ’05
1997 Kim Strout Winegarner, Boy, Charles
Ford, Oct. ’05
1997 Tania Schaust Tschudi & Daniel
Tschudi ’97, Girl, Kennedy Mae, June ’06
1997 Jodi Winkels Verhelst & Scott Verhelst,
Girl, Gabrielle Rose, Dec. ’05
1997 Heather Moen Vinje & John Vinje ’96,
Boy, Grant Olson, May ’06
1998 Molly Schiltgen Bonnett & Justin Bon-nett
’98, Girl, Amelia, Oct. ’05
1998 Maureen Collins Flynn & Joshua Flynn
’97, Boy, Aidan James, Mar. ’06
1998 Ema Hartung & Greg Hartung, Girl, Erin
Eleanor, Dec. ’05
1998 Michelle Frith Heiland & Joseph Heiland
’98, Girl, Evelyn Alice, June ’05
1998 Jennifer Kelm & Brett Peterson, Girl,
Greta Elizabeth June, July ’06
1998 Julie Koshiol Kraemer & Dale Kraemer,
Girl, Jenna Rose, Apr. ’06
1998 Debbie Walck Miera-Moseley & Lee
Moseley, Boy, Alberto, July ’05
1998 Juliane Russomanno Nilsson & Steve
Nilsson, Girl, Grace Elizabeth, Dec. ’05
1998 Chloe Graham Quinn & Mick Quinn, Girl,
Avery Kathryn, Aug. ’05
1998 Shasta Hannan Rueckert & Dave
Rueckert ’97, Twins, Sawyer and Sam,
Mar. ’06
1998 Jodi Wallace Saari & Matthew Saari, Girl,
July ’06
1998 Dawn Cjazkowski Sammon & Adam
Sammon, Boy, Connor Patrick, Feb. ’06
1998 Margaret Longo Trotta & JJ Trotta ’97,
Girl, Maria Kathleen, Feb. ’06
1998 Anne Bebak Welle & Peter Welle, Boy,
Blaise Nicholas, Apr. ’06
1998 Jenny White & Brett Baloun ’98, Girl,
Margaret Claire, Nov. ’05
1999 Jennifer Carling & Jeremy List ’99, Girl,
Kaitlyn Elizabeth, Mar. ’06
1999 Jennifer Neegaard Flinn & Dugan Flinn
’99, Girl, McKenna Murphy, Feb. ���06
1999 Kristin Kuhlmann Francois & Sam
Francois ’99, Girl, Madeline Noel, Sep. ’05
1999 Sarah Nachreiner Johnson & Avery
Johnson, Boy, Haakon Michael, Mar. ’06
1999 Shannon Erikson Martenson & George
Martenson ’98, Girl, Claire Cathryn,
May ’06
1999 Laura Huehn Mogren & James Mogren,
Girl, Samantha Grace, June ’05
1999 Stephanie Halverson Pazdernik &
Michael Pazdernik ’96, Girl, Maryn
Elizabeth, Apr. ’06
1999 Kelly Lord Roche & Tim Roche, Boy, Liam
Anthony, May ’06
1999 Rebecca Maly Schimming & Chris
Schimming ’99, Girl, Norah Jolene,
June ’06
1999 Nicole Schmitz & Jake Schmitz, Girl,
Molly, Mar. ’06
1999 Kerry Turner Schwalbach & John
Schwalbach ’97, Boy, Samuel John,
Feb. ’06
1999 Jennifer Gustafson Smith & Brian Smith,
Boy, Jacob Gregory, Dec. ’05
2000 Katrina Lusty Buetow & Dan Buetow
’99, Girl, Stella Blaire, Nov. ’05
2000 Tracey Dearing-Jude & Jim Jude, Girl,
Kelsi Lillian, Mar. ’06
2000 Jody Stueve Durand & Michael Durand
’99, Boy, Jacob Michael, May ’06
2000 Jocelyn Rossman Hirschfeld & Josh
Hirschfeld, Girl, Ava Rae, July ’06
2000 Jamie Rymer Knippel & Kip Knippel ’99,
Boy, Thomas Keegan, Feb. ’06
2000 Tanya Lafore & Jeff Petrouski, Girl, Macy
Ellen, July ’06
2000 Katherine Dekarski Lamecker & Nick
Lamecker ’00, Boy, Joseph John, July ’06
2000 Tricia Ziegler Madden & Ken Madden,
Boy, Michael James, July ’06
2000 Rebecca Rajacich Melhus & Michael
Melhus, Boy, Miles, Apr. ’06
2000 Kristi Merten & Steven Merten, Girl, Paige
Elizabeth, Feb. ’06
2000 Leah Essenmacher Tanton & Nicholas
Tanton, Boy, Asher Nicholas, Jan. ’06
2001 Brianna Turnquist Axelrod & Ben
Axelrod, Girl, Lily Rachel, Apr. ’06
2001 Janna Winter Galloway & David Galloway
’01, Girl, Gwenyth Marie, Dec. ’05
2001 Rebecca Larson Gierok & Daniel Gierok,
Boy, Feb. ’06
2001 Jeannette Wetherbee Guggisberg &
Nicholas Guggisberg, Girl, Morgan Marie,
Mar. ’06
2001 Jill Roehl Herkenhoff & Paul Herkenhoff
’01, Boy, Nathan Paul, Feb. ’06
2001 Kelly Konz Larson & Carl Larson, Girl,
Lauren Carolyn, June ’06
2001 Sara Miller Theisen & Brian Theisen ’01,
Girl, Miranda Rae, June ’05
2001 Tessa Beckers Wohletz & Jason Wohletz,
Boy, Grant William, Feb. ’06
2002 Sarah Nett Eveslage & Steven Eveslage,
Boy, Jack Edwin, July ’06
2002 Megan Aspengren Lapos & Andrew
Lapos, Girl, Belle Irene, Mar. ’06
2002 Christina Bauer Lindstrom & Derrick
Lindstrom ’02, Girl, Elenora Rose,
Nov. ’05
2002 Wendy Hennen Maiers & Daniel Maiers,
Girl, Sara Kay, Apr. ’06
2002 Kris DePauw Noble & Josh Noble ’02,
Girl, Olivia Rose, Mar. ’06
2002 Brianne Parker Peroutka & Brent
Peroutka, Boy, Logan Michael, Dec. ’05
2002 Bridget Schmidt & Dan Schmidt ’03,
Girl, Mary Kathryn, Oct. ’05
2002 Erin McGeary Selix & Jason Selix, Boy,
Cole Daniel, Apr. ’06
2002 Kelly Boyles Simons & Mike Simons, Boy,
Tysen Michael, Dec. ’05
2002 Kate Wood Wynn & Kelly Wynn ’01, Boy,
Asher Allan, Apr. ’06
2003 Kristi Barber, Boy, Jackson Christopher,
May ’06
2003 Christina Volkmuth Thell & David Thell,
Girl, Meggie, Jan. ’06
2004 Christine Hirte & Nick Boisen ’04, Boy,
Landon Martin, Jan. ’06
2005 Jennifer Tarmann Day & Joshua Day
’05, Boy, Donovan Orion, May ’06
2005 Vanessa Gondringer Hoffarth & Dan
Hoffarth, Boy, Tyler, May ’06
Deaths
1930 Marie Eckes Sullivan, Apr. ’06
1932 Kathryn Hoyer Ryan, Mar. ’06
1934 Irma Foley, mother of Lucille Malone
Hittner, Apr. ’06
1938 Eleanor Rieland, sister of S. Margretta
Nathe, Mar. ’06
1945 Wynnie Huber Blewett, sister of Peg Huber
Erpelding, July ’06
1946 Margaret Pryzbylski Meske, Feb. ’06
1948 Thomas Berg ’60, brother of Dottie Berg
Kelm, Apr. ’06
1948 Julie Twomey Wenner ’55, sister of Renee
Twomey, Apr. ’06
1949 Pauline Bresnahan Tinguely ’52, sister-in-law
of Jeanne Sinner Bresnahan, July ’06
1949 J. Malinski, brother of Mary Ann Malinski
Mayer, Apr. ’06
1949 Julie Twomey Wenner ’55, sister of Kath-leen
Twomey Pecchia, Apr. ’06
1949 Julie Twomey Wenner ’55, sister of Elaine
Twomey Stramer, Apr. ’06
1950 S. Dora Plakut, June ’06
1951 J. Malinski, brother of Rita Malinski Deyo,
Apr. ’06
1951 Hon. John Knapp ’43, brother of Esther
Knapp Klein, May ’06
1952 Pauline Bresnahan Tinguely, July ’06
Alumnae News & Notes
33
1954 J. Malinski, brother of Alyce Malinski Ilg,
Apr. ’06
1954 John Schwob ’54, spouse of Lois Hagen
Schwob, June ’06
1956 Thomas Berg ’60, brother of Sylvia Berg
Fergot, Apr. ’06
1956 Donald Dufault, brother of Pauline Dufault
Roy, Apr. ’06
1956 Jerry Zylla, spouse of Jan Kammeier Zylla,
Apr. ’06
1959 Shirley Soulek Coughlin, Mar. ’06
1959 Rita Lukes, July ’06
1959 Sister Jeremiah Januschka ’56, sister of
Ann Januschka Yoerg, Jan. ’06
1960 Richard Luger, father of Liz Luger Fisher,
Apr. ’06
1960 S. Catherine Ludwig, May ’06
1960 Irma Foley, mother of Mary Lee Foley
Stephenson, Apr. ’06
1960 Julie Twomey Wenner ’55, sister of
Barbara Twomey Wolfe, Apr. ’06
1961 Helen Concialdi, sister of Pat Gagliardi
Ridgeway, Apr. ’06
1962 Marcella Martini, mother of S. Galen
Martini, July ’06
1962 Raymond J. Calhoun ’42, brother of Clare
Calhoun Ritchie, May ’06
1964 Kathryn Rocheford, mother of Martha
Rocheford Rasure, Apr. ’06
1964 S. Evangeline Reuter, June ’06
1965 Eleanor Rieland, mother of Barb Rieland
Anderson, Mar. ’06
1965 Father Aloysius Blonigen, C.M.M., brother
of Jeanette Blonigen Clancy, Mar. ’06
1966 Mary K. O’Rourke, mother of Mary
O’Rourke Baumhover, May ’06
1966 Clair Conn, mother of Patty Conn, Mar. ’06
1968 F. J. Moudry, father of Terry Moudry
Krebsbach, May ’06
1968 Jeanne Albertson Lingbeck, July ’06
1969 Marietta Campbell, mother of Jeanie
Campbell, Apr. ’06
1969 Margaret VanHatten, sister of Cathy Lee
Cooper, May ’06
1969 Father Aloysius Blonigen, C.M.M., brother
of Evie Blonigen Guggisberg, Mar. ’06
1969 Eileen Stommes, July ’06
1970 F. J. Moudry, father of Patricia Moudry,
May ’06
1972 Marietta Campbell, mother of Carol
Schaeffer, Apr. ’06
1974 Wallace Peterson, father of Sheila Peterson
Gilmer, ’06
1974 Wendelin Walz, father of Julie Walz, ’06
1974 Robert Zachman ’77, brother of Mary Rita
Zachman, Apr. ’06
1975 John Kollmann, father of Alice Kollmann,