Westwind, Summer 2006

Blazing the Trail

GENEROSITY IN SERVICE2006 Alumni of the Year

Answering The CallLessons Learned at the Pulpit and in the Pews

Westwindwww.wwc.edu/westwind

The Journal of Walla Walla CollegeSummer 2006

2 Westwind Summer 2006

CONGRATULATIONSA note to congratulate you on the new format for Westwind. The photography, graphics, layout design and organization of con-tent make for a very handsome journal. The close collaboration between the graphic designer and the copy editor is obvious and the results rival any of the glossy magazines on the market today. Keep up the good work!

Grover Starr ’52San Diego, Calif.

HURRICANE KATRINAThanks for doing a wonderful job of crossing all the theaters of education provided at WWC. I noted the article about Hurricane Katrina and the faculty and stu-dents who were involved. I would imagine besides me there are other former students who helped

in some way. If you are interested, I will submit information about how the organization I work for assisted in the relief efforts.

Melodye Trusty ’97 and ’98Powell, Wyo.

Editor’s Note: Look for Melodye’s and other alumni stories in the next issue of Westwind.

READABILITY?Some of the pages of Westwind are easy to read for old people, but many are hard to read. This is especially true for those whose vision is fading.

Nate Brenneise ’57Payette, Idaho

Editor’s Note: Mr. Brenneise was kind enough to send examples of printed pieces and opinions on their readabil-ity. We will keep these considerations in mind in designing upcoming issues.

Alumni Profiles: Because of Walla Walla College’s service-oriented mission, we feature alumni who exemplify service in their professional or personal lives.

In Memory: Please include personal information when send-ing in notices about your loved one’s death. All alumni are wor-thy of having their lives honored; however, because of space we select only two for each issue.

From My Point of View: We welcome essay submissions on a wide range of subjects. We are looking for moving, engaging or thought-provoking essays (850-900 words) that draw from personal ex-periences of the writer.

I look forward to more conversa-tions, perhaps even with you!

Rosa JimenezWestind Editor

Calling All Alumni One of the great things about edit-ing an alumni magazine is having a reason to contact complete strang-ers and, frankly, ask them personal questions. I’ve had many wonder-ful conversations—some entirely by e-mail—with alumni from Alas-ka to South America.

For alumni profiles, we find most of the people we call through Class Member Profiles. These bio forms are sent to class members who will have home-coming reunions that year.

Other great resources are Alumni Central bios and Google alerts.

As good as these resources are, I imagine there are hundreds of alumni (both graduates and non-graduates) with intriguing stories that we don’t know about.

I welcome your tips about alum-ni we should consider featuring in these Westwind pages:

Alumni Interview: In a question-and-answer format, alumni tell about their professional lives. Westwind’s alumni interviews are also posted online at alumni.wwc.edu.

Letters to the Editor

Introducing … Walla Walla University As this issue was in final production, delegates of the Walla Walla College Constituency officially approved a name change for the college. The name “Walla Walla University” was voted on Sunday, Oct. 1, at the constituency meeting held in Portland, Ore. The university name was adopted primarily to reflect the scope of its programs and to position the school more accurately in relation to similar institutions. As part of the transition, the phrase “Seventh-day Adventist Higher Education” will also be used as a descriptor to the university name to identify the school’s connection to the Seventh-day Adventist Church. For more information see wwc.edu/namechange

10Answering The CallThrough the Student/Pastor Mentor Program, theology majors get a chance to step in the shoes of a pastor, long before they graduate.

2 Letters to the Editor

4 Campus Current

9 Bits and Pieces

16 Blazing the Trail The School of Social Work and Sociology has come a long way over the past 30 years.

18 Generosity in Service Meet four alumni who exemplify WWC’s mission of service.

20 Interview

22 Alumnotes

29 In Memory

31 From My Point of View

32 College Avenue Crossings

Summer 2006 Westwind 3

Contents

Westwind Summer 2006, Volume 26, Number 2

Editor Rosa Jimenez Production Manager and Copy Editor Amy Wilkinson Campus Current Editor Kristi Spurgeon Alumnotes Writer Lindsay Krueger Contributing Writers Annie Lambeth, Jenny WattersDesign Robert Car Graphics Cover Photo Kirk Hirota

Westwind is published three times a year for alumni and friends of Walla Walla College, a Seventh-day Adventist university. It is produced by the Office of College Relations. This issue was printed in October

2006. Third-class postage is paid at College Place, Wash. © 2006 by Walla Walla College.

Address: Westwind/OCR 204 S. College Ave. College Place, WA 99324 Telephone: 509-527-2513 Toll-free: 800-377-2586 E-mail: [email protected] Online: www.wwc.edu/westwind

About the cover Practice in preaching from the pulpit is one of rewards of the Student/Pastor Mentor Program.

Lessons Learned at the Pulpit and in the Pews

S tudents cheered and teammates slapped high-fives. Referees watched

for fouls as LEGO robots raced across the ocean. What type of tournament includes robots? One designed to make science and technology as cool and exciting as possible. It was the FIRST LEGO League Challenge, a high-tech academic challenge hosted by the Edward F. Cross School of Engineering.

More than 20 students, from elementary schools across Oregon and Alaska, had one mission: to design, build, and test robots made out of LEGOs. In this year’s challenge, “Ocean Odyssey,” teams used robotics technology to demonstrate creative solutions to several real-world problems involving the health and productivity of the world’s oceans.

Next year’s event will be held April 15. n

Ready. Set. LEGO!


Campus Current

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S B 6364. You may not rec-ognize these numbers, but Senate Bill 6364 means a

great deal to Marble and Doni Jones. Their daughter, Jenda, a former WWC student, died while participating in an activity that is now banned in Washington state because of that bill.

Jenda died last summer while “teak surfing,” an activity in which a person clings to the back of a moving boat, similar to body surfing. She suffered carbon mon-oxide poisoning and drowned on Lake Tapps, near Seattle.

The Joneses were instrumental in getting SB 6364, now known as the Jenda Jones and Denise Col-bert Safety Boating Act, signed into law. The law is named after Jenda and Denise Colbert, another young woman who died while swimming directly behind a ski boat two years ago on the same lake. Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire signed the bill into law March 20, and it went into effect June 5.

Like most people, Marble and

Doni had never heard of a boat causing carbon monoxide poi-soning. “I knew that it could be a problem with a car in a garage,” says Doni. “But a boat always seemed safe because it was outside.”

That’s not true, according to the U.S. Coast Guard. Carbon mon-oxide, an odorless, colorless, taste-less gas present in the exhaust from gasoline engines, can be very dan-gerous to boaters. Carbon monox-ide poisonings occur on houseboats or other vessels with canopies or poor ventilation. The gas can also accumulate onboard while a boat is moving slowly or idling, or through a back-drafting process known as the “station wagon effect.”

In the case of teak surfing, carbon monoxide is extremely potent be-cause the swimmer is so close to the source. “Jenda was athletic,” Marble says. “She was a strong swimmer. None of that mattered. They told us she was dragging behind the boat for less than a minute.”

“It only takes one person on a boat who knows about this to

make a difference,” says Marble. “Our goal is to get the word out about this to as many people as we can. We’ll do whatever it takes.”

Since Jenda’s death, Marble and Doni have devoted countless hours to that goal. Besides speak-ing publicly about the dangers of teak surfing, they shepherded the bill through the House and Senate. Richard McCune, an alumnus and lawyer at Welebir and McCune law firm in California, first mentioned the possibility of a law banning teak surfing shortly after Jenda’s death. McCune was responsible for getting this same law passed in California. From there, the Joneses were able to secure a meeting with State Rep. Maureen Walsh of Wal-la Walla, who sponsored the bill in the House of Representatives. The couple testified before a House committee in January.

Marble detailed the dangers of carbon monoxide for the committee. But instead of leav-ing them with just the facts, he showed them the story of his

daughter’s life through pictures. She had recently completed the pre-professional program in phys-ical therapy at WWC and had just begun classes at Loma Linda University. “That really brought everything to life for them,” Doni adds.

With help from Sen. Pam Roach, who is from the district that includes Lake Tapps and who sponsored the bill on the Senate side, it was soon passed into law.

“The bill was signed into law seven months to the day from Jen-da’s death and three months after it was introduced,” says Marble.

“Jenda will always be in our hearts,” her parents say. “But working to keep others safe helps keep us focused on the positive.” n

Remembering Jenda

Contrary to the social expectations of the era, women leaders were prominent voices of the early Adventist church, says Beverly Beem.

Advocates for a new water safety law, parents of former WWC student Jenda Jones are committed to helping other parents avoid the same tragedy they experienced.

Faculty and students heading to the Peterson Memorial Library last quarter were in for a big surprise. They were expecting the usual 160,000 books but instead found that the library now gave access to more than 8.1 million.

The instantaneous increase occurred when WWC signed on as the 32nd member of the Orbis Cascade Alliance’s Summit Borrowing system. The library con-

sortium serves over 200,00 full-time students at private and public colleges and universities through-out Washington and Oregon.

So what does this mean for WWC? It dramatically increases the number of books, recordings, and films available to faculty and students, says Carolyn Gaskell, director of libraries at WWC. It also speeds up the borrowing process. Instead of the two weeks required

to transfer items through Inter-Library Loan, the Summit system takes only a few days.

“It’s a wonderful option for students,” says Gaskell. “Now they have access to titles from many of the best research schools in the Northwest.”

Students and faculty members are already taking advantage of the opportunities offered by Summit. Christy Berry, assistant li-

brarian, says she receives approxi-mately 175 requests every week.

Though Peterson Memorial Library is not as large as some others in the consortium, it still contributes to the system. Each week, the library at WWC fills about 25 requests from students at other schools.

From Thousands to Millions: More Options for Library Patrons

WESTWIND ONLINEwwc.edu/westwind

Read the legislation for the

Jenda Jones and Denise

Colbert Safety Boating Act.

“Jenda will always be in our hearts,” say the Joneses, who have met with many state officials, including Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire.

Campus Current


Inquiring MindsSit in on Smith Hall’s newest psy-chology class and you might think you’re listening to an episode of “CSI.” The class is part of WWC’s new major in forensic psychology.The class is part of WWC’s new major in forensic psychology.

“Forensic psychology is a game of prediction,” says Robert Egbert, professor of psychology at WWC and lead curriculum designer for the new bachelor of science major. “It’s looking at things that make people different enough that they’re not operating under nor-mal constraints.”

Egbert is quick to point out that

forensic psychology is different from forensic science. Forensic sci-ence is the lab work, the technical aspect. Forensic psychology is the application of psychology to the legal system. “We’re looking up front at the behavior, and they’re looking behind at the evidence,”

Egbert says. “Actually, we look at the evidence too, but at the type of person who might have done it—not a single perpetrator.”

WWC offered its first forensic psychology class four years ago. There were approximately 75 students in that class and subse-quent classes have been quick to fill. Egbert thinks he knows why. “This subject just grabs the at-tention. It can be very in-triguing to some people.”

Beyond classes specifi-cally in forensics, students in the new major will be involved in the social work program and take classes in juvenile delin-

quency and the criminal justice system, along with other psychol-ogy topics.

Students in this major will study and profile famous crimi-nals. They’ll also spend time re-searching behavior patterns and learning to read people. Classes will include visits from the coun-ty sheriff, or workers from the

Washington State Penitentiary, lo-cated in Walla Walla. Egbert also hopes to arrange visits to the peni-tentiary, the county jail, and the psychiatric hospital in Pendleton.

Although classes in forensics are offered at several schools, WWC is the only university in the Northwest, and the only Seventh-day Adventist university, to offer this type of a degree.

A major in forensic psychology can lead in many directions, says Egbert, who has a bachelor’s de-gree in biology from WWC and multiple master’s and doctoral degrees from schools across the country. “Students might go on to law school or become involved in law enforcement, the CIA, FBI, or nearly anywhere. It’s also a handy thing to use if you go into family therapy or counseling. You can use those intuitive skills in a therapeutic context.”

The Next Apple GuruSleek Porsches. Tiny cell phones. Ergonomic chairs. Minimalistic iPods. It’s likely that any beautiful, functional product you’ve seen or used recently was developed by an industrial designer. Now a WWC graduate may be responsible for the next big product, thanks to a new major in industrial design.

Simply put, industrial design is developing and improving the function, value, and appearance

of products and systems in a way that benefits both the user and the manufacturer.

The industrial design major is a natural fit for WWC, says Linda Nelson, chair of the Department of Technology and curriculum designer for the new major. “Our department’s background is in in-dustrial arts, and now we also have a strong graphic design program. The ability to combine those pro-grams is what makes it so easy to offer industrial design here.”

“The major in industrial design will provide a wonderful part-nership between the technology and engineering students,” adds Marlene Baerg, director of en-gineering recruitment. “Beyond teaming up to solve design prob-lems, it will benefit many of our

New Career Paths to TravelGone are the days of few career choices and limited class options. Students at Walla Walla College have their choice of 52 majors, including several brand-new programs in areas you may never have heard of. Even better, two of the newest are unique to WWC.

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Some programs are new, while others are a repackaging of existing classes to better meet student needs. Several of the majors, already offered as a bachelor of arts degree, will now be offered as a bachelor of science degree. New majors include:

• Industrial Design

• Automotive Management

• Aviation Management

• Forensic Psychology

• Psychology

• Applied Computer Science

• Information Systems

• Business Administration

New Majors for 2006-07


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Campus Current

current mechanical engineers who desire a more creative approach to product development.”

Nelson explains that adding three new classes to the existing design and manufacturing classes will round out the curriculum. “They’ll get all the basics and de-velop the skills they need in those other classes,” she says. “But it may seem disjointed at first. Then, it will all come together as the industrial design series explains how all those skills apply to this particular career.”

In order to gain real-world ex-perience, students in the indus-trial design series will brainstorm ways to make existing products functionally stronger and more aesthetically pleasing. Then, students sketch their ideas, de-veloping them further through technical drawing and 3-D mod-eling. “They’ll finish by building models of their unique designs out of clay, plastic, wood, or met-al,” says Nelson.

Industrial design is another major unique to WWC among Adventist colleges and universi-ties. “Several big art schools, like Seattle Art Institute, offer a fine arts version of industrial design,” Nelson explains. “And Western Washington University offers a similar degree. However, we think ours stands out as having the best balance of design and technical skills.

“Consumers are becoming more sophisticated and choosier when purchasing products,” says Nelson. “They demand a higher aesthetic accompanied by greater functionality, and that’s creat-ing a huge demand for industrial designers. That’s something we’re happy to supply.” n

A new short-term law just made giving to a good cause

even more rewarding.

Are you at least 70½ years old and have an Individual

Retirement Account (IRA) with mandatory withdrawls?

If so, you may benefit from a new law that allows you to

make gifts to charities directly from your IRA—without

counting funds as income. Benefits include:

Increased income

Tax savings

Making a gift you never could otherwise

Satisfaction of giving to Christian education

Benefits are only available for a limited time—until

Dec. 31, 2007. Call for more information.

Does your IRA need a new direction?

Allan Fisher

Estate Planning

Walla Walla College

204 S. College Avenue

College Place, WA 99324

Toll-free: (800) 377-2586

E-mail: [email protected]

Website: wwc.edu/alumni/

giving/estate.html


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The bond between Walla Walla College and Thailand’s Mission College

is growing closer with the possible addition of a social work program in the “Land of Smiles.”

Marja McChesney, professor of social work and field practi-cum coordinator, returned in late spring from a sabbatical in Thailand and immediately sub-mitted a feasibility study on the proposed program.

“There is a great need for

trained social workers in Thailand,” McChesney says. Prostitution and AIDS are wide-spread, and other humanitarian issues plague the area. Although many agencies provide social ser-vices, there are few people with the necessary social work skills.

“I have a personal interest in Thai people and their culture,” says McChesney, who has taught at WWC since 1989 and used to live in Indonesia, a country with roots based in Thailand.

Beyond uncovering many is-sues facing the Thai people, McChesney’s feasibility study touched on potential support for the new major and whether quali-fied faculty could be found.

Mission College is an inter-nationally focused school with more than 950 students from 32 counties. Most classes are taught in English. A so-cial work major

at Mission College would be the only program of its kind in Southeast Asia offered in English.

If the details work according to plan, students will be able to begin social work classes there in two years.

That would enhance the col-laboration between the two col-leges, McChesney says. The curriculum would be based on WWC’s, so students would eas-ily be able to transfer between the two schools, or complete a master’s

degree at WWC following stud-ies in Thailand. WWC students would also have the opportunity to participate in international field practicum opportunities, while faculty from both schools could take part in an exchange program. n

A Time in ThailandSocial Work Sabbatical Studies Potential Program

Mission College’s Church landscape reflects the beauty of Thailand.

Marja McChesney, a social work professor, met with college representatives to discuss a possible social work program.


In the Name of Love

Even though this senior is full of knowledge and

wisdom, Josue Galan’s head is feeling a lot lighter these days. That’s because he chopped off 11 inches of hair for Locks of Love, a not-for-profit organiza-tion that provides hair prostheses to financially disadvantaged chil-dren suffering from long-term

hair loss. After two years growing those tresses, Josue demonstrated just how much he’d donate in the name of love.

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Bits & Pieces

Win Free Clothes!If you’re the type who wants everything “my way”

you’ll love the newest offering from the College

Store. “MyGarb” lets you design your own Walla Walla

College apparel from scratch online at wwc.edu/

services/store. The Westwind staff thinks it’s so cool

that we’re going to give you the chance to design

your own. E-mail us at [email protected] and we’ll

draw three winning names.

Panda Bears on the LooseBet you didn’t know WWC was a natural habitat

for panda bears. Blame it on the Social Work Club.

Club members adopted out 120 of the plush bears

to support Camp Amanda, a camp in the Blue

Mountains for young children who have experi-

enced the death of a family member. The camp is

offered at no charge to the child or family, and each

child is placed with a counselor. Money from the

adopted pandas allowed five more kids to attend

camp this summer.

Are men really from Mars? Ask the students who took the Psychology of Men class, offered for the first time last spring. Taught by Professor Robert Egbert, the class delved into the inner psyche of men, including what men are like, why they’re

that way, and what it means to be a man in this day and age. Sounds like a class everyone should take. WWC students agree, judging by the more than 60 students who signed up. Approximately half of those were women.

The Year They Were BornDon’t college graduates seem younger every year? Most of the Class of 2006 was born in the year 1984. To those students, that means:• There have always been Apple Macintosh computers.• People have always been able to walk in space.• Until recently, Peter Jennings, Dan Rather, and Tom Brokaw had

always anchored the evening news.• Weather reports have always been available 24-hours a day on

television.• A “hotline” is a customer service option, not a phone

used to avoid accidental nuclear war.• Someone with the name George Bush has been on the

presidential ticket every election but one.

Men are from Mars


Answering The CallLessons Learned At the Pulpit and In the Pews

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What does it mean to be called by God?

Is it the conviction that God has a special plan for one’s life? A nagging hunger to do more than sit in a pew? A knowledge of being chosen to help hurting and broken people?

The call of ministry is a unique journey for every person who has sensed a divine bidding. However, theology students almost always admit feelings of uncertainty. Kris Loewen, a 2006 theology graduate,

describes his own calling as a long process of thinking, praying, listening, and testing.For some students, stepping into a pastor’s world long before earning professional

credentials has been critical to answering the call. Since 1998, up to 10 theology and religion students each year have found affirmation and answers through the Student/Pastor Mentor Program.

Students in the program—typically juniors and seniors—volunteer as interns in Walla Walla valley churches and even with congregations as far away as Pilot Rock, Ore., and Pasco, Wash.

Sponsored by the North Pacific Union Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, the Upper Columbia Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, and the Walla Walla College School of Theology, the mentoring program gives students a chance to put their classroom knowledge into practice.

“The program was started to bring together two urgent needs—to help our theol-ogy/religion students benefit from first-hand experience of pastoral ministry and for our churches to benefit from student leadership and youthful energy,” says Gerald Haeger, ministerial/evangelism director of the Upper Columbia Conference. “More than anything it gives first-hand affirmation of their call to ministry or, in a few cases, clear indication they should pursue another calling or career.”

Students meet an hour each week with their church’s pastor and spend a mini-mum of seven hours a week in elder meetings, board meetings, Bible studies, Sabbath school and church presentations, and other pastoral functions.

“The local church and pastor are present to mentor, guide, encourage, point the way, and serve as a spiritual laborato-ry,” says Haeger. “They also have the knowledge that they have the privi-lege of ‘passing the torch’ to the next generation.”

In 2005-06, congregations of 10 Oregon and Southeast Washington churches welcomed pastor interns. What lessons did the interns learn from the experience? Practical skills, yes, but most importantly they learned to understand the true mean-ing of their call.

Lesson One: Be Open To Change

The Umapine Seventh-day Adventist Church is just a 10-minute drive from College Place. Situated in a small town among the outly-

ing farms of Milton-Freewater, Ore., the white steepled church is just around the

Theology and religion students gain a broad and in-depth knowledge of Christian faith and Scripture, biblical languages, and Seventh-day Adventist heri-tage, as well as the skills to share their knowledge and nurture the faith of other people. Classes are taught in the following areas: n Biblical Studies Students examine the historical, social, and cultural con-

texts of the Bible writers and their writing. Each course typically focuses on one book of the Bible, such as Revelation, or a group of related books, such as the Pentateuch.

n Religious History Religious history courses introduce students to Christian church history as well as topics in world religions, archaeology, and the history and development of communities of faith.

n Missions Theology majors are required to take the class People in Contemporary Culture (U.S.), and students planning to spend one year as a student missionary or taskforce worker take the class Introduction to Cross-Cultural Ministry.

n Professional These courses are designed for experience in ministry-oriented activities, such as church worship, church leadership, field evangelism, pasto-ral care, and crisis ministry.

n Theology Courses in theology focus on spirituality, ethics, discipleship, Seventh-day Adventist doctrine, Last Day events, and other religious topics.

n Biblical Languages Students learn Greek or Hebrew, the languages of Bible writers. They are also introduced to Acadian, Sumarian, and Arabic, languages of cultures contemporary to Bible writers.

IN THE CLASSROOM

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corner from Tate’s Umapine Mercantile and the Waterhole Tavern, the town’s only retail establishments. The church’s pulpit faces a beautiful window view of a wheat field.

When Ofa Langi first stood at the pulpit to give the sermon to Umapine pa-rishioners, his mind wasn’t on the view. “I was scared,” he admits. A native of Riverside, Calif., and the son of Tongan immigrants, his apprehension came be-cause he had never been a part of a small church and was only accustomed to the worship practices of the Los Angeles Tongan Seventh-day Adventist Church.

“The way I present, I like feedback and conversation,” he says. “So throughout the whole sermon I felt like I was talking to the wall. Everybody just sat and looked at me,” he remembers. “Then, after church everybody came by to greet me and said ‘good job’ and ‘thank you.’ I stood there thinking ‘Wow. Really? Are you sure?’”

Fast-forward two years. Langi graduated in June with a degree in theology and looks back on his pastor/mentor experience with fondness. “Umapine has been a place where now, I feel like I could go there anytime and relax like it’s home. I feel really accepted there. They have embraced me despite my faults. It’s a really loving church,” he says.

Langi believes that his experience at Umapine has helped him to mature and also fine-tune his presenting skills. “When I speak at Umapine I have to calm down. I have to lower my voice and don’t talk too fast. They taught me to slow down.”

Change has come from both sides of the pulpit. “I’ll often get an ‘amen’ when someone feels it’s right and I’ll often get a question. It’s more conversational,” says Langi. “And, they know that when I’m preaching some of my friends will be there so there are different colors and races in the audience,” he laughs.

He’s earned the support of church members, especially Chelsey Griswold, a member for 25 years. “That young man talks about things that are so interesting,” says the 87-year-old Griswold. “I just sit on the edge of my seat spellbound. He’s a mighty wonder-ful young man, and I have a lot of confidence in him.”

Langi embraces his ties with Umapine, but he has always understood that he was a guest in a small church. “I was only going to be there a short time so it helped me not to step over anybody else’s way of living and thinking. And thinking that my way is the right way.”

Lesson Two: Church Is Community

With 2,200 church members, the Walla Walla College Church would be considered a mega-church compared to most Adventist churches. Walla Walla College’s campus church is one of the top five largest Adventist churches in the nation. And it has been Kris Loewen’s home church for as long as he can remember.

Loewen gravitated to leadership from a young age, leading junior high youth groups while attending Walla Walla Valley Academy, and high school student groups and Bible studies during his years in college. So it was a natural fit when,

“Church is far more about a community of people coming together than it is about a program or spectacle.”

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during his junior year, he participated in the Student/Pastor Mentor Program un-der the watchful guidance of Troy Fitzgerald, the College Church’s youth pastor and someone who had influenced Loewen’s call to the ministry.

While in the mentoring program, he led baptismal studies and worship services. He also lent a hand to Fitzgerald and a few other church members in launching a new church service called FirstServe, a contemporary worship program. When Loewen’s mentoring year ended, the College Church pastoral staff asked Loewen to stay, this time as the coordinator of FirstServe.

“FirstServe was started to provide another venue for people who connect more with contemporary praise music as part of an informal service in contrast to a more traditional service with classical music,” Loewen says.

But the intent of FirstServe is about more than just the music. “The name was chosen to express a commitment for those involved in the service to first serve be-fore anything else—to emphasize the service part of the Christian walk,” he says.

Loewen has learned much about coordinating speakers, musicians, drama pro-grams, and technical assistants. Yet, even with his experience in putting all the pieces of a church service together, Loewen concludes that what he learned the most during his College Church experience transcends the details of worship mu-sic, style, and setting. “Church is far more about a community of people coming together than it is about a program or spectacle. I’ve also learned how a pastor’s po-sition is unique in that a pastor is ultimately concerned with people and their rela-tionship with God, and how they should be willing to put behind them differences that would separate most people from the good of God’s cause.”

Lesson Three: Church Is About Changing Lives

Like other students in the mentoring program, Moises Ramirez was no stranger to church work before college. A high school mission trip spurred his interest in leading programs at his home church, the Wenatchee Spanish Seventh-day Adventist Church. Despite his church involvement, Ramirez still planned to pursue his dream of becoming an ear, nose, and

Not all theology and religion graduates enter pastoral ministry. Among the members of the Class of 2006, some are now serving as missionaries, chaplains, and teachers.

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throat surgeon. Once at Walla Walla College, however, he could no longer deny the sense that God was calling him to be a minister.

In 2004, Ramirez began the mentorship program at the Walla Walla Northside Adventist Church. Located six blocks from the Washington State Penitentiary, Northside has 65 members.

As Ramirez has led Sabbath school classes, attended church meetings, and ful-filled other duties, he has discovered two of his ministry strengths. “I have strengths in leadership and management,” he says, “and I’ve worked hard to bring structure to my experience at the church—in sermons, meetings, working with youth.”

Yet even as a self-described “people person,” Ramirez found that one of the most difficult parts of his internship at Northside was visiting parishioners in their homes.

“When I thought about visitations, I thought about my Spanish pastor coming over and giving Bible studies. But I see now that visitation can also be just about get-ting to know people better. I’ve been able to get to know people and their struggles. And through their struggles we have built this relationship.”

Ramirez continues to be driven by a desire to heal people, although not as the sur-geon he once envisioned, but as the pastor he aspires to be—a healer not of physical wounds, but of the soul. “I’m still amazed because now I’m able to take everything I love about thinking about being a surgeon, and I can apply it to ministry. A church can be like a hospital where people come to get help. We are to work alongside with God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. The responsibility of changing lives is not ours but the Holy Spirit’s, and he uses us in order to accomplish this. It’s amazing.”

Lesson Four: Stay Connected To God And Step Out In Faith

Eric Sayler describes the satisfaction of ministry as a joy that is different from happiness. “It’s different from being excited. A really big part of joy is just peace. That’s what I feel when I’m doing ministry with either kids or adults in a church setting—no matter where I’m touching people with God’s love, the joy just settles in.”

Sayler, also a 2006 theology graduate, has spent two years working with Cary Fry, a 1989 WWC graduate. Fry is pastor of Walla Walla’s Eastgate Seventh-day Adventist Church, which has 250 active members.

While there is joy in knowing you can help to change people’s lives, Sayler is also sober about the responsibilities. “Sometimes it can be scary to think about the re-sponsibility. I was talking with Pastor Cary and telling him how sometimes I just feel so inadequate. And he let me know he had felt that way that very morning. I’m glad pastors can feel that sometimes so that we realize that our strength needs to come from the Lord.”

It’s a lesson Sayler has taken from his experience organizing an evangelistic series as a senior project and also as part of his mentorship experience. Sayler spent six

“I believe the greatest compliment of success that a pastor can ever hear is ‘while you were here, Pastor, we saw and learned more of the Savior.’”


months planning the 12-meeting series called “The Missing Piece: How Does It All Fit?”

Sayler organized church members, wrote sermons, and knocked on neighborhood doors to invite people to the meetings. The series focused on topics of Christian founda-tions—from the existence of God and the validity of Scripture, to the Sabbath and the importance of baptism. The meetings were held in the fellowship hall to encourage con-versation and rapport between visitors and church members.

In the end, he isn’t sure if his efforts result-ed in baptisms, but he is sure of two things: that he is staying close to God and stepping out in faith more. “Expect great things and you will see them,” he says. “Don’t be afraid to go out on a limb for God.”

Keeping The Lines Open

Staying connected to God is one of the greatest challenges a pastor has. It’s a challenge David Thomas knows well from his 25 years as a pastor of large and small churches.

“It is very easy to get caught up in the busi-ness of pastoring and leave God out of the picture,” says Thomas. “If a minister is not tending to the inner dimension of his own life by holding his life open to God, he does not allow the Spirit to point out what needs to change and what needs to be adjusted.”

Today, as dean of WWC’s School of Theology, Thomas has the privilege of help-ing future pastors understand the importance of this challenge and the ultimate and divine reason that a church has a pastor.

“I believe the greatest compliment of suc-cess that a pastor can ever hear is ‘while you were here, Pastor, we saw and learned more of the Savior.’”

What does it mean when God comes call-ing? Staying open to him will provide the answers for following the Way and leading others down that path. n

School has done a better job of preparing you for the ministry than you really believe. Some of the biggest challenges in your first few years are going to be

the changes in your personal life. These are unavoidable. When you’re at college you know what is expected: Your schedule is set, you know how you’re doing, you get your grades. After you graduate, none of those things are true. You don’t have goals that are set by teachers. You don’t know how you’re doing; even your sched-ule is kind of at loose ends. These are real personal challenges that take place at a time that you’ve also lost most of your support network.

You are also often discovering that financially it’s more challenging out there than it is in school. It sounds odd to say that, because now you’re making money, but you have to pay off those loans. And with college, you’ve got fairly inexpen-sive housing and meals, plus access to a gym, concerts, and social life on campus. Now those things will cost you a lot more—things that require getting in the car and driving 15 to 30 minutes.

On a personal relationship level, talk to your spouse. One of the things my wife and I have done consistently is have a lunch date once a week. You wouldn’t think you would need that, but you will.

P.S. You will use your Greek. Once you start preaching on a regular basis, the first 10 sermons come pretty easily. After that you have to start digging. Then you’ll find that the languages really are valuable.

Greg Brothers ’80Senior Pastor, Lincoln City and Nestucca Seventh-day Adventist churches, Oregon

The pastor’s role, as someone once said, is, “to make the main thing the main thing.” The gospel has always been about connecting God and people.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer once said, “The righteous man lives for the next generation.” The great joy and challenge for pastors today is to bring a relevant message to the youth as well as the older members in the church, ever mindful that the youth shall “inherit” the church. The question is: What kind of church will they inherit? Creating a safe, affirming environment where young people sense real participa-tion in and eventually become the spiritually mature adult leaders of the church is one of the greatest legacies a pastor can leave in his or her ministry.

Phil Muthersbaugh ’80 Senior Pastor, LifeSource Community Adventist Church, Coeur d’Alene, Idaho

D on’t be surprised by conflict. Jesus will take you through it. Preach a well- balanced diet, not forgetting the great doctrines of the faith and the prophe-

cies. Keep wearing and preaching on the robe of Christ’s righteousness. Stephen Huey Senior Pastor, Hermiston and Heppner Seventh-day Adventist churches, Oregon

Always put the Lord before you and be humbled. People at church, I’m often re-minded, don’t care so much about how much you know; they want to know

how much you care. See ministry as a joy, a calling—not a job. Ministry has to be a call from the Lord. Of course, there will be moments of agony and anguish, but enjoy it nevertheless; it will shape who you ultimately will become and give your ministry meaning.

In seminary learn as much as you can. Don’t see yourself to be above anything, even if it means seemingly repeating course material you have covered. You can always learn something. Discuss with your peers, do a lot of listening, and just pray to God that he prepares you for the journey ahead.

The one piece of advice that has never left me came from my homiletics teach-er. He said, when you go into a church, don’t try changing things. Give yourself a year to listen and learn before you try directing traffic. That is sound advice. You have to earn the confidence of the people that you work with.

Abraham Francois ’01Pasco Ephesus Church and Othello Adventist Church, Washington

ADVICE FOR YOUNG PASTORS


Started 30 years ago “on a shoestring and a prayer,” Wilma Hepker has led in building social work into one of the college’s strongest programs.

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Blazing the Trail

Boise. Orofino. Pocatello. Clarkston. Idaho Falls. Yakima. Seattle. Pasco. Spokane. Pendleton. Rapid City. Casper. Helena.

These cities have something in common. They’re all loca-tions that students consistently commute from to at-tend the School of Social Work and Sociology.

With other social work programs available to them, what draws students to Walla Walla College? Wilma Hepker, dean of the School of Social Work and Sociology, knows. “Over and over I hear the same three things from students: They want our Christian atmosphere, family-friendly schedule, and the clinical focus we offer,” she says.

That may be true, but much of the program’s draw may just come from Hepker’s own magnetism.

The School of Social Work and Sociology began in 1973 when Hepker and her fam-ily moved to Walla Walla. At the time, there was a sociology degree, but Hepker noticed that many of those students were getting jobs as social workers. “There was a real need for trained social workers,” she says.

She set about developing a bachelor’s de-gree in social work. Once that was in place, the school began receiving calls from people

in the Northwest looking for a graduate program in social work. There were two main problems to overcome in order to begin a graduate program at WWC: approval from the WWC faculty and finding a qualified person to direct the program.

Hepker decided to move ahead in faith, although there was resistance to the idea. As it turned out, it wasn’t long be-fore the WWC faculty voted by an overwhelming majority to approve the program. Around the same time, a solution to the second challenge began falling into place. Hepker found Standley Gellineau teaching at the University of Denver. “He was the only Seventh-day Adventist that I knew of at the time with an MSW degree, a doctoral degree, and graduate teach-ing experience,” she says.

Not one to be content with the status quo, it was only a few years before Hepker shook things up again. “We had several stu-dents who were commuting more than eight

As a tribute to Wilma Hepker’s legendary work at WWC and in her profession, the school has been re-named the Wilma Hepker School of Social Work and Sociology.

By Kristi Spurgeon

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hours one way every week in order to attend our program,” Hepker marvels. With an eight-hour drive looming every few days, students were begging WWC to come to Montana. After much consideration it was agreed to establish a social work campus in Missoula in 1997, which was followed four years later by a campus in Billings.

Hepker says all of the social work programs “started on a shoestring and a prayer.” At first the Missoula cam-

pus consisted of a rented room in an adult education center in town and a small house on the grounds of the local Adventist elementary school.

Finding faculty for these programs that fit the necessary criteria proved to be a challenge. As Hepker says, “They just don’t grow on trees.” But they do grow out of WWC’s own program, which is how the School of Social Work has gained many of its current 23 faculty members.

“We had to do a lot of standing on our heads to get things done,” Hepker says. “But I know it has always been God’s will. Otherwise we would never have overcome all the ob-stacles that we faced.” Currently there are 80 students on the Missoula campus, 65 students at Billings, and more than 150 at College Place.

Hepker believes God has blessed WWC’s willingness to ex-tend the program to those who need it. His presence is felt at all three campuses, a “real draw” for many students. Another factor in the program’s success is the family-friendly schedule, with all classes offered on two consecutive days during the week, providing more time for students to work, participate in clinicals, and take care of their families. It has also helped fos-ter the reputation of a “commuting school,” ideal for the many professional students hoping to advance their degrees.

WWC is also one of the few social work programs with a clinical focus. At WWC students learn social work theory, but the focus on clinical work means they also receive valuable experience actually working in the field.

“Our program prepares graduates to work directly with peo-ple through clinical assessments, treatment plans, and evalua-tions using the strengths perspective,” says Marja McChesney, social work professor and field practicum coordinator.

McChesney says that alumni from the School of Social Work find employment based on their comprehensive knowl-

edge and skills in working with clients. “We receive frequent calls requesting names of students who are ready for employ-ment because of the clinical focus in this program,” she adds.

Today, more students graduate from the School of Social Work and Sociology each year than from any other program at WWC. In June, the 30th anniversary of the first bachelor of social work graduating class, 164 students received either a bachelor’s or master’s degree in social work.

Now the program will have to continue on without the leadership of its founder and driving force. Hepker retired in September after 33 years at WWC. Recently, Hepker was honored by the renaming of the school to the Wilma Hepker School of Social Work and Sociology. “It’s all ‘much ado about nothing’,” Hepker laughs. “I tell everyone this fuss is certainly not necessary, but I know they’re trying to be nice.”

The ‘nothing’ she refers to could fill several lifetimes. Hepker has made many valuable contributions to WWC, the Adventist church, the community, and the social work field. She was honored this year with a Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Association of Social Workers, Washington Chapter, and was previously named Social Work Teacher of the Year by the same organization.

Although she will be leaving the program to spend time with her eight grandchildren, write the history of the School of Social Work and Sociology, and clean out the stacks that have accumulated in her house through the busy years, Hepker knows she is leaving the program in good hands. Pamela Cress, associate professor of social work, is the new dean of the school.

“Dr. Hepker has built a strong legacy of quality social work education here at Walla Walla College. It is a privilege to be asked by the faculty to continue the good work that she start-ed over 30 years ago,” says Cress. “I look forward with antici-pation to the joys and challenges of this new position.”

“Christ was the first social worker,” Hepker sums up. “He met people’s needs. He loved them, cared for them, fed them, and clothed them. It’s what humans are here to do and it’s what social workers do. That’s why we have a social work pro-gram at Walla Walla College.” n


Rapid City

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A Christian atmosphere, family-friendly schedule, and clinical focus are what students value about the social work graduate program. Pamela Cress, who has taught since 1996, is the new dean of the school.

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D edicating his life to glorifying God through music, Marvin Robertson has inspired scores of students and fellow worship-pers to do the same.

During his 33-year tenure as dean of the School of Music at Southern Adventist University in Collegedale, Tenn., Marvin had many accomplis-ments. He oversaw the completion of a 44,000-square-foot music facility and the installation of a world-class organ. He also founded three musi-cal groups—the children’s choir Collegedale Caroliers, Die Meistersinger male chorus, and the show choir Something Special. In addition, he pre-pared and conducted his Southern Singers in the performance of many major choral works and was a producer of a number of Broadway musi-cals. In 1968 accreditation of Southern’s music program was granted by the National Association of Schools of Music, a distinction held by only half of the music schools in the nation.

For 27 years Marvin served as the Minister of Music at the Collegedale Seventh-day Adventist Church. He was also a co-founder of the International Adventist Musicians Association and served on several General Conference music committees.

In 1982, accompanied by Die Meistersinger, he made the first of eight journeys to the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. Under communist rule, the group was not allowed to perform sacred pieces, except spiri-tuals and “The Battle Hymn of the Republic” since they were clas-sified as American folk music. After the fall of communism, Marvin returned to establish music curriculum and teach at Zaokski Theological Seminary during the spring quarters of 1993 and 1996.

Marvin retired in 1999. He currently serves as minister of music at Port Charlotte Seventh-day Adventist Church. He and his wife, Jean, have four chil-dren and eight grandchildren.

H ow does a drama buff and would-be news broadcaster become one of the most influential women in the aviation industry? As a communications media major, Gina Marie envisioned becom-

ing a broadcaster, but soon realized few opportunities existed in her native Alaska. Instead, she worked for an engineering firm as an administrative assistant and quickly became involved in subdivision zoning and platting work. She later became a transportation planner with the State of Alaska Department of Transportation, and as Gina Marie says, “the rest is history.”

Fast-forward 10 years, to 1993, when Gina Marie was recruited to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport to serve as its aviation director. For 11 years, Gina Marie was responsible for the operations, maintenance, and strategic and financial planning of the airport, which serves nearly 30 million pas-sengers a year. Under her guidance, Sea-Tac took on a $3-billion, seven-year capital improvement project, including the construction of a new runway, demolition and reconstruction of a concourse, and major refurbishments.

Gina Marie also weathered trying times while at Sea-Tac. In 2001, she saw the airport through repairs after a 6.8-magnitude earthquake and later that year, dealt with the upheaval of the aviation industry after the events of 9/11.

She has served in many industry advisory roles, including being the first woman to chair the North American arm of the World Board of Directors for the Airport Council International.

According to Gina Marie, the best thing she ever did was be-ing a mom to her son, Jeremy, who was a freshman at Tulane University when he died at the age of 18.

In 2004, Gina Marie and her husband, Tom Dow, moved to Washington, D.C., where she is an executive vice presi-dent of McBee Strategic Consulting, a govern-ment relations and busi-ness consulting firm.

Gina Marie Lindsey ’76 Marvin Robertson ’56

GENEROSITY IN SERVICE

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L ike angels in human form” is how Carl Wilkens remembers his Rwandan neighbors. And with good reason. When a militia group arrived at the missionary’s gate to continue its looting and kill-

ing spree, Carl’s neighbors intervened, telling the soldiers stories of the Wilkens’ kindness and friendship. The militia relented, leaving Carl and his family in peace.

Rwanda was a different place when Carl and his family arrived four years earlier. Carl became the head of the Adventist Development and Relief Agency International in the small African country after serving in the mission field at Zimbabwe and Zambia. However, by 1994, when fighting broke out between the Hutus and Tutsis, the American em-bassy issued an evacuation order, leaving Carl and his wife, Teresa, with a tough decision. Carl was determined to stay and help his Rwandan workers, so when his wife and children boarded an evacuation camper bound for Nairobi, Carl stayed behind to bring food, water, and medi-cine to orphans in the capital city of Kigali. Carl was the only American to remain in Kigali while the genocide claimed 800,000 Rwandan lives over the course of three months.

Carl has been featured in two films, the PBS documentary “Ghosts of Rwanda,” and the American Radio and National Public Radio production “The Few Who Stayed.” He has received the Digitas Humana Award from Saint John’s School of Theology Sem-inary and a Medal of Valor from the Simon Weisenthal Center.

Carl, an industrial education graduate, and Teresa (Ap-pley), a 1981 business edu-cation graduate, have three children. Mindy and Lisa are both WWC students, and Shaun is a student at Milo Adventist Academy in Days Creek, Ore., where Carl now serves as chaplain.

While serving as a student missionary on the island of Palau, Jason Wells, Young Alumnus of the Year, stumbled upon a small set of handbells abandoned in the closet of Koror

Adventist Elementary School. The discovery was a coup for the seasoned handbell player, who began teaching his students simple pieces on the bells. They learned quickly, eventually playing for the inauguration of the president of Palau.

After graduating from WWC with a major in English, Jason taught at Tualatin Valley Junior Academy in Hillsboro, Ore., teaching music, English, history, and Bible. As a teacher, Jason was known for his energy, enthusi-asm, and creativity, always bringing the best out of his students. Jason’s energetic spirit was most apparent while directing Ring of Fire, the nation-ally acclaimed handbell group he formed in 1997.

Known for its fiery music and spirited style, the 13-member ensemble has performed in 18 states and seven countries, playing for two presiden-tial inaugurations, NBA basketball games, the Boston Pops Holiday con-cert, and the “CBS Early Show.”

Now academy and college students, Ring of Fire continues to perform at special events under Jason’s direction. Jason shares his handbell exper-tise as a clinician at national and international handbell festivals each year.

After eight years at Tualatin, Jason spent a year at Portland Adventist Academy before parlaying his profes-sional skills in photography, writing, and multimedia into his current position as assistant director of corporate communications at Florida Hospital in Orlando, Fla. Jason and his team produce national television commercials, corporate communication piec-es, and two internal television channels viewed by more than a million patients a year.

Jason and his wife, Heather (Schmunk) Wells, a 1999 nursing graduate, have one daughter, Sidney.

Carl Wilkens ’81 Jason Wells ’96

2006 Alumni of the Year

By Amy Wilkinson

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GENEROSITY IN SERVICE


Interview

How did you begin your career in this field? My mother was a single mom, so I spent most of my time with my grandparents. In 1943, when I was 5 years old, they opened a nursing home for six people in Grants Pass, Ore. We lived in a small, attached apartment so I spent much of my time with the patients in the nursing home. I had wheelchair races in the hallways, and patients helped me with my homework. A man named Rudy helped me learn my ABCs. My sister-in-law was the cook, so I could always go into the kitchen at any time and ask for something to eat. I was treated like a little king. It was a wonderful experience to grow up in this unusual environment.

Did you work there when you were older? I always had chores to do; I worked in the garden, washed sidewalks, washed dishes, and mowed the lawn. I worked as administrator for my grandparents for two years after college. By that time the

nursing home had grown to have 100 residents. Over the years, my grandfather, who was a carpenter, had added on to the building several times. When they decided to sell, they helped Betsy [my wife] and me buy a nursing home in Milton-Freewater. We operated Elzora Manor for 10 years until we followed opportunities in Portland.

How did your perspective about nursing care evolve as the years passed? I always felt there had to be a better way. Traditionally, many of the older people who needed help with their activities of daily living went to a nursing home. Many of these people didn’t need to be in a heavily medical environment. They could have a more home-like seating rather than an institutional environment. So we built a facility where everyone had their own apartment and brought their own furniture. They had their own space and their own doorbell so that they

had their privacy. We would give people more choices in what they would eat, when they got up, when they bathed, and all the things we do at home.

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A Place to Call HomeBy Rosa Jimenez

Twenty years ago, 1963 business graduate Wendell White transitioned from operating nursing homes to de-veloping one of the first senior housing communities in the Northwest where residents could live in a more home-like setting. Through Generations, the company he and his family founded, White is developing com-munities where seniors can receive the care they need in their own environment and also enjoy amenities for their mental and physical wellbeing. Over the past 12 years, the company has developed 25 retirement facili-ties and offers housing options of independent living, rehabilitation, assisted living, and home care services. Currently, the company operates 1100 units with an annual revenue of $35 million. In recent years, Wendell and his wife, Betsy (Wagner) att., have been joined in the business by two other alumni, their son, Rob, a 1991 graduate, and daughter-in-law, Jennifer, a 1989 graduate.


Interview

Where were you first able to provide this home-like atmosphere? We opened our first community—Town Center Village—in Clackamas [Ore.] in 1985. In 1987 we opened an assisted living facility at the same site, which had apartment-style living and also gave nursing care. At that time there were no other facilities in the state that offered this type of housing. Two years later we added independent apartments. We tried to create a resort-like setting with a spa, fitness center, church, bank, theater, and putting green.

Why did you believe it is important to give people choices?It was my observation that as people age, they lose their independence, their privacy, their power to make choices. It is our goal to maintain the dignity of each of our residents, respect their privacy, and maintain their power to choose.

How did you begin your collaboration with Adventist Health? Because we had been successful with Town Center Village, Adventist Health talked with us about developing a housing community on a parcel of land next to the hospital in Portland. We opened our apartments at CherryWood Village in 1999 and opened the assisted living facility one year later.

What is your most recent project? Any other projects on the horizon?Adventist Health approached us about building a community next to Walla Walla General Hospital. We opened Wheatland Village two years ago. It has both apartment units and an assisted living facility. This fall we’ll break ground for a housing community next to Paradise Valley Hospital in San Diego. It will have 500 units—our largest community yet.

It also sounds as if the White family is carrying on the tradition of working together.Yes, we are. Betsy is on our board and is involved in an advisory capacity. My daughter, Melody [Gabriel], oversees marketing. She studied geriatric psychology at Pacific Union College and tells me she chose this major so she could understand her dad. Her husband, Chip, is in charge of development and construction.

And your son? Rob is in charge of the management of our communities. Rob has a physical education background. He worked in fitness centers after college and first came into the business running the fitness center at one of our communities. Then he realized it might not be a bad idea to go into management. His wife, Jennifer, is our treasurer. She began her career in banking and joined the business in 1995.

In 1999, your company was voted Oregon Family Business of the Year by the School of Business at Oregon State University. What has made your family business successful? What I’ve tried to do is have each person responsible for separate areas. We try not to interfere in each other’s area of responsibility. We have a family meeting at least once a month, or more

often if necessary. The six of us get together to go over finances and make major decisions. Even though it can be difficult, I know I need to go along with the decision even if at times I don’t agree with it. Also, once a year, we get away to do long-range planning. So far what we’re doing has worked. Do you have any plans to retire?I’m never going to retire. With the day-to-day operation of the company in other hands, I now have the opportunity to do just what I want to do. Right now it’s the interior design for our communities. In the past, I would hire someone to do this, but I always ended up picking out colors and pieces myself. Now, I’m having a great time doing it.

As you look back on your personal and professional life, what gives you the greatest pride? That’s easy. Having my kids in the business. We never asked them to or pushed them. Coming into the business is something they decided on their own. My children are the fourth generation of my family to be involved in senior housing. And we’ll see with the rest of the family. When my grandson’s school had a Career Day, he was asked what he wanted to be when he grew up. He said “a businessman like my grandpa.” I get emotional about it because it means so much to me. n

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Wendell White and his family, including son Rob, opened Wheatland Village, a senior housing community in Walla Walla, in 2004. The community offers a fitness center, swimming pool, a church, and other amenities.

Enjoy catching up with fellow alumni through Westwind’s Interviews? Visit Alumni Central on the Web (alumni.wwc.edu) to check out archives of these interviews and peruse additional Web-exclusive interviews.


Alumnotes

1950s Wilton Bunch ’56 and his wife, Victoria,

make their home in Vestavia Hills, Ala.

Wilton has spent many years working in

the field of medicine, including a career

as a pediatric orthopedist, serving as the

chair of Orthopedics at Loyola University

in Chicago, the dean of Medicine at the

University of Chicago, and the dean of the

School of Medicine at the University of

South Florida. Currently he is a professor

of ethics at Beeson Divinity School. During

his free time he enjoys playing the string

bass in his university’s orchestra. Wilton

and Victoria have one son, Brent.

Anelda (Lewis) Derhalli ’56 and her

husband, Zouhdi ’53 and ’54, are re-

tired and living in Lake Oswego, Ore. She

writes the following about her experi-

ences at WWC: “It was a privilege for me

to attend an SDA college as I went to

public schools. I really enjoyed the Chris-

tian atmosphere there. Special are the

memories of Sabbath and orchestra.” She

also appreciates the nursing education

she received here. Her nursing career was

put on hold with the addition of their

two children, David and Karen. Her most

recent contribution to nursing was the

24 years she spent at Adventist Health in

Portland. Anelda enjoys gardening, cook-

ing, traveling, and her five grandchildren.

Barbara (Alderson) Heisler ’56 and her

husband, Bill att., make their home in

Highland, Calif. Barbara retired in 2000

after 34 years of service in the field of

education. She taught kindergarten for

30 years and began the kindergarten

program at Redlands Junior Academy in

Redlands, Calif. Barbara’s fondest mem-

ory of WWC is meeting her husband

whom she married the day after her

graduation. The couple has four chil-

dren, Scott, Barry, Susan and Bradley ’88;

and four grandchildren.

Larry Lewis ’56 is retired and living in

Vancouver, Wash. After graduating from

WWC, Larry was ordained as a minis-

ter. He spent many years as an educa-

tor, teaching at Mt. Ellis Academy, Walla

Walla College, and Atlantic Union Col-

lege, where he also served as a college

administrator. Larry has four children, Lori Payne att., Kent, Sharon Hinman att., and Brant; and five grandchildren.

Norma (Shearer) Rice ’56 and her hus-

band, Floyd ’56, make their home in

Pollock Pines, Calif. In 1971, she was

asked to instruct nursing classes at Por-

terville Community College. She became

a professor of nursing and taught there

for more than 20 years. She also became

an expert witness for the California Board

of Nursing. Norma enjoys her family and

recently became a member of the “Red

Hat Society.” From her time at WWC, she

remembers living in Conard Hall, enjoy-

ing her nursing classes, and meeting

Floyd. The couple has four children, Da-

ryl, Douglas, Debra Priest att., and De-

nise Skinner; and eight grandchildren.

Louise (Braatz) Smith ’56 is a retired

registered nurse living in Portland, Ore.

Row 1 Joan Shultz, Joan (Potts) Sproul, Gladys Robison, Kathy (Sharman) Hempel, Jean (Shankel) Smith, Lettia (Cates) Byrd, Dorothy (Curtis) Taksdal, Betty (Parkhurst) Tym, Julianne (Goodman) Krantz, Ed Bryan Row 2 Carmen (Miller) Graham, Tom Stafford, Brooke Stafford, Jerry (Wilson) Stephens, Anelda (Lewis) Derhalli, Esther (Samograd) Polishuk, Lois (Hollenbeck) Stevens, Jeanette (Weaver) Sullivan Row 3 Richard Graham, Marvin Robertson, Paul Lindstrom, Nettie (Hetke) English, Evelyn Dobson, Marion (Kislanko) Burtt, Norma (Shearer) Rice Row 4 Carl Rose, Sam Ketting, Joseph Bozovich, Del Zopf, Don Lang, Harvey Heidinger, Barbara (Alderson) Heisler, Verlene (Rigby) White, Lillian (Morris) Cramer Row 5 Harold Gray, Don Weaver, Howard Gimbel, Verne Wehtje, Victor Boyle, Bill Heisler, Daniel Ling, Arthur White Row 6 Wilton Bunch, Gordon Henderson, Lee Wilson, Bill Greenley, Larry Lewis, Lloyd Kuhn, Floyd Mohr, Richard Madson, David Hensel

Class of 1956

Vanguards

Row 1 Orletta (Wilson) Dealy, Mary (Spenst) Nations, Irmgard (Siemsen) Hooper, Louise (Hudson) Rea, Naida (Johnson) Emmerson, Howard Hallock, Vickie Miller, Virginia (Miller) Mabley Row 2 Donald Dealy, Olen Nations, Elden Walter, Paul Gruzensky, Dale Brusett, Lyman Miller, Elwood Mabley Row 3 Earl Lee, Herbert Bork, Nadene (Thompson) Bork, Elaine (Skinner) Derby, Melvin Derby, June Iseminger, Allen J. Iseminger, Clarence Chinn, Clayton Prusia Row 4 Vida (Wadsworth) Beaulieu, Thelma (Johnson) McCoy, Dick McCoy, Don Goe


Alumnotes

Lloyd Wyman ’50 and his wife, Donna (Spillman) att., make their home in

Newbury Park, Calif., where Lloyd is the

director of the ministerial department for

the Pacific Union Conference. Donna has

become a specialist in grief counseling.

Lloyd and Donna are very athletic and

have run 11 full marathons and 50 half

marathons. Evangelism and pastoring are

Lloyd’s passions, and he has been serv-

ing the conference since 1976. Lloyd has

fond memories of WWC, including meet-

ing and marrying Donna and singing in

“The Crusaders,” the first student group

asked to sing for the final concert of the

year. The couple has two children, Sandra

and Scott; and four grandchildren.

Delvin Zopf ’56 and his wife, Julie, re-

side in Golden, Colo. Delvin graduated

from Loma Linda University in 1960 and

completed his residency requirements in

ophthalmology at USC. He traveled over-

seas to serve as a volunteer surgeon in St.

Vincent, Nepal, Honduras, and Latvia. In

1967 he served as chief of ophthalmol-

ogy at Womack Army Hospital. Delvin is

the founder of the Denver Eye Surgery

Center and Clinic and is currently operat-

ing his own private practice. In his free

time, he enjoys skiing, fly fishing, and

mountaineering in the Rockies, Patago-

nia, New Zealand, and Europe. The cou-

ple has five children, Teri Schoesler, Traci,

Troy, Todd, and Tandi Donaldson.

1960s Darold Bigger ’66 and his wife, Bar-bara (Messinger) att., make their home

in Walla Walla. Darold served as a pas-

tor until 1993 when he started teaching

full time at WWC. He has recently retired

from his service as a chaplain for the

Navy Reserve. From his time as a student

at WWC, Darold fondly recalls Week of

Prayer, moving from Columbia Audito-

rium to the College Church, meeting

Barbara in the Administration Building,

eating Jim Gregg’s stew in their dorm

room on Friday evenings, and watching

Dick Hart’s South American slides. The

couple has two daughters, Hilary Catlett ’97 and ’98 and Shannon Bigger ’95,

who died in 1996.

Claire (Minouflet) Bishop ’61 and her

husband, Blakely, are retired and have

been living in Goldendale, Wash., since

1960. In 1962 they started a sanitation

business, which they sold in 1979. The

couple owns 70 acres of apple and cherry

orchards in Chelan, Wash., which are run

by Jim Bishop. The couple has two chil-

dren, Deborah Wilson and Jerry; and four

grandchildren.

Ed Boyatt ’66 and his wife, Teri (Cleve-land) ’66, make their home in Riverside,

Calif. Ed is a professor in the School of

Education at La Sierra University and Teri

is a teacher with the Riverside Unified

School District. Teri has spent 20 years

teaching in elementary schools in the

Upper Columbia, Oregon, and Southern

California conferences, as well as serving

as principal at Tualatin Valley Junior Acad-

emy. Ed has held a variety of positions

including being a pastor in the Upper Co-

lumbia Conference, teaching Bible at Up-

per Columbia Academy and Walla Walla

Valley Academy, serving as the principal

at Glendale and Columbia academies,

serving as the dean of students at WWC,

working as the associate director of edu-

cation for the North Pacific Union Confer-

ence, and serving as the superintendent

of schools for the Oregon Conference.

Some of Ed’s fondest WWC memories

include meeting his wife, taking classes

from J. Paul Grove, playing basketball in

the Sonnenberg series, and serving as a

student missionary in Guyana. Some of

Teri’s fondest memories include vespers,

becoming acquainted with teachers

and administrators, early morning bird-

watches with Dr. Blake, and serving as the

student association social vice president.

Ed and Teri have three children, Jolene Roeske ’90, Jason ’93, and Jared ’94; and

three grandchildren.

Phyllis Collins ’66 lives in Tamuning,

Guam, where she is a nurse practitio-

ner in the Guam Seventh-day Adventist

clinic. In addition to working as a nurse

practitioner, she enjoys doing Bible stud-

ies and heading a weekly grief recovery

class. In her free time she likes to walk

and read.

Udell (Bulgin) Fresk ’66 is enjoying

retired life with her husband, Gary ’67.

She retired from engineering about five

years ago, and since then has served on

the boards of Auburn Adventist Academy

and the Bellevue Botanical Garden Soci-

ety. Currently she is serving as the chair

of Garden d’Lights, a holiday light display

composed of hundreds of thousands of

miniature lights shaped into flowers. She

manages the more than 300 volunteers

that put the display together. She and

Gary have three children, Bob Eby att., Cami Kitchens att., and Sean att.

Virginia (Hartley) Karst ’61 and her

husband, Emery, make their home in

Salem, Ore. Virginia is retired and vol-

unteers at a local bilingual elementary

school. Emery keeps busy with a full-

time dental practice. In their free time

the couple enjoys gardening and bird

watching. In February and March of

2005 Emery and Virginia took a trip of a

lifetime to Costa Rica to do some bird

watching. The couple has three children,

Elisabeth ’88, Sara Hendrickson att., and

Bertram att.

Ralph Kneller ’66 and ’68 and his wife,

Marie (Huk) ’68, make their home in

Kelowna, B.C. Ralph has been in the field

of education for many years. He taught in

the Seventh-day Adventist school system

for 20 years, including four years at Far

Eastern Academy in Singapore and one

year at Philippine Union College. Cur-

rently Ralph is teaching at a local public

high school.

Albert “Dale” Lent ’61 and his wife,

Myrna (Fowler) att., make their home

Row 1 Jim Dixon, Terrie (Hiebert) Oldham, Nila (Harris) Watson, Claire (Minouflet) Bishop, Alma (Ferster) Liske, Carol (Marsh) Campbell Row 2 Leon Hagen, Joy (Uehlin) Palmer, Berta (Slaght) Brenton, Laurine (Wright) Kites, Beverly (Bretsch) Klein Row 3 Kenneth Dunton, Burton Maxwell, Verne Hyland, Levi Kuhn, Ronald Miller, Burton Briggs, Georgene (Beltz) Roebuck, Dale Lent, Marilyn (Humbert) Coughren

Class of 1961


on 10 acres in Kettle Falls, Wash. Dale is

a retired educator, and each winter the

couple takes a five-month long trip in

their RV. Dale enjoys art, photography,

travel, SCUBA, and his worldwide collec-

tion of more than 10,000 seashells. Dale

and Myrna have four children, Kathryn

Akins, Joseph (deceased), Karen Wein-

ischke, and Jeanne Norris ’87; and four

grandchildren.

Madeline (MacPhail) McKercher ’61

and her husband, Robert, reside in Tilla-

mook, Ore. Madeline retired in 1995 and is

enjoying her retirement. She keeps busy

caring for her husband, quilting, and cro-

cheting. Madeline has two sons, Eric and

Leif Swanson att.; and two grandchildren.

Floyd Penstock ’66 and his wife, Fern,

have served as missionaries in four

countries, the last of which was in The

Gambia, West Africa. During a mission-

ary stay in Liberia, West Africa, they were

taken prisoners by rebel forces. Pres-

ently the couple is retired and living in

Apopka, Fla.

Betty Jean (Skeels) Magnuson ’66 and

her husband, Jay ’65, make their home in

Quincy, Wash. They have three children,

Warren ’97, Amelia Messervy ’03, and

Nathaniel att.; and one grandchild.

Sandy (Leach) Zaugg ’61 is retired

after many years of teaching grade

school, academy, and college. She now

spends her time writing books, mostly

for children. She has had seven books

published so far. Sandy also volunteers

her time at various schools in Asia for

two to six months at a time. From her

time at WWC, she remembers newly

engaged men getting thrown into the

pond and Canadians ice-skating on

the frozen tennis courts. Sandy has two

children, Edwin att., who passed away

seven months before graduation, and

Kimberly att.

Les Palinka ’66 lives in Chula Vista, Calif.,

where he is an attorney-at-law. He has

practiced law as a sole practitioner in the

San Diego area since 1977. His practice

focuses on probate and trust law, estate

planning, and trust litigation. He has two

children, Rick and Jacqueline.

Charles Scriven ’66 and his wife, Re-

bekah Wang-Cheng, make their home

in Oakwood, Ohio. Since graduating,

Charles has had an interesting career

life, including being the associate editor

for Insight magazine, teaching at WWC,

pastoring the Sligo Seventh-day Adven-

tist Church, and serving as president

of Columbia Union College. He is cur-

rently serving as president of Kettering

College of Medical Arts and is the chair

of the Association of Adventist Forums

Board. Charles has three children, Jona-

than, Christina, and Jeremy; and five

grandchildren.

Lillian (Mehling) Stutz ’61 and her hus-

band, Helmut att., make their home in

Burlington, Wash. Both Lillian and Helmut

retired in 2000 and are enjoying a more

relaxed lifestyle that gives them more

time for traveling and spending time with

their family. The couple has two children,

Monica Wildman ’83 and Michael ’89;

and three grandchildren.

Joy (Uehlin) Palmer ’61 is making her

home in College Place where she has

spent the last 15 years as the library as-

sistant at Rogers Adventist School. Edu-

cation has been her lifelong career. She

began her teaching career in a grades

1-8 church school and spent 13 years as

an assistant librarian at WWC. Joy mar-

ried a teacher, which meant lots of vol-

unteer time in the classroom. In her free

time, she enjoys birdwatching and be-

ing a grandmother. Joy has two children,

John and Janel att.; she also has two

grandchildren.

1970s Keith Canwell ’76 and his wife, Nancy (Snyder) ’81, make their home in College

Place. Keith is a manager for a mobile

dental clinic for Northwest Medical Teams

International. Recently he spent a month

on a dental team in Banda Aceh, Indone-

sia, treating tsunami survivors.

Pamela (Larrabee) Duffy ’76 and her

husband, Mark att., make their home in

Bozeman, Mont. Pamela is the secretary

and treasurer for Central Copters, Inc. She

married Mark in August of 1975. The cou-

ple has three children, Tyler ’04, Thomas att., and Ashley curr. att.

Paul Holce ’76 and his wife, Mary Beth,

make their home in Walla Walla, where he

is a nurse practitioner at the Veterans Af-

fairs Medical Center. Paul and Mary Beth

have two sons, Jonathan and Nicholas.

Gary Jepson ’76 and his wife, Deidre,

live in San Marcos, Texas, where he is

the president and chief executive offi-

cer of the Central Texas Medical Center.

The couple has two children, Bryan and

Bethany.

Row 1 Fekede “Fred” Gemechu, Loren Dickinson, Barbara (Parmele) Pekarek, Carol (Foss) Minden, Betty-Jean (Skeels) Magnuson, Suzanne (Trout) Fillmore, Sandra (Dorr) Featherston, Jerry Hiner, Judy (Dolinsky) Vliet, Darold Bigger Row 2 Jerry Schoepflin, Ruth (Christensen) Fenton, Betty (Fritz) Duncan, Nancy (Dewilt) Cross, Eugene Amey, Judy (Littler) Zachrison, Bill Fields, Bonnie (Emmerson) Fields, Carlton Cross Row 3 Keith Colburn, Gordon Johnson, Ruth (Enderson) Turner, Bonnie (Kendall) Humphreys, Nona (Lyman) Nordby, Teri (Cleveland) Boyatt, Carla (Payne) Dowie, Edwin Karlow Row 4 Don Humphreys, Ronald Humphreys, Roger Cox, Ed Boyatt, Dale Ziegele, Chuck Nagele, Wally Ingram Row 5 Gary Wiss, David Heusser, Lowell Lamberton, Richard Hart, Ralph Johnson, Bill Johnson, Edward Klein

Class of 1966

Row 1 Judyann (Ratcliff ) Hoerler, Bev (Petersen) Scott, Bev (Petersen) Scott, Barbi (Aitchison) Dickerson, Eileen (Perrin) Stuart Row 2 Ruth (Gilliland) MacKenzie, Connie Herington, Larry Swisher, Ernie Norhton Row 3 Ole Olesen

Class of 1971

Alumnotes


Denise (Sylvester) Johnson ’76 and her

husband, Doug ’77, make their home

in Spangle, Wash., where she is a secre-

tary in the ministerial department of the

Upper Columbia Conference. Denise is

happy to be serving the Adventist church

once again and is thankful for the train-

ing WWC provided her. From her time at

WWC, she remembers helping out at the

Waitsburg Church, cultural lectures, the

Chinese acrobats, and piano and band

concerts. Denise and John have two sons,

Hans ’04 and Erik att.

Clyde Knecht ’76 is living in Libby, Mont.,

where he is working as a physician.

Gary Kromrei ’76 and his wife, Shareé,

reside in Lenore, Idaho, where they own

a retirement home. Both Gary and Shareé

are active leaders in their church. In their

free time the family enjoys camping,

snow skiing, traveling, music, and country

living. Their greatest joy is their children,

Jesse curr. att., Cody, and LaTasha.

Paula (Revolinski) Von Kuster ’71 is

retired in Cincinnati, Ohio, after spending

many years serving others. Paula was the

director of client services in a regional ge-

riatric home care, a medical social worker

in home health and hospice, as well as a

consultant for behavioral healthcare and

managed care. Paula has had some excit-

ing experiences outside of her career in-

cluding being a mother, visiting Ground

Zero in New York City, performing at

Carnegie Hall, and driving through an

unexploded minefield in post-war Croa-

tia. When she has a free moment, she

enjoys international travel, birdwatching,

and singing. Paula has two sons, Jeremy

and Joshua.

Carol (Sigurdson) Waite ’71 and her

husband, Dennis, make their home in

Berrien Springs, Mich. Carol is a homec-

are manager for eight hospitals with the

Lakeland Homecare Management Com-

pany. She and Dennis have three chil-

dren, Kristin Ivany, Kelsey, and Kyla.

Elaine (Cotie) Lobdell ’76 is living in

Renton, Wash., where she is the direc-

tor of the Outcomes Management Val-

ley Medical Center. Elaine has endured

some hardships in her life including the

loss of loved ones, family separations

and divorces, a serious skiing accident,

and two cancer scares. Through it all,

Elaine has felt God’s presence and has

experienced His love. The births of her

four nieces have been a highlight in her

life. In her free time, Elaine enjoys read-

ing, cooking, hiking, and gardening. She

has fond memories from WWC, includ-

ing many wonderful classes, vespers

programs, lectures, the Administration

Building, dorm life, ice storms, autumn

on campus, and working at the student

health clinic.

Marilyn (Dinwiddie) May ’76 and her

husband, Tim ’80, make their home in

Kelseyville, Calif. Marilyn spent three-and-

a-half school years working as a special

education teacher’s aide for the Konocti

School District. In June of 2005, she re-

ceived her bachelor’s degree in early

childhood education from Pacific Union

College, and she plans to go on to earn

her teaching credentials. Tim is currently

working for Adventist Health as an imag-

ing specialist. Marilyn mentions that her

favorite WWC memories are meeting her

husband, Tim, and enjoying Fort Walla

Walla. The couple has two children, An-drew att. and Carrie Gordon att.

Esther (Simanton) Mayer ’76 and her

husband, Kenneth, make their home in

Freeport, Ill., where Esther is a GED in-

structor at Highland Community College.

She is the treasurer for her church and

helps with the 4-H program. One of her

most memorable WWC experiences was

spending time in Tanzania as a student

missionary. Esther and Kenneth have two

children, Stephen and Alissa.

Chad McComas ’76 and his wife, Debi (Snyder) att., make their home in Med-

ford, Ore. He keeps busy as the pastor of

the Set Free Christian Fellowship Church

and editor of The Christian Journal. Chad

helped found, and is the current chair

of Rogue Retreat, an addiction recovery

ministry. He is also the chair of DASIL,

an advocacy agency for the disabled.

Chad’s WWC memories include speech

classes by Loren Dickinson, staff meet-

ings at KGTS, and Sabbath school class-

es. The couple has two children, Marci

and Marc.

Versa (Bushey) Mooney ’76 and

her husband, Robert, reside in Mead,

Colo. Versa is currently the registered

nurse homecare team coordinator for

Longmont United Hospital. She is also

working as a professor at Front Range

Community College where she teaches

medical terminology. She enjoys skiing,

hiking, and tubing, as well as working

with the youth at the Longmont Sev-

enth-day Adventist Church. Versa has

one son, Phillippe Flechas.

Nanci Oberg-Wolske ’76 and her hus-

band, Ed ’69, make their home in Dan-

ville, Calif. Nanci is a teacher for the

Antioch Unified School District. The

couple has two daughters, Elizabeth and

Natalie.

Carmella (Daniel) Phillips ’76 and ’85

and her husband, Hollibert, are retired in

College Place. Carmella has spent her life

serving her community and has received

several awards including Teacher of the

Year, a Certificate of Recognition in public

education, and a National Youth Leader-

ship recognition. She was also named

Best Teacher in several volumes of Who’s

Who. In addition to her services in the

field of education, Carmella has volun-

teered at Helpline and the Red Cross. In

her spare time, she enjoys hiking, biking,

forming friendships, and reading. Car-

mella earned her bachelor’s degree and

master’s degree in education from WWC

and made some fond memories while

attending. Carmella and Hollibert have

five children, Andi Hunsaker att., Lyndi Schwartz ’76, Philip ’79, Roger ’83, and Stephanie Mays ’86.

Lucy (Vance) Powell ’76 and her hus-

band, Dean, live in Grandview, Wash. Lucy

is a registered nurse who is currently a

homemaker. She enjoys her family, flower

gardening, and collecting dolls, bears,

and books. Lucy and Dean have two chil-

Row 1 Cyndee Darby, Alice (Elder) Dettwiler, Sandra Orock, Audrey (Letniak) Miller, Dawn (Zelka) Hainey, Gail (Hentschel) Dickerson, Edward Harris Row 2 Renita Clymer, Judy Sargeant, Frank Howard, Bonnie (Tym) Corson, Janice (Forgey) Atkins, Beth (Wallace) Robison, Elaine (Wallace) Phelps, Elaine (Cotie) Lobdell Row 3 David Candler, Tom Allen, Pam (Larrabee) Duffy, Wes Kandoll, Dana Reedy, Fred Field, Keith Canwell, Betsy (Saunders) Claridge, Rick Claridge

Class of 1976

Alumnotes


dren, Benjamin and Kimberly; and one

granddaughter.

Mary Ann (Feise) Reinhardt ’71 is a re-

tired teacher living in Walla Walla with her

husband, Norman att. She enjoys travel-

ing, reading, and caring for her grand-

children. She attended WWC as an older

student and didn’t have the same experi-

ence as some of the younger students,

but she does remember the beautiful

campus and the friendly people. Mary

and Norman have two children, Laura

and Marty ’99; and four grandchildren.

John Rogers ’71 and his wife, Sue (Mor-gan) att., make their home in College

Place. John is a physician for the Colum-

bia County Hospital District. Prior to this,

he served as a physician for the Waits-

burg Clinic in Washington. He recently

completed his third recertification for

the American Board of Family Medicine

in August 2005. John notes that one of

his major life-changing experiences was

completing a biblical concepts in coun-

seling course. John enjoys bird watching

and is always on the lookout. The couple

has two children, Tony att. and Charleen att.; and two grandchildren.

Lonna (Wileman) Petsch ’76 and her

husband, Daniel, make their home in

Dupont, Wash., where she works as

staff nurse and glyconutrient educator.

Before she was married and after fin-

ishing the master’s in public health at

Loma Linda University, Lonna worked

for the Adventist Health centers in Utah

and Georgia. Her true passion is doing

health-related outreach, including mis-

sion trips to Thailand, Cambodia, and

Romania. Music—piano and voice—has

given Lonna a joyful way to express her

love for Jesus. She has fond memories

from WWC including the leaves in the

fall, the corn roast and homemade do-

nuts at the barn party, the wonderful

friends she made, and meaningful wor-

ships in the dorm.

Lynda (Farr) Skau ’71 is living in Ridge-

field, Wash., where she is the assistant

director for human resources at the Ad-

ventist Medical Center in Portland. After

graduating from WWC, Lynda went on to

earn her master’s degree from the Univer-

sity of Arizona. In 2002, Lynda’s husband

Dennis ’71 died suddenly at home after a

long downhill course with multiple scle-

rosis. The couple had two sons, Matthew

and Drew, who died in 1998. Despite her

losses, Lynda keeps busy working in her

flower garden and birdwatching. “The

Lord continues to provide blessings,” she

says. Some of her happiest WWC memo-

ries include meeting Dennis and making

trips back and forth between the Portland

nursing campus and the main campus.

John Trude ’76 and his wife, Irene, make

their home in Springfield, Ore., where

John is the receiving clerk and scheduler

for Whittier Wood Products. Since gradu-

ating from WWC, John has enjoyed being

involved in youth and children’s ministry.

He and Irene have spent the last eight

years on the Pathfinder staff, and recently

the couple became the directors of the

Springfield Pathfinder club. John recalls

fun memories from his time at WWC,

including playing confusing tricks on

classmates with his twin brother, learning

from top-notch professors, and classes

with Mrs. Rigby, Dr. “D”, and Dr. Larry Lew-

is. The couple has two daughters, Su-

zanne and Veronica.

1980s Mike Aufderhar ’86 and his wife, Bren-da (Burden) ’83, make their home in

Wenatchee, Wash., where Mike is the

senior pastor of the Wenatchee Sev-

enth-day Adventist Church. He has

served the church as a pastor and direc-

tor of conference family life ministries.

He and Brenda love to speak at mar-

riage conferences all around the world.

They enjoy doing anything they can to

help strengthen marriages and families.

Mike has a passion for leadership devel-

opment and is currently working on a

doctoral degree in leadership. In his free

time, Mike enjoys skiing, snowshoeing,

and backpacking with his family. One es-

pecially fond memory Mike has from his

time at WWC was a special, secret dinner

that he, Paul Richardson, and Gary Parks

arranged on top of the Village Hall bell

tower for their dates.

Wendy Brown-Jensen ’86 and her hus-

band, William ’87, make their home in

Redlands, Calif., where Wendy is a re-

source specialist and educator for the San

Bernardino City Unified School District.

In addition to her career in the school

district, Wendy also teaches piano and

is a marriage and family therapist. She

has fond memories of her years at WWC,

including the flowering trees in spring,

drinking hot apple cider in the girl’s dorm

lobby after vespers on Friday nights, and

playing the Steinway in the music depart-

ment auditorium.

Julie (Reynolds) Campbell ’81 and her

husband, Terry, live in Auburn, Wash.

Julie has been a speech pathologist for

12 years and is currently working for the

Auburn School District. Several years ago,

she took a trip to France with her WWC

roommate, Donna (Albertson) Lang, and

later traveled to England and Scotland

with her family. She is an active member

in her local church and enjoys singing in

a women’s group and in the choir, as well

as playing in the church orchestra. In her

free time, Julie likes to scrapbook, read,

do crafts, and travel. She fondly remem-

bers playing in the WWC Brass Ensemble

and touring Poland in 1979, spending

evenings with friends in Conard Hall, hav-

ing late Sunday morning vegeburgers

at the College Dairy, and listening to the

organ music in the College Church. Julie

and Terry have two children, Jonathan curr. att. and Katelyn.

Beth (Brinker) Dilts ’86 and her hus-

band, David, make their home in Walla

Walla. The couple has two children, Dan-

iel and Dana ’93; and two grandchildren.

Camie (Brown) Dummer ’81 is living in

Joseph, Ore. She is the owner of Dum-

mer’s retail store. She has two sons, Rolie Bartlett curr. att. and Clark.

Gregory Jones ’86 and Michelle (Woodbury) Jones ’86 make their home

Row 1 Mark Tessier, Iretha “Bitsy” (Phillips) Ebright, Richard Hellie, Lori Ciccarelli, Bonnie (Farver) Payne, Janet (Haraden) Baker, Mark Remboldt, Cheryl (Tan) Jacobson, Reg Maas Row 2 Lynn Boyd, Denver Lodge, Nancy (Snyder) Canwell, Twyla (Leiske) Bechtel, Deanna Davis, Garth Gryte, Teresa (Appley) Wilkens, , Carl Wilkens, June (Fearing) Saxby Row 3 James Dick, Dale Peterson, Ralph Stirling, Greg Saunders, Dennis Gaskill, Dave Saulsbury, Gregory Richmond

Alumnotes

Class of 1981


in Milpitas, Calif., where they both work

for Lockheed Martin Space Systems Co.

Michelle is an attitude, determination

and control engineer, and Gregory is an

aerospace hardware engineer. Michelle

and Gregory work together on design

projects and proposals for LMSSC. After

hours they enjoy traveling, hiking, back-

packing, and motorcycling. From her

time at WWC, Michelle remembers hik-

ing with friends on Saturday afternoons,

Saturday night programs, winning a prize

for the most creative way to ask some-

one out (she wrote an infinite loop pro-

gram that only ended when the answer

was “yes”), and staying up all night in the

computer lab to work on an assignment

for Dr. Madsen and almost getting into

big trouble with the dean. Gregory also

has good memories from WWC, includ-

ing College Bowl and Hafner House, and

discussing philosophy, science, and reli-

gion with his professors.

Twilla (Farrar) Leen ’86 and her hus-

band, Norman, are currently living in Au-

burn, Wash., where she works as a fiscal

technician for the Early Childhood and

Family Support Services department of

the Puget Sound Educational Service Dis-

trict. One of Twilla’s fondest WWC memo-

ries is listening to the organ music in the

College Church.

Randy Neff ’86 and his wife, Jackie ’86,

make their home in Loma Linda, Calif.,

where Randy is the senior civil engineer

at Kreiger & Stewart, Inc. He also plans

and promotes benefit concerts for chari-

ties. For more information visit www.

chartiypromotions.net. From his time at

WWC, Randy remembers lunches on Sab-

bath afternoons and visiting with friends,

several of whom are currently teaching

here at WWC, including Pastor Karl Haff-

ner, Dr. Laurel Dovich, Dr. Jim Nestler, and

Dr. Bryce Cole. “WWC is lucky to have

them,” he writes.

Teresa (Walde) Reich ’86 and her hus-

band, Dan ’83, make their home in Walla

Walla. Teresa is a homemaker and enjoys

reading, horses, date nights with her

husband, and visiting friends and fam-

ily. She has taken a yearlong trip to the

Bahamas and the Dominican Republic

in a sailboat, and spent a year in El Sal-

vador as an orphanage director. These

trips abroad have given her a new ap-

preciation for home. Teresa and Dan

have four children, Heidi, Ben, Kimberly,

and Jennifer.

Mark Remboldt ’81 and his wife, Janette (Gimbel) att., reside in Vancouver, Wash.

Mark is the undertreasurer for the North

Pacific Union Conference. The couple has

two children, Anthony and Amy.

Linda (LaFave) Seeber ’81 and her hus-

band, Lathern, are living in Hillsboro, Ore.

She is a home missionary, spending her

days caring for the suffering by help-

ing with prison ministry programs. Linda

taught school for nine years and started a

church school in the Sierra Nevada foot-

hills. In her spare time she enjoys writing

songs, singing, and playing the guitar

and piano. Linda recalls many good

memories of WWC, including meeting

new friends, enjoying good programs,

and getting a good education. WWC is

dear to her heart.

Brian Starr ’86 and his wife, Alisha (Hurd) att., make their home in Juliet,

Mont. Brian is a pediatrician at Deacon-

ess Billings Clinic where he serves as the

chair of the pediatrics department. Alisha

and he have three children, Jeff, Megan,

and Justin.

Donna (George) Street ’81 and her

husband, William, make their home in

Walla Walla. Donna has spent the last

25 years working with the U.S. Army

Corps of Engineers for the Portland and

Walla Walla districts. She also spent 18

months of service in Iraqi reconstruc-

tion. Donna has been very involved in

her church as well, serving as a Path-

finder leader and Sabbath School teach-

er. In her free time she enjoys hiking,

camping, cooking, and needlework.

Donna and William have two children,

Ruthe and Wayne.

Dede (Elsom) Steffanson ’81 and her

husband, Dwight att., make their home

in College Place. Dede is the office man-

ager for her brother’s company, Elsom

Roofing, Inc. She enjoys spending time

with her family, doing water sports in

the summer, and snow skiing in the win-

ter. The couple has two children, Tyler

and Jordan.

Dennis Thompson ’80 and his wife,

Kathy, make their home in Raleigh, N.C.

Both work as registered nurses for the

Duke University Health System. They

were married in 2002.

1990s Pam (Dunn) Wallenfelsz ’96 and her

husband, Todd ’97, make their home in

Anchorage, Alaska. Pam lives a busy life in-

cluding being a part-time pre-op nurse for

Alaska Regional Hospital. She is also a vol-

unteer ski patrol, full-time mom, a home

school teacher, and local MOPS (Mothers

of Preschoolers) coordinator. Each year she

travels to the Bush Village as a mission-

ary to put on the vacation Bible school

program. From her time at WWC, Pam

remembers the symphony, choir, small

groups, friends, flying, and hiking and sled-

ding in the Blue Mountains. Pam and Todd

have two children, Kaiden and Katriona.

Jason Caton ’96 and his wife, Cami, live

in Canton, Mich. Jason is currently work-

ing as an engineer for General Motors.

After graduating from WWC, he earned a

master’s degree in mechanical engineer-

ing from George Washington University

and his master’s in business administra-

tion from the University of Michigan. One

of his favorite memories from WWC was

the annual Engineering Egg Drop Con-

test. Jason and Cami have two children,

Zachary and Rachael.

Shawn (Watt) Foster ’96 and her hus-

band, Kurt’95, reside in Portland, Ore.,

where she is the lead designer for the

Bonfire Snowboarding Company.

Erna (Sorensen) Hoover ’96 is living in

College Place where she is a social work-

er and counselor at the YMCA in Walla

Walla. She has one daughter, Connie Morgan att.

Melinda Johnson ’96 is living in Rich-

land, Wash., where she has been working

as a child mental health therapist since

1999. In addition to being a therapist,

she also runs social skills programs and

works intensely with youth on the autism

spectrum. Prior to her therapist job, she

worked as the supervisor of the children’s

day program at Lourdes Counseling Cen-

ter. Melinda has been awarded two major

grants, the Life Skills Grant for Youth with

Mental Illness and a Family Therapy Pro-

gram grant.

Row 1 Mons Jensen, Debbie (Soper) Gross, Curt Ingraham, Jenna (Johannessen) Lavaliere, Leslie (Larson) Villegas, Teresa (Graham) Panossian Row 2 John Gross, Laurel Dovich, Kevin Renshaw, Dietmar Grellmann, Mike Lambert, Jacquie (Schafer) Zuill (not pictured) Row 3 Teresa (Drazek) Wiedemann, Loren Peterson, Dave Beckner, Robyn (Cawdery) Featherston, Case Ketting

Class of 1986

Alumnotes


Lauri (Marsh) Larson ’96 and her hus-

band, Gerry ’95, live in Walla Walla, where

Lauri practices family medicine at St.

Mary’s Medical Center and recently start-

ed a palliative care service there. She and

Gerry have three daughters, Brooklynn,

Lauren, and Madilynn.

Peter McPherson ’96 and his wife,

Heather (Lambie) ’03, make their home

in Salem, Ore. Both are teachers at Liv-

ingstone Adventist Academy. Peter is the

chair of the History Department and the

Athletic Director. Heather teaches sixth

grade and academy art, and coaches

the girls volleyball and basketball teams.

Every summer the couple works at Camp

Ida-Haven, where Peter is the assistant

director and head of the White-Water

department, while Heather is the head of

the Challenge Course. The couple enjoys

being in the outdoors. Peter has fond

memories from his WWC years, including

meeting some of his best friends, playing

sports, spending lots of time in the histo-

ry department, and earning his bachelor’s

and master’s degrees.

Julianna (King) Montooth ’96 and

her husband, John, make their home

in rural Dillingham, Alaska. Julianna is

one of 10 physicians for a hospital that

serves the local town of 4,000 plus the

26 outlying villages. Her job includes

everything from delivering babies to

emergency care to an occasional vet-

erinary patient. John teaches social

studies, Japanese, and English at the

alternative high school. The couple en-

joys being outdoors and kayaking, ca-

noeing, skiing, hiking, and skijoring with

their dogs. They are enjoying getting

to know their community church and

hope to contribute to it. Julianna has

many fond WWC memories including

rock climbing at Smith Rocks, hiking in

the Wallowas, sledding and cross coun-

try skiing in the Blue Mountains, Rosario

Beach and other biology events, class

discussions and cafeteria conversations,

vespers, and the year she spent as a stu-

dent missionary.

David Natiuk ’96 and his wife, Ale-tha ’96, make their home in Ridgefield,

Wash., where he is the president of his

own corporation. David spent seven

years in Southern California doing mul-

timedia production. During that time

he edited a total of eight award-win-

ning videos. He is currently using his

multimedia design skills to create Web

sites. In his spare time he enjoys play-

ing basketball, tennis, skiing, and playing

with this two boys, Trevor and Connor.

From David’s time at WWC he remem-

bers singing in “Pirates of Penzance,” late

nights editing in the Communications

Lab, and spending time with Aletha

while they were dating.

Kevin Pogge ’96 and his wife, Taletha (Lange) ’95, make their home in Kent,

Wash., where Kevin is a software engi-

neer for Honeywell. The couple has one

son, Quinn.

Jereld Rice ’96 and his wife, Alina, are

living in Pullman, Wash., where he is cur-

rently a student of veterinary medicine at

Washington State University.

Ron Scott ’96 and his wife, Sharri, make

their home in Hubbards, Nova Scotia.

Ron is a science teacher at Sandy Lake

Academy. He spent the summer of 2005

working on a committee to create a

new science curriculum guide for the

North American Division. He enjoys ca-

noeing and woodworking, and plans to

build his own canoe. Many of Ron’s fond

WWC memories are of his time spent

at Rosario Beach and in the classroom

with his biology professors. Ron and his

wife have two daughters, Heather and

Jennifer.

Jeffery Sceville ’96 and his wife, Jodi (Swanberg) att., are dentists living

in Oakdale, Calif. The couple recently

took over Jodi’s father’s practice after

he retired. Before moving to Oakdale,

they lived and practiced dentistry in

Southern California. In their free time,

the couple enjoys traveling, being out-

side, and spending time with their new

daughter, Hannah. Both have many

fond memories of WWC and the great

friends they made.

Tracy Schwarz ’96 and his wife, Stacy (Howland) ’98, make their home in Walla

Walla, where Tracy is a hydraulic engi-

neer for the Army Corp of Engineers. He

enjoys working in the yard and raising

his young daughter, Katelynn, with his

loving wife.

Jodi (Stanley) Smith ’96, and her

husband, Chad, make their home in

Portland, Ore., where Jodi is a registered

nurse at the Portland Providence Medi-

cal Center where she works one day a

week. She spends most of her time with

her two young boys, Josiah and Elijah.

Occasionally she volunteers as a nurse

at Eagle Fern Camp. In their free time,

the young family enjoys hiking, biking,

camping, gardening, and church activi-

ties. For over five years, Jodi and Chad

have been busy working on their fixer-

upper house. Jodi recalls good memories

of the friends she made during nursing

school in Portland.

Jamie (Eichman) Wulff ’96 and her hus-

band, Jason, make their home in Port-

land, Ore., where Jamie is a registered

nurse at the Friendship Health Center.

Jennifer (Chittenden) Youker ’96 and

her husband, Jeff, are living in Placerville,

Calif. Jennifer is a teacher for the North-

ern California Conference. n

Row 1 Lana (Christensen) Ash, Kimberly (Gee) Rivas, Ted Dunker, Lance McBride, Jill (Parker) McBride, Marta (Stratton) Stone, John Stone Row 2 Teresa (Drazek) Wiedemann, Barbara (Fisher) Harvey, Mark Snow, Paul Lee, Adrian Nicolici, Beth (Kopplin) James Row 3 Matthew Michaelis, Bob Ulloa, Tracy Schwarz

Class of 1996

Alumnotes


Babcock—Joyce (Jorgensen) att., was

born Apr. 2, 1927, in Evan, Minn., and died

Feb. 8, 2006, in Medford, Ore. Surviving:

husband Keith ’50 of Medford; daughters

Cindy of Medford, Lisa Greer of Medford,

and Linda Borg of Livermore, Calif.

Barnes—Lisa ’03 was born Aug. 3, 1963,

in Chicago, Ill., and died Jan. 2, 2006,

in Alberton, Mont. Surviving: husband

Daniel of Frenchtown, Mont.; mother

Patricia Thompson; and brother Lance

Thompson.

Bigger—Forrest att., was born Mar. 23,

1921, in Roseburg, Ore., and died Nov.

19, 2005, in Walla Walla. Surviving: wife

Garnet att., of College Place; sons Darold ’66 of Walla Walla, and Rick att., of Cor-

vallis, Ore.; daughters Carolyn Evans ’69 of Laurel, Md., and Sandi Carlson att., of

Everett, Wash.

Booth—Lowell ’73 was born Mar. 11,

1950, in Walla Walla, and died Feb. 13,

2006, in Clackamas, Ore. Surviving: wife

Marsha (Simpson) att., of Brush Prairie,

Wash.; daughters Sharla Carlson ’03 of

Apple Valley, Calif., Sarah ’06 and Shari

of Brush Prairie, Wash.; and sister Laurie Booth att. of Oak Harbor, Wash.

Border—Lester att., was born Jan 3,

1913, in Decatur, Ill., and died Apr. 19,

2006, in Cottonwood, Ariz. Surviving:

Geraldine (Poole) ’65 of Cottonwood;

daughter Sylvia Grindley of Cottonwood;

and sister Geneva of Livermore, Calif.

Brown—Lorraine (Vantress) ’37 was

born Apr. 3, 1915, in Union, Ore., and died

Feb. 6, 2006, in Dayton, Wash. Surviving:

husband, Cooper att., of Dayton; and son

Ronald of Dayton.

Chellis—Allen ’56 was born Mar. 22,

1928, in Ocean Park, Wash., and died

Feb. 4, 2006, in Wenatchee, Wash. Surviv-

ing: wife Lenella (Hitchman) att., of East

Wenatchee, Wash.; son Eugene ’76 of

Seattle, Wash.; daughter Karen att. of Se-

attle; and sisters Marcy Vixie of Walla Wal-

la, Lorna Holeman att., of Long Beach,

Wash., Betty Newton of Kelso, Wash., and

Francis Church of Ocean Park, Wash.

Curry—Delbert ’43 and ’65 was born

Nov. 6, 1918, in Flora, Ore., and died Mar.

11, 2006, in Plymouth, Calif. Surviving:

wife Maeci (Poole) att., of Plymouth; sons

Gary att., of Fair Oaks, Calif., Leroy of Galt,

Calif., Ken of Plymouth, Gerald of Ukiah,

Calif., and Homer of Mali, West Africa;

brother Alex of Alabama and Bud of Or-

fino, Idaho; sisters Lydia Murray of Salem,

Ore., Mariam of Lewiston, Idaho, and

Kathy att., of Garfield, Wash.

Dawes—Anna (Allen) ’48 was born Nov.

13, 1914, in Nepal, Wash., and died May 7,

2004, in Walla Walla. Surviving: son Allen

of Walla Walla; and daughter Donna Fink-biner ’74 of Jacksonville, Ore.

Downer—Harold ’52 was born Nov. 22,

1919, in Billings, Mont., and died Sept.

29, 2004, in Billings. Surviving: wife Mar-jorie (Krieger) att., of Molt, Mont.; sons

Jerry att., of Moscow, Idaho, and Roger of

Wenatchee, Wash.; daughter Sonia Birnel

of Chetwyn, B.C.; and sister Grace Fischer

of Clifton, Tenn.

Eby—Robert ’66 was born Apr. 17,

1946, in Portland, Ore., and died Nov. 19,

2005, in Redding, Calif. Surviving: wife

Sheri of Redding; sons Robert att., of Ar-

lington, Wash., and Michael of Redding;

daughter Kimberly; father Wilder ’39

of Pasco, Wash.; brothers William ’63 of

Canton, Ill., and Ben ’66 of Phelan, Calif.;

and sister Carol Hiort-Lorenzen ’57 of

Fairfield, Calif.

Eiseman—Lela (Mannen) att., was

born Nov. 23, 1920, in Rupert, Idaho, and

died Mar. 16, 2006, in Spokane, Wash.

Surviving: husband Jim of Elk, Wash.,

son Jim ’70 of Milton-Freewater, Ore.;

daughters Carolyn Janke att., of Milton-

Freewater and Marolyn Wagner ’65 of

Hemet, Calif.; and sister Priscilla Fuller of

Twin Falls, Idaho.

Finlayson—Dean ’61 was born Dec. 5,

1935, in Milton, Ore., and died Dec. 21,

2005, in Sun City, Calif. Surviving: wife

Linda att., of Sun City; son Kenneth of

Temecula, Calif.; and daughter Ann Marie

Finlayson-Gross of Napa, Calif.

Hartley—Kenneth ’36 was born Mar. 18,

1914, in Eagle, Idaho, and died Dec. 17,

2005, in Kennewick, Wash. Surviving: wife

Althera of Kennewick; and son Ronald.

Gregg—Roger “Dean” ’58 was born Apr.

17, 1929, in Sidney, Mont., and died April.

6, 2005, in Spokane, Wash. Surviving: sons

Steve ’89 of Cheney, Wash., and Jim att., of St. Louis, Mo.; daughter Mary Murphy

of Eagle, Idaho; and sister Alice ’45 of

Loma Linda, Calif.

Kravig—Frank att., was born June 12,

1934, in Denver, Colo., and died Oct..

13, 2005, in Yakima, Wash. Surviving:

wife Alma (Lushik) ’56 of Yakima; sons

Dean ’86 of Wapato, Wash., Kenton att., of Irving, Texas, and Daniel att., of

Wenatchee, Wash.; and daughter Kari No-vak ’83 of Yakima.

Leiske—Mary (McCartney) ’48 was born

Apr. 20, 1916, in Fife, Scotland, and died

July 6, 2005, in Centralia, Wash. Surviving:

husband Elswerth ’50 of Chehalis, Wash.;

sons Donn ’74 of Montesano, Wash., and

Ken ’76 of Evans, Wash.; daughter Dot

Rasmussen of Cheney, Wash.; brother

John ’48 of Gresham, Ore.; and sister Anne

Saunders of Aldergrove, B.C.

Warren William Willey’s teachers told his father

that all Warren had to do was put “WWW” atop any paper and he would be given an “A.” Known as a bright student, Warren excelled in many areas at his North Dakota high school, including baseball

and music. He went on to excel at WWC, serving as president of the class of 1964 and graduating with a major in chemistry. Warren was later drafted during the Vietnam War and participated in research at Walter Reed Hospital in Maryland as part of the White Coats. After the war, he earned a master’s degree in pharmacy from the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston.

Warren and his wife, Deveena, raised three children; son Phillip and daughters Jennifer, and Heather Port. He also had two grandchildren, Hailey and Hunter.

Warren was born June 6, 1942, in Minot, N.D., and died Dec. 11, 2005, in Hendersonville, N.C.

A Man of Many Talents

In Memory


Lowe—Wanda (Provonsha) ’57 was

born July 22, 1922, in Provo, Utah, and

died August 18, 2006, in Portland, Ore.

Surviving: husband Robert ’59; and step-

daughter JoAnn Hunter.

Molina—Brenda (Irish) ’81 was born

Oct. 13, 1960, in Riverside, Calif., and died

July 21, 2005, in Alma, Mich. Surviving:

husband Robert att., of Alma; sons An-

drew and Jordan of Alma; mother and

father Gene and Barbara Irish of Fuller-

ton, Calif.; brother Carl Irish of Cleburne,

Texas; and sisters Karin Irish of Fullerton,

Janene Valen of Fullerton, Susie Spiegel

of Costa Mesa, Calif., and Lela Elloway of

Concord, Calif.

Newman—Sally (Herwick) ’38 was

born June 23, 1912, in Jersey City, N.J.,

and died April 8, 2004, in Ketchikan,

Alaska. Surviving: son Bill Lindeman ’71

of Romulus, Mich.; and daughter Kathy Harden ’68 of Bonners Ferry, Idaho.

Northouse—Darrell att., was born Jan.

26, 1960, in Emmett, Idaho, and died May

24, 2005, in Hope, Idaho. Surviving: wife

Dawn of Hope; father Donald; mother

Doris; brothers Raymond of Eagle, Idaho,

and Todd Smith-Reese of Middleton,

Idaho; and sister Shannon Fisher ’86 of

Wenatchee, Wash.

Parmele—Tom ’80 was born Oct. 5,

1948, in McMinnville, Ore., and died Jan.

27, 2005, in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

Surviving: wife Ruby of Saskatoon; son

Trevor of North Tonawanda, N.Y.; daugh-

ter Megan Field of Saskatoon; mother

and father Earl and Eola of Napavine,

Wash.; brothers Joe of Lincoln, Neb., and

Gary of Portland, Ore.; and sister Earlene

Wohlers of Chehalis, Wash.

Perry—Vernon ’51 was born June 5,

1923, in Enterprise, Ore., and died May

30, 2006, in Roseburg, Ore. Surviving: wife

Imogene of Roseburg; sons Max ’73 of

Malibu, Calif., and Mark ’77 of Vancouver,

Wash.; daughter Gail Rittenbach att., of

Walla Walla; brother Everett ’51 of La-

Quinta, Calif.; and sister Elsie Jones att., of

Milton-Freewater, Ore.

Piper—Athol ’51 was born Feb. 23, 1918,

in Perth, Australia, and died Oct. 27, 2005,

in Victoria, B.C. Surviving: wife Kathleen

of Victoria; sons Haydn ’73 of Chandler,

Ariz., and Lawrence ’76 of Salem, Ore.;

and daughter Frances DeVries att., of

Weimar, Calif.

Reed—Earl att., was born Nov. 2, 1909,

in Blachley, Ore., and died May 9, 2005, in

Roseburg, Ore. Surviving: sons Thomas

of Tenino, Wash., and Daniel att. of Al-

bany, Ore.; daughter Janet Anderson att., of Snohomish, Wash.; and sisters Bessie

Harris of Wapato, Wash., Elizabeth Ross of

Vancouver, Wash., and Dorothy Schook of

Portland, Ore.

Schutz—Wes “Myron” ’56 was born

Dec. 12, 1933, in Caldwell, Idaho, and

died May 12, 2006, in Berrien Springs,

Mich. Surviving: wife Joan ’56 of Berrien

Springs, Mich.; daughters Kari of Col-

legedale, Tenn., Debra of Aurora, Colo.,

and Julie Duncan of Beaverton, Ore.; and

sisters Carol ’60 of Ola, Idaho, and Myrna Long ’64 of Prineville, Ore.

Silvestri—Gerald att., was born May 1,

1963, in Enumclaw, Wash., and died Oct.

15, 2000, in San Bernadino, Calif. Surviv-

ing: wife Annie of Grants Pass, Ore.; son

Jonathan of Grants Pass; daughter Kate

of Grants Pass; father and mother John

and Anita (Anderson) att., of Vancouver,

Wash.; and brother Richard ’83 of Rock-

lin, Calif.

Stoneberg—William att. was born June

3, 1950, in Eugene, Ore., and died Apr. 9,

2006, in Salem, Ore. Surviving: wife Kath-

ryn of Salem; son Thomas; daughters

Kristin, Carissa, and Anna; brothers Newt,

Neal, and Wallace; and sisters Karen, Dee-

Anne Workhoven, and Sara Henry.

Tosk—Tammy (Carlin) att., was born

April 8, 1961, in Riverside, Calif., and died

April 25, 2005, in Auburn, Wash. Surviving:

mother and father Mary att., and Keith

Carlin of Walla Walla; and sisters Cathy of

Walla Walla and Patty Wright att., of Mil-

ton-Freewater, Ore.

Wiggins—Arlene (Reiswig) att., was

born Jan. 1, 1937, in Everett, Wash., and

died Dec. 10, 2004, in Omar, Wash. Sur-

viving: husband Al ’66 and ’75 of Omak,

Wash.; son Brent of Milton-Freewater,

Ore.; daughters Cindy Stanphill of Win-

ston, Ore., Donna Stafford att., of Eureka,

Mont., and Elaine of Slingerlands, N.Y.;

brother Ken Reiswig of Bend, Ore., and

sister Bernita Burton of Shallotte, N.C.

If there were a club on cam-pus that Letcher Huntington

hadn’t been president of, you’d be hard pressed to find it. While at WWC, the theology major served as president of the Boy’s Club, the Paulist Sodality Club (later known as the Theology Club),

and the Class of 1939. Letcher spent more than 40

years pastoring in Southern India, South Africa, and Washington and Oregon. He also instructed hundreds of campers in archery at Big Lake Youth Camp.

He and wife Lizzie (McLeod) ’30, who died in 1973, had one daughter, Brooke (Huntington) Stafford ’56, who lives in Battle Ground, Wash. He also had two grandsons, Sid ’84 and Jerry Stafford att. After Lizzie’s death, Letcher married Viola Winn-Vipond who also resides in Battle Ground.

Letcher was born Nov. 12, 1909, in Castle Rock, Wash., and died Feb. 16, 2006, in Battle Ground.

In Memory

A Servant Leader at WWC and Beyond

Send information for In Memory to Westwind, College Relations, Walla Walla College, 204 S. College Ave., College Place, WA 99324; or e-mail [email protected]. Please include a contact phone number or e-mail address.

Kris

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From My Point of View

E ver since I was a little boy I had dreamed about two things. The first was to be

a minister. The second was not to lose my hair like my dad.

When I was 18 and fresh out of high school, I enrolled in the School of Theology at Walla Walla College, trying to hold on to at least one of my dreams. During my third year in college, I thought I was answering His call for my life. However, I still had the nag-ging feeling that something was missing. My grades were not the best. I was out of money. And no matter how hard I tried, Hebrew just didn’t click.

But one part of my life was clicking. At the fire station where I had volunteered since my fresh-man year, I discovered I had a knack for staying calm during emergencies. My skills and in-stincts grew more attuned to what was happening around me and I found satisfaction in knowing I had fought the good fight and touched someone in a personal way. I started saying no to other activities because I did not want to miss out on a fire or a medical call. I was spending more and more

time at the fire station, learning all I could. I was discovering a passion for humanity and a way I could make the world around me a better place. I finally found my own way of living the Gospel.

In the years since the dream for my life changed and I have be-come a professional firefighter, I have discovered that a fire depart-ment is like no other organization. You’ve seen it dramatized on tele-vision and the movies, but unless you work in a fire department, it’s difficult to understand.

How do I explain it? Let’s say you decide to move to a new place in a state or country where you don’t know a soul. You research the area, buy a house, and then pick up your life and move to your new home. The instant you arrive you discover that everyone there wants to be your friend. No matter where you are people invite you into their homes for lunch. They show you where they keep their most valuable treasures and want to know where you keep yours.

People in this new place are in-stantly your friends, whether they work with you or socialize with you. You trust them fully, with your life and the life of your fami-ly. The fire service is like this. Your fellow firefighters are your second family, and sometimes like your first. We eat together, play togeth-er, and work together on duty and off. It is a group of people who become your best friends because you trust them with your life.

Several months after 9/11, I vis-ited New York City and Ground

Zero. I had always been told how unfriendly New Yorkers are. However, I was surprised that every-one went out of his or her way to be nice to my buddy and me. When we visited Ground Zero, we simply showed our identification and the police guided us past the barricades and into the restricted area. We were allowed to stand at the edge and look down into the crater of debris. We were allowed to stand next to our New York brothers and sisters—to be there when the remains of a fallen hero was recovered from the wreckage. There are no words to describe the emotion we shared.

Later, we happened upon a fire station on one of the side streets away from the devastation. The station members were interested in where we were from and in-vited us to have lunch with them. These were men and women who had responded on that ill-fated day. They had lost, they had cried, and they invited us in. As we sat to eat, the bells went off and we stood to leave. The sta-tion officer looked at us and told us to stay put, that they would be back soon.

Trust, loyalty, compassion, and family, from people we didn’t know, from people in an unfamiliar place. And we were taken in and accepted like family. I have never experienced this type of acceptance in any other environment.

It can be difficult to find that level of belonging, just as it can to find your calling in life. As for me, I found both in the fire house. n

David Winter, who attended WWC from 1990 to 1994, lives in College Place.

I Found My Calling In the FirehouseKr

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From My Point of View

Do You Have Something to Say? Our new column, “From My Point of View,” will feature essays written by alumni. If you are interested in submitting an essay for consider-ation, visit westwind.wwc.edu for more information.

Nonprofit Org.US PostagePAIDCollege Place, Wash.Permit #11

WestwindWalla Walla College204 S. College Ave.College Place, WA 99324-1198

College Avenue Crossings

Brya

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k an

d Br

ando

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itze

lS pirited music and lively conversation filled popular down-

town eatery Merchants during Homecoming Weekend’s young alumni event.

A Wednesday night tra-dition for many students, Spaghetti Night made its debut as a Saturday eve-ning Homecoming event last year.

More than 120 young alumni—those who graduated between 1995 and 2005—and friends enjoyed pasta, musical stylings by student jazz group the Tyson Haynes Project, and an art show by Rebekah Fandrich, a 2005 art graduate. n

Westwind, Summer 2006

Documents

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