News, by Graduating Year
Alumni Connections
1960-69
Lon Fendall (G64) continues to lecture nationwide. In March, as the Beane Lecture Series guest speaker at William Penn University in Oskaloosa, Iowa, he lectured twice in a series designed to encourage discussions about Quaker principles and philosophies. Retired in 2010 from George Fox University, where he directed the peace studies and international studies programs, he continues involvement with programs in Africa as a volunteer consultant for ministry training among Friends churches in Kenya, Burundi, the Congo and Rwanda.
Terri (Kunkel) Bowen (n66) received recognition in October as a nominee for the 2015 annual Oregon Governor’s Volunteer Award. She was honored for more than six years of service with Love INC in Newberg, which connects families in need with local churches and service agencies who can help them. Now retired, she was a longtime administrative secretary for the Northwest Yearly Meeting of Friends Church.
Jerry Sandoz (G66) and his wife, Barbara, continue to live in Greenwood, Ind., headquarters for One Mission Society. After extended missionary service, they now work as needed, including making annual missions trips where there is a short-term need. He became a missionary with the organization (serving as field treasurer and business manager) in South Korea in 1972 following an assignment with World Relief Commission in South Vietnam and South Korea. In 1997, they relocated to OMS world headquarters, where he became treasurer in 2000 before retiring in 2014.
1970-79
Elaine King (G74) is manager of the data services section of the Oregon Public Employees Retirement System. She has been with PERS since 2003, starting as a retirement counselor, and works and lives in Tigard.
Ron Mulkey (G74) and Deb (Cloud) Mulkey (n77) in September moved from Metolius in Central Oregon to Rockaway on the Oregon Coast, where they are now caretakers for Harbor Villa, part of the Northwest Yearly Meeting’s Twin Rocks Camp. He also serves as camp chaplain, and both work with grounds maintenance and housekeeping for the four-cabin center that serves small groups. It marks a return to Twin Rocks, where they were summer staff coordinators and program directors from 1988 to 1998. For the last 10 years they have pastored the Metolius Friends Community Church.
Kathleen (Ridinger) Berryman (G75) is operations manager and partner with her husband of True North Wealth Strategies, an investment firm in Medford, Ore. She is a Certified Senior Consultant, a former long-term care district manager with Capital Assurance Co., representing Southern Oregon, and more recently an insurance counselor with AAA.
Debbie (Field) Johnson (n75), the last original member of the Voices of Liberty, an a cappella Americana singing group that entertains at Epcot at Disney World, has had her swan song. She retired Oct. 31 after more than 30 years of singing in seven 15-minute costumed performances a day in the American Adventure Pavilion. Along the way she performed for four presidents (Nixon, Carter, George H.W. Bush and Reagan) and even helped Mickey and Minnie Mouse at the National Christmas Tree Lighting at the White House. Over the years the group’s repertoire has grown to nearly 100 songs with a message of patriotism and love of country. Her husband, Derric, former artist in residence and director of music ministries at George Fox, was the first Voices of Liberty director and the primary arranger. The Johnsons now plan to spend more time traveling together and pursuing his creative projects. Her final performance drew feature coverage in the Orlando Sentinel and videos on YouTube.
Mary (Tucker) Walsh (G75) is executive director of the Canby (Ore.) Educational Foundation, now in her ninth year. Formed in 1997, the foundation has raised nearly $1 million through private donations, endowments and fundraising.
Nina (Ram) Dalberg (n76) has coauthored a historical fiction novel, The Legend of King Max, published in October by Outskirts Press. After receiving a degree in broadcast journalism from the University of Montana, her career has included advertising, radio and TV news as well as freelance reporting for newspapers. She and her husband divide their time between Springfield, Mo., and Rosholt, S.D., where they own a discount fireworks business.
Kathleen (Norton) Carroll (G77) is in her 22nd year as an early-childhood educator. Last spring she started working with the Growing Green Panda Childcare and Enrichment Center in Portland, planning and establishing curriculum. This follows two years as a preschool teacher at Grandma’s Place and eight years with Growing Green Panda as a preschool teacher. Previously, she taught at Miracle Village Academy, YMCA Child Care and the Abc Center in the Portland area.
Jeannette (Myers) Bineham (G78) retired in March, leaving her position as a field interviewer with Westat, a statistical survey research corporation, after just over two years. She will continue to live in St. Paul, Minn., where she plans to volunteer as a reading tutor as well as read, bicycle ride and travel. Previously, she was executive director for the Center for Nonprofit Excellence & Social Innovation, an organizational consultant, a housing development manager with the St. Cloud Housing & Redevelopment Authority, and executive director of Reach-Up, Inc., a Head Start program.
Nancy (Svendson) Moon (G78) is the new principal at Henry L. Slater Elementary School in Burns, Ore., beginning last fall. Previously, she was principal at the K-12 Gustavus-Klukwan School in the Chatham School District in Alaska for two years following two years with the Ketchikan Gateway Borough School District as leader of Houghtailing Elementary School.
1980-89
Bob Davenport (G80) is a senior network security engineer, now in his fifth year with RedSeal Networks, a software company based in Sunnyvale, Calif., that models network security infrastructure in order to defend against cyber attacks and build digitally resistant organizations. He lives in Aumsville, Ore., and previously was a self-employed technology consultant for small to large businesses for nearly 11 years.
Linda Graves (G80) in 2014 received a PsyD degree from California Coast University, from which she already has a master’s degree in psychology. She is project director for the California Council on Problem Gambling, in that position for nearly five years after managing the budget for just over six years for the Washington State Division of Behavioral Health and Recovery.
Craig Shelton (G81) is regional sales manager for Atrium Windows and Doors in Portland. He began in March 2014 following full-time orders and deployment with the U.S. Army as a command sergeant major for 18 months until late 2013. He was a senior enlisted adviser, monitoring and overseeing training matters and evaluating training programs for five subordinate battalions and a headquarters company with soldiers in seven states. Previously, he was area sales manager for MI Windows and Doors for 11 years following 10 years as area sales manager for Pella Corporation.
Susan (Barnard) Anquist (n82) is office manager for her husband, Dr. Warren Anquist, a pediatrician in Abbotsford, British Columbia. She is also working on a master’s degree in spiritual formation at Carey Theological College at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, where she plans to concentrate in the area of spiritual direction.
Melanie (Watkins) Erickson (G82) is with Sparrow Management, in her fifth year as a housing manager responsible for a 51-unit apartment complex for low-income seniors in Missoula, Mont.
Malina (Dayton) Lindell (n82) is a teacher of the deaf and hard of hearing with the InterMountain Education Service District in Pendleton, Ore., which provides education and support services for hearing-impaired students in six Eastern Oregon counties. She is the eastern region consultant (of eight regions) for the Oregon Deafblind Project, which provides technical assistance, training and information to deaf and blind students from birth through age 21.
Lynne (Ankeny) Smith (G83) in January launched her own business, The Anchorage Care Management, in Eagle, Idaho, in which she provides comprehensive assessments, care coordination and resource recommendations to individuals and families in need of care. This follows 14 years of elder care in a nonprofit setting and 30 years as a licensed social worker. She is an advanced-level care manager with the Aging Life Care Association and a board-certified case manager.
Virnin (Basinger) Dickinson (n84) is a self-employed cosmetologist, now the owner of her own beauty salon, Nin Dickinson Designs, based in her home in Vancouver, Wash.
Joset (Williams) Grenon (n84) began in September as assistant dean of development and external relations at Lewis & Clark Law School in Portland. Previously, she was director of development at Catlin Gabel School in Portland for two and a half years following more than two years as director of development with the University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts and seven years as director of annual fund and communication at Oaks Christian School in Westlake Village, Calif.
Eric Bronson (G89) didn’t have a minor to go along with his bachelor’s degree in human resources, so he’s working on that now at Clackamas (Ore.) Community College – and has been at it for the last 25 years. That caught the eye of the school’s student newspaper, the Clackamas Print, which published a feature on his endeavor. He wants to earn an associate of science degree with a focus on creative writing and hopes to complete it by this Christmas so he can cross another item off his bucket list. He used his original degree working in the S1 Section (personnel department) in the U.S. Army, serving most of his career in the reserve component as an operations sergeant in the Oregon National Guard, now retired. His first book, The Juggler’s Girl, was published this spring, and he’s also active in fan fiction online.
James Ellis (G89) is completing his 25th year with the Days Creek (Ore.) School District, where he is athletic director, head boys’ basketball coach and physical education and video production teacher. He is an alumnus of the 160-student charter school in rural Douglas County.
Jeff Stanfield (G89) and Christine (Hockett) Stanfield (n80) in January returned to Uganda as missionaries with World Gospel Mission after a year in the United States on a home ministry assignment in Newberg. He has a new role as acting country director, leading other missionaries, handling administrative tasks and directing a partnership with Africa Gospel Church in Uganda. They also participate in several other ministries, including Community Health Empowerment, a curriculum that integrates health, development and evangelism as they train trainers. They began their work in Uganda in 2011 after 21 years in Kenya with WGM, where he was assistant country director and director of computer services at Tenwek Hospital and she was an administrator and teacher at Tenwek School of Nursing.
1990-99
Jennica (Hein) Jenkins (G91) is the clinical director/owner of Blue Sky Counseling Center in Roseville, Calif., started in 2012. She also has been a counselor at Sierra College in Rocklin, Calif., and was a registered psychological assistant at the Monarch Center in Roseville for three years after serving with the Roseville Joint Union High School and Moorpark Unified school districts for 11 years as adolescent intervention counselor and student assistance counseling program coordinator.
Tim Jacobson (G91), after years of teaching in Alaska, is warming up in Texas where he is in his second year as assistant principal at 2,200-student Lehman High School in Kyle, Texas, part of the Hays Consolidated Independent School District. His previous teaching stops in Alaska included Kodiak Island, Anaktuvuk Pass (above the Arctic Circle), the Kenai Peninsula and Quinhagak.
Rich Swingle (G91) had a lead role in a Valentine’s Day weekend limited release film in AMC theaters across the country. Providence, an old-fashioned love story spanning decades, is told through art cinema, using silver screen and silent film styles. It was released by Mainstreet Productions, a Nashville, Tenn.-based production company that specializes in faith-based films. Swingle plays the role of the male lead as an older adult. George Fox’s 1999 Distinguished Alumni Award winner, Swingle, based in New York, has performed in 28 nations on five continents with his one-man plays and workshops, including performances at churches, colleges, prisons, retreats, camps, military bases and theaters from Off-Broadway to The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
David Simonsen (G92) has authored a new book, When Parenting Backfires: 12 Thinking Errors Every Parent Faces. He also hosts a live call-in advice and opinion talk show, “The Dr. David Show,” with Salem Media Group in the Portland area. A licensed marriage and family therapist with the state of Washington, he has his own practice, Creative Solutions Counseling & Consulting, in Lacey, Wash.
Shawna (Shankle) Wilcher (n92) is now director of youth ministries for the Oregon City (Ore.) Church of the Nazarene. She has previous experience as the youth pastor at Willamette Valley Wesleyan Church in Wilsonville, Ore.
Kevin Dougherty (G93) in January began a three-year term as executive officer of the Religious Research Association, a scholarly organization of more than 600 academics and religious professionals with interest in the intersection of religion and society. In August, he became graduate program director for the department of sociology at Baylor University. He has been at Baylor, in Waco, Texas, since 2005, starting as assistant professor of sociology and becoming associate professor in 2011.
Jon Wright (G93) has been named the first cross country and track and field coach at the new $50 million Ridgevue High School, opening next fall in Nampa, Idaho. He has spent the last 19 years coaching both sports at nearby Caldwell (Idaho) High School. Inducted into the George Fox Sports Hall of Fame last fall, Wright was one of five coaches initially selected by the Vallivue School District to guide new Warhawks teams.
Philip Brownell (MA95, PsyD98), after living and practicing in Bermuda for the last 11 years, has moved to Idaho to join Family Health Services, working four days a week in Twin Falls and one day in the Burley clinic. Previously, with Benedict Associates in Bermuda, he was seeing children through adults for a variety of psychological disorders, utilizing his certification by the European Association for Gestalt Therapy. He also is a professional coach, certified through the International Coach Federation. In addition, he is the author of three books: Spiritual Competency in Psychotherapy, Gestalt Therapy, and Gestalt Therapy for Addictive and Self-Medicating Behaviors.
Myrna (Bonar) Jensen (G95) is marketing and communications associate with the Oregon Food Bank, responsible for its quarterly newsletter and annual report, media relations, and creating and executing publicity campaigns. The Portland organization works with a statewide network of partner agencies to distribute emergency food to hungry families, while also advocating for public policy and promoting nutrition and garden education to strengthen community food systems. Previously, she was film and special projects manager with Visit Anchorage for two years, following a television career as assignment editor, news writer, morning edition producer and newsroom assistant for stations in Minnesota and Alaska.
Tony Rourke (G95), following 20 years of health and life insurance underwriting in Oregon, this spring moved with his wife, Heidi (Kunze) Rourke (G97, MAT09) and family to Austin, Texas, where he now is assistant vice president of underwriting for FirstCare Health Plans. He started in March, responsible for daily operations of underwriting, actuarial services, group set-up and reporting departments. Previously, he worked for more than four years with LifeMap Assurance Co., of Portland as director of underwriting. In the move he left behind his elected position to the Newberg City Council.
Joe Gordon (G96) in January joined Westlake Risk & Insurance Services of Thousand Oaks, Calif., to become vice president of benefits for the six-year-old brokerage firm. For the last six years he has been an associate employee benefits specialist with Strategic Employee Benefit Services in Woodland Hills, Calif., following five years as a financial representative with Northwestern Mutual. He now assists clients in implementing multi-year strategic plans, communication campaigns, wellness initiatives and compliance. Since 2010, he also has served as assistant baseball coach with California State University, Los Angeles, as infield and hitting coach.
Corey Hosler (G96) is entering his second year as accounts payable and payroll coordinator with Medical Teams International, a nonprofit humanitarian aid and global health organization based in Tigard, Ore. He moved from a position as accountant with Western Mennonite School in Salem, Ore., after nearly seven years. He lives in Newberg.
Eric Muhr (G96) is the new publisher/CEO of Barclay Press, the Northwest Yearly Meeting of Friends Church’s publishing enterprise in Newberg. He began in September, taking over from Dan McCracken (n70), who retired after 44 years with the organization as staff member then general manager and publisher. Barclay Press, although no longer a printing operation, is the denominational publisher for Friends, including the Evangelical Friends Church of North America. It also produces Sunday school curriculum and books relevant to current work of the Quaker church. Muhr also works part time as a youth pastor at Newberg Friends Church. Previously, he was a schoolteacher in Oregon and Idaho, a newspaper education reporter and youth pastor in Idaho, and a camp director/program specialist at Tilikum retreat center.
Caleb Culver (G97) is director of analytical services with Ste. Michelle Wine Estates in Woodinville, Wash., where he is a certified wine chemist.
Mark Hovee (PsyD97) is now a clinical psychologist with Indian Health Services, based at Chinle (Ariz.) Comprehensive Health Care. This follows an eight-month contract, ending in September, with George Washington University medical faculty, working with U.S. Army soldiers in a primary care clinic at Sayliyah Army Base in Doha, Qatar. That followed just over two years as a clinical psychologist with the West Virginia National Guard developing a team to provide behavioral health services. Previously, he was in private practice for 21 years in Ohio (four years) and Kentucky (17 years) working with correctional facilities, colleges, regional health care agencies and hospitals.
Chad Krober (G97, MBA04) and his business partner at Guild Mortgage Company in Wilsonville, Ore., were named the top mortgage lending team for originations in Oregon in 2015 and among the Top 200 Originators in America for 2015 (at 170) by Mortgage Executive Magazine. He has been a mortgage consultant with the 10-member office for almost five years, moving from MetLife Home Loans after nearly three years.
Brian Greeley (G98) is vice president of Urban Works Real Estate in Portland, joining the eight-broker retail-only firm in 2014. Previously, he was vice president for leasing with CE John Company in Vancouver, Wash., in that position for nearly three years. He was with the firm for nearly 10 years, starting as a leasing associate. His recent clients have included Powell’s Books, McMenamins, Salt & Straw, Little Big Burger and the Oregon Department of Motor Vehicles.
Scott Spurlock (G98) is in his third year as lecturer in religious studies at the University of Glasgow, Scotland, after positions as lecturer and research associate at the University of Manchester in England; the Institute of Theology at Queens University in Belfast, Ireland; Belfast Bible College; and Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland. He earned a PhD in ecclesiastical history in 2005 from the University of Edinburgh and currently is editor of two book series: Christianities in the Trans-Atlantic World, 1500-1800, and Scottish Religious Cultures: Historical Perspectives.
Joshua Cogar (G99) is part of a small team that has started a new brand for Carnival Cruise lines: “Fathom.” It is focused on social impact in the Caribbean region, specifically the Dominican Republic, but also has sails planned to Cuba. Cruises depart from Miami and provide activities focused on the environment, education and economic development. He lives in Redding, Calif., where he previously, until April 2015, was operations director for Digital Force.
Tyler Johnson (G99) is visiting assistant professor of history at The Citadel in Charleston, S.C., moving from his position as assistant professor at J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College in Richmond, Va., the previous year.
Arika (Finlay) Nelson (G99) is a sixth-grade teacher at North Clackamas Christian School in Oregon City, Ore., in that role since 2010. She previously was a kindergarten teacher at Mentor Graphics Child Development Center in Wilsonville, Ore., for five years, until 2005, before taking time out to be a full-time mom and obtain a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction.
2000-09
Hayley (McGregory) Cummings (G00) and her husband are owners of the online store YourStore.com, which features health, beauty and home care Amway products. They started the company seven years ago.
Mikayla (Paris) Kagey (G00) has been hired to oversee the start-up and operations of a new J-Serve program with Joy El Camps and Retreats in Greencastle, Pa. It is a new gap-year program for college-age individuals who want to spend a year exploring their skills and abilities to determine their future life roles. She has been a teacher for 15 years, most recently as a sixth- through eighth-grade teacher with Washington Virtual Academy, based in the Omak School District (Wash.).
Chelsea (Dauber) Carbonell (G01) in July had a landscape photograph included in a digital display of images presented at the Exposure Award Reception at the Louvre in Paris. She is an art instructor with Heritage Homeschool Co-op in Bellevue, Wash., in her second year, and has been a commission artist since her graduation. Her work, using favorite materials of oil, casein and canvas, has been shown in Oregon, Washington and California. Fifteen percent of her art profits go to nonprofit organizations that benefit children.
Lisa Estelle (PsyD02) is owner of Calm Waters Counseling in Spokane, Wash., established in 2009. She is a psychologist offering adolescent, family and pediatric counseling, grief therapy, psychotherapy and stress management services. Previously, she was with Circle of Security, also based in Spokane, a relationship-based intervention program designed to change a child’s behavior through changes in parents’ behavior.
Candyce (Kintner) Farthing (G02, MEd07) is the new chief academic officer for Coral Academy of Science in Las Vegas, responsible for overseeing and improving educational growth of the school as well as providing leadership and strategic direction. It is a public charter STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and math) school established in 2000. It now has more than 2,000 students in Reno, Nev., and Las Vegas in a college prep curriculum. She moved from a position as executive director of Oregon Connections Academy, Oregon’s largest tuition-free virtual public school, serving in that position for a year after joining the academy seven years earlier to serve as a teacher for eighth-grade language arts and, later, as principal of the school’s kindergarten through eighth grades.
Zach Davidson (G02, MAT03) is the new principal of Damascus (Ore.) Christian School, starting last fall after 15 years in public school education, the last 12 with the Estacada (Ore.) School District as a teacher and junior high administrator. The school of 240 students and 37 employees is not new to him. Wife Rachel (DeYoung) Davidson (G01, MAT02) is a 1997 grad, and her parents and brother have been teachers there. Also, both Zach and Rachel have served on the school’s commission, and they have two children attending.
Angela Weece (G03) is teaching fifth grade at Whittier Elementary School in Waukegan, Ill., and also teaches Zumba fitness classes in her off-duty time.
Kaisa Carlson (G04) in September began working with Women’s Healthcare Associates in Portland as a credentialing specialist. Previously, for just over five years, she was with the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Portland as executive assistant, volunteer coordinator, program services assistant and flu clinic fundraiser coordinator. She also is a volunteer leader with Hands On Greater Portland.
Tammy Marquez-Oldham (MBA04) has won the top award given out by the Oregon Small Business Development Center State Advisory Council. She is director of the Small Business Development Center at Portland Community College, located at its CLIMB Center. The 2015 award recognizes individuals who have made a significant professional contribution to small businesses in their community and Oregon, based on leadership, dedication and entrepreneurship. She has 30 years of experience working for large, mid-sized and small businesses and has owned several companies. She participates in the advisory council for the Oregon Association of Minority Entrepreneurs, Port of Portland Mentor Protégé Program, Metro Export Initiative, Small Business Advisory Council and Clackamas County Economic Development Commission.
Sarah Walden (G04, MEd09) in August joined Portland Public Schools as a Head Start teacher. She moved from Mentor Graphics, a Wilsonville, Ore., corporation dealing in electronic design automation for electrical engineering and electronics, where she had been for 11 years as an early childhood educator, teaching a classroom of mixed-aged children between 3 and 5. She is the current president of the George Fox University Alumni Board of Directors, a member since 2013.
Patti (McKinniss) Perkins (G05) is the new CEO and owner of Weaver & Associates, a human resources consulting firm in Garden City, Idaho. She has more than 30 years of business and human resources experience, including the last two as human resources director for the city of Meridian, Idaho. She serves on the board of the Human Resources Association of Treasure Valley and the Society for Human Resource Management State Council.
James Smith II (G05) in August became assistant veterans service center manager with the Detroit regional office of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Benefits Administration. He has been with the VA for more than eight years, serving, in order, as rating veteran service representative, supervisory veterans service representative, change management agent and senior program analyst prior to being named to his new position. He earned a master’s degree in management in 2006 from Minot State University.
Wendy Bruton (MA06) is now director of the Individual and Family Matters Clinic at the Portland Center of George Fox University. A licensed professional counselor, she also is executive director of Oak Springs Wellness Center, a counseling group practice in Salem, Ore., and has had a private practice for 10 years. She was an adjunct professor at George Fox beginning in 2012, teaching courses in counseling and psychopathology, and now is an assistant professor, starting last fall. She has a PhD in counseling and supervision from Oregon State University.
Craig Henningfield (DMin06) in November was installed as the new pastor of the Concordia Evangelical Lutheran Church in Steamboat Springs, Colo. Founded in 1936, it has 265 members. He is the founder of The Church Without Walls in the greater Denver area, started in 2003 to be a “congregational incubator,” providing direction and training for a ministry among those unlikely to attend an organized church. Previously, until October, he was with the Good Samaritan Society for nearly five years as director of spiritual ministries for a retirement community of 350-plus residents and 200-plus staff.
Sarah Katreen Hoggatt (MA06), who lives in Salem, Ore., where she is a writer, spiritual director, speaker, book designer and editor, in November published her fifth book, Finding Love’s Way: A Poetic Exploration Into the Deeper Rhythms of Love. It explores a wider world where God, people and love are inseparable. Her previous publications are In the Wild Places (2012), Encountering the Holy: An Advent Devotional (2006), In His Eyes (2005) and Learning to Fly (2002).
Arturo Lomeli (MAT06) is principal of the new Tom Glenn High School in Leander, Texas. The sixth in the district, the school will open in August. He resigned in December from his position as principal at Hillsboro (Ore.) High School, where he had been for three years following two years as principal of South Meadows Middle School in the same district. He began his education career as a sixth-grade teacher before pursuing a path in school administration.
Nathan McDaniel (G06) is now a full-time member of the George Fox University plant services staff as a groundskeeper, starting part time last April. Previously, he was with the city of Tigard, Ore., as a parks worker and, before that, was a nursery specialist for Garland Nursery in Corvallis, Ore., and a plant specialist and researcher with the Lake County Resources Initiative.
Ryan Smith (MBA06) is back with Bend Research as procurement manager after previously working with the Bend, Ore., company for nearly seven years until 2007 as purchasing manager. In between, he moved to Andwin Scientific in Bend, where he was general manager. Bend Research is now a new division of Capsugel Dosage Form Solutions, which markets to healthcare companies worldwide with various proprietary technologies and manufacturing capabilities
Mark Starr (G06, MA11) is planning a Kickstarter fund to launch Vegetable Race, a board game he has designed. Participants race as culinary vegetables against up to seven friends. He has done the artwork as well as game development and says it features deception, secret objectives, betrayal . . . and a squirrel. He lives in Albany, Ore.
Jeremy Castile (G07, MBA15) in August was named manager of business operations for the global strategic account of Lam Research, based out of its Hillsboro (Ore.) office. He has been with the semiconductor firm since 2007, serving as systems engineer responsible for developing corporate strategies; creating marketing material; designing data acquisition systems; and managing testing programs to deliver cost savings. He also is an adjunct professor with George Fox’s College of Business, teaching strategic management.
Bryan Donohue (G07) is the new head coach of the Kelowna, British Columbia, Falcons baseball team. He was named in January to guide the lone Canadian representative in the West Coast League, a wood bat summer collegiate organization started in 2005 with teams also in Washington and Oregon. It is designed to develop college talent using only current college-eligible players. Donohue this spring entered his ninth season as coach at Mt. Hood Community College, with a career coaching record of 243-127. He played baseball at both George Fox and Mt. Hood Community College, as well as with the Corvallis Knights of the West Coast League.
Ben Kelley (G07, MBA11) joined Nike in Portland last June as a product manager and agile product owner for identity and access management, a suite of services based around consumer interactions that allows access to and personalization of Nike’s direct-to-consumer/B2C digital properties. He previously was with HealthSparq in Portland as product owner/business analyst, assisting the company in building products that help people make smarter healthcare choices.
Elizabeth (Rodman) Larson (G07) and her family are back in the United States, living in Ocean Shores, Wash., after three years in the Eastern Highlands Province of New Guinea as missionaries with Wycliffe Bible Translators, working at a missionary resource center called Ukarumpa. They are seeking to expand their ministry as her husband seeks new certification as a welding inspector with the hope this new job will expand their opportunity to reach more people through a holistic approach to salvation. They are independently raising funds to return and are seeking appearances and contacts in Oregon and Washington to present their plans and needs.
Isaac Moffett (G07) is the new education program manager for the Idaho Department of Juvenile Corrections Center in Lewiston, Idaho, one of three centers in the state. He has taught in public schools for eight years and served as a private school administrator. In addition, he is the author of The Great Education Decision: Learning From the Past to Give Our Children an Eternal Future, and also hosts a weekly podcast and blog, The Great Education Struggle, in which he addresses the American education system and homeschooling from a biblical worldview.
Amanda Newman (G07) in May received a juris doctorate from the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law at Arizona State University, and last fall joined the Phoenix office of Dickinson Wright, in the commercial litigation department. While in law school she was president of the student-led Christian Legal Society, clerk of the Student Bar Association and managing editor of the Sports and Entertainment Law Journal. She was a summer associate/law clerk with Dickinson Wright before graduation and was a judicial extern with the Arizona Court of Appeals. From 2007 to 2012 she was a newspaper reporter for The Newberg Graphic.
Molly (Boyle) Washburn (G07) has moved from Boston to New York, where she now is a department administrator with the College of Dentistry at New York University, starting in August. She left a position as communications manager for the dental school at Boston University, where she served for a year following her 2014 graduation from the university with a master of education degree in policy, planning and administration.
Zach Wilson (G07) in January started his third year with ACIST Medical Systems in a new role. He now is territory manager, after just over one year as a clinical sales associate and his first year as a clinical specialist. The international company develops, manufactures and markets contrast injection technology solutions to simplify the complexities of cardiac catheter labs, operating rooms and radiology suites. Previously, he was with a vascular closure specialist with Access Closure Inc., and a regional manager with TZ Medical in Portland for five years.
Amy Fagan (MAT08) is the teacher (along with the founder) at Willamette Children’s Academy, opened in November in Lake Oswego, Ore. The preschool is located at the longtime site of a former Montessori school. The new school offers a similar mix of play and hands-on activity, as students have a balance of freedom and instruction. Fagan returned to college for her teaching degree after five years in the business world.
Cary Griffith (G08), after nearly eight years as a full-time web designer at George Fox University, left the position in February to work full time for his own design and marketing firm, Griffae Design, started in 2007. His wife, Kayin (Mathae) Griffith (G08), assistant designer and marketing specialist for their company, will continue in her position as director of housing at the university, a position she filled in 2015.
Britt (Robbins) Hoskins (G08) returned to her alma mater in December as associate director of advancement communications and grants. For the last two years she was in Blacksburg, Va., as an instructor in Virginia Tech’s English department while teaching writing courses and finishing a master’s degree in writing and rhetoric. The previous five years she was a public relations professional for Waggener Edstrom in Lake Oswego, Ore.
Emily (Dore) Rorem (G08), after six years as a critical care registered nurse in the Northwest, has moved to the University of Minnesota Medical Center in Minneapolis, where she is a perioperative RN, now in her second year.
Breanne (Reeve) Sherwood (G08), after earning a master of fine arts degree in 2014 from Eastern Michigan University, is now a member of the art and design faculty at George Fox University, where she earned her degree in visual arts with an emphasis in photography and ceramics.
David Buchanan (G09) is an assurance partner with Delap LLP, an accounting and financial advisory firm in Lake Oswego, Ore. He is a network security and cryptographic professional and management consultant, now in his seventh year, dealing with issues in software, banking, healthcare and retail finance, identifying vulnerabilities in information system designs and developing mitigating controls.
Kaisa (Kincaid) Butcher (G09) is one of four co-owners of Lionheart Coffee Company that opened last May in Beaverton, Ore., featuring ethically sourced and produced coffees. It drew more than a few news stories because of its approach: a coffee shop with a cause. Each quarter the store will partner with both a local and an international nonprofit by highlighting their work in the store and then donating 5 percent of proceeds from the store’s loyalty programs. The artisan coffee format includes the usual drip coffee and espresso, but also table service for customers wanting their coffee brewed with more advanced processes such as French press or Chemex. A Kickstarter campaign raised $15,000 to launch the store, and it received a boost with advice from Voodoo Doughnut co-founder Kenneth Pogson as a volunteer mentor through MicroMentor, a professional network run by Portland-based Mercy Corps.
Emily (Hodgin) Forbes (G09) has her own business in Newberg, Love & Plants, established in 2015 and based on her calling as a plant-based nutritionist and educator. Previously, for nearly two years, she was a healthy eating specialist with Whole Foods Market. She was on campus in October and March demonstrating simple recipes, sponsored by the university’s “Nutrition Matters” program. After graduation she traveled to 28 countries to find healthy meals worldwide. Now she is promoting her love of plant-based meals through nutrition and cooking coaching.
Kimberly (McGiverin) Harmon (G09) is in Wuxi, China, where she is employed with Leadership Development International as a community liaison with International School of Wuxi, where her husband is a secondary teacher and athletics director.
Kyle Johnson (G09) in December joined SGA Certified Public Accountants and Consultants in Bend, Ore., moving from Delap LLP, an accounting and financial firm in Lake Oswego, Ore., where he had been a tax senior associate for nearly a year. Previously, for just over three years, he was with PricewaterhouseCoopers in Portland, holding the title of tax experienced associate then tax senior associate. His new firm provides accounting, tax and consulting services to high-net-worth individuals and privately held businesses.
Suzanne (Wood) Johnson (G09) is a personal service representative with Alaska Medical Solutions of Anchorage. She works with patients to describe the purpose and use of prescribed rehabilitative equipment, arranges for equipment at hospitals and homes, and assists in associated paperwork. She previously was a teacher’s aide for nearly five years.
Doug McCann (G09) is the face of Oregon Blueberry Farms and Nursery, one of the state’s larger family-owned blueberry operations. He is responsible for sales, marketing and management of the 35-year-old operation that has 175 acres of commercially yielding blueberry plants near Silverton, Ore., and a 30-acre River Road Nursery operation near Salem, Ore., that supplies commercial growers and retail nurseries globally. He also is co-owner of Givers Gain Properties, a Portland-based real estate investment company.
Justin Sweeney (G09) in January became sports information director at Transylvania University, a private institution in Lexington, Ky., with 1,000 students and a member of the NCAA Division III. Most recently he was sports anchor and writer with Sports Radio 750 in Portland, and a play-by-play broadcaster for George Fox University, covering five sports. He now covers 26 sports for the Pioneers.
Jeff Syverson (MA09) is the new pastor of the nondenominational Big Trees Community Church in Arnold, Calif., starting last June, leaving Horizon Institute, where he was program director and then academic dean for four years. Founded in 2006, Big Trees Community Church serves the growing Korean immigrant church in Los Angeles. He is also program founder and ministry director of Joy in the House of Prayer Ministries in Los Angeles, started in 2013, which offers seminars, retreats, teaching and prayer events.
Kerstyn Tsuruda (G09) is living in Silverdale, Wash., while working for the Department of Defense at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in Bremerton, Wash., where she is an office clerk.
Katelyn (Melland) Wisdom (G09) is staff pharmacist at Walgreens in Tigard, Ore., in that position since 2012 after receiving a PharmD degree from Pacific University’s (Ore.) School of Pharmacy.
2010-15
Vince Beresford (DMin10) in March was named president of the Go For Broke National Education Center, perhaps most noted for its monument in the Little Tokyo district of Los Angeles that honors WWII Japanese-American soldiers of the heroic 100th Infantry Battalion and is visited by tens of thousands each year. Beresford has more than 20 years in higher education and nonprofit leadership, most recently as adjunct professor at Azusa Pacific University, and in executive director positions with the Child S.H.A.R.E. Program in Los Angeles and with the With Hope Foundation.
Erik Burris (G10) is a quality control technician with nLight Photonics, an American laser manufacturing company headquartered in Vancouver, Wash., with sites in Hillsboro, Ore., (where Burris works) and in Europe and Asia.
Scott Granger (G10, MAT12) in August became an administrator in the Wenatchee (Wash.) School District, after being a district teacher for two years and serving as assistant varsity baseball coach, middle school basketball coach and middle school football coach.
Meredith Tribble (G10), founder/manager of her own coffeehouse in Powell, Wyo., participated in the Northwest regionals for the America’s Best Coffeehouse Competition at Coffee Fest 2015 in October in Portland. Her Uncommon Grounds operation, about an hour east of Yellowstone National Park, was started in 2010 and now has six employees. She brought two with her for the six-team competition. Her store advanced to the competition through first-round fan voting, then scoring by secret shopper judges evaluations.
Liz Williamson (G10) is now an accountant with responsibility for cash management at Weiden + Kennedy in Portland, one of the largest independently owned advertising agencies in the world. She started in December 2014 after working as a health and welfare accountant at Intel Corporation in Hillsboro, Ore.
Elizabeth Chapin (MA11) is a graduate teaching assistant and PhD student at the University of Washington School of Information Science, also serving as an adjunct faculty for online and hybrid learning at George Fox Evangelical Seminary. She also is the author of Facing “The Talk”: Conversations with My Four Daughters About Sex, published by InterVarsity Press.
Kyler Dougherty (G11) and Nicole (Johnson) Dougherty (G11) are both employees of Harvest House Publishers in Eugene, Ore., where they are two of three graphic designers, Kyler since January 2013 and Nicole nine months later. They do a mix of book cover designs, product creations and art direction, as well as planning and running marketing campaigns. The company publishes 150 new books a year, has a back list of 1,200 titles and has sold 100 million books globally, all affirming biblical values and helping readers grow spiritually.
Sharon Hale (MA 11) is a marriage and family therapist intern with Western Psychological and Counseling Services in Portland, serving previously as a skills trainer and care coordinator with the group, beginning in 2012. She operates out of offices in Tigard, Oregon City and Gladstone, Ore.
Shannon (Madsen) Johnson (MA11) has joined the advancement office at George Fox University as a gift officer, moving from a position as assistant director for donor development and campaign activities at Warner Pacific College in Portland, where she had been since January 2013. She previously was a clinical care coordinator at Albertina Kerr Youth and Family Services in Portland for two years after eight years with Young Life in Albany, Ore., both as field staff and in direct ministry.
Danny Lybarger (G11) has moved from Portland to St. Louis to become site pastor of BarChurch, a ministry of The Gathering United Methodist Church. He began in June and also serves as director of the college-age ministry. The BarChurch, located near Saint Louis University, reaches out to college-age individuals in a non-church building setting. He moved from a position as youth pastor of West Hills Covenant Church in Portland, where he served two and a half years following nearly three years as Portland director of Kaleo Missions.
Eric Barton (G12) in March joined Christensen Electric in Portland as account manager, moving from a territory sales representative position with Advanced Dental Technologies of Portland after being with the firm for nearly two years.
Chelsea Cason (G12) in July began as a registered nurse with Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center in Medford, Ore., where she is a day shift RN on the medicine floor. She moved from a position with Rogue Valley Manor, also in Medford, where she had been for three years, starting as charge nurse and the last two years as resident care manager.
Benjamin Clark (G12) is an instructional assistant in special education in the Life Skills Center at Straub Middle School in Salem, Ore., the district’s newest middle school with 750 students.
Josh Couch (G12) and Emily (Fakkema) Couch (G13) are living in Newberg while both have positions in Yamhill County. He is a process engineer designing equipment for process enhancement with Cascade Steel Rolling Mills in McMinnville, Ore., and she is a first-grade teacher at Dayton Grade School, starting last fall after receiving an MA in student development and counseling administration last spring from Indiana Wesleyan University. He is completing an MS degree in renewable energy engineering, expected to graduate in June from Oregon Institute of Technology in Wilsonville, Ore.
Clayton Pugsley (G12) and Jodi (Lund) Pugsley (G12) both work in tax preparation positions in Portland. In June she joined the Portland accounting firm Geffen Mesher as a tax senior after nearly three years as a tax experienced associate with PricewaterhouseCoopers. He is a tax accountant with Deloitte LLP.
Joanna (Johnson) Raymer (G12) is an instructional assistant with the South Coast Education Service District in Coos Bay, Ore., serving three southwest Oregon counties.
Luke Thompson (G12, MBA13) is a financial analyst with The Mountain Group in Camp Sherman, Ore. He lives in Salem, Ore., where he conducts analysis of the finance, organizational structure and management of businesses. The firm offers ideas, skills and time to businesses facing material challenges. Previously, until 2014, he was a loan officer with HomeStreet Bank.
Rachel (Elmer) Brumfield (G13) in August joined the University of Montana Foundation in Missoula, Mont., as marketing coordinator. She moved from a position of nearly two years as events and marketing assistant with The Oregon Garden and Resort in Silverton, Ore., where she helped plan and execute public events. In her current position she assists the philanthropic efforts of the independent organization that last year raised $46 million in support for the university.
Sergio Cisneros (G13) is now a business teacher at Lost River Junior/Senior High School, in Merrill, Ore., part of the Klamath Falls School District where he grew up. He also leads the senior seminar and Future Business Leaders of America program at the 212-student school. Previously, he was a contributor to National Public Radio as a reporter at Oregon Public Broadcasting in Portland. In October he had an opinion piece, “Good Parent-Teacher Communication Helps Students,” published in the Klamath Falls Herald and News.
Tami (Bastow) Crosby (G13) has moved to Jacksonville, Fla., where she now is senior accounting specialist with St. Vincent’s Ascension Health. She started last July, moving from a position as senior accountant III with Ascension Health in Indianapolis. The faith-based healthcare organization, with 131 hospitals, is the largest nonprofit health system in the U.S.
Jim Ferraris (ADP13) is the new chief of police for the city of Woodburn, Ore., taking office Dec. 15 to head the department in the city of 25,000. He has more than 37 years in law enforcement, the last five as deputy chief of police in Salem, Ore. He started as a patrol officer in Beaverton, Ore., in 1978 for five years, then spent more than 27 years as assistant chief of police in Portland.
Lauren Floyd (G13) started in January as a registered nurse in the intensive care unit at Providence Portland Medical Center. Previously, she was a registered nurse with Carilion Roanoke (Virginia) Memorial Hospital for just over a year, then an RNII with Inova Fairfax Hospital in Falls Church, Va.
Shannon Gydesen (G13) is living in Ellis, Idaho, working as a registered nurse. In November she was named house supervisor at Steele Memorial Medical Center in Salmon, Idaho.
Josiah Hotovec (G13) and Margaret (Vogt) Hotovec (G13) are in Oklahoma City, Okla., where he is a software engineer with Boeing and she is an accounting assistant with Chesapeake Energy, in her second year.
Sarah (Roberts) Lee (G13) is completing her third year in her first nursing position, at Silverton (Ore.) Health Hospital, where she is a registered nurse serving in labor, delivery and postpartum care.
Hannah Munger (G13) is a sixth-grade school teacher, now in her third year, at The Classical Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo., a kindergarten- through 12th-grade charter school of just over 600 students. In her free time she participates in backpacking, hiking and climbing, including a couple of times up Pikes Peak.
Kassi (VanderKwaak) Reimer (G13) has been chosen to start the new women’s soccer program at Briercrest College in Caronport, Saskatchewan, Canada. The first team will begin training this fall, playing in the 12-team Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference. She adds the new duties to her regular position as a registered nurse at Dr. F.H. Wigmore Regional Hospital in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan. Originally from Chilliwack, British Columbia, Reimer followed her biology degree from George Fox with a degree in nursing from Creighton University in Omaha, Neb.
Matthew Wood (G13), an Air Force National Guard Airman First Class, graduated in November from basic military training at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas. He was sent for further technical training in Biloxi, Miss., and is to be stationed at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, near Tacoma, Wash., where he will be a command and control officer responsible for battle management operations for the West Coast Air Defense Sector.
Heather (Gigstad) Ensign (G14) is a social worker for Gallup McKinley County Schools in New Mexico. She began in February after serving as a special education teacher/long-term substitute with the Window Rock (Ariz.) School District at the Tsehootsooi Intermediate Learning Center beginning in August 2014. She earned a master’s degree in social work in 2015 from Western New Mexico University.
Robbie Frederiksen (G14) is director of youth and young adult ministries at Central United Methodist Church in Stockton, Calif. This follows seven years working with the youth empowerment organization Sierra Service Project in Portland and as director of children and youth ministries for Fremont United Methodist Church in Portland.
Remi Gentry (G14) is in her second year on the data and support team with the Beaverton, Ore., School District. Her work involves data collection on students with special needs to assist in proper specialized program placement. She also plays the violin as part of a trio, Battery Pack, that performs locally.
Benjamin Holtrop (G14) is a multidisciplinary film photographer, stylist and art director based in Portland and Los Angeles. He is art and community director at Aesthetic in Portland, a fashion-driven design house creating visuals and imagery and offering services ranging from fashion lookbooks and ad campaigns to brand strategy and events. He also has been a freelancer since 2010. He describes his work as “minimalist aesthetic,” inspired by light with the aim of creating true visual narrative. His client ad collaborations have included Uber, Pendleton Woolen Mills, Timberland, Nike, J Crew and a dozen press publications.
Kenton Miller (G14) in November returned to campus to use his mathematics degree by joining the university’s data analytics team. He previously was a technician, shop assembler and sales specialist with REI in Tigard, Ore. As a student he spent a summer at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., as an intern.
Timothy Porter (EdD14) in March was named the next superintendent of the South Umpqua School District in Myrtle Creek, Ore. He has been director of technology and student achievement for the South Lane School District in Cottage Grove, Ore., after previously serving as curriculum director in the Sweet Home (Ore.) School District, and as a principal in the Condon (Ore.) School District. His new position includes leadership of a high school, middle school and three elementary schools, with a total of 1,475 students.
Jessica Adrian (G15) is in her first year of teaching, with 23 students in her third-grade classroom at Mabel Rush Elementary School in Newberg, where she did her student teaching.
Tim Dandini (G15), just after graduation, became project director for Natural Stone Designs in Sherwood, Ore., which fabricates and installs natural and engineered stone products. Previously, he was a foreman with Turner Construction and superintendent for Reimers and Jolivette, both in Portland, for five years.
Josh Dolar (G15) in August started as youth director at Our Savior’s Lutheran Church in Salem, Ore., responsible for both middle and high school programs. Previously, he served eight months as youth intern at Cedar Creek Church in Sherwood, Ore., for eight months.
Elisabeth Herrera (MA15), who established her own firm, Elisabeth Herrera Counseling, in Salem, Ore., just after graduation last May, was featured in a Dec. 19 article in the Salem Statesman Journal. Headlined “Local graduate challenges stigmas, provides safe space,” the story told of her background attending local schools with students from low-income families, minority families and those impacted by gangs. She said she felt as if people pitied her and assumed her education wasn’t good enough. Now she’s trying to make sure positive perceptions are observed by students and staff as they work their way through the community. Prior to her own business, Herrera was a child and family therapist intern with Old Mill Center for Children and Families in Salem, Ore.
Ian King (DBA15) is now using his degree, not in business but as an educator on the subject, serving as an adjunct faculty member at three Portland-area institutions: Oregon Institute of Technology, Pioneer Pacific College and George Fox University. This follows more than seven years, ending in November, at Mentor Graphics in Wilsonville, Ore., where he was in world trade operations as senior financial analyst. A former city council member in Beaverton, Ore., he now is giving time as a certified volunteer producer for Tualatin Valley Community Television and serves on the board of Care to Share.
Ana Vella (Robles) Magana (G15) is an immigration counselor at Lutheran Community Services NW, a nonprofit human services agency in Woodburn, Ore. She started at graduation after being an intern with the organization. She is partnered with the Board of Immigration Appeals and assists clients with immigration forms, provides representation and translations, helps with services including fingerprinting and photos, and coordinates citizenship classes.
Isaac Pauley (G15) is director of music and media at Southwest Hills Baptist Church in Portland. He started in July. He also continues as a private music teacher for violin, viola and piano.
Elise Porter (G15) in January joined the George Fox University registrar’s office as an enrollment specialist, moving from a position in the development office as phonathon supervisor that she began in August. She was a phonathon caller for three years as a student.
Alyssa Rands (G15) is the new costume shop manager for the George Fox University theatre department. She was a work-study student in the shop for two years while a student, majoring in theatre with an emphasis in design. Following graduation she was a freelance apparel designer and costume designer in the Portland metro area. She also works in sales for Oregon Worsted Company, a fabric and home decor business in Beaverton, Ore.
Jennifer Schaffner (G15) in June was promoted to senior vice president, bank operations, and human resources manager with Willamette Valley Bank in Salem, Ore., overseeing HR functions for 135 employees at 15 locations in three states as well as managing day-to-day operations of five business locations. She has been with the bank for 14 years after 10 years with West Coast Bank.
Christine Swanson (G15) is using her studio art major as a Portland-area artist, painting with oils, acrylics and watercolors to produce pieces that are a combination of impressionist and realistic painting. Planning to eventually have her own gallery, she also teaches art classes for groups and individuals, all under her professional name “Christine Joy.” For the last three years her entries have received the “People’s Choice Award” at the Oregon State Fair.
Matt Thomas (DMin15), after receiving his doctorate, continues as pastor, in his sixth year, at Whitehouse United Methodist Church in Whitehouse, Texas. He has been a pastor with the denomination for 20 years, previously for seven years in Fannett, Texas.
Bruin Notes
- University Readies to Celebrate 125 Years
- Study Shows University Generates $140 Million for Local Economy
- News Bits
- Powers Publishes Landmark Findings on Heat Dissipation in Hummingbirds
- George Fox, Newberg Ranked Highly for Safety
- Gift Brings ‘The Saint John’s Bible’ to Campus for Second Year
- Plans Announced for New Student Activity Center
- University Honors Top Teachers, Researchers