Central Michigan University • Spring 2004 Graduation Day, © Centralight 2004 On The Job, © Centralight 2004 Centralight © Job, The On Annie Alum, © Centralight 2004 Graduating to Today’s World Centralight COVER-F 1 4/7/04, 10:19 AM Central Michigan University • Spring 2004 Graduation Day, © Centralight 2004 On The Job, © Centralight 2004 Andy Alum, © Centralight 2004 Centralight © Alum, Andy Graduating to Today’s World Centralight COVER-M 1 4/7/04, 10:28 AM For all your graduation gift needs, click and shop at the CMU Bookstore online. www.cmubookstore.com CMU Bookstore hours Monday through Thursday 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Call (800) 283-0234 to order by phone. CMU is an AA/EO institution (see www.cmich.edu/aaeo). Centralight COVER-F 2 4/7/04, 10:19 AM Executive Editor and Director of Alumni Relations Mary Lu Fleming Yardley, ’90 MSA ’92 Editor Barbara Sutherland Chovanec Assistant Editor VOLUME 74 • NUMBER 1 • SPRING 2004 Cynthia J. Drake Photographers Robert Barclay Peggy Brisbane On the cover Writers Off with the cap and gown, Caleb Buhs, ’03 on with the business suit? Fred Stabley Jr. The making of an alum in Design Director today’s world isn’t always Stacy Simmer so easy. In this issue 6 Centralight peeks into Graphic Designers the lives of four recent Amy Gouin Sydnee MacKay, ’98 graduates and how they’re making Alumni Board Communications Committee their way. Daniel Bodene, ’78 ILLUSTRATION BY STACY SIMMER Kevin Campbell, ’74 MA ’76 Thomas Olver, ’98 Shirley Posk, ’60 Paknatchanit “Ling” Sirikururat, ’96 Judy Smith, ’65 For Advertising Information 10 call Cindy Jacobs, ’93 (800) 358-6903 Departments Vice President of Development 2 Letters and Alumni Relations Michael Leto 4 Take Five 16 Associate Vice President 9 Discovery for Public Relations and Marketing Rich Morrison 14 Journeys Features 22 In Support Stay Connected 5 From cab to court 24 Athletics Send change of address information to: Alumni relations 6 Larry Joe 27 Maroon and Gold Carlin Alumni House Central Michigan University 10 Q & A with President Rao 31 Alumni in Action Mount Pleasant, MI 48859 Phone: (800) 358-6903 16 The making of an alum 38 In Memoriam Fax: (989) 774-7159 E-mail: [email protected] 40 Last Shot Web: www.cmualum.com Centralight is published three times each year by Central Michigan University Office of Alumni Relations. It is printed by IPC Print Services, St. Joseph, and entered at the St. Joseph post office under nonprofit mailing. CMU (an AA/EO institution) strongly and actively strives to increase diversity within its community (see: www.cmich.edu/aaeo/). CMU provides individuals with disabilities reasonable accommodations to participate in the activities, programs and services announced in this publication. Individuals with disabilities requiring an accommodation to participate in a program should call the event sponsor. Spring 2004 Centralight 1 Centralight INSIDE 1 4/7/04, 11:15 AM LETTERS FAVORITE PROFESSORS Editor: Just wanted to put my two cents in about two of the professors at CMU that had a direct impact on my career and my schooling. Both Bill Bulger and Dennis Thavent, history teachers, were absolutely GREAT-GRANDDAUGHTER fantastic educators. They knew their subject matter WONDERS ABOUT “609” frontward and backward, but more importantly, I Editor: knew they cared about their students. Never were we just a number in their classes. Enclosed is a photograph taken in Mount Pleasant in August 1918. My great-grandmother, Florence They each had a style, sense of humor, and human Richardson, is seated on the far right. She was sensibility that made us feel great going to classes. attending Mount Pleasant Normal School when it I know I took every class they taught if I could fit it offered a summer program for rural school in. They were fantastic! teachers. She sent the picture to her family in William “Kit” Moran, ’77 Marion as a postcard. She writes little of her Saline MUSICAL MEMORIES summer experience, only that these women are Editor: “the bunch that rooms at 609.” BLACKBURN OFFERED She continued to take classes at Central for many By 1936, Bernard Mayhew as director of bands at LECTURES OUTSIDE CLASS Central State Teachers College introduced the idea years while teaching in a one-room schoolhouse in Editor: of a marching band to perform at football games. Marion. Although the credits she accumulated left President Warriner was delighted. her just shy of a baccalaureate, three of her Scanning my wife’s Centralight I was pleased to children, six grandchildren, and two great- see recognition of George Blackburn in “Favorite As our concert band had but one trombone, it was grandchildren went on to receive their degrees Professors.” He was certainly one of mine! decided that Rex Hulett and I and two other from Central. Currently a student in CMU’s clarinetists would check out trombones and bass philosophy and religion department, I intend to be I didn’t attend Central, but I had the good fortune clef music for The Stars and Stripes and our good the third great-grandchild to graduate from her as a local brat to land a job shearing Christmas ’ole Fight Song, practice a week, and front the alma mater. trees on his farm. On weekends he would 50-piece band’s first show to begin a tradition sometimes come out and work with us. Work-time of spectacular shows. I am interested in learning more about the time banter would nearly always evolve into one of period in Central’s history when my great- “Doc’s” famous history lectures, turning an Rex and Norm Dietz became faculty members of grandmother attended. Many records from this era otherwise boring day into one of fascination with an CMU after the war, and I, thanks to the GI Bill, were lost in a fire in 1925. If any of your readers unvarnished hardball edition that you never got in enrolled at U of M. I conducted several high school know more about this summer program or have history class. They were priceless! We should have bands before retiring in 1976. clues as to where “609” may have been, I would been paying tuition! William Tower, ’40 appreciate hearing their stories. Mike Hradel Sebring, Fla. Kristen Ulmanis Free Soil Mount Pleasant 2 Centralight Spring 2004 Centralight INSIDE 2 4/7/04, 11:15 AM LETTERS MEMORIES FROM ’39 GRAD IN TRIBUTE Editor: Editor: My memories of Central date back to my mother’s Dr. Elizabeth Wheeler Anspach is now deceased. us. But most of all, she was a role model, a conversations about her college days. She (Nell She was my friend, mentor, and colleague, and I wonderful Christian lady, a true friend. We will Coffin) attended Central when it was a Normal write to pay tribute. always be grateful for the influence of Dr. Wheeler School and graduated in 1906. Her class picture is (later Dr. Anspach) on our lives. She was a woman of ideals, a real life pioneer, a hanging on the entrance wall of the Carlin Alumni wonderful professor, a friend of students, a woman Donald Breckon, ’62 MA ’63 House. of compassion, a true friend, a Christian lady, and Kansas City, Mo. When I graduated in 1939, it was Central State for me, a second mother. Teachers College. If we were to return this year, it THANKS TO CMU She was proud of being the first woman to would be our 65th anniversary of our graduation. Editor: graduate from Harvard’s School of Public Health. Our college days came toward the end of the great She was proud of her role in the National Our degrees from CMU have opened many doors financial depression when the stock market fell. Foundation for Infantile Paralysis. She was proud of for both of us and enabled us to enjoy our careers Because of this, almost all of us had at least part- her founding role in the national Society for Public in education totaling more than 66 years. Special time jobs. Tuition was $17 a term, but it was just as Health Education. thanks goes to all our instructors over the years hard to come up with as the thousands of dollars especially Mr. Dunbar, Mr. Carlin, Dr. Poor, and Dr. Betty was most proud of her students. We were as are today. Wells Cook. family, often in her home. She knew us well and My personal joy was being president of the campus was often in our homes. (My daughter is named We both have had a rewarding career in education YWCA my senior year. With Glee Club, Mixed after her.) Her students stayed in contact with her, thanks to the opportunity given to us by Central Chorus, and work on the weekly campus paper, I coming back to Mount Pleasant from around the Michigan University. We weren’t 4.0 in high school, had a full schedule and loved it. world. We kept track of each other through Betty. but CMU gave us “country people” an opportunity to fulfill our dreams! Our YWCA sponsor, Anna B. Herrig, was a precious, Betty did so much, in preventing deaths through elderly professor from whom I learned the best public health nutrition, polio prevention programs, Wayne, ’66 MA ’71 and Sherry, ’67 MA ’72 Dillon traits of character, as well as leadership. public health education in local health departments, Cass City and in teaching. She prepared many others to One of my happy memories is that of the “Campus follow in her footsteps.