Did you recently receive an advanced degree, certificate or award? What about a promotion or new job?
Keep your Alumni Association informed about developments in your career and we'll add them to the next Class Notes section! We like to brag about our alumni!
Joyce (Crawford) Henderson ’67, Sault Ste. Marie, is serving as President of War Memorial Hospital’s Auxiliary.
Harvey Sova ’62, Grand Rapids, was recently on campus while at LSSU orientation with his grandson, Austin Sova, who is attending LSSU in Fall 2018. Harvey played basketball for the Lakers back when the Fletcher building was a gym and took a tour to see what it looks like now as it houses Financial Aid, Business Operations, Registrar’s Office and more. He also visited the Norris Center and is pictured here next to his team photos from 1960-1961 & 1961-1962.
Mark Hales ’78, Midland, Texas, was recently recognized along with his co-workers on H&P’s Rig 497. The team was described in a release as “The A Team on Fasken’s operation, made up of some of the best oilfield professionals in the world.” QES Directional Drilling sponsored a barbeque lunch honoring the crew. Mark is a self-employed petroleum geologist.
Brian Kasubeck ’76, Brechin, Ont., Re-retired after holding an executive career at General Motors and an eight-year career managing golf courses.
Lesslee Dort ’88, Alpena, has earned the Board Certified Patient Advocate credential at Friends Together Alpena, where she works as Program Director.
Dan Ingram ’87, Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., is the Executive Director of the Canadian Heritage Bushplane Museum in Sault Ste Marie, Ont.
Paul Jerrard ’87, Clive, Iowa, has been hired as an assistant coach for the Omaha Mavericks. Jerrard is a hockey veteran with 21 years as an assistant coach in the NHL, AHL and college hockey. He played defense for LSSU from 1983 to 1987 and was drafted by the New York Rangers in the ninth round of the 1983 NHL draft. Following a 10-year professional career, Jerrard returned to his alma mater as an assistant coach.
Robin and Patrick Keeney ’80, Howell, are the proud grandparents of 5 year old Pierce and 1 year old Cecelia.
Max Liedke ’85, Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., has been appointed senior vice president and chief operating officer of Health Sciences North in Sudbury, effective August 20.
Jeffrey Messens ’82, Neosho, Mo., recently retired from the Neosho National Fish Hatchery after a 35 year career.
Terri (Osentoski) Caunt ’99, Clarkson, has been accepted into the Doctor of Nurse Practitioner program at Wayne State University.
Jill (Baker) DeLong ’99, Hummelstown, Pa., accepted the position of global consumer relations analyst for The Hershey Company.
Sharon Gray ’95, Escanaba, was awarded Member of the Year by the Escanaba Area Branch of the American Association of University Women (AAUW) when they celebrated 45 years during their annual Election of Officers. Gray is currently serving as membership VP, and has been instrumental in increasing membership for the local AAUW branch. Gray received her associate degree in accounting from Bay College and a bachelor of science degree in accounting from LSSU. As a non-traditional student, she credits AAUW as inspiring her to pursue her goal of higher education and stated, “Empowering women and girls is the cornerstone of AAUW’s mission.”
Sharon Gray (Right)
Renee Jent ’95, East Lansing accepted a position as a paralegal at JK. Winters, P.C.
Michael Keiser ’93,Harbor Springs was named undersheriff of Emmet County. Michael, a 23-year-veteran of the department, moved through the ranks as marine deputy, full time deputy, sergeant, lieutenant and detective sergeant.
Michelle (Stevenson) Lajoie ’91, Sault Ste. Marie, was named executive director of Community Action Alger Marquette beginning May 1, after serving at Chippewa-Luce-Mackinac Community Action for 27 years.
Christine (Bouschor) McPherson ‘94, Sault Ste. Marie, has been named chair for the board of trustees for Mackinac Straits Health System (MSHS). Christine, who has served on the MSHS board since 2013, is the executive director of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians.
Cindy (Johnson) Metras ’99, Iron Mountain, was elected to the Iron Mountain Kingsford Community Federal Credit Union board of directors at the annual meeting. Metras spent 18 years as plant controller at Specialty Granules, Inc. in Pembine, Wis. Before that, she managed accounting, cash, payroll and collection operations at CSA Air, Inc. at the Ford Airport.
Tina Pountney ’95, Sault Ste. Marie, participated in the annual Dancing with the Stars Competition, hosted at the Kewadin Casino DreamMakers Theater in Sault Ste. Marie. The competition raises funds for Hospice of the EUP and draws a sell-out crowd every year.
Bradley Reynolds ’91, Wentzville, Mo., is the supply chain director of GM Wentzville Assembly.
Pete Stauber ’90, Duluth, Minn., is the Republican candidate for Congress in the 8th congressional district of Minnesota. He was endorsed by President Trump during a rally in Duluth in June. Stauber was a key member of LSSU’s 1988 NCAA Div. I Championship hockey team.
Jody (Levar) Wetherill ‘99, Richmond, Va., is the brand marketing manager for both Archadeck Outdoor Living and Outdoor Lighting Perspectives.
Nancy Barr ’00, Houghton, published a short-story entitled “Peace” that was selected as the runner-up in the Write Michigan Short Story Contest. Her work will be published in an anthology of the contest winners later this year.
Nancy Barr
Robert Battisti ’01, Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., has been named vice president of finance and operations for Algoma University.
Courtney (Brenner) Brinkman ’04, Petoskey, accepted a position as a nurse practitioner at Viking Wellness Center.
Nicola Gray ’06, Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. was recognized by her employer, Sault College, with a Northern Lights Employee Excellence Award for her work in successfully organizing two Ontario College Athletics Association Provincial championships.
Sarah (Clarkson) Hillard ’01, Livonia, has been promoted to lead manager in Product Sales at CPA.com.
Neal Maynard ’09, Spooner, Wis., was promoted to senior investigator with the Wisconsin Office of Public Defender in Spooner, Wis. Previously, he worked as a public defender investigator in Juneau, Ark. for 3 years.
Nicole Nichols ’01, Topinabee, is the coordinator of rehabilitation services at McLaren Northern Michigan in Petoskey. She is helping patients learn how to get into and out of their vehicles, no matter what size, after surgery or injury, using a simulator that mimics the height of their own vehicle, accounting for the steering wheel and how far the door opens.
Nicole Nichols
Luke Otten ‘05, Traverse City, is the lead network engineer for Munson Healthcare IT Management. He is responsible for oversight responsibilities for Munson’s database administration, EHR backend systems, datacenter facilities, Linux/Open Systems, as well as network engineering. More recently, Luke has been leading the maturing of the information security function at Munson – a computer topic that didn’t exist in most universities when he attended LSSU.
Luke Otten
“I’ve never felt more capable of taking on the next big thing. I credit the professors and environment in the computer science department at Lake State for establishing that solid foundation for career long growth.” – Luke Otten
Kristina (Demaray) Thibault ’04, Kinross, opened a new business, called Quarter to $5, in Sault Ste. Marie. She is also the regional manager for Kanava International, LLC, a company that focuses on empowering sustainable organizations in international development.
Nicole Storey ’04, Cedarville, is the executive director of operations for Great Lakes Boat Building School.
Joe Young ’03, Downs, Ill., is an infrastructure analyst with State Farm Insurance in Bloomington, Ill. He’s been with the company for 13 years.
Joe Young
Aria Alizadeh ’17, Boulder, Colo., is a graduate student at Colorado University – Boulder and is focusing on fluids science. Aria graduated from Lake State with a degree in mechanical engineering and plans to pursue renewable energy industry and wind turbines. He really enjoys living in Boulder, with the scenic mountains as a gorgeous view and a great place to hike.
Rebeca Barclay ’17, Marquette, is an assistant teacher in a 3-year-old classroom at Kids Club CDC in Marquette.
Taylor Barnum ’16, Hickory Corners, graduated with a bachelor’s degree in computer science. He is now working as a computer technician for a customs broker and freight forwarder in Charleston, SC. In this position, he wears many hats to help keep the business running. His tasks include on-site and remote tech support, PC and laptop troubleshooting and repair, networking, web development, and programming. Taylor said, “It has been a great job having recently graduated, as I have been able to get a taste for some of the many specific fields that may be enterable with a computer science degree.”
Taylor Barnum
Alyssa Boucher ’16, Canton, is a university relations manager at Quicken Loans. Her job involves traveling to universities to educate students on Quicken Loans and job opportunities there.
Christina Boyce ’18, Howell, has been accepted into the Coastal Marine and Wetland Studies degree program at Coastal Carolina University. Christina is a graduate of the geology department at LSSU and attributes her success to her passionate and caring professors.
Dylan Carlson ’15, Marana, Ariz., is working as a software engineer at IBM.
Dylan Carson
Emily (Blenkhorn) Darling ’14, Sault Ste. Marie, was declared employee of the month at her job as the administrative assistant for Sault Area Schools in October, 2017. She is credited with always being a positive individual who supports all members of the school community.
Christopher Dorans ’15, Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. is a police officer with the Ontario Provincial Police.
Kathleen (Bazinau) Drzewiecki ‘10, Otsego, is working as an Administrative Assistant to the Department of Occupational Therapy in the College of Health and Human Services at Western Michigan University.
Katie Elliott ’17, Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., was named program director for Galilean Bible Camp and Conference Center in Blind River, Ont. Katie graduated from LSSU with a B.S. in Sports and Recreation Management.
Lucas Frazier ’18, Howell, accepted a position with Bulldog IT. Frazier was formerly an intern for Consortium Technical Services at the EUPISD and has a B.S. in Computer Networking.
Phil Graziani ’17, Washington Township, graduated with a bachelor’s degree in computer science. He just landed his “dream job” doing research and writing software for the US Army TARDEC Ground Vehicle Robotics group.
Phil Graziani
John Griffioen ’14, Groton, Conn., graduated from the North Carolina State University College of Veterinary Medicine with a Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) on May 11 and was selected by the Class of 2018 to deliver the commencement address. He was awarded the Merck Veterinary Student Innovator award and the Clinical Proficiency award in Zoological Medicine. Following graduation, John moved to Mystic, CT where he began an internship as a veterinarian for the Mystic Aquarium where he will practice clinical medicine on the aquarium’s animals, mentor veterinary students, and research topics related to aquatic animal medicine both at the aquarium and in the field.
John Griffioen
Corinna Haller ’13 and Blake Kauffman ’17, Sault Ste. Marie, participated in the annual Dancing with the Stars Competition, hosted at the Kewadin Casino DreamMakers Theater. The competition raises funds for Hospice of the EUP and draws a sell-out crowd every year.
Scott Hazewinkel ’17, Sault Ste. Marie, was sworn onto the Sault Ste. Marie Police Force.
Cassandra Holt ’14, Holly, was promoted to senior systems analyst at Urban Science. Formerly, she worked as a data analyst for the National Congress of American Indians.
Adeline Kariainen ’17, Evans, Colo., is pursuing a master’s degree in exercise physiology from the University of Northern Colorado. She was recently interviewed by the UNC Cancer Rehabilitation Institute, where Adeline is working as a cancer exercise specialist.
Anthony Laaksonen ’17, Sault Ste. Marie, was sworn onto the Sault Ste. Marie Police Force.
Zachary Loesch ’16, White Bear Lake, Minn. is the engineering recruiter for Aeroteck in Mendota Heights. Aeroteck is the largest supplier of staffing to General Motors, Ford Motor Company and Fiat Chrysler. They also recruit for most of the Tier 1 suppliers within product development, manufacturing, and quality, in almost all industries, and a very wide range of positions. Zachary will personally be working with LSSU Career Services, Engineering, and other academic departments to inform Lake State grads about great employment opportunities.
Samantha Lucas ’18, Alpena, was sworn into the Alpena Fire Department.
Samantha Lucas
Alison McKeachnie ’10, Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., is a learning specialist at Sault College of Applied Arts and Technologies.
Kevin Palmer ’14, Canyon Lake, Texas, recently accepted a job as a high school teacher at Smithson Valley High School in Spring Branch, Texas, where he teaches medical and nursing sciences. He was also elected as an honorary member of the National Youth Leadership Council in Medicine and plans to begin his pursuit for a masters in education with a focus in sports administration at Concordia University in Austin, TX.
Kevin Palmer
Matt Peabody ’15, Traverse City, graduated with an associate’s degree in internet/network Specialist and in 2016 with a bachelor’s degree in computer networking with a concentration in web development. He is now the frontend developer at Tentcraft in Traverse City. He is responsible for building and maintaining both of their sites and some internal web applications that help improve efficiency. Matt is collaborating with their marketing department on a redesign of Tentcraft.com and creating customized dashboards for different departments to manage workflow and track metrics.
Matt Peabody
David Pelton ‘15, Jenison, was named battalion chief for Walker Fire Department.
John Plotzke ’13, St. Clair Shores, celebrated his 2 year wedding anniversary with his wife, Kara, on June 10th.
John and Kara Plotzke
Laura Roberts ’17, Wellington, New Zealand, graduated with a bachelor’s degree in computer science and a minor in web development. Since then, she returned home to Wellington, New Zealand, and successfully gained employment with Park Road Post Production, which is one of Peter Jackson’s businesses working in the New Zealand film industry.
Laura Roberts
Rose Scheid ’14, East Lansing, was admitted to the State Bar of Michigan on December 8th, 2017. She is now employed with the law firm of Buhl, Little, Lynwood & Harris, PLC in East Lansing.
Brian Springett ’11, Dearborn, accepted a position as the Executive Director for the Greater Detroit office of the Muscular Dystrophy Association. He is responsible for leading his team to achieve fundraising benchmarks that will provide much needed services for the families in the Greater Detroit area with Muscular Dystrophy, ALS and other related muscle diseases
Joseph Sullivan ’16, Mountain View, Calif., was hired by Google after graduating with a B.S. in computer networking. Prior to working at Google, he was a computer systems technician for Consortium Technical Services at the EUPISD
Pawel Wegrzyn ’10, Mississauga, Ont., launched a book on consciousness/meditation/truth called Be Human, Not a Zombie: A Guide to Your Fundamental Nature. It was ranked Top 23 Best Seller on Amazon.ca in the Self Help – Spiritual Category.
Pawel W (Cover)
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