The following Class Notes were received recently in the UW Oshkosh Alumni Office:
’60 Judith Learmann (BS), of Waynesville, Missouri, was honored as the 2018 Outstanding Educational Professional by the Waynesville R-VI School District Foundation. Learmann began her career in the Waynesville School District in 1983 at Wood Junior High, before joining the high school faculty in 1985.
’64 Larry Daehn (BME), of New Glarus, wrote “Laconia March,” which premiered at the Laconia High School band concert. For 27 years Daehn directed the New Glarus High School Band and owned and operated Daehn Publications.
’65 Dean Moede (BS), and ’65 Judy (Marks) Moede (BS), ’71 (MSE), of Menasha, traveled to Fort Wayne to cheer on the UWO men’s basketball team and witnessed the national championship as the Titans defeated Swarthmore College.
’67 Craig Heatwole (BS), of Port Washington, repurposed the Heatwole Foundry Company building into a space for eight small businesses. Heatwole was vice president of the foundry prior to teaching for 25 years in the UW System.
’68 Kathryn (Harkins) Breitzman (BS), of Kaukauna, taught 34 years in the Kaukauna Area School District, including 25 years in third grade, five years in the gifted and talented program and four years in second grade.
’72 Paul Schreiter (BS), of Appleton, recently refereed a basketball game with fellow alumnus ’73 Bernard “Bernie” Barribeu (BS), of Oshkosh. Both men were drafted and served in Vietnam.
’73 Alexander McCaskey (BS), of Wautoma, joined the Old Glory Honor Flight to Vietnam, where he served from 1968 to 1969 in the 9th Infantry Division.
’73 Laura (Wenzel) Frea (BS), of Marinette, was appointed to fill the District 14 seat on the Marinette County Board. Frea is expected to join the Public Services Committee.
’74 David Magnus (BS), of Wautoma, is retired and writes about local short track auto racing. Magnus follows the UWO men’s basketball team and was happy to see the Titans become national champions.
’75 Mark Holt (BBA), of Winneconne, owner of Holt’s Jewelry, spoke to the Wautoma Kiwanis Club about his family business. Holt’s daughter Alexandra will graduate from UWO in May and will eventually be the third generation owner.
’79 Gary Macheel (BFA), of Los Angeles, California, was named the 2018 Wall of Fame Award recipient for the Beaver Dam Unified School District for his exceptional accomplishments. Macheel has had a successful 30-year career in sound design and editing in Hollywood. Throughout his career, he has received 35 Emmy nominations and won eight awards.
’79 Jody (Reif) Ziemann (BS), of Berlin, is finishing her 38th year of teaching Spanish at Berlin High School. Ziemann serves on the Executive Board of the Wisconsin Association for Foreign Language Teachers (WAFLT) and translates and interprets for various local organizations, as well as manages foreign trips for Berlin High School Spanish students.
’82 Steven Boettcher (RTF), of Hartland, produced Betty White: First Lady of Television, a documentary that traces the actress’ career. The film premiered on PBS and was shown at the Wildwood Film Festival in Appleton. Boettcher also helped produce the Emmy Award-nominated documentary series Pioneers of Television.
’83 Sue (Teigen) Salzsieder (BS), of Chilton, is the Chilton elementary and middle school library media specialist. Salzsieder was recognized as the Wisconsin Education Media and Technology Association (WEMTA) Professional of the Year.
’84 Donald Smiley (BS), of Milwaukee, is CEO of Summerfest and president of the Board of Directors for the Miller Park taxing district. Before working for Summerfest, Smiley was president of the Florida Marlins and was in team management when the team defeated the Cleveland Indians in the 1997 World Series.
’85 Scott Martin (BS), of Plover, is the primary subject of the upcoming book Play From Your Heart, which weaves the past and present to tell the true story of how a man went from top to bottom after losing all sense of touch to find he could still touch the lives of others.
’85 Nila (Gruenewald) Rodriguez (BBA), of Glendale, California, retired from senior vice president-controller positions and now runs a nonprofit organization. Rodriguez and her husband enjoy traveling.
’86 Michael Jacquart (BS), of Iola, authored the book A Century of Excellence: 100 Greatest Packers of All Time. Jacquart is publisher at Write it Right LLC.
’86 Joseph “Joe” Sullivan (BM), of Maplewood, Minnesota, is a philanthropy adviser for the University of Saint Thomas. Sullivan’s wife, Karen, also attended UWO.
’88 Kevin Lucius (BFA), of Madison, is vice president at Econoprint Inc. Lucius began as a graphic designer and now co-owns the Verona company.
’88 Jeff Peterson (BBA), of Menasha, is vice president of business development for CR Structures, Appleton.
’89 Anthony “Tony” Klaubauf (MSE), of Denmark, is interim superintendent of the Pulaski Community School District. Klaubauf served six years as the district administrator for the Mishicot School District, where he was previously the elementary principal.
’90 Dennis Krueger (BS), of Suamico, will serve as superintendent of the West De Pere School District effective July 1. Krueger is currently superintendent for the New London School District.
’91 Michelle Jensen (BA), of Ashland, is a reporter for the Ashland Daily Press covering Bayfield County. Prior to this position, she was a copy editor at the Eau Claire Leader-Telegram.
’94 Donna (Petraszak) McMartin (BSW), of Berlin, is a social worker at the Wisconsin Resource Center and president of the Berlin High School Alumni Association.
’94 Diane Raue (BSE), of Fond du Lac, will be the high school principal for the Rosendale-Brandon School District effective July 1. Raue has been employed with the district for 25 years.
’97 Robert Limberg (BSE), of Wausaukee, is a computer support instructor at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College, where he has taught for nine years. Limberg was previously a teacher and IT support staff for 14 years with the Marinette School District.
’98 Jeffrey Bruss (BBA), of Three Lakes, was reelected as Three Lakes Town Board chairman. Bruss is president at Cole Publishing in Three Lakes and a veteran of the U.S. Navy.
’98 Moniste Gauger (BA), of Appleton, is a bilingual, e-commerce customer logistics manager for Essity, a global hygiene and health company. Gauger also is a member of the Board of Directors for the Kanonji Appleton Partnership, an educational and cultural exchange program with Appleton’s Japanese sister city, Kanonji.
’98 Kathleen (Radawitz) Powell (BSE), of Hustisford, a kindergarten teacher at Lincoln Elementary School, was named the School District of Hartford’s 2019 Teacher of the Year. Powell has taught 20 years at Lincoln Elementary.
’98 Stephen Powers (BA), of Thomaston, Georgia, published his third book of poetry, All Seats Fifty Cents, a tribute to nostalgia. He is a professor of English at Gordon State College.
’99 Heidi Schmidt (BSE), of Appleton, is director of pupil services for the Appleton Area School District. Schmidt is a former teacher and associate principal at McKinley/Huntley elementary schools.
’00 Tiffany Barden Losinski (BS), of Waupaca, was inducted into the National Collegiate Gymnastics Association (NCGA) Division III Hall of Fame for her contributions to the NCGA as an outstanding student-athlete and success after college. Barden Losinski manages Carousel Gymnastics LLC in Plover and opened a second gymnastics facility in Waupaca.
’02 Corey Baumgartner (BSE) ’05 (MS), of Kaukauna, earned a 2019 Herb Kohl Foundation Principal Leadership Award. Baumgartner is the principal at Kaukauna High School.
’02 Melissa Johnston (BS), of Berlin, has been a licensed athletic trainer for 16 years with ThedaCare Medical Center, providing training services for the Berlin Area School District. Berlin High School received the Safe Sports School Award, recognizing secondary schools and trainers for keeping their athletes free from injuries.
’02 Erin Kelly (BA), of Milwaukee, is vice president of sales and marketing at Network Health.
’02 Nicole Overbeck (BS), of Neshkoro, is the Markesan Library director. Overbeck has more than 12 years of library experience.
’04 Heather Wegner (BSE), of Brandon, has been library director at Spillman Public Library in North Fond du Lac for more than 10 years.
’05 Clint Carlson (BS), of Watertown, was promoted to director of education technology for Istanbul International Community School, in Istanbul, Turkey. Carlson presents at numerous educational conferences, giving keynote speeches and workshops about integrating virtual reality into education.
’08 Rebekah Peppler (BA), of Oshkosh, is a nominee for the 2019 James Beard Award in the Restaurant and Chef, Media and Restaurant Design Categories for her book, Apéritif: Cocktail Hour the French Way.
’09 Kristen Gust (BA), of Sparta, owns and manages Cork & Barrel, a wine, bourbon and beer bar in Sparta. Gust also works full time at Organic Valley as an inside sales manager.
’09 Nathan Wesener (BSE), of Brillion, has been named principal of the Hilbert School District’s middle and high School effective July 1.
’12 Joshua Hughes (BS), and ’14 Allison (Kerwin) Hughes (BBA), of Waukesha, married in October 2017 and were recently featured on an episode of House Hunters in search of a home in Waukesha.
’13 Emily McFarland (MPA), of Watertown, is a manager and policy adviser of the Office of the Inspector General at the Wisconsin Department of Children and Families. McFarland has been a Watertown alderwoman since 2013.
’14 Kelsey (Johnson-Fischer) Blakey (BM), of Oshkosh, is an audiovisual support coordinator at UW Oshkosh. Blakey met her husband, ’17 Walter Blakey (BS), on campus.
’14 Cassie Boettcher (BA), of Burbank, California, is a singer-songwriter who released a new album, More Than That, on April 5. Boettcher has been a producer on shows including Bachelor in Paradise and The Doctors. She currently works for Toho, a Japanese film studio best known for Godzilla.
’16 Mikalah Enright (AS), and ’18 (BS), of Verona, is a radiologic technologist with the University of Wisconsin Health System.
’17 Kylie Grooters (BS), of Centennial, Colorado, is a customer experience intern for Generous Coffee, a for-purpose company that is passionate about caring for people and fighting injustices around the world.
’17 Zachary Zabel (BBA), of Oshkosh, is an agent for State Farm Insurance in New London. Zabel is a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars and AMVETS.
’18 Danielle Parker (BSN), of Statesboro, Georgia, is getting a master’s degree in public health at Georgia Southern University.
’18 Kimberly Weyland (BS), of Neenah, works on her parents’ organic dairy farm as well as Climate FieldView as an activation specialist.
’19 Clare Robbe (BS), of Hartford, is the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) project director at Interfaith Caregivers of Washington County.
ABBREVIATION KEY
COLLEGES
• AAS — Associate of Arts and Science Degree
• B — Business
• EHS — Education and Human Services
• LLCE — Lifelong Learning and Community Engagement
• LS — Letters and Science
• N — Nursing
GRADUATE DEGREES
• DNP — Doctor of Nursing Practice
• EdD — Doctor of Education
• GMBA — Global Master of Business Administration
• MA — Master of Arts
• MBA— Master of Business Administration
• MPA — Master of Public Administration
• MS — Master of Science
• MSE — Master of Science in Education
• MSN — Master of Science in Nursing
• MST — Master of Science in Teaching
• MSW — Master of Social Work
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