2006
Sharia Barksdale
301-449-5891
rdy2xplore@yahoo.com
Nichole N. May and fiancé Tony Rodriguez were engaged in November 2015 and will be celebrating a May 6, 2017 wedding in Coffman Chapel at Hood College with a reception to follow in Urbana, Md.
2005
Leslie Beck Hughan
410-303-2208
lhughan@gmail.com
Greetings classmates! In this issue, five members of our class have great news to share with you about new degrees, promotions, engagements, a birth, and being a published author. Maggie Hasselbach graduated with a Master of Divinity from Wesley Theological Seminary this spring. Nilah Magruder has a picture book coming out in November! How To Find A Fox, about a little girl’s attempts to photograph a sneaky red fox, was written and illustrated by Nilah and will release from Feiwel & Friends on Nov. 15, 2016. Currently it’s available for pre-order on Amazon and Barnes & Noble. It’ll also be available in most bookstores! Together with her husband, Jennifer Stiegler-Balfour welcomed a second son, Mason Erwin Balfour on April 7, 2016 in Portland, Maine. Big brother Liam and the rest of the family couldn’t be happier about the new addition to the family. Jenny also received tenure and was promoted to Associate Professor of Psychology at the University of New England in March 2016. Victoria Tanguay became engaged to Trevor Bromberg in September 2015. This spring she graduated from Colorado State University with a Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine and earned certification in Medical Veterinary Acupuncture. Charlene Vestermark was promoted to Major in the US Army and is started her last year as a gastroenterology fellow at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on July 1, 2016. Additionally, Charlene and George Hauser, a dentist and a Captain in the Army, will be married in Jamaica come November 2016. They are really excited to begin this new chapter together. Congratulations, Maggie, Nilah, Jenny, Tori, and Charlene!
2004
Chanda Gilmore
chandagilmore@gmail.com
Michelle Donati-Grayman
602-373-8656
m.b.donati@gmail.com
Class of 2004 has been very active again, from new babies to new jobs. Congratuations to all of us! Congrats to Maya Laws Barney and her husband, Justin, on the birth of their first child, Jasmine Marie, born on June 16, 2016. Congrats to Sara Lewis and her husband on the birth of their third child, Lila Catherine, on April 17, 2016. Lila joins big brothers Grant and Eamon. Congrats to Melissa Janovic Dasch M.A.’10 and Thomas E. Dasch, Jr. on the birth of their third child, Tolan Robert, on September 6, 2015. Congrats to Cara Overcash Orr and her husband, Jonathan, on the birth of their second son, Karson Levi, on February 14, 2016. Cara continues to practice family medicine as a Physician Assistant and accepted a position with Temple Physicians, Inc. in February 2015. Lauren Davies Rosario and her husband, J. Tito, welcomed son Kieran in November 2015. Fellow 2004 alum Jessica Lertora Sweeney is his godmother. Lauren was promoted to Marketing Manager at Psychological Assessment Resources (PAR), a publisher of tests for school psychologists, counselors, and neuropsychologists. Phil Dahlheimer and his wife celebrated their fourth wedding anniversary and their daughter just turned 3. Sherri Moser took a job as clinical psychologist in primary care at the Orlando VA Medical Center and relocated to Orlando at the end of November 2015. Beatrice McClearn Glenn and her husband sold their first house and purchased their second house in August 2015. Mary Hope Rottman Shaw remarried in November 2014 and relocated to Wales, England on May 20, 2016 where she start a new life and career there as a web design specialist. According to Mary, her “ECE degree from Hood, though not in the same field, really comes in handy when I am writing up style plans for clients. My managers say I am excellent client-side.” Sarrah Kiermayr Yoder was promoted to the Therapy Team Lead of the Speech Therapy department at HealthSouth Rehabilitation Hospital of Colorado Springs where she has worked for the past 7 years. Wendy Cochran Taylor has been with the Frederick County Health Department for over 9 years and has been the Program Manager of the Food Program within the Environmental Health Services Division for over 5 years now.
2002
Megan Mills
619-988-0462
meganrhiana@gmail.com
I hope this column finds all the class of 2002 doing well after a warm and relaxing summer. I’ve got a few updates from classmates around the country and I am thrilled to share that our Hood family has grown by a little bit. Melissa Spade Cristler and her husband welcomed their first child, Charlotte Emily Cristler on November 2, 2015. Maggie Laabs Piccone and her husband welcomed their second son, Finley David Piccone, on May 25 (his due date). Louise Shoemaker Stephens, M.S.’06 and family relocated to Boise, Idaho after her husband accepted a job opportunity. She is continuing to teach secondary special Ed in the local school district and they bought a house in April so it looks like they will be staying for a while. In an entrepreneurial spirit true to her Hood roots, Kim Hart and her husband and started a company called Beach Bites which allows folks to order food from their favorite Ocean City, MD restaurants and have it delivered to them right on the beach! There is a free app called Beach Bites people can download or they can order through our website: www.beachbites4U.com. If you’re visiting Ocean City, MD this summer, check it out! In addition, she started a performance company called BMoreMusical. They put on a few performances each year in Baltimore, the next show is in early October 2016 so be sure to check out BMoreMusical.com for tickets and more information. My family and I just wrapped up our first year here in Hawaii, so if you ever find yourself headed to the islands, drop me a line, I think we’re finally at the point where we can offer tourist advice!
1998
Pamela Wilson Colaluca
540-631-5928
pamelacolaluca@gmail.com
Erin Goley reported that, despite an unfortunate leg break, she had a wonderful time playing in the Hood Alumnae Soccer Game with Laura Kontes Ames, Naomi Cross, and Suzanne Benson ’00 this spring. Karen White is living in Fargo, ND with her dog Tera. This September, she will be celebrating 16 years at the advertising agency Avenue Right. She is also the Director of Christian Education at Prairie View Church. Laura Kontes Ames, Melanie Gorr and Angela Gennaccaro Brooke got together in Nashville, TN this June to celebrate their 40th birthdays! Any news to share? Please email me at pamelacolaluca@gmail.com.
1996
Jewel K. Smith
703-969-0050
jewelsmith@hotmail.com
Please keep Dawn Mertz Day and her family in your prayers – she lost her grandfather, William C. Mertz on April 17, 2016 at the age of 96. After 16 years in ministry in the Myersville area, Tracy Wiser is now in the “bivocational” ministry working full time as the Night Supervisor at Engage USA in Frederick (a direct mail company) and part-time pastor at Monocacy Church of the Brethren in Rocky Ridge, MD. Tracy and her family still live in Frederick, near Hood; and currently, her middle son is a sophomore at Lee University in Tennessee. Colleen Gabriel Nestor is excited to announce that that her son, Derek Nestor, will be an incoming freshman at Hood this fall and joining the Class of 2020! Our 20th Reunion ended up being a beautiful weekend in Frederick! Over the course of the weekend, I was able to catch up with Reena Amin Borwankar, Ninett Amaya–Coaxum, Stephanie Sheck Bahr, Alesia Gallego Brand, Tabitha Groh, and Liana Robinson Martino. Other alums from the 90’s were a welcome addition at our table during the lunch on Saturday (special shout out to Jacki Resop Amato ’95 and her lovely daughter, Julianna, for joining us). Alesia Gallego Brand earned her M.A. in Professional Counseling on May 14, 2016 from Liberty University. She also started a new position as Therapist at Board of Child Care in Falling Waters, WV. In honor of our 20th Reunion, we would like to purchase a 6” x 9” Blazer Brick for $700. If you are interested in contributing, please email me and I can provide details on how to make your contribution. As for me, I am back in Old Town Alexandria, thrilled to be able to walk, and cut down on my commute into DC every day. There is no place like home!
1995
Jacki Resop Amato
jresop@yahoo.com
Hello Hoodlums! I had a great day at the 2016 Reunion Weekend Luncheon on June 11th. My girls Jewel Smith ’96, Stephanie Sheck Bahr ’96 and Alesia Gallego Brand ’96 let my daughter Julianna (Class of 2030) and I crash their table. We shared Hood memories and caught up with new ones of our families. The weather was perfect and being back on campus is always fun! Please feel free to e-mail me anytime with your updates and news at jresop@yahoo.com! And find me on Facebook under Jacki Resop Amato!
1994
Sanya Cleary Wolstenholme
215-338-8627
lilmackvic@comcast.net
Hi! I have tried to reach out to our class through letters, email, and Facebook. Unfortunately, not much news has been shared with me! I see a lot of good news but need you to tell me that you would like to have it in print! As my own daughter begins her college search this summer I am reminded how special the years at Hood were to me. I can only hope she finds what she is looking for, makes friends for life and memories that never fade. Life is crazy most of the time but please take the time to send me a quick email… Remember, we were born to stand out- let me tell the world what you are up to.
1992
Sally Altland Mason
717-741-5664
masons@rlasd.net
Michelle Barr Inman
785-639-1813
mraynesford@rocketmail.com
I (Michelle Barr Inman) am finishing up my masters in special education. I just need to pass the last class, student teach and pass Praxis! Yahooo!
1988
Susan Boebel Alis
757-229-8541″
susanalis@yahoo.com
Charlotte “Bambi” Volatile-Goebel reported, “Hi Susan, I’m writing you in the middle of day 2 of freshman orientation for my daughter. Marjorie graduated from high school here in Florida in June with honors. She has also been accepted into Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU) where she will start in August. Some may remember that my oldest are twins and my son, Christian also graduated from high school but in Maryland. He has plans to go to Howard Community College and get an apartment with friends to stay in the Columbia area. Christian spent some time after graduation with me in Florida and was able to find his first car. So what does a mother do but have a mother/son road trip back to Maryland! We drove his new car (2 days) from Cape Coral, FL to Columbia, Md. Nice quality time with my son. The final “graduation” that I had this June was for my youngest. Patricia is moving onto middle school next year and like all elementary school kids, this comes with mixed emotions. She is excited to take on the next challenge in school but doesn’t want to leave all of her friends and teachers from her elementary school. Patricia is also active in synchronized swimming and her team participated in their first event in Sarasota. The team participated in 3 events: team, trio, and solo. She was in the team and trio groups. The team placed 2nd for the 11-12 age group. The trio placed 5th for the 11-12 age group. The girl in the solo (not Trish) placed 7th for the 9-10 age group. It feels like there was more but I think this is enough! Hope you are doing well.” I, Susan Boebel Alis, “Finished up another academic teaching year with the close of the school year. This year marked 21 years in education. Roman and I became empty nesters last August when Mackenzie headed off to the University of Mary Washington as a freshman. We enjoyed out time together exploring Williamsburg and getting to know our state better with lots of weekend trips and time with family and friends. This summer will be spent catching up on reading, professional development and family. Classmates: It is time for me to step down as class reporter. If you are interested in taking on the volunteer position, please contact Ashley Nick Wilson ’08, C’14 at wilsona@hood.edu.”