2021 Summer Bridge Class notes

1970s
Lane Ellis ’70, Highlands Ranch, Colorado, retired back in January 2015 and is enjoying life with his 15 grandchildren.

Fay (Schumann) Crimarco ’71, Seminole, Florida, retired in 2019 from the Department of Veterans Affairs and moved to Florida to be near her children, Stephanie and John.

Lowell Tiedt ’71, Anamosa, Iowa, was honored on Saturday, December 5, 2020, with the Outstanding American Award from the Iowa Wrestling Coaches and Officials Association.

Mike Knickrehm ’73 (left), Jeff Stavnes ’76 and Bill DeLauro ’78 (right) took a trip together to the Churchill War Museum in Europe in September 2019 as part of the 75th D-Day Anniversary.

Jeff Stavnes ’76, Storm Lake, Iowa, also recently retired after 26 years in sales and project management for Premium Quality Lighting. He and his wife, Janis (Young) ’74, enjoy time with family and recreation at their second home in Greeley, Colorado.

Kathy Krewer ’75, chief counsel, U.S. Army Materiel Command Legal Center, Rock Island Arsenal, Orion, Illinois, was presented her certificate of retirement during a retirement ceremony held in her honor on March 26.

Van Wimmer ’79, Salem, Virginia, retired at the end of 2020 as the CEO of Treasure of the Earth–Gem & Jewelry Shows.

1980s
Rick Radcliffe ’80, Grinnell, Iowa, retired from an education career of 39 years. He spent the last 24 years as the secondary principal and coaching at Brooklyn-Guernsey-Malcom (BGM) High School in Brooklyn, Iowa. He has recently accepted a position with the Fellowship of Christian Athletes as a field ambassador for the Central Iowa FCA and continues to coach at BGM. Rick and his wife Angie, have four adult children and six grandchildren.

1990s Christopher Emper ’90, Fayette, Iowa, has been hired as a custodian at Upper Iowa University, Fayette Campus.

Chad Dove ’91, Nekoosa, Wisconsin, helped to establish the Alex C. Dove Foundation 501(c)3 in memory of his son, which provides respite retreats for families faced with battling terminal illness. Dove’s Nest is located on Lake Camelot in Rome, Wisconsin. The free lakeside retreat is for use by the person with the illness and their family for up to one week.

Kris (Andrews) Martin ’94, Independence, Iowa, has been the K–12 student success coordinator for the Independence Community School District for the past four years and has recently decided to continue her education this fall to earn her master’s degree from the University of Northern Iowa. Kris’ youngest daughter, Reese, graduated from Independence High School in May and plans on attending UIU in the fall to play volleyball for the Peacocks. Kris and Reese are pictured with their husband/father, Dave Martin ’91.

Juelie Koh ’97 (left), Klang Selangor, Malaysia, and her partner, San Wong, ventured into a nontraditional Malaysian business endeavor during the pandemic: bottled sangria. Their business, Ready-to-Drink, sells several premixed beverages, including gin tea and various cocktails, but their best-seller is their bottled sangria. Since January, Juelie and San have had weekly pop-up shops at the Bangsar Market in KL Eco city in Kuala Lumpur.

Tabatha Frizell ’96, ’19, Waterloo, Iowa, was recently inducted into the East Waterloo High School Hall of Fame. Individuals were nominated based on five categories: high school career, service to East High School, career accomplishments, community impact/service, and evidence of a positive character. Tabatha is currently a teacher within the Waterloo Community School District.

LTC Dallas A. Powell Jr. ’96, Grovetown, Georgia, will retire after 32 years of active duty in the Army on November 1, 2021 as Lt. Col/0-5 in the Signal Corps. Dallas is originally from Brandon, Florida, and will be settling in Augusta, Georgia.

2000s
John Goelz ’00, Oak Creek, Wisconsin, was hired as the chief supply chain officer for Nautilus Inc., an innovation leader in connected home fitness. Goelz brings 15 years of experience in directing supply chain and material planning, including designing and executing processes and procedures utilizing innovative strategies to optimize cost efficiencies and enhance the customer experience.

Katie Jo Wymer ’01, West Union, Iowa, graduated from Morningside College in 2020 with her master’s in education. She is currently a kindergarten teacher at West Central Community Schools.

Jesse ’02 and Bethany Rawley, Renton, Washington, welcomed Eloise Rose on May 22, 2021. Ellie weighed 7 pounds, 5 ounces and was 20 ¼ inches long. She joins her big sister, Isla.

Amanda Freet ’04, Waterloo, Iowa, was promoted at Veridian Credit Union to the manager of card services.

Nate Lamphier ’05, Lake City, Iowa, has been named the new head baseball coach at Waterloo West High School in Waterloo, IA. Nate previously served as the head baseball coach at South Central Calhoun High School, where he led the team to one conference championship and upper division finishes in 5 of his last 6 years. Nate also teaches special education at Waterloo West High School.

Shawna (McDaniel) Matz ’05, Waterloo, Iowa, was promoted to the chief people officer position at Veridian Credit Union in Waterloo, IA. She has worked at Veridian for 24 years and was previously the vice president of talent development.

Mary (Pinter) Stivers ’05, Oelwein, Iowa, is retiring from the US Postal Service as a senior sales representative after 30 years.

Dr. Billie (Hunt) Cowley ’03, ’08, Fayette, Iowa, has accepted the position of dean of the Andres School of Education at Upper Iowa University in Fayette, Iowa. She is pictured with her husband, Matt Cowley ’00.

2010s
Patricia (Reid) Stock ’10, Ankeny, Iowa, tested and passed the SHRM- CP exam in February 2021. Patricia is a talent development officer at Financial Plus Credit Union.

Dr. Jeannie Worden ’10 has been approved for hiring as the next president of Northcentral Technical College (NTC) by the District Board of Trustees. In her 26-year career at NTC, Worden most recently served as its executive vice president.

Kathy Franken ’12, Fayette, Iowa (left), was named vice president for finance and enrollment management at Upper Iowa University. She is shown here with her daughter, Jordan Franken, who is an online student at UIU and is the student financial services specialist.

Brett Walderbach ’13, Norwalk, Iowa, was promoted to regional vice president of sales at Sammons Financial Group in West Des Moines, Iowa.

James Hill ’14, Augusta, South Carolina, accepted a job as the director of animal services for the City of Augusta in 2019. The following year he was awarded a $160,000 grant from the Stanton Foundation to purchase a mobile pet adoption van for Augusta Animal Services.

Jake Bass ’14, Independence, Iowa, will be the RSVP coordinator for the Volunteer Center for the Cedar Valley in Independence, Iowa. Jake was previously the coordinator of student activities for the UIU Fayette Campus. He is pictured with his fiancé, Katie Burns, and her son Christopher.

MBA program alum Tiffany (Rassman) Hastings ’14, Toledo, Ohio, graduated in Spring 2021 from Grand Canyon University with her doctorate of education in organizational leadership. She is currently an organization excellence consultant at ProMedica Health System in Toledo, Ohio.

(Pictured) Lonnie ’14 and Jada (Sternhagen) ’14 ’18 Stuckey, Hot Springs, South Dakota, tied the knot on December 31, 2020.

Tiffany Stouffer ’15, Hurricane, Utah, recently accepted a position as the annual giving & grants coordinator at the Zion National Park Forever Project in Utah. She was previously the annual giving program manager at Wartburg College in Waverly, IA.

Rachel Ubbelohde ’15, Tomahawk, Wisconsin, has started her MBA through UIU and received a promotion through her workplace at InterFlex Group to Quality Manager. Rachel also recently bought her first home in Tomahawk, Wisconsin.

Jordan ’16 and Sierra (Lichty) ’16 Rinken, Sumner, Iowa, celebrated their wedding with fellow Peacocks on September 12, 2020. Sierra also accepted a new position as the communications and marketing specialist in the UIU Alumni Office at the Fayette Campus. She previously worked as an admissions & dual enrollment counselor for Fayette Campus. Jordan has served as the assistant wrestling coach for UIU the past two years and is a full-time farmer.

Cody Booker ’16, LaSalle, Illinois, accepted a new position as a personal injury attorney with the Maschka, Riedy, Ries, and Frentz firm in Mankato, Minnesota.

Gregory J. Palmer ’16, SSG Army National Guard, Merrimac, Wisconsin, returned from his second tour of duty overseas.

Joe ’16 and Tara (Duran) ’15 McCaffery, welcomed their first child, Brecken William McCaffery on February 18, 2021. He came into the world weighing 7 pounds, 2 ounces and was 20 inches long. Mommy and daddy can’t wait to show Brecken all around Fayette, where they first met!

Amanda Smith ’17, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is now working full time in her field as an accounts payable specialist at SoftwareONE.

(Pictured) Adrienne (Staton) Silberstein ’18, Ames, Iowa, is attending Iowa State University to obtain her master’s degree in kinesiology and currently holds a graduate assistant position in fitness for rec services at Iowa State. Adrienne was also married in October 2020 to Mitch Silberstein, who attended UIU from 2014 to 2017.

Hunter Slifka ’18, Cresco, Iowa, was honored with the Circle of Excellence award by the Iowa Agriculture Water Alliance (IAWA) during the fourth annual IAWA Iowa Watershed Awards program in April. Hunter serves as the watershed project coordinator for the Turkey River Headwaters & Chihak Creek in northeast Iowa.

Morgan Thias ’18, Waukon, Iowa, has been hired as the communication & outreach specialist for Northeast Iowa Resource Conservation & Development in Postville, Iowa. Previously she worked in the UIU Alumni Office.

Rachel Patterson ’19 has been hired to teach 6th grade at United Community School District.

2020s
Joshua Barker ’20 graduated as the top cadet of his class during Iowa Law Enforcement Academy graduation ceremonies on May 21 at Camp Dodge in Johnston, Iowa. He was also promoted to patrol sergeant of the Fayette, Iowa, Police Department.

Dzeneta Jusufovic ’20, Waterloo, Iowa, is currently enrolled in grad school at Lasell University to obtain her master’s in communication studies with an emphasis in integrated marketing.

Emily Redmond ’20, Waterloo, Iowa, recently accepted a new position within Veridian Credit Union as a loan advisor in Waterloo, Iowa.

Hannah Swartzendruber ’20, accepted a position at Southdale Elementary in Cedar Falls, Iowa.

Alyson Carroll ’21, Oswego, Illinois, will be the new first grade special education teacher at Wings Park Elementary in Oelwein, Iowa. She posed here for a graduation photo with her beloved dog, Louie.

Kaylie Bricker ’21, Goldfield, Iowa, was hired by Cambrex in Charles City, Iowa as a quality control chemist.

Ryan Dabney ’21, Cedar Falls, Iowa, has announced he has accepted a position as a special education teacher at West High School in Waterloo, Iowa.

Jordan Doland ’21, Waterloo, Iowa, has accepted a kindergarten teaching position at Hudson Schools in Hudson, Iowa.

Marissa McAulifffe ’21, Fayette, Iowa, graduated from UIU this spring with a degree in business administration and has recently accepted a position as an admissions counselor at the Fayette Campus.

Kara Miner ’21, Shell Rock, Iowa, has accepted a preschool position at Waverly- Shell Rock schools.

Reighly Schultz ’21, Richland Center, Wisconsin, was hired by Kohler Company in Kohler, Wisconsin, as an associate accounting analyst.

Adam Small ’21 was hired to teach 3rd grade at Olmsted Elementary in Urbandale, Iowa.

Shelby Steen ’21, Eldon, Iowa, has accepted a position as a biology teacher for Southeast Valley High School in Gowrie, Iowa.

Elizabeth Tank ’21, New London, Wisconsin, was recently hired by City Year in Jacksonville, Florida, as an AmeriCorps member and will work with underprivileged schools to help increase student academics and involvement in the community.

Do you have something special to share? Submit a class note online at uiu.edu/alumniupdate or contact the Alumni Office at alumni@uiu.edu.