1953

Robert Hale, ’53, published his fourth book, “Imagine That!,” in late 2019. It is available on Amazon.

1963

Lawrence Merbach, ’63, ’67, has retired after 50 years teaching mathematics and science at North Dakota State College of Science in Wahpeton. Despite his retirement, Merbach plans to teach Calculus III for the fall semester.

1966

Myron Wentz, ’66, has retired from USANA Health Sciences, Inc. He founded the Utah-based company in 1992 and served as Chairman of the Board of Directors.

1967

Jim Erickson, ’67, recounts the unforgettable saga of the Mount St. Helens eruption in his new book “Memories of Mount St. Helens.”

Phil Jackson, ’67, HON ’08, is prominently featured in ESPN’s new hit documentary, “The Last Dance.”

1973

Nancy (Borgeson), ’73, and Marlon Hvinden, ’74, have recently published “Heroes Next Door,” a book on World War II veterans from Benson County, N.D.

1974

William McKinnon, ’74, ’81, ’83, ’87, is this year’s Outstanding Rural Health Professional for North Dakota. He is Medical Director of Regional Operations for Altru Health System.

1977

Jack Eakman, ’77, has released his new book “Thank You for Leading” on Amazon/Kindle.

1978

Alan Berg, ’78, ’80, has retired from Southeast Nebraska Cancer Center after practicing medicine for almost four decades.

Denise Lajimodiere, ’78, ’96, ’06, has written “Stringing Rosaries,” a book about American Indian boarding schools.

1979

Nestor Jaramillo Jr., ’79, has been promoted to President and Chief Operating Officer by CHF Solutions in Eden Prairie, Minn.

1980

Debbie (Fowler) Swanson, ’80, ’13, has won the North Dakota Public Health Association Outstanding Service Award. She is Director of Grand Forks Public Health.

1981

Erling Martinson, ’81, ’83, has been presented with the Outstanding Rural Health Career award by UND's Center for Rural Health. Dr. Martinson is Family Medicine Specialist and Medical Director with Nelson County (N.D.) Health System.

1982

Chris Manos, ’82, has been hired as an EDA AmeriCorps VISTA with the Montana Business Assistance Connection.

1983

Susan (Swanke) Goltz, ’83, ’88, has joined the Duluth (Minn.) Library Foundation’s Board of Directors.

Lynne (Kaizer) Sears, ’83, was named one of the Top 10 Nurses for 2020 in the Madison, Wis., area by the Wisconsin State Journal. Lynne is a nurse practitioner in the pediatric intensive care unit at the American Family Children's Hospital in Madison.

1984

Tim Huckle, ’84, retired as President & CEO of Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Dakota in January 2020 after 33 years of service.

Dean Opp, ’84, ’91, has retired after more than 30 years as director of the Summer Performing Arts program in Grand Forks.

1986

Jim Sweeney, ’86, is president of Fargo Jet Center, which has been ranked in the top 10 percent of all aviation service companies in the world by pilots in the 2020 Aviation International News (AIN) FBO Survey.

1987

Dr. Susan Haig, ’87, was presented with the American Ornithological Society’s Peter R. Stettenheim Service Award, which is given to a senior ornithologist who has provided extraordinary service to the ornithological community.

Sue (Amundson) Leupp, ’87, is the new administrator at the Good Samaritan Society in Mohall, N.D.

Mollie (Garry) Raymond, ’87, ’89, is the wife of newly appointed Space Force Chief Gen. John “Jay” Raymond, making her the first military spouse in the newly created sixth branch of the military.

1988

Marilyn (Kroble) Vetter, ’88, was named vice chair of Pheasants Forever & Quail Forever within the organization's National Board of Directors.

Sandi (Pittack) Welch, ’88, ’90, has retired as an elementary school counselor. She served Grafton (N.D.) Public Schools for the past 19 years.

1989

Dan Gaustad, ’89, ’94, is the new city attorney for Grand Forks.

1990

Kelsy (Hanson) Boyd, ’90, was promoted to chief financial officer by Sonic Foundry in Madison, Wis.

Mike LaMoine, ’90, has been selected as the North Dakota male high school coach of the year. He served as interim head coach of the state champion Grand Forks Red River boys hockey team.

1991

Marla (Quem) Berge, ’91, joins the Energy & Environmental Research Center at UND as an administrative assistant.

Leann Bertsch, ’91, is Senior Vice President of Corrections at Management & Training Coporation (MTC) based in Centerville, Utah.

Anthony Kiendl, ’91, has been named CEO and director of Vancouver (B.C.) Art Gallery.

Jeff Zander, ’91, has been promoted to Vice President by VISIONBank in Fargo.

1993

Kelly (Rahn) Radi, ’93, was named a finalist in the Inspiration category of the 30th annual Midwest Book Awards for her book “Wonder-FULL: Activate Your Inner Superpowers (No Cape Required).”

1994

Karen Nyberg, ’94, HON ’14, has retired from NASA after nearly 30 years at NASA’s Johnson Space Center supporting human spaceflight, including 20 years as an astronaut and two spaceflights totaling 180 days in space.

Brian Twete, ’94, ’99, a family nurse practitioner with Northwood (N.D.) Deaconess Health Center, has been named the Outstanding Rural Health Provider for North Dakota.

1995

Rick Holman, ’95, North Dakota House of Representatives, is the Rural Health Legislator of the Year presented by UND’s Center for Rural Health.

Dr. Shawn Stone, ’95, was named the 34th recipient of the George Wythe Award, Buena Vista University's highest honor for excellence in teaching. Stone has been a professor of physics and computer science for 21 years at BVU in Storm Lake, Iowa.

Stanley Stratton, ’95, is the new superintendent for the Riverview School District in Searcy, Arkansas.

1996

Dan Conrad, ’96, has been named Executive Vice President and Chief Executive Officer of Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Dakota.

Col. Matthew M. Fritz, ’96, is Commander of the 419th Fighter Wing, Hill Air Force Base, Utah.

Todd Hebert, ’96, was featured in his first online exclusive solo art exhibition, titled “Three Snowmen, Three Bubbles.”

Bobby Meyers, ’96, has been promoted to chief pilot of charter flight operations at Fargo Jet Center.

1997

Josh Andersen, ’97, was awarded the Presidential Coin for his tireless efforts in managing the COVID-19 pandemic as part of the Emergency Operations Center at Oregon Health & Science University in Portland.

Lori (Olmstead) Faleide, ’97, is the Community Healthy Youth Coordinator in Casselton, N.D.

Ray Grefsheim, ’97, has joined Cornerstone Bank as a senior vice president of business banking in Fargo.

Lt. Col. Chad Haman, ’97, has retired from the United States Army after 30 years of service. He lives in Eagle River, Alaska.

Steven King, ’97, has been named Teacher of the Year by Valley City (N.D.) State University’s Student Senate. King is a professor of social science.

Dawn Mattern, ’97, a board-certified Family Practice/Sports Medicine specialist with Trinity Health in Minot, N.D., has been named a Fellow in the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine.

1998

Corey Harbott, ’95, ’98, has been appointed district court judge in Minnesota’s Ninth Judicial District.

Justin Johnston, ’98, has accepted the position of assistant principal at Waseca (Minn.) Junior and Senior High School.

David Overby, ’98, has been named vice president for technology and safety at South Dakota State University.

Mark Sipple, ’98, has been named defensive coordinator for Augustana University’s football team in Sioux Falls, S.D.

Shane Zaback, ’98, made the 2020 Forbes Best-in-State Wealth Advisor list. He works for Raymond James in Minot, N.D.

1999

Hunter Berg, ’99, has been named Executive Director of the Williston (N.D.) State College Foundation.

Joel Bird, ’99, was named to the list of Financial Times 400 Top Financial Advisers. Bird works for Ameriprise Financial in Bismarck.

Shawn Carlson, ’99, has joined Town & Country Credit Union in Fargo as an executive mortgage officer.

Lindsey (Knoop) Anderson, ’99, recently joined Town & Country in Minot, N.D., as Director of Internal Audit.

2000

Ann Siegle Drege, ’00, received the 2020 President’s Award for Excellence for teaching and learning from State University of New York at Fredonia. She is an associate professor in the Department of English and English Adolescence Education program coordinator.

David Schlafman, ’00, private wealth advisor with Ameriprise Financial in Bismarck, was named to the “Financial Times” list of 400 Top Financial Advisers.

2001

Craig Hashbarger, ’01, is a senior audit manager at Widmer Roel in Fargo.

Ryan Meyer, ’01, ’03, has joined Lux Communities, an Enclave Company, in Fargo, N.D., as controller.

2003

Steve Perez, ’03, ’05, was promoted to Library Manager at Pasadena Independent School District in Texas.

2004

Patrick McClellan, ’04, has been chosen as principal of Chief Joseph Middle School in Bozeman, Mont.

Faye Norby, ’04, won the 350-mile women’s foot division of the Iditarod Trail Invitational in Alaska.

Melissa (Dannenberg) Yackley, ’04, was promoted to vice president, commercial loan officer at Stockman Bank in Billings, Mont.

2005

Dan Eastgate, ’05, has been elected to the Bismarck (N.D.) School Board. He is area director of Bismarck-Mandan Young Life and a Realtor at Venture Real Estate.

Tiffany (Hunter) Ford, ’05, ’18, has been appointed as the state director for the North Dakota Small Business Development Network by the Nistler College of Business & Public Administration.

Vishnu Reddy, ’05, ’09, is associate professor at the University of Arizona in Tucson’s Lunar and Planetary Laboratory and is leading a team studying the origin nature composition intent and potential impact of asteroids on our planet.

Jim Vasichek, ’05, has been elected to the First United Bank Board of Directors. He lives in Lakota, N.D.

2006

Kaylyn Bondy, ’06, ’20, is Vice President for Student Affairs at Bismarck State College.

Megan (Campbell) Houser, ’06, has been named to Prairie Business Magazine’s 40 Under 40 list as one of the top business professionals under age 40 in the Northern Plains. Houser is HR Manager for AE2S headquartered in Grand Forks.

Heather (Hanson) Jung, ’06, is an administrative associate for retirement services at Heartland Trust in Fargo, N.D.

2007

Jayden Olson, ’07, is Williston (N.D.) State College’s new Athletic Director.

2008

Kayla (Hoerth) Dornfeld, ’08, ’14, teacher, international keynote speaker, consultant and author, was selected as Top Educator of the Year for 2020 by the International Association of Top Professionals (IAOTP) for her leadership and commitment to the education industry.

Ryan Thayer, ’08, is the new executive director of Fargo Air Museum.

Garth Wiedrich, ’08, ’19, joins Flint Group in Fargo, N.D., as a senior account manager.

2009

Jeffrey Baumgartner, ’09, has been hired as a senior portfolio manager for the private wealth management division of First International Bank & Trust in Bismarck.

Thomas Dryburgh, ’09, ’11, will join Moorhead (Minn.) High School as a girls basketball coach.

2010

Shaun McAfee, ’10, received the Secretary of the Army Award for Excellence in Installation-Level Contracting. He is a Supervisory Contract Specialist for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

2011

Brian Duchscherer, ’11, has retired as Carrington (N.D.) School District superintendent.

Erin (Lowder) Hoffert, ’11, joins the Energy & Environmental Research Center at UND as an administrative assistant.

Andrew Jackson, ’11, has been named a finalist for Alabama teacher of the year. He teaches 4th grade at Eden Elementary in Pell City.

Duane Johnson, ’11, has accepted the position of maintenance information specialist at American Crystal Sugar Company in Hillsboro, N.D.

2012

Bailey Anderson, ’12, ’14, is a Consultant at OpGo Marketing, Fargo, N.D.

Lana DeCoteau, ’12, has retired as superintendent of Belcourt (N.D.) School District.

Monique Lamoureux-Morando, ’12, ’15, and Jocelyne Lamoureux-Davidson, ’12, ’13, are the 45th and 46th recipients of the Theodore Roosevelt Rough Rider Award, North Dakota’s highest honor. They live in Grand Forks.

2013

Britt Lindgren, ’13, is the office administrator at Ritter Adair & Associates, PC in Bismarck.

Justin Weber, ’13, has been ordained as priest to serve the Archdiocese of Milwaukee.

Xuefei Zhang, ’13, is an analytical chemist at the Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC) at UND.

2015

Luke Funk, ’15, a second-year nursing student at Minnesota State Community and Technical College in Winona, has been awarded the Mark M. Welter World Citizen Award scholarship.

Michael Kocsis, ’15, has been named aquatics director and head coach of the men’s and women’s swim teams at the University of Rio Grande (Ohio).

Erin Rocheleau, ’15, has joined Chrysalis Behavioral Health Services in Fargo, N.D.

Wind Spirit Spotted Bear, ’15, has been hired as a multimedia developer by Agency MABU in Bismarck, N.D.

2016

Cameron Dutt, ’16, graduated from the University of Minnesota School of Dentistry and is a Lieutenant and Dentist at Naval Station Great Lakes in Chicago.

2017

Zsofia Barandi, ’17, ’19, was among 133 out of 75,000 who took the CPA Exam to win the 2019 Elijah Watt Sells Award for exceptional performance on the exam. Barandi is employed with EY in Minneapolis.

Zach Bohn, ’17, ’18, has joined the Therapy-Rehab Department at Benedictine Living Community of Wahpeton (N.D.)/St. Catherine's Living Center.

Michael Dulitz, ’17, is North Dakota’s Public Health Worker of the Year. He is the Opioid Response Project Coordinator for Grand Forks Public Health.

2018

Danica Dutt, ’18, is a Social Media Specialist at Nike World Headquarters in Beaverton, Oregon.

Asia Laudal, ’18, has been named the interim head women's soccer coach at Guilford College in Greensboro, N.C.

Nikki Myhre, ’18, has been hired by the Minnetrista (Minn.) Police Department – the first female licensed police officer to be part of the department in the past 15 years.

Taryn Pfingsten, ’18, is a new home associate with Heritage Homes in Fargo, N.D.

Billie Jo (Haines) Soholt, ’18, is principal of Peter Boe Jr. Elementary in Mayville, N.D.

Cole Winbauer, ’18, has been named a representative with Securian Financial Advisors of North Dakota Inc. in Fargo.

2019

Hayley Andresen, ’19, has joined Widmer Roel in Fargo, N.D., a regional public accounting and business advisory firm, as a staff accountant.

Brandon Bochenski, ’19, is the new mayor of Grand Forks.

Meghan Dohrmann, ’19, is a customer service representative for Bank of North Dakota’s student loans program.

Zahra Finnigan, ’19, is a geoscientist at the Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC) at UND.

Micaela Higlin, ’19, joined Starion as a cash management officer at the downtown Bismarck, N.D., branch.

Angelo Mondragon, ’19, is a new attorney at Scott Stewart Law Office in Langdon, N.D.

Amy Quinn, ’19, has been added to South Central Kansas Medical Center’s medical roster as a new physician assistant in Arkansas City.

Meghan Taunton, ’19, has been hired by the Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC) at UND as a research engineer.

Dylan Walski, ’19, has been hired as a financial analyst for AE2S Nexus in Grand Forks.

Caleb Wavra, ’19, has been promoted to control systems engineer at American Crystal Sugar Company’s Drayton, N.D., factory.

2020

Mason Bennett, ’20, was picked by the Hamilton Tiger-Cats as the eighth overall pick in the Canadian Football League Draft. He is the first UND player to be picked in the first round of the CFL draft since 2001.

Arash Abarghani, ’20, has joined the Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC) at UND as a research scientist.

Find the Flame Contest

Several readers submitted correct answers to the Spring 2020 “Find the Flame” contest, and three lucky alumni — Cathy Perry, ’75, ’77; Doug Magnus, ’73; and Michael Miller, ’81 — were drawn from the correct entries to win a prize from us.

They found the flame hidden in the graduate’s zipper pull on her graduation gown.

Be sure to search for the flame on the cover of this issue. If you find it, email AlumniMag@UNDalumni.net