1950
Naomi (Estopy) Mitchum, ’51, was presented the Robert M. Pitzer Award by the DisAbility Committee of the United Methodist Church for “providing exemplary leadership in furthering the inclusion of persons with disabilities in our communities, our churches, and our world.”
1960s
Ken Snow, ’64, and Dottie (Deye) Snow, ’84, celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary
1970s
Ira, ’70, and Barb, DeSpain, ’71, celebrated their 48th wedding anniversary.
Dale and Tammy (Spiva) Hawks, both ’72, moved back to Kansas City and welcomed a new granddaughter, Carmen Jaye, in mid-August. Tammy serves as a member of Baker’s Board of Trustees
John Musgrave, former student, ’69-’71, who served as a Marine in Vietnam, is featured prominently in the 10-part documentary by filmmakers Ken Burns and Lynn Novick “The Vietnam War,” which aired on PBS in September. On Sept. 27, Musgrave participated in a 40-minute chat with the Kansas City Star’s editorial board on Facebook Live, and he spoke at a screening of select clips from the film at Liberty Hall in Lawrence, Kansas, on Oct. 2. An interview with Musgrave appeared in the article “The Vietnam War’s John Musgrave on Fighting, Coming Home, and ‘Thank You for Your Service’ ” in Vanity Fair magazine’s September edition. Musgrave spoke at Baker Nov. 19.
1980s
Jeff Faulkner, ’81, serves as executive vice president and chief operating officer of the National Foundation for Credit Counseling and on Nov. 1, was named acting president and CEO of the organization.
Diana Gish, ’82, performed as Pearl the Singing Mermaid on the ABC TV show The Gong Show on Aug. 3.
Bart Needham, ’84, teaches math at Osawatomie (Kansas) Middle School. He began his teaching career this fall after retiring from 33 years at Honeywell Federal Manufacturing and Technologies (formerly Bendix Corp.).
Thomas Sutherland, ’81, of the 10th Judicial District, sat with the Kansas Supreme Court to hear oral arguments in a case on the court’s Sept. 14 docket. Sutherland was appointed a Johnson County district judge in 2003 after 17 years in private practice.
1990s
Ann Brandau-Murguia, MBA ’97, has been reappointed to serve a four-year term on the Kansas Board of Regents. She serves as the executive director of the Argentine Neighborhood Development Association in Kansas City, Kansas, and is a 3rd District Commissioner on the Unified Government Board of Commissioners.
Leroy Brown III, ’94, was inducted into Baker’s Athletic Hall of Fame on Sept. 15.
Eric Driskell, ’97, was recognized posthumously by the Kansas City Chiefs, who will rename a coaching award in his honor: The Chiefs Eric Driskell Kansas High School Coach of the Year Award. Driskell, who taught and coached football at Blue Valley High School, passed away in February 2017.
Nate Houser, ’94, was named the athletic director and senior advisor to the president at Baker in August. Houser will also serve as the head coach of the men’s soccer program in 2017-18, his 10th season in that role. On Oct. 4, he became Baker’s winningest soccer coach with a win over Benedictine and a record of 127-48-24, which surpasses that of Ron Pulvers.
Gordon Lansford III, ’93, serves as CEO of the Kansas City-based JE Dunn Construction Co., which was named the Midwest Contractor of the Year in August by Engineering News-Record magazine. Lansford was also named to Ingram’s 2017 list of 250 most powerful business leaders in the Kansas City area. Lansford serves as chair of Baker’s Board of Trustees.
Matt, ’92, and Kelleigh (Temple) Magle, ’93, operate a Hokulia Shaved Ice franchise in Olathe, Kansas.
Juan Price, ’94, was inducted into Baker’s Athletic Hall of Fame on Sept. 15.
John Thomson, ’95, is founder and CEO of the Kansas City-based company PayIt, which was named a Rising Startup at Techweek Kansas City in September.
Major Lydia (Alexander) Thornton, ’98, was recently promoted to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Army.
Jacquelyn Wolf, MSM ’91, serves as an executive vice president and chief human resources officer at Anthem, Inc.
2000s
Dale Adams, MASL ’04, was named superintendent of Udall USD 463, in Kansas, and began his duties July 1.
April Counts, MAEd ’07, serves as assistant professor of education at McPherson College in Kansas.
Angie Currey, EdD ’08, who serves as the Kearney School District’s assistant superintendent of special programs, has been named the 2017 Missouri Council of Administrators of Special Education’s Outstanding New Special Education Administrator.
Scott Hughes, ’03, was named to Ingram’s 40 Under Forty Class of 2017. He is a partner at KPMG in Kansas City, Missouri. He also sits on the board for KCPT, chairing its radio and audit committees, and is on the steering committee for the United Way’s Young Leaders Society. He and his wife, Molly (Humphries) Hughes, ’03, have two sons.
Debra Kunz, MBA ’00, founder and president of Center for Deliberate Growth, was selected as the 2017 Kansas Women Business Advocate of the Year. She received the award Oct. 5 at the annual Kansas Minority Enterprise Development Week Awards luncheon in Topeka, Kansas. The award recognizes her more than 20 years of dedication to helping female entrepreneurs and women corporate leaders succeed.
Tanner Purdum, ’07, was inducted into Baker’s Athletic Hall of Fame on Sept. 15.
Jennifer Sanders, MBA ’03, serves as the executive director for the south-central and southeast regions of the American Red Cross.
Brandon Scarborough, ’02, and his wife, Courtnay, welcomed a new baby girl to their growing family.
Lindsay (Ferrell) Vise, ’03, and her husband, Justin, welcomed a baby girl, Whitney Grace, on Aug. 29. She joins big sister, Ella Cate.
Kelly Wolverton, ’03, was inducted into Baker’s Athletic Hall of Fame on Sept. 15.
2010s
Jesse Austin, ’17, received a Youth Coaching Award from the Kansas Wrestling Coaches Association for his year-round involvement in youth wrestling during summer workouts, camps, and clinics and coaching Team Kansas at tournaments in Iowa and Texas. Austin is an assistant wrestling and football coach at Baldwin High School, where he also serves as a special education instructor.
Alan Callahan, ’14, received a Youth Coaching Award from the Kansas Wrestling Coaches Association for his year-round involvement in youth wrestling during summer workouts, camps, and clinics and coaching Team Kansas at tournaments in Iowa and Texas. Callahan is an assistant wrestling and football coach at Baldwin High School and serves as a certified teacher aid at Baldwin Junior High.
Amer Didic, ’16, who plays center back for Sporting Kansas City, was named to the Canada Men’s National Soccer Team in August for an international friendly against Jamaica on Sept. 2. He made his debut for the Canada U-23 team in March at a tournament in Doha, Qatar. Didic signed an MLS contract with Sporting Kansas City on May 31 after his first professional season for USL affiliate Swope Park Rangers in 2016.
Blake Edwards, ’17, fulfills a dream by working for the FDIC in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Abbey Elsbernd, ’15, who is in her third year at the University of Kansas School of Medicine, will spend the 2017-18 academic year in Denmark at the University of Copenhagen as a Fulbright Scholar, where she will study cancer care for adolescents and young adults. Abbey is the daughter of Carey, ’93, and Bob Elsbernd, MBA ’15.
Lauren Everett, MBA ’16, was named to Ingram’s 20 in Their Twenties Class of 2017. She serves as a client development executive at ECCO Select. After earning her master’s, she was promoted from an account manager into a client development executive role.
Emily Gibson, ’11, was named to Ingram’s 20 in Their Twenties Class of 2017. She serves as a benefits consultant at Bukaty Companies. Inducted to Baker’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 2016, she also serves on the Don Bosco Junior Board, and Baker’s Alumni Advisory Council.
Chris Giuliani, MBA ’05, CEO of Spring Venture Group, was named to Ingram’s 2017 list of 250 most powerful business leaders in the Kansas City area.
Diamond Griffith, ’15, earned the Miss Black Harris County title and represented the county in the Miss Black Texas Pageant on Nov. 4 in Houston, Texas.
Brock Hamlin, BBA ’14, serves as vice president, commercial portfolio manager at UMB Bank in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Jim Joyner, ’16, serves as the news and sports director of KNGL-AM 1540/KBBE-FM 96.7 radio in McPherson, Kansas.
Tera Lyons, ’14, was promoted to digital marketing manager at Daytona International Speedway.
Hayley Morrical, ’15, serves as the CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Salina. She took charge of the Big Brothers Big Sisters team after gaining not-for-profit experience at the Salina Area Chamber of Commerce.
Andrew Patch, ’10, MBA ’14, serves as a marketing specialist at ExamOne, a Quest Diagnostics Co. Patch is also the founder of the Heartland Drone Co. in Kansas City.
Stephanie Woltkamp, ’17, was accepted to the University of Denver, Sturm College of Law.