Class Notes: Fall/Winter 2019-20

'40s

DONALD W. BAUMGARTNER MCDS’49 received the 2019 Bravo! Entrepreneur Lifetime Achievement Award presented by BizTimes Media. Baumgartner is the founder of Milwaukee-based Paper Machinery Corp. He is pictured at right with BizTimes founder Dan Meyer.

'50s

ANNE (NELSON) WEISSMAN MDS’54 would like to share the following note with the MDS class of 1954: “Sorry to miss our party. I have been so busy that I literally ran out of my body’s central energy and collapsed in my doorway, breaking my right hip. Five weeks later (mid-July 2019), I am on my feet with a walker and OK. Please remind all our 83-year-olds to be aware of that empty feeling.”

CAROL A. CARPENTER MDS’57 enjoyed her 80th birthday party in September, which was attended by alumnae from the MDS class of 1957. Pictured are: Fran (Kretlow) Bedore, Julie (Teipel) Carpenter, Karen (Kansteiner) Cleaver, Connie (Wegmann) Fox, Gay (Spiess) Grumhaus, Marguerite Huth, Judy (Wetzel) Kern, Connie (Evans) Kolster, Jane (Reuter) Lauerman, Joan Levine, Fay (O’Neill) Mosle, Pepper (Read) McCulloch, Barbie (Wigdale) Nelson, Susan (Garlick) Paslov, Kate (Luedke) Yost, Nancy (Anderson) Dusenberry, and Carol Carpenter.

---

ROBERT C. LEVIS MCDS’59 wrote and published a book, “#Jubilee Fever 2020.”

'60s

DOUGLASS H. BARTLEY ’65 has written and produced a prodigiously researched and drolly humorous four-volume study of the U.S. Constitution (plus a fifth short volume of additions): “The Kiss of Judice: The Constitution Betrayed.”

'70s

KIP JACOBS ’74 joined his fellow alumni and friends at the wedding of Mark Hansen’s ’74 daughter. Pictured from left John “J.S.” Stephens, Burt Bartlett ’74, Mark Hansen ’74, Kip Jacobs ’74, Lisa Kaiser, Jill Jacobs, Gunnar Gundersen, Lisa Gundersen, and Carla Bartlett ’78.

STEPHEN FARWIG ’75 returned to campus on the first day of school (Aug. 27) to speak with 8th graders about the history of the 8th grade stairs, because the class of 1975 was the first to use them.

---

CHRISTINE (CEE CEE) L. WILMANNS ’79 wrote, “I was so sorry to miss my 40th reunion. I heard from Nancy (Hoff) Covert ’79 that it went quite well. My horse work is very involved with little time off, just as it was in high school. I so much, on a daily basis, cherish all my years (kindergarten through Upper School), at University School! Yes, times were different then, but the individual attention I got was the foundation of who I am now. Believe me, I was ‘extra help’ before, during, after school and summer classes! I am a proud product of USM’s firm belief of good education and kindness to the ‘nth degree.’

'80s

MARGY STRATTON ’84 received the 2019 Women of Influence: Community Supporter award from Milwaukee Business Journal for the time, energy, and resources she has devoted to support the community. Stratton is the founder and executive producer of Milwaukee Reads, has worked with United Way’s Emerging Readers program, and is a founding co-chair of United Way’s Emerging Leaders program. Stratton ’84 conceived the United Way’s Philanthropic 5 Awards in 2007 to honor community leaders. Here, she is pictured with Erica Lofton ’19 (right), who won the Philanthropic Youth award in August. Stratton also serves on the Milwaukee Public Library Foundation board and is a former USM Parents’ Association president.

'90s

DR. LOUELLA B. AMOS ’95 was recently featured in a Milwaukee Journal Sentinel article about how she, along with a team of doctors at Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin, helped uncover that vaping may be behind hundreds of serious lung injuries and as many as six deaths across the country. Amos is a pulmonologist at the hospital and assistant professor at the Medical College of Wisconsin.

JOHN U. OLSON ’95 (back row, far left) and his wife, Elin Blakstad ’95 (back row, second from left), visited USM with their family on a recent visit to Milwaukee from their home in Norway.

LAURA (THICKENS) THUROW ’96 received the 2019 Women of Influence: Mentor award from Milwaukee Business Journal for her outstanding leadership at Baird, where she serves as director of wealth solutions and operations. Thurow volunteers at Milwaukee’s The Gathering, and is a board member of Junior Achievement of Wisconsin, TEMPO, and the CFA Society.

RAJ CHETTY ’97 won the A.SK Social Science Award 2019, which is awarded by the WZB Berlin Social Science Center, and includes a $200,000 prize. Chetty was awarded for his research on poverty and social mobility. Chetty recently appeared on Amanpour & Co.; watch the interview.

ANDY GORDON ’98 and his wife, Melissa, welcomed their second child, Harrison James Gordon, on Sept. 18, 2019. Big brother August was very excited to meet his little brother!

JONATHAN J. BERTRAM ’99 and Meghan Bledsoe-Horton Bertram ’07 welcomed Jonathan Carter Bertram on April 2, 2019. “He’s our first and only (so far, lol), weighed 7 pounds 6 ounces and was delivered at St. Joseph’s Hospital,” he said.

'00s

NADYA E. PEREZ-REYES ’02 has been named legislative policy advisor for the Wisconsin Department of Children and Families. Perez-Reyes previously worked as an attorney with the Wisconsin State Public Defender’s Juvenile and Mental Health Office. She also worked in the state public defender’s Washington County and Ozaukee County trial offices, representing both adults and children.

KATHERINE H. MORSE ’03 married Topher Riley on Aug. 31, 2019 at their home in California. Liz Gallun Krieg ’79 and Keeley Wright Davis ’03 were in attendance.

---

HEATHER (NEUWIRTH) LOVEJOY ’04 married Nick Lovejoy on May 27, 2018.

---

CHARLES F. WRIGHT ’04 married Victoria Dickens on Aug. 17, 2019 at Fox Point Lutheran Church. They celebrated with family and friends at Milwaukee Country Club.

---

MICHAEL SARNOSKI ’06 is directing a movie, called “Pig,” starring Nicolas Cage and Alex Wolff. Sarnoski co-wrote the story that the script is based on. Cage plays a truffle hunter whose beloved foraging pig is kidnapped.

---

MICAELA C. WHITE ’06 married Patrick Bomhack on June 23, 2019. The ceremony took place at the bride’s family home and they celebrated with family and friends.

CRISTINA M. COSTANTINI ’07 won an Emmy in 2019 for her documentary, “Science Fair.” The film won the audience award at Sundance and SXSW, and is currently streaming on www.nationalgeographic.com. Costantini visited USM in October 2018, where she discussed the film and shared clips with students.

---

MELANIE (JONES) WEBER ’07 married Colin J. Weber ’07 on June 22, 2019 at the Sherman Library and Gardens in Newport Beach, California.

MICHAEL SENDIK ’07 married Veronica Quintern on July 5, 2019 in Barcelona, Spain. From left T.J. Hauske ’08, Chris Terris ’08, Michael Sendik ’07, and Read Servis ’08.

TOMMY SCHLOEMER ’08 submitted the following photos after a recent alumni get-together:
From left Wyatt Schloemer, Hayley Schloemer, Summer Schloemer, Tommy Schloemer ’08, Grace (Hauske) Robbins ’08, Andrew Robbins ’04, and Everett Robbins.

From left Summer Schloemer, Tommy Schloemer ’08, T.J. Hauske ’08, and Adeline Hauske.

KELLY G. CANNON ’09 was awarded a scholarship from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism to pursue a Master of Science in Journalism specializing in politics, policy, and foreign affairs reporting. She moved to Washington, D.C. for this opportunity and is looking forward to covering news for broadcast, print, and digital at Medill’s Washington newsroom.

'10s

BENJAMIN D. FLORSHEIM ’10 was elected mayor of Middletown, Connecticut in the Nov. 5, 2019 election, becoming the youngest mayor in the city’s history. Florsheim is a Wesleyan University graduate and previously served as an outreach assistant for U.S. Senator Chris Murphy, D-Conn.

---

AUGUST E. FRITZ ’10 married Megan Roehrich on Oct. 5, 2019.

EMILY (SCHUETT) HELLER ’10 married Luke Heller.

DJDADE J. DENSON ’14 was recently featured in a Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service story titled “Four Graduates You Should Know and Will Likely Work for One Day.” Denson graduated from Marquette University in May 2019 with a degree in environmental engineering.

ERICA L. LOFTON ’19 received the Philanthropic Youth award as part of the United Way’s Philanthropic 5 Awards event held in August. Lofton was recognized for her tireless work with peer support and youth advocacy issues, and girls’ leadership. In 2015, Lofton was invited to the White House to accept the Champion of Change Award for building bridges between youth and law enforcement from President Barack Obama.

GRACE PETZOLD ’19 (pictured below, far right) was recently featured in an episode of “Wisconsin Life” for the nonprofit organization Graceful Wakes, which she founded in 2015 with the help of her parents, Wendy and Andrew. Graceful Wakes holds adaptive water ski clinics throughout the state and brings increased accessibility to the sport of water skiing.