Class Notes: Spring/Summer 2023-24

’50s

Betty Blank MDS’51, former Preschool teacher from 1965 to 1993, recently met up with long-time friends—who all turned 90 in 2023—(from left) Nancy Tyrrell Sommer MDS’51, Barbara Larkin, former head of Lower School at USM; Betty Blank MDS’51, and Ginny Fox Pierson MDS’51. The women have crossed paths in a variety of ways over the years, including at USM, where Blank and Larkin worked, and at St. John’s on the Lake, where Larkin and Tyrrell Sommer live. At lunch, the ladies “shared lots of stories and marveled that we all still drive,” wrote Blank. 

’60s

Bill Banzhaf MUS’60 was inducted into the Wisconsin Forestry Hall of Fame in October 2023 for his 40-year career in forestry leading George Banzhaf & Company, and serving as CEO of the Society of American Foresters. He completed his career as the inaugural president of the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI), the largest forest certification organization in North America, which currently certifies 350,000,000 acres of forest land as sustainably managed.

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Gabe Ceci Jr. MUS’60 shared the following: “I just retired as president of the Waukesha Musicians’ Association, AFM Local 193. After 12 years as president, I am giving up the office so I can have more time for the two 18-piece big bands (1940s-1950s style music) I play bass in every week.”

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Susan Straub MUS’62 and her daughter, Emma, visited USM in April to promote their inaugural picture book, “Gaga Mistake Day,” about a mischievous granny who babysits her delighted granddaughter. A few days later, they were interviewed on “Today with Hoda & Jenna.”

’70s

John Scheinfeld ’71 released three documentary films in the past year: “What The Hell Happened to Blood, Sweat, & Tears,” which was nominated for a Critics Choice Award; “Reinventing Elvis: The ’68 Comeback,” currently streaming on Paramount+; and “M*A*S*H*: The Comedy That Changed Television,” which premiered on Jan. 1, 2024 and is now streaming on Hulu. Scheinfeld is an award-winning writer, producer, and director with Crew Neck Productions and lives in California.

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Larry Moon ’72 submitted the following note: “Judy ’72 and I met in 1st grade with Mrs. Billings at Milwaukee University School. I was a new kid in class—Judy had been there since nursery school. Fast forward to high school. I excelled in math while Judy was into history and English. There are many memories we share from parties, float building, and being in theater productions together. In 1982 we reconnected at Debra Usinger’s ’72 apartment to help plan the 10th reunion. We went out to dinner that evening and we were married nine months later! Should have practiced safe eating. We are grateful for the lifelong friends, memories, experiences, and of course the education that we received at USM and especially for the chance to plan our 10th reunion!”

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John Blossom ’74 has received 11 national and international awards, including Sports Book of the Year runner-up, and starred reviews from BlueInk Review and BookLife, for his latest novel, “The Last Football Player.” The novel, for middle school-aged readers, dives deeply into issues of technology, creativity, art, teamwork, and project-based learning. Learn more at jtblossom.com.

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Rock Marasco ’74 submitted a photo of himself and members of the Class of 1974, who gathered at Five O’Clock Steakhouse in Milwaukee for a post-holiday dinner. Pictured from left Ed Ricker, Rock Marasco, Tony Grueninger, Vic Thomas, Jim Ladky, Dave Kelley, and John Topetzes. 

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Tom Florsheim ’76 served as USM’s Class of 2024 Commencement speaker on June 7. Florsheim is chairman and chief executive officer of Weyco Group Inc. He served on USM’s Board of Trustees for nine years, including three years as that board’s president and two years on the board’s Finance committee. He currently serves as chairman of the school’s Endowment Board.

’80s

Jeff Zimm ’81 was appointed deputy executive officer for creative & brand at Los Angeles Metro, the second-largest public transit system in the U.S. With events like the 2026 World Cup, 2027 Super Bowl, and 2028 Olympic Games on the horizon, his team is making Metro the go-to choice for getting around Los Angeles. Zimm has held leadership roles at global advertising agencies in New York, London, and Dallas. “Any USM grads interested in pursuing a career in creative services, art direction, design, or copywriting are welcome to reach out,” he said.

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Bill Zito ’82 held the Stanley Cup after the Florida Panthers won their first-ever championship in an epic seven-game battle against the Edmonton Oilers. Zito serves as the Panthers general manager and is credited with building the championship team.

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Jenny Jansen ’84 participated in a USM Career Lunch and Learn event in February, where students were invited to learn more about the fields of finance and real estate. Jansen is a Realtor with Shorewest, and has over 17 years of experience in the field.

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Ben Zarwell ’87 retired after 26 years of teaching Upper School history at USM. What kept him at USM for so long? “The joy of teaching brilliant, creative, thoughtful, funny students about a subject I find fascinating,” he said. Read more about Ben.

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Gavin Bardes ’89 competed at the American Birkebeiner for the seventh time in February 2024. Bardes, who competed on the men’s rowing team at UW-Madison as an undergraduate, is hoping to connect with other USM alumni of any age who also rowed at Madison. “There is a celebration planned to mark 150 years of Wisconsin rowing coming up this September 20-21, 2024, and it would be great to connect with other rowers,” he said.

’90s

Lafayette Crump ’91 earned a Mountaintop Legacy Award from the Milwaukee Chamber Theatre.

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Sarah Zimmerman ’92 and Tonit Calaway (parent of alumni) recently purchased Downer Wine & Spirits in March. Both Zimmerman and Calaway were longtime customers of the shop when it was owned by brothers Mark and Steve Nord, and are excited to take on this new role.

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Reggie Chambers ’94 has been appointed to Vail Resorts board of directors. Chambers, executive vice president and the chief transformation officer for TIAA, previously served as chief financial officer and head of strategy for the commercial banking division of JPMorgan Chase.  

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Jenny Weber ’94 and her mom, Nancy, reconnected with former Assistant Head of School Gregg Bach when he visited their home in Phoenix.

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Dr. Louella Amos ’95, pulmonologist at Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin, and her colleagues’ research was recently featured in the Netflix documentary “Big Vape: The Rise and Fall of Juul.”

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Anwar Floyd-Pruitt ’95 earned a Mountaintop Legacy Award from the Milwaukee Chamber Theatre. He also participated in a USM Career Lunch and Learn event in January, where students were invited to learn more about the fields of arts and nonprofits. Floyd-Pruitt is curator at the Museum of Wisconsin Art and artist in residence at St. Kate – The Arts Hotel in Milwaukee.

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Maayan Silver ’96 gave a tour of WUWM 89.7 FM, Milwaukee’s NPR, to a group of Upper School Digital Journalism students. Reporters talked about their process for story development, and students had the chance to record a sound bite. Silver is a news reporter at WUWM.

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Wes McKenzie ’97 was named the new vice president of Columbia Savings and Loan Association, one of the only banks to give his great-grandfather a loan decades ago. The bank celebrated its 100th birthday in 2024, and is one of only 41 Black-owned banks in America.

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Chris (Russo) Hawley ’98 and her husband, Alex, welcomed Walker Alexander Hawley in May.

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Nicole Hobbs ’98 was joined by Washington, D.C.-area alumni (from left) Will Gordon ’01, Isabella Mortara ’22, Hobbs, and Stephanie Guy ’20 for an evening walk around the National Mall and tour of the monuments. Hobbs arranged the gathering to coincide with USM’s annual week-long 8th grade class trip to the nation’s capital.  

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Shatoia Robinson ’98 was accepted into BMO Fellowship, a fully-funded venture and leadership program designed to provide comprehensive support to highly promising, diverse sustainability entrepreneurs and leaders. Robinson and her mother, Sandra, recently launched Ready To Roll, a community-driven initiative on Milwaukee’s east side that addresses chronic diseases like diabetes and hypertension by offering locally sourced vegan and vegetarian food options.

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Kathryne Nelson ’99 and her husband, Jason, have owned and directed Camp Kamaji for Girls for more than 10 years, which is a sleepaway camp in Minnesota for girls ages 7 to 15. Kathryne and Jason continue to promote positive development for children, and teaching families the many mental, physical, and emotional benefits of a long-term sleepaway camp experience spent outdoors and without screens.

’00s

Chris Chan ’00 was named a winner of the 2023 Temple Grandin Award, given to individuals with autism who have made a major accomplishment in the past year. His fourth novel, “She Ruined Our Lives,” was published by Level Best Books in February. His previous novel, “Ghosting My Friend,” was named a finalist in the mystery division of the Next Generation Indie Book Awards.

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Rob Jacobs ’02 saved the life of a woman diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia through a bone marrow transplant. After several rounds of interviews, shots to increase his white blood cell count, and a six-hour procedure to separate his blood and extract the white blood cells, Jacobs’ contribution was complete and he was fully recovered within five days. Jacobs, an orthopedic trauma surgeon with the University of Minnesota working at CentraCare in St. Cloud, Minnesota, is not typically on the receiving end of medical care, but he’s grateful for the experience. “You have the opportunity to save somebody’s life,” he said. “It is something that is incredibly memorable and positive. It’s a powerful experience that is definitely worthwhile.” In March, his recipient created a podcast about her experience called “An Ordinary World: Full of Unforeseen Circumstances,” now available on Spotify.

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Lindsay Starck ’04 visited USM in April, where she met with students, co-taught an Upper School English class with Charlie Housiaux ’02, and toured school with Will Piper ’96. Starck was on campus to discuss her new book, “Monsters We Have Made.”

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Catherine (Burke) Fink ’06 and her husband, Daniel, welcomed their son, Graham, in April.

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Cristina Costantini ’07 spoke as a panelist at the 2024 Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) in Los Angeles in May, where five USM students competed. She is executive producer and director of “Science Fair: The Series,” a docuseries streaming on Hulu and Disney+. The series is a spin-off to the award-winning documentary film “Science Fair,” which Costantini directed with Darren Foster.  

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Kenzie Kiefer ’07 participated in a USM Career Lunch and Learn event in February, where students were invited to learn more about the fields of finance and real estate. Kiefer is a senior transaction manager at CBRE, supporting the coordination and execution of all real estate transaction activities.

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Ashley Heun ’08 and her husband, Anders Dowd, have taken ownership of Moonlight Tavern, a supper-club themed restaurant in the Port Hotel in Port Washington, Wisconsin. The couple plan to expand the bar’s whiskey selection to include 150 varieties, becoming the city’s definitive whiskey bar.

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Lane Florsheim ’09 published an article in the Wall Street Journal about Milwaukee Bucks power forward Giannis Antetokounmpo titled “NBA Star Giannis Antetokounmpo on Skipping Coffee and His Viral ‘Failure’ Speech.” 

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Colin Fritz ’09 married Gracie Clemons in Milwaukee. Several USM alumni were in the wedding party, including Kemp Collings ’09, Michael Crimmins ’09, Augie Fritz ’10, T.J. Hauske ’08, Adam Karnes ’09, Peter Lanigan ’09, Kent Peterson ’09, and Michael Sullivan ’10.

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Kelly Cannon ’09 was hired by WME as an agent in its motion picture literary department in the agency’s Beverly Hills office. Prior to this, she served as manager, production and franchise development at Universal Pictures. She began her career as a lawyer before working as a journalist in Washington, D.C.

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Michael Luckey ’09 visited campus in February as a panelist for a discussion about housing insecurity, food insecurity, and poverty, and how those issues affect people in Milwaukee. Luckey is assistant to the county administrator for Jefferson County.

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Scott Walker ’09 reconnected with former Assistant Head of School Gregg Bach in Luxembourg. Bach was visiting the European country and reached out to Walker, who currently lives there.

’10s

Hannah E. Lubar ’10 and her husband, Mike, welcomed their daughter, Junie Josephine Lubar Borge, in late December 2023.

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Fitz Stratton ’10 and his wife, Clare, welcomed son Miles Sherwood Stratton in February 2024. In addition, Fitz is the 2024 winner of the USM March Madness women’s bracket challenge. 

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Cassie (Bence) Hoppe ’12 visited USM in April to speak to Dr. Henry Wend’s Global Scholars students about her career journey. Hoppe is a project engineer with Stormwater Solutions Engineering, and serves as USM’s varsity skiing head coach.

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Harriette (Hauske) Engel ’14 and her husband, Tommy, welcomed Amelia Grace Engel in December 2023.

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Sophie Kies ’17 has started a new position as marketing coordinator at Cherry Bombe, a media and events company in Brooklyn, New York. “I’m excited to work at this mission-based organization and pursue my passions in the food and beverage industry,” she wrote.

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Tripp Grebe ’19 was joined by fellow alumni and classmates at the annual Bridger & Essex Grebe Softball Challenge, a charity softball game that supports the Bridger & Essex Grebe Fund, in August 2023. Since 2011, the fund has raised more than $700,000 to support genetic research and families impacted by infantile neuroaxonal dystrophy (INAD), a rare, inherited disorder of the body’s nervous system, through Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin and the INADCure Foundation. The next game will be held on Saturday, Aug. 10, learn more at https://bridgerandessexgrebefund.com. Pictured from left Branden Hicks-Becker ’19, Sander Read ’21, Tripp Grebe ’19, David Mock ’19, Dani Marcus ’19, Elizabeth McGee ’19, Jonah DeToro ’19, and Keegan Kubicki ’19.

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George Graham ’20has officially accepted a return offer from PwC as an audit associate for the fall of 2025, upon completion of the MS in Accounting and Business Analysis program at Wisconsin School of Business (WSB) at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.

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Grace Gridley ’20 has been accepted into Teachers College, Columbia University for its graduate program in early childhood education. “I’m so grateful for the opportunity to learn from the incredible faculty at Teachers College and to join a community of passionate educators,” she wrote.

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Leen Mortada ’20 visited 5th grade students at USM to speak about her religion (Islam), how she practices her faith, and her work to develop a mobile ablution station to help Muslims practice Wudu, or ritual cleansing, before prayer. Her visit supported the students’ exploration of the cultures, religions, geographies, and histories of India and Pakistan.

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Alvin Pokel ’20 represented Baylor University at the 2024 American Collegiate Rowing Association National Championships Regatta in Oak Ridge, Tennessee in May. He placed 2nd overall in the men’s 2 grand final.

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Jillian Bloch ’22 is a marketing intern with the University of Minnesota’s Athletic Department. She has worked with most of the sports teams and is a lead intern for the men’s baseball team, and has been a social media lead for the hockey team. Most recently she was hired as a member of the Minnesota Twins T.C. Squad, their fan experience group, and elected to be the associate social media coordinator of the Sports Management Association Board.  

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Zindzi Frederick ’23 was profiled in the “USGA Golf Journal,” a quarterly print publication exclusively for members of the United States Golf Association, as a recipient of the four-year Charles “Chick” Evans Scholarship from the Western Golf Association.

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Bret Nerbun ’23 played for the U-19 Puerto Rico Lacrosse team at the Heritage Cup in Haverford, Pennsylvania in May 2024.

Second Chance at Love

A fortuitous encounter at their 50th reunion led Kim Utz ’68 and Marcia Best ’68 to rekindle their romance and find lasting love.

When Kim Utz ’68 returned to Milwaukee for his 50th reunion in 2018, he was expecting to reconnect with friends—not rekindle a romance. But fate intervened, and that class reunion in 2018 led to Utz marrying Marcia Best ’68, his high school sweetheart, in 2023.

Kim and Marcia dated for a few months during senior year, but went their separate ways after graduation. Life in far-apart states (Kim in Arizona and Marcia in Florida), and marriages to other people, prevented any meaningful reconnection until that fateful weekend 50 years later. They attended the reunion not knowing the other was going to be there, or that they were both divorced by that point. “We’d had no contact in 20 years, and while I never forgot her, I just assumed she was a memory I’d have forever,” said Kim.

Their time together in Milwaukee led to long-distance phone calls and cross-country flights, until they realized they wanted more. “Life is short,” said Kim, “and all we wanted to do was spend it together.” They were engaged in February 2023, and married on Nov. 11, 2023. The wedding was attended by family members and best friends including John ’68 and Mary ’68 Sladkey.

“If it hadn’t been for the reunion, we’re sure we wouldn’t have reconnected,” said Kim. “Getting married is the best decision we ever made. We have both found the love of our lives.”