1941
Lizzie Mae Allen Barrett celebrated her 100 birthday with friends and family on January 24, 2016.
1942
Hazel Canon lives near her two sons and their families in Memphis, Tennessee. Her only daughter and her family live in Hillsborough, North Carolina, where she visits them two to three times a year. During a recent visit, Hazel celebrated her 96th birthday while her daughter celebrated her 66th birthday. Hazel said she feels blessed to still live alone and to be able to take care of herself with the help of her retirement home, which has good medical care, many activities, and wonderful friends.
After 74 years of living in Columbus, Ohio, Evelyn Lamb moved to Austin, Texas to live close to her daughter and family. She is enjoying the nice weather, her new apartment, and the Austin scene.
1946
Raymond and Clara (Blackburn) Bradbury ’52 celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary. They were married Nov. 28, 1951, in Wheelwright, Kentucky. They celebrated with family on Thanksgiving Day and then went to Grove Park Inn in Asheville for a few days. Their children are Barbara Bradbury and Phil Bradbury and his wife Carol. They have three grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. Raymond, a Korean War veteran, retired as president of Martin County Coal Corporation in Kentucky in 1992 after 42 years in the coal industry. Clara is a homemaker, devoted wife, mother, and grandmother.
1949
Dr. Franklin and Betty June Parker ’50 conducted a local program on “The Real U.S. President – John F. Kennedy.” For a copy of the transcript, email bfparker@frontiernet.net.
The Dr. Eugene Q. and Joan Parr ’48 Healing Garden was dedicated Oct. 13, 2016 and is located near the entrance of the Baptist Health Lexington Cancer Care Center (formerly Central Baptist Hospital) in Lexington, Kentucky. The garden was made possible by a donation from Dr. Parr, who practiced at Central Baptist Hospital for many years and was the first physician member on the hospital’s board. Dr. Parr served on the Berea College Board of Trustees from 1966 to 1972.
1949 and 1951
Dr. Steele Mattingly and Betty Dimmick Mattingly ’51 were both featured in the Summer/Fall 2016 issue of the Auburn Veterinarian magazine. Dr. Mattingly was one of two Kentucky graduates who returned to Auburn to be recognized during graduation activities. Thanks to a partnership between Auburn (Alabama) and the Commonwealth, for the past 65 years veterinary science students from Kentucky were able to apply to the prestigious veterinarian program at the in-state tuition rate. More than half of the current practicing veterinarians in Kentucky are Auburn graduates, the article states. Also in the magazine was an image of Betty’s B.D.T. (Bullying Doctor Through) degree she earned in 1955 for completing “in a most satisfactory and effective manner the major project of badgering, coaxing, demanding, nagging, suffering, overseeing, threatening, and otherwise aiding her husband in his efforts to complete the requirements for his D.V.M. She has gone beyond the call of duty in letting him out at night at any and all times (for at least 15 minutes), allowed him to baby-sit, and allowed him a generous allowance of at least $.50 a week.” Wives, because the classes at that time were predominantly male, were driving forces supporting their husbands’ education, the caption explained.
1952
Clara (Blackburn) and Raymond Bradbury ’46 celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary. They were married Nov. 28, 1951, in Wheelwright, Kentucky. They celebrated with family on Thanksgiving Day and then went to Grove Park Inn in Asheville for a few days. Their children are Barbara Bradbury and Phil Bradbury and his wife Carol. They have three grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. Raymond, a Korean War veteran, retired as president of Martin County Coal Corporation in Kentucky in 1992 after 42 years in the coal industry. Clara is a homemaker, devoted wife, mother, and grandmother.
Ramona Davidson Jones is busy with church and the retired teachers association.
1953
Elizabeth Hall Westall visited Berea Sept. 24-25. She enjoyed staying at Boone Tavern and seeing familiar places. Her husband, Donald, passed away Feb. 12, 2016.
1955
Dr. Kenneth W. Moss and his wife Constance have been living in Montana near Glacier National Park since his retirement in 1999 from his practice in Alaska. The couple visits Kentucky once or twice a year. Dr. Moss said he is very pleased about the plans for Berea College’s new Margaret A. Cargill Natural Sciences and Health Building.
1957
Donald and Joyce (Collins) Clarke ’59 have been doing volunteer work for environmental organizations since retiring.
1958
Bob and Joy (Phillips) Miller sent this Christmas card to the Alumni office that features a photo of them taken in the spring of 1956 by alumna Shirley Kincaid Cook ’58. They returned to campus to take a recent photo next to the horse and carriage mounting block gifted to the college by the Class of 1910, which sits in front of the Alumni Building today.
1959
Dr. Harold and Sandy (Conover) Branam ‘60 are leading a Savannah-area advocacy team for Friends Committee on National Legislation (Quakers). Their current issue is criminal justice reform.
1962
Celia Hooper Miles published a new novel, The Body at StarShine Mill: A Marcy Dehanne Grist Mill Mystery. Her second novel featuring a former college instructor turned mill marketing consultant is set in western North Carolina where intrepid Marcy faces another death at the mill she hopes to restore. This is Celia’s eighth novel since her retirement from the North Carolina Community College system. She lives in Asheville. For more info, visit her website at www.celiamiles.com.
Rose Hayes Swope has been creating watercolor paintings since she retired and has a gallery in her home and in the Winchester Art Guild. She has been active in her church since her husband’s passing last year.
1963
In an October 5, 2016 press release, August House Publishers announced the publication of Scariest Stories Ever Told by Roberta Simpson Brown, otherwise known as the “Queen of the Cold-Blooded Tales.” Roberta’s book, a spooky collection of thirty-three scary stories for kids, is perfect for reading aloud at Halloween. “Roberta has artfully compiled a memorable cast of sinister characters like the stick man, the shadows, the feathered thing, and even a giant bullfrog from the swamp,” August House said. One of the hallmarks of Roberta’s work is that she likes to “incorporate familiar, everyday settings in her stories to create more suspense and make them even more threatening.” To learn more about Roberta’s book, visit tinyurl.com/zrkytjl
1966
Dr. Paul Lewis represented Berea College President Lyle Roelofs at the inauguration of Dr. Tamara Nichols Rodenberg as the 20th president of Bethany College in Bethany, West Virginia on Oct. 7, 2016.
1969
Dr. Roy Moore and Dr. Pamela Moore ’71 represented Berea College President Lyle Roelofs at the inauguration of Rebecca Koenig Roloff as the 11th president of St. Catherine University in St. Paul, Minnesota on Oct. 11, 2016.
1971
Belinda Pugh plans to retire December 31, 2017, after which she intends to cruise around South America, Antarctica and a few Caribbean islands from Jan. 3 to March 14, 2017. Belinda then plans to find an attic garret in Winchester, Virginia, live on water and crackers while paying off the cruise, and save some money so she can attend her 50th Berea College class reunion in 2021. Her email will continue to be belindainjapan@hotmail.com and 315 Whitacre Rd., Gore, VA 22637.
1974
Dr. Esfandiar Lohrasbpour represented Berea College President Lyle Roelofs at the inauguration of Elizabeth L. Hillman as the 14th president of Mills College in Oakland, California on Sept. 23, 2016.
1975
Diane Rowe Kerby, a long-time Berea City Council member, was presented in September 2016 the Berea Human Rights Commission’s annual John G. Fee Award, named after Berea College’s founder. Diane advocated for city government to protect the rights of gay, lesbian, bi-sexual, and transgendered people in Berea and co-chaired public forums on the issue, said HRC chair Rev. Carla Gilbert in a Sept. 20, 2016 article published in the Richmond Register. Diane also worked to arrange a meeting with the city police department and Berea College students of color who were being harassed by motorists driving through and around campus, Gilbert said. When thanking the commission, Diane said she hoped the people of Berea would work to replace the fear, hate, and anger too evident in the community with love and respect and to treat all people as equal, as Fee taught. Diane served as Berea College’s vice president for business and administration and retired in 2007 after 31 years at Berea. She returned as director of alumni relations from 2013-15.
Wanda Cain Manhanke works as a clinical lab scientist in microbiology at the St. Louis VA Medical Center. She lives in St. Louis with her husband Mike and their two sons, Nathan and Benjamin.
1977
Larry Sweeney represented Berea College President Lyle Roelofs at the inauguration of Kenneth G. Gormley as the 13th president of Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on Sept. 22, 2016.
1984
Danny Brown is employed as a professional staff development coordinator at Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Hospital in Indianapolis, Indiana. He can be contacted at 3801 North Meridian St., Apt. 301, Indianapolis, IN 46208.
Suzan Nutku Setel is working at Aegis Communities senior memory care as a music therapist in Seattle, Washington. “Berea encouraged and supported my mission of caring for others and sharing music to build community,” Suzan said.
Kevin Matney Washburn earned his doctoral degree in educational leadership from Western Carolina University in Cullowhee, North Carolina. Kevin defended his dissertation on the challenges that high school students face in developing information literacy skills in March 2016. The title of his dissertation is “No Literacy Left Behind: Addressing Information Illiteracy in the Information Age.” Friends and classmates can contact Dr. Washburn at kmwashburn1@gmail.com.
1991
Married: Christine Daubenspeck Duttlinger to Berea native David Duttlinger in 2000. The couple resides in Lexington, Kentucky with their two sons. Christine works as a physician assistant in a family practice.
Wade Wasson with his daughters, Sophia, 18, Madeline, 16, and Abigail, 12.
1993
Dr. Adam Howard was featured in the Sept. 22, 2016 Bangor Daily News article “How 1 caring adult can change the course of a child’s life,” which was part of a journalism and community engagement project called MaineFocus. The article highlighted the experiences of mentees and mentors in programs, such as Big Brothers Big Sisters, and how a mentor changed Dr. Howard’s life. A professor at Colby College, Dr. Howard’s scholarship focuses on issues of social class in education, more specifically the role of privilege in shaping education access, opportunity, and students’ sense of self. This photo of Adam during graduation from Berea College in December 1993 appeared with the Bangor Daily News article. He is pictured with his sister, Dianna Howard, who graduated from Transylvania University and went on to earn her M.D. from the University of Kentucky. Adam and Dianna both had mentors and are the only college graduates in their family.
1994
Jeremy Heidt joined the Tennessee Housing Development Agency (THDA) as director of industry and government affairs on Dec. 5, 2016. He leads and manages the business unit responsible for representing THDA in the field, developing and strengthening THDA’s relationship with industry partners, housing non-profits, public entities which administer THDA programs, and elected officials. He is looking forward to representing THDA’s many home-ownership programs, including the Appalachian Renovation Loan Program, and working with partners like the Tennessee Caucus of Berea-based Fahe. He lives in Thompsons Station, Tennessee, with his wife Brenda and grandson, Ryan, 13.
1999
In May 2016, Tammy Clemons passed her doctoral qualifying exams and became a Ph.D. candidate in the department of anthropology at the University of Kentucky. While at UK, she earned a graduate certificate in gender and women’s studies in 2014 and a master’s degree in cultural anthropology in August 2016. Her dissertation research will focus on the cultural production of young visual media makers in central Appalachia and how they envision, construct, and act upon possibilities for young people in the region. She was a recipient of a 2016 University of Kentucky Association of Emeriti Faculty Endowed Fellowship, which is a merit-based award for UK graduate students to support “the preparation of outstanding future college and university teachers.” Tammy also was a recipient of a 2016-2017 University of Kentucky Woman’s Club Endowed Fellowship, which is a merit- and need-based award that supports non-traditional female graduate students.
April Shaeffer’s North Carolina Leadership and Cattle Handling for Women Producers program was featured on FarmHer and aired on cable channel RFD TV on Dec. 2, 2016. FarmHer was founded in 2013 to change the image of agriculture to include women. News of the broadcast was posted on the North Carolina State University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences news page in an article titled “TV Star: FarmHer Features April Shaeffer’s Cattle Workshops for Women.” The article highlighted some of the lessons participants learned during April’s program, such as driving a truck and trailer through an obstacle course, how to administer vaccines properly, and how to change tires. In 2011, April received the North Carolina State Grange Search for Excellence Award and in 2016, the North Carolina Association of Cooperative Extension Specialists Outstanding Subject Matter Program award.
2000
Glen Marku recently joined independent audit, tax, and advisory firm, Grant Thorton LLP, as a managing director in the transfer pricing practice based in Chicago. News of Glen’s hire at Grant Thorton appeared in a September 2016 press release on Business Wire. Glen has more than 10 years of public accounting experience and specializes in documentation, planning, and transfer pricing controversy matters for multinational clients. After graduating from Berea College with a degree in mathematics and economics, he earned a master’s degree in economics from Western University in Canada and a Ph.D. in economics from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.
Dr. Tsering Topgyal was interviewed for the Sept. 21, 2016 Voice of America Person of the Week program that features conversations with dynamic Tibetans engaged in interesting and innovative projects and contemporary Tibetan figures involved in activities and work that are path breaking (www.voatibetanenglish.com/a/3517017.html). His new book, Tibet and China, The Perils of Insecurity (Hurst, 2016), recently was reviewed by Jonathan Mirsky in the Dec. 22, 2016 article “How Tibet Is Being Crushed – While the Dalai Lama Survives,” published by The New York Review. Dr. Topgyal completed his Ph.D. at the London School of Economics and Political Science in 2012, and is a tenured assistant professor in international relations at the University of Birmingham, England.
2001
Soneath Hor is moving to Timor-Leste to take up the position of resident representative of the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector arm of the World Bank Group. He started January 2017.
2003
Cynethia Bethel-Jaiteh, M.S.N., A.P.R.N., received the National Black Nurses Association Under 40 Award, which recognizes nurses age 40 and younger who have shown strong leadership and excellence in practice. Cynethia, who is a University of Louisville school of nursing instructor, was honored during the association’s national conference in Memphis, Tennessee, on Aug. 5, 2016. News of her award was published on the UofL school of nursing website in September 2016. Cynethia is a pediatric nurse practitioner at Park DuValle Community Health Center in West Louisville, where she grew up. Her work focuses on developing solutions for her patients, particularly for children who are overweight.
2004
In October 2016, Emily LaDouceur wrote an opinion piece titled “National Health Crisis: White Privilege” that was posted on Medium.com, and then picked up by The Good Men Project, a multi-media social platform that strives to spark national conversation on what it means to be a good man. In December 2016, she became an editor for The Good Men Project and lead for their Mixed Race Relationship Social Interest Group. She published another piece on December 30, 2016 titled “Think About the Children” and will be writing for the site regularly.
2005
Jamie Boggs and Angie Timberlake Boggs ’06 officially welcomed their third child, Grace Leigh Boggs, to their family Nov. 7, 2016, through adoption. Grace was born Feb. 13, 2014 and became a part of their family in July 2014. Angie is the deputy director for Save the Children’s Kentucky programs and Jamie is the director of the Emerging Scholars Program at Berea College. The family resides in Berea, Kentucky.
2006
Married: Derek Isaacs to Rebecca Bowser on October 22, 2016 in Pomono Beach, Florida. The couple resides in Berea, Kentucky.
2007
Brian Buffett earned a master’s degree in public administration from Troy University in Troy, Alabama on December 16, 2016.
2008
Birth: a daughter, Lily-Drew Karoline Chaffins, to Lesia Smith Chaffins and Ashton Chaffins on March 9, 2016. The couple resides in Berea with their new baby girl.
2012
Jeff Bazemore was featured in the United States Institute for Theatre Technology, Inc. November 2016 newsletter where he shared how his labor experience in the Berea College Theatre Program influenced his career in prop-making. Jeff is props master at the Philadelphia Theatre Company.
2014
Birth: a son, Gabriel Yohancé Frederick Downer, to Stephanie White and Thomas Downer ’15 on December 23, 2015. The couple resides in Lexington with their new baby boy.
2015
Tori Conley wrote a novel, Forever Twenty-One, that is now available on Createspace and Amazon in print and Kindle format. Tori summarized the plot of her novel: What if there was a world where the biological clock stopped at age twenty-one? For Blaise such a world is his life. Everyone is born with a soulmate and it is only upon meeting them that the pair begin aging – together. Blaise, however, wants more than a happily ever until he meets the captivating Rebecca and faces a terrifying decision.
