2000s

00 Workin’ Hard and Hardly Workin’

Happy summer, guys! I hope all of you are outside enjoying some great weather and the longer days. This is the time of year when many of us take summer vacations or staycations, just as a break from our day-to-day stress. Some of you, however, are workhorses and are accomplishing so much. Patrick Quigley was featured on NBC News through his work with OperaCreole (New Orleans) and Opera Lafayette (Washington DC and NYC) to give the world premiere, 137 years after its writing, of Edmond Dédé’s opera Morgiane. Dédé was a free person of color born in New Orleans in 1827 who studied in Paris and was the conductor and composer at the Alcazar Theater in Bordeaux, France, for nearly 40 years. His opera is the earliest-known opera by a Black American. The world premiere of the opera will be performed in New Orleans, Washington DC and NY, as well as recorded. Patrick will be leading the performances as conductor. This is so impressive, and sounds like a lot of time and effort. Break a leg, Patrick! Heather (Hill) Alcazar and her husband, Frederick, were named OK’s SBA Veteran Business of the Year for Czar Athletics. Czar Athletics is a sports performance training facility specializing in speed and strength for athletes of all ages. They opened in May 2020 and have trained over 500 athletes. That is a very cool business, Heather. It sounds like Heather and Frederick are working hard at making other people work hard! In addition to working hard and accomplishing so much in our work, we also have classmates who like to enjoy taking a break from work. In January, a group of Pyros met up in NYC to ponder living on the sixth floor of PE which is actually the second floor, remember flag football victories and enjoy a Kristin Key comedy show. Pyros making the journey were Alison (Healy) Sjovall, Stephanie (Newcom) Acerra, Jean Lantz Reisz, Kathleen (Dunn) Bauman, Biz McShane Murphy, Michelle (Teynor) Beard, Molly O’Rourke, Meaghan Flaherty ’01, Christine (Schneible) Szafranski ’01 and Kate (Backes) Baron ’01. This sounds like such a fun time kicking back, reliving some memories and enjoying time with friends. Hopefully all of you will be able to take time to enjoy the summer sunshine (while wearing SPF 1000, of course) with some fun folks. I love receiving your news and brags, so please email me, and fill me in! — Laurie (Strotman) O’Malley; ndbug3@hotmail.com

 

00MBA Updates

I’m writing this after just watching the sun be totally eclipsed by the moon. It got so dark in Dallas that the birds stopped chirping (thinking it was time for bed) and the outdoor lights all turned on. But four minutes later the sun brightened up the world again. It was dark, but the sun never really went anywhere. Something else got in its way. Great analogy: No matter how dark our world may seem at times (as things and life events get in the way), trust that these too shall pass. God is always there and fully powerful. Thanks for sending your updates! It sounds like several of us got back to campus recently. Liberty Blunier took her seven-year-old daughter back to ND for her first college visit and saw the Dome, Hammes and the Grotto. It must have been an impactful visit, because it made her daughter’s “what I did for my vacation” report at school! Jose Portillow also made the pilgrimage back to South Bend with his daughter — his first time back since graduation. Tina (Villalobos) Mitiguy is living in Menlo Park CA, but made it back to campus (kindly hosted by Barbara Schmitt) for the first time since graduation to visit with her son, who is now a freshman at ND and marching in the Fighting Irish Band. Tina says she was reminded of what a special place ND is and feels very blessed to be a part of the community. And in career news … Abe Berman moved from Boston to VT to become CEO of OneCare Vermont. Congratulations, Abe! Chris Smith left Caterpillar to join CertainTeed as a quality engineer. Giovanni Jimenez is happy to share that he received his third patent from the USPTO for an electronic device that he invented, and is now trying to launch a tech startup if anyone has advice for him. Finally, Roxy and Jason Young recently moved from San Francisco to Denver, so drop by if you’re in town. Also, Patricia Bravo is celebrating 10 years running her business in July. Check it out at bravoforyou.com. Jonathan Puskas wrote to say that “while life is never without challenges (aging parents, loss of pets, health setbacks), we are doing well.” Rachel Verdick ’01MBA continues to serve as a local city councilor in our hometown of Lake Oswego OR while leading her own residential design firm focused on historic preservation. I remain proud to be her husband. Personally, I remain a bit of a “perpetual motion machine.” And, I’ve enjoyed balancing a number of opportunities this year. While it may sound a bit eclectic, it has been rewarding building my own management consulting firm and I feel fortunate to count Google and Microsoft as early clients. Further, although I won’t be selected for admiral, I have asked to extend my Navy career for one additional year to help introduce our Culture of Excellence 2.0 efforts. It’s meaningful work as we look to reduce harmful behaviors and lay foundations to help sailors build healthy habits for life. Finally, I’ve enjoyed nearly 60 days in the mountains as an Alpine ski racing coach with the Multnomah Athletic Club. As a mountain athlete, I absolutely love spending time helping the kids improve in my favorite environment. If any of you are heading out to OR, let’s grab a day together and catch up with a hike, ski, bike or simply some time sitting outside at Mount Hood. Please send any personal and/or professional updates to the email address below. — Mike McDaniel; mba2000@alumni.nd.edu

 

00JD Class Secretary — Daniel Hardwick;

danhardwick@gmail.com

 

01 Class Secretary — Michael Anselmi;

415-860-7130; manselmi@alumni.nd.edu; classof2001@alumni.nd.edu

 

01MBA Class Secretary — Dominic Pang;

dpang@panglaw.com

 

01JD Class Secretary — Jonell Lucca;

cell 602-677-3266; jonelllucca@yahoo.com

 

02 Keep the Updates Coming

It is the end of an era! Thank you, Lisa (Sestile) Corcoran, for 21 years of service and providing updates to all of us. Class updates are one of the first things I look for when opening the magazine. I did not receive many updates this quarter so ask that you share any update, great or small, for future editions. JR Keller shared that he is to be married to his fiancé, Kathryn Dlugos, on Sept. 28 in Ithaca NY. Daniel Kelly has been appointed the dean of the U of St. Thomas Law School. Dan has been a member of the Notre Dame Law School faculty since 2009 and will begin his new role July 1. Adam Russ announced that his wife, Jackie Staple, is expecting their second child any day. A little light on news, so keep ’em coming. — Peter Countryman; pcountry@gmail.com

 

02MBA Class Secretary — Melissa Hurd;

hurdmc@yahoo.com

 

02JD Class Secretary — Ryan D. Costantini;

414 S. Notre Dame Ave., South Bend IN 46617; mobile 574-339-8050; ryan.costantini@gmail.com

 

03 Congratulations

Mary Ellen “Mel” Price has been elevated to Fellowship in the American Institute of Architects (AIA), which is the highest membership honor of the AIA. This honor recognizes exceptional work and contributions to architecture and society. Only 3 percent of architects achieve this distinction. In 2010, Mel co-founded Work Program Architects, an architecture firm that focuses on educational and municipal work, civic landmarks, business spaces and other gathering places. The firm’s mission is to strengthen community through a collaborative design process. Congratulations on the achievement, Mel! Go Irish! — Josh Gentine; jgentine@alumni.nd.edu

 

03MBA Class Secretary — Rosemary Guillette;

9 Messenger St., Unit 7, Plainville MA 02762; rguillette@alumni.nd.edu

 

03JD Class Secretary — Lawrence A. Ward;

206-903-8817; ward.lawrence@dorsey.com

 

04 Brag About Your Besties

By the time you read this, we will have already joined back on campus for our 20-year reunion. Hopefully that will spark a lot of new updates to share in the next issue of the Notre Dame Magazine. It’s hard to believe I’ve been submitting these Class Notes columns quarterly for the past 20 years! I definitely hadn’t realized when I ran for senior class secretary during our junior year that this was part of the deal, but I have loved it! It’s always so much fun to receive emails from classmates. However, as you’ve noticed over the years, our number of submissions has been slowly dwindling. Remember five years out of college, when every issue was about what new city people were moving to; then at the 10-year mark it was all about weddings; the 15-year mark was all about babies; and now it seems we’re all settled into our early 40s and perhaps not as much seems exciting and noteworthy anymore. Well, I challenge you to keep sending in announcements — everyone loves reading them, so they’ve got to come from somewhere! Even if you’re not willing to share something on your own, get the OK from a friend who may be too humble to brag, to share on his/her behalf. Perfect example: Anne McCarley convinced Erin (Clayton) Kuhl to share this huge career milestone … Erin was named the 2024 Deloitte CFO of the Year by the Business Record. Erin is CFO and chief of staff at Krause Group, a diversified and family-owned parent company which owns soccer clubs, wineries, hotels and real estate. Erin is based in Des Moines IA but splits her time between IA and Italy. Our classmate David Yeager Ph.D. is publishing his first book, 10 to 25: The Science of Motivating Young People — A Groundbreaking Approach to Leading the Next Generation. The release date is August, and pre-orders are available now on Amazon. Be sure to check it out, especially if you are a manager, parent, educator, coach and/or mentor. David was also featured on the podcast The Huberman Lab on April 15 in an episode titled “How to Master Growth Mindset to Improve Performance.” Dave, it feels like just yesterday we were cracking up during our ACE summers and busting a move on the dance floor at each other’s weddings — congrats on all these great accomplishments! David and Margot (Morrissey) Yeager reside in Austin TX with their four kids, Scarlett (13), Tripp (12), Jack (8) and Ronan (4). Dave is a professor at UT Austin in the Department of Psychology and the Texas Behavioral Science and Policy Institute, and Margot is a pediatric nurse practitioner. Congratulations to Kathryn (Camarata) ’08MA and Brent Burish ’04, ’05MBA, who welcomed a new son, Mark Laurence, in February. Mark is already doted over by his two older sisters and two older brothers. The growing family lives in St. Petersburg FL where Brent is a CEO for two hospitals. Please send in updates and announcements, big and small! — Carol (McCarthy) Martino; carolmartino10@gmail.com

 

04MBA Back Home Again

After more than a decade of living and working overseas in Hong Kong and London, Neal Capecci, his wife, Kelly, and their children, Livi and Aidan, returned to the United States and are living in Dallas. Keep the updates coming and Go Irish! — Harry Howisen; hhowisen@gmail.com

 

04JD Cybercriminals Don’t Stand a Chance

Eric Tamashasky continues to serve the South Bend community as a magistrate judge for the St. Joseph County Superior Court. In addition to his time on the bench, Eric is an adjunct professor for Notre Dame, where he teaches lucky undergraduates “cybercrimes and the law.” Additionally, he was one of the creators of a groundbreaking program that allows Notre Dame law students to write and execute search warrants involving digital evidence. Eric lives in South Bend and has two sons, Charlie, age 17, and Alex, age 15, who I’m sure really appreciate being enlightened about cybercrime by their former-prosecutor-now-judge father. Please keep the updates coming! — Katie (Wharton) DeFerrari; katiedeferrari@gmail.com

 

05 Our 20th Reunion Approaches

Meredith (Kenney) Snyder wrote to let me know that she had a great visit with fellow Lewis Chick Latasha (Steele) Perdue. Tasha and her husband, Fard, hosted Meredith and her family (husband Shane, son Keegan, 7, and daughter Finley, 4) at their home in Houston. They had a blast attending the Houston Rodeo! Carmen Forte Jr. recently assumed the role of president of the Columbian Club of Chicago, a charitable foundation that advances Italian American culture and heritage and provides financial support to many organizations and individuals in need. Each year, the Columbian Club awards several scholarships, including $60,000 this year to a couple of future Domers (and some other worthy Michigan and Purdue students). Carmen was joined at the club’s installation dinner by Rev. Richard LaPata, OP ’52, who celebrated his 25th anniversary as the chaplain of the club and who has been a spiritual mentor to Carmen since his grade school days. Carmen is a shareholder with a local government law firm in Chicago and lives with his wife, Ashley, in Campton Hills IL, where he also serves as village attorney. It occurred to me recently that next summer will be our 20-year ND Reunion (seems impossible, but the calendar doesn’t lie!). I hope many of you are making plans to attend! Until then, I’ll see you in my inbox. — Caroline Meehan; ndclassnotes05@gmail.com

 

05MBA Class Secretary — Himanshu Gosar;

hgosar@alumni.nd.edu; ndmba2005-owner@googlegroups.com

 

05JD Accolades and Promotions

Congratulations to Ashley (Graf) Federer on her promotion to senior vice president and divisional general counsel for Comerica Bank in Dallas. Meanwhile, Jason Prince joined the International Trade Group at Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP as a partner in the firm’s Washington DC office. Jason helps lead a multijurisdictional economic sanctions practice that involves export controls, national security and governmental enforcement actions. After making his way into the insurance world in 2013, Matt Grantham now serves as a senior compliance analyst for Liberty Mutual Insurance. In Grand Rapids MI, Nikole Canute was included in Crain’s Notable Women in the Law. A partner at Mika Myers, she practices in the areas of labor and employment law, employment litigation, and energy and natural resources. Nikole has been recognized by Best Lawyers from 2021 through 2024, and she was recently elected as vice president of the executive committee for Boys and Girls Clubs of Grand Rapids Youth Commonwealth. Becky (Parrott) Waldren reports that three kids (and Gary) are keeping her very busy — filled with year-round lacrosse, cross country, volleyball, basketball, soccer and, of course, schoolwork. She has been a religion teacher for the last eight years and leads their daughters’ Girl Scout troops on various adventures, trips and service projects, earning badges for activities not often taught in school. She has done that since they were 5 years old — many boxes of Girl Scout cookies ago. On the work front, Becky is a partner at Sheps Law Group, a boutique subrogation law firm that handles property damage losses in the six-figure range throughout NYC. Each day and case is different from the last. The firm provides interesting, rewarding work with the flexibility to be both the lawyer and mother that we all knew she would be. She hopes to see some of us at the 2024 Shamrock Series matchup against Army on Nov. 23 at Yankee Stadium. I had the pleasure of spending time with Tim Storino for the Notre Dame Law Association Board meeting on campus in March. In conjunction with the spring “Different Kind of Lawyer Day,” we were part of a four-person panel for admitted students discussing the impact of the Notre Dame alumni network on our lives. Finally, the Notre Dame Club of Houston will be the host club as we kick off the new football season with the Aug. 31 matchup against Texas A&M. We have a weekend of events planned in Houston and College Station, including a large tailgate outside of the stadium on game day. Please reach out if you plan to be there. Go Irish! — Adam J. Russ; Houston TX; adamjruss@gmail.com

 

06 Watch for Gators

A bunch of O’Neill guys celebrated their 40th birthdays with a golf trip to Naples FL. Nick Stahlschmidt captained one team and handled most of the planning. The other team was led by Jim McMahon, who was responsible for designing the tournament rules and souvenir towels. Team Stahlschmidt included Jason Bogovic (most complaining), Ryan Downey (closest to the pin and most houses hit), Tyler Smith (best socks and runner-up for most complaining) and Jonathan Spadea (Tenzi champion). Team McMahon included Mike Kalman (most strokes gained and fewest key lime pie slices eaten), Todd Strobel (won the cowboy ribeye argument) and Chris Kepner (closest shot to a gator), and they were able to sweep every event on their way to a dominant victory. — Anna (Skoien) Lall; annagracelall@gmail.com

 

06MBA Class Secretary — Mike Lloyd;

651 Nathaniel Chase Lane, Herndon VA 20170; cell 312-388-0501; mt_lloyd@yahoo.com

 

06JD Keep the Updates Coming

I continue to hope that these notes can serve as a means to stay connected as a Class. Please do reach out with any updates that you might have — they don’t have to necessarily be new developments! Cristal Brisco was confirmed by the US Senate as a judge for the US District Court for the Northern District of IN. She has previously served as a St. Joseph County Superior Court in South Bend since 2021, as a St. Joseph County magistrate judge, as the general counsel for Saint Mary’s College, as corporation counsel for the city of South Bend and as an associate at Barnes & Thornburg LLP. Lisa (Schroeder) and Dan Salemi live in Golf IL (a Chicago suburb) with their sons, Billy (11) and Tommy (9). After several years as an in-house employment lawyer in the for-profit higher education world, Lisa now consults on higher education financial aid issues and spends much of her time volunteering at their boys’ local Catholic school. Dan is a partner in the employee benefits practice at Morgan Lewis. Although the Salemi family has not been able to make it to an ND football game in several years, nine-year-old Tommy played in a hockey tournament in South Bend in 2023, which included games at beautiful Compton Arena. The lack of sellout crowds was likely due to the seven a.m. start times and not his team’s lack of notoriety. As for me, I continue to be active with the NDLA Board and encourage all of you to become active in the Notre Dame Lawyers’ Group in your respective communities. — Brian E. Hammell; behammell@yahoo.com

 

07 Thank You, Classmates

Dr. Sarah Deal and her husband, Steven Tonkinson, welcomed their son, Stellan Thomas, on Aug. 23, 2023. Sarah completed her residency and practices family medicine in Miami where she and her family also live. Jillian (Vitter) Alagic married Denis Alagic in March. Jillian and Denis live in Denver, where Jillian is on the faculty and practices anesthesia at the U of Colorado. Denis is from Bosnia and immigrated with his family to the US in the ’90s. He graduated from the U of Louisville with a degree in engineering and works for a satellite startup. March was an exciting month for the Vitters. They also celebrated the wedding of Jillian’s sister Audrey (Vitter) McCabe ’13. A shoutout and huge thank-you to all of our classmates who donated money for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Visionary of the Year campaign on behalf of Sheldon Dutes and Kate (Marcuccilli) Miller. Sheldon and Kate were each nominated and accepted the challenge of being Visionary candidates for their hometown regions (Orlando and Northern IN, respectively). Their fundraising efforts brought in tens of thousands of dollars to help the society fund cancer research and patient support. Thank you! We always look forward to sharing your updates throughout the year. Please keep sending them to the address below. Go Irish! — Stephanie Pelligra; ndclassnotes2007@gmail.com

 

07MBA Class Secretary — Tim Ponisciak;

tponisci@nd.edu

 

07JD Class Secretary — Patrick A. Salvi II;

Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard P.C., 161 N. Clark St., Suite 4700, Chicago IL 60601; 312-372-1227; psalvi2@salvilaw.com

 

08 It Was 20 Years Ago Today

Remember moving into the dorms in August 2004? Maybe you had bleached hair (Pat Miller); perhaps you expected everyone to know how cool St. Xavier HS was (Cory Ingle); maybe you disliked Frosh-O (the real ones) or snuck away for a Corona with your new friend, whom you met 14 hours earlier (Lawrence Sullivan and Mike Reilly); or maybe you planned your first toga party (Amanda Dunlavy McSweeney, Kara Tully Kuelzow and Stephanie Lewis Shambo). Expectations gave way to the Michigan game, when Darius Walker made his name known. Now look at you: 38 years old, tired, heavier (John Biddle), listening to Dashboard Confessional and still excellent. Soon, the ribbed tank tops will give way to the crisp air, ushering memories of Anthony Vernaglia, walk-on Patrick McInerney and preferred walk-on-who-never walked-on, Tom Bufalino; parking lot meatball subs and truck-bed drinks with Chris Garibaldi; and your cousin who still enjoys Jim Harbaugh. On to some updates. Meghan Kelly married Kevin Romero in November. Sarah Panzica Dalton was in the bridal party. Emily Popoff and Camille Legault Pittard kept the dance floor hot. Kevin and Meghan now live in DE, making them the only people we know who live in DE; if we are wrong, holler at Meghan. Legend Megan Julien Kluesner received the Des Moines Diocese Volunteer of the Year this year for her work in the school and parish. Megan lives in Des Moines IA with her husband, Nick Kluesner (who married up), and their four boys. Jarrett Lantz joined the Netflix Global Live Experiences Team and promises to incorporate Finnies and Backer references into every project. Taylor Clagett competed on Jeopardy! once again in the Champions Wildcard tournament. Taylor received the Jeopardy! call eight hours before the birth of the Clagetts’ second child, Charlotte. Our pride (and Joe Pappas’) is overflowing. Speaking of stardom, Ellen Fitzsimmons-Craft was on 60 Minutes discussing her work creating a chatbot therapy tool designed to prevent eating disorders. Way to go, Ellen! Rev. Innocent Smith, OP, published a scholarly monograph on medieval manuscripts of the Bible that incorporated prayers for the Eucharist and Biblical texts: Bible Missals and the Medieval Dominican Liturgy. Drew Whiting is now CEO of the Erie Downtown Development Corporation and recently opened a Five Iron Golf. Talk to him about any issues you may have with rainwater backups. Will Kearney is doing Will Kearney things. Kait Brown and Doug Schlarman are fun attorneys. Omar Rojas does CrossFit and is strong. Lindsay and Patrick O’Brien welcomed baby Mara in April; send sprinkle gifts to East Lansing. Fellow Michigander Kati Garrison is doing amazing work with the Justice Coalition of Religious, a coalition of United Nations-accredited Catholic organizations working to address the root causes of social and environmental injustice. Jimmy England is a doctor and still handsome. Francisco Castillo-Fierro is engaged to be married this fall in Boston; Kaitlyn O’Leary Villasana may be invited. Andrina “AJ” Ong has the best Instagram content. Julia Vogelheim Hudac has the world’s most interesting father and family history. Andrew Zeiser wants to create a man cave with hand-signed photographs of his friends. Dan Straface and Brian Sullivan sent Andrew 8x12 signed photographs, but Andrew does not want them. He wants a mint condition Pat Gotebeski, Ellen Heintzman McInerney, John Donovan, Emily Donelan and Katherine Petersen Messer: Pat is mysterious, Ellen is tall and smart, John was great at quad football (ask Thomas Sullivan), Emily can save his life and Katherine can speak languages other than English. Didier Lewis, Zach Labrecque and Liz Brown Lockwood, holler at us. — Patrick O’Brien; classof2008@alumni.nd.edu

 

08MBA Class Secretary — Megan Ulrich;

meganlouisefitzgibbons@gmail.com

 

08JD Class Secretary — Marie-Therese Mansfield;

mt.mansfield1@gmail.com

 

09 Doing Better Than Fine

Ashley and Jon Poelhuis have been living in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, for the last eight and a half years. On Jan. 23 they welcomed their first child, baby boy Griffin. Mom and baby are doing great, and all are embracing European parental leave to the fullest. Greg McCool will come for a baby-holding visit in the spring, having received a travel blessing from his wife, Christine (Loza) McCool ’08. Dan Mahon married Becca Maslow in St. Paul MN in January. The beautiful wedding Mass was celebrated by fellow Fisher Hall resident and ACE classmate Rev. Drew Clary, CSC. In attendance were Mike Batanian, Andrew Feehan, Colleen (Rielley) Feehan ’10, Hugh Monahan, Chris Saracco, Mike Debri ’11MEd, Jamel (Nicholas) Debri ’10, David Hernandez Garcia ’11MEd, Kate Mahon ’16Ph.D., Chuck Schreffler ’87JD, Mike Willson ’84 and Paul Zenker ’75. Dan is a small-town lawyer in his hometown. Tom Junker and his family returned to campus in June to celebrate the 15-year Class Reunion with his classmates. While on campus, they thought this would be the perfect opportunity to baptize their newest child, Sadie Maeve Junker, who was born in January. The baptism took place on June 2 in the Log Chapel. Rev. Mark Thesing, CSC, who was Tom’s rector in Keenan Hall for three years, baptized Sadie while fellow alum and Keenan Knight Lance Ladendorf served as Sadie’s godfather. Additionally, several Keenan Knights and members of the Class of 2009 were able to attend the ceremony. This is the second child the Junker family has baptized at Notre Dame, and these sacred events have given the family a special connection to the campus and the University. Please visit the Notre Dame Class of 2009 Facebook page to reconnect with members of the Class. If you have any additional news or announcements, please contact me. Go Irish! — Megan Flynn; megflynn7@gmail.com

 

09MBA Class Secretary — Shawn Pulscher;

801-336-7344; spulscher@alumni.nd.edu

 

09JD Class Secretary — Josh Rinschler;

josh.rinschler@gmail.com