As the annual Golden Titan reunion approaches on Saturday, May 14, Robert Kerrigan and Mary Jo (Krueger) Rasmussen, both 1961 graduates, look forward to renewing old acquaintances and seeing how the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh campus has changed.

Since 2009, members of the 50th reunion class have come together from all over the country to attend the University’s spring commencement ceremony and take part in a special Golden Titan luncheon and program.

“A reunion is a time to share a lot of fun memories and to reconnect with people we haven’t seen in years and years,” said Kerrigan, co-chair of the Class of 1961 Reunion Committee.

Co-chair Rasmussen said she also excited to hear about the vision that UW Oshkosh has for the future.

After graduating from UW Oshkosh with a bachelor’s degree in speech, political science and economics, Rasmussen did some graduate work at Georgetown University, took part in state and federal advocacy and spent more than 10 years on the Northern Virginia Community College Board of Education. She is now retired and living in Fairfax, Va.

Kerrigan, who is a financial adviser for his own business in Arizona, said he has no intentions of retiring. “I enjoy the work I do and helping the people I do,” Kerrigan said.

Kerrigan graduated from UW Oshkosh with a bachelor’s degree in economics and a minor in geology. He served in the U.S. Army for one year after graduation, then went on to work at insurance firms throughout Wisconsin, bought and sold a few manufacturing companies and moved to Arizona in 1982, where he now works in the financial arena.

At UW Oshkosh, Kerrigan spent four years playing football under the direction of Coach Bob Kolf, whom the Kolf Sports Center is named after. Kerrigan said he recalls one game during his sophomore year in which he scored 22 points, setting a record that wasn’t broken for 43 years.

“That was a fun afternoon,” Kerrigan said.

Rasmussen’s fondest memory of UW Oshkosh was meeting her husband in economics class. Her involvement with the debate team at UW Oshkosh influenced her greatly, because she was able to take the speaking skills that she learned and use them throughout her life.

Kerrigan said his degree is the most valuable thing he gained at UW Oshkosh.

“A degree opens up so many doors for an individual once he/she gets out of school,” Kerrigan said. “The opportunities a degree gives you can lead you in so many different directions.”

Other members of the reunion committee include:

• Lorraine (Pfeiffer) Gerhart, Crivitz;
• Larry Klausch, Oshkosh;
• Louis Marohn, Glenview, Ill.;
• William Sund, Waupaca.

More information about the Class of 1961 reunion and the Golden Titan luncheon.