’61 Joanne (Reitz) Jonas (EHS), of Clintonville, has kept in touch with several friends made decades ago at UWO from the Classes of 1961 and 1962. The group recently met for lunch to reminisce.

’68 Jim Dykstra (LS), of Mc Lean, Virginia, received the Thomas Daffron Senior Stennis Fellow Service Award for exceptional service leadership to the John C. Stennis Center for Public Service. Former chief of staff in the U.S. House of Representatives, Dykstra was an inaugural Stennis Fellow in the 103rd congress and served as a mentor to young staffers for the past 13 Congresses in the Stennis Center’s Emerging Leader Program.

 

’74 David Rank (LS), of West Bend, is the founder and director of Novel Bookcamp, an annual week-long writing workshop and retreat where many writers from across the nation have learned the secrets of long-form writing and publishing. Rank is married to ’73 Judy Rank (N).

’83 Lisa Zemlock (BME) and ’93 (MS), of Oshkosh, is a member of the Fond du Lac Symphonic Band. Twelve UWO alumni performed together in the 48^th annual Cathedral Concert in November.

’86 Sandie Brick-Margelofsky (EHS), of Dodgeville, retired from her position as managing director of student affairs advancement at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2023. The past two summers Brick-Margelofsky has served as a program assistant at the Lamar Buffalo Ranch in Yellowstone National Park.

’90 Pat Zietlow Miller (LS) and ’00 (MS), of Sun Prairie, already an accomplished author, wrote her first nonfiction picture book, Unstoppable John: How John Lewis Got His Library Card and Helped Change History. Zietlow Miller is married to ’85 Mark Miller (LS).

’94 John Buelow (B), of Fond du Lac, was named one of BizTimes Media’s Wisconsin 275 Award recipients, given to the 275 most influential executives in different economic sectors throughout the state. Buelow, president of Mercury Marine Engine Division of Brunswick Corporation, received the award in the manufacturing sector.

’96 Oscar Mireles (LS), of Madison, retired after 30 years as the executive director of Omega School. The recipient of the 2022 UW-Oshkosh Distinguished Alumni Award, Mireles will continue to run the organization he founded, Latinos Organizing for Understanding and Development, a non-profit in support of Latino artists statewide.

’97 Barbara “Bobbi” Miller (B), of Neenah, received the Fox Cities Economic Development Professionals (FCEDP) 2023 Outstanding Service Award. Miller is the Fox Valley Workforce Development Board’s manager of business services and joined the board in 2005.

’99 Eric Thiede (EHS), of Menasha, is one of 110 new U.S. State Department diplomats, and the only representative from Wisconsin. Thiede is a social studies teacher at Neenah High School.

’03 Julie (Anderson) Astrella (N), of Henderson, Nevada, has been an associate professor of nursing at Touro University Nevada for over 10 years. Astrella earned her Doctor of Nursing Practice in Leadership degree and recently celebrated her 20^th wedding anniversary with husband ’03 Chris Astrella (LS) and ’21 (MPA).

’04 Todd Kelsey (MBA), of Waupaca, was named one of BizTimes Media’s Wisconsin 275 Award recipients, given to the 275 most influential executives in different economic sectors throughout the state. Kelsey, president and CEO at Plexus Corporation, received the award in the manufacturing sector.

’09 Jason Freedman (MPA), of McFarland, was named police chief in Grand Forks, North Dakota. Freedman currently serves as a captain at the Madison Police Midtown District where he’s been employed since 1997.

’13 Sadie (Parafiniuk) Howell (MPA), of Fond du Lac, president and CEO of Envision Greater Fond du Lac, is the chair-elect on the Wisconsin Chamber of Commerce Executives (WCCE) Board of Advisors.

’13 Ceev Sue Xiong (B), of Little Chute, is an admissions specialist and advisor for the Hmong Student Union Club at Fox Valley Technical College.

’13 Kurt Zempel (MPA), of Sheboygan, is the Sheboygan chief of police. Zempel has served the Sheboygan Police Department since 2003.

 

’15 Danielle Kolman (LS), of Appleton, is the assistant director of Employer and Alumni Relations for Lawrence University and serves on the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh Alumni Board of Directors.

’16 Megan Ogi (EHS), of Kewaskum, is the youth services librarian at the Kewaskum Public Library.

’17 Cortney (Kallenberger) Fraser (LS), of Greendale, married ’17 Robert Fraser (LS) after meeting as freshmen at UW-Oshkosh.

’17 Lyndsay Poeschl (LS), of Oshkosh, biology alumna and employee of Kimberly-Clark, led and helped drive the donation of microscopes to UWO. The new microscopes will provide opportunities for students to learn how to use advanced histology equipment for research and diagnostics.

’18 Jennifer Gauthier (MPA), of Shawano, was recognized by the Biden Administration’s Rural Innovators Initiative as an innovator who is making a positive impact on her community. Gauthier is the College of Menominee Nation’s Sustainable Development Institute (SDI) director.

’18 Jacob Pyle (B), of Milwaukee, is vice president-risk officer at Waukesha State Bank. Pyle has six years of experience in finance and risk management.

’20 Landen Moore (LS), of Appleton, is a multimedia journalist with Woodward Communications.

’21 Kyle Boucher (B), of Greenville, a financial advisor with Northwestern Mutual, finished first in the company for new clients in 2024. He is a member of the UW-Oshkosh Alumni Association Board of Directors.

’21 Mitchell Gerend (B), of Kimberly, will be inducted into the 2025 Southern Door Athletic Hall of Fame class. During Gerend’s Titan Football career, he was a 4-year letter winner and two-time Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) champion. Gerend is the lead of the Enterprise Advanced Analytics organization with U.S. Venture.

’21 Jason Schneider (EHS), of Fond du Lac, is the interim Fond du Lac High School Baseball head coach. Schneider is also a health teacher at Woodworth Middle School.

’22 Kevin Kollmann (LS), of Fond du Lac, is a graduate student and production and lighting assistant at Northern Illinois University. Kollmann attended a conference in New York City, serving as an advocate for accessibility within the lighting and sound field.