“Other” Class Notes
Jill Orlov (Arch ’91)
Jill Orlov (Arch ’91), an artist who specializes in miniatures, has an ongoing show called Those Were the Days, featuring “iconic television studio sets in metal miniature,” at D. Thomas Fine Miniatures in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York. Her work is also currently featured at the American Visionary Art Museum in Baltimore.
She will be taking part in a group show Sunday, June 18.
Last year, she and several other artists were commissioned to contribute to a group exhibit called Dream Rooms in which artists, designers and architects were each provided an 18″ wood cube to design a dream room to accompany a historic dollhouse exhibit from London’s Victoria & Albert Museum. Her contribution was featured on MarthaStewart.com and can be seen here.
In 2014, she also won second place in a designer furniture company’s annual Champagne Chair Contest.
More about her work can be found at JillOrlov.com.
Adrian Holloway (Col ’02 CM)
Adrian Holloway (Col ’02 L/M) recently gave a talk to current and prospective students at Virginia Commonwealth University’s School of Medicine as part of the school’s Second Look program, which gives applicants who are members of underrepresented minorities the opportunity to explore the school’s programs in depth. Dr. Holloway, assistant professor of pediatrics at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, has treated children fleeing terror in northern Iraq, malaria victims in Malawi and earthquake survivors in Haiti. In the talk, he discussed his experiences and the importance of giving back to communities.
Ariel Poliner (Arch ’09 CM), Sebastijan Jemec (Arch ’08), Michael Goldin (Arch ’09 CM), Victoria Hanabury (Col ’09), Mark Keller (Arch ’09), Camilo Kohn (Col ’09 CM), Gennifer Muñoz (Arch ’09), Kristin Simpson (Arch ’09), John Wolfe (Arch ’09)
Sebastijan Jemec (Arch ’08), Michael “Mike” Goldin (Arch ’09 L/M), Victoria J. “Tory” Hanabury (Col ’09), Mark Keller (Arch ’09), Camilo Kohn (Col ’09 L/M), Gennifer Muñoz (Arch ’09), Ariel Poliner (Arch ’09), Kristin E. “Kristy” Simpson (Arch ’09) and Jack Wolfe (Arch ’09) have begun an initiative to establish the Fanzone Fellowship for Traveling Craftivism Fund. The fund will support an annual travel fellowship for a rising fourth-year student in the School of Architecture. The fellowship honors the late Carmen Fanzone (Arch ’09), who passed away in 2016.
Toni McNaughton (Col ’78, Educ ’81 CM), Betsy Grindstaff (Col ’78 CM), Mary Blanton (Educ ’79), Pam Sprouse (Col ’78 CM), Kay Crnkovich (Educ ’78 CM), Mollie Quasebarth (Col ’78), Dottie Carter (Educ ’78), Betsy Horton-Coons (Col ’78 CM), Nadine Huffman (Col ’78 CM)
Nine of us UVA alums met last September, 2016 to celebrate our 60th birthdays in Colorado. We all had turned 60 in the past year or were to celebrate that milestone soon. Seven of us met first year on the first floor of Bonnycastle, in 1974. The other two were adopted into our group in the next year as apartment roommates. In essence, we have remained friends for more than 42 years and it started at UVA! We kept up through the years before there was email or social media! We have kept up by attending bridal showers, weddings and baby showers, UVA class reunions, as well as other life events! We have 22 children and 8 grandchildren among us. Our friendship is truly a tribute to the importance of the first year of college and how it can impact you for the rest of your life, as well as our love of the University of Virginia.
Pictured from left to right:
Betsy Merrifield Grindstaff (Col ’78 L/M, from New Mexico), Mary Blitchington Blanton (Col ’79, from Virginia), Pam Sprouse (Col ’78 L/M, from Virginia), Toni McNaughton (Col ’78, Educ ’81 L/M, from Texas), Kay Evans Crnkovich (Educ ’78 L/M, from New Jersey), Mollie Vaeth Quasebarth (Col ’78, from California), Dottie Holzgrefe Carter (Educ ’78, from Virginia), Betsy Horton-Coons (Col ’78 L/M, from Connecticut), Nadine Woodard Huffman (Col ’78 L/M, from Ohio)
Steve Odabashian (Col ’91)
Steve Odabashian (Col ’91) was fortunate enough to make a couple of fun TV appearances. In May 2016, he and his then 3 year (and 1 month) old son Arthur appeared on Philadelphia’s local Fox morning program, Good Day Philadelphia. Arthur dazzled the hosts with his uncanny knowledge of world capitals (he knew 56 of them at the time, and he now knows over 100.) His dialogue with Steve Harvey’s Little Big Shots has hit a bump in the road, but he hopes to make an appearance in an upcoming season!
In October 2016, Steve fulfilled a 15-year old goal by finally appearing on the syndicated game show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. He got within 4 questions of the million dollars, but had to settle for $50,000. In 2001, Steve set the speed record on VH1’s game show Name That Video and won a Toyota 4Runner for his efforts.
Caryn Wiseman (Col ’83 CM)
Caryn Wiseman (Com ’83, L/M) took what she calls a “circuitous route” to become a literary agent in children’s publishing. After years spent working in banking and consulting, “I wanted to do something that would make a positive difference in the world,” she says. The self-described voracious reader now represents authors a illustrators of children’s books, particularly books with social justice themes.
Ms. Wiseman, who works in Palo Alto, California, represents two Wahoo authors, Deborah “Debbie” Levy (Col ’78 L/M) and Tara Sullivan (Col ’04). Ms. Levy has written many children’s books. In 2016, she published I Dissent: Ruth Bader Ginsburg Makes Her Mark (Simon and Schuster), an acclaimed picture book about the Supreme Court justice and her lifetime of dissenting opinions. Ms. Sullivan is the author of Golden Boy (Puffin Books, 2014), a novel set in Tanzania about a boy who is outcast and hunted because of his albinism. Her 2016 book The Bitter Side of Sweet (G.P. Putnam’s Sons) is likewise about human rights struggles but set in the Ivory Coast, where the central characters work as forced laborers on a cacao plantation.
In the popular consciousness, a children’s story can be both a piece of entertainment and a tool for moral instruction, but is the social justice focus a new trend? Ms. Wiseman says it has gained strength and visibility in recent years, though it is not a new development. “There are quite a number of middle-grade and young-adult and even picture books that explore social justice themes, and the number grows every year,” she says, pointing to the We Need Diverse Books and Brown Bookshelf movements for greater diversity in children’s publishing. “There are quite a few authors, librarians, bloggers and editors who focus on social justice themes,” she says, “but there is still a long way to go.”
Sara Austin (Col ’87 CM)
Sara A. Austin (Col ’87) will become immediate past president of the 27,000-member Pennsylvania Bar Association (PBA) at the conclusion of the PBA Annual Meeting, May 12, in Pittsburgh.
Austin is ending her term as the first woman PBA president from York County and the third woman president in the 121-year history of the PBA.
David Walsh (Com ’76 CM)
David M. Walsh (Com ’76 L/M) has been appointed honorary consul of Japan in Orlando by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan. Mr. Walsh was president and CEO of Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems Americas, based in Lake Mary, Florida. He also served as a corporate officer of Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems in Japan and as vice president of service and manufacturing for Mitsubishi Heavy Industries America’s power generation business.
Rodolph Johnson (Darden ’60, Engr ’56 CM)
Rodolph L. “Rody” Johnson (Engr ’56, Darden ’60 L/M) has published his fifth book, An Ice Age Mystery: Unearthing the Secrets of the Old Vero Site (University Press of Florida, 2017). The book tells the story of a 1916 discovery of prehistoric human remains in Vero Beach, Florida. The find caused controversy in its day, as Elias Sellards’s discovery conflicted with the prevailing theory of humans’ arrival in North America. The book explores the original find and more recent evidence that supports Sellards’s findings. Mr. Johnson lives in Vero Beach with his wife.
Hilliard Hardman (Law ’06)
Hilliard “Hill” Hardman (Law ’06) has joined the advisory board of Skyland Trail, an Atlanta-based nonprofit mental health treatment organization for adults with mental illnesses. Mr. Hardman is the director of corporate strategy and development at RouteMatch Software.
Donald Slesnick (Col ’65 CM)
Donald D. “Don” Slesnick (Col ’65 L/M) was installed as president and chair of the Orange Bowl for 2017-18. He served as the mayor of Coral Gables, Florida for 10 years and is the managing partner of the Law Offices of Slesnick & Casey.
David Reid (Com ’06 CM)
David H. Reid (Com ’06 L/M) has joined the government relations department of the lobbying firm Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck as a policy advisor in the firm’s Washington, D.C. office. He previously worked as the Washington, D.C. and political action campaign finance director for Hillary for America and as the mid-Atlantic finance director for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.
David Evans (Grad ’87, Grad ’94)
David Rees Evans (Grad ’87, ’94) was elected to the board of the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities. His three-year term began in February 2017. Mr. Evans is the president of Southern Vermont College in Bennington, Vermont. He was previously the vice president for academic affairs and the dean of faculty at Buena Vista University in Iowa. He has spoken and written on professional issues including faculty hiring and careers, training for administrators and the future of small private colleges in The Chronicle of Higher Education and elsewhere.
Jean-Jacques Cabou (Col ’99 CM)
Jean-Jacques Cabou (Col ’99 L/M) received NARAL Pro-Choice Arizona’s 2017 Trust AZ Women Award. The award honors contributions to the cause of women’s reproductive choice in Arizona. Mr. Cabou is a partner in the white collar and investigations practice of the law firm Perkins Coie. He works in the firm’s Phoenix office.
Lacey Wolf (Arch ’05), Jeffrey Stark (Arch ’83 CM), R.T. Fitch (Arch ’91, Engr ’94 CM), Ted Porter (Arch ’81 CM)
NAVFAC Atlantic Architects and Engineers gathered together to celebrate Thomas Jefferson’s birthday, April 13, 2017. Pictured (Left to right) R. T. (Trip) Fitch III (Arch ’91, Engr ’94 L/M), Jeff Stark (Arch ’83 L/M), Lacey (Wolf) Craven (Arch ’05) and Ted Porter (Arch ’81 L/M).
Lesley Field (Com ’90 CM)
Lesley A. Field (Com ’90, L/M) is pleased to announce the adoption of Mikalah N. Parsons on January 23, 2017. Mikalah is an honor student, violinist, cheerleader, and varsity track team member at her high school, and was warmly welcomed by friends and family in a happy celebration preceding the official adoption event.
Lesley is the deputy administrator for federal procurement policy in the Office of Management and Budget, Executive Office of the President, and is also currently serving as acting administrator. She was recently recognized by FCW and 1105 Media with their top 2017 President’s Award as part of this year’s Fed 100 awards program recognizing sustained leadership in federal information technology. Lesley was featured in FCW’s March magazine, and was also named as one of the Top Women in Technology 2017 by FedScoop Magazine. Lesley is a fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration.
https://fcw.com/articles/2017/03/31/lesley-field-interview.aspx?m=1
https://www.fedscoop.com/fedscoops-top-women-in-tech-2017-lesley-field/
Lisa Bradford (Col ’89 CM)
Lisa Griffith Bradford, LCSW (Col ’89 L/M) is currently the Vice Chair of the Virginia Brain Injury Council. She recently began her 27th year as a clinical social worker at the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Salem. She lives in Roanoke with her son and husband
Blair Nelsen (Col ’80 CM)
Blair H. Nelsen (Col ’80) was elected to the Board of Directors of the International Conference of Funeral Service Examining Boards. Nelsen, Director of Governmental Affairs for SCI Management, is serving his third term on the Virginia Board of Funeral Directors and Embalmers.
C. Michelle Batten (Col ’94)
C. Michelle Batten (Col ’94 L/M) has been named board president of the American Marketing Association in Chicago, Illinois. Ms. Batten is launching strategic growth initiatives to unite marketers across agencies and brands in the academic, non-profit, startup and technology arenas, and has been featured in the “People on the Move” segment of Crain’s Chicago Business Magazine. Ms. Batten is the daughter of Bobby Gale Batten (Com ’58 L/M).
Cynthia Clare (Col ’85 CM)
Cynthia “Cindy” Miller Clare (Col ’85 L/M) has begun her term as the 2017 National Apartment Association chairman. A Northern Virginia real estate executive with Kettler Management, she is the third woman to hold this position.
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