“Other” Class Notes

Alison Brosnan (Col ’03) and Patrick McKenna were married on Jan. 31, 2015, in Brooklyn, New York. The couple lives in Brooklyn, where Ms. McKenna works at Covenant House International and Mr. McKenna works at Hunter College.

Christopher Spillman (Col ’03 CM) has established Spillman & Partners, a law firm with offices in Phoenix and Chicago serving small and midsize businesses, family offices and individuals across all practice areas. He and his wife, Allison Vick Spillman (Col ’03 L/M), live in Scottsdale, Arizona, with their three sons.

Alexandra Guest (Col ’09 CM) and Robert B. Guest (Com ’10 L/M) welcomed a daughter, Everly Cynthia, on Aug. 22, 2015. Mr. Guest recently graduated from Harvard Law School and the family is relocating to Virginia.

Jeremy Branch (Col ’07 CM) and Melissa DeMott Branch (Col ’08, Educ ’08) welcomed a son, Henry Emerson, on March 15, 2015. Henry joins big brother Jeremiah Edwards. The family lives in Richmond, Virginia.

Christina Polenta (Com ’09 CM) and Christina Marie Polenta (Com ’09 L/M) were married in Charlottesville on Aug. 29, 2015. The couple lives in Chicago, where Ms. Polenta works as a senior analyst for a Chicago-based hedge fund and Mr. Magenheimer is pursuing an MBA degree at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management.

Alexandra Ross (Col ’12 CM) and Ryan A. Cunningham (Engr ’10) were married Sept. 20, 2014, in Potomac Falls, Virginia. Ms. Cunningham is the daughter of Mark Ross (Col ’77 L/M) and the niece of Michael Ross (Col ’70, Law ’77 L/M), Donald Barnes (Law ’75), Gerald Barnes (Col ’73 L/M), Pamela Barnes Sweeney (Col ’79 L/M), Mark Sweeney (Col ’79 L/M) and Maria Kurowski (Engr ’87 L/M). The ceremony was performed by the bride’s cousin, the Rev. Nicholas Barnes (Col ’07 L/M). The couple lives in Charlottesville.

Kurren Gill (Col ’12 CM) has received a research fellowship in otolaryngology to attend the Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, where he will participate in the otolaryngology—head and neck surgery—research program for the 2015-16 academic year. Mr. Gill is a third-year student at The Commonwealth Medical College.

S. McKinney (Col ’07 CM) and T. Henry Clarke V (Col ’07 L/M) were married June 28, 2014, at Ladue Chapel in St. Louis. The couple lives in Lynchburg, Virginia, where Ms. Clarke is a trusts and estates attorney and Mr. Clarke is director of major gifts for Virginia Episcopal School. The wedding party included bridesmaids Mary Ashton Burgh (Col ’07), Caroline Batchelor McLean (Col ’07 L/M), Victoria Lockhart Katz (Col ’07), groomsmen Stuart Farrell (Com ’07 L/M), Peter Goodwin (Col ’07), Davar Irvani (Col ’07 L/M), and William McLean (Col ’07). Gretchen Nygaard (Col ’06, Law ’11 L/M) served as a reader

Anthony Holbrook (Com ’01) and Rebecca Brocato Holbrook (Nurs ’05 L/M) welcomed twins, Patrick Miles and Emma Kate, on Jan. 13, 2015. They join big brother Ben, 7, and big sister Claire, 5. The family lives in Temecula, California.

Jeanette Peabody (Col ’99) is now head chef at the Oakhurst Inn, a boutique hotel and café next to the University’s South Lawn. She had been chef de cuisine at Hamiltons’ at First & Main in downtown Charlottesville.

Mark Angle-Hobson (Educ ’98, Educ ’02) was appointed superintendent of Douglas County School District 15 in Days Creek, Oregon.

Stephanie Scherpf (Col ’97) is co-founder and executive director of Jean Appolon Expressions, a Haitian dance nonprofit based in Boston. Each summer, she travels to Port-au-Prince, Haiti, to help conduct the Jean Appolon Summer Dance Institute, a free intensive dance program for 60 young Haitian dancers without financial resources. JAE also has a Haitian contemporary dance company in Boston.

Andrew McCoy (Arch ’97) , associate professor and assistant director of the Myers-Lawson School of Construction at Virginia Tech, has been reappointed a Preston and Catherine White Fellow. Mr. McCoy also directs the Virginia Center for Housing Research, a center in Tech’s College of Architecture and Urban Studies that is the official housing research center for the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Ian McGuire (Grad ’96) has published Richard Ford and the Ends of Realism (University of Iowa Press), which examines the work of American novelist and short story writer Richard Ford. He argues that Ford’s work is best understood as a form of pragmatic realism and that Ford is part of a deeply rooted and ongoing American debate about the nature of realism and pragmatism. Mr. McGuire is the co-director of the Centre for New Writing at the University of Manchester. He writes both fiction and literary criticism and has published essays and short stories in the Paris Review, the Chicago Review and other publications. He lives in Manchester, England, with his wife and two daughters.

Kirsten Kahle (Col ’95) and R. Neal Kahle (Engr ’96 L/M) welcomed a daughter, Elsbeth Mattea, on Feb. 26, 2014. Elsbeth joins siblings Maxwell Murphy, 8; Annika Marie, 7; and Theodore Neal, 4. The family lives in Indianapolis, where Dr. Kahle is a hospice and palliative medicine physician and Mr. Kahle is a software engineer.

Penny Evins (Col ’94, Educ ’96 CM) is head of St. Paul’s School for Girls in Baltimore. Previously, she was an administrator at Isidore Newman School in New Orleans, the Lovett School in Atlanta and the Webb School of Knoxville. She is proud that many of her students have gone on to attend the University.

Thomas Peistrup (Col ’92) has joined the Los Angeles office of Leech Tishman as counsel in the intellectual property and litigation practice groups, where he will maintain a wide-ranging practice balanced among complex business litigation, intellectual property and corporate counseling. He has represented a number of intellectual property rights holders, including film studios, film and television production companies, broadcasters, music publishers, record labels and print publishers; he also provides strategically driven, interdisciplinary counseling in areas such as privacy, data security, advertising clearance, government regulation and risk management.

Weiman Seid (Col ’91 CM) has been invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the Oscar-granting organization. Seid, a publicist, is the founder of boutique consultancy FAT DOT. He previously was senior vice president of marketing and public relations at Miramax Films.

Lisa Brook (Col ’90 CM) has joined the Charlottesville law firm of MichieHamlett, where she will practice in the personal injury group. Over the course of a 20-year career in civil litigation, Ms. Brook has helped clients in a wide variety of cases, including motor vehicle accidents, workplace injuries, wrongful death, permanent disability, and slip and fall.

Allen Clark (Col ’90 CM) and his wife, Elena, welcomed twin boys, Allen Culling IV and Henry Woodman IV, on April 3, 2015. The family lives in Annapolis, Maryland, where Mr. Clark is executive director of budget and finance for Maryland’s judicial branch.

Lori Overholt (Com ’88 CM) has received the Virginia Business 2015 CFO of the Year Award in the small private company division. She is president and CFO of VSA Resorts, a three-property hospitality and vacation ownership company in Virginia Beach.

Kurt Gingrich (Col ’87 CM) and Marsha Taylor (Col ’87 L/M) were married June 22, 2014, in Chesterfield, Virginia. The couple lives in Blacksburg, Virginia; Ms. Taylor teaches French in nearby Salem and at Radford University, and Mr. Gingrich is an associate professor of history at Radford. Two of their children, Taylor Nicole Trumble (Col ’18) and Jared Gingrich (Col ’19 L/M), attend UVA.

Lisa Tucker (Arch ’86, Arch ’90 CM) has received three national honors from the American Society of Interior Designers: the Nancy Vincent McClelland Merit Award; the Joel Polsky Prize; and the Educator Medalist Award. As chair of the interior design program at Virginia Tech, Ms. Tucker has organized the curriculum around sustainable and socially responsible design as a foundation of practice, and a number of interior design programs across the country have adopted her methods. She has published three major textbooks for interior design students: Sustainable Building Systems and Construction for Designers; Designing Sustainable Residential and Commercial Interiors; and Cradle to Cradle Home Design: Process and Experience, co-written with Anna Marshall Baker. She has served as national president of the Interior Design Educators Council and has held leadership positions in a number of interior design organizations.

Lindsay Robertson (Grad ’97, Law ’86) has been named Chickasaw Nation Native American Law Chair at the University of Oklahoma College of Law. He has taught at OU since 1997 and teaches classes in federal Indian law, comparative and international indigenous peoples law, constitutional law and legal history. Mr. Robertson also received the first David L. Boren Award for Outstanding Global Engagement in 2014.

Laura DeLuca (Col ’85 CM) and Leah Bassoff won the 2015 Colorado Book Award for young adult literature for their book, Lost Girl Found, published by the Groundwood Books imprint of House of Anansi Press.

Eliza Pennypacker (Arch ’82) has written Artful Rainwater Design: Creative Ways to Manage Stormwater with fellow landscape architect Stuart Echols. The book shows how to manage runoff, save money and mitigate flood damage while creating inviting and attractive landscapes.

Kevan McCarten-Gibbs (Col ’81 CM) has been appointed director of the department of emergency medicine at UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital in Oakland, California.

Peter Wernicki (Col ’80 CM) received the 2015 Paragon Award for Water Safety from the International Swimming Hall of Fame for his leadership in aquatic medicine, water safety and drowning prevention. Dr. Wernicki is chair of the aquatics subcouncil of the American Red Cross Scientific Advisory Council, where he leads a team in researching, analyzing and presenting evidence-based studies and data that are used to revise all American Red Cross health and safety programs. He serves on the executive board of the United States Lifesaving Association and has been the association’s medical adviser since 1987. Dr. Wernicki helped write the USLA textbook and helped develop and revise the national lifeguard certification program. He is also the medical committee chair of the International Lifesaving Federation. Dr. Wernicki has published many scientific journal articles and often appears on television and radio programs as a water safety expert.

Donald Horn (Arch ’79) has been elevated to the American Institute of Architects College of Fellows in recognition of his green-building policy development and advocacy within the federal government. Mr. Horn is deputy director of the U.S. General Services Administration’s Office of Federal High-Performance Green Buildings, where he promotes environmentally responsible decision-making for buildings, translating green-building strategies and ideals into regulations and guidance the federal government can use to meet building performance goals.

James Lewis (Col ’76 CM) has been appointed to the Accomack Circuit Court, 2nd Judicial Circuit of Virginia. Before he joined the bench, he was a personal injury attorney for 35 years. Judge Lewis also is an adjunct professor of trial advocacy at the Marshall-Wythe School of Law at the College of William & Mary. He is serving a one-year term as president of the l’Anson-Hoffman American Inns of Court.

Paul Tershel (Col ’76 CM) has been selected for inclusion in the 2015 edition of Pennsylvania Super Lawyers; this is the seventh consecutive year he has been on the list. He is owner and principal of Tershel & Associates in Washington, Pennsylvania, where he focuses his personal injury practice on serious injury cases resulting from medical malpractice, automobile accidents, defective products and injuries to workers on the job.

Daniel Hoffheimer (Law ’76 CM) has been elected to the board of directors of Linton Music, a chamber music organization in Cincinnati under the artistic leadership of internationally acclaimed musicians Jaime Laredo and Sharon Robinson.

M. Cooke (Col ’76 CM) has been chosen the No. 1 attorney in South Carolina for the 2015 edition of South Carolina Super Lawyers; this is the second consecutive year that he has topped the list. Mr. Cooke is a member lawyer with Barnwell Whaley in Charleston, where he focuses on complex civil litigation, professional liability defense and personal injury litigation. He frequently lectures on alternative dispute resolution.

David Miller (Darden ’72) has been appointed by Gov. Terry McAuliffe to the board of visitors of Virginia Military Institute. Mr. Miller is president and chief operating officer of Community Health Systems Inc., which has operations in 29 states and treats about 1 million inpatients each year. Mr. Miller, based at the company’s headquarters in Franklin, Tennessee, is responsible for the company’s six operating divisions as well as all strategic growth initiatives. He and his wife, Helen, have two sons and four grandchildren.

Stephen Hartley (Engr ’74, Engr ’83, Grad ’72) has retired from Rowan University in Glassboro, New Jersey, where he was a member of the computer science faculty for 15 years and was chairman of that department for the last five years.

John McCraw (Educ ’71) has been appointed to the college board of Patrick Henry Community College in Martinsville, Virginia, by the Martinsville City Council. He is a retired teacher and administrator for schools in Martinsville and in Rockingham County, North Carolina.

W. Bissette (Darden ’70 CM) has received the 2015 Wake Forest Distinguished Alumni Award for his exemplary service and leadership to Wake Forest University; he is now a university trustee. Mr. Bissette is an attorney with McGuire Wood & Bissette in Asheville, North Carolina. He practices in the areas of economic development, land use and zoning, serving clients ranging from individuals to large businesses and institutions. He is also involved in the community, having served two terms as mayor of Asheville, from 1985 to 1989, and eight years as a trustee of Western Carolina University and vice chairman of the UNC System Board of Governors.

Phil Lilienthal (Law ’65) has received the 2013 Sargent Shriver Award for Distinguished Humanitarian Service from the Peace Corps. He is the founder and president of Global Camps Africa, a nonprofit whose mission is to educate at-risk children in South Africa about HIV/AIDS.

Gary Alexander (Col ’64 CM) has passed the Florida bar exam and has been admitted to practice law in Florida. He has been a member of the Maryland, District of Columbia and Virginia bar associations for more than four decades. He is the founder and senior partner of Alexander & Cleaver and now works out of the firm’s Annapolis and West Palm Beach offices.

Clark MacKenzie (Com ’63 CM) received the William C. Campbell Award from the United States Seniors’ Golf Association for his contributions to the association and to the advancement of amateur golf. He has played on the USSGA international team 15 times since 1998, captained the team for four years and served as team secretary for two years. Mr. MacKenzie has also served on a number of committees for the organization, including the committee planning the celebration of the USSGA’s 100th anniversary in 2005, and has served on its board of governors in various capacities. A member of the Senior Slam Society, he has participated in each of the USSGA’s invitational tournaments. He and his wife, Andy, live in Jackson, Wyoming.

Virginia LeBaron (Nurs ’96 CM) is a Roberts Scholar and assistant professor of nursing at the University of Virginia School of Nursing. Before returning to UVA, she completed a postdoctoral research fellowship at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston and, as a Fulbright Scholar in India, studied access to pain relief for patients with cancer.

Robert Tyler (Col ’89, Law ’94 CM) has been appointed associate university counsel for the University of Virginia, where he continues to practice intellectual property law.

Hannah Rosenfeld (Col ’15) and Shruti Patel (Engr ’13 L/M) run Buddy Watch Inc., a company that produces the Buddy Watch app, a personal safety mobile phone application that automatically detects and responds to emergencies even if users can’t reach their phones.

Jonathan Mueller (Col ’98) and Kimberly Somma Mueller (Col ’98 L/M) welcomed a daughter, Gillian Alma Lorraine, on May 26, 2015. Gillian joins big brother Jackson Walter, 5; and big sister Clara Elizabeth, 2. The family lives in Golden, Colorado.