“Other” Class Notes

Margaret Nichols (Educ ’77, Educ ’78) has received the Special Education Citizens’ Advisory Committee STAR Award in recognition of her work with special education students in Anne Arundel County, Md. Ms. Nichols resides in Annapolis, Md., where she is a speech-language pathologist in the Anne Arundel County school system.

Dean Hasseman (Darden ’78, Law ’71 CM) has retired after a 42-year career as an attorney serving all aspects of the downstream business of the oil industry. Most recently, he was general counsel and chief compliance officer of Citgo Petroleum Corp., where he worked for 23 years. Before joining Citgo, he worked for Sun Oil Company (Sunoco) and Williams Pipeline Company.

Robert Centor (Col ’71 CM) has been named the 2014-2015 chair of the board of regents of the American College of Physicians. He has been a member of ACP since 1978, a fellow of ACP since 1985 and a member of the board of regents since 2008. Dr. Centor is currently a professor of medicine and regional dean of the University of Alabama at Birmingham, Huntsville Regional Medical Campus. Previously, he held numerous positions at the Medical College of Virginia. He is a reviewer for several medical journals and his areas of interest include the diagnosis and treatment of adult pharyngitis, and the clinical diagnostic process.

Steven Platt (Col ’69 CM) retired as a full-time judge of the Circuit Court for Prince George’s County, Md., in January 2007. He is now a founding member, CEO, a mediator, arbitrator, neutral case evaluator and consultant with The Platt Group. Judge Platt also writes a regular blog column, “A Pursuit of Justice,” for the Maryland Daily Record, a business and legal newspaper published in Baltimore.

Joseph Maiolo (Grad ’68) has retired after a 44-year career teaching college writing. For the last 38 years, he has taught fiction writing and literature at the University of Minnesota, Duluth. In honor of his retirement, the UMD College of Liberal Arts has established the Julie & Joseph Maiolo fund to assist deserving students in creative endeavors. Colder by the Lake, the comedy theater company of Duluth, celebrated Mr. Maiolo’s retirement with a May 15, 2014, performance of Mr. Maiolo’s radio-stage play, The Error of the Rings.

Robert Buerlein (Com ’68 CM) was elected to serve another term on the board of the U.S. Marine Raider Foundation. A co-founder of the U.S. Marine Raider Museum, located in Raider Hall at Quantico Marine Corps Base, Mr. Buerlein also serves on the museum’s historical preservation committee. He continues to serve on the executive committee of the board of the Edgar Allan Poe Museum in Richmond, Va.

Scott Kellermann (Col ’67 CM) was named one of 51 Unsung Heroes of Compassion 2014 by Wisdom in Action, a California Bay Area nonprofit organization. At the awards luncheon event, Dr. Kellermann was acknowledged and thanked by the Dalai Lama for his role as a medical missionary to the Batwa pygmies and other tribal groups in southwest Uganda. He was also instrumental in founding Bwindi Community Hospital and the Uganda Nursing School Bwindi. Dr. Kellermann’s work has been supported by the Kellermann Foundation, a nonprofit charitable organization based in Richardson, Texas.

John Stewart (Col ’65 CM) was named to the Florida Bankers Association Hall of Fame. He recently retired from a 50-year career in personal trust banking, where he served at various times as a trust and estate administrative officer; a founding member of personal financial planning for the corporate executive group at Bankers Trust Co. of New York; and as president of Morgan Trust Co. of Florida, Bankers Trust Co. of Florida and BMO/Harris Trust Co. of Florida. Mr. Stewart also served in various capacities with the New York and Florida bankers associations. He is currently a member of U.Va.’s Planned Giving Council and serves as state chairman for the annual George S. and Stella M. Knight Essay Contest for high school students conducted by the Sons of the American Revolution.

Stafford Thornton (Engr ’59, Engr ’62 CM) has retired after a 36-year career as a professor of civil engineering at the West Virginia Institute of Technology, where he taught engineering courses and at various times served as department chair, assistant dean and director of the school’s technology support center. During his professional career, Mr. Thornton was very active in the American Society of Civil Engineers, serving in many West Virginia and regional offices and later as national president of the organization in 1995. He also served two five-year terms on the West Virginia Registration Board for Professional Engineers and was named West Virginia Civil Engineer of the Year in 1996. Mr. Thornton received the honorary degree of doctor of science from West Virginia Tech in recognition of his many accomplishments and service to the school.

Ramon Breeden (Com ’56 CM) was named Virginia Beach’s First Citizen for 2013 by the Virginia Beach Jaycees. Mr. Breeden, owner of The Breeden Co., is a developer and philanthropist who has served on the boards of the Hampton Roads Military Federation Facilities Alliance, the Virginia Symphony Orchestra and the Virginia Beach Education Foundation. A leader in pet-friendly policies for rental housing, he received the inaugural Lifesaver Award from the Virginia Beach SPCA in 2011.

Graham Gillen (Engr ’85 CM) was recently named vice president of marketing for Search Technologies, a leading provider of enterprise search consulting and technology services.

Renee Everett (Nurs ’80 CM) (Nurs ’80 L/M) was married in July 2013. Ms. Everett received the Outstanding Faculty Award from the May 2014 graduating class of Mississippi College School of Nursing, where she is an instructor.

Renee Rinaldi Everett remarried July 2013.
Renee Rinaldi Everett was awarded the Outstanding Faculty Award by the graduating class May 2014.

David Baldini (Com ’03 CM) and Jennifer Linkous Baldini (Nurs ’03 L/M) welcomed a son, Kai Robert, on March 24, 2014. Kai joins big brother Jake, 4.

Patrick Sweeney (Darden ’98) is the host of the Sport & Survival series on Epic TV, an extreme sports website. An international adventurer, extreme athlete and philanthropist, Mr. Sweeney was recently named one of “America’s Fittest Real Athletes” by Outside magazine and Outside Television. He has also started four companies, including dwinQ, a social media platform and operating system for events, based out of Cambridge, Mass. Mr. Sweeney has completed a number of extreme adventures, most recently biking the Iditarod Trail Invitational in Alaska in February 2014. He often adventures with his family, for the benefit of charity: in July 2014, he and his children attempted to summit Mt. Blanc in the Alps, the highest peak in the European Union, but made the decision to try again later after taking a slide on the Grand Couloir during the attempt. They are now working on a video to teach children dedication, training and respect for the outdoors, and Mr. Sweeney is beginning production on a nationwide family adventure television series that will air next year.