Class Notes

Deborah Sheetenhelm Hammond (Arch ’82 CM) has released her 26th novel, The Very Thought of You. It follows the cases of FBI Agent John McIver, who is pulled from his customary undercover work to oversee the stalking investigation of a famous actress, Charlotte Meadows. Chased across two continents, the stalker seeks to overturn Charlotte’s life and end John’s. This novel and Hammond’s other titles are available on Amazon.com in both Kindle and paperback versions and at local book signing events. 

Lindsey Wray (Col ’03) released a debut musical album in December 2022 as part of The Flip Phones band. Titled Better in the Dark, the album features quirky lyrics and catchy melodies that explore themes of light vs. darkness and humans vs. nature. The Flip Phones’ sound lies at the intersection of indie, rock, and folk music. Lindsey (keyboard, melodica, flute, vocals) collaborated with her bandmate and husband, Ryan Kobb (guitar, vocals), to create the unique album, which includes the singles “Man-Made Moon” and “Fly Back to You.” 

Jacob Hiram “Jake” Yost IV (Col ’10) founded PT Rehab Doc after graduating from UVA and, later, Virginia Commonwealth University at the Medical College of Virginia as a doctor of physical therapy. Jake’s company offers rehab videos for specific issues like knee pain, back pain, shoulder pain, total knee replacements, or even just a rough stay at the hospital.

The goal is to improve the quality of today’s physical therapy while at the same time helping to solve the problem of affordable healthcare for all people.

Ed Ehler (Educ ’68) marked the 55th anniversary of the 1968 men’s gymnastics team, which defeated Virginia Tech at Tech. Ehler, a former captain of the West Virginia University team, coached the UVA squad at the invitation of faculty member Edward Ratliff “Butch” Slaughter, while pursuing his master’s degree in education.

Donald Delson (Law ’80 CM) serves as president of the board of trustees of Chester Charter Scholars Academy, a 700-student K-12 charter school in Chester, Pennsylvania entering its second decade. Delson is also a developer of 110 Park Avenue, a 30-unit upscale condominium project in downtown Swarthmore, Pennsylvania. He and his wife, Cordelia, will be married 50 years in June 2023.

David Susman (Col ’81 CM) has been named executive advisor for clinical services in the Department for Behavioral Health, Developmental and Intellectual Disabilities, Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services. Susman, a licensed clinical psychologist, is a former president of the Kentucky Psychological Association and a current member of the American Psychological Association (APA) Board of Directors and 2023 chair of the APA Council of Representatives Leadership Team. 

Mark Angle-Hobson (Educ ’98, ’02) has been appointed to serve on the board of directors of the Resolve Center in Medford, OR. Resolve seeks to transform the way the people and communities of Southern Oregon manage and resolve conflict and repair from harm.

Mark has also been invited to join the Region 16 Comprehensive Center (R16CC) Community of Stewards. A “network of networks,” R16CC seeks to improve the quality and equity of education for students in Oregon, Washington, and Alaska. 

Carin M. Smilk (Col ’89 CM) became editor of the Baltimore Jewish Times in September 2022. She has worked as a journalist for nearly 30 years, most recently for the Jerusalem-based online news site JNS.org. She lives outside Philadelphia with her husband and four sons. 

Dr. Andrew G. Lee (Col ’85, Med ’89 CM) has published his 12th textbook, Space Flight Associated Neuro-ocular Syndrome (SANS). The condition, known as SANS, is unique to long duration space flight. There is no known terrestrial equivalent.

Dr. Lee has worked as a consultant for NASA on SANS, but he has no intention of leaving Earth for the planned manned mission to Mars. Nevertheless, he remains committed to continued terrestrial research on the mysteries of SANS.

Lynlee W. Palmer (Col ’98 CM) has joined Jackson Lewis P.C., where she will serve in the litigation group for the Birmingham, Alabama office. The firm specializes in national labor and employment law. 

Lynlee brings a depth of experience representing both public and private employers. She has represented clients before the Department of Labor, the National Labor Relations Board and more. 

Karen Jones (Educ ’73 CM) has published her fifth book, The Summer of Grace. The southern coming-of-age novel, set in 1951 North Carolina, tells the story of a young girl’s transformation from victim to survivor through humor, hard truths and grace. 

Jones is an author, award-winning broadcast journalist and freelance writer. Her other works, both fiction and non fiction include Up the Bestseller Lists! A Hands-On Guide to Successful Book Promotion, Death for Beginners and The Highland Witch.

Jones lives in Virginia Beach and can be reached through her website, kjwriter.com

W. Lee Jones (Arch ’82) has been awarded the AIA Charlotte Citizen Architect Award by the Charlotte American Institute of Architects. The award recognizes the work of architects who serve as elected or appointed officials, public administrators or institutional leaders and establish and contribute to the development of laws, regulations, policies, or initiatives that promote excellence in architecture. Jones serves as park and recreation director for Mecklenburg County, N.C.

In addition, the county’s Park and Recreation Department received the Great Public Space Award for Romare Bearden Park at the City of Charlotte’s Urban Design Awards. The goal of the local awards program is to recognize and celebrate quality urban design in Charlotte, while encouraging continued community discussion around what makes for unique and great places.  This is the second year in a row that the department has received an award from the organization. Last year, the department received the Merritt -New Construction Award for the Eastway Regional Recreation Center.

Steve Collins (Col ’83) has been named Journalist of the Year by the Maine Press Association. He is the state house reporter for the Sun Journal, in Lewiston, Maine, and a co-founder of Youth Journalism International, a Maine-based nonprofit that teaches and publishes students around the world.

Judith Baroody (Grad ’85 CM) published her second book of short stories, Paris Gold: Ten Tales of Treasures Lost and Found in 2022. Like the first, Casablanca Blue, Paris Blue is a collection of fiction and fantasy based on her experiences and travel. Judith has worked as a foreign service officer, professor and journalist. She is also the author of the non-fiction Media Access and the Military.

Dr. Kern Jackson (Col ’87 CM) was delighted to return to UVA and be recognized by the Virginia Film Festival for the screening of Descendant on Nov 5. Descendant was awarded the Special Jury Award: Creative Vision in the U.S. Documentary Competition during the Sundance Film Festival. Netflix has acquired the documentary, co-presenting the film with former President and First Lady Michelle and Barack Obama’s media company Higher Ground. In addition, the vision, support and partnership of Participant Media continues to inspire the visibility of storytelling. Co-writing and serving as co-producer for this film elevates the visibility of a collection of Jackson’s archived oral histories and interviews with informants – an accomplishment and sacred honor. As a folklorist, Jackson’s preoccupation is with the nuances, the nooks and crannies of culture, as inspiration for honoring the ancestors and the people of Africatown, U.S.A., in Mobile, Alabama.

Robert F. Graboyes (Col ’76 CM) is now owner and president of RFG Counterpoint, LLC in Alexandria, Virginia. Through his firm, he does economic consulting, journalism, and music production. He publishes BASTIAT’S WINDOW, a Substack journal devoted to economics, ethics, health, technology, and culture. He is also a FAIR in Medicine Fellow (where FAIR = Foundation Against Racism and Intolerance). His musical performances and compositions are on his YouTube channel.

Paul W. Hobby (Col ’82 CM), founding partner of Genesis Park and GP Capital, has been inducted into the Texas Business Hall of Fame Foundation. The foundation honors the accomplishments and contributions of outstanding business leaders by celebrating and telling their stories.

John Guerard, (Grad ’76 CM) has published two books: The Leading Economic Indicators and Business Cycles in the United States: 100 Years of Empirical Evidence and the Opportunities for the Future (Palgrave Macmillan, 2022), and the third edition of Quantitative Corporate Finance (Springer, 2022). Guerard, who taught at the McIntire School of Commerce from 1979 to 1981, has retired after 15 years as director of quantitative research at McKinley Capital Management in Anchorage, Alaska. He and his wife, Julie, have settled in Bluffton, South Carolina. 

Brian Stengel (Col ’89 CM), competed in the 2022 Mongol Derby, a 10-day 1,000-kilometer endurance race across Mongolia on native feral horses.  

Dwight Sullivan (Law ’86) has written Capturing Aguinaldo: The Daring Raid to Seize the Philippine President at the Dawn of the American Century, published by Stackpole Books.  Capturing Aguinaldo tells the story of five U.S. Army officers who disguised themselves as POWs.  Their “captors” were actually Filipino soldiers loyal to the United States.  Following a grueling 90-mile forced march, the ruse allowed them to infiltrate the enemy headquarters, helping to bring the Philippine-American War to an end.

Howard Turner (Engr ’97) was named North American Director of Energy Preconstruction Services for Trane Technologies. Turner and his team are responsible for conceiving, designing and ensuring the constructability of projects that enable clients to achieve their decarbonization and sustainability goals.

Mary Beth Paradise (Educ ’93) has published Beach Santa, a children’s picture book which explores what Santa does on the day after Christmas. Paradise is donating 25% of the profits to Team LeGrand, which supports spinal cord injury research and quality-of-life initiatives. Out now at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BJ4RNHY8.

Craig W. Sampson (Col ’90, Law ’93 CM) has been named president of Barnes & Diehl, P.C. in Richmond, Virginia. Sampson serves on the board of governors for the Family Law Section of the Virginia State Bar and is a coauthor of Family Law: Theory, Practice, and Forms, a volume in the Virginia Practice Series that is published annually by Thomson Reuters. Sampson is the son of Thomas W. Sampson (Col ’64) and parent of Sabrina Sampson (Col ’21 CM).

Kimberly Kenna (Col ’79) has an upcoming debut middle-grade novel, Artemis Sparke and the Sound Seekers Brigade, which will be published on Feb. 2, 2023, by Fitzroy Books. The book follows a group of underdogs who conjure up the ghosts of historic ecologists to help save a Long Island Sound salt marsh and appease Mother Nature. The second book in the Brave Girls Collection, Jett Jamison and the Secret Storm, will be published on Aug. 3, 2023, by Black Rose. Kenna’s poems and short stories have been published in American Writers Review, Mused, Plum Tree Tavern and Rubbertop Review.

J. Kevin Moore (Col ’83 CM) has been named to the 2022 Northern California Super Lawyers list for construction litigation. He is an attorney at Bold, Polisner, Maddow, Nelson & Judson in Walnut Creek, California.

Madeleine McDonald (Col ’17 CM) was married to Anthony Fontana in 2021 and graduated from Mercer University’s Physician Assistant Program in 2022, receiving the faculty’s distinguished student award among other academic honors. Madeleine and Anthony live in Atlanta, Georgia, where she is employed as a physician assistant in an internal medicine practice.

Travis McDonald (Arch ’80 CM) received the UVA School of Architecture’s Distinguished Alumni Award for 2021. The award recognizes exceptional graduates from the School of Architecture who have demonstrated creativity, innovation, leadership and vision in their body of work, as well as in their service to UVA. McDonald has directed the restoration of Thomas Jefferson’s retirement retreat Poplar Forest since 1989. McDonald has also served on the Historic Preservation Advisory Committee for the University since 2007, and his book on Jefferson and Poplar Forest will be published by the UVA Press in the spring of 2023.

After over two years on dialysis, Scott Lancaster (Col ’88 CM) has been admitted to the Kidney Transplant Program at Duke Health in Durham, North Carolina.

Scott experienced kidney failure in 2020, with no warning and none of the usual risk factors.  Finding a living organ donor is his best option for having a second chance at life.

Scott requests that anyone who is interested or who knows someone interested in being a donor – or simply in learning more about transplantation – contact him at jscottlancaster@verizon.net or at (336) 653-8923. Potential donors can also contact the Duke living donor team at (919) 613-7777 to find out specific information and whether they would be a medically compatible donor. Provide the team with Scott’s name (Joseph Scott Lancaster) and his birth date (10/29/1965).

Scott understands that many people who read this may not be comfortable with the idea of being a donor but hopes they will spread the word about how living donation can save his life and the lives of many others.

Scott works as an actuary in Richmond, Virginia, and has no family of his own. He would like to thank everyone for taking time to read his story.

Bill Campbell (Engr ’60, ’66 CM) of Williamsburg, Virginia, was inducted into the James Blair Society of the College of William and Mary on Feb. 12, 2022. The James Blair Society is an organization that consists of those who have contributed at least $1 million to the College of William and Mary. The funds will be used to establish a scholarship in his name for students who are residents of Virginia and whose major is physics.

Thomas W. Taylor (Educ ’06, ’09 CM) was appointed superintendent of Stafford County Public Schools on Dec. 1, 2021, serving approximately 30,000 students and 4,000 employees.

Ali Shaw (Col ’12 CM) married FortHouse Studios illustrator Joe Rosshirt on Aug. 13, 2022 at The Towers in Narragansett, Rhode Island. The ceremony was officiated by Jane Carrick (Col ’12 CM), with many ’Hoos in attendance. The couple lives in South Portland, Maine, with their Lab mix Astro.

Paul W. Hobby (Col ’82 CM), founding partner of Genesis Park and GP Capital, is one of six 2022 inductees to the Texas Business Hall of Fame. He will be honored along with his fellow inductees at the Texas Business Hall of Fame Foundation’s 40th anniversary induction dinner on Thursday, Nov. 3. Inductees are recognized as exemplary business leaders who have made significant contributions in their local communities through both philanthropic and civic engagement.

Mayme Beth F. Donohue (Col ’07 CM) has been promoted to counsel at Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP. A member of the firm’s corporate team, Donohue counsels clients on securities law matters, capital markets transactions, mergers and acquisitions, and corporate governance issues. She regularly answers complex securities law questions for both public and private companies and advises clients on reporting requirements under U.S. securities laws and Nasdaq and NYSE rules. She is also a leader of Hunton Andrews Kurth’s metaverse and blockchain working groups, and is associate editor of the firm’s Blockchain Legal Resource blog.

Angelo Antidormi (Col ’99 CM) has been promoted to director of acquisitions by The Procopio Companies, a fourth-generation, full-service real estate development and construction management firm. In his new role, he will lead the acquisitions team through the acquisitions, entitlement, and design phases, building and maintaining Procopio’s portfolio pipeline as the firm targets continued expansion.

Joseph W. Brown (Col ’65 CM), Of Counsel, Jolley Urga Woodbury & Holthus Attorneys at Law, received the 2022 Lifetime Achievement Award from Nellis-Creech Air Force Base. The award honors Brown’s 32-plus years of remarkable support to Nellis and Creech. This is the first time the award has been presented by the Nellis Support Team.

Brown has been a valued and treasured member of the Nellis Air Force Base, Creech Air Force Base and Las Vegas communities for many years. He is a former U.S. Marine, one of the founders and former chair of the Nevada Military Support Alliance and a former honorary commander and vice commander of the Nellis Support Group to the Commander of the Air Combat Command, and, until recently, had been honorary commander for the 526th Intelligence Squadron at Nellis Air Force Base.

Brown also received the National Guard Association of the United States Patrick Henry Award, which provides recognition to officials and civic leaders who, in a position of great responsibility, distinguished themselves with outstanding and exceptional service to the Armed Forces of the United States and the National Guard.

Stephen B. Dobranski (Col ’88) recently published his tenth book, Reading John Milton: How to Persist in Troubled Times (Stanford University Press). He is Distinguished University Professor at Georgia State University, and editor of the academic journal Milton Studies.