Why is the alumni participation important?  The alumni participation rate serves as one benchmark for measuring the strength of West Virginia Wesleyan College.  Foundations and corporations refer to this rate when reviewing grant applications.  They often adopt a stance of helping those institutions that are well supported by those that know them best, their alumni.  College guides, such as U.S. News and World Reports Best Colleges, use the participation rate as a measure of alumni confidence.  They rank highly an institution that has alumni who have faith that their alma mater adheres to its goals and mission.  The chief indicator of this faith is the school’s percentage of alumni who are financial contributors.

Class Notes: April 2006
E-mail your Class Notes to alumni@wvwc.edu

1954   FRED L. STANDLEY, Tallahassee, FL, has been appointed to the editorial board of "The Journal of Florida Literature" sponsored by the University of Central Florida in Orlando.

1964   LAURIE CHRISTIAN PERKINS, Needham, MA, has had her story entitled "Stretching My Prayer Muscle" published in the book "A Cup of Comfort for Christians:  Inspirational Stories of Faith."

1968   KEITH W. FRUEHAN, Germany, has retired from the U.S. Army as Lieutenant Colonel, and is currently Education Services Officer for Friedberg and Giessen Army Education offices in Germany.  His wife, KAREN WILKINSON FRUEHAN, retired in 2004 from the Texas public school system after 30 years in the teaching and administration field.  The Fruehans are currently living in Germany and will remain there for five years, but they travel regularly to the United States to visit their children and grandchildren.

1973   KATHLENE SNAVELY COOPER, Lakeland, FL, retired from teaching elementary art and acquired a ceramic and art studio.  Kathie recently received several blue ribbons for her art work at a ceramic convention in Orlando.  One original sculpture of an "African Guardian Angel" received high honors, and she was recently commissioned to do a large painting for an estate and a book jacket for a soon-to-be published novel.

1981   DAVID J. HENZLER, Ephrata, PA, recently returned from Nigeria where he accompanied an international team of veterinarians, epidemiologists, human physicians and other health professionals to work on the control of the Eurasian strain of high pathogenicity avian influenza subtype H5N1.  He has accepted a position with the Public Health Veterinarian/Epidemiologist III with the West Virginia Department of Health.

1993   CHRISTA HULS BECK, Natrona Heights, PA, has been named as Maestro Producer by Kindermusik International, the world’s leading publisher of music and movement programs.  She is an early childhood specialist and teaches Kindermusik to infants, toddlers and preschoolers at First United Presbyterian Church in Tarentum, PA.  Christa’s husband, PHILIP A. BECK ’91, is senior pastor at First United Presbyterian Church and recently returned from a mission trip to the Gulf Coast to help Hurricane Katrina victims clean up and rebuild.

1994   KATHRYN SHOUP GRIFFITH, Carlisle, PA, recently accepted the position of training manager for American Education Services Group.  Her new position is involved in producing a national teleconference in collaboration with the Pennsylvania Association for Student Financial Aid Administrators. 

1995   MICHELE MORITA COOPER, Philadelphia, PA, currently holds a position as a senior art director at Paragraph, a part of the Philly Creative Guide, and is the president of the Philadelphia Chapter of AIGA (American Institute of Graphic Arts).  *   JENNIFER KLIXBULL SMITH, Sewickley, PA, and her husband, Kenneth, announce the birth of their daughter, Shawna Erin, on June 10, 2005.

2000   TAMARA ADAMS GAEA, Stockton, CA, and her husband, TIMOTHY (TIM) GAEA ’02, announce the birth of their son, Ryan Charles, on December 21, 2005.  He joins his big brother, Sean, at home. (Right)

2001   KILEY M. WINGFIELD, Buckhannon, WV, is employed as an Economic Service worker for the Upshur County Department of Health and Human Resources.