Alumni Updates

Find classmates by name, major, or year of graduation

Kate Nixon, Journalism, 2005

Submitted: April 1, 2022

Since graduating and spending a life-changing week in New Zealand, Kate Nixon ('05, Journalism) has survived 11 years in broadcast news, working their way up from Humboldt County to Southern Oregon as a newscast director, technical supervisor, and eventually accomplished producing a 3-part series about school teachers and the costume department at the world-renowned Oregon Shakespeare Festival. After a few years back in their native San Francisco Bay Area where they served as an apprenticeship manager, they finally moved cross country to live in Asheville, NC, where they now run a national conference on the historic Arts & Crafts Movement.  

Cindy Purnell Frakes, Biological Sciences, 1981

Submitted: March 23, 2022

After 33 years in the high-tech industry, Cindy Purnell Frakes retired from her most recent position of 13 years as Senior Director, Information Development at Oracle. Her career journey prior to that included stints at Borland, PeopleSoft, Computer Associates, and the Paradigm Group. She's now happily retired, living in Ferndale, WA, and has picked up her binoculars to pursue bird #485 and beyond to add to her life list.

Mary Christine Rohn Hartman (Cris), Natural Resources, 1979

Submitted: March 23, 2022

Cris Rohn Hartman (1979) lives in northern California.  She worked as a law enforcement ranger for 30 years after initially working for a private consultant in range/wilderness impact issues directly after graduation. She is still using her college degree while working as an Expedition Leader for a travel company who markets to alumni associations, leading tours and teaching guests about natural and cultural resources and the history of the areas she travels to. She says it is the perfect retirement job.

Lester B Garrison, Chemistry, 1978

Submitted: March 23, 2022

After a most successful career in Clinical Chemistry and developing tests for inborn errors of metabolism in newborn infants, Lester Garrison (Chemistry, '78), has retired. His training in Chemical Oceanography was a good basis for his subsequent work in clinical chemistry. Driven by a passion for applying enzymology to solving clinical chemistry diagnostic issues, he was most pleased to develop a method to diagnose Galactosemia by measuring the lack of activity of the enzyme Galactose 1 Phosphate Uridyltransferase. This changed the accuracy of the previous galactosemia test from 60-70% reliable to 99%+ reliable, a great step forward in screening.

Sanford "Sandy" Wilbur, Wildlife, 1963

Submitted: March 23, 2022

Sanford "Sandy" Wilbur, columnist for "The Lumberjack" 1960-1962, is at work on a new novel, tentatively titled "Vic and Greg: a Wildlife Refuge Romance." Sample chapters are at:  http://www.writing-it-down.com/vic-and-greg/

Sandy's essay "Losing Lumberjack Football" includes some early history of race relations that Humboldters may not know about:
http://www.writing-it-down.com/Society/losing-lumberjack-football.html

Cindy Purnell Frakes, Biological Sciences, 1981

Submitted: March 19, 2022

After 33 years in the high-tech industry, Cindy Purnell Frakes ('81, Biology) retired from her most recent position of 13 years as Senior Director, Information Development at Oracle. Her career journey prior to that included stints at Borland, PeopleSoft, Computer Associates, and the Paradigm Group. She's now happily retired, living in Ferndale, WA, and has picked up her binoculars to pursue bird #485 and beyond to add to her life list.

Mary Christine Rohn Hartman (Cris), Natural Resources, 1979

Submitted: March 19, 2022

Cris Rohn Hartman (Natural Resources, '79) lives in northern California. She worked as a law enforcement ranger for 30 years after initially working for a private consultant in range/wilderness impact issues directly after graduation. She is still using her college degree while working as an Expedition Leader for a travel company that markets to alumni associations, leading tours and teaching guests about natural and cultural resources and the history of the areas she travels to. She says it is the perfect retirement job.

Pamela Schwartz, Art, 1994

Submitted: March 16, 2022

Pamela Schwartz recently started a business working freelance as a presentation design specialist at www.butterflypam.com. A Powerpoint design pro, Schwartz specializes in helping business present a professional presentation. Schwartz also still paints and has a thriving art career.

Sanford "Sandy" Wilbur, Wildlife, 1963

Submitted: March 9, 2022

Sanford "Sandy" Wilbur, columnist for "The Lumberjack" 1960-1962, is at work on a new novel, tentatively titled "Vic and Greg: a Wildlife Refuge Romance." Sample chapters are at: http://www.writing-it-down.com/vic-and-greg/

Sandy's essay "Losing Lumberjack Football" includes some early history of race relations that Humboldters may not know about:
http://www.writing-it-down.com/Society/losing-lumberjack-football.html

Barbara Scaroni, Forestry & Wildland Resources, 1978

Submitted: March 5, 2022

Barbara Scaroni has managed to stay a dirt forester over the many years. Scaroni is still out marking and cruising timber, administering timber sales, running property lines, and writing environmental assessments, timber sale contracts, and researching the land use history of my timber sale areas. During college, Scaroni worked summers for the BLM in Ukiah, CA; Missoula, MT; Rawlins, WY; and Susanville, CA. Scaroni worked USFS in Cave Junction, OR, and Willows CA. Scaroni had permanent jobs after graduation with the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs 1980-1990; Malheur National Forest, Burns, OR, 1990-1993; Coeur d'Alene Tribe, 1993-present.

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