Sigma Kappa - University of Kansas

h h h Sigma kappa Alumnae Update Linda Hammer‑Brown '68, of Fresno, Calif., teaches deaf and hard‑of‑hearing children in kindergarten to third grade during the school year and, during the summer, she performs with the Merced Shakespeare Fest. She is a distance runner and competes in races ranging from two miles to full marathons. E-mail: davehb@aol.com 1970s _________________________________________________ Loretta Mahanna Goracke '71 and her husband, Jim, live 45 miles south of Lincoln, Neb., where she belongs to the Lincoln Sigma Kappa Alumnae Association. Their daughter, Laura, graduated from Creighton University in December 2012 with a doctorate in occupational therapy. Laura married Zachary Anderson, J.D. (also from Creighton) in October 2012 and they live in Carson City, Nev. E-mail: jg54952@windstream.net Karen Hunt Exon, Ph.D. '72 retired from teaching at Baker University in 2010 after 21 years as a professor of history and political science. She continues to coach men's and women's golf at Baker. In her spare time, Karen golfs, reads, enjoys time with her grandchildren, and competes in ultramarathons (100 miles) and kayak‑canoe marathons. In May 2012, Karen finished second in women's solo at the 72‑mile South Dakota Kayak Challenge on the upper Missouri River. She and her husband, Robert, live in Topeka, Kan., and have three children: Michael, Jamie, and Heather. E-mail: karen.exon@bakeru.edu Candy Niemann Wolken '87 lives in the same neighborhood in Overland Park, Kan., that she grew up in. Candice works as a digital marketing and advertising manager for Sprint. Her husband, Charles, works for the Department of Defense and is in the Army Reserves. Candice and Charles have two daughters, Cora and Clarissa. E-mail: candice.wolken@gmail.com Dawn Pickett '89 and her husband, Michael, live in Australia with their two children, Collin and Kierstin. Her husband's company transferred the family in January of 2012 and they will be back in the U.S. in January 2014. E‑mail: mehorn@sbcglobal.net 1990s _________________________________________________ Tracy Bridges Smikahl '93 and her husband, Jeff, reside in Olathe, Kan., and are in the process of adopting their second daughter from China. Her website is: www.twoandahighchair.blogspot.com. E-mail: tsmikahl@yahoo.com 2000s _________________________________________________ Jillian Woodford Wasson '03 married Jonathan Wasson on September 12, 2012. They live in Lenexa, Kan. Jillian is finishing her Ph.D. in counseling psychology at UMKC and teaching Introduction to Theory and Psych: Personality. E-mail: jillianwwasson@me.com Cindy Brunker McClannahan '75 is the chairman of estate planning, business succession planning, and probate and trust groups at Seigfreid Bingham P.C. Cindy and her husband, John, have three children: Susie, Brian, and David, and live in Prairie Village, Kan. E‑mail: cindy@mcclannahan.com Traci Mcmaster '05 and her fiancé, Case Keefer, will be married in Las Vegas in January 2014. Traci is a co‑owner, designer, and planner at Scheme Events, a wedding and event planning company that has been operating since 2010. She lives in Henderson, Nev. E-mail: traci. mcmaster@gmail.com Karin Hampton Cernik '78 left Boeing after 23 years in IT and began a new career as a school psychologist. Her daughter, Erin, is a junior at Concordia University focusing on middle school education and her son, Kelly, is a junior in high school. Karin and her husband, Dennis, live in Wichita, Kan. Alicia Schwindt '05 is earning her MSW degree and entering her clinical practicum at Children's Mercy Hospital. She lives in Topeka, Kan., and married Robert Vincent on September 14. E-mail: alicia. schwindt@gmail.com 1980s _________________________________________________ Shaleen Bayless Link '83 and her husband, Scott, sold their business and retired in December of 2012. Their son, Clay, is a junior at the University of Alabama studying medicine and playing ice hockey. Their youngest son just graduated from high school and will attend a local community college while he decides on a major. Shalen and Scott celebrated their 24th wedding anniversary in September. They live in Grover, Mo. Deborah Slack Harris '85 began in June as a hospice chaplain for Passages Hospice of Illinois. Debbie is also an on‑call chaplain for Carle Foundation Hospital in Urbana, Ill. She lives in Champaign, Ill., with her sons, Nate and Josh, and her two dogs, Violet and Scrappy. E-mail: revdeb95@att.com Dana Aks '06 graduated from New England Law in Boston in 2013 and took the Massachusetts bar examination in July 2013. She is engaged to Mike Fahey, a fellow KU alumnus and member of Theta Chi Fraternity. The couple met doing Rock Chalk Revue in 2012 and plan to marry in Kansas City on September 13, 2014. Dana lives in Boston, Mass. Nicole Jenks '08 will graduate from the College of Mt. St. Joseph with her doctorate in physcial therapy in May 2016. She lives in Belleville, Ill. E-mail: nicole.jenks@live.com Marissa Rittof '08 is in law school at the University of Kansas and will graduate in May 2015. She lives in Quincy, Ill. E-mail: mrittof3@ ku.edu Page 5

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