October 2020

It's All About Community Connection

Out of Viterbo University's five core Franciscan values, service stands out as the way our graduates connect with their communities and the wider world. So many Viterbo alumni are out there going above and beyond for the common good. In this edition of the alumni newsletter, we highlight just a few of them.

Living to Make an Impact

A 30-year-old Jamaican-born single mother from Canada comes to Viterbo University in the late 1970s to study medical records administration and goes on to become CEO of an organization responsible for allocating $4.2 billion annually. More than that, she became a major force driving the ethics, equity, and quality of care agendas in Canada. How does something like that happen? For Camille Orridge '80, it all started with a dinner invitation.

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Volunteer Year a Worthy Path

When Jed Barton ’17 came to Viterbo University, he planned to go on to medical school. During his time at Viterbo, though, he realized medical school was not for him, but he wasn’t sure how to discern his true path. So he did something he hopes a lot more college graduates will do. He committed to a volunteer year, and that led to a full-time job as clinic manager at the homeless respite center at which he volunteered in Washington, D.C.

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Service Is Food for the Soul

Meredith (Zondag) Hink ’01 grew up convinced of the importance of giving back to the community and helping those less fortunate. So when it came time to pursue her dream of becoming a dietitian, Viterbo University felt like home. “There always was an encouragement to give back, whether it was distributing bread to neighbors or working at Place of Grace,” she says.

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Putting Service Before Self

Last spring, when the COVID-19 pandemic was raging in New York City, Brenna Grotegut '19 signed up for a stint as a traveling nurse in Manhattan, even knowing she might not have a job upon return. At the last minute, she was rerouted to Detroit, where cases were spiking. “It’s going to be the worst thing I ever see, but the best thing I ever do,” she said days before leaving. She shared her first-person account of her experiences with us.

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Class of 1970 Members Reminisce During Viterbo Days Alumni Event

There’s something poetic about the Viterbo University Class of 1970 being the first group of Viterbo graduates to conduct a 50-year reunion in cyberspace. After all, the women who graduated half a century ago saw a number of Viterbo firsts while they were on campus, including being the first class to have a yearbook (find a link to that yearbook in the story).

Viterbo Days also featured a Distinguished Alumni Awards ceremony that drew 127 participants, a virtual Class of 1965 reunion, and featured on-demand virtual events including tours of the campus and Mary of the Angels Chapel, a choir concert, a behind-the-scenes theatre video, and an alumni Mass. All the on-demand events and recordings of the awards ceremony and reunions can be found on the Viterbo Days event page.

READ MORE ABOUT THE CLASS OF 1970

Alumni Book Club Selection Digs into Race and Social Justice

The Alumni Book Club will discuss How To Be An Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi in a Zoom session starting at 6 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 19. David Saunders-Scott, an associate professor of psychology at Viterbo, will serve as moderator. Saunders-Scott co-chairs a Viterbo working group to address equity and social justice issues on campus formed shortly after the killing of George Floyd.

Join Sister Laura for First Thursday

Laura Nettles, FSPA, Viterbo’s 2019 Teacher of the Year, will be the special guest for the Nov. 5 First Thursday virtual alumni social, leading a discussion about civility in a post-civil world. With the divisive election cycle coming to a close, Sr. Laura will reflect on civility and kindness in the Franciscan tradition. Please register for the event, which starts at 5:30 p.m. on Zoom.

Behind the Music: Get to Know Viterbo's Tuneful Teachers

This fall, music faculty members will be in the spotlight in a series of talks called My Career: For Better or Worse. Teachers will give talks live in the Fine Arts Center's Nola Starling Recital Hall for on-campus students, with alumni and friends able to join in on Zoom. The Friday afternoon talks all start at 12:20 p.m. Here's the schedule:

►Oct. 30: Visiting Professor Ronnie Bell
►Nov. 6: Professor Emeritus Dan Johnson-Wilmot and coach/accompanist Judy Stafslien
►Nov. 13: Professor Mary Ellen Haupert
►Nov. 20: Professor Brett Robison
►Dec. 4: Professor Ann Schoenecker

Viterbo in the News

Our Viterbo in the News page is packed with media reports on alumni and happenings at the university. Email Randy Erickson if you have a media report about an alum you'd like to add.

UPCOMING EVENTS

All events will be virtual, taking place through online platforms. Check the calendar on the alumni home page for registration information and more details.

Nov. 5: First Thursday
Nov. 12: Alumni board meeting
Nov. 17: Speed Mock with a Virtual V-Hawk
Nov. 19: Alumni Virtual Book Club discussion of How To Be an Antiracist

Remembering Our Loved Ones

There is still time to have loved ones who have passed on to be included among the prayer request for Viterbo's annual November Remembrance. October 31 is the deadline for submitting prayer requests, which can be done through the November Remembrance webpage.

Trim Taxes with an IRA Rollover Charitable Gift

While Viterbo's mission takes many forms, at the core is our desire to serve others and make this world a better place. Many people are discovering they can make a big difference to help further our mission with an IRA charitable rollover gift. Consider designating Viterbo as a beneficiary of your IRA.

An IRA charitable rollover provides several benefits. It allows you to transfer up to $100,000 from your IRA directly to a nonprofit this year. You pay no taxes on the transfer and your gift counts dollar-for-dollar to support our mission.

Call your IRA administrator now for more information on how to make the IRA rollover work for you. You also can email Eric Schmidt, director of major and planned gifts, or call him at 608-796-3078.

Share Your Stories with Us

Do you have a story to tell about your life since graduating from Viterbo or perspectives on how your time here shaped your life and set your course?

We have a dedicated email account just for such stories, and we'd love to hear from you.

KEEPING UP: The Viterbo University alumni email newsletter is published eight times per year. To keep up on the latest news, visit websites for Viterbo alumni, Fine Arts Center, and V-Hawks athletics.

Make Your Annual Gift

GETTING IN TOUCH
Kathy Duerwachter '10

Director, alumni engagement
608-796-3072
kaduerwachter@viterbo.edu

Alumni Update Submissions

www.viterbo.edu/alumni