#MemberMonday

Scott Lambdin '88
Cherryvale, Kansas

Scott is the principal of Cherryvale Middle-High School. His favorite K-State Memory?

"My favorite memory of K -State would have to be living in a house about 20 paces from the Dark Horse beer garden in Aggieville. I spent a lot of time at the Dark Horse!!"

Dr. Steven Mosier '64, '66
Hays, Kansas

Dr. Mosier received a distinguihshed service award from the Kansas Veterinary Medial Association. His favorite K-State tradition is doing the Wabash CannonBall at K-State athletic events. 

Dena Bunnel '10
Manhattan, Kansas

Dena is the program coordinator of the Feed the Future Innovation Lab for the Reduction of Post-Harvest Loss at K-State. Dena's favorite member benefit? "My favorite member benefit is the K-State calendar. When it comes every year, it's a little snapshot (literally, 12 of them) of all that is K-State - campus, traditions, people and, of course, purple."

Jesse McCurry '00, '02
Colwich, Kansas

Jesse is the executive director of Kansas Grain Sorghum. When asked to describe his K-State experience in five words, he chose: Limestone. Tradition. Open House. AGR. 

Clara Kientz '14, '16
Wamego, Kansas

Clara is the assistant director of K-State’s Center for Advocacy, Response and Education, or CARE. She described her K-State experience in these five words: Wildcat. Wabash. Family. Tradition. Home. 

Raynard Kearby '74
Ovilla, Texas

Raynard is the owner and founder of Corinthian Professional Services, LLC. He had this story to share about his time at K-State:
"My favorite memories at K-State are of spending a significant amount of time in our design studios within Seaton Hall. Architecture students were assigned numerous projects that required around-the-clock work in our studio. Many of us built workspaces that included a space to sleep or catch a nap. We even went so far as to build "bunks." My space included a loft above my work drawing surface. The wood was from the old football stadium which was being used for special events and intramural sports, if I recall correctly. The mostly abandoned wood bleachers were excellent for building our studio spaces so we would acquire the wood bleachers and bring them into our Seaton Hall studio to be repurposed.   

Throughout my career as a corporate and university architect, I often am reminded of those days in the studio at K-State working through many nights. Working until the project or assignment is done to make a deadline is a norm in our business. Studying architecture at K-State prepared me very well for this career choice! After all, architects don't need eight hours of continuous sleep anyway..."

Sierra Meusburger Scott '86
Wichita, Kansas

Sierra is a TV anchor and host of Positively Kansas! on KPTS-TV Ch. 8. Her favorite K-State tradition? "I played in the K-State marching band, and it always gave me chills when we played “Wabash Cannonball.” I remember every note and can still play it on my flute to this very day.  I loved the roar of the crowd, the feel of the field beneath my feet and the echo of each note as it bounced off our beautiful football stadium. Every time I go back for a K-State football game now, hearing that song sends my energy level through the roof and I can barely contain myself! I cannot hear it without thinking of all my wonderful experiences at K-State!" 

Trissa McCabe '95
Buhler, Kansas

Trissa received the Presidential Award of Excellence in Math and Science Teaching. When asked about her favorite K-State tradition, Triisa said, "Sharing the tradition of K-State football with our two boys has been and always will be a favorite for our family. Go 'Cats!"

Dr. Howard Erickson '59
Manhattan, Kansas

Dr. Howard Erickson received the Kansas Veterinary Medical Association Lifetime Award. His favorite K-State memory is going to basketball games in Ahearn, and his favorite K-State Alumni Association member benefit is the K-Stater magazine.

Jennifer Sturges '74, '77
Salina, Kansas

Jennifer was honored by the Smoky Valley Chapter of the Kansas Society of Professional Engineers as their 2015-16 Outstanding Citizen of the Year. Later, she was awarded their state organization’s 2015-16 Outstanding Citizen. Her favorite K-State tradition? "My favorite K-State tradition is tailgating before home football games.  Our friends and family know  we will be there every game.....rain or shine!" 

Tyler Sharp '12
Atlanta, Georgia

Tyler is a senior marketing research analyst at Cox Media Group. His favorite memory from his time at K-State is, "Celebrating the Sweet 16 win over Xavier in 2010 at the Delta Upsilon house and in Aggieville. I've never seen Manhattan quite like I did that night."

James Latham '69
Arlington, Texas

James is retired from the U.S. Air Force after 28 years as a Brigadier General. He worked for Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company as the director for international business development in Fort Worth, Texas, retiring in 2014 after 16 years. He recently was recognized as a Kansan of the Year by Native Sons and Daughters of Kansas.

James shared this memory from his time at K-State: "During spring break 1968, four of my Sig Ep fraternity bothers and I took a canoe trip down the Kansas Rive. On the third day my canoe hit something under the water and I bailed out to keep it from overturning. My hip wadders quickly filled up with water and I could not get them off. I was going under but managed to grab onto the handle of a discarded refrigerator on the river bank and hold on until my buddies paddled back to fish me out. The current was strong and the water was very cold. I remember the incident as if it was yesterday."

Debbie Kirchhoff '86
Olathe, Kansas

Debbie is the executive director of strategic initiatives at K-State Olathe. She described her favorite K-State memory: "My favorite memory of K-State is my freshman year in Moore Hall, 5th floor. I met so many wonderful friends! We would all hang out in the common area every evening after doing homework - we became a very close group supporting each other through college."

Julie Benson '97, '99
Orlando, Florida

Julie is the assistant vice president of regional development and university-wide initiatives at University of Central Florida Foundation. Her favorite memoer of K-State is "Traveling with ten friends in an RV to Tempe, Arizona, to watch our K-State Wildcats beat Syracuse in the Fiesta Bowl on New Year's Eve 1997. "

John Sachse '13
Wamego, Kansas

John is the director of industry relations for the Kansas Beef Council. When asked to describe K-State in five words, he said, "Enlightening. Character-builder. Close-knit. Family. Home." 

Steve Braun '84
Overland Park, Kansas

Steve was recently selected by the Kansas City Business Journal as the CFO of the year. Emplyed by Brandmeyer Enterprises LLC and Cognios Capital LLC. When asked about his favorite K-State tradition, Steve said, "In particular, now that we have kids attending K-State, my wife, Susan Stone Braun '85, and I love spending our fall Saturdays tailgating, attending K-State football games and catching up with all the great K-State alumni."

Mitchell Moss '02
Hoxie, Kansas

Mitchell is a Loan Officer and Vice President with the First State Bank. Mitchell's favorite K-State tradition is: a quality education and preparation for the future. "Myself, along with many of my family members and friends, were very fortunate to receive an education, second to none, from this wonderful university. That education provided the tools necessary to achieve very high goals in our careers and succeed in life. This can especially been seen in all of the outstanding accomplishments from our alumni in their: cities, counties, states and beyond." Go 'Cats!

DeeAnn Turpin '13
Houston, Texas

DeeAnn was awarded a 2016 National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program fellowship. When asked to describe K-State in five words, she said, "A continuous blessing in disguise." 

Todd Nighswonger '86
Joplin, Missouri

Todd  is a media relations specialist at Mercy Hospital. Todd said his favorite K-State tradition is "What's become a nearly annual opportunity to attend bowl games. I've been to the last two."

Jodi Kaus '90
Manhattan, Kansas

Jodi is the director for K-State’s Powercat Financial Counseling. She recently received the K-State excellence in engagement award. Jodi's favorite benefit to K-State alumni is  "...that all K-State alumni have access to the free financial tool at Saltmoney.org/k-state to help answer student loan questions, search for jobs and get helpful advice about finances!"

Cathy Bandyk ’82, ’86, ‘99
Morriston, Florida

Cathy was recently named member of the year for the American Feed Industry Association. When asked to describe her favorite K-State tradition, she said, "The noon Hearts game in the Animal Science department!"

Bruce Frost '70
Wichita, Kansas

Bruce received the Pioneer Award for Outstanding Ag Banker from the Kansas Ag Bankers, a division of the Kansas Bankers Association. Bruce's favorite K-State tradition is family. "Our family has a tradition of being K-Staters. My wife’s father and his brothers attended K-State in the 1930’s. My wife and I were at K-State in the late 1960s,  our daughter attended K-State in the late 1980s and we had our two granddaughters at K-State the last two years until the oldest graduated in May. Of the eight family members, all of us had different majors, showing the diversity of education at K-State." 

David Franz '69, '70
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania

David received the Distinguished Alumnus Award from K-State College of Veterinary Medicine and Veterinary Medical Alumni Association. His favorite memory of K-State is, "It was spring of 1970.  I was in a small animal exam room in Dykstra Veterinary Clinic, a senior across the exam table from Dr. Robert Taussig, my favorite clinician-teacher.  I had just palpated the abdomen of a dog and found nothing abnormal.  Dr. Taussig did the 'same thing' and quickly gave me a presumptive diagnosis.  I said, "Maybe when I'm older and wiser?".  Without changing his expression or moving his hand from the animal, he said, "You will get older Mr. Franz, but it remains to be seen if you will get wiser."  I learned more than just veterinary medicine from him. Thanks Dr. Taussig!"

Stephanie McCallister '14
Early Branch, South Carolina

Stephanie is a career coach at Eckerd Kids in South Carolina. When we asked her abouther favorite K-State tradition, she said, "Definitely Call Hall ice cream! It's absolutely fantastic!"

Mako Miller '04
Kansas City, Missouri

Mako is a postsecondary coach with Kauffman Scholars, Inc. She shared this favorite memory of K-State: "One of my favorite memories at K-State is the K-State vs. Nebraska football in 2000. It was my freshman year and it started snowing during the game. The stadium was packed! K-State pulled off the win 29-28. We rushed the field and made snow angels! My clothes were soaked, but I didn't care. It was so much fun to be around so many K-State students and celebrate a great victory.  What a great freshman year memory!"

Larry Erickson '60, '64
Manhattan, Kansas

Larry co-published the Solar Powered Charging Infrastructure for Electric Vehicles. Larry says his favorite K-State memories are from the K-State Landon Lecture Series. 

Chris Merriewether '10
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Chris is an MBA student at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Chris said his favorite memory of K-State is, "Our 2010 NCAA tournament run to the Elite Eight! I enjoyed going to work everyday with that group of guys. Times like this you just don't forget. The K-State family showed an incredible amount of love.  I recall seeing a lot of royal purple at every game!"

Cynthia Fails '02
Kansas City, Kansas

Cynthia is a Senior student service coordinator for the Coaching Program at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, and a member of the K-State Alumni Association Multicultural Alumni Council. She describes her K-State experience in these five words: Scholarly incubator for servant leadership.

Abdul Yahaya '08
Gardner, Kansas

Abdul is a staff engineer for the Gardner, Kansas, Public Works Engineering Department, and an owner of Open Minds Child Development CEnter in Olathe, Kansas. His favorite membership benefit is the annual wall calendar. "I look at each of the images every  month and reflect on all the great memories and love I have for K-State."

Jean Folkerts '67, '73
Manhattan, Kansas

Jean recently received the Sidney Kobre Award for Lifetime Achievement in Journalism History by The American Journalism Historians Association. When asked about her favorite K-State memory, Jean said her favorite memory was working on the Collegian. 

Debbie Mercer '84, '88, '96, '99
Manhattan, Kansas

Recently, Debbie was invited by Jill Biden, wife of U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, to participate in Operation Educate the Educators at the White House. Debbie said, "Some of my favorite undergraduate memories are in Ahearn Fieldhouse. I distinctly remember the K-State versus KU game in 1987. After two overtimes with Steve Henson and Mitch Richmond leading the way, we celebrated a Wildcat win over Manning’s Jayhawks. The den was deafening! Everyone was hugging. It was a family celebration atmosphere at its best!"

Brant Roney '11
Olathe, Kansas

Brant is a technology architect at Cerner Corporation. His favorite K-State tradition? "Singing the Alma Mater with the K-State family after a K-State victory!"

Dr. Nels Lindberg '01
Great Bend, Kansas

Dr. Lindberg received the 2015 Veterinarian of the Year Award from the Kansas Veterinary Medical Association. He said his favorite K-State tradition is tailgating at football games.

Casey Clark '01
Springfield, Missouri

Casey is an assistant U.S. attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice. His favorite memory of K-State is "Spending late spring Friday nights at Frank Myers Field watching the K-State baseball team."

Andy DiOrio '02
Overland Park, Kansas

Andy is the first two-time president of the Greater Kansas City Chapter of Public Relations Society of America. When asked how he would describe K-State in five words, he said, "Friends; Family; Preparation for Life."

Rod Harms '82
Manhattan, Kansas

Rod recently received the Volunteer of the Year Award from the Manhattan Chamber of Commerce. Rod's favorite K-State traditions are: "...of course tailgating and attending football games with family and friends."

Zaldy Doyungan '15
Topeka, Kansas

Zaldy is a sports journalist for KSNT News. "My favorite K-State memory would have to include experiencing three court stormings in three different perspectives: As a fan, as part of the security and as part of the media," Zaldy said. "Each one was different, but all of them were really intense and it was great to have gone through that."

Leah Carenno '08
Nolanville, Texas

Leah is a captain in the U.S. Army. Her favorite K-State tradition is tailgating at Bill Snyder Family Stadium with friends and family.

William Service III '08
Anchorage, Alaska

William is a production optimization engineer at ConocoPhillips. He had this to say about his favorite K-State memory: "Late hours in the Chemical Engineering lab, supporting K-State sports teams, enjoying Aggieville, building relationships, and learning about the possibilities a K-State education can provide. There are too many to single out just one favorite memory. But wherever I work and travel, whether it be Alaska, Europe, Asia, or South America, I always know I belong to a strong K-State family that supports each other, no matter where life takes us."

Elizabeth Grilliot '14
Hutchinson, Kansas

Elizabeth is the director of neighborhood development at the Hutchinson Recreation Commission. Her favorite memory of K-State is "The great friendships made with fellow graduate assistants in the Kinesiology Department. Many hours of post-class discussions were spent at Little Apple Brewing Company on Wednesday evenings."

Kathy Palermo '71
Lee's Summit, Missouri

Kathy is serving as the 2014-16 state president of the General Federation of Women’s Clubs of Missouri. She had this to say about her favorite K-State memory: "My favorite memory of K-State is being in the marching band the first year women were allowed to join. Before 1968, it was an all-male marching band. We had so much fun in the band under Dr. Phil Hewitt and I made a lot of great friends in the band. The highlight was traveling to the away games on the train or the bus. Such great memories!"

Adriane Falco '07
Olathe, Kansas

Adriane Falco is an elementary school music educator in the Blue Valley School District in Overland Park, Kansas. She was recently selected as a 2016 Kansas Master Teacher. When asked about her favorite memory at K-State, Adriane said, "I truly enjoyed my memories of being a K-State Singer under the direction of Gerald Polich. It was a wonderful opportunity to perform and travel throughout the state of Kansas. I loved the camaraderie my fellow singers and I shared over countless hours spent in a bus traveling to a new place to perform, and how we still keep in touch to this day."

Staci DeGeer '07, '09
Edwardsville, Illinois

Staci is a product development scientist for Nestle Purina PetCare. Staci described her K-State experience in these five words: Family, Friends, Home, College of Agriculture, Future.

Abby Buchmann '15
Washington, Missouri

Abby Buchmann is an interior designer at the St. Louis office of HOK. When asked to describe her K-State experience in just five words, she replied,"K-State; where friends become family."

Samuel Brinton '11
Washington, D.C.

Samuel is a nuclear engineer and senior policy analyst at the Bipartisan Policy Center. When asked to describe his K-State experience in five words, Samuel said, "Unwavering Support for the WHOLE Wildcat."

Michelle Snyder '08
Alexandria, Virginia

Michelle Snyder is a requirements manager for the U.S. Department of Defense. She also was awarded Joint Staff Action Officer of the Month from Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. "My favorite K-State memory is K-State football games - go 'Cats!" Snyder said.

Kevin Dale '90
Evergreen, Colorado

Kevin is the executive editor of Cronkite News at Arizona PBS, a daily news operation and innovation hub operated by the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University. "My favorite memory of K-State is JMC Professor Bill Brown and his thundering lessons in Kedzie Hall." Kevin said. "I remember those lessons to this day and try to live that passion for what we do as journalists. I could never match his delivery, but hopefully I have been able to impart his values and lessons to colleagues and now students."

Lisa Rockley-Cline '05
Lenexa, Kansas

Lisa is president and CEO for Community Health Charities of Kansas and Missouri. Her favorite K-State tradition has always been Purple Power Play on Poyntz in downtown Manhattan. "It was great to start the school year at the community pep rally with the coaches, cheerleaders, band and thousands of K-State fans in purple," Rockley-Cline said. 

Tom Ksiazek '69, '70
Galveston, Texas

Tom was recently recognized by global experts who study deadly infectious diseases with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 6th annual International Symposium on Filoviruses. When asked about his favorite K-State memory, Tom said, "I lived in the KSU veterinary teaching hospital between my sophomore and junior years in veterinary school during the summer of 1968. I really got a great chance to work with the clinical teaching staff and that was more intense than the ordinary academic year teaching cycle. There was also a larger opportunity to have hands on clinical experience during this experience. Altogether, it was a great experience." 

Kaye Kabus '88
Topeka, Kansas

Kaye was recently honored as the 2013-14 School Nutrition Association Regional Outstanding Director of the Year for the Southwest Region. Her favorite memory of K-State is meeting herfuture husband, John Kabus ’88, for meals at Derby whenever they could. "I have enjoyed getting to dine there again with two of our children, Caroline and Conrad Kabus, who are both currently attending K-State," Kabus said. "Can you tell I was in the Hotel and Restaurant Management program?"

Nick Relic '10
Overland Park, Kansas

Nick is coordinator of minor league and amateur video for the Kansas City Royals Baseball Corp. His favorite memory from his time at Kansas State University is "storming the court after beating KU for the first time in Bramlage Coliseum, on Jan. 30, 2008."