Alumni, we want to hear what you've been doing. Mail career, wedding, child, and death news to Life Events, Virginia Tech Alumni Association, Holtzman Alumni Center, 901 Prices Fork Road, Blacksburg, VA 24061, or email the information to classnotes@vt.edu. Photos may also be shared for consideration. For assistance, call 540-231-6285.

1949

  • Robert F. Barbe, Tarboro, N.C., wrote a book entitled, “African Faces and Places,” about his work as a medical missionary in West Africa.

1951

  • Frederick C. Schwartz, Vonore, Tenn., was honored on Memorial Day for his Army service in World War II.

1964

  • Neil F. Payne, Plover, Wis., published a book, “Wildlifer: Wisconsin Origin to Climate Change” in 2024. 
Cover of "Wildlifer" by alum Neil F. Payne
Neil F. Payne ’64 published a book, “Wildlifer: Wisconsin Origin to Climate Change.” Photo courtesy of Neil Payne.

1966

  • Ronald W. Gibbs, Blacksburg, Va., spoke this spring during the opening of a special exhibit in the Corps Museum that recognized the 50th anniversary of the Paris Peace Accords. The exhibit included several artifacts and relics from Maj. Gibbs.
A man speaking to a room of cadets.
Ronald W. Gibbs ’64 spoke this spring during the opening of a special exhibit in the Corps Museum that recognized the 50th anniversary of the Paris Peace Accords. The exhibit included several artifacts and relics from Maj. Gibbs. Photo by Katie Mallory.

1976

  • Douglas W. Johnson, Jacksonville, Fla., published a memoir “Portrait of a Kaleidoscope Life: Chasing Clouds, Cancer, Culture & Creativity.” An entire chapter is devoted to his time at Virginia Tech and his lifelong commitment to Ut Prosim (That I May Serve).
A man speaking into a microphone.
Douglas W. Johnson ’76 published a memoir, “Portrait of a Kaleidoscope Life: Chasing Clouds, Cancer, Culture & Creativity.” An entire chapter is devoted to his time at Virginia Tech and his lifelong commitment to Ut Prosim (That I May Serve). Photo courtesy of Douglas W. Johnson.

1980

  • Ronald J. Kendall, Lubbock, Texas, received a Governor’s Texas Environmental Excellence Award from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.

1981

  • Robert A. Bryant, Clinton, S.C., published two companion volumes under the title, “The Book of Revelation: All Creation’s Hallelujah.”
  • Frank H. Cowling Jr., Chesapeake, Va., a partner and senior vice president of private asset management at S.L. Nusbaum Realty, re- tired after four decades working in commercial real estate.
  • Russell D. Housley, Herndon, Va., was named a 2024 ACM Fellow, one of the most prestigious recognitions in the computing field. 
  • Melanie Hurley, Alexandria, Va., retired from the U.S. Department of Energy after 33 years of federal service. Currently, she is the president/CEO of the Heart of Gold Sickle Cell Foundation of Northern Virginia.

1983

  • Timothy P. Roche, Falls Church, Va., retired from the Foreign Service in April 2021. A few months later he cycled the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route from Canada to Mexico. He now works a variety of odd jobs, including contract instructor at the State Department’s Diplomatic Security Training Center, solutions architect with a major government contractor, substitute school bus driver, teacher and coach with Falls Church City Public Schools, stick-shift driving instructor, and climbing arborist. He also serves on the Falls Church City Urban Forestry Commission.

1984

  • Gaynor Richardson Flynn, Chesapeake Beach, Md., retired in September from her role as quality assurance manager in the Division of Pathology and Clinical Laboratory Medicine at Children’s National Hospital in Washington, D.C. Her career spanned 40 years across several hospital clinical laboratories.

1986

  • Kirk H. Schulz, Spokane, Wash. joined the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics.

1988

  • Steve Hopkins, Louisa, Va., was named Virginia’s 2025 Farmer of the Year by the Sunbelt Agricultural Exposition. He runs Riverview Farms Cattle,the family farm, with his wife, Crysti Hopkins ’90, and their sons Garrett Hopkins ’21, and Blake Hopkins.
A family standing in front of a sign for their farm.
Steve Hopkins ’88 was named Virginia’s 2025 Farmer of the Year by the Sunbelt Agricultural Exposition. He runs Riverview Farms Cattle, the family farm, with his wife, Crysti Hopkins ’90, and their sons Garrett Hopkins ’21, and Blake Hopkins. Photo courtesy of Sunbelt Agricultural Exposition.

1990

  • Keith A. Laepple, Bellevue, Wash., is part of a trio of Seattle-area angel investors who recently launched a new group called VentureUs that aims to make pre-seed and seed investments in startups across the Pacific Northwest.

1992

  • Rush D. Dixon, North Charleston, S.C., and Judith A. Maragioglio Dixon ’93, were named to Forbes Magazine’s inaugural list of America’s Top 200 Residential Architects.

1995

  • Rebecca Ballard Ensogna, Virginia Beach, Va., was named vice president at Hanbury.
  • James J. Gapinski, Lusby, Md.,leads the site and infrastructure group for A. Morton Thomas and Associates, Washington, D.C.
A woman sitting in front of a bookshelf.
Rebecca Ballard Ensogna '95 was named vice president at Hanbury. Photo courtesy of Rebecca Ensogna.

1997

  • James L. Moore III, Lorton, Va. has been recognized for four consecutive years as one of the top 200 education researchers and scholars in the United States who shape educational practice and policy.

1998

  • Diana F. Karczmarczyk, Alexandria, Va., co-authored “Health Education and Promotion: A Skills-based Approach” along with Sara Pappa. This is her second publication with Routledge. The first was “Men’s Health: An Introduction,” for which she was a co-editor and contributing author.

2000

  • Michael B. McGrath, Glen Allen, Va., is the founder, executive director, and head coach at River City Inclusive Gym in Henrico, Va.

2001

  • Ryan A. Crowley, Washington, D.C., relinquished command of the Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling and the 11th Wing to Col. James M. Clark on June 25.

2002

  • Morgan A. Eddy, Annandale, Va., vice president of Steele Foundation, was awarded the 2024 ABC Metro Washington Excellence in Construction Award for exceptional site work on the Claret project and received a Washington Building Congress 2025 Craftsmanship Award in the underpinning, foundations, and excavations category. Eddy recently delivered a presentation at the ASCE Geo-Institute’s Geo-Virginia 2025 conference.

2005 

  • Paul N. Bowles III, Park Ridge, N.J., a partner at Fox Rothschild, was named to Billboard’s 2025 Top Music Lawyers list.
  • Seth W. Pesek, Milton, Ga., was named president of Phoenix Senior Living.

2006 

  • Jummy Olabanji, Washington, D.C., has a broadcast career that has taken her to television stations in Charlottesville, Norfolk, and New York City. Five years ago, she returned home to the Washington, D.C., area as the co-anchor of News 4 Today at NBC4 Washington.
A woman sitting at a news desk.
Jummy Olabanji '06 has a broadcast career that has taken her to television stations in Charlottesville, Norfolk, and New York City. Five years ago, she returned home to the Washington, D.C., area as the co-anchor of News 4 Today at NBC4 Washington. Photo by Andrew Adkins for Virginia Tech.

2008

  • Brian Anthony P. Gerardo, Baltimore, Md., was recognized by The Baltimore Banner as a 2025 Emerging Leader. He is senior associate of learning and capacity building at The Annie E. Casey Foundation. 
  • John R. Matthews, Wytheville, Va., was named a 2025 Virginia Business Forty Under 40 honoree.
A man holding an award.
John R. Matthews '08 was named a 2025 Virginia Business Forty Under 40 honoree. Photo courtesy of John Matthews.

2009 

  • Elizabeth Paige Hungerford Kepner, Glen Allen, Va., is the executive director of the Child Development Center at Wyndham.

2010

  • Valerie L. Van Dyke Rasmussen, Daleville, Va., is vice president of marketing and communications for Country Natural Beef.
A woman smiling in front of a blurry scenic backdrop.
Valerie L. Van Dyke Rasmussen, Daleville, Va., is vice president of marketing and communications for Country Natural Beef. Photo courtesy of Valerie Rasmussen.

2011

  • Kirsten N. Kube, Denver, Colo., joined Fox Rothschild as counsel in the litigation department in Denver.
A woman in a suit smiling.
Kirsten N. Kube '11 joined Fox Rothschild as counsel in the litigation department in Denver. Photo courtesy of Kirsten Kube.

2014 

  • Identical twin boys, Sully Matthew and Cal Hamilton were born on 2/28/2025 to Hokie alumni parents; Matt Chandler and Emily Preisendanz Chandler ’15 of Leesburg, Va.
Twin babies on a Virginia Tech blanket.
Identical twin boys, Sully Matthew (left) and Cal Hamilton (right) were born on 2/28/2025 to Hokie alumni parents; Matt Chandler and Emily Preisendanz Chandler ’15 of Leesburg, Va. Photo courtesy of the Chandlers.

2016 

  • Anna W. Drew, Salem, Va., was named as a 2024–25 Milken Educator. The Milken Educator Awards, a recognition program created by philanthropist Low- ell Milken, provide unrestricted grants of $25,000 cash.
  • Shivanie A. Ramdin, Ocala, Fla., is a hospitalist with TeamHealth.

2017 

  • Henry S. Yockey, South Bend, Ind., joined the Institute for Defense Analyses as a member of the research staff in the Operational Evaluation Division of the Systems and Analyses Center.
  • Colin R. Miller, Virginia Beach, Va., welcomed a son, Finn William Miller, 12/10/2024.
  • Justin M. Bull, Indianapolis, Ind., was the 2025 U.S. Brewers Cup Champion in the U.S. Coffee Championships and advanced to the World Brewers Cup in Jakarta, Indonesia.

2018 

  • Kevin M. Osborne, Arlington, Va., married Carly Dutton ’18, 2/22/2025.

2019 

  • Anelise S. Brinker, Smyrna, Ga., married Patrick Anthony Brinker ’20, 11/15/2024.

2020 

  •  Star A. Norton, Martinsville, Va., is the director of the exceptional children’s program for Rockingham County Public Schools.

2021 

  • Nabra Asgedom, Aiken, S.C., is a UAV Development Engineer at Savannah River National Lab. He is also the visual technician and choreographer at North Augusta High School and the visual technician at Civitas Independent Percussion for the indoor drumline. “I started teaching marching band and my heart felt full again. Since then, I’ve still been working and teaching marching band and will see what happens next.”
Person playing a sousaphone.
Nabra Asgedom ' 21 is a UAV Development Engineer at Savannah River National Lab. He is also the visual technician and choreographer at North Augusta High School and the visual technician at Civitas Independent Percussion for the indoor drumline. Photo courtesy of Nabra Asgedom.

2022 

  • Dax Hollifield, Charlotte, N.C., is the jackman for Michael McDowell’s No. 71 Spire Motorsports crew, which earned the $100,000 grand prize in the NASCAR Cup Series All-Star Pit Crew Challenge at North Wilkesboro Speedway.
  • Fletcher Dodge and Natalie Ferguson, Blacksburg, Va., were married on 10/25/2025 in King George, Va.
A couple standing in front of scenic background.
Fletcher Dodge (left) and Natalie Ferguson, both Class of 2022, were married on 10/25/2025 in King George, Va. Photo courtesy of Madison Gravitt Photography.

2023 

  • Luke D. Bussel, Salisbury, N.C. is the tire carrier for Michael McDowell’s No. 71 Spire Motorsports crew, which earned the $100,000 grand prize in the NASCAR Cup Series All-Star Pit Crew Challenge at North Wilkesboro Speedway.
  • Emma R. Lulis, Detroit, Mich., is the social media coordinator for the Detroit Pistons.

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