Larry Neumann, Jr. ’81 was nominated for a Jeff Award for actor in a principal role for “In God’s Hat,” a production with Profiles Theatre. In addition, First Folio Theatre, with Alison C. Vesely ’79 as artistic director and co-founder, is up for multiple awards.

Here’s a link to the article: http://www.jeffawards.org/

On a personal note from Bob Poynton; I’ve know Larry since high school days where he was always recognized as one of the most outstanding actors in our area.  I couldn’t be more proud of his accomplishments.  Alison Vesely was also a classmate of mine in the Drama department at Wesleyan.  She was one of the most dedicated and hardest working students in the school.  It’s wonderful to see her being recognized for her outstanding talents.

More than 5,000 alumni showed their support by making a gift to IWU in fiscal year 2014!

And for the second straight year, Illinois Wesleyan alumni have grown our alumni giving percentage. We are now at 23%!

THANK YOU for doing your part to keep IWU strong.

Michael Greenberg is serving a two-year term as Grand Consul of Sigma Chi. In this position, he will serve as president of the international fraternity, as well as chairman of the executive committee, the grand chapter and the Sigma Chi Corporation. While a student, he served two terms as magister, or pledge trainer, for IWU’s chapter. He previously served in several leadership roles with the organization, including chair of the Grand Council, and has been a facilitator at the Balfour Leadership Training Workshop 30 times. Michael owns Interior Investments, a Chicago-area furniture retailer, as well as Journey 360 Degrees, a leadership development organization.

Wendy Mann Woith, an associate professor in the Mennonite College of Nursing at Illinois State University, has been selected by the American Academy of Nursing to join the newest class of fellows. More information is available here: http://mediarelations.illinoisstate.edu/news_releases/1415/july/woith.shtml

Woith is alumna of Illinois Wesleyan University, the University of Illinois at Chicago and OSF St. Francis College of Nursing. A high-resolution photo is available upon request.

As a member of The Lettermen, Robert can currently be seen in a new Time Life/StarVista informercial for “Legendary Voices”.  Below is a link to a recent interview that was filmed in conjunction with the informercial.  For more information on the CD collection please visit  www.thelettermen.com

Here’s the link to the interview:  The Lettermen Behind the Scenes Interview

Sandra Steingraber ’81 testified May 21 at an Illinois House committee hearing against a bill allowing “fracking.” She appeared in Normal to speak against the controversial drilling method on May 20, as reported in The Pantagraph.

Here are a couple of links to articles relating to Sandra’s efforts.

This article is from the Illinois Times: http://illinoistimes.com/article-11428-fracking-bill-draws-.html

and this is for the Pantagraph: http://www.pantagraph.com/news/state-and-regional/illinois/fracking-critics-seek-more-safeguards-in-illinois/article_dbe6535a-c1a3-11e2-b34e-001a4bcf887a.html

For his distinguished contributions to the arts, Don Ester ’80 was initiated as a National Arts Associate by the Iota Chi Chapter of Sigma Alpha Iota in March. A music major at IWU, Don is a music education professor at Ball State University in Muncie, Ind. He received the 1998 Ball State University Excellence in Teaching Award and the 2006 Indiana Outstanding University Music Educator of the Year Award. He holds a Master of Music degree from Southern Methodist University, where he studied choral conducting and a Ph.D. from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Don has taught in the public schools as well as at the university level, and has served as a full-time church musician.  A frequent guest conductor and clinician for choirs of all ages, he founded and directed the White River Youth Choir from 1994 to 2008, leading them on performing tours in the US, Brazil, and Japan. His research and publications focuses on music literacy pedagogy, the adolescent voice, and instructional strategies. An accomplished pianist/accompanist and singer, he is also a past National Chair of the Society for Music Teacher Education. Don’s wife is Carol (Gore), also Class of 1980.

Todd Koehl ’82 has been named superintendent of the Troy School District, with schools in Joliet and Shorewood.

This link leads to the article: http://thetimesweekly.com/news/2014/jun/23/troy-school-district-selects-new-superintendent/

Congratulations Todd!

Tim Keith ’81 is VP of Sales/Marketing for Kahuna Business Group in Bloomington. This article is about Kahuna’s new business plan.

http://www.pantagraph.com/business/local/new-business-plan/article_0370baf0-6608-5ce4-9818-2dff557143af.html

“Older Ladies” the music video I recently directed has gone viral with almost 2 million views in less than two weeks (at the time of this writing). Oakland based Singer/Songwriter and longtime collaborator, Donnalou Stevens performs her song about the joys of getting right with getting old and it seems to have struck a chord with quite a few ladies (and men) around the world. Here’s what the Huffington Post had to say about it…http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/06/24/older-ladies-song-video-donnalou-stevens_n_5527127.html?utm_hp_ref=entertainment&ir=Entertainment

I’m pretty new to the filmmaking world but enjoying a fair amount of early success (my comedy short, On The Nature Of Hotness won Best Short Comedy at the NYC International FIlm Festival last year and it’s been screened at nine film festivals. It’s now available on Indiflix) and this Older Ladies video was a hoot to make. We’ve got a couple more up our sleeves (keeps your eyes open for Older Men) and I hope the fun just keeps on coming.

Attached you’ll find of pic of me in the video (salon chair) and a publicity shot.

All The Best,
Christine McHugh (Theatre ’82)

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