Class Notes

“THREE WITNESSES: A Painter, A Prisoner, A Peasant.” by George Custodi Newly translated Italian war diaries and memoirs; word-for-word accounts presented to the reader in two languages – English and Italian. This is not a history book presentation. It is real life at war - in all its daily horrors and struggles and tragedies. No screenplay could create the drama that was lived by these three men. They were, after all, eyewitnesses. Three witnesses; three perspectives: a painter, a prisoner, and a peasant. The Painter, Livio Orazio Valentini, kept the drawings from that time for the rest of his life. In stark black and white pencil sketches he preserved his memories of the Nazi death camps where he was imprisoned, along with the firsthand horrors of frontline combat. In haunting, unforgettable words and images, he carefully documented what he had witnessed as an infantry corporal in the Italian armed forces during World War II. Later, in his memoirs, he relived it all. The Prisoner, Sub-lieutenant Angelo Luigi Custodi of the Italian army, witnessed the betrayal of his country with sickening disillusionment. Yet he endured Nazi capture and deprivation by focusing his culinary talents on his meager and pitiful food rations. Bartering, scavenging, even selling bits of clothing and treasured possessions, he created artful meals from mere scraps, and planned for the day when he would once again eat abundantly and well with his young bride and their infant son. Before his small, battered, diary came to a sudden, unexplained stop, he carefully documented all of his recipes, woven within his daily agony and observations. The Peasant, farmer Attilio Cerchecci, barely thirty years old, witnessed destruction all around him – every hour, every day, every night. He protected the animals in his care by hiding them in the surrounding fields. He took provisions to the rest of his family and neighbors as they hid in the nearby caves. He felt the impact of the bombs and wept for the devastation and knew the anger of innocence lost. Helplessly, he could only stand and witness as friends and neighbors were murdered without pity or reason. He carefully recorded every name, every horror, for posterity. The Translator, George Custodi, son of one of the witnesses, has lovingly and painstakingly made these three accounts available to the English-speaking world. Beginning with his father’s found diary, some 15 years after his death, this devoted son carefully culled forth the words written a generation earlier. To this, he added a similar documentation written by his friend, the renowned artist, Livio Orazio Valentini of his own personal experiences. When a third such treasure was released to him by a local lifelong resident of Orvieto, Italy, a complete and remarkable story took shape. A story that needed to be shared. These three independent yet intertwined diaries and memoirs illuminate a part of a national betrayal the magnitude of which most of us have little awareness. An epilogue to the book by Dr. Donald M. McKale, professor emeritus at Clemson University, however, gives it scale and meaning through a clearly presented and well-documented historical perspective. Presented simultaneously in English and Italian, this book creates a unique packaging of disparate experiences of the same moment in time. George Custodi, along with his wife Sandi, has been a resident of Aiken since 1987. Through his personal friendship with Livio Valentini, these two men were instrumental in the creation of the “sister city” relationship between Aiken and Orvieto, Italy. Valentini was also a valued and popular lecturer and visiting professor at USCA Aiken prior to his death in 2008. Custodi has dedicated the net proceeds from the sale of this book, to the Valentini scholarship program at USCA Aiken. He will be available at book-signings throughout the coming months. Books may be ordered through: www.ThreeWitnessesBook.com or Amazon.com. Book Price: $19.95 US; €15.00, plus shipping and handling. Published by: The Design Group Press ISBN 978-0-9791277-9-3

A Fresh Look at Prairie Reconstruction Carl Kurtz ('68 fisheries & wildlife biology) published a second edition of his book A Practical Guide to Prairie Reconstruction. Thirty-five years and many acres after planting his first patch of prairie flowers, Carl Kurtz is considered one of the deans of the great tallgrass prairie revival. The Prairie Enthusiast called the 2001 edition of his book a “readable and understandable introduction to prairie and the general steps in carrying out a reconstruction.” Now this second edition reflects his increased experience with reconstructing and restoring prairie grasslands. Carl Kurtz is a professional writer, teacher, naturalist, and photographer. He and his wife and partner, Linda, live on a 172-acre family farm in central Iowa and provide a source for local-ecotype prairie seed.

Lisa Ossian (’84 English, Ph.D. ’98 agricultural history and rural studies) has published a book titled The Depression Dilemmas of Rural Iowa, 1929-1933. In her book, Ossian describes Iowa’s rural dilemmas, evoking through anecdotes and examples the economic, nutritional, familial, cultural, industrial, criminal, legal, and political challenges that engaged the people of the state. Ossian is co-director of the Iowa Studies Center and professor of history at Des Moines Area Community College.

Don Greiman (’52 animal science) reigned over the Iowa State Fair last August as the 2012 grand marshal of the Fair Parade. Greiman was a State Fair board member from 1965 until 2009, and he twice served as the board’s president. This year marked Greiman’s 47th consecutive year of attendance at the fair. Now he has written a book about the fair, A Blue Ribbon Life, published by the Iowa State Fair Blue Ribbon Foundation. Jane Cox (’63 English and speech), ISU professor of theatre, co-wrote the book with Greiman.

We Hope You Like This Song: An Overly Honest Story About Friendship, Death, and Mix Tapes is a sad, funny, honest memoir written by Bree Housley (’01 advertising) in honor of her friend, Shelly (Warner) Bridgewater (’02 elementary education) who died in 2005 following complications of childbirth. “The book is NOT Beaches,” Housley says. “It’s brash, sometimes inappropriate, and we never steal each other’s boyfriends.” Bridgewater, Housley’s best childhood friend and ISU roommate, died at age 25 one week after her daughter, Hailey, was born prematurely. Shelly had developed preeclampsia before the birth, followed by a condition called HELLP Syndrome. Housley felt tremendous guilt for not being at her best friend’s side when she became ill. Four years later, she and her sister started a yearlong project to honor her friend’s “crazy, spontaneous crush on life.” “We choose a new resolution each week and tried to complete it in seven days – a New Week’s Resolution, if you will,” Housley said. “By the end of the year, I had gone through a strange sort of healing, and I was ready to tell our story.” The result was a blog and the book, which was published in October 2012. “The year after Shelly’s death was a blur,” Housley said. “Writing the book was cathartic. When I sat down to write, I hadn’t detailed the guilt, so it was super therapeutic.” Housley was on campus in April for a book signing at University Book Store. She said that she’s surprised by the number of emails she’s received from ”complete strangers” who have read her book and want to talk about their own grief. “So many touching, emotional thoughts have been shared with me,” she said. Though writing the book was painful, Housley said the outcome was “exactly what I was hoping for. People tell me they’re going to call a friend RIGHT NOW. I could not have wished for a better outcome.” Housley is a freelance advertising copywriter in Chicago. She’s currently at work on book number two.

Susan Puckett (A) (’82 family & consumer sciences), author of A Cook’s Tour of Iowa, has recently released Eat Drink Delta: A Hungry Traveler’s Journey Through the Soul of the South. Part travel guide, part cookbook, and part photo essay, Puckett’s book “reveals a region shaped by slavery, civil rights, amazing wealth, abject deprivation, the Civil War, a flood of biblical proportions, and – above all – an overarching urge to get down and party with a full table and an open bar.”

Iowa State is featured front-and-center in a newly released book titled Powerful Learning Communities. The book’s senior author, Oscar Lenning (’64 engr operations), says, “The book has some very good things to say about the learning communities at ISU; it’s a follow-up to a 1999 book titled The Powerful Potential of Learning Communities that was co-authored with ISU Professor Dr. Larry Ebbers” (L) (’62 ag ed, MS ’68, PhD ’71 ed ldrshp). The new book also features author Kevin Saunders (PhD ’04 ed ldrshp), a former academic administrator at Iowa State.

Writer Tracy Guzeman (A) (’80 landscape architecture) released her debut novel this summer. The Gravity of Birds is part mystery, part psychological drama centered around two sisters. Told in alternating chapters that weave revelations about the sisters’ past with clues discovered in the present, The Gravity of Birds is “one of those rare, exquisitely written novels that haunt you long after you’ve finished the last page” according to one reviewer. Guzeman lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Robert Nelson (L)(’71 political science) and his siblings have published their father’s autobiography, Tracks: From Buggies to Furrows to Wings. The late Merle Nelson, a 1929 electrical engineering grad, spent most of his life farming the same farm on which he grew up near Rockford, Iowa. Rob says, “As a boy, [my father] would run to the window to see a car go by on the road that was two tracks through the prairie. The day before his 62nd birthday he saw Neil Armstrong walk on the moon. While there may be generations that experience more technological change, I think my dad’s generation saw the most dramatic visual changes.” Tracks is available as a Kindle e-book.

Bill Williams (MS ’84 journalism & mass communication) has written for print, radio, TV, and advertising agencies. He’s won awards for his photography and sold prints in galleries stretching from New Mexico to Missouri. And now he’s published his first book, Murder by Guile – a glimpse of the real world behind a murder investigation in a small Arizona mountain town – based on a true crime story.

John Baxter (MS ’89 professional studies in education), associate head football coach at the University of Southern California, has published his first book. I Hate School: How a College Football Coach Has Inspired Students to Value Education and Become Lifelong Learners is an inspirational tale of his life’s work and takes a hard look at problems with education in America today.

Iowa Staters will be interested in a book by Duane Acker (L)(’52 animal science, MS ’53), president emeritus of Kansas State University. His book, From Troublesome Creek: A Farm Boy’s Encounters on the Way to a University Presidency, includes encounters and experiences from his seven years of teaching and advising agriculture students at Iowa State.

Jennifer Dukes Lee (L)(’95 journalism & mass communication) has published Love Idol, a nonfiction book with “a palpable Iowa flavor from beginning to end.” In an early chapter, Lee mentions her role at the Iowa State Daily. “I am grateful for my education at Iowa State University and see clearly how it was one key step on this journey to having a book published,” Lee said.

John Bosley (’03 art & design) recently illustrated his first children’s book, A Spaceman Who Lived in Des Moines. Bosley is head designer at RAYGUN, a popular Des Moines’ East Village design company that specializes in screen printing, apparel, books, and more.

Brenda Hagen McGuire (’93 psychology) has a chapter in a new book, Answering the Call: Entrepreneurs and Professionals Reveal How They Said Yes to Success and You Can, Too! Her chapter, “Big Dreams – Small World,” showcases how a passion for travel has turned into a successful global career.

Nancy Geiger (’77 textiles & clothing) has published a book titled In These Days of Cell Phones, Texting and Social Media…Can the Nest Ever Truly be Empty? The book is based on newspaper columns she wrote from the time her daughter went away to college until her wedding day.

Marilyn Call Gould (A)(’55 food science) has authored an e-book on grandparenting. In America’s Greatest Asset: Grandparents, We Are Not Yet Finished!, Gould shares valuable advice on grandparenting and how to live a useful life.

Charlie Notis (L) (MS ’72 meteorology), the recently retired co-owner of Freese-Notis Weather, a private weather consulting company in Des Moines, has recently published a memoir. From Hell to Iowa chronicles his experiences of escaping from communist Albania as a child, coming to America, and becoming a meteorologist.

Davis Brown Law Firm Elects Three New Shareholders The Davis Brown Law Firm is pleased to announce that Elizabeth R. Meyer, Sean D. Solberg and Michele L. Warnock have been elected shareholders, effective January 2015. Elizabeth is a member of the Litigation Division and maintains a varied practice representing individuals and companies in business litigation matters including contract, real estate, employment, probate and personal injury disputes. She is also an active member of the firm’s employment law and labor relations practice group, working with clients on all aspects of the employment relationship. Sean is a member of the firm’s Intellectual Property Department and serves as patent counsel to clients ranging from startups to Fortune 500 companies. He drafts and prosecutes patent applications, drafts and negotiates technology agreements, performs patentability and freedom to operate analyses, and manages client patent portfolios. Sean has clients nationwide and practices mainly in the firm’s Emmetsburg office. Michele is a member of the Litigation Division and maintains a practice with an emphasis in labor and employment and business litigation. She represents employers across the spectrum, from small, local businesses to large multistate employers, including startups, franchises, and large corporations to mitigate liability. About the Davis Brown Law Firm Founded in 1929, Davis, Brown, Koehn, Shors & Roberts, P.C., provides comprehensive legal representation to a diverse client base. Firm clients include private individuals as well as Fortune 500 corporations. With 80 attorneys, the firm offers depth and experience in a wide variety of areas, such as corporate transactions, corporate governance, entity choice, litigation, banking and finance, taxation workers’ compensation, insurance defense, real estate, immigration, employment, finance, biotechnology, securities, patent and intellectual property and government relations.

BRAVO GREATER DES MOINES TO HONOR STEVEN ZUMBACH AT 10th ANNUAL BRAVO AWARDS GALA DES MOINES, IA (January 6, 2015) - Steve Zumbach, inspirational community leader and founder of Bravo Greater Des Moines, will be honored at the 10th Annual Bravo Awards Gala – Tensational! on Saturday, February 7, 2015. Growing up on a dairy farm in Manchester, Iowa, Zumbach worked on the family farm and was elected as a state and national officer of Future Farmers of America. Pursuing his undergraduate degree at Iowa State University, Zumbach served as Student Body President and, in 1973, was appointed by Gov. Robert Ray as the youngest member of the Board of Regents to serve the interests of students at Iowa’s public universities. Zumbach would go on to earn his Ph.D in Economics from Iowa State, law degree from the University of Iowa, and a CPA certification. Zumbach began practicing law in Des Moines and helped found what became the Belin McCormick law firm. A fixture of the Des Moines business community, Zumbach’s volunteer work has been a propelling force in his community impact. Through his volunteer work with the Iowa State University Foundation, Zumbach helped the University increase capital campaign giving, and for his service received the ISU Alumni Medal and the Order of Knoll award. He served as chair of the Greater Des Moines Chamber of Commerce Federation, and was instrumental in forming the Greater Des Moines Partnership, which he chaired in 2003. He has received the American Economic Development Council’s Excellence in Economic Development Award and the Iowa Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals Volunteer of the Year Award. He has earned the Governor’s Award for Outstanding Service as an Iowan, and was inducted into to the Iowa Business Hall of Fame. Zumbach most recently co-chaired the Capital Corridor and its launching of central Iowa’s “Cultivation Corridor” effort. Zumbach was an early supporter and advocate for the impact quality of life has on economic development. Seeing the need for continued investments in the arts and culture offerings in central Iowa, Zumbach convened government, business and community leaders to form a sustainable funding stream for central Iowa organizations. Zumbach’s visionary leadership led to the founding of Bravo Greater Des Moines in 2004. As a unique collaborative organization of local government partners, Bravo has invested nearly $25 million over the last 10 years and continues to provide critical funding and support to the local arts community. The Bravo Award recognizes a company, individual or family that has made a significant contribution to arts and culture in central Iowa. The Bravo Awards Gala celebrates the honorees as well as the community's arts and cultural organizations and programs. As Bravo’s founder, and an instrumental leader in central Iowa advocating on behalf of the arts and culture sector, the 2015 Bravo Award will be presented to Steven Zumbach.

Obama to Pick Former Bank of Hawaii CEO to Be Fed Governor President Barack Obama plans to nominate Allan Landon, the former chief executive officer of Bank of Hawaii Corp. (BOH), to be a Federal Reserve Board governor, two people familiar with the matter said. The White House’s announcement may come later today, according to the people, who asked not to be identified discussing the plans beforehand. Landon was chairman and CEO of Bank of Hawaii from September 2004 to July 2010, according to a biography on the website of the University of Hawaii at Manoa’s William S. Richardson School of Law, which lists him as a lecturer. White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest declined to comment on Landon, saying “I don’t have any personnel announcements to make from here.” Fed governors are nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate. While the Fed traditionally has had a community banker or supervisor on the seven-seat board, that role hasn’t been filled since Governor Elizabeth Duke, a former executive at a Virginia community bank, retired in August 2013. The Fed Board has had two vacancies since the departure of governors Sarah Bloom Raskin in March and Jeremy Stein in May. Obama hasn’t yet nominated a Fed vice chairman for supervision, a new position created by the Dodd-Frank Act of 2010. The role has been unofficially performed by Fed Governor Daniel Tarullo. 2008 Crisis Landon retired from Bank of Hawaii in 2010, the second year the Honolulu-based company earned Forbes magazine’s “America’s Best Bank” honors. Bank of Hawaii -- which has $14.6 billion in assets, according to Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. data -- weathered the 2008 financial crisis under the leadership of Landon, who said when he stepped down that the firm has sought to run itself like a community bank. The longtime Ernst & Young LLP partner joined the bank in 2000, and after his departure has been a partner in Portland, Oregon-based Community BanCapital, a firm that invests in community banks. He has also served on the board of MidFirst Bank of Oklahoma, which describes itself as the one of the biggest privately owned banks in the U.S. He has also taught at the University of Hawaii and University of Utah. Bipartisan Donor Landon’s political contributions include both Republicans and Democrats, having given to former President George W. Bush and the Hawaii Republican party, as well as Representative Brad Sherman, a California Democrat, according to Federal Election Commission records. When he was chief financial officer of First American National Bank of Nashville, Tennessee, in 1999, Landon also donated $500 to the failed presidential run of Senator Lamar Alexander, a Tennessee Republican, the FEC records show. Landon, a graduate of Iowa State University, is already active in other Washington-area institutions, serving on the Smithsonian National Board and on the Public Broadcasting Service board. Democratic senators Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Mark Warner of Virginia and Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota and Republicans David Vitter of Louisiana and Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania have urged the administration to nominate a community banker to the Fed. Vitter previously offered a bill that would mandate that the Fed have one governor position with community banking experience. His measure is included in a terrorism insurance legislation under consideration in the House. Fed Chair Janet Yellen told Vitter in her July 15 testimony before the banking committee that while she supports having a community banker on the board, she won’t endorse making it law. The nomination must be approved by the Senate Banking Committee, which is expected to be led by Richard Shelby, an Alabama Republican. He previously opposed Obama’s 2010 nomination of Nobel-prize winning economist Peter Diamond to serve as a Fed governor. Diamond withdrew, citing Shelby as “the leading opponent.”

HOLLY STREETER-SCHAEFER JOINS LEGAL TEAM AT BURNS & MCDONNELL Holly Streeter-Schaefer is Burns & McDonnell’s newest staff attorney who offers a rich blend of blend of passion and experience in construction law. Holly graduated with distinction from Iowa State University with a degree in Construction Engineering and received her law degree from Drake University. Specializing in construction law, contracts and risk management, Holly will leverage her 15 years’ of legal experience to focus on three of the firm’s growing global practices: Water, Transportation, and Environmental. In addition, she will also provide legal guidance and strategy on a broad range of business matters that intersect with design and construction law, corporate, regulatory and business law. Holly comes to Burns & McDonnell from the Polsinelli law firm, where she spent the majority of her career focusing on legal matters in the design and construction industry. Holly also spent more than five years in-house with a large construction company where she served as corporate counsel. Holly is a member of the Missouri Bar, Kansas Bar and the Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association. She is highly involved in the construction trade organization and is a regular speaker on current issues within the industry. She is also on the Board of Central Exchange and a member of the Central Exchange WiSTEMM committee. Holly also serves on the City of Overland Park's Code Board of Appeals and as a board member of the Greater Kansas City NAWIC chapter.

I have a nephew who graduated from Iowa State in 2012 currently traveling the world for his job; and another nephew graduating from Iowa State on Saturday! Not only am I a very proud aunt, but also a first time grandma! Life is good!

Cynthia (Johnson) Dees (B.S. Business Management, Class of 2006) was recently selected to fill the role of the Assistant to the City Manager for the City of Sugar Land, Texas. In this role, she will assist the City Manager with administrative responsibilities and serve as the liaison to the Mayor and City Council. Previously, Cindy served as the Administrative Manager for the City of Sugar Land Public Works Department.

2015 Prize for a Faculty Member for Research in an Undergraduate Institution Recipient Isenhower L. Donald Isenhower Abilene Christian University Citation: "For his essential contributions in hardware construction, installation, calibration and operation for experiments at LAMPF, FNAL, RHIC and at CERN, and for enthusiastic mentoring of a large number of undergraduate students while being recognized for outstanding teaching at the undergraduate level." Selection Committee: Carlos Bertulani, Chair; S. Major; T. Solomon; A.W.P. Poon; D.A. Craig