Inspire, Fall 2005

studying to become an emergency room nurse, and Allison stays at home with the kids. 2000s Andrew Blodgett ’00 and his wife, Jenni, announce the birth of Carter Andrew on April 16, 2005. They reside in Traverse City, Michigan. Hot Dog! “I feel like a mini celebrity,” shared Shaun Hanna ’05 , “because everywhere I go people are so excited to see me.” The 27-foot hot dog on wheels that Shaun is driving just might have something to do with it. Shaun is an official hotdogger for Oscar Mayer ® . As such, he has taken the Hotdogger Oath, which includes a promise to “Encourage wiener lovers nationwide to relish the delicacy, ketchup on the great taste of hot dogs, and give in to the craving once it’s mustard.” But all puns aside, being a hotdogger is serious business. At Oscar Mayer’s Hot Dog High in Madison, Wisconsin, Shaun underwent two weeks of what he calls “Top Gun for marketing majors.” His 12-hours-a-day training gave him crucial instruction in marketing, teambuilding, and media relations. Oscar Mayer had to be sure that their new crop of fresh college graduates could handle the public appearances, promotional events, and media relations that are part of being a goodwill ambassador for the company. The two weeks ended with one of the things Shaun had been most looking forward to: lessons for driving the 27-foot-long Wienermobile™. “I finally got to sink my teeth into the job,” Shaun quipped, “and I really relished the opportunity.” Shaun first heard of the hotdogger opportunity through Dr. Jeff Fawcett ’82 in Cedarville’s “Principles of Marketing” class. Shaun thought it would be perfect for him, and apparently Oscar Mayer did, too, because, as Shaun puts it, “I cut the mustard.” Shaun and his hotdogger partner, Katie, have been assigned to drive the east region of the country, stretching from Maine to North Carolina to Illinois. Their first gig with “Our Dog” (the name for their Wienermobile™) was in Milwaukee. “It was quite an experience with people hanging out windows to get pictures, honking, and waving,” Shaun recalled. Shaun says the job is the “ultimate road trip” as it lets him not only get professional training and experience, but also see the country, meet new people, and spread smiles as he hands out Wienerwhistles™ to children. Shaun could soon be driving a Wienermobile™ through your hometown. To find out where he’ll be next, contact Shaun at shaun.hanna@kraft.com . Chrissy Redfeairn Calderwood ’00 and her husband, Rex, announce the birth of Logan Allan on September 16, 2003. Chrissy and Rex were married March 9, 2002. They reside in Phoenix, Arizona, where Rex manages a terminal of his family’s company, MP Environmental Services, Inc. Chrissy works part-time in the office and enjoys bringing Logan with her. Brenda Mick Felker ’00 and her husband, Brian, announce the birth of Jordan Brian. He was born March 18, 2005 and joins his brother, Caleb (2), at home in Rockford, Michigan. Elizabeth Johnson ’00 and Michael Caven were married November 27, 2004 in Waterloo, Iowa. After a honeymoon in Panama and Colombia, they returned to their home in West Des Moines, Iowa. Elizabeth owns a weight loss company, and Michael is a civil engineer. Amber Dahms McCool ’00 and her husband, Joe, announce the birth of Luke Joseph on March 2, 2005. Joe is a senior accountant for Sun Federal Credit Union, and Amber enjoys staying at home with Luke. They reside in Findlay, Ohio. Sarah St. John Norpel ’00 and her husband, Troy, announce the birth of Aurora Joy on January 21, 2005. They reside in Coralville, Iowa. Kristina Parr ’00 and Daniel Kinde were married July 31, 2004 in Interlochen, Michigan. After a honeymoon in the Bahamas, the couple returned to their home in Hudsonville, Michigan. Kristina works for an accounting firm, and Dan works for Lear Corporation. Dan ’01 and LaChelle Peters Rickett ’01 announce the birth of Aubrie LaChelle on July 10, 2004. Dan is an associate pastor, and LaChelle enjoys staying home with Aubrie as well as partnering with Dan in the ministry. They reside in Okemos, Michigan. Bryan Mangin ’02 and Kelly Martin ’05 were married May 14, 2005 at Southgate Baptist Church in Springfield, Ohio. They enjoyed a honeymoon in Acapulco, Mexico. Bryan is a state trooper in Greene County, and Kelly works for the Wade Company in Springfield. They reside in Beavercreek, Ohio. Inspire 31 Letter from A Soldier Jacob Noftz ’01 is an infantry medic serving with Bravo Company, 1st/15th infantry, 3rd brigade of the 3rd infantry. He is serving south of Tikrit in Iraq. In the following e-mail, he shares about his experience and explains the accompanying photos. July 6, 2005 Thanks so much for the support. It helps us a lot over here to know we have support back home. I know public opinion is rather conflicted on our presence over here. It’s good to be reminded that regardless of politics and agendas the soldiers are still loved and respected. … I majored in communication [arts], but my emphasis was theatre. I’m pretty sure some of the comm professors might remember me (although I’m not sure they would like to). You can tell Dr. Jim Phipps ’68 that his persuasive theory and interpersonal communication classes have paid off quite well. I’ll admit things are a bit more difficult when using gestures, expressions, and a 20-word Arabic vocabulary, but I think he would be happy with the results. … I’m happy to be able to give a window into the activities over here. I don’t know how much of the “hearts and minds” aspect is broadcast over there. I hope you aren’t constantly barraged with the violence and body counts. There are things other than all that going on. … Here are some pictures one of the guys took while we were on a patrol. We’d been walking for about two hours and took a break. This family is very friendly to us and we stop here occasionally. Each of the platoons has a family or two that they’ve encountered/adopted and have good relations with. Whenever possible we drop in on those families if we are patrolling in their area. This was the first time I had been to this house. The kid I’m bandaging scraped up his leg pretty good when he fell off his bike. You can’t really see it, but he is screaming ... he calmed down and warmed up to me later. Ideally, this is how we want our missions to go. We walk around and talk to the people and play with the kids when nobody is shooting at us. Thanks for the support, all of you. I hope to see you soon. Love, Jake Jake welcomes your e-mails at noftiza1@hotmail. com, however he asks that you not send forwards.