July 15th, 2010

We are sad to report that Jane C. Jette, 91, mother of Ann Atkinson, Communication, passed away June 25.

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Jerry Babonis, husband of Helen Babonis, textbook manager at the KSC Bookstore, received the Gary N. Lauten Award for outstanding service and commitment to the University of New Hampshire’s Forest Watch program. Babonis has been sampling two research plots with his sophomore biology students at Monadnock HighSchool annually for 10 years. For more on Babonis’s work, the Forest Watch program, and the Lauten Award, visit UNH’s Campus Journal.

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Seven Keene High School juniors will attend the Advanced Studies Program at St. Paul’s School in Concord this summer, including:

• Julia Brush, daughter of Judith Rubin and Francis Brush, will study The Quest. At KHS Julia is Student Council secretary, Vice President of the junior class, a member of the National Honor Society, Co-founder of the Quidditch Club, a member of Interact, and a representative to the principal’s advisory. She recently returned from the New England Young Writer’s Conference held at Middlebury College’s Bread Loaf School. She volunteers as a Hebrew teacher and at the Fast Friends organization.
• Carolynn Johnson, daughter of Chris Hrynowski and Ockle Johnson, will study Advanced Mathematics. At KHS, Carolynn is a member of the National Honor Society, the Envirothon team, the Math Team, the Quidditch Club, the cross-country team, treasurer of the Key Club, and plays alto sax in the KHS Concert Band. She was named the most outstanding English student her freshman year. She is also a mentor with the Keene Elementary Band and involved with the Girls Scouts.

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We are sad to report that Jesse Ward, 82, father of Donna Hinz and stepfather of Pauline Dionne, passed away May 22. A service will be held today, May 27, at 2 p.m. at St. James Episcopal Church in Keene.

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We are sad to report that Helen Hoefler Handwerker, 93, mother of Deborah Edwards, Student Center, passed away on April 13, 2010.

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From Brian Green, Sociology:

My wife Jana gave birth to our first daughter, Diana, on Thursday, February 18 in Trnava, Slovakia. Both mother and daughter are doing well. We hope to be back in Keene within the next few weeks to introduce Diana to the campus community.

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From Jim Draper, Purchasing:

1/24/10 – Morrisville, NC - 5:20 p.m.
My youngest daughter (Michelle) had her 3rd child – all boys.
The new guy:
Thomas Edward Hay
7 lbs. 9 oz.
19” long

Congratulations, Jim, and our best to Michelle!

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We are sad to report that Warren Lodge, 86, father of Gloria Lodge, Academic and Career Advising, passed away on December 6, 2009.

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Congratulations to Kirsti Sandy (English) and Scott Herstad, proud parents of a new daughter, Betty Rose. Betty Rose is a local celebrity (you can read about her in the Brattleboro Reformer), as she was the first baby born at Brattleboro Memorial Hospital in 2010!

We are sad to report several Keene State community losses:

Brent Elwell, a recognizable fixture at many KSC athletic events and from various appointments on campus, passed away on January 5. His positions on campus varied from working events in athletics to working in the bookstore to his earliest post helping in the mailroom 15 years ago.

Elizabeth R. Shesler, 92, mother of Jeanne Hearn, assistant director, Aspire Program, passed away on December 18, 2009.

Dorothy J. King, 88, mother of Beverly King, assistant professor of Physical Education and assistant dean for Professional and Graduate Studies, passed away on January 7, 2010.

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From Kim Schmidl-Gagne, Academic Affairs: Please join us to help create a group that will provide social opportunities for diverse families; share information and expertise; inform, educate, and dispel misinformation; and celebrate our life choice, affirming diversity’s strengths and providing support for dealing with its unique challenges. We need your input and perspective to help this group be what you need it to be. We will meet on Tuesday, November 17, from noon to 1:30 in the Madison Street Lounge (lunch served).

This planning group meeting is extended to members of the KSC campus community. As the group takes shape, we will reach out to the wider community. We welcome any diverse family configuration: adoptive families, multiracial families, GLBT (Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender) parents/guardians, grandparents who play a parenting role, any under-represented ethnicity, and more (help us to expand this list). Sponsored by the Office of Multiculturalism and Diversity and the Child Development Center.

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The campus community’s thoughts are with Mary Jensen (Recycling/Sustainability) whose sister, Sara J. Jensen, died on October 26.

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The campus community’s thoughts are with Patrick Hearn (Recreational Sports) whose father died on September 26, 2009.

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The campus community’s thoughts are with Brad Miller (Campus Safety), whose father died on September 24.

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Elizabeth Williams (ITG) and Michael French (Physics) have just become the proud grandparents of twins: Dylan Thomas, 6 lbs. 14 oz., and Jacob Nathaniel, 6 lbs. 2 oz., born July 11, 2009. The tired, yet joyful parents are Geoffrey Williams and Carmen McElman. They are all living happily in Nelson.

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Emerita faculty member Miriam Goder has shared that her husband, Dr. Harold Goder, passed away December 30, 2008. Dr. Goder was a faculty member in Biology beginning in 1962 and continuing through his retirement in 1998. Miriam, a Keene State faculty member in Music from 1962 to 1994, lives in Hendersonville, North Carolina.

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The campus community’s thoughts are with Elaine Broad-Ginsberg (Music), whose father Kenneth L. Broad died suddenly on February 2. He was 72 years old.

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We are saddened to share that Dr. Margaret Rogers Ebbighausen passed away on January 27. Dr. Rogers was a Professor of Special Education at Keene State College from 1974 until her retirement in 1991.

The campus community’s thoughts are with Kathleen Johnson (Management), whose father Albert Daniels died on January 25. He was 81 years old.

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We are saddened to report that Dr. Virginia Trumbull, professor emeritus of Special Education, passed away on Wednesday, November 26, after a long struggle with Alzheimer’s disease.

Ginny began her career at Keene State College in fall of 1974 and continued through her retirement in 1998, earning recognition for her excellence as a teacher in 1988 as KSC’s Distinguished Teacher of the Year. Dr. Trumbull’s expertise in Special Education made her an incredible resource for students in our education program as well as for campus and community members who themselves had learning disabilities or special needs and required support.

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A memorial for Dr. Charles Hildebrandt, Keene State College emeritus faculty and professor of sociology, will be held on Monday, November 3, at 4 p.m. in the Redfern Arts Center Alumni Recital Hall.

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Dr. Charles Hildebrandt, emeriti faculty, professor of sociology at Keene State College for nearly 30 years, and founder of the Cohen Center for Holocaust Studies at Keene State College, died on October 21.

“It is with great sadness that I confirm the death of Dr. Charles (Chuck) Hildebrandt, who, according to his family, battled Alzheimer’s disease and dementia for the past ten years,” President Helen Giles-Gee wrote in a message to the campus. “We are grateful for his inspiration, vision, passion, and commitment to this important work. Dr. Hildebrandt’s legacy extends from our campus to students, scholars, and colleagues across the country and the world.”

Henry F. Knight, director of the Cohen Center, said he never met Hildebrandt, but feels the founder’s profound influence. “From my very first days at Keene State College and the Cohen Center, I’ve felt the gentle shadow of Chuck Hildebrandt,” Knight said. “Everything about it has been rich and powerful. Like many others in our community, I am proudly in his debt.”

On sabbatical in 1982, Hildebrandt traveled to Jerusalem to study at the Yad Vashem to develop a course on the Sociology of the Holocaust and to prepare to establish a Holocaust Resource Center at Keene State. That year he traveled around the United States collecting books and materials for the Center. Today, as one of the nation’s oldest Holocaust resource centers, the Cohen Center for Holocaust Studies is recognized as a “center of excellence” by the Jewish Foundation for the Righteous. It has a strong collection of print and media resources, holds a biennial residential summer institute for educators, and supports a minor in Holocaust studies at Keene State College.

Paul Vincent, a former director of the Center and professor of Holocaust studies and history at Keene State, was a long-time friend of Hildebrandt’s. “The Center so much reflects the vision that he had,” Vincent said. “His goal was to remember, and to teach. That was very important to him, and it’s something I’ve carried with me.”

You can add a personal remembrance or tribute of Chuck Hildebrandt on the Cohen Center site here. Arrangements for a memorial will be announced at a later time. Gifts in his memory can be directed to the Charles Hildebrandt Holocaust Studies Award Endowment, Cohen Center for Holocaust Studies, Mason Library, 229 Main St., Keene, NH 03435-3201. For more information, call 8-2940 or visit www.keene.edu/cchs/.

Courtesy Photo; Dr. Charles Hildebrandt

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We are sad to report that Nona Fienberg’s (Arts and Humanities) mother, Mary Davis, passed away on October 16. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Cohen Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies or to the meaningful cause of your choice.

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Campus Safety student switchboard operator Samantha Massahos was crowned Miss Monadnock Region on October 12 in Wilton, N.H. Sam is a native of Salem, N.H. ,and is a member of the Class of 2011. She has participated in several scholarship pageants around the state and won seven out of eleven talent competitions. She will compete for the title of Miss New Hampshire in May 2009 in Derry.

Courtesy Photo: Samantha Massahos

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We are sad to report that Peter Tandy’s (Education) father passed away on September 28.

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We are sad to report that Barbara Ware’s (Modern Languages) mother died in early September.

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Congratulations to Erik Ullman (IT Group) and his wife, Melanie (KSC alumni), on the birth of their daughter, Zoe Grace, born on June 26. Zoe has two older brothers.

Anne Whittle (Admissions) sends along the following note: My family and I would like to thank the College community for the many acts of kindness shown to us at the time of our daughter’s death. This has been a very difficult time for us, but your friendship helped us through this sad time.
With sincere appreciation,
Ann Whittle

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