Page 29 - Currents Fall 2012

WSU Currents • Fall 2012 27
Ewald Hertz ’66 ( Wausau, Wis.) passed
away on January 28, 2011.
Dennis “Denny” Peterson ’66 (Rushford,
Minn.) passed away on May 9 at his home.
After receiving his associate’s degree in
business at Winona State, he worked for
Tri-County Electric Cooperative for 32
years. He also farmed. He served with the
Rushford Fire Department for 30 years and
also volunteered for numerous organiza-
tions in his community.
Clifford “Cliff” Sorensen ’66 (St Louis
Park, Minn.) passed away on January 13.
He served in the U.S. Army from 1943-46
and taught high school industrial arts for
more than 30 years in Westby, Wis.
Esther “Red” DeVine ’69 ( Slayton, Minn.)
passed away on May 20. She taught in
Worthington, Hillsboro, Ore., Jasper, and
Peterson before settling in Lanesboro in
1963. A first grade teacher, she retired in
1995. She loved spending time with her
children and grandchildren.
Mary Lynn Gustafson ’69 (Red Wing,
Minn.) died on April 20 at her home. She
taught elementary school for 39 years in
Red Wing and enjoyed Bible study, gar-
dening, summer vacations, and the arts.
Helen Elizabeth Lynch ’69 ( Plainview
Minn.) passed away on August 29, 2011.
She first attended Wayne State College
and the earned her bachelor’s at WSU. For
several years she taught developmentally
disabled children in the Wabasha-Kellogg
schools and also taught Head Start in
Wabasha.
1970s
Daniel Wenkman ’72 (Necedah,Wis.) died
on February 18. He earned a master’s at
WSU and finally his PhD at the University
of Wisconsin in 1993. Dan dedicated his
life to teaching as a teacher, coach, and
principal. He was the youngest elementary
school principal in Minnesota when he
served at St. Thomas Elementary in Min-
neapolis from 1972-76, and later went on
to serve as principal of Sullivan Elementary
for 28 years. During his career he touched
the hearts of innumberable students, par-
ents, and fellow staff members.
Donna G. Weber ’73 (Winona) passed
away on May 3 at her home. She received
her nursing degree from Winona State and
then her master’s as a nurse practitioner
from Marshall University. She worked for
the Olean Medical Group until she retired
in 2010.
Patricia (Sheehan) Fredrickson ’74
(La Crescent, Minn.) passed away on No-
vember 7, 2011 after a five-year battle with
cancer. She taught in La Crescent for 34
years and was recognized as Teacher
of the Year in 2001.
David B. Gieske ’74 ( Onalaska,Wis.) died
on November 24, 2008. David worked for
Hormel Foods in Austin and Key Cadillac
in Edina before starting Classic Compo-
nents, where he specialized in restoring
classic Chevrolets.
Earl Good ’74 ( Onalaska, Wis.) passed
away on October 1, 2011.
JoAnn (Marcou) MacBrine ’74 (Dowing-
town, Pa.) passed away on April 23. She
graduated from WSU with a degree in
special education and after post-graduate
work, began her career as a teacher fo
the Devereaux Foundation. While work-
ing for the Chester County Intermediate
Unit, she was honored by former First Lady
Laura Bush for outstanding service. Most
recently, she taught at Lionville Elementary
School in Lionville, Pa.
Ruth Ann Radke ’75 (Balsam Lake, Wis.)
passed away on September 28, 2011. She
was a registered nurse in the Twin Cities
area for more than 30 years.
Gail Bergaus) Bradbury ’76 (Winona)
passed away on May 7 at her home. A
CPA, Gail devoted a great amount of her
time to volunteer work with Project FINE,
the Dakota Homecoming, and ushering at
concerts of all kinds. She played clarinet
in the Saint Mary’s Concert Band, was a
master gardener, and enjoyed traveling the
world with her husband, Bernard.
Michael Kerrigan ’77 ( Little Rock, Iowa)
passed away on July 6. He served in the
U.S. Air Force and earned his business
management degree at Winona State. He
spent many years of his career working
with the American Legion and later worked
as an IT consultant.
Loretta (Thulien) Brown ’77 ( Fairmont,
Minn.) passed away on February 23, 2009.
Timothy J. Steffes ’78 ( Winona) died on
March 24. He served in the U.S. Air Force
and retired from CenturyTel in 2007. He
loved music, hunting and fishing, golf, curl-
ing, and walking.
1980s
Mark H. Ekstrand ’80 (Wabasha, Minn.)
passed away on June 10. He earned a
biology degree at WSU and worked as an
EMT for the Austin Ambulance Service and
later as an emergency room technician at
Austin Medical Center. He was also an avid
fly fisherman and golfer.
Alice Jane Wagner ’84 (Rochester, Minn.)
passed away on June 11 at her home.
She returned to school to earn her BSN
at Winona State and worked for Wabasha
Public Health for 18 years before retiring in
1955. She remained active as a volunteer
for Mayo Medical Relief Missions and the
Haiti Mission for 27 years.
1990s
Karlyn Sue Keuter-King ’95 (Dubuque,
Iowa) passed away on May 31 after battling
cancer. She was an outstanding athlete at
WSU in both volleyball and softball and re-
spected for her business career, volunteer
work, and devotion to her family.
2000s
Laurie Keller ’06 (Owatonna, Minn.)
passed away on July 21, 2010.
Faculty,
Staff, Friends
George M. Christensen (Winona) passed
away on March 7. A professor of psychol-
ogy and a clinical psychologist at Winona
State, he earned his undegraduate and
graduate degrees from the University of
Minnesota. He retired in 1990.