UTMB Alumni

SON CLASS NOTES

1930s | 1940s | 1950s | 1960s | 1970s

1980s | 1990s | 2000s

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See School of Medicine class notes
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See Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences class notes

1940s

Dorothy Carter Black ’45, El Paso, Texas, is retired and after 56 years her degree from UTMB School of Nursing has brought her great pride, fulfillment and pleasure. All the changes she has seen during those years have brought benefit to the patient, though there can never be enough of bedside nursing. Lucille Pieper Gwin ’48, Corpus Christi, Texas, is retired. She enjoyed her visit to UTMB during Homecoming 2001. All of the activities were so beautifully planned and she had a wonderful time. She would like to hear from her classmates. Her address is 5825 Ocean Drive, Corpus Christi, Texas, 78412. Ruth Lynch Townsend ’46, still has not heard from any of her classmates. Her address is P.O. Box 2925, Bryan, Texas, 77805-2925. Ruth recently became a lifetime member of the UTMB SON Alumni Association. Bette J. Rogers ’47, Wichita Falls, Texas, reports that after a stent and pacemaker in December 2001 and seven months in assisted living, she is independent again. She says those golden years are just electroplate.

1950s

Ella Ruth Nelson Bedgood ’59, Atlanta, Texas, retired from the Atlanta ISD in 1996, but she substitutes for the school nurses. She has been busy remodeling her house, which has been a very trying experience. Dr. Dorothy A. Chesley ’57, Austin, Texas, is volunteering with the Texas Department of Health (TDH) Volunteer Services to promote faith-based nursing in Texas. Parish Nurse Connections, a quarterly meeting, provides the opportunity for nurses in faith communities to hear about TDH and other statewide resources. In April 2003 Dr. Chesley received the UTMB Rebecca Sealy Distinguished Alumnus Award for her significant contributions to the nursing profession. Eva J. Goulding ’56, Pasadena, Texas, served as president of the Harris County Medical Society Alliance for one year and is currently serving a three-year term as trustee of the Dr. John P. McGovern Museum of Health and Medical Science in Houston. Kathleen “Kitty” Nentwich Janiga ’57 San Antonio, Texas, retired from teaching at San Antonio College in 1999. She now does property management at a ranch and is also active in the Quilt Guild coordinating the construction of 40 quilts a month to give to a children’s shelter. Kitty is also active in parish nursing. Leanna Haverlah Koemel ’56, George West, Texas, is retired and enjoys visiting her children and grandchildren. She was thrilled to visit her youngest grandchild during the first week of her life and enjoy a snowfall at the same time. Leanna took an “Autumn in New England” tour and it was fabulous. She would like to read about more classmates in the alumni class notes. Dorothy K. “Dottie” Reid ’53, Silverton, Oregon, is retired but she volunteers at Northwest Medical Teams and also does some parish nursing at Trinity Lutheran in Silverton.

1960s

Jean A. Rowland Cox ’61, Austin, Texas, has been very busy with book signings throughout Austin and cities near her hometown of Talpa in West Texas. Her book, “A Long Way From the Cotton Patch,” includes experiences and memories from her eleven years spent at UTMB working in medical-surgical positions. Recent travels include a river cruise in Europe and a two-week Caribbean cruise. Dr. Katherine J. Moore ’61, Houston, Texas, is currently employed by the Methodist Health Care System of Houston. She functions under a service agreement between Methodist and Hewlett-Packard Company (formerly Compaq Computer Corporation), where she manages Compaq’s employee health services and workers compensation program nationwide. Katherine also has her own part-time business, K. J. Moore Consulting. She specializes in occupational and environmental health program development, evaluation, workers compensation, OSHA compliance training and medical/legal record review. She hopes to retire from full-time employment in the next few years and continue her part-time consulting business. Pansy D. Faith Cowan Hughes ’64, Garland, Texas, remarried on August 24, 2002. She is no longer working as a psych nurse.

1970s

Janet C. Gilmore ’70, Missouri City, Texas, received the innovation/creativity award during Nurseweek’s annual Nursing Excellence Awards for the South Central region on November 15, 2002, in Dallas, Texas. Janet is director of perioperative services at the Methodist Hospital in Houston. Dr. Sally H. Helton ’75, Cincinnati, Ohio, is searching for Vicki Clifford from the class of 1975. Please contact her at HBobatwork@aol.com. Aletta Z. Linares ’75, is enjoying retirement and the freedom it gives her. She and her husband, Hugo, recently moved and have found a wonderful environment, friends, and much to do. Her new address is 207 Eastmoor Drive, Asheville, North Carolina, 28805-9255. Frances “Franki” Pokladnik ’70, La Marque, Texas, retired from UTMB Nursing Services, Behavioral Medicine, on August 30, 2002. Phyllis J. Smith ’74 and ’76, Fort Sam Houston, Texas, retired from military service with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel, Army Nurse Corp., in November 2000. She gave more than 22 years of service to our country. Deborah Epps Vaughan ’74, Colleyville, Texas, has been married to Dr. Thomas H. Vaughan, Jr., SOM ’76, for 28 years and has four children. Her oldest daughter graduated from Texas A&M University in August 2000. Her other two daughters are also attending Texas A&M, and she has a teenaged son. Deborah is certified by the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners and is also a member of North Texas Nurse Practitioners, Signa Theta Tau.

1980s

Patricia A. Bruso-Campbell ’83, United Kingdom, married Alan Campbell on March 11, 2000, and is living and working in Scotland. She is enjoying the beautiful country, her interesting job and a wonderful life. Janice Fivel Di Falco ’83 and ’88, Houston, Texas, has been married for ten years and has a daughter, Marissa, and a son, Ryan. She received a national fellowship from the American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation (AACVPR) in Charlotte, North Carolina, in September 2002. Lisa McDowell Lowrey ’81, Austin, Texas, is enjoying life with her husband and raising their three children. She recently became a lifetime member of the UTMB SON Alumni Association. Jane E. Reinhart Gonzalez ’69 and ’83, Galveston, Texas, and Paula R. Castonguay ’81, Santa Fe, Texas, received the UTMB Betty Lee Evans Nursing Excellence Awards in May 2003 for their clinical achievements. Kleanthe “Anthe” Caruso ’75 and ’84, League City, Texas, received UTMB’s Betty Lee Evans Nursing Excellence Award in May 2002 for her clinical achievements. She is also chairing the American Nurses Association Task Force to review and revise standards of nursing in correctional settings. Mei-Mei Mai ’86, Houston, Texas, recently graduated from dental school in Houston and currently practices dentistry there while maintaining her R.N. and R.N.C. licenses. Janie Perez ’81, South San Francisco, California, manages the research protocols at the Stanford Cystic Fibrosis Center.

1990s

Barbara A. Cutler ’92, Houston, Texas, retired from being a family nurse practitioner in January 2000, but returned to work part-time in October 2000. She currently works locum tenems throughout Harris and Galveston counties. Barbara has also been active with the local Red Cross since 9-11. She is married and has three children, three grandchildren and one more grandchild on the way. Barbara and her husband travel in their motor home throughout the United States. They recently returned from a five-week tour of New Zealand and Australia. She finally got to meet her pen pal of 44 years who lives in Australia. Helen-Louise Boling ’94, Toledo, Ohio, is still enjoying her work as an acute care pediatric nurse practitioner (PNP). She enjoys getting together with UTMB PNP alums at the annual National Association of Pediatric Nurse Associates and Practitioners conference. Deborah Howard ’95, Stafford, Texas, a lactation education coordinator at Memorial Hermann Hospital Southwest, received the Obstetric Nursing Award at the 19th Annual Houston Perinatal Nursing Symposium, sponsored by the March of Dimes, the Harris County Hospital District, and Texas Children’s Hospital. This award is given to a registered nurse in recognition of excellence in the areas of clinical practice, education, research, and community and program development. Jennifer Juul Parkey ’95, Metairie, Louisiana, married Joe Parkey, a 1998 graduate of UTMB School of Medicine. They have one son, Ryan, and a daughter, Grace. Eva Marie Sonnier ’94 and ’99, Dallas, Texas, is working as a family nurse practitioner in a busy clinic in the Dallas Metroplex area.

2000s

Emily M. Weber ’00, Pearland, Texas, was recently named Nurse of the Year at Texas Children’s Hospital. She was honored for her outstanding patient care and leadership abilities as a charge nurse. Janet B. Newsom ’77 and ’00, Marshall, Texas, is practicing as a geriatric nurse practitioner in long-term care and clinics.