Spring 2020

Dear Members of the Class of 2016,
 
Like colleges all over the country (and the world), Luther College has just wrapped up a spring semester like no other. Our students participated in remote learning, connecting with their professors and classmates online and on Sunday, May 24, we celebrated the Class of 2020 with a virtual commencement . It certainly wasn't the spring semester we imagined, but the Luther community responded with resiliency and creativity.
 
Many of us are making adjustments, sometimes daily or even hourly, to these uncertain times but we wanted to be sure to connect with you and to send you Hailey, Jacy, and Laura's letter. We think you'll enjoy reading what they have written to your class.
 
Especially now, gifts to the Luther Fund can make a big difference in supporting students as they navigate all that's ahead. If you can ,   I hope you will consider making a gift today.

We hope you and your loved ones are safe and healthy during these times. For updated information about Luther's response to the pandemic, visit luther.edu.

Many thanks for your steadfast love and support.
 
Mariah Bringer Smith ‘95
Director of Development, Current Gifts
Hey Class of 2016!
 
We hope this update finds you healthy, happy and not too stir crazy. What a time to be alive… COVID -19 has delayed our update a bit and has affected quite a lot on the Luther campus as well.
 
As you may have already heard, in late March, Luther began distance learning along with the rest of the country, and sent the students home from campus. Those who could not return home, such as international students, were welcomed with open arms into Decorah community members’ homes. How lucky is Luther to be so near and dear to the Decorah community? Summer courses are also scheduled for distance learning and I guess we will see what the fall brings to Luther. What an interesting freshmen year for some, and what a weird end of undergrad for some.

Luther announced a new global health major which is ironically perfect for the future Luther students as this was announced prior to COVID-19. Also new, is a partnership between Northeast Iowa Community College and Luther that creates an A.A. to B.A. Social Work Transfer Pathway.
 
Here’s something beautiful that may have flown under your radar or maybe you caught a glimpse but we think it’s worth watching again and again. There was a virtual choir (some of you grads were seen in it!) who sang To Luther , and it shows how we can all come together from afar to still give adoration for our Alma Mater.


Hailey Johnson
6219 E. Long Circle S
Centennial, CO 80112
303-885-8494
Jacy Mahoney
13075 Bacardi Avenue
Rosemount, MN 55068-3002
612-269-7371




Laura Vestle
5917 Vincent Avenue S.
Mpls. MN 55410-2842
319-899-4293

CLASS NOTES
 
Kalla (Galyon) and Jordan Boekhoff live in Owatonna, Minn. Kalla is a representative at State Farm Insurance, and Jordan teaches social studies at Byron High School.
 
Ellen Badger Hanson is project manager and research assistant for the USDA - Agricultural Research Service/Thunder Basin Grasslands Prairie Ecosystem Association in Fort Collins, Colo.
 
Olivia Brooks earned the juris doctorate from Drake University Law School. She is an associate attorney at the Ahlers & Cooney law firm in Des Moines, Iowa.
 
Makayla (Marinack) Dahleen is a graduate student at the Lutheran School of Theology in Chicago.
 
Samantha Ea is coordinator for global service with the ELCA’s Global Mission Unit in Chicago.
 
Sarah Ea is a medical support assistant for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs in St. Paul, Minn.
 
Claudia Elvidge is loan documentation specialist at Coulee Bank in La Crosse, Wis.
 
Spencer Hackler is a school psychologist intern at South Central Educational Cooperative in Tyndall, S.D.
 
Bryn Hedlund earned the juris doctorate from the University of Iowa College of Law. She is an associate attorney in the litigation division of Whitfield & Eddy law firm in Des Moines, Iowa.
 
Elizabeth Hovden is physician assistant with Mayo Clinic Health System in Mankato, Minn.
 
Amanda Jenkins of Decorah earned the MA degree in library and information science from the University of Iowa School of Library and Information Science. She is a user experience librarian at Luther.
 
Peter Lillibridge is an account analyst at Kinect Energy Group in Plymouth, Minn.
 
Nicole Lussier is event manager at Auction Harmony in Brooklyn Park, Minn.
 
Lauren Mordini is summer camp coordinator for the Aldo Leopold Nature Center in Monona, Wis.
 
Riley Samuelson earned the MA degree in library and information science from the University of Iowa School of Library and Information Science; he an education and outreach librarian at the Hardin Library for the Health Sciences in Iowa City, Iowa.
 
Windom Shields is senior energy specialist at Kinect Energy Group in Plymouth, Minn.
 
Josue Silva is a Catalyze program advisor at College Possible in St. Paul, Minn.
 
Peter Swanson earned a master’s degree in music from the University of Maryland and is a doctoral student and graduate assistant at the University of North Carolina in Greensboro, N.C.
 
Laura Turco graduated in 2019 from the Courtauld Institute of Art with a postgraduate diploma in the conservation of easel paintings. She is the Samuel H. Kress fellow in painting conservation at the Institute of Fine Arts at New York University in New York City.
 
 
MARRIAGES
KALLA GALYON and JORDAN BOEKHOFF, June 30, 2018
 
ALEX HEIN and Jeff Theismann, Feb. 8, 2020
 
ZACH HENDRIKSON and Jenna Marier, Aug. 17, 2019
 
SARAH MCKAY and JON COCHRANE, Aug. 17, 2019
 
OLIVIA MITCHELL and BRIAN PAULSRUD, Aug. 11, 2018
 
SARAH RICKERTSEN and COLIN ERAL '17, Nov. 25, 2019
 
CHELSIE WOHLERS and Adam Yotter, Aug. 11, 2018
 
OLIVIA ZANT and Eric Montou, May 26, 2018