Category: Alumni

It would be easy to assume that baritone Thomas Hampson has moved on from his eastern Washington roots. The Eastern alumnus doesn’t need anyone new to mention that he’s distinctly gifted, naturally expressive, charismatic or good-looking (opera buffs call him “Thomas Handsome”). Audiences love him. Hampson (’92 BA government) packs opera houses on both sides…

Shawn Vestal ’08, ’05, MFA creative writing, BA interdisciplinary studies, won the Washington State Book Award for fiction for his debut novel, Daredevils (Penguin Press, 2016). The award, given by the Washington Center for the Book, honors “literary merit, lasting importance, and overall quality.” Winners were announced in Seattle in October. Vestal’s novel, set in the 1970s, tells…

Cristina Santana’s small stature and quiet, comforting manner are nearly lost in her sizable bulletproof vest. She roams the streets of Sunnyside, Washington, with her husband, Arturo, whose medium-sized build fits his T-shirt labeled U.S. Probation in large, yellow letters on his back. They walk with confidence among the streets of their hometown, often stopped…

At the highest level of professional competition, all athletes relentlessly search for ways to gain an edge over their opposition. Their ambition for success is equally preternatural as they train to the outer edges of physical capability. So what sets apart the perennial MLB All-Star from the struggling minor league prospect, both drafted in the…

Rodrick Jackson’s life changed forever Dec. 21, 2016. It was his 18th birthday – the day he changed his name to Rodrick Fisher and was adopted by the family who saved him from an uncertain future 10 months earlier. During the emotional adoption court hearing, Jolene Fisher spoke on behalf of her husband, Adam, and daughters,…

In October 2016, Rear Admiral (Ret.) George Lotzenhiser ’47 and Lt. Col. (Ret.) Jerry Mellick ’67, Eastern alumni from different generations, traveled together on the Inland Northwest Honor Flight to be recognized for their service to our country. Mellick served as the guardian for “The Admiral,” as he affectionately calls Lotzenhiser. The following are excerpts…

Skyler Oberst is easy to pick out of a crowd of young professionals. It isn’t his fashionable eyeglasses, his watch and matching leather shoes, or the geometry of creases on his shirt and slacks that could only come from an ironing board. It’s something else – an unmistakable sense of purpose multiplied by passion. Trim…

With Crystal (Balcom) Ju’s fear came a sense of longing. She longed for adventure, for travel, for fulfilling work. Her ambition and bravery led her down a path she never imagined – owning a successful international business in South Korea with her husband. Fresh from EWU graduation in 2010 with a car packed full of…

By Kevin Decker, PhD Action figures? Check. Lightsaber? Check. Blu-ray copy of the latest J.J. Abrams film? Check. These are not the normal tools of the college instructor, much less what the average philosophy professor brings to class. But because I teach philosophy and popular culture at Eastern Washington University, I also have to carry…

Physicist Kira Burt ’11, BS physics, only dreamed that one day she’d be working at the largest, longest-running collaborative science experiment in the world. Yet that’s where she found herself the past couple of years, living in France and working in neighboring Switzerland on a series of cutting-edge experiments in the field of particle physics…