The Alumni Magazine for Worcester Polytechnic Institute. (WPI)
Issue link: http://wpialumnimag.epubxp.com/i/277771
class notes development for largest plastic (Corian) sink plant in the world. Final project was to take DuPont's Building Innovations manufacturing (Corian, Tyvek, etc.) to zero landfll in eight sites worldwide. I retired for a few months and then started a C&D; recycling business in the Buffalo area. Triad Recycling and Energy Corp. is frst to recycle many materials in New York, such as asphalt roofng shingles, drywall, vinyl siding, and mattresses, to name a few. I'm currently working to develop new markets and processes of recycled materials and reduce material headed to landfll." 1979 Andrew Davidson writes, "On Saturday, Sept. 7, 2013, I walked my daughter down the aisle. A day to make a dad proud." Chris Mather runs Leveragent, a company that helps communities and organizations implement effective entrepreneurial development programs. 1981 Phil Gallagher writes, "I spent the Christmas holiday at Big White, B.C., skiing with my family, including my son Scott (WPI '13) and my daughter Hannah (WPI '16). Both kids are Chem Eng majors, which means they got their smarts from their mother. Life is good in the Pacifc Northwest, but we enjoy our trips back to New England to visit friends and family as often as possible." Phil is senior vice president at Babcock Services in Kennewick, Wash. 1982 Anni Autio writes, "In October I joined The Thompson & Litchner Company in Canton, Mass., as a senior engineer. The company offers a broad range of engineering, testing, quality control, advisory, and forensic services to the construction industry. T&L; has enjoyed a reputation for excellence and quality of service since the formation of the original partnership of Sanford E. Thompson and Frederick W. Taylor in 1896. It's exciting to be working at this well-established frm with such a rich history of projects." Jay Koven is a second-year student in the computer science PhD program at NYU Polytechnic School of Engineering, working in the areas of visual data analytics and investigative forensics. "Three of my four kids are engineers and spread around the country," he writes. "The fourth is currently up in Worcester working as a curator intern at the Higgins Armory Museum, which is in the process of merging with the Worcester Art Museum." 1983 Joel Kearns has changed jobs. After almost four years at MEMC Electronic Materials (now, SunEdison) in St. Louis, as vice president for solar wafer R&D;, he is now deputy director for space fight systems at the NASA Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, Ohio. 1984 Jean Salek Camp and her husband, David, have moved from Hawaii to southern California to be closer to her parents. Jean shut down her project management and consulting business and is focused on renovating the newly purchased house. In addition to helping her parents, Jean and David are taking advantage of being on the mainland, which makes it easier to travel and visit other family members and friends. Jean is taking a distance learning interior design course and continues to enjoy painting with watercolors. In March, Bob Korkuc celebrated his 25th year at BAE Systems (formerly Sanders) in Nashua, N.H., where he is a digital module product lead. Bob earned an MSEE at Villanova University in 1989, and obtained a master's certifcate in systems engineering from Johns Hopkins University in 2003. He is also the author of Finding a Fallen Hero: The Death of a Ball Turret Gunner, published by the University of Oklahoma Press in 2008. Fallen Hero tells the story of Bob's uncle Tony Korkuc, who was killed in WWII on a B-17 mission over Germany. Bob has been happily married for 13 years and has a 10-year-old daughter and an 8-year-old son. 1985 Jeannine Machon is expanding her laboratory and testing business with the legalization of marijuana in Colorado. Having run a mobile lab testing marijuana potency for 2+ years, she has been actively working with the State Department of Revenue to help draft practical and pragmatic testing legislature for this nascent industry. In one of three labs licensed by the state of Colorado, Jeannine and her two business partners are expanding their equipment and analytical capabilities to meet the needs of the recreational marijuana industry. 1986 Patrick Tormey is vice president, Global Accounts Program, at PerkinElmer Inc. He writes, "I am proud to report that one of my twin daughters, Carmen, was recentlyaccepted to enter WPI this fall, along with a generous scholarship. What a wonderful opportunity for this young lady to immerse herself in one of engineering's top institutes!" 1987 Paul Gaynor, CEO of First Wind, gave a seminar at WPI in December called "Wind Energy: Will the Growth Continue?" His company, headquartered in Boston, has played a major role in that expansion, with wind farms from Hawaii to Maine. "Wind has grown 15-fold since I've been in the industry (about 10 years), and still only provides about 3 percent of the U.S. energy needs. Yes, there is a long way to go, and yes, it is a very fne career choice," he told an interviewer for The Daily Herd, WPI's online newsletter. Steve Hall recently retired as president of Ekra America, a multinational electronics manufacturing automation company. He's back on the WPI campus as the head wrestling coach and says he's happy to be giving back to the next generation of the "WPI Wrestling Family." Steve and his wife, Michelle Payant Hall '85, are getting used to being empty nesters, as their sons, Connor and Matt, are both in college, "playing lacrosse and, hopefully, going to class!!" Don Kane is a senior distribution engineer with Connecticut Light and Power (Northeast Utilities), living in northwest Connecticut with his wife, Jacqueline, and their boys, Patrick and Andrew. Don recently completed his MS in power systems management through WPI. Paul Lubas joined ASCO Valve Inc., a division of Emerson Electric, as director of marketing. He is responsible for developing and maintaining a marketing strategy for ASCO products in process control markets, which include refning, oil and gas, chemical, food and beverage, life sciences, water and waste water, power generation, and pulp and paper. Paul and his family have relocated to New Jersey from Glastonbury, Conn., as a result of the job change and now reside in Mendham. Spring 2014 59 WPI_classnotes_final.indd 59 3/9/14 2:42 PM