It’s an experience many Kalamazoo College alumni can relate to: spending four years working and learning with amazing and inspiring classmates, then going your separate ways, never to have the same sort of connection again.
Friday, Oct. 20, was the first event in a planned K-Talk series that Joan Hawxhurst, director of the College’s Center for Career and Professional Development, said will make it possible for alumni such as Karman Kent (left) and Matt Thieleman, both ’07, to share their ideas and experiences with the K community.
But for Karman Kent and Matt Thieleman, both ’07, a convergence of opportunity and expertise launched a post-college professional collaboration aimed at bringing the beneficial effects of mindfulness to stressed-out college students – an experience the two spoke about before an audience of students and fellow alumni in Dewing Hall on Homecoming Friday.
It was the first in a planned K-Talk series that Joan Hawxhurst, director of the College’s Center for Career and Professional Development, said will make it possible for alumni to share their ideas and experiences with the K community.
The project that renewed the ties between the two former classmates began after Kent joined Morehead-Cain, a foundation that provides full-ride merit scholarships at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Now the foundation’s director of scholar selection, Kent found a community of high-achieving students, not unlike those at K, who were often severely stressed by the difficulties of meeting their own high expectations and those of others.
Thieleman, meanwhile, had launched a career in social media marketing, then discovered a passion for developing future leaders through training in mindfulness, the practice of focusing one’s attention on what is happening in the current moment. He launched a Nashville-based consultancy that, as he puts it, helps people recognize that actually “being present” in a situation is key to developing the ability to see the way forward in an increasingly noisy world.
Kent – seeking a way to get students to open up about their troubles – reached out to Thieleman, who brought his expertise to UNC for a seminar. He and Kent said they saw a surprising and “profound” transformation in the Morehead-Cain students who participated, with 95 percent recommending the program to others.
Thieleman continues to counsel students. And Kent said the foundation was so impressed with the results that it has hired a full-time adviser to coach its scholarship recipients in mindfulness techniques.
Hawxhurst said Kent and Thieleman’s experience points out the potential power of the K experience during and after college. Kent concurred.
“At Morehead-Cain … the alumni network is one of the biggest benefits to being in the program,” she said. “We have so many amazing alumni here at K. If we can have that kind of openness to working together, it can be transformative.”
Acclaimed for his former role on AMC’s “The Walking Dead,” Steven S. Yeun ’05 was among four honorees Friday, Oct. 20, as Kalamazoo College presented its 2017 Distinguished Alumni Awards. Athletic Hall of Fame inductions also were held in the ceremony at Dalton Theatre at Light Fine Arts.
Distinguished Alumni Awards honoree Steven Yeun ’05 is acclaimed for his former role on AMC’s “The Walking Dead.” He was among four honorees Friday, Oct. 20.
The recipients and their awards were:
William DeGrado ’77, Distinguished Achievement Award. DeGrado is a professor in the department of pharmaceutical chemistry and an investigator at the Cardiovascular Research Institute at the University of California San Francisco.
Phillip C. Carra ’69, Distinguished Service Award. Carra is a partner in Apjohn Group, a life science start-up consultancy in Kalamazoo; former corporate vice president for public relations at the Upjohn Co.; an emeritus trustee of the College; and a leader in numerous civic organizations. His award was presented in absentia.
Yeun, Young Alumni Award. A fan favorite as Glenn Rhee on “The Walking Dead,” Yeun, whose award was presented in absentia, has since gone on to play roles in feature films including “Okja” and “Mayhem.”
Gail Griffin, Weimer K. Hicks Award. An author, poet and essayist, Griffin was chair of three departments (English, Theatre and Classics), founding director of Women’s Studies and director of Teaching Development during her 1977-2013 tenure at K. This is the latest of her numerous K honors.
As many as 1,000 alumni from around the nation and world will gather on the Kalamazoo College campus Friday-Sunday for K’s annual Homecoming.
Topping the list Friday night will be the annual Distinguished Alumni Awards and Athletic Hall of Fame Inductions. And Hornet Pride will be on display at football, men’s soccer and women’s soccer games on Saturday, alumni volleyball, softball and baseball games on Friday and an alumni swim meet and 5k Run/Walk on Saturday.
Kalamazoo College will conduct its annual Homecoming festivities Friday, Oct. 20-Sunday, Oct. 22.
Also among the Friday-Sunday events:
Reunions of the classes of 1967, 1972, 1977, 1987, 1992, 1997, 2002, 2007 and 2012. There is also an informal gathering for the class of 2017.
Receptions and gatherings for groups including LandSea alumni, 1833 Society Young Alumni, Alumni of Color, the Emeriti Club, theatre arts alumni and athletics teams, plus a chance to socialize with faculty and staff in departmental receptions throughout the Weimer K. Hicks Student Center on Saturday morning.
Artist Julie Mehretu ’92, of New York City, has worked for the past 14 months at a deconsecrated Harlem church on two towering paintings measuring 27 feet by 32 feet that required a scissor lift to develop.
Since graduating from K with a degree in art and art history, Mehretu has become one of the leading contemporary artists in the United States. She has received international accolades for her work, with her honors including the American Art Award from the Whitney Museum of American Art and the prestigious MacArthur Fellow award.
Mehretu recently shared a testimonial of the liberal arts including her Kalamazoo College experience with the Council for Independent Colleges.
“The liberal arts experience gives you the opportunity to learn, to fail, to succeed, to really find out who you are,” she said. “When I reflect on how my artistic work has progressed, I think of those early years at Kalamazoo College. My artistic process takes both intense thought and impulse. Balancing this has taken time and evolved over the years. It happens in all kinds of different ways. I’m making all these decisions, determining one thing at a time, and not even so much determining as understanding. I think that’s what Kalamazoo College was for me: a place to begin to understand.”
The final products of her latest efforts will be on display at the San Francisco museum for more than three years beginning Sept. 2. Read more and take a sneak peek of the paintings at the New York Times and Architectural Digest websites. The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art also has a news release at its website.
In early May, 28 Kalamazoo College students had the opportunity to share a meal on campus with eight professionals who have at least two things in common—the K-Plan and careers at the Stryker Corporation, a Kalamazoo-based Fortune 500 medical technologies firm.
The alumni returned to campus at the invitation of the Center for Career and Professional Development to meet with students who could learn about career paths at Stryker and the relevance of the K-Plan to those paths. At least 15 current Stryker employees got their undergraduate degrees at K, and both institutions are interested in strengthening the talent pipeline between the two.
The event began with a welcome by S. Si Johnson ’78, the retired group president of Stryker MedSurg Group and a current member of the College’s board of trustees. Johnson shared the four core values of Stryker—integrity, accountability, people, and performance—and reflected on how the critical thinking and problem solving skills inherent in a K education are great preparation for a career at Stryker.
After students and alumni enjoyed informal networking conversations over dinner, James N. Heath ’78, the retired president of Stryker Instruments and a member of K’s board of trustees, moderated an alumni panel that included Randy Rzeznik ’08, director of customer excellence, Neuro, Spine, ENT and Navigation; Bryce Pearson ’15, finance representative; Kevin Packard ’05, clinical marketing manager, Neuro, Spine, ENT and Navigation; and Michael Weslosky ’02, staff scientist.
Panelists reflected on their trajectories from K to Stryker and talked about the qualities of the company they find most attractive. The panelists’ K majors were varied—chemistry, economics, biology, and business—and each panelist cited the value of the work ethic instilled by the K-Plan and the 10-week term. They also stressed the importance of persistence in the pursuit of employment. Pearson, for example, shared the effort and time that was required before he secured a position at Stryker.
Heath also invited one of the students in attendance, junior Alex White, to describe the extensive process he’d gone through to secure an internship with Stryker for the upcoming summer.
Other alumni attending the event included Legal Counsel Christopher DiVirgilio ’04 and Senior IS Business Analyst Russ Hankey ’96.
Students and alumni agreed that the evening was a success and excellent preparation for the next step in the K/Stryker relationship: a half-day immersion K-Trek for selected students to the company’s headquarters in the fall.
Biology professor (North Carolina State University), scientist and science writer Rob Dunn ’97 has a new book out. Never Out of Season: How Having the Food We Want When We Want It Threatens Our Food Supply and Our Future, was reviewed by Raj Patel in and article titled “Seeds of Destruction.” The review appears in the April 16, 2017, New York Times Book Review. Patel finds the book an engrossing review of human hubris relative to agricultural production. Medicine effectively treating high blood pressure may barely register in a patient’s consciousness. But he will know if it fails catastrophically, however brief that moment of recognition might be. Such unconscious dependence characterizes most of us relative to the people (and their efforts) who manage the diseases and pests that threaten modern agriculture and the world’s food supply. There have been catastrophic failures in the past, and Rob covers several, most notably, the 1845-49 Irish potato famine, a devastation (millions died) more artificial than natural, caused by failures both political and scientific. Among the latter, the fear of scientists to speak truth to power and a contempt for the botanical ingenuity of indigenous science. Concludes Patel: “There are biologists today who stare into the abyss of global crop failure, and stand ready to protest commercial and governmental venality. We can hope that Dunn’s book encourages them to be less humble toward the interests they serve, and offer more humility toward the knowledge of indigenous people, on whose shoulders they stand.”
Roundtable meeting in Chicago during K to the Windy City, the newest K-Trek.
Kalamazoo College’s latest K-Trek, K to the Windy City, tested two expansions — in numbers and event type. The results are in: success above expectations!
“We wanted a K-Trek that would accommodate more students and provide more types of student-alumni and student-thought leader interaction,” said Valerie Miller, assistant director for external relations in K’s Center for Career and Professional Development. K to the Windy City is the largest K-Trek to date. Twenty-five students and 57 alumni participated in the three-day event, which featured round-table meetings (standard for K-Treks) and also offered panels, a networking event, a customized itinerary for nearly every student, and some fun and relaxation at a Second City performance.
Coordinated by the CCPD, K-Treks are multi-day immersive discussions with leaders in various industries. Previous treks (inspired by the thinking of alumnus Brad O’Neill ’93) have visited San Francisco (where the focus was on entrepreneurship) and New York City (finance and business). The Windy City trek focused on the law and nonprofit administration, with social justice as the bridge between those areas of interest.
“Our 25 students divided themselves roughly into three tracks,” says Miller. “About a third was certain they wanted to pursue a career in law. Another third were equally sure about nonprofit administration. The final group was on the fence. All were interested in social justice.”
Valerie Miller during the extensive K-trek prep phase.
K to the Windy City “started” the day after winter term finals, but prep work commenced long before that. Wade Thomson ’98, an attorney at Jenner & Block who also does pro bono work with persons seeking political asylum in the United States, provided the unique framework for this K-Trek that focused on the intersection between Chicago and justice.
For their part, student participants researched the alumni whom they would meet (and the organizations they worked for) and then prepared a list of questions for the interaction.
For her part, Miller relied on the cover letters and résumés of each student to customize individual itineraries that would provide the most educational impact.
The meetings provided some excellent outcomes and revelations for the students, according to Miller. “Some very practical advice,” she explained, “such as the need for solid business skills in nonprofit administration; timing for law school and how to optimize a gap year, should one choose that option; and the surprising number of law-related work opportunities that do not require a J.D.
“For those students certain about their choice (law or nonprofit administration),” she continued, “the experience may have confirmed or focused their vision. Those less certain found value in the additional information they could use to eventually decide.”
K to the Windy City departs Kalamazoo College, headed for the newest K-Trek experience.
Student participants represented a cross section of classes, majors and geography. Twelve seniors, six juniors and seven sophomores composed this first Windy City trek. Fourteen academic majors were represented; 11 students call Michigan home; 11 come from a variety of states; three were international students.
“I learned more in two days about what a legal career entails than I had learned in my entire life up to that point,” said Benjamin Toledo, a senior anthropology/sociology and business double major. “Given the chance to speak with successful lawyers from K provided us with the opportunity to clarify any uncertainty that we had in regard to a career in law, all while receiving advice from individuals who were once in our shoes. It was a truly phenomenal opportunity to meet and connect with such talented people.”
“I was surprised by how many alumni didn’t always know exactly what they wanted to do or have a clear vision of where they’d end up,” said sophomore Lauren Arquette (political science). She was grateful for the insight. “It takes away a lot of the pressure we put on ourselves of feeling like we always have to have a plan, because often times, things don’t exactly go according to plan. I realized that life doesn’t have to be stressful and meticulously planned out for you to be successful.”
After the event, students were provided a survey to prompt reflections on the value of the experience. The participants also are writing biographies of the alumni with whom they met to post on the CCPD website for future Windy City trekkers.
K students riding public transportation in Chicago.
“That’s a future for which we all hope,” says Miller. “This K-Trek was so successful that we’ll continue to work hand in hand with our colleagues in the Office of Development to encourage participation from alumni and to raise the funds for this and other treks.”
2017 Student Participants included: Abby Lu ’17, Ailih Weeldreyer ’19, Andrea Beitel ’17, Anja Xheka ’17, Anne Waugh ’19, Ben Toledo ’17, Blanca Moreno ’17, Carmen Nogueron ’18, Cat Cook ’17, Cody Howrigon ’18, Emily Levy ’17, Gunyeop Lee ’17, Hannah Lehker ’17, Heather Brown ’18, Honora Stagner ’17, Jasmine Khin ’18, Lauren Arquette ’19, Lauren Perlaki ’17, Madison Triplett ’19, Matthew Ryder ’18, Monet Foster ’18, Regina Shaw ’19, Ren Ballew ’17, Sirui Chen ’19 and Sydney Brown ’18.
The following alumni participated in a panel event, met with a group of students and/or hosted students at their place of work. Many of these alumni also provided additional support through funding, space, food and/or ideas for the planning of K to the Windy City, and many attended networking events — Kelly Bauer ’10, Assistant Corporation Counsel, City of Chicago Department of Law; Marietta Bowman ’02, Senior Survey Director, NORC at the University of Chicago; Jane Burchfield ’85, Manager of Talent Acquisition, NORC at the University of Chicago; Michael Cansfield ’87, Director of Development, Lookingglass Theatre; Megan Carney ’92, Director, Gender & Sexuality Center, University of Illinois at Chicago; Jeremy Cole ’96, Partner, Jones Day; Andrea Dakin ’98, Director of Program Development, AIDS Foundation; Kant Desai ’99, Principal, Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund; Mike Doornweerd ’92, Partner, Jenner & Block; Kim Drew ’00, Senior Project Manager, Economic Security Policy, Heartland Alliance; Caitlin Finan ’11, Research Analyst, NORC at the University of Chicago; Mark Furlong ’83, Chief Operating Officer, Thresholds; Marie Halverson ’93, Associate Director, Education and Child Development Studies, NORC at the University of Chicago; Cole Hardy ’06, Staff Counsel, FTD; John Hayes ’96, Assistant Unit Supervisor, Illinois Attorney General; Kathleen Hirsman ’76, Faculty, Loyola School of Law; Will Hobart ’06, Program Officer, Youth Guidance; Peter Knight ’95, Partner, Latham & Watkins; Carla Kupe-Arion ’02, Assistant Corporation Counsel, City of Chicago Law Department; Matt Lango ’97, Deputy Commissioner, Chicago Commission on Human Relations; Hope Lassen ’02,
Some fun at Second City
Restorative Justice Specialist, Alternatives, Inc.; Jodie Lawton ’99, Major Gifts Officer, McCormick Foundation; Stephanie Leite ’01, Lead Trainer and Curriculum Designer, Global Learning Modules; Matt Longjohn ’93, Evidence-Based Health Interventions and Community Integrated Health/National Health Officer, Y-USA; Carlton Marcyan ’76, Senior Partner, Schiller DuCanto & Fleck LLP; Elizabeth Okey ’07, Senior Associate, Corporate Responsibility, Burson-Marsteller; Jeff Owen ’76, Partner, DLA Piper; Anne Renaud ’10, Community Support Specialist, Thresholds; Sam Sedaei ’06, Associate Attorney, Foran Glennon; Wade Thomson ’98, Partner, Jenner & Block; Carla Varner ’97, Chief Legal Officer, Franklin Monroe; Mary Woolever ’70, Former Architectural Archivist and Reference Librarian, Ryerson and Burnham Libraries, Art Institute of Chicago; Mike Woolever ’71, Partner, Foley and Lardner.
The following alumni provided support for K to the Windy City through donations or through support/guidance around the development of trek events. Many also attended networking events — Alexandra Altman ’97, Doug Doetsch ’79, Jay Goodwin ’85, Andrea Johnson ’15, Alex Morgan ’11, Aaron Ries ‘06, Sonya Olds Som ’94, Juli Scalf ’09 and Elizabeth Schweitzer ’09.
And the alumni listed below participated in networking opportunities with students — Margy Brill ’11, Mathew Duggan ’09, Justin Evans ’09, Christine Grodecki ’06, Kelly Koss ’04, Haley Madel ’13, Kristen Nuyen ’12, Kathleen O’Donovan ’11, Sara Reschly ’95, Christopher Rollyson ’82, Christie Schuessler ’11, Jeannette Srivastava ’00, Erin Stockall ’11, Ajka Suljevic ’10 and Rachel Zarit ’02.
Kalamazoo College alumni never know where their paths might cross.
In early March, Jeff Palmer ’76 and his wife, Susan Andress, were about midway through a month-long trip to Tasmania and New Zealand when they stopped to hike to the Franz Joseph Glacier on New Zealand’s “South Island.”
“It was a beautiful place on a beautiful day and we were taking our time on the roughly four-mile round trip trail,” said Jeff, who recently retired as associate director of communication in K’s Office of College Communication.
“Surrounded by green-sloped mountains, waterfalls, and a glacier bluer than we imagined it would be,” Jeff said “we expected the cast and crew from Lord of the Rings to step out of the mist at any moment.”
Instead, a flash of orange and a familiar logo in the hand of a young man darting past on the trail caught his attention.
“Hey!” Jeff called out. “Where’d you get that K College water bottle!”
The young man stopped quickly and spun around. The young woman running with him did, too.
“I gave it to him!” she said with a big smile. “Do you know K?”
Holly Gillis ’09 and her husband, Ethan Basset, were toward the end of a ten-day vacation, rushing to see the Glacier before moving on to their next stop. Both are medical doctors working in Houston and soon moving to Ohio.
Holly and Jeff talked a little about their K-Plans (“Mine doesn’t take long to tell,” said Jeff) and some of the K professors and staff they both know on campus. They also agreed to follow up via email once they were back home. [See Jeff’s brief write up below about Holly’s post K career thus far.]
They compared a few New Zealand travel notes and agreed they were “glad to see one of nature’s wonders before climate change and science denial causes it to melt away,” said Jeff.
Susan and Ethan took photos while their alumni spouses marveled at the odds of having an impromptu Hornet gathering in a mountain valley half a world away from K’s “Fair Arcadian Hill.”
“What an incredibly small world,” Holly said. “Light attracts light.”
With a little help from a K water bottle.
***** Holly Gillis ’09 is a Madison, Wis., native who majored in chemistry at K. She also sang the national anthem for a range of Hornet home athletics events, wrote restaurant reviews for the Index, sang soprano in the Premium Orange a capella group, served as a co-director of Frelon dance troupe, was the American Chemistry Society Student Affiliate Chair; and volunteered in the children’s ward at Kalamazoo’s Bronson Hospital. She also traveled to Perth, Australia, for her study abroad, during which she volunteered at the Western Australian AIDS Council, working on a needle exchange program and youth risk reduction programs.
After K, Holly earned a medical degree from Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine in Western Pennsylvania and completed her residency in pediatrics at the University of Minnesota Masonic Children’s Hospital.
She and Ethan were married in July 2016 and have been living in Houston this past year “learning and working” at Texas Children’s Hospital, she said. He is completing his pediatric otolaryngology fellowship, while she works in the emergency department and serves as assistant professor of pediatrics.
Next up for the couple is a move to Columbus, Ohio, “learning and working” at The OSU Nationwide Children’s Hospital.
Ethan will join the pediatric ear-nose-throat clinical and academic faculty, while Holly starts a fellowship in pediatric critical care. She intends to focus on the disparate access to quality health care that low income children with complex medical needs have within a pediatric hospital system compared to those with middle and high incomes.
“K study abroad shaped the way I think about medical practice and empathy for low and very low income women and children,” Holly said. “The service component to my study abroad program–a health screening project in a low-income suburb of Perth with primarily aboriginal women and children–helped expose the bubble that is so convenient for many of the economically stable K students to live in, including myself.”
Study abroad also fueled Holly’s interest in travel, particularly to the lands Down Under. She traveled to Sydney, Australia, during the summer after her first year of medical school to work in a lab related to research she conducted for her K Senior Independent Project, or SIP. (Professor of Chemistry Laura Furge served as Holly’s on-campus SIP faculty mentor for the reading of her thesis.) A recent vacation to New Zealand with Ethan was a respite from work and studies before they finish their assignments in Houston and pack for the move to Ohio.
She looks forward to being a little closer to her Wisconsin and Kalamazoo College homes, and hopes to cross paths with K alumni.
“Foreign study at K cultivates confidence and an open mind,” said Jennifer Zeoli, a Kalamazoo College graduate who studied abroad during her junior year in Strasbourg, France. Today, her foreign study continues in places such as Thailand.
Jennifer Zeoli’s foreign study has never stopped. Fortunately, she has a great job for travel and the perfect avocation (photography) to freeze and savor its moments.
After the psychology major (Kalamazoo College Class of 1996) graduated, she returned home (Clinton Township, Mich.) and took a temporary job through Kelly Services. She was assigned a two-week gig at Tweddle, a publishing company that quite likely produced the owner’s manual in your car. Well, for Zeoli, “temporary” turned to 20 years that, through work or play, have included 45 countries and 300 cities.
Quotidian and un-sexy as automobile owner manuals may seem, there are cars all over the world, making manuals a very cosmopolitan product. As Tweddle’s account manager for Ford Europe and Ford Asia Pacific, Zeoli has worked in many countries, including a three-and-a-half year posting in Turin, Italy. Last December she was in Melbourne, Australia, and February found her in India. Whenever she’s on the road, she takes every opportunity to wander and see the sights.
“I like my job,” said Zeoli. “Evolving technologies make it interesting. I also love traveling for the company and on my own.”
Foreign study began in France
Travel means diving into different languages and cultures and meeting different people, with many of whom she continues to correspond.
“Foreign study at K cultivates confidence and an open mind,” said Zeoli, who studied abroad during her junior year in Strasbourg, France. “K helped prepare me for work in other countries.”
Work abroad has provided other, less material, value. “Travel allows you to see how other people live, which can deepen your awareness and appreciation of your own home.” (For all her travels, Zeoli still calls home the town where she grew up.) “When I was in Cambodia, I saw long lines of people with sick children waiting to see a doctor. In Tanzania I saw kids wearing shoes made from motorcycle tires. Travel has changed my perspective on what’s important in life.”
Jennifer Zeoli travels to places such as Florence, Italy, today after foreign study at K took her to Strasbourg, France.
Her wanderings extend beyond work. She’s seen (and photographed) wonders: the star-filled night sky outside her Bedouin tent in the Sahara desert, the muted gray beauty of beach ice in Iceland (see back cover), the grace and presence (both overwhelming and tenuous) of the animals—lions, elephants, giraffes and wildebeests— she saw during a safari in the Serengeti.
Zeoli has a knack of aligning the places she visits with her own life’s moments, like timing her 40th birthday celebration on Easter Island. One year in Europe, she celebrated Halloween by going to Transylvania and visiting the castle of Vlad the Impaler.
“He’s considered a hero because he helped defend Romania against the Ottoman Empire,” said Zeoli. “His brutality helped inspire the 1897 gothic horror novel, Dracula, by Irish author Bram Stoker.”
In addition to her business travel, Zeoli has joined group tours and traveled alone. In 2012, she soloed in Jordan and Turkey and never had any problems. “I always show respect for people and don’t take any unnecessary chances. I’ve been OK and expect that will continue.”
Jennifer Zeoli travels to places such as Iceland today after foreign study at K took her to Strasbourg, France.
In true liberal arts fashion, Zeoli preps for her trips by studying the history of a place. Before she saw the cathedral in Florence she studied how construction commenced in 1294 without a plan for building the dome. Builders put up the walls, and the town held a contest that sought ideas on how to build the dome.
“Once you know a few things about a place, you gain another layer of appreciation for it,” said Zeoli.
She definitely appreciates Tuscany and hopes to one day own a villa there. “My love of Tuscany grew when I worked in Italy. I spoke broken Italian but managed pretty well with my 50 Italian co-workers. They became my teachers and were patient and kind to me.”
Zeoli studied French at K to go along with her foreign study and relied on it when she spoke Italian.
“If I didn’t know a word in Italian, I’d use the French word and add a vowel at the end. You’d be surprised how often it worked,” she said. The company also gave her a week-long language class in Florence.“I did pretty well,” she said, “but the teacher did comment that I spoke Italian with a French accent.”
Foreign study creates a devoted traveler
Zeoli’s position provides four weeks of vacation which (no surprise) she devotes to travel.
“I use the wallpaper on my computer for the next place I will visit,” she said. Next on her agenda is Hawaii.
“One of the items on my bucket list is to ride in a helicopter over the big island,” said Zeoli. “It will make for fantastic photos, and I can’t wait!”
Her photography has morphed from avocation to art. Zeoli is quite accomplished at recording the beautiful and intriguing places she has visited. She uses a Canon 70D camera, which has full manual settings. It’s definitely not your point-and-shoot style camera, and it produces fabulous effects.
She takes her camera with her everywhere and loves to photograph landscapes, cityscapes, animals and flowers — or anything she finds interesting or unique. She is intent on capturing the moment.
“When you stand in front of the pyramids you’re a part of them,” she said. “When I am home and look at the photos on my wall, I think about how they represent different moments of my life.”
Of those 45 countries and 300 cities, what’s her favorite? “Florence. I love its history, its connection to cultural giants like Dante, Machievelli, Michangelo and DaVinci, its compactness and, of course, its fabulous food.
“I don’t usually go back to a lot of places, but I go back to Florence as often as I can,” adds Zeoli. “It’s a great picture-taking place, too.”
She posts her photos on Facebook to share moments with family and friends. Lately, she is selling her photos.
“I went to the Ann Arbor Art Fair one year and noticed all the amazing photos for sale,” she said. “I decided to sell my photos, too.”
She features her photographs through Fine Art America, which provides an online marketplace and fulfillment service as well as marketing services for artists and photographers.
Someday, she’d like to pursue the art market for her photography and write a coffee table book featuring her travels and photography.
Zeoli encourages others to travel but knows it’s not for everyone. “Some people don’t like the inconveniences, or they may be fearful of the foods they might have to eat. Others, like me, want to experience everything they can. If it’s your passion, you have to go for it…like the old proverb, ‘Leap before you look.’ ”
— Story by Olga Bonfiglio for Lux Esto, the magazine of Kalamazoo College
Students take advantage of “Grateful for K Day” to share their gratitude in handwritten thank-you notes to K donors
Kalamazoo College invites students, faculty, staff, alumni and others to celebrate “Grateful for K Day” on Wednesday, April 5, 2017.
Sponsored by the Kalamazoo College Fund, and formerly called “Tuition Freedom Day,” the April 5 event educates students about the important role philanthropy plays in sustaining and enhancing Kalamazoo College and (hopefully) inspires them to express their gratitude for the alumni, parents, faculty, staff and friends who generously support the College each year.
On Grateful for K Day students write hundreds of thank-you notes to express appreciation for the generosity shown through philanthropic support of Kalamazoo College. More than 98 percent of K students receive scholarships and/or some form of financial aid. This day acknowledges K donors and helps to educate students on the impact philanthropy has on their education and K experience.
What can you do on Wednesday to honor generosity and express gratitude? If you’re a student, please visit the Hicks Center from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. to write a thank-you note or two to our donors. After you’ve written your notes, grab a cookie and hot chocolate!
If your a donor, please share your “Why I Give” and “Why I am Grateful” stories on our website or Facebook page, where you can also learn more about Grateful for K Day.
In early May, 28 Kalamazoo College students had the opportunity to share a meal on campus with eight professionals who have at least two things in common—the K-Plan and careers at the Stryker Corporation, a Kalamazoo-based Fortune 500 medical technologies firm.
