Honoring yesterday, inspiring tomorrow. in this issue: - Winchester ...

class notes
2006
Don Mike Mendoza interned
for Duquesne University’s
NPR affiliated station 90.5
WDUQ by directing a show
called Rhythm: Sweet &
Hot. He is now working for
American University’s NPR
affiliated radio station 88.5
WAMU FM. He is a cast
member of Urinetown, which
runs the last two weekends of
October in Washington, DC.
pinoyboy06@aol.com
Hannah Posner ’06 and
Andrew Wickerham ’06
2004
Ian Sullivan spent the
summer studying at the
Arabic Language Institute at
Hunter College in NYC. He is
a senior at Sarah Lawrence
and will continue his study
of energy and economics as
a research assistant to the
economics department chair,
who is working on carbon
economies and environmental
discount rates. He also plans
to take an applied fieldwork
course and internship. Ian
is continuing the campus
newspaper that he started last
year and preparing for, well,
the real world.
isullivan@gm.slc.edu
2003
Gordon Lubimir graduated
from Tulane University in May
2007 with a B.S. in Ecology
and Evolutionary Biology.
He entered his first year of
medical school at Lincoln
Memorial University - DeBusk
College of Osteopathic
Medicine, in Harrogate, TN.
john.lubimir@lmunet.edu
Katie McGraw graduated
from Penn State in May
2007 with B.A. degrees in
both Public Relations and
Psychology. She works as a
public relations specialist for
Tri Rivers Surgical Associates
and is a member of the Public
Relations Society of America.
katlyn.mcgraw@gmail.com
2002
Brea Heidelberg celebrated
her graduation from Drexel
University's LeBow College
of Business with Dr. David
Seward, WT's Director of
College Counseling. Brea's
award-winning essay in the
"Behind Every Graduate"
competition credited Seward
with teaching her to love other
cultures and languages, as
well as instilling in her the
importance of diversity. Dr.
Seward received an expensepaid
trip to Philadelphia,
attended pre-commencement
activities, and was honored at
the commencement ceremony.
He received a $2,000 prize, and
a $2,000 donation was made to
Winchester Thurston School.
2001
Angela Ambroz is moving
to Suva, Fiji in October 2007
where she’ll be working for the
next two years with the Pacific
Islands Applied Geoscience
Commission as a natural
resource economist. She
worked at the International
Food Policy Research Institute
in Washington, DC as a
summer intern (again).
angela.ambroz@gmail.com
Emily Flechtner is teaching
in a bilingual kindergarten in
Munich, Germany following a
year as a Congress-Bundestag
Scholar. She and her mother,
Joan Flechtner, WT North
Hills Campus teacher, have
established an exchange
between their Pre-K classes.
As international buddies
they have sent each other
photos of their schools and
holiday celebrations and
created classroom books with
drawings, photos, and mini
bios of all their students. This
year they hope to expand the
relationship with monthly
letters filled with songs,
recipes, and stories to read in
both English and German.
Ryan Schulz is the director
of a gymnastics program
in Morgantown, WV. Her
husband started a new job
with Westinghouse. Ryan
is considering pursuing a
doctorate in psychology.
rwschulz1@gmail.com
2000
Claire Blaustein is living in
Washington, DC and loving
everything except the humidity.
She is the managing editor
for a new cooking Web site,
Cookthink, launched this past
summer. The Web site offers
recipes and reference, as well
as an e-mail newsletter called
Root Source, which talks about
a different in-season food every
week. It has been a challenge
being part of a startup and
the only employee, but really
wonderful as well. She is doing
music freelance writing on the
side, including work for NPR.org,
and since she was runner-up for
the Michael Oliver Young Writer
of the Year competition at BBC
Music Magazine this year, she
should have a piece published
with them in the November
issue. To keep her violin chops
up, Claire joined a band, Society
of Strangers, and is happily
exploring the new worlds of
bluegrass, folk, and punk.
claire.blaustein@gmail.com
1999
Ben Sota took his Zany
Umbrella Circus around the
world from Amsterdam to Kabul
to New Orleans, bringing joy
and laughter to children in all
sorts of environments. He was
featured in the March issue of
Pittsburgh Magazine.
www.zanyumbrellacircus.com
36 Thistletalk Autumn 2007