Dear Classmates from the Great Year of 1960!
Greetings everyone. This is your annual class letter with Concordia updates, messages
from classmates, information on the class challenge and Homecoming updates.
I hope all of you will have enjoyed some lovely summer days by the time you receive
this letter. It won’t be long before students and professors prepare for another academic
year. I was privileged to attend the Founder’s Day Celebration this spring, where I
became acquainted a current student. Her maturity and poise certainly impressed me,
which I believe shows the quality of the students at our alma mater.
The featured speaker Founder’s Day 2014 was Jim Ziolkowski, whose life has been
dedicated to buildOn, an organization that turns inner-city teens into community leaders
at home and abroad. After visiting impoverished countries, he decided to give up his
promising job at General Electric to help poor youth in our own country and build
schools in third world countries. Ziolkowski credits a Cobber, Jim Parks, Vice
President of General Electric for believing in his dream and securing seed money to
begin this project. Jim Parks was chosen for the Alumni Achievement Award in 1996.
When you come to campus, be certain to visit the new Offutt School of Business,
located in the East Complex. I was delighted to attend a workshop in the building and
found it enchanting with all of the windows and open space. The inviting outdoor westfacing patio made me wish I could eat lunch out there sometime.
During the workshop we heard from President William Craft, Campus Pastor Tim
Megorden, as well as Christine Schultze, who represented the Language Villages.
President Craft spoke about the plans for remodeling the Ivers and Jones Science
Building, in addition to other future goals for the college. He mentioned that there were
2,600 students enrolled this year. The college is anticipating 500-600 students for the
freshmen class this coming year. Pastor Megorden told about the research that Rev.
Roland Martinson has been doing on campus this past year in efforts to bridge
students’ academic and faith/worship lives.
Christine Shultze mentioned that the Language Villages plan to have a July and August
program this summer to make certain the international students coming to Concordia
have a solid English background before beginning their freshman year. She also
mentioned that Concordia students who spend a semester abroad need to experience
culture shock when overseas. Unfortunately, too many Concordia students abroad
remain too connected with iPads, smart phones, etc. to have the immersion that can
help them be culturally connected in a global sense.
CLASS CHALLENGE REPORT
The Class of 1960
Participation: 118 members or 42.60%
Potential donors: 277
Total credit is $2,071,061.05
Support for Concordia can be shown in many ways. Many alumni come back to campus for
special occasions such as Homecoming, Christmas concerts, sporting events and the Corn Feed.
As opportunities come along, please tell your friends about Concordia and encourage young
people to consider Concordia when selecting a college. The Class Challenge Report is provided
each year for your information. Give what you can when you can and remember that all of us
together make a difference in helping young men and women train for leadership in this changing
world. Wear your maroon and gold proudly and thank you for all the ways you support Concordia.
DON’T FORGET HOMECOMING IS OCT. 10-12
“Cobbers Together, Now and Forever”
2014 Alumni Achievement Award Recipients
A. John Ahlquist ‘63
Dr. Roger Leopold ’62
Sandra Cartie ’82
Dr. Vernon Tolo ‘64
2014 Sent Forth Recipients
Presented at Commencement Weekend during the Senior Banquet
(This honor is given to those alumnus/a who have graduated during the past 20 years)
Roxana Saberi ’97
Richard Sommer ’00
CLASSMATE NEWS
Sid Sheggeby writes…
Life for this retiree continues on with fortunate good health, good family, and good friends. My
wife LeeAnn and I continue to winter in Fountain Hills, AZ which makes SD winters more
bearable.
In May of 2013 my wife and I enjoyed one trip of a life time, an African Safari, in Kruger
National Park, South Africa.
During May and August of this year my wife and I and 3 daughters will visit Norway and
Sweden. The first part of the trip will be a tour of Norway and then we will stay on our own to
check out our ancestry in Numedal, Telemark and Hardanger as well as in Varmland,
Sweden.
Lee Temanson writes…
I have finally retired after 15 years with Caribou Coffee, 21 years with Control Data, and many
more with other companies in the Twin Cities. We spent a weekend in early May on the
campus as our oldest granddaughter graduated from CC. We have a grandson who will be a
sophomore next year. After putting two of our kids through, we should have done enough to
be considered “Loyal Cobbers”.
Gene Okerlund writes…
After investing 47 years in music education as a band and choral director and arts
administrator, and realizing I was hitting the “70's” bracket, I decided making music was the
one thing I enjoyed the most and spent the first year of my retirement learning the
“windjammer, guitar, harmonica and bodhran (Irish drum) to augment my playing skills on
trumpet, trombone and flugal horn. At the same time I proceeded to create a music library of
accompaniments for over 400 songs from the 20’s, 30’s, 40’s, 50’s and 60’s. My show
became known as the “Golden Oldies” one man band.
Contacts with some 24 retirement facilities in the Fargo, West Fargo and Moorhead revealed
a thirst for songs from that era. I proceeded to schedule three tours, fall, winter and spring,
doing about 60 presentations a year. Next year will be my fourth year of touring, all the while
spending hours in my small music studio expanding my music library of back-up combos with
the help of several wonderful computer software programs like Finale, Band in a Box and
Garage Band. I also serve as a Hospice musician and provide guitar/vocal music to assigned
hospice patients in what has proven to be the most meaningful part of my life.
The one-man-band has now evolved into a two man band comprising myself and a good
friend, Dewey Possehl, a jazz trumpet player and a retired band director from Moorhead
Public Schools. Between the two of us, we have been playing and/or teaching for well over a
100 years. We are exploring ways we can become more integrated into healthy life styles
with the possibility of doing “Golden Oldies” dances designed to inspire our older population
to continue dancing. We are also available to provide musical support for fundraising events
held in the community. This is our way of giving back to this wonderful Fargo/Moorhead
community as a volunteer. Life doesn’t get any better.
I recently developed a webpage which provides a sense of what has been done in the past.
There are also some examples of performances using the windjammer which many of you
may not be familiar with. Please visit www.fargogoldenoldies.com for a preview of what
Golden Oldies are all about.
Sandy (Beltz) & Ardell Knudsvig writes…
The highlight of the year for this couple from our 1960 class
was the January birth of a new granddaughter, Robyn.
REMEMBERING OUR CLASSMATES
SYLVIA ANN (GERMUNDSON) LARSON Sept 2, 1937—January 1, 2014
Sylvia graduated from Elbow Lake High School in 1955. In 1956 she continued
her education at Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota in Business
Education. She married her high school sweetheart, Lowell Larson, at West
Elbow Lake, Minnesota. They lived in Roseau, Crookston, and Red Lake Falls
before moving back to Moorhead, Minnesota where they resided until 1998.
Sylvia served as an administrative assistant at Concordia College for over 25
years. After retirement they purchased a home in Mesa, AZ. Sylvia is survived by her husband
Lowell, son Jeff and his wife Vickie, daughters Julie Larson, five grandchildren and two great
grandchildren.
MARLYN DENNIS SLETTUM January 13, 1938—November 15, 2013
Marlyn was born in Turtle Lake, North Dakota. He was a graduate of Fargo
Central High School in 1956 and of Concordia College in 1960. He settled in
Montevideo, MN where he worked 34 years for the Chippewa County Family
Services. As a mental health, adult protection, and senior services social worker,
Marlyn co-founded the Meals-on-Wheels program and was a charter member of
the Mental Health Local Advisory Council. He is survived by his wife Maxine
(Anderson), children Ann, Mark and Stacy, and grandchildren Noah and Kate.
COLLEGE UPDATE ‘KERNELS’ 2014
Music
The Concordia Orchestra completed a historic tour of the Holy Land in May 2014. They shared
concert performances with members of the Edward Said National Conservatory of Music
orchestra in Bethlehem, Ramallah, and Jerusalem.
The Concordia Choir will tour the southeastern United States from February 21st through
March 8th, 2015 during its National Tour.
The Concordia Band completed a spring tour in February 2014 through MN, WI and MI.
Preparation for Tour 2015 is under way, which will take them to the Pacific Northwest Feb 1-8.
Athletics
On May 5, 2014, the baseball field was named in honor of 36-year Head Coach Bucky
Burgau, who is stepping down at the end of the 2014 season. Former World Series winning
Philadelphia Phillies Chris Coste ’00 will take over as manager while Bucky continues as
assistant coach. Burgau is the all-time winningest coach in MIAC baseball history. He recently
became the first coach in the history of the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference to
earn his 700th career win. He has the 12th most wins of any active coach in NCAA Division III.
Bonus “kernels”
In 2016 we will celebrate the 125th Anniversary of the founding of Concordia College!
In 2017 we will celebrate the 500th Anniversary of the Reformation.
COBBERS FOR COBBERS
Giving to the Concordia Annual Fund provides vital student scholarship support for the current
fiscal year. Help us instill the philosophy of Cobbers for Cobbers, so that we “pay it forward” to
the next round of students, giving them access to the Concordia experience.
LOYAL COBBER PROGRAM
You may win a prize for being a “Loyal Cobber”. Visit ConcordiaCollege.edu/LoyalCobber
Check your Concordia Magazine for the picture of a Concordia toy dog. It was a gift I received as
a freshman at Concordia. You may bring your photos or memorabilia during Homecoming to be
photographed for the archives by the History Department.
Marjorie Gjevre, Class Agent