The Upper Midwest

24 Aug

What a phenomenal experience we’ve had the last two weeks! Jim and I had an opportunity to meet with so many friendly, passionate, successful Iowa Staters in the upper Midwest states of Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. It never ceases to warm my heart that Iowa State grads are doing such amazing things all over the country.

We began our 10-day journey in Dearborn, Mich., world headquarters for Ford Motor Company and home to our own Matt Dunker (’00 mechanical engineering). Matt is a vehicle architect for Ford, and he’s had a love affair with cars since he was just 15 years old. Matt will be featured in our special VISIONS Across America issue in spring 2014. That’s Matt and me above at Ford World HQ.

Also in Michigan we met with Greg Clites (’74 meteorology, MS ’81 civil engineering/water resources). Greg lives in Ann Arbor and teaches high school math in nearby Tecumseh. Greg struck me as being genuinely interested in students and their success – the kind of math teacher I wish I had in high school. His approach to teaching makes math relevant in students’ lives. I’ll feature Greg (shown at right in his Tecumseh High School classroom) in the next several weeks on this blog.

Between our appointments with Matt and Greg we visited the University of Michigan campus. The fall semester had not yet started, but the campus and downtown Ann Arbor were already lively and vibrant. I always think it’s a treat to visit university campuses when we travel, so we try to make the time to do that whenever we can. We also made sure to stop by Zingerman’s Deli, a gastronomical institution in the city of Ann Arbor. Yum!

Leaving Michigan and entering Illinois, we headed for the big city of Chicago. There we had a trio of wonderful interviews and photo shoots with alumni, and we had a rocking good time at the ISUAA Club of Chicago “Cyclone Summertime Happy Hour” event at the Millennium Park Grill (see earlier blog post).

Our first stop was with Theaster Gates (’96 community & regional planning, MS ’05 interdisciplinary graduate studies). Theaster (right) is a hard person to describe in a few words. He’s an artist, an urban planner, and an arts administrator. But within each of those categories, there’s so much more. He’s the director of arts program development for the University of Chicago; he’s a potter and installation artist; he’s a community organizer and cultural entrepreneur. We toured a few of the buildings within the Dorchester Project, an area he’s developed for community arts on Chicago’s southeast side. I can’t wait to tell you more about him in the special issue of VISIONS.

We spent a full morning at the Lincoln Park Zoo – mostly for work, but I have to admit I always enjoy visiting a good zoo. It’s especially fun when you have a tour guide like Anthony Nielsen (’97 fisheries & wildlife biology). Anthony is the lead keeper of the Kovler Lion House and Seal Pool, and he gave us a behind-the-scenes tour of both. I even got to touch Della, the gray seal. (That’s Jim photographing Anthony and Della in the seal pool above.) Anthony has been with the zoo for 12 years, and he clearly loves the animals he works with. I’ll write more about him, too, in the coming weeks.

Our last Chicagoland meeting was with John Arends (’77 journalism & mass comm) in Batavia, Ill.  John is president and CEO of ARENDS, a communication and marketing company founded by his father, Don Arends, who is also an Iowa State graduate (’52 ag journalism). The Arends family has quite a number of Iowa State ties, including being named Family of the Year in 2010. John’s wife, Anne (’78 PE & dance), and two of their three children, Allie and Kate, graduated from Iowa State; son David is a senior this year in kinesiology and health. Jim and I spent a fascinating afternoon with John, Anne, and their dog, Ellie, at John’s office, which is located in an 1870s-era former windmill factory on the Fox River. (That’s John with Ellie above.)  John has quite a story to tell, and I’m really excited to be able to share it with you (soon, I promise).

I love Chicago, but I was relieved to leave all that traffic behind. Our next few interviews and photo shoots were scheduled in southern Wisconsin, an area that just cries out to be photographed. When we weren’t on assignment, Jim and I rambled through the rolling countryside in search of the perfect red barn and the perfect black-and-white dairy cows to photograph.

Our first appointment in Wisconsin was with a dynamic duo that has both Iowa State connections and local ties.  Kelli Cameron (’02 ag education) and Steve Servantez (’89 DVM) have a unique, interconnected story to tell. They both live in Janesville, Wis., and are equally enthusiastic about Iowa State and about their local community service projects. (Jim and I are with Kelli and Steve above).

Next up we met a young couple in Mt. Horeb: Karlee Michalski and Eric Meisel, left. Karlee is a 2010 apparel merchandising, design, and production major who works as an assistant technical designer at Lands’ End. Eric is a data analyst at Medseek, a healthcare software firm in Verona. They are planning a May wedding. I love the story of how they met at Iowa State and how they’re using their degrees in their first jobs right out of college.

The next morning we headed to Lands’ End headquarters in nearby Dodgeville. Lands’ End is a big deal in this part of Wisconsin, and a quick look at our alumni database shows at least 30 Iowa State alumni currently working there in some capacity. Chief among them is Chris Kolbe, a 1992 fashion merchandising graduate who holds the title of executive vice president/brand president for the company – one of the very top positions. Chris has also worked for such fashion giants as Ralph Lauren, Saks Fifth Avenue, Liz Claiborne, and J. Crew.

While I was at Lands’ End I also ran into Heather Sinclair, a 2011 graduate who practically lived here at the Alumni Center – she was really, really active with Student Alumni Leadership Council, and she worked briefly with me in alumni communications. Heather graduated with a double major in apparel merchandising, design, & production and journalism & mass communication (wow, that’s a lot of “and”s). She now works for Lands’ End as an assistant merchant and seems to love her new job and her new state of Wisconsin. We had fun catching up, as you can see in the photo of us above.

The last Wisconsin alum we met was Faye Perkins (’79 PE & biology, MS ’85 exercise physiology). Faye (left) made my day when she posted a comment on the Wisconsin web page that ended with, “ONCE A CYCLONE, ALWAYS A CYCLONE!! I LOVE ISU!!” Faye is one of Iowa State’s pioneer female athletes, one of our earliest female scholarship winners, and a member of the ISU Athletic Hall of Fame. She’s been a faculty member, administrator, and softball coach at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls. I found our time together absolutely inspirational.

At this point, we were three states down, one to go. But I was so enthusiastic about the story potential in Minnesota that I scheduled seven alumni in that state. So we still had our work cut out for us (and another three days on the road).

As it turns out, I am not the least bit sorry I “overscheduled” us in Minnesota, because the alumni we met there were outstanding, and every one was unique.

First off: Ron Schara (’66 journalism). If you live in Minnesota, and if you are a hunter or fisherman, you know Ron Schara. Even if you don’t live in Minnesota, if you are a hunter or fisherman, you probably know Ron Schara. He’s a living legend.

Ron is the executive producer of the popular television show “Minnesota Bound,” which he hosts with his black lab, Raven. We met Ron and Raven and got to sit in on part of the outdoor filming of one of his shows. If you can’t wait to read more about Ron, you can watch episodes of his shows online. That’s Jim photographing Ron and Raven by the Rum River.

Later that same day we caught up with Natalie Boike, an alumna after my own heart. She’s a magazine editor! So we had lots in common and lots to talk about. Natalie has worked for a variety of publications, most recently the Mpls.St.Paul Magazine. Natalie is a 2005 journalism and mass communications grad. (We’re showing off our respective magazines in Nicollet Mall above.)

The next day, Jim and I once again found ourselves on a university campus: the University of Minnesota’s main campus in Minneapolis. There we met with Louis Mansky (MS ’86 microbiology, PhD ’90), a professor and director of the Institute of Molecular Virology. Louis (shown at right in his office) spends his time focused on the important study of the HIV virus and how it evolves and mutates. Fascinating stuff.

It was a thrill to meet our next alumna, Ann Lindemeyer Burckhardt (’55 home economics journalism), because I grew up with her cookbooks. Do you remember the Betty Crocker cookbook? I think my mom had several versions. For a long time, that cookbook was THE go-to gift to take to a bridal shower. And Ann was the editor from 1956 until 1963.

She also published 11 cookbooks of her own and wrote for the food section of the Minneapolis Star Tribune for 24 years. I could tell you more about her, but then I’d give away all the good stuff. Needless to say, we spent a delightful afternoon with Ann in her Edina apartment (above).

Later that day we met Jeff Prouty (’79 industrial administration) for a decidedly NOT difficult appointment – on his boat in Wayzata. He had offered the opportunity for Jim and me to take a spin with him on Lake Minnetonka and said we could invite a few Iowa Staters to join us. I immediately called Russ Snyder (’73 landscape architecture), our ISUAA Club of the Twin Cities president, and he put together a small invitation list that included club leaders and members of our Young Alumni Council. Jeff is a management consultant and the chairman and founder of The Prouty Project in the Twin Cities. We had a thoroughly relaxing evening on his Think Tank II (that’s Jeff with the boat above). It was the perfect way to end the day.

The next morning we left Minneapolis and headed to the southeast Minnesota town of Rochester, home of the world-renowned Mayo Clinic. There we met Lucas Carlstrom (’08 animal science), an MD and PhD student in molecular neuroscience at the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine. Luke (left) is starting the fifth year of an eight-year program there, and his list of accomplishments is already impressive.

And, finally…drum roll, please…our LAST interview on our LAST DAY on the road (for awhile) took us to the Prestegard Farm in rural Frost, Minn. A recent graduate, Richard Prestegard (’02 ag business) works with his father, Al, who attended Iowa State back in the early 1970s in farm operations.(That’s Richard, left, and Al, right, chillin’ in the field with Jim.) They currently farm land that’s been in the family for five generations. Their corn-and-soybean operation offered a dramatic backdrop and a perfect end to a fantastic trip to the upper Midwest.

Chicago ROCKS!

19 Aug

Jim and I were blown away by the number of happy, enthusiastic Iowa State alumni (and their friends) who turned out for the ISUAA Club of Chicago’s “Cyclone Summertime Happy Hour” held last Friday (Aug. 10) on the patio of the Millennium Park Grill during our VISIONS Across America tour of the upper Midwest. It was a beautiful night to be in downtown Chicago, and the Cyclones just kept coming. I think all told we must have had upwards of 50 people show up between 5 o’clock and the time we left, and everyone seemed to have a great time.

I have to give a special shout-out to club leaders Scott DeKoster (’02 advertising) and Leslie Blake DeKoster (’03 industrial engineering) for helping to plan and promote the event. Scott arrived at the Millennium Park Grill TWO HOURS prior to the start of the event just to save enough space for the Chicago Cyclones to gather in the popular, no-reservations-accepted outdoor bar area (I eventually showed up with some stand-up Cys and cardinal & gold pom-poms, which seemed to help define the gathering space.) Soon Iowa Staters began arriving in droves, in grad years ranging from 1956 to 2012.

Even the band, The Walk-ins, got into the Cyclone spirit. Lead singer Joe Matise wore an Iowa State nametag and a Homecoming sticker and even joined us for a few group photos.

Here’s Jim Fancher (’56 electrical engineering) and his wife, Carol, enjoying the festivities.

Chris (’01 management information systems) and Kristen Collins (above) have one of those “mixed” marriages: Kristen didn’t attend Iowa State; she married into it. But you’d never know. She was one of the most enthusiastic Cyclones in the group.

We even had a couple from West Des Moines join our group. Kyle Nielsen (’07 journalism) and Allison Roby (’09) had just arrived in Chicago on vacation and saw the cardinal & gold, so they thought they’d stop by.

Thanks, Chicago. We had a fantastic time!

Ready to head out again

1 Aug

On Tuesday, Jim and I leave Iowa on a four-state, 10-day tour of the upper Midwest. We’ll be meeting with 19 alumni (yes, 19…I got carried away with the Minnesota stories), plus we’re co-hosting a party with the ISUAA Club of Chicago on Aug. 10 and having a small gathering with club leaders from the ISUAA Club of the Twin Cities on Aug. 15.

I think this will be a great group of alumni, with a lot of variety in the stories we’ll be telling. Not to give anything away…but we have engineers, journalists, an artist, fashion designers, a teacher, medical researchers, a cookbook author, a farmer, and even a lion keeper at the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago. We’ll be meeting with lots of young alumni on this trip – several who graduated since 2000 and even a couple of 2010 grads. I’m really excited (and honored) to be able to tell their stories. So stay tuned!

Up next are the New England states in late September/early October, followed by a trip to California, Nevada, New Mexico, and Arizona in November. We have our New England trip planned, but we’re still working on the schedule for the Southwest, so if you live in those states, let me know what you’ve been up to.  You can email me at cgieseke@iastate.edu.

 

 

 

The one that got away

27 Jul

My only regret from our visit to Alaska is that we were unable to connect with alumnus Bob Chlupach (’71 fisheries and wildlife biology). Bob has been competing in the famous Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race since the 1970s. Jim and I were eagerly anticipating meeting Bob and his dogs at his home in Willow, Alaska, but he was called out of town at the last minute – we were so disappointed!

Bob was born and raised in Mason City, Iowa. During the summers while he was attending Iowa State, he worked for the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission and then the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. After graduation, he worked for several seasons in southeastern Alaska before being hired on as a permanent fishery biologist.

By the mid-1970s Bob had a sled dog team. He entered and completed his first Iditarod in 1977, subsequently entering and completing 11 Iditarods over five decades – including the most recent one in March 2012 (shown above).

Bob is tentatively signed on to run the 2013 Iditarod – a brutal, 1,150-mile race — even though he has “a very young and totally unproven group of dogs.” He says, at his age, people tell him he’s an inspiration.

“The race is always tough mentally and physically, but I really enjoy being miserable,” he jokes.

In addition to training for the Iditarod, Bob has worked as a professional sport-fishing guide. In an email to me, he offered a guidebook’s worth of advice for anyone traveling to Anchorage, including: Bike paths, maintained ski trails, Chugach Mountains “right out the back door,” Matanuska and Susitna valleys 45 minutes away, and the Kenai Peninsula nearby.

“My brain feels really relaxed in Alaska,” he said.

Following our trip, Bob sent me this heart-felt email:

“I retired from the State of Alaska as a fishery biologist and was involved in several programs which were, at the time, the cutting edge of technology for fishery science and species management,” he wrote. “The ISU curriculum provided the background of tools to facilitate my intensive engagement into the field. Combining this with the fishery biologists I worked with during summers while in school and after graduation, not knowing at the time, proved immeasurable. The brain stimulation through the use of math, statistics, models, and personally being a key player and carrying programs to fruition was…..I have no words to describe the value.”

Thanks, Bob. I think you just did.

Adventures with a grumpy pilot

18 Jul

When we sent emails to Iowa State alumni in Alaska way back in February, one of the first responses I received was from someone named Grumpy who wrote this: “Would you like a floatplane ride while in the Anchorage area? I should be available.”

Well, heck yes.

“Grumpy” turned out to be Darrell Holmstrom, ’74 aerospace engineering. Darrell is a veteran commercial pilot for Federal Express who also happens to fly his own floatplane and two helicopters. We met him July 6 at his floatplane in Eagle River, Alaska, not far from his home in Chugiak.

Let the fun begin!

Jim and I climb into the four-seat plane (no easy task; I require a push from behind) and off we go.

Our first view is of Knik Arm at high tide, with the towns of Palmer and Wasilla off to our right. Soon we can see the town of Willow, the starting point for the Iditarod Trail Dog Sled Race. As we fly, Darrell points out the Iditarod Trail, which in summer is a river. In winter, Alaskans use the frozen river like a highway to travel by snowmobile.

Next he shows us Mt. McKinley (also known as Denali), the highest mountain peak in North American with an elevation of 20,320 feet, which on this day is partially obscured by clouds.

We see fishing lodges, lakes, a glacier, Mt. Susitna (“The Sleeping Lady”), rivers made from glacial silt. But no roads. I realize you don’t know what Alaska really looks like until you fly over it.

I’m in the back seat; Jim is in the front with Darrell. I’m happy that I remembered to take Dramamine and wear my motion-sickness bracelet. But I’m not afraid.

“Floatplanes are the safest thing up here,” Darrell says. “You can land almost anywhere.”

Where we do land is a lake near which he has a cabin. The day is sunny and warm. We extricate ourselves from the plane and walk up the hill to the cabin, passing by a few outbuildings.

“One more building and I’ll have a compound,” Darrell says.

We sit on his porch, swatting mosquitoes and talking about Alaska.

Darrell was in the Air Force, stationed in Fairbanks from 1982 until 1985. After he left the military he was hired by Eastern Airlines, then a cargo outfit called Flying Tiger. He moved to his current location in 1988 just as Fed Ex bought Flying Tiger, and he’s been flying for them ever since – to Asia, Australia, Hawaii, and even “down to America.”

He likes the Alaskan attitude. “It’s kind of like Texas: ‘Leave us alone. Don’t mess with us,’” he says. He likes to hunt and fish, restore projects “that people gave up on” (like the helicopters), and work on the cabin. “The trick is to get everything built before you get too old,” he says.

Up here, he explains, a small airplane is “like an Alaskan pickup truck.” You need it to get where you’re going. You can haul stuff in it. The floats on Darrell’s plane can be removed during the winter and replaced with skis for snowy landings.

The sun is so warm it’s almost hot. Darrell says that compared to Anchorage it gets warmer here on the lake, but it also gets colder here in the winter. But it’s not as bad as Fairbanks, he says, which can drop to 40 or 50 degrees below zero in the winter.

We leave Darrell’s sunny porch and take his small motorboat across the lake to visit one of his friends who is building a new cabin. It’s a marvelous place, and I can see myself living here all summer. Except I can’t swim. So maybe the lake is not the best place for me.

One more quick visit to the cabin (indoor plumbing! a fully stocked kitchen!) before we board the plane and head back to Eagle River. I get to sit in the front seat this time. The views are amazing.

I have to ask Darrell one more thing: Why “Grumpy?”

“It’s an Internet name,” he says. “My wife came up with it.”

The Last Frontier

14 Jul

Jim and I left Alaska last Monday, but my head is still a little bit in the clouds with thoughts of our wonderful visit to the “last frontier.”

Here are a few fun facts about the state:

  • Of the 722,000-ish residents of Alaska, Iowa State graduates currently account for 322 of them.
  • More than 40 percent of Alaska’s population resides in Anchorage, the largest city in the state.
  • Alaska is the largest state by far (about 2.4 times the size of Texas, 4 times the size of California, and about a fifth the size of the entire “lower 48” combined) – but it’s the fourth-least populated and least densely populated of all 50 states.
  • The capital of Alaska is Juneau, an area larger than both Rhode Island and Delaware – and almost as large as the two combined. Juneau is the only U.S. capital that cannot be accessed by road.
  • In fact, much of Alaska cannot be accessed by the road system.

So, in other words, Alaska is big. Vast, really. And huge chunks of it cannot be reached by car.

This is my third visit to Alaska, and each time I go I am more certain that I’ve only just scratched the surface of this huge, wild, magnificent state.

Jim and I headed north on the Fourth of July. We spent the next day in and around Anchorage scouting locations for our photo shoot – and, in the process, encountering two large moose, some truly spectacular scenery, and ever-changing weather (the forecast said “sunny, with rain.”)

The next day we visited Darrell Holmstrom (’74 aerospace engineering), a commercial pilot and longtime Alaskan. He was nice enough to invite us for a spin in his float plane – but I’ll tell you more about that later. Let me just say that we saw Alaska from a completely different angle.

All our scouting led us to the Turnagain Arm, promoted as one of the most beautiful stretches of highway in America. Driving down this ever-curving roadway, you have the 3,000-foot mountains of Chugach State Park jutting straight up on your left and spectacular views of the fjord-like Turnagain Arm and more distant, snow-covered mountains on your right.

This is where we photographed alumna Laura Tauke (’05 graphic design), a graphic designer who lives and works in Anchorage. We’ll be featuring Laura in our special VISIONS Across America issue in spring 2014.

After our work was finished we managed to squeeze in a bit more sightseeing – we spotted eagles and sea lions and pink salmon (but no bears). We viewed fishing boats and mountain ranges and glaciers. We saw another moose and a wolf and mosquitoes the size of my fist.

It never got completely dark the whole time we were there. In the evening, we just basked in the alpenglow.

We’re now back in Iowa and the sky seems small.

First morning in Alaska

6 Jul

“There’s a big bull moose up on the left and a younger one on the right.”

This is the word from a bicyclist Jim Heemstra and I have just met on the bike trail at Kincaid Park in Anchorage, AK. We’re there to scout a location for a photo we’re shooting Saturday of alumna Laura Tauke (’05 graphic design), an avid cyclist.

We thank the biker for the heads up and continue on the trail.

And then — there he is. The biggest moose I ever saw — definitely the CLOSEST moose I ever saw — with the biggest rack of antlers. He’s just hanging out, munching away on the vegetation.

We stare at him, transfixed. Taking a thousand pictures, of course. He raises his head, looking straight at us. Um, nice photo, but uh-oh. What have I read about moose? That they’re far more dangerous than bears. That you probably don’t want to piss them off…by taking photos? I’m not too clear on that part, but Jim and I look at each other with fear in our eyes and slowly walk away.

Getting ready for Alaska – and beyond

20 Jun

If it seems like there hasn’t been much activity on this blog lately, you’re right: We haven’t been on the road for more than a month. I’ve been working on my “regular” projects for the Alumni Association (the summer issue of VISIONS, our 2012-13 wall calendar, a catalog of travel tours) that will be mailed out in the next couple of weeks.

But with those projects behind me now, it’s time to think about our upcoming VISIONS Across America trips. We’ll be going to Alaska in two weeks, meeting with three alumni. Bob Chlupach is a 1971 fisheries and wildlife biology grad who lives in Willow, Laura Tauke is a 2005 graphic design alum who lives in Anchorage, and Darrell Holmstrom is a 1974 aerospace engineering grad who flies for Fed Ex.  Alaska is one of my favorite states, so I’m pretty excited to be going back. I am looking forward to long, sunny days and hoping for all-around good weather while we’re up there.

And then in August we’ll be hitting the road again. This time the trip will be a little closer to home. We’re traveling to Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. We have a large base of alumni in these states, so it’s been tough trying to decide where to go and whom to see. I still don’t have my schedule 100 percent finalized, but I am getting closer. Thanks to all the alumni in those states who took the time to write and tell their stories. You can read their stories on the state pages (go to www.isualum.org/visionsacrossamerica and click on  the map to read stories from each state.)

 

 

An Iowa Stater in Kentucky’s bluegrass region

29 May

We picked the best week of the year to be in Kentucky: Derby Week.

If a little kid’s year revolves around Christmas or summer vacation, a Kentuckian’s year revolves around Derby.

Like: You can’t wear white until after Derby. Or: You can plant tomatoes after Derby.

Julie Hunsinger Mink (’82 psychology, ’88 statistics) rarely goes to horseracing’s most famous event, the Kentucky Derby, held annually the first Saturday in May at Churchill Downs in Louisville. (“I don’t like big crowds,” she says.) But she thoroughly embraces the weeks-long festivities filled with parties, fireworks, and fancy hats.

As for horse racing, Julie much prefers Keeneland, an older, more genteel racetrack in Lexington. Races are held at Keeneland for three weeks each spring and three weeks each fall. And, like Churchill Downs, spectators get dressed up and wear big hats.

“Getting dressed up is part of the fun,” Julie says. “You can’t wear the same hat twice.”

Julie was born in Lexington, but her family moved frequently for her father’s mining career. She lived in Iowa from 1977 to 1988, 10 years of which were spent in Ames. Twenty years ago she moved back to Kentucky to work at Investors Heritage Life Insurance Company in Frankfort, where she is currently the vice president and chief actuary.

Frankfort is the capital of Kentucky and home to two capitol buildings – an old one built in 1830 and a “new” capitol built in 1910. (Julie explained that there was a dispute between Louisville and Lexington over which city should be Kentucky’s capital – and somehow Frankfort was chosen.) Frankfort’s other claim to fame is a scenic cemetery built on a bluff overlooking the town and containing the grave of Daniel Boone.

During our visit to central Kentucky with Julie as our tour guide, we learned that bourbon can only be called bourbon if it’s produced in Kentucky. To illustrate, she took us to the Four Roses bourbon distillery in Lawrenceburg, Ky., where we tasted three different bourbon “recipes” (for research purposes only, of course.)

Although Julie calls Kentucky home – she lives in Lawrenceburg with her husband, Dick, and son, Shane — she still keeps in touch with her friends from Iowa State, reuniting with a large group every couple of years in different parts of the country.

“My Iowa State friends are the best friends ever,” she says. “They’re the people I have known the longest. They’ve known me at my best and at my worst.” This summer, they’re all headed for Ames.

“I couldn’t be prouder of the fact that I’m an Iowa State graduate,” she says. “We’re few and far between in Kentucky.”

North Carolina, by design

23 May

When Jeanne Mercer-Ballard was in second grade, her teacher asked the students in her class to write down on a piece of paper what they wanted to be when they grew up. Jeanne wrote:

INTERIOR DESIGNER

TEACHER

STUNT WOMAN

Well, OK, so she’s not a stunt woman.

Jeanne did grow up to be an interior design professor at Appalachian State University in Boone, N.C., where she teaches classes in visual literacy and environmentally sensitive design. She’s also worked as an interior designer in Chicago, Kansas City, and Charlotte, N.C.

She lives with her husband, their two young children, and a dog in a passive solar home on 10 acres in rural Zionville, an area surrounded by the Blue Ridge Mountains. It’s the proximity to the mountains and outdoor activities that attracted her to the area.

“I remember the first time I came to Boone,” she said. “I was here for the weekend, and it was a cool July night. I got out of the car and just started skipping. I loved the climate.”

Jeanne (’89 interior design) is originally from Nebraska City, Neb. She and her family enjoy hiking and just generally “being outside, getting muddy.”

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