David Karpel EMP-36 and bride Wendy with fellow EMP-ers

EMP-36

June 28 was a special day for classmate Dave Karpel. He married Wendy Graham in a lovely ceremony in Boulder, Colo. John Clouse, Bob Blanchard and Paul Jachim were in attendance. Congratulations, Dave and Wendy. We wish you much love and happiness!

Although many of us won’t be going back to school this year, many EMP-36 offspring are back in the classroom. Charlie Benz sent word that after moving to California last summer, his children are adjusting well to their new school and are in 7th, 5th, 3rd and 1st grade. Sounds like lots of homework to review! Charlie transferred to the West Coast with Merial, which is the stand-alone pet/vet supply company resulting from the Merck and Rhone-Merriux merger. He is enjoying the transition to a more “consumer touch” company and is on the road about 50 percent of the time.

Charlie also mentioned that California taxes and state elections are definitely different than in the Midwest. His home is in Granite Bay, which is only 45 minutes from Napa and 90 minutes from San Francisco and Lake Tahoe. Visitors are always welcome.

Artaj Singh sent word that life is busy but good. He and Judy spent a few days with Darra and Rick Day in Toronto in August, and they all survived the blackout.

Julie and Mark Bader announced the engagement of their daughter, Erin, to Randy Ewoldt. They will graduate from college and marry next spring. Sounds like a busy spring for the Bader family.

Cindy Seemann sent word that she has been immersed in her job the last six months and that she left Brady Corp. at the end of July after 22 years. She has been putting the finishing touches on her résumé and plans to tap into the Kellogg alumnae career center with her job search. Cindy’s son, Billy, will be turning 3 at the end of the year. Good luck, Cindy!

Dennis Konkol was appointed division president of PCC. Every few months he has continued to add business units to his areas of responsibility. Dennis has remained loyal to Kellogg and is a true supporter. He has sponsored several managers in the EMP programs.

Mari Lyn Bushnell has left Newell-Rubbermaid after 17 years to start a design and marketing consulting firm, ADOBE. She has been busy with back to back projects and is targeting the manufacturing and retail sectors.

John Crowell recently left Harley-Davidson to acquire a Harley dealership in the Las Vegas area. When we hit the jackpot on our next Vegas trip we will know where to buy a bike. Good luck to you, John, and best wishes for success!

Lastly, my husband, Matt, and I had a good but very busy summer. A highlight for me was a business and pleasure trip to Japan in June. My travel company continues to plan the regular custom trips I’ve been providing in the last few years for clients going to Europe, Asia, Australia and New Zealand, but we are also working with several new suppliers and are now offering packages to the Caribbean, Africa, South America and Hawaii. I also continue to provide meeting planning services to several pharmaceutical companies. Both sides of the business were very slow in spring because of SARS and war, but I’m happy to report that business really picked up this summer. Perhaps that’s an indicator that the economy is finally turning around.

Take care, and all the best for a great holiday season!

Karen Kalbacher Stevens