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May 2006 Alumni Announcements

Marriages and Births | Personal Updates | In Memoriam

Marriages and Births

  • Bobby Collenberg '90 and his wife, Julie, welcomed twinWhitney and Carrie Collenberg girls Whitney and Carrie (pictured) at 12:52 p.m. and 12:53 p.m. on Wednesday, April 19. The Collenbergs live in Virginia Beach, Va.
  • Heather (Hardman) Lujan '98 and her husband, Arron, welcomed a son, 8-pound 10-ounce Vaughn Aldrich Lujan on March 25, 2006. Heather works in Health Services at Princeton University in New Jersey.
  • Laura (Doran) Rifenberry '95 (pictured) married Robert Laura (Doran) Rifenberry '95Rifenberry on April 22, 2006 at the Virginia Beach Resort Hotel and Conference Center. The Rifenberrys live in Virginia Beach.

Personal Updates

  • JoAnne Coniglio '77 was named Accomack County Teacher of the Year for 2006-07. She currently teaches music at Kegotank Elementary School.
  • Peppi S. Dayton (Schwartz) '79 is a 23-year veteran firefighter/paramedic for Norfolk Fire-Rescue and lives in Virginia Beach, Va.
  • Lonnie Blow '82 is the Assistant Men's Basketball Coach at Hampton University in Hampton, Va. He is working on a masters degree in higher education.
  • Kevin Nickelberry '86 was recently named Head Men's Basketball Coach at Hampton University in Hampton, Va. He was the assistant men's basketball coach at Clemson University for three seasons and has been ranked by Basketball Times, the Hoop Scoop and Rivalshoops.com as one of the top 20 assistant coaches in the country.
  • Kat Puryear '87 received her master of Education in Instructional Design/Technology in September 2005. She currently works as a Program Coordinator with the Southern Virginia Higher Education Center in South Boston, Va., where she resides with her husband, Sammy Puryear '86, and their two daughters, Sydney (12) and Madison (8).
  • Kelsey Grammer's company, Gramnet, along with Paramount Pictures recently bought the life rights of Sarah Rutherford '95 and are developing a half-hour sitcom for CBS based on her recent book, "Going Overboard" and her nationally-syndicated newspaper column. She has been hired as a consultant for the project for two years. In the past year, she has been featured in "The New York Times" and "Newsweek" and on CBS's "The Early Show," "Nightline," Fox News, CNN and MSNBC. She will be in Norfolk for book signings this summer. For more information, visit her Web site at www.SarahSmiley.com.
  • Spencer Baird '00 recently accepted a promotion with Dannon Co., moving to their U.S. headquarters in White Plains, N.Y., as Senior Manager of Corporate Category Management focused on their U.S. dairy business. He is responsible for strategic analytic projects across all U.S. grocery customers along with initiatives centered on Dannon's key food service, club and military customers.
  • Mike Dailey '01 is a counselor and opera singer in Virginia Beach, Va. This summer he will be in Charlottesville, Va., at the Ashlawn Opera Festival doing his first professional role as Camille in "The Merry Widow." He has also played Melot in the opera "Tristan and Isolde."
  • Kelly (Rust) Fisher '02 is a Specialist in the Management and Organizational Department of Philip Morris USA.
  • Pat Gainer '05 is the Director of Church Relations and Stewardship at Virginia Wesleyan College.
  • Paul Pavon '06 and his band, Fall of Transition, were named best group in the pop/rock category by Ninevolt Magazine.

In Memoriam

  • Eloy David "Rocky" Najera '76 passed away on April 16, 2006 after battling cancer. Rocky was born and raised in Delan, Calif., and spent four years in the U.S. Navy before coming to Virginia Wesleyan. He graduated in 1976 with a degree in English and went on to teach English for 16 years at Frank W. Cox High School in Virginia Beach. Rocky and his wife, Diane (Crandell) Najera '72 lived in Virginia Beach.

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