2000-05

2000

Catherine Cabaniss, Memphis, Tenn., is a planned giving officer for a non-profit children’s organization.

Thomas Foster, Sugar Land, Texas, married Kirsten Lewis, twin sister of NBA all-star Rashard Lewis, on July 9, 2005.

Caressa Holloman, Austin, Texas, and Jonathan Murray were married on May 22, 2004. The couple are finishing their master’s degrees in divinity at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary. Caressa is on track to become an ordained minister with the Presbyterian Church and will finish school in two years.

Heather Alexander McIntyre, Lewisville, Texas, married Sean McIntyre on Dec. 4, 2004. They recently bought their first house in Lewisville.

Chad Ruffin, Shreveport, has earned a $34,000 Howard Hughes Medical Institute Research Training Fellowship for medical students. In July 2005 he began a year-long fellowship at the University of Washington in Seattle to research improvements in the way the cochlear implant conveys information back to the user. He has a personal connection to the research: six years ago he had his own cochlear implant. He has finished his second year at LSU School of Medicine in Shreveport.

2001

Carter Benton, Navasota, Texas, moved to a small community near Bryan/College Station. His wife, Jaime, practices medicine and Carter plans to pursue a graduate degree and open his own real estate business.

Jaime Cloud, Shreveport, is studying graphic design and freelancing on the side. Jaime married Joey McGill, who is attending LSU in Shreveport. They honeymooned in San Francisco.

Sarah Dewitt, Shreveport, is a field training officer for the Shreveport Police Department, where she has been a police officer for three years. She is currently back in the Education Department working on a master’s degree and will graduate in 2006. Sarah and Paul Cox married in October 2005.

Dani Garza, Lancaster, Pa., performed aboard the Spirit of Philadelphia cruise ship. She also returned to Sight & Sound’s Millennium Theatre in Lancaster to star in the biblical tale of Ruth. The world-premier musical played May 21 thru Oct. 22, 2005. Information about the show can be found at www.sight-sound.com. For Dani’s latest news log on to www.dani-garza.com.

Jamie Hearne, Alexander, Ark., graduated from Nova Southeastern University College of Osteopathic Medicine in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. She began her residency in pediatrics in June at Arkansas Children’s Hospital in Little Rock, Ark.

Ryan Oswald, Bossier City, La., received a master of fine arts degree with a concentration in communication design from Louisiana Tech University in May 2005.

Lee Parker, Denver, Colo., graduated from Iliff School of Theology with a master of divinity. He works as Iliff’s academic computing administrator and webmaster as he goes through the ordination process in the Episcopal Church.

Dawn Crider Peterson, San Antonio, Texas, is in the U.S. Air Force, stationed at Lackland Air Force Base. She is an acquisition officer, obtaining necessary supplies/ equipment for troops (anything from combat equipment to airplanes). She is currently working on the acquisition of T-38 ejection seats. Dawn married Johnathan Peterson ’01 in Austin, Texas, in July 2002. They lived at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, until May 2005.

Lee Rankin, Many, La., is a law clerk for Judge Stephen Beasley of the 11th Judicial District for Sabine and DeSoto parishes.

Matthew Smitherman, Shreveport, passed the Louisiana Bar and is with the law firm Lemle Kelleher in Shreveport.

2002

Jason Burnham, Houston, Texas, graduated in May from Candler School of Theology at Emory University with a Master of Divinity degree. He started work in June at St. Luke’s United Methodist Church in Houston, where he is an associate minister.

J. T. Cope, Kailua, Hawaii, returned from Afghanistan in May and is scheduled to deploy again to Iraq in early 2006.

Nikki Doughty, Dallas, Texas, is senior copy manager for Neiman Marcus Online. She oversees all fashion text for the website and marketing materials while managing a writing team. Nikki has been employed with the company for a year and a half. She is engaged to Brett Sumrow, an architect with Corgan Associates, Inc. They are building their first house together in Garland, Texas, and will marry in spring 2006.

Melissa Duplantis, Conroe, Texas, is self-employed as a behavior therapist for several children diagnosed with autism in the Spring/Woodlands area. Melissa graduated in May with a master’s in clinical psychology from Sam Houston State. She is currently submitting Social Relations Model thesis research for conferences and publication. She will work on a doctorate next.

Erin Bryan Eklund, Charlotte, N.C., graduated with a master’s degree in industrial and organizational psychology in August from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. She is the human resources coordinator for Lending Tree, LLC, working for the senior director of human relations.

Jessica Fant, Longview, Texas, is a physical education teacher at Trinity School of Texas in Longview. She also coaches volleyball, basketball, track and cheerleading. Jessica plans to marry Gary Morris in June 2006.

Ashley Gaines, Houston, Texas, graduated from Texas Woman’s University in 2004 with a M.S. in physical therapy. She is a practicing physical therapist at St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital in Houston.

Magan Graham, Norman, Okla., graduated from the University of Oklahoma Law School and passed the Oklahoma Bar Examination. She has accepted a position with the law office of Daniel M. Davis.

Minja Ilic, Pratt, Kan., is working as a scout for several National Basketball Association teams.

Christopher Jay, Sarepta, La., is director of marketing and educational programming at the Robinson Film Center in Shreveport. Formerly a public relations and advertising executive at Williams Creative Group Inc., he conducts all public relations efforts while organizing community events such as the Robinson Film Center Film Clubs and educational film programs for children. Jay has more than three years experience in marketing and public relations, as well as a background in television production and independent filmmaking. He is an independent filmmaker whose work has been screened locally, regionally and nationally.

Angelique Lasseigne, Golden, Colo., is in graduate school at the Colorado School of Mines in Golden. She is completing a doctorate in metallurgical and materials engineering. After graduation, she will pursue a postdoctoral position, but her final goal is to be a professor of metallurgical and material engineering.

Travis and Rebekah Snider Leger, Lake Charles, La., began serving in the Peace Corps in July in East Timor. She is a rural health specialist and he is a community development specialist.

Emily Phifer, Shreveport, is a victim’s advocate in the Sexual Assault Center for the YWCA in Shreveport. She also works at Express Personnel Services in outside sales for the temporary and permanent staffing service. She plans to obtain her master of social work degree.

Ceci Salinas, San Antonio, Texas, completed a master’s in occupational therapy at University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio May 21, 2005. She completed her pediatric rotation with an early childhood intervention center in San Antonio, and her adult rotation with the University of Colorado Hospital in Denver.

Sarah Williams Shoup, Denham Springs, La., was commissioned as a deacon at the Louisiana Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church in June, after completing a master of church ministries in education at Southern Methodist University in December 2004.

2003

Sarah Bate, Austin, Texas, finished a master’s in social work at the University of Texas and is working for Bluebonnet Trails Mental Health and Mental Retardation Community Center as a child/youth case manager.

Katie Cooper, Bronx, N.Y., works with pharmaceutical advertising agency Cline, Davis and Mann in New York City. She works in account management as a team support manager on one of their biggest accounts, Lipitor.

Patrick Fertitta, Shreveport, was selected chairman of the Republican Party for Caddo Parish in April 2005.

Andrew Irby, Lafayette, La., is a third-year law student at Wake Forest University School of Law. He has been offered, and has accepted, a position to clerk for Justice Edward T. Brady in the Supreme Court of North Carolina following graduation in May 2006. In February 2005, he represented Wake Forest in Tulane Law School’s annual Moot Court invitational competition. His Moot Court team (Andrew and two teammates) advanced to the quarterfinal round. He received awards for “Best Brief” and “Second Place Oralist.”

Brandon Lawson, Columbia, Mo., worked this past summer for the Missouri Attorney General’s Office in environmental protection. A third-year law student at University of Missouri-Columbia, he will graduate in May 2006. He is serving as the assistant managing editor of the Journal of Dispute Resolution, in which he was also published in December 2005.

Chip LeDuff, Camp Lejeune, N.C., is serving in Iraq and would love to hear from his Centenary friends. Email him at .

Amanda Mustin, Baton Rouge, La., is working as a law clerk at Louisiana Sea Grant Legal Program and as a research assistant to one of the LSU Law School’s professors. She will be graduating from LSU Law School in May 2006. She is engaged to John Mattingly and plans to be married on May 27, 2006.

Tasha Rogers, Pearland, Texas, is currently working as a manager for Norris of Houston Salon and Day Spa. She is responsible for the front desk operations as well as customer service issues. In the evenings, she coaches competitive gymnastics.

Lauren Stallings, Spring, Texas, is completing her second year on the Japanese Exchange and Teaching Program. She has been living in the town of Fujishima and teaching English at the junior high school for the last two years.

Charlie Starnes, Rosemont, Pa., has been recognized with an Overdyke Award for “Best Undergraduate Paper” by the North Louisiana Historical Association for his “Slum Clearance and Self Interest in Shreveport Under the James Gardner Administration—1954 to 1958.” He took third place in the undergraduate division in Spring 2004. The paper was recently published in the North Louisiana History Journal, Fall 2005, Vol. 36, No. 4., which is edited by Centenary alumna Gay Griffith Means ’63.

Sarah Sutton, Austin, Texas, is a case manager with the Arc of the Capital Area in Austin. She is also in grad school at Texas State University, getting an M.A. in marriage and family counseling.

Joanna Tagert, San Francisco, Calif., is attending the San Francisco Art Institute’s Post-Baccalaureate program in visual art.

Jenny Trahan, Austin, Texas, is pursuing a master’s in professional accounting at the University of Texas at Austin. She will graduate in 2006.

Natasha Wilson, Madison, Wis., is at the University of Wisconsin Law School.

Mallory Woods, Dallas, Texas, is working for Neiman Marcus Corporate in the Information Services Department. She is the project coordinator for the Human Capital Management System Project. She and husband Nick bought their first home in the Lake Highlands area.

2004

Sterling Allen, Austin, Texas, is in a master’s program in vocal performance with a sacred music emphasis at the University of Texas. He is the full-time assistant director of music at Bethany United Methodist Church in Austin and is responsible for all non-traditional music and worship styles/services as well as three youth choirs.

Justin Breitschopf, Washington, D.C., interned at The White House and with the Ways and Means Subcommittee on Social Security. See details at www.centenary.edu/ news/2004/December/0006-white-house.html. Now he is an analyst for the Air Force team on the Defense Base Realignment and Closure Presidential Commission.

Eric Camp, Richardson, Texas, is attending the Southern Methodist University School of Law and working at Carstens & Cahoon, an intellectual property firm in Dallas.

Adam Dufour, Dallas, Texas, graduated from the University of Notre Dame, cum laude, with a master’s degree in accountancy in May 2005. He joined Ernst & Young, LLP, as an associate in the Assurance & Advisory Business Services (AABS) practice of its Dallas office.

Melissa Guillory, Bentonville, Ark., works at Stepping Stones Children Academy in Bentonville, where she is the lead teacher over the toddler II classroom. She plans to continue with early childhood education until she is able to finish her elementary education degree. She is engaged to Matthew Weaver of Texarkana, Texas. He graduated with a B.A. in journalism in May 2005 from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville. They plan to marry in May 2006.

Amanda Holloway, Tyler, Texas, is pursuing a master’s degree in psychology and began a research study and teaching assistantship at Lon Morris College in August. She will also be the Dance Team sponsor.

Jennifer Maynard, Lafayette, La., is a graduate student at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette working on a master’s in psychology.

Susanna Miller, High Point, N.C., works at Cold Stone Creamery as a store manager. She started graduate school at the University of North Carolina Greensboro in social work.

Jennifer Powers, Alexandria, Va., is a graduate student at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. She will complete her master of public policy degree, with a concentration in health policy, in May 2006. She is applying for Ph.D. programs in sociology.

Joseph Robideaux, Decatur, Ga., is the Metro Atlanta project coordinator at Northside United Methodist Church in Atlanta. Wife Valerie Olsen ’03 Robideaux is serving at the same church as women’s discipleship associate. They both attend Candler School of Theology at Emory University in pursuit of master of divinity degrees. Upon graduation, they will return to Louisiana to serve the Louisiana Conference.

Ebonee Spencer, Lewisville, Texas, has taken a job as a health inspector for the City of Garland.

Meredith Stewart, Austin, Texas, is working on a master’s in traditional Chinese medicine at the Academy of Oriental Medicine in Austin.

Noah Ward Bangna, Bangkok, Thailand, is a high school math teacher at the International Community School in Bangkok. He is also coaching soccer. He signed a contract with a semi-pro soccer team called the “Londoner” in Bangkok.

Brandon Wollerson, Austin, Texas, will graduate in May 2006 from University of Texas School of Social Work in Austin. He will pursue a career in hospice care.

2005

Erin Broderick, Bossier City, La., is a full-time employee at McKay Consulting as an administrative assistant. She hopes to go to graduate school to get a master of fine arts degree in costume design.

Rita Coolidge, Austin, Texas, works for The Standard, where she sells life and disability insurance to companies.

Laura Daigle, Austin, Texas, is pursuing a master of music in composition at the University of Texas in Austin. She is slated to graduate in May 2007.

'Malinda DeBusk, Panama City, Fla., married fellow Centenary alum, Sean Gilder ’03, who is stationed at Tyndall Air Force Base.

Sherricka Fields, Shreveport, is a mortgage loan officer for Allied Home Mortgage Capital Corp. She originates, processes and brokers a wide variety of real estate financing transactions. She also does mortgage consulting and home ownership planning.

Kylie Garrett, Emeryville, Calif., is the director of marketing for the McMahon Mortgage team in Lafayette, Calif. She handles the creation and development of all marketing materials, coordinates seminars, monitors and organizes the client database, and develops various mail campaigns.

Jennifer Hayes, Jacksonville, Fla., is a tradeshow coordinator for Armor Holdings Products Division in Jacksonville.

Jessica Hayes, Jacksonville, Fla., will leave for Morocco in March as a Peace Corps volunteer. She is currently coaching gymnastics at World Class Gymnastics in Jacksonville.

Janis Kelley, Keithville, La., received the Tip Davidson Award from the Health and Exercise Sciences Department at Centenary this past spring. This award was special because her grandmother had been taught by Tip. As a student, Janis volunteered with the Hal Sutton Foundation.

Laurie Stevison, Houston, Texas, is a graduate student at Rice University in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology.

Sara Thompson, Grapevine, Texas, was recognized with an Overdyke Award for “Best Undergraduate Paper” by the North Louisiana Historical Association. She captured first place in the undergraduate division in spring 2005 for her “Optimism Was Not Enough: Shreveport’s Reaction to the Onset of the Great Depression.” Her entry was prepared under the supervision of Dr. Sam Shepherd Jr., professor of history at Centenary. The paper was recently published in the North Louisiana History Journal, Fall 2005, Vol. 36 No. 4, which is edited by Centenary alumna Gay Griffith Means ’63.

Lindsay Yearwood, Austin, Texas, is engaged to David Campbell ’01. They will marry in March 2006.