Joseph V. Baldini, ’70 BS Hotel Administration, is a parts service manager in Tacoma, Wash. He previously worked for 20 years in the food and beverage industry and seven years with the Puget Sound Chapter of the National Association of Investor Clubs. He is married with two sons, a daughter-in-law, and one grandson.

Gary W. Brown, ’73 BS Hotel Administration, is vice president of sales and conference operations for Colonial Williamsburg Co. in Virginia. He previously was vice president of convention sales and services for the Baltimore Area Convention and Visitor’s Association and has worked at the Westin, Ritz-Carlton, Regent, Hyatt, and Hilton hotel chains. He and his wife, Suzie, have two sons, Tyler and Travis.

Mark G. Tratos, ’74 BA Political Science, was named a distinguished graduate by Lewis & Clark Law School. He is the founder of the firm Tratos & Quirk in Las Vegas, which specializes in entertainment law. He has written legislation dealing with trademarks, unfair competition, and rights of publicity. He is the author of numerous law review articles and has served as an adjunct professor at the William S. Boyd School of Law and the William. F. Harrah College of Hotel Administration. He is chairman of the board for the Entertainment Development Corp. and president of the Nevada Intellectual Property Law Society.

Kenneth W. Fong, ’78 BS Business Administration, received the 2002 Certified Property Manager of the Year award from the Las Vegas chapter of the Institute of Real Estate Management. He is a partner/manager of Fong and Associates, which owns and manages shopping centers and offices in Las Vegas.

n 1980s

John Maksimik, ’80 BS Hotel Administration, works for Orgill/Singer & Associates in Las Vegas and recently earned the certified risk manager designation from Certified Risk Managers International.

Brian M. Allen, ’81 BS Hotel Administration, was promoted to director of food and beverage for the Hawaii Convention Center in Honolulu. He previously served as senior catering sales manager and assistant director of operations. Prior to joining the convention center, he was general manager of Kauai Coconut Beach Resort, director of food and beverage at Royal Lahaina Resort, and Honolulu Airport manager for Budget Rent-A-Car.

Edward Chaaya, ’81 BS Hotel Administration, is the general manager for the Holiday Inn Resort Safaga City in Egypt. Previously he worked with Hyatt International and other hotel chains in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Mary E. Wells, ’82 BS Geology, has been appointed to a five-year term on the New Mexico Board of Licensure for Professional Engineers and Surveyors. She is the office manager of Terracon, a geotechnical and environmental engineering firm in Las Cruces, and is a licensed professional engineer in New Mexico and Nevada. She also holds a master’s degree in geological engineering from UNR.

Ron Shratter, ’83 BS Hotel Administration, is president of Elite Hospitality Group, an executive recruiting firm in Atlanta specializing in the hospitality industry.

Lee Brucks, ’84 BS Hotel Administration, completed his MBA at Rivier College in New Hampshire. He works for BAE Systems in the business management division. He and wife Cathy have two children, Austin and Carissa, and reside in Nashua, N.H.

Sharon Flax Mars, ’84 BS Hotel Administration, is the rooms division manager for the Little Dix Bay Resort in the British Virgin Islands. She also owns and operates Tropix Limited, a vacation property management company. The company also provides location services for photo shoots, commercials, and movies.

Tony Santo, ’84 BS Hotel Administration, is a 22-year veteran of the gaming industry and was recently named senior vice president of Park Place Entertainment Corp.’s Western and Mid-South regions. He oversees operations of a dozen casino resorts in Nevada, Mississippi, Indiana, and Louisiana. He is a member of the Harrah Hotel College Alumni Board.

Andrew Meckler, ’86 MS Hotel Administration, was named tavern operations director of Timbers Hospitality Group, which operates seven Southern Nevada restaurants.

Timothy Morrissey, ’86 BS Hotel Administration, has worked for the state of Nevada for 10 years. He supervises the Southern Nevada adjudication section in Las Vegas, which is part of the Department of Employment, Training, and Rehabilitation of the Employment Security Division.

Greg Schall, ’86 BS Hotel Administration, is vice president of lodging for the Stuart Dean Co., a large building restoration and maintenance company in New York.

Sue Davis, ’87 BA and ’89 MA Political Science, is an assistant professor of political science at Denison University in Granville, Ohio. She received her doctoral degree from Emory University. She previously served as an instructor at Emory and as an adjunct professor at the Air Force Special Operations School.

John C. Futrell, ’87 BA Psychology, is president of Futrell Financial Management, a wealth management company, and is the financial columnist for the weekly In Business Las Vegas and a financial commentator for KTNV 13. He also serves as a speaker for the Las Vegas Executive Speakers Bureau and as president of the Financial Advisory Council. He has volunteered with the Arthritis Foundation and the alumni association of the UNLV swim team.

n 1990s

Wanda Ruth Cherno Sands, ’91 BA Criminal Justice, received a master’s degree from Northwestern California University in Sacramento, where she is currently working on a doctoral degree. The 77-year-old also holds a degree from Western Sierra Law School. She lives in Las Vegas.

Tim Koch, ’91 BA Accounting, was recently named the managing shareholder of Chavez & Koch, an accounting firm with offices in Las Vegas and San Diego. He is in charge of the daily operations of the Southern Nevada office and oversees the audit and consulting services of the firm. The firm offers accounting and business advisory services to growing small- and medium-sized companies.

Christian E. Hardigree, ’93 BS Hotel Administration, teaches hospitality law, labor management relations, and hospitality employment law at UNLV. She was named the hotel management department’s 2002-03 Professor of the Year. A graduate of the Walter F. George School of Law at Mercer University in Macon, Ga., she is also an attorney with Parnell & Associates in Las Vegas.

Jarrett Kratchman, ’93 BS Hotel Administration, opened the Ritz-Carlton New York, Central Park as director of finance and quality. His first child, Alyson Brook, was born in June.

Geoffrey Combs, ’94 BS Hotel Administration, is training manager for Qdoba Mexican Grill in Denver and is part of the management team opening new Qdoba restaurants in Colorado Springs, Colo. He lives in Agate with his wife, eight dogs, four horses, four llamas, two cats, two rabbits, and a number of chickens.

Joseph Miller, ’94 BS Hotel Administration, is director of business development for Infosys Corp. He is a specialist for business-critical application and infrastructure management and currently lives in West Hills, Calif.

n 1990s (continued from previous column)

Joseph P. Ruggieri, ’94 BA Chemistry, is a research specialist for the research foundation at the State University of New York, Stony Brook. He uses mass spectrometry to study pollutants in marine environments and specializes in environmental issues, including analytical chemistry and regulatory compliance. He lives in Patchogue.

Jana Baraks, ’95 BS Accounting, is the fiscal manager at John Lewis Coffee Shop, a homeless shelter and non-profit community development corporation. She lives in Coal Valley, Ill., with her daughter, Korryn.

Brian J. Devine, ’95 BS Finance, is a partner with the law firm Seeger Salvas LLP in San Francisco. His law practice focuses on complex commercial litigation.

Quincy Moore, ’95 MA Educational Foundations and Counseling, was selected as chair of the American Counseling Association Foundation. He is also dean of undergraduate studies and student support at West Chester University in Pennsylvania. He previously served in a number of positions at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond. He has published numerous articles on education, mentoring, and transcultural counseling. He received a doctoral degree from the University of Iowa and completed post-graduate studies at Harvard University.

Brad Packer, ’95 BS Hotel Administration, is director of public relations for Noble House Hotels and Resorts in Miami Beach, Fla. He previously served in public relations positions with Island Outpost Hotels and The Venetian Resort-Hotel-Casino.

Bryan Page, ’95 BS Hotel Administration, is owner of Page Wine Cellar in California’s Napa Valley. The vintner’s 1999 Page Red Table Wine received a score of 93 in the May issue of Wine Enthusiast. While at UNLV, he was chef of the UNLV Wine Club and taught in the Summer Studies in Switzerland program for two years.

Stephanie Rosenthal Shirit, ’95 BA Political Science, recently launched and is director of marketing for Resource Associates, a recruiting and temporary staff augmentation firm. The company focuses on technology, engineering, professional services, construction management, geographic information systems, and executive recruiting. She lives in Las Vegas with husband David Shirit and their son, Mordechai.

Kevin Yamashita, ’95 Bachelor of Landscape Architecture, was promoted to vice president of Landaco Landscaping & Grading in Las Vegas. He has been in charge of production landscaping jobs for area homebuilders as well as high-end custom projects. He received his landscape architect license in 1999.

Jennifer Brown Hodur, ’96 BA Political Science, is an associate attorney at Alschuler, Grossman, Stein & Kahn in Los Angeles. She graduated with honors from Loyola Law School in 2000. She was elected to the Order of the Coif, a national legal honor society, and served as chief production editor of the Loyola Entertainment Law Review.

Gregory Dye, ’96 BS Hotel Administration, was promoted to field craftsman by Las Vegas Handyman, Inc. His duties include residential repairs, carpentry, plumbing, electrical work, and various other services.

Brandon Berrett, ’97 BA Criminal Justice, is the human resources manager with the International Rescue Committee in New York, N.Y. He is working on a master’s degree in urban policy at the New School’s Milano School of Management and Urban Policy. Previously at Cambridge University in England, he studied organizational development and the economic downturn in the European Union. He lives in Long Island City.

Jung Hoon Lee, ’97 BS Hotel Administration, is the general manager for a Tony Roma’s restaurant managed by Sun@Food in Seoul, Korea. Previously he served as a front office manager for the Hilton Fort Lee.

Carolyn Babcock, ’96 BA Environmental Studies and ’98 MA Communication Studies, is a media and performing arts professor at the Savannah (Ga.) College of Art and Design. She also holds a doctorate in communications from the University of Utah, where she served as a research assistant and teaching fellow.

Jeff A. Breeden, ’98 BS Accounting, is in charge of the business valuation and litigation support practice at the firm of Stewart, Archibald and Barney in Las Vegas. He holds both the certified valuation analyst and certified public accountant credentials. He still regularly plays with the Rebel Pep Band at Runnin’ Rebel basketball games.

Gabrielle Crawford, ’98 BS Physical Education, teaches physical education at Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary in Las Vegas and is working on a master’s degree in health promotion at UNLV.

Darrel Kieckhafer, ’98 BS Mechanical Engineering, is a heating, ventilation, and air conditioner engineer for AMEC in Las Vegas. He recently passed the Nevada Professional Engineering Exam.

Rachel Klem, ’98 Bachelor of Music, is working on a master’s degree in music therapy at New York University. She is an elementary school music teacher and lives in Jersey City, N.J.

Chris Smith, ’98 BS Hotel Administration, is the internal communications partner in the human resources department at Harrah’s Rincon Casino in Valley Center, Calif. He handles employee relations issues, benefits, recruiting, training and development, and communications. He received the company’s Chairman’s Award for outstanding team performance in 2002.

Antoinette M. Thomas, ’98 BA Sociology, is a real estate broker, property manager, notary public, and loan officer in Las Vegas.

Brad Mark, ’99 BS Hotel Administration, was elected to the board of directors for the Las Vegas Speedway Children’s Charities.

n 2000s
Amy Byro, ’00 BS Culinary Arts Management, is a pastry chef at the Rincon Casino & Resort in San Diego. She helped open the resort last year. Previously, she worked for the Rio in Las Vegas.
Hanako Nagano, ’00 BS Hotel Administration, is housekeeping manager at the St. Regis Monarch Beach Resort in Dana Point, Calif. She lives in Aliso Viejo and hopes to move back to Las Vegas in the future.

Geraldine P. Nagazyna Howard, ’00 BA Psychology and Sociology and ’02 MSW, is the senior social worker for Family Healthcare Services, a subsidiary of Sierra Health Services specializing in services for senior citizens in Las Vegas. She is working on a doctorate in social work from LaCrosse University.

Antonio Zavala Blanco, ’00 BS Hotel Administration, recently completed basic training at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in San Diego.

Irma Jamin, ’01 BS Hotel Administration, was named Employee of the Year by the Le Meridien Chicago. She will represent the hotel at a company conference overseas.

Laura McEwan, ’01 MFA, is a 2003 graduate of the master of fine arts program at the University of Connecticut at Storrs. The Benton, Connecticut’s state art museum, exhibited her self-portraits and narrative paintings in May.

David Gibson, ’02 J.D., opened Gibson Law Offices LLC, a full-service litigation firm practicing family, business formation, personal injury, criminal, and landlord/tenant law in Henderson. Previously, he was an associate with another local law firm. He is married and has two children.

n In Memoriam
Robert Appleyard, ’75 BS Hotel Administration, died Feb. 7.
Shannon L. Buckner, ’01 MS Hotel Administration, died on Feb. 16.