Bruce Claver, ’90 BS Hotel Administration, recently joined the Union League Club of Chicago as front office manager. Established in 1869, the club has 190 guest rooms. He and his wife, Amy, are expecting their second child in June. They live in Glenview.
Gary Seideman, ’90 BA Communication Studies, is the chief executive officer of DigiMedia Services, a video production company specializing in corporate and broadcast videos. As a member of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s Team in Training for the past four years, he has helped raise more than $10,000 to find a cure for blood-related cancers. He enjoys mountain biking, road cycling, snowboarding, hiking, and adventure travel. His latest adventure took him to Italy, where he biked more than 200 miles through Tuscany in six days. He lives in Escondido, Calif.
Matthew J. Engle, ’91 BS Business Management, runs two offices as an area manager for AAA Nevada in Southern Nevada. He was selected the 2004 AAA Volunteer of the Year for Nevada and Utah, having coordinated several volunteer opportunities for employees. His hobbies include working out, attending concerts, and following the Rebels. He also is a soccer coach and serves on the board of directors for the Summerlin-area American Youth Soccer Organization. He and his wife, Elizabeth, have two daughters, Tabitha and Madison.
Al McDonald, ’91 BA Criminal Justice, earned a law degree from the University of Arizona in 1995. He has his own law firm and is the first courtappointed conflict lawyer for the Pascua Yaqui Tribe. He is a lifetime member of Kingston’s National Registry of Who’s Who in American Law and a member of the United Registry of Who’s Who in National Jurisprudence. In 2003, he was selected Businessman of the Year by the Business Advisory Council of the National Congressional Committee. Before opening his own practice, he was a partner in Trezza and McDonald, one of the largest criminal defense firms in southern Arizona. He lives in Tucson.
Brian Costanzo, ’92 BS Hotel Administration, last year started his own meeting and event company, Vision Hospitality, in San Francisco.
M. Dean Dupalo, ’92 BA Communication Studies, ’93 BA Political Science, is a lecturer in the political science department. He also serves as chair of the Community Development Review Board, which makes funding recommendations for some 90 nonprofit organizations in Southern Nevada. Previously, he served in the U.S. Air Force.
Michelle Lorenzo, ’92 BS Business Administration, works as a sales executive for Panorama Towers, a Las Vegas high-rise condominium project. Her hobbies include snowboarding, kickboxing, running, weight lifting, yoga, and tennis.
Lyra Beck, ’93 BS Hotel Administration, is working for Boyd Gaming Corp. as corporate director of hotel yield/teleservices. She returned to Las Vegas from Northern Nevada where she worked for another company in a divisional role. Before that, she helped open a Harrah’s property in Louisiana.
Ron Pepper, ’93 BS Hotel Administration, owned and operated a martial arts school until deciding to fulfill his dream of living abroad. In Spain, he started a photography business specializing in panoramic “virtual tour” photography. More recently, he moved to San Francisco and launched www.panoramanetwork. com, which keeps him involved with the hospitality business. He also works as a bartender on the weekends.
Sari F. Utschen-Ayalon, ’93 BS Hotel Administration, returned to Las Vegas recently after 10 years away. She opened her own staffing service called Culinary Pros, which provides culinary services to hotels, country clubs, and those hosting special events.
Diane Watanabe, ’93 BS Hotel Administration, moved from New Jersey to Scottsdale, Ariz., where she is an event manager for WorldatWork, an association for human resources professionals. Her husband, Jonathan Ukeiley, ’91 MBA, will join her in Scottsdale this spring.
Jim Geoffroy, ’94 BS Finance, recently was promoted to associate director of finance with Verizon Wireless, resulting in a transfer to Denver. He and his wife, Sherry, had a daughter, Kaitlyn Jane, on May 24, 2004. They live in Castle Rock.
Tara Pike, ’94 BS Environmental Studies, is celebrating her 10th year as solid waste and recycling manager for UNLV’s Rebel Recycling program. She was married Oct. 23, 2004, to Nick Nordstrom in Zion National Park. They own Millwork Creations Ltd., a custom cabinet door manufacturing company. Her hobbies include caring for her dogs, reptiles, and fish and serving as a “foster mother” for abandoned and abused cats. She also is active in efforts to preserve threatened ecosystems around the world.
Joanne Barrios Wildenhain, ’95 BS Hotel Administration, works as senior sales manager for Marriott Hotels and Resorts International at the Renaissance Los Angeles Hotel. She lives in Redondo Beach.
Allie Smith, ’96 BA Communication Studies, is executive director and editor of CLASS! Publications, which produces a monthly magazine by, for, and about Clark County high school students. She is also involved in environmental, political, and human rights issues.
Rachel Ego Conneely, ’96 BS Hotel Administration, moved from Boston to Wyoming, changed jobs, and got married — all in six months’ time. She now works for the Powder Horn Ranch, a new golf community in Sheridan.
Mark Benjamin, ’97 BS Hotel Administration, is director of operations for net.insights, a marketing company that designs websites and provides web management services to hospitality companies. He also heads Las Vegas Restaurants Online, an online restaurant reservation bookings company.
Hilaire Pressley, ’97 BS Biology, earned a doctoral degree in optometry from the University of Houston in 2001. She then completed a residency in ocular disease and refractive and ocular surgery. She now practices in Las Vegas.
Kyle Horvatis, ’98 BS Hotel Administration, is a physical education teacher as well as baseball and volleyball coach at Kenmore East High School in Buffalo, N.Y. He has been teaching for four years. He lives in Lockport.
Tony Letendre, ’98 BS Hotel Administration, was elected to PGA membership as a class “A” member in May 2004. He is the head golf professional at the new Toscana Country Club, a high-end private club with two Jack Nicklaus signature courses. He lives in La Quinta, Calif.
Candace Jones Severson, ’98 BS Nursing and BS Health Education, received a master of public health degree from Emory University in 2000. For the past three years, she has worked as a pediatric nurse at Emanuel Children’s Hospital in Portland, Ore. On Sept. 5, 2004, she married David Severson at Portland’s First Christian Church.
Elliot Dubin, ’99 BS Hotel Administration, recently became director of hospitality services for Jani-King of Illinois. Jani-King is the world’s leading commercial cleaning franchise company with more than 10,000 franchise owners worldwide. He lives in Niles.
Rodney Woodbury, ’99 Bachelor of Music, is in his sixth year as director of bands at Century High School in Pocatello, Idaho. He recently was included in an article for School Band and Orchestra magazine titled “50 Directors Who Make A Difference.” He serves as a worship team leader at his church. He and his wife, Cassie, are the parents of Maisy, 3, Asher, 1, and Mabel, who was born Feb. 25.
