OSU Stater Magazine Fall 2023

54 ForOregonState.org/Stater OUR COMMUNITY ALUMNI NEWS EDITED BY > SCHOLLE MCFARLAND JACK COLLETTO, ’23 Former Oregon State Football quarterback, fullback, linebacker and special teams player Jack Colletto won the 2022 Paul Hornung Award, given to the most versatile player in major college football. Colletto is the first Beaver to win the award, which was established in 2010. He played in 43 games and was a two-time all- conference honoree as an all-purpose specialist. Colletto, who earned his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering, signed as an undrafted free agent with the San Francisco 49ers. Alex Austin, former OSU foot- ball cornerback, was drafted by the Buffalo Bills. Josiah Blaisdell, M.S. ’21, launched a nonprofit online learning platform, Epsilon Learners (epsilonlearners. com), to advance STEM education through distance learning for underprivileged, rural and foster youth. Alissa Brandt, ’96, was named vice president of interiors for the Portland, Oregon-based Ankrom Mosian Architects, one of the largest architectural firms in the western United States. Kelli Caldwell, ’95, won the John Lennon Songwriting Contest Grand Prize for her fourth album for families, “Baby Ninja,” available from kelliwellikids.com. Nick Cheatham, ’17, opened Corazón, a Corvallis wine bar and shop, in January. Steve Clark, ’75, vice pres- ident of Oregon State’s University Relations and Mar- keting since 2011, retired this June. Brandin Cooks, ’15, an NFL wide receiver, was traded to the Dallas Cowboys. KC Cowan, ’79, published her first Regency romance novel, The Bennets: Providence & Perception, with Meryton Press. Pushpa (Deardorff) Devi, ’17, published a memoir, The Lucky Lotus: The Filthy Dirty Life of an Adopted East Indian Girl in an Alabaster World, available through Amazon. Learn more at authorpushpadevi.com. Michael Driscoll, ’70, received an Atomic Veterans Commemorative Service Medal and an Atomic Veterans Service Certificate for his involvement in two 1962 nuclear bomb tests in the Pacific Ocean. Read his dramatic story at bit.ly/ atomic-driscoll. Kerry Eggers, ’75, published Wherever You May Be…Now: The Bill Schonely Story, avail- able from kerryeggers.com. Eggers has written about sports for Portland newspapers for nearly 50 years. T. Beau Ellis, ’06, was named managing partner of VF Law and will oversee strategic planning across the firm’s operations in seven states. Neil Fernando, ’97, founder of Emerio Design, announced the acquisition of Reece & Associates, an engineering and planning firm founded by Dave Reece, ’77, who will join Emerio’s executive team as he transitions toward retirement. Aleah Goodman, ’20, was hired as an assistant coach for Oregon State Women’s Basketball. Jaydon Grant, ’20, MSB ’22 (Las Vegas Raiders), Tre’Shaun Harrison, ’22 (Tennessee Titans), Brandon Kipper, ’22 (Baltimore Ravens), Tyjon Lindsey, ’22 (Seattle Seahawks) and Rejzohn Wright, ’22 (Carolina Panthers), all signed undrafted free agent contracts with the NFL. Rod Hebron, ’66, a two-time Olympian (in 1964 and 1968) and eight-time Canadian national champion in Alpine skiing, was inducted into the Canadian Ski Hall of Fame. Larry Kirkland, ’72, was celebrated at an August reception in Vancouver, Washington, where his art installation, “Grant Street Pier,” is the focal point of the waterfront park. It won an Engineering Excellence Project of the Year Award. KARL MAASDAM

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