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Up-and-coming baritone Eugene Chan (‘06, Music) is already hitting some high career notes. Among them are two national vocal awards and a performance at Carnegie Hall.

“This is a very difficult career to be successful in and to make ends meet,” says Chan. “I am blessed with the opportunity to have been doing the one thing that I love the most—perform.”

In January, Chan, 23, sang at the request of Grammy Awardwinning mezzo-soprano and Kennedy Center Honoree Marilyn Horne during her annual Carnegie master class. Chan has studied with the international opera star for six months. “Eugene Chan is a fine young baritone with all the prerequisites for a wonderful career,” says Horne. “He has a beautiful and expressive baritone voice. I expect really good things from him."

Chan’s two recent awards are from some of the most competitive vocal competitions in the country. He received second place honors in the Metropolitan Opera’s Western Regional Finals for young artists, and a special judge’s award from the William Matheus Sullivan Music Foundation’s annual singing competition.

At 21, Chan began singing professionally by soloing in Sacramento Opera’s production of Madame Butterfly. Since then he has been a soloist for the San Francisco Opera as well as for the Camellia Symphony and the Sacramento Choral Society and Orchestra.

Though a longtime vocalist, it wasn’t until attending Sac State that Chan explored opera. Before, he sang vocal jazz and in choral programs. “Voice professor Robin Fisher took me under her wing at a crucial time in my life and gave me the technical tools I needed,” he says.

Chan credits his early success to his ability to be lyrical and subtle, but at the same time able to reach the most difficult notes in a baritone’s upper range.

The recent graduate was a soloist for the West Coast Premiere of Rene Clausen’s tribute to Sept. 11 victims, “Memorial,” performed at the Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts. Earlier this year, Chan performed with the San Francisco Boys Chorus and at the 2006 Green and Gold Gala on campus. He is a past recipient of the Marilyn Horne Foundation’s Encouragement Award.

One could say sisters Linda (’85, International Business) and Suzanne Diers (’83, MIS and Accounting) struck oil while attending Sac State. Before graduation, the two landed positions at Chevron Corp. through University-sponsored recruitment programs.

Combined, the pair has worked for one of the world’s leading energy companies for 44 years. Each has advanced, holding essential positions within the company’s ranks.

“I had no idea I would get so many of the wonderful opportunities I’ve had,” says Linda Diers. As an auditor she has hiked in underground coal mines in Montana, visited refineries in Mississippi and flown out to ships anchored in the Gulf of Mexico. “I’ve been all over the U.S., Canada and Bermuda.”

Going even further afield, she now works as the internal controls coordinator in Cabinda, Angola.

Suzanne Diers is an information technology project manager and project management team leader. She operates a project management office supporting Chevron’s clients in 44 countries throughout the Western Hemisphere.

Each has risen from entry-level positions to areas that oversee major oil and energy exploration and distribution, working with people from around the world—Linda on the marketing, international business and treasury sides, and Suzanne in the areas of project management, information technology and IT recruiting.

In a company that employs 55,000 people from 180 countries, having siblings with the same names can be confusing.

“There are mix-ups,” says Linda, citing the occasional misrouted e-mail. “And we do look a little bit alike. Sometimes someone I don’t know will come up to me and start talking.”

Seemingly such experiences in mistaken identity have paid off. “Combined we know a lot of people,” says Suzanne. “And we know more about the company because we learn from each other’s work experience.”

Despite working for an international company, each remains close to their roots. Suzanne, who was honored by the College of Business Administration at the Alumni Honors Luncheon in 2003, maintains ties with Sac State by recruiting for Chevron. In the last year she has recruited 15 Chevron interns and employees. She has also helped secure thousands in scholarship funds.

The sisters’ father was a Navy pilot and Linda has kept the family’s Navy connection by working on San Francisco’s Fleet Week, and serving as president of the Navy League of the United States’ Oakland Council.

Though they no longer work together at the company’s San Ramon headquarters, the connection keeps them bonded, Suzanne says. “Being able to be in the same company makes it a little easier to be together.”

Education was always a part of Sac State alumnus Mary Louise Mack’s (’73, Educational Administration) life. The recently retired principal of Carson Creek High School, part of the Sacramento County Juvenile Courts School Program, made it her life’s work to educate troubled young people in the Sacramento area for nearly 40 years.

As principal, Mack expected a lot from herself, as well as the teachers. “We worked with teens who had committed all sorts of crimes, and it was vital to show them there was a better way of life than the one they had grown up knowing. Our goal was to have them leave the school with more than they came in with.

“We wanted to educate the whole child, not only in terms of book smarts but also in manners, dress and how they expressed themselves. They needed these skills to get a job and succeed.”

Mack strove to instill selfworth in all her students. “It was important to let them know that someone cared about them, because they didn’t always get that at home,” Mack says. “Those children are at such a formidable age. And no matter how dastardly their deeds, children need to know they’re loved. That gives them the confidence to accomplish something worthwhile.”

Mack, who had a bachelor’s degree in business education and a minor in English, began teaching English and other subjects in the Juvenile Hall girls’ school in the early 1960s. “After so many years teaching in Juvenile Hall, the administrators asked me to become the vice principal of the girls’ school. I knew that if, in a budget crunch, they had to downsize that I would be the first to go because I didn’t have an advanced degree in education. So I began taking classes at Sacramento State to obtain my master of arts in school administration.”

While attending the University, Mack was impressed with the high standards the professors set for their students. “I was lucky to have consistently studied in an environment where the educational bar was set high, and I was able to become a better student and educator because of it. I enjoyed my experience at Sacramento State and was able to make a difference in children’s lives as a school administrator because of it.”

Since her retirement in 2004 after almost 20 years with Carson Creek High—39 and a half years total with the Sacramento County Office of Education—Mack has kept busy building her dream home and making an occasional foray into the classroom as a test monitor. “I haven’t solidified m y plans for the future yet,” she says. “I considered substitute teaching for a short time but decided against that. But whatever it is I decide to do, I’ll be there 100 percent for the kids who need me.”

Mark A. Lund (‘71, Business Administration) is such a believer in community banking that he came out of retirement last year to start his own company.

Lund is the founding president and CEO of Roseville-based Community 1st Bank. With a second branch in Auburn, the bank employs 20 people.

“Building a community bank—from the ground up—is something I’ve always wanted to do,” says Lund, who over the years has seen many community banks eventually acquired by bigger banks.

Unlike nationally centered institutions, community banks offer borrowers loans from local lenders and community members who are familiar with the area’s economy.

“The thing I like about being involved with community banking is you have an opportunity to help so many people realize their dreams,” says Lund.

Lund also sits on the bank’s board of directors along with several other Placer County investors. “Out of approximately 350 shareholders nearly all are residents here in Placer County,” Lund says. “If someone comes in for a loan, we not only know him, but we probably also know his numbers.”

Before “retiring” with his wife Debbie (‘71, Education) in 2004, Lund was the CEO, president and a board director for Rocklin-based Five Star Bank. Prior to that he worked for several banking institutions, most notably for the Bank of Commerce in Auburn for 13 years and Placer Sierra Bank.

Lund is also involved with the Boys and Girls Club of Auburn, Auburn Host Lions Club, Nevada City Masonic Lodge and Shriners.

While his banking career has been a success, he admits that banking was the furthest thing on his mind while he was at Sac State. A chance opportunity as a management trainee for a community bank in Marin County showed him the influence banking can have on people’s lives.

“It makes me feel great,” he says. “I’m helping people achieve their goals. At the same time I’m helping the community to grow and prosper.”

Jacqueline (Jackie) Walden, Ph.D., ’68, B.A., Psychology, ’89, M.A., Anthropology, has moved to Grants Pass, Ore., where she serves on the board of directors and ethics committee of the local Lovejoy Hospice. Her specialization in gerontology prepared her for these challenging positions. In addition, she authored one of the chapters in Left Coast Press’ new publication, Women in Anthropology: Autobiographical Narratives and Social History. In it, Walden thanks her mentors, George Rich and Melford Weiss, both professors in Sac State’s anthropology department, for their help in her career.

Donna Bledsoe, ‘70, B.A., English, ’75, M.A., English, was awarded her master’s degree in English on the basis of her fine arts project, a book of poetry called Scars, a copy of which is on file in the University Library. She is an active poet again and publishes a blog at fromrosewood@blogspot.com with her newer works. She invites Sac State students—past, present, and future— to visit and make comments.

Karyn Domich, ’72, B.A., Family and Consumer Sciences, has returned to campus after a 30-year career at Sac State and her retirement in May 2005, to take on a special assignment in the Alumni Relations office. She is the chapter relations coordinator for the Alumni Association and will be the liaison for the alumni chapters, establishing and supporting the growth and stability of this component of the Association. Domich formerly was in the President’s Office and the Office of University Advancement. A longtime volunteer with the Intercollegiate Athletics Department, she is also serving on various event committees of the Stingers. She is part of a long line of Sac State alumni.

Duane Hoffman, ’75, B.S., Business Administration, joined the California Franchise Tax Board after graduation and in 1981 started a program which taxed nonresident professional athletes based upon performance duties in California. Since then, most other states have followed his lead in taxing non-resident professional athletes and entertainers. Over his 25-year career, numerous articles have been written about Hoffman and his job, among them in The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post. Most recently, The Sacramento Bee featured him and the program’s so-called “jock tax,” which generated more than $7 million in the fiscal year 2004-05, the last year tax records are available. He lives in Rancho Cordova.

Gwen Schoen, ’74, B.A., Family and Consumer Sciences, has come full circle since she graduated from Sac State. She says that she is probably one of the few people who decided at a very young age exactly what she wanted to do and made it happen. In 1979 she was hired as a home economist in the “Katherine Kitchen” department of McClatchy Newspapers. Katherine Kitchen was a staff of home economists who wrote about food, fashion and home furnishings for the Sacramento, Modesto and Fresno Bee newpapers—which she says is very similar to being a local Betty Crocker. Besides writing, she did recipe demonstrations and a lot of public speaking about fashion trends, cooking and nutrition. When the Katherine Kitchen department was dissolved in the mid ‘80s, she was reassigned to the Sacramento Bee and became the fashion writer. About 10 years later she began working on a new section called “Time and Money” which focused on consumer affairs. When the food writer left the paper in 1995, Schoen returned to the food section as the primary food writer, a position which she still has. She lives in Carmichael and has been married 35 years.

John H. Leach, ’76, B.A., Government, is the site operations director at The Hermitage, Home of President Andrew Jackson. Located just outside Nashville, Tenn., the National Historic Landmark is the third largest presidential site in the United States and the recipient of the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s Trustee Emeritus Award for Excellence in the Stewardship of Historic Sites. The 1,120-acre historic site and farm consists of 32 historic structures, a visitor center, 600 acres of farmland and 100 acres of cattle pasture. Leach’s responsibilities include security, gardens and grounds, museum cafe, housekeeping, farms, and building maintenance. He resides in Hermitage, Tenn. with his wife and daughter.

Carolyn Parks, ’77, M.A. Special Education/ Gifted Education, began her career with a first place national award for drama in 1949—screen legend James Dean took sixth. As she entered UCLA, she got married, ending her “drama queen” dreams. However, after graduating, she came to Sac State and earned her master’s degree. Her thesis/project is on file in the library and lately, she has seen many of her concepts put into practice in public education. Teaching for years, Parks continued to use her Sac State project in her own classroom. After retiring, she did “studio teaching” which required credentials from elementary through secondary. She has also worked on several films and commercials, including Breakdown, shot partly in Colfax, What’s Love Got to Do with It, and Diggstown. When a commercial required climbing down a canyon to an American River gorge, she decided she was getting too old for that kind of occupation, so now she heads music, drama and poetry groups with Sac State’s Renaissance Society. Parks says, “I enjoyed Sac State more than UCLA—I was older, more experienced and given professional freedom. Thanks, Sac State.”

Brian Purtill, ’77, B.S., Criminal Justice, has been counsel to the Santa Rosa law firm of Spaulding McCullough & Tansil LLP since May 2004. Currently, he is also on the faculty at the Empire School of Law, teaching civil procedure for the academic year of 2006–07. Purtill and his wife, Jymmey, ’78, B.S., Nursing, live in Sebastopol.

Mark Booher, ’ 87, B.A., Drama, interim artistic director/ associate dean of the Pacific Conservatory of the Performing Arts since December 2005, has been named to the position permanently. He has been an Allan Hancock College Fine Arts Department faculty member and served as the conservatory’s director of acting from 1999-2005. The conservatory’s acclaimed two-year training program, the only one of its kind on a community college campus, has infused the national theatre scene with thousands of actors and theatrical technicians since its inception. As an actor, director and choreographer, Booher has been involved with many prestigious regional theatres as well. He received his M.F.A. in Acting from UC Irvine and is a member of Actor’s Equity Association and the Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers. He lives in Santa Maria with his wife, Lindy, and two children.

William Eaton, ’89, B.S., Criminal Justice, joined the Los Angeles Police Department after graduating from Sac State, where he also played football. He has risen through the ranks and in August, was promoted to captain. Eaton is married to
Elizabeth Free Eaton, ’89, B.S., Criminal Justice, who is also employed with the Los Angeles Police Department as a detective. They live in Valencia.

Donna Thayer, ‘83, B.A., English/ Journalism, ’86, Teaching Credential, ’03, M.A., Educational Leadership, has been in the education field for 20 years and was recently appointed an assistant principal in the Lodi Unified School District. She was formerly a consultant at the California Department of Education where she worked on the California High School Exit Exam. Prior to that, Thayer worked in the Folsom Cordova Unified School District as a teacher, district lead teacher and administrator.

Richard Daskam, ’90, B.S., Business Administration (Finance), a realtor, has been appointed to the 2007 Multiple Listing Service Committee by the Pacific West Association of Realtors. He is an agent/partner at Keller Williams Realty Los Alamitos and will serve on the MLS Committee for one year. Pacific West Association of Realtors is the largest realtor association in California, and has nearly 13,000 realtors in Los Angeles and Orange counties. Daskam is also a director for the 2007 California Association of Realtors and is serving on several committees for that group. While in college, he was on the staff of The State Hornet and worked in the Sac State Sports Information Office. He makes his home in Long Beach with his wife, Michelle, and their family.

Regina Truhart, ’96, B.A., Music (Voice), has been named assistant professor of costume technology at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. As a graduate with a master’s degree in fine arts from the College-Conservatory of Music, Truhart has returned there after teaching costume technology at the University of Florida and the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee. She is a recipient of the United States Institute of Technical Theater Award of Distinction, and a first-place winner in the National Opera Association video competition. Her credits include work with the Washington National Opera, Seaside Musical Theater in Daytona Beach, Fla., Utah Shakespearean Festival and Opera Theatre, and Music Festival of Lucca in Italy. In Cincinnati, Truhart has worked with the Ensemble Theatre of Cincinnati, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, Cincinnati Shakespeare Company, Cincinnati Ballet, Cincinnati Opera Outreach and College-Conservatory of Music. She lives in Cincinnati.

Robin Zasio, ‘91, M.A., Social Work, returned to school to earn her doctorate in clinical psychology in 1999 at The California School of Professional Psychology in Alameda. Currently she owns and operates two drug and alcohol residential recovery homes. Zasio also owns and directs The Anxiety Treatment Center, located in Sacramento, where she specializes in treating anxiety and related disorders using cognitive behavioral therapy, and exposure and response prevention techniques.

Stefanie Aeder, ’06, B.S., Kinesiology, Meloney Greer, ’05, B.A., Education (Child Development), and Jessica Hoffman, ’05, B.A., Communication Studies (Public Relations), all former Sac State gymnasts, were featured in Stick It, an April 2006 release from Touchstone Pictures and Spyglass Entertainment. The movie, starring Jeff Bridges, follows a rebellious 17-year-old in the regimented world of elite gymnastics. In the film, Aeder, Greer and Hoffman perform in two competition sequences and are featured throughout the finale. They auditioned in Los Angeles after their final competition at Sac State. Aeder lives in Portland, Ore., Greer in Coeur D’Alene, Idaho, and Hoffman in Escondido.

William E. Greep, ’05, B.S., Business Administration (Accounting Information Systems), has been promoted by Hearst Argyle Television to director of engineering at WMTW-TV in Portland, Maine. He was previously assistant chief engineer at WISN-TV, the Hearst station in Milwaukee. Prior to joining Hearst Argyle Television, he was the manager of outside engineering at KXTV-TV in Sacramento.

Catherine Labbé, ’06, B.A., English, who worked as an assistant while a student at Sac State, has been named the University Alumni Center’s event manager. Serving clients from the campus and the community, she coordinates the use of the Center for meetings, conferences, social gatherings and weddings, to name just a few of the events booked into the space. Before coming to the Alumni Relations office, she worked as a manager of a local cafe, and brings her experience in customer service to her position at the Alumni Center.