Karen Hille Phillips
Karen Hille Phillips, Pacific Lutheran University’s largest single benefactor. Her $15 million gift funded the new Karen Hille Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, which will open in October 2013. (Photography by PLU Photographer, John Froschauer) By Greg Brewis A Lifetime of Service to Others…
From Microsoft to Martin Luther, and back
From Microsoft to Martin Luther, and back again In 1994, Mike Halvorson was the first one to write a book about something nobody else cared about. The book? How to use a little-known software program called Microsoft Office. We can guess how that turned out.…
PLU graduate studies the Kindertransport
PLU graduate studies the Kindertransport By Barbara Clements Their faces stare out from yellowed passport photos. Some are smiling. Some scared. Some of carrying suitcases. Many are only holding their younger siblings or nothing at all. This photo is of the first transport from Berlin…
208 Garfield, much more than a coffee shop
208 Garfield offers so much more than coffee, from something to snack on to a drink at the end of the day. (Photos by John Froschauer) 208 Garfield, much more than a coffee shop By Chris Albert There’s a new flavor to Garfield Street at…
Wines from PLU alumni
PLU on the Vine There are selections from five wineries with PLU alumni connections available at 208 Garfield. Benson Vineyards Estate Winery is family owned and operated by Scott Benson ’96 and Rebecca (Gilge ’98) Benson. Scott says, “Most of the vineyard’s 25 acres is…
Talking trees, floods, kites, it’s all in a day’s work
Todd Sheridan Perry ’92 worked on many of the Gollum scenes in the second Lord of the Rings movie. How Todd Sheridan rose from PLU to become one of Hollywood’s most successful special effects wizards By Barbara Clements Remember the scene in the “The Lord…
Bank president shares PLU experience
PLU alumnus came for the hoops, stayed for the connections By Kari Plog ’11 Steve Maxwell, ’90, always knew he wanted to be in business, but that isn’t what originally attracted him to Pacific Lutheran University. “I came to PLU to play basketball,” Maxwell said.…
‘Think faster, work harder, feel more deeply’
‘Think faster, work harder, feel more deeply’ By Barbara Clements Looking back, Svend Ronning ’89 can’t remember when music wasn’t part of his life. His mother was a piano teacher; his grandfather played the violin. In fact, he still occasionally uses a bow that his…
Alum challenges ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’
19-year Air Force vet challenges ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ By Steve Hansen When Major Margaret Witt graduated with a nursing degree from PLU in 1986, she began a highly successful career as a flight nurse with the U.S. Air Force. She served in the Persian…
Cammocks ensure PLU remains a place for students to grow
Cammocks ensure PLU remains a place for students to grow By Chris Albert There is one thing Craig Cammock ’91 finds to be true every time he encounters a Lute in the world: “They’re always a pleasure to run into.” It’s a big reason why…
Instructor sees value in great instruction
From PLU to a one-room school house, instructor sees value in great instruction By Chris Albert As a teacher for 35 years, Margaret Dakan ’38 saw the difference an education could make in a person’s life. Her belief in the kind of education Pacific Lutheran…
Ramstad Scholarship a fitting tribute to a PLU leader
Ramstad Scholarship a fitting tribute to a PLU leader By Greg Brewis Gifts in memory of a loved one are a cherished part of the close relationship with the university that are often built by PLU families. There is surely no more poignant example of…