Clicking on the image above will lead you to a page that looks a lot like this one,
except without this text at the bottom. The reason I have this page in the middle is
because I want to point out some people in these pictures. I don't know most of them.
At lower right, standing center (this is the same picture which appeared on the cover
of the Spring 2000 Course Schedule) is Dr. Paul J. Kaiser, Department Chair for Mathematics
and Computer Science. Highly recommended. I do have to get him that pesky reflective
essay, though.... Really, Dr. Kaiser is a good instructor, and he seems to run the
department well. I had him for Statistics, and I had to negotiate with him about some
requirements just to be able to graduate in January. He was very accomodating.
At lower left, center is Angres Thorpe, Assistant Mens Basketball Coach. I think Angres
likes everybody. In addition to his coaching duties, Angres brought cheer to the SRFC
on a daily basis. He was also responsible for keeping us in laundry detergent. The
woman on his left is Gayle Kirchdoerfer, former Assistant Director of Student Recreation.
That wasn't her full job title, but neither was Weight Machine Repairman, Pool
Superintendent, SRFC Student Employment Coordinator, Substitute Lifeguard, or any of
the host of other things she did to keep the facility running smoothly. It was always
a lot more fun to come to work when Gayle was in, even when she was not having a good day.
For one thing, I had someone to appeal to if I was having a problem. Even if I wasn't
really having a problem, I could go into her office almost anytime she was there to ask
her a question; she was about as accessible a supervisor as I can imagine having. It
always seemed like Gayle knew more about what was going on in the building than Jill
(her supervisor) did; Jill's office is on the second floor, and Jill spent much of her
on-campus time in meetings and on the phone with people, trying to handle all the outside
things that go into the facility, while Gayle, on the first floor, was right there when
anything happened. I decorated Gayle's office door for her birthday (thanks Dawn for
letting me stay in the building past close) with blue paper and the appropriate number
of paper candles. There are a lot of things I miss about working in the Rec Center
(seeing my fellow students, getting paid, etc.), but one of the most significant things
I miss is having Gayle for a supervisor. She left the University shortly after earning
her master's degree, so even if I went back to the SRFC, she wouldn't be there. She
participated in the same Commencement I did, 16 January 2000, so I got to see her get
hooded. (Like my father, Gayle was taller than the person who hooded her, so she had
to bend down a bit.)
So that's why I stuck this page in the middle. One of these days the university will
change their front page, and the link above will go to a different looking picture. I
still wanted to save this one, though; that's the picture I like.