Here’s the next installment in a series of alum profiles leading up to your 10th year reunion.
Below are updates from Chad Dorman, Meg Helstowski Corry, Teddy Farrell, Brittney Cross, Ethan Joseph and Sean Dempsey.
Yes, many of you have been keeping up with each other on Facebook, but sometimes it’s nice to stop and reflect a bit on the last 10 years. We’ll take the slow path and try to feature as many of you as possible before October.
In that vein, if you want to see your friends in next month’s post, refer them by completing this quick form — it’s a great way to shine the spotlight on a good friend!
10 years later, what are you up to (career, family, where you’ve lived, etc.)?
The early years after college I worked at a private school in Kansas City teaching English, Creative Writing, and Public Speaking before venturing out into the world of business to follow an opportunity. It was, at the time, a job I couldn’t pass up. Before long though, I realized that I wanted to get back into the world that I knew and loved. I took my new business acumen, blended my passions for academics and athletics, and Leonard Andrew Consulting was born – offering everything to students and student-athletes from tutoring, admissions and test prep, to NCAA recruiting advice and personal training.
What’s the best thing you’ve done in the last 10 years?
So tough to narrow down an absolute best. I spent as much time with friends and family as I could, traveled when my schedule allowed, and continued to build the business.
Who is the one person you most want to see at Reunion (classmate, professor, etc.)?
Again, so tough to narrow it down to just one! There is a whole host of classmates and professors that I look forward to catching up with.
Do you have a post-graduate tradition with your UVM friends? (ex. You get together at the beach each summer).
I’m fortunate to have a great group of friends who are like family to me. We keep close with a number of traditions – a steak cook-off every spring, a Friendsgiving every November, and a holiday party every December. Each of those traditions has been running strong for nearly 10 years.
How is your UVM degree relevant to your career?
My career and work came after seemingly the perfect combination of education and experiences, passion and interests. I always knew that I wanted to be working in education and with athletes. The real ‘spark’ wouldn’t come until a few years after college, but with my degree in education the fuse was lit.
What were you involved with at UVM?
I loved being part of UVMtv. Those days I worked on everything from news reports to covering the UVM hockey games.
10 years later, what are you up to (career, family, where you’ve lived, etc.)?
I currently live in St. Simons Island, Georgia with my husband, Brian; kiddo, Will; dog, Oakley, and cat, Gordon Bombay.
After UVM I attended law school at Florida Coastal School of Law and thereafter took the Georgia bar. I practiced personal injury law for 3 years in Savannah, Ga. which was fast paced and crazy. I learned a ton. For the past 4 years I have been a staff attorney for the Superior Court judges of the Brunswick Judicial Circuit. I (actually) love my job.
Living at/extremely close to the beach for the past 10 years has been as awesome as I hoped it would be.
What’s the best thing you’ve done in the last 10 years?
Moved south! Just kidding – I miss the Vermont mountains and the first snow of the season. Best thing I’ve done is become a mom to a very funny little boy.
Who is the one person you most want to see at Reunion (classmate, professor, etc.)?
The Patty 3/2 crew – looking at you Dave Lombardo.
Do you have a post-graduate tradition with your UVM friends? (ex. You get together at the beach each summer).
Does g-chatting with Krista Iannoni Easterly every day count?! She keeps me sane on a daily basis.
How is your UVM degree relevant to your career?
Well, political science led me directly into law; some of my really great professors definitely influenced me to take the LSAT and go immediately to law school. That was great advice. And I suppose it’s fair to say I used my business degree to decide it was a good business decision to work for the government (great hours and benefits).
What were you involved with at UVM?
Women’s tennis team; College Republicans.
10 years later, what are you up to (career, family, where you’ve lived, etc.)?
Have lived in Aspen, Colorado, since graduation and I work in Real Estate Development across the western US. I got married in 2013 to Emily and now have two kids (Sid -2 years and Maisey – 1 month).
What’s the best thing you’ve done in the last 10 years?
Hard to say, but happy to have maintained relationships with most of my UVM classmates and starting a family has been fun and challenging.
Who is the one person you most want to see at Reunion (classmate, professor, etc.)?
Jacob Dibble, a living legend and the handsomest member of UVM’s class of ’07.
Do you have a post-graduate tradition with your UVM friends? (ex. You get together at the beach each summer).
We try and go on a trip each year, either golfing or fishing.
How is your UVM degree relevant to your career?
I studied finance and currently use that with real estate acquisitions and financing.
What were you involved with at UVM?
Finance Club and AdvoCats in the admissions office.
10 years later, what are you up to (career, family, where you’ve lived, etc.)?
I can’t believe it’s been 10 years! I currently live in Rhode Island and I work at the University of Rhode Island as an academic advisor with our student athletes. This was a career switch for me after getting a MSW at UNH and working as a social worker in mental health/addiction field for 5 years. I love being back as part of a university community and part of the draw back was due to the great time I had at UVM! I am recently married (July 2016) to Brandon Miles (also UVM ’07) and we live in Wakefield, Rhode Island with our dog Blaze. Brandon is a U.S. Probation Officer.
What’s the best thing you’ve done in the last 10 years?
The best thing I’ve done in 10 years…totally cliché, but marry Brandon! We met the first week of freshman year at UVM in 2003. We didn’t begin dating until after graduation around 2009 and it has been an incredible journey. We make a great team and he’s is absolutely the best gift UVM gave me 🙂
Who is the one person you most want to see at Reunion (classmate, professor, etc.)?
Don’t have one person in mind but look forward to seeing familiar faces from the UVM years!
Do you have a post-graduate tradition with your UVM friends? (ex. You get together at the beach each summer).
I feel so lucky to have made and stayed close to a core group of UVM friends. They are truly my favorite people, my dearest friends and I miss them all the time! Fortunately, we make a big effort to get together multiple times each year…ski weekends, cape weekends, now weddings, and babies; it has been so wonderful to spend the last 10 years building on our friendship that started at UVM!
How is your UVM degree relevant to your career?
I was a Psychology major and maybe unlike most did end up working in the field (kind of)…the PSY background certainly helped me in graduate school when I pursued a Masters in Social Work, as much of the theory/core human development concepts were similar. I think my undergrad degree helped me begin to understand how to connect with, lead and ultimately help people. I certainly use this every day!
What were you involved with at UVM?
Primarily, I was a member of the Women’s Basketball team—two-year captain.
10 years later, what are you up to (career, family, where you’ve lived, etc.)?
Within a few months of graduation, an opportunity to work at Shelburne Vineyard arose and since then I’ve been happily growing grapes and making wine as the Vineyard Manager and Winemaker there. This career choice has led to a real passion for agriculture and wine and has provided me with opportunities to travel as a speaker/presenter at several national and international cold/cool climate wine conferences. During my tenure, Shelburne Vineyard has become recognized as the top producer of cold climate grapes and wine.
For five years this August, I’ve been the lucky spouse of fellow RESNRer, Jessica DeBiasio. We are now proud residents of South Burlington, having bought a house just before our wedding. As I write this, we are in the midst of a major renovation, continuing to update our home and make it our own. We also garden like crazy; seedlings for this season are already starting to grow.
What’s the best thing you’ve done in the last 10 years?
I’m terrible at picking “bests” I’m too diplomatic for that. As I said above, five years ago I married the beautiful Jessica DeBiasio, so that of course tops the list. We turned our large SoBu yard into an epic garden and we’ve taken some amazing trips, including to France and Nova Scotia, both with fantastic wine. Professionally, I’ve dedicated myself to wine-growing in VT and this has helped elevate the perception of VT wine and gained me national attention.
Who is the one person you most want to see at Reunion (classmate, professor, etc.)?
If I’m able to attend, I think it will be fun to see those people I knew and liked but haven’t kept in touch with.
Do you have a post-graduate tradition with your UVM friends? (ex. You get together at the beach each summer).
Nothing regular, but there have been some Slade reunions and occasional dinner parties with folks still in the area.
How is your UVM degree relevant to your career?
While my Natural Resources degree isn’t directly relevant to wine-growing, there are certainly some parallels and related subject matter like soils, chemistry, and hydrology. In addition, my natural resource background has allowed me to think ecologically about the best way to grow grapes while limiting environmental impact.
What were you involved with at UVM?
Early on at UVM I participated in the Outing Club and Trek. However, it was really my time at Slade Hall that had the strongest influence over my career. Practicing my ag. skills in the garden and experimenting with fermentation provided me with the opportunity to realize my interest in wine-growing. I was also President of CEL (Consortium for Ecological Living) and played pick-up soccer regularly.
10 years later, what are you up to (career, family, where you’ve lived, etc.)?
Right out of college I started working with a local VT web and marketing firm called Loud Canvas Media. I bought the company about two years later and have been doing that ever since. Together with my talented team, we’ve grown the company from an initial 30-40 clients to now over 400. I now live in the Portsmouth NH area, which is about an hour from Boston. I have a beautiful baby girl named Ava Grace who turns 1 at the end of May.
Who is the one person you most want to see at Reunion (classmate, professor, etc.)?
I made a lot of excellent and lifelong friends at UVM, most I still stay in close connection with. However, others (due to no fault of their own or mine) simply let life pull them along its serpentine current and I lost touch. There are actually a long list of people I can’t wait to catch up with. I feel bad not being able to list them all. Peter Dunbar was a crazy guy who, if he isn’t a multi-millionaire by now, is most certainly on his way and/or hatching up a half dozen crazy ideas for new business ventures. Nick Donahue, who I also went to high school with, is someone I’d love to see and hear where life has taken him. Matthew Lewis is probably the funniest and most impressive person I’ve ever known but now lives on the other side of the country; can’t wait to see him again! And Andrew Stickney, who’s last words to me in college were (and I quote) “well, Sean, it’s been real and I love you. But I probably won’t ever see you again for the rest of my life. So … bye.” – thus I look forward to proving him wrong. 😉
Do you have a post-graduate tradition with your UVM friends? (ex. You get together at the beach each summer).
Several UVM friends (mixed with many high school friends as well) get together each and every year without fail to celebrate Thanksgiving (“Friendsgiving Weekend”). For a weekend we rent out a large house on Home Away or use a friend’s house to cook an ostentatiously large bird or two. Then we spend the weekend (the time preceding and post dinner) celebrating our friendship with adult beverages, games/tournaments, and many laughs about the ‘good ol times’.
How is your UVM degree relevant to your career?
Very much so! I received both a Business and Computer Science degree, and have put them both to very good use. My undergraduate business degree (as well as my MBA a few years later) has been instrumental in maintaining and growing a successful web/marketing business. And my CS degree was very helpful in the early years when most of the projects my firm took on were done with me as the lead/principal developer. So without my experience at UVM I would not be where I am today.
What were you involved with at UVM?
I was president of UVMtv for 2 or 3 years. We brought the fledgling club from 7 or 8 active members to over 150 by my senior year. Sadly the club has not been treated too well recently and its numbers have dwindled significantly (compounded with the fact the campus is no longer on a closed-circuit TV network.) I was also an RA (resident advisor) for almost my entire career at UVM; that was an extremely rewarding experience as well.