I'm still in Des Moines working at The Des Moines Register.

Most of my time now is spent with family matters. I have a son named Jay.

Dawn works as a private surgery nurse for a plastic surgeon in town. She loves her work and the patient contact she has - from pre-surgery consulations through recovery. Plus she has really enjoyed learning more about surgery and being involved in that.

Todd and Paula have left the bright lights of Hollywood and settled for the lights of the football stadium at Rockbridge High School in Columbia. His son Kevin is graduating from Oregon University, son Jeff is a sophmore at Mizzou and his youngest is on the Rockbridge football team. Paula is teaching and Todd is hawking the book he and Dan O'Brien wrote, MizzouRah! Memorable moments in Missouri Tiger Football History.

donoho@mchsi.com

I'm the on-line news producer for KYTV, Springfield, Mo. I've been here for 11 years and was (in order) morning news producer, assignment editor and reporter before crossing over to the Web in 1997. Previously, I was news director at KOLR-10 in Springfield for two years. I do a lot of volunteer work with the Boy Scouts, where I've been a troop Scoutmaster for 10 years and have led leadership training courses.

My wife is an elementary vocal music teacher in Springfield. We've been married 23 years as of August 2002. We have two children, Cullen and Adrienne. Cullen was 21 in July 2002 and is scheduled to graduate from Mizzou in May 2003 with a degree in education. He plans to teach high school English. Adrienne is 17 and will graduate from high school in 2003. She's thinking about possibly studying physical therapy or geriatric medicine in college.

After staying two more years at Mizzou and getting my Master's degree in 1979, I went to work as assignment editor for WCHS-TV in Charleston, W.V., working for Mizzou alum Kent Collins, who is now chairman of the broadcast sequence in the School of Journalism. After a year there, I moved to WHO-TV, Des Moines, where I was assignment editor for five years before falling out of favor with a new news director, Brink Chipman, who took the job after being our Magid consultant and recommending the firing of our news director. Both of our kids were born in Des Moines.

In August 1985, I took a job as news director at a low-power, music video TV station in Lawrence, Kan., where I worked with Max Utsler's students from KU, producing five-minute, top-of-the-hour newscasts. Max also supplemented my meager salary with a part-time teaching position at KU. The station went out of business after I was there for a year.

I got out of TV journalism for three years, working for the Boy Scouts in Kansas City as a district executive and directing summer camps for two years. In 1989, the general manager of KOLR-10 in Springfield remembered me from a previous interview, called me up when he had a news director opening and hired me. Unfortunately, our styles of leadership clashed and I left in October 1991 to join the number one station in the market, KYTV (KY3).

I look forward to seeing you all in October.
ghartley@ky3.com

My post-Mizzou story starts at WSAV-TV in Savannah, Georgia where I was a reporter, photographer, editor and fill-in sports anchor. My stay lasted four months.

I was hired away by KTBS in Shreveport, Louisiana off someone else's resume tape. I had been the photog on the stories. I was a photographer/reporter there for 2.5 years.

In 1980 I headed back north to Indianapolis as a photographer. In the late '80s I teamed back up with Dan O'Brien who joined WTHR as a sport producer. One of the highlights of my time here was being in the film "Blue Chips," starring Nick Nolte, Shaq and Todd Donoho. My appearance lasts for about three frames. The filming was in Indiana and I was Todd's freelance photographer for the stories he brought back to air on KABC. O'Brien was the series' field producer. It was a true Mizzou collaboration.

In 1996 health reasons forced me to give up photography just as WTHR was becoming an MSNBC.com affiliate. Since I was the only person at the station who knew how to build web pages, self-taught, I was the logical choice to become the MSNBC Producer. I also, unofficially, managed the station web site. Now, my title is Senior Web Designer and I spend my days creating and modifying web pages and having lunch with OB whenever possible.

I have also built several web sites on a freelance basis, including www.missourifootballmoments.com.

I am married to the former Kathy Pollock, also a broadcast grad ('78). She's working as an attorney for the state's Department of Environmental Management. We have two kids, one in high school and one in college. One plans to be an engineer and the other is studying architecture.

Warren Mills
317-291-9392
wmills@wmills.net

I am presently the assistant marketing director for Bryan Cave LLP, a law firm with 650 lawyers in 18 cities worldwide. My job includes strategic planning, public and media relations, development of collateral materials and new business development as well as supervising marketing personnel in the various offices. Working with lawyers has its own challenges and rewards, including regular opportunities to visit offices in Phoenix, Los Angeles, New York and Washington D.C. This career didn't even exist when we were in college!

I have remained in St. Louis since graduation and in addition to law firm marketing, I've done a stint with Fleishman-Hillard Public Relations working on a variety of national accounts, was PR director for The Sporting News Publishing Co. for 10 years and wrote for two industry trade magazines. Coincidentally, Drew Rogers' father (Drew was Dec. '76 BJ grad) was my first boss. Although I've never worked in a newsroom, I have found the skill of broadcast writing to be invaluable no matter what the position.

On a personal front...after demonstrating remarkably poor judgment in my first choice of a spouse...have been married for seven years to a wonderful man, Tom Wilcox, and am stepmother to four kids - all now teenagers. They spend quite a bit of time with us, and are as challenging as any lawyer. I stay busy with all the travel as well as serving on a number of charity boards, helping with high school fundraising auctions, playing tennis, reading and doing my part to keep the program going on the home front. My husband and I enjoy entertaining friends together and playing golf. Looking forward to seeing everyone in October.

lapfeifer@bryancave.com

After graduating, Dan O'Brien and I worked for the NBC affiliate in Montgomery, Alabama. Leigh kept telling us it was a great station with a lot of new toys...can you say ENG? Dan went on to bigger and better(?) markets, I stayed on for seven years, ultimately becoming assistant news director. We had a gaggle of Mizzou grads flow through the station during my time there.

In 1984, I jumped the fence and went to work in PR for a Montgomery-based international construction and manufacturing conglomerate. We rode the construction boom to the hilt, but when it turned to a bust, we went through a series of downsizings. One day in 1992, my boss said there was another downsizing but I didn't need to bother writing the news release.

After spending the summer looking for a job, I landed with Southern Company's Alabama Power headquarters in Birmingham. I left as Vice President-PR when I realized I couldn't work with my incompetent, irrational boss another day. (She left the company about three months after I did...timing is everything.)

After spending a few months freelancing and playing, I went to work in Y2K as Sr. Vice President - PR for AmSouth Bank, also in Birmingham. I know several of you who knew me well are doubled over with laughter that I'm working for a bank. (I think my name is still on file with the Boone County DA's office for all the bad checks I wrote back then!)

What goes around, comes around. I left AmSouth Bank and joined Alfa Corp back in Montgomery, Alabama. The town has changed a little since OB and I arrived in 1977, but not much and not altogether good. But I love my job heading up Public Relations for a major Southeastern insurance and it’s affiliated Farmers’ Federation.

OC, Jim Scilligo and Todd Donoho came through on their way back from last year’s reunion and I was absolutely committed to attending the 2007 shindig. BUT, I am on the board of the Public Relations Society of America and our annual International Conference is that same weekend in Philadelphia and it is a command appearance for me. So as the saying goes, wait until next year!

David C. Rickey, APR
Vice President - Public Relations
Alfa
2108 East South Blvd.
Montgomery, AL 36191
(334) 613-4034 work
(334) 414-1776 cell
drickey@alfains.com
david.rickey@amsouth.com

Hey guys for what it's worth ... I'm a General Sales Manager for 9 radio stations in Central Missouri. I have worked for the same company (Zimmer Radio Group owner of 33 stations in 3 states) for 11 years...I hire, train, sell, and manage... and clean the bathroom sinks if necessary. I am a Columbia Chamber Ambassador.. which means I attend over 100 ribbon cuttings a year. This wears me out thinking about it!

Married 11 years to the same guy, Mike. Oh by the way... he's into Fireworks.

Can't wait to have everyone back in Columbia October 5th.

Cynthias@zrgmail.com

2008 is a year of big milestones for me, and our J-School Centennial Celebration is one of them!

We are so fortunate to have friends like Cynthia Schreen and Mike Beck and Todd and Paula Donoho living in Columbia. They are wonderful hosts and great fun, and if you have not joined us for one of our yearly reunions (2008 will be my eighth in a row) you are truly missing something.

As for me, 2008 marks my twentieth year in Florida. Amazing, since I did not even want to come here. My ex-wife was transferred to Tampa and I followed along. This year also marks my fifteenth year out of TV news. That is as long as I was in it.

I consider myself incredibly lucky to have worked as a TV news reporter for 15 years. I really loved it (well, most of it!) I would not trade those experiences and memories for anything. Someone will occasionally ask if I miss "it." The answer is no.

When my contract expired at Tampa St. Petersburg station in 1993, it was pretty obvious to me I would have to look at other options. I did not envision doing stories like "the busiest shopping day of the year" into my fifties.

I was fortunate to latch on with Barnes & Noble book stores as they expanded into Florida. I helped them open new stores across the state, as well as doing field marketing, community relations, and partnership building with corporations and non-profit organizations.

The Barnes & Noble job lead to a stint as director of marketing and public relations at Tampa's Lowry Park Zoo. This gave me more great experience in area of development (fundraising) and in communications specialties I was not familiar with (like direct mail, online, and media buying.)

Also during these years, I served on numerous boards and committees -- a diverse lot ranging from the Tampa Bay Civic Opera to the Florida Department of Education Adult Literacy Task Force. I became more involved in my local church and helped organize and stage Christian men's conferences on a regional and national level.

When I left the zoo to pursue work in the private sector, a funny thing happened. I took on a couple of contract type positions to tide me over while I looked for a permanent job. Those two original contract jobs turned into four, then six, then eight. When I finished one job for these "clients," they found other work for me to do. It became pretty obvious that I could not afford take a single "permanent" job.

In 2001, I incorporated my business as The Outsource Media Group, and moved it out of my house and into an office in downtown St. Petersburg. I have since moved to a bigger office, and now I have several people who work for me on a contract basis.

We do marketing communications and development. Our client list is pretty diverse. It includes a PBS station, a performing arts center, a metropolitan daily newspaper, and local, regional and statewide non-profits. We stage fundraising events, sell advertising, and do creative among other things.

After all these years, I still feel pretty overwhelmed most of the time (silly me, I thought it would get easier over time.) But, the work is fun and rewarding.

After living on St. Pete Beach for nine years, I moved to a mid-rise condo overlooking the intercoastal waterway in 2002. My West Highland White Terrier Maisie and I enjoy long walks around the natural habitat on the property and barking at the pelicans and terns. (I do the walking, Maisie does the barking!)

Best wishes, and I hope to see you in September an catch up.

Jim Scilligo
President
The Outsource Media Group, Inc.
One Progress Plaza
Suite 620-A
St. Petersburg, FL 33701
phone: 727-894-3644
fax: 727-8943654
jscilligo@theoutsourcemediagroup.com

Here’s my 2 cents worth...It’s been an incredible journey since leaving the secure confines of J-School. I spent 13 years traveling the globe via broadcasting, starting out as a photographer/reporter in Little Rock, then reporter/anchor DesMoines, Orlando, Tampa, St.Louis and then CNN in Dallas. I learned a heck of a lot, interviewed many people/presidents/celebs/poor folks and experienced the craziness/insanity of broadcast news (saw more news directors and reporters fired than George W Bush has words in his vocabulary). I eventually got mad as hell and could not take it anymore. (as the movie goes)

I retired in 1990 and started my own business as a personal/business growth coach which including training as a certified financial planner and leadership development from some of the best leaders around. My company in Arlington, TX (across from the new billion dollar Cowboy stadium) is now nearly 18 years old and has helped a lot of people. We are now expanding into the fitness arena. I’ve been married nearly 23 years and have 3 wonderful kids. One is becoming an attorney, the 2nd a film maker (Speilburg want a be) and the other still just a fun lovin kid.

I’ll always remember my time at Mizzou with fondness and hope to become more involved with alumni after staying on the sidelines for years.

Corpe Diem

Christopher G. Abel,CFP
Abel and Associates/Growth/Ameriprise Financial Investments
2000 E. Lamar Ste 600
Arlington, TX 76006
817-462-4078
214-564-2824 cell
Christopher.g.abel@ampf.com

After graduating I worked at KMOX radio in St Louis as a producer and then sports director for two years. In 1979 I left St. Louis to take a TV job, weekend sports, in Reno, NV at the CBS affiliate. In 1981 I joined the ABC affilliate as their sports director. All went well until the station was sold in 1989 and a week after covering the earthquake world series in SF, the new owners fired all the veterans. What to do? I was married with a 5-yr old at the time so I did what every red blooded Mizzou person would do, I ran for Mayor.

I was Mayor of Sparks, Nevada from 1991 to 1999 before taking a job in the Governor's office. During that time I opened a baseball card store and an advertising agency. But once appointed to a State position (Transportion Commissioner) I had to shut down all other outside activities. I was with the State until 2006 when I joined CB Richard Ellis and opened their land services department selling tracks of land to developers. Last year we started our own firm, Commercial Partners of Nevada. So Dave Dugan was right, it's all about SALES.

On the side, I still free lance in broadcasting. I'm fortunate to have been hired to work my 7th Summer Olympic Games and leave next week for Beijing. I do basketball, boxing and volleyball for TV New Zealand and a network that feeds games to South Africa, India, Malaysia, Australia and other countries. My son Matt is now 22 and graduated with a finance degree from the U. of Arizona. He's in NYC looking for a job this month. My wife Gina is amazing and really wanted to join us but couldn't get off work. See you all soon for my first time back in 31 years!

breslow@sbcglobal.net