Alumni Stories
News articles
Building character
Theatre alumni are on a quest to write, produce and direct a fantasy adventure film to showcase Eastern Oregon's local talent and natural scenery.
Around the world hospitality
The Allison Inn and Spa in Newberg now benefits from EOU alumnus Lonny Watne's globe-trotting career in hotel finance.
Not your average table wine
Keith Kenison, '90, got his first job at a winery shoveling grape skins out of the bottom of steel tanks. Now he oversees all of the reds as a winemaker for 14 Hands.
Baseball: Back at EOU
Nearly 50 years after he set a record for home runs, Steve Carter, '60 is leading his teammates once again. This time, he's scoring scholarships for a new generation of Mountaineers student-athletes.
Binding Time
One-of-a-kind art books get printed and bound in an old fruit warehouse in central Washington. An EOU alumnus found opportunity in this small community's vacant downtown.
Where the arts speak
From bedtime reading out of textbooks, to steering Baker County's art center, Ginger Savage has built a life and career out of creating welcoming spaces.
Donor Spotlight: James Gorham
Part of something bigger A new business in his old hometown inspired James Gorham, ’95, to get involved in the EOU Foundation. Now, more than 10 years later, the business is thriving and Gorham is a member of the EOU Foundation Board of Directors. After graduation, he earned his master’s in physical therapy and opened...
On the air
Local news anchor Mark Hanrahan, ’04, finds himself on the frontline of community issues nearly every day. From behind the evening news desk at KREM in Spokane, he tells viewers the latest happenings at 5, 6, 10 and 11 p.m. each night. “Journalism offers something new and interesting every day,” Hanrahan said. “It’s a very...
A President from Pohnpei
David Panuelo, ’87, was sworn in as the ninth president of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) in May 2019. Islanders make up a growing number of EOU students and alumni, doubling from less than 2% to more than 4% of the student body over the last three years. Long-standing connections between EOU and Pacific...
One man’s trash
By Katy Nesbitt Luke Dynes, ’02, is the poster child for the self-made business executive — but his work goes beyond his success in agriculture. Dynes moved to Eastern Oregon as a teenager from Danville, Illinois. He attended Hermiston High School and spent summers in Elgin. Motivated to get an education and gifted with a...
“Yes, and…
Improv comedy relies on a central principle called “yes, and” that dictates participants respond to new ideas or actions from their peers with the phrase, “yes, and.” Two actors are pantomiming a dinner scene when another walks on stage and asks whether his pet skunk is welcome in the restaurant. One of the diners reaches...
Finding strength through teaching
Pauci-immune necrotizing glomerulonephritis: 15 syllables that changed Tara Fox’s, ’18, life when she was diagnosed with the kidney disease as a sophomore in high school. The chronic disease means she’ll need an organ donor eventually, and bi-annual chemotherapy treatments to keep it at bay in the meantime. She said her kidneys have been functioning at...
