Archive for July, 2011

By Thomas Rhoden ‘09

This project had pretty simple beginnings. I remember that I was sitting under the thatched roof of last season’s rice crop in the school where I kept my office, when one of the younger students in my English enhancement class brought in a stack of crinkled papers. At first I was not sure what the boy wanted me to do with the yellowing sheets of paper. I quickly remembered that in my exhaustion from leading a full schedule of other classes and discussion groups that morning, I had been too tired to keep up being anything even slightly resembling a proper teacher of the English language that afternoon and had given out a quick assignment to the group of bright-eyed learners to turn into me in an hour.

So here the child was with the class’s finished product, well-handled and ink-imbued. I traded a few thank-yous for his disheveled ream of papers and promptly set the pile aside. I knew I would have a chance to look over them the next day since I had nothing planned.

When I did finally tackle the stack, I was very surprised to find the contents within to be captivating and endearing.

The in-class assignment had been something along the following: Please write three paragraphs about your past. I had been expecting nothing more than the normal drill of working on the past tenses. But the students’ essays to this question ended up being so genuine and their accounts of struggle and disenfranchisement so startling that I knew I wanted to understand better their particular plight.

I wished to learn more about the refugees that I worked with and their unique experiences fleeing to and living in the refugee camps along the Thai-Burma border as well as the complicated process of being resettled to a new host country. When I had another opportunity to meet with the class, I also asked them to write essays about their present situation and future dreams. I did this exercise with most of my classes.

Atop those green-wet mountains that border Thai and Burma, life continued on in the refugee camps as it always had, slowly, sparsely, until my own one-year commitment in the camps came to an end. Given some time to reflect over the experience, I knew it was time to reevaluate those essays to see if they could be brought to larger audience. This book is the final product of that process.

The main objective in compiling this manuscript is to increase awareness about the issues facing refugees and former political prisoners of Burma. Depending on which organization one cites, the total number of refugees in Thailand can vary by the tens of thousands, but most would agree that there are at least 150,000 Burmese refugees living in the camps that border Burma and Thailand.

I started the project on Kickstarter to raise funds for the production, distribution and marketing of the book. When compiling the budget for this project, I was pretty happy to see that I was able to save costs on all fronts.

Kickstarter is an all-or-nothing way to raise money for these types of creative projects. I’ve set a fundraising goal and a deadline by which I need to meet that goal. The trick is that if I don’t reach our goal by this deadline, I don’t get any of the funds that our supporters have pledged. On the bright side, I can go over our goal (and hope to do so). I’ll use any additional funds on additional marketing resources so we can reach an even larger audience.

I’m incredibly grateful to everyone in the Thunderbird community, both the alumni and current students, as well as the professors and staff for your support and encouragement. I can’t wait to share the book with all of you.

To make a pledge to my project, please see my page here.

Frederick Andresen ’58 was recently published in RussiaProfile.Org The article is called “Musings of a Russophile: Russia and China – Next Generation or Today?” and explores the past and present  relationship between Russia and China.

Salah Tarraf ’73 was profiled in the Minneapolis Star Tribune for being named the Metropolitan Economic Development Association’s 2010 Entrepreneur of the Year. Tarraf is the CEO of Tarraf Construction and was born in Senegal to a Lebanese father and Colombian mother. He came to the United States in 1968 to attend college. Before starting his company, Tarraf held senior positions with Xerox in Canada and AIG in west Africa as well as American Express in the Twin Cities.

Sonya Varea-Hammond ’81 was recently profiled in Western Farm Press upon her retirement as the leader of the UC Cooperative Extension office serving Monterey County, Calif. During her time in the role, Varea-Hammond addressed agricultural economic development, biotechnology education and the ag-urban interface in Monterey County. Another focus of her work was advocacy and marketing for Cooperative Extension.

Dennis Diokno ’91 was recently featured in the Budapest Business Journal – Online in an article called “Better know a CEO: Dennis A. Diokno, managing director of First Med Centers.” The article profiles Diokno and also includes a fun Q&A section about a variety of his life experiences.

Kimberly Bishop-Yanke ’92 was recently featured in the Michigan newspaper, the News-Herald for her anti-bullying presentation she gave to 300 students in second and third grade at a local school. Bishop-Yanke is an expert in anti-bullying and has spoken at schools around the country and has appeared on numerous television and radio networks.

Allison Evanow ’92 was recently featured on the cover of Kiplinger’s Personal Finance and was profiled in an article about how she built her million-dollar organic spirits business. Evanow is CEO of Square One Organic Spirits, which was founded in 2006 to capitalize on the alumna’s idea for a niche business. Evanow’s company makes organic vodka and other spirits. Evanow is currently releasing sprits with unusual flavors, such as cucumber vodka and is about to release Square One Basil.

Paul Hussey ’95 was recently featured in the Irish Times in an article called “Keeping on the boil from Hong Kong to Isle of Man and back.” Hussey is CEO of the Isle of Man-based company Strix, which is the largest maker of electric kettle controls in the world. He is a big believer in innovation and protecting intellectual property as the route to success.

Hollie Castro ’96 was featured in womenworthwatching.com for winning the 2011 Profiles in Diversity Journal’s Company and Executive Women Worth Watching Awards. Castro was also recently recognized by the HR Symposium of Northern California, when she won the 2011 Human Resource Excellence Award for HR Leadership.

Mark Zafra ’98 was recently named in the California newspaper The Sacramento Bee for winning the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Man of the Year award. Zafra raised $105,521.00 for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society during a 10-week fundraising competition to raise funds for blood cancer research and patient services. Zafra is a leukemia survivor himself and is a global sourcing manager at McKesson Corporation.

Denise Farinos ’04 was recently featured in a Q&A article in the Latin American Business Chronicle. Farinos is the CFO of General Motors in South America. In her role, Farinos manages what some executives describe as the company’s most valuable asset in terms of growth and return on investment. Especially important is Brazil, in which General Motors sold nearly 700,000 vehicles last year.

 Aaron Bare ’09 was recently selected to the Phoenix Business Journal’s “Forty under 40” list. Bare is an Entrepreneur in Residence at the Walker Center for Entrepreneurship and CEO of Buzz Mouth.

Post by Will Counts ‘09
Project Manager

The life of one of Thunderbird’s two converted WWII airport hangars – known as the TAC — has sadly reached its end. 

A recent structural analysis completed by a Phoenix-based engineering firm discovered the bow trusses, which support the roof of the TAC, are no longer structurally sound. 

After learning this information, Thunderbird leadership and stakeholders discussed the options for the future. It was ultimately decided mid-June, that instead of making costly repairs that would only put a Band-Aid on the problem as well as decrease its functionality with multiple posts, the building should be removed and replaced with a semi-permanent air-conditioned structure.

The original Pub that stands attached to the east end of the building will remain standing through November 2011 so alumni can make a final toast in the traditional spot during the 11.11.11 Global Celebration.  

I’m sure that some of you are wondering why we would not make repairs to the TAC, since it has historical value and is one of the original hangars. The answer to this is that the cost of fixing this type of structure to meet required safety standards is not feasible, and for a temporary solution, we can provide a structure that is better able to meet everyone’s needs.  In the school’s overall master plan there are plans to begin development of new convention center to permanently take the place of the TAC.

Work to begin taking down the TAC will begin the second week in July. The new semi-permanent structure is scheduled to be installed by early October. 

If you have any questions on the project, please contact me at will.counts@thunderbird.edu or (602) 978-7541

 Interesting TAC facts:

• More than 500 guests, including dozens of World War II pilots, crowded into the historic building on May 29, 1991, for the 50th anniversary of Thunderbird Field’s dedication. USO musicians played patriotic songs, and Hollywood legend Jimmy Stewart, an original airfield investor, made an appearance.
• Other guests over the decades included former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, former U.S. Vice President Dan Quayle and former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.
• Students also used the hangar for Regional Nights, Global Sounds concerts and club events. Afterward they frequently gathered at the Pub, which opened in 1971 on the east side of the structure.
• Before the hangar emerged as the TAC, students used the facility as a parking garage. Alumni from the era tell stories of the pigeons that made their homes in the rafters, bombarding the cars below with their droppings.
• Thunderbird President William Voris approved a plan in 1983 to convert the hangar into an assembly hall for graduation and recreation activities. Adjoining rooms on the hangar’s east and west sides previously had been converted into classrooms and storage facilities.
• The original Pub location previously served as an apartment for Thunderbird Executive Vice President Berger Erickson and his wife, Mabel.