It was during President Camille’s visit to Los Angeles, California on January 9, 2019 that the idea of a Los Angeles Alumni Chapter of Albertus Magnus College was born. Inspired by President Camille’s enthusiasm about forming a Chapter, and Gio Duaqui’s long-held dream, Gio and Barbara Chesney Schmir, the two alumni attendees, became a committee of two. Three years later, Gio and Barbara are happy to announce that the Los Angeles Alumni Chapter has been a success and has now expanded to include alumni in western states outside of California, including Nevada, Arizona, and Washington State. Now known as Albertus West, we welcome all Albertus alumni in western states to share stories and memories of our alma mater, as well as present happenings.
ALBERTUS WEST NEWS:
GIO DUAQUI ’96, founder of the LOS ANGELES and ALBERTUS WEST ALUMNI CHAPTERS, is partner and Executive Vice President at ITO Solutions, an information technology and services firm helping businesses nationwide since 2008. In October 2021, Gio was appointed to serve as a member of the Board of Trustees of Albertus Magnus College. Gio is the first Filipino American and the first out LGBTQlA+ person to serve on the Board. In May 2022, Gio was invited to speak at Albertus Magnus College’s first Lavender Graduation ceremony honoring the College’s LGBTQlA+ students.
Gio, who majored in Business and Economics at Albertus, has recently been elected to the Board of Trustees of the National Federation of Filipino American Associations and has been appointed Director of Diverse Segments. NaFFAA is the largest national Filipino American Organization in the country. Gio will lead the national facilitation of Entrepreneurship and Economic Empowerment and Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DE&I) programming, which is advocating for over 4 million Filipino Americans in the country. Gio lives in Las Vegas with his husband, Matt.
LARRY COLE ’97, founding member of ALBERTUS WEST, says it was the New Dimensions program, created by Albertus as a means for working adults to achieve a college degree, that drew him to the school on ‘The Hill.’ This non-traditional program enabled Larry to receive his degree while still fully engaged in corporate life. Larry said his Albertus degree “empowered” him to make positive changes in his professional life. It also made him determined to find a way for other working adults to achieve the same. To this end, Larry and his wife, Kathy, created the AMpower fund, a scholarship fund that provides financial assistance to non-traditional Albertus students so that they, too, can feel empowered as they work toward a degree.
Larry and Kathy live in Fountain Hills, Arizona where Larry was appointed Board Chairperson of the Fountain Hills Leadership Academy. The FHLA mission is to identify current and emerging leaders and deepen their knowledge of the challenges and opportunities facing Fountain Hills. Larry was also appointed to the Crisis Response Team, which provides immediate and on-scene crisis response to emotional support victim’s families. Larry and Kathy celebrated their 30th wedding anniversary on September 5th.
KATHRYN EVANS ’83, a founding member of the LOS ANGELES ALUMNI CHAPTER, has been following her love of art since studying drawing and water color with Sister Thoma at Albertus. Since moving to Los Angeles, Kathryn has worked as a set painter for film, TV, Theme parks, Walt Disney Imagineering, the television series, ‘Robot Chicken,’ a Halloween baking show with Martha Stewart and Snoop Dog, and a Harry Potter attraction in London. Kathryn recently completed a larger-than-life size Demogorgon that was part of a traveling exhibit representing ‘Stranger Things,’ a NETFLIX streaming series. Kathryn presented the Los Angeles Chapter with her painting of Rosary Hall as a donation to the silent auction at the Albertus Magnus College Lighting the Way Gala celebration. She continues to create her yearly calendars entitled “BOO,” after her beloved cat. Kathryn lives in Pasadena, CA.
MARY SCHAEFER BADGER ’75, a founding member of ALBERTUS WEST, is a retired Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine. She majored in Biology with a minor in Chemistry and English. After graduating from Albertus, Mary continued her research in the sciences in the Department of Cell Biology at Yale University and has received awards in excellence in science. She has been a practicing physician in the ICU, on Shiprock, New Mexico’s Navajo Reservation, under the direction of the United States Public Health Service, and has served as a mentor to medical students at Gonzaga University School of Nursing, as well as Washington State University Medical School. Mary is a Fellow of both the American College of Osteopathic Internal Medicine and the Academy of Wilderness Medicine.
During the COVID-19 Pandemic, Mary came out of retirement to help the Medical Reserve Corps of Eastern Washington State in their immunization program, worked as a patient advocate for Kaiser Permanente Health Care, and chaired the American College of Osteopathic Internists Committee on Climate Change and Health. In October 2022, Mary taught an in-person class on Climate Change and Health for the Washington State Osteopathic Medical Association. Mary lives in Spokane and enjoys hiking and outdoor sports with her husband of 31 years.
SUZANNE AYOTTE MARICICH ’63, a founding member of ALBERTUS WEST, received her M.A. at Moorhead State University and studied journalism at the University of California, Berkeley. Suzanne is a recent graduate of Stanford University’s novel writing program. Her book ‘Resilience,’ which is pending publication, is the story of a woman’s journey through loss, grief and recovery.
Before retiring and writing her first novel, Suzanne was a hospital-based marketing communications executive. In 1986, she launched Maricich Health, a company that specializes in healthcare systems, specialty practices, pharmaceutical companies, and medical device manufacturers. The company’s services range from research studies to strategic planning and marketing campaigns, including rebranding, creative implementation, media placement, public relations and social media. Suzanne’s company is currently run by her two sons and her daughter is an architect.
Suzanne lives in Seal Beach, California with her husband of 58 years, Tom, Professor Emeritus of Organic Chemistry, at California State University, Long Beach.
SARA BETH OLIVER ’21 is presently enrolled in Western Governors University MBA program. She is the Assistant to the Vice President of Student Services at Grays Harbor College, Aberdeen, Washington. Sara is looking forward to continuing her education while also being in a position where she can support other students. Sara Beth lives in Grayland, Washington.
ORI CRUZ ’93, is a founding member of LOS ANGELES ALUMNI CHAPTER OF ALBERTUS MAGNUS COLLEGE. Ori has been a member of the Board of Directors of the American Art Therapy Association since his election to the Board in 2020. He just celebrated his 14th anniversary of working for the Department of State Hospitals in Coalinga, California. Ori is looking forward to his retirement in six years.
Ori’s niece, Angelina Collazo, and her fiancé, Greg Fries, welcomed a baby boy on July, 22nd. Ori, now a grand uncle, says everyone is doing well.
LIZ DUNN ’70 received her JD from Golden Gate Law School and practiced family, criminal and business law for 6 years. Deciding to approach disputes in another way, Liz turned to private mediation and training, eventually returning to the Juvenile Court, starting her first mediation practices in child protection cases. Rounding out her career, Liz became a Hearing Officer for involuntary mental health holds. Liz and her wife, Kathy, have enjoyed camping, backpacking, and hiking, as well as traveling through California in their 2003 sportsmobile.
MARY KILLEEN LYONS ‘59 lives in Santa Rosa CA, just north of San Francisco. Mary will be 86 years old on her next birthday. Last year, Mary celebrated her birthday with 16 family and friends in Dublin, Ireland and later in the summer, celebrated her partner’s 80th birthday with him at the Bayreuth Wagner Festival in Germany.
At Albertus, Mary was a Biology-Chemistry major. In the 70’s, she received an MS in Biochemistry (University of Colorado), worked as a research biochemist, and later in life, as an enologist at Simi Winery (Healdsburg, CA). In the 80’s, she earned an MA degree in Theology (University of San Francisco), worked for several years as a lay Catholic chaplain in Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital, was a founding member of Sonoma County Hospice, and for six years, she was the National President of the Association of Contemplative Sisters (ACS). In the 90’s Mary received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology (Pacifica Graduate Institute). Her dissertation asked nuns in monasteries this question: “How do post-modern, contemplative women perceive and describe their experience of God?” She continues doing a small private psychotherapy practice via Zoom. Mary has four daughters, sons-in-law, and seven grandchildren. Inspired by another Albertus alumna, Mary made a sweatshirt outlining her life.
HEATHER LAGANELLI ’03 is creatively growing the art and business community in Bakersfield, California. She’s done so much in such a short period of time:
• Opened and curated a public art gallery that features local/living artists’ works
• Received a grant to fund future artistic improvements on over 100 ft. of wall space that backs-up to a public alley
• Founded “Mural Alley” five years ago — a rotating large-scale space in the heart of downtown
• Celebrated the eighth anniversary of her farm-to-table restaurant.
BARBARA CHESNEY SCHMIR ’95, co-founder, with Gio Duaqui, of the LOS ANGELES ALUMNI CHAPTER OF ALBERTUS MAGNUS COLLEGE, is a staunch believer in a strong Liberal Arts education and the living world of the classroom. She credits all her teachers at Albertus for her continued enthusiasm for learning. Now an octogenarian, Barbara is presently engaged in Zoom classes in French, Art, Pilates, and Hebrew. A former classical ballet dancer, teacher, and educator, Barbara was a founding member of the Dance Committee of the Arts Council of Greater New Haven, a founder of the Dance Department at New Haven’s Neighborhood Music School, and an active member of numerous dance organizations. She was the 1956 recipient of the National Society of Arts and Letters Dance Award. Barbara has three children, and two grandchildren. Her late husband, Gaston L. Schmir, was Professor Emeritus Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry, Yale University. She lives in Los Angeles.
So, to all Albertus alumni in western states, please join us to be part of our ALBERTUS WEST family. For more information regarding ALBERTUS WEST, please contact Gio Duaqui at duaqui@gmail.com or Barbara C. Schmir at barbara.schmir@gmail.com.