Michelle Widger
UNK Alumni Association, 308.865.8474
Kent Holen (Class of 1962) is the newly-elected president of the University of Nebraska at Kearney Alumni Association.
Holen, who lives in Holdrege, is retired from a career in marketing and advertising in Nebraska, Missouri and Colorado. He was marketing sales manager for American Water Works Association, advertising sales manager for Crow Publications and advertising sales representative for Farm Journal, Inc. He began his career as a teacher at Sidney High School. Holen assumed the duties at the association’s annual board of directors meeting in conjunction with 2005 Homecoming activities. Holen replaces Chuck Lindly (Class of 1952) of Rapid City, S.D.
Other officers for 2005-2006 are Larry Edwards (Class of 1964) of Fort Collins, CO, president-elect; and Maureen Gaffney Nickels (Class of 1974) of Chapman, secretary.
Nine board members completed three-year terms on the board of directors and are now trustees of the association. They are Marshall Adams (Class of 1964) of Sun City West, AZ; Les Adelung (Class of 1983) of Amherst; Amy Bellows (Class of 1984) of Omaha; Larry Dix (Class of 1977) ofLincoln; Cheryl Nienhueser (Class of 1977) of Houston, TX; Matt Sheffield (Class of 1996) ofHighlands Ranch, CO; Joyce Bryan Strout (Class of 1970) of South Barrington, IL; Larry Wilcox (Class of 1967) of Minden; and John Wolf (Class of 1973) of Snohomish, WA.
Angela Regenos (Class of 1984) of Kearney, who served as Alumni Association president in 2003-2004, completed her term on the executive committee.
Nine board members were elected to three-year terms. The nine include:
Jerry Stine (Class of 1967, MSE 1976) of Bertrand retired in 2004 after a 37-year career in education. He was a teacher, coach and athletic administrator for Wheeler County High School for 11 years and Bertrand Community School for 26 years. He is past president of the Nebraska Coaches Association (NCA) and is author and secretary of the NCA Career Milestone Award that has recognized more than 1,000 coaches since its inception in 1992. Stine served on the National High School Athletic Coaches Association (NHSACA) board of directors and has served on the board of directors of the Nebraska High School Sports Hall of Fame since 1997. He has been a NCA Track Coach of the Year and was inducted into the NHSACA Hall of Fame in 2004. Stine was a four-year letterman in track in college and was secretary of the K-Club.
Tammy Adelson Hayden (Class of 1990) of Kearney is finance assistant for Holy Cross Lutheran Church. She also has been human resources coordinator for Morris Printing Group. As a student she was a member of Phi Beta Chi sorority and a little sister to Phi Kappa Tau fraternity.
Greg Shea (Class of 1989) of Kearney has been vice president of operations for the Tri-City Storm hockey team since helping bring the team to Kearney in 2000. He also worked in sports with the Omaha Racers basketball team and the Omaha Lancers hockey team. In 1996, Shea worked in the sports information department for the Summer Olympics in Atlanta.
Marsha Wilkerson-Rodehorst (Class of 1990) of Kearney is executive director of the Kearney Area United Way. She was a Horizons Honors Program student and president of Phi Beta Chi sorority as a student.
Judy Johnson Hall (Class of 1964) of Lincoln retired in 2000 after a public school teaching career of 30 years. She now teaches part time at UNL College of Education and Health Sciences and supervises student teachers. She was a founding member of the Lincoln Public Schools Foundation. She is a recipient of the Spotlight Award for innovation and creativity in teaching and the Mike Troester Spirit of Teaching Award for teaching excellence. As a student she was a member of Kappa Alpha Phi/Alpha Phi sorority.
Bill O’Neill (Class of 1995) of Omaha is an associate director in the Department of Public Affairs at UNMC. As a student Bill held several management positions with the student newspaper, The Antelope, and was president of Society for Collegiate Journalists (SCJ) chapter. He was the SCJ’s national student journalist of the year in 1995.
Shelly Marks (Class of 2002, MSE 2005) of Atlanta, GA, works with Competitive Resources Group (CRG). The company is a specialized training and placement firm that works primarily with degreed individuals having competitive athletic experiences at the college level, helping them in their career goals. As a student, Shelly was a four-year basketball letter-winner and co-captain two years. She was on the Student Athletic Advisory Committee, Gold Torch Society and the commencement speaker.
Christa Boroff Spencer (Class of 1992) of Overland Park, KS, is vice president of marketing for National Bank of Kansas City. Before that she had been account director for Bernstein-Rein Advertising. At UNK, she was a member of Alpha Phi sorority, editor of The Antelope and an intern with the Alumni Association. She also earned a master’s degree in Journalism from Ball State University.
Mary Howington (Class of 1962) of Fort Worth, TX, is retired after a career in education that included 30 years at Everman school system near Fort Worth. She has been involved in education and library groups and is a past president of the UNK Texas Alumni Association.
