Santa Clara Magazine

Freshman Dorm: Swig

Brigid (Modena) and Mike Benham '81 will celebrate their 29th Wedding Anniversary this July. They currently reside in San Mateo with their 4 children close-by and eagerly await the arrival of their first grandchild in August. They look forward to their reunion in October.

Renee Worthington '82 is currently a Program Officer at Meridian International Center, designing and implementing professional programs for the United States Department of State's International Visitor. Visitors come from all over the world to meet with their professional counterparts in their specific areas of expertise. She lives in Bethesda, Maryland with her husband, Sam, who is CEO of InterAction, a membership organization for U.S.-based international non-profits. They have three children: Rachel, 24; Jamie, 21; and Lindsay, 17. Rachel currently lives in Argentina, working on a small-holder farm. Jamie is a senior at Emerson College in Boston, and Lindsay is in her senior year of high school.

Peter Verbica ’82, J.D. ’99 is now at Merrill Lynch’s Global Wealth Management Group in Silicon Valley. His oldest daughter, Vanessa, serves as an IT petty pfficer with the U.S. Navy. His second oldest daughter, Madeline, is a ballerina, graduating from Walnut Hill School for the Arts in Nadick, Mass.

Peter Verbica ’82 joined the Global Wealth Management Group at Merrill Lynch's Silicon Valley Complex. He is the proud dad of four talented daughters. His oldest daughter serves as an IT petty officer for the U.S. Navy aboard an aircraft carrier. His second daughter, a ballerina, just graduated from Walnut Hill School for the Arts near Boston, Mass., and is doing a Summer Intensive at Princeton Ballet. His third daughter is on the varsity tennis team at Fountain Valley School in Colorado, and his youngest daughter is an avid long-distance runner.

Rebecca Veltman J.D. '82 is enjoying her retirement and her first grandchild, Roman, who just turned four.  She plans to volunteer for the local courts which are suffering cutbacks for the coming year.  All that and travel are keeping Rebecca very busy. 

Rebecca Veltman J.D. ’82 writes: “Enjoying my retirement—traveling, reconnecting with old friends and family, and my new granddaughter, Mikayla, who joined her 5-year-old brother, Roman, in December. I am happy to have both daughters close by.”

Tom Squeri '82, J.D. '85, longtime vice president and general counsel of Granite Rock Co., was named as the company's president and CEO. Squeri worked for two private law firms in the San Franciso Bay Area that specialized in construction litigation prior to joining Graniterock: San Francisco's Pettit and Martin, where he became a partner in 1993, and the San Jose office of Coudert Brothers.

Julie A. Sly ’82 is editor of Catholic Herald Magazine, a bimonthly publication of the Catholic Diocese of Sacramento. She is also a freelance writer for various publications and websites.


 

Andrea Hawkins Sloan '82, J.D. '86 was appointed Immigration Judge in October 2010 by Portland Immigration Court Attorney General Eric Holder. From 1998 to October 2010, Judge Sloan worked for the Office of Administrative Hearings, Salem, Ore., in various capacities, including administrative law judge, interim chief administrative law judge and executive/deputy chief administrative law judge. From 1987 to 1991, Judge Sloan served as deputy district attorney, Humboldt County District Attorney’s Office, Eureka, Calif. Judge Sloan is a member of the Oregon State Bar and the State Bar of California. She lives in Beaverton, Ore., with her husband, Chris Sloan J.D. '84, and their two children.

 Both Jay ’82 and Victoria “Vicky” Shore ’84 are now retired.

Paul Russell '73, MBA '82 was appointed senior vice president of engineering at ArrayPower, a Silicon Valley-based power electronics company.

Russell has more than 25 years of experience in technology development for companies in the solar, aerospace and defense industries. Prior, he served as senior vice president of engineering for concentrated photovoltaic solar systems provider Amonix. Additional experience includes multiple executive positions with Northrop Grumman and Space Systems/Loral, as well as systems engineering roles with Ford Aerospace.

Vince Polito, '82 married Gena Young on April 12, 2008, in Orange, CA. Len Savage '82 served as best man. The couple welcomed a daughter, Delaney Mariella, on August 15, 2008. The family lives in Chino, California. Vince is a surplus lines insurance broker for Crump Insurance Services, Inc. and Gena is an office manager for Pirzadeh and Associates, a traffic engineering firm in Irvine, CA

David Norbury MBA '82 has been retained as a strategic advisor at Quantance Inc., a manufacturer of ultra-fast, 4G envelope tracking power supplies. He will work with the company as it expands its power management products, including ultrafast power supplies for 4G devices, and extends its intellectual property into next-generation products serving broader markets. Mr. Norbury retired in 2003 as CEO of RF Micro Devices, which he led for 10 years from start-up through IPO to market leadership in cellular handset PAs. He also previously served as president and CEO of Polylithics. Mr. Norbury began his career as an RF/microwave designer at Avantek, eventually becoming division vice president.

Larry Murnane ’82 joined Breakwater Equity Partners, a commercial real estate workout consultancy and investment firm, as a senior strategist.

Murnane has more than 20 years of extensive practical experience in commercial real estate transactions and litigation involving purchasing, selling, leasing, financing and loan restructuring. Prior, Murnane was a principal at one of San Diego’s oldest and most respected real estate law firms. More recently, he founded and managed a commercial real estate investments firm.

He also served as an adjunct professor at the University of San Diego, teaching real estate courses to both undergraduate and post-graduate students. His experience includes having served on the San Diego County Property Tax Assessment Appeals Board, and as a Judge Pro Tem and Arbitrator for the San Diego Superior Court.

Tony Mirenda '82, currently president and CEO of TBI Construction and Construction Management, is joining Blach Construction Company’s senior management team as a project executive.

Mirenda worked for the Carl N. Swenson Co. until 1987 when he joined TBI. Mirenda helped build TBI into one of the most successful and respected firms in the Bay Area, and in 2004, he purchased the company from owners Chuck Toeniskoetter and Dan Breeding.

Mirendan has worked on and led many of Silicon Valley’s landmark construction projects, starting with his first assignment on the major renovation of the Basilica Cathedral of St. Joseph in downtown San Jose in 1987. He also has led the multiple award-winning renovation of the historic Old Santa Clara County Courthouse. One of his most notable recent projects is the highly acclaimed Portola Valley Town Center, which has been certified LEED Platinum and was voted one of the Nation’s Top 10 most sustainable projects.

Laura Lung Cha J.D. '82 is a member of the Executive Council of the Government of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) and Non-Exectutive Deputy Chairman of the Hong Kong & Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited. Between 2001 and 2004, she served as the Vice Chairman of China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC), the first person to be invited from outside Mainland China to serve in the central government of the People's Republic of China. She is currently the Vice Chairman of the International Advisory Council of the CSRC. Before joining CSRC, Cha was with the Securities and Futures Commission in Hong Kong from 1991 to early 2001. She is an independent Non-Executive Director of the Hong Kong Exchange and Clearing Limited and China Telecom Corporation Limited as well as a Senior Advisor to Investor AB, a Swedish listed company. Cha practiced law in the 1980s in San Francisco with Pillsbury, Madison and Sutro, and in Hong Kong with Coudert Brothers. Cha was awarded a Gold Bauhinia Star in July 2009 and a Silver Bauhinia Star in 2001 by the Hong Kong Government for her public service. She has also been awarded an Honorary Doctoral Degree in Law in 2002 by the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.

Jeffrey Janoff ’82 was named a Super Lawyer for the second straight year.

Michael A. Jacques '82, J.D. '88 was recently elected as a Commisioner for the Placer County Superior Court. He lives on his small-scale farm in rural Placer County with his wife of twenty years, Kyle, and sons Nathan, 15, and Philip, 9.

Albie B. Jachimowicz J.D. ’82 writes: “Would love to see how young everyone looks [at the reunion], but my son Josh J.D. ’11 is getting married the same weekend to Caitlin Robinett J.D. ’10. See you at the 60th reunion!”

Mary Shipsey Gunn '82 is manager for Pueblo Grantmaking at the David and Lucile Packard Foundation. Mary was awarded the Shrine of the Sun Award by the El Pomar Foundation in December 2010. The award is presented to a nonprofit professional that has had a profound and lasting impact on the nonprofit community. She and her husband, Stephan, live in Pueblo, Colorado.

Freshman Dorm: McLaughlin

Dan Greco ’82 writes, "I've been a prosecutor my entire career, helping victims and the police. I work in the Washoe County District Attorney's Office. The county includes Reno, Sparks, Lake Tahoe, Washoe Valley, and stretches all the way up to the Oregon border. After graduating from law school, I worked on general felony cases. I was lucky enough to be promoted to the Major Crimes Unit in 1995, and I have been the Chief Deputy District Attorney in charge of that unit since 1999. Never a dull moment. I spend 75 percent of my time prosecuting murders. The rest of my time is split between handling "special assignments" and supervising the other attorneys in the Major Crimes Unit. In 1996 I married Melissa. She was a court reporter for many years, and then in 1994 she went to work for the United States Probation Office. After years of trying--it's complicated--God finally blessed us with a daughter, Adelyn ("Addi"), on July 22, 2011. (See attached photo.) Melissa had to spend 58 days in the hospital, but she eventually had a full recovery. We are very happy and Addi has remedied the one thing that was missing in our lives."

Freshman Dorm: Dunne

Pete Dunbar '82 writes: "I have tremedous memories of my years at Santa Clara. Lived in Dunne for 2 years, was an RA at the Alameda junior year then off campus with my buds in senior year. Been doing public service in law enforcement for almost thirty years and the light is at the end of the tunnel! I met my wife on a cruise 26 years ago and have two great kids—daughter wants to be a nurse and son is a sophomore at St. Mary's (SCU said " we regret to inform you..."). Huge Sharks fan. Looking forward to making our reunion a special time for all of us and those who stand to benefit from our participation."