1970s
Dr. Charlie, BS ’70, and Linda Payne Massler, BSHE ’70, celebrated their 50th anniversary June 28, 2019, with an extended family trip to the Hershey, PA, area. “Two daughters, two sons-in-law and four grandchildren had a wonderful time of celebration together,” Linda writes. The Masslers are retired — Charlie from dentistry and Linda from financial planning — and are “enjoying every minute of this new ‘career.’ We hope to make it back to Baylor in the fall of 2020 for the 50th anniversary class reunion and Homecoming. Sic ’em, Bears!” they write. Contact at 445 Burkes Crossing Drive, Winston-Salem, NC 27104 or charles.massler@gmail.com.
Kay Wheeler Moore, BA ’70, of Garland, TX, was awarded the Garland High School Alumni Association 2019 Distinguished Alumni Award for public service and community involvement. She and her husband Louis Moore, BA ’68, are community activists in Garland and have helped rehabilitate the inner-core neighborhood where she grew up. Contact at kaymoore2000@yahoo.com.
David H. “Danny” Nordyke, BBA ’70, of Tyler, TX, established The Ruth E. Nordyke Endowed Scholarship Fund in Business in loving memory of his wife Ruth Nordyke, BBA ’70. Ruth and Danny met and later married while students at Baylor. Their children also graduated from Baylor: David Nordyke Jr., BBA ’02, and Kathryn Rowan, BSE ’97.
Dr. Kathryn Tinius, BA ’70, of Dallas established The Tinius Family Endowed Fund in Film and Digital Media for Baylor in Los Angeles. This fund will help support Film and Digital Media’s internship program there.
Stephen B. Ables, BA ’71, JD ’73, authored Teeing Up the Day (Austin Brothers: 76 pages), a collection of moving stories that offers a Christian perspective on golf. These devotionals will continually draw the reader’s attention to the important things around him or her and help the reader see past the obstacles and sand traps along the way. Contact at 506 Kerrville, TX 78028 or sables@ktc.com.
Peggy Shuler Dement, BA ’72, of Garland, TX, revisited the London area with daughters Stephanie Dement Little, BBA ’99, and Charlotte Dement Cobbs, BBA ’13. “First stop, the Prime Meridian in Greenwich,” Peggy writes.
Dr. Jimmy Dorrell, BA ’72, MES ’93, and Janet Dorrell, BS ’80, MS ’02, were featured on stories.whataburger.com in an article titled “This Waco couple might be the best neighbors in the world” for their 26-years of work with Mission Waco.
Suzii Paynter, BA ’72, was named CEO of Prosper Waco, which helps improve the overall quality of life in Waco through education, health and financial stability. Prosper Waco brings together all the nonprofits and community organizations working toward the same goals and provides them with the data to make informed decisions.
Beverly K. Plauché, BBA ’72, of Rusk, TX, authored Walking with the Lord: What a Way to Go! from Christian Faith Publishing. The heartfelt story follows the author as she continues to look for God’s direction in her life. Plauché is a retired teacher and financial manager.
Angela and Louis Bremer Jr., BS ’73, established The Louis and Angela Bremer Endowed Scholarship Fund in Health Policy and Leadership. This scholarship assists graduate students pursuing a degree in the Robbins MBA Healthcare Program. Louis and Angela’s two children are also Baylor graduates: Kirsten Bremer Steves, BBA ’05, and Louis III, BM ’07.
Ray Perryman, BS ’74, founder and president of the Waco-based Perryman Group, received the Chairman’s Award for Lifetime Achievement in Economic Development from the International Economic Development Council. The award was given “in recognition of Dr. Perryman’s decades-long commitment to economic development and providing the information corporations and communities need to optimize location decisions.”
Mike, BBA ’75, and Edith Colvin Reitmeier, BA ’75, BSN ’79, of Waco established The G. Michael and Edith Colvin Reitmeier Endowed Scholarship Fund in Graduate Accounting. Mike is president and managing shareholder of JRBT, which also created The JRBT Endowed Fund in Accounting. Both funds help support accounting students.
5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Priscilla Richman Owen, BA ’76, JD ’77, assumed the chief judge position Oct. 1, 2019. She was appointed by President George W. Bush to the 5th Circuit and took the oath of office in 2005. The 5th Circuit is based in New Orleans and covers Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas. Owen joined the firm of Andrews & Kurth in Houston after law school. In 1994, she was elected to the Supreme Court of Texas.
Barbara Tate, BA ’76, MSEd ’78, MBA ’93, retired as director of Waco’s MHMR program serving McLennan County. MHMR Central Texas has 92 funding sources, including a $34 million annual budget, operates 32 locations in six counties and employs 550 people. The organization served more than 15,000 people last year.
Deb Varallo, BSEd ’76, was appointed to a three-year term on the 2019-20 board of trustees of the Nashville State Community College Foundation. She founded Varallo Public Relations, a full-service marketing, public relations and crisis management firm in 1991. She is a member of Society of Fellows for TEDxNashville and recognized by the YWCA of Middle Tennessee as a Woman of Achievement.
Dr. John Dennis Anderson, BA ’77, MA ’78, of Cape Cod, MA, was the featured performer Sept. 7, 2019, at the celebration of the 20th anniversary of the Hemingway-Pfeiffer Museum and Educational Center in Piggott, AR. Anderson is an accomplished oral interpreter who presents biographical performances of America’s greatest authors.
Elizabeth Darling, BSEd ’78, president and CEO of OneStar Foundation in Austin, was confirmed by the U.S. Senate to be the Commissioner of the Administration for Children, Youth and Families at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services based in Washington, D.C.
Dr. Charles Weathers, BA ’78, MSD ’83, established The Charles W. Weathers Endowed Athletic Scholarship Fund for Women’s Basketball and The Charles W. Weathers Endowed Fund for the Baylor Collaborative on Hunger and Poverty. He is also a member of Old Main Society.