William T. “Tom” Avenell (Animal Husbandry, ’57) celebrated his 87th birthday in May. He has had a rich life, earning three Tae Kwon Do black belts, surviving aorta replacement, marrying a lovely Scottish lass, and running Tom Avenell Management Company — where he still works. His various careers include commercial banking, commercial credit management and residential and commercial property management. He currently leads physical fitness classes for senior citizens.

David L. Ashby (Soil Science, ’62) retired in 2000 after a long career as a research scientist for several companies. He has devoted most of his life to helping impoverished children in Honduras and other countries. Ashby has founded several organizations and schools to aid these children and has sacrificed much of his life to improve theirs. Despite turning 76 this year, he plans to continue his philanthropic work.

Steve Greene (Animal Science, ’71) and his wife Vicky celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary on January 21, 2016. They currently live in the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Patty Bates (Natural Resources Management, ’81) retired from the U.S. Forest Service after a 35-year career in natural resources management. Her career includes roles as resource officer, district ranger, staff officer and acting deputy forest supervisor across four states. Bates is now enjoying life on a small ranch in southwest Montana.

Julia (Andal) Cox (Dietetics & Food Administration, ’85) worked for a few years in hospitals after graduation. In 1995, she earned a J.D. from Humphreys College of Law in Stockton, Calif. She attended law school at night with two young children at home, while working part time as a dietitian tech at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Stockton. Cox is now a contracts supervisor with the U.S. Department of Defense in Houston, Texas.   She and her significant other live in Galveston, Texas. Her daughter earned a BSN from the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio in 2015 and works in intensive care. Cox’s son Daniel passed away in an accident in 2012. Cos currently chairs the Daniel M. Cox Memorial Scholarship at Columbia Community College in Sonora, Calif. for high achieving STEM transfer students.

 Cori Stacy (Nutrition, ’00) married the love of her life in Hanalei, Hawaii on November 27, 2015. They visit San Luis Obispo whenever they get the chance.

Michael Kovach (Agribusiness and Animal Science, ’05) left his job at a mobile marketing agency to work at Panasonic Avioncs, where he now manages the in-flight entertainment system for private aircrafts. He lives in Laguna Beach, Calif., but work is based out of Hamburg, Germany.

 Natalie Ohanessian (Food Science, ’09) is grateful for the experience and foundation she received as a food science major at Cal Poly. Soon after graduation, she accepted a job at Fresh & Easy’s corporate office. After nearly six years of food retail experience, she has started her own food consulting business, offering experience and support to smaller artisan food makers. Her company, Food Happy Consulting, helps small producers with production management, product development, food safety and distribution chains.

Miles Sheldon (Agricultural Sciences, ’12) recently got engaged and has started a new job with Crop Production Services.

Sonnie (Thompkins) McVicker (Animal Science, ’13) and William McVicker (M.S., Computer Science, ’12) were married last year after dating all through college. They love making trips to San Luis Obispo and reminiscing on all of their cherished memories spent together at Cal Poly. They are currently in South America on an adventure of a lifetime. In the three months they have been traveling, they have explored Bolivia, Brazil, Argentina and Chile.