We are thrilled to have Christy join the Southwest Team! Her first day will be December 16th. She comes to us with more than 25 years of professional experience. She spent the first 13 years of her career with First National Bank of Valparaiso and the last 11 years in numerous roles in development at Valparaiso University. She enjoys creating and building relationships with donors and most recently held the position of Executive Director of Planned and Principal Giving at Valpo.

In her personal life, Christy loves spending time with her family and friends including her husband Derek, daughter Alyssa (senior in high school), and son Tyler (sophomore in high school). Favorite family activities include playing tennis, riding roller coasters, sledding, and playing board games. She also has a spirited black lab mix named Maggie.

Please join me in welcoming Christy!

Deanna Gumpf

It is my pleasure to welcome Tom Yemc to the Northwest team as a Regional Director. He will be cultivating relationships with members of the Notre Dame Family in the Bay Area. Tom’s first day will be December 16th.

Tom is a proud graduate of the Notre Dame Mendoza School of Business with a BBA in Finance. Tom was a former resident of Flanner Hall and is a parent to three Notre Dame graduates. Before joining the University, he built a career in information technology at Accenture, in Chicago, rising to the role of a Managing Director. Most recently, he was the Global Alliances Lead at Sutherland Global Services. Additionally, Tom is a volunteer firefighter in his community during his spare time.

Please join me in welcoming Tom!

Shaheen

It is my pleasure to welcome Molly Stark to the Northwest team as a Regional Director. She will be cultivating relationships with members of the Notre Dame Family in the Bay Area. Molly’s first day will be December 9th.

Molly is a proud graduate of Notre Dame and a former volleyball player. After graduating with a degree in Psychology, she spent 10 years playing professional volleyball in the United States and Europe. Prior to joining the University, she spent 15 years as an owner and director of a highly successful elite volleyball club in Phoenix, AZ.

Please join me in welcoming Molly!

Best,
Shaheen

I truly appreciate all the thoughts, prayers, cards and gifts sent to me after my loss of my mom and during and after my surgery. You are all incredible and I am grateful. Blessings!

Angel

Dear Team,

I’m thrilled to announce that Alexander Servin (Alex) has joined our Information Technology and Services team as the IT Solutions Consultant filling the position vacated by Jeff Faust.  Alex is an OIT employee dedicated to Development. 

Alex received his bachelor’s degree in computer science from Purdue University Northwest (PNW)  and brings with him over three years of IT experience supporting a Civil Engineering firm in Chicago.

Fun facts:  Alex enjoys spending time with family and catching any Chicago Bears and Chicago Bulls games.  He has a twin sister and is a volunteer at Big Brothers Big Sisters where he was matched with a “little brother” whom he mentors and enjoys spending time with playing soccer, bowling, and eating deep-dish pizza. His “little brother” is also a twin!  

Please join me in giving Alex a warm welcome!  We are excited to have him on board and look forward to his contributions.  

Best,

Rose Michalski

The issues that were encountered during OIT’s attempt to upgrade Business Objects back at the beginning of October have been resolved. This weekend, OIT will proceed with the upgrade to Business Objects version 4.3 which contains major changes to the user interface. To assist with the transition, we are offering the following learning opportunities. 

All Users
Business Objects Upgrade Resources	Business Objects 4.3 Quick Reference Guide Business Objects 4.3 Overview Video
Tech Talk Live	Wednesday, December 11th at 1:30pm	Tech Talk Live Zoom Link

Dear Team, 

As mentioned during the Blueprint meeting, the much anticipated 2024-Year End Memo is complete! Page Three is a great quick reference guide for important information. In addition, the wire instructions and the gifting of security information are at the end of the memo. Remember, please do not share this memo outside our department but share individual pieces of information as needed.

With the launch of asceND, gifts are processed in real-time so you will no longer need to reach out to Gift & Data Management to see if a donation has been received.

Let’s have a great calendar year-end! 

Amy 

Team,

I am delighted to share some wonderful news! Tim Kelly and his wife, Colleen, have welcomed their second child, a beautiful baby boy, Kendall Antas Kelly, born on December 1, 2024. Kendall is their first son and joins his proud big sister.

Both mom and baby are doing well. Please join me in extending our warmest congratulations and best wishes to the Kelly family during this joyful time.

GW

Dear Team,

It is with a heavy heart that I share the news of Colleen’s loss of her father. Thomas Doyle, class of 1975, passed away on November 22, 2024. We extend our deepest condolences to Colleen and the Doyle family during this difficult time.

As Colleen takes time to grieve, let’s offer our support in any way that feels appropriate. Services will be held today Monday 2, 2024. For more information please see the following link: https://www.airsman-hires.com/obituaries/Thomas-Doyle?obId=33864094#/obituaryInfo

Sincerely,
GW

Team,

As I previously shared, Careen Quinlan is retiring on December 6 after 13 year as a leader on our IT team. I am now pleased to share that Patty Kokesh has agreed to serve as the interim leader of this team for the next few months. Patty has been a member of our Development team since 2017, spending the majority of that time in data analytics roles on the IT team prior to assuming her current role as Senior Director of Financial Administration and Strategy in 2023.

Patty is well positioned to lead this team during this time of transition, and is inheriting a skilled and talented team who continue to evolve our IT processes and data analytics functions. Over the next several months, I will work with Patty and the leadership of the ITS team (Andrew Yocum, Dean Ernzen, Tracey Mulheirn, Mayuri Changede, Rose Michalski, and Matt LaFlash) to ensure we have the right structure in place before undertaking the task of identifying a permanent leader of this important team, which we hope to have in place before the end of this fiscal year, if not sooner. During the transition time period, Patty will also maintain oversight of the Financial Administration and Strategy team.

Please join me in thanking and congratulating both Carleen and Patty for their leadership during this time of transition.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Brian