Nov 22
Oct 04, 2019
Lake Superior State University and the LSSU Alumni Association will pay tribute to four highly accomplished alumni and friends at the annual Alumni Awards Banquet beginning at 5:00 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 11th in the Walker Cisler Center as part of Great Lake State Weekend 2019.
The public is welcome at the banquet to honor Anthony Bosbous ’73, Sault Ste. Marie; Cory (Gallaway) Andersen ’04, Silverthorne, Colorado; Wendy (Menard) James, formerly of the Soo and now of Burbank, California; and David Saunders ’80 of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. Dinner reservations are $25 each and must be reserved by October 8th for this event. They are available at LSSU.edu/glsw, Lukenda Alumni House on LSSU’s campus, or by calling the LSSU Alumni Office at 906-635-2844.
“We are proud to recognize the accomplishments of our distinguished alumni. Their dedicated commitment to their communities and the university truly embodies the value of service that we hold as Lakers,” stated Dr. Rodney Hanley, LSSU President.
“All four of our award recipients have Sault Ste. Marie connections, and each of them is an excellent example of an LSSU success story,” said Susan Fitzpatrick, director of Alumni Relations. “We invite everyone to join us in recognizing their accomplishments and celebrating their connection with LSSU.”
Anthony Bosbous
Anthony G. “Tony” Bosbous will receive the Lighthouse Recognition Award at LSSU’s Alumni Awards banquet October 11th. The Lighthouse Award is given at the discretion of LSSU’s Alumni Awards selection committee for recognition of long time advocacy for Lake Superior State University. Tony has demonstrated his passion and support for his alma mater with his service on advisory boards and regular support of golf fundraisers and Laker hockey. His years serving as city commissioner and service on local boards indicate his willingness to share his time and talents to enhance his community. His long-standing service as mayor of Sault Ste. Marie indicates the confidence that the Sault Ste. Marie citizens place in him.
“To be the recipient of Lake Superior State University’s Lighthouse Award is a tremendous honor for me and my family,” said Tony. “My wife, Margaret and I are very proud that our children, Carrie and Jodi are both Lake State Alums and our granddaughter Emma, is currently a sophomore at this excellent university.”
Tony Bosbous was born and raised in Sault Ste. Marie and graduated from LSSC in 1973 with a bachelor of arts in sociology. He is a veteran of the U.S. Army National Guard 1437th Engineer Company. Tony began at the Chippewa-Mackinac-Luce Community Action Agency as a head start teacher and was soon promoted to head start director. He was later promoted to Deputy Director of CLM Community Action, a post he held for 33 years before retiring after a total of 42 years with Community Action.
Tony started in politics as a trustee on the Sault Area School Board of Education, where he served for eight years beginning in 1983, including four years as president. He served ten years on the Sault Ste. Marie City Commission 1991-2001, including four years as mayor pro-tem. He was first elected mayor of Sault Ste. Marie in 2001 and has served continuously in that role until retirement in 2019, making him the longest-serving mayor in Sault Ste. Marie history.
As mayor, Tony supported the expansion of War Memorial Hospital, Lake Superior State University Sim Center, and the LSSU Center for Freshwater Research and Education (CFRE). He was a member of the management team which developed the $13 million Sewell Avery Community Action Center and Avery Square in downtown Sault Ste. Marie. He managed the MSHDA housing rehabilitation program for Chippewa, Luce, and Mackinac counties and led the rehabilitation of the Pullar Community Building, helping raise more than $400,000 in private donations. Tony led the acquisition of the Tendercare Corporation Building (former historic Federal Building) and monitored the remodeling project as Sault Ste. Marie’s new city hall.
Tony is the 2010 recipient of the Michigan Municipal League’s Michael A. Guido Leadership and Public Service Award. This award was created in memory of Dearborn Mayor Michael Guido and goes annually to a chief elected official who embodies professionalism and leadership, and is dedicated to the residents of their community and advocacy in Lansing and Washington, DC.
Mayor Bosbous retired from Community Action in July 2011 and has served or is currently serving on various boards, including United Way of Chippewa County – 30 years and past president, Michigan Workforce Development Board – 30 years, Sault Ste. Marie Lions Club, Big Brothers and Big Sisters and the LSSU Foundation. He is a founding member and past president of the Soo Blueliners, which raises funds for Laker hockey. Tony is also a member of American Legion Post #3 and Elks Lodge #552.
Tony commented, “Lake Superior State University continues to be such an integral part of the fabric of Sault Ste. Marie and the entire Eastern UP! It is one of the most important engines that drives the growth and successes of this area. We are so proud to be LAKERS! I thank you so much for this prestigious award.”
Tony is married to Margaret (Tavern) and they have two grown daughters – Carrie and Jodi. They have four grandchildren – Emma, Ryan, Piper and Tucker.
Cory (Gallaway) Andersen
It would be difficult to imagine anyone with stronger Lake State connections than Cory (Gallaway) Andersen. Cory attended and graduated from Lake State with a bachelor of science in business administration – marketing in 2004 and married Kelsey Andersen (also an alumnus). Cory’s brother Tim earned a mechanical engineering degree in 2012, and Tim’s wife Gina Johnson is also an alumna. Cory’s mother Cindy (Huston) met her father, Neil Gallaway during their very first college class at LSSC in September 1971. They were married a month after graduating in 1975. Cindy’s sister, Susan, met her husband, Maurice Evans (All-American track athlete and Laker Hall of Famer) during her freshman year, married, and lived on campus in married housing. Cory’s grandparents Bruce and Marian Huston established an endowed scholarship at LSSU for students from Cory’s hometown of Lewiston, Michigan. Cory says, “LSSU is important to our family and I’m proud of our longstanding connection.”
While a student at LSSU, Cory played a leadership role in the Student Alumni Involved for Lake State (SAILS) and she worked as a campus tour guide. She also worked in the Alumni and Foundation offices, including as a student manager for LSSU’s student telemarketing team. Cory stated, “I credit Lake State for helping me have a positive start to my career. My professors and staff members genuinely cared about my success and gave me ample opportunities to grow as a leader, giving me confidence to pursue any endeavor.”
Cory and her husband Kelsey are lifetime members of the LSSU Alumni Association, and they also support their alma mater. Cory and Kelsey enjoy hosting occasional alumni gatherings for Laker alumni in Colorado, where they now call home. These attributes, along with Cory’s many professional accomplishments, combine to make Cory a natural choice for the Paul Ripley Award. The award was established in 1994 and is presented to graduates who have enjoyed exceptional personal and professional success early in their careers, and who are involved with LSSU and/or the LSSU Alumni Association.
Cory is currently an account leader and director of business development for Snavely Associates, a national communications firm that supports higher education, healthcare and cultural nonprofit organizations. In her role at Snavely, Cory has had the opportunity to support annual giving teams at Arizona State University, Ferris State University and many others. Cory earned her Certified Fundraising Executive (CFRE) in 2009 and an MBA from the University of Denver in 2010.
Prior to joining Snavely, Cory was the director of annual giving for the University of Denver from 2010 to 2016. From 2007 to 2010 Cory was the development manager for The Cable Center in Denver, and from 2006-2007 Cory was the lead on-site sales associate for the Denver Art Museum. Cory’s first position after graduating from LSSU was as a development officer for Adrian College’s Office of Development.
Cory is highly involved in the Association of Fundraising Professionals, Colorado chapter where she was a board member for seven years, serving as president of the chapter in 2013. She has volunteered with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Colorado, Frisco Elementary School and with the National Philanthropy Day committee in Colorado. In 2008 Cory received the Up and Coming Professional Award from the Association of Fundraising Professionals, Colorado Chapter.
Following her personal passions, in 2017 Cory completed training with DONA International to become a certified birth doula. She founded Peaceful Peak Doula to assist parents with their birth journey. “My parents are entrepreneurs, and I have always felt a strong pull to create my own business at some point. As a doula, I have the flexibility to choose the number of clients I work with to balance with my other responsibilities. It’s been a wonderful addition to my life,” Cory stated. Cory is also in the process of training to become a childbirth educator.
Cory is a multi-sport athlete, competing in numerous triathlons, marathons and half marathons, including finishing Ironman Mt. Tremblant in 2012. She is also an avid outdoorswoman and enjoys yoga, skiing, backcountry hut trips, hiking, camping, and kayaking. Her favorite activities are adventures with her husband Kelsey and the couple’s two children, Laird (6) and Corbin (3).
Cory and her husband Kelsey are currently building their own home in Silverthorne, Colorado. They are keeping a blog for friends and family to keep track of the progress – visit www.lifeat9290.com.
Wendy (Menard) James ‘74
Wendy (Menard) James, who grew up in Sault Ste. Marie, will receive the Kenneth J. Shouldice Alumni Achievement Award. She attended Lake Superior State University before moving to Lansing at the request of Michigan’s governor. She then graduated from Michigan State University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in journalism, with minors in political science and economics. She is a member of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians.
“LSSU was a family affair for me,” said Wendy. “My Mom worked in the President’s office, and my Aunt Barb worked the switchboard. My Uncle Harry Pike was Dean of Students, and my Aunt Ruth Johnston Pike taught nursing. I babysat for lots of families on campus, most often for Ron and Marion Mason.”
“I transferred to Michigan State for my senior year only because I was asked by Governor Milliken to lead a statewide effort to address the spike in youth traffic deaths from lowering the drinking age to 18,” explained Wendy. “I was hired as part of a joint effort to help create an outreach program to raise awareness of the dangers of drinking and driving among young people.”
“I have to admit that I never really connected with MSU – my heart and mind stayed with Lake State. Classes at MSU were huge and impersonal. I remember one class at LSSU, where I think there were 8 people in the whole class. We received very personal attention,” stated Wendy.
Of receiving the Shouldice award, Wendy said, “What a thrill! Dr. Shouldice was a friend of the family and someone I always looked up to. LSSU was such an important part of my personal and professional development. To this day, I have close connections to the university and the community that have helped to shape my life and career. This is an incredible and very personal honor for me.”
Wendy James established The Better World Group (BWG) in 1999. In the 20 years since creating BWG, she has developed unique expertise in many sectors, with a special focus on environmental issues. With BWG, she redefined coalition building to deliver a string of successful environmental policy achievements for California and beyond. Wendy also served as a mentor to countless young advocates. She retired from BWG as Chief Executive Officer at the end of 2018.
Wendy works with environmental and environmental justice groups, government organizations and progressive businesses in framing their environmental strategies and implementing advocacy campaigns in support of a wide array of policies and projects. She has extensive knowledge of climate change, clean energy, and air quality policy issues, and extensive experience with coalition management, complex public policy issue shaping, media relations, and communications strategy.
“LSSU is where I planted the seeds for my career in politics and my work on the environment,” said Wendy. “I remember the first Earth Day at the college in 1970. I was still in high school, but the college hosted the event, and I was there – it stuck with me. I also served on the student government board, and it was remarkable. I served on that board with Pat Gagliardi and Mitch Irwin, both of whom went on to serve long and distinguished careers in the Michigan Legislature. Kel Smyth, who was also at Lake State at the same time, also worked for U.S. Sen. Carl Levin for a long time, and I went on to work for then-State Senator Bob Davis (while I was still a senior at Michigan State) and then moved onto to Washington DC when he was elected to Congress in 1978.”
Before forming The Better World Group, Wendy served as president of the nonprofit Environmental Media Association (EMA), working closely with the entertainment industry to support various environmental initiatives.
She began her professional career as a reporter and weekly columnist for The Evening News, the precursor to the Sault News. Wendy is proud to be a founding board member of the Sault Tribe Business Association, an organization of tribal-owned businesses. She has long-term involvement on numerous professional and nonprofit boards.
Over the years Wendy has been recognized by many organizations including lifetime achievement awards from the Coalition for Clean Air, Los Angeles League of Conservation Voters, and Climate Resolve. Among her other accolades, Wendy was honored by the California League of Conservation Voters in 2011 with an Environmental Leadership Award, by the California Climate Action Registry in 2008 and named Small Business Woman of the Year for California’s 20th Senate District and 43rd and 44th Assembly Districts in 2006.
Wendy has many fond memories of her time at LSSC, stating, “It may have been a small school in a small town, but we had first-class instructors and world-class ‘visitors.’ I remember Soupy Sales coming to an accounting class and JFK’s press secretary Pierre Salinger dropping by. That was huge to me as a budding journalist. The professors managed to make every class interesting. I recall even in physics – something I just didn’t connect with – getting to choose our lesson plans and Prof. Sampson teaching us craps to learn statistics. Trust me, they weren’t being creative like that at Michigan State.”
Wendy remembers some of the professors who had a significant impact on her career and her life. “John Matheson was my journalism professor and mentor – and I had the incredible luck to be working as a reporter at The Evening News while I was attending Lake State. He really helped to drive my career in the media. Bruce Harger helped me pass Intermediate Macroeconomics at Michigan State. I could not grasp the concepts in the class. The professor gave us an extra credit assignment and said if we were to complete it successfully, we would be guaranteed a passing grade. I knew I was in trouble, so I set about to complete that assignment – by calling Bruce Harger! He spent hours on the phone with me walking me through that assignment –teaching me how to do it. Remarkable,” Wendy stated.
“I had one class at MSU that I liked”, Wendy recalls. “It was a journalism lab and the instructor was Indian. He reminded me of Madan Saluja, but I was hesitant to say anything. Finally one day he took the whole class to a bar and I got up the courage to mention Madan. He literally leapt across the table at me yelling “You know Madan!” It turned out that they had immigrated to the US together, and then lost touch. He was so thrilled to have the chance to reconnect.”
Wendy states, “I will always be proud of my Laker roots and be thankful for the foundation and inspiration I received from LSSU. Always a Laker Girl!”
Wendy lives in Burbank, California with her husband Michael.
David Saunders ‘80
2019 LSSU Outstanding Alumnus David Saunders jokes that he was the only Canadian student-athlete ever recruited by Lake Superior State at the time who couldn’t skate. It’s probably true since most Canadian athletes were recruited for hockey, not wrestling. But David’s engagement with LSSU goes far beyond his days as a wrestler. David has served on the LSSU Foundation Board since 2009; he received the Lukenda School of Business distinguished alumnus award in 2010, and he has been a generous donor to the university for more than 20 years.
“I would like to thank Dr. Madan Saluja for encouraging me to become involved with LSSU after achieving a level of professional success, and encouraging me to become a member of the LSSU Foundation,” said David. “I would also like to thank Tom Coates and Virginia Zinser of the Foundation for their ongoing support and encouragement in my involvement with the School and the Foundation.”
David completed his bachelor of science in accounting at LSSC in 1980. Along with earning a varsity letter for wrestling, David was also a member of the Lambda Sigma Beta professional business fraternity. His education subsequent to LSSU includes a CICA International Tax Course in 1992 and a CICA In-Depth Tax Course in 1988.
David is a tax partner with BDO’s International Tax Practice. He practices extensively in the area of Canada-U.S. income taxation at the corporate, personal, and partnership levels.
David is a frequent speaker regarding Canada-U.S. tax planning, structuring U.S. inbound business investment into Canada and Canadian outbound business investment into the United States. David has spoken at the CICA National Conference on Taxation and has been quoted on cross-border tax planning issues in Canada’s national newspaper, Toronto Globe and Mail.
David’s professional affiliations include the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ontario; Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants; Canadian Tax Foundation; and the International Fiscal Association.
David said, “I was fortunate to have received the Lukenda School of Business Distinguished Alumnus Award in 2010. The award means very much to me as Dr. Lukenda and the Lukenda Family have been long time clients of BDO. When talking to students I often refer to myself as having gone to the ‘real’ Lukenda School of Business It gives me great pride to have been involved in the fundraising efforts to secure the Lukenda School of Business naming opportunity.”
David is very involved in the Sault, Ontario community. He is a member of the gift planning and advisory committee of the Sault Area Hospital Foundation; past president and treasurer of the Rotary Club; past treasurer of the Sault Ste. Marie Children’s Foundation; past board member, president, and treasurer of the Algoma Community Legal Clinic; past treasurer of the Searchmont Ski Association; and past board member, president, and treasurer of Hospitality and Travel Sault Ste. Marie.
Regarding his wrestling roots, David said, “I attended LSSU, and I was fortunate enough to have wrestled for Lake Superior State for four years under Coach Jim Fallis and obtain a great business education.”
David went on to say, “I have always been proud to have graduated from Lake Superior State University and believe it gave me the education and background necessary to have succeeded in becoming an International Tax Partner at BDO. Considering all the successful alumni of LSSU, it is a great honor to be named LSSU’s 2019 Outstanding Alumnus.”
David and his wife Elizabeth have a daughter, Dr. Nora-Beth Mercier.