Boasting Bengal: Matt Thorum

We all remember Matt as one who enjoyed the sciences, and today he's still pursuing that interest. After serving in the Puerto Rico San Juan Mission (Spanish-speaking) for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Matt graduated from the University of Utah in 2005 with honors and a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry. Now he is in his fourth year studying at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign working on a Ph.D. in Materials Chemistry. His research is focused on developing new oxygen reduction catalysts to improve the cost and efficiency of fuel cells.

When Matt isn't submerged in research or textbooks, his favorite hobby is climbing. (Climbing? But Illinois doesn't have mountains!) Matt proves us all wrong--not only is there great rock climbing, but there is great ice climbing too. Matt shares his love of climbing as a part-time climbing clinic instructor for the Adventure Recreation program on campus and is the vice-president of the UIUC Climbing Club.

[Check out Matt's bio and his fellow climbing instructors on UIUC's website here.]

Boasting Bengal: Jacey Egbert

From winning the 1999 Brighton Bengal Award in Music, Jacey (Egbert) Faulkner has neither stopped her studies in nor devotion to music. She received her Music BA in piano performance at the University of Utah and continued on to earn a Music MA in piano performance and collaborative piano. She was a 2002 featured soloist at the Salt Lake City Winter Olympic Games, won a full tuition scholarship, and was even a "piano double" on the T.V. series Everwood. Her focus in music now is pedagogy and music therapy, providing healing to patients and their families in hospitals and care facilities.

In addition to music, Jacey enjoys traveling. Some of her favorite trips include Italy, Czech Republic, and Hawaii. Most recently, her travels have taken her to Madison, Wisconsin, where she resides with her husband of 6 years, Nate, and daughter, Amelia, age 2. They will be there for 4 years for an orthopedic surgery residency and then off to warmer weather! Some of Jacey's future dreams include becoming a floral designer, meeting Oprah, and seeing the world.

[Find out more about Jacey by looking her up on Facebook, or if you want to read her family blog, send her an email: firefingers_rwh(at)yahoo(dot)com.]

Announcing the BHS Reunion Golf Tournament

For all you golf enthusiasts, we are excited to announce a golf tournament the morning of our reunion! Here are the details:

Where: Old Mill Golf Course, 6080 Wasatch Blvd. S.L.C. UT 84121
When: August 1, 9:30 am
Cost: $54 per player; cost includes cart and 18 holes

Players will be put into teams of four. The first team will tee off at 9:30. Other teams will follow behind every 8 minutes.

Prizes will be awarded for closest to the pin, longest drive, best knickers, the winning team, and other games throughout the day. With each participant, we will accrue a $10 credit at the Pro Shop for prizes in each category (e.g. 30 players=$300 in prizes at the pro shop for the winner in each category). So, the more players we have, the bigger and better the prizes will be!

If you are interested in playing, please complete the Golf Tournament payment link on the reunion page here. After we receive your payment, you will receive an email with more details. If you have questions email Ben Gundersen [ben_gundersen(at)hotmail(dot)com] or call (623) 889-1550. Registration will not be accepted after July 20 so sign up today!

Boasting Bengal: Shelby Felix

After graduation, Shelby (now last name of Hales) moved to Logan and went to Utah State. She met her husband, Jared, in the lunch line on the first day of school. So romantic, right? He even asked if she would buy his food--of course he was joking, but she still said no. Shelby got a degree in Family and Consumer Science, minoring in Family Finance. Jared appreciates her thriftiness.

Jared and Shelby lived downtown Salt Lake for five years and loved it. Part of the time they lived downtown, Shelby worked at Department of Workforce Services as a legal secretary and Jared attended law school at the U. Then it came time for kids. Shelby now stays home with their three children: Annie is 5, Tate is 3, and Nash is 7 months. They are living back in the old stomping grounds and keep busy fixing up their house. Shelby recently tiled both their bathroom and entryway, as well as painted their kitchen cabinets with Jared. She's feeling good about progress but there is still much to be desired. Things Shelby likes to do these days are run races, watch her kids do anything, golf with Jared (or any date, really), and make brownies with chocolate chips... so she can eat them :)

[Shelby is on Facebook, but she also loves her family blog. If you'd like to peek at it--being private and all--send her an email at shelbyhales(at)gmail(dot)com.]

Boasting Bengal: Erin Hallmark

Some of our classmates successfully turned their high school hobbies into real-world experiences. Erin Hallmark put her BHS yearbook interest to good use and found a natural talent in editing and design. However, her editing skills have obviously improved over the past ten years, since she now says there are formatting and design characteristics in our senior yearbook that she would love to change, even though she originally designed all the layouts.

Erin received her bachelor's degree in English from Brigham Young University in 2004, along with minors in editing and management. While earning her undergraduate degree, she worked as an editor for BYU's Independent Study program and also volunteered with several student journals. She began her career as the Senior Writer/Editor at Tahitian Noni International, a wellness marketing company, and just five years later, she transitioned to become a Marketing Communications Manager for Zrii, a company in the same industry, located in Draper. The career move meant that Erin recently moved back to the Salt Lake Valley after living in Provo for 10 years.

Erin is now the proud owner of a master's degree in technical writing from Utah State University. Thanks to her graduate work, she has published several articles in technical communication journals and magazines.

In addition to writing, Erin also enjoys communicating through design and wants to spend more time developing her skills in photography, bookbinding, and graphic arts to appease her creative interests. She also enjoys geocaching and thoroughly spoiling her two darling nieces.

[Check out Erin's bookbinding blog here and some of her recent editorial work here in her former company's magazine, Tahiti Tradewinds.]

Boasting Bengal: Sean Escobar

Sean Escobar has lead a very fulfilling life since graduation and is very passionate about his family, his career, and his lifestyle.

Sean was introduced to his wife, Crystal, by a fellow Bengal, Brenda Drollinger. (Coincidentally, Crystal has a journal entry from years past where Brenda had prophesied that she would someday introduce Crystal to her husband.) Sean will forever be grateful to Brenda. He feels Crystal is the most wonderful person in the world, and is also drop-dead gorgeous. It was love at first sight for Sean, and Crystal saw potential. :)

Sean and Crystal had a couple of things in common that drew them close right from the start. Firstly, they both had served missions for their church--Sean to Virginia and Crystal to Germany. Second, they knew a lot of the same people as Crystal had attended Butler Middle School. The same year Crystal left was the year Sean transferred to Butler; they just missed each other. Then they literally traded places--Sean to Brighton and Crystal to Skyline.

The third thing they had in common was that they had the same beliefs about money and financial freedom. In fact, Crystal was pursuing her own career in another relationship marketing company when they met. It was Crystal’s results on the Nutritional Cleansing Technology that proved to be the deciding factor in her joining forces with Sean in Isagenix. Because of their own results, they felt a moral obligation to share this technology with everyone and anyone that would listen. An incredible residual business opportunity was born and they have been doing their business full time ever since. They are passionate about helping young people like themselves find a way to get their health in check and supplement their income without risking the farm. What a blessing to help so many people improve their health and quality of life by introducing them to the concept of nutritional cleansing.

After 5 years of marriage they now have 2 kids, a 3 year old daughter named Lily and a newborn son named Oliver or “Olly.” They also have 2 dogs and 2 cats. Sean and Crystal are living the life of their dreams in Draper, where their home is tucked against the Wasatch Mountains. They can literally hear the horses and chickens from their kitchen window, and the deer come right into their back yard. Sean and Crystal both feel that it is such a blessing to work from home and spend the majority of time with the ones they love the most.

Learn more about Sean's business on his website here; you can also email him at sean(at)escoweb(dot)net.]

In Memorium: Erich Tabert

Erich Thomas Tabert

4/27/1981 ~ 11/17/2007

Erich Thomas Tabert, 26, was born April 27, 1981 in Loma Linda, CA. Our beloved son was suddenly taken from us on November 17, 2007 at the hands of another. Erich had a beautiful smile that lit up any room he walked into and drew people to him. He was easygoing, kind and trusting and had many friends. He was passionate about soccer both as a player and a Liverpool fan. He was a voracious reader, an Eagle Scout, and an avid Star Wars fan. He enjoyed the friendships he made with his online gaming group. Erich graduated from Brighton High School in 1999. He was enlisted in the US Air Force while he attended the Air Force Academy Prep School. He also attended the University of Utah. He is survived by his mother and father, Eileen Mastin Tabert and Herbert H. Tabert, Jr., brother, Herbert H. Tabert III (Chip), sister Natasha A. Tabert, grandparents Thomas and Tomiko Mastin, Maria V. Tabert, and numerous aunts and uncles. Though our loss is tragic, others have already received the gift of life through Erich's donation of his organs. We will miss his presence in our lives but take comfort in knowing that we will be with him again.

Friends may visit on Thursday, November 29, 2007 from 6-8 p.m. at Cannon Mortuary 2460 E. Bengal Blvd. (7600 S.) Funeral services will be held on Saturday, December 1, 2007, 1:00 p.m. at Wasatch 7th Ward, 8100 S. Top of the World Drive where friends and family may call from 12:00 to 12:45 p.m. Interment after services will be at Mountain View Memorial Estates. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made at Zion's National Bank to the American Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO) Scholarship fund in memory of Erich Tabert.

[via source]