Boasting Bengal: Sherri Later

After graduating, Sherri Later cheered for the University of Utah and then coached cheer for 5 years. She temporarily moved to California to become a corporate trainer for the Love Sac Stores, when she wasn't learning to surf and enjoying living on the beach.

Returning to Salt Lake, Sherri graduated from the University of Utah in 2003 with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (RN) and an eventual huband--the Shayne Perry and Sherri met in college (he actually went to Highland High School). Two years ago they moved to Columbus Ohio, where Shayne is currently attending dental school.

Sherri loves being a nurse and has had multiple jobs in different areas such as Med/Surge Floor and PACU at University of Utah Hospital, OB/GYN Office at Altaview Hospital, Cancer Unit at Primary Children's Hospital and now PACU again at Ohio State University and Riverside Methodist Hospital. She has cut down her work schedule from 60 hours to 48 hours a week, and someday she would like to work full time for a children's hospital.

Her true passion lies in pediatrics. This November Sherri is going on a volunteer medical mission to help with a program called Operation Smile. She hopes this is the first of many missions to come.

Sherri and Shayne have two miniature dachshunds that are Sherri's pride and joy. (She says you may as well call them my children since the wife of a dental student is pretty lonely.) She also teaches dance to little girls once a week. The couple loves to travel and make it a point to go often.

[Learn more about Operation Smile here.]

Boasting Bengal: Emily Ousley

A year after graduation, Emily moved back to her birth state of Knoxville, Tennessee. She worked as a nurse at the University of Tennessee Medical Center, and in 2004, she met her fiance, an Emergency Room physician. The couple enjoyed working together until Emily quit working in 2008 to raise their family.

Emily now has three children: Kaley, 10; Keegan, 7; and Alexander, 14 months. Being a stay-at-home mom is far more demanding than being a nurse, but Emily states she loves every second of it. She is heavily involved in the PTA at the local elementary school where her children attend. She is also the "team mom" for both her daughter's fast-pitch travel softball team and her son's baseball team. Their family spends lots of time at the lake and tries to travel as much as possible.

Emily misses having all of her high school friends all the way across the United States, but she tries to stay in touch as much as possible through Facebook. She loves raising her kids in a small town, and she is very happy with her decision to move back to Tennessee. Emily sends her best wishes to everyone at the reunion and hopes that she can make the next one.

[To keep in touch with Emily, visit her Facebook profile here or her blog here.]

Boasting Bengal: Tyler Peterson

Since his embarrassing and unsuccessful bid for Brighton Class Moron in 1999, Tyler "Rat Tyla" Peterson underwent an arduous 10-year marketing plan to restore his image in time for this year's landmark reunion. As the product of professional lifestyle consultants and online profile managers, the former write-off has emerged simply as "Mr. Peterson, the Esteemed."

After a brief foray into Psychology, Mr. Peterson used his acute understanding of the human mind to manipulate editors at the Salt Lake Tribune into giving him a job as Chief (ahem, intern) Correspondent. Tired of interviewing famous people like former Secretary of Health and Human Services Mike Leavitt, Mr. Peterson focused his time on blessing the ears of others through piano performance. The culmination of his efforts resulted in a masterful performance of Chopin's Minute Waltz at Libby Gardner Hall to the applause of roughly 10 child prodigies and their wealthy benefactors.

Currently, Mr. Peterson is Regional Account Manager for what his CEO calls "the world's next YouTube." Mr. Peterson will let you look at his stock options contract if you promise not to come begging for money after his golden life-sized statue replaces the seagull atop the gate at South Temple and State Street.

When he's not courting rich investors, Mr. Peterson indulges in his rich and beautiful wife, Emily. The couple has one 5-month-old son, Dean. The proud parents realize their child is ideal for magazines and movies, but they are too sensitive and caring to exploit their infant for money, and instead, kindly let those without children hold him.

On July 30, Mr. Peterson will relocate to Washington, D.C. to earn a Masters in International Affairs. It will only be a matter of time before he is the country's top spy, careening through exploding neighborhoods in terrorist villages and recklessly spending your tax dollars on sports cars and luxury watches. He is planning a book in time for the 20-year reunion. Mr. Peterson may be available to sign copies for a limited fee for those who call in advance. Thank you.

[Mr. Peterson is happy to share his wife's version of their lives on their blog here. E-mail tylerppp(at)hotmail(dot)com if you are interested and he'll grant you access.]

Boasting Bengal: Julia Wilson

Julia Wilson went to Southern Utah University after high school and studied music for two years. Then she moved back to Salt Lake and married her high school sweetheart, Travis Burnett, and they have three beautiful girls: Shali, 6; Savanna, 4; and Kaila, 1. They love to go camping as a family and enjoy time together.

When Julia isn't spending time taking care of her kids, she loves to play soccer. She has been playing goalkeeper in a women's league for about 6 years--and sometimes plays in up to three teams at a time! Julia plays 11v11 at the Jordan Soccer complex for a team called Mayhem, and last month she joined a team to play a tournament in Boise. They took first place and had a lot of fun. Not to discriminate the warmer weather, Julia plays women's 6v6, coed 7v7, and indoor soccer during the winter.

[Catch up with Julia and all her adventures on her blog here.]

Boasting Bengal: Brittney Penrod

Brittney Penrod went to college at Utah State University and graduated in 2003 in Family and Human Development. She met her husband, Ryan Bradshaw, at school through a roommate and friend and the two were married in July 2001.

Brittney is blessed to be able to stay at home with her family, as well as use her piano skills to teach six students out of her home. Brittney and Ryan welcomed their son, Caden, in 2004, the same year that Ryan graduated in Education and was offered a Physical Education and Weights teaching and coaching job at an inner city high school in Las Vegas, Nevada. They have lived in Nevada ever since, adding a daughter, Maliya, to the family mix in 2007 and purchasing their first house in 2008.

Their family stays busy with friends, activities, projects around the house, and supporting Ryan at some of his sporting events. Because Brittney is expecting their third child, another boy, in August and won't be able to attend the reunion, she sends her best wishes!

[Check out Brittney and her cute family on her blog here.]

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.]

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.]

Boasting Bengals: Jessica and Ethan Trump

Jessica Sturm married high school sweetheart Ethan Trump in Yosemite's Ahwahnee Hotel in 2006, just a few months after completing their respective degrees from the University of Utah.

Jessica double majored in Marketing and Business Administration and quickly started a career at a local advertising agency. Ethan graduated with a Technology Communications degree and worked for six years at a small development company. In 2008 he switched careers and became the Marketing Director for another high tech Utah company called Cirque Corp.

For the ten+ years that Ethan and Jessica have been together they've purchased and sold a condo, purchased a home, and traveled the world--the last of which was always a dream of Jessica's. Some of their favorite places include Kyoto, Japan; Balzano, Italy; and Tarangire National Park in Tanzania.

Jessica and Ethan live in Salt Lake City and have three cats, a large garden they are working on, and no big travel plans for the 2009 season.

[Contact these two on Facebook (Jessica and Ethan) or check out Jessica's blog here.]

Boasting Bengal: Paul Jewkes

Paul Jewkes has traveled the state but found his love in southern Utah. And that's just not education speaking. He went to Dixie State College on a whim--quite literally; he packed his bags and left at midnight to arrive the day before school started. His whim proved to be a good thing as he was introduced to my wife, Jessica Fotheringham, at the same school. After immediately hitting it off, they dated for four years, married, and 3 years later they had their son, Zander.

Southern Utah continued to infuse Paul's life. He was a corporate trainer for the Olive Garden from 2002 to 2007 while owning a home in Herriman, Utah, but then he moved back to St George, where his family started Sand Hollow Resort. Sand Hollow was rated the number-one place to play in Utah by Golf Week Magazine. So what is he doing now? Selling the resort of course, which is just one part of his experience in real estate, his current industry of choice. In his spare time, Paul has taken up web design as a hobby/source of lunch money and also spends time golfing.

It looks like it is official--Paul loves St. George and says he will not make it back up north anytime soon.

[Check out the information on Paul's resort here, his personal real estate site here, or his family's blog here.]

Boasting Bengal: Jonathan Munk

Marketing has become Jonathan Munk's passion since he graduated from BYU in Communications. Four years ago he took an internship that lead to online marketing full-time employment for MarketSplash by HP, a company that helps small businesses develop marketing materials. He also writes and maintains two blogs: Manizesto for small business marketing (but he's currently on hiatus), and Haiku Today for daily haiku inspiration.

Jonathan also finds time to enjoy his love for the outdoors and individual sports--pretty much anything that will get him out of his cubicle. Mountain biking, cycling, hiking, camping, snowshoeing, and playing the drums are some of his life's fortes. Jonathan is married to the amazing, talented, and beautiful Jessica Kolb, and they have two sons, Zac (3) and Max (1).

[Have a small business? Learn more about the offerings of HP's MarketSplash here.]

Boasting Bengal: Katie Fox

Katie Fox Walk was the girl who never missed a day of school from K-12 grade. After high school she attended Dixie State College for two years to become a Computer Tech. (She says that yes, she ditched class a lot.) When she came back to Salt Lake she decided to change her profession and become a medical assistant. Working for two hand surgeons, Katie has been working at the Orthopaedic Center at the University of Utah for 6.5 years now and loves it.

Katie married the love of her life, Todd Walk. He also went to Brighton High and she knew nothing about him even though he was her neighbor for 17 years. Apparently her lovely mother tricked her into meeting each other when Katie's car broke down. Todd came to her rescue and fixed it at his shop, and they have never been apart since that day. Katie and Todd have been married for three fantastic years and recently had a remarkable daughter named Averi, who is 8 months old. Now they are planning for their second baby.

Todd and Katie love to be in the outdoors. They love driving down to the sand dunes and riding their ATVs, or taking their truck and finding something to climb up on. They also enjoy shooting guns down by Utah Lake. She says she wishes they traveled more but some of their favorite hot spots are Victoria-Canada, Seattle-WA, Saint Anthony-Idaho (for the dunes of course), and Southern California (to be with family).

[If you want to talk with Katie, add her as a friend on Facebook here.]

Boasting Bengal: Ashley Cameron

Ashley became the Undefeated Leg Wrestling Champ during Fall of '98 and has maintained that title over the past 10 years. While holding on to her champ title she has gone to school to become a registered dietitian and just finished her master's degree in Nutrition Science. Since 1999 she has volunteered every year at Camp Foundation for Children and Youth with Diabetes (FCYD), working various positions such as camp counselor, cook, kitchen dietitian, and camp dietitian. Ashley currently lives with her husband in the Arctic Tundra (known to most as St. Paul, Minnesota), but they will be moving back to the Salt Lake area very soon. She spends her day with her very quick-witted four-year-old daughter, Cam, and a developmentally delayed, lickaholic English Pointer named Maggie. Together, the three of them work on improving Ashley's ability to shotgun a Diet Dr. Pepper, and Cam's ability to know the alphabet backwards and forwards. No time is spent working on Maggie's issues. She is hopeless, but cute!

[Learn more about the FCYD here and add Ashley as a friend on Facebook.]

Boasting Bengal: Tyler Tsujimoto

Tyler's high school interest as a yell leader turned into a career for health and wellness. He graduated from the University of Utah in 2004 with a BS in Health Promotion and Education. Currently he works as a personal trainer at Life Time Fitness and is considering a PhD in physical therapy. He resides in Midvale (his first house) with his two dogs. (Fun fact: Tyler's home was nominated for Home of the Month in August 2006.)

[Learn about the personal training group at Life Time Fitness here.]

Boasting Bengal: Jenny Davis

After graduating from Brighton, Jenny Davis (now Taylor) attended the University of Utah. During her sophomore year, she moved to Washington, D.C. for an internship in Congressman Chris Cannon's office and have lived in the D.C. area ever since. From 2001-2006, she was Congressman Cannon's Executive Assistant. After 5 years on Capitol Hill, she started working at the Washington Speakers Bureau where I am a Senior Event Coordinator. Jenny graduated from George Mason University with a B.A. in Communication and concentration in Public Relations.

Jenny currently lives in Alexandria, VA, a suburb of Washington, D.C., with her husband, Paul. She and Paul met in 2003 when she was working on Capitol Hill and were married in August 2007. He is the Chief Republican Council for the Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties at the House Judiciary Committee.

Fun fact, Jenny was on the TV show Trading Spaces in 2004.

[Learn more about the the Washington Speakers Bureau here.]

Boasting Bengal: Heather Cooley

Heather Cooley is now known as Heather Cooley Jenkins and has been married to her husband, James, for 4.5 years. They live in Salt Lake City; he is the director of finance for a tech company, and she loves working as an interior designer. Naturally Heather also enjoys designing and decorating the new house they just purchased.

Since high school, Heather and her husband have done a lot of traveling--they've visited Hawaii, Grand Cayman, Florida, Canada, Mexico, Chicago, New York, Tennessee, Thailand, Alaska, and most recently, Forks, Washington. They don't have any children, but they do have a spoiled cat named Lillie.

Heather and James also spend their free time working with the Ouelessebougou Utah Alliance, a charity that helps the people of Mali, Africa. They try to volunteer at an annual benefit dinner held every spring.

[Learn more about Heather's volunteer work by visiting the Ouelessebougou website here.]

Boasting Bengal: James and Karen Bates

James and Karen (Vargo) Bates currently live in the D.C. area. James is attending his second year of law school at Georgetown, and Karen works for a D.C. law firm in their IP group. On December 19, their daughter, Sophia Bates, was born into their family. They've never been happier!

[Learn more about Georgetown University Law School here.]

Boasting Bengal: Adam Archer

Since graduation, Adam has spent quite a bit of time seeing the world and adding adventure to his life. His first adventure with the military lead him to his wife, Cori, and her three-year-old son; Cori and Adam were married in August of 2003. They lived in Aviano, Italy, for the first year of their marriage, and then moved to Ft. Hood, Texas.

After completing 5 years of military service in the US Air Force, Cori was discharged from the military after becoming pregnant with their third child. Shortly thereafter they moved back home to Utah. They purchased a home in Layton in June of 2006 and lived there until September of 2008. Meanwhile, Adam jumped back into his undergraduate degree and enrolled full-time at Weber State University. Not only did they have three children, but he also managed to work 40 hours per week in Salt Lake City and attend night classes in Ogden. It was pretty wild and strenuous, but thanks to an amazing wife and understanding kids, he was finally able to earn his undergrad--or at least, he says, he lacks one class and will earn it this May 2009, a BA in Philosophy with a Minor in Construction Management.

Adam started working in commerical construction management in Texas in 2004 and have been pursuing a career in it ever since. He really enjoys it.

Adam and Cori now live in Sandy next to Alta High school and added their fourth child this past September. (Technically, he says, since they already had one child with their marriage, they have only had three children in five years--not as insane as having four in five years.) He says he can't claim any credit for his children as his wife does everything. "I struggle to remember our daughter's birthday. I cook dinner and 'bring home the bacon,' but other than that she pretty much does everything. Good thing I married up."

Says Adam, "We are really happy and feel very grateful. Life has been very good to us, void of tragedy and despair. We are certain that those unfortunate days are sure to come but thankfully we have our great family and good friends to help us through those times when they arrive. We really anticipate seeing everyone at the reunion; it will be fun to enjoy and share in your many successes and triumphs."