Michael Friedman, MA ’67

Michael Friedman, MA ’67, formerly a disc jockey and sports director at KFRU-FM, retired from news and public relations after a 40-year career. Friedman is now an adjunct professor of professional communications management at SUNY Farmingdale, New York.

Bob Kalish, BJ ’63

Bob Kalish, BJ ’63, was inducted into the Maine Press Association Hall of Fame during the MPA’s annual meeting Oct. 17 in Bangor. Kalish spent 10 years with the Bath Brunswick Times Record as a reporter, during which he covered the dismantling of the state’s only nuclear power plant and the closing of a major … Continued

Alice Handelman, BJ ’65

Alice Handelman, BJ ’65, was recently honored for her years of service to seniors within the St. Louis community by the Women’s Auxiliary for the Jewish Aged when they installed a bench in her honor at Covenant Place. Handelman was director of community relations at the Jewish Center for Aged in St. Louis for 18 … Continued

Theodore E. (Ted) Hoffman, MA ’66

Theodore E. (Ted) Hoffman, MA ’66, died Aug. 11, 2015, at age 92 in Aurora, Colorado. He was a World War II veteran, a newspaper editor and later, public affairs officer, Bureau of Reclamation, Coulee Dam, Washington, and Phoenix. Hoffman was assistant agricultural editor, University of Missouri College of Agriculture, Columbia, 1963-67 and 1969-72. The … Continued

Joe Hardy Jahraus, BJ ’63

Joe Hardy Jahraus, BJ ’63, died May 1, 2015, in Tulsa. Following graduation, he worked as an editor of Hallmark Cards and later as director of sales and promotion for Skelly Oil, which later merged with Getty Oil. As a student at MU, he was a cartoonist for Show Me Magazine. A prolific artist, his … Continued

Tom Ryther, BJ ’61

Tom Ryther, BJ ’61, has been inducted into the Bayless High School of St. Louis Athletic Hall of Fame. Ryther still holds the Bayless record for most wins by a pitcher set back in 1955. He is among 10 former athletes initially chosen to enter the newly-formed Hall of Fame. Joining Ryther is former Mizzou … Continued

Frank E. Ovaitt Jr., BJ ’69

Frank E. Ovaitt Jr., BJ ’69, received the Gerald Sass Distinguished Service Award from the Association of Schools of Journalism and Mass Communication. The award, established in 1946, is based in part on connecting the work of academics and communications professionals. Ovaitt is the first public relations professional to win the award. He is president … Continued

Bill Tammeus

By Kelsey Hoffmann For a man who always had a knack for words, Bill Tammeus, BJ ’67, could only utter one after finishing the letter: “Wow.” The letter came from a mother in central Illinois whose son had recently died from leukemia. It explained that a column she had read in The Kansas City Star … Continued

Steven Lane Smith, BJ ’69

Steven Lane Smith, BJ ’69, recently won the Reviewers Choice Best Humorous Novel Prize for 2014 for his novel, “Caledonia Switch.” Set in a deceptively peaceful-looking New England town, protagonist John Hardin is the brightest star in the village’s universe. His vestiges of infantile omnipotence allow him to tread fearlessly on risk as he illegally … Continued