Dozens of PNWU alumni from the University’s first few classes had a great mini reunion in Anchorage, Alaska earlier this month. The group shared old stories and caught up with their classmates while enjoying food and drinks at the PNWU on Tour event.
Many students enjoyed mingling with members of PNWU’s Development and Clinical Education teams while reprising the adventures of committing to and attending a school so new that the first building wasn’t finished when they were admitted.
Andrew Peters, DO, a member of the College of Osteopathic Medicine’s inaugural class, enjoyed the event alongside fellow PNWU alum Owen Hanley, DO.
“He gave me his World Cup skis,” Dr. Peters proclaimed with a big smile. Dr. Hanley was on the World Cup Ski Team at one time and had some skis he gave to Dr. Peters before he went to Alaska for his clinical education rotations.
“I still have them, and use them,” said Dr. Peters, an Alaska native. “I grew up in Homer, and my family still lives there. It is the most beautiful place to live.”
Dr. Peters was a well-known student while in Yakima. His wife Amanda explained why. “They put him up on a billboard in Yakima. They (fellow PNWU students) were all on display for the Valley to see what was happening in Terrace Heights.”
Amanda and Andrew met while in undergraduate programs at Northwest Nazarene University in Nampa, Idaho. “We were in some science classes together there,” she said, with a huge smile on her face.
They arrived in Yakima together as Dr. Peters became a member of the inaugural class which attended school in what was then a little more than half of today’s Butler-Haney Hall.
The stories stopped momentarily when Dave ‘The Soup Guy’ Warner, PNWU’s Manager of Student and Alumni Recruitment, walked into the room and started receiving hugs from many of the students. Warner supported and built relationships with many of PNWU’s first alums by starting up his crockpot each morning and cooking soup for the students. The aromas would drift down the hallway, pulling them to his office throughout the day. The smiles on alumni faces revealed the long-lasting effects of his impact on their lives while on campus.
Dr. Peters has dedicated his life to service, even beyond the healthcare he delivers to countless residents of Alaska. He served in the U.S. Navy for nine years. Although it occasionally separated him from his family, it did provide the setting for a spectacular reunion at one point.
Before deploying from the port of San Diego, Amanda and their three daughters were able to go onboard the aircraft carrier dad temporarily called home to see him and the incredible ship.
Many students shared great stories around the room, with laughter turning up the volume during the event. Two additional alumni gladly posed for pictures with their former chef Dave Warner, who was in Alaska searching for the next group of PNWU students.
Sherry Johnson, DO, PNWU-COM Class of 2013, now a Breast Surgical Oncologist, and Katy Ryan, DO, PNWU-COM Class of 2013, who practices Family Medicine, were having a great time talking when they moved over to chat up Warner and have their photos snapped with an old friend.
The entire evening was filled with a lot of fun laughter, smiles and lengthy conversations between alumni and employees. It appeared to be another successful chapter in the PNWU on Tour series.