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teambuilding, professional
mentoring andmotivational
speaking. She serves as the project
director of the Family Tree Healthy
Start Program, a federal infant
mortality reduction initiative.
Nick Jones, B.A. in
Communications,
’11,
is the new head
pastor for Central
Baptist Church in
Altavista, Va. Jones felt called into
full-time ministry after
overcoming drug addiction and
hopes his story inspires the
congregation and the community.
Brian Simpson,
B.A. in Christian
Studies, ’12,
has
been hired as the
head track and field
coach for Eastern Mennonite
University in Harrisonburg, Va.
Simpson previously was head
coach of the Wilson (N.C.) Track
Club for eight years.
Shane Keith, B.S. in
Business
Management, 13,
and MBA, ’16, is a
finance professional
for the Vanguard Investing Group
in Payson, Ariz. Previously, Keith
edited and interpreted financial
policy and procedure to ensure
the group was within regulatory
requirements. He is using his
obtained skills to apply for a
position on the Payson Unified
School District board.
Matt Love, B.S. in
Public Safety and
Emergency
Management, ’14,
and M.S. in
Leadership with an Emphasis in
Disaster Preparedness and
Executive Fire Leadership, ’15,
was named the new fire chief of
Fort Myers Beach (Fla.) Fire
Control District. Love was with
the Colorado Springs Fire
Department for 11 years before
getting his first fire chief position
at Cimarron Hills (Colo.) Fire
Department.
Lori VanDerveer-
Hand, BSN, ’15,
is a
staff RN at
Hunterdon Medical
Center (HMC) in
Flemington, N.J. VanDerveer-
Hand recently was selected to be
a member of the nursing
optimization team, which
improves the charting system for
nurses at HMC.
ValeriaWright,
B.S. in Elementary
Education with an
Emphasis in
English, ’15,
is a
coordinator for the Title One
Parent Center, a home base early
literacy and parenting program in
the Florence (S.C.) Public School
District. Wright will focus on
building a team environment for
the support of home visitors and
the program’s families.
Jeremiah Lofthus,
B.A. in Digital Film
with an Emphasis in
Production, ’15,
is
co-owner, editor
and videographer for Volente
Videography in Washington state.
Lofthus has produced many
genres of video and photography,
including wedding, music videos,
graduation and special events.
Louie DeDonatis,
B.S. in Sports
Management, ’15,
is
a producer for the
Lax Sports Network
in Boston, the first ever 24/7
lacrosse network. DeDonatis is a
former member of the GCU men’s
club lacrosse team.
SPOTLIGHT
Kristina Anderson, ’14
There's beauty in fighting cancer
A routine doctor visit and ultrasound turned
into Kristina Anderson’s worst nightmare.
A former athlete, cheerleader and academic
scholar, Anderson was diagnosed with a
rare, Stage III form of ovarian cancer in
2013 at age 25. The diagnosis and ensuing
nightmare of trying to receive approvals
from her health insurance coverage to
begin treatment inspired her to create
the SaveHerLife.org nonprofit support
organization with her former nurse, Sandy LeDuke.
Three weeks after her last round of chemotherapy, Anderson
competed in the 2014 Miss Arizona pageant, but the cancer that was
believed to be in remission instead returned in March 2016. Another
six months of chemotherapy followed until her last treatment in
September. She’ll continue “maintenance” chemotherapy treatments
periodically in hopes of limiting any future reoccurrence.
Anderson earned her bachelor’s degree in community health from
the University of Illinois, her Master of Business Administration
from Grand Canyon University in 2014, and recently completed a
Master of Science in Accounting from GCU.
Seemore on Anderson's story in a video at
news.gcu.edu.Sam Strasser, ’09
He turns startups into successes
Sam Strasser’s grandfather owns his own
investment company. His mother runs an
interior design business.
Entrepreneurism is a family affair.
“That’s definitely in our DNA,” the 2009
Grand Canyon University business graduate
said from his Santa Monica, Calif., home base.
Strasser’s trail of startup successes
continues to branch out. He began and built
Weezlab, developing business-specific applications and websites,
for five years before leaving last summer. He also co-founded
Curby, a software app for business valet services, before he sold it to
Curbstand in 2015.
He’s currently working on Treasury Market, an investment
technology concept for small- and medium-size businesses ($15
million to $50 million in revenue).
Business-to-business is where Strasser has focused most of his
energy, dating to high school. It’s why he embraces the exhaustion of
starting from scratch.
“I like the grind,” he said. “It’s where I excel — the thrill of ‘That
can’t be done,’ and seeing if I can do something to create value where
there wasn’t before.”
—MARK HELLER
GCU
Alumni