Alumni Stories

Inspired by his family's commitment to Public Service, Luke Hanson first aims to become an FBI agent, but is unable to due to a pre-existing back condition that flared up during his physical fitness test. He pivoted and applied for a job in Finance, where he landed his first position with the FBI.  He currently works as a supervisor within the Counterintelligence Division's Strategic Resources Section, overseeing the Financial Management Unit.

Homecoming 2023 drew in alumni from around the nation for gatherings large and small of the classes ending in 3 and 8. Photos here!

Mike Lynne has made a lifetime career as a entrepreneur and businessman.  He is 80 years old with no plan to retire.

Bob Olson '65 shares the a tragedy as a child to his life-long ministry with Hospitality House and prison ministries.

Alton Olson '53 unlikely path of becoming a missionary doctor in India. 

Deb Kellogg's journey of German being a struggle in High School, to teaching German for 25 years, then becoming a tenured professor and leading the German program at Normandale college for 22 years. 

Dave Anderson '64 shares his life career of working with Boeing, where he served all over the world, as well as his non-profit work since retirement.

Judy (Bixby) Hagstrom shares her inspiration for and history of her lifetime career as an artist. 

Sara (Fabie) Cassidy's willingness to try new things helps shape her success and career.

Andrew Johnson '15 shares his beginnings at MA in Applied Research and Engineering, then his Microgrid research at the University of St. Thomas.

LeRoy Carlson finds new vision after retirement starting 'The Warner E. Sallman Art Collection, Inc.'

Kris (Rosdahl) Ehresmann '80 shares her past year of challenges and encouragement with COVID-19 as the Director of Infectious Disease at the MN Department of Health. 

Jim Wald shares the story of his legacy of three distinctly different careers during his 35 years at MA, and how he was initially recruited as the new shop teacher. 

Polly shares about the journey of God planting seeds in her life, starting at MA and coming to fruition in her life, her children and her family. 

Brian shares how God used his time at MA to make two of the most important decisions of his life. 

A midwestern boy makes it big in the Hollywood filmmaking industry. 

Kari (Glenn) Fields '90 shares her legacy at MA.  "I've never had a desire to look elsewhere because I am so happy at MA." 

Mark Wilkening serves non-profits and finds God's calling on his life. 

Tricia shares the story of how her interests, passions, and calling combined in medicine, international health, and ministry. 

Joy's journey of life, relationships, and becoming a teacher

Hugo Mayo shares why, as a student, he chose MA for the 'best academic programs in the city'.  

Cal Peterson '58 comes to MA in 9th grade, after being in a one-room schoolhouse in Stillwater, MN.  He learns construction and woodworking as a trade, and dedicates his time volunteering at Covenant Pines Bible Camp, where he met his wife Sarmita. 

Sarmita (Priede) Peterson escapes Latvia during WW2, and later comes to America as as immigrant. 

Congratulations to Nels Elde '91 a 2020 MacArthur Fellow! Elde is an evolutionary geneticist at the University of Utah. 

Larry Wefring '61 overcomes epilepsy and seizures with brain surgery.

Lilly Thomey '15 studies snail species in Hawaii with Americorps.

Shawn Zobel '08 began his first company, 'Draft Headquarters' while in High School at MA. He later also started a company called Zobel Sports Consulting. 

Kate attended Minnehaha Academy her senior year and graduated in 1937. She was born in May of 1919, and will turn 101 years old this month!  To our knowledge, this makes her the oldest living Minnehaha Academy Alum and former faculty member.

“Don’t hold fast to any plan that you might have in your hand. Hold it loosely and let God lead you where He wants you to go.”

Ginny Taylor recently celebrated her 80th birthday and 60th wedding anniversary.  She has spent the majority of her life serving around the world with her husband Clyde, who was in the Foreign Service. As a retiree, Ginny loves to volunteer with local missions. 

Meta Herrick Carlson, Minnehaha Academy Alum '00 is now a published author!

Tom had a 21 year career in broadcasting, and then another 26 years in his second career: teaching broadcasting!  He loves baseball, and helped make the 1,100 member Puget Sound Senior Baseball League one of the premier leagues in the national Men’s Senior Baseball League. 

James Barnett '04 finds community and inspiration at MA for his future career as educator.

Mark Ireland '92 lives out his faith and values as a judge in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Michelle Thompson '86 began 'Nonna's' with fellow MA Alumni Lisa Terhaar '88 and their spouses, wanting to create a new Christian Montessori concept where they work with both infant/toddlers and those with aging and dementia.

Lisa Terhaar '88 along with fellow MA alumni Michelle Thompson '86 and their spouses created a new Christian Montessori concept called 'Nonna's', where they work with both infant/toddlers and those with aging and dementia.

Eli Aronson '17 finds his love of the performing arts at MA, and goes on to study vocal performance at St. Olaf college. 

Stephen Swanson '63 shares his love of opera singing and music, and how Harry Opel was his biggest influence at MA. 

Jenny (Ekstedt) Johnson '99 takes her experiences of volunteerism and and meaningful change at MA into her career at the Minneapolis Foundation. 

Casey Franklin '87 felt called to plant a Covenant church to reach unreached people in Denver, Colorado. 

Lara Hammel '86 and her husband Jeff start a well-loved ice cream shop in the Twin Cities called 'Izzy's'.  

Conner Wray '10 is a co-founder of JonnyPops, a simple, 'good for you' frozen treat with real fruit and nothing artificial. 

Every step of Andy’s journey has been about people investing in him, and him investing in others. God places people in our lives, and God gave Andy opportunity after opportunity for intentional relationship building.  Andy says, “You just need to keep your eyes open and your heart open to see what happens.  Do the right thing because it is the right thing to do. Don’t do it to make money, to gain power or influence, just do it because it is the right thing to do.  If we could all do that, we would be in a much better place than we sometimes find ourselves.”  

Barbara (Patterson) Chapman's '83 journey includes a calling to Japan as a missionary for over 20 years, with God showing her his provision and care for her. 

David Anderson '67 was the Chair of the Board of Trustees on August 2nd, 2017, the day of the explosion.  This profile explores 'why' decisions were made as the school was rebuilt. 

As a figure skater for most of her life, Cheryl Marker '95 shares how mentoring and tutoring from MA teachers helped her excel in both figure skating and her future career. 

Janet (Valine) Larson '46 shares about her time at MA and meeting her husband Woody in High School.  They were married, and she pursued her dream of being an RN, while helping Woody with the ministry he founded, 'Hospitality House Youth Development'.  

Tim Carlson '91 shares an MA parents perspective on the August 2nd, 2017 explosion and future plans for the school.  

Elaine (Olson) Ekstedt '69, MA's most tenured alumni and faculty, shares about what was salvaged from the explosion that would be meaningful for all alumni. 

Zoey (Cohen) Leege '97 finds renewed inspiration in her art as she copes with a disability in her life. 

Nate Stromberg '96 comes full circle as a student, and now a teacher of Art at the Upper School campus.  He created the art program and also designed many of the art pieces around campus.  

“My education at Minnehaha in the late 70’s offered a Christian worldview that has made a huge difference in my life.”

Preston gives back to MA with woodworking projects from the trees that needed to be cut down on campus after the explosion. 

When Linda was only 29 and their two sons were four and two, her husband Stephen was walking in downtown Minneapolis when he was struck and killed by a careening car.  “Everything about my life changed in an instant, and I learned what it meant to live by faith.” 

“MA had such a big impact on my life. I had an excellent experience as a student, made lifelong friends, and had huge respect for my teachers.  It was incredibly formative for me. Being on the capital campaign committee was an opportunity for me to get involved and to try to help encourage others to recognize the impact that MA had in their lives--and indicate that we should be stepping up like the people of MA did 100 years ago…in forming the school, giving sacrificially to enable the school to be formed, and ultimately serve us.  In the same way, we should be stepping up today so that we can be putting in place the buildings, facilities, programs and endowments that can carry the school forward for the next 100 years.”

“My three years at MA were very significant for my whole life in setting up my path, my personality, and all of the ideas that grew up in me. I appreciated my friends and teachers, and their support and help. They treated me not as a foreigner but just as a person. They thought my piano talent was special and unique, a valuable gift and I learned that gift was something I could use for the rest of my life.”

“I may be one of the only surviving classmates of the class of 1950—that generation has mainly passed.“ Jack was born in 1932 and he is now 87 years old. The average man who entered the workforce in the early 1900’s lived to be 52 years old.

Don DuBois '82 stays close to MA, first as an alumni, and now as a maintenance engineer for the school. 

Brian J. Anderson's title is “Principal Professional Staff Physicist.” Brian has had opportunities that very few people, or even scientists, have, and they were the highlights of his career.  One was working on the Mercury Surface Space Environment Geochemistry and Ranging (MESSENGER) mission to Mercury. Brian said, “I was a part of the first ever mission to send a spacecraft into Mercury orbit --and you only get to say that once!”

Holly (Larson) Abramson '08 came to Minnehaha for high school, calling the experience “transformational ”. Holly was struck by the differences between her public school experience and what she found at Minnehaha. “MA provided so many opportunities to discover what you were passionate about." 

Amy (Bragg) Carey's '80 personal vision is to ‘lift a people’ through Christian Education. “To see that happen day in and day out is the most exciting thing. At the end of the day, what really matters is who we are in our relationship with the Creator.”

Allan Law, '62 says “God put me on this earth to help the poor.” Allan is on the streets of Minneapolis 20 hours a day, and on call 24 hours a day with his ministry called 'Loved One Another', partnering with churches, non-profits and individuals to help people in Jesus name with food, blankets, and other necessities.

Brad Person '80 finds his calling in photography, with an amazing calling to serve Luis Palau, an international evangelist, at festivals around the world. 

The human brain is three pounds of mystery that scientists have wanted to understand for decades.  Diana Wallin’s '03 fascinating research as a neuroscientist focuses on the brain and its development from an early age.

As a Minnehaha student, Mark Stromberg '74 had no idea that he would go on to pastor Covenant churches, and ultimately serve as Northwest Conference Superintendent. Minnehaha Academy was founded by the Northwest Conference in 1913 and has been a ministry of the conference ever since.

In the eighth grade, Andy Ness knew he was going to be an artist when he grew up but he had a hard time ‘seeing’ how that was possible. That year, Carrie Johnson (his 5th grade teacher) scheduled a day where he got to “skip” school and spend the day with her father, an actor at the Children’s Theatre. Andy shadowed him for the day, meeting actors, set and costume designers, and others who worked in the arts. “This was a pivotal experience for me. Mrs. Johnson saw potential in me, and showed me that there are jobs in the arts and a place for me out in the world.”

“Minnehaha was when my belief took root and I really committed my life to Jesus.  It changed the entire direction of my life,” Monie says.

Phil Weiler '49 and Barbara (Brandt) Weiler '55 share their life stories of marriage, ministry, music and journalism.