A place to learn about what’s going on in the lives of RISE Community Members
March 2023
JK Ancell (they/them)
JK has recently started listening to Hank and John Green’s podcast and they are obsessed with it! They’ve been busy working a ton and rehearsing for Rocky Horror Picture Show, which they are really looking forward to! They are grateful for their parents, the children they get to teach, and for Hank and John Green. And most notably this month, their birthday is March 26!!
Sunshine Brown (she/they)
Sunshine has been having fun lately working her job at a dog daycare and with her hobbies of crocheting and bead-work. They have also been busy saving up for their Spring Break trip to go to Arizona to see the opening show on the Taylor Swift Eras tour! She is grateful for her grandpa, her partner, and her cat.
Abby Butler-Cefalo, (she/her/hers)
Abby got engaged on New Year’s Eve, so she has been spending much of her free time wedding planning! She’s also looking forward to going to Grad School in the fall to pursue full-time ordained ministry! But she has also found some time recently for reconnecting with old friends, launching a non-profit that she co-founded, and being in the utterly chaotic world of her kitten, Nutmeg. Her hobbies include running, cooking, and exploring new vegan recipes, and she is really grateful for her kitchen & having the energy to spend time there - vegetable prepping/chopping is a mental and emotional reset for her!
Dirt Fitzhenry (they/them)
Dirt has recently been playing a lot of chess and learning tactics, watching foreign murder mystery dramas, shaving their partner’s head, and doing physical chemistry. They’ve also been cooking tofu, writing research papers, and eating lunch with their research lab.
They’re grateful for their partner, Isaac, and their support system that involves him, their RISE friends, and their chemistry family.
Caitlin McGeehan (she/her)
Caitlin recently went to Richmond to see Hot Mulligan and The Wonder Years! In February she spent lots of time doing schoolwork and spending time with friends/new members in Student Ambassadors. Lately she is thankful for her super fun roommates, who are always down to hang out and are so much fun to be around. Her current hobby is that she is trying to practice piano more!
Amanda Miller Garber (she/her)
Amanda is always scheming & dreaming in an effort to mend God’s creation together (particularly with RISE folks)! She’s also the president of the board of our local domestic violence shelter. She still found time recently to visit some sweet National Parks in Utah and New Mexico, as well as Chincoteague Isalnd. When she isn’t working or traveling, she is really trying to start running regularly again (anyone want to be a running partner?) She is super grateful for leaders who work so hard and give so much (with so much joy). And that RISE is finding its energy again. Also super thankful for her family. And açaí. And coffee. She is ready to start planting flowers (loving this super early spring), and is very much looking forward to going to see Taylor Swift with her daughter in May (who will be graduating from high school in June) and then some awesome summer travel plans!
Roy Nelson (he/him/his)
Since having Covid at beginning of the year, Roy has had extreme fatigue and brain fog. So he has mostly been taking things easy. Nevertheless, he has still been vacation planning and making environmental modifications around the house to make life easier. He is grateful for life and family, and is looking forward to traveling to Europe in May.
Sarah Nicklas (she/her)
Sarah likes to read books. In February she was busy preparing things for the 100th day of school and Valentine's day, watching a play, and looking forward to spring break. She was recently involved in a severe car accident, and is grateful that she was alone in the car at the time. She is grateful for her children.
Caroline Palmore (she/her/hers)
Caroline is currently taking classes on exotic & farm animal medicine and is finding them really fun and interesting! Aside from school, she has spent a lot of time with her fellow RISE leaders, as well as preparing for her vet tech board exam which she’ll sit for at the end of March. She plays the ukulele and is currently working on hand-writing some tablature for her favorite music, as well as experimenting more with cooking! She is very thankful for her roommates and fellow RISE leaders who are always supportive, and is looking forward to the prospect of spring and hammocking in the warm weather!
Will Weston (he/him/his)
Will’s hobbies include music, skiing, volleyball and swimming, and most recently trying to read the Breeze and books other than textbooks for classes. He has also been going to a lot of new club meetings such as ASL, Catholic Dukes, and Card Sharks. While he struggles with being drained and exhausted after balancing job, classes, and social life, he is grateful for his family, close friends, and new friends that he’s made, as well as JMU’s community and all the opportunities on campus. He looks forward to making new memories every day at college.
Chris Zepp (he/him)
Chris keeps himself busy with two jobs and being a husband and dad, but he has still found time to go to as many of the local school musicals as possible. He enjoys good stories (books, theater, movies, and TV), music, sports (Go Os!), jigsaw puzzles, and humor. He also has a well-hidden crafty side that can be seen in his homemade candles and hand-sewn patched work pants. He is most grateful for his family and his friends that are like family.
Want to be included in the next edition of Community Connections?
Watch for an invitation to submit your pictures and life-happenings in the coming months!