Association news & class notes
Denise Laudenberger recently celebrated her six-year anniversary with Hanger Clinic, where she serves as an office administrator. Hanger Clinic is a nationwide provider of orthotic and prosthetic devices, with roots dating back to the Civil War. A fun fact about Denise is that she owns a three-legged cat — an amputee she adopted even before joining Hanger. Outside of work, Denise has embraced “cruise life,” having taken three Royal Caribbean cruises this past year to Bermuda, the Bahamas, and Canada. She’s already busy planning her next adventure!
Mary Van Pelt Waskey has officially begun her 37th year of teaching! The last several she has been teaching second grade. Both of her daughters are now in high school, and the family enjoyed a wonderful Disney vacation last January followed by a relaxing beach trip over the summer. Mary stays busy keeping up with her daughters’ dance, theatre, and church youth group activities.
Brian Baugus continues to reside in Chesapeake, Virginia, and is now in his 13th year as an economics professor at Regent University. Since the last update, Brian and his wife have enjoyed traveling to several European countries, as well as Mexico and Guatemala, where they celebrated their 32nd wedding anniversary. At home, they have a bit of land and quite the menagerie — ranging from a flock of 50 assorted birds to goats, donkeys, pigs, and even a few exotic animals, including a Burmese python and a pet alligator. Brian says that if you’re ever heading to Virginia Beach or the Outer Banks, be sure to reach out!
After 36 years of federal service Theresa Bernhardt Ballinger retired in August 2025. Most recently, she was the Goddard Space Flight Center’s chief financial officer for finance. She looks forward to continuing her work on the board of the Autism Society of Maryland and leading the task force for its affordable housing project, Patuxent Commons. Theresa is looking forward to spending more time at the beach with her family and reconnecting with her WMC friends.
Roland McCahan continues to enjoy the beach bum life on the beautiful Outer Banks of North Carolina. He notes that he doesn’t influence anyone about anything!
Bryan Lynch retired from the New Jersey State Police in January 2022 after 26 years of dedicated service, including 19 years on the governor’s detail. He has since begun his second career as an executive protection (EP) specialist with Kenvue, a company that spun off from Johnson & Johnson. Bryan and his wife, Kerri, recently celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary. Their daughter, Madalyn, graduated from UMass Amherst in May, while their son, Gavin, also graduated in May from Ocean County College and is now attending Gwynedd Mercy University, where he plays baseball. Their youngest daughter, Camryn, is a senior at Toms River High School, ranked eighth in a class of 500, and shines in both volleyball and softball.
Debbie Ridpath divides her time between Los Angeles, England, and the East Coast for work. She continues to work as a showrunner, writer, director, and producer. Her children, now 27 and 25, also work in the entertainment industry, and she enjoys spending much of her time with them. Deb hopes to eventually settle back in England on a farm property — provided she can convince her kids to join her! She remains in touch with Janine Advice as well as Nora Soliman ’92 and Dina Soliman ’91, and she’s hoping to reconnect with more old friends soon.
Bob Hutchinson is still working in research and development compliance at Johnson & Johnson. His sons are both in high school now. This past year, his family enjoyed trips to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic; Watoga State Park in West Virginia; and Ocean City, Maryland.
Mel Fahlteich Fernandez shares that life is fantastic! She and her husband recently celebrated 10 wonderful years of marriage. Their children are all grown and thriving — just like their parents. Mel’s favorite role these days is being “Gogo” to her four grandchildren: three boys and one girl, ages 4, 3, 2, and 1. With her kids living nearby, she gets to see them often. Mel’s career with the county in Central Florida continues to go great, and she still makes it back to Maryland a few times a year to visit her mom and sister, who both live in Anne Arundel County.
Roxanne Benjovsky McClanahan and her husband, Dan, are enjoying life with their three grown sons, two daughters-in-law, and their beautiful new granddaughter, Ava Jane McClanahan, who arrived on May 21, 2025. Ava lives just two miles away, so “GranDan” and “Moxie” get plenty of visits! Roxanne is back to working in the office in Washington, D.C., where she serves as a ServiceNow engagement specialist for Hogan Lovells. She jokes that it’s funny how an Art major ended up working in IT at a law firm — proof of the power of a liberal arts education! While she admits to being a little envious of classmates who have already retired, she’s still a few years away herself. Roxanne stays closely connected with her WMC friends, especially through the “Thirsty Thursday” gatherings that her Phi Sig sisters have kept going every month since 1989. She sends her best wishes to everyone!
Patrick Dail began a new role in June 2025 as vice president for workforce development in Danville, Virginia, after previously working with a community college in Charlotte, North Carolina. He’s been really enjoying the region and extends an open invitation to anyone for a hike — or some good barbecue!
Chris Schaber and Cathi Frantzen Schaber ’90 welcomed their first grandchild, Ella, on July 14, 2025. Chris continues his long and successful career in biotech and was honored with McDaniel’s Alumni Professional Achievement Award in 2024. He remains close friends with Steve Hollander, Dan Moskowitz, and Harry Cohen.
Jim Cardea and Frances Fato Cardea are now proud grandparents — and officially empty nesters! Their oldest daughter, Jaimie, welcomed a baby girl, Sawyer, last June, and Jim and Frances have loved every moment of watching their granddaughter grow and reach new milestones. Just two months later, their youngest daughter, Kelly, headed off to Penn State, leaving the couple on their own for the first time in 28 years. Frances continues to serve as controller at the Aspen Hill Club in Silver Spring, Maryland, where she’s worked for 32 years, while Jim remains a partner at Schochor, Staton, Goldberg, and Cardea, P.A. in Baltimore, practicing medical malpractice law. In their free time, Jim and Frances enjoy traveling and relaxing at their home in Bethany Beach, Delaware. Last summer, they caught up with several fellow alums, including Chris Newman ’88 and Sue Shoumer Newman, Tom Paranzino ’82 and Kathy Marvel Paranzino ’85, Mike Schmall ’90, Chris Flatter, and Ann Kangas ’90. They’ve also enjoyed attending various McDaniel alumni events and staying connected to the Hill. Next September, Jim plans to host the final Dr. Don Cardea Memorial Golf Tournament in New Jersey. To date, the event has raised nearly $100,000 for the Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia.
Maria Filshie Douglas and her husband Dave Douglas ’87 of Easton, Maryland, are enjoying retired life to the fullest. Their recent travels have taken them across Europe, to sunny Aruba with Tracy Buckman Dunne ’88 and Matt Dunne ’87, and to Key West, Florida, with Richie Wheatley ’87 and his wife, Martha. They also love visiting their daughters in Kansas City and Bentonville, Arkansas. Maria especially treasures catching up with her sorority sisters Mary O’Hara Zorbach, Barb Pierantozzi-McCaughey, and Elizabeth Burkitt Leasure.
Elizabeth Burkitt Leasure is loving life with her husband, Ted. They spent winter in Cocoa Beach, Florida, and enjoyed travels to Nashville, Tennessee; St. Petersburg, Florida, for the Firestone Grand Prix; Northern California; the Bahamas; and Virginia Beach to visit Shawn Chatfield Ott ’88. Elizabeth also loves her visits with Mary O’Hara Zorbach, Maria Filshie Douglas, and Barb Pierantozzi-McCaughey.
As for me, my husband and I are splitting our time between Maryland and South Carolina. We still have our home in Timonium, Maryland, but spend as much time as possible in Pawleys Island, South Carolina. Since my kids and most of my family are still up north, I travel back and forth quite a bit. Eventually, we plan to make the move to South Carolina full time. When I’m in Maryland, I work for Redfin as an associate agent. I love running into WMC friends wherever I go! We’re looking forward to celebrating weddings, milestones, and birthdays — and with our 60th birthdays coming up, we’re already planning a girls’ trip to celebrate! It’s hard to believe that almost 40 years have passed — it feels like just yesterday we were waiting in line at Glar, going to club room parties, tailgating, and dancing at Champs.
Mary O’Hara Zorbach1989 Class Reporter8 Forest Ridge CourtTimonium, MD 21093mozorbach@yahoo.com