We offer here a sampling of the many faculty and staff members who are great models of how to achieve work excellence while maintaining outside interests. One of the college’s six themes in its Strategic Vision is “nurturing and developing the whole person.” Those who take the time to reflect, to create and to pursue their passions have a healthier outlook on life and are better able to sustain high levels of achievement. Here is just a sampling of the many and varied activities undertaken outside of office hours.

“My youngest daughter, Jessica, and I take Kajukenbo. It is the first American martial arts, founded in 1947, in the Palamas Settlement on Hawaii. I take a contact, self-defense class that is comprised of Karate, Judo, Jujitsu, Kempo, and Kung Fu (Chinese kickboxing). This is a tough class. I am one of only a small handful of adult women in our class. Jessi and I attend two one-hour classes back-to-back twice a week. The art has boosted my confidence in how not to be a complete victim if a situation arose. It’s one of most physically and mentally demanding sports I’ve ever done.

“Going to class with my daughter, Jessi is the best part. She helps me remember katas [series of moves] and other things I might forget. We work on our moves together at home. I get a huge kick out of watching her as well. She has several sparring partners her age and does very well. She has developed a good deal of confidence as well as a mean roundhouse kick. We both will be competing this July at a National Tournament in Las Vegas.” --Kim Young, administrative aide, Department of Chemistry

“I do the audio engineering and write some of the commercials for a podcast. Search for PAFLY in the iTunes store or go to http://paflyradioplays.blogspot.com/ and click on any of the green headings.” --Erik Spjut, professor of engineering

Painting and drawing are what I pursue outside of work (I have a bachelor's in fine art, painting and drawing). Completing paintings and becoming skilled in techniques has been a 20-year pursuit that has required an aggressive commitment and a constant negotiation of goals and time. Although, the process of drawing and painting brings me a sense of purpose and well-being, it is also a frustrating endeavor. Several years ago, late at night in a fit of frustration I threw out all of my paintings into my apartment’s dumpsters. At dawn, I was surprised to discover strangers plunging into the dumpsters, appraising the pictures and collecting the canvases with zeal. I thought that was funny and wondered where those pictures would end up. For many years, I painted 3 to 6 hours, four days a week while working a full-time job. Currently, I don’t do that. Since, I’ve started working at HMC, I’ve started a visual journal in which I draw and paint whatever I can within my lunch hour somewhere on a Claremont College campus." --Michelle Spromberg, administrative aide, Office of Public Relations

Bob Wolf, professor of physics emeritus, enjoys kayaking, as does David Coons, director of foundation relations. Coons says, “I’ve been paddling since shortly after I came to California in the 1980s and have had many great times along the Southern California coast, in the Channel Islands National Park, Southeast Alaska, the Sea of Cortez and Baja’s Pacific coast. I like the energy and challenge of the ocean and the beautiful places a kayak can take you which would be hard to get to otherwise.”

Karen Taggart ’77, associate director of annual support and alumni relations, is head judge and trophy maker for the city of Ventura’s Kinetic Sculpture Race. The races, which are held aross the country in different cities, involve hand-built structures that must be engineered to travel on land and in water. The human-powered vehicles must have flair, and a sense of humor certainly helps, says Taggart, who has been enjoying the races for more than 10 years.

Robin Ives, associate professor of mathematics emeritus, and his wife, Lori Ives ’61, are active in Sierra Club and environmentalist activities.

“My most recent passion is tissu, an aerial circus skill in which you climb and perform acrobatics in two long pieces of fabric that are rigged to hang from the ceiling. I think of tissu, which is French for fabric, as a combination of two other physical activities I enjoy— dancing and climbing.” --Rachel Levy, assistant professor of mathematics (shown left)

Competitive swimming is a favorite activity of Karl Haushalter, assistant professor of chemistry and biology. He and several other HMC faculty members train regularly at the CMC pool. Each summer for the past five years, Haushalter has competed in a two-mile rough water swim race from the Hermosa Beach Pier to the Manhattan Beach Pier.

Also swimming at age 91, is Joe Platt, senior professor of physics and founding president emeritus. Platt says, “I swim about a quarter of a mile most days, which helps keep me alive and moving.”

“I help run the local little league which serves 526 players ranging from t-Ball (5 years old) to senior baseball and softball (15- and 16-year-olds). This year, my duties range from vice president, softball director, umpire coordinator, auxilary and all other duties as assigned. I spend my nights and weekends opening the snack bars, delivering equipment, scheduling umpires, running background checks on volunteers, ensuring the coaches and players are following the rules, responding to the hotline, receiving complaints, attending Parks and Recreation meetings, and attending District Little League monthly meetings. After all the work is done, I sometimes even get to enjoy one of my childrens’ games!” --Karen Angemi, executive assistant to the president

“I have lately become fascinated with gardening. Plants are amazingly intricate and working with them is therapeutic.” --Francis Su, associate professor of mathematics

“It took me 40 years, but I finally realized my dream a few years ago. Thanks to my husband Daniel, who is my riding partner, I executed a plan to buy horse property, built my own barn, and learned some horse riding skills that helped me navigate the foothills of La Verne and Claremont. I wake up early every day including Sunday to feed the horses and clean their stalls. Yes, it is hard work, but this is my passion and I am glad to do it. I tell people, ‘It is the best gym I every joined!’ The riding and maintaining of these magnificent equines is physically demanding but it is worth it. I am living my dream, and I feel joy doing it!” --Elaine Guerra, lab manager, Department of Biology

Annie Atiyeh, physics stockroom manager, enjoys taking recreational walking tours wherever she travels. When exploring new countries and new cultures, Atiyeh says she likes to “discover places from a walker’s point of view and see places where regular tourist would never see.”

Guy Gerbick, associate dean of students, dean of residential life, has a particular fascination for college campuses. “I love to wander around them, learn their history, find out their famous alumni, browse the bookstore, tour through the student union, check out their dorms, read the student newspaper, etc. I've hit hundreds over the years, visiting all 50 states and several other countries. I also have dozens of institutional history books,” he says.

“My passion outside of work is doing volunteer work for SoldiersAngels.org. I have adopted a soldier in Iraq and write him weekly and send him a care package once a month. He is only 20 years old! I asked him what he needed or would like me to send. He asked for a soft blanket and a fluffy towel. Of course, I sent them right away but couldn’t help tearing up a bit at such a simple request. Since I can’t afford to adopt more than one, I pass out flyers and have posted them around HMC also. I volunteer for several outside activities for Soldiersangels.org, and it is probably the most rewarding thing I have ever done.” --Tony Martin, lead building attendant, Department of Facilities and Maintenance

Cathy McFadden, Vivian and D. Kenneth Baker Professor in the Life Sciences, has combined her interests in birdwatching, hiking and international travel into a pursuit known as world birding—traveling the world with the goal of seeing as many as possible of the world’s 10,000 species of birds. “So far I have managed to see about a quarter of that number (roughly 2,400 species). Since beginning world birding, my husband and I have travelled to Mexico, Belize, Ecuador, Kenya, The Gambia, Bhutan, Thailand and northern Australia in search of birds. I have also managed to fit in some birding time while attending international conferences or doing marine field work in places such as Palau, Okinawa and Panama. In addition to combining travel and (often) strenuous outdoor activity with birding, world birding has provided a great opportunity to meet, get to know and help to support people of other cultures. We hire local, native guides wherever we go, and, as a result, have had experiences such as spending three weeks driving across Bhutan in the company of two Bhutanese guides, and spending a day walking the Masai Mara with a Masai herdsman.”

Bicycling is a favorite pasttime for a number of community members. When he’s not rebuilding his Porsche, Tom Shaffer, plant engineer, rides his bike in the local hills on weeknights, takes longer rides on the weekends, and has made “epic rides” through Colorado, Utah and Arizona.

Merritt Humphrey, assistant director of annual support and alumni relations, rides 15 miles each weekend on her pink bicycle.

Director of Public Relations Don Davidson races bicycles in the master’s category (55 and over) for the Southern California-Nevada Cycling Association. In 2005, Davidson won the silver medal in his category in the Mount Everest Challenge State Climbing Championship, a two-day, 206-mile race that includes 29,035 feet of elevation gain in six climbs within the Sierra Nevada and White-Inyo mountain ranges.

Hal Barron, Louisa and Robert Miller Professor of Humanities and professor of history, pedals at least 50 miles on weekends in addition to riding a training route around the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, near his home. Barron did his very first century ride (100 miles) last summer and says he is looking forward to doing more of them.

Christine Alvarado, assistant professor of mathematics, has combined her love for running, swimming, biking and competing and now does triathlons. She says, “I barely think of these sports as my ‘passion.’ They are just an essential part of my life, exactly like eating and sleeping. But I guess to the people around me they definitely look like a passion!”

“I took up running in a serious way soon after arriving at HMC in 1997 and completed my first marathon in 1998. Since then, I’ve run 4–5 more marathons, and probably as many half-marathons. I am particularly proud of the fact that I set a personal-best in a half-marathon this year--1:30:59. The intensity of the exercise helps bleed off excess energy and stress, and helps me keep an even keel. Also, I find the time alone on the road or on the trail about the only time alone I get, and I deeply value it.” --Tom Donnelly, associate dean of the faculty and associate professor of physics

“My extracurricular passion is classical choral singing. I sang in the Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Concert Choir in the fall when my class schedule allowed it, and I am an ongoing member of the Occidental Chorale (based at Occidental College but with a much wider membership than that; we are also the official chorus of the Pasadena Symphony and sing a lot with them). I am mostly a choral singer but have also worked with small (4-5 person) groups and done a very little bit of solo work.” --Theresa Lynn, assistant professor of physics

“I’m pretty passionate about music, specifically opera. Every year, I go to area schools and give talks to help prepare them to attend a free opera performance downtown.” --Geoff Kuenning, associate professor of computer science

“My true passion is collecting antique dolls called Lenci that were made in Italy starting in 1919 and through WWII. They were reissued in the ’70s and ’80s, but the factory closed in 1999. The older dolls from the ’20s and ’30s are very desirable by cloth doll collectors. They are truly pieces of art. I write magazine articles about them, and I recently made a presentation to a woman’s philanthropic organization that raises money for scholarships for female students. I’ve also presented seminars at the United Federation of Doll Clubs’ yearly convention, where people come from all over the world. My two seminars were three hours each in Dallas, and this July, I’ll be holding discussions in Detroit. I have a room in my home that is just for my dolls, made from 100% wool felt and beautifully painted and dressed.” --Judy Fisher, director of career services (shown right with some of her collection)

“With all six of our kids out on their own—the last three of whom received master’s degrees—our passion has been to help other kids achieve their dreams of a college education through our involvement with a local chapter of the Dollars for Scholars called the Esperanza Scholarship Foundation. My wife and I have been involved with this group for six years now and it has grown substantially in terms of scholarships awarded as well as funding raised—over $180,000 in 2006.” --Barry Olsan, director of corporate relations

In addition to spending time with his wife and infant son, David Vosburg, assistant professor of chemistry, says he enjoys harmonizing his spiritual and intellectual growth—“being part of a supportive and engaging faith community that together wrestles with issues of belief, practical living and the mind. This also relates to my interest in exploring spiritual themes in ‘The Matrix’ and ‘The Lord of the Rings,’ ” he says.

“I like to spend time in the mountains. I love the beauty, the exercise, and the chance to connect with our local environment. During my sabbatical, I got into the guidebook business and published two books. Now, my wife and I are working on a third, ‘Afoot and Afield in the Inland Empire.’ Our son comes on most all of the hikes less than 12 miles, riding on my back or trotting along. It’s become a perfect way to combine family, hobby and work.” --David Harris, associate professor of engineering

Lisette de Pillis, professor of mathematics, loves to learn languages. As a teenager, she spent four months at the Goethe Institute in Staufen, Germany, and stayed on for one year, eventually becoming fluent in German. After graduating from college, she went to Norway, where she married, and learned to speak (and read and write) Norwegian. “Currently, on sabbatical, with the aid of a Mellon Faculty Enhancement Grant, I am learning Italian (which is going to be very helpful for my future research collaborations with the Italian scientists in mathematical cancer modeling) and am now speaking at an advanced-intermediate level.”

“I write poetry and small essay pieces. Writing is as much a part of me as computing, and I enjoy toying with words regardless of the potential pun that should be quickly ushered to the nearest, deepest pit and quickly tossed therein.” --Raymond Allen, help desk support specialist, Department of Computing and Information Services