OUR TOWN
October/November 2020
Editor’s Message: The Moment of Truth The most important election of our lifetimes will soon be taking place. Many of you have probably already voted by mail or plan to vote early in person in the coming days. Then, on...
League of Women Voters and Citizens’ Climate Lobby Host Forum on Climate Change
The League of Women Voters of Bloomington-Monroe County and the South Central Indiana Chapter of the Citizens’ Climate Lobby will hold a nonpartisan virtual forum on climate change Thursday, October 8, from 6:30–8 p.m.
Rahul Shrivastav: IU Dining Director
Restaurants, cafés, cafeterias, concession stands, catering—they are all under the purview of Rahul Shrivastav, executive director of Indiana University Dining.
Marietta Simpson: Opera Professor
Mezzo-soprano Marietta Simpson’s repertoire ranges from Bach and Beethoven to Gershwin and Bernstein.
Joe Weiler: Golfer
Joe Weiler started golfing at the Bloomington Country Club as a way to spend time with his friends. But by the time he hit seventh grade and was consistently beating his father at the game, he realized he was getting pretty good.
OUR TOWN
October/November 2020
Editor’s Message: The Moment of Truth The most important election of our lifetimes will soon be taking place. Many of you have probably already voted by mail or plan to vote early in person in the coming days. Then, on...
League of Women Voters and Citizens’ Climate Lobby Host Forum on Climate Change
The League of Women Voters of Bloomington-Monroe County and the South Central Indiana Chapter of the Citizens’ Climate Lobby will hold a nonpartisan virtual forum on climate change Thursday, October 8, from 6:30–8 p.m.
Rahul Shrivastav: IU Dining Director
Restaurants, cafés, cafeterias, concession stands, catering—they are all under the purview of Rahul Shrivastav, executive director of Indiana University Dining.
Marietta Simpson: Opera Professor
Mezzo-soprano Marietta Simpson’s repertoire ranges from Bach and Beethoven to Gershwin and Bernstein.
Joe Weiler: Golfer
Joe Weiler started golfing at the Bloomington Country Club as a way to spend time with his friends. But by the time he hit seventh grade and was consistently beating his father at the game, he realized he was getting pretty good.
Audrey Heller: Theater Pioneer
The Jewish Theatre of Bloomington was founded 15 years ago by Audrey Heller and Bakol Ruben Geller, and while Rubin Geller departed for Israel several years ago, Heller is still going strong.
Doug Bauder: LGBTQ+ Educator
Following his retirement at the end of 2019, Doug Bauder, founding director of the Indiana University LGBTQ+ Culture Center, is ready to start work on a book reflecting on that experience.
John McCluskey: Author, Athlete, Teacher
Back in 1964, when he was a junior at Harvard University, John McCluskey was the first African American to start at quarterback for an Ivy League team. He also started his senior year, and it tickles him now to think that George W. Bush was a cheerleader on the sidelines and that John Kerry watched from the stands while McCluskey led Harvard to victories over Yale.
Michael Shermis: Connector
Michael Shermis is a connector. As a consultant, he facilitates retreats that help nonprofits connect with their missions.
William Vance: Local NAACP President
In 1909, a multi-racial group of activists formed the NAACP, the nation’s oldest civil rights organization. Today, the local branch of the organization maintains that tradition of diversity, with as many white members as African American members.
Rish Naran: From Zimbabwe To Bloomington
At 18, Rishel “Rish” Naran traveled from his home country of Zimbabwe to Texas, his heart set on a career as a professional golfer. Unfortunately, he suffered a back injury during a soccer game, making a golf career unattainable. Changing paths is what eventually landed him in Bloomington where, at 29, he works as the general manager of Andy Mohr Honda.
Kathleen McLean: Bassoonist Professor
When she joined the school band in her hometown of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, 11-year-old Kathleen McLean wasn’t really interested in playing the bassoon. Her first choice was the trumpet. But she was assigned the tall, thin woodwind and, she says, “Then I fell in love with the sound, so akin to the human voice.”
Sammy L. Davis: War Hero
Sammy Lee Davis enlisted in the Army during the Vietnam era while a senior at Mooresville High School, south of Indianapolis. He was sent into battle and had been in Vietnam just eight months when, on the night of November 18, 1967, his artillery regiment of 42 was overrun by about 1,500 North Vietnamese soldiers.
Don Griffin Jr.: Realtor and Civic Activist
Fifteen years ago, Don Griffin Jr. had a thriving real estate brokerage but was disillusioned with the business. He stopped advertising, closed his office, and planned to become a chaplain. Then he made a resolution that would change everything. “I decided I would just work with people I like, and it’s not going to be about money but about helping people get to the next chapter in their lives,” Griffin says. “And it was funny. People started coming to me more.”
Katie Mills: Bassoonist Extraordinaire
When she was in middle school and studying the cello, Katie Mills had a musical epiphany: “I knew I wanted to play an instrument that nobody else played.”
Jackson Njau: Paleoanthropologist
One might say Jackson Njau, 52, was born into the paleoanthropology field—or at least very near it.
Lillian Casillas: Latino Community Advocate
When Lillian Casillas moved to Bloomington from northwestern Indiana in 1985, she joined thousands of other young adults who left home to attend Indiana University. It was a common experience, but Casillas, a native of Mexico, says her Latino heritage and its emphasis on family made the move more significant for her, both geographically and culturally.
Tony Kale: High School Sports Announcer
Ellettsville native Tony Kale, now in his 31st year of high school sports broadcasting, got into radio the old-fashioned way: as a teenage wiseguy.
William Ramos: Water-Safety Expert
William Ramos has devoted his career to reducing the incidence of drowning. The director of the Indiana University Aquatic Institute and an assistant professor in the Department of Recreation, Park, and Tourism Studies in the IU School of Public Health, Ramos received IU’s 2019 Latino Faculty and Staff Distinguished Faculty Award for his work educating the public on water safety.
John Thiel: Disabled Veteran Activist
Disabled by a leg injury he received in Vietnam, John Thiel retired from the U.S. Army and enrolled at Indiana University in 1971, almost 20 years before the Americans with Disabilities Act.
