Science

Read news and updates submitted by fellow alumni by date submitted, news category, faculty of graduation, decade or search for a name. Share your news here.

Fred Zelonka, MA’58

died at his home near Seattle at age 94. He was born in a CPR camp in Canal Flats, AB, had a successful career with IBM, raised four kids and was a world traveller, lifelong learner, gifted writer and devoted father and husband.

Robert Musgrove, HBSc’83

released a new book entitled Panorama of Existence: The Story of My Near-Death Experience (NDE) and Post-Cancer Awakening in April 2024.  

Read more.

Ross Bates, BSc’80

passed away on January 28, 2025 in Castlegar, British Columbia. He was an instructor at Selkirk College.

Edward Fuller, BSc’77

retired from British Columbia Geological Survey Branch and Thompson Rivers University OL faculty. Edward stays active, travels, enjoys motorcycles and volunteering.

Brian Todd, BSc’78

retired as a marine geoscientist from the Geological Survey of Canada in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. His career in geophysics took him to many remote parts of onshore and offshore Canada, always in the company of outstanding colleagues.

Michelle Wheatley, BSc’86

retired from Fisheries and Oceans Canada in April 2024, after 20 years with the department. She most recently worked as a special advisor to support the establishment of the new Arctic region.

Ryley Yost, BSc’17, PhD’23

started a new position within the School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies at Western in September 2023.

Pete Emes, BSc’99

was nominated for a Juno Award for “Best Underground Dance Single” in 2024 with his production/DJ duo Smalltown DJs.

Robert Gioia, BSc’97

has joined the team of dedicated primary care physicians at Holy Cross Medical Group’s Wilton Manors office in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. He has a deep-rooted interest in preventative medicine, sexual health, LGBTQ+ health and HIV medicine.

Dawn Macdonald, BSc’97

published her first poetry collection, Northerny, with the University of Alberta Press in February 2024.

Stephen Andebirhan, BSc’16

purchased their first home in Glen Cairn, London, ON.

Andrea Wishart, BSc’10, MSc’14

defended her Ph.D. in August, and married Steven Denis in September 2023 in Saskatoon, SK.

Chris Hillis, BSc’06

is now the Chief of Oncology for Hamilton Health Sciences (Juravinski Cancer Centre).

Amanda Philavong, MSc’20

joined the Ivey Business School as their new Research Officer.

Winston Richards, PhD’71

passed away December 19, 2022, at his home in Durham, North Carolina. A partner to his wife of 58 years and father to eight children, Winston was a distinguished professor of Mathematics and Statistics at Penn State University.

Read more.

Trina Innes, BSc’89

was recognized in 2022 as one of 100 women and gender-diverse people who are leading the way to a clean energy future in Canada through the Women in Energy Transformation Series.

Read more here.

Jacob Van Dyk, MSc’71, DSc’14

published True Tales of Medical Physics: Insights into a Life Saving Specialty featuring short stories from scientists and medical professionals.

Claire McCague, PhD’04

published The Rosetta Mind, the second novel in her science fiction series.

Tristan Squire-Smith, BSc’04, BA’05

published Wrinkly Ranch, a deep dive into COVID’s toll on long-term care facilities.

Read more here.

Jerry Battista, MSc’73

produced a virtual music album The Stochastics & Friends with 13 other amateur international physicist-musicians. Learn more here.  

Thalia Standish, BSc’14, PhD 2020

and Geoff Standish welcomed their first child, Eliana Ava Standish in May 2021.

Wendy Lopez-Pollard, BSc’00

married the love of her life in August 2022.

Jennifer Street, BSc’18

and Kyle Tan, BSc’18, met at Western and were married in June 2022. 

Mary Anne White, BSc’75, DSc’11

and John Noel, were granted a US patent for “Phase-change Material and Method for Producing Same”.

Germaine Joseph-Hays, BSc’05, MSc’07

was promoted to Assistant Principal at Corvallis High School in Corvallis, OR,USA and was selected as scholar in the prestigious Fulbright Teachers for Global Classrooms program. 

Michael Menard, BSc’84

is the Adjunct Professor at Nazareth College School Of Business Rochester, NY and new Board Member with Volunteers Of America Upstate NY.

James McInnes, BSc’02

and Vasiliki McInnes, MScN’15, opened a vegan food manufacturing facility in London, Ontario. Read more here.

Danny Chang, BSC’20

and Jason Grier launched a startup called Delphic Research to help support government affairs professionals.

Sarah Van de Vooren, BSc’10

celebrated five years travelling as a digital nomad, working with Waste Solutions Canada as a sustainability data analyst.

Lee Manchur, BSc’07

was promoted to Chief Information Officer at Ontario College Application Service in May 2022.

Dennis McKaig, BSc’88

has recently accepted a faculty teaching position at Fanshawe College where he will teach Law to business and accounting students.