Class Note 1981
Issue
May-June 2026
Class Note 1981. ’Round the girdled earth they roam: Anne (Hallagher) and Tom McGonagle and Lisa and Scott Stuart summitted Kilimanjaro in January. Inspiring!
Searching for classmates who chose a road “less traveled by,” I found four who attended seminary.
Rick Bellows knew at age 12 he wanted to be a priest. He majored in earth science and philosophy and worked as a geologist, following the advice of his bishop that he gain life experience before seminary. Rick earned a master’s of divinity and was ordained an Episcopal priest. He worked as a hospital chaplain and led parishes in Massachusetts and New York. He says that each “felt betrayed” by a prior priest and “restoring trust” was a focus of his ministry. Since retiring, Rick has volunteered at a church for the homeless and now at a church in Massachusetts. He says he chose a great career, seeing congregations open up to the world, and he has had interesting philosophical discussions with his children.
Rick shared a U-Haul driving to seminary with Nancy Milholland, whoreports that she too felt called to the ministry in middle school, before the Episcopal Church ordained women. Nancy was a geography major and worked in tech before seminary. As a priest she served parishes in Michigan and New York. She then returned to tech while volunteering with parish ministries. After a cancer diagnosis, Nancy moved west to work for Genentech. She earned a master’s in geographic information systems and now works with the San Francisco Department of Emergency Management. She says coordinating disaster responses is a “nice marriage of concern for others, well-being, creativity, geography, and tech.” She views her ministry as “supporting others as they listen for that still small voice that brings courage, forgiveness, and love.” She’s also won a USA hockey championship, weeks after chemo, and a 50-plus national championship. She says, “Life is full, and I wonder what is next.”
Shawn Norris says he came to Dartmouth “on the edge of faith” and got involved in the Dartmouth Area Christian Fellowship, Tucker, and Edgerton House. He says he is “grateful for those who taught me to distinguish faith from certainty and to find the holy in the broken and hidden places.” Shawn got a master’s of divinity and was ordained a Lutheran pastor. He served churches in Arizona and Pennsylvania and worked with students on college campuses, most recently, for 23 years in Kansas, where he lives with his husband, Lou Flessner.
Tyler Zabriskie received a master’s of theology in intercultural studies, inspired by Dartmouth religion classes and work with Indigenous faith leaders in Congo. He has counseled people with substance abuse, started inner-city ministries in Los Angeles, and coached leaders in Cambodia. He also earned an M.B.A., led change management at World Vision International, and directed humanitarian programs at American Refugee Committee. Tyler now coaches. “It feels sacred,” he says, “when we explore soulful questions about meaning, purpose, or identity.” He married a Mennonite chaplain, Kristi, and has two children.
—Howard Morse, 1836 Milvale Road, Annapolis, MD 21409; m.howard.morse@gmail.com; Christy Hunter Mihaly, P.O. Box 119, East Calais, VT 05650; christymihaly@gmail.com
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Searching for classmates who chose a road “less traveled by,” I found four who attended seminary.
Rick Bellows knew at age 12 he wanted to be a priest. He majored in earth science and philosophy and worked as a geologist, following the advice of his bishop that he gain life experience before seminary. Rick earned a master’s of divinity and was ordained an Episcopal priest. He worked as a hospital chaplain and led parishes in Massachusetts and New York. He says that each “felt betrayed” by a prior priest and “restoring trust” was a focus of his ministry. Since retiring, Rick has volunteered at a church for the homeless and now at a church in Massachusetts. He says he chose a great career, seeing congregations open up to the world, and he has had interesting philosophical discussions with his children.
Rick shared a U-Haul driving to seminary with Nancy Milholland, whoreports that she too felt called to the ministry in middle school, before the Episcopal Church ordained women. Nancy was a geography major and worked in tech before seminary. As a priest she served parishes in Michigan and New York. She then returned to tech while volunteering with parish ministries. After a cancer diagnosis, Nancy moved west to work for Genentech. She earned a master’s in geographic information systems and now works with the San Francisco Department of Emergency Management. She says coordinating disaster responses is a “nice marriage of concern for others, well-being, creativity, geography, and tech.” She views her ministry as “supporting others as they listen for that still small voice that brings courage, forgiveness, and love.” She’s also won a USA hockey championship, weeks after chemo, and a 50-plus national championship. She says, “Life is full, and I wonder what is next.”
Shawn Norris says he came to Dartmouth “on the edge of faith” and got involved in the Dartmouth Area Christian Fellowship, Tucker, and Edgerton House. He says he is “grateful for those who taught me to distinguish faith from certainty and to find the holy in the broken and hidden places.” Shawn got a master’s of divinity and was ordained a Lutheran pastor. He served churches in Arizona and Pennsylvania and worked with students on college campuses, most recently, for 23 years in Kansas, where he lives with his husband, Lou Flessner.
Tyler Zabriskie received a master’s of theology in intercultural studies, inspired by Dartmouth religion classes and work with Indigenous faith leaders in Congo. He has counseled people with substance abuse, started inner-city ministries in Los Angeles, and coached leaders in Cambodia. He also earned an M.B.A., led change management at World Vision International, and directed humanitarian programs at American Refugee Committee. Tyler now coaches. “It feels sacred,” he says, “when we explore soulful questions about meaning, purpose, or identity.” He married a Mennonite chaplain, Kristi, and has two children.
—Howard Morse, 1836 Milvale Road, Annapolis, MD 21409; m.howard.morse@gmail.com; Christy Hunter Mihaly, P.O. Box 119, East Calais, VT 05650; christymihaly@gmail.com