Four Ball State alumni in Europe met recently with BSU International Advancement director Martin Limbird.

Adrian (MA'90) and Kimberly (MA'90) Van Alphen interrupted their fall family holidays to meet Limbird in the southern Netherlands city of Roosendaal. Both Van Alphens are faculty members at the Eindhoven campus of Fontys University of Professional Education. The couple and their two children usually travel to Kim's parents' home in Ohio each summer, using school holidays to visit different parts of the Netherlands. Adrian was responsible for sending a Fontys faculty team of sports management specialists to Ball State.  He expressed interest in expanding that connection to a full-fledged exchange agreement between Fontys and BSU. Kim teaches English as a Second Language to Fontys students.

1985 MBA graduate Eric Guichard traveled 30 kilometers across Paris to meet Limbird on October 18. Employed as CFO for the French subsidiary of a U.S.-based pharmaceutical firm, Nova Biomedical, Guichard has maintained an active interest in Ball State. He recalled being awarded an assistantship, making his studies financially possible. Guichard remembers many of his fellow business students, including Umit Taftali (BS '85). Guichard recently traveled to Asia to assist his firm in setting up a subsidiary in Japan. Limbird encouraged Guichard to visit campus and share his international career experiences with BSU students.

1988 political science graduate Major Christopher Courtney is in his 17^th year as a career officer in the U.S. Army. Chris is currently a strategic planner with the U.S. Delegation to NATO Military Mission in Brussels. Chris spoke enthusiastically about the outstanding instructors he had at Ball State, mentioning specifically Professors Dorothy Rudoni and John Cranor. While at BSU, Courtney was very active in his fraternity, homecoming and other student activities. He especially values advice from Dr. Jim Marine and Charlotte Sheppard, whose guidance provided valuable life skills. "I learned how to learn while at Ball State", said Courtney, noting that his German language study at Ball State was critical to a recent exchange program he completed in Switzerland.

"We are grateful to each of these alumni for their continued interest in Ball State and their generous support of the Ball State University Foundation," said Limbird. "We look forward to their return visits to Muncie in the future."