Once again the annual OBCL retreat at Lake Tahoe came and
went far too quickly. But it was so much
fun while it lasted. It was a solid weekend of great fellowship with grads and
their families from all over the US. There were opportunities to meeting the
school board and discuss the school’s future.
There were fabulous times of eating, enjoying group games, and playing
with the kiddos. And of course attendees also had fun outdoors, hiking, biking,
and driving around to see the sights.
This year’s Tahoe event was a not-to-be-missed opportunity. Check out the fun below! And read up on this year's doings :-)
Special thanks to Bethany Harlin, Laura Barth and Jessica Mulder for the great collection of pictures.
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| So excited to be here!!! |
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| Fellowshipping with Alumni from all across the country |
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| Next Generation OBCLer? |
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| Kershner photo opt with the Dean |
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| The Man, The Myth, The Legend |
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| Taking the Oath. |
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| Sharing School Vision |
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| Some Cool people sharing Hot pizza |
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| Photo shoot opportunities |
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| Chill'in |
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| Reuniting with classmates |
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| Solving all the world's problems :-) |
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| Lovely People |
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| Empire building. |
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| SCORE! |
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| The Gang's All Here - well almost |
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| Lake Tahoe |
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| Biking between rain bursts |
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| Flume Trail Hikers |
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| Award Winner |
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| Friends for Life |
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| Entertainment |
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| Honing Skills |
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| Evening chats |
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| Coffee, coffee, coffee = Happy! |
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| The long awaited Settlers of Catan Championship |
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| Drinking in all the beauty |
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| Fun People |
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| Chef Extraordinaire |
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| Race to Emerald Bay |
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| So much fun, can't stand still! |
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| Deep Discussions |
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| Morning Greetings |
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| Friends!!! |
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| Meeting the Dean |
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| Stephen Fairley with Satisfied Customer |
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| Laughing together |
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| Glad to be here man! |
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| Good times, good times |
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| Taking a breaking from work! |
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| Iridescent Glow |
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Lead the charge
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The 10th
Annual OBCL Alumni Meeting and Retreat was a great success, with many new
records and precedents set that will impact Tahoe gatherings in special ways for
years to come. It was fantastic to have almost 100 individuals in attendance,
including JD and paralegal alumni, their families, current students, alumni
board members, and school board members.
Whenever we can see friends and classmates, it is great event; and to
have a whole weekend to catch up on life and work with fellow alumni, and to spend
time discussing how to increase the impact of OBCL is even greater. This year we
had fantastic venues for meetings and housing, all of them huge and impressive.
Perhaps even more impressive and definitely more scrumptious were the amazing
meals all weekend long. What is fellowship without food, right?!
We want to
extend a huge thank you to all the dedicated Alumni Association directors and
volunteers who made the weekend run so smoothly. To all of you who attended, we
are so glad you came. As for the rest of
you, we look forward to you joining us next year.
ANNUAL MEETING.
The annual meeting set a new
record this year for the swiftest and most efficient handling of reports,
elections, and new business. The new
Alumni Association board for the 2014-2015 year is as follows:
President: Jack Stuart
Immediate Past President: Mark Bigger
Vice President: Jonathon Hauenschild
Secretary: Rachael Denhollander
Treasurer: James Pennington
College Liaison: Gabriel Waddell
Student Affairs: Amy Kershner
Paralegal Liaison: Emily Adams
Alumni Relations: Paul Harman
Promotion & Media: Emily Milnes
National Assn. & Accreditation: Jamie Long
Student Liaison:
Jacob Pennington
THE RODGER J. MAGNUSON MEMORIAL ADVOCACY
AWARD.
In memory of Dean Magnuson,
the Alumni Association has instituted an annual award for the winner of the
Appellate Advocacy moot court to honor the Dean’s heart for the school and
desire to train advocates of truth and justice.
Our first winner of the award, David Covey (Class of 11B), received a
scholarship to attend Tahoe and a beautiful crystal plaque to commemorate his
skill in persuasive communication.
SWEARING IN CEREMONY.
Another first for Tahoe was a
swearing in ceremony held for one of our newest JD graduates, Katie Kershner. It
was moving to watch a graduate from years past administer the oath to a new
grad. We hope to see more graduates hold their ceremonies at future Alumni
meetings.
A WORD FROM THE ALUMNI PRESIDENT.
Incoming Alumni president,
Jack Stuart, held a brain storming session with attendees to elicit ideas for
incentives to encourage alumni to get involved and participate in projects. Ideas
ranging from bumper stickers to rides in a jet with Jack were suggested J. What type of awards, prizes, recognition,
or other incentive would motivate you to give or help with projects? Contact Jack Stuart with your ideas.
OBCL BOARD UPDATE AND BRAINSTORMING SESSION.
For the first time in the
history of Alumni retreats, the entire school board was present. This year’s
board is comprised of: Dean Douglas McElvy, Robert Barth, Peter Fear, Mark
Bigger, and Paul Harman. It was wonderful
having them in attendance to share their passion, ideas, and goals for the
future of the school. They shared many of their plans including bringing on a
part time staff member to spearhead and oversee creating a new website and
other marketing tactics. The board also
held a brain storming session with attendees to gather suggestions for improving
the school and attracting more students that fit the mission of OBCL. What are
some of your suggestions? Pass them on to the board.
THE RAINMAKER INSTITUTE WORKSHOP.
Stephen Fairley presented a
workshop on growing your firm through more effective ways of converting
potential client leads into actual clients. This energetic and humorous
presentation gave all of us much food for thought toward changing and improving
our practices.
SUNDAY WORSHIP.
We wrapped up the weekend’s
official events with a very special time of singing and sharing testimonies
together Sunday morning. “Behold how good and how pleasant it is when brothers
dwell together in unity” and even more beautiful when they join together to
praise the Lord.
