Message From the President

Motor City Badgers Alumni Association Newsletter Spring 2023

                            Message From the President
Welcome Motor City Badger Alumni to our 2023 Spring Newsletter. Our chapter promotes the Wisconsin
Idea in SE Michigan. In order to do that we are requesting more active engagement from our alumni that
call SE Michigan their home. That means more than looking at our social media sites to see what other
alumni are doing. It means to be actively involved with your fellow alumni and use your excellent
Wisconsin education to make a difference in your community. Attending a Community Service event to
help those that are less fortunate than you. Engage in a Founders Day celebration and listen to
interesting topics and reinforce your love of our university. Young alums can get together to laugh and
participate in fun activities. Help SE Michigan high school seniors the opportunity to attend UW with your
donations through our scholarship program. Our goal is to plan activities that bring our alumni together to
enjoy our shared love of the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Keep an eye out for our chapter events
like our annual Golf Outing, Student Sendoff, Community Service, Fill the Hill Giving Days, Young Alumni
Events and Game Watches later in 2023. You can read more about our past and upcoming events below.
On Wisconsin.

                             Day of the Badger - Matched
                               Scholarship Fundraiser
Day of the Badger Giving Days start on March 28th and March 29th and will be matched up to $3K. This is
where you can help the Motor City Badger Chapter stay strong. Our chapter annually provides
scholarships to local high school seniors so they can attend UW–Madison. In 2022 we donated $8K for
this worthy cause. We need your generous help to continue our scholarship program. Please help two
local southeast Michigan high school seniors attend the University of Wisconsin–Madison. For questions
Day of the Badger, please contact our scholarship chair Anita Bersie-Chabalowski ’00 at
abbersie@uwalumni.com. Please read what the Motor City Badger Scholarship meant to one of our
recipients below.

                     Follow Our Scholar – Elspeth Hayden
Elspeth Hayden is originally from Ann Arbor, MI. She graduated from Ann Arbor Huron High School and
attended UW-Madison from Fall 2010-Spring 2014. She graduated with a Bachelor of Music in Flute
Performance and a minor in Environmental Studies. Elspeth currently resides in Bloomington, IN,

Favorite/most meaningful experience at UW: Easy access to delicious dairy, like Babcock ice cream! :)
More seriously, the friends I made. I'm still in regular touch with my (randomly assigned) freshman year
roommate, as well as lovely folks from my small department's graduating class. Most of them are from
Wisconsin and/or still live there, so the likelihood of having crossed paths with them had I not attended
UW is slim to none.

How did I spend my time outside the classroom at UW: I loved my part-time jobs as a student worker
in the Mills Music Library and with local nonprofit Bach Dancing & Dynamite Society. I also enjoyed
regular trips to the Madison Public Library, and the beautiful views living near Lake Monona!

How my time at UW has affected my life after graduation: I went straight from UW to a Master of
Music in Flute Performance at the prestigious Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University. I completed
that degree successfully in 2016 (thanks in great part to the stellar preparation I received from the UW

music school and its wonderful faculty), but realized that wasn't the career I wanted to pursue. After
several further years of exploration, I have come full circle and returned to using my environmental
studies minor from the renowned Nelson Institute at UW to run the Integrated Program in the
Environment and related academic programs here at Indiana University.
My love for the city of Madison continues as well. I completed my first Ironman triathlon there in 2021, and
returned to the city in the summer 2022 as the final stop on my 30th birthday tour of the Great Lakes
region!

I am very grateful for the Motor City Badgers scholarship that supported me through my
undergrad and enabled my personal and professional development. On, Wisconsin!

                   Badgers On Board – Anita Chabalowski

Anita Bersie-Chabalowski is the current Motor City Badgers Chapter Scholarship Chairman. Anita
received her Bachelor of Science Degree in Engineering Mechanics from UW-Madison in 2000. While at
Madison, Anita was active in the Hoofer Sailing Club as a sailing instructor and member of the Wisconsin
Sailing Team. A job offer from Ford Motor Company brought Anita to the Southeast Michigan area after
graduating from UW. She also holds a Master of Science Degree in Product Development from the
University of Detroit-Mercy, received in 2007.
Much of Anita’s career at Ford has been in Engine Design, having recently transitioned to Motion
Technology Planning. Having grown up in Minnesota, the SE Michigan area was all new. Finding fellow
Badgers at Ford and through the Motor City Badgers Chapter really made the transition to Michigan an
easy one. Anita participated in game viewings, Badger Huddles and Founder’s Day events before
officially joining the
MCB board in January of 2013 as the Chapter Secretary. More recently Anita transitioned to the role of
Scholarship Chairman when long-time board member and past Chapter President Bruce Pierce stepped
back. Helping to identify and give out scholarships to local SE Michigan students seeking to attend UW
Madison from out-of-state is quite rewarding. The award candidates and past recipients are truly an
impressive and deserving bunch of students.

Anita and her husband Alec Chabalowski, a fellow Badger (BS History & Molecular Biology ’99, JD ’01),
live on the Detroit River in Grosse Ile Michigan. They continue to stay active in the sailing community on
Lake Erie through multiple organizations and racing their sailboat “Family Truckster” with their two

children Ryan (12) and Holly (9).

                                       Founders’ Day
Come join the Motor City Badgers for Founders’ Day 2023, Saturday April 29th, 2022, 4-8 PM ET at The
Ella Sharp Museum & Hurst Planetarium in Jackson, MI. This year we have a very special guest, Nicolle
Zellner (BS Physics/Astronomy from Wisconsin and PhD Physics/Astronomy from Rensselaer
Polytechnic Institute). Nicolle is a professor of Physics at Albion College, Planetary Scientist (Lunar
Samples, from the Moon), and STEM educator. Nicolle has won the prestigious Carl Sagan Medal, written
articles on the James Web images, Artemis and Michigan/Wisconsin efforts to support space exploration.
In 2022 Nicolle was elected as a Fellow to the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Nicolle also works on projects with NASA.

Come enjoy some local food and drinks while Nicolle shares some of her research. You will also have
free access to the Ella Sharp Museum and get a special tour of the Hurst Planetarium. Watch your
mailbox for details from the Wisconsin Alumni Association. Thanks to Luca Mantovano for planning this
annual event. For questions, please contact Luca at gianluca.mantovano@gmail.com. The Ella Sharp
Museum is located at 3225 4th St. Jackson, MI 49203

                    Hockey Event-Wisconsin vs Michigan
Our chapter hosted our annual Wisconsin vs Michigan Hockey Event at Yost Arena on 2/4/23. A pre-
game get together was held at Conor O’Neill’s for alumni fellowship. There were 15 alumni who attended
the game and had a great time cheering on our Badgers. Thanks to Renee Newman and Heather Smith
Straw for planning this fun event.

Basketball Event-Wisconsin vs Michigan
Our chapter hosted our annual Wisconsin vs Michigan Basketball Event at Crisler Arena on 2/26/23. A
pre-game get together was held at Conor O’Neill’s for alumni fellowship. There were fifteen alumni who
attended the game and had a great time cheering on our Badgers. Our Badgers played tough but lost to
Michigan in overtime 87-79. Thanks to Charlie Childs and Jonathan Thickens for planning this fun event.

                         Young Alumni Event-Trivia Night

Our Young Alumni Chairperson Emma Noraian has scheduled a fun Trivia Night event on March 30th from
7 to 9 pm at Blom Meadowwork located at 100 South 4th Avenue, Suite 110, Ann Arbor, MI 48104. Emma
sent out the signup details on the WAA/Motor City Badgers site. All Motor City Young Badgers get
together for our Trivia Night. Thanks to Emma Noraian for planning this fun event.