Special to the Times

The Environmental Health and Water Quality Technology program celebrated their 50th anniversary on the evening of March 20 at the Mequon campus.  The program began in 1968 at the Milwaukee campus. The program relocated to Mequon when it opened in the mid 1970s.

Dr. Wilma Bonaparte, campus vice president, and Dr. Michael Sitte, program associate dean, officially welcomed everyone to the evening’s festivities. Kathy Bates and Jerry Ortiz, the two faculty in the program, acted as co-hosts for the remainder of the evening.

There were more than 70 graduates and current students who attended. Remarkably, alumni in attendance included graduates from each of the five decades dating back to the ‘70s through the present. The highlights of the evening occurred when graduates, some of whom are retirees, shared their journeys and the twists and turns occurring along the way, as well as their impressive accomplishments throughout their careers in the environmental health field.

Many commented on how entering the program literally changed their lives. To hear such remarks were both a very flattering and humbling experience. For Bates and Ortiz, it was a case of not only bursting with pride but enormous gratitude for having had the privilege of being a part of their lives.