SWE Greatland Update 8-4-11

Time flies! SWE FY12 is already here! There are several ways you can stay in the loop, volunteer, and hear what's going on in the community: get on our mailing list to receive our electronic updates, "Like" us on Facebook, and check out our SWE Greatland Calendar. See what's going on this year so far...SWE Greatland Update 8-4-11.

SWE Greatland President Weds!

Congratulations to SWE Greatland President, Melissa (Mormilo) Branch! Melissa married Robert Branch today at St. Anthony's Church in Anchorage, Alaska. It was a beautiful summer Alaskan day with great company and good food. Melissa looked beautiful in her wedding dress. We were all surprised with a serended traditional African song by the priest; even the bride and groom were pleasantly surprised! The food was catered by Two Fat Guys Catering and all the dishes were delicious, as were the homemade cupcakes made by a special friend in lieu of a wedding cake. Several SWE members attended the ceremony and reception and we were even delighted to see that FY12 Director of Regions, Linda Thomas, flew up from WA for the celebration!

Wrapping Party and Potluck

SWE Greatland gathered for our annual wrapping party and potluck this past Wednesday, December 8th. We sponsored 17 backpacks through the Anchorage Home Builders Association (AHBA) program. Our members had a lot of fun playing Santa's elves to give children in our community a bright Christmas. A huge thanks to Susie Gaulke for coordinating our participation again this year! Many thanks to the extra elves for bringing paper and their mad wrapping skills to lighten the load!

Tanya Hickok hard at work.

Sarah Stephens and Irene Sipin (mad skills!)

Irene Sipin, Devki White, and Jenny Cronlund

Our littlest elf - Jedrek Chmielowski

Sixth-Best Job in America? Yours

Money magazine's ranking of civil engineering as the sixth-best job in America was spotlighted in a recent CNN video. ASCE shared the good press with its members. And the best part? The engineer highlighted was a woman! Check out the article and video - http://www.asce.org/Content.aspx?id=12884902060.

Prison Tour

SWE Greatland members toured the Goose Creek Correctional Center on Thursday, September 23rd. The site is monstrous and has design details unlike any other project we've seen! Thanks to Clayton at Neeser for guiding us through (and back out of) the site safely! Here are a few highlights:

Networking cables in the Guard Tower

Back-up fuel tanks

We need more power!

One of two security fences.

Bunk beds, anyone?

Cells under construction

How Do You Define Success?

SWE's 60th year has been all about achieving (and celebrating) success on our own terms. Last week's update shared quotes about success from well-known men and women. But what does success mean to you?

Feedback Requested: Anchorage & Youth

SWE Greatland is requesting you to answer these few questions regarding the Anchorage community and it's involvement with today's youth. Please take a couple minutes to answer the following questions by leaving a comment.

What makes Anchorage great for youth?
What is needed to make our community better for youth?
What are we doing as individuals and as a group to contribute?
What can we do as individuals and as a group to contribute?

Thanks for your time and visit our SWE Greatland blog again soon!