Published February 05, 2025
In the summer of 2023, the UWAA launched the Steamboat Stories project to celebrate and preserve the personal stories of our alumni and to create a shared history of UW. Over the past year, the UWAA has gathered over 8,400 accounts from UW alumni around the world. These stories are more than just memories — they reflect the shared history and enduring spirit of our community. Each account highlights the experiences and achievements that define our alumni, showcasing the powerful connections and lifelong bonds formed at UW. Through these narratives, we celebrate the vibrant legacy that makes the UW community special, and now we want to share these stories with you.
Rebecca J. Oertel, B.S. ’84, biochemistry
I’m proud of the time I spent in the biochemistry department at UW. Professor Randolph Lewis took me under his wing and gave me a technician job in his lab. He was encouraging and an excellent mentor. He understood how I thought and knew how to foster my curiosity. I learned a lot of incredible things that solidified my intent to be in science and do basic research. I also remember Professor Boyd Haley’s lab, where we invented new compounds to treat cancer. I was asked to come with the whole staff to a new cancer center in Kentucky. My time there gave me confidence in myself and my goals. My professors kept challenging me to do more and to learn more to broaden my horizons. I’m so thankful I had the opportunity to be at UW and to have had such great professors.
Spencer Ramsay Pelton, Ph.D. ’18, anthropology
I’m originally from Tennessee, but I chose to pursue my doctorate at UW because I love the Rocky Mountains, and the faculty in the anthropology department is really great. My Ph.D. required a lot of research, so I was able to serve as a research assistant in Mongolia for the Dukha Ethnoarchaeology Project. I lived with the Dukha nomadic reindeer herders in the northern end of the country for a couple of months and used a portion of the research I conducted there in my dissertation. I got my Ph.D. in archaeology, and it was hugely instrumental in helping me get the job of Wyoming state archaeologist. I had the chance to work in Wyoming for several years doing research as a graduate assistant for UW’s archaeological field school, and the job required a Ph.D. It also required all the hands-on experience I had prior to applying for it. Getting a Ph.D. at UW has opened up a lot of professional doors for me, and I’m grateful for the opportunity.”
Sara Ray, B.A. ’06, M.A. ’10, communication
I landed in Laramie upon being recruited to play volleyball at UW. I have so many wonderful memories from my time as a student-athlete, and my roommate was also a volleyball player. My experience as a Cowgirl prepared me for my career — first as an assistant coach with the volleyball team and eventually into intercollegiate athletics administration. I worked in student-athlete development and academic services at Arizona State University and then back to the University of Wyoming, Colorado State University and the University of Washington. My husband was a football player at UW and also works in intercollegiate athletics. We have been blessed with the opportunity to work together within the athletic departments of every university I worked at. We are currently at the University of Pittsburgh, where my husband is a strength and conditioning coach for the football team. I’m so grateful for all of the experiences I had at UW, and I’m especially grateful for meeting my husband there.
