Calling the Aggie Clan for the 2018 Family Reunion

All Aggies are invited to the Utah State University’s Alumni Association Aggie Family Reunion Friday, Oct. 12, at 6 p.m. at the Aggie Recreation Center on the Logan campus as part of USU’s Homecoming week. Festivities for the second annual event include dinner, games, stories, music, photos, fun with Big Blue and Aggie Ice Cream. After dinner, the 2018 USU Homecoming Honorees will be honored.

The 2018 Homecoming Honorees include Alumni of the Year — Duane and Marci Shaw; Distinguished Young Alumnus — Joshua Meibos; and Grand Marshal — Steve Mothersell.

Duane and Marci Shaw, Alumni of the Year

Duane and Marci Shaw’s Aggie pride and spirit run deep. The couple have fond memories of their time spent as students at Utah State University. Attending football and basketball games are among their favorites. Duane married Marci one week after graduating from USU, after which they moved to the Salt Lake Valley to develop his career.

Duane grew up in the shadow of the “A” on Old Main Hill where all six members of his family graduated from the university. He earned his degree in finance from the College of Business (Jon M. Huntsman School of Business) in 1973. He began a career as a mortgage banker shortly after graduation and went on to found Academy Mortgage Corporation in 1988. The company, headquartered in Sandy, has grown to nearly 1,000 employees in 100 offices in 25 states.  In his spare time, he enjoys golfing, USU men’s basketball, and buying and selling racehorses. Duane’s favorite Aggie Ice Cream flavor is Lemon Custard.

Marci grew up in Cache Valley and attended USU. After marrying Duane, she devoted her life to raising her four children and eventual 17 grandchildren. She served a mission with, Duane, for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the St. George area. She also enjoys serving as a missionary for a girls’ camp during the summer months. Marci enjoys golfing, skiing, waterskiing, and traveling. Her favorite Aggie Ice Cream flavor is Burnt Almond Fudge.

Duane created positive connections with his professors while attending USU and served as a teaching assistant the last two years at USU. He remembers skiing at Beaver Mountain with his friends on Thursday afternoons accompanied by several of his professors.

Duane and Marci enjoy giving back to USU and have established several endowments at the university. The couple were heavily involved in funding the Jon M. Huntsman Hall and love to visit for an ice cream cone at the café named in their honor, “Shaw’s 88.” 

Currently serving their second mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Duane and Marci love to serve others. They juggle their time between traveling the world, helping those in need, and spending time with their grandchildren. 

Joshua Meibos, Distinguished Young Alumnus

As an Aggie, Joshua Meibos was an involved and active participant as a student-athlete, Sigma Chi fraternity member, and Student Alumni Association board member. Some of his fondest memories involved helping facilitate and carry out the tradition of True Aggie Night. Joshua was the first in his family to attend college and finished as an Aggie at Utah State University after transferring from Weber State University.

After graduating from USU in 2005 with a bachelor’s in speech communications from the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, he went on to a successful career in the retail industry. For three years, Joshua scouted, trained and developed managers for Abercrombie & Fitch. He relocated to manage in the areas of Seattle, Washington, and Honolulu, Hawaii, but it was during this time that he realized something was missing.

After deciding to enroll in a master’s program at Arizona State University, Joshua decided to focus on physical education. Today, he is challenged by his work as a physical education teacher at Crockett Elementary in east Phoenix, Arizona, where he has taught students from families with refugee status and who speak 20 different languages. An estimated seven percent of students at the school battle homelessness. For his dedication, where his main focus is to create a safe learning environment for all of his students, Joshua was named the 2018 Arizona Teacher of the Year in November 2017.

During his tenure as an elementary physical education teacher, Joshua has been instrumental in helping his school receive several accolades, including tMichelle Obama Let’s Move Active School national award in 2015, and a bronze award from the Alliance for a Healthier Generation that same year. Currently, Joshua serves as vice president of his school district’s teachers association and as a member of several groups where he advocates for his profession, and, most importantly, his students. 

Joshua is the middle of five boys and was raised in a lifestyle of farming, rodeos, and sports.

Steve Mothersell, Grand Marshal

A two-year starter as a tight end, Steve Mothersell was part of the USU football team that beat BYU in 1973. And, according to Steve, his involvement with Utah State football and his education at the university are some of the most memorable moments of his life. His senior year, Steve was selected as the KCPX Player of the Week following Utah State’s 34-0 win against the University of Utah.

Since graduating with a degree in physical education in the College of Education (Emma Eccles Jones College of Education and Human Services) in 1975, Steve has continued to support the Aggies. He has been a lifelong contributor to USU athletics, served on the National Advisory Board for Aggie athletics, and is a former board member and past chair of the USU Foundation Board. 

Steve founded SCM Homes of California in 1983 and has since grown the company into one of the leading homebuilding and development firms in the Central Valley. He continues to be active in the industry where he has served as president of the Building Industry Association of Central California and as a board member of the California Building Industry. 
Steve and his wife, Diane, are avid Aggie fans. They will do what it takes to attend home and away games to support their team, and they enjoy going to games with family and friends. In 2016, Steve was inducted into the Utah State Athletics Hall of Fame. Together, he and his wife have made significant financial contributions to Utah State Athletics over the years. The Steve C. Mothersell Sr. Athletics Hall of Honor is housed in the Jim and Carol Laub Athletics-Academics Complex on the USU Logan campus.

Steven has four children and eight grandchildren. 

To register for the Aggie Family Reunion, visit https://www.usu.edu/homecoming/registration/index.