Budgets were cut and we were forced to stay on campus for this Christmas party. Our amazing admin staff in CSBG came up with a creative party theme – frat party – complete with drinking games (sans-alcohol).

Living far away from my parents and family, Joanna was like an older sister to me. She always had just the right story or bit of sage advice…and when words didn’t allay my concerns she broke out the dump cake! 

She probably doesn’t realize how much she helped when I was pregnant with Erik. As many of us realize, “What to Expect When You’re Expecting” is unabridged and conveniently omits a number of crucial topics! Joanna held my newborn son even before any of his Grandparents. She is now blessed with grandbabies of her own…and they are among the luckiest on the planet. 

Posted by Shanye Hudson

Dennis and Joanna in the Outback of San Diego Wild Animal Park.  A particular ostrich took an interest in JC. I believe this was on Christmas Day 2001. It is hard to believe it was so long ago. So the zoo, the aquarium, the Beer Fest in Oakland and the Sacramento Jazz Festival were only some of the many great things that K and I enjoyed doing with Joanna and Dennis.  We love you guys.

Posted by Will Perakis

Joanna, Thom and Will learning to wash down barbequed rattlesnake.  Fun time in the desert, and check out the custom hats! Lowe’s Ventana Canyon Resort.  Great time on the Jeeps as well.

Will says, “Why is Rich in the black hat?”

Rich replies, “WOW,  Look at those young people!!!  And Will with hair!  Someone had to play the bad guy with the black hat.  I was the boss back then so it had to be me.”

Picture provided by Will Perakis of his wife, Joanna and Anita.

Trips to Hawaii always signaled a downturn was to come. This one started with the sales training, which I think was on a Sunday. Kevin Crofton had the stage for 3 hours convincing everyone that our linear cleaner was going to work. As he stepped off the stage, he turned to me and I quote, “Beat that Seto!” I have to admit that to date, it was by far the best presentation of clean ever, but in etch, we had our secret weapon. We worked with the video company and created a “preview” of the 2300 that was like a movie preview with scenes from Toy Story, Aliens, Fifth Element and others intermingled with video of the machine. I remember showing it and when it finished, you were all just staring at me, quiet (a rare thing during sales training), not quite sure you understood what had just happened so we had to show it again. I’ll see if I still have it and if it is possible to convert from VCR format. I’m married to a video guy so if it can be done…

Besides the heightened focus and intense arguments over the upcoming election (Bush/Gore), the most memorable part of this conference, was the amazingly inappropriate team building day. Who in their right mind would send out a bunch of highly competitive people into 15 foot waves on flimsy rafts that were hastily made out of inner tubes, some wood and some rope??? I think it was Dave Hemker and Stefano Mangano that were on the raft that completely broke apart after being hit by a monster wave.

This was also the conference where the drinking was quite high at night, even for Lam standards. Bill Spira disappeared with a bachelorette party. Some of Lam Japan were found in the elevator passed out. The venue complained about how the bar was being raided after it had been shut down. And many regional teams showed up to our “tie off” meetings in the morning in some state of disrepair.

Hoping others found more pictures from this event.

Thanks Joe Coletta for these amazing photos of an event that clearly was awhile ago. Look at the hairstyles! And you all actually have hair!

Here is a comment from Elton Peace on the event, “I remember we all congregated at one of the bigger houses every night, and sat around the big table. Joanna always seemed to be telling a great story, or generally entertaining everyone.”

Welcome to We Love You Joanna. This blog is a way for friends and loved ones to share stories, pictures and thoughts with Joanna and each other. Joanna is so loved by all of us. Every one of us has been touched by her kindness, generosity, humor and all that encompasses her. Whether it be a new quilt on the birth of a loved one, or a special baked good that meets with your exact dietary requirements that you don’t even know how she remembered, or that critical advice in a crunch, or just recognizing that you needed someone to talk to just to advance through the day. She is always there for us. Now, it is time for us to be there for her. This blog is a small step in doing that to provide Joanna entertainment when she is stuck in a procedure, a laugh when she needs it, an uplift when things are looking down…

To add to the blog, you can comment on an existing post, or go to the top of the page and click new, then add post. From there, it is easy to write your memories, stories and add your pictures. When you are done, preview and then post.

Ideally, we are adding new stories over time so that Joanna has new content to view. It’s time for everyone to start blogging :).