Alumni Updates

Jeremy Duggins (’04) and wife Erica welcomed baby number four in May.

Else (Whelpley) Bartee  (‘11)  Else attended Christopher Newport University where she earned her Bachelors of Art in Psychology and minored in Childhood Studies. Directly after college she used her degree to teach at a school for students with autism in Newport News, VA.  In 2015, Else met her husband who had been stationed at Langley Air Force Base. One year later they were engaged, and another year and one deployment later, they were married in May of 2017. They now reside in the Panhandle of Florida on the Gulf coast with their baby, Sophia Grace, whom they welcomed in August of 2020.

Else returned to school to earn her M.S. in Digital Marketing and Advertising and officially opened her photography business, Else Bartee Photography, in August of 2019.  You can find her work on her website at www.elsebarteephotography.com.

Kara (Flanagan) Paxton (‘11)  Kara graduated from VCU in 2015 with her BSN and is currently a Coronary ICU RN with a certification in critical care at VCU. She says she loves that she gets to be hands-on at her job; and that she has tried her hardest to help and encourage everyone she cares for. During her free time she volunteers at a free clinic in Orange County, VA. She recently started Nurse Practitioner school where she is concentrating in Adult Gerontology Acute Care and will graduate in 2023.

Hannah Woods (‘12)  Hannah graduated from Vanderbilt University with a dual Advanced Practice Degree, Family Nurse Practitioner and Emergency Nurse Practitioner.

Sophie Nichlos (‘15)  Sophie and her boyfriend, Isaac got engaged in October. The two met while in school at Liberty University.  Sophie earned her MBA from Liberty and now works at CarMax Corporate Headquarters and Isaac has a government job. The two married on August 7th.

Rachel Zello Riley (’16)  and husband, Jordan are now first-time parents. The two welcomed their first child, James Patrick Leon Riley, on April 27th, 2021.

Lauren Hopkins (’17) and Connor Ross (’16)  Lauren and Connor were engaged in September and have a September 2021 wedding planned. Connor works as a technical analyst at Mary Washington Hospital and Lauren just earned her real estate lisense while working as a business office manager.business office manager while working on her real estate license.

Nina Thompson (’18) and Allen Randall (’16)   Nina and Allen were engaged on November 3rd. Allen is currently in the process of taking over the family business and Nina is working towards her engineering degree. A wedding date is yet to be determined.

Daniel and Elizabeth Carpenter-Hughes (‘06)  Daniel and Elizabeth have stayed local to Fredericksburg, and will have their two children attending FCS in the fall! Daniel has immersed himself in becoming the best realtor to his clients, and Elizabeth works as an attorney with Williams Stone Carpenter Buczek PC.

Drew Kittredge (‘96)  Drew and his wife Sarah (Ritchie) Kittredge are co-owners of photography business, Kitt Creative. Kitt Creative specializes in family photos, professional headshots and a Santa’s Workshop experience offered each year at their studio at 810 Caroline Street. They have been married for 17 years  and have 5 children, ages 2-14. 

Carolyn (Woehrle) Dahlberg (‘99)  Carolyn graduated at Lee University (‘03); Thomas Cooley Law School Graduate (‘08) and is currently  Managing Partner of Woehrle Dahlberg Yao in Richmond, Virginia.  She and her husband Mark have been married for 14 years and their three children, Catherine, Adalyn and Evelyn, attend FCS lower school!

Claire (Lister) Ellinger (‘96)  Claire graduated with an art degree from Mary Washington College in 2000.  After marrying Kenny Ellinger and having her sons, she began her current business, Art Time for Kids, in 2014. The classes began very small and were held in her home. The business grew with her boys, and as they began preschool and then elementary school, Art Time for Kids matured as a business as well.  Art Time for Kids now resides at 101 Hanover Street. They offer classes for children ages 2 through middle school, and they are steadily growing their programs. Currently, there are over 70 children enrolled in different classes throughout the week. Claire proudly uses Art History and process-based art projects to give students a wonderful art experience every class.

Jenny Carter Nolan (‘03)  After graduating from FCS, Jenny went to college at Mercer University in Macon, Georgia and graduated in 2007. She was selected as a Teach For America Teacher in inner city Atlanta, where she taught first grade for two years. From there, she went to law school at Mercer and passed the Georgia Bar. She and her husband married during his last year of medical school in 2011 and then moved to Richmond to finish Kyle’s six years of residency and fellowship. One of the opportunities she is most proud of is creating and teaching a Business Law and Intro to Law course at VCU. She is currently home with her two boys, ages 2 and 5 but will plan to practice law again in the coming years.